The Havoc Chronicles (Book II): Unbound (11 page)

I ordered the swordfish and Rhys had mahi-mahi. The food was delicious, gently touched with spices to set off the natural flavor. I liked seafood, but I rarely got to have it. Dad wasn’t a big fan so we almost never went to seafood restaurants.

“How’s the swordfish?” Rhys asked once I had eaten a few bites.

“Unbelievable,” I said.

“I’m glad.” He paused and looked around the restaurant, but the only other person besides us was the waiter hovering in the far corner of the room. “I, uh, just wanted to...” Rhys trailed off and looked away.

“Wanted to?” I prompted.

Rhys broke out of his reverie. “Nothing,” he said. “It was just a dumb question, and I finally remembered the answer.”

“Oh, okay,” I said, not sure how else to respond to such an obvious lie. What was going on with him? He was seriously confusing me.                        

 For dessert we had a light sorbet that was just sweet enough to taste good, and not so sweet it made my overly-sensitive taste buds want to gag. It was nice to be with someone who understood the cuisine challenges associated with being a Berserker.

After we ate, we went out to Haystack Rock – one of my favorite spots on the entire coast. I loved looking out at the huge rock formation that jutted out of the ocean like a small mountain. I had a photograph in my room that my dad had taken of me and my mom when I was three. It shows us walking on the beach holding hands while the sun peeks over the top of the rock. Something about that picture always made me feel calm and safe. It had been the one constant in my room as I went through different decorating phases.

We walked along the beach together – side by side, but not touching in any way, much to my dismay – listening to the sound of waves and the cries of the gulls. The biting wind blew a light mist off the ocean so I was glad I had bundled up.

Then Rhys asked me a question that took me completely by surprise.

“Do you like me, Madison?”

I tensed, not sure where this was going. “Of course I do,” I said. “You’re a great guy. What’s not to like?”

“Not like that,” said Rhys. He stopped walking and turned to face me, standing dizzyingly close to me, so that I had to look up to meet his eyes. “Do you like me? You know, as more than just a friend?”

Was he really so oblivious that he had to ask? I had done everything I could think of to let him know how I felt. Boys really were dumb.

“Yes,” I said, gazing into his eyes. “I do.”

He met my gaze for a moment then turned to look out at the ocean. “I like you, too.”

I reached up and turned his face so he was looking towards me again. “Then that’s a good thing,” I said.

“But I shouldn’t,” he said. “I shouldn’t like you.”

“Why not?”

“Think about it.” A note of bitterness crept into his voice. “I’m one hundred and seventy-eight years old. You’re sixteen. I should be arrested for even thinking about you like this.”

“You said yourself that physically, you were only twenty.”

“It’s more than just that,” Rhys said. His eyes were glistening. “You’re the daughter of my oldest friend. What do you think your dad would say if we told him we were together?”

The pieces of the past months were now starting to click into place. Rhys did like me. He’d just been holding back out of respect for my dad.

“I would hope he’d be happy that I found someone I truly cared about,” I said. “And if he had any problem with that then he and I would have to arm wrestle to settle the argument.” I hoped a little humor might ease up the tension.

A smile briefly flashed across Rhys’ lips. “I’ve never met anyone like you before, Madison.”

“Well, we can’t all have Berserker dads and Binder moms,” I said.

“It’s not about that at all,” Rhys said. “There’s so much more to you than just your powers. I cut out my own heart over a century ago when I left Anwyn. I vowed I would never love again and for the first time since then, I think that I could.”

As he spoke he leaned in closer to me. We were now mere inches apart, and I was definitely having trouble breathing. Did he just say that he loved me?

And then the moment I had been waiting for finally came. Rhys leaned down and oh-so-gently pressed his lips to mine. My heart began pounding and I slipped into a pre-zerk, heightening my senses, increasing my awareness.

The soft touch of his lips spread through me – a warm, blissful feeling coursing through my veins. I wrapped my arms around his neck, inhaling his distinctive scent – a smell that I couldn’t possibly describe, but that somehow conjured in me images of strength and goodness.

He pulled back. Our gazes met and for a moment, like that first time, I felt as if I was looking into his soul. This time, I did not pull back or break the contact. I saw pain there, and I understood its source, but I also saw hope. Hope and love.

I leaned in and rested my head on his shoulder. “I can’t tell you how long I’ve been waiting for this moment,” I said.

Rhys chuckled. “Probably about as long as I have.” He took in a deep breath and reached down to squeeze my hand.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.

I squeezed back. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.” I stood up on my tiptoes and kissed him again. I reveled in the feel of his arms wrapping around me, pulling me in close.

When we were done, Rhys reached into his pocket and pulled out a rectangular wooden box. “Here,” he said. “I want you to have this.”

The wooden box gleamed red in the sunlight. There were tiny brass hinges on the long side and a matching clasp opposite.

I opened the clasp and lifted the lid. There, nestled in a satin lining was a beautifully carved wooden spoon. The handle was carved so it looked as if there were two intertwined hearts that merged into an intricately carved Celtic knot. The threads of the knot merged back into a single thread which was connected to a heart-shaped bowl at the end.

“It’s beautiful,” I said.

“It’s a love spoon,” Rhys said. “It’s a tradition in my homeland for a boy to carve a spoon for the girl he is interested in. If she accepts it, then that means she would like him to court her. It’s sort of a declaration of intent.”

“You carved this yourself?”

Rhys shrugged as if it were no big deal. I ran my fingers over the intricate carving. It had to have taken months of work. The amount of thought and effort that had gone into this was incredible.

I threw my arms around Rhys, careful not to hurt the spoon. “Thank you. I love it!”

“Then you accept my intent to court you?”

Well, that was a no-brainer. Of course I wanted to date him. But as I was opening my mouth to reply, words that Mallika had said to me earlier made me shut it again.

“I love it, Rhys, I really do,” I said, not meeting his eyes.

Rhys inhaled sharply. “Please tell me you aren’t about to throw a conjunction out to start your next sentence.”

“But,” I said, and his head drooped. “I need to tell you something to make sure you want to be in this relationship.” I didn’t want to tell him this because I didn’t want to give him any reasons to change his mind, but my conscience said I had to at least let him know.

“Then there’s nothing to discuss,” Rhys said. “If you will have me, then nothing else matters.”

“What if I aged like a normal human?” I asked.

“You’re a Berserker, so that’s not an issue.”

“I’m also a Binder,” I said. “Mallika said there’s the possibility that I might age normally.”

With a gentleness that can only come from someone incredibly strong, Rhys pulled me into an embrace. “I will take whatever time with you I can have and count myself blessed beyond my wildest hopes.”

“But what if I get old and wrinkly?”

Rhys reached down and lifted my chin. “Nothing,” he said, “I repeat, nothing, will keep me away from you. I gave up love once for the Berserker cause. I will not do so again.”

I reached up and pulled Rhys’ head closer to me. “That is exactly what I was hoping to hear.” I pulled him inward for a rather passionate kiss that I sincerely hoped would be the first of many to come.

At school on Monday I walked into the building holding hands with Rhys. The gossip machine kicked into high gear within milliseconds of our arrival. By the time we got to my locker, I was pretty sure the entire school knew Rhys and I were an item – finally.

Amy ran up to me and practically knocked me over giving me a giant hug. Then she let go and punched me in the arm.

“How could you not tell me?” she said.

“I’m sorry, but it just happened, and I’ve been a bit distracted.”

Amy looked over at Rhys. “I bet you have been.”

I blushed. “Oh, not like that.”

“Hey, I’m not judging.” She leaned in closer and whispered, “What are you going to tell Josh?”

“The truth. I’m dating Rhys and no longer available.”

“He’s going to be devastated,” said Amy.

“I doubt it.”

Amy hesitated before speaking, not meeting my eyes. “Well, would you mind if I did some consoling, should the need arise?”

“Knock yourself out,” I said.

The morning had a surreal feeling to it. I recalled the first day of school this year, when I had come in looking completely different and everyone seemed to be staring at me. What was it about high school that made everyone so interested in things that were none of their business?

By the time lunch approached I was both looking forward to it and dreading it. I was looking forward to spending some time alone with Rhys – if you can count being in a cafeteria full of staring hormone-riddled teenagers as being alone – but I was also dreading my first contact with Josh. I hadn’t seen him all day.

We arrived first and sat at our usual table. I felt the eyes watching me and did my best to ignore them. Rhys didn’t seem to mind the attention.

“Who cares?” he said. “I was never worried about what any of them thought.”

I grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. “That’s tough talk from a man who’s scared to let my dad know we’re dating.” We had jointly decided to let our relationship grow a bit before subjecting it to the fire of my dad’s potential ire. But it couldn’t hurt to tease him a bit about it.

“Hey-” But before he could finish his protest, he stiffened and looked over my shoulder.

I glanced back and saw Josh walking towards us. The half-grin on his face gave him an insolent, almost cocky expression.

“Hey, Madison,” he said when he reached the table. “Can we talk for a second? You know, alone?”

I was about to tell him that anything he had to say he could tell me in front or Rhys, but Rhys let go of my hand and said, “Why don’t you two talk. I’ll be back in a minute.” He stood up and quietly slipped out of the cafeteria.

Josh pulled up an empty chair and sat on it backwards, leaning his arms on the back rest.

“So, you two are going out now?” he asked.

“That’s right,” I said cautiously, unsure which direction this conversation was going to go.

“Don’t think I’m giving up, Madison,” he said.

“Josh, look,” I said, trying for a combination of compassion and firmness. “It’s over between us and has been for a long time. You need to accept that Rhys and I are together.”

“I accept this as the price I have to pay for messing things up with us before.” His face clouded over with a look of confusion. “I still don’t know what I was thinking, but I intend to fix my mistakes and get you back. Arthur didn’t give up when he saw Guinevere fall for Lancelot.”

“Yeah, and look how well that turned out. They destroyed an entire kingdom.”

Josh smiled and stood up. “Some things are worth fighting for.”

***

The rest of the week went by in a blur of rehearsal, school, constant staring, Berserker training, and Binder lessons.

All of which – except for the staring; that was really getting on my nerves – was fine with me. I got to spend most of each day with Rhys, and I didn’t have time to do much more than keep my head above water, which made the days go by quickly.