The Curse Keepers Collection (147 page)

He started to open the toolbox attached to the rear of the truck bed when he squatted and stared into my eyes. “Are you going to accept Okeus’s offer?”

My gaze lowered to his feet. “I . . . I haven’t made a final decision yet.”

“Can we discuss it right now? Because I’d like to say my piece before you decide.”

My eyes widened. “Okay.”

He moved to the end of the bed and sat down on the open tailgate, patting the spot next to him. Once I was seated, he didn’t waste any time. “
Why
would you accept Okeus’s offer?”

“To save you. And David and Claire and Drew and Myra. To save the people I love.”

He swallowed but he didn’t look at me, staring instead at the small county airport next to the aquarium. “So let’s say you become Okeus’s queen and you save all of us, but you get pregnant with Okeus’s babies. Do you really think you can love them and raise them?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. I can’t let myself think about that.”

“That’s
exactly
what you need to think about. And when your
many
babies grow up and become the monsters their father is, how will you deal with that?”

I closed my eyes.

“Let’s go ahead and ignore the fact that not one of us could live with ourselves if you made this decision. Let’s even ignore that you’d be lonely as shit. Despite what Okeus says, you will be utterly and eternally alone. And eternity is a fucking long time.” His hands curled around the edge of the tailgate. “But let’s not ignore what those creatures will do when they are grown. They will kill and destroy. You may have saved Claire and her husband, but you haven’t saved their children. And that’s the mind-fuck Okeus will play on you. He’ll kill their kids. Or, hell, maybe he’ll make
your
kids do it.”

The truth struck me with mind-numbing horror. He was right.

“So tonight, when he asks you for your answer, tell him to go fuck himself, Ellie. Because not one damn good thing will come from saying yes.”

I bit my lip to keep from crying and nodded.

“Promise me. Promise me on David’s life.”

I gasped.

His jaw set. “I have to be sure. You need to be able to trust me, but I need to be able to trust you too.”

“I promise I won’t accept his offer.”

He stood, stomped to the toolbox, and lifted the lid. “Come here.”

I got up and stood next to him, surprised by how serious he looked. “Elinor Dare Lancaster, Curse Keeper, daughter of the sea, witness to creation.” He pulled out the sword and handed it to me.

My right hand encircled the grip, and his right hand covered mine, sending a surge of power from his mark into mine. I looked up at him in surprise.

His eyes were trained on my face. “I promise to stand by your side and defy the gods. To forge our own destiny. From tonight and forward, we will work together to defeat the demons and send them back to Popogusso. We will fight to protect all of creation from the evil that we—
I
—set free. And I promise to stand with you until the end, whenever that comes.”

I shook my head in shock. “Collin . . . ”

“Now let’s figure out how to save David, because we need ‘he who guides the Curse Keeper’ if we have any hope of defeating these guys in the future.”

I nodded as he dropped his grip. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he mumbled, shutting the lid. “We have an uphill battle ahead of us.” He walked to the end of the bed and jumped down. “I’m still not sure returning that sword to you is the brightest idea, but I feel better knowing you have some way of defending yourself.” When I reached the edge of the tailgate, he grimaced. “Try not to impale yourself when you hop down.”

I twisted my mouth into a mocking smile. “Very funny.” I held the sword up and away from me as I jumped and landed on my feet.

“Let’s go survey the grounds and come up with a plan.”

We walked around the building toward the sound. We stopped at the edge of the trees to the north of the complex. “I think you’re right. If we lead them to a fake gate, we should make it close to the water. If Mishiginebig is still watching out for you, he’ll come to your defense.”

“If?”

He shrugged. “Well, we do run a risk. I suspect once Okeus figures out you’ve decided to turn him down, he’ll remove all protection from you in the hope of forcing your hand. And just like that, Mishiginebig will turn from protector to predator.” Collin started to walk into the woods.

“And what will happen when Okeus realizes
you’ve
defied him?” I asked as I followed him.

He didn’t answer.

“That bad?”

“Honestly, Ellie, I don’t know. We’re making our own rules tonight.”

“I need to tell you about the Raven Mocker’s prediction for my future.”

He stopped and turned around to face me. “A Raven Mocker told you your future? Why didn’t you tell me?”

I lifted a hand in frustration. “I don’t know. Maybe because I was busy
dying
and all.”

“Sarcasm won’t help right now.”

He was right, damn him. “Look, Collin, I’m sorry. With everything else that’s been going on, it slipped my mind. She told me almost a week ago.”

“Shit, Ellie.” He groaned and lifted his head to look up at the now-darkening sky. “What did it say? It could make all the difference tonight.”

“She said I was a vessel that will determine the fate of the world and I will either save it or destroy it. And that it will happen soon.”

He watched me for a long moment. “That’s it?”

My eyebrow shot up. “That’s not
enough
?”

He snorted. “Well, it’s vague as shit.”

“
Thank you
.” I thrust my hands out from my side. “That’s what
I
said.”

“What do you think it means?”

“I thought it meant I’d become Okeus’s boo. What else would I think?”

He crossed his arms and stared out into the sound. “Remind me of what the ghost of your Aunt Betty said.”

“Aunt Bitty. And she said that I need the ring, but not in the way I think.”

“Okay.” He put his hands on his hips. “How do you think you’re supposed to use it?”

“There are letters in the library at UNC at Chapel Hill, and one of them is an eyewitness account of the blessing of the spear and the ring.”

“You’re kidding?”

I shook my head. “Of course I’m not.” I told him about Okeus and Ahone. “So Ahone told my ancestor that a
she
in his line would need the ring and it would save her life. And that if she were to stand next to the tree with the ring that sings and read the inscription, she could permanently seal the gate to hell.”

“Is that what you intended to do with it?” Collin asked.

“No,” I said in frustration. “I think it’s a terrible idea. Ahone’s been planning this for centuries, and we both know he’s just about as trustworthy as Okeus.”

“Your ghost aunt said you need the ring, but not in the way you think. Without her influence, how would you use it?”

“I don’t know,” I groaned. “I probably wouldn’t use it at all.”

“Maybe that’s the answer. Maybe you
are
supposed to use it.”

“Should I really put that much faith in a ghost that’s giving me instructions through Claire?”

Collin’s shoulders slumped. “Maybe Tsagasi knows something.”

“I haven’t seen him since Sunday and I’m scared to call him. What if it counts toward the seven times he and his friends agreed to protect me? I don’t want to waste the blood oath.”

“You just want to ask him a question, so I think you’re in the clear. Besides, I think this is important enough to warrant calling him.” He paused. “But if you want, I’ll try to summon him instead.”

“Wait!” My stomach cramped from my nerves. “Let’s talk a bit more about this shindig tonight. Maybe it’ll help us figure out what to ask Tsagasi.”

He nodded. “That’s a good idea. And let’s figure out where we want the fake gate to be.” He stopped next to a tree about twenty feet from the shore. “There’s a neighborhood to the north. I’m worried we’re too close to people.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe we should do this on the dock.”

“But what if they expect a tree?” I said. “David tricked them with the aquarium, but what if they know that part? We’ll have to find one that’s close to the water and hope Big Nasty will help.”

“You want a plan, here’s one: We lead the Guardians here, we start the words of protection and create a vortex. They won’t know it’s not the gate. We’ll get David and the sword and the spear and then get the hell out of here.”

“That’s still a sucky plan, Collin.”

“And it’s the only one we’ve got.”

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY
-F
IVE

We walked out onto the dock and came up with more details. We’d stand at the back of the dock while Collin used his guile to convince them to show us any warded weapons they had. The threat to my safety would hopefully draw the attention of Big Nasty, and the confusion of a giant snake showing up would help Collin free David and steal the weapons while I added to the chaos. Not to mention I had my own supernatural bodyguard detail at my disposal. And if Big Nasty didn’t show, we’d create the vortex and tell them it was the opening to Popogusso.

There was no way in hell it was going to work, but I couldn’t come up with anything else.

The sun had begun to set, and I was getting more and more nervous. “We should call Tsagasi now. If nothing else, my four protectors can help us.”

“Good idea.”

We walked to the edge of the dock when the familiar ringtone of David’s phone went off, echoing off the water and trees around us.

I stopped in my tracks, terrified, but I told myself that anyone could be calling him.

Collin was several paces ahead of me, but he spun around to face me as he dug David’s phone out of his pocket. He checked the screen and cringed. “Fuck,” he muttered before answering. “Yeah.” He was silent for several seconds, and then he put his hand on his hip and looked down at the wood planks under his feet. “Fine.” After he hung up, he turned to look at me, his face tense.

“What did they say?”

“They changed the location and time.”

“What?” I shook my head in frustration. “When? Where?”

“The Elizabethan Botanical Gardens at the five-hundred-year-old oak tree.” His eyes locked on mine. “In ten minutes.”

I gasped and took a step backward. “But how did they know?”

“I don’t know. Does Myra know the location?”

My head was a blur of conflicting emotions and thoughts, but I needed to focus. “No, I don’t remember telling her specifically, but it wouldn’t be that hard for her to figure it out. Tom found me out there multiple times. He might have told her.”

“Or they could have broken David,” Collin added, his voice gentle.

“That too.” The thought brought me close to the edge of hysteria. But I needed to keep my shit together. Freaking out would get David killed.

“We better get going. We don’t know if there’s a penalty for being late.”

We walked across the parking lot as a small single-engine plane took off from the airport. I was glad for the noise. The eerie stillness of the night made me more nervous.

“What about the sword?” I asked, laying the weapon on the floor at my feet once we got into the truck.

“If we take it, the Guardians might steal it from us. But if we encounter any demons, we’ll need it. I say it’s worth the risk.”

“Do you know how to use one?”

“If you’re asking if I’m better with it than you, I’m honestly not so sure. But if you’re going to focus on getting the ring back from the old broad, then maybe I should take it. We can still move forward with the plan to form a vortex to confuse them, and once it’s open, I’ll try to go for David and any weapons they may have.”

I nodded. “And Tsagasi?”

“If things get dicey, call him.” Collin’s hand gripped the steering wheel so tightly, his knuckles were white. “In fact, you should have called him yesterday when we encountered the Raven Mockers.”

“You know what they say about hindsight.”

“Yeah.”

Several other cars were in the parking lot when we pulled in. “Why did they wait so long to call and tell us to come here?” I asked as Collin turned off the engine.