by Jaymin Eve
Fuck. Joy lit up her features and it was like being punched in the gut. I couldn’t stop myself from reaching for her and pressing my lips to hers. I needed to kiss that pretty little mouth.
She kissed me back without hesitation, and it was only the knowledge that others were watching that kept me from claiming her right then and there. There were only so many times you could tempt a mate bond before it forced you together. I needed to slow this down. She wasn’t ready. Trust was not where it should be between us. I needed to prove my loyalty to her, my worth.
I pulled back, leaving her flushed and breathless. I wanted to see her looking like that many times.
“Go, we have plenty of time. Lock and I have leader shit to talk about anyway.”
The vampire laughed then, his rumble turning into a boom of mirth. “Leader shit might be the most accurate description I’ve heard to date.”
Mischa had her hand pressed to her lips, and seemed to want to say something, but then Hadie gestured for the girls to follow her. Jessa hooked her arm through her sister’s, and soon they were stepping over to a large building close to the edge of the east side. I watched them until they were out of sight.
“Congratulations on your child. I had not heard there was more than one mated Compass, or more than one young due.”
I turned back to Lock and gave him a nod of thanks. “Yes, Braxton and I will be blessed as fathers very soon.”
“My daughter has just had a son with her mate,” he said. “I thought I could not love any supe more than my child until my grandson arrived. He owns my heart.”
I clasped him on the shoulder. “Congratulations to you and Hadie. That’s truly wonderful news.”
I couldn’t wait to meet my daughter, to hold her close and promise her the world. The thought that Kristoff had nearly ended her life kept me from peaceful sleep, and had oceans of anger churning within me.
Chan was a healer without equal. He had worked miracles to keep them both alive. Although, at one point he’d suggested that Mischa might not make it, and that we should remove the child in order to give the baby a chance to survive. It had been a hard decision, but at the time my instinct said to keep them together, that mother and daughter were stronger that way. They had proved me right, fighting off the effects of the oil, pushing through the pain together. True warriors. My perfect girls.
“Let me show you through the prison,” Lock said, distracting me from the dark memories filling my mind. I couldn’t dwell on what I’d almost lost. For now I was grateful.
I followed the vamp in the opposite direction of where the girls went. Despite the roundish shape of this space, this was the largest of edges.
“Magic keeps the breezes up here to minimum. Otherwise we’d be buffeted,” Lock said, giving me the tour. “We house five hundred supes here. The other prison, in North China, has about a thousand. We have quite limited space.”
He led me right up to the edge and then whistled loudly. He repeated this action twice more. We both waited, silently staring out into the horizon. Standing this close to the edge felt as if I were standing on the clouds. A flapping could be heard now, distant at first but getting louder and louder, until two beasts flew into view – large eagles, but like no eagle a human would ever have seen.
“Beautiful, aren’t they?”
“Yes,” I said. “Where do they stay when you don’t need them?”
Lock gave a waving hand signal to the birds and they swiftly landed behind us. They were massive, standing at least a foot taller than me, and twice as wide. The span of their wings was almost comparable to dragons, and the incredible power of their bodies was unmistakable.
“I don’t know where they go, but they always come when called. They’re the true guardians of this prison. They’re tied to the mountain itself, and the prison makes sure they’re protected and cared for.”
This “living” prison, and the mythical guardian eagles which allowed supes to travel to the cages, was something no other community could boast. The origin story of Sinchin stated that these birds were a product of the prison’s magic, that they will never die and cannot be manipulated by inmates.
Lock crossed to the closest eagle and reached out a hand. Large obsidian eyes followed his movements, and as he approached the bird lowered his head and allowed him to touch. Lock then stepped around to the side and pulled himself up onto its back, settling in close to the joints of the wing. I wondered why he didn’t just slide right off the silky feathers, until I noticed a small harness-style leather strap crossed over the middle. Lock gripped it to anchor himself.
“Make sure you extend the first reach, but then let him come to you,” he said, warning in his tone.
Copying his movements, keeping myself as calm as possible, I approached the other bird. There was maybe a moment longer hesitation from my beast, but he soon lowered his head and allowed me to mount. I settled myself onto his strong back, and surprisingly enough it was comfortable and easy to grip my legs.
“Prepare yourself, young vampire,” Lock said with a grin. “This is not for the weak of disposition.”
I returned his grin. “My disposition is as rock solid as Sinchin.”
Not to mention I’d spent plenty of time on the back of my dragon brother. We’d made Braxton take us flying many times. That’s what he got for being the lucky asshole with a dragon soul inside. Still, as the eagles spread their wings and ran for the side of the mountain, nothing quite prepared me for that initial drop off a mountain thousands of feet in the air.
It was freeing in a way that would be impossible to explain. It was something everyone needed to experience for themselves. I wished we lived closer so I could do it all the time. Mischa and Jessa had to give this a go, they couldn’t leave until they had. With some strong thrusts and tilting of their bodies, the eagles circled around and started to cross to the prison.
As the cells came into sight I had to shake my head. Now that was what I called some truly secure prisoners.
Mischa Lebron
Jessa sat beside me while I painted. For once she was quiet and tranquil. Clearly something about this place gave her a sense of calm. Not sure what that said about my sister, considering this was a prison, housing a bunch of deadly criminals. Still, if I ever committed a crime, this was where I’d hope they would send me. The beauty would occupy me for many years. Of course, I was yet to see where the cells were, so maybe I’d change my mind about that. But for now it was perfect.
Most of my mind was occupied with building layers of images and then painting them into place. Still a part of me was stuck mentally repeating that kiss from Maximus. It had come from nowhere, in front of others, and he gave zero cares. He had kissed me like he couldn’t stop himself, and my heart was still pounding.
He was disarming me, tearing down every wall I’d ever built to protect myself, walls I’d been building since I was old enough to feel the sharp sting of rejection, of hatred, of prejudice toward anyone different to the norm. The human world might have a lot of wonderful in it, but there was also a lot of hate. The supe world was segregated too, but not in the same way. Humans were the same species, the same blood and organs beneath their skin, and they still found ways to separate themselves out. The supe races were actually different species and still managed to live in communities together, to build a world which protected humans and other supernaturals. Yes, they had wars, but it just didn’t seem as bad. Or maybe I’d not been here long enough to see it. Hopefully it was just not as bad.
“I’d hate you, except I think art is a useless skill. Now, knife throwing, that’s a great skill,” Jessa said, her head thrown back in the sunlight. There was no malice in her words, something else I appreciated about supes. If a human was jealous of my paintings, they’d have sneered and acted like art was the worst thing anyone could bother doing. Jessa did none of that, she just spoke truthfully. I had a skill she admired but didn’t think was any use. So she wasn’t jealous.
Still … I had to chuckle at h
er.
“You’re the queen of the backward compliment.”
She shrugged. “What can I say, you have a true gift from the gods. I’d swear that’s a photo sitting there, not a picture painted with tiny little brush strokes. But that isn’t going to save your life if someone comes at you armed.”
Truth. Still, my artistic abilities had saved me on more than one occasion. Not in the way Jessa was saying, but the ability I had to paint scenes in my mind allowed me to notice little details. Sometimes that saved me from being attacked, or let me know when someone was trying to trick me.
I should have known it with Larkspur’s daughters, but grief and abandonment issues had completely wiped out my artistic side. I didn’t paint for months, which was like the first time ever. I’d been a bit broken then. I wasn’t sure all the cracks were filled yet, but things were getting better.
I was about halfway done with the painting when a whoosh noise drew my attention. We’d been in the building with Hadie when Maximus and Lock had gone to the prison. I still had no idea where the cells even were, and the last thing I expected to see was a pair of dragon-sized eagles fly over our heads. They went into a glide, landing in the center of the large oval space. Jessa was already on her feet, her body half crouched and blade in hand. She only relaxed when she noticed Maximus and Lock on their backs.
I was standing too. Somehow my wolf had taken control for a second and shot me to my feet. My back ached briefly as it adjusted to the weight on my front. Every day the width of my tummy doubled. Maybe I was carrying twins too. Or my girl was very cozy in her well-padded room.
Maximus’ face was lit up as he gracefully launched himself from the huge bird. It was nice to see him with such a carefree expression, dimples flashing.
Damn dimples. Jessa was right. They were weapons.
He took his normal long strides, reaching us in seconds. “I hope neither of you are afraid of flying on the back of giant eagles, because you have to see this prison. It’s ingenious.”
Jessa scoffed. “I was a goddamned dragon. You can’t have forgotten already. Old age is gonna do a real number on you, my friend.”
He ruffled her hair before laying a kiss on her cheek. “I remember, babe. Don’t worry, I know you’re an expert flyer.”
Ah, so the question had been for me, and I really had no idea.
“Guess we’re about to find out,” I said, standing taller. I was not missing out, even if there was a chance the flying motion would have me wanting to vomit over the edge.
Maximus reached out and took my hand, touching me on instinct. I was totally down with this instinct thing.
My eyes remained locked on the fascinating beasts as we walked closer. Jessa moved toward Lock. He reached down and hoisted her up with ease. Maximus led me to the other, and without any hesitation placed both hands on my waist and lifted me onto its back, right behind this little brown leather saddle.
“Normally you’d have to let the eagle come to you first, but he trusts me now, so as long as you’re with me, we’re fine,” he said as he leapt up behind me, settling in close.
It was good to know the bird wasn’t planning on attacking me anytime soon. Maximus wrapped his arms tightly around me then and all other thoughts disappeared. He ran a soft caress over my belly, before reaching forward and clenching a large hand into the loop of the saddle attachment.
“Hold on,” he said softly. Then with a sharp whistle from Lock the eagle spread its wings. The sudden change in footing sent a lurching sensation through my stomach. The eagle was fast, trotting along on two legs until it reached the edge of the mountain, and without a moment’s hesitation dropped right off the side.
I couldn’t stop the shriek bursting from my mouth. My stomach roiled wildly for many seconds, before eventually the flight went from falling to gliding and I was able to swallow a few times and stop my breakfast from reappearing. Then the beauty of the world stilled everything inside of me. I forgot about the torture, about the last few months of fear and loneliness. I forgot about my stupid decisions, and my heartbreak at losing the only guy who’d ever held my interest for longer than a few minutes. In that moment I was no longer Mischa Lebron, damaged and broken. I was a creature of the sky and I was free.
I lifted my arms up and closed my eyes as the gliding sensation washed through my body and into my soul.
“You look like one of the gods,” Maximus said, his voice low and strained. “The light is surrounding your face, and there’s so much serenity shining from you.”
He dropped his head then and buried it into the space between my shoulder and my neck. I could feel him inhaling deeply, as if breathing me in. There might have even been the scrape of fangs, but no bite. Which was sort of disappointing.
He lifted his face, lips brushing gently against my cheek. “You need to open your eyes now, gorgeous. Sinchin cells are just around this curve of mountain.”
I shifted slightly so I could see his depthless brown eyes shimmering back at me. His face was so close that it would take nothing for me to lean forward and press my lips to his. The cocky grin on his face said it all. He knew I wanted to kiss him.
Dammit, why were the Compasses so irresistible?
The eagle started flapping harder, increasing the bumpiness of the flight, which was enough distraction for me to look away and focus on the mountain. It was almost as breathtaking as the male behind me.
I loved seeing Sinchin from this angle. We had made it to the top through an elevator magically built into the center of it, but the actual mountain itself was hundreds of miles wide, and had large ruts and ground-out sections everywhere. There were huge cliffs of bare stone; others were overrun with grass and wildflowers, like the ones we’d received earlier from the people. Small animals were dotted around, mountain goats and other mammals feeding and climbing.
As the eagle crested around the side I realized this part of the mountain was almost a straight up and down wall. The rest was designed in the normal tapering pyramid shape, smaller at the top before gradually easing out to the largest section at the bottom. Not here though, this was completely vertical and smooth, no handholds or anything.
That’s when I saw them, right near the top – scattered prison cells built into the rock face. They started right across the top, and moved along in rows. Hundreds of them.
Maximus started to explain it to me and Jessa, who was hovering close by with Lock. “There are five hundred cells, each occupied by a single prisoner. The magical barriers extend out about six feet in all directions from the edge of the rock. That way they can’t touch the mountain itself to try and escape. They’d have to jump, which some prisoners have chosen to do, but apparently the mountain never lets them leave. If they jump, they disappear into the ground below and are never seen again. No one knows what happens to them.”
So literally the prison cells were ten-by-ten square holes in the side of the mountain. There looked to be a pallet bed and small restroom facility in each. A shimmery, clear dome extended out from each of the holes, which was obviously that barrier Maximus was talking about, which meant the supe could walk right out and stand on … nothing. I could see some of the prisoners sitting right on the edge of their clear barrier, staring out into the distance, legs dangling out into the abyss below.
There was a real mix of supe races. Some I couldn’t tell from here, but others were clearly from the demi-fey contingent.
“How do they get food and supplies for activities?” Jessa asked.
Lock picked up the conversation now. “Mostly everything in this prison is controlled by the mountain itself. Whoever created the spell inside this giant rock was one powerful magic user, because over time it has become a sentient being. Once a day the rock wall at the back of each cell opens, allowing the prisoners to leave. On the other side is a large football-field-size space. The inmates have time to eat, use the gym, and work on creative products. We allow them to take paints to their rooms, because many of them find the view c
omforting in their time of incarceration.”
“When new prisoners arrive, they go into the same lift we used,” Maximus said. “But the prison takes them straight to their cell, no detours.”
Lock nodded, his eyes drifting across the expanse of cells. “Yes, there’s actually very little use for us here, except to make sure everything continues running smoothly. It’s why I’m generally the only one around the prison. The other leaders don’t bother themselves with it so much.”
I had to shake my head – prison was a bleak life. Understandably. Some of the inmates deserved to be here, no doubt; others probably deserved worse, but it was still sad to see life wasted in such a way. I wished people could just enjoy their blessings and not seek to harm others. Maybe there would be a world one day where prisons were not the sole reason for our supernatural communities.
“We need to return to Stratford now,” Maximus finally said. I noticed then that the sun had shifted quite dramatically in the sky. Time had flown by so quickly.
The eagles banked off; many of the prisoners’ eyes followed us. Some even waved, like we were visitors who’d stopped by for tea. In no time the birds had deposited us back to the mountaintop, before taking off again.
“If the mountain provides everything for the prisoners, why do you need the birds?” I asked.
Lock watched them fly away before turning back to me. “The wall only opens once a day. Some of the prisoners have special needs and need supplies more regularly than that. The eagles are provided for this reason.”
Fair enough. Hadie emerged from the building then. In her hands were our flowers and a rolled scroll. “I wasn’t sure if you would have time to finish the painting,” she said when she was closer. “So I had one of the mages magically seal and bind it for you. When you get home you can open it and the spell will dissipate. It will be as you left it.”
I blinked back a few tears. “Thank you,” I said, reaching out and taking the gifts from her. “You two are so very kind. We really appreciate you taking the time for us today.”