The Moonstone (Enchantment Book 1) (28 page)

"Please sit down, Miss Mills and we'll begin the meal."

So I take the seat opposite from where Black will be seated. He pulls out his chair and sits facing me, looking somewhat frustrated.

I would love to ask him a million questions, but I prefer to keep them to myself since I can't be sure what's going on in his head.

"So, how are you finding this new life of yours, Lou?"

"Really? This is the kind of boring conversation that you're going to serve up? Why did you bother to send Bethany away?"

There, I lost control. It seems I’m incapable of conserving my calm demeanor around him. He knows just how to push my buttons.

"I had no need of her."

"What do you mean?"

"I wanted to bring you here and here you are. You wouldn’t have accepted my invitation if you had been the sole guest, now would you?"

He's absolutely right. I sit back in my chair, back straight and cross my legs the way Flicka taught me.

"So, why do you need me in your house, Mr. Black? You lost control of my spirit so you decided to take over my evenings as well? Lately you seem to be wherever I am. Very strange."

"I guess we can chalk that up to fate, and good thing too or that chimera would have made an appetizer of you and your Zach had I not arrived just in the nick of time."

"He's not my Zach, he's a friend, that's all. Do your stupid laws forbid all friendships between humans and enchanters? Will I be forced to renounce my parents as well?"

"I think he considers you more than a friend...,” states Black, darkly.

Before I can respond, a waiter arrives and places a hamburger in front of me. I was expecting something sweet. This is surprising.

"Don't you eat sugar like other enchanters?"

"Like other enchanters...I’m not like other enchanters, Lou. I’m me."

He answers in such a dry tone of voice as if I’d just insulted him.

"Weren't you raised by humans? Isn't this the kind of food you've eaten so far in your short life?"

Oh, oh! He was trying to please me and I insulted him. Nice shot!

"I much prefer sweets," I say, pushing away my plate.

Black turns his head away, grumbling. I obviously hurt his pride and destabilized him.

"Justin, bring the next course. Our guest doesn't appreciate our thoughtful gesture."

Justin comes back with two huge pieces of cheesecake. I try not to react. I don't want him to see that he got it right this time. I pull the plate slowly towards me.

"I presume this is more to your taste, Miss Mills?"

"This will do fine," I hope my tone will bring him down from his ivory tower.

I take a first bite and the cake is absolutely dreamy. In my life as a human I've never tasted anything like it. My mask of confidence slips after the first bite and I find it hard to express how delicious it is.

"I think you’ll find this is better than just fine, Lou," he says, plunging his spoon into his dessert and presenting me with a bite of his cake.

Without even thinking about the consequences I gobble the offering from his spoon. When I open my eyes once again, after realizing what I’ve just done, I can see Black watching me like a predator. I push my chair back in one move and Black advances, leaning on the table as if to fill the space I’d just created between us. The tension is palpable, as if there were an electric current amplifying the air between us. Why is he so magnificent? He is as irritating, unnerving and enraging, as he is attractive. The silence is broken by a small whistling sound coming from Black. Suddenly the metal spoon flies from my meal to my lips.

"How? How’d you do that?"

"I am a demi-God, Lou. There are a lot of things that you don't know about me."

I can't argue with that.

"A demi-God? You? Of what God? That's hard to believe?"

I can't believe what he’s just revealed to me. But then, that makes a lot of sense. Black takes himself for a God, so a demi-God wouldn't surprise me!

"Which God isn't the point; I don't like the Gods. Why do you find it so hard to believe?"

"Because you’re a power-hungry, arrogant, pretentious jerk and I think that you’re telling me this to impress me. I’m not a plaything for you to control any way you wish."

"One doesn't control wild animals, Lou, one tames them."

This man, or demi-god, or whatever, is incredible.

"I’m not a wild animal and I won’t be tamed either. Do you intend to lock me up with your superb black horse?"

"I have no intention of keeping a collection like Jézabel and Bethany, and believe me, I have much better things to do than bother with a pipsqueak like you."

"Ok, that's enough! I’m not a thing, a creature, or a rabbit."

He looks me squarely in the eye.

"So, what are you then?"

I don't have an answer to his question and he knows it. I’m neither human, nor completely magical. I’m in a sort of limbo, lost in the middle of nowhere, and I don't need his intimidation to remind me of that fact.

I get up, walk over to the mini bar and pour myself another whiskey. This time I take my time coming back to the table, walking directly towards Black with confidence. He seems surprised by my audacity and pushes back his chair.

"So, this is how you operate? You intimidate or you banish those who are different than you are? Your little game won't work with me. Tell me, did a woman break your heart? Why else would you condemn a good and well-intentioned person for the simple fact that she fell in love with a human?"

He places his fist on the table and gets up with a jump.

"I knew that you loved that pathetic human. I think you should refrain from any more confessions. I won't be able to defend you if you continue," I can feel his suffering, but I'm not sure from what.

"I'm not talking about me, Black. I'm talking about a friend, someone that you banished for..."

He lets out a sigh and joins me by the fireplace.

"I knew that somehow Gertrude had something to do with you. She and Charles have always been close." 

Oh, I never dreamed he would be able to guess who I was talking about. I figured that Black had a habit of banishing people and that he wouldn't have been able to make the connection. Me and my big mouth.

"Listen, Gertrude was warned and she continued anyways. I don't banish for pleasure; the law is the law."

"What laws can deny true love? Don't you have a heart? Don't you have a little bit of compassion for them? Of course you don’t, it certainly doesn't seem like it."

I approach him and put my hand on his heart without even thinking about it.

"A heart of stone like yours has never loved. So how could you understand the suffering you've caused?"

He takes my hand off his chest brusquely and puts his face up against the wall, hands on both sides of his head as if I had just said the worst thing possible to him. My eyes are suddenly drawn to the portrait hanging over the fireplace; it’s such a beautiful painting.

"How could someone as insensitive as you have such a beautiful painting that’s obviously so full of love?" He turns his head to look at me without a trace of malice and instead gives me a look that is deep and somber, almost sinister.

"Enough time wasted," he says between clenched teeth.

His fingers run along the mantelpiece and end a couple of inches from me. He whistles and all the doors to the room slam shut unison.

Oh my God, he's going to banish me...or worse!

"What's going on?"

He whistles a second time without answering and everything on the table begins to float in the air. With a wave of his hand the table is upended, touching the ceiling at one end. He walks toward me as if he would devour me raw and I feel as if the wind has been knocked out of me. Black grabs my wrist and directs me to the table. I should certainly defend myself, but I'm too stunned to react.

A moment later I’m backed up to the table that’s now almost vertical in the room. I must do something, but I don't know what his next move will be and that terrifies me. I can feel the energy in me growing, ready to attack like a million ants willing to obey the commands of their queen, except that the holes to the anthill seem to be blocked. I don't know what's happening, but nothing comes out, no ball of energy, nothing. I think Black can read the panic on my face because he answers me directly.

"There's no use wasting your time, this table is made of marine wood from one of the most celebrated pirates, Black Beard. He was actually an enchanter and the best potion maker in the world. The wood of this table was one of the greatest achievements of his life. He soaked his wood in a potion that prevents those who are near it from using their powers. He created a whole ship out of it. That completely erased the threat of mutiny; if you only knew what I had to do to get ahold of the wreckage from his boat. A table like this is handy when we invite magical dignitaries to negotiate. As you see, Lou, I don't trust anyone."

He gets closer to me as is his custom.

"I don't trust anyone," he repeats.

"The advantage is that the owner of the table maintains all his powers, so enough of all your wriggling already, it's pitiful. Anyways, do you really think your little magic tricks this week are anything in comparison with my more than four thousand years of practice?"

More than four thousand years of practice? I knew he was a demi-God, but it didn't occur to me that he was that old. I don't care about his trick table; I won't let him treat me like this! I take a flying leap and slide on my side to get away from his grip. As soon as I do, I hear him whistle once more. Darn. Two multi-armed candelabras that were previously on the table appear in front of me like a pair of guard dogs. The candle flames gutter and their arms begin to move. The candelabras push me back to the table and in a fraction of a second they have me by the wrist; with a twist they have me pinned to the table, making escape impossible. Now I’m really in trouble and panic is starting to set in.

I can see a smile spread out on Black's gorgeous lips.

"Don't bother trying to fight it. If you only knew how many years I’ve spent looking for someone like you...It's a shame it had to be you."

He walks towards the bar, serves himself a whiskey and raises it in my direction before drinking it in one gulp. He's completely nuts! I see him open a small wooden door in the wall and pull open a drawer where he’s hidden a record player. He drops the needle expertly onto the record.

"You know what fascinates me about humans? It’s their understanding of music. They have something that we don't have. Their little emotions allow them to create wonderful melodies and believe
me, that's hard for me to admit."

I recognize the song
I Put A Spell On You
. But this time the voice seems different. It’s eerie and almost sounds like Marilyn Manson.

"I modified it a little myself. You know Lou, my gift is to use frequencies to move and change raw material. I can also create a melody from scratch and make it spellbinding. On the other hand, I can stare at a blank page for an eternity and human music fills that void for me. All I need to do is find the right melody to fit my needs, make a few adjustments and that does the trick! This song is perfect for what I’m planning. If you listen to the lyrics, I would even call it ironic."

What is he going to do to me?

He pulls up his sleeves and walks toward me like a cat. Oh my God, is he going to sacrifice me for the sake of some sort of ritual? He whistles the tune of the song and raises his arms in the air. The ceiling instantly liquefies and transforms into a colossal hurricane that resembles a black hole; this creates a cold wind that passes through the room. The darkness leaves and is replaced with a clear starry sky; a bolt of lightning comes out of the sky to reach Black’s raised hands as he stares at the ceiling.

Electricity invades the room and scatters around the space, a little like static electricity does in one of those science center experiments. If I weren’t already so scared I'm sure I would marvel at this rare spectacle. Black's normally pale eyes darken and look almost black. He brings his charged hands towards me and when he’s two feet from me, he moves them, raising my pendant in the air. When it comes into contact with the bolt of lightning, it goes back to its original color. Black gets closer to me and sends his whole electric charge into my necklace and then into my body. This isn't painful, but strange, as if a net of energy were formed between us, as if he had somehow attached himself to me. It's so strange, especially with the singer at that moment calling out "and you're mine". Black takes a deep breath and shoots a last jet of lightning at me before dropping his arms and his head at the same time. He backs up to the bar and turns away from me, grabbing the counter with his hands as if he were completely exhausted. I look around at the mess of the room and then at myself to see if I’m still in one piece. Apparently yes, I don't feel any different except for the deep hatred towards Black and an intense desire to understand what just happened.

"I’m sorry for what I’ve just done," he says, almost inaudibly, without even bothering to turn and look at me.