03 The Fate Of The Muse - Marina's Tales (39 page)

I poured some milk in my coffee and looked up
to meet his eyes again, “You know, if we’re going to do this, you
have to let me pay the rent too.”

He shook his head no, “I can manage.”

I reached for my purse, pulling out the fat
envelope of cash that I’d been hauling around, slapping it down on
the table, “I want you to focus on school. I insist.”

He looked surprised at the amount, studying
me with his brows knit together.

“It’s mine,” I said defiantly, “And it’s just
been piling up… Susan’s gallery owes me another two thousand
already.”

“I don’t want your money,” he said
proudly.

“I thought we were supposed to be getting
married… Doesn’t that make it
our
money?”

“We’re not married yet,” he said.

“Ethan… just take it, okay?” I paused,
finally bitterly voicing one of the things that had been making me
uneasy, “It’s like people are just
throwing
money at me… The
paintings are only selling so well because of the whole… you know…
muse
thing.”

His eyes softened, “Don’t be ridiculous!” he
said, “Your paintings are awesome. Everybody really likes
them.”

I cast him a cynical look, for no matter how
nice he tried to be, I knew that everything I did was colored by
the strange powers I’d never asked for.

He smiled grudgingly, “You shouldn’t look a
gift horse in the mouth.”

“You and your horses,” I said sarcastically.
He just grinned at me.

I snorted in irritation, unfolding the paper
and snapping it open. What I saw made me forget all about how
bull-headed Ethan was being about money.

“Four Dead In Tragic House Fire” the headline
screamed, and I felt sick to my stomach as I read the grim
details.

“What would your dad think if he found out
you were paying my rent?” Ethan kept protesting, but I was no
longer listening to him.

The story went on to say that the bodies were
burned beyond recognition, and that dental records were being used
to identify them. The lone female victim was identified as recently
elected Congresswoman Watson, victim of a home invasion robbery at
her family’s lavish beach house. Several weapons were recovered at
the scene, but an exact cause of death would never be known.

The three men were presumed to be the
suspects, and I didn’t doubt that they’d find long criminal records
for each of them. I shuddered with revulsion when I remembered the
cold, dead glint in their hardened eyes. If a completely
emotionless, sociopathic nature was what it took to be immune to
muse powers, then how did you explain Ethan?

“If I were him–” Ethan stopped when he saw
the look on my face.

I handed him the paper and he read it,
frowning. He finally put it down and reached across the table for
my hand, “Maybe that’ll teach Edwards to leave you alone now.”

I sighed, “He’ll never give up on Nixie.”

“But she’ll be okay, right? I mean, you
warned her mother…”

“Sister,” I said absentmindedly, thinking
about what Evie would make of Nathan Edward’s evil plans.

“What?”

“Nevermind,” I said.

“I hate it when you do that,” he replied.

“Do you know what I hate?” I asked with an
exasperated look, pushing the cash towards him.

He looked at it, thinking, “We’ll see,” he
said in a conciliatory tone.

My phone rang in Ethan’s room and I got up to
answer it; it was Cruz. Brad had spoken to his father, telling him
that he that we had unwittingly stumbled into a robbery. Since none
of us could prove anything against the Edwards family, both Cruz
and Brad pretended to know nothing, and truthfully, there was no
reason for Cruz to know any more than he already did.

The guys were going to lunch with Evie today
too, and Cruz asked me what I was going to wear, excited about
taking Brad to meet his benefactor. I was surprised to find Cruz as
resilient as the mermaids, seemingly unaffected by his ordeal. I
suppose love really did conquer all.

I felt like I was a million years older, with
the weight of the entire world bearing down on my shoulders. I told
Cruz I’d be on my way up to the city soon, hanging up the phone
with a sigh.

Ethan appeared in the doorway, “Who was
that?”

“Cruz,” I told him. “I guess him and Brad are
going to Evie’s too.”

Ethan made a sour face, “I’m curious to see
what Evie thinks about Brad. They should keep an eye on him.”

“They?”

“Evie and Boris. You should tell her
everything you know about his father. They can help watch over you
too.”

I cringed, for it was annoying, the thought
that I needed to be “watched over” like a child. I was on the verge
of adulthood and being made to feel more helpless than ever. My
father would be home soon, and I wondered how much he needed to
know. As much as I missed him, the last thing I wanted was him
hovering over me too.

Ethan bent down and kissed my cheek, “There’s
a lot of work at Lue’s today. I have to get going.”

“Me too,” I said glumly, looking at the clock
on the wall. I grudgingly got up to go.

Ethan pulled up at Abby’s, killing the engine
and scooting over on the seat. He wrapped himself around me with a
happy look on his face, “I can’t wait until my Dad clears out for
good, so we can start moving your stuff in.”

“I’ll have to leave some things here… to keep
up appearances,” I said with a twinge of guilt.

He smiled slyly, “How will you get by without
all your clothes?”

I opened the door, slipping out of his arms
and turning to glare at him, “Am I going to have to put up with
your sarcasm every day?”

“Yes,” he said, smiling even bigger. He
pulled me back by my fingertips and kissed me goodbye, “Call me
when you get back?”

“Okay, I’ll see you later,”

Evie would expect me to dress for lunch, so I
rummaged through my rack of clothes, finally settling on a stunning
new dress that I’d never worn, biting the tags off with my teeth.
An image of Lorelei biting a writhing fish popped into my mind, and
I grimaced. I smoothed my hair and put on some make-up, admiring
the way the silver threads in the dress looked a bit like scales.
Did everything in the world have to remind me of mermaids?

I slipped on a pretty pair of silver sandals
and set out to deal with Evie. As much as I wished I could avoid
the whole topic, I was curious to hear her plans for dealing with
Edwards and Olivia. Evie always had a plan.

The drive to San Francisco was over too soon,
and I pulled up to Evie’s building to find the garage attended by a
strange man. I tensed up, instantly on guard. I lowered the window
a tiny crack, locking the doors as he approached me. He was tall,
with close cropped hair and eyes covered with mirrored lenses. He
wasn’t nearly as wide as Boris, but he had the same sort of stance.
Ramrod straight spine, coupled with an economy of movement; it was
a military bearing.

He leaned in towards the window, “Marina
Vanderpool? I’m the new valet, Paul. Evelyn expects you… please
allow me.” He held out his hand for my keys.

“Where’s Boris?” I asked suspiciously,
looking over his shoulder. I put the car into reverse, poised to
escape.

The man smiled broadly and nodded, “Very
good.” He pulled out a phone and dialed, snapping it shut
immediately and standing back with his arms folded across his
chest. The phone in my purse rang, and I jumped. It was Evie.

“I’m sorry to have to frighten you
sweetheart, but we’ve added a few new security measures. Boris
wanted to test you– and I’m very happy to say that you passed with
flying colors!”

“Whoopee,” I said dryly.

“Let Paul park the car and come up. We have a
lot of ground to go over before lunch.”

When the elevator doors opened I stepped out
into Evie’s open arms. Her familiar perfume enveloped me, giving
rise to a big lump in my throat. As much as I tried to fight it,
Evie had the power to make me feel like I was a small child
again.

“Thank God you’re alright,” she said, equally
emotional.

We walked to her apartment arm in arm, and
she led me to a small table set up for tea in the in the library.
We sat, and she poured us each a cup, looking up at me with serious
eyes.

“I didn’t even see it coming,” she said, “I
truly thought she was my friend. I never dreamed I’d lose my
intuition this late in life.”

My heart went out to her, for I knew that
Olivia’s treachery was doubly painful. Evie’s confidence was
completely rattled; it was an especially hard blow for one who was
used to being in charge of everyone and everything.

“Nobody knew,” I said soothingly.

“You did,” she said meaningfully, “Olivia… of
all people! I’ve known her for years. When I think…” her voice
trailed off. She had tears in her ice blue eyes.

I took her hand, “I’m sorry Aunt Evie.”

She composed herself, “I suppose that money
really is the root of all evil.”

“Why the Edwards family? Are they really all
that rich?”

“I’m afraid so. And powerful. We’ve just
recently come into some inside information about a secret research
facility, a medical lab… a real chamber of horrors.”

My eyes flew open, “That’s where they were
going to take me!”

“Yes, well, Barbara’s first official act as a
congressional representative was to appoint the new director of a
multi-million dollar laboratory. Outwardly, it’s supposed to study
marine life, but our source has informed us that they’ve been
working to set up an area within the facility… devoted entirely to
imprisoning and experimenting on mermaids.”

“I know what they’re after.” I said with a
sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I told Evie what I knew about their plans to
capture Nixie, and she was more shocked and outraged than I’d ever
seen her before. Edwards’s quest for immortality at the expense of
an innocent life disgusted her.

“Eternal life… I suppose it’s the one thing
that money cannot buy,” Evie mused, “How could Olivia be involved
in something so awful! I know I’ve been terribly naive, but I never
believed one of our own kind could be so… cruel. How could I have
missed it?”

“I’d never have guessed if it wasn’t for
Marissa.”

“Marissa?”

“She was the one that told me, right before
the council meeting. She warned me to leave right away. She said
that Olivia was dangerous.”

“But how did she know?”

“It came to her in a vision… like the ones I
have.”

She nodded, taking a moment to digest the
news, “That explains a lot. Olivia insisted on coming back with me…
to meet you…” Evie started getting maudlin again, “She had me
completely fooled.”

“What are you going to do about her?” I
asked.

“There’s not much I can do,” she said
ruefully. “I’ve reported her to the council… But she has many
powerful friends there. I’ve no doubt she’ll deny having anything
to do with the Edwards family, and once again, we have no
proof.”

“What about Brad?” I asked her, “Do you trust
him?”

Evie looked thoughtful, “I have no idea. I
have people looking into his background, and I expect a report
within the week. I also have a little test of my own planned for
him.”

“A test?” I asked, surprised. She no longer
has faith in her instincts, I thought.

“You’ll see,” she smiled at me.

“What are we going to do about his
father?”

“I’ve had the building and my plane
completely cleared of all bugs. Olivia helped me choose it…”

“I’d like to learn how to do that,” I
said.

“Boris and I have decided to increase our
security team. I now have an expert on weapons and surveillance… We
can arrange some lessons if you’d like.”

“You mean that Paul guy?”

“Among others.”

Evie reached over to the table and rang a
little bell. Within seconds, Boris appeared in the arched doorway
of the library entrance. I heard a scuffling noise and looked
behind him to see Yuri shuffling along on crutches. He looked at me
with a sheepish smile.

“What in the–” I scrambled out of my seat in
shock, looking back and forth between Boris and Evie.

Evie spoke calmly, “Relax Marina, I know it
must come as a shock to you, but we believe that Yuri no longer
poses a threat. I thought it best not to break the news of his
defection over the phone.”

“Are you kidding me? Defection?” I remained
poised to leave.

“Yuri is working for me now. Really darling,
have a seat and let me explain.”

She gestured to the chair opposite hers, and
I finally sat down unhappily.

“Boris has put Yuri has through an intensive
interrogation, and he’s provided us with some extremely valuable
information. He worked for Edwards for many months, and knows a
great deal about his operation.”

“How do you know you can trust him?” I asked,
looking over at him suspiciously. One of his legs was in a cast,
and the whole side of his face was scraped and bruised. He hung his
head like a dog that had been scolded.

“Boris assures me that his allegiances are
totally switched,
and
he has some excellent combat and
weapons skills. Remember, you did tell us that he saved your life…
right?”

“Yes,” I said grudgingly, “But I still
wouldn’t trust him.”

She turned towards the men, “Boris, does Yuri
have something to say?”

“Da,” he said, turning to Yuri with a few
words in Russian.

Yuri swang his crutches a few steps closer to
us, addressing me, “I very sorry, Marina.”

Our eyes met, reminding me of the last
frightening time I’d looked into them. I stared speechlessly,
shocked that he’d even survived the tumble down the cliff. He
seemed sincere, but I just turned to look at Evie
incredulously.

Evie nodded to Boris with a fond smile, “You
may go now.” I watched them leave with a frown.