Amber (Amber trilogy Book 1)

by Hati Bell

“Who was this girl? Will she testify on your behalf?”

  A charming smile lit Logan’s face, as if he weren’t the one with his head on the chopping board. “Unfortunately she can’t, Mrs. Hofland. You see, the lady in question can’t speak up on my behalf because she’s married. She’s caught in a terrible marital knot and I don’t want to add to her pain. I like older, mature, and lush women,” he said matter-of-factly, sending Mrs. Hofland a grin that made her blush.

  Kincaid folded his hands together. “Apparently, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” he drawled.

  “But sometimes it rolls away enough to not get contaminated with pesticide,” Logan countered. He obviously hit his mark, because Kincaid’s lips curled up in disdain. His grandfather didn’t like to be reminded that Drake didn’t carry his illustrious name.

  “As chairman, I motion we follow the rules and detain Logan Stark in the Catacombs until his case goes to trial,” Kincaid said.

  Shit. Drake cursed inside, desperately thinking of a way to keep Logan from being shipped off. He knew the rest of the Council would be useless and unwilling in speaking against Kincaid. They had found the perfect scapegoat to pin the murder on and Logan didn’t have a powerful family at his back.

  “Logan Stark isn’t the killer,” Amber suddenly spoke.

  All heads turned in her direction.

  “Are you absolutely certain of that?” her father asked.

  She nodded and gave a recap of the same thing they had discussed when he’d asked her to read Logan. “Also, it’s kind of strange for Logan to take off his shirt showing off his tattoo for any cameras or potential witnesses,” Amber added.

  Drake felt a subtle shift go through the Council. Meg’s and Amber’s gift was considered to be absolute and final. Also, backing Amber up meant supporting all dryads, even if it meant that a dragon would go free. He figured the vote to ship Logan off would be fifty-fifty. Still, it was a risk. Kincaid was right. The outcome of a voting was far too important to leave to chance.

  “I say we take a vote after a short break,” William O’Neill suggested.

  One by one the Council members left to the adjoining room, under Gregor’s guidance. Kincaid was the last to rise from his seat and go the opposite way, towards his study.

  Drake hurried after him and slid inside the room before the door closed. He would only have one shot at this.

  His grandfather sat at his chair behind his desk. He lit a cigar and was staring into the flames.

  “Logan is not a killer,” Drake started, dropping into a chair opposite the desk. He planted his feet firmly into the Turkish carpet, not planning on leaving before he got what he came for.

  “Are you sure?” Kincaid scoffed. “He is a Stark, after all. They aren’t the most reliable dragons judging by the past indiscretions of their patriarchs. Collaborating with goblins, torturing their sons with iron, bloodying their women, and that’s not even half of it.”

  “Logan is a lot of things, but a cold-blooded murderer is not one of them,” Drake protested, not wanting to go into his brother’s past with his father. “As chairman you have two votes. I want you to vote against him being placed into custody.”

  “Are you asking me as a dragon or as my grandson?”

  “Does it matter?” he asked, knowing it did.

  “Of course it does. One is my subject; the other is my blood. Blood is thicker than water.”

  “Like your son was?”

  “I don’t have a son. No child of mine can call himself my blood when he’s unworthy of me.”

  There was no point in arguing over his ridiculous statement. Drake had no illusions about the relationship between his father and Kincaid. “What do you want in exchange for your vote?”

  His grandfather didn’t seem to be surprised by the turn of their talk. For a moment his eyes slid over the antique chessboard in the corner. A terrible suspicion gripped Drake’s mind, as he braced himself for a list of conditions.

  “The O’Neill girl,” Kincaid began, while pulling away his cigar, “what is her role in this tragicomedy? I noticed she looked for you when she entered. How did you manage to get her to choose your, a dragon’s, side? What was her price?”

  The change of subject threw him off, and he spoke before thinking it through. “She has no price. She believes in Logan’s innocence.” The second the words left his mouth, he regretted them. To Kincaid everything served a goal. Some way to aid himself or the name he was so proud of. He didn’t understand selflessness. He considered it a weakness, a crack in a shield he would gladly shoot holes in.

  Kincaid gave him a scrutinizing look. “So she testified for a dragon, her natural enemy, without asking anything in return? That doesn’t seem very likely. Sounds to me the girl might have an unfortunate crush on you, or perhaps for the son of Stark? Feelings you might reciprocate?”

  Drake kept his face void of expression. “She’s a dryad. She means nothing to us.”

  Kincaid nodded approvingly. “In that case it shouldn’t be a problem for you to give me a simple promise in exchange for my support.”

  “Fine, I’ll take your damn name,” Drake growled.

  “That’s rather presumptuous of you,” Kincaid said, his voice tinged with disapproval. “It’s an honor to carry the Kincaid name, not something you can force upon someone. No, what I want from you is something quite different.” He crushed the cigar in an ashtray and scratched a sharp nail over his wrist, sending Drake a challenging look.

  Drake stepped up to the desk, and Kincaid’s condition filled the angry air between them. “No problem at all,” he said, scratching his own wrist until blood trickled down his hand.

  The king of Hell hadn’t lied about what he wanted. His curious request had nothing to do with enforcing his family name on Drake. It was about something else. Something which made shivers go down Drake’s spin, because it suggested Kincaid was a lot more perceptive than he’d anticipated.

  He readily spoke the words that sealed his promise to Kincaid, though-words he had no intention of ever saying out loud anyway. Words that could give someone power over him.

  They left the room after their with blood signed promise that was more ironclad than any regular contract.

  He felt her presence before he saw her. She was standing in the hallway, looking at paintings depicting his ancestors. There was tension and a hint of disbelief in her expecting eyes. It was the expectation of him smoothing over his betrayal. It would be easy to get her back on his side. He was certainly selfish enough to do that. Egoism was in his blood and embedded into his DNA. She would believe him for the simple fact that she wanted to believe him. She didn’t know that he was born and bred in a cold winter, cursed to forever live there. Always in the bitter cold, in a chaotic darkness. She couldn’t know, for she was light: he was only her absence.

  With every step towards his beacon, it felt as if the weight of the world pressed more and more on his shoulders. He feverishly searched for a solution to escape his self-induced inferno, but he came up empty. He’d made his choice, though she didn’t know this yet.

  Kincaid was watching from the sideline, his gaze like a hawk.

  Amber gave Kincaid a tentative look, but when he remained standing, she cleared her throat. A subtle reference to the dragon promise he hadn’t freed her from. “I don’t understand,” she said calmly. “You had promised to-”

  Drake crossed his arms in front of his chest. “The only promise that counts is the one you can enforce,” he cut her off. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Logan is my family, and even if he weren’t, he’s still a dragon. You are nothing. Just a dryad, so even less than nothing. The deal was we’d have your back in exchange for your gift, that is, until the day it became useful for me. Did you really think I would allow you to use your gift in any way against my brother?”

  All the color left her face but it wasn’t enough. She was still standing with him, with Kincaid, in one of the seven circles of Hell. Dammit. What would it tak
e for her to flee, screaming? The unsure look she was giving Kincaid decided it for him.

  “What the fuck are you still standing here for?” he barked. “Haven’t I been clear enough? We had fun for a while, but you are no match for me, dryad.”

  Those last words finally seemed to do the trick, because she raised her chin and stepped backward.

  The look she gave him, cut right through his soul. Had she shown him contempt, rage, or even hate, he could have handled that, but her disappointment nearly broke him.

  It’s worth it. Just a small price for Logan’s life. It has to be. He kept telling himself that as he watched her walk away. Still, he had to swallow when the gap between his darkness and her light grew and grew.

  TWENTY-TWO

  The sun shone mercilessly on her face, when Amber plopped down onto the grass next to Pinky. From here she had a good view of the orange kayaks on the banks of the river which would be the starting point of their outside gym class.

  Her gaze went to Cally and Benn sitting at a table a few feet back, oblivious to the rest of the world. Next to them sat the other Musketeers, Drake and Logan, the latter stretched out like a Roman.

  It had been a week since Logan had been acquitted of Nurse Croft’s murder. It had taken days before she figured out that Drake hadn’t pretended to be an asshole for Kincaid’s sake. Days in which she’d had the illusion that he would give her an explanation of his-of course-noble reasons for his betrayal. She’d almost waited until pigs could fly before it finally hit her: there would be no explanation of any kind. Still, she was somewhat proud of herself. She didn’t wallow in misery by staying in bed for days with a bowl of ice cream and a tube of whipped cream.

  No, she had turned her negative feelings-betrayal, hurt, and rage just to name a few-into something positive, such as studying for her exams.

  “You know, for someone who doesn’t like chick flicks, your life sure does resemble one,” Pinky noted. “Just think about it. A casual meeting, where he saves you from a life-threatening situation. Followed by a confrontation with your brothers, after which you discover that he belongs to the Montagues and any chance of a romantic relationship turns to ash. Then he comes to your aid again, even gets hired to protect you. Of course, then begins the second act: the inevitable break-up because of a lack of trust-”

  “A lack of honesty,” Amber corrected her. “He knew how important it was, and still is, to me to catch Croft’s killer. He also knew how nervous I was because I was going to replace Meg for the first time and how important it was to me to use my gift in a useful way for a change. He knew all that and even after I had promised him to help Logan, he didn’t free me of my dragon promise. Instead, he just let me fend for myself in front of the Council. If it hadn’t been for the surveillance tape, the Council wouldn’t have let me off the hook that easily.”

  Her bestie gave her a glare. “Fine, like I said, the second act: the inevitable break-up because of a lack of ho-nes-ty. Followed by you wallowing in misery.”

  Amber scrunched her nose. “I did not wallow in misery.”

  “Sure you didn’t. Instead you dragged me into a slasher movie marathon filled with blood and gore,” Pinky said dryly.

  She had been so naive and floating around with her head in the air. Like a… pineapple in a float. Though that comparison didn’t do the pineapple justice, because a pineapple had more grit. A pineapple would’ve never run from the Dome with its tail tucked between its legs. No, it would have called Brutus out. She grimaced, when she realized she was comparing herself to a piece of fruit and was losing.

  Pinky waved a hand in front of her face. “Hello? Earth to Amber.”

  “Sorry, what?”

  “I wanted to know what’s on your mind. You looked pained for a moment.”

  “Pineapple,” she muttered darkly.

  “You’re doing it again.” Pinky sighed. “Talking to yourself, out loud.”

  “I’m sorry. I was just thinking about how Bryan warned me and I didn’t listen. I could just kick myself.” Amber got on her feet when she heard the sound of Bull’s whistle. It was time for her to go find her kayaking mate.

  She grazed her knee to a pole when someone bumped into her while passing her. It was Fiona Claw. Of course. Bad things never came alone. Fiona gave her a shove against her arm and Amber paled at the new vision that pierced her heart.

  “Watch where you’re going,” Fiona snarled, as charming as ever. “It’s bad enough we’re sorted in the same kayaking team, which puts me at a disadvantage. You’ll be sorry if you make me lose,” she said and stomped off.

  Their kayaking class was at the same time with Devon College, and the two gym teachers had decided to collaborate.

  At the dock stood a guy in green cameo shorts and a black tee. Throw in his military cut and it made him look like a G.I. Joe. A goblin military man no less. Amber stared at the kayaks floating in the water behind him. They looked like giant carrots with holes in them.

  “It’s not as bad as it looks,” Army Boy said. He must have seen her pained expression.

  She didn’t know what surprised her more: the fact a goblin could be friendly or the fact he was towards her. “They look like they could sink to the bottom of the river any minute,” she confessed her concern.

  “I’m Gavin, by the way,” he said with a friendliness that made her do a one-eighty on her feelings towards goblins.

  “Hi, I’m Amber.”

  They were alerted to the instructor sauntering their way by a branch snapping. Fiona was right at his heels.

  “Ah, I see you’re an uneven group,” the instructor said scribbling something on his clipboard. “You girls can take the tandem kayak and he can take the single one,” he said while handing out safety vests.

  Amber had barely put on her vest when Fiona shoved a paddle in her hands. The dragon got into the kayak, with a sidelong glance at Gavin. She ignored their staring contest as she got into the kayak, too busy making an unpleasant discovery.

  She was seasick. Was that even possible on a river? Her churning stomach and sweaty palms assured her it was. She slowly breathed in and out, trying to keep her lunch inside with the kayak slowly rocking when she sat down. She tried to concentrate on other stuff such as plants at the shore, a colorful butterfly, and a passing family of ducks.

  It didn’t help.

  The instructor wasn’t finished yet. “In about a mile you will come across a narrow curve with a strong current. Too strong for inexperienced kayakers such as yourselves to pass it together. So, make sure you pass it one by one. Don’t make it into a competition. Enjoy!”

  The moment he turned around, Fiona’s paddle hit the water and she furiously started paddling. She gave Amber a cutting glare over her shoulder. “Don’t you dare lose your paddle. We’re going to beat that filthy goblin. You will regret it if you make me lose.”

  Amber tried to keep up with Fiona’s tempo, while getting soaked through. Fiona’s paddle cut like a knife through butter, while hers was feeling heavier and heavier by the minute.

  They went passed wildlife, around rocks that glistened from the foamy water hitting them, below a bridge, but neither of the kayaks really got a big lead on the other.

  Then she saw they had neared the narrow curve the instructor had mentioned. “We have to slow down. We won’t fit through that curve with two kayaks,” she yelled. “Fiona!” she tried again, when the dragon ignored her.

  They flew past an old mill and the water got wilder and splashed all over the kayak, nearly causing her to lose her balance and fall out.

  “Keep paddling!” Fiona hissed back.

  The were finally in the lead-though barely-but Gavin was right on their tail.

  Suddenly Fiona pulled her paddle from the water and spun around. Amber didn’t need to be clairvoyant to guess her evil intention. She screamed Gavin’s name and his head shot up. He was able to avoid Fiona’s perfect swing, but it was a close one.

  Fiona tried to hit him again, bu
t this time her improvised weapon swung all the way around and hit Amber’s head. She dropped into the water with a yelp.

  It felt as if she’d run straight into a wall and she had difficulty staying conscious. She coughed, trying to keep afloat while the ferocious current dragged her away. It took her a moment to realize her vest had a leak in it.

  The water closed over her scream and she disappeared beneath the glassy surface. She could see her arms floating in front of her, like pale sticks, and her body getting heavy while she sank. She tried to swim, to force her limbs to move to the light above her.

  It was as if she’d lost her motor skills and she started panicking. Water penetrated her nostrils. Her lungs felt as if they would implode. It seemed to take forever to reach the sandy bottom of the river. Your life flashing before your eyes, appeared to be a lie. There was also no white light at the end of the tunnel or an angelic choir welcoming you into the afterlife.

  It is not your time yet. Destiny has plans for you. You will be awakened by fire, not through water.

  Hearing voices from the other side apparently wasn’t a fluke. And feeling regret, she thought. Regret about all the things she had wanted to do in life. Silly things that had seemed important-even critical-at the time, got reduced to simple, meaningless pockets of air. All her pent-up rage floated away. More than anything she wished Drake were here. He would have never left her behind. Just as he would have never left his brother at the Council’s mercy, she realized. Not even if he had to sacrifice his relationship with her.

  That was love. Unconditional love that couldn’t be simply forged by blood ties. She realized she had been so angry with him for giving Logan something she had wanted for herself.

  Little grains of sand danced before her eyes, rising up from the bottom of the river. She closed her eyes in defeat. Her last coherent thoughts were how different she had imagined her life and death would be.

  The voice from the other side returned.

  Put your arms around my neck and I’ll take you to the light.

  Put her arms, that felt like weights, around his neck? Wasn’t an angel supposed to save you all by himself?