Betrayal Foretold: Descended of Dragons, Book 3 (9 page)

W
hen Gaspare arrived
, Forster, Bay, and I were sitting in the dining room. The French doors stood open and my mother sat on the dock with her back to the house. We had promised to visit, and we all put on positive faces as best we could. But we knew. We knew she wouldn’t be back.

“What?” Gaspare searched our faces. “What’s going on? What’s wrong?”

Bay opened her mouth to answer him, but I spoke first. “My mother wants to leave. To go back to the home where she raised me. Will you take her?”

“I…” he paused. “Yes. But she can’t come back. It’ll have to be a condition of her leaving. We’ve worked too hard to protect this place to leave any vulnerability.”

“I know,” I mumbled. “She knows.”

I led Gaspare to the dock, to my mother, and hugged her one last time before she left.

“I’m so proud of you, Stella.” Her eyes shined with unshed tears. “You’re just what I hoped you’d be. So strong.”

I smiled and squeezed her hands. “See you soon,” I said and regretted the words as soon as they escaped my mouth. There was no way to know when I’d see her again. But she had made her choice, and it wasn’t to stick it out with us—with me. I was thankful she had said good-bye this time, that she had attempted to explain, but she was abandoning me again, and it left a bitter aftertaste I didn’t think I’d ever be rid of.

Mother lifted a hand in a silent good-bye and I nodded my encouragement. Gaspare clasped her other hand, and the two disappeared. I closed my eyes against the pain that radiated deep in my chest.

Standing alone on a dock is a particularly solitary endeavor. I wouldn’t recommend it, unless isolation is your goal. I chewed the cuticle of my thumb and waited for Gaspare to return, growing ever more impatient and irritable. When he did return, I wasted no time getting to the heart of my most pressing concerns. “Did you check on Ewan today like you promised? Is he all right?”

“I did,” Gaspare said slowly. “I dropped by Radix and sought him out.”

“Did you tell him I’m okay?”

“I didn’t speak to him, no. I saw him gathered at Sabre Bar with the Redfern girl and some others.”

I was so angry about the situation, so frustrated, I could hardly breathe. “God, Gaspare. They think I’m dead. How can you think this is fair? How can you think it’s right?”

“It’s neither of those things,” he snarled. “I know that. But it
is
for the greater good.”

“‘The greater good,’” I repeated, then louder. “‘The greater good?’ I freaking hate the greater good, Gaspare, and if it causes a life filled with such misery, I really don’t see the point! Greater good for who? Not for me.”

He closed his eyes and shook his head wearily. “I know you can’t see it now, but we must all suffer a little sometimes to preserve what’s most valuable to us.”

My throaty laugh held no humor. “Oh, what have you suffered? I don’t see you suffering.”

He stiffened but didn’t respond directly to me. “Bay, Forster, do you two mind if I take Stella for a while? There’s someone I’d like her to meet.”

“O’ course not.” Bay said and turned to Forster. “Perhaps we could visit Rose while they’re gone.”

* * *

“
W
here are we going
?” I snapped at Gaspare. “Who do you want me to meet?”

“It’s a surprise.” He smoothed his white button-down shirt nervously before taking my hand to trace.

“I am sorry about your mother,” he said, holding my gaze. “And your friends.”
I nodded, twisting my mouth to keep it shut. I didn’t want to get into another argument with him.

Gaspare traced us to a square building just outside of town. Inside, wide hallways led to offices and roomy spaces filled with technical equipment, the purpose for which I couldn’t guess.

“What is this, some type of laboratory?”

“Yes, precisely. Just through here.” We rounded a corner and entered a lab that occupied the entire top floor of the building.

“Emelie?” he called to someone working behind a screen. She looked up and began removing a light blue lab coat and gloves as she walked toward us. She draped the coat and gloves neatly over a nearby stool and stopped near Gaspare, who beamed with delight and ran a hand around her petite shoulders.

“Stella, this is Emelie, my wife.”

Wife?
Wife
? When did he get a wife?
My dumbfounded face certainly betrayed my shock. They both laughed, and I was so thrown off base that I laughed awkwardly, too.

Emelie’s blonde hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, presumably for work. Her eyes were a lovely steel gray and her skin fair and flawless. She was strikingly beautiful in a very
au naturale
kind of way. In any kind of way, really.

“I take by your response Gaspare didn’t tell you about me before you arrived.” Her wide smile revealed pageant-caliber teeth.

“No. He didn’t.” I stared a moment longer and then located my manners. “I’m Stella.” I turned to Gaspare and shook my head. “Why would you hide her?”

“Hide? I don’t hide her.”

“Do the people of Thayer know you’re married?” I scoffed.

“No. I don’t make that public.”

“And why not?”

“Well, it’s complicated.”

“You insinuating I’m simple?”

“No! It’s just. Well, it’s a long story.”

“I don’t have dinner plans.”

“Oh, you’re right, Gaspare. I do like her,” Emelie said, laughing and flashing a brilliant smile. “She doesn’t let you have an inch!”

Gaspare looked back and forth between the two of us, satisfied pleasure practically leaking from his blue eyes.

“Fine,” he said. “We’ll tell you everything over dinner. At our house.”

“Ahhh,” I nodded playfully. “So that’s where you’ve been staying.”

* * *

E
melie and Gaspare’s
home was warm, lived-in, and lovely. She collected colorful blown glass and hand-woven wool blankets, among other things, and placed the treasures strategically throughout each room. I admired the collections, making small talk as she prepared a pasta salad in the kitchen.

Gaspare had run to Thayer for business, but was expected to return within the hour.

“Where did you and my uncle meet?” I asked.

Her face lit at the thought. “Here. My family relocated during the war.” Emelie’s steel eyes darkened a bit when she said, “Gaspare helped us escape after my father was killed. My mother and brothers and I fought as long as we could. I was badly injured—would have lost my good sword arm if my true nature hadn’t helped me regenerate.” She winked and showed off a perfectly healthy arm.

“Regenerate? Is your animal form a lizard or a starfish or something?”

“Lizard? No.” Emelie threw her head back and laughed, and then caught sight of Gaspare as he entered the kitchen.

He kissed her sweetly on the mouth. “Emelie’s a skin changer. Her family was one of those targeted during The Massacre because they were different from the general public. I knew her father, and when I heard of his death, I offered Pearl as sanctuary. They flatly refused, set on avenging him. I fell in love with Emelie the moment I saw that angelic face turn to steel. She fought with such fervor, such skill. I was afraid not just for her, but of her.”

I looked dubiously at Emelie’s petite shape, at her sweet face and unassuming demeanor.

“What, you don’t believe me?” Gaspare asked.

I shook my head.

“It’s true. She’s tough as nails.”

Emelie shrugged, grinning, and went about her salad making.

“So how did you finally talk her family into relocating to Pearl?” I asked, and immediately noticed the change in her mood.

“My brother died next,” she said, her bright eyes dulling at the tragic memory. “His loss, coupled with my father’s, was just too much. We agreed to come to Pearl for my mother.”

“I’m sorry.” I was saying that far too much lately. The more I learned of Thayer, the more I understood it wasn’t the Utopia Rowan Gresham had made it out to be when he sold me on the idea. Thayer was plagued with prejudice and bigotry, with violence and death and loss. I was beginning to think no place was perfect; that maybe the world I came from was just as good in its own way.

“It was a long time ago,” she said.

“So your ancestry, the fact you’re a skin changer, is why you’re here now instead of Thayer? Is that why you never introduced her to Thayer, Gaspare?”

Gaspare shook his head. “Not exactly,” he said.

“Time to eat,” Emelie announced, and we moved our conversation to the dining room.

“When Gaspare brought you to meet me, you saw my lab.”

I nodded.

“I understand you and I share a love of science. Genetics, specifically, is my passion. I’ve been working on something for a very long time. It’s important to me, but wouldn’t go over well in Thayer. I could go back to Thayer, though it would affect Gaspare’s approval ratings,” she said with a wink. “But I choose to remain in Pearl for my work. And of course, Gaspare must remain PM for all of our safety. There’s never a guarantee that the next leader will be one of the good guys, you know?”

I nodded my agreement, though I knew very little about the politics of Thayer. I’d not thought much about it. I knew leadership was determined by who held the most power, rather than by election. I supposed Gaspare’s successor could be a really powerful bad guy. Yes, I could see the dilemma.

Emelie had continued to talk while I considered the political landscape. “…we remain separated, for now at least. It’s not so bad. Tracing makes everything easier. He pops in and out, and I sometimes join him in his private quarters at the PM residence.”

An embarrassed but mischievous smile spread across her face. “We were caught once by the butler.”

Gaspare’s burst of laughter made me that much more curious. “What happened?”

“Gaspare put on like I was a prostitute! Like I was there for services rendered. We laughed about that for days. We’re still laughing about it!”

“Poor Hamilton,” Gaspare shook his head and wiped his eyes.

“Well, what are you working on? What’s so important?” I asked.

She looked to Gaspare, who nodded his encouragement. “I’ve worked all these years to find a way for children to be possible for interspecies couples.”

“No kidding,” I breathed. “That’s amazing. Something like that has the potential to change…everything. Are you close to finding an answer?”

“Sadly, no. But I continue my work. I have to.”

I nodded, my mind racing at the implications of such a discovery. If she found a way, Boone and Timbra could have children someday. Would that make the current stigma of marrying outside one’s species better…or worse? I didn’t know, but I did know the two deserved every chance at happiness.

“How do you like Pearl so far, Stella?” Emelie asked. “Gaspare tells me you’ve met Forster and the Tremaines, and done some exploring.” She leaned toward me and laid her hand on top of mine, her gray eyes sympathetic. “I know you’re not thrilled to be here, but I hope you’ll give it a chance. You’ll not find better people anywhere, and the island is, literally, a tropical paradise.”

I nodded but didn’t say anything.

“This may not be ideal,” she went on, “but you have an opportunity for a fresh start, to pursue anything you’ve ever desired. You could throw yourself into astronomy, if you like. Pearl is ideal for an observatory.”

“Actually,” I looked at Gaspare and Emelie, both so eager to please me. “What I’d really like to do is learn everything I can about my abilities. About magic, about being an omni.”

“I’d love to help you with that,” Gaspare began. “We can continue what we started back in Thayer. It may take a while, but you’ll get there.”

I rocked my head from side to side while I searched for the right words. I had to tread lightly not to hurt his feelings. “Well, I really think I need a crash course, something intensive. And you just don’t have time for that. Forster mentioned someone he thought could help me.”

He didn’t seem too wounded when he asked, “Who’s that?”

“Someone named Abia Pike?”

Emelie drew her mouth back in a knowing grimace, but Gaspare was, as always, cool. He’d learned to school his reactions and rarely betrayed any physical signs of his true feelings. But at the mention of Abia Pike’s name, his eyes widened for an infinitesimal moment, hinting at some great secret or inner turmoil.