Tempest Unleashed (24 page)

Mark shook his head, grinned, and for a second I caught a glimpse of the old Mark, the one I remembered. The one I could talk to for hours without either one of us running out of things to say. “It’s good to see you, Tempe.” He reached behind me, yanked twice on my ponytail like he used to, and then he was gone. Slipping past us and out of the waiting room door before I could think of something, anything, else to say.

The house was even more gloomy than when we’d left it earlier. A summer storm had rolled in while we were at the hospital, turning the normally bright blue sky a dingy gray that made my normally sunlit house downright depressing.

“Rio!” I called as soon as we got inside. “I brought dinner!”

There was no answer. Kona and I exchanged worried looks. I headed for the stairs, but Kona stopped me with a gentle arm around my waist. “Why don’t you let me try to talk to him?” he suggested softly.

I remembered the way Rio had looked when he’d spoken about Kona earlier. “Maybe that’s not such a good idea.”

“I had ten younger brothers and sisters,” he reminded me. “There’s not much he can say that’s going to shock me.”

“He’s not exactly in a good place right now. I mean, he’s never been the sunniest kid, but he wasn’t like this either. Plus, I think he blames you for my leaving as much as he blames me. Maybe more.”

“I know. Which is why he and I might as well get this all out in the open now.” Kona cocked a brow. “I’m not planning on going anywhere, so he needs to get used to me. Right?”

“Right.” I knew I didn’t sound convinced about sending him in to see Rio, but that was because I wasn’t. I loved my brother, but he could be a real jerk when he wanted to be. And right now, it was pretty obvious that he really, really wanted to be.

While I waited for Kona to come back down, I cleared up the mess that had been left in the kitchen before laying out the food we’d picked up. Rubio’s fish tacos—Rio’s favorite. I just hoped Kona managed to talk him out of his room.

I didn’t hear anything from upstairs—no yelling, no slamming doors—but I didn’t know if that was a good thing or not.

I got glasses, filled them with ice.

Pulled sodas out of the fridge near the bar and put them on the table.

Got napkins and placed them next to each person’s glass.

Washed my hands for the second time since I walked in the front door.

Emptied the dishwasher.

Started to fold the napkin into origami dolphins—

I couldn’t take it anymore. I was going up to see what was happening. For all I knew, the two of them could have killed each other …

I was halfway up the staircase when Rio appeared at the top of the steps, Kona directly behind him. Rio looked pissed (big surprise), but he didn’t say anything when he slid past me on the stairs. Neither did Kona, who didn’t look anywhere near as haggard or worn out as I’d expected him to. God knew, Rio could try the patience of a saint.

We settled around the table, and I watched this strange, black-clad Rio eat. And at least that was familiar—he still devoured his food like a raging wildebeest was going to plow into him at any second. Strangely, that gave me hope.

At least until I got a good look at his face. His eyes were bloodshot—really bloodshot—and I wasn’t sure if that meant he’d been crying or smoking pot. The fact that I didn’t know illustrated better than anything else just how much things had changed around here while I was gone.

Rio had always been a pain in the butt, but he’d also been pretty much a rule follower—more so than either Moku or me. And the fact that I was now worried about him doing drugs … Part of me wanted to go back to that day eight months ago and change my decision—to hell with the consequences.

I tried to talk to Rio a few times, and he answered grudgingly. He didn’t say anything major, but still, it was a start. One I really appreciated.

I glanced at Kona.
What did you say to him?

Nothing major.
Kona smiled.
Just guy stuff.

Ugh, seriously?
I sighed hugely to let him know I wasn’t buying it.
I swear, it’s times like these that remind me you really were born two hundred years ago. And that is
not
a compliment.

He just laughed.
So temperamental. That’s why they call you Tempest, right?

Whatever.

I glanced at Rio and the smile froze on my face. The semi-relaxed look he’d worn at dinner was gone, and it was pretty easy to figure out what had caused it, even before he said, “God, you two really are freaks.” And just like that, all the progress Kona had made evaporated.

“Rio.” I tried to get him to meet my eyes, determined to have it out with him.

He was back to ignoring me.

“Rio,” I said again, this time louder.

Still no answer. He got up and threw his trash away.

“Rio!” He was going to talk to me whether he liked it or not. I started across the kitchen after him, but Kona slipped up behind me, slid his arms around my waist. It felt like an embrace, but at the same time I knew he was doing it to hold me back, calm me down.

It might even have worked had Rio not chosen that moment to turn around and stare at me, his eyes flat and dead. I watched open-mouthed as he very calmly, very deliberately, flipped me off. Then he turned the volume all the way up on his iPod before heading for the stairs.

I lunged after him, wanting to strangle him and plead with him all at the same time. Once again, it was only Kona that held me back.

“Give him time,” he murmured in my ear. “Once Moku wakes up, things will get better.”

“
If
Moku wakes up.” I shoved against his arms. “You can let me go now. I promise not to chase him down and pummel him.”

“Well, thank God for that.” Kona reluctantly dropped his arms. “Maybe it just makes me feel better to hold you.”

“I think you’ve got that backward.” I laid my head on his shoulder. “How did I screw everything up so badly?”

“You didn’t. Sometimes life just happens. It takes a while before everything catches up between how things are and how we want them to be.”

“Is that what this is?” I asked. “Fantasy lag? Like finding out Santa Claus isn’t real?”

He grinned, rubbed my shoulders. “Something like that. Just a little more painful, maybe.”

“A lot more painful,” I corrected.

He sighed. “Yeah, I know. I’m sorry, baby. I’d fix this if I could.”

“You got Rio downstairs. That’s something.” I looked at him curiously. “How
did
you do that?” I asked again.

“I told him I’d kick his ass.”

“What? Kona!”

He held his hands up in mock surrender. “I’m joking, I’m joking. I apologized.”

“For what? You didn’t do anything.”

“I stole you away, didn’t I? And then I told him I understood how he felt.”

“And he just believed you?”

“He did after I listed a whole bunch of those feelings. Which wasn’t hard—it’s not like I haven’t been exactly where he is right now.”

“Oh. Right.” I blushed a little, ducked my head. “Is that why you’re being so good to me right now? Because you remember what it’s like to have your family so fragmented?”

“First of all, I’m taking care of you because I love you.” He paused, ran a hand through his hair. “But yes, I remember what it was like to spend days waiting, terrified that my sister was going to die, and I know what it’s like to lose a brother suddenly, when you’re least expecting it. Either way sucks.”

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t think. I should have realized how hard all this is for you.”

He shrugged. “No harder than it is for your family. I miss Oliwa and Annalise. Every day I miss them, but that doesn’t mean I can blame the whole world for it.”

It was my turn to soothe him. I scooted behind him, lightly rubbed his shoulders. “I know what happened to Oliwa—”

“Yeah. You killed his murderer, who had turned traitor and sold us all out to Tiamat.” He said it like he was proud of me.

I ignored the way my stomach clenched at the mention of something I spent every day trying to forget. “Yes. But what happened to Annalise, Kona? I don’t want to pry, but …”

“But Sabyn told you he wasn’t responsible. Right?”

“I didn’t ask Sabyn. I wouldn’t do that.”

He sighed. “I know you wouldn’t.” He glanced at the clock. “Are you sure you want to do this now? You must be exhausted.”

“I’m wide awake. But if you don’t want to tell me …”

“I’m not sure. It’s really hard to talk about.”

I could imagine. Just the thought of losing Moku had me so turned around that I could barely function. I couldn’t imagine how I would feel if one day he was just gone. No wonder Kona wanted to kill Sabyn.

Blowing out a long, slow breath—like he was about to do something he’d regret—Kona crossed to the table. He sat down in one of the chairs, pulled me into his lap. Then buried his face in my hair and breathed deep. “How is it you can still smell like raspberries, even after months under the sea?”

I melted a little, but didn’t answer him. Every day that passed, Annalise’s death—and Sabyn’s part in it—seemed to loom a little larger between us. I wanted it out in the open and this seemed to be the time for it, especially now that everything in my own life was so precariously balanced. Still, I’d pushed far enough. It was up to him.

Kona seemed to understand, because he passed a hand over his face, then began to talk. Slowly, haltingly. “Annalise was my favorite. To be honest, she was everybody’s favorite. My mom’s, my dad’s, all of ours, really. She was just … good, you know? Just deep down sweet and innocent and good, which is sometimes hard to find in the ocean, as I’m sure you’re figuring out. No hidden agendas, no nefarious plans, no ulterior motives. She was just sweet because that’s who she was.

“Anyway, she fell for Sabyn when she was young—really young. She was born seventy-five years after me, so the age difference between my friends and her, back then especially, was huge. Not that any of that mattered to her. She tried to follow us everywhere—sometimes we would allow it because she was just so damn cute, but other times we’d send her back, if it was too dangerous. She didn’t have much power, but then she didn’t need it. We were all willing to switch off taking care of her, keeping her safe.

“I think Sabyn was flattered by her attention, at least at first. He didn’t take her seriously—none of us did. She was just a baby.”

He stared out the huge picture window behind us, but I knew he wasn’t seeing the ocean. He was seeing a lifetime ago, long before I was even born. The thought weirded me out a little. For the first time I think I began to understand what it meant to be with someone who was two centuries older than I was, even if he only looked about eighteen.

“But she didn’t stay a baby. She grew up and she was beautiful—my dad’s guards had a hard time keeping all the merboys and selkies away from her.” He snarled when he said merboy. “She never noticed them, though. She only had eyes for Sabyn. Which we still laughed about, until one day, when she was looking at him, I caught Sabyn looking back.

“I told him she was off-limits—he was too old for her, too powerful, too dark. I mean, we’d been friends a long time and I knew what he was like. He went through the maids like they were candy.” His laugh was bitter. “Hell, they were candy for Sabyn. Something to keep him amused for a few days before he found someone else. He’d never hurt any of them at that point, at least none that I’d heard about. Anyway, he agreed, promised me he’d stay away from her.”

“But he didn’t.”

“No. They started dating and it got pretty serious, pretty quickly. I was pissed about it and I acted like a total ass to both of them. Maybe if I hadn’t, she would have come to me. She’d always come to me before when she had a problem, always trusted me to fix it for her. But not this time. This time she confronted him on her own.”

“He was cheating on her?”

“Of course. He could say he loved her, but Sabyn isn’t capable of loving anyone but himself. I never blamed him for that, not with the way he was raised. But she was my sister, you know? There were a million mermaids out there who would do anything to be with him. Why couldn’t he just leave her alone?”

He wasn’t asking me, but I answered anyway. “Because he’s a selfish prick with no impulse control?”

Kona laughed, but there was no humor in it. “Yeah. Pretty much. She followed him one night, caught him with some mermaid from an Australian clan. They had a huge fight and he hit her. She came home with a whole side of her face bruised and swollen up. She didn’t tell me it was him, but I knew.

“I went after him, beat the hell out of him. It was my job to protect her, you know?”

“I know.” I smoothed my hands through his hair, pressed soft kisses along his jaw. Did anything I could think of to soothe him. His eyes were wild now, dangerous, and he was shaking so badly I thought he was going to fly apart.

“Maybe if I hadn’t, things would have ended differently. They would have been okay.” He shook his head. “I don’t know. But Sabyn, he’s got a really bad temper. He keeps it under wraps most of the time, but it’s there, never far from the surface. And it turned out he’d been pissed all along that I didn’t think he was good enough for Annalise. Absolutely furious. And he wanted revenge, but he’s such a coward that he didn’t come after me like a normal person would. Like I thought he would. He went after her instead.”