Zoe repacked her backpack and zipped it. In a few hours she and Davide would be weighing anchor on the Dolphin. Johnson was driving them to the Portland Yacht Association where the cruiser was docked. She shook her head as she thought about everything that had happened in less than two weeks: Davide unexpectedly showing up after her last performance in Madrid; Davide whisking her away to Australia and together watching the sunrise over Uluru; meeting Yileen, another Indigo child, at the base of the mountain; being led on a walkabout to Kata Tjuta; witnessing a mystical happening in Yileen's cave; and finally, composing heavenly music with Davide.
She heard a knock on her door and stepped to open it.
"Good morning, Zoe," said Davide. "Are you ready to go?"
"I am."
"Great. There's only one thing left to do before leaving." He walked to her bed and she looked questioningly at him when he picked up a pillow and tossed her another one. "And that's have a pillow fight." He grinned and rushed to bonk her on the head with his pillow.
She giggled and swished hers into his stomach. "So, you want to play rough, huh?" She ducked and parried.
Davide laughed. "I've been thinking about having a pillow fight ever since we got back. Talking about it in Australia conjured up all kinds of happy memories."
Whoosh. He smacked her shoulder, danced sideways, and then caught her in the face. Laughing, she reached for another pillow and fought double fisted. Going for a direct attack, she pummeled him with both pillows. He laughed and circled his arms around her and her pillows, pushing her backward until her legs hit the mattress and she fell across the bed. He landed on top of her with three pillows separating them.
"Zoe, are you under there?" He chuckled and started peeling away pillows. By the time he'd uncovered her face, they were both laughing so hard neither of them could talk. Davide rolled beside her and leaned on his elbow, gazing into her eyes. His laughter turned into a smile and then she saw blue flames simmer in his eyes. For a second, she allowed her own gaze to reveal her love, and then masked it again.
Suddenly, his smile faded and his lips descended to her ear. "Thank you," he whispered, and kissed her earlobe, before moving to her neck in a string of gentle kisses that made her toes curl. Whether he was thanking her for the pillow fight or for something else, she didn't know. In the next instant, her entire world consisted only of him. His lips returned to her ear and he gently nipped her lobe before trailing the tip of his tongue along her jaw line. She prayed that he would kiss her lips, but he moved to kiss her collar bone. She shifted her head to allow him access to whatever body part he desired. When his mouth dipped to her breast, and his fingers tangled in her hair, she moaned and whispered his name, "Davide." She almost breathed the words, "I love you," but a sudden commotion at her door distracted them.
"Oh, oh, excuse me," said Beth McGovern.
Davide jumped away and blinked. Zoe hastily sat up and covered her mouth with her hand.
"I was just comin' to say goodbye," said Beth, grinning like a Cheshire cat. She motioned toward them, "Carry on. Carry on," and closed the door.
Zoe moved her hand from her mouth to the last place Davide had kissed her, and blinked rapidly.
"Oh, God, Zoe, I'm sorry. I just…just…got carried away."
With a wave of her hand she said, "I'll meet you downstairs in a minute."
"Okay. I'm really sorry."
She closed her eyes and felt Davide lift off the bed and then heard the door shut softly behind him.
Falling backward on the bed, she let her eyes flood with tears. He's sorry he kissed me.
The ride to the marina where the Dolphin was moored was long and mostly quiet. Zoe barely listened to Johnson and Davide's occasional small talk in the front seat. She knew her eyes had been red rimmed when she'd said goodbye to Roth and Rainey and Stella and Hank, but thankfully, they hadn't mentioned it. When she'd sought Beth out in the kitchen to say a final goodbye, the old woman had enfolded her in her arms and said the strangest thing. "This is very good."
* * *
Roth, Rainey, Stella, Hank, and Beth all lounged in the library. Stella poured tea for everyone.
Rainey grinned. "Beth, tell us again about barging in on our star-crossed lovers."
A happy smile creased Beth's face and she snickered. "I've never been one for tact. I honestly had no idea I was walking into a love fest. The door to Zoe's room was slightly ajar, so I just pushed it open." She sipped her tea, savoring the moment of revelation. "So, here's Davide practically on top of Zoe and kissing her like she was the most precious thing in the world, and all the while making his way toward private parts. So, I'm about to make a quiet escape when my old foot bumps a table next to the door and it startles the bejesus out of both of them. Davide looked like he'd just stepped inside the pearly gates while Zoe looked befuddled, like she couldn't believe what was happening."
Rainey clapped her hands and leaned to kiss her husband's cheek. "I think our plan is working."
Stella looked at Hank, "Zoe is the best thing that ever happened to Davide. This is so romantic!"
* * *
Johnson pulled into the parking lot of the exclusive Portland Yacht Association and Davide and Zoe said their goodbyes.
Davide watched Johnson drive away and glanced at Zoe. Her eyes were still red and puffy. He couldn't believe he'd almost made love to his best friend. Had he ruined their friendship? Zoe hadn't looked him directly in the eyes since his lapse in judgment. He felt awful and had to try to make things right. He stepped in front of her.
"Look at me, Zoe," he said softly. Instead of looking at him, she glanced to the side. He reached his index finger and gently brought her face around and tilted it upward. She was gnawing on her bottom lip and he almost groaned when hot desire rushed through him. "What can I say to make things right?" He bent his knees until he was almost eye level with her. "Please look at me."
Slowly, she lifted her puffy eyelids and gave him a smile that made his heart turn somersaults. "You don't have to make anything right, Davide. The incident is over, forgotten. Let's find the Cave of Thirteen so you can speak what's on your mind." Grabbing his hand, she pulled him up the steps of the clubhouse.
Davide should have felt relief, but instead he felt disappointment. Somehow her dismissal of their encounter hurt him deeply.
* * *
While Davide registered with the front desk, Zoe excused herself and located the ladies room. Drying her eyes with a towel after splashing cool water on them, she allowed herself to relive Davide's kisses and caresses. At least now she had the memory of his touch to carry with her for a lifetime.
The door to the bathroom opened and she automatically glanced in the mirror. The reflection of the young woman who had just entered made Zoe's heart stop. Her aura was like Gabriel's; the man who had kidnapped Zoe when she was seven. The woman came to stand beside her and Zoe hastened to leave, but a loud clink on the counter made her pause. She gazed back into the mirror and met the woman's eyes before glancing down. For a moment, she refused to believe what she saw. The woman had dropped a long chain with two items strung onto it. One was a flat, circular pendant about the size of a silver dollar, and the other, resting beside it, was her father's wedding ring, unmistakable because of the diamond encrusted outline of a horse that Fawn had designed for him.
Zoe turned to face the woman and her murky aura of grays and blacks. "What are you doing with my father's ring?" she demanded.
"Giving it to you, of course." The evil woman pushed the chain toward Zoe. "We want you to have it as a reminder that your father's life is in your hands. Oh, and if you think it's a counterfeit, read the inscription inside the ring. It's quite touching: Sweetheart loves Wade."
"What do you want?" Zoe rasped.
"All we want is your cooperation. If we get it, your father remains…intact. Wearing this chain will remind you of that. Oh, and the pendant, it's a tracking device." She lifted a hand to her cheek in mock embarrassment. "But I've forgotten my manners. I'm your cousin, Seraphina." The woman pushed the chain closer to Zoe. "Put it on."
When Zoe just looked at her with incredulity, the woman continued, "Do you actually think you've been free of us all these years?" She snickered. "Gabriel always was one to make a mess of things. Kidnapping you and then getting himself killed by falling off that ledge was a doosey." Seraphina tilted her head and tapped her chin. "But we all figured there was more to it than him being crazy. My aunt and uncle sent several of their nieces and nephews to investigate, and you wanna know what we discovered?" She snickered again. "We discovered people with weird ass auras. You got the indigo one, your stepmother's got one that's just plain bazaar, and that younger kid you grew up with, who's grown into a stud muffin, has a freakin' golden one. If he wasn't the enemy, I'd have the hots for him. Kinda do anyway. But getting back to Gabriel… The ruins where he fell off the ledge, it's got voices comin' out of that hole. Seems our family has more talent than we gave ourselves credit for. Not only can we see auras, we can hear voices comin' from another realm. And the thing is, we don't have to be on your land to hear them. We can go to any sipapu and hear the same thing." The woman grinned. "Zoe, dear, don't look so surprised. We did our homework, we know all about the third and fourth worlds of Anasazi legends."
A tear slipped down Zoe's cheek and Seraphina laughed. "Oh, Zoe, you're such a dear heart. Too bad that's your shortcoming. You would have made a wonderful addition to our coven with all your gifts."
Zoe choked out the words, "I want proof that my father's okay."
The witch curled her lips. "Don't make demands of me. You'll get nothing until we have your cooperation. We've gleaned enough information from the voices to know your boyfriend is the prophesied prince. We've figured out a lot over the years, such as, the prince's father is a shifter and his mother is some kind of hybrid; his sister is, too. We also know your stepmother is a shifter. This is what we believe: if there's one shifter, and we know of at least four, there's more. We want to know where they're coming from and we think you hold the key to that knowledge. The voices from the ruins have been going berserk these past two weeks. Something's happening. What's going on, Zoe? One of our cousins works for the airlines and found out you and Davide just got back from Australia."
Zoe remained silent.
"See, now that's why we have to track you." The woman lifted the necklace with the tip of a long fingernail painted blood red, and held it out to her. "Remember Daddy?" Seraphina dangled the chain in front of Zoe's face. "Just so you know, the links are inseparable, so don't think you can remove the ring or pendant from it. Put it on." With trembling hands, Zoe finally reached for the chain and slipped it over her head.
Seraphina smirked, "You take it off or try anything…and Daddy's dead." Then she turned to the mirror and perused her reflection. Fluffing her hair and smiling at herself she whispered, "Lovely." With a final warning she said, "Remember Daddy," and left the room.
Zoe lifted shaking hands to her father's wedding ring. Where was Fawn? Was she off on assignment? Had they harmed her? Zoe didn't know how long she stood looking at the ring's reflection in the mirror. A knock startled her and she dropped the chain underneath her T-shirt just as Davide called out.
"Zoe, are you okay? You've been in here a long time."
"I'm…I'm okay. I'll be out in a second."
"Okay sweetie, I'm all checked out with the desk. We can leave any time." He closed the door.
She took a deep breath and splashed her face with cold water again.
* * *
Davide couldn't help noticing the beautiful red head standing on the dock near his yacht. When he and Zoe reached her, the woman said, "Goodness, is this your boat? Wowie. My cousin's gonna take me out on his, but I like yours better. His is teeny compared to yours." She winked. "I like em big."
Repulsed by the woman and her inane babble, Davide ignored her. However, she did not leave. She watched their preparations and then grinned and waved when they loosed the ropes binding the ship to the dock. "Ya'll have a great trip! I'm gonna tell Daddy all about your super-duper boat!" She turned and skipped away.
Davide looked at Zoe. "God, she's weird."
Zoe didn't respond. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked past him toward the cabin as if he were invisible. Davide ran his hands through his hair and decided he'd really screwed up with Zoe.