Hunting Medusa: The Medusa Trilogy, Book 1 (27 page)

The whirlwind rushed through them in only minutes, leaving them panting and sweaty along the wall.

Andrea started giggling again.

Kallan grinned into her hair, struggling to catch his breath. “Yes?”

“Wow.” She still trembled with aftershocks, and with the uncontrollable giggles.

Before he knew it, he was laughing with her, and they’d tumbled to the floor, tangled together.

A long time later, while she hiccupped with residual giggles, he slid his hand over the top of her damp head, drawing her nearer. “Goddess, I love you,” he managed.

“I love you too,” she whispered, then froze in his arms.

Kallan grinned anew and leaned away far enough to see the horror-struck expression on her face. That just made him grin wider. “I know.” He kissed her hard and fast and pulled her closer.

It took several minutes more for her to relax against him again, but at last, she sighed and the tight muscles in her neck eased under his fingers.

Now if he could figure out how to get rid of the threat his cousins posed, they could spend the rest of their lives together.

He shut his eyes, feeling some of that tension gathering in him now. That was a tall order.

Andi sat at the tiny round table in the tea shop, staring at the targes on the shelf around the top of the wall, at the other tourists crowding the room. Kallan sat opposite her, looking very male in this very feminine sort of place. Except for those shields.

“What’s wrong?” His tone was patient, as it had been for the last few days whenever she’d withdrawn.

She frowned at the targe with the nasty four-inch spike sticking out from its center. “I hate running away.” The idea never went away, especially now since she seemed to have made up her mind to deal with her other emotions.

Kallan touched the back of her hand on the table.

She met his eyes, guilt tightening in her belly. He’d done so much to keep her safe, and she felt ungrateful at the same time she knew she had to go back and stand her ground.

He tipped his head to one side, and her gaze caught on his shiny hair. It was longer now than when he’d first arrived at her house with his vacuum, and it felt amazing on her skin—as she’d been reminded last night when he knelt between her thighs in the very posh hotel room where they now stayed.

She gave herself a little shake. The memory was a distraction she didn’t want right now, though heat had already started curling into her belly.

“You know why.” Still patient.

“If it was just you, would you have gone halfway around the world?”

He frowned. “No.”

She took a slow breath. “You would have stayed to fight, right?”

He opened his mouth.

“If you tell me it’s because you’re a man, I’m going to pour my tea over your head,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him.

He shut his mouth.

Andi rubbed one hand over her forehead. “I don’t want to argue with you, Kallan,” she said after a moment. “But I need to go back. To defend myself. I’m the keeper of the goblet, so it has to be me.”

“And if Stavros is still there?” His jaw clenched.

“If I time it just right, he won’t be a threat anymore.” She’d considered it. If they went back at exactly the right time and his cousin was still camped at her house, she could just turn him to stone.

“And the rest of them?”

Yeah, that part she hadn’t worked out. She sighed and put her chin in one hand. “I know. And they won’t all be courteous enough to come when I can make Harvester statues out of them.”

One corner of his mouth lifted.

“But I can’t spend the rest of my life running away, Kallan. I don’t believe you can either.”

His faint smile disappeared, and she knew she’d hit her mark.

She made her tone gentler. “We need a new plan.”

He looked away, a muscle jumping in his cheek.

She turned her hand under his and caught his fingers with hers. His were warm and, after a second, he gave hers a squeeze and turned to face her.

“All right.” He didn’t look happy about it, though.

Her heartbeat slowed down a little bit.

“But we have to make sure it’s going to keep you safe. Or I won’t agree to it.”

She nodded slowly, feeling an ache in her chest. “Okay.”

He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. “Can we drink our tea in peace now?” he asked gruffly.

Andi made her lips curve into a smile, hoping it reached her eyes. “Yes.”

Kallan kept her hand in his while they finished their tea and sandwiches, and she forced herself to focus on the present rather than the very uncertain future.

That would come soon enough.

Kallan kept his senses open as they wandered through the city over the next few days. Andrea had been quiet after he agreed to come up with a plan for her to return home to fight his family. Nothing he’d thought up so far would work, however. There were too many things he couldn’t control.

Starting with his cousins.

Stavros had evidently given up on her returning to Maine, as his latest posts to the family site said he was traveling along the eastern coast, hoping to pick up a trail.

Kallan wasn’t sure he believed that. Stavros was holed up somewhere coming up with his own plan. And Goddess help Kallan if Stavros had somehow discovered he was with Andrea.

He realized they’d stopped walking, and Andrea was looking into a store window. He smiled when he saw what had caught her eye: swords.

He leaned nearer. “You know those aren’t sharp, right?”

She slanted him a dark glance. “Yet.”

He laughed. “Which one has you so enthralled?”

She bit her lip, looking from one blade to another. “None in particular,” she said finally, dragging her gaze back to his face. “I’m just thinking ahead.”

“You really are a bloodthirsty woman, aren’t you?” he murmured against her ear.

“You know it.” She winked up at him and started walking again.

He let her drag him along, though now his mind turned to weapons. He had a stash of his own back in the States. Surely there was something in it she could use besides her dagger, which was intended for close combat, and he’d really rather she didn’t get into that.

“Have you looked at the amulet lately?” he asked suddenly, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk.

She swung around to face him, startled. “No, why?”

“Just wondering what color it is now.” He hadn’t looked at it since her whispered declaration, when it was a blush pink.

She shrugged. “I wasn’t really worried about it, I guess.” A wry smile curved her lips. “Do you think it matters? As long as it’s still there?”

He shook his head. “No, I suppose it doesn’t.” Though he thought he’d still like to know the reasons for the color shifts.

He thought he might take a peek later.

He was leaning in to kiss her when his inner sensor started shrieking an alarm. Another Harvester was nearby,
much
closer than when they’d been at Culloden.

He put his arm around her and started walking more quickly, guiding her away from their hotel.

Andrea didn’t argue, though some of the color left her cheeks when she understood what was happening, and she moved faster too.

After several minutes of the other Harvester keeping pace with them, Kallan started jogging. Andrea let him lead the way, locking her fingers tight around his as they wove around tourists and locals alike for ten minutes. He felt his cousin getting closer, making Kallan break into a run, sweat sliding down his back. A few minutes later, their pursuer eased back, tempting Kallan to slow as well. He didn’t, though his lungs ached and Andrea panted beside him. And in another moment, his cousin closed in again. Kallan sprinted faster, panic rushing along his veins as he dragged Andrea with him.

It took another ten minutes before his level of alarm dropped drastically, and he slowed his pace a bit so they could catch their breath. Whichever cousin happened to be in Edinburgh had stopped following them—though Kallan wondered now if it really was a coincidence that they’d had two brushes with his cousins. Or was it just one cousin? “He’s not close anymore,” he muttered. And he wondered why.

Still, he did a circuitous little walk around several more blocks before he steered Andrea away from the residential area they’d run into and flagged down the first cab he saw. Once they’d driven half a dozen blocks, the other Harvester wasn’t near enough to sense at all.

When they walked back into their hotel room, Andrea dropped into a chair by the window and folded her arms on her chest. “We need to figure out a plan. Now.”

He sat on the foot of the bed and covered his face with his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. She was right—running away sucked. And if running didn’t get them away from his family, there wasn’t any point in it.

But running back would get her killed.

“Let me see the amulet.” He lifted his head.

She cocked an eyebrow, but pushed out of the seat and tugged her shirt out of the waist of her jeans, moving toward him.

He unbuttoned her jeans and eased the zipper down, then turned her around.

The cup was pure white.

He pushed her shirt up and her jeans down so he could see the entire tattoo.

Nothing else had changed, not the snake or the flowers. Just the damned cup.

He touched it, skimming his finger over the rim of it. Heat flared immediately, and he pulled his finger away. Then touched the stem of the goblet. Same thing.

“I don’t understand.” He let her shirt fall down, covering the tattoo.

“What color is it now?” She moved away, to twist around in front of the mirror over the dresser. “Oh.” Her eyes rounded. “Maybe I should email Aunt Lydia again. Maybe she’s had time to do a little digging.” She turned away from the mirror to meet his gaze.

“Perhaps.” He knew there was nothing in the lore the Harvesters had collected over the centuries that mentioned the amulet changing colors. Always, it was gold.

Of course, none of their lore mentioned it residing in the Medusa’s skin either.

He shook his head. It meant something. It had to. He just wasn’t looking for the answer in the right place. Or perhaps he simply didn’t have access to the right information.

Andrea pulled his laptop out of his bag and booted it up before she rearranged her clothing.

“Hey, I wasn’t done,” he teased.

She sent him a lingering look that made his pulse beat faster. “You’ll have to wait, big boy. We have work to do.”

It didn’t take her long to fire off the email to her aunt, and then she started searching online for clues to amulets changing colors.

Hours. She spent hours searching and coming up empty. No one’s mythology made any mention of this ever happening. By the time she gave up and rose to pace, her frustration had ratcheted up the tension in the room to a palpable level.

Kallan heard her email program chime for new mail and caught her wrist when she walked past him again. “Mail,
meli
.”

She forced a smile for him, then sat, turning the laptop to face her. She tapped on the keys, bringing up her aunt’s reply.

Dearest Andi,

How lovely to hear from you again. It’s nice not to worry, and if you’re filled with questions, then you must be in good health. That makes me very happy.

As for the amulet… I find it most interesting it has changed colors multiple times now. I’m not sure what the progression of colors means, however. I do not think, though, that the color change indicates any drop in the level of protection. Our Mother created it long ago and intended it to be permanent, so that shouldn’t be a worry.

I truly wish I could be more helpful, dearest girl. Please stay safe and touch base with us when you can.
 

Much love,

Lydia.

Andrea dropped flat onto the bed, growling and glaring at the ceiling.

He moved the laptop away and stretched out on his side next to her. “It was a long shot,” he reminded her.

She shut her eyes. “I know. But I keep hoping someone will know. I think we need to know why.”

He agreed, but telling her that now wouldn’t help, so he kept his mouth shut.

Instead, he lifted one hand to stroke away the worry lines on her brow. “Now what?”

“I need a break from the searching. Going about it blindly is no good. I need to think of some way to target it better.” She opened her eyes and turned her head slightly to look at him. “Thank you.”

He smiled. “You’re welcome. Are you hungry? You’ve been at this forever, and I think it’s after suppertime.” It was hard to tell with the summer sun still shining brightly in the window.

She inhaled, considering. “I’m a little hungry.” She met his gaze again, hers darkening. “I know a really good way to work up a fantastic appetite, though.”