The Curse Keepers Collection (129 page)

I cried for several minutes and was finally starting to calm down when the image of Allison’s abused body pushed to the front of my head. “Oh, God, David. It was so horrible. What they did to her.” I released a fresh sob. “All I can see is her blood. I keep hearing her scream.”

He sucked in a breath as he realized whom I was talking about.

“That last Raven Mocker was different than the others; I knew she would be harder to destroy. And then she lunged for you.” I tried to catch my breath. “I was sure she was going to kill you, but she took Allison’s heart instead.” I took a shuddering breath. “It was the most horrible thing I’ve ever seen. Until I saw what she did next.”

“What?” he whispered.

I shook my head. “You don’t want to know.”

“Enough secrets, Ellie.” His voice was harsh. “Enough.”

“The Raven Mocker held Allison’s heart in her hand and ate it. Like it was an apple.”

His body stiffened.

I jerked out of his arms. “I’m hurting you. I just keep hurting you.”

“Not you, Ellie. You’re not doing this. Ahone. Okeus. The Raven Mockers. They’re the ones who are responsible.”

“But they would leave you alone if it weren’t for me.”

“You don’t know that, Ellie.” He sounded weary. “Countless people have died who have no ties to you at all.”

I jumped off the bed, still naked, and began to pace. “Oh, God. You’re right. All those people and animals—they’re all dependent on me to save them and I’m failing.” I started to cry again.

“Ellie, that’s not what I meant.”

I shook my head. “Maybe not, but it’s true.”

He was silent for a moment, and then he slid off the mattress and opened one of his drawers, pulling out a T-shirt. Grabbing my arm, he tugged the shirt over my head and helped me put my arms through the sleeves. He leaned down to kiss me before pulling me into a hug.

“You’re doing everything you can. You can’t do any more than that.”

I took a deep breath and tried to pull away, but he led me back to the bed. He pulled back the covers and sat with his back against the headboard, my body pressed to his side.

“Now tell me about Tsagasi.”

I told him about finding him in the backyard. “He said he’s my guardian.”

“And you trust him?”

“I don’t know. He helped me, so I suppose that I have no reason not to trust him other than the fact Ahone was supposed to be helping me too. Have you heard of Tsagasi?”

“He’s part of Cherokee legend. He and Tsawasi. They are both mischievous, but they’re not supposed to be evil . . . not as far as I know, anyway. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were brothers.”

“If he hadn’t helped, we’d all be dead.”

“You could have sent them away with your mark if he hadn’t shown up.”

Was David right? Should I have just sent them away instead of trying to destroy them? I still wasn’t sure I would have gotten the vortex open in time to protect us all, and I couldn’t have done both. But my decision had led to Allison’s death, even if it had probably saved many other people. “I’m sorry.”

He held me close. “You did everything you could, Ellie.”

“Did I?”

“You can’t second-guess yourself. You managed to tap into your power as a witness to creation by trusting your instinct, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s all you really have to rely on—instinct. I suggested that you use the ring and you automatically dismissed it.”

“I’m sorry.”

He tipped my chin up. “Don’t even think of saying you’re sorry again. It’s good that you’ve been following your gut. My suggestions are merely suggestions. I had no other idea to offer. Thank God for Tsagasi.”

“I never even considered that I might have additional power from being a witness to creation. It’s stupid when I think about it.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, but you’re right. Everyone wants you for that very power, so it makes sense. But you need to practice with it and see what else you can do.”

I nodded, relaxing into his chest. I rested there for several moments, listening to the soft rhythm of his heartbeat in my ear.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I treated you so badly tonight.”

I tilted my face up and kissed him. “It’s okay.”

“
No
. It is
not
.”

“David . . . ”

“I said some ugly, hurtful things that I wish I could unsay.”

“You had every right to say them. They’re all true.” He started to protest. “No, I have ruined your life. I killed Allison.”

“
Ellie.
”

“It’s true. I wish it wasn’t, but it is. I’m giving you a last out, despite what I said earlier. I need you, and the thought of living without you . . . ” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “But I don’t want you to stay with me out of guilt or obligation. Things got real tonight, and I suspect it’s only a preview of what’s to come. I won’t hold it against you if you decide that this is too much.”

He slowly shook his head. “I can’t go back now. I told you that earlier, even if it was in the most hateful way possible. Even if I could go back to my old life, I wouldn’t want to.” He lightly rubbed my arm. “Nothing of great worth comes without a price.”

“The cost is too much.”

“That’s for me to decide, love.”

I rested in his arms, both of us nearly asleep. “Did Allison show you her big secret? The reason we came to Chapel Hill in the first place?”

“No.” His arms tightened around me. “She refused to tell me. She said she’d only tell you if I broke up with you. I have no idea what it was.”

“She died for nothing.” My voice broke again.

“Ellie, enough.” His words were sterner than usual. “This will eat you alive if you let it. There’s enough guilt to go around, but I’m not blaming you. And if you continue to blame yourself, you could jeopardize our safety. Get it all out of your system now and let it go.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“Nothing about this is.” He kissed my forehead. “Try to get some sleep.”

I lay in his arms, terrified as he fell asleep. The doors were marked. We were safe. But for how long? How long would I be able to protect him?

I fell asleep, David’s arms chasing away the nightmare of Allison’s screams. But I blinked awake in the middle of the night, sensing that something was off.

David slept next to me, his breathing soft and even. I waited to hear the familiar banging on the door followed by my slurred name, but it didn’t come. There was no angry god waiting for me. Still, a slight itch tickled my right hand.

I carefully sat up and slid out of bed, trying not to disturb David.

I padded through the house and into the kitchen, pouring myself a glass of water. While I was midsip I heard a noise outside, so I set the glass down on the counter and cracked the back door open.

“Took you long enough to check on me.” I heard Tsagasi’s voice but couldn’t see him.

I walked out through the door and sat on the step, tugging David’s T-shirt down to cover my bare ass. “I’m sorry. I was dealing with a crisis of my own.”

“Human feelings are such fragile things,” he grunted in disgust.

I wasn’t sure how to respond to that. There was definitely no arguing his point. “Did you have any problems?” It seemed so wrong to ask it that way. Allison had died and Tsagasi had stayed behind to cover up her death. Goose bumps broke out on my arms. When had I become so callous?

“No, but the Raven Mockers returned, looking for ‘he who guides the Curse Keeper.’ ”

He who guides the Curse Keeper? “
David?
He has a title?”

“Everyone and everything has a title. Sometimes more than one.”

Like me. I had three. “David said Raven Mockers are only supposed to go after people who are on their deathbeds. Even then, they wait until the person’s dead to take their heart. But that Raven Mocker took Allison’s heart while she was still alive.”

“Being locked up for centuries changed the Raven Mockers. And not in a good way.”

“So they aren’t following the rules anymore?”

“Many things aren’t.” Tsagasi crawled up the steps and sat next to me. “I thought you would have realized that by now.”

I stared at him longer than intended, but I still wasn’t used to talking to a one-and-a-half-foot-tall man. “You said you’re my guardian.”

“I said a guardian
of sorts
. Perhaps ‘coach
’
might have been a better term.”

“Coach?”

“I can guide you and point you in the right direction. I can watch you train. But I can’t volunteer information. I can only answer direct questions, but I can’t tell you what to ask. I can only steer you in the correct direction. Tonight you asked the right questions.”

I shook my head. “It wasn’t enough. I didn’t save Allison.”

“While you must try to save the world, you cannot save everyone in it.”

My head knew he was right, but I wasn’t sure how many more people I could watch die. “That’s depressing.”

“It is what it is. Once you accept your circumstances and your fate, you will truly be ready to take on your adversaries.”

“You think I haven’t accepted my circumstances and fate?”

His head tilted to look up at me. “Have you?”

“I suppose not.” I sighed and leaned my temple against the side of the house. “So what did you do after we left?”

“I straightened up the house. I asked my friends to help me lay the woman out on the sofa.”

“Your friends?”

“There are many beings in the spirit world. Many are my friends.”

“Are they good spirits?”

He groaned and shifted his legs. “There you go again with categorizing things as good and bad. The rightness or wrongness of a situation depends on which side you lean toward. The same with people.”

“I’m not sure I like that answer.”

Tsagasi’s shoulders slouched. “It is the way of the world, Curse Keeper.”

I sucked in a deep breath, surprised by how relieved the little man next to me made me feel. Still, even though I was grateful for his help, I wasn’t sure I could totally trust him. “How do I know that you aren’t trying to trick me or use me?”

He shrugged, looking unconcerned. “I suppose you don’t.”

“Then how can I trust you?”

“Maybe the question is why wouldn’t you trust me?”

“Ahone.”

He pursed his lips and nodded. “Good reason.”

“I asked you earlier, and you wouldn’t tell me. Who sent you to work with me? Okeus or Ahone?”

“Why are you so sure that someone sent me?”

I expected him to look at me, but he kept his attention on the back of the yard. Was he purposely avoiding eye contact to hide something from me? “Because the spirit world is run by Okeus or Ahone. So which one do you side with?”

“Neither.”

One thing I’d learned over the last couple of months was that most supernatural beings were cagey with their answers. I wasn’t sure what to make of him. “So you’re on your own?”

“Few beings are truly on their own.”

Yep, he was being cagey all right. “Who told you to come to me?”

“No one. Although I did discuss it with my friends.”

“And do your friends side with Okeus or Ahone?”

He laughed. “Neither of the gods pays much attention to me and my friends. We are considered too small, too far beneath the gods for them to concern themselves with
lesser beings
.”

I knew I wasn’t imagining the bitterness behind his words.

“Still, we are many, and some of us are smart enough to recognize that while this is a game played by the gods, we will be affected one way or another.”

“So you were elected to come to me?”

“No. I volunteered. Most think this is a fool’s errand. Especially after tonight. Many are upset with me now. They believe that I’ve put them in danger.”

“Why?”

“Because the Raven Mockers now know I’m involved.”

I closed my eyes. “And several got away.”

“Why do you think the Raven Mockers engaged you tonight?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Don’t be so dense.”

I shook my head. “You don’t hold back, do you?”

“Do we have time to waste?”

“No.” The facts came hurling at me like projectiles. They had waited for me to get the sword before attacking. Then they’d only come at me one at a time, and the final woman hadn’t killed me when she had the chance. Why? She’d said I wasn’t ready. “It was a test,” I murmured. “She said I was stronger than she expected and I would be ready soon. But ready for what?”

“Do you think that’s the only reason? Then why would the Raven Mockers seek out that woman?”

I shook my head. “No, I thought they targeted Allison because killing her could hurt David, thus hurting me.” My gaze stayed on his face. “But that was just a bonus. The main reason they killed her was because she saw the Ricardo Estate, and more importantly the Sword of Galahad. It’s the real thing, isn’t it?”

“It depends on what you mean by ‘real thing.’ ”

“The sword the Guardians possess can kill demons.”

He shrugged, looking unimpressed. “The sword you used tonight has the power to kill demons.” He hopped off the step and waddled over to a bush, pulling out the sword I’d used earlier, the blade wiped clean.

“You took Allison’s sword? Did she know what it was?”

He laid it on the porch next to me and resumed his original seat. “I doubt she had a clue. It belongs to you now.”

“Do I still need the Sword of Galahad?”

“You need every tool at your disposal.” But the end of his sentence lifted up slightly.

My eyes narrowed. “What’s so special about the Sword of Galahad then?”

His face spun to look at me, a genuine smile spreading across it. “
That
is the right question.” He leaned forward. “The sword they call the Sword of Galahad has the power to subdue gods.”

It took a full two seconds for his words to register. “Subdue but not kill?”

“You can never kill a god. But you can remove its power. The sword the Guardians possess has that ability.”

So were the Raven Mockers trying to keep me from finding out about the sword? It made sense that the gods wouldn’t want me to have it. But it appeared the Raven Mockers weren’t following Okeus. The real question was what would they all do to stop me? “So it was a coincidence that Allison just
happened
to have a sword on her wall that was warded to kill demons when the Raven Mockers showed up to attack us?”