Moon Shimmers(65)

“I love you,” he mouthed.

I blew him a kiss, and then turned back to the path. We were nearing a breach in the trees and through it, I could hear the breeze playing against the currents of the pond. I steeled myself, and glanced over at Delilah. She had followed my lead. I could see the tufts of tissue poking out of her ears. Good. The last thing we needed was one of our party being held hostage by the kelpies.

As we neared the clearing, I could see the glimmer of water rippling under the sunlight. The scent of flowers—I couldn’t place which type—floated by on the light breeze. Intoxicating, they made me want to run toward the ponds, to lose myself in their heady aroma, but I forced myself to stand still.

From where I was standing I could see the ponds—they ranged from hot-tub size to big enough to swim in, and seemed to form a chain against a terraced hillside, the smallest at the top pouring into the one below and so forth, like a naturally tiered fountain.

The bottom one was as large as six Olympic-sized swimming pools, and on the other side of it, lounging against rocks, were the loveliest men I had ever seen. Kelpies could take the form of any fantasy you might have. Sometimes they even mimicked horses, leading weary travelers who thought to catch a free mount into the bogs.

I tried to clear my sight, to see them as they were, but it was difficult. Their charm was a powerful aphrodisiac. But then, something inside clicked—it was as though my own glamour rebelled against theirs—and I caught a glimpse of one of them in his true form. I decided it was a he, because as he stood he resembled the Swamp Thing, with a penis that rivaled the biggest I’d ever seen. The kelpie was covered with a layer of bog mulch, with branches and sticks poking out from the slather of stinking mud.

He leaned his head back and let out a single, crystal clear note, which seemed so out of character with his form that it was hard for me to put the two together. His teeth were neon white, glowing under the sun, sharp, ragged needles filling his mouth. A breeze gusted by and I barely restrained an impulse to gag. The scent of flowers had turned to decay.

“I can see them.” Apparently, once I managed to break the charm, it broke the charm for all of them because I was staring at a group of at least six of the creatures. A pod—nest—whatever they called their groupings. There were three males and three females, by the looks of them, and they were all lounging at the edge of the pond.

“What do you want to do next?” Bran said. “I can see them as they are.”

“I can’t,” Roz said, “but it doesn’t matter. I can feel their energy from here and it’s dangerous and deadly.”

“I guess we engage. If you see someone toss down their weapon and head toward the kelpies, intervene. We all run the risk of being charmed, though I doubt Smoky will have much trouble keeping away from them.”

I glanced at the kelpies, trying to decide if I had any magic that would stand up to them. Turning to Roz, I held out my hand. “Give me ice bombs. Or firebombs. That pond isn’t very large. If we bombard them with ice or fire, it’s going to become mighty uncomfortable and force them out. Once on land, they won’t have as much power because their magic comes from the water.”

He fumbled in his duster, pulling out a bag of the firebombs. “Just don’t fall into the pond while it’s boiling. That’s a small-enough space that even just five or six of these will bring the water almost to boiling and anything in there’s going to fry.” He paused. “You’re sure? This will kill off the fish, too.”

“The fish are already dead,” Bran said. “The kelpies will eat them all, if they haven’t already. Either way, they’re dinner for somebody.”

“I’ll take them.” I held out my hand for the bag. “I don’t think my magic will be much use here, and with these, at least I can chase the kelpies out of the pond and you guys can be ready to take them on. I don’t know that my bruised ribs are going to allow me to help with the fighting unless you’re desperate. I’m more of a hindrance that way.”

“Then you need to get over to the pond’s side without being seen, because they’ll come out of that water in a heartbeat the moment you set foot into the clearing.” Roz handed me the bag of bombs. “And as much as I like you, I am not going to wax enthusiastic about your ability to lob the firebombs from here. I’ve seen you throw.”

“Yeah, yeah. Technicalities.” I stuck my tongue out at him, but he was right and I wasn’t about to argue the point. I’d never sign up to be a pitcher in a game of softball. I glanced around. The trees encircled the clearing, so if I worked my way through them, keeping quiet and out of sight, I should be able to make it over behind the pools. But that still left enough distance for the kelpies to move.