Dark Queen’s Quest

by I. T. Lucas

  “What about housekeeping?” Yamanu asked.

  “There is no need.” Alena waved a hand. ”Ovidu can take care of it. I don’t want to have to put on makeup when I’m here. It’s really uncomfortable.”

  “Then it’s settled.” Ragnar turned to the butler. “I’ll show you where the laundry facilities are, and where you can get fresh supplies.”

  “Thank you, master.” Ovidu bowed.

  “What about room service?” Alena asked.

  “Ovidu can come down to the kitchen and pick it up. Anything else?”

  Alena shook her head. “I think we are good. I just wonder how long we are going to stay here. I don’t intend for this to be a permanent move.”

  “It depends on your mother,” Yamanu said. “It’s not over until she says it is.”

  Alena sighed. “Or until we flush Kalugal out. But I doubt that we will. I’m only doing this because it’s so important to my mother.”

  9

  Mey

  “Are you sure that you are not forgetting something?” Mey asked.

  Jin’s former roommate shook her head. “Jin was very tightlipped about that job.”

  “Think back. Perhaps you overheard her talking on the phone with someone about it?”

  “Nope. She might have gotten text messages or emails, though. If you know her email login, you can check.”

  “I don’t.”

  Gabi shrugged. “Let me get that box for you.” She pulled it out from under the bed. “Jin said that everything in it belongs to you. Clothes that she borrowed and forgot to return.” She glanced at her watch. “I really need to run.”

  Mey smiled. “Forgot is the wrong verb, but never mind. Do you mind if I stay here and go over what’s in it? I don’t want to schlep the whole thing to my place. I’ll only take the things I really want back.” She pulled out a designer blouse and fluffed it out. “Like this one. Do you want it? Because it’s not really my style.”

  Mey laid it out on the bed so Gabrielle could get a better look. “I often get to keep the things I model, but I don’t always like them.”

  The truth was that it was one of her favorites, but given how Gabrielle was salivating over it, the blouse was just the right incentive for the girl to let Mey stay and sift through the box, hoping she would find more things she didn’t want.

  “I guess it’s okay. Just lock things up before you leave. Turn the little knob and slam the door. It will lock it.”

  “I will. And thank you for letting me stay.”

  “No problem. Have fun sifting.”

  When Gabrielle left, Mey did exactly what she’d said she would, sifting through the box, but not to choose what she wanted to take. She was searching for clues. Maybe Jin had left something for her in there? Some breadcrumbs she could follow?

  Except she found no surprises. There were no hidden notes tucked into pockets of pants or under the insoles of shoes. And the box itself had nothing other than “For Mey” written on it. She’d even gone as far as fingering the seams and hems, hoping against hope that Jin had sewn a message into one of the garments.

  There was nothing. Evidently, Jin had left of her own volition, and she’d felt no need to leave hidden messages for her sister.

  There was one more thing Mey could do, and it was the main reason she wanted to stay alone in the room.

  Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Mey closed her eyes and started her slow breathing. For her strange past-viewing ability to work, she had to enter a meditative state. The deeper she could go, the better she could witness the echoes of past events.

  It was a finicky thing, which sometimes worked and most often didn’t. She’d learned from experience that strong emotions left a clearer imprint on the space they’d been felt in, provided that it was enclosed and not too big. It was as if the walls absorbed the echoes of those feelings, saving the imprint they had left and revealing them later to those with the ability to tune into that particular frequency.

  Like Mey.

  Not that she knew of anyone else who could do that. Jin had a special talent too, but it was both similar and different than Mey’s.

  Jin could remote view people. Not in the past or in the future, though, only in the present. For it to work, it was enough that she’d met the person once and touched him or her. But again, it didn’t work with everyone. Jin's mental tether probably had its own frequency too, and it resonated with some but not with others.

  When she did that to Mey, Mey felt as if someone was watching her and got goose bumps all over her arms. But she was the one exception. Others had no clue when Jin was doing it to them.

  As teenagers, they’d tested it on their parents and friends, but no one other than Mey had felt Jin’s mental spying.

  When they’d told their mom about it, she’d laughed it away, thinking that they were playing a game. Nevertheless, she’d warned them not to make up stories like that because people would think they were nuts.

  The truth was that it had been hard enough for two tall Asian girls to fit into their mostly Caucasian school without adding weirdness to the mix. So, they had talked it over and had decided to keep it a secret.

  They had sworn not to mention it to anyone again.

  Besides, even if anyone had believed their story, it would have made people wary of them. No one wanted to be spied on, and that was exactly what both abilities did. So even though what they could do was quite easy to prove, it was better not to. When they got older and realized how their talents could be exploited, the need for secrecy had become even more important.

  After long moments of deep breathing, Mey entered the necessary state and the walls started talking. The first echo was naturally the most recent one, and it was of Gabrielle and her boyfriend hooking up. Unfortunately, she couldn't press fast forward and had to suffer through the entire thing.

  The next echo was of Gabrielle crying over a bad grade, then another one of her with her boyfriend, and then finally she got to Jin’s last day in the dorm room.

  Sitting on the bed with her phone clutched in her hand, she was talking with Mitch on Skype, so Mey could hear his side of the conversation as well.

  “Don’t say things you don’t mean. You are not going to wait for me.”

  “Yes, I am. I love you, pumpkin.”

  Ugh, what kind of a guy called his girlfriend pumpkin?

  Jin sighed and a tear slid down her cheek. “You think that you do. But I know you. You can’t be alone. The moment I’m gone, you are going to replace me with someone else. I don’t want to think about it while I’m away. My new job is going to be stressful enough. Let's just make it a clean cut and part as friends. Can you do that for me?”

  There was a moment of silence, and then Mitch sighed. “I’m going to miss you.”

  “Me too. But it’s for the best. I want to remember the fun times we had together.”

  “We had a lot of fun. That’s why this is so hard.”

  Jin chuckled. “We are only twenty-two, Mitch. There is still plenty of fun in our future, just with different people.”

  Mey listened patiently to the back and forth until the final goodbyes had been said, and then Jin disconnected the call, hung her head, and let the tears flow.

  It was obvious that it had been difficult for her to break up with Mitch. Why had she done it? Was it really because of the reasons she’d given him?

  She’d been right, of course, as Mey could attest. The guy hadn’t wasted a moment to try to hook up with the sister of the girl he had claimed to love.

  “I had to do that,” Jin murmured to herself. “I don’t know when I’ll be back, and Mitch is not the kind of guy who will wait around.” She took in a shuddering breath. “This is worth the sacrifice.” She chuckled sadly. “Not that Mitch was such a big one. But we did have fun together.” She reached for a box of tissue and blew her nose into one. “There will be others. Hopefully, who are more like me.”

  The vision wavered and then dissipated.

&nb
sp; Mey opened her eyes and frowned. “Others who are more like me?” What had she meant by that?

  In the back of Mey’s mind, warning bells started ringing, but she didn’t want to listen to them. It was probably just a flare of paranoia.

  This had nothing to do with Jin’s remote spying ability.

  It couldn’t have.

  They had talked about how dangerous revealing it would be for them, and how crucially important it was to keep their abilities hidden. Unscrupulous people of all nationalities and interests would love to get their hands on what she and Jin could do.

  10

  Yamanu

  “Our appointment was for half an hour ago,” Arwel said quietly.

  “Patience, my friend.” Yamanu crossed his legs. “We are not in a hurry.”

  The truth was that he didn’t mind waiting for the modeling agency’s owner to be done with her previous appointment. The eye candy milling around was quite entertaining. Too bad that it was probably illegal to even look at some of those girls.

  The one sitting across from them and laughing at something on her phone couldn’t be more than sixteen. She was tall and leggy, and with makeup she probably looked older. But clean faced, she definitely looked illegal. Not that he was even thinking in that direction, and thankfully, he felt no stirring in his loins.

  But being celibate didn’t mean that he was blind, and a guy could still appreciate beauty even if it was only to look and not touch.

  “Why do you keep your sunglasses on?” Alena whispered in his ear. “You look weird.”

  “I look even weirder without.” He let the glasses slide down his nose and peered at her over their rim.

  She waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. People will think you’re wearing contact lenses.”

  “They tend to stare.”

  “That’s because you are so freaking handsome. Embrace it.”

  “Is that supposed to be a pep talk?”

  “Do you need one?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. I’m conflicted.”

  “You are a strange guy, Yamanu.”

  “So I’ve been told.”

  Alena leaned back and looked at the agency owner’s door. “Do you think she is making us wait on purpose? Or does she have someone in there?”

  “She is on the phone,” Arwel said from Alena’s other side. “She’s frustrated and angry and harboring murderous thoughts.”

  Alena gaped at him. “You can feel all that?”

  He nodded.

  “No wonder you need to drink so much. Perhaps you shouldn't come with me everywhere. I can have either Uisdean or Ewan pretend to be my boyfriend, and you can hole up in the hotel’s accounting department.”

  A smile bloomed over Arwel’s face. “It’s in the basement. That’s why it is so peaceful there. Only accountants, but they also get frustrated from time to time. Just much less than others.”

  The girl across from them looked up from her phone and smiled at Arwel. “Are you here for an interview?” she asked.

  He looked at Alena, but the girl shook her head.

  “I meant you.” The girl smiled at Alena. “You’re obviously a pro.”

  “How do you know?” She used her fake Slovene accent.

  The girl waved a hand in her direction. “Your makeup, your hair, your clothes. It’s obvious that you have a stylist working for you. Your friends are both very handsome, but they lack that professional touch.”

  Yamanu smiled. Thank you, Amanda and Eva.

  “I’m Sondra,” the girl introduced herself.

  “I’m Arielle, and this is Arwel, my boyfriend, and Yamanu, my manager.”

  Sondra looked impressed. “How come I haven’t heard of you? You must be big to come here with your manager.”

  “I’m famous abroad. I’m new to the United States.”

  “Oh, I see. I’m not familiar with the scene over there.”

  Yamanu tuned out the conversation. The door to the waiting room kept opening and closing, with people popping in, leaving messages for the owner with her secretary, and then leaving.

  Other than their group, only Sondra and one slightly older model were sitting on the plush chairs and awaiting their turn to meet with the famous Dalia Cromwell.

  Everyone else seemed rushed as if this was a hospital emergency room that was dealing with life and death emergencies, and not a modeling agency that was about the more trivial side of life.

  But then the door opened once again, and Yamanu’s breath caught in his throat.

  Now, that was a lady.

  Gorgeous, tall, and at least twenty-four, the woman was a stunner, with natural poise and grace that wasn’t fake, and a kind, friendly expression that wasn’t haughty.

  Yamanu had never had a preferred type, but he had one now, and that was her.

  Her hair was as long and as dark as his, but she had red highlights added to hers. Big hazel eyes were framed by long lashes, but not the fake ones that every girl and her mother were gluing on these days. In fact, her face was clean of makeup, and she was dressed casually in a pair of faded jeans, a tight T-shirt, and ballet flats.

  He had the absurd notion that with him she could wear heels and still feel feminine and delicate. She would like that, wouldn't she?

  Tall girls liked tall guys.

  Smiling, she walked over to them. “Hi, I’m Mey.” She offered her hand to Alena. “Are you here for an interview?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Welcome aboard. This is an awesome agency to work for.” She bent down and whispered, “Dalia is known as the dragon lady, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. She takes bullshit from no one, and she really cares about her models. You’ll be in good hands.”

  “That’s good to know. I’m Arielle, and this is my boyfriend, Arwel, and my business manager, Yamanu.”

  Arwel remained seated as he shook Mey’s hand, but Yamanu felt inclined to show her proper respect and got up, then hurriedly removed his sunglasses and tucked them away in his pocket.

  “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma'am.” He took her hand gently in his much bigger one.

  As Mey looked up into his eyes, he heard her breath hitch, but she recovered quickly. “You should be a model, Mr. Yamanu. You’re much too handsome for a business manager.”

  “I’ve retired from the spotlight.” He winked. “But thank you for the compliment.”

  She laughed. “There is something to be said for early retirement. If I could afford it, I would gladly do so as well.”

  He was still holding on to her hand, but it seemed that neither of them wanted to end the contact. “And what would you have done in your retirement? Traveled the world?”

  She shook her head. “Been there done that. My sister and I want to start our own fashion label. But we need to save up for the seed money first.”

  Something in her tone had changed when she mentioned her sister. And the smile had left her beautiful hazel eyes.

  “I wish you all the luck in the world with your endeavor.”

  “Thank you.” Mey pulled her hand out of his and reached into her back pocket. “Here is my business card.” She handed it to Alena. “I’ve been with the agency for a while. If you need any advice or pointers, don’t hesitate to call me. I know how difficult it is to start in a new place.”

  “That’s most kind of you.” Alena opened her purse and put the card inside.

  “I mean it. It’s not the let’s-do-lunch kind of lip service. I hate it when people do that.”

  Yamanu really liked the girl. Poise, grace, delicate femininity, a face to die for, and a no-nonsense attitude that was even rarer than her exotic beauty.

  Damn. It would take hours of meditation to get her out of his head.

  Celibacy sucked, but he had no choice.

  Life was full of compromises. If Arwel could sacrifice his sanity for the clan without complaining, Yamanu could sacrifice his sex life and keep a lid on it as well.

  A
lena smiled. “I promise to call. I’m sure I can learn a lot from you.”

  11

  Mey

  When Mey had entered the reception room, she’d thought the three new people were models, each waiting for an interview with Dalia.

  They were all striking, but only Arielle looked the part. She was dressed to the nines, and her makeup had been done by a professional. It was too much for an interview, but maybe she’d come straight from a photo shoot.

  The woman didn’t strike Mey as one of those models who wore their public image everywhere they went. She seemed down to earth, and genuinely a nice person, which was why Mey had offered her help, and given her a business card.

  No, that was a lie. Or at least partially so. Mey really wanted to befriend the new girl, but more than that she wanted to see Arielle’s gorgeous business manager again.

  He was the most striking man she’d ever met, and she’d met quite a few throughout her modeling career. But it wasn’t only the physical perfection that had evoked such powerful yearning in her.

  Yamanu was special. She could sense it the moment he’d opened his mouth and uttered his first words. His voice was hypnotic, soothing. It promised safety and solace, but also wicked things that Mey was embarrassed to think about.

  And then he’d taken her hand, and when she’d looked into his pale blue eyes, what she’d sensed before had intensified tenfold.

  Like a teenager with her first crush, giddy with excitement because she’d found her perfect guy, Mey wanted him to be hers, but even more than that she wanted to be his.

  Totally out of character for her.

  Mey was strong, independent, and she had never wished to have a man to lean on. She didn’t need that. She’d always thought of relationships as partnerships between like-minded people. True love and the meshing of souls were unachievable ideals, and frankly, such a deep level of closeness seemed suffocating to her.