Of Water and Madness (16 page)

Liam stared hollowly at the door, his mind empty of all thoughts even as his heart shriveled miserably into the shadows.

They wandered down into the courtyard, heading toward the oak tree in the meadow so Stella could go back to New Orleans. Liam had his hand in hers, and a sense of contentment in his mind. His eyes were glued to her face, as if he couldn’t bear to look away.

She’s so beautiful…so perfect…I think I love her.

“I love you.” He spoke the words, his mind pleased and at ease but his heart shuddered, knowing it was a lie.

Stella smiled up at him, and her cornflower blue eyes honed in on his, drawing him in. “Good. That sounded very believable.”

They continued to walk, and when Stella began to ask him questions, he answered without hesitation.

“So the older Earth and Fire Dryads don’t get along?”

“Nope,” he began, the words tumbling out of his mouth as his brain scanned through all the facts. He didn’t even realize what he was saying, he only knew that there were fingers probing around in his mind, feeling around for all angles of the situation, so nothing would be left undisclosed. “It all started years ago when Brock was dating the Muse, Serendipity, and then she left him for Rohan, who was Brock’s best friend at the time. Then, more recently, Serendipity had an affair with Brock, and now Rohan and she are separated. But neither Rohan nor Brock have ever forgiven each other for what happened.”

“Interesting,” Stella mused, tapping her lower lip with her fingertips. “And what’s the story on Brock and your friend Blythe? Any tension there?”

“She thinks he doesn’t spend enough time with her, and too much time with his ex-wife, her mother.”

“And the Earth girl and her parents? Are there any conflicts there?”

“A lot.” Liam had a flashing memory of Rohan’s face, filled with vile hate, before it disappeared. “Since Rohan discovered that his wife was cheating on him, he’s left her, leaving Rhiannon in the middle. Serendipity has been trying to get Rohan back, unsuccessfully. What’s worse is that Serendipity arranged for Rhiannon to marry this guy, Michael, who was murdered. Serendipity blamed Rhiannon, and schemed with Michael’s father to kill her.”

“My, oh my.” Stella smiled lushly as she digested all the information he’d given her. “What about the Air girl, is there any dirt on her that I should know?”

“Capri is marrying the Fury, Rian, in a few days,” he said immediately, the words coming from the knowledge in his mind even as the suspicion in his heart flourished.

“Good, I’ll be your date,” Stella decided as they stopped in front of the oak tree. She turned to face him with a triumphant smile. “Until then.”

She met his eyes and held them, unblinking, and he felt the misty fog inside his head thicken until he was nearly dizzy from it. Then she leaned up to kiss his cheek, and before she pulled away she whispered softly in his ear.

“You’ll miss me, Liam. You won’t think of anything but my face, my smile, my voice…my eyes. You love me and you don’t care what anyone else thinks.”

She stepped back and touched the tree, repeating the words he’d instructed her to use to get back to New Orleans. He stood there, numb from head to toe, lost inside himself as he watched her disappear in a flash of gold light.

And emblazoned in his mind was the image of her face, her blue eyes gleaming with ethereal power.

In the dark shadows of a Creole flavored dive bar buried deep in the French Quarter of New Orleans, they sat back with a glass of aged bourbon and toasted their success.

“To the loveliest southern belle ever to walk the Earth.” Dante’s lips curved as he eyed his companion, showing a glint of perfectly straight teeth in a smile that was as wicked as it was charming.

Stella held up her glass, her stunning blue eyes shining with victory and pure feminine mystery. “You were right, that boy was putty in my hands. And such a treasure trove of information…”

Tossing back his glass of bourbon, Dante let out a laugh and waved to the waiter for another. “I knew the moment I saw him that he was the key,” he told her, his golden eyes glinting with the thrill of success as he reached for her hand, holding it in his own. “But you, darling, are invaluable.”

Stella tilted her head and eyed him seductively, her tongue sliding along her upper lip in pure suggestion. “I feel we offer each other so much, Dante. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you, after all.”

“No, my sweet. Without me you’d still be in Hell.” Dante leaned in to capture her mouth with his, the hand that held hers clenching tight as his other hand came around to pull at her hair and hold her against him. She didn’t mind the pain…in fact, she thrived on it.

“God, that boy’s pathetic kisses compare nothing to yours,” she groaned, her free hand raking nails down his chest as she bit his lip hard enough to nearly draw blood.

Dante chuckled, releasing her as their eyes met, enjoying the violent passion as much as she did. “Just a little bit longer, darling, and then we will have it all.”

She smiled and downed the rest of the bourbon in her glass, the bite of it sending a pleasant shiver down her spine. She played with the empty glass in her hands, watching the light play over the crystal.

“Thea didn’t even recognize me,” she said, her eyes filled with glee. “I’ll admit, I was a bit worried. But she said nothing.”

“She is most likely suspicious,” Dante reasoned, thanking the waitress who brought him a fresh drink. His brows furrowed as he took a sip. “But nothing about you is as you once were, not physically, at least.”

“They’re such fools.” Stella laughed, loud and vibrant, the memory of their skepticism toward her darkly humorous. “They kept checking their stupid little devices to see if I was a demon. Damn fools.”

Dante grinned. “Darling, they would never in their wildest dreams consider the possibility that you were one of them.”

“As I said, damn fools.” Stella rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair, bad memories haunting her mind. “But then again, it’s been over one hundred years since I lived under Thea’s burdensome rules. She never let me do things my way.”

Bitterness clouded her eyes and she scowled at him when he laughed at her. “When you get your kicks waging wars between men simply by persuasion, of course peace loving Thea is going to banish you.” He leaned in, reaching over to cup her face, desire and madness flickering with the greed in his eyes. “But I…I am like you. I live for violence, for bloodshed and tears. I want nothing more than to watch them all burn. And with you in my corner, darling, our power knows no bounds.”

Stella’s lips curved into a wicked smile. “In a fortnight, it all falls down. We’ll make it burn, Dante. And then we’ll dance in the flames.”

“Don’t be stupid,
you’re not walking with him,” Blythe huffed, looking annoyed and restless as she waited beside Rhiannon just inside the atrium doors. In her hands was a bouquet of white cabbage roses.

Rhiannon smoothed out the skirt of her bridesmaid dress with her free hand, her own bouquet in her other as anxiety and nerves raced up her spine. “You are the maid of honor, and therefore you walk with the best man. I’ll be fine.”

“Damnit, who cares?” Blythe asked in a loud whisper, not wanting anyone to hear them. “I’ll walk with Liam, and you can walk with Brogan. No one’s even gonna notice.”

Rhiannon rolled her eyes. “It will mess up the order at the altar, Blythe, how can you not see that?”

“So we make it work once we’re up there, no big deal.” Blythe grabbed Rhiannon’s shoulder with her free hand and shook her, her fiery eyes intense with emotion. “I know this is hard enough on you already, and I’m honestly surprised you’re still going through with this, but I don’t want you making yourself into some kind of martyr when you don’t have to.”

“I’d do anything for Capri,” Rhiannon murmured defensively, pushing Blythe away. “Just stop worrying about me, I’m fine.”

Blythe rolled her shoulders restlessly and backed off, recognizing a brick wall when she’d hit one. “Whatever you want,” she muttered under her breath, turning away so she wouldn’t have to look at Rhiannon any longer.

She just didn’t understand Rhiannon’s reaction to Liam’s betrayal, not one bit. She herself was furious and determined to fight for what she had considered a promising relationship between her brother and the Earth Dryad. But Rhiannon refused to fight, refused to do more than just accept and move on as if she had never loved him, and he had never loved her.

But Blythe knew better. She knew in her heart that Liam had loved Rhiannon….hell, he’d bought her an engagement ring. This bullshit about him being unhappy was a sham, and there was something going on with him that wasn’t natural.

And coupled with her anger over Rhiannon’s cold acceptance was her frustration over the lack of helpful information from all the research Rian and Jax had been doing. They were no closer to finding the secret to Liam’s obsession with Stella than they had been the moment they’d found him in that night club in New Orleans.

But the days were slipping by, and Blythe was getting more and more worried that by the time they discovered what was happening to him, it would be too late. It was already the night of Capri’s wedding, which Thea had insisted go on as planned, and she was still at such a loss with him.

There was a noise behind them and they turned to see Liam approaching. Brogan lingered behind him, his dark eyes shooting daggers into the Water Dryad’s back. But Liam had his usual carefree smile in place, and he leaned in to kiss Blythe’s cheek cordially.