Hidden In Darkness (A Seven Realms Book Book 1)

by S. J. Stewart

  That sureness was nice but foolish.

  He couldn’t protect them any more than he could protect the Oracle who sat beside him, her cheek flushed red with anger. They weren’t his responsibility and she wouldn’t stay here to appease his guilt over how things had gone. That wasn’t her responsibility. This world—realm— whatever, was harsh, and unfortunately, she couldn’t soften herself to them just because it seemed like the right thing to do. She was no martyr.

  Whatever memories were taken from her, there was a reason to it, and it’d been done to her here in the Dark Realm. It would stand to reason getting those memories back while here would be unlikely.

  Sliding her chair back, she wrapped her hand more firmly around Zura’s. “I can find it on my own.”

  “As I said, only those capable can walk through the barriers at the edge of the realms,” Orren said flatly. He wasn’t trying to convince her, just stating facts he hoped would change the decision she already made.

  Nodding, she headed toward the door. “I guess we’ll see if I am capable when we get there.”

  10

  THIRIEL

  The low whimpering of the small Pixie perched on the table before him filled him with an annoyance that was immeasurable. Everything about her was getting under his skin, irritating him, making him want to lash out at anything nearby.

  She knelt with her blood crystal on the end of a sparkling thin rope, woven by her kind no doubt. She swung the crystal over the map of the Seven Realms he acquired from an elder as she continued to scry for what he was looking for, who he was looking for.

  Her pale lavender skin was marred with blue bruises and deep red cuts. The shimmering wings on her back drooping slightly as she worked.

  It had been a nuisance to get the little Pixie here. It wasn’t often she was apart from her mate, and that little Pixie was someone you didn’t want to cross. Small as she was, the little green-skinned devil was an assassin, often employed by the rulers themselves. Had she been with her mate it would have been impossible for him to get his hands on her.

  His options now were limited. He would have to kill her, make it seem as though her death came at the hands of someone else. The last thing he wanted was to paint a target on his back. As small as they were, the Pixie assassins were fierce and capable. Taking out beings across all seven realms without much effort.

  Not all Pixies were as useful, but their magic was potent. Especially when you were one of the chosen few whose line was gifted with a bloodstone.

  The bloodstone was what made the little lavender Pixie before him so valuable to him. With that stone, she could find her for him, get her within his sights once again.

  Every waking breath led him here. Once he had her, everything would fall into place. These realms would be whole again, they would flourish beyond his wildest dreams.

  He needed only to find her.

  The cold stone of the walls was covered with climbing ivy, but it did little to take the bite from the air. Fireflies flitted out of opened blossoms, gently lighting the room. He had forgone torches here. He didn’t want to supply anything that would provide the Pixie any warmth. The cold discomfort would fuel her to work faster.

  At least he thought it would.

  “What seems to be the problem? Do I need to provide you with some motivation?” He flicked his wrist, pointing a finger at her. Magic shot from his fingers. An illuminated grey orb hit her, knocking her back on the table.

  She folded, her teeth grinding together as she closed her eyes against the agony. Her body appeared so small, a mere foot tall. Her limbs were thin, as were those of all the Pixies. It was part of their deception. She could withstand just as much as he could, and he was a great deal larger than her. Her white hair fell free from its binding, curtaining her face as she rolled onto her side, her small lavender arms wrapped around her waist so small he felt he could break her if he squeezed her in his fist. Her silver wings fluttered for a moment before falling limp at her side. “I told you,” She wheezed. “She just— disappeared. One minute she was there with the others and then she was just gone. No amount of scrying will find her for you. No matter what you do to me.”

  She was a tenacious little thing. It was no wonder she managed to be mated to an assassin.

  No matter what he threw at her, she seemed to let him know she would tear his throat out if given the chance. Too bad he couldn’t convince her to take on a more Elfish form for a time. He would love to see if that tenacity carried through the bedroom.

  He was sure it did.

  Pixies could change their size, tiny like the tip of a pin or just as large as a woman of most species. She stayed this size since he captured her, knowing full well his magic would be too damaging smaller but also knowing being the same size as Thiriel put her at risk in other ways.

  Pity, he thought. He would’ve loved to play with her a bit before he was forced to dispose of her. She was a pretty little thing.

  She had the same colour skin as a lot of High Elf women. Something about the pale purple always did something for him. He wished his pale white skin was as beautifully coloured.

  As she huddled on the table, the wood was slowly covered in the same ivy climbing the walls. Little orange flowers dotted the thick vines as they slowly took over the room, blossoming and filling the air with a calming fragrance. Her magic took over, doing what it could to help her counteract his own. Pixies were resilient little things.

  Warmth blossomed out of the flowers, the pale blue ones blooming overhead releasing a light mist.

  Covering his nose with his handkerchief, Thiriel frowned. “You can’t keep this up forever, Alette. Find her.”

  A humourless laugh shook through her as the mist completely coated her skin. Her blue bruises faded away to nothing before the little gashes covering her stitched themselves together. She didn’t push herself to sit up, lying there laughing. “I don’t need to keep this up forever. Only until Cricket finds me.”

  He frowned. The last thing he wanted was for Cricket to find them before he had what he wanted.

  “She will find me, you know. It’s only a matter of time.” She pushed herself up to sit then, her silver eyes staring at him without a hint of fear.

  Scowling, he wrapped the hand at his side into a fist. “Find me an Oracle,” he demanded. “Maybe she will be able to succeed where you did not.”

  11

  ORREN

  Panic ate away at him, burrowing into his chest until he felt nauseous. Sickness was not something that afflicted Incubi, but that’s exactly how he felt as he schooled his face with disinterest. Melas walked past him, through the cabin, and out the door.

  The sound of the front door shutting hit him like a punch to the gut.

  His face was blank, but his mind was in chaos. Playing through every conversation, every tactic he could use to get her to stop and come back. Get her to agree to stay for no other reason than it was what he wanted.

  It wasn’t often he didn’t get his way.

  Part of being an Incubus meant it was very easy for him to persuade people to do as he pleased, even unintentionally. He released a pheromone in the air that made people agreeable. For whatever reason, it didn’t work on Melas. As much as he hated admitting it, he tried to play with her emotions. Trying to bend her will, fill her with the desire to stay.

  Her black eyes hadn’t even registered his influence.

  Thick walls surrounded her emotionally and mentally. It was extremely difficult to read her expressions because there weren’t any. Barely even a slight hint to what was happening underneath her closed-off surface.

  Orren planned to slowly wear her down. Make her comfortable with him over time.

  She hadn’t even given him a day.

  Even her dreamscape was completely closed off to him. While she slept he looked for her. Tried to find her door in hopes of slipping into her subconscious and seeing if there was something there he could use to figure out who she was, what she was running
from, and how to get through to her.

  Her dreamscape was as elusive as she was, out of his reach. The only beings out of reach to him were those who existed in The Veil.

  Melas being from The Veil was unlikely.

  She didn’t have the happy candour of a Cupid not to mention she lacked the wings and had an edge to her that would make her the worst possible Cupid in history. She had no barrier so she wasn’t an Oracle. She was unable to unlock her memories or grab hints of what happened to her which meant she likely wasn’t a Seer. Being found unconscious without her memories told him there was no way she was Luck, seeing Luck or Hope was rare so there was no way he could say for sure she wasn’t either of those beings but her overall demeanour told him she wasn’t. She lacked the conviction of Judgement and Justice.

  The beings of The Veil were visually distinctive and often were unable to change their physical form to conceal their species.

  Yet, he couldn’t access her dreamscape.

  Now she was gone. Melas and Zura walked out of the cabin without a second thought.

  Shit.

  They sat there in disbelief.

  As usual, Andrei was the first to say anything. “You just let her leave.” His voice was quiet, unable to process what just happened.

  “I’m not known for kidnapping women and children,” He said flatly.

  She surprised him. He thought she would be as enthusiastic in uncovering who she was as he’d been. Thought her curiosity alone would be enough to keep her here. It would have been enough for him.

  Melas was not helpless. She already bested two of them physically and stripped Ela of her barrier. That alone should be enough to instill confidence in keeping her own if she stayed to find the answers she had to want. It hadn’t been. That surprised him too.

  She walked out the door as though she couldn’t care less what she was. The questions not burrowing under her skin the way they did his.

  Taking in a deep breath, he debated running after them.

  Ela stuttered, pushing herself up to lean across the table and put herself physically in his line of sight. “How will we figure this out without her? She just left. Walked out like she didn’t care. Actually, she didn’t. Couldn’t care less if she tried.” Her bottom lip shot out as she sulked. “I can’t stay here, Orren. I can’t live outside The Veil.”

  Turning, he placed his hand over hers giving her a reassuring look. “I will do everything in my power to figure this out for you. With or without her. She was right, this is my mess to clean up, and I will. Don’t worry. You’ll be back to your life in The Veil in no time.”

  She opened her mouth then closed it, like a fish out of water trying to suck in air.

  “What if something happens to Zura?” Andrei asked lightly. “They don’t know where they’re going.”

  Ridhor pushed himself away from the table, tossing his fork down onto his plate. It cracked as he stepped around the table and walked out of the dining room. His heavy steps could be heard moving down the hall until the front door opened and shut again.

  Andrei glowered. “Just great.”

  If one thing was abundantly clear since their arrival, Ridhor was extremely protective of Melas and Zura. If he was following them, he would make sure nothing happened to them as they made their way to the realm’s edge.

  Orren was conflicted.

  As much as he wanted them safe, he also didn’t. He wanted them to need him, to need his protection. To need his answers, to need his cabin. He wanted them to be swatted away from the realm’s edge and back towards him.

  Melas’ presence haunted him in the dreamscape, now her presence haunted him in his own home. He could smell her still, warm and spiced. Campfire and cinnamon. It surrounded him, assaulting his senses with every breath. Everything inside him wanted to get up from the table and run after them. Follow in Ridhor’s footsteps.

  It wouldn’t go well, he reminded himself.

  “This is all turning to shit,” Andrei said finally. “She is marching across the Dark Realm with a Berserker following behind her like a protective cub.” He ran his fingers through his hair again. “She’s doing something to all of us. You have to feel that.” He swallowed hard.

  He did.

  “I’ve never seen Ridhor so close to the edge. She enters a room and the guy is ready to fight the world the moment something makes her frown. Not to mention the way you’re always staring at her. It’s creepy.”

  A small crease furrowed his brow. “I’m not staring and it’s not creepy.”

  Ela laughed. “You’re definitely staring and it’s a tad creepy. You just zero in on her and refuse to look anywhere else. I don’t think you looked anywhere else the whole time she was in here.”

  Even though what she was saying annoyed him, he was happy to see she could laugh right now. Ela was having a tough time of things. He would have to do what he could quickly to make things easier for her.

  Was she right?

  Melas had this way of drawing his attention and holding onto it. She was so guarded, he couldn’t help but keep a close eye on her and wait for a moment when whoever she was behind the wall she built around herself slipped through just enough for him to catch a glimpse.

  It wasn’t creepy.

  Wasn’t too creepy.

  Hell, it was a bit creepy.

  “You’re no better.” Orren sighed. “I’ve never seen you this emotional. You’re bouncing off the walls constantly jumping the gun with every little thing we say. What happened to cool and collected Andrei? You know, that guy who was one of the oldest Vampires in existence and acted like it.”

  Andrei scoffed. “I’m not being emotional. You think I’m being emotional because I’m the only one saying anything about any of this. Ridhor is quiet, too wrapped up in whatever storm is brewing inside him to be out here with us, and you’re working so hard to emotionally remove yourself from everything so you can sit there and stare at her without her getting any hint to what the hell you’re thinking.” He pointed lightly at Ela. “She and I are the only ones who have anything to say, it’s no wonder we both look crazy.”

  Ela lifted her shoulders. “I imagine I am acting a bit crazy. To be fair, I’m experiencing a lot of emotions for the first time. It’s a tough thing to get a handle on. From where I’m sitting, none of you are acting like the three men I’ve known.”

  “I just said that.” Andrei rolled his eyes. “We are a fucking mess since she showed up.”

  “Could she be Fae?” Orren asked aloud. “There are quite a few species in the Seelie Realm who could cloud our minds enough to affect our personalities.”

  They all mulled over that possibility.

  Andrei’s head tilted, considering the possibilities. “A Jinn maybe.”

  “Her features don’t seem to point to any type of Fae.” Orren shook his head.

  “I said Jinn.” He rolled his eyes before agreeing. “She’s gorgeous, but not in the gentle, ethereal way most Fae tend to be.” His eyes got a faraway look as he pulled up a mental image of her. His grin slowly stretched, his eyes heavy with lust.

  Orren rolled his eyes, something he could do freely now without a stranger in their midst. “Really, Andrei? She’d sooner stab you than let you put your dick in her. Can you get your mind out of your unattainable fantasies and try to figure this out with me.”

  He scoffed, pouting a little. “There are few who can satisfy sexually as a Vampire. They write books about it. She would be lucky at the chance to warm my bed.”

  It was Ela’s turn to frown as she tilted her head in confusion, considering his words. “What a peculiar thing to say to an Incubus. They were literally created with the sole purpose of manipulating minds with sexual pleasure. I would think their expertise in the bedroom far surpasses that of a Vampire. A cursed being who was created with absolutely no thought to their sexual prowess.” She wasn’t trying to insult him, merely trying to make sense of what he said.

  He flinched, feeling the sting of her
words like a slap to the face. “Ela, don’t take this the wrong way. You’re absolutely beautiful, a sight to behold without your barrier. Never would I have thought all of this was underneath that barrier. That being said, I liked you that way much better.” He pouted.

  Orren laughed, shaking his head. “I do believe, you’ve hurt his feelings.”

  She lifted her shoulders, his feelings something she never considered before and wasn’t sure if she would begin to consider now.

  Silence shrouded them again as they all turned into their thoughts.

  “Do you think Ridhor will take them through the edge?” Andrei asked.

  It was a question they had probably all been mentally asking themselves but none wanted to ask out loud. If he did take them through to the Mortal Realm, it would make it more difficult to keep an eye on her. The Mortal Realm was like the Wild West. There were no rules because there was no one who cared enough to govern the humans. Whoever had been entrusted as their keeper, one of the Seven, would have died off centuries ago with the human lifespan being so short.

  Whether they passed knowledge down for others to rule over the Mortal Realm, he had no idea. It wasn’t as though a human would have much weight to throw around against the other realms anyway. Their position would mean absolutely nothing, especially since most people in the Mortal Realm were completely oblivious to the existence of anything outside their little world.

  What an arrogant species.

  They thought they were at the top of the food chain. The most intelligent life forms.

  It was laughable.

  They divided themselves by things like where they were from, their earnings, their belief systems, only further weakening their realm. Most of their advancements came at the hands of other beings dabbling in their realm when their lands weren’t so overdeveloped and you could stretch your powers without consequence. If it weren’t for the other realms, they would all be sitting in the dark, withering away and grunting to one another.