Chapter Forty-Two

Abby

Iwept tears of joy when Miss Fiona handed Charlotte's crying infant to me. I held the swaddled baby tightly to my chest, rocking her from side to side and praying to God the storm would not claim this precious child's life.

"Charlotte is hemorrhaging. I must stop the blood loss," the healer said as she wiped her brow with the back of a bloody hand. Candlelight flickered across her face, casting long shadows on the walls.

"Do you need me to do anything?" I asked.

Fiona heaved a sigh, looking down at Charlotte. "I will need food soon, but it will have to wait."

Before the baby arrived, I had already salvaged bread and cheese from the kitchen, as well as a jug of milk. I peered down the stairwell, wondering how Gabriel was holding up against the elements. I still couldn't believe what I'd seen when I'd gone out to the porch to ask Gabriel if he needed food. By some heavenly phenomenon, Gabriel had stretched his hands toward the sky and kept the foul weather at bay.

Ever since Miss Fiona and Safi had come to town, I'd seen many marvels. Still, of all the miracles I'd witnessed, nothing was more inspiring than the moment I'd first heard Charlotte's baby cry.

I looked down at the cherubic infant, who was now sleeping soundly in my arms, despite the chaos that surrounded us. She had rosy cheeks, wisps of pale hair, and an adorable, puckered mouth. She truly looked like an angel from heaven, and at that moment, I knew I was going to love this child more than anything in the entire world. This was the baby I'd braved a hurricane to save, and I'd risk my life for this infant again without a second thought for my safety.

"Fetch me another basin of water, Abby," Miss Fiona called. Though I was reluctant to part with the child, I carefully laid the baby down in her makeshift crib—a heap of blankets in the corner of the hall—and rushed into the nearby toilet. I carried the water back to Miss Fiona, alarmed to see Charlotte's skin was as pale as the porcelain basin I carried. There was so much blood everywhere. Too much, making Charlotte look as if she were a lamb on the slaughter.

"Will she live?" I asked, my voice cracking with emotion.

"Aye," Miss Fiona said as she leaned back on her heels, "but she will not wake for a while. Healing her has drained her energy." She looked down at her bloody hands. "And mine."

After Miss Fiona washed up, she ate a few pieces of bread and drank a glass of milk. Then she curled up beside Charlotte and closed her eyes.

I cradled the infant once more, singing her a soft lullaby while praying the storm would abate.

* * *

Duncan

THE JOURNEY WAS TREACHEROUS. More than once I dodged flying slate, glass, and other debris. The flood conditions had worsened considerably in only a short time, and now the water was up to my shoulders, traveling so swiftly, I nearly lost my footing dozens of times. I tried to keep to higher ground, traversing porches and other elevated spots, taking only short reprieves, as the houses looked ready to crumble at any moment. I didn't need to go far to find the doctor and Safina. The weather limited travel. They were less than a block away, in a finely gilded three-story home with a tall porch and a sturdy brick exterior. Dr. Straw was smart to have picked this house. Compared to the others in the neighborhood, it stood the best chance of weathering the storm.

I was out of breath, my energy nearly spent by the time I'd climbed onto the back porch. I snuck in through a window that was already shattered. Though I tried to be quiet, I stumbled over a pail, making a loud splash in the ankle-deep water. I quickly righted myself, hoping the sound of my clumsy feet was drowned out by the howling winds.

My heart pounded as I slipped through the kitchen and into a formal dining room. I sensed Safina was near.

When something moved beside me, I ducked and an object swooshed over my head. I fell to the floor, landing on a padded, water-drenched carpet. I kicked and was rewarded with a thud and a grunt. I jumped back up, as did Dr. Straw, who wielded a cane as if he were an experienced swordsman.

I backed up, looking for a weapon to use as leverage. I nabbed a heavy statuette, gripping it like a club, and warily circled the man, waiting for him to make a move.

The doctor lurched forward, aiming for my gut. I jerked right, deflecting the cane with my makeshift club. The doctor grunted and spun around, thrown off balance by my strength. The wind howled and the walls shook, adding another element of danger to my perilous situation. I hoped the house was as sturdy as it looked.

A window broke, causing Dr. Straw to lose his focus for a brief moment. That moment was all I needed. The doctor's eyes bulged when I lurched forward and jerked hard, ripping the cane from his grasp. I dropped my club into the water behind me and clutched my new weapon, spinning it around and aiming the sharp end at the doctor.

"Where's my child?" I growled.

The doctor plastered on a smile, one so cold, I could almost imagine venom dripping from the man's teeth. "Never you fear. She is well, but if you wish to see her alive, you will give me back my cane."

I laughed. Did this man think I was fool enough to hand him back the very weapon that had laid me up for two days? No doubt it was also the same weapon that had gutted Safina's mate.

A slow smile spread across my face as I thought of a way to return the weapon, and justice, to the murderous leech.

I didn't need Straw to find my child. In fact, her recovery would be much easier without having to worry about the doctor trying to stab me.

I took a step back, bracing my feet and recalling my training from my years as a dragonslayer.

"You wish for the cane back, do you?" I asked.

"I said to give it back, sir, or you risk your child's safety." Dr. Straw reached behind him, most likely searching for another weapon.

"Here you go then." I lurched forward, thrusting the cane into Dr. Straw's chest.

The man gasped as blood poured out of his mouth and nose. He stumbled back, wrapping both hands around the spear.

I rushed ahead of him, swinging open the front door and pulling the man out. "Have a good swim," I said with a sinister smile before kicking the doctor into the river that raged past.

I found Safina sleeping in an upstairs bedroom, her clothes soaking the bed and her wet hair plastered to her face. I felt her pulse and checked her breathing, relieved she was otherwise unharmed.

I brushed her hair out of her face. "Safina, wake up."

She moaned when I shook her, a hand flying to her head. "Ouch," she mumbled.

The house rattled as I shook her again. "Safina!"

Her eyes flew open, and she shot up, a wild look in her eyes as she shrank back like a frightened cat. "Father, the doctor means us harm!"

"Never fear," I said as I sat beside her. "He can't harm you now."

"Gabriel, my love!" Safina's hands flew to her mouth. "He stabbed Gabriel!"

I took her in my arms, stroking her hair as she buried her face in my chest. "Do not fret, darling. Your mother is healing him as we speak."

"But that house," she cried. "It was ready to fall to pieces."

I continued to stroke her back as I kissed her forehead. I'd waited so many years to hold my child like this, and despite the sound of the wind battering the house like the thundering hooves of a thousand stampeding horses, I still took joy in the moment.

"I'm sure Gabriel will keep the winds at bay." I spoke with a confidence I hoped wasn't false. Surely Fiona had healed Gabriel by now.

Much to my chagrin, she pulled out of the embrace, looking up at me with tear-drenched lashes. "But for how long? His powers aren't that strong. We must get back to them."

I adamantly shook my head. "Safina, you're not going anywhere until the storm passes." Though Safina was tall for a lass, she was at least a head shorter than me. The water would be too high. "I won't risk your life to go back, and I'm sure Gabriel wouldn't want us to, either. Be at ease, lass. He has elemental magic and a dragoness protecting him."

Safina's shoulders slumped as she swallowed, wetting lips that were cracked and peeling. "Are we safe here?"

"Aye," I said, "the house is brick. It looks more solid than the others." Though, truthfully, I wasn't sure this, or any other house in Galveston, could withstand the damaging winds and flooding much longer.

Safina slipped out of bed and went to the window. She sucked in a sharp hiss. "Oh, Almighty Mother. I've woken to a nightmare."

I rushed to the window to see a tidal wave heading straight for the house. Huge pieces of debris, rooftops, and livestock, barreled across the top of the surge. I watched with morbid fascination as a horse tumbled head over hooves across the top of the wave, its neck flopping around as if the bones had been snapped in two.

I was reaching for Safina when the surge hit.

"Almighty Mother, save us!" Her voice rattled almost as hard as the walls.

We tumbled onto the bed when the floor lifted, rippling like a wave. The bed crackled as it slammed into a corner of the room. Safina screamed when a heavy dresser smashed into the bedposts. The house groaned and shook before settling again, but something wasn't right. The walls were now slanted at a downward angle. We had to get out of here before the entire structure collapsed.

"Come with me," I said.

We leaned against the wall for support as I pulled her across the hall and down the stairs. There was a gap between the walls and flooring, which signaled the house was falling apart. When we reached the landing, I was alarmed to see the ankle-deep waters had swelled to the top of the room within a matter of seconds.

Furniture floated all around the first floor, bumping the ceiling and rattling the chandelier. I pulled her back up the stairs and into the bedroom

"Where do we go?" she pleaded, looking up at me as if I had all the answers.

I was both humbled and ashamed that she put so much faith in me, and I swore with every breath in my body, I would find a way to save my child.

I vaguely remembered a balcony overlooking the rear of the house. I'd considered climbing up its trellis in hopes of taking the doctor by surprise.

"I know another way out." I held tightly to her hand, pulling her into the adjoining room. "Let's go."

I left her on the room's four-poster bed. "Hold on!" I yelled as the noise outside intensified, making it sound as if a steam train were rumbling through the house.

When I opened the glass doors that led to the balcony, they were ripped from my hands and sent flying into the swirling vortex before landing in the flood. Violent wind poured into the room, threatening to suck me into the fury. I was dismayed to see the balcony had been torn from its perch and surprised I hadn't heard the noise.

Determination fueled my movements as I crossed the room and flung open the door leading to the hall. The top hinge had already broken, leaving it hanging at an awkward angle. I yanked on it, kicking the bottom hinge until it came loose.

I laid the door on the floor and grabbed Safina off the bed. "We're going to have to jump."

Her eyes widened as she backed against the wall. "No, I can't."

I had no time to convince her. I jerked her into my arms, spinning her around so her back was flush against my chest. "You can, lass," I said in a tone that left no room for refusal. "When I say ‘jump,' you will hold on to this door, and we will ride across the waves." I held onto her elbow while holding the door in front of us.

She clutched the sides of the makeshift raft with white knuckles. "I'm afraid."

I did my best to push back the bone-crushing terror that gripped me, threatening to rob my mind and body of strength. I knew not if it was my own fear that made me doubt my plan, or if her emotions were whirling with mine, but this was our only option.

"I am with you, Safina," I hollered against the wind, "I will not let you go."

"You promise?"

"I've waited five hundred years to find you. I will not lose you again. I swear it."

* * *

Abby

MISS FIONA DIDN'T SLEEPlong. She was startled awake after a loud boom rattled the walls.

My stomach lurched when the floor beneath us shook and then rolled as if it was riding a wave. The house groaned and then settled, shifting so something felt off. I slowly stood on shaky legs, noting the hall dipped to one side.

"What happened?" Miss Fiona asked.

"I-I don't know," I stammered. "But it felt like we were hit by a wave."

Clutching the baby to my chest, I carefully walked down the stairs, alarmed to see the furniture floating in knee-deep water.

I could see Gabriel from the open window. Water dripped off his drenched clothes and hair, but his stance was solid as he held his arms to the sky. I looked curiously at the murky haze in front of Gabriel until I realized what I was seeing.

Panic gripped my limbs as I gaped at what I could only describe as a massive wall of water in front of the house. My legs felt encrusted in ice as I slowly walked to the window.

Dear God in Heaven!

The water stretched above Gabriel's head, level with the second floor of the house, and yet the flood passed us by as if we were looking at the hurricane from behind the wall of a glass tank. I had to turn away when I saw a woman's lifeless body move past, her hair fanned out behind her and her skirts billowing around her legs.

"Great goddess!" Miss Fiona hissed behind me as she splashed across the room.

I turned to her. "I don't understand. How is he keeping the weather at bay? Why hasn't the water engulfed this house?"

Miss Fiona crossed to the window, peering outside. "It's not for me to tell, but Gabriel is a good man, as is his grandfather."

I swallowed hard as I looked at the sleeping baby nestled in my arms. This baby, and everyone in this house, owed their lives to Fiona and Gabriel. "I know they are, as are you and Safina." Then I remembered the conversation the healer had had with Safina's father moments before he left. "Miss Fiona, what did Mr. MacQuoid mean by your mortal state?"

The healer frowned, shaking her head. "Never you mind, child."

I straightened my shoulders, forcing myself to show courage. "I do not fear the truth. I know you are good, whatever you are."

Miss Fiona heaved a weary sigh as she looked down at her blood-stained dress. "You say that now, but if you were to see me in my magical form, you would fear me, and mortals never like what they fear."

I couldn't imagine disliking the kind healer for any reason. "I would never hate you, Miss Fiona. You have my word."

Miss Fiona flashed a soft smile before turning back to the scene outside. "Safina!" she wailed.

I froze. "What is it?"

Miss Fiona threw open the front door. "She's out there!"

I watched with a mixture of shock and horror as Miss Fiona raced across the porch and jumped into the current. What I saw next I wouldn't have believed if I hadn't caught a glimpse of a sea monster's long, spiky tail the day Pedro was attacked by a shark. One moment, Miss Fiona was a beautiful, flame-haired woman, and the next, she was a monster the size of a locomotive. The creature roared once, flame shooting out of her jowls, lighting up the murky water. She tucked her wings behind her back and pointed her snout downstream, kicking her hind legs before disappearing in a cloud of bubbles.

"Oh, Lord in heaven," I breathed. "She's a dragon!"