* * *
Queen's Palace, Le-Ath Veronis
Li'Neruh Rath
I had one destination in mind, and that was the suite where Zaria slept. I appeared right outside her door and prepared to slip inside.
"Not so fast," a hand dropped on my shoulder. Yes, I recognized the voice.
Wisdom.
Why was he here?
I turned to look at him. "That's my daughter, sleeping in there," he frowned at me. "She's imagined all this time that she's an orphan. She isn't. I just couldn't interfere—more than I have, anyway."
"What she's done she's done on her own, I know that much," I allowed smoke to emanate from my nostrils.
"You know everything about her background? The captivity at the hands of terrorists, the torture, deaths and everything?"
"I know."
"What does Breanne say?"
"Breanne said she recognizes love when she sees it. No harm will ever come to Zaria through me. Besides, I have no desire to form an enmity with the entire Larentii race."
"You should have no desire to form an enmity with me."
"You think you know me so well," I blew more smoke.
"I'm more than aware of your background. We both love Breanne, never forget that."
"What the hell is going on out here?" Zaria flung the door open. She blinked as she looked from me to Wisdom.
"Holy, fucking hell." She sat down hard on the floor and covered her face with both hands.
* * *
Lissa
Charles, AKA Wisdom, sat at the kitchen island drinking tea while I stared at him. Next to him and frowning deeply, sat Li'Neruh Rath.
"So Zaria threw both of you out and disappeared?" I lifted an eyebrow at Charles.
"She's my daughter, all right," Charles rubbed his forehead.
"Well, that explains a lot," I snapped at him. "The least you could do was leave her alone and let her sleep," I turned on Li'Neruh Rath.
I'd placed a shield around the three of us so the comesuli working in the kitchen wouldn't hear what was being said. Their gossip had already caused enough trouble, thank you very much.
"I didn't intend to disturb her—I merely wished to check on her," Li'Neruh blew smoke. "When she recovered from the initial shock of finding us outside her door, she disappeared."
"She went to Valegar in the Archives," Charles blew out a sigh. "I think he has her in a healing sleep after we upset her."
"Good." I slapped a hand on the granite counter. "She'll have to bend time the minute she wakes to go back to Earth," I scolded. "I've had mindspeech from Belen, you know."
"We know," Li'Neruh and Charles said simultaneously.
"Hmmph." I wasn't particularly pleased with Li'Neruh and he knew that. He was the one advising Zaria to wait before Changing What Was for Kifirin, and that had resulted in death threats against my eldest son.
It also made it more difficult for Jayd and Garde to turn things around—if that were even possible.
Glinda was going from depression to anger and then back again—especially after Jheri's experiences with her deranged father.
"She's going to ask you to remove the claiming marks," I said, confusing my companions.
"Glinda?" Li'Neruh made the connection.
"Yeah."
Li'Neruh shrugged.
"Understandable," Charles nodded. "And I know you're seeing a correlation between me as Zaria's father and Griffin as your father. Trust me, I have watched her carefully throughout her lives. Yes, she's been banged up a few times, but not like you have."
"Yeah." I dropped my eyes to the granite island and studied the gold flecks in polished stone.
"Lissa, you've always carried the universes on your shoulders. Zaria is here to help." Charles tucked hair behind my ear and smiled when I lifted my eyes. "Griffin may never fully realize the damage he caused. That's his burden to carry. Free yourself from that entanglement and be happy."
He was right. I felt as if I'd finally sloughed off a heavy coat worn during a hot summer as I gazed into his eyes—eyes that were suddenly filled with stars. Griffin became smaller and smaller in my mind, until he was relegated to a far corner that I could shut out if I wanted.
I did.
The worlds would go on, and Griffin held no place of importance in any of it.
I blinked when Charles' eyes returned to normal. I breathed. The air smelled fresh. Clean.
Untainted.
"Things will work out," Charles smiled. "Even if Zaria decides to chew my ass."
"Good, because it's about damn time things worked out."
* * *
King's Palace, Karathia
Rylend Morphis
Reah, my mate, had come. Edward, a co-mate, and Denevik, her grandfather, had come with her. I followed both as we walked through the palace, studying its structure.
Yes, it was built of stone.
And Power.
Every ruler who'd sat Karathia's throne had added his shields and moorings to it, to ensure its stability and longevity.
An army of High Demons could unravel all that in minutes, if they were so minded. That meant if they wanted the walls down, they could accomplish that easily, by disabling every spell ever placed on them.
I'd gotten mindspeech from Gavril and Tory, too, offering their help if I needed it. At this point, I had no idea what I'd need.
I did learn something from Denevik, however.
"When we went to rescue Jheri, a duplicate appeared in her place before we left. Zaria, I believe, wants her father and uncle to believe she's still there. I've never seen a duplicate so lifelike during my existence."
"They could change their plans if they believe Jheri has escaped," Reah pointed out.
"You're right," I agreed. "We don't need to hunt their next target, if they change their minds about Karathia."
"I never thought we'd be fighting the basest weaknesses of High Demons." A curl of smoke drifted from Denevik's nostrils. "It troubles me that those weaknesses are there and so easily exploited."
"I believe Aldavik Foth has pulled his sons away from Veshtul," Reah said. "He wants no part of this, and I'm worried about him and his family."
"Most of them live in the north already, and few were in Veshtul, or so it was the last time I was there," Denevik said. "I hope Jayd will not notice their disappearances; he had enough High Demons following his every whim, because they have hate and prejudice in their hearts and his actions feed their hidden desires."
"Zaria pulled away those who've committed murder already—humanoid and High Demon," Reah nodded. "I doubt Jayd misses them; he still has quite a crowd following."
"So, a rational discussion with any of them is out of the question?" I joked.
"There's no rationality left," Denevik snorted. "You'd have better luck convincing a lump of rock."
"You've skipped in and out, haven't you, Grampa?" Reah frowned at Denevik.
"I have. I went to Veshtul and that place is a powder keg. The humanoids there are terrified, the High Demons unreasonable," he explained. "All the roads in and out of the city are now closed and guarded, so any humanoids wishing to leave are prevented at best or jailed at worst. High Demons are demanding food, goods and anything else they want from shop owners and refuse to pay for any of it, as if the humanoids are their slaves and have no rights at all."
"I curse Acrimus and Liron for starting this," Reah huffed.
"Granddaughter, they merely released what has been hiding in many hearts for a very long time. Remember, many of these were alive when my brothers killed my parents and took the throne for themselves for a short while. Many either stood by and did nothing or condoned the takeover. Gardevik did nothing to stop it; Jaydevik was away from Kifirin and didn't bother to come back for a very long time. I couldn't prevent the deaths of my parents, and thought Glindarok dead. I was forced to skip away after arguing and fighting with my brothers and almost dying for my words and actions."
"We know the Ra'Ak we
re involved in that coup, by spreading poison in waiting ears," Reah sighed. "Although that wasn't known for a very long time. Rorevik, after your brothers mistreated High Demons during their rule, claimed the throne belonged to the House of Rath, since Jaydevik was chosen as Glinda's mate and future king. He rallied those behind him that he could muster—Gardevik was one of them—and retook the throne at a great cost. We all know how weak his rule was."
"Yes. He and Jayd pronounced a death sentence against any male from the House of Lith. I was in hiding for a long time."
"And things come full circle," Reah observed. "Let's hope for the best in this."
"The best would be moving this palace and setting up a duplicate in its place," I rumbled, gazing about me at the richly-decorated walls.
"We can do that," Edward said, speaking for the first time. "Why didn't you say that to begin with?"
"I think I saw that in a vid once," Reah giggled. "It was funny."
"I hope High Demons have a sense of humor, then," I said.
"Don't count on it," Denevik replied.
* * *
Auckland, New Zealand
Mother Rose
"Susan?" I answered the call on my cell phone. Susan was a shapeshifting neighbor, although not an owl.
She was a hen. Yes, that made for interesting full moons for her, as she wouldn't dare go outside during the shift; too many predators could harm her. She was forced to stay inside, lay down puppy pads and cluck around the house.
"I just heard that your cruise was canceled," she said.
"Yes. We're currently out of the country, though. Are you safe?" I thought to ask. It was a valid question—those evil creatures could show up anywhere, if they could show up at a mall in Adelaide.
"I'm fine," she reassured me. "I just wanted to check on you, since I hadn't heard anything after the attack in Adelaide. When I saw your cruise ship on the news, I had to call."
"We're all fine; we have friends with us and we're good for now," I told her.
"Did you see those things?" she asked. "They're enormous and terrifying."
"We saw them, but managed to get away," I said. "Stop worrying, all right? I'm more concerned about you than us right now."
"You don't think they'll come anywhere near Alice Springs, do you?"
"I can't honestly answer that—I have no idea what those things will do."
"Everybody's trying to leave the country, and nobody knows where to go," Susan said. "It's giving me the willies."
"If I hear anything, I'll call," I said. "Be careful."
"I will."
She ended the call. I dropped my cell phone into my purse with a sigh. We'd already lost friends to those monsters. I wasn't in the mood to lose more.
"Want breakfast, Gran?" Tim, Jim's eldest, poked his head in the door. "We're about to go downstairs to the restaurant."
"Yes," I said. "Let me get my cane."
* * *
Lexsi
My poached eggs were too runny instead of being overcooked, like most restaurants served them. I dropped my fork with a frown. They tasted like vinegar, too, and I hated that.
"Send them back," Opal said softly.
"Only if I get to cook them," I said. "I'll make do with bacon and toast."
"I've missed your cooking," Watson told me from across the table. "Food on the ship was good, but this," he stared at the ham on his plate and shook his head.
"It's not a five-star hotel," Opal said. I didn't miss the wistfulness in her voice, either. "It was the best we could find with the number of rooms we needed. They worked around check-in time, too, to get us in here."
"Then let's order lunch in, or go out," Watson said.
"I'll second that," Klancy agreed. "I hope Zaria comes back to join us by then."
"Zaria is here, and is about to move all of you to Kent, in England," Zaria appeared at the table. "You'll be safe there, I assure you."
* * *
Kent, England
Adam Chessman
I'd never been so shocked in my life. Belen's mate, Zaria, was Larentii, and there were no female Larentii.
None.
"I'm from the future," she nodded to me. "This is a secret you'll have to keep, I'm sorry to say."
Pheligar, the bastard, had the temerity to look smug.
He's my uncle by marriage, Zaria sent mindspeech to me. How the hell did she know what I was thinking? My thoughts were heavily shielded.
"You cannot hide anything from the Vhanaraszh," Pheligar said after seeing my frown. "She is mated to my nephew," he added.
"What do you need from us?" Kiarra asked, ending the verbal battle between the Larentii and me before it could get started.
"I need a place for a small crowd to stay," she said. "And your help in destroying what could turn into an army of Ra'Ak and rogue High Demons."
"We have plenty of space, either here or at Merrill's old place not far away," Kiarra offered. "I'll call in some of the others, too, so we can hold a meeting. I want to hear all about these rogues and Ra'Ak, and how they've managed to elude my detection up to now."
"I can help with that," Zaria said. "Give me a few minutes and I'll be back with the others."
* * *
Morwin
Zaria allowed me to keep the ranos pistol, and provided a second one in case it was needed. Both were packed with my gear when she landed us in an enormous room inside a very large home.
"This is Adam Chessman's ancestral home," Zaria announced as we looked about us in wonder. The floors were marble; the walls were richly decorated with valuable paintings.
"Welcome to Gryphon Manor," two men, a woman and a Larentii appeared inside the room. "I'm Adam Chessman," one of the men introduced himself. "This is Kiarra," he indicated the woman, "Merrill," he nodded toward the other man, "and of course, Pheligar."
"We've allocated suites for all of you," Kiarra announced. "There is an indoor swimming pool and hot tub on the premises, a fully-stocked kitchen and laundry facilities. If you need anything, just let one of us know."
"Settle in first," Opal said. "Meet us here in an hour, and we'll get to work on a plan."
* * *
"Who are they?" Chloe's hand was held firmly in mine as we walked up a second flight of stairs.
"No idea," I confessed. Zaria and Opal trusted these people, and they had a Larentii with them, who knew Zaria. "I don't think Larentii associate with anyone who isn't trustworthy," I added.
"I'm having nightmares about those monsters. Did you really kill some of them?"
"Dearest, a ranos pistol will kill just about anything, even the large and powerful, if you can get close enough. I was doing my duty and yes, I killed several."
"I love you," she leaned against me. I smiled all the way up a third flight of stairs.
* * *
Zaria
"I'm concerned that this Ra'Ak is hiding behind a Sirenali," Kiarra paced. "This means he could be anywhere. You say this Ra'Ak actually recalls his name? Few are capable of that," she added.
"Welcome to twisting timelines," I said. I sat in her kitchen with Opal, Kell, Klancy, Tamp and Ilya, while the others settled into their rooms upstairs. "It's like a game show, with the worst outcomes possible if you lose."
"What is your biggest fear?" Pheligar asked. He, Adam and Merrill sat across the kitchen island from my bunch.
"That the rogue gods may show up," I whispered. I'd carried that fear with me for a while; in the here and now, they still lived. That included Acrimus and Liron, two of the worst, in my opinion.
As for the General, I didn't even want to say his name aloud.
Kiarra stopped her pacing when I said rogue gods. She and I—she had no idea that we were connected.
"Conner's on her way," Kiarra announced.
Another one I was connected to.
Family.
I'd only discovered that recently.
We three—we had the same father. Eventually, I'd have a conversation with said f
ather.
Just not now—I had things to do.
One of those things was setting up a fake library, to steer Morgett away from Uluru. More and more, I was convinced the Metal Library had relocated there.
Nefrigar's words regarding it made me shiver. What if it could destroy everything? Did the rogue gods want that, if that's what its intentions were? I imagined they wanted to keep their lives—they'd certainly fought for them at the end of the god wars.
The debacle on Kifirin, too, weighed on my mind. What did Li'Neruh have planned? So many possible trails led away from that, and none of them sounded good to me.
Jayd knew Glinda wanted Reah on the throne. That concerned me—that the announcement had been made and then Jheri had carried the news straight to her father. Yes, it was a mistake, but I couldn't ignore the jealousy and pettiness leading to that revelation.
At lease we'd saved Jheri from rape and who knew what else.
Fucking Jayd with fucking controllers. Nobody should have that shit. Nobody.
Fuck him. Fuck him royally for doing that—to his own daughter.
I blinked, drawing away from my thoughts. Conner had arrived.
* * *
"You want to build a duplicate of the Metal Library and lure the enemy in?" Merrill asked.
"Yes. This is Morgett's goal, to find it and take it. While I doubt the real thing would ever allow that, it knew to protect the timeline when it relocated last time."
"Zaria, you're saying that keeping V'ili and the Blackmantle twins alive is crucial to the future?" Adam asked.
"Unfortunate but true," I said, allowing my shoulders to slump. The hour was almost up and there were still questions to answer. Soon, the others would troop downstairs and we'd have to filter our conversation.
Kory and Lexsi didn't need to hear some of it, even, and I felt sad about that. I could tell them everything in the future, just not now.
"Uncle, Corinnelar and I will recreate the Metal Library," Valegar appeared and dipped his head respectfully to Pheligar.
"So you do have a proper Larentii name," Conner's dimple appeared as she smiled.
"Yeah," I sighed.
* * *
Queen's Palace, Le-Ath Veronis
Lissa
"Martin, Weldon and I will take care of things on Harifa Edus," Winkler promised before leaning in to kiss me. "Don't worry, we'll let you know if things get out of hand."
A Demon's Due: Latter Day Demons, Book 3 Page 15