Chained (The Siren Series #2)

by L. A. Griffiths

  What! Are these idiots blind, they sent us on that mission to kill Idina.

  Something wasn’t right. Did they really have no knowledge of the leaches?

  “We can neither confirm nor deny that there leaches are roaming around un-checked and all we have is a word of a Siren.” The white masked woman said.

  While they talked amongst themselves again, something inside me wanted to spill every detail that I had witnessed. I wanted to hold my tongue but maybe some of the information will be useful. I took a deep breath and hoped for the best.

  “There seems to be a leader.” I raised my voice.

  The judges stopped and slowly turned towards me, and I could feel their disapproval.

  “Excuse me?” said the baby faced masked man “How dare you speak without authority.”

  “Calm yourself, the Siren wishes to speak.” said the jeweled masked man. “Please continue.”

  I took another deep breath. “Someone is commanding the leaches, giving them orders. They abducted me, and the person’s name is Barbus.”

  More shocks and gasps came from behind me and even the judges were taken aback.

  “Is this true?!” the longed nosed man’s voice bellowed throughout the court room.

  “That so-called man has been wanted by the council for many years and you say that he has taken command of the leaches and abducted you.” asked the red lipped lady.

  “This is quite the tale you are spinning, young Siren.” added the long nosed man.

  “If she is to be believed, then we could all be in danger.” The baby masked man said.

  With the word danger now floating around, it had finally tipped everyone over the edge. Loud shouts and yelling filled the room while the four judges tried to get the room under control. I bowed my head down hoping to avoid their rage. The judges voices had their own say with each of their voices echoing. Even the crowd was getting a bit rowdy. This was getting out of hand, this was such a bad idea.

  “My lords and ladies!” A serene and seductive voice called out from the chaos.

  I turned on the spot to see Rhea slowly making her way through the crowd and towards the judges. Oh crap, what’s she doing!

  She glided from her seat and made her way to the center, and stood beside my podium.

  “Rhea, it’s been too long.” said one of the men but I didn’t catch who it was.

  Rhea gave a little bow. “Lords and ladies, Ellie Laveau has been under my protection. She is a gifted creature and she requires the highest protection, and what she says is true. Barbus is the man who is pulling the strings, he abducted Ellie and used the leaches for his own selfish ends.”

  “You speak with such conviction, Rhea. We will talk about Barbus without prying eyes.” said the screechy voiced woman.

  “But how can the leaches be controlled? They are animals, they don’t take orders.” said the longed nosed masked man.

  “That is unknown to me as well, but he has created an army of them.” Rhea replied.

  “An army you say? Have you seen them for yourself?” asked the jeweled man.

  “Yes, I have your lords and ladies. It is truly a horrible site.”

  The council members talked amongst themselves with whispers.

  “Now that you’re here, we can question you, Rhea. Do you deny that, you tried to hide a Siren from us? You know that they are forbidden creatures and are not for personal use?” said the baby faced man.

  “No I do not deny this. I saw that Ellie was in danger and sought out to protect her from anything that would harm her. And I still do that to this day.” Rhea said.

  “But where were you when this poor young girl got kidnapped?” asked the evil baby faced mask.

  I turned to Rhea and I saw a tiny glint of that darkness she tries so hard to contain. Within seconds the darkness faded and she was back to her normal self.

  “My lord, I’m surprised you have taken this to heart, since you wouldn’t have known about it, unless it had to be presented to you. You’re so wrapped up in your own little games that you cannot see what is happening outside, in the real world.” said Rhea.

  “How dare you! Know your place, this is our domain.” roared the baby faced man.

  “Domain or not, Ellie has come her willingly to plead her case.” added Rhea.

  “That is enough!” said the jeweled man.

  The four judges turned in my direction. “Can you confirm that Rhea has been protecting you?” the red rose lipped lady said.

  “Yes, Rhea has been protecting me from the many things out there that wish to harm me, and I trust her judgment.”I said the words but did I actually believe them? I didn’t know anymore.

  “Also, there has also been a massive surge in magical power recently, do you know anything about this?” The cracked baby faced man bypassed Rhea and asked me directly.

  I swallowed a lump in my throat and tried to speak but my mouth was too dry. I didn’t even know what he was talking about. I was about to speak but Rhea took the floor.

  “We know nothing of these power surges, Ellie is new to her powers and they are still growing, she is too young to do such things, and to even accuse this young girl of wrong doing is going beyond even your station.”

  My mind then flooded with the memory of myself being possessed by the many spirits. I did cause that power surge, but how did they know about that? At that moment I felt like a guilty convict just waiting to be taken to jail and do my time.

  “The question was asked to Ellie.” said the longed nosed man.

  I stared up at the four intimidating judges who held my fate in their hands. “No, I know nothing of this, my lord.” I held my voice as the best I could.

  “I did not want it to come to this but I invoke the protection of the old gods, Ellie is now under my protection.” said Rhea as she sat back down into her seat.

  Around me the court burst into cries of anger. Even the judges went along with the gasps. The four robbed judges tried to get the room under control by banging their gavels onto the desk but it was heard on deaf ears.

  “Order, order!” cried the judges.

  What the hell just happened? I turned on the spot to see Rhea smiling from ear to ear. She liked this way too much. Even Sophia and Naaz looked at her with shocked expressions.

  Soon after many cries, the room was under control. “We cannot let a Siren go out unchecked.” one judge said.

  “She is under the old god’s protection, there’s nothing we can do.” The red lipped woman said.

  “Surely we can keep her here.” said the baby faced man.

  “We have to abide by the rules and release her into Rhea’s care.” said the jeweled masked man.

  “Are we all in agreement?” asked the baby faced man.

  There were nods and a few groaning noises coming from the unhappy judges.

  “Very well Rhea, we will entrust you with the Siren, but we will be watching you very carefully.” said the powder white woman.

  A chill made its way up to my spine. I then knew that they would be watching every move I’d make. Even a slightest mistake and they would know about it. Would the council always be watching me all my life, I hoped not.

  “You many leave.” said the longed nosed man with a wave of his hand.

  Finally, after standing in front of the four judges and waiting for them trying to decide my fate, I was allowed to leave with Rhea. I stepped down from my podium and walked out through the main doors and into the warm bask of the sun as a free woman.

  "Thank god that's over with." I said stretching my muscles. I seemed to be tense all the way through.

  "Yes, I'm glad too." said Rhea.

  “So why did they let me leave?” I asked.

  "Well, I didn’t want to do it but I knew what the outcome was going to be, so I had little choice and invoked the old god’s law. You are now under my protection and no one can take you away from me, not even the council."

  “That was a very smart move, Rhea, but are you
sure you did the right thing?” asked Marcus.

  Rhea didn’t answer him.

  “Who are the old god’s?” I asked them.

  “The old god’s are a group of the highest authority in our supernatural world and not just anyone can invoke their laws.” Sophia took a glance of Rhea but as she spoke “only people who are ‘special’ can do it, like Rhea.”

  I was a little confused by it all but if it means I get to leave without harm, I have no problem with it.

  "I'm surprised that you invoked the old god’s law, Rhea, no one has done that in many years." Naaz said spitefully.

  We all turned towards her as she descended the court stone steps, her sheer dark dress blowing in the wind with ever step she took. There was a hint of movie star glamour about her, but I had to think twice, this was Naaz we were talking about.

  "Bit disappointed, Naaz?" Sophia asked.

  Naaz spun around and gave Sophia a dark piercing stare and carried on walking past us. As she drifted past me I stared at her, hoping to catch anything that could give away her motives. This woman was very dangerous, and I think she was reaching the end of her limit. She had tried to play the entire situation and she had lost.

  “Naaz!” Rhea called out to her. “The council didn’t give us that job did they?”

  “What do you mean?” Naaz asked playfully.

  “The council had no knowledge of that mission to kill Idina did they? It was all you. You used us for whatever sick scheme you have planned.”

  “But what about the information I had? I would have known if Naaz had given it to me.” Marcus said.

  “Who did give you the information, Marcus?” I asked.

  Marcus started to think. “It was one of the protectors. He told me that we had been given a job to find the nest.”

  Rhea gave Marcus her full attention. “Marcus, did you ever see the protector when we came back to the bunker?”

  “No, did you.” He asked.

  “What? What’s wrong?” I asked eagerly.

  “We were betrayed, Ellie. That’s what’s wrong.” replied Sophia.

  I turned to Marcus who had fury written across his face.

  “What did you offer the protector?” Rhea asked.

  “I have no idea what you are talking about, you and your weird imagination.” Naaz brushed off the accusations.

  “It’s true isn’t it, Naaz?” I asked. “You manipulated everything to your advantage, for whatever reason, you let leaches butcher innocent people and you killed Idina.”

  “She needed to die! I did you a favour!” A sharp wind whipped around Naaz, her words fuelling her emotions.

  Naaz gave us one last look and disappeared in a wave of darkness.

  "I won’t let her get away with this" Marcus said.

  “She won’t.” replied Rhea.

  I looked up at Marcus and saw his sun kissed skin. He was truly breathtaking while he stood in the afternoon sunlight. All he features were lit up for all to see. I just stared at him and took in all that he was, his square manly jaw, his straight nose that had a little bump at the bridge, along with his perfect full soft lips. I was totally engrossed in him that I missed the question posed to me.

  "Ellie?" said Rhea.

  "Huh?” I replied.

  "I said are you ready?"

  "Ready for what?”

  "Home, we can go home now." Rhea said.

  I nodded. I wanted to leave here immediately. There was something about this place that just made me feel uneasy. Maybe it was the power struggle I could feel coming from the four judges. I would not like to be locked in a room with them.

  I entwined my hand with Rhea’s and the four of us were torn away from the council and hurtling back towards Naaz's dusty barracks. I had a feeling deep inside that something would be waiting for us.

  Chapter Fourteen

  I arrived with the same sick feeling I always felt while teleporting, maybe I'll get the hang of it someday. Naaz had arrived before us and left to go upstairs to her own quarters. I had envisioned Naaz’s bedroom to be a sadist paradise. Chains, torture devices and god only know what else. I pictured her sleeping on a bed of nails, and no pillow would ever be comfortable enough for her, only the nails.

  "Rhea, Naaz doesn’t look happy at all." Sophia asked.

  “She tried to play the game and she lost.” replied Rhea.

  "I don't like the vibe I'm getting from her at all." I said.

  "Maybe we've outstayed our welcome?" Marcus asked.

  "Yeah, I think so too." Rhea added.

  I made my way to the cosiest room in the house (well the only cosiest room). The others followed me like a pack of wolves, like I was their leader. I sat myself down at the foot of the roaring fire and thought of the judge’s ruling.

  That council meeting was too intense to put into words. I felt free, but leashed at the same time. The council said to be watching my every move from now on, and that didn’t sit well with me. I had never been called to something like that before. Was all that really necessary? The masks, the robes, and even putting me down into the floor to rise up like some carnival attraction for everyone to gawp at? They didn’t tell me anything I needed to know, and I was kinda’ pissed off at that. It was all just a formality for them, like appearances were the only thing that mattered to them and not the interest of the supernatural order.

  “Ellie?” a voice called out to me.

  I ignored my self loathing and looked up to see Rhea standing over me.

  “May I sit?” she asked.

  I nodded and shuffled to my left.

  “Are you ok?” she asked.

  “To be honest, no. I’m more confused than ever. I thought going to the council would be good for me, but they just wanted to get a good look at the Siren, the freak.”

  “I understand where you are coming from. But the council do not pander to others, they rule on what they see before them, luckily I stepped in when I did otherwise you would have been taking away.” explained Rhea.

  “I’m glad you did, I was really scared, and I thought they would kill me or take me away.”

  “I would never let it come to that.” she said.

  “They were not happy were they?”

  “No they were not, there hasn’t been a Siren in many years, and with you just popping up have caused many people to become nervous and suspicious.” replied Rhea.

  “Why?”

  “Because some people see you as a threat, those council members are not your allies. You need to remember that, Ellie.”

  “Did you know one of them?”

  “Yes, I knew one of them very well.”

  “How do you know him?” I asked.

  “We have crossed paths many times. I first met him when he was just working at the council, just low level jobs, but now he has worked his way up to the top.”

  “He must have some powerful connections.”

  “Among others.” Rhea replied “there is also the problem about the power surge.” said Rhea.

  “Oh yeah that.” I said sheepishly. “What would they have done to me if they found out it was me?”

  “I don’t really know, but they didn’t.” said Rhea “It also makes me wonder how they found out.”

  “It was the siren souls, wasn’t it?” I asked.

  “Maybe, but something that powerful being released all at once, that’s bound to raise an interest.” Rhea replied.

  I truly was in big trouble, with something like that being easily detectable. I really had to watch what I did with my powers in future.

  “I heard you talking about me, about my powers.” I said.

  “Ellie, we wasn’t..” I cut her off.

  “I understand. My powers are growing too fast and they scare me but whatever happens, I will deal with it.”

  “Understand.” she replied.

  “It really scares me that my powers are growing fast every day. Who knows what I am truly capable of?”

  “I’m sure in time you w
ill be able to handle them.”

  “But what if I can’t, you saw how that orb nearly drove me insane.”

  Rhea gave me her full attention and looked at me with fiery eyes. “Ellie, I know what ever comes your way, you will be able to fight it. You were captured and held prisoner for two weeks and you have come out strong.”

  Rhea’s words of wisdom struck a chord within me. I did come out of it, but did it make me stronger? I didn’t know, if I had been left in there a few more days, I would have given up. I wouldn’t call that strong.

  “So where do we go from here?” I asked.

  “Well, now that Idina is dead, there will be no more leaches, so that will decrease the numbers a bit. But there is Barbus left.”

  Just mentioning his name made my body shiver. He had been invading my dreams lately and he seems so real. His touch on my skin, his breath on the nape of my neck just felt so realistic. Was it just a dream or was it something from the future, like the leaches? I haven’t even had time to tell Rhea about the dreams. But was now the perfect time?

  “Uh Rhea, I’ve been having more weird dreams lately.” My voice was dry and sore. To admit to Rhea I’ve been having these dreams were to admit that they were indeed real.

  “What about?” she asked.

  “I’ve been having dreams about Barbus.” Rhea’s body froze. She slowly turned her face towards me and it was full of horror.

  “When?” she quickly asked.

  “One when I was underground and one just the other night.” I said.

  “O-other night?” Rhea’s words caught in her throat.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked. “Is it a problem?”

  Rhea quickly got to her feet and rushed out of the room, leaving just her soft scent behind.

  “Rhea!?” I called after her but she disappeared from view.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Marcus came into the room with one of his smiles. Oh crap.

  Behave yourself.

  “You on your own?” he asked.

  “Yeah, just me.” I told him.

  Marcus slowly walked over to the fire and lowered himself into a sitting position.

  “Bet the council was scary?” he asked.