Seaborne (26 page)

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Authors: Katherine Irons

Tags: #Romance, #Paranormal, #Fantasy, #Chick-Lit, #Mythology

BOOK: Seaborne
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Korinna hugged Alex and then Morgan. “Be careful, both of you. I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you.”
Morgan nodded. “We’ll be all right. It’s Danu and Lucas I’m worried about.”
“They wouldn’t hurt them,” Morwena said. “How could they? They’re just children.”
But Morgan knew by the terror in his sister’s eyes that she didn’t really believe that. She was attempting to ease her mother’s mind. “So long as you and Alex and Orion and Marcos are alive,” she insisted, “there would be no reason to harm the children.”
If Orion was alive
, Morgan mused. Had he been slain on the way to Atlantis while he was still unconscious and helpless? A woman who would poison her own husband would stop at nothing to rid herself of her rivals. And if anything had happened to Alex’s twin …
Morgan cast a glance at Alexandros and cold steel replaced the uneasy feeling beneath his heart. If Orion had been murdered, there would be no hiding place for Halimeda, her son, or their supporters. Alex would hunt them down, one by one, and destroy them.
Morgan was struck by the sense of loss he felt when he thought of Poseidon’s death. Larger than life, he had been a man of excess in all things. His father had been a hard man, a courageous but sometimes ruthless ruler. He’d shown small affection toward his grown sons in the centuries past, yet Morgan had to admit that he loved his father and had desperately sought his approval. Poseidon was … or rather, Poseidon had been more than a man. He had been a legend, and if he was truly gone, there would be none to match him in the years to come.
It had taken longer to find a place of safety for his mother, Marcos, and Morwena, than he’d expected. The waters off Greece were dangerous, and without their loyal dolphins or palace guard, the women and his injured half-brother might easily become victims of Melqart’s creatures or other predators. He’d had to take them to an underwater cave near the ancient land of the Spartans.
The waters here were zealously guarded by warrior naiads, and the magical humanoids would give Queen Korinna and her children sanctuary for a few days. After that … Morgan couldn’t think past what had to be done. As he had pushed thoughts of Claire to the far corner of his mind, so he must do with thoughts of the political struggle to come. Saving Atlantis from Caddoc and Halimeda had to wait until the old palace was secure and his family safe.
The journey back was uneventful, without encountering anything more than a cruise ship of human tourists plowing through the water without heed to the watery world below the surface. Alex and Morgan had sought the relatively shallow floor of the ocean and stared up as the mammoth shadow passed by overhead.
The palace wasn’t far, and they had decided that the easiest undetected entry might be made the way they had escaped, but as they neared the site, Alexander stopped swimming and got a strange expression on his face.
“What is it?” Morgan demanded, sliding his sword free.
“No.” Alex made a chopping motion with his hand. “It’s Orion. He’s here. And he’s recovered.” His brother grinned. “All’s well, Morgan.” He set off swimming and Morgan followed, still wary. He knew Alex had good instincts, but his intuition wasn’t always perfect.
In minutes, joy replaced his apprehension. Orion appeared with Lucas at his side and Danu in his arms. “If you’ve come to win a victory for our side, you’re late,” Orion said, laughing and slapping his brothers on the back. “This little one has already done it.”
“Daddy!” Danu threw out her arms and leaped through the water. Morgan caught her and held her tight.
“Are you all right?”
She giggled. “ ’Course, I am. I helped Echo save the dolphins, and the dolphins saved the good soldiers and—”
“The dolphins broke Damasko and the guards out of the dungeon,” Lucas supplied. “There was a big fight.”
“And we won. Actually, I did,” Orion said.
“Don’t listen to him,” Lucas said excitedly. “It was all over when he got there. Our dolphins killed three of them and the others surrendered to Damasko’s men. And they weren’t even armed yet.”
Danu clung to Morgan. “Where were you? A bad man tried to stick me with his trident and he hurt Echo, but she’s better, and I missed you.”
“I brought fifty men with me,” Orion said, “but I could have come alone. Other than the shades. We ran into a pack of them.”
“And?” Alex arched a golden eyebrow.
Orion shrugged. “Let’s say they won’t be a problem anymore.” He grew serious. “Mother? Is she—”
“Safe with the naiads. At the Spartan caves. You can swing by and pick her up. Morwena’s with her. Marcos was hurt in the fighting, but give him a few days and he’ll recover.”
“We were worried about you,” Alex said to Orion. “How did you escape Halimeda’s crew? After Poseidon was poisoned—”
“Not quite,” Orion answered. “I’m well enough. I woke up in the temple with Lady Athena sprinkling flower petals over me. For a minute, I was afraid I was dead. I’ve a hangover you wouldn’t believe, but otherwise, I’m as good as Father.”
“The king?” Morgan shook his head. “He’s not dead?”
Orion laughed. “No thanks to Halimeda. She tried to poison him, but you know how suspicious he can be. He switched the soup bowls on her and, apparently, she ate from the wrong bowl. As you can imagine, he’s not too happy with her.”
Alex frowned. “She survived?”
“She won’t for long. It’s a slow poison, painful but effective. You know Poseidon. He’ll show her no mercy.”
“Why should he?” Alex said. “She doesn’t deserve it.”
“So there’s no uprising? Poseidon is in control?” Morgan asked. He kissed Danu and passed her back to Orion. “You’re telling me that our father is alive and in good health?”
Echo crowded close and nudged Orion. He placed Danu on the dolphin’s back, and Echo clicked contentedly. “Perfect health,” Orion replied.
“Caddoc?”
“He and his cronies got away. So watch your back. There’s a death warrant on his head, so he has nothing to lose.”
“Then why did Halimeda’s guards try to arrest us? If the plot had already failed. They insisted Poseidon was dead and Caddoc—”
“Poor timing, I guess,” Orion answered. “They probably thought he was. Father’s not so easy to kill.”
“Neither is Caddoc, apparently,” Alex muttered.
“So now what?” Morgan asked.
Orion grinned. “We finish up here, retrieve Mother, Morwena, and Marcos, and take this little heroine back to Atlantis. You know how Poseidon loves a rousing tale. Once he hears how Danu saved the palace, you’ll be his favored son and heir again.”
“Other than our pending sentence of eternity in the coral prison?” Morgan said.
Orion nodded. “Small squid. You got us into this, Brother. I’m counting on your good judgment to get us out.”
“What are you waiting for?” Alex asked, turning to Morgan and giving him a shove. “I hate suspense. Go get your woman.”
CHAPTER 26
“M
iss Claire, please.” The housekeeper tugged at Claire’s arm and raised her voice above the salt wind. They were on the beach below Seaborne, and Mrs. Godwin had come down the walkway to coax her back to the house.
“You remember,” she said loudly. “Tomorrow starts my vacation. There’s a shower for my niece tomorrow at the parish church in Stowe, and I promised my sister that I’d help her set up. Nathaniel’s taking me, and we’d like to get started this afternoon, before the roads get too bad, if you don’t mind.”
“Absolutely. It’s a long drive.” Claire settled the binoculars around her neck. She’d been watching a sailboat in the distance, half hoping that it might be Morgan. Wherever he was and whoever he was, she suspected he didn’t need a sailboat to reach her.
The wind caught Mrs. Godwin’s headscarf and ripped it away. It sailed up and then tangled in the wire mesh that lined the sidewalk. Grumbling, the housekeeper hurried to seize the scarf, put it back on her head, and double knotted it under her chin.
Claire covered her mouth to hide her amusement.
“No way I’m going off and leave you here on this beach,” Mrs. Godwin said as she began to push the wheelchair back toward the pavilion. “It’s bad enough leaving you alone for a week. I wouldn’t go today if Jackie hadn’t promised she could come out, fix your supper, and spend the night.”
“Don’t be silly,” Claire replied. “I don’t need Jackie. She has her husband and children to cook for. I’m capable of being alone in my own house for a few hours. And, the agency is sending Jane tomorrow morning. She’ll be here all week.”
“Jane’s responsible enough, I suppose, but a little young for my taste. You know I always liked Nurse Wrangle. She was—”
“Creepy. A Nazi. I won’t have her back. Ever.”
Mrs. Godwin huffed and puffed as she pushed the chair against the wind. “You really need to consider an electric chair.”
“I like this one. It keeps me fit.” She didn’t need Mrs. Godwin’s help to get up the incline to the pavilion, but it was easier to accept it than to argue.
“The weatherman says that we might get hit bad by this nor’easter. I’d feel better if I was here. Maybe I should just postpone—”
“You go and enjoy yourself. I’m not helpless.”
“I suppose. Now, Jackie won’t have to actually cook tonight. I’ve left chowder, salad, and blueberry buckle.”
Claire sighed. “I doubt if we’ll starve. The freezers are full.”
“And if the power fails, all Jackie has to do is throw the switch in the utility room, the one with the red button.”
“Jackie’s familiar with it. And so am I. I’ve done it myself, more than once.”
“In the dark, it’s not so easy. I’ve left written instructions on the kitchen counter.”
She allowed Mrs. Godwin to push her chair toward the elevator that led to the top of the bluff. Sand blasted their exposed arms, legs, and faces, and threatened their eyes as the elevator began the slow rise to the top. The bluff had sheltered her somewhat and she hadn’t realized how quickly the weather had changed for the worse. Mrs. Godwin was right; she should have come up from the beach earlier.
Back at the house, Claire urged Mrs. Godwin to leave at once, and assured her that she’d be fine. As soon as she got to her room, she located Jackie’s number, called her, and told her that she wasn’t needed this afternoon.
“You certain about that?” Jackie asked. “I don’t mind. I told my kids that it would be hot dogs and beans tonight, and it won’t hurt their daddy to watch over them.”
“I’m certain. Mrs. Godwin left enough to feed an army. The weather’s turning nasty. You don’t need to make the drive out here to heat chowder in the microwave and serve me a dish of dessert. I’ll be fine, and Jane will be here first thing in the morning.”
“If you say so. I can tell you. I don’t care much for driving the beach road in bad weather.”
“Absolutely. Try and stay dry. See you next Monday.”
Claire wheeled her chair to the window and watched until she saw the van with Nathaniel and Mrs. Godwin disappear down the driveway. A fine rain was already pattering against the glass, and the clouds had taken on a darker hue. They were in for a real old-fashioned
buster
, as the housekeeper would have said, but Claire didn’t mind. Storms had never frightened her, especially here at Seaborne. She’d always thought of the house as a great sailing vessel, riding the Seven Seas in search of buried pirate treasure.
Her cell ringtone announced Justin’s call. She almost didn’t pick up, but then she decided that she wasn’t going to spend her life hiding from him. Wasn’t there something she’d read about the philosophy of karma?
The best way to rid yourself of a karmic tie to an enemy isn’t to hate them; rather to feel no emotion regarding them at all.
Okay, she decided. That was worth a try. “Hello, Justin.”
“I called earlier, but you were on the beach.”
“You called me on the beach this morning.”
“Right. After that. You must have had your cell off.”
“Maybe, I was bird watching.”
“Oh. I was afraid I was making a pest of myself, and you’d decided not take my calls again.”
“I thought of it.”
“I apologize for what I said. It was wrong. It’s just that I’m disappointed that you won’t consider—”
“Let’s not rehash it all, Justin. I’m willing to be on friendly terms, nothing more.”
“All right. If that’s what you want.”
“It is.”
“So you really are turning into a bird watcher?”
“I’ve been keeping a log of the birds I see every day. Identifying new ones, looking for unusual ones.”
“Sounds fascinating.”
She almost laughed. By the little enthusiasm in his voice, Justin was lying through his teeth. “I caught a few seconds of the weather,” he went on. “It looks as though you might be getting some heavy rain.”
“I think it may be more than rain. It looks like a nor’easter is bearing down on the coast. But we’ll be fine here. Seaborne’s ridden them out for centuries.” She pushed herself over to the refrigerator and removed a Coke. Where Mrs. Godwin found them in glass bottles she couldn’t guess, but icy cold, they were delicious. She could almost hear the wheels turning in Justin’s head as she took a sip of the soda.
“And you’ve got your housekeeper and her son there with you? When I spoke to Nathaniel earlier, he said something about driving his mother to Vermont.”
“A family shower. It’s her vacation week. But Nathaniel will be back, and I’ve got a nurse coming in the morning.”
“No one with you tonight?”
She was tempted to lie. All she needed was Justin calling Richard and having him bugging her. But lying required too much energy. “I was supposed to have Jackie—she’s one of the maids—but I told her not to come because of the weather.”
“So you’re alone?”
“Like Rapunzel in her enchanted tower.”
“That concerns me, Claire. What if you should have another seizure?”
“Don’t worry. Nathaniel will be back, and I feel fine.”
“Well, don’t hesitate to call if you need anything. I still care about you.”
“I know you do.” That was an untruth. She knew no such thing, but it was one of the small white lies honest people told every day to make life easier. “I’ve got to go, Justin. Lots to do.”
He tried to prolong the call, but she uttered a cheerful “Good-bye,” and hit end. She dropped the phone in her lap and slowly finished her Coke.
Outside, the wind beat at the shingles and rattled the windows. The sky had become even darker while she’d been on the phone with Justin, and the raindrops drummed rather than pattered against the house. She placed the empty bottle on the floor and pressed her fingers against the glass of the French doors. Mounds of black storm clouds piled up and she thought she saw a streak of lightning to the north.
Guess Mrs. Godwin was right
, she thought.
We’re in for a real buster
.
She was suddenly hungry. She took the elevator to the kitchen, rummaged around in the refrigerator for the seafood chowder that Mrs. Godwin had made fresh this morning. Homemade whole wheat bread and a caesar salad would go perfectly with the hot chowder. Humming, she found a bowl and spoon, heated her soup in the microwave and carried her early supper to the breakfast room.
She’d forgotten a drink. Even though she’d just finished the small Coke, she was still thirsty. Returning to the kitchen she retrieved an icy bottle of Samuel Adams, opened it, and returned to her solitary meal. The rain was coming down in sheets now, and it soothed her as she ate. “Maybe I’ll get a cat,” she murmured aloud. Mrs. Godwin hated cats and so did Richard.
Too bad
, she thought. It was her house, and if she wanted a pet, she’d have one.
She was just finishing the last spoonful of the delicious chowder when she thought she saw movement in the corner of the room. She started, her breath catching in her throat. No one was here. No one could be here. To get into the room, someone would have had to walk past the table.
She stared into the shadowy corner as her pulse thudded. If this was a trick of her Humpty-Dumpty brain, it was a new one. She’d never seen ghosts before, not unless you counted Morgan as a—
Light as concentrated as a flashlight beam held inches from the floor flickered against the tiles. She blinked at the brightness of the pulsing illumination. Fire? Was there an electrical fire? No, this wasn’t flame, more of … Claire’s mouth grew dry as the light source grew and the image of a man wavered and materialized against the backdrop of the brick wall.
Not a flesh-and-blood man. A helmeted warrior from the far past. Transparent. Ghostlike. Maintaining an image for a fraction of a second before dissolving into gray mist, and then appearing again, this time clearer.
She wasn’t a screamer, but she gasped and opened her mouth to yell. But then the face under the crested helmet took form. Strangely familiar. Suddenly, she knew who it was. It wasn’t Morgan, but the Achilles who’d come to kidnap her from her bed—the dazzling apparition Morgan had claimed as his brother Alex.
“Richard. This is Justin. How’s the weather out there on the coast?”
“Seventy-five and sunny. Anything wrong there?”
“No, no, not at all.” Justin had pulled over into the rutted parking lot of a boarded-up seafood wholesaler just south of the Maine state line and made the call on his cell. The windows of the rental car fogged up as wind and rain beat against the windows. “I hoped I wouldn’t catch you in court.”
“No. I always put the phone on vibrate when I’m in court.”
“How’s it going?”
“Could be better.”
Richard had told him weeks ago that he’d be in San Francisco consulting on a high-profile court case. The coincidence of Richard’s absence and the housekeeper’s annual vacation had been a stroke of luck, and Justin meant to take every advantage of it. Who knew when he’d get such an opportunity again?
“Have you spoken to Claire? She’s still not answering my calls.”
“Yes, I have. As a matter of fact, I just talked to her a few minutes ago. I was worried about her up there with Mrs. Godwin gone, especially with the storm moving in,” Justin said smoothly. “I called and convinced her to go to a hotel in Bangor for a few days, just in case. Separate rooms, of course.”
“What?” Richard demanded. “I can hardly hear you.”
Justin repeated himself. “Did you get that?”
“Still scratchy but I can hear you. You say Claire agreed to go with you? That’s a surprise.”
“She did,” Justin said.
“Say again.” Richard was fast becoming impatient.
“I said, she did.”
“Can you hear me?”
“Perfectly.”
“I hope I didn’t do the wrong thing, insisting she go to the hospital,” Richard said. “She hasn’t been this angry with me since I refused to allow her to sail from San Diego to Hawaii with friends when she was a sophomore in high school.”
“I know. We’ve had our fair share of fusses, but she never holds a grudge long. I’ll see if I can get her to call you tonight. Is there a number at the hotel where she can reach you?”
“She has my cell number.”
“And if the connection’s no better than this, you wouldn’t get much out of her. Are you at that hotel you usually stay at?”
“Yes. I’m in 4210. I’m not sure of the area code, but I haven’t had any reception problems other than this one. Your phone may be dying. Come to think of it, your name didn’t come up when it rang.”
“Didn’t it? That’s odd.”
Justin heard a man call Richard’s name, and then he hurriedly said, “Sorry, I’ve got to go. But I appreciate this. You’ve taken a huge weight off my mind. I know she’ll be safe with you.”
“I think this is the best thing for Claire. You know me. I was never a big fan of Seaborne. Too isolated for my tastes.” That much was true. The old house literally gave him the creeps. Give him a penthouse apartment in New York any day. All that country house fever was nonsense in his opinion.

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