by S King
I could handle a lot of things in a lot of different ways. But what I couldn’t handle was the fact my heart felt as if it were simply falling out of my ass and all of the air was being squeezed from my lungs.
Finally, she looked at me with a sympathy dancing in her blue eyes and sighed, “well, that…” she blew out a hard breath. “Damn is all I have to say.”
“Karina,” I sighed.
“I mean, come on Lumi you have to admit this is like a fucked-up version of Romeo and Juliet.”
“Karina, I don’t want Romeo and Juliet, ok? I want all of this to end.”
She sighed, rubbing my arms, “it’s almost over. Ok? I just need you to hang on.”
“One more thing,” I took in a deep breath and leveled my gaze to hers, “Lovett? What’s going on?”
It was Karina’s turn to become hard. She clenched her teeth and narrowed her eyes to the building behind me, “that son of a bitch was the one behind framing Losett and.” She finally looked at me, “he’s the new sect leader of our guard.”
I figured the latter and didn’t bat a lash at the subject, but it was the former that had me staring wide eyed at her. “He was the one…”
“To kill our senior? Yeah, surprised, right?”
“Why?”
“Take a gander.”
I frowned, leaning against the tree and stared at the courtyard. When the pieces clicked, I stared at Karina, “no.”
She nodded, raising a brow, “he got together with Svenia and came up with this bullshit plan to frame you and Demir in the hopes of ruining the relationship between you two. Svenia had hoped Demir’s loyalty was stronger than his feelings for you and would drive him into her arms. Lovett thought the same about you.”
The air was knocked from my lungs for a second time as I took in her words. Lovett and Svenia were the true ones behind this fucked up situation. They were the ones to put Demir and I in this life-or-death situation. Without even thinking about how the tables would turn and flip upside down should the plan backfire.
“Are you sure?” I asked, still holding on to a thread of hope that maybe Karina was wrong.
A sympathetic look passed over her face as she slowly nodded, “as the day is long. I wish it weren’t, but unfortunately, it’s true.”
I wiped my face and took a deep breath, looking at the sky, “what now?”
“Now, I go break your husband out of lock up and get the love birds back together.”
“What?”
With a parting wink, she slipped past the guarded line of the territory and disappeared into the darkness.
The only thing I could hope for was both she and Demir would make it out of Onyx Elite’s clutches, alive.
Chapter 20 A Fatal Promise
Slowly, I lifted my head and stared at the judges, “you think I’m going to do that because you told me to?”
Judge Sadvidge smiled before shrugging and sat back in her seat, “no, Mr. Losett, we don’t think you’re going to kill Luminous because we told you to. You see, you find yourself in a very difficult position. However, given the turn of events, it would seem that you’ve been offered an olive branch. Either execute the Black Diamond Order on Luminous River, former sect leader of Silver Guard, squadron eight. Or” she raised a brow at me and smirked, “you may be escorted out to the retaining wall where you will meet your end.”
I considered the ultimatum and debated with myself, but what I wasn’t expecting was the very thing that had come out of my mouth next.
“I’ll do it.”
A satisfied smile covered all of the judges faces as the single statement eased all of their worries. Judge Sadvidge was the first to speak as she grabbed for something on the bench.
“Excellent choice, Mr. Losett, if you’ll sign this contract,” she nodded to Roxy who was waiting silently at the end of the bench. “This certifies you will execute the Black Diamond Order of former sect leader of squadron eight of Silver Guard, Luminous River. Your timeframe is within a seventy-two-hour period.”
I gritted my teeth, taking the contract and pen. I needed to do this, not because I wanted to but because I had to. In a sick game of irony, I had to fight myself to not drive my sword into my own chest. This was the only time in my life I had compared myself to Lovett. The same way he valued his life and wanted to keep air in his lungs was the exact same way I valued my life. I valued the air coming and going from my body more than anything else, more than Luminous.
Slowly, I lowered the pen and just simply stared at my signature. It made me sick to see my name, signed in ink on the permanent contract but it was self-preservation.
A deep breath left me as I handed the contract to Roxy, taking note of her sick and sadistic smile covering her face. This wasn’t the time to the start a fight with the flunky and I didn’t need any additional problems. Turning my attention to the judges, I waited for them to say what they needed to so I could get the hell away from here.
“Very good, Mr. Losett, you are free to go.” Judge Sadvidge still had that cocksure smile on her face and a sick twinkle in her eye.
The flunky released the cuffs around my wrists and nodded to the standard steel door I had entered a countless number of times.
I didn’t waste any time spinning on my heel, snatching my sword from another flunky guard member and stormed from the court’s graces. I was in the middle of cursing myself from one end to the other when I heard something falling on the stone ground. My steps slowed for a moment until I stopped altogether and looked around in the dim light.
“Hello?” Pulling the sword from its case, I prepared myself for a bloody fight in the corridor.
“Gold?” A familiar voice came from a hidden alcove further down the corridor. “Demir?” Karina stepped out from the shadows of her alcove and frowned at me.
“What’re you doing here?”
I knew better than to grab for her and get her out of the way of any assault the judges may have tried to pull. Karina was the type of female I’d feel safe with in a back alley without my sword. And that was saying something in terms of her skill.
She tilted her head, looking past my shoulder for a second, “well, I was coming to break you out of hell. What…” she motioned between me and the door I had just come from, “what,” she shook her head, “how did you get out of there?”
“I…” it was my turn to be at a loss for words. I couldn’t tell Karina the truth. So, I did what I do best. I lied to her.
“I got caught.” Ok, so it wasn’t a complete lie, but it wasn’t the entire truth either.
Frowning, she raised a brow at me, “obviously. How did you get out?”
I took note of the bomb in her hand and forced myself to stay put, “they let me go.”
“What type of deal did you make to get out?” The warning in her tone was obvious and forced me to consider my next words very carefully.
“I—”
“Oh my god,” she scoffed, raising a brow at me as her grip tightened on the bomb in her hand. “You promised them Lumi, didn’t you?”
“No, I—”
“You sorry son of a bitch,” something in her storm blue eyes changed. “You have no idea—”
“I didn’t promise them, Luminous.” I snapped, glancing over my shoulder at the steel door.
“Then what the hell did you promise them, Demir? Because those bastards behind that door don’t do anything out of kindness.”
“I made my bed,” was all I said and started past her. “Take it how you want to, I’m getting out of here.”
Her hand shot out, slamming my body into the stone wall as a sinister smile crossed her lips, “you know, I hate it when people think they can lie to me.”
“I’m not lying to you.”
She stepped closer, her eyes changing to become a dull gold-grey…just like mine. “You promised to kill Luminous in order to save your own ass.”
Never in my life had I ever been afraid of anyone, not even when death was staring me in th
e face. But right now? Standing face to face with Karina Rizzo, I was scared shitless.
“Let me give you a word of advice, Losett,” she lowered her voice, eerily sounding just like me. “If you so much as think of hurting Luminous, I’ll ram this Russian Heart so far up your ass you’ll be burping gun powder for a year.”
Shoving off of me, she didn’t give me a chance to respond and simply walked away. Only after raising her closed hand above her head did I understand what she was doing.
“Shit,” I breathed, ducking into the nearest alcove I could find as explosion after explosion brought down the building.
Rocks, debris and fragments fell around me as aftershocks shook the ground; faintly, I heard screams and panic filled yells mingling with the ringing in my ears. Karina wasn’t playing when she said she was coming to break me out, but I didn’t know she was capable of this type of destruction.
When I knew there wouldn’t be any more falling stones or bricks, I lifted my head and slowly lowered my hands to assess the damage.
The smooth stone tunnels and steel door were leveled to nothing more than a memory. While the courtroom was only partly in tact; there wasn’t a ceiling, allowing the empty sky to be perfectly visible. Snowflakes fell over the soot covered rubble as flames began to form further in what was supposed to be the room behind the official courtroom.
“God,” I breathed, looking around the destruction.
Luminous’s best friend had caused a scene like no other. Actually, it was like seeing my death before it had happened. Still, I focused on the minute detail of how in the fuck was Karina able to see into my mind and sound like me? Granted, nobody in any of the guards talked about what the scientists had cursed them with.
Hell, even after everything we shared, I didn’t know what Luminous had to deal with other than sleep paralysis and she didn’t know about me seeing someone’s death when they touched my hands. So, it was really no surprise I didn’t know about Karina’s ability to see into my mind and become an extension of myself. Still, it was scary as fuck and rendered me timid when I thought about her.
Pushing myself from the rubble, I dusted myself off and took a deep breath. There was no purpose in finding out if the judges or anyone else were alive; it’d be no question they’d think I had some part in this mess if I showed up out of the dust like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Besides, I had signed my contract and all I had to do now was avoid fulfilling it. But for the time being, I needed to get out of here and try to find Luminous to make sure she was ok.
§§§§§
It was Christmas day and here I was, like a fucking idiot, trudging through the snow looking for the one woman who infuriated and excited me in one breath. After last night’s little explosion the guard members had been heavily searching the area for Luminous and Karina.
They had wanted the two most powerful women in Silver on a platter for their Christmas celebration, but thankfully neither had been found and if I had to guess, I knew Karina was probably hidden somewhere in plain sight. As for Luminous, I didn’t know where she was or how she had gotten away so quickly.
I had returned to the space we had last seen each other, but thanks to the fresh snow fall her, tracks had been covered and there wasn’t anything I could do but continue to search the area. I just needed a glimpse of her zircon gray hair, just one glimpse and my nerves could be at ease for a moment.
The bile was rising in my throat the longer I searched and couldn’t find her. “Luminous!”
I spun around and searched the mountains for any sign of life; unfortunately, I was only greeted with silence and a few birds chirping. What if the guards had found her already? What if she was already dead? Shaking my head, I took a deep breath and relaxed my nerves.
Slowly, I scanned the top of the mountains where the cliffs dropped off and narrowed my eyes. Soon the light would die out and make it virtually impossible for me to see beyond a certain point. Just when I thought things were about to become a dark and frozen wasteland, hope made my heart speed as I saw what I had been looking for.
I saw the simple movement of something turning in my direction and raised what looked like a hand.
“Luminous,” I breathed, ignoring the cold, I used every ounce of strength I had to plow my way through the snowdrifts.
She was easily a mile away from me, but I wasn’t paying attention to the length I would need to travel to get to her. I only saw Luminous in the snow-covered terrain and didn’t think about hypothermia or a cold.
Bursting through the tree line, I nearly wept with happiness at the sight in front of me. Luminous standing in the middle of a clearing with her coat pulled tight and her whip pinned to her back.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Demir,” her voice was like a heavenly song playing in the vast wasteland.
Without thinking twice, I rushed to her and pulled her against my chest. She was safe, she still had air in her lungs. So, why wasn’t I as happy about seeing her as I thought I would be?
Leaning back, I smoothed her hair away from her face and took in the dark crescent moons hanging under her eyes and the wariness in her face. She looked exhausted and completely done with the entire situation we found ourselves in.
Honestly, who could blame her? It wasn’t like this entire year had been anything less than a shit show. So, why wouldn’t she be exhausted from the reality.
“What’s wrong?”
The question had become something of a staple in her vocabulary when it came to me. Nonetheless, it brought a smile to my face and even more so allowed me to come up with something to ease her nerves. She didn’t need to worry about me, and I wasn’t going to allow it to creep into her veins if I could avoid it.
“Nothing.”
“Where did they take you?”
I clenched my teeth for a moment, not wanting to tell her what had happened during the time we were separated. Like my current thought process she didn’t need to know about what the prestigious Onyx Elite judges had forced me to do. Not to mention, Karina had scared the living shit out of me last night.
Opting for the safest option I simply smirked and turned the tables on the conversation.
“What’s your curse?”
She sighed, the tension in her forehead leaving her for a moment, “photogenic memory. Yours?”
Well, shit, I didn’t think about the outcome of this conversation all the way, did I? Still, I had opened the door and I couldn’t do anything but oblige my own curiosity.
“Death.”
“What?”
“I can see how someone dies and who kills them. Granted, it happens only when their death is within six months.”
She considered the answer thoughtfully before looking at my chest, “did you see mine? That night at the ball when you left?”
“No.”
A sense of relief calmed her for a moment, leaving her to think of yet another question to ask me. I didn’t want to lie to her, but it was a necessity. A necessary evil, my mother would’ve said in this situation.
Lying to Luminous was selfish within its own right, I’ll admit it, but I’d rather see her smiling through the tears versus losing herself to an infinite agony. Although, that infinite agony was going to come sooner rather than later.
I couldn’t stop myself from touching her hair again and memorized every strand on her head, the planes of her face. The way she smiled or the pinched look on her face when she was lost in thought; I tried to commit every detail to memory and tried to talk myself of what I was required—by the courts—to do.
“Did you face the courts?” She asked out of nowhere, disrupting my memorization of her face.
Taking a deep breath, I brought her to my chest again and sighed as I stared out over the snowy mountains, “don’t worry about it. We’ll figure out something soon.”
“How?”
“I don’t know yet, I’m not that quick on my feet,” I tried to add humor in my tone, but Luminous being Luminous wasn’t hearing
it.
“Demir, it’s one thing to not know what you want to eat for dinner, but we’re talking about our lives here.”
“I know that.”
“You were taken to the courts?” She asked again.
“I was.” I could tell her that much.
“What happened?” Something dancing in her eyes was telling me she knew more than what she was willing to tell me.
“Nothing worth busying our time with.”
“Demir.”
“Look, Lumi, it was the same as it always is. It’s either their way or the highway and I chose the highway.” A necessary evil, I kept reminding myself.
She stared at me, the internal debate obvious in her eyes. Lumi wasn’t stupid by any means and knew better than most when she was being played for a fool. But right now, I needed her to get off the subject and find something else to busy her time with. On the plus side, assuming this was our plus side, she didn’t have Karina’s talent for seeing into my mind and becoming an extension of myself.
“Hungry?”
Her harsh eyes narrowed for a second before she let the suspicion die on her lips, “yeah.”
I smirked, nodding down the mountain at another small town, “want to cause some trouble in the unknown?”
She snorted and rolled her eyes, “let’s try not to cause a scene this time.”
“In technicality, we didn’t cause a scene at the last town. That was the guards fault, not ours.” I helped her down the steep incline and searched my brain for a topic that didn’t involve courts, guards, bombs, deaths, or anything in between. How hard could it be?
Two hours later we found ourselves nestled into the corner of a simple inn, sharing a plate of squid soup and a pitcher of boba tea. I had spent the entire time of our walk filling in the empty space with questions about her favorite type of music, color, movie, hobby, books, paintings, poets, philosophical sayings and everything in between. Of course, she had tried to get me to engage, to which I told her I wanted to know more about her.