Made to Love (20 page)

“
Not at all,” Father
said.  “I promise they won't die.  That's the most I can
do.”

“
Your word.”

He held out a hand. 
“Let's shake on it.”

I look at his extended
appendage suspiciously.  “Why?”

“
That's what civilized
persons do, to my knowledge,” he said.  “When an accord is
reached.”

“
You're blackmailing me
into walking in a glowing ring of light,” I hissed.  “That's
no accord.”

He shrugged.  “Suit
yourself.  You'll regret it if you don't.”

“
I'll take my
chances.”

He held up his hands and
stepped away.  “No more wasting time.  Go in, or the
siren dies first.”

I looked up at Octavius's
prone form – he was beautiful even in his wasted agony – and felt
my heart tear.  I didn't think I could take any more of
this.

With a gulp, I walked
in.

Chapter
Fifty-Three

To my shock, I was in my
apple orchard.

It wasn't the apple orchard
as I normally knew it, all dark and suspicious even with Octavius
present.  It was the glowing, beautiful one from my
dreams.  The one where I was surrounded by beauty and safety
and the men I loved.

It had never been as
beautiful as this.

The moon, which was only a
sliver in the real world, was full and round here, spilling her
silver light on the foliage.  The pedals that were gone from
the real world were in full flower here, and I was enveloped by
beautiful white light.

Despite everything, I
couldn't help but feel happy.  This was my home, my
love.  I was always loved here.  Nothing was harsh, or
ill done.  It was all perfect.

I saw commotion at the end
of the orchard.  I floated down, and I wasn't sure if my feet
touched the ground.

A group stood at the end of
the orchard.  They turned their heads to me, and I noticed
they were unicorns in their half-human, half-horse form.  I
didn't spy Rich, but they all looked a lot like him: golden and
beautiful.  Oddly enough, there were only men in the group,
and their muscles were gleaming in the moonlight.

I missed Octavius, but I
was so blissful I couldn't care.

Byron lay on a stone slab
behind them.  I peeked, then giggled.  I wasn't alone
here!  Of course!  And the unicorns had been nice enough
to tie him down for me so he wouldn't escape and be scared. 
They were so considerate.

His face was contorted, so
I stepped up and caressed his cheek.  “Don't be
scared.”

“
Calliope!” he said. 
“We have to get out of here, now!”

I laid my finger across his
lips.  “It's okay.  I know what I'm doing.”

It was true.  I knew
what they meant now about being Queen.  This was my kingdom,
and I was going to set it free.

And Byron was going to be
my king.  Forever.

Chapter
Fifty-Four

“
No, Calliope!  Don’t
do it!”

I turned to see Octavius
limping toward me, a dark patch in my golden garden.  But even
he was radiant here: glowing skin, glowing eyes, his hair and snug
black clothing effervescent.

He was bruised,
battered.  It almost detracted from the beauty of the orchard,
but not quite.

I ran to him, and he
half-collapsed in my arms.  “Oh, Octavius,” I sighed, gently
lowering him to the lush grass.  “Are you okay?”

He nodded, but pain
contorted his face.  “They hurt me bad, Calliope.  And
now they aim to hurt me even worse.”  Octavius reached up and
cradled my face between his hands.  “If you do this ritual the
way Doctor Muzhchyna wants, you’re going to be permanently bound to
Byron.  And Byron is the doctor’s creature!  You will
give total control of the Radiant Lands of Myth and Faerie to
Doctor Muzhchyna and be imprisoned with Byron forever—not to
mention you’ll get pregnant.”

I cast my gaze up at
Byron.  I wanted him so badly.  I felt drawn to him, like
the way two magnets of opposite polarity were drawn to each
other.

“
I have to become Queen,
Octavius,” I said.  “It’s time for me to do it.”

His hands tightened on my
face.  “Make me your King.  We’ll defeat Doctor Muzhchyna
together.”

“
No,” Byron said, sobbing
raggedly.  “He’ll kill me if I prove useless.  He said so
himself!

From the wide array of
unicorns, Rich stepped forward.  “There is an alternative,
Calliope.”

“
Rich!” I gasped.  I
set Octavius down and ran into his arms, smoothing my hands over
his softly-furred shoulders and twining my fingers through his
mane.  “What do you mean, an alternative?”

“
There is a variation on
the ritual,” he said.  “You could have multiple
Kings.”

Octavius struggled to sit
up.  “You don’t mean—the Joining of the Soul’s
Fire!”

Rich nodded. 
“Yes.  The Joining of the Soul’s Fire.”

Byron gasped.  “It
just might work!”

I stared between them all,
gaping.  “What do you mean?  What is the Joining of the
Soul’s Fire?”

“
The ritual involves a
mating,” Rich explained.  “If we all mate simultaneously –
with the help of my unicorn army focusing on binding us – then we
three could each be your King, with all the responsibilities and
power shared!”

“
We could keep Doctor
Muzhchyna from controlling Byron,” Octavius said. 
“Yes!”

“
But what does that mean
for me?” I asked.  “It’s not fair… you all shouldn’t have to
share me for the rest of our lives.  Marriage is supposed to
be between one man and one woman.”

“
I love you, Calliope,”
said Rich, taking my shoulders in his hands to give me a serious
look.  “But I’m not in love you.  I will gladly share you
and give up my ability to marry again in the future if it means
helping you save the Radiant Lands.”

“
I love you,” Byron
said.  “So much I will share you if I must.”

“
Me too,” Octavius
agreed.  He clambered to his feet and went to the stone slab
upon which Byron rested.  Rich led me over to them.

Suddenly very shy, I looked
down at my feet.  “So what do we do for this ritual?”  I
was so excited, but also so scared.  It was like I was
suddenly getting to marry my three favorite men in the entire
world.  I was a blushing bride.  Goodness.

“
It’s very easy,” Rich
reassured me.

Octavius kissed me
gently.  “Relax and let us do the work.”

And I did, while the
unicorn army watched, and knew bliss.

Chapter
Fifty-Five

The Joining of the Soul's
Fire wasn't just a name; it was an accurate description.  My
body felt one thing, but my soul was joined in three sections to
three separate other souls.  It was the most intense sensation
I'd ever experienced, and I knew how Byron was overwhelmed during
his animation.

But at the same time, the
peace I sampled in my dream was only one fraction of the peace I
now felt, with my three men surrounding me in the grass.  We
were tangled together like we could never be torn apart, and I
couldn't be happier.

I made myself stand and
look at all of them.  My kings.  But I was the
queen.  “It's time,” I said.

They rose as one and nodded
in agreement.

Without speaking, Rich ran
to rejoin the herd behind us.  Byron went in front of the
portal, and Octavius wrapped his arms around me.

“
Ready?” he
said.

I breathed in his sweet
scent.  “Always."

We took to the air, and
unlike the terrifying moments with the bird ladies in the sky, I
felt exhilarated. 

This is how it was meant to
be, how it had to be.   Me and my boys defending the
places and things we loved, with our lives, if necessary.  Not
that I could even imagine death, not when I had just gotten
everything I wanted.

Doctor Muzhchyna couldn't
stop us now.

Chapter
Fifty-Six

We brought the creatures of
the world across with us.  I bet it was pretty epic to see –
all kinds of running and flying being streaming out of the portal
in droves – but I was at the top and the front, so I saw none of
it.

Nothing but
Father.

Byron stopped at a certain
point, and Octavius landed us besides them.  When Rich
approached, they pushed me back and formed a protective barrier
around me.  I tried to push around them, but they batted me
away.

“
I need to help!” I
hissed.

They ignored me.

“
Dr. Muzhchyna!” Octavius
called.  “You cannot have the Radiant Lands of Myth and
Faerie!  They belong to us!”

“
Do they now?” The doctor
sounded amused.  “I don't believe you.”

“
Even with all of this
around you?” Rich asked incredulously.  “With all the might of
the land?”

“
I don't see the Queen, so
no.”

Reluctantly, Byron moved
aside and revealed me.  Octavius remained resolutely where he
was.

Dr. Muzhchyna bowed. 
“Your Majesty.”

“
Cut the crap,” I
said.  “I want you away from here.  Now.”

“
But I'm your humble
servant, thanks to Byron.”  He gestured toward Byron as he
spoke.  “And the kingdom is mine.”

“
Think again,” Octavius
growled.

Dr. Muzchyna gave Octavius
a bland look.  “If you don't remain quiet while the adults
talk, I will silence you.”

“
I dare you to
try.”

“
Very well.”

The doctor gestured one of
his hawk girls forward, and she swooped in the air and darted for
Octavius's heart.  Before I could even cry out in alarm, he
caught her throat.  She gurgled and thrashed in his grip, and
he tossed her away.  She cried piteously on the ground, but
Dr. Muzchyna ignored her.

“
Look who has the big boy
pants now,” Dr. Muzchyna said.  “Maybe Byron has outlived his
usefulness after all.”

He flipped open his jacket
and pulled out a button.  I cried out and tried to push out of
the way, but Rich stopped me with an arm.

“
It's okay,” he whispered.
 “Byron's safe.”

And so he was.  The
doctor laid a finger on the button and laid pressure upon it. 
Nothing happened.

Byron cocked his
head.  “Was that supposed to kill me, Father?”

“
No,” the doctor
said.  It might have been my imagination, but he looked
slightly less cocky than before.  “But I have other means up
my sleeve.”

“
I don't believe you,”
Rich said.

“
Neither do I,” Octavius
agreed.  “Give up now, and your end will be
painless.”

“
We can't
kill
him,” I whispered.

Octavius looked at
me.  “Why not?”

“
Because...well...”

“
Because he's
human?”

I sighed.  “Because
I'm human.”

“
Not really.  You are
the Queen of us all, and justice must be dealt out.  Villains
cannot be tolerated.”

“
He's right,” Byron
added.  “He could have something we don't even know
about.”

“
If that's true...he's the
only one who could tell us about it, too.”

All three of the men looked
a little thoughtful at that.  They nodded and turned back to
the doctor.

“
Surrender,” Rich said,
“and we'll make sure you are taken care of.”

“
You'll excuse me if that
offer doesn't comfort me,” Dr . Muzhchyna said.  “Besides, you
don't have the upper hand.”

“
We don't?”

Dr. Muzhchyna raised his
hands into the air, and the wind picked up.  We looked around,
panicked.

He was right.  We
hadn't won yet.

Chapter
Fifty-Seven

“
I have just armed the
weapon that will self-destruct this island, and the only safe
portal to the Radiant Lands of Myth and Faerie, if you all do not
do as I demand!” Dr. Muzhchyna shouted over the great wind. 
“I have less than ten minutes to disarm the bomb before it
explodes, and all of you creatures are homeless!”

“
No!” I cried. 
“Please—please don’t!”

“
Calliope, control
yourself!” Octavius demanded.

Byron stepped
forward.  “You would destroy me, Father?”

“
Yes,” Dr Muzhchyna
said.  “As a matter of fact, that is the plan.”

I began to shake with
fright.  “No!”  The thought of losing Byron – one of my
new kings – was more than I could bear.  The thought of having
those beautiful lands beyond the portal destroyed, too, was just as
bad.

Octavius shook me, but I
just kept crying.  It was too awful.  I couldn’t control
myself.