Hunting Medusa: The Medusa Trilogy, Book 1 (24 page)

She shut her eyes and enjoyed the warmth he shared with her. The last of her shaking eased. “She won’t see it till later.” She opened her eyes, twisting to look up him.

“Is there anyone else who might know?”

She considered that for a moment, then slowly shook her head. “Aunt Lydia has been sort of the family matriarch since her mother died. If anyone knows, it’ll be her.”

“Then we should get our supper before they stop serving food.” He kissed her lightly.

Andi pushed to her feet, though her appetite had fled.

He touched her chin when he rose. “We’ll figure it out.”

She wanted to believe him. But it was just one more thing on top of so many things that were wrong in her life right now.

It seemed the only good thing she had was Kallan.

That thought startled her as she walked with him out of their room.

The man who’d come to kill her was now the best thing she had in her life.

How screwed up was that?

Chapter Ten

Kallan didn’t try to settle Andrea down as she paced their room. Not after the first attempt, anyway.

She kept looking at the computer as if willing her aunt to reply to her email. And it wasn’t working.

He glanced at the clock on the bedside table—one-thirty. A.M. Andrea should be exhausted by now after the day they’d had. But he could feel the nervous energy stirring around her, flowing from her into the room.

It was starting to make
him
feel unsettled. Add to that his own lingering unease about their brush at Culloden with one of his cousins… He wished he knew who it had been, and why they were there. It had to be a coincidence, but he didn’t like it.

When her email program finally chimed out that she had mail, she practically jumped onto the bed.

He stifled a smile, sitting up from his spot against the headboard to look.

Dearest Andi,

I’m doing just fine here. And I have to guess you’re doing the same wherever it is you’ve got off to. That relieves me greatly.

As for your earlier question, I’m afraid I don’t have any concrete answers for you, only guesses and none based on close personal experience or even family rumors.

The cup has been discussed as Medusa’s Goblet, a possible amulet, for many years, but no one has come right out and said so, at least not that I’ve heard about. Silly, if you ask me. Our Mother clearly knew what she was doing when she crafted her protection for us all those years ago. I have never heard of it changing colors before, though I can offer you some suggestions as to the meaning. Keep in mind, these are just supposition on my part.

The color could change as an indication of danger, though I’d imagine it might have changed color before now if that were the case. So I think you can rule that out.

I suppose it could change color after one has it in one’s possession a certain amount of time. Again, I’ve never heard of this happening, so who really knows? Annis never mentioned the cup at all after the initial discussion of her tattoo. I feel certain, however, that she would have said something if it had ever changed colors while she was alive, because she was horrified enough when she got it. I don’t believe ‘tenure’ would change the color.

It could also change color because of some emotional change in you. Extreme stress might contribute to a color change, as could something like a tragic loss in your life. It may even change color if you were to fall in love, though you would first have to meet a man for that to occur.

I can tell you it isn’t because you’ve gotten pregnant, as the only Medusa to ever give birth was our Mother. (And, again, you’d have to meet a man first.) I highly doubt anything minor could cause such a change, so anything little, like a slight illness or injury is unlikely the cause. I really have to believe that only something momentous would cause such a change.

I could continue to make guesses, darling Andi, but I have to admit to true ignorance. I simply do not know. Please try not to worry too much over it. Take very good care of yourself and stay safe. Please let me know if I can do anything to aid you.

Much love,

Lydia

Andrea’s shoulders slumped a little when she got to the end. “Well, it was worth a try.”

Kallan clenched his jaw to keep from saying the things rushing through his mind right now. Foremost was the voice wondering what color the cup would turn if she ever admitted her growing feelings for him. If she let that last wall tumble down. Because he had an idea that was the cause of the color change, just as her aunt had suggested.

She let out a long breath, rubbing her forehead. “I’m sorry I’ve been such a wreck tonight.” She looked over at him. “I didn’t mean to snap at you earlier, either.” She touched his forearm, sending curls of warmth along his veins.

He forced himself to relax and push thoughts of the chalice out of his head for now. “I think I can take it,” he said lightly.

She studied his face for a few seconds. “You’re tired. So am I.” She skimmed her fingers up his arm, almost absently. “We should get to sleep so we can catch the ferry in the morning.”

He wouldn’t disagree. Being on an island in the north Atlantic with no other Harvesters would make him feel a lot more relaxed. He shut down the laptop. “Did you set the alarm yet?” Best to keep this light now. She was still very disappointed with her aunt’s response.

She turned away to do so, her shirt riding up as she stretched over the bed to the alarm clock. All he could see were the flowers, but he knew the rest of her tattoo was there. Changed.

And he was certain he knew why.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know what to do about it. Or how that change could keep her safe from his family.

When she climbed into bed a few minutes later in nothing but her panties, he gathered her close and shut off the light, his brain too busy processing possibilities for him to sleep.

Andi noticed Kallan’s brooding over breakfast, but didn’t say anything. She’d done enough of her own brooding last night that she thought he was entitled to a little if he wanted. She peered into her teacup, swirling the residual leaves around in the tiny bit of liquid left. Maybe the tea leaves could help her. She smiled to herself as she finished the drink, then flipped the cup upside down on her saucer. She hadn’t read tea leaves since she was a teenager. It had always been more fun than anything else, but she knew some of her aunts took it very seriously.

He shot her a questioning glance.

She lifted one shoulder and picked up her fork to stuff a bit of fluffy scrambled eggs into her mouth while she waited for the cup to fully drain.

“We have forty-five minutes till the ferry goes,” he said after he finished a piece of sausage. “Is there anything you want to do in the meantime?” He held her gaze.

Heat slid into her belly at the intensity in his green eyes. “It’s too bad we checked out of the inn already,” she murmured.

He smiled for the first time all morning, and she relaxed a little. “Who needs a room for that?” He winked and stuck his fork into the fried potatoes on his plate.

She laughed, then flipped her teacup right-side up, peering into the scattered, soggy leaves.

A goblet shape was clear near the opposite rim. She tried to make her suddenly racing heart slow down. The amulet. But what did it mean here?

She frowned, taking a slow breath as she rotated the cup a little. Most of the tiny leaves had settled randomly, not forming any sort of shapes, though she did see a little scythe near the bottom of the cup—obviously a reference to the Harvesters in her life. When she’d turned the cup to the other side, a heart shape was also rather definite.

She shot a glance at Kallan, who was busy stuffing in his breakfast and seeming not to notice her consternation.

She forced herself not to frown, studying the formations. What relation did the cup and her heart have? Or the cup, the scythe and her heart?

She set the cup down and shifted her gaze to the window at her left, staring at the gray waves rolling onto the rocky shore and the matching gray sky. She couldn’t come up with anything that made any sort of sense. She let her mind drift, her focus shifting to the swooping birds over the water and hopping along on the rocks.

Still nothing.

She sighed and propped her chin on her hand.

“What’s wrong with your tea leaves,
agaph
?” He lifted his glass of orange juice to take a sip.

“Nothing.” Still, heat washed up her throat to her cheeks.

He picked up her cup before she realized his intent, and peered at the wet leaves stuck to the inside. “Mm, the amulet.” He slanted her a somber glance.

Her pulse beat too fast again.

He turned his attention back to her cup, rotating it first one way, then the other. Then his eyebrows shot up, and he lifted his gaze back to her face, which felt as if it were bright red. “Hm.”

She shut her eyes for a second. She knew she was going to regret asking, but the words rushed out before she could stop them. “What ‘hm’?” She looked at his shoulder instead of his face.

“Your heart.”

Reluctantly, she met his gaze again. “What about it?”

He shook his head, but it was clear he had some idea.

Andi hesitated. She didn’t know if she really wanted to hear it. No matter how tangled her own thoughts on the matter were, his were sure to be pointed and likely going in a direction she didn’t want to follow.

Kallan set her cup on the saucer. “Are you ready?”

She lifted one brow, watching him fold his napkin beside his plate and push his chair back. “Really? That’s it?”

He shrugged. “You clearly don’t want to hear it.”

She shoved her own chair back, frowning up at him now. “When has that ever stopped you before?”

A grim smile curved his lips. “Maybe I’ve learned a lesson or two along the way.” He put some money on the table and stuck out his hand.

Andi stared at his fingers for a few seconds, torn. She knew she might not want to hear his thoughts on the tea leaves. But she wasn’t sure she liked this either. Was she a coward for leaving it alone, or smart for not starting the discussion? How badly did she want to know his opinion? Badly enough to hear something unpleasant? Or should she not open that box of arguments? At least, not right now.

She put her hand in his, slowly, feeling only slightly better when his fingers wrapped around hers. His jaw was set when she looked up, and she had the awful feeling she’d just made the wrong choice.

The ferry left on time, and the crossing was rather smooth, considering the choppy waves Andi glimpsed from her seat inside. Kallan sat in silence for much of the trip, reading brochures he’d picked up at the ferry office, his expression calm. But every once in a while, when she snuck a peek at him, a muscle in his jaw jumped in aggravation.

She sighed and let her forehead rest against the cool glass. “Tell me.” She knew she was going to regret this as much as not asking. She shifted her gaze so she could see him from the corner of her eye.

His head shot up, his green eyes focusing on her. “What?”

“Tell me. About the tea leaves.” She swallowed at the intensity in his gaze.

“Just a theory.” He jerked one shoulder, but his expression was far from casual.

“Let’s hear it.” It shouldn’t be like pulling teeth, getting him to share this. Should it? Maybe he was still pissed she hadn’t wanted to hear it back at the inn’s restaurant.

He considered her for several long moments, as if gauging her sincerity. “I think it meant the future of the amulet is tied to your heart. To your emotions.”

She winced. “You don’t think it just meant if anything happens to stop the beating of my heart, like the little scythe at the bottom, the cup goes bye-bye, on to the next Medusa?” It made the most sense, she mused, as she’d been thinking of little else since they left the restaurant.

He shook his head. “No. I think it means your future is tied to both, but mostly to your heart.”

He was holding something back. She narrowed her eyes as she watched him. “And?”

He sighed. “Isn’t that enough?”

“You’re not done with that thought.”

“How do you know?”

She smiled a little. “We’ve spent how many days together now, twenty-four-seven? I think I might know a little bit about you by now.”

His expression relaxed a little. “What do you think you’ve learned about me?”

She tipped her head to one side, still studying him. “You’re thoughtful. I’m sure you planned every step out before you came to my house. Then when your plans went to hell, you didn’t just rush into something else, but stopped to consider the best course of action in the face of new facts.”

His beginning smile disappeared.

Andi’s smile widened. “I’m sure you’ve never lied to your family before, as you’re uncomfortable doing it now, despite the new situation.”

He remained stubbornly silent.