Wicked Paradise (23 page)

Morgan touched his shoulder, sliding her fingers down to his dragon tattoo. “I’m so sorry.”

He shrugged, gave her a prodding pat on her bottom and they resumed their journey. “It is what it is.”

“Was it so terrible to contemplate your pact with Lauren? She didn’t appear to be a dowdy, horrible woman in my visions.”

Ryan snickered. “It was the whole idea of the pact that I didn’t like. I was willing to do my part for our future, whether I liked it or not. Our people expected us to breed a new generation of strong Druids. I don’t love her. Love doesn’t exist in our miserable world. I had no choice. Either I entered the pact or risked death to both our covens.”

“Why didn’t your two covens work together? Why did you have to force a merger?”

“There has always been too much infighting and distrust between our covens. Many in Lauren’s coven committed treasonous acts during the wars by helping the lesser Cabals trying to overpower us.”

“Oh, lord.” Morgan shook her head. “You trusted them enough to enter into a pact?”

“Lauren needed my help to rule her people, to whip them into shape. By the time the Alasorons took power, they’d already killed her defectors who’d helped the lesser Cabals. Together, we brought hope and power to the covens.”

Wistfully, Morgan stroked a bloom on a clump of hibiscus. Sometimes she missed the future originally planned for her on Avalon. “At one time, my people had similar expectations of me.” She sniffed her fragrant fingers, wishing always to experience a fresh, aromatic, and beautiful life. “Go on.”

“I must have fallen asleep, which had never happened to me on the open water. I jerked awake feeling disconnected from my body as if I’d been portal hopping like the old days, hunting one demon or another. My fire barely flared inside me. I thought I might be Fomorian marked or infected, after all.” The winged foal raced across Ryan’s path, nearly tripping him. He cursed, stumbled upright. “The sailboat bucked and dipped in seething whitecaps. Thick clouds had rolled in.”

“How far did you sail to encounter clouds?”

“I’d only been asleep an hour. I thought I was hallucinating—that’s one sign of Fomorian poison—even more so when the rain moved in. I hadn’t seen rain in over a year. Then wind and lightning kicked up.”

“Were you excited by the tide of events after a terrifying year?”

“It totally freaked me out.” He chuckled, swatted at another buzzing bee. “Hell hadn’t changed since the day before, just another tent going up at the circus.” He stopped and spun around, touched his fingers to her moist cheek. “Now I know differently.”

Overwhelmed, Morgan blushed, unable to voice her beliefs about fate. He smoothed his thumb over her lips, and she kissed it before his hand dropped away. “How bad did the storm get?” Exhausted, she steered him forward and they resumed walking. She wanted to reach their destination before she wilted under the night’s balmy heat.

“I’ve never seen a storm that bad. Gale force winds, slashing rain. Fog settled in and I saw nothing beyond a few yards. Mist so thick I could hack through it with a machete. That’s when I strapped on my backpack, secured the boat, and watched the world spin around me.”

Shaking his head as if to dislodge the memories, Ryan thrust into a tunnel of tall fluttery grasses. “Lightning zigzagged across the surface of the water. Waves flooded the deck. The wind screamed a bizarre warning that cut through my chest.” He hesitated, slowed his pace. “A voice called to me over the roar of the storm...”

Morgan’s breath caught. “I’m here. Come to me. Talk to me, I had said.”

“Yes,” he replied in a hoarse voice. “I scanned the stormy depths looking for you, unable to see anything beyond a few feet. I felt an invisible tether to you, as if you were real and within reach. Then all of a sudden, the fog cleared, creating a doorway into the deepest black space I’d ever seen. A triple bolt of lightning lit the sky, intersecting on a sparkle below the water’s surface off starboard. I searched for another boat or anything that might make sense out of the nightmare squall. I saw only that tiny light in the roiling sea. It tugged at my heart, called to my soul.” Ryan kept moving forward, as if afraid to show the vulnerabilities in his words and voice.

“The boat began swirling as if in the center of a hurricane, making horrible howling, sucking sounds. I lost my footing and my head crashed against the cabin wall. I almost passed out. When I glanced up, water rose above the boat, and it kept rising into the sky. It curled around port, froze in place. Another blinding flash lit the white tip of the curl. Violet light hurtled toward me like a shooting star. The rogue wave slammed over the boat, and flung me into the sea as the sloop flipped over. I thought I was a goner.

“My last regret was leaving my people in a jam they may never survive.” He paused for a long moment, smoothing his hand over the foal’s mane until the foal shook him off. “I faced death every day, destroying the evil preying upon us, stealing our magic. Then I’d witnessed the war firsthand, saw the destruction of humanity, lived in its desolate aftermath. I always knew I’d die at the hands of a powerful Fomorian. I sure as hell never expected to bite it alone on my sailboat.”

Morgan’s knees buckled, and she clutched a tree limb. “Fate wields a mystifying sword.”

Ryan chucked. “Don’t I know it? Before death pierced me, your voice filled my head, hypnotized me.”

Leveraging her faltering body, Morgan caught up to Ryan. She lifted on her toes and molded her lips to his, gave him the same breath of life and the light of love she’d given him in the sea.

Shock shuddered down Ryan’s torso. He crushed her to him, took her mouth with a savage intensity, rocking her back and forth. Her knees weakened and she held onto his arms, drinking in the sorrow in his demanding lips, giving him back faith. When they drew apart, he said in a husky voice, “Oblivion claimed me as I reached for the amulet beckoning toward the ocean floor. That’s all I remember.”

“You smiled at me, held the amulet aloft.” Morgan smoothed her hand down his chest, inhaled the faint sandalwood soap on his skin. “I dreamed of that moment, but I couldn’t make heads or tails of it.”

“Seer’s Sight?” Ryan stroked her hair. She nodded, planting a cool kiss on his rune brand. “How can you tell if it’s your Sight versus a dream?”

Morgan snickered. “It’s difficult. This island confuses my magic. Through years of practice, I found a way to pay attention to my dreams. A gut feeling tells me to heed and listen when it’s my Sight. When you capsized, it was a foretelling. The other was just a dream. I didn’t piece the two together at first.”

“I thought I was losing it.”

“Did you want to forget about me?” A dragonfly-sized mosquito landed on her arm, and she slapped it away, along with a swirl of apprehension.

Ryan skipped a step. “Hell, I don’t know.” Fern fronds taller than his six feet blocked the path. He shoved them aside, letting her stride through the slim opening. “You were in my head. I tried to tell myself you didn’t exist. But you remained even after the ocean tossed me on the beach. Then we had the one dream and it showed me something I believed I didn’t care about, especially in my bleak existence.”

The trail tapered to the span of one body. Ryan took the lead, needlessly holding back branches that naturally eased away for Morgan. A half-hidden vine snaked across the path. Ryan stepped high over it. “Watch your step.”

Morgan dipped the torch and saw the vine shiver, its leaves fluttering in the stagnant air. It shrank into the ground, buried by mulch. She grinned in amazement. The foal sniffed the spot, stomping a front hoof, trying to dig out the disappearing creeper.

“Fate has a helluva bang. Now that I know it was yours and Gwilym’s magic, it all makes sense. Except—” Firelight reflected a deep searching look in his eyes.

“Who believed our magic could reach across time and strange worlds? My father is very powerful, although I never believed him capable of time and space travel.”

A seductive smile slid across Ryan’s mouth, showing a hint of teeth. “I’d love to thank him someday.”

“Maybe we’ll find a way.” Morgan studied her boots, unable to confess her ability to scry to Gwilym. She wanted to hang onto her father for a time before sharing him.

“I hate that fate split you two up.” Oversized magenta orchids grew in profusion beside them. Ryan tugged one off its stem and slipped it behind her ear, fastening it in her braid. “You are one beautiful, brave woman.” His lips caressed her neck, sliding down to the hollow of her throat. Her skin twittered along the line of kisses he left behind.

Beyond the cove where they’d spent their first day together, they descended an overgrown, indistinct route to another hidden cove. Secluded on three sides by walls covered by boulders and sea grasses, the water swept onto the shoreline in lazy strokes, the color of gray dawn.

The sun rose from the western horizon. Ginger and gold painted the sky above the water, spreading into a shimmering sheet of gilded crimson that left Morgan gaping in awe. The island’s energy seemed centered in the small inlet. It created odd sparks as it danced a jig with her magic. They stood on the craggy shoreline, a tepid mist dripping on them. The bloated northern moon darkened plum like, shadowing the southern moon, casting a violet haze on the white sand. Night’s last stars peeked down upon them, winking their goodbyes.

Blinking rapidly, she turned to Ryan, who watched her reaction with a sly smile. “It’s raining!” She laughed, holding her palms up to catch the mysterious, cool drizzle. “There are no clouds!” Amazement trilled up her spine.

“This island defies logic.” He dumped their bags on the damp ground and clasped her shoulders from behind, easing his chest against her back. “For all I know, we’re in an undiscovered dimension.”

Morgan knew they were on no documented land. Old Merlin’s powerful magic was absolute and far-reaching. Little did he know when he banished WindWraith here that the island contained magic the twisted Fomorian creature was able to decipher and use to poke holes in the barrier. As long as they destroyed WindWraith, the island remained hidden and safe, soon home to those singular lives tied to the charms stuffed in her satchel. Unless they found a way for all of Ryan’s people to find the paradise. She certainly would always remain a part of the land. No matter what Ryan believed, he may be stuck on the island forever. He was stubborn enough to want to discover that for himself, so she kept her tongue. Yet, she lived in fear that he’d find a way to leave.

At the right time, she would tell him what Gwilym passed on to her. She only hoped by then he understood that his people must rely upon themselves. Doubts still meandered through her, thicker than the vines growing in wild profusion on the island. Maybe all was not as it seemed and tomorrow falsely proved all the nonsense in her head.

The winged foal trotted hesitantly toward the ocean. A wave rolled in and he scampered back. His ears flattened as he hissed at the foamy froth popping on the white sand.

Morgan laughed. “Silly baby. It won’t hurt you.”

“The winged horses don’t like the ocean. They won’t go near it, nor fly over it.” Ryan’s breath tickled her ear. “Water currents surrounding the island are dangerous, unpredictable.”

A loud double wave crashed onto the shore to enhance his point. The raven pair wheeled above, silhouetted by moonlight lending their black bodies an ethereal hue. They swooped in perfect sync. The birds of the seers belonged together. A telling sign, Morgan mused. Of what, remained a mystery.

She leaned her head against Ryan’s chest, smoothing her fingers over his forearms wrapped across her stomach. “Did you ever try to leave the island?”

“Hell, yes. From various launching points.” He rested his chin on her head. “I built a crude raft. Each time I rowed out, I barely reached the breakers where a riptide swirled me in circles back to shore. No matter how hard I fought, I couldn’t row past the breaks. Lunar effects on the tides obviously have strange effects on this fantasy island.”

“It is a beautiful, fascinating paradise,” she said thoughtfully. The mist kissed her hot face like a balm, doing little to alleviate her fatigue.

“Let’s get out of the rain. I want to show you what I found. The earthquake must’ve opened up a hidden entry into a lava tube.”

When he dropped his arms, she staggered without his support. Exhaustion snuffed out whatever energy WindWraith had deigned to leave behind. Ryan caught her before her gelled legs deposited her on the sand.

Concern etched his face. “Did I push you too hard?”

“I’m simply weary.” She usually recovered faster after expending magic. More confusing, the island’s vibrant energy no longer enhanced her depleted state.

“Can you walk up that incline?” Ryan tipped his head toward a mass of palmettos and pampas grass leading up the cliff.

She nodded. “I’m starving, too. That’s probably what ails me.” Less convinced than her words revealed, she continued at a slower pace.

They approached the cliff walls. Untainted, crystal energy bristled over Morgan’s skin. Ryan peeled away viney tentacles and held back the overgrown greenery to let her slide into an opening along the cliffside. The foal pranced on her heels, and Ryan brought up the rear. A few feet into the interior, the cave deepened into ebony darkness. Tangible energy enticed them forward. Her heartbeat accelerated. “It’s very dark.”

Ryan found her hand in the tunnel and she grabbed hold. “Use your other hand to follow the wall. It lightens the farther we go into the interior.”

They inched into a tight passageway. Green, amber, and white veins glimmered in variegated granite and lava walls. The air oscillated with life, summoning them forward. Energy spilled into Morgan, feeding her depleted reserves. The farther they traversed beneath the ground, the more gems of every rainbow color guided them onward. The tunnel widened into an eight-foot round illuminated antechamber. Morgan released Ryan’s hand and spun in a circle, her mouth gaping in awe.

“Keep going.” He patted her lower back. “It gets better.”

Water trickled in the passageway, and she heard a waterfall’s louder splashes up ahead. They rounded a sharp bend and Morgan stopped, laughing in amazement.