by Jessica Gunn
I watched the citizens of Alzan close in around us. “You’re assuming they won’t kill us first.”
Chapter 18
Ben
I hadn’t expected Sandra to take everything so well. But to have her laugh at me regarding Krystin was the weirdest thing to have ever happened to me. And even now, later in the day, she and Rachel were back to talking like they used to when we all were friendly and hung out. Back before the accident on the lake that’d given Rachel and me our powers. Before I’d gotten Sandra pregnant. Before the Hunter Circles had changed our lives irreparably.
All we needed to do now was wait out the Fire Circle and whatever Hydron might do about Sandra until after Krystin and Shawn got back. And then we had to save Alzan.
I closed the fridge door and grabbed the magnetic bottle opener. Cap off, I returned to the living room, where Nate sat with Rachel and Sandra in front of the television. We had one, like every other twenty-something in the United States, but we rarely used it. Especially lately. These last few nights, for instance, were the longest Nate had been home in a long time.
I stood behind the couch and, instead of watching whatever mind-numbing show they had on, tugged my phone out of my pocket. I’d kept it on silent for most of the day. There was little chance Krystin or Shawn would call if they were in trouble rather than teleporting home, and there wasn’t anyone else I wanted to talk to. Even still, seeing no messages from either of them, especially Krystin, made my heart sink a little.
Where are you?
A knock sounded on the front door, followed by the doorbell. No one, even me, got up right away to see who it was.
“What are the chances that’s a Fire Circle envoy?” Nate asked, a gaze cast wearily on the door.
I stood and did the same. “Decent. Sandra?”
“Yeah?” she said, standing too.
“Can you do me a favor and go upstairs, just in case?”
“Sure,” she said slowly, looking from me to Nate and back again.
Rachel walked with her as far as the stairs. “If anything happens, I’ll be right up. I’ll get you out of here.”
Sandra’s face paled. “What else is going to happen? They already have Riley and threatened me.”
“That’s exactly what I’m worried about,” I said as I moved for the door. Luckily for us, demons didn’t usually use doors when they dared to enter a Hunter’s home. That limited the amount of danger Sandra was in, but not by much.
As soon as Sandra was up the stairs, Rachel standing on the bottom landing, I reached for the doorknob. “On me.”
Nate and Rachel nodded, but when I unlocked the door and pulled it open, only one person stood outside.
“Max.” My brow furrowed at the sight of the tall man, my cousin’s new boyfriend. And Hydron agent.
“Hi,” he said, holding a hand up to block out the sun.
“Max is here?” Rachel asked, stepping from the landing.
I held up a hand. “Apparently. Tell me, Max, are you here on official Hydron business or is this a personal call?”
I didn’t need to look over at her to know Rachel rolled her eyes. Her tone sharpened as she made her way to the door. “Get out of the way, Ben.”
Max’s stare leveled me. “Both. I was sent to follow up on the Sandra situation and I wanted to check in and make sure everyone was okay.”
Rachel nudged me out of the way and invited Max inside. “We’re fine, Max. Ignore Ben. My cousin likes to pretend he’s in charge of me.”
Max nodded once. “I understand. I have two little sisters.”
“Are they Hydron agents too?”
Rachel shot me a glare.
“No,” Max said. “They’re sixteen and eighteen. And, god willing, they’ll never know about this side of the world.”
I swallowed hard, holding Max’s stare. I had the same hope for Amanda, my younger sister. So far, her only brush with this side of the world had been the boating accident that had seen the awakening of Rachel’s and my powers. With any luck, she herself would never develop any and I’d never have to introduce her to the Fire Circle.
Assuming Rachel and I were still Hunters when all of this was over. And if Lady Azar didn’t succeed in her march on Alzan.
“Chill out, Ben,” Rachel said.
I straightened and looked toward the stairs. “No. Not until I know why he’s officially here. What do you want, Max?”
His face hardened into a familiar mask. Krystin wore the same one when in Hunter mode, when seriousness and duty were more important than feelings or anything else going on. “It’s more what Hydron wants,” Max said. “Chiefly, to be sure you’ve handled the situation with your ex.”
“Sandra isn’t going to be a problem. I’ve taken care of it.”
“Meaning?”
My jaw tightened, but Rachel’s continued glare was enough to convince me to chill out. Only by a little. So help me, if Max turned out to be a traitor too, someone out to screw us over like Jaffrin, I’d kick his ass into the nearest demon lair and leave him there.
“Meaning I’ve talked to her and she’s agreed to stop talking about it, in person and on social media,” I said. “She’s under my care and my protection. You and your little Hydron buddies and the CIA can back the hell off now.”
Max, to his credit, didn’t flinch. “And what steps are being taken to make sure she’s not a security threat to the Hunter Circles and the country in regards to Lady Azar and Shadow Crest?”
“I just told you,” I snapped. “I’ve taken care of it. Now back off, Max. Tell your boss things are handled, and that if they don’t believe me, they can come to Boston and see for themselves. Or, better yet, they can join us in the fight against Lady Azar. Then you’ll know for certain.”
Max relaxed his stance, his expression softening. “Okay. Sorry about that.” He reached inside his shirt and pulled out a wire and recording box, then disabled them both. “I have to ask those things exactly or they’ll punish me. And I think that, at this point, you guys need every ally on the inside you can find.”
I bit my tongue so hard to keep from speaking that I tasted blood. “You’re making one hell of an impression, Max.”
“Seriously,” Nate said. He’d been so quiet this whole time, I’d forgotten he was there.
Rachel wrapped her arm around Max. He returned the embrace, looking down at her. “I’m glad you’re safe. I heard half your team is missing and wanted to be sure you’re okay.” He looked up again. “All of you. Despite what you might think about me, Ben, I really am on your side. And not just because I’m seeing your cousin.”
“Why, then?” In my experience, my team had never been good at making allies. One of the most useful had just turned tail and run back to the demon woman who’d held him captive for hundreds of years. Bile rose in my throat at even the thought of considering Giyano an ally at any point in this insane adventure. But he’d never been mine, only Krystin’s. And look where that had gotten her.
Max shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Because you guys are one of the last defenses Boston, maybe the entire country, has against Darkness’s hold. You’re the good guys, and the only ones capable of handling that threat.”
I don’t know about that. Lately, it seemed like we couldn’t handle making breakfast, forget fighting this war. “And what about Sandra? What will happen to her?”
Max pulled away from Rachel, back to being the Hydron agent as soon as his expression changed. “Nothing, as long as she stops telling people tales of demons and magik.”
My jaw clenched. “She will. It’s already been taken care of. She’s here under my watch.”
“Good.”
“You know, Max, I have to admit I’m not a big fan of your organization,” I said. Rachel shot me a look. “What I mean is I don’t like the government having any control over the Hunter Circles. This is our war. We’ve been fighting it for thousands of years without outside influence.”
Max leveled me with
a look. “The fact you’re still fighting it gives me the impression that maybe it’s time for that outside help you claim to not want. Without Hydron, the ‘gas leak’ nonsense from nine months ago would have been a disaster.”
Well, he sure as hell was right about that. “Touché.”
“Good,” Rachel said, looking between us. “Now shake hands and actually introduce yourselves because I’m over whatever male positioning is happening here.”
I swallowed my response, and my pride, and then offered my hand. “Ben Hallen.”
Max shook it. “Max Jones, Hydron Agent and also friend. I’ve been seeing your cousin for a few weeks now.”
Stay calm, Ben. “Treat her right and you’ll never hear from me.”
He nodded, his stare hard. “Understood.”
I let go and backed away, my gaze landing on the stairs. Sandra was still standing at the top, listening to all of this. “I’m going upstairs for the rest of the afternoon. Let me know if anything changes.”
“Okay,” Rachel said, watching me go as I climbed the stairs.
Sandra waited for me at the top, just as I’d guessed she would. “What’s the word?”
I laughed a little, but nothing was funny. “Like you weren’t listening in the entire time.”
She shrugged, grinning. “Obviously. I wanted to know if I was about to be arrested or not.”
“I never would have let that happen.” Except I’d already let the Ether Head Circle take Krystin once before. What good was I to either of them, really? “I need time from them. You’re probably safe to go downstairs if you want.”
Sandra bit her lip and looked down the hall. “Honestly? I’m a bit tired. Everything about this has been exhausting.”
I crossed my arms, shoving my hands into my armpits as I rocked onto the balls of my feet. “If it won’t be weird, you can take a nap on my bed. I was going to do some research online.”
Sandra laughed. I’d forgotten how beautiful her smile was, especially since I hadn’t seen a genuine one aimed at me in almost three years. “It won’t be weird to me unless it’s weird to you.”
“I think I’m too tired to care.”
She gestured down the hall. “Then lead the way.”
I nodded and guided her to my room.
Chapter 19
Krystin
“Run,” I told Shawn, holding a hand up in front of me. If these guys wanted to attack or imprison us before we figured out our destined magik, they’d have to go through me first.
“Cianza,” Shawn hissed before tugging on the back of my tank top. “No magik, remember? Let’s go.”
We took off at a run from the man near the fruit stand and the group of people who followed after him. But every step away from the stand brought us that much closer to Cianza Alzan all over again.
My knees gave out first and I stumbled, nearly falling to my face. Shawn gripped the back of my tank top again and pulled me back.
“Thanks,” I said.
“Don’t thank me yet. I don’t know much farther I can run.”
I looked over at him. “Me either. And if we keep going this direction, we’ll hit the cianza.”
Shawn froze. “Then let’s not. What’s the worst they’ll do to us, really?”
I stopped too. “Kill us. Or imprison us.”
“If we don’t figure out this magik, we’ll die here anyway.”
“Thanks, Mr. Optimism.”
I turned back toward the buildings and found the fruit stand man and his crowd chasing after us with various weapons, all with differing degrees of sharpness. Swords mixed with brooms and other blunt objects.
“Hey!” I shouted toward them as they came. “Please, let’s talk about this.”
The fruit stand man charged forward ahead of the crowd he’d accumulated. “This plane is locked, inaccessible. Who are you and where do you come from?”
I glanced over at Shawn. The truth or not the truth? “I’m Krystin. He’s Shawn.”
“Are you Neuian?” another shouted.
“A Neuian from the origin plane?” someone else asked, a shock in their tone. “Impossible.”
“Look at their eyes,” said the man. “They can’t be Neuian.”
My eyes widened of their own accord. What the hell were they going on about? Neuian. What is that?
“We’re Hunters,” Shawn said, stepping beside me. Better we’re in it together than apart, I guess. “From the Fire Circle. The Powers, like you.”
The man from the fruit stand scoffed. “We’re nothing alike, Hunter. How did you get here?”
Someone cried out, “The walls are open!”
“No, they’re not,” I snapped. “We came here through blood magik to find our own magik.”
The man’s face twisted. “Blood magik?” He drew his sword and held it up. The others lifted their weapons in response. “Blood magik is forbidden here.”
“Yeah, probably because it’s the only way to break through the walls,” I said under my breath.
Shawn hissed my name and nudged me backward.
“What are the odds me using my magik will tip a cianza this big?” I asked him.
“Let’s not find out.”
“What if it’s the only option?”
“Don’t let it become the only option, Krystin. Please. We’re here to keep that cianza from blowing.”
I scoffed and turned but didn’t see much before Shawn tugged me out of the way as the fruit stand man’s sword swung down in a mighty arch toward my face. I came up, twisting around the man and disarming him within a few moments. Snatching up the sword, I pointed it at him as he lay there on the ground. The crowd behind us gasped and then went deadly silent.
“Stop!” someone called, slicing the air like a knife through water. “Stop! Don’t hurt them!”
I lifted the sword and aimed it at another man, who came barreling through the crowd without regard for anyone standing in his way. Shoving and knocking his way to the front, he stopped his sandaled feet in front of Shawn and me, his hands raised.
This man had a jovial face with warm, rosy cheeks, a lean body, chiseled cheekbones, and fine brown hair. “Please, put the weapon down, Daughter.”
My eyes narrowed. “Daughter? You’re not my father.”
Shawn’s head tilted. “I think he means the other kind.”
This new man looked to Shawn. His eyes grew wide with excitement and he reached a hand out. “Yes, yes. My name is Areus, keeper of the Pyramid. Mentor to Son and Daughter. I have been waiting so very long to meet you.”
My breath hitched, my grip on the sword loosening. “Mentor?”
Shawn shook Areus’s hand, though a pensive look twisted his brow. “We’ve been trying to figure out our magik and how to get here for a while now.”
Areus’s face darkened for a moment before he looked over his shoulder. “There is nothing to see here. Please move along before I involve the High Council.”
“Unnecessary,” groaned fruit stand man from the ground.
Areus offered him a hand and pulled the man up. “Nonsense, brother. These are the two who will save us all.”
“Brother?” I asked.
“Tirus,” he said, introducing himself. He had a good head of height on Areus. “I didn’t mean you harm.”
I scoffed again. “Much. It’s fine. Definitely wouldn’t want us to be Neuian or anything.”
“Krystin,” Shawn snapped.
I spun on him. “What, I can’t have a little fun?”
But the way Areus’s face drained of all blood at the mention of these Neuians told me that maybe it wasn’t a thing to joke about after all.
“Have you come into contact with them?” Areus asked.
“We don’t even know what Neuians are,” Shawn said.
Areus nodded quickly, then took off through the crowd again. Shawn and I hurried behind him, dodging people as they stood and stared.
“Please, follow me to the Pyramid Building. We’ve so much to catch
up on. To teach you,” Areus said. “And do not mention the Neuians again. If you don’t know, you soon will, and I’d rather have prepared you for more before then.”
“For what?” I asked. Despite the fact that we were following a complete stranger, I welcomed the space now growing between me and the cianza. Its effects lessened as we followed Areus back into the city settlement, where he climbed into a cart drawn by horses and invited us to join him.
“Quick,” he said. “It’s an hour even by horse. We have no time to waste.”
“You’re not kidding,” I said.
“How long have you been waiting for us?” Shawn asked as Areus drew the cart into the street.
“Too long, I’m afraid,” he said, almost quiet enough that it might have just been to himself. “Let’s not discuss anything further until we’re inside the safety of the Pyramid.”
“Safety from what?” Shawn asked.
Areus looked over his shoulder, his stare hard. “Prying eyes, hungry ears, and whatever darkness your arrival is heralding.”
I gulped. I guessed that about covered it.
Though it took us longer to reach the entrance, the pyramid Areus spoke of crested the horizon almost immediately after we left the city settlement. But unlike standing on the mountain looking over at it, I could now see the pyramid in details. Namely, that it was humongous.
The pyramid stood hundreds of feet tall, towering up into the cloud cover above. Each story appeared to be made out of different gemstones, creating an amazing rainbow-like exterior that rose all the way to the amethyst cap. Obsidian, lapis lazuli, moonstone, hematite. Diamond and sapphire, tiger’s eye and opal. All rising up into the clouds.
My breath hitched somewhere in my chest. “That is magnificent,” I whispered, positively awestruck.
“The stonework alone,” Shawn said.
“Wishing archaeology had been more than just an elective?”
His eyes didn’t move from the pyramid before us. “More than you know.”