Chapter 21 #2
Maren gapes at the weapon, her stormy gaze reflecting its glow, and a sharp and wicked grin pulls across her lips. She looks from the trident to me and is clearly impressed with us both.
She takes a step closer, her gaze locked on the weapon.
“Listen to me, Lachlan. If Vivian’s handiwork is fresh, her magical signature should be all over it.
If you’ll let me borrow it for the ritual, I can use its connection to her lair and bypass all her securities.
I’ll snatch it right from under the bitch’s nose and consider it a debt long overdue. ”
Lachlan looks down at the gleaming trident for a fraction of a second before handing it over with a decisive nod.
“Take it,” he says, his voice filled with absolute trust. “Whatever you need, but she did mention the weld is fresh and may need some time.”
The moment Maren’s smooth fingers wrap around the trident, a bright blue light flares along its prongs.
The brilliant sheen reflects off the millions of seashells coating the cavern walls, casting a long and shimmering oceanic glow across the entire grotto.
I’m utterly spellbound watching the raw and elemental energy hum through the air.
Maren grips the thing, her gaze full of appreciation. “Oh, her magic is most definitely fresh, and I can see where she repaired it too.”
“Aye, she said it’d take days before I can use it properly again. But Vivian always did have a heavy hand with magic.”
Maren holds it out and away from her before nodding. “I think with as little magic as this’ll take, it shouldn’t be a problem. I can practically smell Vivian’s spite clinging to its edges, which makes getting your things back a walk in the park.”
She turns toward the center of the chamber, holding the trident out in front of her as she approaches a small dark opening in the floor, where the faint sound of rushing subterranean water echoes. “Stand back, you two. Give a girl some room to work her sea magic.”
Lachlan immediately steps back, his massive arms sliding around my waist to pull my frame securely against his side.
I can feel the excited thumping of his heart against my shoulder.
The long exhausting road trip in Arthur’s car, the panic of the crowds, along with the centuries of isolation have had to have taken their toll, but I feel only happiness from him.
“Watch closely, my flower,” Lachlan whispers, tickling the lobe of my ear with his breath and sending shivers down my spine.
His tone is full of warmth and his deep voice vibrates only with pride.
“You’re about to see one of the greatest wielders of selkie magic go to work.
I left them outside in the courtyard, if that helps at all. ”
“Shouldn’t matter where they are in that lair of hers.
The magic knows my intent.” Maren lowers the tip of the trident into the hidden water channel and closes her eyes as she begins to hum.
The sound echoes and reverberates off the seashell-lined walls, the signal to the start of her magical heist.
Her low hum deepens and transforms into a low and melodic chant that seems to come from everywhere, so much so I can feel it in the soles of my boots.
I watch in complete and rapt awe as the trident lights up with an aquamarine light that bleeds into the dark water pooling at her feet and turns the seashells littering the walls different colors.
The small channel begins to swirl and bubble rapidly like a tiny whirlpool right there in the stone floor of the grotto.
“Aha, I’ve got it. Just a moment more now.”
Lachlan’s hold on me tightens imperceptibly, tugging me in so close I can feel his tense eagerness.
My inner biologist is in a riot, trying and failing to logically comprehend how physical matter can be displayed through an underground water vein, but the breathtaking spectacle and knowing its happening blows my mind.
With a sudden and sharp movement, Maren yanks the trident skyward.
The water in the floor surges like a miniature geyser but instead of a splash, a heavy bubble of displaced water begins to bubble and break over the stone floor. As the liquid drains back into the chalk cracks, two large and completely dry suitcases clatter onto the ground.
My mouth falls open as I gape. “Oh, my freaking god. She did it, those are our bags.”
“Told you,” Maren says, opening her stormy gaze with a triumphant smile. She moves to rest the trident against her shoulder, seemingly unbothered by the fact that she just committed burglary via underground waterways without moving a single inch. “Like I said, a walk in the park.”
I break away from Lachlan’s side and drop to my knees beside our bags, unzipping the top pocket to grab my phone, and find it perfectly fine, if full of missed calls. “Amazing.”
Lachlan looks up at his cousin. “You’ve done us a big favor here, Maren. I’m in your debt.”
“Fleshing out old debts, think nothing of it. Those seashells have paid for any favors you could have and then some,” Maren says, handing the gleaming trident back to him with a respectful nod.
She turns her warm brown eyes on me, and her smile softens.
“Now that you’ve got your things back, let’s get you two settled in a bit, you’ve had a long ride and I think a celebratory round of drinks is in order. ”