Ancients and Old Ones : Book 8 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  “You didn’t lose us,” Kyle told her, frowning.

  “I won’t be like that…” Andrew started.

  “Yes you will! Before you know it you’ll be trying to kidnap me, or too busy to take a phone call… It starts with a simple promotion and turns into you leaving me,” she said, fighting back the tears.

  “I promise you’ll always be my top priority.”

  “No you won’t! And why that? Why do you have to take that one? Do something less dangerous like… Court Reporter… or Records Keeper.”

  Jerry, the Equites’ Records Keeper, looked over at the Elder, “Is my position not dangerous?”

  Chevalier shrugged, “She doesn’t understand your full position.”

  “I’m the Interrogator, Em,” Andrew said. “I’ll be a damned good one too.”

  “No! You’re too nice to be in that position!” Emily yelled. “Tell William you’ll be the Court Reporter.”

  The Equites’ Court Reporter looked over and frowned, “I’m nice?”

  “I’m starting to get offended,” Jerry whispered.

  “Tell him!” Emily screamed.

  “I can’t change positions on the Council,” Andrew told her. “The old Interrogator made too many mistakes and was banished.”

  Emily gasped, “You banished him?”

  “Yes… we had to…”

  “Bring him back,” Emily said, and stood up quickly. Being shackled to the wall was all that was keeping her from going to the Encala.

  “We can’t. This is how the heku work.”

  “Screw the heku!”

  Zohn’s eyebrows rose, “Interesting.”

  “Emily… he can’t be on the Council anymore. He was showing great weakness,” Andrew explained.

  “Tell William to bring him back and reinstate you to the Palace Guards,” Emily growled.

  “No…” Andrew’s words were cut off when Emily threw her phone at the nearby wall and it broke into pieces.

  “Em…” Chevalier said from beside her.

  She looked up at him, shaking with rage, “Let me go.”

  “You can’t run off to the Encala just because they replaced a member of their Council.”

  “I have to bring him to you… you all owe him… they brought you back, so I’ll have Kyle revive him.”

  Kyle shook his head, “We can’t do that.”

  “You owe him!”

  “No… we owe the Council… he was replaced, as is tradition.”

  Emily sat down suddenly and laid back in the chair, then turned onto her side away from them.

  Chevalier touched her shoulder softly, but she pushed his hand off and pulled the blanket over her.

  He nodded and returned to his seat.

  Zohn cleared his throat and spoke so Emily could hear, “Can you please tell us what position he holds on the Council?”

  “Yes, I can,” she mumbled.

  There was a pause before Quinn chuckled, “Ok then, which one?”

  “None,” she said, but didn’t turn to the Council. “As soon as I get out of here I’m bringing back the old one and he’ll return as a Guard.”

  “It doesn’t work that way.”

  “Leave me alone,” she whispered, and then shut her eyes to hide the tears that were forming.

  “What did she mean by losing you and the Chief Enforcer?” the Chief of Staff asked Chevalier.

  “I don’t really want to get into that,” Chevalier told him. “I’ll talk to her later about it.”

  Kyle nodded, “I think I should too.”

  “Very well,” Zohn said, and then called for the next appointment.

  As the heku in the trial area petitioned to start a new Coven, Emily slowly drifted off to sleep.

  “We’re busy, what do you want?” Chevalier asked her. Emily looked over at him, Kyle, Sotomar, and Andrew as they sat at a large conference table. She grabbed onto the bars of the cage she was in, and tried to open the door.

  “I can’t get out.”

  Andrew shrugged, “You’re safer in there.”

  Emily reached down and began to pull at the shackle on her ankle, “I have to get out.”

  Salazar walked into the room, and the other heku ignored him as he went over to the cage and sat down, “Stop complaining.”

  “Chev!” Emily screamed, and pulled against the shackle. She looked up at the heku at the table and none of them were even looking at her.

  Salazar glanced at them and then shrugged, “Guess they’re too busy to help you. So let’s get on with it. You killed me… so in repayment it’s time for your torture to resume.”

  “No,” Emily whispered, and grabbed onto the shackle on her ankle.

  “Em’s having a bad dream,” Chevalier said when the heku on trial was taken back to his cell.

  Zohn looked over at her, “About what?”

  “I’d have to touch her to see that.”

  “I wonder why she doesn’t scream anymore.”

  “No idea,” he said, and walked down to the overstuffed chair. He knelt down beside the chair and gently touched her arm.

  All of a sudden, Emily screamed and jerked away from him, diving over the edge of the chair. When she hit the ground, she began frantically tugging at the shackle on her ankle.

  “Em… calm down,” Chevalier said softly, and began unlocking the metal. “Stop fighting me.”

  Emily’s fingers dug at the metal and kept getting in the way of Chevalier’s key.

  “Kyle…” he called out.

  Kyle blurred behind Emily and gently took her wrists in his hands. Once Chevalier removed the shackle, she put her shaking hands over her face and gasped in quick breaths.

  Chevalier lightly put his hand on her shoulder, but she cried out and scooted away from him, and then returned her face to her hands. When she calmed enough to breathe slowly, she looked up and saw the Council had left, leaving her, Kyle, and Chevalier alone in the council chambers.

  “I’m ok,” she whispered, and stood up slowly.

  “I’m sorry, we won’t do that again,” Chevalier told her. He reached out to take her hand, but she pulled away from him.

  “Don’t touch me… right now… I can’t…” she mumbled, and then quickly walked out of the room.

  Kyle looked over at Chevalier, “Do we go talk to her about what she said?”

  He thought, and then nodded, “Let’s go.”

  The heku followed Emily up to the bedroom and then walked in after her. She sat down and put her hands out toward the roaring fire as Chevalier and Kyle each took a seat beside her.

  “Want to talk about Andrew?” Kyle asked her.

  She shook her head.

  “We want to talk about what you said about us,” Chevalier told her.

  Again, she just shook her head.

  “I don’t like that you feel you’ve lost us because we joined the Council.”

  “It’s true,” she said softly, and then pulled a blanket over her legs.

  “You haven’t lost us,” Kyle said, frowning.

  Emily looked over at them, “When’s the last time you took a day off… or we went on vacation… or even to a movie?”

  “All you have to do is ask.”

  She shook her head.

  “Talk to us,” Chevalier said. “Please.”

  “Don’t shackle me.”

  “We won’t. That was a bad idea, I’m sorry.”

  “I need to go talk to the Encala,” she said softly, still watching the fire.

  “Why?”

  “They have to release Andrew from the Council.”

  “They can’t… he’s sworn in.”

  She shook her head, “They will for me. I’ll threaten them if they don’t.”

  Chevalier touched her arm lightly, “Em… you should be happy for him. Any position on the Council is an honor.”

  “No it’s not. It’s a death sentence.”

  “Death sentence?” Kyle asked.

  “Yes… maybe not in the literal sen
se, but in other ways.”

  “Can you explain that?”

  Emily looked over at Kyle, “We used to go horseback riding.”

  “Yes, we still can.”

  “We watched movies, played games, we joked, and hung around the castle.”

  “We can still do that.”

  “No we can’t,” she whispered, and her lip quivered slightly. “Not since you joined the Council.”

  “I was already on the Council when we met,” Chevalier said. “How have you lost me?”

  “Becoming an Elder… leave the island… they took you away from me. I can’t…” She fought back the tears. “I can’t take losing another heku I care about because of the bloody Councils.”

  “You haven’t lost us, Em,” Kyle said, and touched her leg softly.

  “Before we moved here I was never locked up, or restrained, or confined. I was allowed to walk the island and do what I wanted. We spent time on the yacht, went on walks, we had fun.”

  “Things are more dangerous now,” Chevalier reminded her. “Back on the island, the Valle and Encala didn’t really know about you yet.”

  Emily stood up and headed for the door, “I’m going back to my house… away from the heku.”

  “Em, we need you to stay here.”

  “No,” she said, and went into the nursery to get Megara.

  Kyle silently ordered the Cavalry to return to posts around Emily’s mansion, and then looked over at Chevalier, “She’s going to go to the Encala.”

  “I know. I guess we better warn them.”

  When Emily came back out with the toddler, Kyle turned to her, “We really need you to stay.”

  “I have business to attend to that I can’t do from here.”

  “Daddy,” Megara said, and then held her hands out for him.

  “No, Baby… we’re leaving.”

  “No! Daddy go.”

  “She can stay here if she wants,” Chevalier said softly, and then took the toddler from Emily.

  “Fine,” Emily snapped, and then ran out of the room.

  Kyle watched them for a minute and then sighed, “You two have turned into a divorced couple.”

  “What?” Chevalier growled.

  “Separate houses… fighting over the kids…”

  He sighed, “You’re right. How do I fix that though? I can’t live at her house and she won’t stay here.”

  “I’m not sure.”

  ***

  “Emi?” Alec called from the back of the house.

  “Yeah, it’s me,” she said, and set her keys on the table.

  He walked up to her and frowned, “I’ve been worried about you. Did you get the land?”

  “Yes… then the Equites decided to confine me.”

  “For what!?”

  “They tried to stop me from leaving the palace so I ashed Kyle and Chev… but then I felt bad and called the Encala to revive them.”

  Alec chuckled, “That’s awesome.”

  “Yeah, they didn’t think so.”

  “Where’s Megs?”

  “She prefers her Dad, apparently.”

  Alec and Emily stood in silence for a few minutes before Alec spoke, “Should we go check out the new lot?”

  “Sure, let’s go see how bad it is.”

  They walked out the back door and across to the empty property. It was overgrown with weeds and littered with trash.

  Emily sighed, “This place is disgusting.”

  Alec nodded and picked up the remains of a rat.

  “Ew, put that down,” she said, and wrinkled her nose.

  Alec tossed the carcass out away from them, “We’ll get it cleaned up, then what?”

  “I have no idea… I may try to get it zoned for livestock.”

  “No house?”

  “I changed my mind about that.”

  Alec nodded and then his eyes narrowed, “Someone’s coming.”

  “Who?” Emily asked, and then looked over when 8 men came into view.

  Alec crouched, “Valle.”

  “Stand up,” Emily whispered. “I got them.”

  He hesitated and then stood up straight and moved closer to her side. As they got closer, Emily recognized Sotomar, the Valle’s Chief Interrogator, and six Imperial Guards.

  “What do you want?” Emily asked, crossing her arms.

  Sotomar looked around, “I had a feeling you bought this.”

  “Yeah it’s mine… so go away.”

  He looked over at Alec and his eyes narrowed, “You need to turn him over to us.”

  “Why would I do that?”

  “He’s a traitor and needs punished.”

  She glared at him, “You know me better than that.”

  Sotomar smiled, “I do… and I also know that your Cavalry was a few minutes late getting here and they don’t know you and Alec are out here.”

  “I can take care of you myself.”

  “And risk passing out and getting buried?”

  “I won’t pass out with only 8 of you.”

  Alec smiled at Sotomar.

  Sotomar glared at him, “You’d let her protect you?”

  “Nope,” Alec assured him. “However, I won’t tell her what to do and I won’t stop her from doing what she thinks is right.”

  “How very mortal of you.”

  He just smiled at the Valle.

  “Get off of my property, Sotomar,” Emily said, irritated.

  “Not until we agree what to do with Alec.”

  “Oh, we already agreed that you all leave him alone or turn to ash.”

  “He’s ours to punish though. Heku tradition dicta…”

  “Oh my God! I don’t adhere to heku traditions and I’ve about had it with heku period.”

  Sotomar thought for a moment, “Why is that?”

  “Here’s the deal. I ash you… your Council tells Chev… the Equites Council figures out I took land away from you… they get mad… I get restrained… it’s all just annoying. Why don’t you save us both the heartache and just leave?”

  “The Equites restrained you again?”

  “Of course.”

  “Why?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business… but I took off on personal business and ran into two Ancients.”

  “You did!?”

  “Yes… I ashed them and brought them to the Equites… for that I was punished.”

  “They could have killed you!”

  “They didn’t…”

  “Where were you?”

  Emily glared at him, “Again… none of your business.”

  Sotomar stepped closer, “Where were you that you encountered two Ancients?”

  “Get back!”

  “Tell me!”

  Alec sighed when the Valle turned to ash. He reached out and steadied Emily when she swayed slightly.

  “Damnit… this is going to cause more problems than I’m ready to deal with.”

  “So let’s bury them, no one’ll know.”

  Emily smiled, “I like how you think… but I always get caught.”

  “Call the Encala to revive them?”

  “They’ll tell Chev.”

  Alec nodded, “Then we face the music.”

  “We? You aren’t going to be in trouble for this.”

  “They were after me.”

  “But I ashed them,” she said, and started back for the house, followed by Alec.

  “She’s over here!” one of the Cavalry called out when Emily scaled the fence separating the properties.

  Silas rounded the corner and blurred up to her, “What were you doing over there?”

  “Nothing… just looking at my new land.”

  “You bought that?”

  “Yes”

  “Why?” he asked, looking over at the weeds and trash.

  “Why not?”

  “Go check it out,” Silas said to two members of the Cavalry.

  “Wait! No…” Emily said. “Might as well just call Kyle.”

  Sila
s looked at her with wide eyes, “There’s ash over there?”

  She shrugged.

  “Who, Em?”

  “Just Valle,” she mumbled, and headed into the house.

  Alec watched her and then turned to Silas, “Please just call Kyle to talk to Emily. Don’t tell him why.”

  “Why not?” Silas asked him. None of the Cavalry trusted Alec.

  “Because it’ll be easier on Emi if the Council doesn’t find out.”

  Silas glanced at the weeds again, “Who was it?”

  “Sotomar, their Chief Interrogator, and 6 Imperial Guards.”

  “Damnit!” Silas growled. “I have to tell the Council that!”

  Alec thought before turning back to Silas, “Bring Kyle here… Have him tell Emi that he’ll not tell the Council if she’ll move back into the palace.”

  Silas’ eyes narrowed, “Why do you want her back in the palace?”

  “She misses Chevalier… she needs him around.”

  “That’s all?”

  “That’s enough. Believe it or not, I want only what’s best for her.”

  Silas shrugged, “I’ll try it, but it’ll be up to the Chief Enforcer if he wants to follow through.”

  ***

  Emily followed Kyle into the palace and then started up the stairs when he smiled and walked toward the back entrance to the council chambers. His deal was the best way out of the Council finding out about her interaction with the Valle.

  Her time away from Council City had put some of the horse care on the back burner, and she wanted to try to get some of that done today before she found out if she was to be confined to the recliner in the council chambers during the day again.

  After putting on some chaps, riding gloves, and slipping on her cowboy hat, she grabbed a rope from beside the door and headed down the stairs. She was just tying it into a lasso when she saw Chevalier in the fourth-floor foyer talking to Zohn. He was facing away from her and a smile crossed her lips as she readied the lasso.

  Aiming carefully, she let the lasso go and then gasped when Chevalier’s hand shot up and caught it before he even turned around.

  “How’d you do that?” Emily asked, re-coiling the rope.

  Chevalier chuckled, “I’m just that good.”

  She smiled and shrugged, “Fine, be that way.”

  “Why are you back?”

  “I thought I lived here.”

  He smiled, “You do… I’m just surprised is all.”