by Ana Calin
“Lord Protector, if I may speak freely.”
The only encouragement I give him is a hard stare.
“Word about the girl has spread like wildfire, in no time. We’ll have to contain the flow of rumors if she’s to have a chance at the Academy. Even if we do get her in, with the word going around like that, she’s sure to get bullied.”
“She’ll have Maverick to watch over her in the beginning. He’ll be her mentor.”
“I suggest that you reconsider Maverick as her mentor as well. He played a part in spreading the rumors.”
“Maverick is a dark and brooding warlock, he’s not the type to talk around.”
“No, but the creatures and spirits of the forest dwell around him, and they saw her at his hut. They also witnessed your encounter with the warlock last night.” Is it just me, or does that last part sound like a reproach? “And they sensed the portal open at the witching hour.”
I stand, walking around the desk. “Silas, you’re one of the reasons why Maverick summoned me to the woods.”
“Me?”
“Your romance with the girl.”
“My what?”
I stop behind him, gripping the back of his chair so hard my knuckles show. “Apparently it’s her emotions that trigger her magic, and you triggered strong emotions in her.”
“Lord Protector, with all due respect, where do you get these ideas?”
“It seems what brings her magic powers to life is her emotions. Last night something so strong happened in her heart that she re-opened the portal here, in the Thorny Forest.”
His profile turns icy. “On your territory? That’s unheard of.”
My fists tighten on the back of his chair so hard the wood threatens to snap, and my voice fills with gravel.
“That’s great magical power, but it wouldn’t have unlocked without the emotion. Maverick says it was you who took the girl from his hut last night.”
“I didn’t think it was safe for her to take part in rituals at the witching hour after only one day of introduction into magic.”
“Really? Or was it jealousy that prompted you?”
Silas, demigod of warfare, stands and faces me, the Grim Reaper. He’s tall, shoulders back, entire body flexed to fight.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you want a fist fight.” I grin, the desire to take him up on it just under my skin.
“This isn’t about what I want. I just can’t believe that you don’t see why I did what I did last night. Lucia Reid has dark powers that we don’t yet understand, and Maverick wanted to immerse himself into the unknown, with her, at the witching hour. Do you hear the madness in that?”
“I trust Maverick.”
“How can you trust anyone with something you don’t yet fully understand yourself?”
“So you took upon yourself to get the girl out of the warlock’s hands, take her for a romantic walk in the woods, and then accompany her to the privacy of her chamber.”
He freezes, the expression on his face speaking volumes. I toss the chair between us aside, stepping into his private sphere. I’m in his face, curling my upper lip over my teeth.
“I know you’re responsible for the change in her emotions, Silas. Do yourself a favor and tell me exactly how that happened, before I find out myself.”
His jaw ticks. “Lord Protector, with all due respect. What happened between the girl and me is personal, and none of your business.”
His confession curls my fists. I can barely contain the urge to punch him in the face. “Have you lost your senses completely, demigod? There should never be anything personal between you and the girl. You’re an ancient being, while she’s only a child, nineteen years of age. I forbid you to go anywhere near her again.”
“I’m a Guardian Angel of the mortal world. You can’t order me to stay away from a human that might be a walking portal to hell.”
“I can order you to stay away from a child under my protection, in my mansion. Consider it a restraining order, effective immediately.”
“That child re-opened the portal last night, on your watch.”
“Because her emotions were all over the place, thanks to you.”
The butler clears his throat, drawing both Silas’ and my attention to him. I’m not even sure when he entered the study, I was fuming so hard.
“Forgive the intrusion, Lord Protector.” He walks over with an invitation in his hand. “This has just arrived. It’s from the Headmaster.”
Silas and I glare at each other as I rip the top of the envelope, stepping away from the confrontation. Gordon pulls back, bowing his head and waiting for my instructions, but his eyes dart expertly from me to the demigod from under his eyebrows. Even if he hadn’t heard us fighting, the violence between us is so thick you could cut it with a knife.
I should have expected this. The Headmaster invites the girl to the Academy, in order to meet her in person and subject her to a test. The invitation says he would be making his decision about enrolling her, but he also warns that, if he feels the girl might be a Trojan Horse trying to infiltrate the Academy, he would file a petition with the Council to throw her into the pit. It goes without saying that he would also be petitioning a re-evaluation of my position as Lord Protector, for having failed to assess the danger correctly. He would question my competence before the Council.
My eyes spark fire at the invitation before I toss it into a silver goblet, and watch it burn.
“He wants to meet the girl, and test her,” I growl under my breath at Silas.
The butler shifts, my hawkish eyes darting to him. His face is distorted with shock and disdain. He didn’t think the girl worthy of much of his own attention, let alone mine, and now the Headmaster’s, too.
I for one wasn’t even supposed to meet her again in person after the first time I examined her, and yet here I am, contemplating a third time. I remember the hours I spent with her in her chamber last night, both of us naked under the flimsy cover of a duvet and my shadows that seemed a cape to her, sharing an exquisite moment of intimacy.
Fuck, get a grip, Ramses Delacroix. You’re the Lord Protector of the mortal realm and the Flipside, a Grim Reaper, not a sensation-seeking boy going through puberty. Not once since the beginning of time have you been soft, and you’re not going to start now with a freckled human girl. But if I can’t give in to these feelings, neither will Silas.
I motion to Gordon. “Get me Maverick.”
Silas
I FIND LUCY IN THE back garden. I thought I’d be able to manage this, I’ve gone over my speech a hundred times in my head—repeat to her why the two of us can’t be, and keep a stony attitude about it. Just try to help her accept it, and hurt less, because I can’t bear to think that I caused her pain.
But the moment I glimpse her a void sucks my heart away. I approach her slowly, watching her form bent over a bed of flowers—magic lilies; their scent must have lured her.
“They can be used in love potions,” I say. Her back stiffens under her cape, her red hair pinned on top of her head in a messy bun. She gets up slowly, and turns to me.
One look at her face is enough to make my breath stop.
“You’re changed,” I breathe, drinking her in. Her magic is coming to life inside of her, changing her appearance. Her hair is a brighter red, a color that would sting human vision. There’s dangerous mystery in her blue eyes.
“Yes,” she says through her teeth. “I’ve been feeling different, too. Who knows, maybe it’s you I have to thank for that.”
“Me?”
She juts out her chin, white-knuckling the bundle of basil and lilies in her hands; she already learned one or two things from the warlock, it would seem.
“Your rejection made me stronger. The Lord Protector says that’s what activated my powers.”
“The Lord Protector told you that himself?”
She gives me a grin that hides a grudge. “Last night, after you left, I lost control of my powers, and the p
ortal re-opened. Luckily the Lord Protector saved the day. Then he came to my room, and started to remove the blockages on my magic.”
The muscles in my jaw ripple, the news tearing at my guts. “The Lord Protector was in your room?”
“Caressing me with oils and fragrances and spells. He put me to sleep with his arms around me, and made me feel safe and contained like I’ve never felt before in my life.”
I grab her arms and yank her close in an impulse of madness. “What the hell are you saying?”
She keeps that pearly grin on her face, drinking in my reaction. My blood boils.
“He set my magic free, and it felt like heaven.”
I shake her. “But what happened? Did the two of you—” The words knot in my throat.
She throws her head back as she laughs. I shake her harder.
“Tell me the truth.”
“What gives you the right to ask for the truth, Silas?”
“You got close to me, last night. I was your first kiss, I was the first man who ever touched you intimately. The way you responded to me, you—” My face screws in anger, my fingers digging into her delicate flesh through the cape that covers her body. She whimpers, dropping the bundle from her hands. I pull her close, forcing her to take this seriously.
“Only hours later you let another man touch your body. You let the Lord Protector—God—” I push my forehead to hers, squeezing my eyes shut to deal with this fire inside of me, with this urge to crush my lips against hers and push my tongue inside her mouth, making sure she feels me so deep that she’ll never want another man.
“First of all,” she says, “it wasn’t a matter of ‘letting’ Ramses do anything. He’s the Lord Protector, and he did what he had to do.”
“Ramses. He gave you his first name?”
“He only did it to make the whole process easier on me. I’m not used to much physical contact. Like you said, you were my first kiss, and you know what, I’ll admit that it meant the world—the reason why my emotions spun out of control. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure that my heart is closed and sealed to you for good.”
She tries to move away, but I yank her back. I can’t resist my impulses. My hand winds around the back of her neck, sinking in her hair and cupping her head. Then I force a kiss on her.
Never before have my feelings dominated me like this. My whole body is taken with need, the need to feel that this woman is completely mine. Our kind is irresistible to humans, so she shouldn’t be able to fight my hold on her, she should be completely taken with me, but surprise. She pushes her hands against my chest. I keep her close, flexing my arm around her back. It must feel like concrete to her, she doesn’t have a chance to escape my embrace.
I push my tongue inside her mouth, letting out a muffled moan when I taste her. She tastes of the forbidden fruit and dark desires. My hands itch to lift her cape, find out what she’s wearing underneath, find her skin. I want to feel her naked folds and sink my fingers inside her, take her virginity right here and right now with my hand, so that no one else can claim it.
She tries hard to resist, but soon she melts into my kiss. She splays her fingers on my chest, grabbing my shirt, pulling me deeper into our kiss.
“Master Silas, what in the cursed realms are you doing?” I recognize Gordon’s voice, and his steps as he hurries over to us. He tries to push me away from Lucy, forcing us to break the kiss, but he fails. He resorts to pulling her from my arms, and our lips finally peel off each other.
“For the blessed realms’ sakes, control yourself,” he spits through his teeth. “If the Lord Protector sees you, you’ll end up in a dungeon, Master Silas. You have a restraining order.”
Maverick
I PUSH OPEN THE DOORS to the study, and stop in my tracks. The Lord Protector stands by the window, dressed in black, looking fully like the Grim Reaper that he truly is. Whatever he’s staring at down in the garden, it makes those hazel eyes glow like a killer’s.
“You asked to see me, Lord Protector.”
“What I asked,” he growls under his breath. “Is that you let me know as soon as you had answers from the girl’s essence. Yet I have to summon you.” His eyes pan over to me, and the hairs stand on the back of my neck.
Rarely anything takes me aback, but there’s something about Ramses Delacroix that’s just chilling. There’s a murderous desire in his eyes, and when a supernatural with the essence of a Grim Reaper looks at you like that, it creeps you out.
As a man given to aggression and violence myself, I know nothing is more important than to help him regain his self-control. I walk slowly to him, holding his gaze, and keeping my tone low and calm.
“I did come to see you last night, Lord Protector, but Gordon insisted that you would not be bothered for any reason. That you’d told him expressly to make sure no one did.”
The Lord Protector’s gaze clears as he understands. Good to see a trace of reason replace some of that rage.
“That’s true.” He moves away from the window towards the desk. It might look fluid and natural to the untrained eye, but I notice it’s an effort for him to move away from whatever he’d been looking at. He grabs two tumblers and the crystal bottle with alcoholic Ambrose, the finest whiskey of the supernaturals.
“Then tell me now—what did you discover about Lucia Reid? Have you gotten to the bottom of her essence?”
“I did, but it wasn’t uneventful.”
“Save the details, just give me the gist.” He hands me a tumbler. I’d normally refuse, but I guess it’s better if I don’t cause his anger to rise again. I follow him to the cushioned eighteenth century sofa in the middle of his palace-worthy study. The piece once stood in the palace of Marseilles. It witnessed its fair share of aristocratic orgies, which makes it invaluable for magic—the essence of forbidden passion carries power.
“Like I suspected, we couldn’t easily trace her supernatural powers because she needs to be strongly emotionally engaged in order for her powers to bubble up to the surface. So she has to be feeling something strongly. Distress seems to be particularly effective. I think her powers were bound and sealed when she was a toddler.”
“I thought about that too. I used a cocktail of freeing oils and spells on her, breaking some of those barriers. She should be able to use her magic better now, even though not fully. The ties that bind her magic are strong, as if set up by one of the most powerful entities out there, maybe an archangel. I guarded her all night to make sure her magic didn’t boil over, but apparently she’d still need to be triggered emotionally for things to get out of control. As long as she doesn’t get too upset, she won’t re-open the portal, even with her power freed. And by the time she’ll be that upset again, I trust she’ll have learned how to use and control her magic.”
My muscles cord up. I know what those freeing spells imply. “That means... You rubbed oils and fragrances into her naked skin, while you cast spells over her?”
He just stares at the tumbler, tilting it in his hand. I stare at him, incredulous, lifting my eyebrows. “You touched her?”
That the Lord Protector would touch a human woman with his own hands, that’s a fucking shock.
“I had to. I traced her and Silas back to her room. I had to prevent them from having sex before it was too late. And believe me, the atmosphere was thick with lust when I entered her chamber.”
I breathe out in relief—so it didn’t happen between Lucia and Silas. I try to persuade myself I only feel this relief because I agree with the Lord Protector, not because Silas didn’t get to take the girl’s virginity. I don’t care about that, do I?
And yet deep down I can’t help wondering what Lucia Reid feels for Silas, and if she would have let him do it. If she would have given him her virgin pussy.
“Now tell me, Maverick,” the Lord Protector prompts. “What did you get out of the girl’s essence?”
I emerge from my thoughts, and pull myself back together.
“It was fuzzy at firs
t, but then—probably because you freed some of her magic—it went smoother. Diving into her essence felt like speeding down a spiral of thunderclouds into the hot depths of the earth’s crust. I couldn’t see anything at first, but I felt the friction of the hot air against my energy body, the clouds pressure squeezing my lungs, pulsing to eject me.
“Whoever blocked her essence, they sure took all the protective measures they could think of. Not only that her supernatural power can’t easily be identified, but if anyone manages to dive in past the blockages, hot energy attacks, spitting them out. But I forced myself, and rocketed through it. When the last layer of clouds thinned, scorching heat, like that of a volcano hit me.”
“By the cursed realms,” the Lord Protector hisses, a sharp frown on his brow. “It could have killed you.”
“I’m more resilient than most warlocks, Lord Protector. I turned my outer energy into a coat of earth crust.”
“Lava turned rock. The hardest thing to burn. Smart.”
“I made it through the lava into the bowels of the volcano. And there I found them.” I lower my voice. “The gates of hell, Lord Protector.”
“The girl has demonic powers?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“But—” He stands and paces around, refusing to believe it. “I felt her energy last night. She is a good person, she is capable of love, in fact she is filled with it.”
“Demons are capable of love, too.”
“Yes, but that ability calcified so long ago it’s almost impossible to bring it back to life. That’s why they’re so attracted to fire, they unconsciously try to melt their own souls, but Lucia Reid, she loves her best friend quite consciously. She loves her with ease. She fell in love with that—” He spits the word as if it burns him. “That mortal boy, Chase. And now.” He looks to the window. “Now she’s falling for Silas.”
He heads to the window, signaling me to follow. I step by his side and see the girl, dressed in a red cape like Little Red Riding Hood, her bright red hair in a messy bun. My throat closes up.