Blind Spirit (Scourge Survivor Series Book 4)

by JL Madore

  “Clay,” Reign said, his obsidian eyes flashing to his other son. “Julian, use that million-dollar surveillance system of yours and find me Clay Wells. Now.”

  “Get Nash here too.” Someone yelled behind me. “He and Clay are joined at the hip. The kid might be innocent and met her for something Academy-related.”

  “Fine,” Reign snapped. “Find first. Flay later.”

  “Why would one of the students do this?” I asked.

  The cold blast of air gusting through our group was cut by another electrical surge.

  “Blossom.” Galan launched forward and joined Bruin and me on the forest floor.

  Jade mumbled, sliding her hand toward her head. “Wha—”

  “Love, are you well?” Galan lifted her hand to his kiss.

  Jade’s emerald eyes fluttered open. “I think. Oh . . . cold.”

  She struggled a little, but Bruin placed his hand firm on her chest. “How about we call in the big guns to make sure you and the babes are good before you do a jig?” He looked to Reign who nodded and Flashed away.

  A huge shudder overtook her and her teeth started to chatter. “C-c-cold.”

  Bruin ripped opened his shirt and slid beside his sister. He gathered her against his body and wrapped his arms around her. “We’ll snuggle for a minute and take the chill off.” Jade’s eyes rolled closed. She smiled and nuzzled closer. Bruin raised a hand and called a blanket to appear out of nothing and drape over them.

  After a time, Jade’s chattering slowed and the crease between her brows eased. “There we go,” Bruin said. “See, my inner furnace is handy, eh? Better?”

  “Mhmm.”

  In a flash of golden mist, Reign returned with Castian, God of gods. Both of Jade’s fathers looked ready to kill.

  Castian stormed forward. “I have Jade, Bruin. You find who did this and bring them to me.” Castian’s voice, usually liquid velvet, cut like glass shards.

  When he laid a gentle hand on her belly the whole forest rumbled and shook. Birds flew from the trees. The wolves howled. I planted my hands on the ground to keep from toppling over.

  The next moment the forest fell away in a blur and I found myself with Castian, Jade and my brother in the opulence of the Palace of the Fae.

  Jade rested on a padded bed. Healers rushed in and with both haste and great care, they peeled away her clothing and began examining her.

  I stepped out of the way when a member of the house staff rushed to collect Castian’s heavy velvet cape.

  “Galan,” Castian said, handing it off, “Stay with Jade. Lia, you come with me.”

  Castian’s command left no hope of discussion.

  Exiting the examination area, my legs trembled and my mind was at once both fully present and numbingly vacant. What could the God of gods want of me? Verily, Castian had always been cordial but, at this moment, his anger consumed the air around us.

  As he rushed forward in that authoritative, potent way of his, the hairs on my arms stood erect.

  Outside, storm clouds gathered in swirling ferocity. Lightning skittered and streaked through the sky. Thunder cracked and my heart jumped inside my chest.

  Castian led me to an elegant parlor with gold velvet couches and a brown tufted ottoman the size of Jade’s dining table. The room smelled of parchment from the tomes lining the bookcase and wood smoke from the hearth’s smoored fire.

  “Tell me, Lia. All of it.”

  “I discovered her, Sire. I cannot tell you much.”

  “Start from the moment you first met up with Jade this morning. You were working at the clinic, yes?”

  I sat on the edge of one of the sofa cushions and clasped my hands in my lap. Castian sat on the ottoman opposite me. “I was in the clinic, though in truth, I am not much aid. Jade knows how I love the hustle and energy of the students and encourages me to socialize.”

  Castian nodded, tapping his fingers against his thigh. “What happened today?”

  I recalled our day, as best as I could, starting from the two of us opening the clinic, the students tended to and their injuries, Cowboy’s surgery, Kobi and Savage, and her napping when Samuel came in for his exam.

  “Wait,” Castian said, raising his finger. “She said she didn’t want to sleep too long because she had things to do. Did she mention meeting anyone?”

  I thought hard, trying to recapture every word of the conversation. “Apologies, I am certain she never mentioned anything more.”

  He scowled. “Okay, then what?”

  I skimmed over my altercation with Samuel, our return, the wolves and their strange reaction to the girl in the forest.

  “And you’ve never seen this girl before today?” he asked.

  I shook my head.

  “Yet she seemed familiar enough with Jade to comment on where she kept her phone?”

  “Verily it struck me as strange, but I assumed she was a student and noticed Jade’s habits in passing.”

  Castian’s lips tightened and he tilted his head. “Did you get her name?”

  “I asked it of her—and this is going to sound unreal, but I swear on my honor it is truth—before she responded, a giant red-tailed hawk swooped in and stole my wrap.”

  Castian’s emerald eyes snapped wide. “Say that again.”

  “A red-tailed hawk, a massive and majestic creature, snatched my wrap and flew straight to where Jade was buried beneath the cover of loose brush. If it were not for the bird—”

  Castian Flashed from the room and I was left to myself.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The Palace of the Fae twisted in a veritable warren of golden corridors. Stained-glass transoms spilled a kaleidoscope of color over priceless antiquities, breath-catching works of art and into endless nooks, open spaces and withdrawing rooms. Insignificant in the grandeur of it all, I was left to find my way back to Jade and her healers.

  Verily, as Castian’s daughter, Jade would be well cared for. By the time I found them, I was certain she would be resting peaceably with Galan at her bedside. Or so I prayed.

  After an hour’s time, I found myself no closer to knowing where I was than where I had been. Several times, Fae goddesses wearing one-shouldered gowns, and elegant chignons, swept past me. It seemed, I was invisible.

  Twice I thought to approach one of them but, at the last moment, held my tongue and continued on my own.

  At the end of one of the main corridors, the space opened into a vast, vaulted rotunda. Shimmering gold walls reached up five stories and terminated with a domed Oculus. Centered on the marble mosaic beneath the arched ceiling, stood a life-size bronze of Castian battling two evil and hideous beasts. With one foe in front of him and the other behind, he was frozen in a twisted stance, sword raised, blocking a killing blow. As I walked one full rotation, I examined the craftsmanship. Try as I might, I would never be able to describe its majesty to Maryssa, our village sculptress—assuming I ever ventured back to visit the Highborne village.

  Pressing on, I ignored the wide, slow arc of the marble staircase. If nothing else, I remained certain that at least I walked the correct floor. As my steps quickened, my chest tightened. What if Galan needed me? What if something unspeakable happened to the unborn twins? Turning the corner, I caught sight of a pale blue gown disappearing through a doorway.

  Enough was enough.

  Hustling along to the withdrawing room, I peered in. “Hello?” I rapped my knuckles on the door jamb and waited. Strange. The room appeared to be empty.

  Three overstuffed plum sofas created a u-shaped seating arrangement before a wide, marble hearth. Though not lit, the faint scent of chestnut lingered from its last burning. Four picture windows covered with sheers and framed with heavy velvet drapes spanned the back wall. It seemed sunlight prevailed over the clouds and the brilliance of the afternoon light filtered in.

  “Hello?” I repeated.

  One of the drapes rustled and a young woman peeked out of its shadow.

  “Sorry,” she said, lookin
g over my shoulder. “I’ll explain—” As quick footsteps terminated outside the doorway, the woman’s eyes grew round and she ducked back behind the drapes.

  “Who are you?” a female asked from the hall behind me. Though the iridescent skin of the goddess standing outside the doorway was beyond beauty, her austere glare took me aback. “Why are you wandering around loose in the palace?”

  “I am Lia, merry meet.”

  She brushed past me and scanned the room, hands fisted on her hips. “Have you seen Zophia?”

  “Apologies. Who?”

  The female turned on me. “Zophia. She was headed this way. Long brown braid, dark blue eyes. . ..” She leaned closer. “Have you seen her or not?”

  “I cannot say—”

  “Who were you talking to?” She stepped forward, staring down the sharp bridge of her nose. “I heard voices.”

  I buried my hands into the folds of my skirt. My fingers brushed over something hard in my pocket and I held out Jade’s phone. “I was speaking into this . . . to someone . . . not in this room. Someone at Haven.” I nodded once and exhaled. “Yes. I was speaking to someone at Haven on this telephone.”

  The female lost interest and paced the room. “If you see her—”

  “Apologies. Who?”

  “Zophia!” An unflattering blush crept up the female’s long ivory neck. “Good grief, are you daft? Okay, I’ll speak slowly. If you see Zophia, tell her Castian’s love-child has gone and gotten herself beaten in the forest somewhere.”

  “Jade. Yes, I was there.” I tucked the phone back into my pocket, lest she somehow make the connection it was not mine own. “Is she well? Are the young—”

  The female crossed her arms under her ample bosom and scowled at me. “Do I look like a news reporter?”

  I shrugged. “Verily, I cannot say, but if you could direct me back to—”

  “Not a tour guide either,” she said, holding a hand between us. “Zophia needs to assure Uncle we had nothing to do with this. Some human did it, not us.” Message delivered, she swept back toward the door, muttering to herself. “This is why people of the realm don’t deserve free will. Look at the trouble they cause us when left to their own.”

  I stood there dazzled until her voice eventually faded down the hall. Blinking at the empty doorway, I drew a deep breath.

  “Sorry about her,” the girl in blue said, extracting herself from the draperies. She approached, hand extended. She did indeed have chestnut hair and midnight blue eyes and now that she was in the open, her opal skin shimmered in the sunlight as well. “I am Zophia. You’re Lia, right? Galan’s sister?”

  I shook her hand and nodded. “I am. Merry meet. How did you know?”

  “It’s the hair.” She pointed, her mouth twitching in a shy smile. “I am the Keeper of Lives in Progress in the Realm of the Fair. Right now, Galan and his sister are the only two living descendants of Rheagan.”

  I stiffened.

  Her grip tightened and she shook her head. “No. Please don’t be alarmed. We are family, distant, but blood none the less. I am Castian’s niece as well.”

  Her melodic voice emphasized the as well and I took pause. “Verily, I never considered myself Castian’s niece, but I suppose. . ..”

  “You’re the great-great-great however many times daughter of his sister, Rheagan.” She swept her intricate braid to her front and draped it over her arm like a wrap. The length still dangled halfway down her gown toward the floor. “I’m the daughter of his brother Dane. We’re cousins.”

  “I am quite certain your sister does not feel the same familial tie.”

  Zophia giggled. “You’re better off. I wish I were invisible in the lives of Zana and my half-sisters. Maybe they’d leave me out of their drama. Instead, I’m a modern-day Cinderella. It’s exhausting.”

  As she spoke, she fluttered toward the open door and peeked out, looking up the hallway and down. “Coast is clear. Would you like me to take you back to Jade and Galan?”

  “Oh, I would be in your debt.”

  Zophia waved her hand. “After saving me from Zana, it’s me who owes you. Now, let’s go see what’s happening with Jade, shall we?”

  The fear when discovering Jade in the forest was naught to the panic which gripped me when Galan greeted me in her recovery suite. His hair hung loose of its usual leather thong and looked as though he fingered through it like a madman. His essence bled agony and when he embraced me, his trembling squeeze sucked the breath from my lungs.

  I glanced to the recovery bed and my hand went to my throat. Sweet Shalana, Jade was dying. It was plain.

  Though the physical signs of her assault were gone, so too was her vitality. She appeared to be naught but a child, a frail form lost and absorbed in a cradle of pillows and a frenetic weave of tubes. Her rich copper skin, which usually shone as if kissed by the sun god himself, was the putrid color of old tea and her gemstone emerald eyes were dull and heavy.

  “That good, huh?” She whispered as she beckoned me closer. “Galan said I was radiant, as always, but I knew he was full of shit.”

  “Apologies.” I caught myself and moved to her bedside. “Galan is correct, you are resplendent as always, sister mine.”

  Her eyes pinched closed and a groan ripped from deep in her throat. As she twisted on the bed, energy crackled through the air and sparks ignited from her fingertips.

  Galan collapsed at her bedside. “Castian, I beg of you, make it stop.”

  Jade placed her hand on his bowed head and stroked his hair. “It’s all right, Galan. Even gods have tenets to live by.” She shifted slightly and exhaled. “I’ll be fine.”

  Galan scrubbed his palm over his face. “Of course, you will. You are the strongest female alive and will accept nothing less.”

  “And don’t you forget it.” Jade’s smile relaxed as she looked to me. “Thanks for the rescue, girly. I heard you found me in the nick of time.”

  I eased down on the bed’s edge opposite Galan. “It was terrifying . . . and quite queer.”

  “Queer? How so?”

  I retold the tale of the giant bird leading me straight to where she’d fallen in the brush.

  Her deep-red brow knitted. “A hawk?”

  “Yes. One moment it was there and the next, it dropped my wrap and flew off.”

  Jade looked bewildered, but the distraction of the conversation seemed to lift her spirits. It all seemed so surreal. “Why would one of your students harm you like this?”

  Her fingers drifted to her bare neck. “Clay stole my pendant. Said he needed to return it to its rightful owner.”

  Galan cursed, shaking his disheveled hair.

  “Rightful owner?” I said. “You are Galan’s mate, by our ancestral traditions you are its rightful owner.”

  Jade covered my hand with hers and cried out as another wave of electricity snapped in the air. The attack set off alarms and as she stiffened beneath the sheets, a rush of attendants flooded the room.

  Galan and I were swept out to the patio.

  “Jade is strong, like you said,” I reminded him.

  While the caregivers hustled on the other side of the decorative glass doors, my brother drew me further across the patio. “It is the young who are in the greatest peril, not their naneth.”

  Though, knowing Jade, the loss of the twins would kill her spirit even if she survived physically.

  “Sire,” a voice called from the now open door, “she’s asking for you.”

  Galan kissed my head and rushed back inside.

  Left with naught for me to do, I stared out upon the palace grounds. Despite the warmth of the surroundings, a shiver ran up the length of my spine.

  ***

  The manicured lawns Behind the Veil rolled out and away from the palace in a plush emerald carpet. The sky, a perfect cerulean blue, swirled with a soft breeze carrying the scents of mint and bergamot across the property. The beauty of the palace paled when held against Jade’s suffering.

&nb
sp; Since the moment Galan left for his Ambar Lenn, our lives had spiraled in a constant state of turmoil: the Scourge attack, my kidnapping, his struggles finding his footing with Jade, my struggles adapting to an entirely new life. How was I to adapt after what happened. No one spoke of it but—

  An agonizing darkness exploded inside my skull. Staggering forward, I rested my elbows on the rail and leaned forward. I breathed deeply as Jade had shown me.

  After a long moment, my world righted itself.

  A glance over my shoulder assured me Galan had not seen my episode. Good. He had enough to deal with. Deciding to take a moment to gather myself, I trudged off the patio and onto Castian’s grounds.

  I untied the lacings of my suede boots and slipped them off. I tucked them under a boxwood and strode barefoot across the lawn. Somehow, prancing on the lawn of the Fae Palace barefoot seem wickedly indecent.

  However, as the stress of the day continued to bombard, and with no stream in sight, social propriety took second place to making the world melt away. Scrunching my toes into the cool pile of the velvet grass, I raised my face to the warmth of the late afternoon sun and tried to focus.

  How could things go so horribly awry in such a short period? This morning, Jade and I sipped tea and discussed the mural to be painted on the nursery walls.

  Now? Oh, gods, what now?

  I was jostled out of my commiseration, inundated by nuzzling noses and inquiring glances. The wide round eyes of Castian’s deer assess me. Dozens of the inquisitive beasts had gathered and surrounded me. I stopped strolling and scanned the lawn again.

  “Who keeps your grass so pristine, little ones?” Ears flickered and tails twitched as if in answer. “Is there a Brownie dedicated to the removal of skat from godly grounds?”

  An assertive doe with one droopy ear seemed intent on searching my palms and pockets. Huge round eyes blinked as she nudged her insistence.

  I widened my stance to keep from being toppled over. “Apologies. I have nothing for you, milady.”

  Her fellow grazers joined the prodding, their curiosity transforming to insistence. Recognizing my time to leave, I slipped through an iron gate dividing the threshold between lawns and rose garden, and left the herd behind.