His gaze is pinned on Zora intensely, but she merely ignores him as she moves around the table and sits next to Boral. I decide to sit next to her, so I can keep an eye on Maddox to see if I can glean anything from his actions. What I can pick up now, as he continues to stare at her, is that encounter they just had meant something to him. If it hadn’t, he’d do what any male would do in this situation and pretend she didn’t exist. But it’s almost as if he’s willing her to look at him, which she doesn’t.
I glance down at Carrick, who is also watching Maddox watch Zora, a frown on his face as he contemplates what’s going on. His eyes come to me and I give the smallest shake of my head, indicating that he shouldn’t bring it up just now.
So to break the awkward staring thing going on, I clear my throat and lean past Zora to look at Boral. “You have something for us?”
“I know where Kymaris is,” he says without preamble, and the shock all of us feel is palpable. I think we’d all given up hope that she’d be found before the ritual, especially since Kaesar had gone into hiding and was not answering Boral’s attempts to contact him.
“How?” Zaid asks his father, the suspicion in his voice not quite as heavy as the early days of him joining us. Boral has proven his loyalty, but Zaid is still having boundary issues with his dad.
“I ran into a daemon who is the offspring of one of the ritual Dark Fae. Had met her at a few of Kymaris’ parties in the past.”
That told me right there without even asking that she was a daemon with a dark aura, taking after her parent. Any daemon with a light aura would never have been a party to the murdering of humans that was occurring there.
“And this daemon just spilled the beans on where Kymaris is?” Carrick asks.
But before Boral can answer, Maddox asks, “Why would a lowly daemon know where Kymaris is?”
Meaning… can we even trust this information.
Boral first looks to Carrick to answer his question. “No, this daemon did not just spill the beans. It took some work to get the information out of her.”
My stomach rolls, because I can only imagine the type of work Boral had to do and I’m sure it involved plenty of torture. But even though the thought sickens me physically just a bit, it doesn’t offend my morals. This is war, and any evil creature that sides with Kymaris has a death sentence over their head as far as I’m concerned. We’re too close to the ritual to have a lax code of conduct.
Boral turns to Maddox. “And to answer your question, this daemon is incredibly close to her Dark Fae parent so she knows insider information. In fact, Kymaris has called all the Dark Fae who will participate in the ritual to her side. They are all banding together until it’s time for the ritual to start.”
“I’m assuming this daemon is dead,” Carrick asks. “Because at this point, Kymaris still doesn’t know you’re working on our side.”
Without an ounce of shame or regret in his expression, Boral shakes his head. “I couldn’t let her live since I’d be outed as working with you.”
My eyes cut to Zaid, who is watching his dad with an inscrutable expression. However, it’s not the usual disdain, disbelief, and hatred he bears for the man. It’s almost as if he’s seeing him in a different light but isn’t quite sure what to make of it.
Yes, it’s horrible Boral killed to get information, but it was a necessity. And I know Zaid knows that.
Perhaps he’s wondering just how much his father liked doing it, since that’s his nature as a Ravager Dark Fae. I don’t even want to think about that.
“Where is she?” Carrick asks, turning the attention back to what’s important.
“Hungary,” he replies. “Holed up in a villa in a small village on Lake Balaton, which is in the western part of the country.”
“Is it where I was taken?” I ask.
Boral shakes his head. “I don’t think so. Sounds like it’s a pretty modern piece of property so a dungeon in the basement is unlikely.”
“You have an exact location?” Maddox asks.
“I do,” he replies and it goes silent around the table as all mull the fact that we know where Kymaris is.
Carrick breaks the quiet. “We need to make a move on her. Take her down now.”
“I agree,” I reply. “I’d prefer to get this over with sooner rather than later.”
“You’re not going,” Carrick replies, and I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face that he would dare think to order me to stay out of this.
“Excuse me?” I say with high offense. “I’m the one who is supposed to take her out.”
“Maybe,” Carrick muses, then amends. “Probably. But I’d like to test the theory that maybe I can do it on your behalf. I’m the one the gods picked to help you. Maybe fate will allow me to destroy her and save you the burden.”
That actually makes sense. We’ve never quite looked past the prophecy that said I’d thwart it. Maybe I can pick champions to do my dirty work?
Just as I’m about to admit that his idea has some merit, I go cold all over. I also remember Arwen’s prediction that I would bear great sacrifice.
What if me letting Carrick do this on my behalf is my sacrifice?
What if I lost him to Kymaris?
“No,” I exclaim, shaking my head hard. “You could die. That would be my sacrifice. Not going to let you do that.”
“I can’t die,” Carrick says gently, his expression soft with the knowledge that my fears are born out of love.
“Oh yeah?” I snarl. “Tell that to Lucien.”
Carrick doesn’t let that affect him, his gaze remaining locked onto mine with resolution. “I won’t be going alone. I’ll take Maddox, and that will be sufficient might to take her down.”
“She has an army of Dark Fae at her disposal.” I throw my arms out wide in frustration, almost popping Zora, who has been quietly taking all of this in, in the face. “And they all have powers.”
Carrick inclines his head in acknowledgment, even though the army part is a bit exaggerated since she only has eleven ritual fae that we know about with the twelfth coming from the Underworld at some point. “If it makes you feel better, I can ask Titus to join us?”
“Three against an army,” I mutter sarcastically. “That will work.”
“What exactly do you think it’s going to be like if we battle her at the ritual?” Maddox asks, and I can tell by the tone of his voice he thinks I’m being ridiculous. My head swings his way, my glare in full force. “Do you think it’s going to be easier? Let me answer that… no, it will not, because she’ll have daemons flocking to her side here on Earth and if the veil rips, Dark Fae and demons will pour out. This is our best chance to take her out with the least amount of damage and the absolute best way to help keep you safe.”
I growl low in my throat, wanting to argue.
But I also hear what he’s saying.
“Finley.” Carrick’s voice… gentle but also with the continued resolution that this isn’t up for debate. “We have to try this. We have to let me try to take her on as your champion. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work, but I’ll come back to you. I swear it.”
I exhale in resignation. I know he’s right, but the thought of losing him is too much to bear.
And I’m now aware that this must be how he feels every day because it’s a certainty he’ll lose me at some point.
I nod, my silent assent that this is the play we need to make.
“Is the Blood Stone with her?” Zaid asks his father, refocusing back on Kymaris.
“That I don’t know,” Boral replies flatly. “And trust me… I worked hard to get that information, but I’m confident the daemon just didn’t know.”
“What else did you get?” Carrick asks, his voice incredibly chilled and businesslike. It’s time to make plans.
For the next hour, plans are laid. They decide not to call in Titus since he’s recruiting annihilators, and they don’t want that impeded in case the much larger battle Maddox described plays
out.
Plans are re-hashed.
Smoothed out.
Contingencies discussed.
In the end, Carrick and Maddox will be heading off to Hungary tomorrow, bending distance to get there. They won’t bring fancy weapons or explosives, just their demi-god strength and magic.
They’re going to march right into the villa where Kymaris is staying and they’re going to try to kill her.
They’re the demi-gods of old, riding into a vicious war with nothing but death on their minds.
Part of that is comforting.
Part of it is terrifying.
And I still can’t stop worrying that something bad will happen to Carrick.
CHAPTER 18
Finley
There’s a figurative cloud hanging over the condo ever since Carrick and Maddox left for Hungary.
As is typical of Carrick, he gave me continued reassurances before gracing my lips with a soft kiss. When he pulled back and still saw the fear, he gave me a deeper kiss that scrambled my brains and I forgot my worries for a moment.
But my lips no longer tingle with the memory of his on mine, and now we just sit around and worry.
Boral and Zaid are here, as is Zora. We’ve all been puttering around, moving between the kitchen and the living area. Zora tries to read a book, but keeps putting it down to stare out the windows. Zaid keeps offering food and drink, making himself busy being the hostess with the mostest, but keeping him mostly in the kitchen. Part of that is so he doesn’t have to actually talk to his father, although they’re making real progress. Zaid can actually be in the same room with Boral without leveling hateful glares his way or make scoffing noises every time Boral talks.
Hell, just a few minutes ago, Boral asked Zaid if he wanted to play cards, and Zaid, who was admittedly distracted, was actually polite in saying, “No, thank you.”
I took Boral up on the offer, and we’re engaged in a close game of rummy at the dining room table. Zora’s still in the living area with her book, and Zaid is organizing the refrigerator.
It’s his phone ringing that has me freezing. Is that Maddox with an update? Because Carrick would have called me directly. Maddox would call Zaid if it was bad news about Carrick.
I lay my cards down, my palms turning sweaty. Zaid answers from the kitchen, and there’s a moment of silence before I hear him say, “It’s fine. Send her up.”
Boral and I exchange a glance before Zaid comes into the dining room. “Echo is here asking to see Maddox.”
Clearly, Maddox isn’t here, but Zaid didn’t let her know that. She’s been a source of information for us before, and she’d probably bolt if she knew Maddox was gone.
Turning to his father, he says, “After she enters the condo, I want you by the elevator in case she decides to bolt once she learns Maddox isn’t here.”
Boral doesn’t question his son’s request, merely nods as he pushes up from his chair, throwing his cards down.
We all move into the living area, and I speak to Zora with urgency. “I need you to go into your room and stay there until I tell you it’s safe to come out. Someone’s on their way up who can’t know I have a twin.”
She doesn’t hesitate or argue, merely grabs her book and scurries off.
I hear the elevator whir as it approaches, and I brace. Echo is unpredictable. A homeless daemon junkie with a tarlike black aura around her. She’s incredibly strong with sharp teeth, and she has an acute dislike of me in particular.
It’s Maddox she likes and trusts, although, rest assured, if she’s here with information, she’ll want to get paid.
The elevator doors slide open. Echo stands there in her threadbare clothes and dirt on her gray-colored face. I see her true daemon self, of course, but if Zora was in here, she’d only see a young girl in her early twenties. We’ve tried to get Zora to see past auras—using Zaid for practice—but she just can’t tap her magic in that way either. It’s the feeling of darkness welling up when she tries that scares her away. As such, she’s stuck with pulling forth wings and speaking to me telepathically, not that those aren’t impressive in and of themselves.
“Where’s Maddox?” Echo asks as she glances around. She’s comfortable enough in assuming he’s here that she steps off the elevator. When the doors close, Boral moves in front of them.
As a Dark Fae, he’s far stronger than Echo and can keep her contained if necessary. He can also stop her if she tries to attack.
“Maddox isn’t here.” My tone is gentle, but firm. “Do you have information for him? Because you can tell me, and I’ll pay you.”
The minute I say Maddox isn’t here, Echo starts backing up. She turns toward the elevator as I offer to pay her, but freezes when she sees Boral there. She may not have noticed him before, but the way she stiffens, I can tell she understands that he’s not letting her out of here.
“Echo,” I call, and she turns slowly to face me. “We are not going to hurt you. But I have to assume you know something we might be interested in. I’m sorry Maddox isn’t here, but if you have something, tell me what it is and I’ll hand the cash over to you.”
She considers this a moment, her eyes darting over to Zaid before coming back to me. She lifts her chin, not in defiance, but to show she’s not afraid. “I have good information. Two thousand dollars.”
Carrick has ten times that amount just sitting in a desk drawer for these impromptu visits from Echo. I don’t feel like dickering with her on the price today. Besides, her last piece of information was to tell us it was Kymaris who overtook Fallon’s body.
“Deal,” I tell her. “Now give up the info.”
Echo tucks her hands into the pockets of her coat. I notice there’s a hole in the corner when her finger pokes though.
“You know that art gallery your sister had?” she asks.
Of course, I fucking do, I want to snarl, but I merely nod with a smile.
“She’s holding a human hostage there. Word on the street is that it’s some sort of sacrifice.”
My gaze moves from Zaid to Boral and back to Echo. The prophecy stated that she’d need twelve like creatures, which we determined were the original Fallen, and one unlike. I had thought that might mean me, but, in all honesty, it could mean any human.
We’d have to launch a mission to save this person, of course, but they are probably safe until the ritual.
Probably.
We need more information than that.
“How long has this human been held there?” I ask.
Her lips curl up, and her eyes sparkle with what might be malicious mischief. “Months. Soon after Kymaris came here.”
“And you’re just now telling us?” I grit out.
“I didn’t find out until about two weeks ago.”
“And why didn’t you come then?” I ask, wishing I had the physical strength to smack her around a little.
Echo shrugs. “Didn’t need the money then.”
I can’t help the sigh of frustration that comes out. “Tell me everything you know. Where in the gallery is this person being held and how many are guarding them? Are they just daemons or Dark Fae or both?”
“I’ll give you all of it,” she says smugly. “Even draw you a map. But aren’t you curious who they’re hiding?”
It’s at this moment I understand why Echo is emanating a gleeful vibe. She doesn’t like me at all, and something about her information is going to cause me some distress. She knows it, and now I know it.
“Who?” I whisper because my throat finally went dry. My mind races to all the human friends I have that Kymaris may have taken. It could be my manager at One Bean, Lisa, or maybe even Duane, my MMA instructor.
My blood chills as I consider Rich.
Could they have gotten to him?
“It’s that rich dude who was engaged to Fallon,” Echo says with a fangy smile. “The one who disappeared in Switzerland.”
“Blain,” I gasp in astonishment.
“Yeah,” she says with
a nod. “Totally douchey name.”
There was a time I agreed with that sentiment, especially since his personality was douchey, too. I’m stunned to hear this news, but there’s a thrill of adrenaline that pumps through me that Blain is still alive. I had assumed Kymaris killed him when she took over Fallon’s body. It sucked that my sister’s memory was now fouled by the suspicion that she committed murder, but that was a cross I’d have to bear.
Hell, everyone knew Fallon, aka Kymaris, had something to do with it. The local police, the Swiss police, Blain’s parents.
Oh my God.
They were going to be thrilled.
I spin toward Zaid. “We have to go get him now.”
“You mean we have to call the police,” he counters. “You cannot go against Kymaris’ goons.”
I whip back to Echo. “How many are there?”
“Only one or two at any given time,” she says. “They have the dude tied up so he’s not hard to watch.”
Jesus. Blain’s been a hostage for—my mind whirls backward in time—for probably two months now.
“What kind of shape is he in?” I ask.
She shrugs. “I haven’t seen the dude, but I’ve heard some other daemons talking. Let’s put it this way… he’s alive.”
Damn it. He’s got to be in bad physical shape, not to mention mentally.
I look back to Zaid. “We have to go get him now.”
* * *
I paid Echo the two thousand and sent her on her way with a stern warning she better keep this information to herself or Carrick would be paying her a visit. As much as she dislikes me, she’s terrified of Carrick and she nodded effusively that she’d say nothing.
Next followed a very brief meeting where it was debated between Zora, Zaid, Boral, and me whether to call the police to rescue him or mount an offensive.
Zaid, ever the prudent one in our group, wanted to first wait for Carrick to return, but if I wouldn’t agree to that, then he felt should get the police involved. But that’s because he’s just trying to protect me. He’s my guardian in Carrick’s stead, and he takes it seriously.
The Rise of Fortune and Fury Page 18