Refuge (28 page)

Feeorin raised his head, and his large black
eyes stared into mine for a long moment before he bowed again and
returned to the lake. When the water reached his back, he gave a
soft ninny and sank beneath the surface. I watched the spot where
he had disappeared until the ripples stopped moving along the
surface of the water.

“Kelpies do not linger long above water. That
Feeorin stayed as long as he did is a sign of the esteem he has for
you.” Aine practically glowed. “He recognized you as an undine,
which means I was right; your Fae side is definitely stronger than
your demon side.”

I did not ask her what would have happened if
the kelpie hadn’t recognized me as Fae.

“Now it is time for you to learn to control
water.” I must have made a face because she laughed. “Do not fret;
we will start with something easy. I will show you how I make the
air move, and then you can try it with the water.”

She went to stand beneath the trees, facing
me. Then she raised a hand and moved it in a small circular motion.
On the ground, leaves and twigs began to flutter and dance, forming
a column that stretched upward toward her hand. “To do this you do
not need to release your magic like you did to summon the water
creatures. Water is your element so you simply draw on its power
and then command it to do your bidding.”

Oh, is that all?
“How do I do that?”

“Everything in nature has a life force, an
energy that flows through it, and it is the same power you have
inside you. If you look for that power outside instead of within
yourself, you will find it.”

I did as she instructed and felt around
outside my body for a power like mine. I knew what I was looking
for and what it should feel like, but either I was doing it wrong
or I could not draw on the power like she could. After a few
minutes, I looked at her in defeat. “It’s not working.”

Aine pursed her lips and thought for a moment
before her green eyes lit up. “You need more contact with the
water. Sit in the lake and try again.”

“Sit in it? This water is freaking cold!”

“It is the only way,” she said, brushing
aside my objections. “Once you do it a few times, you will need
only to use a finger, but for now more of your body must touch the
water.”

I just had to be a water elemental.
I pulled off my
hoodie and threw it on dry land – not that a dry hoodie was going
to help much when my bottom half was soaked. Grimacing, I lowered
my body until I was sitting in the cold lake with water lapping at
my stomach. “C-can an undine g-get hypothermia?” I asked through
chattering teeth.

Aine let out one of her musical laughs. “No,
and the sooner you learn to draw on the water magic, the sooner it
will warm you.”

That was all the motivation I needed. I laid
my hands on my thighs beneath the water and began feeling for magic
around me. It was hard not to reach for my own power, and to ignore
the cold seeping into my bones. I pictured glowing energy infused
with each water molecule, and then I imagined pulling all that warm
energy toward me. I concentrated on only that, and after a few
minutes, my imaginings grew so vivid that I no longer felt the
cold.

“Look, sister!”

I didn’t realize I had closed my eyes until
Aine spoke, and when I opened them, my gaze was drawn immediately
to the soft glow outlining my body beneath the surface. My first
thought was that I had accidently released my power – until I saw
what had to be thousands of golden sparkles drifting through the
water toward me like tiny underwater fireflies. Mesmerized, I
watched the particles join the ones clinging to me and the golden
aura around me grow brighter. I waved my right hand slowly through
the water and saw with delight that the magic followed it. I also
noticed that the water offered little resistance, and my hand might
as well have been moving through the air. Mimicking Aine’s actions,
I started moving my hand in a circular motion, and a dazzling
spiral of magic formed in the water. I picked up speed until I had
made a mini whirlpool, and then I lifted my hand from the water,
still moving it in a circle. My eyes widened and I sucked in a
sharp breath as a spinning column of water formed between my hand
and the surface of the lake
. I’m dreaming. I can’t really be doing this.

Clapping broke my concentration, and the tiny
waterspout collapsed with a small splash. I looked over my shoulder
at Aine, grinning so wide that my cheeks hurt. “Did I really do
that?”

“Yes.” She walked to the water’s edge where I
could see her better, and her face glowed with pride. “You are
indeed Sahine’s progeny, and she would be so proud of you.”

“That was awesome! Can I do it again?”

“You may do it as many times as you wish” –
her eyes gleamed with mischief – “if you are not too cold to
continue.”

“Nope, I’m nice and toasty.” It was true. The
water around me felt as warm as bathwater now, and I could sit in
it all day.

Aine settled down on the shore and spread her
skirts around her. “I’ll be here as long as you want to do
this.”

For the next two hours, I played with the
water, making bigger and bigger spouts and whirlpools, small waves
that broke against the shore, and even a plume of water that rose
ten feet in the air and sprinkled down on us like rain. I marveled
over each new trick, still unable to believe that I was the one
doing it. The best part was that I never tired because I was using
the water’s power instead of my own. If only my Mori powers came to
me as naturally as this.

It was with great reluctance that I finally
stood and released the power around me. My hands were wrinkled and
white from being in the water so long, and my dripping clothes
clung to me as I joined Aine on the shore. It was going to be a
cold walk home, but I didn’t care because I’d just had the most
amazing afternoon and I was happier than I had been in a long
time.

Aine came over to take my hands in hers. “You
did very well today, sister.”

“It was unbelievable,” I said, struggling to
come up with a better word to describe the experience.

“I am glad you enjoyed it. Now let’s take
care of this.” She waved a hand and my clothes were instantly
dry.

“That is a cool trick.” I sat down to pull on
my socks and boots and saw that the sun had started dipping toward
the west. “I wish I didn’t have to leave yet, but they will come
looking for me if I don’t get back soon. When will I see you
again?”

“When you have mastered your water magic, I
will come back. I do not like to stay long in this world
anymore.”

“You could visit me at home,” I said
hopefully.

She smiled and shook her head. “It is safe
for you to walk among the Mohiri because you are half demon. I am a
full Fae, and it would cause chaos if I appeared among so many Mori
demons.”

“What would happen?”

“They would be confused, afraid, and very
angry. Most Mohiri go their entire lives without meeting a Fae, and
they would not be able to handle their demons’ reaction to one. I
do not think your people would be too happy about that.”

I winced at the thought of dozens of Mohiri
warriors thrown into a Fae-induced rage. “No, definitely not.”

She hugged me. “I will see you soon, little
sister,” she said stepping back. She smiled and waved, and just
like that, she was gone.

The next time I see her, I gotta ask how she does
that.

Running feet alerted me to the hounds
approach. They were panting and happy like they had spent the
afternoon running around instead of sitting by the lake. I felt a
stab of guilt for having so much fun while they were in a dream
state, but they did not look any worse for it. To make up for some
of it, we spent another fifteen minutes at the lake before I told
them it was time to go home. It was very unlikely we’d encounter
anything this close to a Mohiri stronghold that two hellhounds
could not handle.

When we walked out of the woods just before
dusk, I spotted Nikolas and Chris standing near the main building,
facing the woods, and I knew they were watching for my return. I
was pretty sure that if I’d waited ten minutes longer before coming
back, I would have met the two of them in the woods.

I was changing for dinner an hour later when
I heard someone outside my door. When I went to see who it was, I
found an envelope that had been slipped under the door. As soon as
I picked it up, I recognized the stationary. Smiling, I unfolded
the paper inside and read the message written in his elegant
handwriting.

I would be pleased if you would join me for dinner at
seven this evening in the library. Desmund.

I stared at the note for a long moment.
Desmund was inviting me to dinner? The same Desmund who had thrown
a fit when I trespassed in his library less than two weeks ago? It
amazed me how much he had changed in such a short time. The night
we met, I thought he was the most unreasonable person ever, and now
I looked forward to spending time with him.

Music greeted me as I approached the library,
and I recognized it from the Beethoven CD Desmund had sent me.
Inside, there was no sign of him, but I found a small table set for
two near the hearth and a side table holding several covered dishes
that smelled amazing and made my stomach growl.

“Sara, I am glad you could make it. I was not
sure if you had already made plans for this evening.”

I turned to greet Desmund, and I was so
surprised by the change in his appearance that I almost forgot to
speak. He was impeccably groomed and wearing brown trousers and a
beige jacket, looking every bit the English noble. But it was not
his attire that shocked me; it was the color in his complexion and
the warm easy smile he gave me. He still looked ill but so much
improved since the last time I’d seen him. Was it possible that the
small healing a few nights ago had affected him like this?

“Well, I did have to turn down all my other
invitations, but they’ll get over it,” I said when I had found my
voice again.

His smile faltered. “Oh, I did not mean to
make you cancel your plans for me.”

“Desmund, I’m kidding. If you hadn’t invited
me to dinner, I would have come to see you tonight anyway. You owe
me a checkers rematch, remember?”

I knew I’d said exactly the right thing when
his mouth curved smugly and a gleam entered his dark eyes. “Indeed
I do. Let us enjoy the meal the kitchen prepared for us, and then
we shall have our rematch.”

He pulled out a chair for me, insisting that
I sit while he served us since he was the host. He seemed to be
enjoying himself so I obliged him even though I felt a little silly
being catered to. I started to say he shouldn’t have gone through
any trouble for me, but then I realized that he must have all his
meals brought to him since he did not venture downstairs. I guessed
that Tristan visited him sometimes, but still it had to be lonely
eating alone up here most of the time.

“Here we are.” He laid a plate of lamb chops,
rosemary potatoes, and vinaigrette salad in front of me then sat
across from me with his own meal. It was a lot fancier than the
food I normally ate, but I had a feeling it was standard fare for
Desmund.

“Wine?” He held up a bottle of red wine, and
I politely declined. “How are lessons with your new trainer?” he
asked as he cut into his lamb chops.

“Better than I expected. I used my Mori
strength to pick up a forty-pound weight with one hand this
morning. I’ve never been able to do anything like that.” Desmund
didn’t know anything about my Fae heritage, so I couldn’t tell him
about the rest of my training.

“So working with Nikolas is not as bad as you
had feared?”

“I guess not,” I admitted reluctantly. “He is
helping me, even if I do still feel like clobbering him half the
time.”

He laughed, and I was struck again by how
different he seemed, relaxed and confident. I wished I could tell
him about my incredible afternoon at the lake, but I still didn’t
know him well enough to trust him with such a secret.

“Desmund, the last time I was here, you
mentioned that you and Nikolas go way back and I got the impression
you don’t like each other. Can I ask why?”

His expression became shuttered and I thought
he was not going to answer. Then the ghost of a smile settled on
his face. “Nikolas is one of the greatest warriors of this age, but
there was a time when I held that distinction. I led hundreds of
missions across Europe, and my kill rate was unmatched by
anyone.

“I was leading a team to deal with a vampire
problem in Glasgow when we encountered another team led by this
upstart young Russian warrior, barely out of training. I told him
we had the situation under control and he could turn around and go
home, but young Nikolas did not take kindly to my words.” Desmund’s
smile turned into a smirk. “Perhaps I said something about him not
being old enough to leave his mother’s teat. Needless to say, we
did not sit down to a drink together after the job was done.”

In the short time I had known Desmund I had
already formed a picture of the arrogant and sardonic man he had
been before the Hale witch attack. I could only just imagine the
fireworks when he and Nikolas had butted heads, having had some
firsthand experience with Nikolas.

“You two never got along because of
that?”

Desmund chuckled. “Oh, that was nothing. We
had a few other clashes over the next few years that were even
better. It actually got quite boring over there when he decided to
travel to America.”

I shook my head. “Somehow I doubt it ever got
boring where you were.”

“True,” he replied with a cocky shrug. He
took a sip of wine, and we ate quietly for a minute before he said
he had heard about the excitement downstairs yesterday. After that
I had to describe the whole kark incident in detail for him.