“What? What the hell does that have to do with anything? She tried to kill me. I brought her to you. I thought I’d actually get a little justice.” I screamed at him, screamed all my frustration at the one person I expected to help me.
“You didn’t bring her to me for justice. You brought her here for revenge.”
“What’s the difference when her crime is attempted murder?”
“I’ll ask you again. Are you willing to leave this life behind? Because if you kill her, that is what you will have to do.” Arawn waited patiently for my answer.
This was not the price I expected to pay for coming here. I thought I’d have to agree to some father daughter time, not leave everything behind to join him on the hunt.
“You didn’t ask me to walk away from everything after I killed Morrigan. So why now?” I was totally confused and terrified of what he might say.
“Morrigan wasn’t just a threat to you. She wouldn’t have stopped until she had destroyed everything and everyone. There was no other end for her but true death. You cannot go around killing everyone who wishes you harm, Maurin.” as the leader of the hunt, Arawn spoke from experience.
“Not everyone who wishes me harm, just the ones who try to harm me.” I corrected him, but my words lost some of their sting.
“If you sentence her to death for her crimes, then I will stand behind you, but you cannot stay here. Do you think the coven will simply accept your form of justice? Do you think the Council will allow an Executioner to walk among them when you can just snatch them out of their existence? Can you walk away from it all?”
I looked around, at the clear winter sky filled with stars, at the vampire keep—I looked everywhere but directly at Arawn. My eyes finally fell on Mahalia. Her smug look of defiance was almost enough to make me say yes, but Aidan was right behind her. I took a deep breath. The cold air stung as it filled my lungs, but not as much as the bitter realization that my father was right.
“No I can't. I won't trade my life in order to take hers.”
Arawn tried to hide his disappointment. Despite his lecture, he had hoped I would choose revenge and, by proxy, him. He hasn't tried to force me—yet—but I knew he wanted me with him on the hunt.
“It has been decided then. Mahalia, High Priestess of the Salem Coven, Advisor to the Council, you have been accused of attempted murder and treason against the Council. I find you guilty of these crimes. Are you ready for sentencing?”
Mahalia stepped out of Aidan's grip and stood before Arawn with an incomprehensible arrogance. It was becoming clear to me that she really didn't think she had done something wrong. She believed she had done what she had to in order to ensure the survival of the coven. Too bad it would be their undoing.
The world shifted before I saw the reality breakdown. Arawn was powerful enough to move all of us through the between without a physical connection. Damn, he is fast! So that was what it was like to move through the between when you actually knew what you were doing. If I hadn't done this a couple of times already, I wouldn’t have known what had happened. My movements through the between were awkward and choppy. This was the first time I had traveled with him when he wasn’t trying to teach me how to do it. I was a little awestruck. He moved the four of us, plus two Cwn Annwfn, and I barely noticed.
Aidan looked a little green, but he was handling the situation with a cool composure that would make any vampire proud.
Mahalia gasped when her new surroundings came into focus.
I think until that moment she thought Arawn was just going to kill her. The weight of her crimes came crashing down on her as she stood before the Council. She stumbled back and spun around to look at Arawn—with fear in her eyes for the first time—before collapsing on the floor at Agrona's feet.
The vampire queen crossed her Jimmy Choos without even acknowledging the coven leader.
“Arawn, so good to see you again. And so soon. I hope your daughter has inherited your love of the hunt.” Agrona said by way of greeting.
“Only time will tell. As promised, I have delivered the traitor.” Arawn motioned to the High Priestess.
I stole a look at the man who claimed to be my father, hoping to catch a glimpse of what he was thinking. He’d already been here and made some kind of agreement with the Council. That was totally unexpected. I had no idea where this was going, and Arawn wasn't giving anything away.
Stepping back, he gave a soft whistle. The two giant, white dogs curled up at his feet. Having fulfilled his part of whatever deal he'd struck with the Council, he was happy to watch the rest unfold as a bystander.
“Mahalia has already been found guilty of treason and attempted murder. She has been brought before the Council for sentencing.” Agrona spoke to the crowd in the room. Until now, I hadn’t noticed it was full of people.
Vampires casually filled the hall as if they had been invited to a cocktail party instead of a hearing. There were several wolves from Roul’s pack and one who wasn't. Cash gave me a little salute, but I didn’t wave back. Completely caught off guard by what was happening, my brain scrambled to catch up.
Arawn came here after he had left me in the warehouse. He knew what Mahalia had done the minute he found me in the between. The Lord of the Hunt also knew she wouldn't fear death, and he would not have her made a martyr, so he came here to put in motion the one thing Mahalia feared above all else.
A door in the back of the room flew open. Oberon, Graive, and Amalie were shackled together. Two of the most beautiful men I had ever seen shoved the three of them through the doorway with an ease that shouldn't have been possible for their wiry frames. The men were fair-haired and skinned. Were they twins perhaps? One of them kicked Oberon hard behind the knee. He went down and took Amalie and Graive with him. They landed in a pile at Mahalia's feet, but she refused to acknowledge their presence. She didn't even glance in their direction as they struggled with the shackles and chains to untangle themselves.
The twins moved around the heap of bodies in front of them and went to stand beside Roul. The one who had kicked Oberon looked at me with soul-piercing, sapphire-blue eyes. It wasn't hard to figure out what they were. Fey. Blue Eyes gave me a wicked grin that sent shivers down my spine, and I forced myself to look away for fear of being glamoured.
“Mahalia is hereby stripped of her position as advisor. The coven's seat on the Council will be given to the Fey, and the witches will be barred from petitioning for seat or position in the Council for a century. Lastly, Mahalia will step down as High Priestess of the Salem coven.” Agrona looked to the twins, all three sharing similar expressions of delight.
Amalie pleaded with her to deny the charges. When Mahalia made no effort to defend herself, Amalie resorted to begging for leniency from the Council.
“The mere fact she still lives is an act of mercy.” The coven had finally lost Roul’s favor.
“You can't do that. The Council doesn't have that kind of authority over the coven.” Oberon started to stand so he could properly object, but Cash forced him back down on his knees.
“Move again. I dare you. I've been dying to kick your ass.” Cash growled.
“What do you care? What's she to you, wolf?” I hadn’t realized it until Oberon asked the question, but they were referring to me.
Cash pulled back and let a looping right-handed fist fly. He connected with the side of Oberon's face hard enough to send blood flying across the stone floor.
Roul let out a roar that rattled the walls. “Agrona hasn't finished!”
“Thank you, Roul. The Council must approve the new priest or priestess,” Agrona directed the full weight of her words at Oberon.
“The coven will decide who leads them. It will not be put to vote before a vampire, wolf, and fairy.” Oberon said the last word as if it were a derogatory name as he spit blood on the floor.
“Yes. Well, the Council tried that approach before, and it was unsuccessful. The leader that you chose conspired against us, tried to mur
der one ally, and alienated another.” Blue Eyes’ twin remained silent, but it was clear they were in agreement.
“Screw you, elf. Does Keebler even know that you left the tree? Last time I checked, the Fey weren't in a position to judge anyone.” Graive snapped back in defense of her second family.
“I wouldn’t draw too much attention to myself if I were you. Oops, too late.” Blue Eyes was paying more attention to his fingernails than to the pissed off vampire next to him.
“You dare to speak that way to a member of the Council? You are an abomination tolerated only at the bequest of the now condemned!” Kedehern shouted as he moved toward her.
Graive's magic wasn’t affected by the shackles like Oberon’s and Amalie's. The necro tapped into her power without thinking and froze Kedehern right where he stood. She opened her mouth to apologize, but there was no way to take back what she had just done.
Amalie's whimpering was barely audible over the rattling shackles as Graive tried to get away. Unfortunately, there was nowhere for her to go.
Aidan moved forward.
Graive let go of Kedehern and focused on the immediate threat headed for her, but he was immune to her magic. It was the reason the vampires had made him their executioner and the reason Agrona and Kedehern had sent for him in the first place.
Aidan pulled her up by her hair and forced her head back. He plunged his fangs into her neck. I saw her strength leaving as her blood filled his mouth. This was the same vampire who drank from me more than once, but Graive’s experience was very different from mine. I had known nothing but pleasure both times Aidan had pierced my skin, but he did not offer to cloud her mind with euphoria. Instead, she felt every pull on her veins, every drop of blood that left her body. His eyes were locked on mine, daring me to look away.
Without flinching, I watched him as I had expected him to watch me earlier. The need to have someone see you at your worst—at your most vulnerable—and find acceptance in their eyes was something I understood all too well. I held his gaze while Graive's skin paled and his blushed, while her limbs went limp and her pulse slowed, until Kedehern ordered him to stop.
Graive crumpled to the floor as Aidan released her.
Oberon pushed Amalie out of the way and scrambled over to check on her.
Aidan drew the back of his hand across his mouth to wipe away her blood before breaking eye contact with me.
“I am feeling generous this evening. Your necromancer is not dead, Druid. Her pulse is weak, but she will live. The coven may break treaties, but the vampires do not. I will allow her to live on the technicality that she did not attack the vampires during her stay in Salem.” Kedehern yawned, feigning boredom with the proceedings but his eyes were alert and watchful of everyone in the room.”The only use of her necromancy was under great duress and what she perceived to be self-defense. When your lover regains consciousness, do her the favor of reminding her of her manners. I may have found a purpose that will spare her life and keep her in Salem, but I will not overlook such behavior a second time.”.
“Having a necromancer under our control would certainly give us an advantage over any challenging vampires. Or it could incite them to war. Whatever shall we do with her? Decisions, decisions. I will agree to this indulgence. For now. Remove this trash from my sight.” Agrona dismissed Graive with a wave of her hand.
A couple of vampires stepped forward to do their queen's bidding. One grabbed the chains and started dragging Amalie, Oberon, and Graive out of the room. The other went for Mahalia.
“Leave that one. We have other plans for her,” Agrona, spared a glance at the Fey twins.
Amalie screamed for Mahalia as she was dragged away from the head of her coven—a leader she had loved and followed without question, and to whom she was obviously still loyal. Oberon said little to comfort her. He was too focused on whether Graive would in fact wake up.
I turned away as they left the room, just as I had turned my back on the coven when the Council sentenced them. I hadn’t spoken on their behalf, even though I knew there were some in the coven who were innocent. They would share in the punishment along with the guilty.
A small part of me felt bad about that. The rest of me said that was the naive part of me that got suckered by the coven in the first place.
I really would miss Amalie, though. Or maybe I would just miss the idea of having a friend. I’d had so few. Even if she didn’t know what Mahalia was trying to do, I doubt I’d ever be able to trust her again, and I doubted even more that she’d forgive me for lumping all of the coven together.
Aidan came over and took me gently by the arm. “Let me take you home.”
“Now? But Agrona hasn’t finished with Mahalia yet.” I wanted to wait for the sentencing.
“She’s finished with the witch. Trust me.” He tried nudging me toward the door.
“Why the rush? You’re not telling me something,” Planting my feet, I pressed for more information.
“Ian and Kellen are very creative. You won’t want to stay for the next part, trust me.”
“Ian and Kellen?”
Blue Eyes looked up at the mention of his name. Was he Ian or Kellen?
“Keep your voice down. Don’t draw their attention. You won’t like the games that they play.” Aidan’s voice dropped to a whisper.
“You mean torture? Aidan, are they going to torture her?”
I was horrified at the thought, even though I had been ready to slice the blade of my sword through her neck not an hour ago.
“Did you think that she would not suffer for her treason? She tried to kill you. She will be made to pay for that.” Aidan looked like he really wanted her to pay for that. “If not in kind, then in blood. That is the law of the Council. I know that you will not stand by and watch it without opening your mouth, so I’m taking you home.” he said.
“Well, you’re right. I am going to say something. Agrona can put a stop to this. If she isn’t getting the death penalty, then she should get life in prison.” I stepped forward, prepared to march off and give the Council the what for. “Not torture. I don’t do torture. Don’t you all have a prison or something she can just rot in?”
“This isn’t the U.N., Maurin. Agrona and Roul had to concede to some of their demands. She will be imprisoned at the UnSeelie Court. Not all of her fears of the Fey holding a seat on the Council were unfounded. “His hand slipped into mine, pulling me back a step. “They aren’t all pixie dust and pots of gold. They can be cruel. Mahalia will see the worst of them tonight. Her campaign to keep the Fey off of the Council has been going on for years,” Aidan explained.
“The UnSeelie Court? How do you know all this?” I didn’t waste time pretending not to be confused. “I must have missed all this on the itinerary.”
“I’ve been with the Council a lot longer than you, Maurin. I know how things work. We’re leaving. Now. So get that pretty, little ass of yours moving,” Aidan encouraged me with a gentle shove toward the door.
I turned to look at Mahalia one last time. Ian and Kellen were walking toward her. Refusing to give them the satisfaction, Mahalia did her best to hide her fear.
I wouldn’t wish an all-night torture session with the Fey on my worst enemy—even the ones who had tried to kill me and prayed they broke her quickly. Something told me the list of people who tried to kill me would be getting longer. Someday I might actually need to re-evaluate my moral stance on torture instead of just turning a blind eye to it like I had with so many of the other morals I had adhered to in my human existence.
Agrona gave a little nod as Aidan tugged me out of the room by my arm. I couldn’t change it or stop it, so I walked away, leaving Mahalia and another piece of my humanity behind.
Chapter 22
We weren’t at my apartment for five minutes before the buzzer for the intercom was going off. There really is no rest for the wicked.
“Don’t answer it” Aidan pleaded, gently grabbing my arm to tug me away from the intercom.
“If I thought that would actually work, then I wouldn’t.” With a heavy sigh, I hit the talk button. “Yeah?”
“Buzz me in, Kincaide. You’ve got a hell of a lot of explaining to do.”
The voice was distorted and broken up from the out-dated intercom system, but I knew it was Masarelli.
Aidan just rolled his eyes. “I told you not to answer it.”
I hit the other button to let Masarelli in and held my apartment door open as he walked up the three flights of stairs.
“You want to explain what the hell happened back there?”
“Not really.”
“Kincaide.” He managed to turn my last name into a warning.
“You asked,” I chided. “Are you going to come in or what?”
Masarelli stepped inside, but didn't bother to make himself at home. I got the impression he didn’t want to stay in my apartment any longer than was necessary. That was fine with me.
“How did you do…whatever you call the thing that you did? You know, the disappearing thing.” He waved his hands around as if he were a magician.
I started to explain, but all you could hear every time I opened my mouth was barking. Masarelli looked at me like I had completely lost my mind.
“It's not me, jackass.” I sounded as exhausted as I felt.
“When did you get a dog, and who thought it would be a good idea to give you one?” Totally serious, he tried to look past me in concern for the welfare of an animal left in my care
I didn't bother with false indignation over his last comment. The current state of my life certainly was not well-suited for a dog. Unfortunately, there was no ignoring the undeniable sound of barking coming from my bedroom. Did I tell him my long lost father had apparently stopped by, uninvited, I might add, and brought his enormous dog with him? Of course not. Masarelli would have pressed for more information or, even worse, insisted on meeting him. His curiosity would have made him stay longer than either of us wanted him to. So I did what any rational person would do. I lied.
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