The Gatekeeper's Secret: Gatekeeper's Saga, Book Five (The Gatekeeper's Saga) (16 page)

Plus, it had been awkward lying beneath the heavy blankets that were necessary to keep her from floating away. Even worse was the pruning of her skin. How the skin of Dione, Amphitrite, and the merfolk managed to look so smooth and wrinkle-free, Therese could not imagine, for her own looked like a three-dimensional road map.

But the worst part of living underwater was the panic that overcame her each time she woke up. It would take her a moment to recall that she could breathe underwater, and there would be this terrifying few seconds, reminiscent of the day her parents died, that would overcome her. Twice, Rhode, a mermaid and another daughter of Amphitrite and Poseidon, rushed to her side to calm Therese down. Rhode helped her by carrying her up to an island where she could sun bathe beneath Helios, Rhode’s husband.

When Than arrived in Hades’s chariot to pick her up, she was glad to be finally going home, but she would miss her room in Poseidon’s palace and its beautiful view. After she said goodbye to Poseidon and each of the goddesses, Artemis reminded her that although they had been struck, they had succeeded in their mission.

“We didn’t fail,” Artemis said.

“I know,” Therese said. “We did good.”

“Stay in touch,” Dione called out to her.

“I will,” Therese said.

“Come back and visit me again soon,” Amphitrite said.

“I promise,” Therese replied.

She turned to
Callisto. “Be sure to thank Arcas. If it hadn’t been for him, we might not have found Cyclopes Island.”

“Thanks, Therese,”
Callisto said. “I’ll tell him.”

Swift and Sure drove Therese
and Than in the chariot from the bottom of the Aegean Sea to its surface and then down through the great chasm into the Underworld. The chariot ride filled Therese with a thrill even as she felt a bit sorry to leave the sea.

Once they were in their rooms and had visited with their animals,
Than took Therese by the hand and led her to their bedroom.

“I don’t want to sleep anymore,” Therese said. “I’ve been in bed for three weeks.”

Than smiled, and his eyes glistened. “I didn’t bring you in here to sleep.”

He pressed his lips hard against hers, and moved his fingers through her hair, which was still wet and curly from the sea. Then he cupped his hands around her neck and held her lips against his. His hot breath sent chills down her spine, and she was overcome with euphoria. Tears of happiness sprang to her eyes as she pressed her hands against his back, reminding herself that this magnificent man belonged to her. She sometimes couldn’t believe it.

“Oh, Than,” she gasped.

He lifted her up in his arms and carried her to the bed, where he gently laid her down. He moved beside her and gazed down at
her—she on her back and he on his side, propped on an elbow. He kissed her again, and she kept her eyes open this time, watching his beautiful face make love to her face. When he opened his eyes and met hers, she blushed and smiled, like a child caught with the cookie jar.

“I love you so much,” she said.

He kissed her again and then whispered, against her lips, “I wish we were married.”

“It won’t be long now.” She reached up and kissed his throat three times before lying back down and gazing up at him.

“It’s an eternity away.”

She laughed, suspecting his notion of eternity to be much longer than hers.

He brushed back her damp hair and covered her face in a flurry of kisses before falling on her and nestling his face against her ear.

“I love you so much, too,” he whispered.

Therese closed her eyes and sighed and wished they could lay there like that forever.

***

When Dr. Norton, a petite brunette with large black eyes, returned to Pete’s room at Mercy Regional with Pe
te in a wheelchair, Jen and her mother stood up.

“Don’t be alarmed by the chair,” the doctor said. “It’s standard procedure.”

“Well, how did it go?” Jen’s mother asked.

The doctor turn
ed down the brakes on the wheelchair and said, “Why don’t we all sit down.”

That didn’t sound good, Jen thought as she and her mother sat on the edge of the hospital b
ed while the doctor pulled over a stool and sat down.

“As you know,” Dr. Norton began. “We found no physical evidence of anything unusual, but our psych evaluation has me concerned.”

“Just ask her,” Pete said.

“Ask who what, Pete?” Jen’s mom asked.

“Ask Jen about the gods,” Pete said. “She’ll tell you I ain’t crazy.”

Jen couldn’t believe it. Pete had told the doctor Therese’s secret. Jen wanted to stand up and kick him in the shin. “Pete! Stop talking like that!”

“But Dad’s ghost said…”

“Your father’s dead,” Jen’s mom said gently. She stood up and took Pete’s hand. “I’m so sorry your dad is gone, sweet boy. I feel like his death has been the hardest on you.”

“Mom, it ain’t that,” Pete said. “He’s been trying to tell me something.”

“Calm down, Pete,” Dr. Norton said. “Mrs. Holt, please sit down. Let me tell you what I need to say.”

“Should we speak privately, doctor?” Jen’s mom asked.

“We will,” the doctor agreed. “But I want Pete to hear this. I’ve already told him, but I want him to hear it again. He seems to be suffering from Delusional Disorder.”

“What is that?” Jen’s mom asked.

“It’s a psychosis in which the patient sees or believes things which aren’t true.”

Oh, no, Jen thought. Her brother had a psychosis? Maybe the doctor was wrong. Maybe she just didn’t understand about the gods and ghosts and everything.

“Just ask Jen,” Pete said. “She’ll tell you everything I said is true.”

Dr. Norton continued. “In Pete’s case, he seems to suffer from a mix of what we call grandiose and persecutory. Patients with Grandiose Delusional Disorder have an over-inflated perception of themselves as a powerful being, usually in response to a traumatic feeling of helplessness. Pete believes he is a seer who can talk to ghosts to learn about the future.”

“Pete!” Jen’s mother stood up again. “Is that true?”

“Hip told me I’m a seer,” Pete said. “I didn’t make that up. I swear.”

Jen couldn’t stand to see her brother suffering. “Hip did tell him that,” Jen admitted. “I was there. And I do believe he can talk to Daddy’s ghost. There are people on television who do it, and they aren’t considered delusional. I saw someone on
Oprah
once.”

Jen’s mom sat back down, looking a bit pale in the face.

“That’s true, Jen,” Dr. Norton said. “But they don’t have seizures and become comatose. Pete’s psychosis is making him physically ill. And his insistence that the Greek gods of ancient myth live and breathe today, well, that makes him different from the so-called mediums you’ve seen on TV.”

But Jen knew the gods were real. How could she say so without sounding crazy herself?

“Jen, tell them about Hip and Than and Therese,” Pete insisted.

“Therese?” Jen’s mom asked.

Great. Why wouldn’t Pete shut up?

“The second type of Delusional Disorder Pete suffers from is called persecutory. That describes the delusional patient who believes he or someone he knows is in danger. Pete believes that someone close to his friend Therese will die on her wedding day.”

“That’s what Dad told me,” Pete said. “You’ve got to believe me.”

Jen wanted to tell her brother to be quiet, but it was too late. The cat was out of the bag. She should probably say something to defend him, but she couldn’t think of anything that wouldn’t make her sound crazy, too.

“I want to believe you, son.” Jen’s mom turned to the doctor. “So what do we do? How do we help him?”

“For now, we need to keep him calm, so I’m writing a script for a mild sedative. This disorder is sometimes temporary, so I want you to come back to see me in six weeks so I can examine him again.”

“Of course,” Jen’s mom said.

“Meanwhile, if his symptoms get worse,” Dr. Norton said, “call or bring him in.”

Jen’s mom nodded and smiled at the doctor, but Jen could tell she was holding back the floodgates. Jen’s heart ached for her mother, who thought Pete was sick, and for her brother, whom she had failed to defend. If she had told them what she knew of the Greek gods and her father’s ghost, would they have put her on medication, too?

During the ride home from the hospital, Pete wouldn’t look at her or talk to her. It was clear he felt betrayed. She didn’t blame him. She was as angry with herself as he was. But the best plan of action hadn’t been clear to her—still wasn’t clear to her. She had to find a way to protect her brother and the identity of her best friend at the same time.

She had decided not to tell Pete about what she saw in his dream—about her being named by her father’s ghost as the one fated to die. If the dream had passed through the gates of ivory, and was a lie, then there was no reason to bring it up to her brother, whose state of mind was already fragile.

After she and Bobby had turned out the horses and she had showered and gotten ready for bed, she lay beneath her
covers unable to sleep. She started to call to Hip but then thought better of it. She threw off her covers and went down the hall to Pete’s room with tears welling in her eyes.

She tapped at the door. When he didn’t answer, she opened it. He lay there staring at the ceiling.

“Pete?”

“What do you want?”

He sounded normal, at least. She was relieved that he hadn’t been in a trance, or worse. “I want to tell you I’m sorry.”

He continued to stare at the ceiling.

“I didn’t know what to do,” she said.

He still didn’t respond.

“I think it’s easier for Mom to think you’re a little delusional than for her to hear the truth,” she said. “It’s just too much for her—too much for most people.”

He sighed, which was something. At least he wasn’t cussing her out.

“So, I guess I’m asking you if you can do this for me, if you can handle being misunderstood, so we can protect Mom and Bobby and the others from the truth, and maybe protect Therese’s secret, too.”

He turned to meet her gaze. She couldn’t tell what he was going to say. His face was expressionless.
Go to hell
was just as possible as
I love you
.

“Can you, Pete?”

He closed his eyes and nodded. He didn’t open them again. In fact, he looked like he had gone to sleep. Maybe it was the medication.

“Pete?” she asked softly. When he didn’t respond, she tip-toed across the room and kissed him lightly on the top of his head. She wished she could go back in time and remove this burden. He had already carried a heavy one for her when he had stood up for her against their father. She leaned over, caught her tear before it landed on him, and whispered, “You’re the best big brother in the whole wide world.”

***

Than held Therese in his arms, wishing he hadn’t promised his parents to tell her as soon as she had returned from Poseidon’s palace. His parents had wanted him to tell her while she was still there recuperating, but Than had insisted that Therese be allowed to recover without the extra worry. His parents had honored his request on the condition that as soon as she returned, he would broach the subject.

And now, even though all he wanted was to kiss and hold her, it was time.

He kissed her softly on her ear once more and whispered, “I have news. I need to tell it to you.”

Her eyes popped open and she lifted herself up on both elbows. “What’s happened?”

He sat up and squared himself to her. “Aphrodite passed a secret message to Hip when he went to visit her last month.”

Therese sat all the way up now. “What did it say?”

“It said,
Help me
.”

She stood from the bed and paced around the room. “I knew it! I knew she couldn’t be angry with us forever. I bet she hasn’t even been shunning us! I bet Zeus blocked her somehow. Maybe she hasn’t even been able to hear our prayers!” She swung around to face
Than, her eyes shining bright. “Am I right?”

“Perhaps.
We don’t know. The note could be a set up. Zeus may have put her up to it.”

“I don’t believe it.”

Than climbed from the bed and took her hand. “We have to consider the possibility. It would be unwise to ignore it. Now come here.”

He brought her back to his arms and stroked her hair, which was dry and curlier than she usually fixed it. He never understood why she frequently wore it straight when it was just as beautiful in its natural state.

“There’s more,” he said. “Hades and Persephone want you to go to Mount Olympus.”

“Me?”

He nodded.

“And you didn’t fight them on this?” She gave him a wry smile.

He kissed the smile off her lips. “It crossed my mind.”