Kindling Flames: Smoke Rising (The Ancient Fire Series Book 3)

by Julie Wetzel

  “Kian Dubhlainn,” soft, little voices giggled from the rafters.

  Vicky recognized some of the lesser fay as they fluttered down to see what the vampire wanted.

  “Have you brought cailín to play with us again?” they sang happily to Darien.

  “You will have your fun this evening.” He smiled at the happy, little fay flying around him. “Right now, I need to test the mirrors. Would you be so kind as to set us both with light enchantments?”

  The fay giggled and swarmed around them.

  Vicky scrunched her eyes closed as the magic settled over them.

  “Thank you,” a voice she didn’t recognize spoke from where Darien had been.

  Opening her eyes, she found a tall man, who she didn’t know, next to her. He wore the same soft T-shirt and jeans Darien had, but his face was very different. His features were chiseled, and his hair was long and blond. Overall, he was quite handsome in a rugged way.

  The man turned his blue eyes to Vicky. “You look very nice,” he said as he held out his hand to her. “Come on so we can check the mirrors.”

  “Darien?” Vicky questioned before raising a hand to her throat. Her voice didn’t sound right.

  The man smiled at her. “That’s right,” he said as it dawned on him that he had forgotten to tell her about the party. “You don’t know.” The man took Vicky’s hand and wrapped it around his arm so he could walk her across the room. “It is me,” Darien reassured her. “Tonight’s party is a masquerade ball. It’s customary to dress up so no one knows who you are.”

  Vicky nodded as she listened to the strange voice coming from Darien.

  “To add a little more fun to the evening, we are taking it a bit further. The lesser fay are going to enchant everyone to make it harder for people to identify who is who. That’s what the mirrors are for.” He pulled her over in front of one of the full-length mirrors set into the wall.

  Vicky stared at the handsome man in the reflective surface. Her eyes shifted to the woman next to him, and Vicky looked behind her for the red-haired girl.

  Darien laughed. “That’s you.”

  “No way!” Vicky gasped as she stepped closer to the mirror to get a better look. She grabbed a handful of the fire-red hair and pulled it around for a better inspection. “This is amazing!”

  Darien chuckled again. “This is where the mirrors come in.” He drew Vicky back from the glass and wrapped his arms around her so he framed her. “To find out if you have discovered who your partner is, all you have to do is look in a mirror and say their name.” Darien looked at their reflections and breathed Vicky’s name softly.

  Her eyes widened in surprise as her reflection shifted into her normal visage.

  “You try it.” He leaned his head over into Vicky’s hair.

  “Darien.” Vicky spoke softly and waited for the reflection to melt away to reveal his normal image.

  Darien made a noise when nothing happened. “That’s odd.” He stared in the mirror. “Try the name the fay used.”

  “Kian Dubhlainn,” Vicky said, but still, nothing happened.

  Darien pulled away from her to inspect the mirror closer. “Try—” He tried to give her another name to say, but he couldn’t get the word out. Realizing his error, he laughed. “I forgot about that part.” Darien sighed as he gained control over his mirth. “You can’t say your real name under the enchantment.”

  “Darien Ritter isn’t your real name?” Vicky sounded a little put out.

  Darien smiled at her to ease the sharp edge of the truth. “Over the last nine hundred years, I’ve had lots of names. Darien is what I go by now.” He turned his attention back to the mirror as he spoke. “Kian Dubhlainn is a title given to me by the fay a long time ago and should have almost as much power over me as my true name.” Running his fingers around the edge of the unframed glass, he felt the magic. “I think I can change this spell to work with the names people are known by.” He fussed with the mirror for another moment before stepping away from it. “Try it now.” Darien took up his place behind Vicky again.

  “What name should I use?” Vicky asked, no longer sure who the man she loved was.

  “Use—” Darien tried to say his name again and smiled. “I think it will work with my normal name now.”

  “Darien,” Vicky said and watched as the image melted into Darien’s face. Looking up at the man behind her, she found that his features hadn’t returned to normal. “You’re not you,” she said, surprised.

  “Of course not.” Darien kissed the side of her head. “That would ruin the fun for everyone else.” He led her away to the next mirror to make sure it was working, too. “The only people that see the change in the mirror are the person guessing and the person being guessed.”

  “Ah.” Vicky nodded her understanding. “So what’s your real name?”

  Darien smiled at her. “That’s not something I usually go around sharing with people.” He wrapped his arms around Vicky in front of the next mirror. “Names have power to them.” Breathing Vicky’s name again, he watched her reflection change.

  Vicky said his name more tartly then before, getting the desired result.

  “At the moment, it’s impossible for me to speak it.” He kissed the side of her head again before leading her on to the next mirror. “My real name is rather old fashioned, but if you ask me again when this is over, I’ll be happy to tell you.”

  Vicky relaxed again, content that Darien was willing to share that with her. “Thank you,” she said as he led her on to the next mirror. “I would like that.”

  “Anything to make you happy.” Darien pulled her into him for a hug before they reached the next stop. “I’ve already shared my soul with you, what’s a name?”

  Vicky giggled as they went on to check the rest of the mirrors scattered along the walls.

  ***

  “So, how do we get out of these disguises?” Vicky asked as she stood in front of the last mirror, holding Darien’s hand.

  “We could step outside the building and let the veil pull the enchantment from us.” He looked over to the far end of the building where the door was. “But, that means we would have to go clear over there and then back here.”

  Vicky looked at the distance between them and the door. “Or?” she was sure he had another answer. She squeaked when Darien snagged her and kissed her firmly. Melting into the surprise embrace, she returned the kiss to him.

  The cheers and giggles from the lesser fay flitting around in the air echoed around the room.

  Vicky drew in a ragged breath when Darien released her and opened her eyes to find the ruggedly handsome blond was replaced by her own sweet Darien with his wavy, brown hair and green eyes.

  “The little ones always love a good kiss.” Darien smiled and kissed her softly again.

  “I saw that.” Rupert’s voice broke the two apart.

  Vicky blushed her embarrassment.

  “If you two have time to snog, then you have time to put these out,” he grumped at them as he held out a box of glass globes and votive candles for the tables.

  Darien chuckled and took the container from the wolf. “Yes, sir!” he answered and led Vicky away to decorate the tables.

  She pulled one of the globes out of the box and set it in the center of the flower ring on the first small table. “So what’s your real name?” Vicky asked casually as she set the candle inside the globe.

  “It’s—” Darien’s mouth worked, but no sound came out. He cleared his throat and tried again. “D—” He chuckled. “It looks like that question will have to wait for later, my dear.” The look on his face grew deviant as he smiled at her. “But, I promise to have you moaning it by the week’s end.”

  Vicky’s mouth opened in surprise at the suggestive comment, and she looked over at the smug vampire. Shaking her head, she took another glass bowl from the man and placed it on the next table. The sooner they got the dressing done, the sooner they could get to the fun awaiting them come evening
.

  ***

  Elliot looked down at the woman sleeping in the pile of pillows. “Do you think we should wake them up?” Zak and several of the lesser fay had curled up to join Vicky in a nap after all the preparations had been completed.

  She hadn’t meant to fall asleep. Vicky had only sat down in the cushions for a few minutes to rest after helping set up the large fountain gracing the buffet table. It was the soft purring of Zak and the singing of the fay that had lulled her away unexpectedly. Elliot pulled out his phone and took a few quick pictures of the cute pile.

  “What are you doing?” Darien hissed as he reached for Elliot’s phone.

  “Don’t worry about it.” Elliot pulled the electronic device away from Darien’s hands and punched a few buttons. “I’ll send you copies.” Darien’s friend smiled as he closed up the phone and stuck it in his pocket.

  Darien let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head.

  “You have to admit, she is kind of cute curled up there,” a male voice sounded from behind the two vampires.

  Darien and Elliot both turned to see the newest member of the Vampire Council coming towards them.

  “Good evening, Christian,” Darien greeted the new arrival.

  Elliot moved closer to the young woman sleeping with the fay.

  Christian looked around at the warehouse that had been transformed into an elegant ballroom. “You have done a magnificent job here.” The effect was ruined by the electric lights flooding the area, but that would change as soon as the event started.

  “Rupert and the fay have helped greatly in the setup,” Darien admitted. “I’ll be happy to pass on your compliments to them.”

  Christian bowed his head slightly in agreement with Darien. “I must admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the invitation.” The new vampire master folded his arms over his chest as he talked. “A masquerade ball with werewolves and fay? I was sure it wouldn’t work. Tensions between the groups usually run a lot higher then I have seen here. Also, it’s not hard to tell one group’s energy from the others, but this is remarkable. I can’t feel power from anyone here. What have you done?” Christian looked around at the people slowly gathering together. He recognized several of the vampires.

  “We have Lord Dakine to thank for that,” Darien explained. “He set up the area to hide power levels and make it harder to recognize the participants. It adds to the fun of the masquerade.” He smiled.

  “It’s a great idea,” Christian said. “Thank you for inviting us.”

  “You’re very welcome.” Darien bowed slightly to his guest. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to wake up my assistant. It’s about time to get things rolling.”

  “But of course.” Bowing his farewell, Christian went back to his minions waiting for him.

  “Something feels weird about that guy,” Elliot whispered to Darien as they watched the new master walk off. “I don’t trust him.”

  “Is that what your growing bad feeling is?” Darien asked, concerned.

  “I… am not sure,” Elliot answered. “I don’t think so, but he does bear watching.”

  Darien made a noise in agreement before turning to wake Vicky. He knelt down and patted Vicky on the hip. “It’s time to get up.”

  She shifted in her sleep, disturbing the fay snoozing on her.

  “Come on now.”

  Elliot grinned down at his friend trying to wake the sleepy woman. “Good thing she just fell asleep and the fay didn’t enchant her.”

  “That didn’t turn out so well last time,” Darien said as Vicky finally woke up.

  Elliot’s eyebrows climbed up his face in surprise. “Last time?”

  “We had a little bit of a run-in with the fay the first time we were in Fairy.” Darien smiled as he remembered Vicky in the spider silk dress, laid out on the bed of flowers. “That’s where she first picked up Zak.”

  The fay gurgled at the vampires as Vicky sat up in the pillows.

  “What happened?” Yawning, she cleared the sleep from one eye with her knuckle. She looked around at the little, winged people stretching and yawning around her.

  “You fell asleep,” Darien explained as he stood up and held a hand down to her. “It’s almost time to start.”

  Vicky blinked at the hand before taking it.

  Darien lifted her to her feet a little faster than she could handle, and she stumbled forwards into him. “Careful there.” Darien caught her against him before she could fall over. He held her fast for a moment until she had her balance again.

  “Thank you,” Vicky said as he released her. Shaking her head to clear it, she yawned again. “Excuse me,” she said as she covered her mouth. “I think I need to get something to wake me up.”

  “There’s coffee on the refreshment table.” Darien pointed Vicky off to the buffet. “Most everyone is here and it’s time, so I am going to get things going.”

  Vicky nodded her head and headed over to get a drink with Zak scuttling behind her.

  Darien watched her walk away, appreciating the view.

  A Cheshire-cat grin spread across Elliot’s face. “You did that on purpose.”

  Darien looked at him, affronted. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said sarcastically.

  Elliot nudged him hard.

  “Okay, so maybe I pulled a little harder than necessary.”

  Elliot’s grin widened at Darien’s admission.

  “Come on,” Darien changed the subject. “Let’s get this party started.” The two friends made their way to the center of the room.

  A loud tolling of large bells drew the party guests from their conversations. The electric lights died, dropping the room into darkness. Everyone’s attention was drawn to the familiar man standing under the chandelier, visible in the light of a single, tapered candle.

  “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” Darien’s voice rang across the gathered crowd. “I would like to welcome you to this year’s Halloween celebration and thank you for coming.” He paused for the light applause. “I’m your host for the evening, and if anyone doesn’t know who I am, just ask your neighbor—I’m sure they will be happy to fill you in.”

  Darien paused again for the laughter to subside. “I would like to thank all those that helped with this event. Without Rupert and his wolves, Dakine and the fay, and many from the various kisses, this evening would not have been possible.” There was another moment of light applause before Darien could get on with his speech.

  “You are all encouraged to join in on the masquerade, but, by no means, do you have to. I can personally assure you everything that happens here tonight is safe and will not last once you step outside the confines of this building. If anyone wishes to have the enchantment broken early, Lord Dakine has offered to abstain from the festivities and will be available to take care of your needs. The little ones are waiting for the participants through the divide in the curtain.”

  He held his hand out towards the door where everyone entered. “Ladies to the right, men to the left, please. And now, without further ado…” Darien spoke a word, and power washed out over the crowd. A collective gasp went up as all the candles sprang to life, drenching the room in a warm glow that made everything glitter. “Eat, drink, and be merry!” A cheer went up. Soft music filtered into the room as the majority of the crowd worked their way over to have the fay enchant them for the masquerade.

  “Nice speech,” Elliot said as Darien blew out the candle he was holding.

  “Thank you.” Darien made his way against the crowd to the refreshment table and the candelabrum he had taken the taper from. He looked around for his assistant and smiled when he found she was already being herded away by the lesser fay. Zak held on to her ankle as the little, winged people tugged her over to a split in the wall where the first of the transformed guests were coming out.

  Elliot followed Darien’s line of sight just in time to see Vicky disappear through the hole. “The little ones seem to have taken a real liking
to her,” he pointed out. “Shouldn’t you be worried?”

  “No.” Darien smiled and turned his attention to the buffet table. “I pity the fool that lays fang or claw on her.” He grabbed up two crystal goblets and filled them with the golden liquid flowing from the fountain. “They are in for a nasty surprise from Zak if they try something. And once he’s done, they’ll have me to deal with.” Holding one of the glasses out for Elliot to take, he raised his to his lips for a drink.

  “If there is anything left, that is.” Elliot chuckled as he took the cup. He looked at the amber liquid. “What’s this?” He swirled it around, studying the way it coated the inside of the goblet.

  “It’s safe.” Darien swallowed his sip and urged his friend to try it. “Lady Aine arranged the food for the evening, knowing the vampires would be here. You can eat and drink anything tonight without it bothering you.”

  Elliot stared at him in disbelief. “Really?” Elliot looked over the foods laid out over the tables. “Even the chocolate cake?” His eyes fell on the decadent dessert.

  “Even the cake.” Darien smiled as Elliot raised the glass to his mouth. The golden liquid was sweet like honey and tingled slightly as it went down.

  “Is this… mead?” Elliot asked, taking another sip of the drink.

  “Yes,” Darien smiled. “There is also coffee, wine, water, champagne, and a full bar.”

  Elliot chuckled. “Went all out, didn’t we?”

  “You never know what people will want.” Darien led the way down the table to the chocolate cake. “I’ve tried to think of everything.” He picked up a plate and handed it to Elliot.

  The younger vampire’s eyes lit up at the special treat. He had been turned at a time before chocolate was common, and his system still didn’t handle food well. Elliot took the plate. “Can I really eat this?” His voice was full of longing for the food he had only been able to dream about. He had tasted chocolate before, but spitting it out was just not the same as eating it.

  “Go on.” Darien took his glass so his hand was free.

  Elliot picked up the fork on the edge of the plate, cut a small piece off, and tasted it carefully. The noise that came out of him made Darien laugh.