I can’t help the smile that forms on my lips as I hurry to the cell’s door and pass through it. Reed is on the other side, waiting for me. His perfect mouth leans nearer to my clone’s lips. “I want so much to kiss you right now,” he says. In this light, his face and body show the strain of his captivity. Although there are no marks on him, he has a hollow look about him that makes me feel even more contempt for his captors.
“If I thought for one second that I could hold my form, I’d have already kissed you, but I’m having a hard time keeping my consciousness in my clone.”
“Are you hurt? Are they mistreating you?” he asks.
“No, it’s not the divine angels. I’m just tired—so much has happened so fast.”
While Reed casts a shadow on the wall, my form throws only light. “I was worried about you, Evie,” he admits. “When I saw you fall, I thought for a moment that Tau killed you. I retaliated against your father—I nearly killed him.”
“He doesn’t look like you hurt him too badly,” I whisper, my eyes going to the end of the hallway where Tau fills the archway; his red wings spread wide. He has no emotion except an expression of superiority on his face.
Tau doesn’t approach Reed, but instead pulls his phone from his pocket and connects with a number on speed dial. Holding the phone to his ear, he says, “Evie’s here. She sent a clone, Xavier.” He listens for a moment before he adds, “Yes. Now.” Pulling the phone away from his ear, he ends the call.
In the back of my mind, I hear a commotion. It’s a build up of echoes—a slamming of a door—faraway, like the ocean in a shell—footsteps. I feel my upper arms seized, but Reed hasn’t touched me. My clone fades, her light scattering sparks into the darkness of the hallway. My name reverberates off the brown stone walls surrounding us. “Do you hear that?” I ask Reed beside me.
“I hear nothing,” he replies with a grim expression.
“It’s Xavier.” I draw my clone’s light back to her in a desperate attempt to stay with Reed. Xavier’s presence is all around me—his scent is time and distance—so vast I can’t ever escape it.
A violent shake scatters my clone’s light again in glowing embers like the stirring of a campfire in the middle of the night. Sparks dance away, up and out from me. I feel Xavier’s touch. He becomes the wind lifting this body away.
“Xavier’s in my room with me. He’s trying to bring me back to him, Reed.”
“I’ll find you,” Reed promises as his shoulders bend toward my clone. His need to protect me is written in his eyes. “Soon.”
Looking away from Reed, towards Tau, I call to my father, “Don’t hurt Reed.”
Tau’s voice is stern. “You’re not in control here.”
Something cold swabs my bicep. The scent of rubbing alcohol assails my nose. A dull pain sticks my arm. My head spins with dizziness; Reed and Xavier are before me as two different planes of reality merge at once. I become a dead star collapsing, compressing all my energy into an internal fire. The light within my clone bursts into a shower of sparks. My consciousness emerges from that reality, being torn away from Reed as I propel back into this one. I open my eyes and find my head cradled beneath Xavier’s arm while he holds my limp body to him upon the bed’s white blanket. The fire still crackles in the grate. It’s quiet in my Arctic bedroom with just the soft sound of Xavier’s heartbeat.
“What did you do?” I ask, grogginess overwhelming me.
“I had to bring you back,” he whispers near my ear. “I gave you a mild sedative. You can rest now.” His lips press to my forehead. When he pulls away, my cheek falls upon his shoulder.
I struggle against the darkness that is pulling me into it. “You shouldn’t have drugged me. I’ll fall asleep, Xavier.”
“That’s the plan,” he says in a lulling voice.
“Brennus will be there...he’ll be waiting for me,” I manage to say in a thready tone. “He can find me...whenever I close...my...eyes...”
Through a half-lidded stare, I see Xavier’s eyes open wider in growing understanding—panic. He grips my arms and presses his face nearer to mine. “How?”
“Blood. He has some of mine and he can use it...the dark red path that leads him to me.” My eyes slip closed.
“Can he harm you in your dreams?” he asks with a wild shake when I don’t immediately open my eyes.
I can only manage a squint. “He won’t hurt me.”
Xavier scoffs. “Didn’t he just spend months trying to kill you?”
“We’re...past that now.”
“He’s an evil killer, Evie!”
“Maybe he was evil—before, but now—”
“He’s still evil! You did nothing that would change that.”
“He’s a weapon, like me—has been for a long time—just waiting to be wielded.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“Don’t I?” I ask, feeling more relaxed than I have in months. “I’ll be sure to ask him...what side he’s on, but I already know the answer.”
“Really? And what side is that, Evie?”
“Mine.”
In the darkness, my hand moves over the soft sheets beneath me. My breath exhales, a confession of life. With my cheek against the mattress, a golden glow falls upon the linens from over my shoulder. I frown. Slowly, I lift my head from the bed and rise up on my elbow. Brennus is stretched out next to me, his legs crossed. His black wings rest against a thick pillow. He plays with a golden orb of light in his hand in a distracted way, the light falls over his black leather jacket in such a way as to make it appear liquid, and then shadow.
“Where are we?” I ask while sitting up straighter. My hands smooth my rumpled hair. I’m light-headed, it’s as if I’ve had too much to drink.
Brennus grins as he throws the ball of light into the air. Its golden glow hovers above us, dispelling the darkness in our immediate area, but beyond the orb, the absence of light seems to go on forever.
“Ye’ll have ta tell me where we are. ’Tis yer dream.”
“I don’t know where I am.” I still fear him, no matter whose side he’s on.
“Where were ye when ye were drugged?”
My hands drop from my hair as I turn to stare at him. “How did you know?”
“Dere’s nuting here.” He waves his hand in the direction of the darkness. “Yer mind is so vivid—expressive. ’Tis unlike ye na ta have a tousand wee details. Ye see in light, na dark. Dis is da opposite of ye.”
“It’s scary how well you know me,” I murmur.
“I am scary, never forget dat.”
“Whenever I do, you remind me.”
That gets another grin from him. “Show me where ye were as ye fell asleep—ye were in dis bed, I take it?” Brennus runs a hand over the white fur blanket.
“Why do you want to know?”
“Because I’m interested,” he says with an unruffled mien. “I want ta know everyting about ye. Knowing where ye are is always a priority ta me. Dat should come as no surprise ta ye.”
“Yes, you’re a total stalker. The truth is that I don’t know where I am,” I confess. “All I know is that it’s cold—” I’m cut off as Brennus’ hand cups my cheek and his lips press to mine. His kiss is soft and sweet—so unlike his demanding personality. I fall silent, not responding, yet unable to pull away. Brennus’ eyebrow lifts before he pulls away from me. His lips curl in a barely suppressed smile and his green eyes shine with inner fire.
I pull my jumbled thoughts together enough to murmur, “Don’t kiss me.”
“Technically, we’re na even in da same room together.”
“It feels real,” I whisper.
“It does,” he admits with a gleam in his eyes.
“So, don’t do it.”
“’Twas na a kiss so much as ’twas an attempt ta clear da fog from yer mind.”
“It felt like a kiss—and what’s so funny?” I ask at his growing smirk.
He raises both of his eyebrows. �
�Nuting,” he replies, his smile spreading into a full-fledged grin. He glances around, causing me to do the same. The nothingness is being replaced by a watercolor of light. It bleeds from the ceiling downward, filling in the details and dimensions of my wintery bedroom. “I was jus tryin’ ta get a clearer picture of dis place.”
I grasp his hand; it’s warm in mine. “You can’t come here, Brennus. This place is crawling with angels.”
His eyebrow arches in question. “Are ye worried about dem or me?”
“Neither. Both. Neither! “I shake my head in confusion, dropping his hand. Turning away from him, I rise from the bed and walk to the fireplace. Heat radiates from it just like a real fire. I face Brennus as he stands. “I didn’t do what you asked.”
Brennus frowns, “Dat’s na surprisin’. Ye never do as ye’re told—ye always need more tellin’. Ye’ll have ta be more specific because I do na remember whah ’twas—”
“Emil’s alive. He’s here—in this time.”
Understanding enters his eyes. “I know.”
Confusion clouds mine. “You do?”
“I was jus wi’ him—yer Emil.”
“He’s not my Emil!” I retort in an almost breathless denial.
“But he is—yers.” Brennus extends his hand to me. “Take a walk wi’ me.” His head gestures toward the door. “We have much ta discuss.”
I walk to his side, but I don’t take his hand. “You were just with him?”
We move together, through the doorway. “Whose room is dis?” Brennus asks, his brow wrinkling.
“Xavier’s.” I watch him eye the enormous bed. “What?”
“He’s guarding ye. Dey have ta go tru him ta get ta ye.”
“Yeah,” I agree as I continue through the room and to the door that leads to the rotunda outside it, “he’s a bit possessive—kind of like all the men in my life.”
“Ye tend ta bring dat out in us.”
“Sure. Blame the victim.”
He ignores me. “Except for Emil. I tink he jus wants ta end ye.” The truth of Brennus’ statement brings fear. I know the danger I’m in. Emil can tell tomorrow by where we’ve been. I have very few memories of him—only the ones from Lille.
We pause outside the doorway overlooking the center of the rotunda. We’re across from the giant glass-cut angel statues on the other side of the track-like passageway. His proximity to me is intimate—unnerving—especially because it’s just the two of us here. Brennus backs off the edge of the balcony. His strong wings beat the air as he hovers in front of me. “Has yer flying gotten any better?” he asks.
My wings arch out around me to half extension. “I can hold my own.”
He studies the shapes my wings take before he gives me a cheeky grin and replies, “Ye can.”
He turns away from me and flies upward, past several balconies and tunnels that lead away from the rotunda. I follow him up all the way to the peak of the glass dome. Sunlight is obscured by snow and ice, but there are enough scattered drifts in it to be able to see out.
The rim of the dome has silver filigree carved in the shape of angel wings. I hold onto the stone ledge that meets the silver edge, my wings keeping me aloft as I peer outside at the mountain peaks and snow beyond. There could be an ocean off in the distance, but it could also be refracted light of the bluest hue coming off the icy snow.
The air around me stirs from Brennus’ wings as he poises beside me. “Da northern hemisphere—at da bottom of da world.”
I give him a funny look. “How do you know we’re not in the southern hemisphere?”
“I can tell da difference. Da magnetic pull stirs in a different direction from pole ta pole. In time, ye’ll learn ta differentiate between dem.”
“If you’re so intuitive, why are you calling the northern hemisphere the bottom of the world?”
Brennus’ eyebrows rise in challenge. “’Tis a matter of perspective, is it na? Change yer angle and everyting changes. ’Tis all in how ye look at a ting. Ye should try turning a map upside down once in awhile. Everyting looks different when ye do.”
What he says makes sense. “You always surprise me, Brennus,” I admit.
“Surprisin’ ye has become a bit of an obsession of moin,” he murmurs with a sexy smile. “Come. Let’s see whah lies below.” Brennus’ green eyes dance as he retracts his black wings and free-falls through the hollow of the mountain. He’s not looking at the approaching ground, but instead, he has his back to the floor as he stares up at me.
I face him as I follow him, pulling my wings in and feeling the thrill of speed while I fall away from the natural light. My hair flies back from my face, tangling behind me. Level after level rushes by in flight. I’m not weightless with Brennus just inches beneath me. It could be him pulling me down as much as gravity. To be alone with him in this place is a dream of falling with no ending—just he and I—out of sight.
As we near the ground, fear grows that he’ll crash into it. From deep within me, I’m compelled to rescue him from impending doom. Before I can conjure a spell, however, one that will stop him from splattering all over the stone floor, my hair falls forward around my face. I’m caught in stasis for a moment, neither moving nor falling. I stare into his eyes, so close to mine, and I think for a moment that it might be okay if we never come down. Neither of us is here of our own free will—not really. We were both somehow forced to climb this hill, be these monsters, and our inevitable fall will probably destroy us both.
Brennus guides our landing, in one moment turning us from a horizontal position of falling to a vertical one where his feet touch the ground first. He draws me to him. My hands rest upon his shoulders as I slide down his chest. When my feet are firmly on the floor, I let him go, flushed by the intimate contact.
The sound of rushing water draws my attention away from Brennus. Water runs over the ice walls surrounding us. It drains through a grated edge, but some mist wets the stone tiles near it. A round labyrinth twists its way over the floor with a pattern tiled in shades of blues. Xavier had mentioned it to me earlier—it’s a meditation maze. I’ve seen something similar to it in pictures of grand cathedrals, but it’s different being near one; there’s an innate sacredness to it that invades my senses.
“Would ye like ta try it?” Brennus asks. I nod and walk with him, following the obvious entranceway before us.
After we round the first bend in the maze, we follow the outer rim. The mist from the water walls wets my face. Lights fade in and out in intervals behind the water with tranquil effect. “You know something, don’t you, Brennus? About Emil?” He glances at me. “You said earlier that Emil just wants to end me.”
“Emil attacked yer boy-aingeal—at yer aingeal’s house in Crestwood—he was looking for ye.”
“Is he alive?”
“Emil?” Brennus asks.
“Russell.”
“He survived.”
“How? Emil nearly shredded me within the first few minutes of meeting him and he technically wasn’t even fully there. He was inside a possessed human body.”
Brennus pauses in the labyrinth. “Ye should be wi’ me! I’ll keep ye away from Emil. Did he harm ye?”
I stop walking as I face him with a shrug. “He didn’t kill me.”
“Dat’s na whah I asked.” I walk again in silence. Brennus catches up to me and keeps pace beside me. “When Finn and I found yer friends in Crestwood, Emil was already dere. He was planning ta execute da wee Throne and da Power—”
“Anya and Zephyr.”
“Right, dem. He was going ta keep Russell alive until such a time as he could torture and kill him in front of ye.”
“But Russell escaped?”
“Escape is maybe na da right word—more like he was rescued.”
“You helped Russell?”
Brennus shrugs. “Finn and da fellas took exception ta da way Emil spoke about deir queen. Dey tought he needed ta be taken down off his high horse.”
I put my hand on
Brennus’ arm, stopping and turning toward him. “No, Brennus. None of them do anything without your consent. It was you—you saved my friends.”
Brennus tucks my arm in the crook of his elbow as he urges me to move alongside him again. “Do na tell anyone dat I helped, I have a reputation ta protect.” My mind reels with the implications. “Whah happened wi’ ye and Emil? When did he attack ye?”
“You have to tell me everything first—with Russell and Emil.”
Brennus smiles at the shock on my face that I can’t hide from him. “I had a wee chat with Emil—Djet. Do ye remember him by dat name?” he asks.
“No.”
“May I touch yer cheek?” I stop walking and take a step away from him. He adds quickly, “’Tis only so I can show ye whah Russell remembers of yer lifetime wi’ him in Egypt. ’Twill be easier ta do dat if I can give ye da memory rather dan explaining it all.”
“How do you have Russell’s memories?” My suspicion is clear.
“I stole dem from him while he was focused on Emil.” I relent by moving closer to Brennus and facing him. The backs of his warm fingers brush a soft path down my cheek. When his hand drops away he takes my arm again, tucking it around his. We begin to walk the maze once more as transparent walls form around the curves of the maze—Brennus’ magic is conjuring them. “Dese are Russell’s memories from one of yer lifetimes together.”
A golden-skinned Emil appears on the wall of the maze next to a slight, dark-haired girl that I know to be me. As we walk, the scene of my lifetime with Russell plays out. He was Iah then, and I, as Zahra, couldn’t get enough of him. I witness our most intimate moments—our first meeting, our first kiss, the first time we made love in the secret alcove of Djet’s Egyptian palace are all there—all the things I used to see—all the things I used to be in that lifetime—seen through Iah’s eyes. My death—being burned alive—is gruesome, but it’s not as if it’s happening to me. It’s not the same as when I was forced back into the memory with Emil in Lille. I’m not experiencing it—I don’t feel the same pain, fear, or other raw emotions the way I had in France. This time, it’s tolerable.
Iniquity (The Premonition Series Book 5) Page 14
