Alicia rolls her eyes and waves a single hand, dismissing the idea that she could have done anything wrong. “Your room is the last one on the left. Tonight, we dance!”
Alicia pushes Lilah down the hallway, winking before she turns back and shuts her door.
Shaking her head, Lilah slinks down the hallway to find her name engraved just as Alicia’s with gold plating. The door clicks open at the touch of her skin, and she wonders what the enchantment is, greedy with ideas for future uses, like locking her door back at Waterstone.
The room is cold and empty. Glancing around, she takes a quick inventory of the layout. It is a simple square design with no window, only a bed on one wall and a dresser on the other. She walks to the bed and sits. White sheets, white blankets, white walls.
It will be a long night.
Chapter Seven
“No going home,” Verna repeats. She looks around at the tense faces. Faces she now has memorized: every line, every feature. “Where, then, am I to go?”
Jarred is the first to speak. “You will stay with Florence and I.” He looks around for someone to challenge his decision. No one does. Verna shies from him as he comes toward her, Florence in tow. “Come, now.” He motions to Verna. Verna wobbles as she stands, frowning. If she goes with them, how is she going to warn Lilah? “I’m not going to ask again.” He motions once more and stands a few strides off from the others.
Verna nods. There is no escape. She follows him into the darkness, then looks back over her shoulder at the grouping. Each, in turn, disappear. Verna takes his outstretched hand and closes her eyes.
In the span of a single breath, they are transported. Verna feels Jarred let go of her hand, and she takes the opportunity to put some distance between her and the couple.
Jarred runs his fingers through his hair, ruffling the soft curls. “You don’t need to fear me, Verna,” his voice transforms, much like the rest of his features. Suddenly, he no longer looks like the worn and exhausted man she had seen before, but a powerful man in his prime. He turns to Florence’s enchanted form and throws a gray orb of light at her heart. Florence rises from the spell.
Verna glances around herself, her neck stinging with the fast movement. The room they stand in appears to be the living room of a house.
Florence shudders out from the dreamlike state and walks over to where Verna huddles against a wall. “Like Jarred said, you’ve nothing to fear.”
“I . . . what is happening?” Verna crouches closer to the wall but finds that she can get no closer than she is.
Florence smiles an enticing, enchanting smile. “Ah, well, Verna, the final battle is upon us.” Verna exhales, and her vision fades.
She wakes to find Florence’s deep dark blue eyes boring into her own. “You aren’t well.” Florence checks over her shoulder, then proceeds to make a tsking noise.
“No, no, I’m fine.” Verna moves away from Florence and tries to stand, but feels the blood rush to her head, so she kneels for a moment. Florence gives her a pointed look. Verna sighs, putting a hand against the wall for support as she stands. “Why did you bring me here?”
Florence smiles again, and Verna can hardly stand to look at her as flashbacks to that day fourteen years ago confuse her sight. Blood-splattered cheeks; hair clung to her forehead, knotted and dirty. Verna’s gaze drops.
“You’ve taken good care of her, Verna, and I thank you for it. If Alessandra attacks at the Ludi, then I must be there to protect Lilah.” Florence smiles, as if this conversation is as normal as any other. Verna thinks sadly that this is a normal conversation for Florence Hilt to have.
Verna sighs heavily. “Why is she doing this?”
Florence laughs; Verna shivers. “Who knows? I stopped understanding my sister the moment she killed Consul Aulus, along with his family.” She shakes her head. “No, it was even before that. We might have had the same vision of a future, but she had no boundaries when it came to what she was willing to do in order to reach that goal. In the end, she became another peg in the cycle of hatred she originally wanted to end.”
Verna’s heart stills. To still fight after all these years . . . “And Lilah? How does she fit into all of this?”
Florence purses her lips. “I had hoped Lilah would never be involved in this, but such is not the case. If Alessandra believes the prophecy to be true, then Lilah is the only thing standing in her way of ruling how she always intended.”
Verna gasps. “The prophecy? But Lilah’s—”
Florence’s eyes flash black. “I know.” She shakes her head. “I don’t believe it. From the moment I looked into her eyes as a child, I knew what she might be for this world. That’s why I’m going to stop Alessandra this time. For good.”
Verna gulps. “The others of the Six, what do they plan on doing?”
“Nothing will happen to her,” Florence says, her hair gathering a darker shade. “I won’t let anyone harm her. You will go and warn her of Alessandra’s imminent attack, but tell her nothing else. She’s not to know the truth, not from you, at least.”
Verna wants to ask why. Hasn’t this lie gone on for long enough? Doesn’t the child deserve to know? Verna had once been of the same opinion as Florence, that keeping the truth from Lilah was in her own best interest, but now . . . Being kept in the dark will only hinder Lilah’s ability to defend herself. Verna covers her face with her hands. I have failed you.
Florence pats her shoulder. “Cheer up! Everything will be fine.” She gives Verna a charming smile.
Verna stares at her in wonder. How can you say such a thing? Lilah’s world is about to crumble, and it’s because of you. Because of both of you.
“What do you think?” Alicia holds up a mirror for Lilah so she can see herself. Her deep blue eyes contrast sharply against the dark shadow Alicia added to her eyelids, and her eyelashes curl in a like manner to Alicia’s. She tilts her head and notices how her cheeks sparkle ever so slightly in the light. She smiles. She looks . . . different.
At first, the prospect of going to a club sounded ridiculous to Lilah, but seeing her transformation, Lilah thinks she might have fun tonight. She deserves to have a little fun, right? “How are we going to get out of here without anyone noticing?” Lilah says.
Alicia laughs. “Don’t you know? There’s no curfew here! We can come and go whenever we want—mostly.”
Lilah didn’t know. Unlike Alicia, and most everyone else, she hasn’t been coming to the Ludi since she could conjure. Alicia and her family have probably been coming together every year since she was a child. With Verna’s budget, Lilah couldn’t afford to take trips that weren’t absolutely necessary.
“Ready then?” Alicia says, giving her a thumbs up.
Lilah nods her head, smiling.
The music pours out of the building in a chaotic stream. The line to get in to the nightclub drags down the side of the building and into a dimly lit alleyway. “Come on,” Alicia’s voice lilts, excited for the thrill of being free, even if the freedom only extends to this moment. She grabs Lilah’s hand and rushes them both to the front of the line where a broad-chested man with white cotton hair stands, arms crossed.
Alicia smiles brightly, slinking up to the white-cotton-haired man and whispering something incoherent. Lilah catches the end of her words “. . . and you wouldn’t want him to know that you denied me entry.”
Cotton Hair nods his head and wisps his fingers across the lock on the club’s entry; a flash of silver light courses across Lilah’s eyes. The door opens, sending a tumult of screeching voices and music into their ears. They walk in.
The club smells like nothing Lilah has ever smelt or wants to smell ever again. It is an odd mixture of bodies, sweat, and something unidentifiable.
Alicia shakes Lilah by her shoulders, her brimming excitement palpable. Her lips move, soundless.
“I’m sorry, what?” Lilah yells, looking around. Alicia throws her head back, laughing, but the sound never makes it to Lilah’s ears. It is l
ost somewhere in the tumbling orchestra of noises.
The crowd of dancers manages to move uniformly. They jump up or to the side or sway their hands in the air as little shots of liquid gold dribble down their fingertips and into their mouths. After taking a few glances around, Lilah can tell that the club hosts both Nox and Lux. Two young men stand aloof from the crowd, drawing attention to themselves. Before she can study the two men more, Lilah is again whisked away by her friend’s soft hands.
Two bartenders attend to the bustling crowd, one with the same cotton hair as Cotton Hair, while the other has a shaved black scalp. She watches, mesmerized as Cotton Hair’s twin grabs a blazing red can and shoots a green concoction into it with his right hand.
Lilah tries to steal another look at the two young men, but all she can see are the random rainbows of colors sprouting out from behind the bar. She turns to Alicia, who has her eyes closed and is swaying from side to side. “I’m going to get us water,” Lilah yells to her, leaning in with the hope that Alicia can hear her.
She knows the message was received by Alicia’s flamboyant response, “Oh for Aura’s sake, Lilah! Get yourself a real drink! I don’t want water and if you return with a cup for me, I’m going to toss it into this crowd and say you threw it!”
With her arms out to her side for protection, Lilah wades into the sea of swishing and swashing dancers, making her way to the bar. Finally, Lilah can see the two guys by the bar, free from obstruction. The one closest to Lilah has his back turned, presenting her with a mop of dark brown hair. He is quite tall and stands over most everyone in the club. The other one is shorter, or rather, less tall; the tip of his head reaches his friend’s chin. His hair is raven-colored and his eyes are a brilliant blue and gold that shine in the dark light of the club. They laugh and point to something off in the distance.
They are clearly Lux, both have a yellow sun with a lightning bolt wrapped around it exposed on their necks, the Lux signa for a warrior. At first, shock reverberates through Lilah’s frame. Intrigue. She has never met a Lux warrior before. Might they be her opponents tomorrow? She’s caught between the choice of approaching the pair to ask or watching them from afar and guessing, then settles for the latter.
“What can I get for you?” the bartender says, his deep resonating voice easily heard over the music.
“I’ll have what they’re having,” Lilah points to the two people she saw earlier who got the red and green potion.
He laughs. “I don’t think so!”
“Why?”
“Because you’re not eighteen, are you?”
Lilah narrows her eyes. She guesses most the others here aren’t either. Lilah holds the man’s stare; his dark eyes match the color of his skin. She rolls her eyes with a sigh. This isn’t worth it. “Two waters then.” Lilah turns and lets her frustration fizzle out through an exhale. Alicia will be disappointed. Lilah watches the crowd. They dance with blank faces and languid motions.
Eventually, she mingles through the crowd and unconsciously finds herself searching for the Lux guys. Lilah swims through the crowd. The music changes to drums that send pulsing vibrations through her body, straight into her heart. Shifting, the crowd becomes more chaotic and desperate. Howls drift into the messy melody, while Lilah unconsciously stops to watch, mesmerized by the motion.
“Lilah!” Alicia shakes Lilah’s shoulder from behind. Lilah takes a sharp inhale and turns to see her friend holding two drinks, green and red sparks shooting from the glasses. Her jaw drops. “I figured since it was taking you so long that you were having trouble getting drinks, so I went to the bar to look for you, but I couldn’t find you and I just went ahead and got them,” she rattles on. Lilah sets her waters down on an empty table. “Here, drink it!” Alicia takes a gulp from her own, sticks her tongue out after she swallows, then giggles.
The crowd suddenly washes over them, pulling them into the center of the mass.
Lilah looks down at the drink; the shimmering liquid calls to her. As it hits her tongue and slides down her throat, it burns, then pools in her stomach. Lilah glances to Alicia, who seems perfectly comfortable in the throng; she melts into the crowd, becoming another faceless dancer. Lilah reaches out to her, but Alicia seems to willingly abandon her. The drink . . . Lilah spins around, arms out, just as the drums break into a singer’s high-pitched squeal.
Time ceases to exist. Lilah becomes one of them. Her navy dress sticks to her shape with sweat. In the mass of dancers, she feels at ease, weightless in the waves of the sea.
There comes a reprieve in her inebriated state, and she tries to swallow, only to find her mouth dry. Water, I need water. Collecting her limbs, Lilah ambles to the edge of the horde, while something catches her eye. It is the shining blue-gold eyes of the raven-haired guy. He stands off from the crowd, catching her gaze and holding it. He steps forward, his friend, too, knocking shoulders with a man who has his back turned. The brunette tries to apologize, but the man recognizes the signa on their necks and immediately pushes back, yelling incoherently. The Nox man throws his thick neck back, Lilah assumes to laugh, but he could have made any other noise. She jumps forward, senses in overdrive, her mind racing. She looks around, trying to find Alicia. The two Lux have done it now. Nox gather, responding to what Lilah now understands was a call from Thick Neck. She gets as close to the grouping as she dares. What am I going to do anyway? The Nox circle around the Lux.
“Now what have we got here, two Lux kids with no one to hear their cries.”
The two Lux step back, their hands positioned curiously. The taller one steps forward into a lonely ray of light, pushing his dark brown hair out of his face, allowing Lilah to see him clearly. His face is all angles, sharp and contrasting. Under the lights, stubble darkens his chin and brown eyes radiate. A smile, broad and overreaching, spreads across his face. His lips begin to move, but Lilah can’t hear what he says. His friend is not pleased by what he hears, and he frowns. Lilah scans over his face. Compared to the other, his is round and fit—healthy. His left eyebrow rises, meeting Lilah’s gaze again. He smiles; Lilah looks away, unsettled by the warmth spreading in her cheeks.
Alicia takes hold of Lilah’s shoulder, and once she sees what all the fuss is over, says, “Oh, is there going to be a fight?” Her big eyes grow larger.
She doesn’t answer. What was I thinking? In the pause, the Lux pair retreat, vanishing out the door of the club.
Alicia huffs. “Man, I really wanted to see them fight.” Alicia turns to Lilah. “Hey . . .”
“Can we go? I’m not feeling well.” Her head pounds, jarring her senses.
“Sure, too much fun?” Alicia grins. Lilah nods, but even that motion makes her sick. Alicia grasps Lilah’s hand and weaves effortlessly through the crowd to the entrance door. When she opens it, the night offers them a cool respite.
Lilah wonders how often Alicia has come to clubs such as this one. Her friend seems nearly unaffected by the atmosphere and drink. It dawns on Lilah that she may not know Alicia as well as she thinks she does. A shiver ripples over her skin.
“Ah, fresh air,” Alicia says, stretching her arms over her head.
They walk the way they came, crisscrossing through the back alleys, hoping not to see anyone that would be able to identify them. Lilah is sure she saw a glimpse of Scarlet in the club, dancing in the middle of all those bodies. But she had had the drink at that point, so can the memory be trusted? Her care vanishes as her head throbs again.
As the two shift back over to the main road, Lilah senses they’re not alone. Heartbeats scatter. Both Alicia and Lilah stop and turn to find a dark alley in their wake. They share a pointed look; Lilah’s eyebrow rises with curiosity, and Alicia smiles. They make an unspoken agreement. Alicia strikes her hands together; a green light grows inside her palms. Lilah isn’t exactly sure what defensive abilities Alicia has, since her ability of omnilingualism is the ability to speak a language without any knowledge of it—the reason she chose to study world history.
Is it a feint?
“Come into the light, or we’ll make the alley light up for the entire block to see,” Lilah says.
“Okay, okay.” The brunette Lux from the club steps into the light created by one of the streetlights.
“Where’s your friend?” Lilah quips.
“What friend?” He smiles.
“Don’t think we’re that dull, Lux,” Alicia says dryly.
“Okay, okay.” The other Lux comes from the shadows of the alley, cerulean-gold eyes flashing.
“What do you want with us?” Lilah says. There’s no way we’re getting into a fight. She glances at Alicia and scowls. I have to win the Ludi for Waterstone—no, for myself.
“Just wanted to introduce ourselves before tomorrow,” the raven-haired one says, coming forward.
“Then who are you?” Lilah crosses her arms.
His expression hardens. A kind of stoic air sweeps his features. Lilah cuts her gaze while her stomach twists in knots. He takes several steps forward before extending his hand. “Caleb Addison.”
Lilah looks to the markings on his neck, the yellow sun’s rays in a constant battle with the white lightning bolts. Another signa reaches up from below the collar of his shirt, but Lilah can’t make it out. Her mind drifts and becomes blurry. A cool draft of air whistles past her as she smiles and pushes her hand out to grasp his.
“Nice to meet you, Caleb. I’ll enjoy beating you tomorrow.”
Lilah wakes in a daze and immediately regrets having been out late last night. Someone pounds on her door; someone is always pounding on her door. She lugs herself out of bed.
It’s Van Thorpe. “I’m here to bring the WA students to the arena. Bring all that you wish to have for the Ludi—weapons included—and meet at the end of the hall in an hour.”
Lilah nods and then closes the door. With haste, she moves around the room, brushing her hair, washing her mouth, checking and then double-checking all the gear in her bag. She catches a sight of herself smiling unconsciously in the mirror.
Premonition Page 9
