Witch Fairy book 3 (9 page)

“No.”  Something about his voice tells me that I’m going to be really mad when I hear the answer.

Kegan looks at Kallen and I have rarely seen such a fierce look on another person.  “You have not told her?”

Kallen also looks fierce.  And, he looks look he’s seriously planning Kegan’s death; he just hasn’t come up with the cruelest possible way to do it yet.  That’s probably the only thing keeping him from doing it right this minute.

I let the noisy whirlpool go because I might need that magic to use against the two guys standing in front of me if I don’t get some answers soon.  And on the woman on the beach, of course.  The water comes crashing back down into the ocean, dousing both Kallen and Kegan.  After they sputter back to the surface, I put my hands on my hips as, I say, “You had better start talking.  Otherwise, I’m tearing another hole in the realm walls and going home.  You and Isla can deal with the Fairies who want to jump realms all by yourselves.”

“What?” Kegan asks.  “What are you talking about?  And what do you mean, tear holes in the realms.”  Obviously, Kegan’s out of the loop of what’s going on.  That’s strange.

“Later,” Kallen growls.  To me, he says, “I will explain, but first, I need you to let the girl go.”

I look back at the beach where the limp body of the girl lies.  My magic has her firmly planted on the beach.  I’m not hurting her, just holding her.  I think about letting her go, but keeping her like this might get the story out of Kallen faster.

Really?  I just thought that?  I just thought about keeping another person hostage to extract information out of my
boyfriend
.  Someone who should tell me everything up front because we shouldn’t have to have secrets from each other?  Not someone who I should have to torture strangers to get him to talk to me.  He’s right.  I am taking my anger out on the wrong person.

“You’re always going to keep secrets from me, aren’t you?” I ask him, and he hesitates just long enough to confirm that’s true.  The pain that stabs me in the heart is much worse than the pain in my legs.  I don’t know much about relationships, but I do know they require honesty to survive.  What secret could be so big that Kallen won’t trust me with it after all we’ve been through?  “I am so sick of this.”  I pound on my chest with my index finger as I practically shout, “I can’t keep myself, or anyone else, safe if I don’t know what I’m up against.  Your little secrets just got me attacked.  But I’m supposed to sit back and say, okay, he’ll tell me when he’s ready?  You know what?  I’ll do what I came here to do because I gave my word, and I don’t do that unless I intend to follow through.  But from now on, I’ll use my magic anyway I see fit to keep my realm safe.  If that means collateral damage resulting in innocent Fairies getting hurt, or even it means blowing up your whole damn realm, because I don’t have the right information about who’s my enemy and who’s not, then let that rest on your conscience, not mine.  I’m also not going to be in a relationship with someone who doesn’t have enough faith or trust in me to tell me the truth.  So, you need to keep your distance from me.  If you can’t be honest with me about whatever is going on here, or everything else, then our relationship is a complete fraud.  As soon as I take care of these Fairies, I’m out of here.  The sooner that happens, the better.”  Pulling my magic back inside of me, I don’t even register the shocked look on both guys’ faces.  I stalk out of the water on my stinging and bleeding legs that are getting sorer as the sea water soaks into them.  Maybe not the most graceful exit ever, but I manage.  I walk past the body gasping for breath on the beach without even acknowledging her presence.  I walk towards the stairs that lead back to the house, and, without looking back towards any of them, I walk to the house.

I can’t believe this.  I get attacked and Kallen still doesn’t want to give me all the information I need.  How can I protect myself if I don’t know who or what I should be protecting myself from?  If Kallen follows me right now, he’ll be sorry. 

After a couple of wrong turns, I finally find my room.  Why does this stupid house have to be so big?  Slamming the door after me, I stomp across the room, push back the netting and flop onto my bed, not caring what my bloody legs and the salt water on me will do to the yellow comforter.  I thought I would calm down once I got here, but magic is still swirling inside of me at lightning speed.  I try to force it down, but it won’t go.  It’s attached to my agitation.  Who is this Xeniaa person?  She has to be someone important to Kallen.  Otherwise, he’d be a bit more forthcoming with the information.  Is she someone he cares about?  Do I really want to know if she is?  Growling out loud, I sit up and throw one of the frilly pillows from the bed as hard as I can out onto the terrace. 

“Was that really necessary?” Kegan asks as he walks through the silk curtains holding the pillow.  “These pillows are supposed to be for decoration, not used as weapons.”

Why is he here?  And
how
did he get here?  “Go away.”

“And have both my grandmother and Kallen angry with me for leaving you alone?  That is something even I will not risk.”

I glare at him.  “Trust me; you have more to fear from me than you do them.”

Kegan spends several heartbeats staring at me with furrowed brows.  Why doesn’t he leave already?  “You are serious,” he finally says.

I cock my head and sigh in frustration.  “Yes, I am.  Will you please go away now?”

“Who are you?”

What kind of stupid question is that?  “We’ve already been introduced.  I’m Xandra, your Kegan. 
Now
will you go away?”  He’s too much like Kallen, both in looks and personality, to be around me right now.  I’m just getting more and more annoyed.

“I know your name.  But, who are you?”

Hmm.  He honestly looks like he doesn’t know.  Interesting.  “Who do you think I am?”

“I had assumed that you were from the northern territory since I had never met you before.  Someone brought here to be Kallen’s wife.”

What is it with everyone wanting to marry me off at seventeen?  “No, I am definitely not here to be anyone’s wife.  But, I would like to be alone right now.”  Does the guy not take a hint?  Maybe Isla didn’t ask him to spy on me and Kallen.  Maybe, he just gets a kick out of following people around and annoying the crap out of them.  “Kegan, look.  You can leave or I can make you leave.  Since I don’t have the greatest control over my magic at the moment, that could turn out very badly for you.  Please leave.”

Holding his hands up in front of him, he says, “Okay, I can take a hint.”  No, he can’t.  “But, will you at least let me bring you some food?  You said you were hungry.”

I’m about to shout at him, or eject him by magic, when my stomach growls loudly.  Fine, I’m hungry.  That doesn’t mean I need company.  “I’m sure I can find something on my own, thanks.”

With a last assessing stare, Kegan give me a curt nod and finally leaves the room.  Through the door, not the terrace.  Good lord, it’s about time.  Lying back on my bed, I try not to think about how simple my life was just a few short weeks ago. 

It doesn’t take long for the exhaustion I have felt building up inside of me to pull me down into sleep, despite the pain in my legs.

Chapter 8

Something touches my face, which wakes me from the pleasant dream I was having in which no one wanted to kill me.  My mind hasn’t quite surfaced to consciousness as I wipe at my face to get whatever it is away from me.  What seems like half a second later, it’s on my face again.  At this point, my brain has figured out it might as well wake up, because whatever this is, it isn’t going away.

Opening one sleepy eye, I’m startled at first to find two tiny, beady black ones staring back at me.  I scowl and murmur, “Go away,” before I roll over and ignore him.

So, he pokes me in the back.  Rolling back towards him, I swing my hand out at him.  “Go away!”

He backs up a couple of feet on the huge bed and folds out his feathers to shake them off, but he doesn’t leave.  Stupid raven.  “Kallen, I mean it.  You need to leave or I’m going to start using my magic.  I don’t want to be around you until you’re ready to tell me everything.”

The air around him shimmers and he becomes his Fairy self again.  Quickly clothing himself with a pair of shorts, he says, “Xandra, I want to tell you everything.  But, I believe my grandmother should be here, as well.  She has more current information on what is going on.”

“You could tell me what you know.”

He doesn’t quite meet my eyes, when he says, “I believe it is best to wait.”

“Then leave.”

“Xandra…”

With a frustrated growl, I stand up from the bed.  “Fine, if you won’t leave, I will.”  Kallen stays where he is as I walk to the door, open it and close it behind me.  Maybe I’m acting childish, but I don’t care.

I find my way back to the beach and I’m happy to find the girl is gone.  I spend a second wondering if she swam away or walked away.  Then it dawns on me that I honestly don’t care.

Walking up to the water, I let it tickle my toes but I don’t go in.  Not with these puncture wounds.  They don’t really hurt anymore, but I’m sure the salt water would change that.  It was painful enough the first time, I don’t need to repeat the experience.  Closing my eyes, I focus on getting rid of them.  It only takes a couple of minutes to pull the magic inside of me, imagine it healing me from the inside out, and then let it go as all the pain leaves my legs.  Opening my eyes, I look down at them to make sure that I did it correctly.  Yup, two legs as good as new.  I can’t help but smile with pride.

“You healed yourself.”

I roll my eyes and take a deep breath before turning towards Kegan.  “You know, I already have a shadow.  See, it’s right there.”  I point to it in the sand.  “I don’t need two.”  Snarky, yes, but I’m not in the best of moods at the moment.  Something that resembles hurt shows in his eyes, but he tries to hide it.  Great, now I’m snarky and I feel mean.

“Do you like shells?” he asks.

I scowl.  “What?”

“Sea shells. You know, the things mollusks leave behind when they die?”

I’m about to get mad at him for speaking to me like I’m a toddler, until I see the teasing glint in his eyes.  “Thanks for clearing that up.  I thought you meant the kind that annoying Fairies end up in when they get turned into snails.”

Kegan laughs.  “I try to avoid those.  But I do know a great spot for collecting some rather beautiful specimens of the other kind.  Would you like me to show you?”

I look at him for a minute before answering.  I guess I could use some company right now.  I’m not as gung ho about being left completely alone as I may have implied earlier when I was mad.  I nod, and say, “Sure, why not.”

That makes him chuckle.  “A lukewarm response to my invitation, my favorite kind.  Shall we?”  He sweeps his arm towards the long shoreline.

We’ve started walking when I realize I’m still in the tiny black bikini.  It was one thing when I was swimming with Kallen, but I’m too shy to go prancing around in it with Kegan.  “Um, hold on a minute, I need to try to put something else on.”

“Oh, no,” he says in mock alarm, holding his arms out to stop me.  “Wearing both a bikini and a fig leaf in one day is enough for me to know that is not a good idea.”  With a smile, he asks, “How is that?”

I look down at the pink and lavender swirled beach sarong that he created for me.  “Better,” I say with a smile as I look back up at him.

“Then I will lead you to the most glorious shells you have ever seen.”

I laugh.  “Don’t you think you’re overselling it a bit?”

“And risk your wrath when it turns out to not be true?  Never.”  We start walking again as he says, “I will have you know that I have magically transformed the stretch of beach we are heading towards.  Only shells that meet a certain standard of beauty may rest themselves on this particular sand.  All others are washed back to sea instantly.”

I raise my brows skeptically as I keep pace with him.  His strides are almost as long as Kallen’s.  “Have you now?  Does that make you a connoisseur of beauty, or a Fairy with too much time on his hands?”

He chuckles.  “Probably a little bit of both.”

 “Where do you live?” I ask.  Obviously, he doesn’t live with Isla and Kallen.

“Not far from here.”

“Do you live near the beach?”

He shakes his head.  “No, I live inland.”

I’m getting the impression he doesn’t want to talk about this.  “Do you visit Isla a lot?” 

“Yes, it is peaceful here.  Mostly, I come to wander the beach.  It gives me time to think.”

“What do you think about?” I ask.

He shrugs.  “This and that.”

“This penchant for not giving out information is a family thing, then?”

He smiles, but it’s kind of a sad smile. “If it makes you feel better, I am often kept out of the loop of information as well.”

“Why?”

“That is a very long tale and I promised you beautiful shells.  We cannot spoil that beauty with dull stories.”

I can tell I’m not going to get any more out of him, so I drop it.  “Where are these glorious shells?”

“We are almost there.  It is a fairly secluded part of the beach, so the shells are not as picked over as they are closer to the homes that reside along the shore.”  He gives me a mischievous look, “Are you afraid of being alone with me in a secluded place?”

I can’t help but laugh at that.  “No, not at all.”

His brows furrow into an exaggerated frown.  “I am not sure if I should be insulted or relieved.”

“Neither.  I’m just more powerful than you.”  I didn’t mean for that to sound like I was bragging, but it did.  I look at him a bit sheepishly.  “Probably.”

He doesn’t say anything for several footsteps.  “Are you really from another realm?”

I hesitate, debating whether I should answer truthfully or not.  There has to be a reason Isla hasn’t filled him in on all of this.  “Yes,” I finally say.

“Which one?” Kegan asks.

“There’s more than one?”

He chuckles when he sees the surprise on my face.  “There are several besides this one.  I am surprised you did not know that.”

I shake my head in frustration.  “You would be amazed at the stuff I don’t know.”

“Then perhaps we should forget about the things we do not know, and focus on what we do know.  For instance, I know I am walking along the beach with a beautiful woman at my side.”

I narrow my eyes at him.  “Perhaps we should talk about something else.”

“Such as your gorgeous green eyes?”

“Kegan…”  There’s a threat in my voice and he definitely picks up on it.

“Okay, okay,” he says with his hands up and palms out.  “I will speak of nothing but shells and the weather from this point on.”

I don’t think I believe him, but I’m argued out for the day. Some quiet time collecting shells may be just what I need.  And surprisingly, Kegan does keep his word and it becomes a pleasant, worry free excursion that does wonders to calm me down.

We’ve been gone for about an hour or so, and I have several shells that I’m cradling in my sarong, when Kegan holds his head with pain written all over his face.  “I bloody hate it when he does that,” he growls.

“Are you alright?” I ask with genuine concern in my voice.

“Yes,” he grumbles but he’s still holding his head.

“What is it?”

“Kallen and his bloody mind messages.  They do not cause him a bit of harm, but they are quite painful if you are on the receiving end.”  Hmm, add that to the list of things that Kallen hasn’t told me.

“What did he say?”

Kegan stands up straight and shakes his head.  “You do not want to know.”

I glare at him until he sighs.  “He told me what he would do to me if I did not bring you back to the house immediately – untouched.”

I put my hands on my hips, and through a clenched jaw, I manage, “He did not.”

With a hand still at the back of his neck, he says, “I have the pain in my head to prove it.”

“Well, he can just forget it.  I’m not going to respond to that.”

His other hand flies to his head again.  After a moment, he looks up at me, “He is rather adamant.”

“He’s also a jerk.  But you should go before he sends you anymore painful messages.”

He looks as if I slapped him.  “I will not desert you on this lonely stretch of beach. I may not know what all is going on, but I know enough to understand that Xeniaa does not like your presence here.”

I take a deep breath as I try to hold back my annoyance.  It’s not Kegan I’m mad at, it’s Kallen.  Kegan’s just trying to be a nice guy right now.  “Look, I don’t need a babysitter, okay?  I’ll come back to the house when I’ve calmed down and am capable of reasonable conversation.”

The look on my face must let him know that this isn’t a debate.  After a moment, he nods.  “I will see you back at the house, then.”

I watch him walk back around the bend of the beach to the long stretch that leads to Isla’s house.  When I can no longer see him, I sit down in the sand and begin to look over my shells.  They really are beautiful.  I’m polishing a bit of seaweed off from a particularly large shell when I feel a hum at the back of my mind.  There was a time when I didn’t recognize that as an indication that a magical being is near me.