Dark Cotillion (First in the Brenna Strachan Series)

by Hadena James

  Of course, like any rule, there were exceptions and I had four of them. I could use and manipulate the power of the Overlords that were bound to me. I could share magic between them or take it from them and make it my own. I could channel it or force it into other things, but we were keeping that a secret.

  “Now, out of bed, lazy bones,” my mother yanked the covers from the bed and put a dress in their place. I raised an eyebrow at it.

  “It will look fine on you,” she told me, noting my disapproval. “Hurry up, we have the President coming and the King of England has RSVP'ed. In fact, since the whole incident with Chiron, I’ve had thousands of RSVPs. I have no idea if we have enough food for all of them. Some of them can really eat. Plus, there are Chimeras on the lawn. Gregorian insists on doing security.”

  “Let him,” I told her, standing up and trying to wiggle into the dress from hell. I managed but felt very exposed. My shoulders were bare, but the dress had a collar. It clung to all the right spots and all the wrong spots, in my opinion. It was almost black. In reality, it was such a dark blue that unless you were really looking at it, it did look black. I frowned at her. There was no back. Just a collar at the top that hooked closed and material that suddenly formed into a skirt just above the waist. I wasn’t sure whether I looked like a stripper, a hooker or something worse. My mother seemed to think I looked excellent. She called down the hall and a woman appeared with a case. She opened it to reveal make-up and hair stuff.

  “I have horns, you just can’t see them,” I warned her as she went to touch my hair.

  “Not a problem, do you want to hide them?” She asked.

  “Yes,” I sat down in a chair. She began doing complicated things to my hair. Sometimes it hurt and sometimes it just felt weird. Within twenty minutes, she announced she was through with my hair and began trying to swipe on make-up. I frowned at her as she barked instructions on what to do with different parts of my face. She wiped it all off and started again, this time with different colors. I took a deep breath to keep from trying to turn her into a newt. I was positive I couldn’t do it, but I really wanted to.

  “Perfect,” she purred as she finished torturing me. My mother checked a clock.

  “Ten minutes to go,” she announced. The woman left. My mother continued to beam at me. “You look stunning.”

  “I feel like a hooker,” I responded.

  “Call girl sounds so much better,” she chided me. “And you don’t, you just think you do. I do have some wonderful shoes for you.”

  “Oh great,” I groaned. My mother is one of those women that can wear six-inch stilettos all day long and never think about it. I have trouble wearing anything with a heel.

  She brought out a pair of boots that matched the dress. They were knee high riding boots without a heel. I nodded approval as I slipped them on and zipped them up.

  “Now, I really do look like a hooker,” I said admiring the shoes.

  “Call girl and no, you don’t.” She kissed me. “I imagine the guests are all here, we’ll wait a few more minutes.”

  “Making an entrance?” I asked.

  “Of course, we have Kings, Presidents, Prime Ministers, and Overlords downstairs. It is always good to make an entrance with that much power in a room, because it puts them off their game.”

  “Really? I just thought it made them cranky because they were too important to stand around waiting.” I quipped back at her.

  “Bren,” my father stepped into the room, “wow, you look stunning.”

  “Thanks, I feel like a hooker.” I gave him a hug.

  “I can’t believe you are all grown up,” he gazed at me with tears in his eyes.

  “Don’t cry. If you cry, I’ll cry, and then the torturer will have to come fix my make-up.” I warned him. “I’ll make her put it on you as well.”

  “Still the tough girl,” Lucifer gave a deep sigh, “but always my little girl.”

  “Dad.” I didn’t know what else to say.

  “I hate every time one of my children go through the Maturing,” he confessed.

  “So do I,” my mother grinned. “You start talking about wanting more children.”

  “More children would be nice, sometime in the future.” Lucifer took hold of my mother’s hand. “Hard to believe another one has grown up.”

  “Come on, Luc,” my mother took him from the room. “She needs an escort and that isn’t you.”

  “Who is escorting her?” My father looked at her.

  “Whichever of the Overlords won the card game.” My mother shrugged. “Last time I heard, Fenrir was winning.”

  “They are playing cards to see which one is going to escort me downstairs? Sort of lame,” I squinted at my parents.

  “Yes it is,” Uncle Levi walked in, “which is why I am going to escort you.”

  “Oh man, it’s prom all over again,” I sighed and stood up. I didn’t have a date to prom. My parents had still insisted I go, so they called Uncle Levi to escort me. He was my date that night. It had been creepy and weird. If I hadn’t been a complete social pariah before, I had been after that night. Luckily, high school ended the next week.

  “This is far less weird and more acceptable than prom,” Levi held out his arm. “We all drew lots to see who got the honor.”

  “And that’s more acceptable than playing cards?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

  “They were playing poker, have been for the last twenty hours. Yes, drawing lots was more appropriate.”

  “Great, let’s get the fiasco started.” I took his arm.

  “With pleasure.” Leviathan followed my parents from the room, me on his arm. I felt like I had three heads when I got to the bottom of the staircase. Everyone turned to look at me. I bit my lip.

  “I think I liked fighting Cerebus better,” I whispered to Levi.

  “It won’t be that bad.” He swept me into the room and the crowd swallowed me.

  Twelve hours later, I had finally found a chair. My feet hurt from dancing. My stomach ached from eating all the food. My head hurt from talking to everyone under the sun. I wanted nothing more than curl into a ball and fall asleep. Of course, that wasn’t going to happen. There were still presents to open and people were still milling around.

  “Holding up?” Anubis said from behind me. It was the first time I’d talked to him all night. The four had been avoiding me as if I had plague. Maybe I did.

  “Just barely,” I admitted.

  “Levi told me that you were having flashbacks to prom.”

  “Well, he escorted me to prom and now this… so yeah, maybe a little.” I responded. “And I’m tired of dancing and being nice to people.”

  “Remember what else happened at prom?”

  “Look, I don’t remember much about prom. Levi went with me. That’s about it.”

  “You ended up at my house, drunk out of your skull, uncle in tow.” Anubis grinned at me.

  “Are you suggesting I ditch my party and go get drunk?” I frowned at him.

  “Yep, pretty much.” Anubis handed me a glass of amber liquid. I took a sip. The Good Stuff, my father’s private stock.

  “How many bottles of this stuff does he have?”

  “Of his personal stash? Oh, 12 thousand or so, and it is always expanding. He rarely shares with anyone outside of family and Overlords.” He took a sip out of his glass.

  “It’s nice to be privileged.” I grinned.

  “Yes, yes it is.” Anubis stood up and held his hand out to me. “And we don’t have to go anywhere to get drunk. The others, including Lucifer, have already started in his study.”

  “Most excellent,” I stood up and followed him.

  All the Overlords were gathered in my father’s study. Included with them were the King of England, the Prime Minister of Canada, and the President of the United States, as well as my immediate family, even Daniel, who had a glass of juice.

  “Ah, my lovely,” Fenrir got up and crossed the room to me. “Have you been int
roduced to everyone?”

  “Yes, and you have a huge head start on me.” I told him.

  “Yes, I do.” He grinned and went back to his seat. It had taken nearly a week for him to take Lycan form again, but he had made peace with his inner wolf.

  “When do you start work again?” Lucifer asked.

  “In a week, she will need that much time to open all those presents that seem to fill the Council Chamber,” Anubis answered for me.

  “I’ve hired someone to write thank you notes.” My mother was sipping on her glass. It was half filled with red wine.

  “That’s useful,” I told her. I went and sat down on the edge of my father’s desk. This was normally a huge no-no. The desk was older than the country of England. However, since my mother was sitting on it, I guessed I would also be allowed.

  “Well, it will be nice to have you guys back at work,” President Robert Philips told me. “The police community has noticed your absence, particularly during the time when you were needed most because of the problems created by your Maturing.”

  “Nasty business,” the King of England said, “nasty business. But tonight is not about those things.”

  “No, no it isn’t.” Lucifer stood up. “Brenna Strachan, you have another oath to take.”

  “I took the Demonnation Oath,” I gave him a confused look.

  “Yes, but now you take the Oath of Protection,” the President responded. “You see, the reason this whole arrangement works out is because we are all sworn to protect one another. You have a double dose and therefore, a stronger duty. Your status as both a Demon Lieutenant and a Great House Witch means that you have more to gain and more to lose.”

  “No, Robert, let me explain,” King Linus interrupted. “As Humans, we are at the whims and mercies of the Elders. This business with the Maturing is just one example. So, a small group of Elders swears an oath to protect Humanity even if it means their own death. What you did with the Centaurian Overlord might have been a matter of life and death for you, but it was also life and death for us Humans. You earned the right to join the club.”

  “Club?” I frowned at him. “Okay, what am I swearing and to whom and etc?”

  “You are swearing to lay down your life to protect and preserve life on Earth. Not just Human life, but all life,” King Linus replied.

  “That is sort of innate in Demons,” I pointed out.

  “True,” my father responded, “but oaths forged in blood and magic hold more weight than just innate feelings.”

  “Ah, gotcha,” I nodded once.

  “Ready?” President Philips asked.

  “Sure.” I sat my glass down on a coaster and stood up.

  “Repeat after me, I, Brenna Strachan, Demon and Witch vow to protect life on Earth even if I must exchange my own life in return.”

  I repeated the words. Magnus and my mother began chanting something strange, King Linus slit my wrist and drained some blood into a cup.

  “I don’t have to drink that, do I?” I frowned at the cup.

  “No,” King Linus laughed and tossed it into the fireplace. It burst into flames. Something tugged at the inside of me as the flames danced. I was bound to the oath with blood and magic. It was an interesting sensation.

  “All done,” Prime Minister Sevier told me. He raised his glass and toasted to our continued partnerships. I drained my glass to the toast and Gabriel refilled it from an antique looking bottle.

  “Now then, I have to go, but the rest of you can stay, drink heavily and enjoy yourselves enough for me.” President Philips stood to leave.

  “I’m afraid I need to go as well,” King Linus echoed. Prime Minister Sevier issued the same. They began to shake hands with everyone.

  “The decay has begun, forged in blood and bound by magic.” Daniel suddenly began to speak. His eyes were rolled into the back of his head. “Death will come. War will come. Defeating Chiron was just the beginning. More conspirators lurk in the shadows, waiting to rise up. Two more will betray. One has begun tonight. So many Elders died because Brenna Strachan lived. They have blinders on to Chiron’s fear. They do not believe that more would have died if she had. Three Overlords will be replaced, one has already been replaced, and one will be replaced during a time of peace, one during the time of War.”

  Daniel paused. We all waited with bated breath. He did not disappoint.

  “War unlike any other will come to the world. The Four Horsemen will come to Earth. They are not Divine. They are not God’s will. They are unnatural, created by the evil that lurks in the hearts of Humans and Elders. They will wear masks; they will seem to be alive. The first to rise from the dead will be The Great Divider and he will be The Conqueror. The second will be The Wicked Temptress and she will become the embodiment of War. The third will be The Judge and he will bring with him Greed and Famine. The fourth will be The Tenth Brother and he will be Death. Together they will create a group of followers and together they will bring about the Great War. If they can be discovered to be false before they take positions of power, war can be prevented. If not, then war will be inevitable and only Humans and Elders working together can bring peace back to Earth. There are to be nine signs before the first will rise, three have happened. Six more will come.”

  He fell silent again. Again, we all waited in absolute silence. His eyes went back to normal and he grinned at us.

  “You want to know the signs,” he gave me a look.

  “No,” I frowned at him, “I think I know the three that have happened.”

  “Really?” Anubis looked at me.

  “Yes, really.” I sighed and continued to stare at Daniel. “If I’m correct, prophet, will you tell me?”

  “Yes,” he nodded to me.

  “One, the Binding, two, the Hanged Man materializing and three, Killing Chiron.”

  “Close,” Daniel responded, “You got two of the three.”

  “The Binding isn’t a sign,” Lucifer said to me, “number one is wrong.”

  “Correct. Number two and three are correct, but number one is wrong,” Daniel said in a singsong voice.

  “Is it important to know the three signs?” President Philips asked.

  “Yes, it may provide clues to the other signs,” Lucifer answered.

  “The Council Chamber,” Pendragon said. “Our vote in the Council Chamber to let Brenna live, afterwards, Daniel came in and revealed he was a True Prophet. That was the first sign.”

  “Very good, Pendragon,” Daniel turned to look at him, “that was the first sign. The Revelation of the Prophet.”

  “If Revelation of the Prophet is the first sign, death of the prophet will be the last,” Fenrir seemed to have sobered up considerably.

  “Yes, Fenrir, Death of the Prophet is the last,” Daniel answered.

  “Fifteen years,” I frowned.

  “No,” Daniel corrected me, “I will not die at the Maturing.”

  “Good to know,” I looked at him, “I think.”

  “Can you reveal anything else about the signs?” Lucifer asked.

  “I can only say them after they have been spoken aloud,” Daniel replied.

  “So, we have 4 of the 9 figured out.” Anubis looked at me. “Any suggestions?”

  “I know less about prophecy than anyone in this room. Do we know who the Horsemen are? I mean, of course, we know who the fourth is, but what about the other three?”

  “Yes,” Lucifer sighed. “The Great Divider is an Elder that once preached of separation between Humans and Elders. His name was Elijah. He was an Angel.”

  “I killed him after Anubis was cursed,” Gabriel told me. “He played a huge role in dividing mankind from Elders.”

  “The False Prophet isn’t dead yet,” Pendragon said. “Christ has been returned to the prison after the battle with Chiron.”

  “And my mate is the Wicked Temptress,” Anubis answered. “Bitch is going to come back to life, how irritating.”

  “Then the death of Christ is one of the si
gns,” my mother told us.

  “Yes,” Daniel nodded.

  “5 of the 9, we are making progress,” Lucifer answered. “We know who the Horsemen are and over half the signs.”

  “We have Revelation, Manifestation of Death, Death of an Overlord, Death of Christ, Death of the Prophet,” Pendragon looked at Lucifer, “I see a pattern.”

  “They all involve Death or the Prophet,” Lucifer responded.

  “The Prophet.” I looked at Daniel, “one of the signs is that the Prophet will survive Maturing. His prophecy won’t be finished by then.”

  “Good, Demon,” Daniel answered, “you have six.”

  “Death of an Overlord during a time of peace,” Fenrir said loudly. “Too easy, I think.”

  “Seven,” Daniel responded.

  “Why the Four Horsemen?” Gabriel looked at us. “That’s pretty heavy into Christian theology. We’ve already proven Angels and Demons are not what is written in the Bible, so why are the Four Horsemen in there?”

  “Really?” Lucifer gave him a look. “Just because the Bible was compiled by a bunch of fruitcakes doesn’t mean there wasn’t some prophecy in it. Some of it has already come true.”

  “Wait.” I closed my eyes and tried to remember my days in Catholic Church. “Okay, if parts of the Bible are true, the Four Horsemen are a part of the breaking of the Seals. There were only seven seals. One was the raising of the dead.”

  “Zombies can be made all the time,” Gabriel responded.

  “Zombies yes, but reanimated corpses are not the same as a resurrected soul,” my mother informed him. “The Horsemen are all resurrected souls, why not the Dead that happens with the seals?”

  “Eight, Witch, although I do not think you actually grasp the concept.”

  “Probably not,” my mother agreed. I agreed with her silently. I didn’t have a clue what it meant.