Rising (25 page)

Sara
shook her head. “No, Mom. I met someone like me.”

“What?”
Her mother looked stunned. “Who is she? Where did she come from?”

“No
, Mom. Xanthus is a he. And he’s a Dagonian. He’s descended from Dagon and Calypso, Calypso is the daughter of Atlas and Dagon is a sea god in the Sumerian pantheon.” Wow. She couldn’t believe she’d remembered all that.

“Atlas
? Calypso? Like the Greek gods?”

Sara
nodded.

“
And you say this Xantus…”

“
…Xanthus.”

“
Yes, Xanthus. Is he, does he have a tail like you?”

“
Only when he’s in the water and then it looks like mine, except his is grey. Xanthus said females have tails just like mine. He said I’m a perfect image of a Dagonian, except for my eyes. He said they
only
ever
have brown eyes. So I ask you again, are you sure my dad had blue eyes?”

Nicole’s
brows knit together as if she wished she could confirm Sara’s identity. Instead, she nodded. “I’m sure.”

“D
oes this mean I was right all along, that I’m just a freak? I can’t be a Dagonian. So what am I?”

“
You’re not a freak. You’re my Sara, just like you’ve always been.”

Sara
sighed, wishing her mother’s words made her feel better. But she felt as if the identity that had just been revealed to her had been ripped from her hands. She wasn’t anything special. She simply resembled a Dagonian. And her father? Who knew who or what he was?

A heavy
pounding at the door made Sara jump. She didn’t know how, but she just knew. Xanthus was here. How had he found her so fast?

Sara
considered trying to make a break for it out the back door, but she realized she wouldn’t get far with no money and more importantly, no way to drive away. Being in a wheelchair was a real handicap sometimes.

“I
wonder who that could be,” her mother said.

“Just be prepared for a seven
-foot-tall, ticked-off Dagonian.”

Her
mother’s eyes widened in fear. “Should I call the police?”

“No
, he won’t hurt us. Come on, Mom. Let’s get this over with.” Sara wheeled to the front door.

Saying he was ticked was a big understatement.
When Sara opened the door, there was Xanthus towering high above her. He was livid. Still, she saw the relief in his eyes when he saw her. “Sara,” he said. “What do you think you’re doing? Gretchen told me what happened. Hades, Sara. Why you didn’t come to me?”

Xanthus
looked a mess, his eyes were shadowed, his hair tousled, and he had a wild look in his eyes. Sara had only been gone two or three hours, but Xanthus looked as if he’d had the scare of his life.

Didn’t
he know he needed to stay away from her? And how she wished the thought of that didn’t make her feel as if she were being ripped apart from the inside out. What was she going to do?

S
ara knew what she had to do for his own protection.

“It’s over.”
She began to sob. “Don’t you see? Your Dagonians know about me. There’s no getting around that. We have no future. And I don’t want you to die.” Xanthus knelt down beside her and cradled her cheek in his hand. His thumb brushed away her falling tears. He was no longer furious, but his eyes were tender and filled with relief.

“Oh
, Moro Mou, don’t cry. I’ll get this figured out. I don’t care what it takes. I won’t leave you.”

“Why is my daughter afraid,
Dagonian?” Nicole’s icy voice lashed out.

Xanthus stiffened
and he shot a glare toward Nicole. Sara really didn’t need this right now.

“Mom, it’s not his fault. He’s done everything he could to protect me.”

Xanthus turned back to her. “Sara, I think it’s time we get moving. I can’t guarantee that one of us wasn’t followed.”

“
I asked you a question, Dagonian,” Nicole shouted. Sara had to admit, her mom had courage. Xanthus looked terrifying as he glared at her.

“Why don’t you ask
your…” Xanthus glanced in Sara’s direction and sighed. “Maybe you should ask Sara’s father.”

“And how am I supposed to do that? I haven’t seen him since before she was born. Now I’m going to ask you one more time,
Dagonian. Why is Sara so afraid? Who is threatening her?”

Xanthus sighed
. “Contact between humans and Dagonians is strictly forbidden. Because Sara is part human and part Dagonian, she is considered a danger to our society. And now she’s apparently been discovered by another Dagonian and I am her only hope if she’s to survive.”

“
Why aren’t you turning her in yourself?”

Xanthus
glowered and then looked at Sara. Once again, he seemed relieved to see her. “I would never turn her in because I love her and would die before I’d let anyone else touch her.”

In a flash, Nicole’s
demeanor changed from accusing to acceptance. Yeah, her mom was nuts but Sara still loved her. Nicole rushed to an impressionist painting of a waterfall and lifted it off the wall, revealing a safe. “I’ve got about fifty thousand dollars in cash. I also have a Glock semi-automatic.” Nicole spun the combination and pulled the safe open. “I always knew that Sara could be in danger. Truthfully, I thought it was us humans that were the biggest threat. I’ve always been prepared in case I had protect her from people who would want to exploit her, which is why I went so nuts when she disappeared.” Nicole mom was talking so fast, it was difficult to catch everything she was saying.

Nicole
rushed forward, holding a black leather bag, opened it, and turned it toward them to show them stacks of bills and a big gun sitting on top. Several boxes of ammunition were tucked inside.

Xanthus looked shocked. “
I appreciate the offer, but I have more than enough weapons and money for anything we might be confronted with.”

“Sara is my daughter and my responsibility
.”

“Nicole…” Xanthus looked like he wanted to argue, but then stopped.
He grabbed Sara’s wheelchair and pushed her toward the door. “We need to leave now.” He turned toward Sara’s mom. “Nicole, you need to come with us. They’ll be after you too.”

“But why would they want
me
?” Nicole looked confused.

“You’ve been with one of us
. You’ve seen him. All of him. And that means prison or death where I come from.”

“But
he didn’t…”

“Let’s go
,” Xanthus growled. As he ripped the door open, Sara came face to face with death.

The Dagonian’s dark, menacing scowl was even more frightening than Sara had remembered. Xanthus opened the door and there the demon stood—the Dagonian from the cafe, the one trying to ruin her life. His black eyes narrowed, burning with hate as he looked straight at her.

The intruder
moved inside and shut the door. “Well, little brother. I can’t say I’m surprised to see you here with this half-human.” He spoke with a heavy accent.

L
ittle brother? The Dagonian that loathed her was Xanthus’s brother? Looking at his sneer, she didn’t think he’d welcome her to the family.

Xanthus
stepped back and growled. “What do you know of her, Gael?”

His
brother’s grin broadened. “What would you say if I told you
I’m
her father?”

Sara
gasped. Xanthus paled and said, “No.”

Gael’s
laughter bellowed. “No, I’m not, but the look on your face almost makes me wish I were.”

Xanthus
white face flushed red in anger. He stood his ground and waited.

Gael
gestured toward Sara. “I must say, this foul creature is easier to look on than your bride was. It’s a shame you have to kill her.” Sara leaned away as he moved toward her. Lifting a lock of her hair, Gael pressed it to his nose and inhaled. “She smells nice too. Strange though, her scent is not nearly as compelling as a full Dagonian. Perhaps this is how humans smell when they’re fertile. I’ve never mated with a female during her time—didn’t want to deal with the consequences.” Gael shrugged. “But this half-human won’t live long enough for us to worry about that, will she, brother?” He darted a glace toward Xanthus.

“Get away from my daughter!”
Nicole scrambled forward and pushed Gael hard in the chest. He moved back, caught off guard. His hand whipped out fast, striking Nicole across her face and sending her into the wall. At that moment, Xanthus was at Sara’s ear. “Don’t believe a word of what I say next,” he whispered.

Before Sara could
even blink, Xanthus had grabbed his brother, lifted him by his coat, and slammed him into the wall. “This is my find and my kill, Gael. You will not interfere. I have special plans for them both before they die and you’re not part of those plans.

“
But you, Gael,” Xanthus said. “What is your purpose here? You know wandering off on your own in the human world is strictly forbidden and I’ve a feeling this is not the first time. The council may turn a blind eye to your other crimes. But not this one. For this, you face death.”

The
color washed from Gael’s face. “You wouldn’t. You couldn’t want me dead. I’m your brother.”

“
That didn’t mean much to you when you ordered
my
death. And believe me when I say, I’ll kill you in a heartbeat if you give me any more reason. Nothing would give me greater pleasure.” Xanthus threw Gael to the floor as he issued the warning. Sara was shocked to see a fin peeking from under his long trench coat. Unlike Xanthus, Gael had no human legs.

“Leave now
,” Xanthus said. “Return to the sea. And if I ever see you on dry land again, I’ll kill you on sight.”

“I’ll
leave, little brother, but I warn you.” Gael turned and shot a glare at Sara. “If you don’t destroy these creatures soon, I’ll be back with my army at my side. Then we’ll see who destroys who.”

Gael rose from the floor, brushed himself
off, and strode out the door. He moved like he had legs. Xanthus was right. This couldn’t be the first time Gael had been on land. Sara jumped when the door slammed shut. For a moment, she sat gaping at the wooden door. Then, she turned to look at Xanthus. With his feet braced apart, he scowled with barely leashed anger.

S
ara searched for something to say to ease his temper. “I heard it might be difficult to get along with in-laws, but I had no idea.”

Xanthus
turned to her, startled. Then a slow smile crept across his face.

“In-laws?”
Sara’s mom staggered up to her feet.

“Oh
, Mom, don’t get up. Xanthus, help her.”

“
No, stay away from me. I heard what you said. You’re going to kill us.”

“
No, Mom, he didn’t mean it.” Sara wheeled to face her.

“Sara,
you keep out of this. You were always too trusting.” Nicole clawed through the bag, spilling money onto the floor in her haste.

Sara’s heart dropped when she realized
Nicole was looking for the gun.

“It’s not there
, Nicole.” Xanthus held the gun up and released the magazine. It dropped to the floor with a thud. “Sara’s right. I have no intention of killing either of you. If there is anyone who should have died here, it would be Gael. I have a feeling I’ll regret letting him live.”

Sara
wheeled to his side. “Xanthus, you can’t kill your own brother.”

“He’s not my brother.”

“He’s not?”

“Not anymore.”

“Enough of this,” Nicole screamed and stomped her foot. “I need to know what is going on and I need to know right now. And if I don’t like what you say, Dagonian, I’ll kill you with my bare hands. And don’t you think that I can’t.” She hurled the bag against the wall. A hundred bullets clattered and rolled across the hardwood floor.