wrath of the Sea Queen (233 page)

"
And there is the matter of the aid I gave you on the plane. 
And then I called back my storm as you attempted to lessen its effect on the ship…o
h, I see.  You thought you did that all by yourself
.
  That would have been quite an accomplishment for
such an amateur
.  You
ha
ve
definitely
got the potential, but you
a
re not that good
; not
yet
.
"

Rika's
condescending
voice
tr
ied
to undermine C
a
el
i's confidence
.  T
here was an i
ota
of truth behind her words.  Perhaps Rika had helped.  C
a
eli could not honestly deny it
.
  Nonetheless, she
had
made no bargain with Rika.

"
Are you suggesting that my choice to help a child in need obligates me to
a
debt
by default
?  Do you think that somehow you can transfer a debt that h
is mother might have owed you
to me
? 
That's preposterous. 
And, if I were to believe that you aided me, as you
claim
, do you find it appropriate to set terms and demand payment after
volunteering your services
without my knowledge
? 
There is no contract in that
arrangement
either. 
What makes you think I will agree to pay
you any sort of
fee for your services
?  Exactly what do you believe your aid is worth?
"
  C
a
eli stall
ed
until she could
devise a plan
.

"
You know exactly what I want, and we
wi
ll
come
to that in
due time
.  But,
I think
we will start with your interference first.  I believe
the only fair trade is one child for another.
"
  Lara's voice stunned C
a
eli
, and
she
took an un
conscious step backward, increasing the distance between herself and Lara
.  C
a
eli understood immediately, but she would not willingly give up her
second
child
; not
Vin's
remaining
son.

"
You
a
re out of your mind
!
  I
ha
ve already lost one child
because of you
. 
I am not about to lose another.  You cannot have my son
,
"
C
a
eli stated defiantly.

"
Ah, but
you
ha
ve already lost him.  Refusing to
admit
the truth
will not change that fact
. 
Despite your
persistent
rudeness,
I am
trying to
do
you a favor.
"

"
A favor
? 
You believe that taking my child is somehow helping me? 
You
r years in the sea have softened your mind.  You
'
re crazy
!
"
  C
a
eli thought Rika must really be desperate to believe
that
what she a
sk
ed
carried
any
measure of
good
ness
.
 
A
s long as she
still lived
, C
a
eli would fight to defend the life of her baby.

"You will not have him!  You will have to kill me first."

"
Oh, but I will.  You cannot avoid your fate any more than Max can. 
Just like you
,
M
ax
was never meant
to remain in your world
, but
his father
insists that he should stay
. 
Since
Max
cannot
come home to me
in my current state,
then I will
soon
come to him. 
I will use you to reclaim my son
. 
Unfortunately, that will take some time
, even after we are joined
.  Meanwhile
,
your son
will live as I do.  If you think of where this will end, it really is a favor to you; for you will not be alone as I am now
.
"

"You cannot do this.  I will not accept your terms."  C
a
eli was dumbfounded at the notion Rika proposed.  How could
Rika believe that she would agree
to such an outrageous idea?

"
I
really
do not care whether you
find
my terms
agreeabl
e
.  They are set.  You can choose to give up your child willingly or I will simply take him from you. 
I offer you a moment to d
ecide which method you prefer.
"

Inside, C
a
eli's anger gr
e
w.  Outside, the
sea heaved
and the storm clouds
gathered
threateningly over
the little island
. 
C
a
eli
could not believe
t
hat Rika
had the audacity to think she could take
a
life with such disregard
for
those she affected.  C
a
eli would
not permit it, could not.  She would give everything to
protect her family, and even Max, who could not defend himself.  However,
C
a
eli
's eyes were open.  She
understood
that the cost
of this confrontation
would be
high.  If
Rika
,
using
Lara's form
,
could touch her child, C
a
eli might not be able to defend him. 
She might not be able to effectively defend herself.  But
,
that
was not going to
prevent her from trying
.  H
er anger and gift sustained her as she
prepared to oppose whatever Rika might try
. 

Rika
slowly walk
ed
forward,
closing the distance between them.  C
a
eli backed
toward
a rocky outcropping
, thinking to have the stone at her back
.  She
was startled to
bump into a man
stepping
out of the shadows.  A
t first
,
unable to see him,
she
mistook
him for
the man in black. 
How was that possible?  C
a
eli was certain she
had
destroyed him.  Yet here he was, and he
had
managed to get
behind her.
 
C
a
eli
was trapped between the man and Rika.

The man grabbed C
a
eli's arms and held her directly in front of him, so that she was facing Rika. 
C
a
eli struggled unti
l she heard a whisper in her ear from a
familiar
voice
.  The
man
remained
behind her
a
s Rika
approached and
extended
her hand
toward
C
a
eli's
stomach
. 
When she was within range,
C
a
eli
kicked her and dove to the side.
  T
he man behind C
a
eli released her
as she moved
and lunged forward to grab
hold of
Lara
's body.