DaughterofFire by Courtney Sheets Read Free Book Online

amusement at her mother’s remark.
Pele was just as bad as the handsome demi-god when it came to the opposite sex.
    The goddess turned her head and glared at her daughter.
Kalama squelched the giggle that threatened to burst forth. Pele turned and
looked out the window again, losing herself in the dark night and in thought.
    “Okay, Namakaokaha’i swept my father out to sea where he
drowned. But since I am here, safe and sound with you, she obviously didn’t get
her hands on me. So what happened next, Mom?” Silence stretched between them
for a few moments. Finally Pele spoke, continuing the story.
    “When she realized she killed the man she loved,
Namakaokaha’i went lolo . The fighting became fierce, Kalama. I almost
lost you. I was certain she would tear you from my womb. But finally, I was
able to obtain the upper hand. I buried her in a mound of lava and sent her
straight to the bottom of the sea, where she was to remain—until the
earthquake.” Pele’s gaze turned sharp and met Kalama’s. Kalama noticed a small
twinge a fear lacing her mother’s expression. “She coming after me…and you.”
Pele’s voice was strained. Fear raced through Kalama. Namakaokaha’i was more
dangerous than mortals could imagine. She had been trapped at the bottom of the
sea for over two hundred years. The goddess of the sea was bound to be pissed
off.
    “You beat her once, you can do it again. Now you have me to
help you.” Kalama stood and crossed the distance to her mother.
    “You don’t understand, Kalama. She wants to destroy me and
my islands. Many years ago, in the time of Kamehameha the great, a powerful kahuna devoted to Namakaokaha’i had a tiki of me created. He blessed the carving with
the power to control my lava flows and my powers. When I found out I smashed
the damned thing. I should have burned it to ash in my Kilauea,” Pele said, her
anger growing. The rumbling started again, soft and low, building with each
word the goddess spoke. The truth of what her mother was telling her washed
over her like a strong wave.
    “That’s what the thefts at the park are all about, aren’t
they? Namakaokaha’i is behind them. She’s looking for the tiki pieces.”
Kalama’s voice was barely audible above the rumbling din Pele was creating in
the earth.
    “Yes. She is after the tiki. If she finds it, she will
finally have her revenge. You must get to the pieces before she does. If not,
all of Hawaii will suffer.” Pele turned the full power of her gaze on her
daughter. Kalama stepped back under the force of it.
    “How am I supposed to find the pieces? I’ve never even heard
of this thing until today,” Kalama said. A helpless sensation rippled through
her as she looked at Pele. She was a two-hundred-and-thirty-year-old fire
goddess with powers beyond mere mortal imagining, and yet she didn’t know how
to help her mother. Her mother and Hawaii were in danger and there was nothing
she could do about it.
    “I have something for you that might help us.” Pele turned
and crossed out of the large, functional room and into the back bedroom she’d
originally emerged from. Kalama shook her head, scared to see what her mother
would bring out from the room.
    With a glance toward the heavens, Kalama slumped back on the
ratty but surprisingly comfortable sofa and waited. A loud rumble cut through
the air.
    “Calm down, daughter, I will be right there,” Pele said, her
voice a muffled shout.
    “That was my stomach, Mom. I’m starving.” Kalama laughed.
    “There is pineapple in the kitchen.”
    Kalama popped up from the couch and bolted to the kitchen.
True to her mother’s word, a fat golden pineapple rested on the scuffed Formica
countertop. Rummaging through the few drawers, Kalama managed to locate a
knife. She held the pineapple on a cutting board of hard Koa wood and sliced
off the bottom. Grabbing the fruit by the leafy green top, she began cutting
away the spiny sides, exposing the pale yellow flesh. Finally