Ritual Magic (31 page)

I shrugged at him. "What does
some
of
my powers mean?"

"Well, you will retain a good portion of
what I have returned to you. But I must buffer out the ones that
could cause devastating harm to those around you." He sounded
hesitant and I didn't understand why. This sounded like a good
thing to me.

I eyed him from head to foot. It's funny
that I hadn't noticed that he was wearing beachcomber wear complete
with the tan cargo shorts, button down Hawaiian shirt and sandals.
He looked absolutely ridiculous, but I didn't dare put it into
words or even thoughts—he would have caught it all.

"Okay." I replied simply.

Dylan looked taken aback with mild shock.
Huh, I guess you
can
surprise a god
. A smile began to
form on my lips as I watched him try to gather his wits about
him.

"You're...okay with my removing powers from
you?" He sounded even stranger as he put the confusion to words. I
nodded up at him, and then looked down at my hand hidden in
his.

"It's for the best, I know." I looked back
up at his eyes as they seemed to ebb with emotions.

He just nodded as he looked down at his hand
as well. "Then it is agreed."

His hand began to glow with a rich green
glow as my hand returned the favor and glowed with blue. Together
there were lights pouring out of our joined hands that streamed
across the mist like a crazy disco ball in a bad 70's movie. The
lights sprayed across Dylan's face as he looked down at our hands
as if he were concentrating on something complicated. Finally the
lights died down and he reached over with his other hand to pat our
clasped hands in front of him. Basically he was patting his own
hand because mine was so small and feeble compared to his that it
was almost lost completely.

"You're a good girl." He nodded at me now
with a look of remorse in his eyes. "I know that you have gone
through quite a challenge and you have many more that await you.
But you are a good leader, a good queen. You have always been
strong and that strength will carry you through so much more."

I looked at him in wonder. "Okaaaay." There
were questions left to ask about what he had just said, but my mind
was racing—clearer. I could think again and wrap my mind around
many different issues at once. It was like I had a cavern of space
in my mind and I could answer questions that had been plaguing me
for years.
That's new
.

"Yes," Dylan smiled as he continued to pat
his hand. "You have new abilities because I have removed others.
Because you are no longer laden with the power for destruction, the
power for peace and concentration are free to take hold. There are
many other new abilities that will surface in time. You will be
much more than you ever have been, and radically stronger." He
smiled down at me.

"But...I thought that you were taking powers
away...not giving more to me." I suddenly felt heavy with
responsibility while all I really wanted to be was free. It
instantly came to my mind that I had always wanted to be free—to be
normal. I instantly knew that this was never going to be the
case—not while I was alive.

Dylan's eyes swirled and lit up as if
someone had turned the light on to the giant aquarium in his head.
"Well, I guess that's it." He released my hand from his and I felt
it fall to my side.

That's IT? That was all? Huh, that was
easy.

Dylan's forehead creased as he turned
slightly to his side as if he heard something that he didn't
expect. "Huh, I guess it
was
easy. But not everything has to
be difficult. Just remember that."

A sigh of relief escaped me as I turned
towards the outskirts of the mist and noticed the outline of the
Learjet on the tarmac at Durango's airport. "So I just go back.
Nothing else?"

Dylan thought about it for a minute and then
twitched his head again, tilting it to the side. He sighed deeply
as he turned back to me and nodded toward the ground.

"Nothing else." His words seemed insincere,
but I was going to take them and run.

I turned towards the misted outline of the
Learjet and began to walk away, thanking my lucky stars that
nothing else had been discussed.

"Oh, one more thing." Dylan's voice boomed
behind me, sending a sudden icy chill up my spine like fingertips
tickling my back.

I stopped in mid-step and turned my head
towards him, clearly indicating that I was on my way out.
"Yes?"

"Stay away from the vampire." He huffed. The
mist around me seemed to swirl with the gust of his breath. "And
the demon too." And then he was gone.

I stepped out of the mist to find Solomon
standing at the steps to Leo's Learjet. My heart immediately began
to pound like a sprinter on a weekend relay. My feet stopped in
their tracks of their own volition—I was frozen.

My mind was cycling rapidly through all of
the possible reasons for my behavior before.
What was he going
to think? What explanation could ever cover what happened? Would he
be kind if I told him the truth? Would he be as troubled as I was
with my future self?
I was going to have to broach the subject
soon because the expression on his face spoke of utter pain.

I turned my head from side to side—appearing
as if I were assessing the environment. Honestly, I was trying to
shake all of the negative thoughts and anxious fears from my mind.
I could never really function like that. Who could?

Solomon looked as if he wasn't shocked that
I had just appeared on the tarmac. His eyes held mine for a few
seconds longer than was comfortable and then he took a step closer
to me, pausing to gauge my reaction. He was nervous...possibly even
afraid.

How could a vampire that was 650 years
old be afraid of anything?
I scanned him again. His eyes showed
it all—he was definitely afraid. He was afraid of
me
.

My eyes guiltily sought the ground for
comfort. I didn't want to see his eyes full of pain and
questions—it was just too much for me to bear. I shook my head
again to clear my mind and then I looked up at him once more.

This was not a situation that I had ever
pictured myself in—having to face Solomon after I had hurt him so
badly.
Well, it wasn't you doing the hurting, so we just need to
communicate and get over it.
Communicate. WOW, I really sounded
like a therapist.
Do I even trust therapists? Hmm, going to have
to come back to that one.

Solomon took another tentative step in my
direction as I eyed him. Hot Hades, he was gorgeous. The darkness
cast shadows all over him, adding a darker tone to his dirty-blond
hair. He was insanely handsome, and my knees went weak just
thinking
about him, much less drinking him in like I was at
the moment. I felt like an old woman in the audience of La Bare's—I
didn't belong here, this close to a man that was as close to
physical perfection as anyone could ever dream of.

"Celeste?" His voice shook slightly as he
reached out for me with his powerful arm, I mean
hand
.
Gosh! Why am I staring at his bulging arms?!

"Yes?" I sounded stupid as I answered his
question with a question. Really? I didn't have to pretend that I
had no idea that I had been a cold, and aloof wonder woman of the
supernatural. He already knew all of that.
No, no, no! I was
framed!

Solomon turned his head slightly sideways
and smirked with the sexiest expression I had seen in a very long
time. He knew what I was doing and he actually thought it was kind
of funny.
Even sexier.
I loved him even more for that. My
heart swelled so quickly that I felt a sharp, beautiful pain
underneath my breastbone. It spread across my chest and almost
shattered my facade.

I smiled coyly up at him as he turned back
to face me completely, his eyelids dropping just low enough to make
his steamy eyed expression appear almost scalding. Pausing for a
second with a lifted hand, Solomon finally reached over and offered
me his arm.
YES! Come to Mama, biceps!

I accepted his arm as I slowly ran my
fingers across his bulging muscles and golden-toned skin. I was
suddenly inundated by his manly scent and I closed my eyes to drink
in the memories of us together. Every fragrance that made his true
smell was full of separate memories and thoughts that we had
shared—it was like taking a trip down memory lane in just one
whiff. Forcing my eyes open, I looked up to find Solomon's
blue-green eyes shining down on me. The sound of the ocean suddenly
crashed in my ears.
Oh my gosh! This guy is so HOT that the
ocean is the only thing that can cool me down.

Stay away from the vampire!
Dylan's
voice rattled in my ears.

I'll take that into consideration, thank
you for your input
. I smiled back up at Solomon as he turned us
toward the hatch steps of the Learjet.
Would you please butt out
of my love life?
I knew that was going to push him.

LOVE LIFE?
Dylan's voice shook in my
mind.

Of course. Now, thank you for your help. I
have friends to see and places to go.

Friends. That really was the truth—I had
friends beyond Tisha, and I was in the center of one strong,
complicated, dysfunctional, and beautiful family. I smiled to
myself as Solomon let me go up the stairs first, patting my hip as
I pulled myself up. Well, he really was sort of
grazing
my
hip—his hand was elsewhere.

"Hey, watch it, mister." I teased as I sped
up the steps, attempting to get away from Solomon's reach.

"I
am
watching it—that's why I had to
pat it." I heard Solomon's smiling voice behind me as we walked up
the steps.
Well, there goes the tension between us. Thank
goodness!

As I stepped into the cabin, my spirits
lifted. My family was surrounding me with anxious faces. I sighed
as I walked through the cabin, every eye in the room watching me
cautiously. Sitting down slowly into my chair next to Jack, I
leaned forward onto my knees and sighed.

"Okay, let's have it."

Silence clung to the air for about one
minute and then, true to form, Von had to open his big mouth.

"So. What the hell happened? Why were you
acting that way? How the HELL did you blast all of those shadow
demons away?" The questions were always so many and opportunities
to answer so few with Von. My eyes automatically rolled in their
sockets in response to his questions and I was deeply hoping that
he wasn't going to miss it.

"You know, Von. I don't miss the questions
when we are separated."

Jack snickered next to me as he leaned his
shoulder in for a quick tap. He was so thick and sturdy that it was
easy to sway with his weight. My eyes took in his disheveled hair,
his deep, hollow eyes and I knew—he had much more to be upset about
than I could ever dream about.

"Are you okay, Jack? How are you holding
up?" I leaned into him and reached over to lay my hand on his.

Jack looked down at my hand and then sighed.
"Yeah, I'm going to be okay. Just...," he looked away because he
obviously couldn't finish the thought.

"Not right now." I squeezed his hand as I
looked at the back of his head.

His hair was in fits of matted strands of
hair—whipped into a frenzy from the wind and dirt that had helped
to decorate it. He was sporting a windblown, tangled shaggy dog
appearance and that definitely would not do. So, being one of his
closest friends, I immediately began to do what I could. I reached
up and began to brush his hair out with my fingers until his
shoulders shot up to shrug me off. My hand drifted back down to my
lap. He couldn't handle being touched right now—the hurt was too
deep and too raw.

Turning to the group, I narrowed my eyes on
Von's hostile expression.

"It appears that it wasn't me in charge of
the actual ritual. I was overwhelmed, and my body was taken over."
Yeah, it sounds as crazy as I thought it would.

Everyone's eyes were on me and they all
looked full of different emotions—rejection, caution, fear,
confusion and finally, my very favorite, casual non-interest. You
have to love Leo for always making everything so blasé and
unimportant.

"What? Do you know how insane that sounds,
Celeste?" Von's voice dominated the conversation as I watched
Solomon take a stance next to him, crossing his arms and generally
looking intimidating.

Von turned his head towards Solomon's frozen
expression and shook his head in disgust. "So, let me get this
straight. It wasn't
you
out there in the clearing? It was
someone else, possessing your
body
?" He paused for a moment
to let the question sink in. Although he was waiting for a reply, I
could see the curtain actually pull away from his expression—it
was
finally beginning to sink in.

"Yes."

Leo pushed up from his cushy leather seat
and walked towards Von's shoulder, laying his long fingers over
Von's collarbone.

"I believe that she is speaking the truth.
There was definitely something...different about her." Leo's eyes
flicked over to me with calming strength. "Who could this person
have been, Celeste? Who in all of the kingdoms could ever be strong
enough to take control of you?" His head quirked to the side as if
he thought the view would change from that angle.

I closed my eyes and breathed out slowly.
Yeah, I was going to have to come clean here or we were going to
start out on the wrong foot for the future.

"It...was...," I laid my head back on the
seat to help get the words out, "it was me." My eyes cut to Leo for
some reason. Out of everyone in the room, it was Leo that I was
turning to for strength and support.