Stars of Fortune
Page 77
“I’m not sore.” But Annika poured in the pale green liquid.
“She tempts me to say fuck you.” Riley boosted herself into the tub.
“Consider it said.” Sasha closed her eyes, sipped the frothy drink. She heard the splash as Annika chose the pool instead.
“I hurt everywhere, and it’s worse knowing I’m going to be squatting and lunging and running at dawn tomorrow.”
“Add in upper body work.”
Sasha slitted her eyes open. “Consider it repeated in your direction.”
“We’ll be diving tomorrow, so that’ll mix things up. And maybe we’ll get lucky. I left Sawyer and Doyle working out where.”
“Bran?”
“He got a brainstorm about Annika’s deal, so he went up to work on it.”
Sasha decided she’d go up and help him with it. Eventually. “God, this smells so good. Why don’t I have one of these at home?”
“A hot tub, or a hot magician to make you magic hot tub potions?”
She smiled to herself. “Both.”
“Bet you could get both.”
“Bran, in my little house in the mountains? He has New York, and Ireland. My place is so isolated, so quiet, and he’s . . . he’s larger than life, isn’t he? All that power. He banks it—that’s control—but it’s huge, and passionate, and more than could be satisfied living in a little house in North Carolina.”
“Will you be, once we’re done with what we’re here for?”
“I don’t know anymore.” And that shifted her balance. “But I think I’ll always need a quiet place to go, to live, to paint. I’ll never block what I have again, or feel I have to be alone. I know more about myself, what I’m capable of. I know what it is to be a part of something really important. Something worth fighting for. And when I look at myself now . . .
“The mirror sees the truth, hard and bare. What she fears and fights against lives in the glass. And there lies her end, one only the stars can change. She fears her end.”
She came back to herself with Riley gripping her arm to keep her head above water and calling for Annika.
“I’m all right. I’m okay.”
“Take a hit.” Riley pushed the glass back in her hand. “I saved it when it started to tip out of your hand.”
Sasha shook her head, let out a breath. “Give me a second.”
“The water’s too hot, and you’re pale. Come, cool off in the pool.”
“Good thinking.” With a nod to Annika, Riley put the glass aside, pulled Sasha to her feet. “Out and in, pal.”
She obeyed, as she did feel too hot, and somehow too . . . loose. The cooler water of the pool helped offset the dizziness so she was able to climb out again on her own.
“Do you remember what you said?” Riley asked her.
“Yes. About a mirror, about the truth in it. I’m not sure what it means.”
“We should go in,” Annika decided. “Out of the sun.”
Yes, Sasha thought. She’d get out of her wet bathing suit, take a moment or two to settle. “One good thing.” She rolled her shoulders before wrapping herself in a towel. “I don’t ache anymore.”
Though she brushed off the offers to help her change, she realized they’d gone straight to Bran when he walked in before she’d buttoned up a dry shirt.
“Let me look at you.”
“I’m all right. They didn’t have to interrupt you for this.”
He simply put his hands on her shoulders, took a long study of her face. “No headache?”
“No. I didn’t try to block it. It comes on in a wave—and it leaves me a little shaky, but it didn’t hurt. You were right about that.”
“Describe what happened.”
“Riley and I were in the hot tub—Annika put your potion in the water. Wonderful, by the way. I was relaxed, and we were just talking about . . .” She adjusted here. She certainly wasn’t going to bring up Riley’s suggestion he’d come live with her in North Carolina.
“Talking about what?”
“How I knew myself better since all this started, and knew what it was to be part of something. Then it was that wave again. It’s like being pulled by an undertow. But this time, I tried to go with it instead of fighting to stay up.”
“What did you see?”
“I—” She broke off at the knock on her door.
“Are you okay in there?” Sawyer called out.
“Yes. I’m coming down. I need to organize my thoughts,” she said to Bran.
“All right.” He ran his hand over her damp hair. “We’ll go down.”
They’d already gathered on the terrace, so she sat, took a breath. “I’m sorry because I don’t really understand what I meant, what I saw. It might have been a room, it might have been a cave. Everything was gold and silver and shining. Like a really elegant house of mirrors. It was like I was standing there in it, but I couldn’t see myself. Then I picked up a mirror—but it wasn’t my hand. I think it was hers. Nerezza. She picked up this jeweled mirror, but when she looked in it, what looked back was not just old. Ancient. Gray and withered. Sunken eyes, thin gray hair. Hardly more than a skull. Nothing else reflected. The glass around that image was pure black.
“The glass shattered, and that face was in all the shards, hundreds of shards. And the shards went to smoke, and it all went dark.”
“She tempts me to say fuck you.” Riley boosted herself into the tub.
“Consider it said.” Sasha closed her eyes, sipped the frothy drink. She heard the splash as Annika chose the pool instead.
“I hurt everywhere, and it’s worse knowing I’m going to be squatting and lunging and running at dawn tomorrow.”
“Add in upper body work.”
Sasha slitted her eyes open. “Consider it repeated in your direction.”
“We’ll be diving tomorrow, so that’ll mix things up. And maybe we’ll get lucky. I left Sawyer and Doyle working out where.”
“Bran?”
“He got a brainstorm about Annika’s deal, so he went up to work on it.”
Sasha decided she’d go up and help him with it. Eventually. “God, this smells so good. Why don’t I have one of these at home?”
“A hot tub, or a hot magician to make you magic hot tub potions?”
She smiled to herself. “Both.”
“Bet you could get both.”
“Bran, in my little house in the mountains? He has New York, and Ireland. My place is so isolated, so quiet, and he’s . . . he’s larger than life, isn’t he? All that power. He banks it—that’s control—but it’s huge, and passionate, and more than could be satisfied living in a little house in North Carolina.”
“Will you be, once we’re done with what we’re here for?”
“I don’t know anymore.” And that shifted her balance. “But I think I’ll always need a quiet place to go, to live, to paint. I’ll never block what I have again, or feel I have to be alone. I know more about myself, what I’m capable of. I know what it is to be a part of something really important. Something worth fighting for. And when I look at myself now . . .
“The mirror sees the truth, hard and bare. What she fears and fights against lives in the glass. And there lies her end, one only the stars can change. She fears her end.”
She came back to herself with Riley gripping her arm to keep her head above water and calling for Annika.
“I’m all right. I’m okay.”
“Take a hit.” Riley pushed the glass back in her hand. “I saved it when it started to tip out of your hand.”
Sasha shook her head, let out a breath. “Give me a second.”
“The water’s too hot, and you’re pale. Come, cool off in the pool.”
“Good thinking.” With a nod to Annika, Riley put the glass aside, pulled Sasha to her feet. “Out and in, pal.”
She obeyed, as she did feel too hot, and somehow too . . . loose. The cooler water of the pool helped offset the dizziness so she was able to climb out again on her own.
“Do you remember what you said?” Riley asked her.
“Yes. About a mirror, about the truth in it. I’m not sure what it means.”
“We should go in,” Annika decided. “Out of the sun.”
Yes, Sasha thought. She’d get out of her wet bathing suit, take a moment or two to settle. “One good thing.” She rolled her shoulders before wrapping herself in a towel. “I don’t ache anymore.”
Though she brushed off the offers to help her change, she realized they’d gone straight to Bran when he walked in before she’d buttoned up a dry shirt.
“Let me look at you.”
“I’m all right. They didn’t have to interrupt you for this.”
He simply put his hands on her shoulders, took a long study of her face. “No headache?”
“No. I didn’t try to block it. It comes on in a wave—and it leaves me a little shaky, but it didn’t hurt. You were right about that.”
“Describe what happened.”
“Riley and I were in the hot tub—Annika put your potion in the water. Wonderful, by the way. I was relaxed, and we were just talking about . . .” She adjusted here. She certainly wasn’t going to bring up Riley’s suggestion he’d come live with her in North Carolina.
“Talking about what?”
“How I knew myself better since all this started, and knew what it was to be part of something. Then it was that wave again. It’s like being pulled by an undertow. But this time, I tried to go with it instead of fighting to stay up.”
“What did you see?”
“I—” She broke off at the knock on her door.
“Are you okay in there?” Sawyer called out.
“Yes. I’m coming down. I need to organize my thoughts,” she said to Bran.
“All right.” He ran his hand over her damp hair. “We’ll go down.”
They’d already gathered on the terrace, so she sat, took a breath. “I’m sorry because I don’t really understand what I meant, what I saw. It might have been a room, it might have been a cave. Everything was gold and silver and shining. Like a really elegant house of mirrors. It was like I was standing there in it, but I couldn’t see myself. Then I picked up a mirror—but it wasn’t my hand. I think it was hers. Nerezza. She picked up this jeweled mirror, but when she looked in it, what looked back was not just old. Ancient. Gray and withered. Sunken eyes, thin gray hair. Hardly more than a skull. Nothing else reflected. The glass around that image was pure black.
“The glass shattered, and that face was in all the shards, hundreds of shards. And the shards went to smoke, and it all went dark.”
