September 3 | Day
As I listened to Nixie relay how she had outwitted Distefano, a surge of pride coursed through me. I had always thought of her as delicate, but she had proven me wrong by showing her unbreakable resilience. I had no idea what I would have done if anything bad had happened. Nevertheless, before Dex and I could even call Delilah back to the van and hit the road to rescue her, Nixie had texted us that she was safe. Now we sat in Dex's shed comparing our experiences.
"Richter Distefano knows about The Book of Tides, and he wants to use it to keep humans from acquiring the gift of magic." Nixie's eyes were wide with worry as she put the gadgets Dex had lent her back into their box.
Fitz paced the room, glancing through a slit in the blackout curtains that covered the windows for Delilah's sake. He hadn't relaxed his guard since their return. "I think the president could be behind the smugglers finding out," he suggested. "No way an OASIS agent would've leaked information about the book to an everyday civilian, but they definitely would've felt compelled to say something about it to Distefano, if he asked."
As I sat on a stool by the door, I carefully cleaned and oiled my gun, with my gaze bouncing from them to the woman in charge.
Dex semmed to agree, squinting at the computer as she reviewed the footage from our reconnaissance mission. She swiveled in her office chair to face us. "But that's just speculation. Right now, what we know is that our safety net is shrinking. We've got smugglers in New Orleans looking for us, Distefano trying to bribe the princess, and Darcy hot on our trail."
"Darcy and Distefano have been uneasy frienemies for years. Darcy is after the president's seat on the council, although Distefano pretends not to know it." Delilah stretched from her perch on the workstation countertop. "With them both in search of the book, their rivalry will spur them to greater depths of depravity."
"Then why did you tell the vampire about it?" I snapped.
Smiling, she leapt from the counter and strutted toward Dex's computers. "He already knew something. You didn't see the undercurrents running beneath the surface between him and Mal. I had to give my husband a small piece of our information in order to get more of his, but I didn't tell him we have the book.
"Darcy is preoccupied with training his new pet dog to win best in show." Delilah put our focus on the part of the video where a young man was transformed into a werewolf before our eyes. The rest of our team came closer to witness it. Dex and I had already seen.
"The billionaire collector is so wrapped up in his years-long search for the Map of Destiny," said Delilah, "that coming after The Book of Tides is an afterthought for him. So, he's not hot on our trail, but if he finds out Distefano is closer to getting what he wants, then he will be."
At the workstation next to Dex, Abuela Maya was brewing a milky white potion that bubbled with a pearlescent sheen. "Perhaps its time to consider finding another safehouse," she murmured, staring with heightened concentration at what she was adding to the mixture.
"Yeah, this one no longer feels safe." Nixie caught my eye. "Distefano made a point of telling me he knew how to find me." She hugged herself, and anger ricocheted through me at him threatening her. I quickly and forcefully put my weapon back together.
"I dare him to come here," I muttered. Fitz nodded at me in agreement.
Dex smiled tiredly. "Now isn't the time to run away, Abuela. Nor to pick senseless fights, boys. It's time to finish what we started. Delilah's ready to take us to the Gates of Mortality."
"How?" I asked, wary of the vampire.
Delilah and Dex locked eyes, Dex fighting to keep a pained expression from showing. Delilah spoke up, "We have to go to someplace where people regularly hover between life and death."
"You mean like a hospital?" Fitz asked.
"No," Delilah chuckled.
"We're going to see my brother, Torres," Dex replied, looking away.
A trap house. Torres was an addict. Abuela Maya stopped what she was doing and frowned at Delilah. This was the vampire's doing.
"How do you feel about that, Dex?" I asked.
"Hm? How should I feel? We have to do what we have to do," Dex replied gruffly. "Be prepared. We leave in a few days."
There was something I had to do before we moved forward with the mission, and I couldn't put it off any longer. Realizing how much I actually cared about Dex and Nixie, a feeling I had never known before was gnawing at my soul. It made me restless to finally put everything on the table.
***
"Nixie, I need to talk to you when we get the chance," I said from the guest room door.
"Can't we talk now?" she asked.
I looked around the room that she shared with Fitz. The sharpshooter didn't look up from his phone, but I knew he was listening. I didn't think he would take well to what I had to say. I scratched the back of my neck and took a step back. "I'd rather talk somewhere private."
A flash of uncertainty passed over Nixie's face as she got up from the bed and followed me out, closing the door behind her. "What's this about?" she asked quietly.
I opened my mouth to speak, but I didn't know how to begin. Shaking my head, I marched to the backdoor of the cottage, with a glance over my shoulder to make sure she was following. Her halting steps didn't seem too enthusiastic.
When we got outside to the pond, I climbed into the boat and made space for her. Dex called from the shed, "Any room for one more?" I nodded, and she loped toward us. We rowed to the center of the pond in silence.
"Just tell me," Nixie said.
"I've lied to you both, and I'm sorry. I think you should know the truth." I lowered my head.
She crossed her arms, tears welling in her eyes. "I knew it."
Dex wordlessly stroked her back. Both women fixed their gazes on me, nailing me to the spot. I imagined Nixie believing I had another relationship or something equally dastardly, and I shook my head vehemently. "It's not what you think," I said.
"Oh, really? It's not that you're the head of a criminal organization, pardoned for a serious offense under the condition that you take part in this OASIS mission?" She lifted her chin.
My jaw dropped. "I didn't think you'd remember that."
"Right, because everyone thinks I'm this vapid, innocent, darling princess who doesn't pay attention to anything around me. You looked me in the eyes that day and told me that you were joking. But I overheard your conversations about jail time, and I know you owe someone a serious amount of money," she sighed, dashing her tears.
"Owed." I stared at the water glumly. "I owed someone a serious amount of money. I'm not a longtime secret agent. I'm the leader of a street racing gang, and before I got caught by OASIS for breaking the Existence in Proximity Act, I thought I could increase my profits by selling drugs. Once I got the package, however, I realized that wasn't the life for me. I paid off the drug dealer with money I got from making a foolish deal with Delilah."
"You knew, Dex?" Nixie implored.
"I...knew some parts, but I thought it would be more appropriate for Legend to tell you the truth about himself on his own terms," Dex replied. "Because of his bargain with Delilah, we almost had the assassination of a council member on our hands, but I headed it off at the pass. Legend confessed everything to me last night."
I inclined my head, staring at my hands, wishing I could disappear. "Now you both know all there is to know," I mumbled. "Look, I understand that this probably changes the way you two see me. I let you believe that I was a stand-up guy because that was what I wanted to be."
"Well, Legend, you did a terrible job of hiding the fact that you were hiding things," Nixie laughed shakily as she regained her composure.
"I saw through you the minute I met you," Dex confided. "I watched you go from Bantam rooster to baby chicken right before my eyes, and I knew you would come with baggage, but I accepted you anyway. I'm pleased you found the strength to be truthful. It's time for me to be more forthcoming with you, as well.
"Let's talk about your family." She blew out a breath. "The image they project is why you've never felt like you were good enough. As a special agent, it was my job to thoroughly investigate you and the people around you. That means I learned a lot of stuff that your parents likely don't want anyone to know. Everyone has secrets and even delusions."
"Do you know who my real father is?" I asked anxiously.
"No, but I think it's only fair to tell you that none of the Liangs are as successful in real life as they appear on paper. They're all struggling financially and dealing with their own personal problems. People exaggerate things. If you remember nothing else from this conversation, I hope you remember this: there is no need to compare yourself to everyone else's perfect story. Your story is unique and special, so focus on your own journey."
I was shocked to hear that my family wasn't what they appeared to be. It made me realize that I was more of a Liang than I thought. I stored the information away for later, when I had time to reflect on its significance and find out more about what my family was keeping from me. I had grown up with so many secrets, which probably had bearing on my natural inclination to hide things. I didn't want to be like that anymore.
"What surprises me is that you thought being honest and forthright would push people away. While I knew you were hiding something, I kept seeing the best in you, and you saw me like everyone else–not able to handle the truth. That's so incredibly heartbreaking. All I ever wanted from you was to get to know the real you," said Nixie.
Staring into her eyes, it seemed like the simplest request, yet the hardest. "I apologize from the deepest part of my heart. I've never let anyone get to know the real me. The real me is an outcast. He can't fit in. He doesn't belong."
Nixie grabbed my hand. "The real you went through traumas just like the rest of us. Yours left you with a skewed idea of what it means to belong, but if you look around, you'll see that you fit in perfectly here with Dex and me and everyone else on the team." She tilted her head. "We're all our own brand of misfits."
"You're a princess," I corrected her.
"I'm offended that you think princesses can't be misfits."
"And I'm offended that you didn't point out I'm a professor!" Dex laughed.
Nixie suddenly unbuttoned her shorts, and I raised an eyebrow. I didn't know what she was thinking or what she was doing. She playfully rolled her eyes at me as she shrugged out of her shirt and dove into the water. I leaned over to catch a glimpse of her blue and purple tail when it materialized. Her dreadlocks, instantly soaked, rained around her face as she looked up at us with a grin.
"Come on in. The water's fine, you guys," Nixie invited.
The smile left my lips as I studied her beauty. "We're not the same, ladies. I don't have a bright, sunny future ahead of me. When we're done with this mission, I go back to boosting cars and running from the cops," I said.
Nixie sprinkled me with water. "You're full of it, Legend Liang. Your future will be whatever you make of it. Now swim with me."
"Is that what you want to do when this is over, Legend? Go back to boosting cars?" Dex peered at me. Nixie dipped beneath the water, came back up, and dragged me into the pond with her. I let out a shout, while Dex cackled in surprise as she got splashed. "What, are we gonna swim our problems away?" She chuckled.
I sank with Nixie, my waterlogged clothes ballooning, bubbles filling the water like confetti. The sunlight that cut through the surface illuminated her vibrant features, and her hair floated around us like a veil. I was captivated by her. My dragon burst out of my chest with joy. The little totem twirled and looped its way from her to me.
When Dex plunged into the water beside us, we made room for her in our circle. My hairy legs brushed against her pale brown calves as I treaded water. Nixie swam around her and kissed her beneath the gently rolling ceiling of waves, and I thought my heart might explode from the pleasure of seeing them together. Being with them. How they had responded to my confession defied expectations. They hadn't turned their backs on me.
"Mami Wata drags men underwater to teach them spiritual truths," Nixie whispered when we resurfaced. Arms draping my shoulders, she wouldn't allow me to break eye contact. "I want to divulge a spiritual truth to you, Legend. I adore you. You're one of the most interesting men that I've ever met, and I know you're flawed, but that's part of your character."
She turned to Dex and said, "I adore you, woman. You're, hands down, the only person who has ever won me over so thoroughly. I want to be in a relationship with the two of you. I don't know how this goes. I don't even know if it's done, but to hell with conventions. I'm a princess; I can do whatever I like."
"Leaning into that a little heavily, aren't we?" I teased.
"Our secrets and fears have been standing in the way of us being together," said Nixie.
"This mission is standing in the way of us being together," Dex clarified.
"Our secrets and fears," Nixie insisted. "For example, Dex, you're afraid that if you're not focused on work every minute of everyday, you'll do something crazy like fall in love with a stranger." She smiled, unrelenting, and Dex glanced away with a laugh because she was right. "There's nothing crazier than shutting people out to keep your emotions in check."
The sun beamed down on us as I considered her words. "A relationship," I tried the thought on for size. She nodded encouragingly. "The three of us together, exclusive to one another. Just seeing where this goes?"
"That's what I had in mind."
Dex mused aloud, "What happens if I stop worrying about doing something crazy and go for it?"
"You'll feel a lot better," Nixie chortled.
"Alright... Legend, I've been trying to turn my head from you from the moment I first saw you, and I haven't been able," Dex told me. "And, Nixie, I have been racking my brain to figure out how I would return to my normal life after you're crowned queen and move on from us, but what you're offering is a chance I'm willing to take. Can I finally admit that it feels as if lightning has struck twice? I'm falling for both of you."
"Say the words," said Nixie.
"We're together," Dex capitulated.
I dragged them under the waves in an exuberant three-way kiss to seal the deal. In the distance, Fitz watched from the shore, and I made an internal vow that I wouldn't disappoint him or Abuela Maya. I wouldn't break Nixie and Dex's hearts.
***
The next part will become free from November 27, 2023, but until then, it can be unlocked for only 5 Coins!