Secret Magic, page 10
part #1 of Nobledark Academy Series
“All right. If you change your mind, let me know.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“Back to class,” Madame Karathos went to her desk. “I’m sorry for pulling you out of class. But I prefer to chat in private, so you may be as honest as you like.”
“I appreciate it,” I said.
“Have a good day, Miss Washington,” Madame Karathos’ voice followed me out.
Okay, that was a big ass bundle of weird. First, that Sokolov guy. He stared at me like I had a couple of heads, and he didn’t like the look of them. Then Madame Karathos, wanting all sorts of information.
Weird was the word for the day.
I went back to Intention and was able to catch up on the lesson to the point that homework wouldn’t kill me. I thanked all the stars. I had enough going on to keep track of right now.
Iliana would be here two days from now. I hadn’t seen her in person since Hell. Outside of my one visit with her in the dreamscape. Neither of those times had been… all that great.
Why was she coming now? And here? If anyone saw her and knew her for a siren… fuck. I couldn’t even imagine what would happen.
My mind was going a million miles a minute, and somehow, I made it through class the rest of the day.
Matty caught up with me after classes. “Hey, gorgeous,” he said, taking my ponytail in his hand and letting it run through his fingers.
“Hey,” I said, feeling shy. This felt… intimate.
“What are you doing tonight?”
I rolled my eyes. “What am I always doing?”
“You should come and see me practice,” he said.
“What?” Did he seriously just ask me to watch him do something?
“It’s not like that,” he said. My face must have given me away. “Even when we practice, the rugby teams make it a party. It’s fun.”
“Do I need to bring pom-poms?” I ask.
He laughed. “I’d love it if you did. Especially if you save them for later,” he said, scooping me closer, and bending down to kiss me, oblivious of the other students around us.
“Do you have some free time now?” I asked.
“What did you have in mind?” Matty asked, his lips close to mine.
“Why don’t you come back to my room? I can always use help… studying…” I said.
“I believe I do have some free time,” Matty said. He grabbed my hand. “Where’s your pod?”
“You remembered,” I said, pleased.
“I remember everything about you, Olivia,” he replied.
I led him to my room and then we walked into the pod. While Thalia’s door was open, I didn’t stop to chat. Instead, I pulled Matty into my room, slamming the door in my haste to get in.
His arms went around me immediately. “I’m so glad I ran into you,” he whispered into my ear.
The throaty sound of his voice sent waves of excitement through me. I could feel a warmth that began in my core at the thought of his hands on me. And here, we were in private.
One of his hands cradled my head as he looked down at me. The other slid under the hem of my shirt, touching my bare skin on my back.
“Your hands feel good,” I said.
“Oh, hell,” he groaned. “You’re going to make me crazy, saying things like that.”
“What, that’s not good?” I asked, batting my eyes.
Rather than answer, he kissed me. His tongue traced my lips, and then demanded entrance, exploring my mouth.
A surge of lust nearly knocked me over. I wanted him.
His hands explored along my back, sliding down to the curves of my hips. I pressed myself against him, feeling his hardness against me. I leaned into him more, loving the sound and feel of his groan.
Suddenly, in one smooth motion, I was in his arms. He walked from where we stood to the bed and lay me on it. Then he eased himself next to me, his hand moving along my stomach as he kissed me.
“How… long do you… have?” I got out between kisses.
“Not long enough, damn it,” Matty said. “Not long enough at all.” His kisses trailed along my jaw and down my neck.
The feeling of being blissfully, happily, fully alive engulfed me. Here, in Matty’s arms, with the touch of his lips on my neck, along my collarbone, and his hand tracing designs along my abdomen, there were no shadows on my heart. Nothing mattered but this moment. With Matty.
He looked at me then, as if he were trying to memorize me, memorize my heart. When he kissed me, his kiss was gentler than it had been. His lips were soft, but he would not be denied.
In that moment, I didn’t think I could deny him anything.
Reluctantly, Matty pulled away. “I have to go,” he said. “I don’t want to.”
I kissed his nose. “But you have to.”
He got up, pulling me with him. Wrapping his arms around my waist, he held me close, his chin on top of my head. I could hear his heart beating, and the warm smell of him enveloped me.
“I’ll see you later, Olivia,” he said.
With another kiss, he was out the door.
I stared at the door for a while, my hand twirling the end of my hair. How long I stood there, I didn’t know, but I jumped when there was a knock at the door. Without waiting for an answer, the door burst open to admit Jade and Thalia.
“Was that Matty Pearce I saw leaving?” Thalia asked.
“You still have all your clothes on!” Jade sounded disappointed.
“Of course I do,” I snapped. “This wasn’t a quickie before practice.”
“Those aren’t bad things, you know,” she countered.
“Well, no, I don’t know,” I said. “Not yet, anyway.”
“That needs to go on your bucket list,” Jade said.
“I’ll take that under advisement,” I replied as I rolled my eyes.
They left after teasing me some more, and I dragged myself over to my desk. Homework needed to be done, and I knew that after Thursday, after Iliana’s visit, I wouldn’t be good for anything.
With a sigh, I sat down and got to work.
Chapter Fourteen
On Thursday morning, the day Iliana was expected, I woke early. I didn’t know when she would show up, and I hadn’t called my parents to get details. I could have just popped into the dreamscape, since that was my go to these days, and asked Iliana herself, but something stopped me.
The last two nights, I’d been dreaming. I could see a tall man, cloaked in shadow. I couldn’t see his face, but I knew it was Marbys. The anger that rolled off him was palpable. He was furious.
And I could hear a voice, but it was as though the person speaking was behind a thick barrier, and only the strength of their voice allowed any noise at all to get through. I knew that was Marbys as well.
Why was he hanging out in my dreams?
That was one thing I planned to ask Iliana. She’d been with him—I couldn’t accept the idea that she might have loved him. That one pushed my level of belief too far. He was such a smarmy asshole. Iliana seemed too smart for his shit.
But regardless, he was supposed to be locked up. So why was he camped out in my dreams? I didn’t need this. I slipped on the ring before leaving my room. It seemed important that I wear it when I met her.
During breakfast, I wasn’t very talkative, and Jade and Thalia both patted my hand at various times. They knew who was coming to visit today.
Damn it, I thought as I walked into the third class for the day, Acquisition. Why can’t she just show up and put me out of my misery?
As if on cue, a student came in and handed a note to Professor Carlisle. He read it and looked up. “Olivia Washington? You need to go to the headmistress’ office.”
This meant I’d probably miss lunch, at this rate. Not that I could eat, but I felt a resentment at having no control in this whole damn mess at all.
I hurried to Madame Karathos’ office. Once there, and ignoring the weird statues, I knocked on the door.
“Enter,” I heard.
As I pushed the door open, I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. I couldn’t control how nervous I felt, along with everything else.
But only Madame Karathos sat at her desk. She was smiling at me. “Your guest has arrived. Per your parents’ request, I’ve put her in one of the small rooms off my office.” She pointed off to my left. “If you’ll walk down that hallway, it’s the third door on the right.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“Enjoy your visit,” she replied, and looked back down at whatever she was writing.
I took a breath and turned down the hallway. This was interesting—that there were a whole set of rooms that could be accessed without having to be out in the main hallway.
It suggested secrets and hidden things. None of which I looked on with any sort of favor.
At the third door, I took another breath, grasped the handle, and pushed open the door. The room had a small window which looked out onto the grounds at the back of the school and the forest in the distance. There was a round table, and five chairs around it.
Iliana stood at the window, a deep rust-colored cloak on her head. When I walked in, she turned around. After a moment, she lowered the hood.
“Close the door, Olivia,” she said. Her voice was deeper than I remembered, but it had a musical lilt to it.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hello. Thank you for meeting me.” She stopped and stared.
After a minute or two, I started to feel twitchy. “What?” I asked.
“The last time I remember really seeing you, you were but four months old. To see you now, a grown woman…” she stopped.
Oh, shit. Was she going to cry? Please, no.
She smiled, and I think it was the first time I’d ever seen her smile. Every other time I’d seen her, she’d been angry looking.
Iliana was beautiful. Her hair was as dark as mine, but in the light, there was a bluish sheen to it. Her eyes were blue, a dark, deep blue, darker than mine. But looking at her, there was no doubt that we were related. Even if I wanted to deny it, I couldn’t.
She was my mother.
“Please, will you sit down?” Iliana asked.
I sat in a chair across from her.
Carefully, Iliana eased into a chair. She still didn’t speak.
“Can I ask questions?”
She nodded.
“What is the deal with the stones?” Marbys had plagued me for months to find this stone, something he called Persephone’s Blood. When I found it, when Raven and I were pulled through the dreamscape to the underwater cavern, I couldn’t believe it. I thought he was full of shit and full-on crazy. But I’d held the stone in my hand, and it felt as though it were alive.
Iliana sighed. “Of all the things you could ask, I think that might be the most difficult of all to answer.”
“I didn’t know I was supposed to make this easy,” I said, unable to stop myself.
Iliana held out a hand. “Please be patient. I knew you would ask. The stone you found is called Persephone’s Blood because we are descended from the line of Persephone. Our family, the Karidias, has been the guardian of Persephone’s Blood. The responsibility of the stone passes from mother to daughter.”
“But it exploded, or whatever,” I interrupted. “I saw it. In the white light, when it touched the other two stones.” For a moment, I was back there, back in Hell, watching the poor little demon push the stones together even as they burned his fingers away.
“The other two stones, the Night Stone, and the Ocean’s Light, they are the responsibility of the other two leading siren families. It is our responsibility, and our curse.” She looked down, her fingers tracing patterns on the table. When she looked up, her eyes were blazing. “The gods cursed us, for being willing to sacrifice mankind. To that end, we were tasked with keeping the demons in Hell from overrunning the world.”
“Are you kidding me?” I asked.
“I wish that I was. The gods are not kind, Olivia. Remember that. They are focused on their own concerns, and everyone else either helps them, or is in their way.” Her face was hard, like stone. “We are their creations, but since we created a problem for them, we must suffer for it. And suffer we have.” Her voice broke on the last word.
“How?” I asked. The anger I’d felt toward her wasn’t here.
“The stones are what is referred to as the Arabethym Stones. Our family, the Karidias family, we are Persephone’s Blood. The Mantilae family, Kassandra’s family—she was the woman who was not awake—” she looked at me with a question on her face, asking if I remembered.
I nodded. I would never forget it. “Yes.”
“She is the Night Stone. And Aella, Raven’s mother, she is the Ocean’s Light. That is the part the Pelagos family plays in our curse.” Iliana sighed.
“Okay, what the hell is the curse? It’s time to stop talking like a history book, and tell me what is going on,” I said.
Iliana glared. “You need to learn manners.”
“And you need to learn to get to the point,” I snapped. “Please get to it.”
“The three siren families, the heads of all sirens, if you will, all bear the weight of the curse. It’s why we don’t go out among the rest of the world. You never know when you may be called on to play your part.” She looked away, and I could swear there was a sheen of tears in her eyes. She brushed at them angrily. “The worst part is that we must have children. Sirens only have daughters, Olivia, so that the curse can live on. We know what we are dooming our children to, but we must. And we cannot share this. The burden belongs to our families alone. The rest of the sirens will not be made to share this.”
“Why shouldn’t they?” I asked.
“They are already in a school, marked as criminals until proven otherwise,” Iliana looked at me sadly. “They are guilty from the moment of their birth. As are you. Is that what you want for others like you?”
A thin line of heat worked its way across my cheeks. It was shame. Deep, humiliating shame. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone else.
“They are not the focus at this point. The focus is that each of the three families has a daughter. And the daughter takes on the responsibility of the stone from her mother, at the right time.”
“What’s the right time?”
“That is where the problem comes in,” she began.
“What, this all isn’t a major clusterfuck?” I asked, leaning back with my hands out.
“There are clusterfucks, and then there are clusterfucks,” Iliana said, not missing a beat. “Our purpose, our job,” she sneered the word, “is to keep Marbys and his ilk in Hell. To do that, all three matrons must, at the same time, pass the keeping of the stone to their daughters.”
“Wait,” I held up a hand. “All six together at the same time?”
Iliana smiled again. “You are correct, Olivia.” She stopped. “You’re wearing the ring.” Her eyes glittered. It looked like tears.
“It feels right to wear it,” I said.
She visibly swallowed. “It should. It’s yours, part of your birthright.” She stopped again, and cleared her throat delicately. “Back to the stones. Getting all six of the women together has not happened but once or twice. And each time, one of the mothers or daughters was killed before the circle could be completed. So it continues. We have children and hope they don’t die. We try to gather the three mothers and daughters, so that we may pass on our responsibility and seal off Hell.”
“ Back up. I’m missing the whole dying bit,” I said. “Why do they die?”
“When you gave Marbys the stone, you gave him me,” she said. “In times of danger, each of the stone keepers know. We feel it, like an itch just at that place between your shoulders where you cannot reach. You know the one,” she smiled at me.
I felt a jolt of connection that I nearly missed in my shock.
“It goes away for a time, but until you scratch it, it will not disappear. That is the burden of a stone keeper.”
“You turn into a stone?” I asked in a whisper.
She nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving my face. “Yes. That is your job, your responsibility.”
I jumped up, pushing the table away. “I don’t want it! I don’t have to take this shit on! This is your problem, not mine!”
She didn’t move. “You are a Karidias, whether you like it or no. You can’t get around that,” she shrugged. “You don’t think all of us haven’t tried to shake off the yoke of this utter shit? You’re not original, you didn’t just invent being angry at your situation.” Each word, spoken in a stronger accent than I’ve heard from her any other time we’ve spoken, cuts like a knife. They are spoken without heat, with no anger, with very little expression at all. “And all the women before me who have had to see their mothers, or their daughters, killed, because a demon doesn’t want to be hemmed in. That’s why we can’t complete the circle. Someone always dies. The demons always find a way. Until now.” There are centuries of the women who came before her in her words.
“I… ah… “ I began.
Iliana held up a hand. “Put your chair back at the table, and sit down, Olivia.”
I sat.
“There are five of us, now. Marbys is confined. He is not confined forever, and we can’t kill him—”
“Then why are we doing this? I have to put up with him in my dreams again, and we can’t even kill him?” I slam my hand on the table.
And then I realize what I’ve just done. First, I told Iliana about my current bad dream issue. Second, and worse, I said ‘we’. I made this a ‘we’ thing. Which I vowed never to do, and in the first moment of stress, I completely fall apart. Oh, shit.
“We can banish him. It will keep him away from the world, from humans, from us, for the next millennium. We can do this, Olivia. But we need you. We will find the third daughter, and stop this endless cycle of death and misery.”
“You know what that means?” I ask. “That means everyone will know.”
“Know what?”
“That. I. Am. A. Siren.”
“Don’t forget the demon part,” Iliana added, pointing at me.
“Not helpful,” I ground my teeth to keep from screaming.
