The Complete Chosen Trilogy (The Chosen #0)

by N. M. Santoski

  Manas shoved her body out of the way. “Clear the room!” he shouted at the guards. “Caer Anglia is now under lockdown—no one leaves, no one enters without my permission! Consider yourselves lucky this wasn’t an official Decimation—and know that I might still change my mind.” He turned to Rebecca. “Get them all out of here.”

  ***

  Noel stumbled from the room, barely able to see through her tears. Claire…

  She made it back to her rooms and jumped back in terror when she realized someone was already there. She had a handful of fire aimed and ready before the figure stepped into the light, hands raised.

  “Kuriyami? What are you doing in here?”

  The girl looked drawn and paler than usual, her ink black hair swinging into her face with every trembling breath. “That display made me sick!” she spat. “Who the hell does he think he is?”

  “What? No, it’s… Aeron…”

  Kuriyami waved an irritated hand. “Don’t even try it, Dix!” she said. “Your best friend was just murdered, and I hate to break it to you, but Nolan Aeron didn’t swing the sword! Manas Warrington did! He murdered three people because they feel threatened. Because they know that they’re wrong! Like there isn’t enough death in the world without—”

  Noel snuffed out the fire and leapt forward, clapping her other hand over Kuriyami’s mouth. “Quiet! Are you trying to get us killed?”

  Kuriyami ripped her head away with a jerk, moving to pace the room. “We need to find Nolan.”

  “Why?”

  “To take up the cause! Of course! You think I want to follow a sniveling little puke like Manas Warrington? A murderer? A daddy’s boy with delusions of grandeur that are destroying our society? The hell with that! I’m going to find Nolan, and you’re going to help me.”

  “What do you need me for?”

  “Manas knows you hate Nolan. You’re going to play both sides.”

  ***

  “So tell me, Noel—why do you wish to leave Caer Anglia?”

  Manas was sitting sideways, his leg thrown carelessly across the arm of the chair. Noel pictured Claire’s final moments to conjure up the hate she needed to succeed. “I want to hunt down Nolan Aeron and either kill him or bring him here to you.”

  “Why?”

  “He tricked one of my best friends into following him and got her killed, and tricked my other best friend into thinking she’s in love with him! His family took my father from me! I want justice.”

  “No, you don’t.” Manas got to his feet and walked down to face her.

  “I don’t?” She tried to keep her voice steady.

  “No. You want revenge.”

  Thank the gods. “Revenge, then.”

  “No. You must remain here. I need you by my side when Aeron and his people come. Perhaps you will be able to convince Giada of her foolish position, and your Lord Younger of his duty. Oh, and Noel?”

  “Yes, Ma—I mean, Lord Younger Artifex?” she corrected hurriedly, relieved to see his approving nod at her amendment.

  “You and all those who were close to Aeron during the teach year will be watched. I would hate to see you suffer Claire’s fate.”

  Noel swallowed a mouth full of flame with a solemn smile and left the room to give Kuriyami the bad news.

  “That wasn’t our agreement!”

  “I don’t know what you want me to do!” Noel snapped back. “He didn’t really give me a choice in the matter! I’m being watched—all of us who have connections to Nolan or Gia or Pyrrhus are.”

  Kuriyami huffed and flopped back in her chair. “Then I guess we wait, as unappetizing as that thought is.”

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  As they were sitting down to dinner, the phone in the kitchen rang.

  “Pardon me,” Bentley said, rising. He stepped into the kitchen and the ringing stopped abruptly as he picked up the receiver. They could hear his voice only enough to catch timbre, not words. There was a pause, and the tension in the room rose another notch.

  They heard the receiver slam down onto the counter, and a fierce growl began rumbling from the other room.

  “Bentley, no!” Idella was leaping over the perfectly set table and running into the kitchen.

  The other three jumped up to follow, but Idella snarled, “Stay back!” with such venom that they instinctively complied.

  “Bentley, control it,” she was urging. “Don’t make me shift here and knock you on your ass.”

  They could hear him panting, clearly struggling with her order. The sound of claws scrabbling against tile made Nolan take a step forward, but Gia threw her arm forward to hold him back.

  “Wait.”

  After a few moments, there was another crash and the sound of broken retching.

  “Idella?” Pyrrhus called.

  “Come on, it’s safe.”

  They moved through the door to see her cradling Bentley’s head on her knees as he fought for composure. His clothing was rent in several places, and his shoes were absolutely destroyed.

  “What happened?” Gia asked, kneeling next to him. Pyrrhus knelt on the other side, taking his hand and smoothing his long fingers over the distraught man’s knuckles. Nolan remained standing, ready at a moment’s notice to knock Bentley flat with electricity if he had to.

  Idella shrugged, and they all looked down to Bentley.

  He struggled to his knees, ignoring Gia and Idella’s grasping hands and using Pyrrhus’s to pull himself upright.

  “Manas Warrington murdered my aunt two nights ago.”

  “What?” Nolan cried.

  “Not just my aunt. He has put three teachers to death at Caer Anglia for aiding your cause, Nolan.”

  “Who else?”

  They turned to face Gia, whose face was now green. “Who else?” she demanded, leaning forward to clutch at the torn edges of his shirt.

  “Matthew Graves and Claire Connor.”

  Gia shrunk back against Nolan’s legs, shaking her head so hard that her neat ponytail slipped from its elastic. “No, no, no, no,” she moaned. “Not Claire. Please.”

  Pyrrhus shot Nolan a look. “Take her to the room, Nolan. I’ll help with Bentley.”

  Nolan didn’t bother answering. He merely bent down and scooped his fiancée into his arms. She wasn’t crying—not yet. The shock went deeper than that. She was still shaking her head, repeating the word “no” over and over into his chest.

  ***

  An hour later, they reconvened over their now cold dinner. All but Idella bore traces of crying on their faces, but they were as composed as it was possible to be, given the circumstances.

  “I’ve discovered a bit more, if you are willing to listen,” Idella said.

  They sat in silence as she recounted the events of the Decimation, including the fact that Rebecca Selocrim was now at Caer Anglia.

  “We have to kill him,” Pyrrhus said once Idella was done.

  “What? I thought you said—“ Nolan began.

  Pyrrhus slammed an open hand flat on the table, rattling the glasses. “Damn it, Nolan! Claire and Sensei and Dr. Graves have been beheaded in the middle of the Atrium! Do you want a fucking engraved declaration of war?”

  Eyebrows went up at his profanity, but no one commented on it. Gia took Nolan’s hand. “I know it bothers you, Nolan, but I think we are at the point where showing less than total dedication to our cause will make us fail. The numen have seen that Manas is willing to kill in order to protect his people. How can we do less?”

  “How can we do what they do and expect people to think us the better option?” Nolan countered.

  “You haven’t entertained the possibility that you’ll have to kill to end this? Are you that stupid?” Pyrrhus countered.

  Bentley rested two fingers lightly on his wrist. “Pyrrhus,” he said softly, “there is nothing wrong with valuing life.”

  “And if it is to save a life, then I will take one if I have to,” Nolan added. “But to cold-bloodedly plan the murder
of two men—“

  “And a woman—don’t think Selocrim will let you waltz in and take over,” Idella added.

  “The murder of three people, then,” Nolan amended. “I just…” He ran his hands through his hair, frustrated. “Can’t we try the other way?”

  “Nolan, we don’t know anything about how he did it! We run the risk of it not working at all, or even having it backfire and stripping you of your numina! If I could talk to Azar, or even Claire—“ she snapped her mouth shut, but the damage was done.

  “Claire would be invaluable if her head were still attached.” With a violent shove, Pyrrhus stormed away from the table.

  “Pyrrhus—!“ Nolan called after him.

  “Let him go. He needs to process this.”

  Nolan sank back down into his seat with a frown. “Maybe we should sleep on this and talk about it tomorrow. I think we’re all a little tense.”

  Idella nodded. “An understatement. I plan on leaving for St. Thomas tomorrow… we’ve wasted enough time. We can revisit all of this over breakfast—maybe we’ll actually eat this time.”

  ***

  Gia stumbled into the bathroom still yawning. Damned mornings. As she finally managed to make contact with the light switch and the lights came up, sudden swaths of red streaked across the bathroom sink and floor made her scream and jump backward into the hall.

  “Gia?” she heard Nolan yell, and he rounded the corner an instant later, hands full of plasma. He paused, confused, as he saw she seemed unhurt.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “It’s… here, look.” She pushed the bathroom door back open and gestured.

  “Is that blood? Wait… no.” Nolan pushed deeper into the room and knelt. He ran his hands over the floor and came away with handfuls of hair.

  “Pyrrhus…Pyrrhus!” Nolan bolted to his feet and ran for Pyrrhus’s room.

  It was empty. Not a single belonging of his remained. The pair raced downstairs to find Idella sitting alone at the breakfast nook.

  “He’s gone,” she said idly, turning a page of the Wall Street Journal with a flick of her wrist. “They both are.”

  “Where? Where did they go? And why would Pyrrhus shave his head?” Gia demanded.

  “To Manas Warrington, of course.”

  Nolan had her in his sights in an instant. “You’d better explain better than that, and quickly.”

  “Stand down, Swordsmith.”

  “No.”

  Idella sighed and rose to her feet, carefully eying the roiling ball of plasma that was growing by the second. “I have a letter for you, if you’d give me a moment… may I?”

  Nolan nodded. She reached back toward the table and picked up a folder piece of paper neither had noticed before. She held it out to him expectantly.

  “Gia, take it.”

  She snatched it and broke through the seal, opening it and letting her eyes race ahead through Pyrrhus’s familiar handwriting. After a moment, she slammed the paper down on the counter. “This is fake.”

  “It is not.”

  “Pyrrhus would never write this.”

  “I watched him do it. I’m sorry if you don’t like what’s in it, but I assure you that he wrote every word.”

  “Gia, what is it?” Nolan urged.

  Gia’s hands snapped up. “I’ll cover her,” she snarled. “You read it. I don’t think I can read that out loud.”

  Nolan took the letter from the counter.

  I can no longer pretend that this is a noble quest, nor trust in the fruits of our endeavor. Too many people have died, too many families destroyed… Manas will stop at nothing to take the right of the Sword from you, so I suggest you surrender it. Bentley and I are on our way to Caer Anglia now, shriven, to admit the error of our ways. If we can smooth the way for you, perhaps Manas will grant you an easy death. If you love her at all, you will send Giada back to Arias before you surrender… do not drag her down with you to suffer Claire’s fate.

  I wish things could have been different.

  P.

  Nolan clenched his fist, crumpling the paper in it. “How could he?”

  “Nolan, you can’t possibly believe that this is real!” Gia protested.

  “It absolutely is. There are phrases in here that he used that only he and I would know. It’s him. Traitor!”

  Gia closed her eyes against his fury. “Please… it can’t be.” When she opened her eyes again, his stony expression was unchanged. “Excuse me.” She fled the room, leaving Idella and Nolan to stare at each other.

  “We leave… today.”

  Idella frowned. “Where will you go?”

  “I have to reclaim the Sword. This must end.”

  “You should wait, if you can. Having Lady Gravia in your corner will be to your benefit, especially since you no longer have Pyrrhus.”

  “How long should you be gone?”

  “Flight is a little over 5 hours. I have an address, and Lady Gravia should recognize a picture of you as my proof.”

  “What pic—“ The flash of a camera phone blinded him for a moment.

  “Thanks, Idella.”

  “Well, it’s much easier for me to prove that I know you now, isn’t it?”

  He decided it wasn’t worth the fight to argue. “Let me go check on Gia—I’ll be right back.”

  When Nolan entered their room, Gia was curled up with the last of the journals.

  "Which part are you reading now?" he asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

  She mumbled something unintelligible, engrossed.

  He gently took the book out of her hands, marking her place and setting it aside. Before she could get indignant, he put his arms around her and settled in.

  "Did you need something?" she asked finally.

  "I was thinking that we should get married sooner rather than later."

  "I think that's a good idea."

  "...Really?"

  "Oh, are we surprised?" she asked with a smile. "Nolan, I wouldn't have said yes if I didn't want to marry you. If I want to marry you, why would I care if we do it now or six months from now?"

  "Then we can do it whenever we like," she said brightly. "Now?"

  He blinked. "Now? Don't you want, like, a pretty dress? Or guests? Or anything?"

  She pursed her lips. "Well, I do wish I could have… certain people here, but we are in hiding. I'm not going to put us in danger for a pretty dress.”

  “Don’t we need a witness?”

  “Idella will do it—IDELLA!” Gia hollered, dragging Nolan after her.

  “What am I doing?”

  “We need to be married. Now.”

  Gia hustled Nolan in front of the fireplace and handed the box containing the rings to Idella. He was still feeling as though he'd been run over by a particularly enthusiastic truck.

  Idella gave them both a critical glance, but said nothing about Gia's plaid sleep pants or Nolan's bemused expression. She thumbed the ring box open, nodded approvingly, and motioned for them to sit, facing one another.

  They sat in front of the fire, both looking up at the still standing Idella. She gently placed a hand on either of their heads. Nolan could feel the heat from her hand seeping through his mop of hair into his scalp.

  "Let’s see what I can remember.” She cleared her throat and said solemnly, “Gods, male or female, whichever you prefer to be called... I, Idella, child of Hercules, do call you to be witness to this joining."

  Nolan snuck a glance over at Gia, but she had her eyes piously closed.

  “Nolan John of the House of Aeron—Lord Fulmen, chosen heir of Jupiter, Swordsmith.”

  He'd never heard that many titles applied to him before. Idella's silence implied that he was waiting for a response, so Nolan obliged. “Uh—present.”

  That made Gia snort with laughter, though she tried to suppress it.

  Idella gave him an irritated look. “Do you come here of your own free will?”

  “Yes.”

  “Giada E
lisabetta of the House of Disanza—Lady Zephyra, chosen heir of Diana, woman without a Lord.”

  “Yes,” she said.

  “Do you come here of your own free will?”

  “I do.”

  “Excellent. Join hands, please.”

  Nolan reached out and caught her hands in both of his. He expected them to tremble, but they were steady and cool to the touch.

  Satisfied, Idella began to speak again. “O gods, witness this man, taking this woman into the shelter of his household. He will make her his Lady, his helpmeet, his partner in all things. He will fulfil the holes left by her previous family by creating a family of their own. Witness this woman, leaving the safety of her known family for an unknown with this man. She will call him her Lord, though they will be equals. She will be the lover of his youth, the mother of his children, and the companion of his old age. Grant them clarity in their marriage, and honesty, and above all, love.”

  She removed the rings from the box and showed them to the couple. “Do you intend these rings to be a symbol to the world that you are now one?”

  “Yes,” they both answered.

  “Then wear them in devotion.”

  They exchanged the rings and slid them on. Nolan's felt alien to his hand, almost too slick. He'd never worn any jewellery besides his medallion and his grandfather’s dog tags before.

  Gia was admiring her hand in the firelight, the ring glinting.

  “Seal your pact in that time honoured tradition—a kiss.”

  Gia leaned forward and braced her hands on Nolan's shoulders, kissing him deeply. He responded in kind, only stopping when Idella interrupted.

  “Let the gods witness that you are now Lord and Lady of the Fulmen and Zephyra. Let no numen contest what has been forged here in good faith.”

  The three sat in silence, the solemnity of the moment heavy in the room. Finally, Idella spoke. “Congratulations. Nolan, I wish you would reconsider leaving today.”

  “I want to be closer to Caer Anglia. The further I am from the Sword, the less control I have over my numina. We’re wasting time.”