Ferus : Book 6 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  Emily watched him go and then laid down after glancing at Mark, who was standing guard at her door.

  Once the Equites Council was seated, Derrick showed in the Valle representatives, Elder Ryan and four Imperial Guards.

  “What do you want?” Chevalier growled.

  Ryan sighed, “We came with a peace offering, and a diplomatic solution.”

  “Peace offering?” Kyle asked skeptically.

  “Yes… we give him to you,” Ryan said, and turned to one of his guards. The Imperial Guard hissed and blurred toward the door, but the other 3 Imperial Guards caught up with him just as the Equites Guards flooded into the room.

  “Why would we want one of your guards?” Zohn asked.

  Chevalier hissed and then spoke, “It’s Rasmussen.”

  The Ancient threw back his hood and glared at the Equites Council, “You can’t keep me here.”

  “Put him in a cell for now,” Quinn said. “And new orders are that Emily is to be kept out of the prison. She no longer has free access.”

  “Yes, Sir,” Derrick said, and the Equites Guards pulled the Ancient out of the room.

  Once things quieted down, Ryan spoke, “Now the Valle wish to discuss an alignment of the Equites and the Valle, in hopes to take out the Encala together.”

  “Why would we align ourselves after what you did?” Zohn asked. “You forced a member of our Council to turn seven of our covens to ash, against her will.”

  “We realize now that was wrong. We apologize for taking it to that level and for the amount of pain it caused her,” Ryan said.

  “Pain?” Chevalier asked.

  “Yes… we should have stopped once she began to show signs of suffering, but things got out of hand,” Ryan explained. “We now understand that she is not a weapon and wish to return as her friends.”

  “She failed to mention the suffering part,” Kyle said, narrowing his eyes.

  “We as Elders recognize the mistake we made in breaking the alliance, and want to know what we would need to do to restore it.”

  “That alliance was made by Emily,” Quinn said. “She took it personally when it was broken, and I’m not sure she would wish to continue it at this time.”

  “Please, let me apologize to her.”

  Chevalier thought and then called for Emily. A few minutes later, she came in through the back council doors, being supported by Mark. The brighter lights in the council chambers brought her paleness out further, and as she sat down in a chair beside Chevalier, the council members grew angry.

  Emily looked over at Ryan, “What do you want?”

  Ryan’s eyes grew wide, “Who did that to you?”

  “The Encala did… why are you here?”

  Ryan’s features softened and his voice quieted, “We want the friendship back, Emily. We want to realign ourselves with the Equites and to join them in exterminating the Encala.”

  Emily took a glass of juice from a servant, and turned back to Ryan after taking a drink, “Bring Exavior here and I’ll think about it.”

  Chevalier frowned and turned to her, “Why?”

  “Elder Exavior was banned from coming to Council City. It was part of the conditions for his return,” Ryan explained.

  “Then no,” Emily said, leaning back in her chair.

  “Please, reconsider… the Equites and the Valle could wipe out the Encala quickly, and then peace would return to the heku again.”

  “No”

  Ryan sighed, “Think about it, at least.”

  Emily shrugged, “I’ll think about it.”

  The Valle Elder smiled, “Good, then we’ll return and wait for your call.”

  Elder Ryan and the remaining Imperial Guards moved out of the Equites Council Chambers quickly, and the door was shut.

  “That was interesting,” the Chief of Defense said, turning toward the others.

  The Council all turned to watch Emily as she stared into the glass of juice. She finally sighed and called for the Cavalry to mount up. There was a rush of movement inside the palace as the Cavalry left for the stables and guards replaced them at their posts.

  Mark came and helped Emily out of the Council room.

  “What are we going to do with Rasmussen?” Kyle asked when they heard the Cavalry leaving the palace grounds.

  “Banish him again, I guess,” Quinn said.

  “I foresee Lady Emily going after Exavior,” Dustin said, deep in thought.

  “I agree,” Kyle sighed. “She seems to still have a bit of a vendetta.”

  “What do you think she’s thinking about?” Quinn asked Chevalier.

  “Either going after Exavior, the Valle, the Encala, or all of them.”

  “She’s still pretty weak. We have a week or so before she’ll feel up to doing that,” Zohn told them. “We either need to come to an agreement, or figure out how to stop her.”

  ***

  “Emily?” Mark whispered, and touched her arm lightly.

  She sat up and looked at him, “What’s wrong?”

  “The Council needs you for a few minutes.”

  “What time is it?” she asked, yawning.

  “It’s 5 o’clock.”

  “Ok, have some breakfast brought in, too?”

  Mark nodded and left the room when Emily got out of bed. She’d regained most of her strength back in the week since the Valle visit, but was still pale and sometimes had dizzy spells. She dressed quickly and tied her hair up as she walked down to the back entrance to the council chambers. When she walked in, the Council turned to her.

  “Sorry, we know it’s early,” Quinn said.

  “Come, sit,” Chevalier told her, and motioned for the chair beside him.

  Emily sat down after taking a tray full of fruit and coffee from a servant, and then turned to the trial area. Her eyes narrowed when she saw Encala Elder Aaron standing beside their Chief Enforcer, Frederick, and two guards.

  “It’s good to see you are well,” Aaron said, smiling.

  Emily frowned, “No thanks to you.”

  “We regret what we had to do to protect ourselves.”

  “Whatever… why did you wake me up?” she asked, grabbing a few grapes.

  “We’ve come to ask the Equites to realign with us, so the Encala and the Equites can remove the Valle faction,” Aaron explained.

  Emily grinned and looked at Kyle, “Is this a joke?”

  “No,” Kyle told her, and grinned slightly.

  “So… you all feed from me every three days until I can’t even move, and now you want to be friends?” she asked, frowning.

  “We apologize for what we did, again… but we had to protect our city from your abilities.”

  “You wouldn’t have had to protect yourselves if you had let me go.”

  “That wasn’t an option either. We felt that the Encala would be the best place for you… at the time…”

  “Until you almost killed me, and then you figured you’d drop me off in the middle of nowhere in the mud?”

  Aaron frowned, “That’s another thing… we want to know who took you from the Encala palace.”

  Emily smiled, “You have no idea who returned me to the Equites?”

  “No, and we need to know, for security reasons.”

  “Why would I tell you that? The heku saved me.”

  “It’s important that we know.”

  “I’m not going to tell you, and I’m not recovered enough to forgive you for the constant feedings,” she told him.

  “At least think about it and let us know,” Aaron asked.

  “Oh, one other thing,” Emily said. Everyone turned to her and then spun toward Frederick when he dropped to his knees, gasping for breath as he tore the shirt from his burning chest.

  When the Encala’s Chief Enforcer fell to the ground, Emily released him, “That’s for the kiss.”

  “You kissed her?” Chevalier growled.

  Frederick growled, and then blurred toward Emily, but found himself quickly pinned to t
he dirt floor of the council chambers by Kyle and Dustin. He fought against them, and glared with feral eyes toward Emily.

  “Calm down or we’ll put you in our prison,” Dustin yelled at him.

  The Equites finally let him up once he calmed down, and he turned and stormed out of the council chambers, followed the other Encala.

  Emily sighed and got up to leave.

  “You neglected to mention the kiss during our briefing,” Zohn said, turning to her.

  She paused at the door, and then left without saying anything.

  Zohn frowned, “Strange, Aaron obviously fed from her, yet she chose to burn the kisser.”

  Quinn grinned slightly, “You’d think after this many years, you would figure her out.”

  “Meaning?”

  “In her eyes, a kiss is worse.”

  “How can that be?”

  “Personal violations,” Dustin answered. “She takes them more seriously than physical assaults.”

  Zohn turned and frowned at Dustin, “How the hell do you know that?”

  “I pay attention.”

  “Has she mentioned who freed her?” Quinn asked Chevalier, changing the subject.

  “No, she hasn’t, and I haven’t asked. I’m guessing she wouldn’t tell us.”

  “Why not?” Zohn asked, frowning.

  “He freed her. She won’t turn him in.”

  Chapter 5 - Custody Dispute

  “Sir, there’s a problem in the radio tower,” Derrick said, looking at Kyle.

  “What kind of problem?”

  “The Valle are asking to land.”

  Kyle frowned, “Why the hell would we let them land?”

  “It’s… well… they say they are bringing a gift for Lady Emily.”

  Kyle shook his head and headed up to the roof of the palace to find out what exactly was going on. He took the radio from the heku, and glanced up at the waiting helicopter. The Bell 429 was painted white with a thick strip of maroon crossing from the nose and fanning out into maroon feathers at the tail.

  “Base here,” Kyle said. “What exactly do you have for Emily?”

  “Delivering the helicopter to the Lady,” the pilot said, still hovering 50 feet above the Equites’ helipad.

  “You are bringing Emily a helicopter?” Kyle wasn’t sure he heard correctly.

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Kyle glanced at the heku in the radio tower, and then turned to Derrick, “Get 20 guards up here.”

  “Right away,” Derrick said, and turned to the stairs. Within seconds, guards flooded onto the roof.

  “Land it,” Kyle said. “Then stay in the cockpit.”

  “Coming down,” the pilot said, and gently set the helicopter down between Equites 1 and Equites 2.

  Kyle and Derrick walked around the helicopter, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Derrick pointed when he saw the name of the helicopter, ‘Winchester 1’ was written in white flames inside of the maroon stripe.

  One of the guards opened the side door, and Kyle stepped in and his eyes grew wide. The inside of the helicopter looked like a living room. It was equipped with a soft, plush couch, TV, DVD player, a small fridge, and a wet bar.

  “Well, that’s new,” Derrick said, shocked when he saw the inside.

  “Come on out,” Kyle said to the pilot as he and Derrick moved back out onto the helipad. The heku pilot stepped out and crouched slightly.

  “Why are the Valle giving Emily a helicopter?” Kyle asked him, ignoring his defensive posture.

  “I don’t know. I was told to bring it here and then I’m free.”

  “Free?”

  “Yes, I’m an Encala, been imprisoned by the Valle for almost 5 months.”

  “Escort him out of Council City,” Kyle said, still looking at the Bell 429 helicopter. “Get the Elder.”

  Derrick nodded and disappeared. A few minutes later, all 3 Elders came up to the roof. They stopped when they saw the strange helicopter, and immediately noticed the name ‘Winchester 1’.

  Kyle turned to them, “Seems the Valle think Emily needs her own helicopter.”

  Chevalier’s eyes narrowed, “This is Emily’s?”

  “That’s what the Encala that brought it told us.”

  “An Encala flew a helicopter to the Equites from the Valle?” Quinn asked, confused.

  Kyle grinned slightly, “My guess is they thought we’d keep him, so they sent a prisoner. If you think that’s odd, go look inside.”

  Chevalier quickly disappeared inside the helicopter and came back out, grinning, “Interesting… never seen a living room inside of a helicopter.”

  Quinn and Zohn both peeked inside.

  “Bring Lady Emily,” Quinn said, sliding into the cockpit.

  Emily came onto the roof a short time later, covered in sweat and still wearing black cut-offs and a sports bra, “What’d I do now… wait… you all got a new helicopter?”

  Chevalier grinned, “You… got a new helicopter.”

  “Why would you buy me a helicopter?”

  “The Valle bought it for you,” Zohn said, obviously irritated.

  “Ok then, why would the Valle buy me a helicopter?” she asked, and crawled inside. She sat down on the soft couch and looked around.

  “Not sure exactly,” Chevalier said. “Come on out until we can have a crew search it.”

  Emily opened the fridge to look inside before leaving, and pulled out a card. She sat back on the couch and opened it.

  “Seriously, Em, come out.”

  Emily grinned and stepped out, shaking her head, then handed the card to Chevalier. He opened it and chuckled.

  “Guess you have a helicopter,” he said, and gave the card to Zohn.

  “Seems a little extravagant for a bribe,” she said, walking around to look at it.

  Zohn frowned, “We should send it back.”

  “Why’s that?” Quinn asked, stepping out. “It’s pretty nice, though it won’t carry many at once.”

  “I’m sure that was the idea behind it,” Chevalier said, still looking at it.

  “Because… I don’t want the Valle thinking they can bribe us into aligning with them,” Zohn said.

  A heku crew appeared and began going over the helicopter. One started with the engine while the other three went inside.

  “It’s not hurting anything in letting them send Emily a little gift,” Quinn told him.

  “Little gift? A flower is a little gift,” Zohn growled.

  Emily smiled, “It’s nice and all, but I don’t need a helicopter.”

  “Keep it, it’s not hurting anything,” Chevalier suggested.

  “Doesn’t replace all the ashing they made me do,” she said, and headed back inside the palace.

  The Elders followed her down the stairs.

  “When it’s inspected, do you want to take a ride?” Quinn asked.

  Emily stopped on the stairs, “I guess… still don’t know why I need a helicopter when I can’t even fly one.”

  “I can teach you.”

  “I should rephrase that… I don’t want to fly one.”

  “Why not?” Quinn asked.

  “If I need to go somewhere, I have a truck, a Jeep, and an Aero to choose from. Flying isn’t my favorite way to travel,” she explained.

  “Because of the wreck?” Zohn asked.

  Emily’s eyes narrowed, “I’m not afraid to fly.”

  “Whatever you say.”

  “Are you still leaving today?” Quinn asked.

  “Yes, as soon as I shower,” she replied.

  “Take the helicopter, it looks pretty comfortable.”

  “I can’t fly, remember?”

  “Kralen can. We’ll have him run you to the island,” Chevalier suggested.

  “Then… let me guess,” Emily said. “He’ll stay and take me wherever I want by helicopter?”

  “Sure, why not?”

  “Because then I have a guard on the island… no thanks.”

  “Then the fact tha
t Silas is a certified co-pilot wouldn’t help either?” Quinn asked, grinning.

  Emily’s face grew serious and she nodded, “I’ll take them… Silas and Kralen.”

  The Elders watched while Emily walked down the stairs and turned toward the bedrooms on the fifth-floor.

  “What was that?” Quinn asked, frowning.

  “I’m not sure… I think she just agreed to Council City Guards on the island,” Chevalier said. “I better go find out what’s up.”

  “Why? That’s what we want… guards with her on the island,” Zohn reminded him. “She agreed to them, let’s not push it.”

  “Still, something’s not right,” Chevalier told him, and headed down to the bedrooms.

  “Certified co-pilot?” Zohn asked, walking down the stairs.

  Quinn grinned, “It worked…”

  “Em?” Chevalier asked as he leaned against the counter in the bathroom. He didn’t like how the dark shower curtain blocked her from view.

  “Yeah?”

  “I get the impression you’re not telling me something about your stay with the Valle.”

  “Like what?”

  “If I knew, I wouldn’t be asking.”

  Emily came out of the shower wrapped in a towel, “I’ll handle it.”

  “So you did leave something out.”

  “A few things… maybe.”

  He stopped her as she walked past him with a hand on her arm, “Tell me.”

  “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Whatever it is, is causing you to take guards to the island. I want to know what happened.”

  She pulled away from him, and disappeared into her closet to get dressed. When she came out in jeans and a t-shirt, she sat down on a soft chair to brush her hair.

  “Was it something Exavior did or said?” he asked, watching her.

  “No,” Emily told him.

  “She’s lying,” Zohn said from behind Chevalier.

  Emily gasped and turned around, “Get out of my room.”

  “Our room,” Chevalier corrected. “I invited him.”

  “Did Exavior threaten you?” Zohn asked.

  Emily set her face and looked Zohn in the eye, “He threatened to pelt me with pink bunnies.”

  Chevalier glanced at Zohn, and the former Chief Interrogator’s eyes narrowed, “Just tell us.”