DaughterofFire (9 page)

Kalama’s heart squeezed at his comment. She was falling for
Jack There was no avoiding it. “Jack.” She said his name so softly she almost
didn’t hear her own voice.

“I’m sorry for bringing it up but,” he stopped and sighed,
taking a pause before continuing his thought, “you’ve become kind of important
to me and I’d like to know if you feel the same and if you get to stay.”

“I don’t know, Jack. I really don’t know.” She let her words
trail off, not having an answer for him.

“The next time I make love to you, I’d like to do it in a
bed.” His laughter rang out.

“That will be a new experience for us.”

She liked how he called the little house in Volcano home, as
if it really was theirs to share. She pressed a kiss against his neck before
sliding back into her seat. Fishing around at her feet, she located her shorts
and began the strange dance of wiggling into them.

“Seriously, close your eyes for a bit, baby. I’ll wake you
when we hit Volcano.”

She contemplated their situation for a few moments, staring
into the inky darkness as if it held the answer to her questions. Losing Jack
had become as big a fear as losing her home and her mother to her aunt’s
destructive appetites.

Kalama didn’t know how she was going to accomplish it, but
she was determined to keep all three in her life for a very long time. She
simply had to figure out how to do it. The strain of the last couple days
coupled with the delicious orgasm Jack had given her finally took their toll
and she nodded off to sleep, the tiki piece and Jack by her side.

The sun was barely up by the time they pulled into Volcano.
Jack had wanted to check on HVO to make sure everything had run smoothly in his
absence, especially since discovering that Nani had been the cause of all the
trouble. He’d dropped Kalama off at the top of the crater so she could speak
with Pele. If she could get her stubborn mother out of hiding.

When Kalama reached the top of the caldera rim she noticed a
little girl, no more than ten, seated on a big rock, a small black dog resting
at her feet.

Kalama looked around her and was relieved to see the caldera
deserted save for the little girl and her pet.

“We found the last piece,” Kalama said, approaching the
little girl.

The child turned her head and spared a glance over her
shoulder at Kalama, her eyes bright in the early morning sun.

“Good, daughter. Now we can destroy it before it destroys
me,” the child said, rising to her feet. As she walked toward Kalama her body
shifted and stretched until Pele’s adult form stood before her.

Kalama pulled the piece from her pocket and handed it to her
mother.

Pele took it and turned it over in her hand a few times, as
if memorizing each curve and each carving. “Stand back.”

Kalama took a few steps back, separating them just enough
for her mother to do what must be done.

Slowing, Pele began to chant, the sound rolling over the
crisp morning air until it reached a fever pitch. Kalama added her own voice to
the mix. Pele slammed a palm against the earth, splitting a patch of ground
between them. Magma rose instantly in the spot, a glowing fissure cracking the
hardened ground. When the crack was wide enough and thick lava flowed close
enough to the surface, Pele dropped the piece of wood into the magma. Kalama
watched as the koa sizzled and caught fire. In what felt like an instant the
tiki piece was gone, swallowed by the fiery evidence of her mother’s anger.

With a mighty sweep of her hands, Pele closed the seam in
the earth between their bodies.

Kalama met her mother’s gaze. “Hawaii is safe. You’re safe.”

“For now. Your aunt and I have been locked in battle since
the beginning of time. This will not stop her, but we did manage to slow her
down,” Pele said as she stared down into her face, her expression intense. “You
love him. The scientist,” Pele said laying a hand against her cheek.

Kalama weighed her words carefully, fully aware of her
mother’s thoughts on love. The goddess wasn’t known for her fidelity or her
luck with members of the opposite sex.

“Yes, but I can’t have him. He’s mortal. I’m not,” Kalama
finally said, heaving a sigh.

“I loved a mortal once. Do not make the same mistakes I did.
Call to your uncle Kane. There is a way.”

Kalama stared out over the caldera, the smell of sulfur
tickling her nose. She had no idea how Jack truly felt about her.

Kalama held out the piece to Pele, she wanted to see the
thing destroyed in the fiery pit of lava.

“Isn’t this sweet? Mother and daughter together at last.”

Namakaokaha’i walked up the pathway toward the caldera,
dragging Jack behind her. His hands were tied in front of him. Blood trickled
down one side of his face and his clothes were torn and smeared with blood.

Kalama rushed forward only to be stopped by the strong hand
of her mother on her arm.

“What did you do to him?” Kalama hissed at her aunt. She
tugged at her mother’s grip, trying to break free but Pele was a goddess and
much more powerful.

“Give me the carving or I kill him.” Namakaokaha’i pushed
him forward and delivered a kick to the backs of his knees, sending Jack
sprawling into the dirt.

Kalama pulled harder in an effort to loose herself. She
needed to get to him, make sure he was okay. “You’re too late. We’ve already
destroyed the damn thing.”

“You fools,” the voice hissed, snakelike and liquid. Pele’s
sister oozed across the black lava, stalking toward them. “I may not be able to
destroy you, sister, but I can kill your child and her lover.”

Jack looked up at her, his jaw set hard. Kalama watched as
he shook his head with the barest of movements. Finally breaking free of her
mother’s grasp, Kalama darted past her aunt and straight to Jack. She knew the
battle that was coming and she needed him to understand everything. There was
no way to keep him safe without fighting back.

Kalama helped him to his feet and clasped her arms around
him in a fierce hug. “I love you,” she whispered against his chest.

“I love you too.” He lifted her chin with a fingertip. She
looked into his eyes and almost lost herself in the dark depths. He brushed a
kiss over her lips. “Now, go kick her ass.”

She felt herself smile and some of the tension left her
body. She was a fire guardian. She was no powerless mortal, but a being crafted
to protect the volcano. Meeting his gaze once more, she nodded and pulled
herself from his arms.

“You threatened my mother. You threatened my home. You hurt
my love. Now you will pay.”

“You will bleed, guardian and then Hawaii will fall.”
Namakaokaha’i human form began to shift. Water rose up, forming a body. Long
limbs and strong curves, silver hair and piercing eyes emerged from the
glistening fluid. Water that had pooled in the ravines and crevices of the lava
field after the heavy rain from the night before began to take shape, forming
around her body, turning her liquid.

Thrusting her hands in front of her body, Namakaokaha’i sent
waves of water crashing at Kalama and her mother. Pele threw up her hands in
defense, blocking the wall of water. The rushing liquid pummeled Kalama’s body,
shoving her back across the rock. She held her ground, her muscles screaming in
protest. Mustering all the power she had, Kalama pushed back at the wall of
water. The earth rumbled beneath the goddesses’ feet. Namakaokaha’i reared back
as the ground rolled, pitching her off kilter. Kalama seized the advantage.

“Mother, now!” Kalama shouted over the roar. Pele swept her
hands out in a powerful gesture and ripped a seam in the earth beneath her
sister’s feet. Namakaokaha’i screeched in anger and pain when the sizzling
magma poured up and touched her watery form. Steam hissed in the air. She
jumped to one side of the chasm, putting some distance between herself and the
rapid flow of lava.

“Herd her toward the lava. It will force her to take human
form,” Pele said, her voice strong.

Kalama dropped to her knees. She let loose with a mighty war
cry and smashed both fists against the ground. Anger, thick and strong, filled
her and took possession. The earth erupted, spewing lava in every direction.
Namakaokaha’i ceased her assault and dodged the ever-growing rivers. Twin
columns of fire and rock spun around Namakaokaha’i, chasing her in an eternal
battle. There was nowhere for her to run, except back to the sea.

Pele stood, stalking toward her sister. Her eyes flashed
silver, and her hair was no longer a shiny black. The tresses grew in length
and flowed down into the lava and became part of the mountain. She blazed with
crimson fire.

“I will bury you at the bottom of the sea so you can never
hurt my islands or my daughter again.” Pele’s voice roared and hissed as if
pulled from the center of the caldera. Namakaokaha’i stumbled in her haste to
the water’s edge and landed on her backside, attempting to stop her fall with a
free hand.

The power of the mountain and her mother flowed through her,
filling her with a strength she’d never experienced before.

She commanded the lava to lick at Namakaokaha’i feet. The
viscous material began to coat the exposed flesh of the sea goddess. Steam
hissed from where the lava ate at Namakaokaha’i human flesh. The goddess
screamed in agony. Kalama knew if they could trap Namakaokaha’i in human form
within the lava, they would trap the goddess herself. Drawing power from the
caldera and her mother, Kalama forced the lava faster.

The lava roared around Namakaokaha’i, covering every inch of
bronzed flesh, until only the goddess’s eyes remained visible.

“Please,” Namakaokaha’i begged.

“You will never threaten me or my child again.” Pele knelt
near the lump of charred black ground that was once her sister. “You forced me
to do this. I never wanted to fight you,” Pele whispered against the rock.

Kalama watched as Pele rose from her knees and calmly closed
the last remaining section of lava. Soothing the raging lava, Pele slowed the
flow around her. Beginning a low chant, Pele commanded the ground to shake, and
sent the form that was once Namakaokaha’i into the deep river of lava. She
watched the shape sink deeper and deeper. When the fire goddess was finally
satisfied, she slowed the river, and closed the gaping earth until only a minor
fissure remained.

Now that the danger had passed Kalama turned her attention
to Jack. He had wisely kept a distance from them as they’d battled
Namakaokaha’i.

“I’m not even going to ask what just happened. I’m just
going to accept it,” he said, coming stand next to her and wrapping an arm
around her waist.

“Jack, this is my mother Pele, the goddess of fire.”

Pele had returned to her statuesque form, her hair once
again a thick black, and her eyes back to the soulless ebony.

“Pleased to meet you,” Jack said, holding out his free hand
as a peace offering. Kalama smiled to herself when she noticed the slight
shaking in the gesture.

Pele laid a palm against his cheek. “Look after my island.
Stop believing in only science. There is so much more here in Hawaii.”

“I will,” he said with a smile.

“Take care of my daughter. She loves you, you know. I’ll
admit you aren’t so bad, for a mortal.”

Jack looked down at her and Kalama couldn’t help but smile.
He leaned down and brushed her lips with his, sending a shiver down her body.

“Thank—” Jack cut off when he realized Pele was no longer
there. “Where’d she go?”

“She does that. If you plan on having me stick around you’ll
have to get used to Pele coming and going whenever she likes,” she said,
turning into his embrace and wrapping her arms around his neck.

“What say we move you into my house?” Jack leaned down and
captured her lips in a soft kiss. “We still haven’t made love in a proper bed
yet.”

“Sounds good to me, Dr. Jack. But there is one more thing I
need to do before that can happen.”

He cocked his head to one side and looked at her with an
amused expression.

Sliding out of his arms, she took his hand and led him to
the edge of the caldera. She squeezed his fingers and took a deep breath.

“Kane, Chief of all, please answer my request. Make me
mortal so that I may spend my days with this man,” she looked over to Jack and
swallowed, “whom I love.”

Jack’s smile widened even more and his blue eyes glittered
with emotion.

“But does he love you too,
ohana keiki
?”

Kalama laughed and turned around to see her uncle Kane
standing behind them, his arms crossed over his massive chest. His thick black
hair was pulled back into a ponytail that trailed down his back. He flicked his
gaze to Jack and then back to her, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

“A mortal? And a
haole
one at that.” He shook his
head and held out his arms for a hug. She let go of Jack’s hand and slipped
into her uncle’s bone-crushing hug.

“Yes, uncle, a
haole
. But you always told me that
aloha
comes from everywhere and in every form. He is my
aloha
.”

He lifted her chin up with his finger and searched her face,
his own expression serious.

“Be sure, Kalama, if I make you mortal I cannot change you
back. You will grow old with him and you will die like every other mortal.
There will be no
Vaka Nui
for you.”

She looked over her shoulder at Jack and nodded, certain of
her choice.

“I understand.”

“Sir, I can tell you that I love her more then I thought I
was capable of loving someone.” Jack’s voice cut in. He walked toward them and
placed a hand on her shoulder, meeting Kane’s gaze.

“Yes, I think you do, boy. Very well, if my girl wishes to
be mortal then so be it. Make the offering in the morning. I will speak with Ku
and Lono. By sundown tomorrow you will be mortal.” Kane looked down into her
face and grinned. “And name your firstborn after me,
manini
.”

Kane let her go and moved to shake hands with Jack. He held
the hand a moment before he nodded and walked away.

Once they were alone, Kalama threw herself at Jack with a
laugh. He caught her and whirled her around in his arms, his own laughter
mixing with hers in the island air.

“Oh Jack…”

Jack’s demanding kiss cut off any other words she might have
said. She melted into him and warmth consumed her. Kalama knew that with this
man by her side she was finally home. In Hawaii.