Into Evernight: an Urban Fantasy Novel (Fearless Destiny Book 2)
Page 10
“This is a safe house?” My voice rose in panic.
His chest rumbled against mine.
“Can you imagine an enemy attempting to navigate these elements?”
“No, only a fool would do that!”
He laughed a full belly laugh.
“Stop laughing and get us somewhere that is actually safe!”
“Maybe I just love having you crawl all over me.”
If I hadn’t been terrified I’d have lost my grip on him.
“Seriously, Baal!”
The world tilted. I squeezed my eyes shut and screamed.
“We’re here,” Baal said.
I risked a peek to see grey stone and pillars. Another bloody balcony! But man was I glad to see it. I slid off Baal, dropped to my knees, and kissed the ground.
“It wasn’t that bad,” Baal said.
“Says you, Mr Breezy. How about I take you for a nice walk through a furnace?”
“Then I’d get the chance to climb all over you.”
His eyes glittered with mirth as he held out his hand to help me up. I took it, allowing him to tug me to my feet and finally saw the view.
“What the fuck?”
Baal turned to glance over his shoulder. “Impressive, isn’t it?”
Terrifying was more like it.
We were in the midst of an actual tempest—lightning, tornado, rain, the works—but where we stood nothing touched us. Not a single drop of rain, not even a waft of air. The world was silent and still.
“The safe house is protected by wards, and yes, we are in the actual eye of a storm.”
There was nothing else to say but, “Wow.”
He chuckled. “Come, I have some friends I’d like you meet.”
He pushed open the thick balcony doors and disappeared inside.
With one final glance at nature’s wrath, I followed him inside.
“So we’re just suspended in the storm?”
“Yes.”
“How does that even work?”
“With powerful magick.”
“Crawford?”
“Yes, He is a most powerful mage.”
The balcony led us onto a dark carpeted corridor lined with odd bits of quirky antique furniture and fancy framed paintings. The walls were a buttery cream colour and the ceilings high and decorated with fancy silver swirls. Twinkling lights hung off ornately twisted frames, and we passed several windows providing epic views of the storm surrounding us.
The light airy colours inside relegated the storm outside to the status of a cute puppy. I could imagine myself standing at one of those huge windows, cup of tea in hand, watching the storm from the comfort of my cosy home.
“Did you decorate this place yourself?”
“Some of it.”
“I think it’s beautiful.”
He paused at a cream archway to glance over his shoulder. His lips lifted in a smile. “Wait until you see this room.”
And then he was leading me into the most magnificent room I’d ever seen.
Too many cool features for my brain to process, so I backed up, slowed it down, and took it one step at a time, slowly running my gaze across the room: from the glass domed ceiling with a view of the churning storm, to the wall lined with colourful tomes, to the fireplace twice the length of me that ran against one wall, and the cosy chairs scattered around it to create a lounge area. It would be like sipping tea under the stars, like a camping in your own living room, but with all the creature comforts. It was as if the outside had been brought indoors. I loved it!
“Kenna?”
I blinked and turned my overwhelmed gaze to meet his. “I love it. It’s so open, yet so closed and cosy.”
He blinked back at me, his eyes lighting up. “Yes, that’s exactly it.”
We remained like that for a long moment, locked in an ocular embrace that grew more intense by the second.
“Finally! We were beginning to think you’d abandoned us.” A tall, broad-shouldered djinn came striding into the room through another archway to our right. His skin was pale blue and his dark hair was cut short and severe. He was dressed in some kind of livery—an intense velvety blue edged in yellow. His dark gaze swept over me inquisitively and then he inclined his head.
“Your Majesty.”
I shot Baal a sharp glance. “He knows?”
“Agares is my most trusted friend and the general of my army, he will also be accompanying us to The Meet and Black Moon Ball.”
“As will I.” A woman appeared in a puff of smoke, and I blinked at her striking physical appearance—cobalt blue skin and golden hair and eyes—she was kitted out in head to toe leather. I couldn’t stop staring, the combination was just so compelling.
Her brow arched. “I see the future queen likes to stare.”
Her tone told me I’d offended her with my gawping. “Can you blame me? You look amazing! And that outfit is total badass.”
She stared down at her leather pants, then back up at me. “Um, thank you, Your Majesty.”
Getting called Your Majesty was gonna take some getting used to, but it was who I was gonna be, so I inclined my head in what I hoped was a gracious manner—I’d seen Baal do it often enough.
“This is Irina, my battle mage. Irina graduated the top of all her classes in both defence and attack magicks.”
His battle mage huh?
I glanced at him quickly, noted the small intimate smile that tugged at his lips, and then back to Irina, who lowered her lashes in acceptance of the compliment.
My stomach burned.
“Let’s all make ourselves comfortable,” Baal said. “We have a lot to get through before The Meet, and only a night and a day to do it.”
We moved toward the lounge area, and I slipped into a seat facing Baal while Agares sat to my left and Irina beside Baal.
The burn in my stomach moved up to my chest.
“So, what do I need to know?” I just wanted to get this over with.
“Before we start,” Irina said, turning to Baal, “has there been any news of Father?”
Baal shook his head. “I’m sorry, Irina, not yet.”
She sighed, and I tried to catch Baal’s eye but he was too busy placing a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
“Crawford is Irina’s father,” Agares said. “We still haven’t had contact from the black mages on his whereabouts.”
I looked across at him, then back to Irina, who was nodding at something Baal was whispering in her ear, her jaw set in determination. Poor woman, of course she’d be distressed if her father was missing, of course Baal would comfort her. She was his battle mage after all. Gah! Things were bad when I couldn’t keep the snark out of the tone of my own thoughts.
This is what I’d wanted right? Other people around, a buffer between Baal and me, and now I had it in the form of Irina, except I didn’t want him laughing with another woman like that. I didn’t want him smiling at her in that intimate way. It made my stomach hurt. It made my heart ache, and I hated myself for it, because this was exactly what was needed—a reminder that he and I could never be, that I would never be desirable. Not like that. It was a reminder that all his attention and camaraderie was to serve a purpose, to build my confidence to take the throne.
I needed to focus.
“Do you know if Brett, the emissary Baal sent, has returned?”
Agares shook his head. “We haven’t had word yet. Baal?”
Baal looked up from his whispered conversation with Irina.
“Have we heard from the emissary?” Agares asked.
“Not yet, but it’s only been two days. Orin is probably wining and dining him, showing him how wonderful Twilight is and why we should sign the revised treaty, whatever that may be. Your friend seems smart enough not to make any bold enquiries that may raise suspicion, and as long as he keeps up the act he should be safe.”
I didn’t like the uncertainty of it all. “Should be?”
“He knew the risks going
“He means a spy,” Agares said.
“Yes, Agares. I will send a spy. What have you learned of the ship that was docked in my bay?”
“It belongs to Overlord Dima. It seems that your mother has been trading with him and pocketing the spoils.”
Baal’s jaw tightened. “Thank you. I will deal with her when I return. In the meantime,” He turned his attention to me, “we need to run through what you’ve learned about the fifth dimension during our time together. We will fill in any blanks, and tomorrow we will go over the etiquette on how to behave at a Meet.”
“Okay, well, I know the dimension is split up into provinces which are run by Overlords, and I know that the Overlords answer to whoever sits on the Ibris Throne.”
“And what allows someone to become Overlord?” Irina asked.
“The ability to fully command one of the four elements. Many djinn have an affinity for one element or another, but only an Overlord can actually command one, and only Ibris’s bloodline could ever command fire, making them the most powerful of the djinn.” I smiled smugly, confident I knew my stuff.
“Yes, but more than that, rumour has it that Ibris himself could command earth, air, and water to some degree,” Irina added.
“It’s no rumour,” Baal said “It was the truth. I saw him do it. But Kenna has not exhibited any other elemental affinity, even though her fire command is heightened by her Twilight nature. It is a wonder to behold.”
He was looking at me in that way again, the way that made my stomach flutter. I averted my gaze to the flames.
“Do you know what the denizens are?” Irina asked.
“Monsters.”
Her lips curled in a humourless smile. “Yes, but they weren’t always so. At one time our kind was segregated by tribes and beliefs. Some hated humanity, others were fascinated by humans, and some even loved them. Our world was superimposed over yours and we were everywhere, in the sea, in the deserts, and in lush green forests. Djinn watched humanity, lived side by side, and interfered. Some even went as far as to hurt humans. The result was the alliance wars—human sympathisers against human haters. The haters coveted the human world and felt they deserved it more than humanity. Many lives were lost, and when the dust settled Ibris ruled that, as god’s favoured creation, humanity would be left alone. Those that didn’t agree were banished to the outlands.”
“What about the settlements in Evernight? Erebus said they were outcasts too.”
Baal sighed. “Not human haters, just djinn refusing to accept Kai as their ruler, refusing to choose a political affiliation. They would rather hide in Evernight then take a stand.”
“But isn’t that a pretty huge stand in itself? They’re risking their lives for what they believe in?”
“They’re hiding, refusing to stand up and be counted,” Baal said.
“The settlements are scattered and their numbers alone could build an army,” Agares said.
“What of those hiding in the borderlands?” Irina snorted.
“Best to leave well alone,” Agares said.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because we have no idea what we’d be awakening,” Baal said. “The djinn that reside there are almost as ancient as Ibris, and they cling to the old ways. Best not to kick the hornet’s nest.”
“Now that we’ve filled some gaps in Kenna’s knowledge, let’s see what else she knows,” Irina said.
Okay. I could do this. “I know that Overlords are the only djinn who don’t have any distinct skin colour, and that the rest of the djinn population’s skin colour is determined by their personal spiritual journey. Green being the least enlightened and blue being the most.”
“And red?” Irina asked.
Why the heck was she the one quizzing me? I looked to Baal, not bothering to mask my annoyance.
His lips twitched.
“I have no idea,” I admitted.
Irina pressed her lips together, shooting Baal a look. “The efreet were red djinn that rose from the flames at Ibris’s call. They were the first djinn to walk this dimension and the djinn that made up Ibris’s court.”
“That’s one thing I don’t understand. I saw a tapestry with Ibris on it, and he was crimson-skinned like the efreet, and yet Overlords don’t seem to look any different from the average human.”
“Average?” Baal said.
Agares chuckled, but Irina remained perfectly straight faced.
“Ibris was crimson-skinned like the efreet, and yet he was not one of them,” Baal said.
“Some say that the efreet were indeed born from him. Ibris was the first djinn the creator forged. The efreet, who we believe came from Ibris, were born next, and the rest of us were forged last by the creator himself. Ibris was no Overlord, he was a king. The lack of hue to an Overlord’s skin merely indicates that he has reached enlightenment, and can be trusted with the power to rule. It was Ibris who decided who would rule, he divided the realm into provinces, keeping the heart of it for himself. The efreet remained with him, and after Ibris’s death the ones that hadn’t been killed while in a drugged slumber were hunted by Kai’s army. Broken and outnumbered, they scattered.”
“Surely the fact that Kai hunted them was proof enough that he must have orchestrated the assassination.”
My pulse sped up as heat spread through my body at the injustice of it all—the fact that my father had been murdered, the fact that my mother had been forced to run, to hide me, and the fact that I’d been forced to live a life that had fractured my psyche in such a way that I’d never truly be normal.
“Kenna? Your hands?”
I glanced down at my hands to see them glowing like lanterns. I exhaled and pulled back the rage.
“Better,” Baal said.
Irina’s golden gaze was on me, her lips turned down. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”
“I’m not upset with you, I’m furious with the person responsible for my father’s death, and when I find them I will make them pay.”
“And we will be by your side,” Baal said.
We fell into silence for a long moment, the crackling of the flames the only sound in the room.
“Well!” Agares, clapped his hands, “Now that we’ve dispensed with the quiz, how about a friendly game of qarom?”
“It’s never friendly with you,” Irina said teasingly.
“Hey, I command one of the largest armies in the dimension, I have a reputation to uphold.”
“No, you’re just an over competitive jackass.”
“And you’re a cheat!”
Irina gasped. “I am no such thing!”
“I know when I’ve been magickly played.”
Their friendly banter leached the final residue of my anger, and my tense muscles unknotted.
I caught Baal’s eyes on me and raised a brow.
“Do you want to play?” he asked softly.
The question was innocuous enough, but there was a definite suggestive tone to it—enough to make my mouth dry and wake up the butterflies in my stomach.
“I’d like that,” I kept my tone neutral.
He tucked in his chin and dropped his lashes, a small smile hovering on his lips. “Well then, we shall have teams—Kenna and I against the two of you.”
Irina balked. “You want me to work with him?”
Agares snorted. “You should be glad you’ve been placed on the winning team.”
Baal stood. “I’ll fetch the board.”
He disappeared through the archway that Agares had entered through earlier, and I settled back into my seat, tuning back into the mage and the general’s banter.
Their voices, one indignant the other provocative, reminded me of Brett and our many movie nights, our many banter sessions. Man I missed him.
Be safe hun, be safe.
20
BRETT
With all the opulent contemporary shit going on in this place, he would have thought Orin would have extended his creative efforts to his dungeon accommodation, but it seemed that when it came to criminal residences granite was out and rough-hewn rock was in. He didn’t even get his own cell, no VIP treatment there. The upside was he was sharing with a lovely djinn couple called Farah and Naseem. Apparently they’d been kidnapped en route to visit their daughter at court and held here for months with no explanation whatsoever. The plus side was they hadn’t been tortured yet. Farah liked long walks on the beach and Naseem enjoyed a good sweet leaf pipe.
Gah, he’d been in the cell for less than a day, and all the couple had done was talk at him. It was as if after so many weeks of just each other’s company they were desperate for a fresh pair of ears.
Brett tuned out, his eyes fixed on the tiny barred window of their cell door. They would come for him soon, and the pain would begin. Maybe this was part of the torture? Making him wait for it. Forcing him to anticipate the knife going in.
“I’m just glad it’s not damp in here,” Farah said.
“It gets a little chilly at night, but it isn’t unbearable.”
Yeah, the accommodations were just peachy.
“We can huddle now that you’re here. More body heat,” Naseem said, his eyes gleaming with a little too much anticipation.
Oh, bring on the torture, please…
Farah smacked Naseem’s arm. “Stop it, can’t you see the poor boy is scared out of his wits? And look at us, yammering on about our predicament without ever asking him what a human could possibly be doing here in Twilight.” She fixed her brown eyes on him expectantly.
Ah, it seemed he finally had the floor. “I’m the emissary from Lindrealm.”
“Emissary? What are Lindrealm and Twilight cooking up now?”
Brett snorted. “Oh, nothing much. Orin just wants us to sign up to become his subjects, that’s all.”
Naseem’s dark eyes widened. “I told you, Farah. I told you the king was a power-hungry monster, didn’t I? All those rumours circulating in the dimension.”
“Conspiracy theories, my love.”
“No, not theories, fact. The man has power. Have you heard of The Hunt?”
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