Banishment : Book 9 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

“Damnit,” Zohn growled when Chevalier disappeared from the room.

  Allen spoke softly, “This is going to break up my family. Mom’s going to leave if Dain is punished, and then we get to deal with Dad.”

  “I can see how this is going to cause a problem,” Kyle said. “However, we can’t let him continue.”

  “I understand, but how can we lessen this? Mom’s against banishment but putting him in prison isn’t going to help her either. She’s going to want to protect him.”

  “Maybe… maybe she’ll understand,” the Chief of Staff said.

  “She’ll protect her Children to the death,” Kyle told him. “This is going to end her compliant phase and could even end the relationship she has with the Elder and this faction.”

  Allen nodded, “We tried to explain that to Dain, but he didn’t seem to care. He wants Mom away from Dad.”

  “Why?”

  “He fears for her life.”

  “That’s in the past though,” Kyle said. “They haven’t fought in years.”

  “I know that, but he’s protective of Mom.”

  “If he was that protective, then he wouldn’t have attacked innocent mortals and put her in this situation,” Zohn said.

  “He’s not mature enough to rationalize that,” Allen explained.

  Quinn looked at Kyle, “How do we tell her?”

  “There’s no way to lessen this.”

  “Then we just tell her that her son is now an outlaw?”

  “Chevalier should do it.”

  “No,” Allen said. “You can’t leave it up to him. He’s too angry, and she’s going to need comfort.”

  “I can’t tell her without him there,” Kyle said.

  “Then I will.”

  “You can handle the aftermath?”

  “No, but I can try.”

  Chevalier appeared behind Allen, “Where is Alexis?”

  Allen jumped at the sudden voice and then turned, “She stayed to find Dain.”

  “Where?”

  “The old Dot Tables warehouse in the city.”

  Chevalier instantly disappeared and when they didn’t hear his car leave, they realized he was mad enough to get there faster on foot.

  “I’ll go talk to Mom,” Allen said, and then swallowed hard and looked at the door.

  “Maybe you should go, too,” Zohn said to Kyle.

  He nodded, “That might be best.”

  Allen’s voice fell to a whisper, “This could be explosive.”

  “If you’re wrong about Dain…”

  “I’m not.”

  “Let’s go then,” Kyle said, and started down to Allen. Together, they walked up to Emily’s office.

  “Chief Enforcer,” Gifford said, bowing slightly. He and three members of the Cavalry were posted outside of Emily’s office.

  Kyle knocked, “Em, it’s Allen and I.”

  She opened the door and smiled, “Hi, what’s up?”

  “Can we talk to you?”

  “Sure, talk.”

  “Inside?”

  Emily shrugged and then stepped back and let Kyle and Allen into her office. Allen shut the door behind him, and they turned as Emily sat down in her leather office chair.

  “You look nervous. What’s wrong?” she asked, studying them.

  Allen knelt down beside her and took her hands in his, “I need you to listen closely and not fly off the handle, ok?”

  Her eyes narrowed, “Tell me.”

  “Dain’s been the one attacking women in the city.”

  She sighed, “No he’s not. Now don’t get your Dad all worked up over that.”

  “He is, Mom. Alexis and I’ve known for a while, and we tried to talk to him about it, but I don’t think he’s going to stop.”

  “It’s not Dain.”

  “Yes, it is. He’s confused and running from Dad. He mentioned being irritated at always being turned down for the guard staff.”

  “It’s not Dain!”

  “Em, it is,” Kyle said. “It all makes sense. We had an operation to catch the one who was doing it, and all of a sudden he changed his MO and stopped hitting the stripper bar. It’s because Dain was in on the plans.”

  “Did you tell Chev?”

  “Yes”

  “Chev!” Emily called out, and opened the door. She waited for a few seconds and then turned to Kyle, “Where is he?”

  “I think he went to where Allen and Alex met up with Dain.”

  Emily pushed Kyle and yelled, “You shouldn’t have told him that shit story! He’s gone off to kill his son for no reason! Why would you do that?”

  “It’s true, Em.”

  She pushed him again, “No, it’s not! You and Allen just want to turn Chevalier against his son to get Dain to leave you alone about the guard staff, and all you’ve done is killed him.”

  Kyle grabbed her wrists when she tried to hit him, “Like it or not, Dain’s gone rogue. The Elder is taking it personally and has gone to deal with him. We can’t allow him to keep attacking innocents.”

  Emily roughly pulled her hands away from him, “Where are they?”

  “I think it would be best if you stay here,” Allen said.

  “Where are they?!”

  “No. Alexis is already there, and she’s going to get into the middle of the fight if there is one, though I suspect Dain’s far from Council City by now.”

  Emily grabbed her phone and dialed. When Dain answered, he didn’t speak at first, “Dain?”

  “I’m here.”

  “You have to run… you have to get away.”

  “I am.”

  “Do you know what they’re saying?”

  “Mom, I’m sorry.”

  She frowned and tried to wrap her mind around what Allen had just told her, “Is it true?”

  “I didn’t mean for this to happen, and I wish I could take it back.”

  “Is it true then?”

  His voice sounded lost and tired, “Yes.”

  Emily sunk down against the wall, “Dain.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “They’ll try to banish you.”

  “I know, but first, they’ll have to find me.”

  “Why did you do it?” she asked, barely above a whisper.

  “I don’t know. I just couldn’t stop once I started.”

  “Come back and I’ll protect you. We can figure this out. It’s not your fault.”

  “It is too. I knew what I was doing.”

  “You said you couldn’t stop. It’s those damned heku instincts, and it’s not your fault.”

  “Still”

  “It’s my fault. I should have seen this coming. Come back, I can protect you from your Dad.”

  “No, I don’t want you fighting Dad over this. He’s going to lose his temper with you.”

  “I’m not going to let you do this alone.”

  “I’m ok. Things will blow over. Alex and I are thinking of ways to make this all go away.”

  “It’s not going to go away.”

  “Give it time, ok?”

  Emily sighed when Dain hung up. She stayed on the floor and looked across at the wall, deep in thought. Allen and Kyle stayed with her silently, and waited for Chevalier to return.

  When Chevalier returned, Kyle took a deep breath and knelt down beside Emily, “He’s back.”

  “Does he have Dain?”

  “No”

  She nodded and stood up slowly, “Is Alex back?”

  “Yes, she’s with him.”

  “I'd better go,” she said, and started for the stairs.

  Kyle took her arm gently, “He asked that you not come to the council chambers.”

  “Why not?”

  “He’s talking to Alex.”

  “All the more reason I need to be there.”

  “Just stay up here, please.”

  Emily sighed, “I’ve been good. I’ve done what the Council asked and have quit running off and doing things alone… but when my family is concerned, the Council c
an go to hell.”

  Allen appeared ahead of her on the stairs, “Let him talk to her.”

  “Move”

  “No. She’s keeping information from the Council, and she can’t do that.”

  “Move, or you’ll need Kyle.”

  “You aren’t going to ash me, Mom. Just listen to me. Alex needs to face the Council over this.”

  Kyle turned and looked around them suddenly, “How’d I get to the stairs?”

  Emily headed down the stairs quickly, ignoring when Kyle followed her.

  “What did you wipe?” he asked her angrily.

  “Lady Emily, the Council requests you not go in there,” Derrick said, blocking the door.

  “Step aside, Derrick.”

  “No”

  “What did you wipe?” Kyle asked again, and took her arm.

  Emily stepped over the pile of ash that used to be Derrick and opened the doors leading into the council chambers. The Council all looked up, shocked, and Chevalier stood slowly.

  Alexis was standing before them, and it was obvious that she’d been crying.

  “Em, don’t do this,” Kyle said, following her in. “Derrick said that the Council asked you to stay out here.”

  She walked up and stood beside Alexis and crossed her arms.

  “Emily, we need to handle this on our own,” Zohn told her.

  “No, I’m not going to stand by while you interrogate my daughter.”

  “Mom, I can handle this,” Alexis said, though it was obvious she was highly upset and thought she was in trouble.

  “You don’t have to,” Emily told her, and touched her shoulder lightly. She then turned to the Council, “She’s not going to tell you anything. Come on, Alex, let’s go.”

  “No, she cannot leave,” Quinn said calmly. “We aren’t going to hurt her.”

  Kyle took his spot on the Council’s stand, and the Chief of Defense filled him in on what Emily erased.

  “This is none of your concern,” Chevalier said angrily. “She knows where Dain is, and I damned well better be told where.”

  Emily stood in front of Alexis, “She’s not going to tell you. I’m going to handle this on my own, and I don’t need this bloody Council getting involved.”

  “He broke ancient heku rules and not only assaulted mortals but risked exposing our kind,” the Chief Investigator told her.

  “He’s a confused young boy who lost his way. It’s not his fault. He has screwed up genes and can’t control the primal urges his father gave him!”

  “He can control them and he will.”

  “It’s not Alex’s fault either.”

  “We didn’t say it is,” Zohn said. “We just want to know where Dain has gone, and she knows.”

  “She’s not telling you,” Emily said, and set her jaw. The Council all cringed as they saw her reverting to her old ways of doing things on her own and rebelling against them.

  “Let’s all calm down,” Quinn said. “We understand that you are trying to protect your children, but one of them has gone rogue, and it’s dangerous having him out there.”

  “Alex,” Garrett said from behind them. Alexis turned and watched Garrett walk into the council chambers.

  Emily ignored him and studied the Council.

  “They told me what happened,” Garrett said to her. “It’s important that you tell them where he is.”

  “Back your puppet off,” Emily snapped.

  “He’s giving her good advice,” Zohn said.

  “No! He’s doing your bidding.” Emily turned and took Alexis’ hand, “Let’s go. We need to get out of here.”

  Alexis nodded and then watched Garrett as Emily pulled her out of the council chambers. Within a couple of minutes, the Council heard Emily’s Jeep take off out of the palace.

  “Damnit,” Kyle hissed.

  Chevalier stood up angrily, “I’m going out after Dain again.”

  “You aren’t going to find him without Alexis telling you where he is.”

  “I’ll talk to her,” Garrett said to them.

  “Right now, let’s not involve you any more,” Zohn said. “We don’t need you as a bad guy. If you can gain her trust, she may tell you.”

  Garrett nodded, “Yes, Elder. I wonder if she’s sent Dain to one of our houses.”

  “You have secret houses?”

  “Yes, Elder.”

  “Where?”

  The Chief of Defense shook his head, “She’s not going to send him to her house if Garrett is aware of them.”

  “That’s true,” Garrett said.

  ***

  Emily rolled over in bed and then watched as the sun rose above the hills outside of town. She hadn’t slept well in over a week, and she and Alexis were still living in her house, far away from the heku. The heku had kept away from the house, though Emily suspected there were Cavalry watching over it.

  Each night, Exavior visited her, and she’d started leaving the light on in her room, which didn’t help the sleeping. He always begged her to bring him back, saying she owed it to him. Emily was frustrated that she couldn’t get any heku help with the ghost.

  Alexis had told Emily where Dain was, and Emily was trying to figure out how to get to Jersey to talk to him in person but was too afraid of leading any Equites to him. Chevalier hadn’t contacted her at all, and she was hesitant to call him. Not only was she and her daughter harboring an Equites fugitive, but she’d broken their unspoken agreement to try to behave and abide by what the Council thought was best for her safety.

  Emily looked over at the door when she heard a knock, “Come in, Alex.”

  Alexis came in, and it was obvious that she’d been crying again.

  “Have a seat,” Emily said softly.

  “I miss Garrett and Asher,” she said, and sat down.

  “I know.”

  “Can we call them long enough to get the baby brought over?”

  Emily sat up and leaned against the headboard, “Why don’t I go back to Council City long enough to get him?”

  “What if they keep you?”

  “I don’t think they will. They know how unhappy I am and won’t risk me turning them to ash.”

  “I really miss them.”

  “I know,” Emily said, and touched Alexis’ hand lightly.

  “I just want to erase all of this and get back to how we were.”

  “I wish we could too. We can’t let them banish Dain though.”

  “I know. I’ve just been wondering if he really is a menace that needs taken care of though.”

  “He’s not a menace.”

  “He attacked innocent women.”

  “He’s confused! No one understands him, no one. He’s alone.”

  “We all are,” Alexis said as she pulled her knees up against her chest.

  Emily grabbed her phone when it rang, “It’s Dain… Hello?”

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “How are you?”

  “I’ve been thinking, and I’m coming back.”

  “Back here?! No, you can’t. Your Dad is going to banish you.”

  “I’ve left you and Alex holding the bag on this one, and it’s not right. I know you’re holed up in your house with no contact from Council City.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Dad’s not the only one that has sources. Anyway, I’m not going to let anything happen to you and Alex, and the only way I can protect you is to come back.”

  “Dain no!”

  “Banishment doesn’t kill a heku, Mom. I’d see you again.”

  “It’s not going to happen. You need to stay there.”

  “I can’t stay here while you two put up with this!”

  Alexis took the phone from her Mom, “Dain, it’s too dangerous. You can’t come back here.”

  “Is she talking to him?” Dain asked.

  “No”

  “Are there guards around the house?”

  “Not that we’ve seen, but Dad won’t leave her unprotected.”
<
br />   “I’m not going to put you two through this, Alex. This is my fight, not yours.”

  Alexis smiled slightly, “You’re more mature than most give you credit for.”

  “This isn’t time to let my ego get in the way. I’m not going to sit here while you and Mom deal with Dad.”

  “We can though. Mom’s going into the city to get Asher, and we’re ok here. I can’t fight Dad like Mom can, and we can’t risk him controlling me.”

  “Alex…,” Dain whispered.

  “Stay there. We’re ok here.”

  “Is Allen helping you?”

  “No,” Alexis said softly. “He’s backing the Council.”

  “Always the obedient one.”

  She nodded and then hung up the phone and looked at Emily, “He’s staying there for now.”

  “He’s going to end up coming back to protect us.”

  “He’s afraid that Dad’s going to hurt us.”

  “He won’t.”

  “I think he’s grown up more in the last week than he ever has.”

  “He’s had to,” Emily said, and then slowly got out of bed.

  “You’re going now?” Alexis asked, also standing.

  “Yes, if I’m not back by tonight, I want you to go to Jersey.”

  “I’m not leaving you here.”

  “Just make sure no one’s following you.”

  “I can’t…”

  “You have to. The Equites have a history of keeping me against my will, and it’s worse when I’m fighting them. This is the ultimate fight, and you have to get out of here.”

  “I can’t just take off to Jersey.”

  “Right… you go to Palau. Stay at your Dad’s house, and then when it’s clear, leave for Jersey.”

  “Not that! How can I go if I think you’re being restrained?”

  “Because being restrained by the Equites includes a lot of care and comfort. They won’t stick me in prison or abuse me.”

  “I don’t…”

  “You have to. You’re the only one that can keep Dain away from Council City and his Dad.”

  Alexis finally nodded, “Ok.”

  “For now, I’ll go get Asher.”

  “He’s probably with Tracey,” Alexis told her.

  Emily thought for a moment, “Your neighbor?”

  “Yes, she watches him during the day when I’m busy.”

  “Ok,” Emily said, and then dressed quickly. She took a deep breath before driving in to Council City. The Gate Guards let her pass, and she immediately headed for Alexis’ house. She wasn’t surprised to see Garrett come out to meet her with Asher in his arms.