Feeling the anguish in Gabriel, coupled with my own fears, I knew what I had to do. I slightly shook my head to convey that he wasn’t to do anything. A trickle of blood flowed down my neck, the movement having caused a small cut. What did it matter? I was most likely going to be dead soon anyway.
Even if I didn’t think of the stolen children, I knew that creating more Fae would be a bad thing, even if it didn’t kill Gabriel in the process, and I didn’t believe for one minute that they would let us go when they had it. The only power they had over him was what they could do to me. Without that, Gabriel and Lexi would most likely survive. If I was lucky we would all walk away, but that was unlikely.
Looking deep into his eyes, I drew all my love for him and pushed it in his direction. The last time I had done this I had had the luxury of touch, I just hoped it worked and he received my message of goodbye. I purposely glanced towards Lexi and back again to show that he was to take care of her. Mouthing the words, ‘I love you’, I closed my eyes and tensed my body ready to throw myself backwards. At the same time Gabriel roared, ‘NOOO!’ and I sensed him start to move forwards. The Fae behind me tightened her grip, turning the sharp edge of the blade into my skin.
The room suddenly filled with the sound of a silvery voice. ‘Well if I’d known it was a party, I would have gotten all dressed up.’
Chapter 10
Everything stopped. I was tensed ready to push back, the edge of the knife pressed into my neck. Gabriel was paused mid charge towards me with the Fae hanging from his hand, a look of rage and tight despair etched into his face, his body bright with anguish. Even the two Fae gripping me had frozen at the sound of the newcomer.
We all turned to stare.
With long golden hair and a fair complexion, she was beautiful. Momentarily forgetting my plan to either escape or die, I stood transfixed by the angel who must surely have come directly from heaven. Even in jeans and tight fitted jumper, she could quite easily have gone to a ball and nobody would have raised an eyelid, only able to stare with wonder at the splendour before them. She radiated beauty and happiness.
She laughed the sound of a hundred tiny bells chiming and clapped her hands as if at a child’s birthday party.
‘I’m sorry, am I interrupting?’ She didn’t look sorry. She grinned as if she was enjoying herself immensely. ‘I can leave if it’s a bad time.’ She stepped back with an elegance far exceeding that of the Fae.
I wanted to touch her to confirm to my mind that this image of beauty before me was real, sure that if I dared to hope that we were saved, she would poof out of existence, only ever having been a figment of my imagination. I allowed myself to get a sense of her and was relieved when I could feel no fear, only confident amusement, and disgust which was surely directed at the Fae. I was positive that she would help us and I almost sagged with relief, the blade held firmly in place the only reason I didn’t sink to my knees.
To my surprise I felt almost buoyant, the relaxed and happy feeling of the newcomer captivating me, drawing me in so much so that the fear, although not gone, was now barely a shadow in the background.
I glanced towards Gabriel with a slight smile dancing across my lips, and frowned. He didn’t look happy, his eyes were narrow and his lip curled, as if the presence of this wonderful woman was an inconvenience instead of our salvation. My captors just stood watchful, as if waiting for the situation to develop so that they could act as needed. It seemed I was the only one mesmerised by her presence. The light shimmering around her was the same as Gabriel’s, but so much brighter. She sparkled.
The Fae holding me at knife point was the first to speak. ‘Who are you?’ Even though her body was held in only mild wariness, there were undertones of fear within her tight voice.
‘I am Eris,’ the newcomer said as if she was surprised they hadn’t recognised her. ‘But you may know me as Risa.’
As she told them her name everything changed. The Fae gripped in Gabriel’s arms scrabbled in the air, trying to swing himself away from the smiling woman and behind Gabriel. At the same time the female pulled the knife closer to my neck, causing the blood to flow freely down my front and shoulder. I was distantly aware that the third Fae had scrambled back against the wall and that the two who had recently joined us had made a hasty retreat, though there was a strangled squealing from the back of the house.
The fear returned with the knowledge that if she placed any more pressure on the knife, I would be dead. Gabriel glanced at me, and his face somehow tightened further as he came to the same conclusion.
‘Risa.’ His voice was full of command instead of the pleading I expected to hear.
‘Okay, Okay,’ she sighed as if he was spoiling her fun. She turned towards me and acknowledged the female Fae. ‘It seems that you are upsetting my friend here.’ She gestured to Gabriel. ‘Do you think you could let go of that woman?’ She asked it almost regretfully as if it would amuse her to watch the scene play out.
‘This is no concern of yours.’ The Fae edged slowly backward, pulling me with her.
‘That’s where you’re wrong,’ Eris said with the brightest smile I had ever seen. ‘And if you truly knew who I was, you would know that you have only two choices here.’
The dagger vibrated next to my skin again, but this time the pressure released and I slumped forward with relief. As the grip of the Fae loosened in surprise to Eris now having control of the weapon, I pushed myself backwards, ramming her into the kitchen side with a force that knocked all the breath from me. Without hesitation, I staggered towards Gabriel, slipping on the blood spilt, before landing in a heap between him and Lexi.
After checking Lexi’s breathing, which was scarily shallow, I clutched Gabriel’s free hand and pulled myself up. He gripped me tightly, his stiff stance letting me know that we were still very much in danger.
‘She’s a feisty one Gabriel.’ Eris laughed. ‘I can see why you like her.’
She directed her attention back to the female Fae who had already sprung back up to a crouched position, with her hands curled out before her. ‘Now can someone please explain what this is all about?’
The male Fae both looked directly towards the female, who stood breathing heavily whilst glaring at the beautiful newcomer, her eyes filled with vengeful hate.
Eris sighed. ‘I can see I am going to have to be persuasive.’ Eris didn’t move, but the female dropped to the ground, the most awful high pitched squeal emanating from her as she writhed around on the floor.
I couldn’t help but smile as I watched her. Remembering the pain she had put Lexi through, I hoped she died in agony, knowing that still wouldn’t be enough to compensate for her deeds. Gabriel just watched stonily, his eyes occasionally moving from Eris to the Fae.
After a while I couldn’t bear the sound any longer. I wanted her to suffer, but her screams were so pitiful that I lost all pleasure at her misery. The male Fae stood beside her, frantically looked around for the best exit, before darting towards the lounge. He only managed a few steps before collapsing on the floor to join his companion in writhing agony.
Eris watched them both with a satisfied smile, before shaking herself. The screaming stopped and the Fae became motionless, though still whimpered quietly.
‘Now shall we try again?’ Eris twitched her fingers and the female Fae rose up. She sagged, her toes barely touching the ground as she was held in place by Eris’ power.
‘Why are you here?’ Eris asked with hope in her voice, as if she wanted the Fae to disobey her again.
This time the Fae acted more wisely. ‘To take the Siis’ Shi in order to create more of our own,’ she answered in a whisper, though astonishingly still managing to maintain an air of defiance in her tone.
‘And how would you be able to do that?’
The Fae stared at her for a moment, her eyes bright with hatred, before nodding towards the silver sphere still resting on the side. Eris nonchalantly picked it up and began rolling it around in her hand.
‘And how does this work?’
I could sense the battle going on inside the mind of the Fae, before she sighed resignedly, obviously deciding her fate was more important that the secrets of her trade. ‘We use it in conjunction with the dagger…’
‘This dagger?’ Eris interrupted, holding it up before her.
The Fae nodded in agreement. ‘The point of the dagger is pushed in the grove of the sphere,’ she continued. ‘And when the Siis holds the handle, his Shi is drained into it. We then use that to make us strong enough to give children the gift of long life.’
An icy sickness pierced my stomach at the thought of the poor children who would have been converted into the Fae.
‘How ingenious!’ Eris looked genuinely in awe of what the Fae had created, or maybe for the reason they used their invention. A loud crack echoed out through the kitchen and the male collapsed to the floor with his head turned at an impossible angle.
‘Why did you do that?’ the female Fae demanded as she backed towards the lounge. ‘You said we had a choice. I told you what you wanted.’
‘But you do,’ Eris said. ‘If you would rather a slow, painful death, I’m more than happy to oblige.’
The coldness in Eris filled me with a quiet dread as I collapsed against Gabriel, the loss of blood starting to impair my vision and weaken my body. The suspicion that, what I had thought was our saviour, could well turn out to be our damnation, followed me as I drifted into oblivion.
Gabriel’s voice broke through before I was able to open my eyes to see his face. His hands touched my neck and the memories flooded back to me, causing my throat to swell with panic. My eyes widened and I tried to scurry back away from his touch.
‘It’s me. Please hold still while I heal you.’
I tried to focus on his beautiful face, tired and engraved with worry as he smiled down at me.
‘What happened?’ I croaked. My neck stung sharply, mixed in with a dull throb as if my heart had travelled up, and my head was woozy, making it difficult for me to concentrate.
‘You fainted from blood loss and hit your head.’
I sat up, looking around in fear. ‘Where…?’ My head spun making it impossible to finish the question.
‘Risa is dealing with them,’ he reassured me.
‘You mean Eris?’ I mumbled incoherently whilst swaying.
‘Only she would name herself that,’ he muttered while smoothly pushing me back down.
‘Oww.’ Pain seared across my head. It was as if I had been hit with a hammer, the pains sharp as they travelled around my skull, and my brain throbbing like a pulse.
‘Don’t sit up until I have fully mended you.’
‘Lexi?’ I asked. My neck was starting to feel better, and I could feel the tissue knitting together again, along with the tingling sensation from his light.
His eyes shadowed and he averted his gaze to his hands. ‘I am really sorry.’
A coil of ice made its way through my stomach. ‘What do you mean you’re sorry?’
‘It’s too late,’ he replied quietly. ‘She’s dead.’
The pain in my head intensified as I moved to her side. ‘No!’ I shouted as I shook Lexi’s still body. ‘No! You can heal her. You have to heal her.’ Even though her face was ashen with death, I checked for any signs of breathing. ‘You have to heal her now,’ I cried. ‘She can’t die. She can’t. Heal her now.’
He put his arms around me from behind. ‘I am so sorry, Ana.’
‘No!’ I shouted, pushing him away. ‘This can’t be happening.’ I turned her onto her back and opened her airway as I had been taught at work. I started CPR, startled by how easily her small chest moved under my hands. ‘Come on Lexi,’ I begged her, ignoring the tears that made it impossible to see. ‘Damn it, come on.’
I forced breath into her still lungs and counted each compression out loud. When Gabriel tried to draw me away, I pushed his hands off. I couldn’t just give up.
‘Stop!’ Gabriel demanded after a time. He forced me to his chest as I fought against him, until the strength left me and I hung lifelessly in his arms.
I started sobbing in a way that I never had before. It came from deep within my soul, forcing its way up through my body, tearing at me as if it was trying to rip me apart. I choked. So much so, that the breath couldn’t force its way out of my lungs and Gabriel had to smack me across the back to start me breathing once more, allowing the sobbing to resume its course. At some point he healed my head wound, helping my mind to clear. It just made the pain even sharper and the tears fall more freely.
It was several minutes before it stopped as quickly as it started, leaving me feeling hollow and as if I wasn’t really alive. I sat with my legs out before me and detachedly took in the carnage around me. The cream tiled floor was covered in puddles and streaks that were drying to a rusted brown. Even the wall was coated with smears of blood that had come with Lexi’s last breaths. We had been sat so happy only an hour before and now she was gone.
Eris returned through the front door, smiling with triumph. ‘That was fun!’ She grinned wildly and delicately lifted herself onto the side. ‘I found four more just waiting for me outside. From the scent, that was all of them.’ Gabriel glared at her as she selected an apple from the fruit bowl, the skin peeling away as she examined it. ‘What’s next?’ she asked as she put a section of apple into her mouth.
‘We have to move her,’ Gabriel told her through gritted teeth.
It took a moment for his words to penetrate my haze. ‘What do you mean move her?’
‘We can’t leave her here,’ he said softly. ‘There is no way to explain what happened.’
‘I’ll do it,’ Eris exclaimed with enthusiasm as she slid off the side.
‘No!’ I shouted as I dragged Lexi’s still, cooling body onto my lap. ‘You can’t take her.’ She didn’t love Lexi like I did. She didn’t care for her. To her, Lexi was a body that needed to be moved, not the kind, wonderful woman that was my best friend.
‘We have to,’ Gabriel said.
‘What about the injuries?’ I protested hysterically. ‘People know she is here. When the police see the injuries they will come to investigate anyway.’
‘Eris can change them.’ Gabriel tried to disengage me from Lexi. ‘Make it appear as an accident.’
Even though his words made sense, I couldn’t bring myself to release my friend. Gabriel reached his fingers towards my head.
‘Don’t you dare,’ I seethed as I forcefully slapped them away. ‘You can’t just deal with me by sending me to sleep.’
He sighed and let his hand drop. ‘I know this is hard, however, we need to do this.’
I glared at him for several seconds, willing him to suffer as I was.
‘I know that,’ I finally snapped. ‘Just give me some time.’
He backed away as I sat, stroking Lexi’s hair away from her eyes.
‘I’m so, so sorry,’ I told her as fresh tears rolled down my cheeks. ‘I never meant for this to happen.’
It was some time before I could bring myself to kiss her head and release my hold on her.
‘Do it,’ I told them flatly as I stepped back.
Eris glanced towards Gabriel, who nodded in response. She scooped Lexi into her arms as if she weighed nothing more than a baby, her eyes still wide with excitement, though thankfully no longer smiling. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Lexi’s red hair, which hung down in a mattered clump, and her limp arm that swung gently as it pointed towards the floor.
‘I’ll be back,’ Eris said before gliding out of the room.
Gabriel reached out to cup my face.
‘Don’t you touch me,’ I hissed. ‘After all this, don’t you dare.’ He closed his eyes against my accusing stare and I turned away.
I didn’t cry as I washed the signs of destruction from the room. Instead I thought of the times I had shared with Lexi over the years. How when my parents had died, she had taken time off work to sit wi
th me. How she had always known the right thing to say, to draw me out of my misery or self-pity. I remembered how excited she had been when she had got the job in the care home, how she had tinkled with laughter, saying, ‘You have no hope of getting rid of me now.’ She had been my rock and I had no idea how I was supposed to survive without her, or how I was going to live with the knowledge that I had been the cause of another death.
Once I finished, I glanced towards Gabriel who sat at the table watching me with a pained expression, before going upstairs for a shower. I stood motionless as the hot water beat at my skin, unable to drag my eyes away from the redness that spun around the plug hole before finding its way down. I stood so long that the water began to run cool. It was only then that I found the will power to wash myself and get out.
Once dressed, I paused to collect myself and draw on my energy reserves. The night was far from over. There was still the strange woman to deal with, and many questions that needed answers.
Eris and Gabriel were both waiting in silence, with steaming mugs grasped within their hands. They both watched, Eris with interest and Gabriel frowning with concern, while I made myself a coffee to try and combat the exhaustion. Even though all my injuries had been healed, I was still sore and weak, so I swallowed a couple of paracetamol followed by some B12 vitamins I found in the back of the cupboard. To my astonishment my stomach rumbled. It was so wrong that I could feel such a thing with what happened, but I hadn’t eaten since lunch, so I prepared a plate of sandwiches before joining them.
We all sat in silence while I nibbled at the food which lay heavy on my stomach. After a few mouthfuls, I pushed it away.
I studied the unlikely woman, still unsure as to whether she was friend or foe. I knew I was only alive due to her interference, something that caused me to feel grateful, yet at the same time, left a bitter taste in my mouth. As for whether I wanted her in my house, I was undecided. The pleasure she had received from what had happened disturbed me.
‘Thank you,’ I told her, trying to infuse gratitude into my tone.
Night of the Fae (Ana Martin series) Page 10
