by Emma Holly
“If the palace is that big white sprawl with the golden domes, wild horses couldn’t keep me out. I can’t wait to see inside.”
“Good,” Iksander said, amused. “My errand might be tricky. I’d be grateful to have you there.”
“What is it you need to do?” Connor asked as they began to walk together.
“Rejoin my statue double. The four of us who escaped the curse left a piece of our spirit behind ourselves. That way, any enemy who found our stone forms would assume we were trapped and harmless—the same as everyone. From what Arcadius said, my double woke somewhat enfeebled.”
“Hm,” Connor said, interested but apparently not finding any of this too strange.
They were interrupted before Georgie could ask questions.
“Your Majesty!” someone hailed. “Please allow me to transport your illustrious self and friends!”
“Ah,” Iksander said. “My incognito status must have expired.” Chagrin aside, he inclined his head to the djinni on the flying carpet that had landed beside them. “You honor us. We’d be grateful for a lift up the hill.”
The driver chattered excitedly the whole way. His wife would never believe the passenger he’d picked up! Was the sultan familiar with recent goings on? The driver was so thankful Iksander had returned! Praise God their city had clever leaders! Despite the awful empress’s efforts, hardly anyone had died. They’d be back on their feet in no time, he was convinced. Wasn’t it odd, though, how that Elyse woman the guardians planned to marry fascinated young people? Probably the human was tolerable. The driver heard she’d uncovered a criminal ring that was abducting orphaned teenagers. His daughters were obsessed with her. Kept asking if he’d carried her as a fare.
“As if the palace doesn’t have its own drivers! Girls get their fantasies, though, don’t they?”
“I suppose they do,” Iksander said, glancing back to wink at Connor and Georgie. They, apparently, were passing for members of his race. “I do think it’s nice when young people keep open minds.”
“Certainly,” said the driver. “Though my girls’ minds are so open sometimes their brains smoke out.”
He set them down in a grassy courtyard within the palace walls. A quartet of guards ran out from the colonnade that surrounded it. Iksander gestured to them that the unofficial driver’s presence didn’t pose a security risk.
“Sir!” one of the younger soldiers blurted. “What happened to your hair?”
His superior clouted him as Iksander laughed. “Forgive me for not speaking to you now,” he said. “I promise I’ll address that oversight tomorrow.”
The soldiers bowed with disciplined synchrony.
Wow, Georgie thought. Iksander really is the top banana here.
He led them into a residence so opulent her senses struggled to take it in. Every ceiling was a twinkling gem-studded vault, every corridor gleaming with polished stone. The arches alone presented the most fanciful yet harmonious Ottomanic vision she could have imagined. Unlike the regents’ fortress, which couldn’t escape its own darkness, here every beauty was light-filled and fairylike.
The mosaics were spun sugar for her astounded eyes.
“I feel like I’ve walked into the Arabian Nights,” she murmured.
“That’s because you have,” Connor laughed.
“True!” she said and chuckled along with him.
Iksander smiled indulgently. “If you’d like to continue, the treasure vault is a couple floors down the next stairway.”
“A treasure vault!” she exclaimed, practically skipping after him.
At the stairwell’s final door, he paused. His hand rested on the knob without turning it.
“Sorry,” he said. “Just remembering how terrified I was the last time I came down here.” He shook his head. “Running for my life and everyone else’s too.”
“You made it through that challenge,” Connor reminded. “Whatever you face now, you’ll never doubt yourself as badly as you did then.”
Iksander’s beautiful eyes tilted with his smile. “You do have a knack for saying the right thing.”
When he turned the knob, they walked through together.
Halfway down the narrow hall, a door like a bank vault’s hung open. Its pure gold construction—and never mind the diamonds encrusting it—guaranteed it couldn’t be overlooked. Their footsteps must have alerted whoever was inside. A young dark-haired djinni stepped into the corridor. Like most of Iksander’s kind, he seemed handsome to Georgie. Honey-gold eyes gave his sharp-featured, narrow face extra charisma.
His expression remained austere until he recognized who approached.
“Your Majesty!” he exclaimed, breaking into a wide bright grin.
“Joseph,” the sultan returned warmly. He clasped the young man’s shoulders and kissed his cheeks in turn. “How good it is to see you again!”
An overflow of emotion prevented the djinni from speaking.
Iksander laughed and patted him. “I hear you’ve been playing nanny to the me I left behind.”
“Sir,” Joseph said, embarrassed. “I wouldn’t call it—“
“Oh, never mind explaining. We’ll see for ourselves, shall we?”
Since he said “we,” Georgie and Connor trailed after him into the treasure room.
The vault was large and octagonal, the shelves that lined it piled with precious objects too numerous to count. Admiring them beyond a glimpse was impossible. A man who looked exactly like Iksander slumped dejectedly on a small velvet stool. He hadn’t glanced up at their entrance.
He seemed to be talking to himself.
“Why should I try to help the city?” he said as if continuing a conversation nothing could interrupt. “I’ll only mess things up. I’m not even a whole person. Arcadius and the others are better off without me.”
Joseph went to the double and rubbed his bowed shoulder. “Your Majesty, see who’s come to make you feel better.”
“I don’t deserve to feel better. I only let people down.”
“Good Lord,” Iksander burst out. “Am I really that mopey?”
“Of course you’re not,” Joseph said. “This version of you isn’t a complete copy. I’m only concerned that reincorporating him might depress your outlook. You may have, inadvertently, left the less confident part of your consciousness behind.”
Iksander’s snort startled the young djinni. “I’m pretty sure I brought my insecurities along. They chafed me more than once in the course of our adventures. I’m not afraid to let this . . . facet of my character join up with me again.”
His words caused the doppelganger to look up. “You’re me. The me who escaped through the portal.”
“That’s right. I did better than we expected. I held together when I had to, dug in, made new friends—ended the curse, if that interests you.”
The copy Iksander pursed his lips. “You ended it.”
“With help and stubbornness.”
The copy smiled faintly. “We are stubborn.”
“Very. Also strong enough to love again.”
The copy’s gaze sharpened. He seemed to notice Georgie and Connor for the first time. If them being male and female surprised him, it didn’t show. Georgie’s nape tightened at his perusal—and at the feelings Iksander had expressed. “You love those two?”
“I have that honor. They’re true and brave and extremely interesting.”
Evidently, the copy understood what this was code for. “You’re trying to seduce me to rejoin you.”
“We belong together. Good and bad. Strong and weak. That’s the nature of every created being.”
“The girl looks like . . .”
Iksander shook his head. “That isn’t why she calls to me. She’s her own unique self. I respect her. And him. They’re one of a kind in too many ways to count.”
The copy stared at him as if peering into his soul. As he did, he sat straighter, his resemblance to Iksander increasing.
“Very well,” he finall
y decided. “You are who I want to be. I agree we should reunite.”
No ritual was required. Iksander’s double turned not to smoke but to a shimmer of sunny light that flashed over and into him.
Whole now, Iksander stepped back to catch his balance.
“Are you all right, sir?” Joseph asked.
Iksander touched his own chest. “Perfectly. I don’t actually feel different.” He smiled at Georgie and Iksander. “Falling for the pair of you was more of an adjustment.”
His hand had flattened on his heart. Georgie moved to him and laid her own over it. Her words came out throatily. “I believe I know what Connor feels, but I’ll speak for myself. I love you too. Meeting you was one of the top two lucky breaks in my life.”
“Top two, eh?” he repeated humorously. His eyes were shining, the spirit behind them as dear to her as Connor’s.
“I love everyone,” Connor declared, “but you two especially.”
Iksander laughed softly. “I’ll take that, my winged friend, and count myself as fortunate as Georgie.”
CONNOR WAS AN EBULLIENT being. Despite his naturally high spirits, his joy at dinner that night surpassed any he remembered. He loved Iksander, he loved Georgie, and now they loved each other. Beyond that, he loved the city guardian’s former quarters and the stories the sultan’s friends had told. The group who’d reunited was cozy: the commanders Arcadius and Cade, their human fiancé Elyse, plus the magician who’d guarded Iksander’s double in the vault.
Perhaps because Arcadius was a soldier, his dining room wasn’t as overwhelming as other parts of the royal abode. It was nice, of course. Djinn didn’t do unadorned. Tapestries draped the walls, the magic battles they portrayed vivid and intriguing. The ceiling was high and coffered, the long table quartersawn white oak. Remembering their days in salvage, he and Georgie had stroked it when they sat down. Comfort definitely reigned in the dining chairs, which were handsome but broken in. The antique china plates were a little chipped, the food delicious and plentiful. Connor had to watch himself with the wine.
Djinn, he gathered, liked their drink strong and rich.
Most pleasing of all were the new people. Their quick minds and passionate hearts drew him irresistibly. He found the two commanders interestingly different—like younger and older brothers rather than clones of the same person. Their human was very pretty with her black curly hair and her sharp green eyes. She was down to earth. A little shy but sneakily funny. To his great satisfaction, she and Georgie were eyeing each other like potential future friends. Joseph the Magician was most interested in him. The sorcerer had figured out Connor’s nature even before Iksander revealed it.
Connor could tell he viewed it warily.
“I hope you’ll get over your uneasiness,” he said. “I know djinn and angels have a fraught history, but I’m not the same sort of angel as when I started out—which isn’t to say my kind are your enemies. Becoming incarnate simply allowed me to experience preferences. At this point, I doubt I’m more different from you than Elyse or Georgie is.”
“Don’t worry about us,” Cade said. The younger of the commanders lounged with one arm slung along the back of Elyse’s chair. She sat between her two fiancées, her half-drunk wine cradled to her chest. One of her hands, Connor saw, rubbed the original Arcadius’s thigh. “We’ve learned to appreciate diversity.”
“The question is,” Arcadius said, “would you prefer to conceal your origins from the populace at large? That controversy might be better avoided for the time being.”
Connor considered whether the deception would bother him.
“I wouldn’t mind being treated like a normal djinni,” he decided. “If you think I can pass for one.”
“You almost can,” Joseph said. “You eyes . . .” He shook himself. “They really are a glimpse of heaven.”
“I try not to abuse my power,” Connor said, “but you djinn do get sucked in.”
Iksander laughed underneath his breath. When their gazes connected, Connor’s body warmed faster than the wine could account for. Oh, he was looking forward to further exploring the connection between the three of them. Pictures rolled through his mind of their trio finding new ways to have fun in bed. The arousal this stirred made him shift in his chair. Seated beside him, Georgie touched the small of his back, her fingernails scratching shiveringly across it.
He guessed his other lover knew why he was squirming.
“So,” Iksander said, pausing to clear his throat. “I guess we’ll keep the fact that you’re an angel under wraps for now. We have enough developments for our people to absorb.”
“You mean explaining how their sultan turned saboteur?” This jest came from Commander Cade.
“Georgie is responsible for that. I followed her lead like a good soldier.”
Elyse set down her delicate crystal goblet to lean toward Iksander. “What will happen to Luna’s city without their power plant? I know it produced a monster, but they’ll need some sort of energy.”
“I expect they’ll try to bring the former plant back on line. Hopefully, their subjects will have a greater say in how the system’s managed. And, who knows, after the debacle Georgie set in motion, the regents might not last until their investiture. Without an endless supply of magic to buy the courtiers’ silence, the truth could get out. Or the Smoke Chamber could name someone else to rule. In the end, a more responsible faction might topple Henri and Eleanor.”
“Let us pray that happens,” Arcadius said. “Peace between our people would be agreeable.”
“Amen,” Connor agreed. He laughed at the startled looks this drew. You’d have thought he were uttering a curse. He supposed it would take a while before they truly relaxed with an angel in their midst.
They’d learn Connor’s prayers were the last things that would harm them.
“I’ll drink to that,” Cade said, ending the awkward pause by lifting his glass in toast.
“And to love,” Elyse added, “wherever we find it.”
“To Philip,” Joseph finished. “May our last, lost friend return safely.”
They clinked crystal rims and sipped. Connor admired the way Elyse’s guardians kissed her flushed cheeks from either side. Suddenly, the place felt like home to him—no matter how far they were from that.
Home is where I have beings to love, he thought. That had been his truth from the beginning.
Iksander wagged his head. “I still can’t believe I screwed up our arrival date.”
“Maybe you didn’t,” Georgie said. “Maybe today was the perfect time. If you’d returned before your friends, who knows if Elyse and the Arcadiuses would have saved those young people?”
“Yes,” Elyse agreed, mischief lighting her pretty eyes. “I like being a heroine. Georgie will too. We humans are practically rock stars here these days.”
“Don’t forget threesomes,” Cade interjected. “I won’t claim they’re universally accepted, but at least we broke the ice.”
“Fine,” Iksander surrendered. “I defer to your judgment on my screwup.”
Arcadius sat back thoughtfully in his chair, his hand gently rubbing Elyse’s shoulder. “You’ve changed. I think I like this more humble you.”
Arcadius was more deadpan than this double. Connor couldn’t tell if he were joking.
“The ‘more humble’ me is obliged,” Iksander drawled. “Just for that, I won’t deputize you to handle my mother tomorrow.”
“The valide sultana has bloomed in your absence,” Elyse informed him, her teasing unconcealed. “You might find her too busy to be handled. You certainly won’t find her much in the harem. With the challenges the city faced and half your officials trapped in stone, it seemed wise to give her a job or two.”
“Or two?” Iksander repeated, rubbing his jaw in shock.
“She’s good at taking charge. I’m not sure you’ll wrest those particular duties back.”
“You have a mother!” Connor exclaimed happily. “I haven’t met on
e of those before—not as a lover anyway. That will be exciting.”
“Oh God,” Iksander said, his sun-kissed skin paling.
Elyse found this hilarious. Once she’d recovered her breath from laughing, she turned to Connor and Georgie. “Don’t worry. The sultana is a likeable harridan. And a sucker for affection.”
“We can do affection. Georgie and I mostly liked Luna.”
“I guess we did,” Georgie said. Though she smiled at Connor, her eyes misted. He suspected she was remembering her role in Luna’s death. “For a while anyway.”
“I guess that’s a story for another night,” Elyse said kindly. “You two are planning to stay, aren’t you?”
Connor wondered that as well. Georgie turned to Iksander. Their gazes communicated, probably something to do with their disagreement over the empress’s punishment.
I don’t want to leave, Connor thought. I want you to forgive him.
He didn’t say so aloud. Georgie’s fate was hers to choose without pressure. She’d admitted she loved Iksander. That would count in her decision.
“That depends,” she said, causing him and Iksander to brace slightly, “on how long your glorious sultan wants us around.”
Iksander’s smile spread like honey across his handsome face. “In that case, you and Connor will be here a long, long time.”
Like paranormal romance? Have a peek at the opening for Hidden Talents, the start of my HIDDEN world stories.
WEREWOLF COP ADAM PROTECTS and serves the supes in Resurrection—but that’s not all. He also looks out for unsuspecting human Talents who wander in from Outside.
Telekinetic Ari is just such a wanderer. She’s hot on the trail of a crime boss who wants to exploit her gift for his own evil ends, a mission that puts her on a collision course with the hottest cop in the RPD.
Adam wants the crime boss too, but mostly he wants Ari. She’s the mate he’s yearned for all his life . . . though getting a former street kid into bed with the Law could be his toughest case to date.