Guardians of the Akasha

by Celia Stander

  Chapter 12

  Several guests were already assembled in the Great Hall when Keira arrived. She paused in the door and pulled self-consciously at her midnight-blue satin dress.

  Thank goodness I packed this, she thought.

  The men were dressed in black-tie and the women in elegant evening dresses. She noticed Marco leaning casually against the wall next to the fireplace. He was talking with Rafael and Chloe. Simone sat on the armrest of a leather couch nearby, dressed in a pale gold shift dress, looking as if she had stepped off of the cover of Vogue.

  “Miss Keira, I presume?” a laughing voice interrupted her thoughts. Keira smiled back at the rakish looking young man in front of her.

  “My name is Brian Smith. At your service.” He gave a low bow, then straightened up and combed his ash-blonde hair out of his eyes.

  “Nice to meet you, Brian,” she nodded back at him. “Thanks,” she added as he handed her a small glass of sherry.

  “Welcome to Casa de la Guardians,” he smiled and clinked his glass against hers. “What do you think of it so far?”

  “Well, I only arrived this afternoon. There hasn’t been much time to look around, but the bit that I’ve seen is very impressive.”

  “Wait until you see the rest of it. I’d be happy to serve as your tour guide, if our slave master gives us any time off,” Brian said.

  “Slave master?” Keira asked.

  “Marco,” he answered with a nod in the other man’s direction. “He’s placed us on high alert.”

  “Is that because of the Council meeting, or the threat from Daemon?” Keira asked.

  “You know about that?” Brian asked in return.

  She nodded and sipped her sherry. She didn’t want to tell Brian she had only had a brief introduction from Victoria; she needed all the information she could get.

  “Well, it is both actually. We’re always more vigilant when all the Council members are gathered together, but the thing with Daemon—”

  “Will be sorted as soon as I get my hands around his throat!” A booming voice interrupted Brian. A man the size of a small mountain grabbed Keira’s hand and shook it vigorously up and down. “Howdy, I’m Adam. You must be Keira—I’ve heard a hell of a lot about you—glad to meet you!”

  Keira grinned and gingerly tried to extract her crushed fingers from his grip. Adam had a smile a mile wide and muscles nearly as big. It seemed as if his tuxedo was ready to burst at the seams trying to contain the man within it.

  “You’ll have to fall in line, mate. There are a few of us wanting the privilege of killing that bastard,” Brian said.

  “Yeah, yeah—you know you’ve got no chance against me.” Adam’s smile held a dare.

  “So, are you both part of the Draaken?” Keira interrupted what looked like an argument waiting to happen.

  “Yes, we are. Although I’ve been here longer than Adam,” Brian answered.

  “That’s right—old man—why don’t you go retire back in England, and let the Aussie take care of things—”

  “So, Australia, I’ve never been there,” Keira desperately searched her brain for a topic that would defuse the situation. She smiled with relief when she caught her aunt’s eye.

  “Keira!” Victoria beckoned them over to where she stood with an older gentleman with a shock of grey hair and a big walrus moustache. Victoria looked elegant and regal, as always, dressed in a long copper coloured skirt and matching bolero jacket with black velvet trim.

  “Keira, I would like to introduce you to one of my oldest friends and colleagues, Mr Leonardo Savelli,” Victoria said as the sprightly gentleman took Keira’s hand.

  “Buona sera, bella. It is a pleasure to meet you,” he said, bowing slightly and kissing the back of her hand.

  “Leo is the Leader of the Italian Families, and also a member of Council,” Victoria added.

  “A pleasure to meet you, Mr Savelli,” Keira replied with a smile.

  “I see you have already met Brian and Adam,” Victoria nodded to the men who kept to Keira’s side.

  “Yes, and Brian’s offered to show me around the castle.”

  “Which he won’t be able to do any time soon, since he will be busy with guard duty. Your shift starts in fifteen minutes,” Marco said as he joined the small group.

  “Yes, boss!” Brian winked at Keira as he excused himself and left the room.

  “Toodles!” Adam called after him with a grin.

  “Marco, will you please introduce Keira to everyone before we go in to dinner?” Victoria requested.

  It looked as if Adam wanted to say something, but he stepped back as Marco held his arm out to Keira. “Shall we?”

  She nodded and took his arm, following when he steered her towards Zina who was talking to a distinguished looking man. “You’ve met Zina, of course; and this is my mentor, Chetan,” Marco said as they stopped in front of the couple.

  Chetan seemed relaxed, but Keira sensed a great, contained power, as if he could erupt into a storm of movement at the slightest notice. A burnished copper pendant in the shape of a flame hung from a leather thong around his neck.

  “Keira,” Chetan acknowledged. “I go by a different name when taking care of business in New York, but among the Guardians, I am known by my Sioux tribal name.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Keira said.

  “You look beautiful,” Zina smiled at her.

  Keira wasn’t sure she heard correctly when Marco murmured a soft, “I agree,” next to her, but judging by the amused glance Zina gave him, something was said.

  “May I join you?” a polite voice asked and a dapper Japanese man bowed to the group.

  “Of course,” Marco answered. “Mr Yoshibumi Harigaya, I would like to introduce you to Ms Keira Wilde.”

  “Konbanwa, Miss Wilde,” he said with another bow.

  “Konbanwa Harigaya-san. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu,” Keira replied.

  “Do you speak Japanese?” he asked in surprise.

  “Only the very basics,” Keira smiled. “I’ve always been fascinated by Japanese culture and would like to visit your country very soon. Are you also a member of the Draaken?” Keira asked.

  “No, I am not,” he replied. “I have been sent by the Asian Families as an observer to your Council meeting. We have our own way of honouring the Akasha, and have our own conventions. However, recent events are threatening our way of life and it might become necessary for us to join forces. The matter will be decided when I return to Japan and report to my Elders.”

  A bell chimed to announce dinner and Mr Harigaya offered his arm to Keira before Marco could, and escorted her to the dining room.

  She was grateful to be seated next to Chloe, who kept up a stream of cheerful chatter and gossip about everyone present, as well as tipping her off on the Council members expected to arrive the next day. After a while, she had a pretty clear picture of how internationally represented the Guardians truly were. Victoria had mentioned that they were spread across the world, but Chloe’s information made it so much more real to Keira.

  Through subtle questions, she learned that Marco’s family was the most influential in South America. His father had recently died and Marco became Leader of the Santana Family. At twenty-four years old, that made him one of the youngest Family Leaders in the world. Besides that, he was also Commander of the Draaken and everyone expected him to become the next Chairperson of Council, when Victoria stepped down.

  “His father died recently?” Keira pressed Chloe.

  “Yes, not long after the accident that killed his sister and brother-in-law.” Chloe’s voice sounded strained, giving Keira the distinct feeling there was more to the story.

  Keira looked up and caught Marco’s brooding eyes staring at her from across the table. He lifted his glass to her in a silent toast and she looked away quickly, feeling flustered and out of sorts.

  “That is awful,” she whispered. She didn’t want to force the subject and made a mental note to ask Victori
a about it later.

  It was a few minutes before midnight when Victoria rose and wished everyone a good night. She crossed to Keira, rested her hands on the young woman’s shoulders, and leaned over to kiss her cheek. “Good night, darling,” she whispered. “Please remember that, no matter what happens, I love you and have the world of faith in you.”

  “I love you, too, Aunt Vic,” Keira smiled. Victoria gave her a last hug and retired to her room.

  Chapter 13

  Keira was woken early the next morning by a timid knock-knock. She opened her bedroom door to find two children impatiently hopping up and down. She had scarcely enough time to change from her PJs before Justin and his friend, Amber, dragged her outside with the promise of a ‘castle tour.’

  “Aunt Vic said to tell you she’s sorry she can’t take you, but she’s preparing for the meeting, and the Draaken are busy with stuff, so here we are!” Justin said.

  Amber was no slouch when it came to chatter, and in the space of two minutes, Keira knew everything about her. She was from the village nearby, her parents were not magickae but worked at the castle (her mother was the cook and her father the groundskeeper), she loved playing hide-and-seek with her best friend Justin, her dearest wish was to become a member of the Draaken (which might just be a possibility because her cousin twice removed was one), and she was nine-and-a-half years old and hated her curly red hair.

  “But I love your hair,” Keira said and made a friend for life.

  “Come on slowcoaches!” Justin teased the girls as he skipped up the stone staircase in front of them.

  “Coming,” Keira panted as she reached another landing in the seemingly endless climb.

  “It’s okay Keira, we don’t have to race,” Amber said, frowning after Justin. “Slow down!” she yelled at him.

  “Here we are,” Justin said as he pushed a wooden trap-door up and over. They climbed the last few steps, through the trap-door and out onto a narrow stone eyrie in the castle’s topmost tower.

  Keira sucked her breath in as a sudden attack of vertigo had her clinging to the wall.

  “Are you all right?” Justin asked, casually peering over the railing into the drop below.

  “Yes,” Keira said. “Give me a minute. I’ve never been good with heights.”

  “I’ll hold your hand,” Amber offered. “It’s really very beautiful up here. Just take one step and you’ll see. Come,” she encouraged Keira to walk forward and enjoy the view.

  Keira took a deep breath and joined the children at the railing. She tried to not look down, concentrating instead on the horizon where a rolling sea of green stretched away beyond the castle walls. On the horizon towards the west, she could see the misty blue peaks of a mountain range peering out above the emerald waves.

  “Germany is that way,” Justin pointed towards the mountains.

  Sudden movement on the wide, surrounding wall caught Keira’s attention, and she watched as a camouflaged figure scanned the forest through binoculars.

  “What is he doing?” she asked pointing to the man far below them.

  “Oh, that is one of the Draaken. Look, there are more of them,” and, one by one, Justin pointed them out. “Marco says we have to be extra vigi—vigil—something.”

  “Vigilant,” Keira suppressed a smile, not wanting to offend the boy.

  “Yes, that’s what he said. So there are guards all around, making sure the Council people are safe. Look, there’s one of them coming now.”

  A glint of black approached the castle through the forest and Keira watched as a limousine came into view and drove over the lowered drawbridge into the courtyard.

  A statuesque woman stepped out of the car just as Victoria came walking down the steps from the front door. Her aunt kissed the woman on both cheeks and escorted her inside. Keira couldn’t hear what the women were saying but, by the way Victoria welcomed the new arrival, it seemed as if they were old friends.

  “Justin, was that Zina’s aunt?” Amber asked.

  “I think so. We’re a bit high up here to be sure.”

  Amber turned to Keira. “Zina’s aunt is very famous in Africa. She was a model, and now she’s helping poor children. Aunt Victoria always said that ‘there’s a woman with her head screwed on right.’ What does that mean, Keira? Our heads are not screwed on, are they?”

  “No,” Keira laughed. “They’re not. It means that she is a very intelligent woman, and uses her intelligence in a good way.”

  “Let’s go, there’s lots more to see!” Justin called as he turned and climbed back through the trapdoor. Keira gave a sigh of relief. Anything to be at ground level again, she thought and hurried after the children.

  They were soon walking down long hallways covered with more rugs woven in warm earthy colours. Iron brackets, attached to the grey stone walls, held torches that looked ancient enough to have been used when the castle was just built.

  “Those are really old,” Justin confirmed when he saw Keira looking at one. “It would be so cool if we could still use them, but we’ve got electricity now.” He dismissed the invention with an annoyed huff.

  Down another passage and around one more corner, they stopped in front of wide double doors. “The library,” Justin swung the doors open and waved his arm at the treasure inside. The large, sunny room was overflowing with books. They were stacked on floor-to-ceiling shelves, on tables and on chairs. Keira’s hands itched to open a few of the leather-bound volumes within reach, but the children each grabbed an arm and dragged her off to continue exploring.

  I’ll have to come here again, Keira promised herself.

  Another long hallway had her feet dragging as she admired the paintings hanging on the walls. She couldn’t help wishing she knew more about art.

  “This one is my favourite,” Amber said and stopped in front of a painting depicting three boys sitting on a beach and looking out at the sea. Three sail boats dotted the background.

  “I’ve never been to the sea,” Amber said, and peered intently at the artwork. “Is it really as big as Justin said? He said it never ends,” she turned to Keira with a puzzled frown.

  “Well, it certainly is big,” Keira answered. “But it has a beginning and an end, just like everything else.”

  “Come on you two!” Justin yelled from the end of the long hallway.

  Keira laughed and ran with Amber to join the impatient boy.

  “Let’s go to the school,” Justin said as they caught up with him.

  “Yeah!” Amber agreed.

  “Isn’t it closed right now?” Keira asked, unsure whether she wanted to see the place where she should have spent her teenage years.

  “It’s closed for initiate training, but the Draaken members use it when they’re here,” Justin explained and, once again, led the way. After a few turns and down a flight of steps, he opened a single wooden door and they stepped out into the bright sunlight.

  As they crossed the cobblestone courtyard, another black limousine pulled up. A grey-suited man stepped out, gave Keira’s little group a dismissive glance, and hurried up the steps.

  “Who was that?” Keira asked.

  “Simone’s Family representative,” Justin said with an equally dismissive shrug.

  “Oh,” Keira said. It seems as if everyone she’d met up to now had family arriving at the castle. “Do you know if any Wilde members are coming, besides Aunt Vic?”

  “No, this meeting is only for Council members. Each family has only one representative on Council and Aunt Victoria is there for the Wildes,” Justin answered.

  “Are there any Wildes in the Draaken?” Keira asked. She knew nothing about her own family, aside from the information Aunt Vic had given her, and that really only told her that they’d been around for a long time and some of them were magickal. She didn’t know who or how many were involved with the Guardians. It could be anyone, even cousin Gisele and her Cambridge fiancé.

  “Not in the Draaken, but there are quite a few who are active G
uardians. General members of the Guardians have all kinds of abilities. They help with weather stuff, healing people and animals, finding lost things,” Justin answered her question. “I would have liked to be able to do that, I lose stuff all the time.”

  “Me too!” Amber laughed.

  “There have been Wildes who were Draaken members, in the past. The history books are in the library, you can read all about it.”

  Keira nodded. Bloody hell, I’ve got so much to learn. Which is probably the understatement of the year.

  Her worry must have reflected on her face because Amber smiled and squeezed her hand. “It’s okay, Keira. We’ll teach you. There are a lot of people, and other things, out there who want to get to the Akasha. It is important that you know everything.”

  Keira looked down to the girl’s solemn face. Other things?

  “Here we are,” Justin said as they stopped in front of a small, squat stone building.

  “This is it?” Keira asked, confused. “It is so small.” The unassuming structure was hardly one storey high and didn’t seem big enough to hold one of the black limousines, let alone a school.

  Amber merely giggled behind her hands. Her eyes sparkled with excitement as Justin rapped a coded knock on the door. They waited for a moment, then the door silently swung open.

  “Come,” Justin beckoned as he and Amber disappeared into the darkness beyond.

  Keira followed cautiously; a staircase wound its way down and she could hear the children’s voices disappearing below her.

  Curiouser and curiouser….

  Two-hundred stairs and she stopped counting, winding her way further down in silence. She glanced at the small globes spaced at intervals against the curving wall, casting just enough light so she could see her feet. She wouldn’t want to be here when those all went out. Keira shrugged off the thought of pitch-dark, cold and slimy tunnels as she reached the end of the stairwell. A narrow passage ran straight ahead for a bit, then turned sharply left.

  Suddenly, she heard yells and what sounded like crashes and the impact of something heavy falling.