Ember's Curse (Prime Wolf) (12 page)

She unzipped her purse and pulled out a tube of lipstick. When she finished flawlessly applying it to her lips without help from a mirror, she twisted it closed and looked at me. "Well?" she asked impatiently. "Am I in sudden need of a million SPF Sunblock?"

"Get your facts straight, Vampire Barbie. You can't look behind you while leaving the underworld...that has nothing to do with water," Nathan said.

She stuck her tongue out at him in response and said between chuckles, "Shut up, Fido."

I quickly tried to figure out a way to explain to her why I made such a strange request. I wasn't allowed to tell her that if she happened to make eye contact with a water nymph, she would be under its spell within seconds, completely hypnotized and a slave to its whims. Not to mention, if someone that I brought sees one of them...yeah, you guessed it, I would have broken the pact. I shivered at the thought of both possibilities.

"I can't tell you why, Harper. I just really need all of you to trust me on this one."

Brady backed up slowly. His face flushed red and then it completely washed out, leaving it so pale it was almost blue. "Are you alright?" I asked him. He shook his head vigorously. He continued to back up until he was stopped short by the truck. "Wha...wha, what is that?" he asked, pointing towards the lake. I followed the line of his finger and almost yelped.

Everyone else turned and looked at the same spot with confused expressions.

"What are you talking about, dude? There is nothing there," Milo said.

Boy was he wrong. There was most certainly someone there.

"Get back in the truck now!" I yelled. "Roll up the windows and lock the doors. Don't look anywhere but at each other."

The tone of my voice must have been warning enough because, before I could check to see if they had complied, I heard the doors to the truck slam shut.

I'm not leaving you out here alone, Ember.

I know...it's okay. Is she allowing you to see her?
I asked Collin.

Yeah, I see her. Who is she?

With a graceful stride, a beautiful nymph stalked towards us. She had light brown hair that draped in waves to her knees. Her auburn streaked locks were as dry as a bone, even though she had just emerged from the water. She was cloaked in a sheer ice blue material. The dress molded to her body and fanned out behind her in several mini trains. She was breathtaking; it hurt my eyes to fully take her in. If there were such a thing as too beautiful, Orea would be the embodiment of it.

She is Orea...The Queen of the Hydriads, and she isn't very happy with me, Collin.

I extended my arm behind me and made a pushing gesture for him to stay back.

"She-wolf," Orea said, addressing me in a cool tone. "You have done me and my people a grave dishonor tonight." She clucked her tongue and then slightly tilted her head to the side while her expression remained neutral.

"Does your pack wish to break oath with me?"

Immediately, I began to shake my head no. I then did something that only a few people have ever lived through; I made complete eye contact with her. The queen’s silver orbs swirled hypnotically. I tried to pinpoint an exact color, but every time a flash of green or even brown would surface, a swirl of silver would wash over in its place. I cleared a lump in my throat and measured my words carefully before I answered her.

"No Orea, we do not wish to break oath," I said respectfully. "If it so pleases you, may I ask you a question in turn?"

I went over my words a few times in my head to make sure I addressed her properly. I was already on thin ice, and I hadn't a clue why. I didn't want to fuck things up more by misspeaking.

"I seek only answers here, Wolf," she hissed. In a flash, her face transformed into something serpent like. Her pupils turned to black slits and a thin, forked tongue slashed out of her mouth. I blinked and her beautiful mask was back in place. My inner wolf growled in response but I caught the sound of it in my throat and forced it back down.

Orea stared at me for a moment and then said, "I will allow you one question."

I didn't hesitate. Even though my question was simple, I really needed to know the answer. It was imperative to fix whatever damage I had inadvertently caused.

"What was my offense?" I asked.

From here on out all I could do was answer the queen’s questions. If I didn't answer them to her satisfaction, well then to quote Brando, I'd be ‘sleeping with the fishes’. All of us would be.

"What is the second rule in the oath your pack made to me all those centuries ago, child?"

Well this answer was easy. Those rules had been drilled into every wolf’s head even before they could talk.

"Never bring humans to the island," I said automatically.

"So you are familiar with the rule then, yes?"

"Yes," I answered her. What in the world could she be getting at? I thought.

"Then tell me, She-wolf. Why is there one in our midst?" she asked sternly.

Orea lifted her arm with a grace only a true ruler could deliver and swirled her fingers in three slow circles in the air. She then pointed to the lake. The still water began to ripple and a wave of light flashed over the surface. It was almost blinding. When my vision cleared, I spotted the tops of three heads emerging from the water. Their faces were as white as a porcelain doll’s with lips as blue as a cerulean sky. All of them had hair the lightest of blonde. The nymphs slid out of the water, their naked bodies shined from the light beaming underneath them, and then it began to slowly recede. When they finally stood on dry land, the light was gone.

"Bring me the human," Orea ordered at her subjects, and without hesitation, the three nymphs walked gracefully in the direction of Collin’s truck.

"There aren't any humans with us," I exclaimed.

I felt panic begin to build up inside of me. I took several short breaths to try to calm myself down. Nobody in that vehicle could defend themselves from the predators that were heading their way.

Orea looked at me and shook her head in disapproval. "Are you going to add lies to your list of wrong doings as well?"

I tried to listen to what she was saying. It was actually the wisest course of action, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the nymphs. They were closing in on the truck quickly and I was forced to do nothing but watch and see how things were going to play out.

I couldn't tell the three beings apart from one another. They positioned themselves in front of the truck. All three stood in calm identical poses. Their arms were outstretched in front of them, palms out. They began to slowly open their mouths and a whistling hum escaped from between their lips. The sound was everything and nothing at all. It rang in my ears with shallow purpose, it was not meant for me. That hypnotic melody spun from the lips of the Hydriads was focused solely on the truck’s occupants.

One by one, my friends exited the truck. Their faces held no trace of emotion while their bodies moved mindlessly. It was a scary sight to behold. They were being completely controlled by the lulling hum. When they reached the triplets, their bodies jerked to a stop. In unison, the nymphs took a step forward. The song continued to flow from their lips and their straight, lithe arms remained in front of them. They had only one person in their sights now. One of them waved a hand in front of Harper’s face and she fell to the ground. The remaining two proceeded to follow suit until only the person that Orea claimed to be human remained standing. Two of the nymphs took hold of each one of his arms and led him, behind their sister, over to us.

"The human as you requested, my queen," the pale creatures said together as if using one voice. It seemed like they did everything in tandem. It was really creepy.

"I don't understand," I said to Collin, who was now standing right up against me. He grabbed my hand and pulled me even closer. With a hardly hidden fear in his eyes, he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Oh my God, Ember...she is right."

"What your mate has just realized, too late I must add," Orea began to say while she placed her hand on Brady’s face. She lightly traced over his cheek and then pinched his chin between two elegantly long fingers and proceeded to stare into his vacant eyes. "Your friend here hasn't fully transitioned yet...therefore, he is still half human."

"You have got to be kidding me," I said, shaking my head. "I had no clue that there was an in-between state. I would never have brought him here had I known."

"Even if what you say is true, it still doesn't change the fact that the oath has been broken this night, foolish girl."

The sisters pulled Brady back to them. They nodded their heads at the queen as if in answer to a silent order, and then walked away.

"Where are you taking him?" Collin’s voice boomed with authority. "He is in my custody and has to answer to our laws before you can detain him."

Collin! Are you nuts? No one talks to the queen that way and lives!

I felt a tight squeeze around my hand. It was Collin gripping it firmly. I had forgotten we were still holding hands.

Trust me, Darling. She is the queen of her water world. But remember, I am also the equivalent of a king in mine.

"You dare question me, Alpha?" Orea asked. Her words trickled out softly. I could feel the beginning of an even deadlier song than the one before, welling up from between her lips.

I fell immediately to the ground on one knee. I had to get her attention off of Collin before he got us all killed, even if it meant going against the very dominant wolf seething with anger inside of me. Therefore, with a bowed head, I quickly stammered, "He doesn't understand our rules’ Your Majesty. Please keep that in mind."

"You show great restraint, She-wolf. Maybe you're not as foolish as I had first thought…unlike your mate."

An eerie silence filled the air around us. All I could hear were the soft even breaths of my glamoured friends several feet away from me, sprawled out on the ground, and the slow beat of Collin’s heart. Somehow, he was keeping it together. I couldn't say the same for myself.

Orea looked over at Collin with piercing eyes. A small muscle in her cheek twitched. It was a slight movement, barely noticeable, but I noticed it. Maybe she wasn't as unshakeable as I'd initially thought. It made me wonder what could possibly have her on edge.

"Protocol does state that leaders of certain...shall we say "groups" have to follow specific guidelines when dealing with each other. I will give you that, Alpha," she said with a smirk.

"But what makes you so confident that I wouldn't just clean up this little mess myself? No one would be the wiser."

I sure hope you know what you're doing, Collin,
I sent to him in warning.

There is only one way to find out. It doesn't seem like we have a choice anyways.

Your confidence is inspiring.

Woman, just let me concentrate.

I growled in response to his last message. I just hoped we lived long enough for me to make him pay for that chauvinistic tone later.

Collin jumped from our private conversation right back into the one he was having with Orea. I growled silently to myself with more promises of retribution, as I watched his face change from casual observance to one filled with boyish charm.

"Orea," he said with a devilish smile, "I'm sure we can work something out so that we're all satisfied with the outcome. There is no need to butt heads over an unintentional slight."

The queen tapped her index finger on her cheek. She stared off into the distance while deep in thought. She held that pose for a moment and then a smile slowly crept across her face.

"I propose a trade," she said, "I have been guardian of this lake for almost 500 years. In three months’ time, our world will be open to the Dark Plain. We will be overrun by vampires; the sheer number would be staggering. I could use your help."

Without waiting for an answer, Orea walked over to the edge of the water. She knelt down and dipped her hand into it and then closed her eyes. Silver lashes that fanned over the edges of her cheekbones gave way to two solid tears, one from each eye. They slid down her pale face and landed with a soft 'plop' into the water. "I am Orea, Queen of the Hydriads," she began to chant in a low tone. "As it is my right, I call upon the element of water. In return for your favor, I give freely my soul tears."

The water rippled out in small circular waves, from where the tears had landed. The ground beneath my feet started to shake; it sent small tremors up my legs. With her free hand, Orea started to draw designs with the tip of her index finger, over the water’s surface. I couldn't make out what she was drawing. As soon as she finished swirling a design, the water would wash it away. The earth shook a second time but this quake was stronger. I fell against Collin and he quickly grabbed hold of me and drew me securely against him.

Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut after all,
he said.

No, this is something else entirely. I have only heard about this through pack legend, it's just like my grandmother described it.

I could feel Collin dive into my mind and begin to rifle through my memories. When he found, and played back, the one where I was told about the original oath between Orea and my pack, he pulled back out. He then let out a heavy breath; he now knew what was going on.