Page 115 of When the Wicked Sing
“Always.” He dipped his brush again, swirling it in white. “I enjoy listening to you,” he replied with a grin.
She shifted her left shoulder toward him so he could see the tattoo inked there.
“I got that tattoo to remember a couple of friends. Xena and Titus.” She pulled her hair over one shoulder and began braiding it as she spoke. “When I was a youngling, I used to get into a lot of trouble,” she admitted with an edge of regret. “Guardian Xena found me hanging around a fishing boat in the daylight. I was very young and curious, so…” Mariana took a breath. “I got too close, and a net caught me. I was fortunate, actually. The fisherman aboard saw me and let go of the net before he could completely pull me out of the water. If he had … I wouldn’t be here today.”
“That had to be terrifying,” he murmured.
She nodded, her face tight, remembering the pain. And all that happened afterward.
“Why do I get the feeling there’s more to the story?” Dax asked, and Mariana met his curious gaze.
“Because there is.”
“Tell me?” He placed a gentle kiss on the inside of her wrist before he continued painting, now on her hips.
“Xena rescued me from the net and pulled the fisherman down. She wanted him to pay for what he’d done and decided it was best to let Cybele decide his punishment.” She shuddered as she remembered. “While he was a prisoner, I brought him food and water. He was kind to me. Even when the food I brought him wasn’t edible, and the water wasn’t drinkable for a mortal, he still thanked me every time. I was scared they weren’t feeding him enough. Anyway, I learned his name was Titus, and he was from the Andros Islands. He said he wanted to speak with the Guardian who rescued me so he could thank her. I was confused, and Xena was skeptical when I asked her, but when he told her how grateful he was that she had saved me from his net, something happened between them—a mutual understanding.” Mariana smiled softly.
She glanced down at the tattoo on her shoulder. “Xena vouched for Titus and asked Cybele to release him, but”—her voice cracked slightly—“Titus asked Cybele if he could stay. He wanted to learn more about us and … I think he was in love with Xena. Cybele, of course, didn’t want the mortal to stay, especially since we had no idea how to keep him alive down there. But then Xena offered to go with him for a short time.”
Her throat tightened as she stared at the ceiling. Shame at what happened after gripped her stomach.
“Did she go with him?” Dax was looking at her when she glanced down at him.
She nodded. “My mother used the opportunity to spread a lie across the Andros Islands that sirens weregoddesses. Xena might have loved Titus, I don’t know … but when Celeste first told me the story, I cried. The story of asea goddessnamed Xena who loved a mortal man named Titus, and it all came crashing down on me that I had helped spread a lie.”
Dax frowned. “I don’t think you did anything wrong, Mari. Whether the story was true or not, it was Cybele’s choice.”
“Astra always said that,” she commented, staring off into the distance.
“Did you find her?” Dax asked softly, drawing her gaze back toward him.
“Yes,” she admitted. “But she didn’t make it out during the …” Her voice trailed off as her breathing turned ragged. She swallowed, taking a deep breath.
“Hey.” Dax moved closer, brushing her hair away from her forehead and placing a hand on her trembling cheek as she fought back tears.
She was so tired of crying.
“I’m so sorry she’s gone. But with everything that’s to come … Don’t let the past consume you.”
“Keep moving forward,” she whispered.
Dax gave her a solemn nod. “Whether it’s on legs or with a tail,” he said with so much seriousness that she shook her headand gave him a closed-lip smile, surprised she was able to hold back from rolling her eyes.
He smiled and kissed her hands. “I mean it, though,” he said, setting her hands down and staring at them. “You have to push through. These are the moments that define you, define what type of ruler you’ll become. And I know you, Mari. You’re going to change everything.”
In the darkness of her mind, Mariana heard a voice whisper to her, “I believe in you. Your destiny was written in the stars of the sky and the waves of the sea, the moment you were born. You’ll save your people, I know it.”
She smiled, wiping her eyes as she recognized Seraphina’s voice. The Goddess believed in her, and so did everyone she loved. She had to move forward, as Dax said. She couldn’t allow the past to hold her hostage or her guilt to consume her. Nothing good would come of it.
A sudden knock on the front door had Dax grumbling.
“Get lost!” he shouted, and just as he was lowering his head to kiss her, the sound of paper sliding under his door drew their attention.
With a groan, Dax stood and snatched up the letter.
“Who’s it from?” Mariana called through the open door of his bedchamber into the living space where he stood.
His eyes quickly scanned the page before dropping it on a nearby table, before walking back toward her.
