Curse of Shadows and Light

by Penelope King

“But why?” I ask. “What is the point of any of this? Why now?”

  “From what we’ve gathered, there’s been a power struggle brewing on their side for a few centuries, and a certain faction thinks the way to assume command is to get rid of us— take over, so to speak. And now that they know there’s a way to do it…” Demetri lets the rest of the sentence hang.

  “And what did you mean when you said that everyone I loved would die?” I ask Vincent. “Maybe we’ll win.”

  He runs his hand though his hair and leans back. “In a war of that magnitude, there will be no winners. But you were asking me why we shouldn’t just let them take out the Legionare as punishment for killing your friend Bones.”

  I feel Kieron stiffen beside me.

  “..And it’s because that will end the chain of existence. All sires can be traced back to the Core Powers, the ones who started the genetic trail that eventually created you, you, you—” He nods to all four of us in turn. “And every other demon and demion in existence. Your sires die, so do you. Demions become purely human, and demons vanish entirely.”

  “Wait, what? You mean if my great- great- great grandfather to the power of infinity somehow gets killed, I die too? What kind of messed up deal is that?”

  Vincent shrugs. “That’s how it’s always been. Your connection to the Source… our connections… go far beyond just our own body, far beyond our own selves. It’s a connection to something ancient, mystical, and necessary. If that Source disappears, so do we. The balance will be thrown off, and the world as you know it will cease to exist.”

  I rub the side of my head. “And you’re saying that if it happens, it will be my fault.”

  Vincent shakes his head, as Kieron reaches over to give my hand a gentle squeeze. “That is an unfortunate way to word it. Let’s just say that we don’t want the Light-angels to take advantage of any opportunities they may think they have. And to do that, we must keep you safe until we figure a way out of this mess. But we also need to know anything you might know about them.”

  I take a minute and let his words sink in. I knew Light-angels getting into Thiberoux would be bad, but this was even worse than I’d thought. “The only real contact I had with them was when we were fighting for our lives after getting ambushed in my own home. It’s a freak miracle we even survived. We killed two of them,” I glance at Kieron, “but just barely. The other two got away. Since they know all about me, we had to leave and come hide out here on the other side of the country.”

  “It was Liora who was with them the most,” Kieron adds. “She was involved with the one named Tristan. He was sort of their leader I gathered. He preyed on her and drained her of her strength in order to manipulate and use her. He almost had her at his mercy when things took an unexpected twist, and we ended up having a confrontation. Fortunately, they didn’t get what they wanted.”

  Vincent suddenly leans close to me, and I jump again. He reaches out and grasps the Boumeaux dangling between my breasts.

  “This… this is what they’re after,” he murmurs.

  I take a deep breath and wrap my hand over his and gently release his fingers from the stone.

  “Yes. Not specifically this exact stone, per se. But someone who can handle one without turning to dust and who also can be forced into opening the portal to Thiberoux.” I lean back against Kieron. “So a few of them cooked up the not-so-brilliant scheme to use Liora. Naturally I had no idea what was going on—”

  “And I was indisposed at the time,” Kieron interjects. “I didn’t know what’d happened with Liora and the Light-angels until later.”

  I glance from him to Vincent, who remains silent, studying me with a mysterious intensity that is irritating, yet at the same time turning me on. Suddenly… inexplicably… I wish the entire room would clear out and leave me alone with him.

  Kieron picks this second to wrap his arm over my shoulder and pull me close, and I’m flooded with guilt.

  What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I acting like some pathetic bitch in heat? It’s not like this is the first time I’ve been near a sexy guy. This damn pregnancy must be messing with my hormones… and my head!

  “So Liora is the vulnerable one. She’s the one they’ll be looking for when they need to get in. Their ‘key master’, for lack of a better term.” Demetri looks at me, and I nod.

  “That’s why we’ve taken sanctuary with a powerful witch. Her enchantments will keep Liora safe.”

  “It would be best if we could just move you into Thiberoux permanently,” Vincent says. “That would fix this whole problem.”

  “Except for the whole ‘death upon reentry’ banishment,” I remind him. “And the fact that Liora would probably kill herself first if she had to live there full time.”

  He looks at me carefully. “Yes, that is unfortunate. And there is no way I can reach Abbaton to have him rescind his command,” he murmurs.

  I can’t help but laugh. “Now that’s some sweet irony for ya—banish the one person who could actually save your ass. Those idiots deserve to die just for being so stupid.”

  “Except they’d take the rest of us with them,” Kieron reminds me.

  “We don’t know for sure that they’ll come after Liora again,” I say after several tense moments. “Maybe they’ll just get some other demon to do it. I’m sure some turncoat would let them in to Thiberoux for the right price.”

  Vincent looks me square in the eye. “Demons are many things, but they can never turn against their own Source of Power. Even the weakest demons would rather die than suffer the consequences of letting Light-angels into Thiberoux. It’s encoded in their DNA, their essence. Creators knew what they were doing there.”

  I consider Vincent’s words, and I have to admit they ring true. As thoroughly pissed off as I am at the Legionare, and as much as I would love nothing more than to see those sons of bitches get what’s coming to them, I know I could never let Light-angels in the door. It just couldn’t happen.

  But Liora…

  Suddenly it really hits me.

  “They really are going to come for her, for us, aren’t they… Liora is in a lot of danger…”

  Demetri and Vincent exchange glances.

  “Yes, Lucky,” Vincent says quietly. “They are probably coming for you… for Liora. And we need to figure out how to stop it. And we need to figure out soon.”

  ********

  I wrap my arms tightly around Kieron’s waist as we speed through the portal and back toward the mansion. The sun will be coming up soon, and for the first time since I can remember I’m actually fearful—fearful of what might happen to me as I sleep.

  “Will you stay with me?” I ask Kieron as we enter the guest house. Corrine has long since gone to sleep, and everything is quiet. “Please, stay with me,” I repeat, staring into his dark blue eyes.

  He gives a slight nod and follows me to my room. I quickly change out of my clothes and into a t-shirt and some boxer shorts. He takes off his shoes and his shirt and undoes the top button of his jeans. We fall into the bed and press our bodies together, arms and legs entwined, just holding tight.

  I hate myself for what I’m doing, using him like this. I really do love him. I do. But when I close my eyes and press my face into his warm flesh, it isn’t Kieron I’m feeling. It isn’t his arms I’m imagining holding me tight. It isn’t his lips that are delicately gracing the side of my face, and it isn’t his soothing voice whispering in my ear that I hear. He will never be him.

  But he is gone.

  So I’ll take what I can get.

  Chapter 12. Liora

  His hands gently stroke my arm, and I feel his warm breath on my face. I open my eyes to meet his, and smile. Without a word I give him a small kiss and snuggle closer. He feels so good right now. I feel so safe, protected, and loved.

  “Good morning, sleepyhead,” he murmurs.

  “Mmmmm. Why aren’t I waking up like this every morning?”

  He chuckles softly. “Do you rea
lly want me to answer that?”

  I sigh, the sweet moment gone. “No, I suppose I don’t.” While my jealousy of whatever Kieron and Lucky do together has considerably diminished, it still bugs me to think that he was like this with her, not me. I’m just getting the leftovers.

  I sit up and rub my eyes, while Kieron rolls onto his side and props himself up on his elbow. Damn he looks so sexy in the morning, hair all mussed up, wearing only his jeans. I can’t help but wonder why Lucky hasn’t slept with him yet. Clearly she has no problem giving it up. What is she waiting for?

  But deep down I know why.

  “How’re you feeling?” he asks in a husky voice.

  I take a moment to consider his question and am surprised when my truthful answer is, “Great! I feel really good. Better than in a long while. I take it last night went well?”

  He rolls his eyes and gives a small grimace before flopping over on his back. “Last night was… well, let’s just say it was interesting. There are some people coming over soon to meet with you—”

  “People?” I raise my eyebrow.

  “Demions. But their powers aren’t active in this world, only in Thiberoux. They are Guardians there.”

  Like Bones was…

  “And there’s some stuff we need to talk about. Things you need to know.”

  My heart thuds dully, and I lick my suddenly dry lips. “Things like what?”

  He gives a half smile and rubs my leg. “You need to know that we will keep you safe. That we will protect you. And that I love you.”

  “Is there a but?”

  “But…” He lets out a deep sigh. “There are some things we need to discuss. One of them being that I’m due for my sleep very, very soon, and that’ll put me out of commission for a brief spell. The timing sucks, obviously, but I’ve pushed it back as far as I can. I can’t hold off much longer.”

  I nod my understanding, even though this definitely is not something I want to hear right now. I know that Kieron has weird sleep habits. He stays awake for days, sometimes even weeks at a time. But then he goes into an almost coma-like state for several days. The thought of being alone now, with only Anastasia’s enchantments to keep me safe, is more unsettling than I want to admit.

  “But you won’t be alone and unprotected,” Kieron continues as if reading my mind. “It’s one of the reasons the demions are coming over.”

  I raise my eyebrows. “Ha! I’m sure Anastasia will be overjoyed by that.”

  “Yeah, I know she won’t be thrilled, but we don’t have a choice. I’ll need you to talk to her about it. They’re special; as far as I know, they only have active demonic powers in Thiberoux as Hellhounds. But here they are more human. At least, that’s how Vincent explained it to me.”

  I frown. “If they have no powers then what good are they?”

  “Well, here they have passive powers, which aren’t the same thing. Strictly defensive, and off any supernatural radar.” He shrugs. “I’ll let them explain it to you. It’s merely a precaution, really… a couple extra sets of eyes on you while I take a quick nap. And I guess they really need to talk with you about your experiences with Tristan and the other Light-angels.” He avoids my eyes when he mentions Tristan.

  Great. I was really hoping to never have to re-live that nightmare ever again.

  “What do they want to know?” I mumble.

  He shrugs. “Just to find out what exactly happened. Anything you might know…”

  “Well, I guess they sound better than normal demons,” I say, trying to change the subject. “You know how they give me the creeps. Present company excluded, of course.” I give him a quick kiss on the mouth, and he arches an eyebrow.

  “Of course.”

  Thirty minutes later I’m showered and changed. Kieron is sitting on the couch flipping through a magazine, and Corrine is out in the kitchen stirring something in a bowl and wearing a blue ruffled apron that looks like something from the fifties.

  “Hi, Liora! Nice to see everyone survived the night! You want pancakes?” She grins and pushes her glasses up, leaving a smudge of batter on her nose.

  “Sure.” I try not to laugh as I slide onto a barstool at the counter. The kitchen looks like a tornado blasted through it. There’s spilled milk on the counter, flour on the floor, and several broken eggs in the sink.

  “I know, I know. I’m not the neatest cook ever. But I’ll clean it all up, promise.”

  I chuckle. “It’s fine, I’m not worried. Thanks for doing this. It’s really sweet of you.”

  Corrine takes some oil and pours it into a hot skillet. “I’ve decided this is what I’m going to do… my way of contributing. You’ve done so much for me, so I’m going to do this for you. Breakfast, lunch, dinner… you name it. I was up half the night collecting recipes, and I was hoping to sit down with you guys, and you can tell me all the stuff you like and what you don’t—”

  “Whoa wait, no. Corrine, you really don’t have to do that. You don’t owe us anything! Get that out of your head now.”

  “Yeah,” Kieron chimes in from the couch. “Don’t you know that you’re the only thing around here that’s actually normal? Without you, we’d just be a house full of freaks. You keep us connected to reality. That’s a big enough contribution. You just being you.”

  Corrine smirks at us, and then starts scooping out her batter onto the skillet. “Okay, well then I’ll put it to you this way—it’ll make me feel really good to be able to do this for you guys, and I really hope you’ll let me. I’ve always wanted to learn to bake and cook better, but I’ve never had enough food or supplies to work with. But now I do, and I’m really excited to try out a bunch of things. And it gives me something to do, and I feel useful. So if it’s okay with you guys, would you mind if I did all the cooking around here?”

  Kieron and I look at each other, and I turn to Corrine with a smile. “Of course you may. And thank you. It’s a very sweet gesture.”

  “And most appreciated,” Kieron adds.

  Corrine grins. “Cool. Okay, so what’s on the agenda for today?” She expertly flips the pancakes and wipes her hand on her apron.

  “Actually, I need to go talk with Anastasia in a bit. Do you wanna come with me? Check out the place?”

  She scrunches her eyebrows and tilts the skillet so the pancakes slide off onto a plate. “Sure, but won’t I be interrupting your chit chat time?”

  “Well, I was thinking—thank you, that looks delicious—yeah, I need to talk with her about some things, and we’ll need some alone time. But there’s a chance we might need you to pass on some things to Lucky later. That is if you don’t mind.” I pick up the syrup bottle and start drizzling it over the short stack she’s just put in front of me.

  Corrine’s face brightens. “Sure, of course I don’t mind. Anything I can do to help. Plus, I’m dying to see the inside of her place. I bet it’s amazing!”

  “You’ll have to tell me all about it,” Kieron says dryly, as he comes over to sit beside me. I know he doesn’t really care about seeing her fancy house, but I can’t help but wonder if her rejection of him doesn’t hurt his feelings, at least a little. Kieron cares for humans far more than most demions do. It’s one of the things that made me fall in love with him. And for Anastasia to reject him so callously without even knowing him at all has to sting.

  We finish eating and Corrine and I clean the kitchen, then head on outside to visit Anastasia. Kieron was just going to relax and watch some TV and promised he wouldn’t fall asleep before we return.

  It’s another perfect day, one that almost has me convinced that we really are in paradise, in a lucid dream-like fantasy. The air is crisp and clean, the sky the palest powder blue, and there isn’t a cloud in sight. Flowers splash their vibrant colors against acres of pristine green grass, and even the cobblestone walkway beneath our feet glistens as if covered with gold dust and crushed diamonds. The soothing lull of the ocean rhythmically crashing against the rocks completes the tranquil scene.
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  “Doesn’t it seem like we’re in some sort of fairy tale here?” Corrine asks, as if reading my mind.

  I chuckle. “Yeah, and we’re on our way to see the wicked witch now.”

  She giggles and covers her mouth. “She’s not really that bad, is she?”

  I know Corrine is more nervous then she lets on, so I shake my head. “Nah, she’s okay. She’s just not a fan of demons is all, but who can blame her? She likes humans just fine. You have nothing to worry about.”

  “But that thing she told you and Lucky about Tatiana dying… I mean, that was really messed up, yeah?”

  “Yeah, you could say that. But in retrospect I can sorta see why she did it.”

  “Hmmm.”

  Anastasia meets us by the side garden, almost as if she was expecting us. “Good morning, ladies. It’s nice to see you on this lovely day.”

  I blink. She seems so different from the cold, guarded woman from yesterday.

  “Hello, Mrs. Havish,” Corrine says and nervously adjusts her glasses.

  “Hello, my dear. Have you two eaten already?”

  We both nod.

  “Well, then come along. Let’s give you the grand tour, shall we?”

  Chapter 13. Liora

  Almost an hour later I am convinced we’re in some sort of alternate universe. Anastasia’s mansion is far beyond anything I’ve ever seen in the movies, let alone in real life. And as far as I can tell she lives here all alone with only a few servants. It’s so strange… and a little sad.

  “If you don’t mind me asking, what did your late husband do?” I ask her. She’d already told us that she was widowed and childless.

  “Do?”

  “For money? How did he get so wealthy? Or was it his family’s money, like an inheritance?”

  Anastasia gives an amused laugh. “Oh, no my dear. This house and the money is from my side of the family.”

  I stare at her, puzzled. “Your side? But you and Tatiana are sisters. Twins. Why wouldn’t she…?” I don’t even finish my question before Anastasia silences me with a knowing look.