A Secret Fate (8 page)

Taking Maia’s cue, Addie stood where she was but it took every ounce of restraint she could muster not to go charging at her lover, her soul mate, throwing her arms around him, pressing her body against his. He was alive. That’s all she kept hearing in her head. Cael was alive and he was here. But until now,
it hadn’t occurred to her that he wouldn’t recognize who she was or might even reject her
.

“Breena?”

“Yeah.” Breena laughed. “It’s me. I knew you’d come home in time for my party. Everyone said you wouldn’t, but I knew you would.”

“You’re so tall!” Cael said, sounding shocked as he examined Breena. Obviously, she’d grown from when he’d last seen her, which meant he probably wouldn’t know who Addie was. How much did he remember? How many years had been wiped from his mind, years that she never existed as far as he knew?

Look,” she held up the delicate heart pendant Addie had given her for him to see. “Addie gave me this for my birthday. It says ‘Forever Friends.’” She beamed with pride and Addie smiled. When Cael look up and frowned, it confirmed what Addie already knew, he didn’t remember her at all. And there was still no connection between their minds as they’d experienced before he vanished.

“Breena,” Siana said and gently tugged the child away from Cael. “Let’s give him some space.” She glanced at Addie before turning her attention to her son.

“Cael, I need to talk to you. Privately.”

He looked around and his gaze settled on Addie for a few seconds before he looked at his mother. “Hi mom,” he said. “What’s going on? Who are all these people?”

Siana took Cael by the elbow and led him away as Addie sank down in the chair. Tears welled in her eyes. Aiden sat beside her, his hand on her shoulder. She wanted to shrug away from him, now regretting her decision to let him come with her. What if Cael had come back with his memory fully intact and saw her with Aiden? Not that she was doing anything wrong and Aiden could have been there on his own. Besides, there was nothing going on between them, though Aiden had hinted more than enough times. He’d been over to the beach house bearing food every night since he’d grilled the steaks, insisting she needed to eat and take better care of herself. Even without the subtle acts of affection, she wasn’t stupid and knew how Aiden felt about her. He was kind. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she never gave him any indication that she was interested in him that way. It was a harmless friendship, so why did she feel guilty that he was here beside her? On the other hand, why had she ever let him talk her into letting him come? What was the point? She should have just continued being rude to the man. Maybe he would have gotten the hint then that she didn’t want anything to do with him. The beginning of a headache niggled at the base of her skull from all the conflict raging war in her mind.

Breena approached her, splayed her small hand over Addie’s and closed her eyes. She knew what the child was doing and she accepted Breena’s gift as they viewed the short distance into Addie’s future. After a few seconds, Breena pulled her hand away and shook her head. “I’m sorry he doesn’t know you. He was even shocked to see how much I had grown.” Addie wanted to hug Breena, but if she did then the little girl would take on all Addie’s pain, not something she would wish on her worst enemy. Breena blinked and added, “He’s not staying. When I hugged him, I sensed it.”

Addie frowned. “Why not?”

“Finn.”

“Oh. Yes. Finn.” The reason Cael had been swept away in the first place. But what was it Cael had to do and where was Finn now?

***

“Cael, where have you been?” Siana demanded as she shut the door to the library across the hall from the main parlor and the noise of the few rambunctious ten-year-olds and the other guests she’d been entertaining. She walked to the window and drew open the heavy curtains letting the afternoon sun brighten the room, making it a bit warmer. It wasn’t a room they used much. It was stuffy and reeked of wealth. It was more for looks than anything, an extra room to show off some interesting collections. The real library, holding all the secret Sectorium’s history was down on a lower level, not for the eyes of unsuspecting visitors without powers or gifts.

“Mom, I …” Christ, he hated this. “I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve been in Bora Bora for the past couple of weeks trying to figure it all out. This guy and I materialized there. I couldn’t just leave him since he’d had his finger on the trigger of a gun when we appeared. I didn’t know him and …”

“Finn. His name is Finn.”

“Yes, that’s his name. How did you …?” How did she know his name? She’d never meddled in his affairs before.

“And he is wanted for murder,” she supplied.

“What? That doesn’t sound like Finn. Not the Finn I know. He’s a nice guy.” Cael couldn’t sense any violence or danger from the guy’s aura. In fact, it shifted periodically from yellow to orange indicating the man was thoughtful and optimistic. Not the traits you’d find in someone who’d committed murder.

“He may seem like a nice guy, but he still killed his girlfriend. Besides, if he’s such a nice guy why was he pointing a gun at you?”

“I’d been asking myself that same question all week. I didn’t say he was pointing it at me. I said ‘his finger was on the trigger.’ It was raised and clutched firmly in his hand, ready to shoot but he lowered it right after we materialized.” His mother had a good point though, and he hated that she was the one to bring it up.

“Get over it, honey.” She’d read his thoughts, which was irritating to say the least. “You’re like an open book right now. Cael, why did you stay there so long? Why didn’t you call me?”

“Please, stay out of my head. And why the hell would I call you?”

“Don’t use that tone with me.”

“Sorry, but why would I think to call you? You’re not usually involved with my police work. I was taking advantage of the location, the situation and was sort of enjoying myself. Trying to forget.”

“The situation? Trying to forget?” Siana sighed heavily as Cael realized the irony of his statement and knew she saw his pain. “Oh Cael, what is the last thing you remember?”

He sat, elbows on his thighs and ran his hands through his hair. “Stefan and Claire had just died, or so I thought. I don’t know; I was depressed about it. Still am. I figured I’d brought us to Bora Bora because that’s where they had been heading. I thought I needed to be there to mourn their deaths.”

“I’m sorry about Stefan and Claire. I know you and he were like brothers. But Cael, that happened five years ago. Your memory was accidently erased during your struggle with Finn.”

“How? How did I lose my memory?”

She stopped. Studied him. “There is so much you need to know, but first, where is Finn?”

“I left him there sleeping. Finn’s not going anywhere. He had a busy night. Besides, he can’t leave the island without a passport. I’m still confused. Why are you involved with my case?”

“Cael, you don’t work for the police department anymore. You haven’t worked in New York for four years now.”

“Where do I work, then?” He couldn’t imagine not being a cop or detective. He’d spent his entire life training for that and had always wanted to be an investigator.

“You work for us now. The Sectorium. You have a private investigator’s license. I’m sorry, honey, we don’t have time for all the explanations you deserve, but you will get to know everyone again. Right now, though, you need to bring Finn to Whisper Cape.”

“That’s where Uncle Bart lives. Why there?”

Siana sighed. “Because that is where you were with Finn when you disappeared. You were at a wedding. He confessed to killing Careen, his girlfriend, after another woman accused him of also killing her sister. You were struggling for the gun. Gerry was aiming for Finn to wipe a specific time period from his mind so he would calm down, stop wrestling and trying to get away. Gerry would have been able to plant other memories to take the place of what he’d erased had you two not disappeared.”

“Gerry? Who’s Gerry?”

“Oh boy. This isn’t going to be easy. Gerry was the groom at the wedding. Look, this is all going to be explained in time. But first you need to get Finn back to Whisper Cape.”

“But how do I do that without him finding out about my ability?”

“Don’t worry about that. Gerry can fix it so he won’t remember that either.”

“This Gerry character. Is he out there with those other people?”

“No. His wife and … niece are.”

“And they are here to celebrate Breena’s birthday?”

“The niece, Addison and Breena are … friends.”

“I take it the pregnant one is married to Gerry and the gorgeous creature standing next to her is Addison?”

Siana smiled. “Yes.”

“She’s a little old to be playing with Breena, don’t you think?”

“It’s complicated,” she said, ignoring his sarcasm.

“I see.” He shook his head. “No, not really, you’re blocking me. What are you keeping from me? Something about this woman? What is it?”

“In due time. You’ve lost so much of your memory. Telling you too much, too soon, I … you’re already going through enough pain.  I won’t risk it.”

He frowned, hating being kept in the dark, but considering his confusion and agony over Stefan and Claire, he knew she was probably right. “Okay, so I guess I’ll go get Finn. Where should I take him?”

“You can take him to the Cliff Hanger Bar and Grill. It’s on the main highway in the center of Whisper Cape, but Bart can go with you and show you. Gerry should be there and he’ll know what to do. I’ll call him and tell him you’ll be bringing Finn in. Then you’ll need to take Finn to the sheriff.”

“Okay.” He stood to go seek out his uncle when Siana stopped him.

“Cael.” Siana hesitated, placed her hand on his arm. “There’s something important you need to know first. Something that can’t be put off.”

“What?”

“Sit down, please. If there was any other way to tell you this, believe me, I would welcome it with open arms.”

He didn’t like the sound of where this was heading, but obeyed and sat, giving her his undivided attention. “You’re scaring me, Mom. Are you okay?” God, what was happening? Was she ill? Cancer? Wait, that wouldn’t be possible; Ristéard would have healed her.

“No, I’m fine, I’m not ill.” She’d read his mind, but continued to block him from hers. “I wish I didn’t need to be the one to tell you.”

“If you’re not ill, then … something with Breena? Ben?” God, he knew whatever she was about to lay on him wasn’t going to be good.

And fuck, she didn’t beat around the bush when she said in a soft low voice, “Ristéard is gone.”

“What do you mean, ‘gone?’ Where did he run off to this time?” Christ, the man was always going somewhere searching the world for objects and clues about their heritage. There was a library on the floor below full of the stuff already.

“He didn’t run off anywhere, honey.” She touched his hand and said, “He died.”

Cael stared at his mother, certain he hadn’t heard her correctly. Words formed in his mind but stuck in his throat like a wad of cotton, paralyzing his ability to speak. When she followed the statement with, “I am so sorry you have to relive this pain,” he realized his ears hadn’t deceived him.

Relive the pain? What the hell had happened during the past five years? This was too much, on top of the deaths of Stefan and Claire.

“Oh honey, I know it’s hard to realize you’ve lost the people you were closest to, but in reality, it didn’t all happen at the same time. You must try and remember that.”

“When?” The single word choked its way past his trembling lips.

“Almost two years now.”

Shock, despair, anger and sadness flowed through his entire body. His mentor, his friend and by all rights the closest thing to a father he’d ever known was dead. “How, Mom? How did he die?”

Siana wrapped her arms around him, let her mind flow into his and he saw the day she learned the news as Cael stood beside her, listening as Red, aka Dr. Flynn, delivered the horrifying news. The authorities claimed a bear attack in the woods behind Ristéard’s home in Upstate New York had taken his life, but Red, after examining the body determined that he’d been murdered. Cael and his mother instantly deduced it had been the evil Eidolon and that the Sectorium’s sacred book and powerful crystal would be missing too, as Ristéard had been their guardian. Siana continued to show him the days following the horrible news, the memorial they’d had with all the other members of the Sectorium in attendance to pay homage to their great leader. How could such a powerful man with so many extraordinary gifts have been struck down so easily?

As if on cue, almost as though his mother had called him, Bart entered the room, a somber expression on his face. Cael stood, walked to his uncle and embraced him. The comforting shoulder and the checkered soft flannel fabric his uncle liked to wear soaked up the moisture of his uncontrollable tears and they held onto each other for several minutes. His uncle, his mother’s twin, was his other rock, also taking the place of the father who had deserted Cael when he was a boy. Bart, like Ristéard, tried his best to fill in the gaps whenever Cael needed a father figure. Bart always understood him, always got him. He may not have inherited powers from his parents like Siana possessed, but he had a certain sixth sense that was undeniable when it came to Cael. Though not considered an ability in the eyes of the Sectorium, it was a hell of a great gift as far as Cael was concerned.

***

Breena held Addie’s hands, explaining what she’d seen in her vision. “I saw Grammy Siana talking to you. She said Cael didn’t know ...”

“Breena!” Siana scolded as she and Cael entered the room. Breena blushed and pulled her hands away from Addie’s. “Please, take your friends into the playroom for a while.”

“I wish I could see further, Addie,” she whispered before turning to go with her friends. She stopped in front of Cael before leaving, grabbed him around the waist and hugged him. Addie knew instantly that Breena was feeling his … whatever it was he was feeling, but realized with regret that it must be painful when Breena released him and tears were streaming down her cheeks. “I miss them, too. Every day.”