“I don’t think –”
“Then don’t think, just get out of here.” Silver interrupted. “You’re becoming boring kingling. Lena take him back to his palace will you?”
The brownie, prompt as ever, appeared and grabbed Marten’s sleeve with an apologetic look as she swiftly tugged him from the room.
When he was out of earshot, Silver sighed. “You remember what I told you about appearances?” She began, aiming her words at all of the hounds. “You must obey me around others and even act afraid of me. I would never hurt you, but they mustn’t know that. When on your own you must be volatile and brutal, like wild animals. It is better to make people fear you, for it will keep them at a distance.”
“Why do you treat them with such suspicion?” Theria demanded. “They could be useful, you cannot fight Alda alone.”
“I never said I was going to fight her. She’s the Council’s problem; I’m not doing their dirty work after they sent me to my death like a lamb to the slaughter.”
“She attacked you!” Theria looked incredulous, and it was a strange look for a demonic dog.
Silver shrugged. “She’s been attacking a lot of people. I’m not going to take it personally.”
“She tried to kill you!” Theria argued. “Look at all the effort she put in.”
“I’m flattered she took such measures.” Silver replied calmly. “But I’m not interested in fulfilling the Ancient’s contract.”
“Why not? How is this pride war you have with them more important than keeping this world from falling to the hands of those power hungry maniacs?”
“It’s not about pride.” Silver gave the hound a frustrated glare, glad that the others were remaining silent for now so she only had to argue with one. “The Ancients will kill me if I survive Alda. They won’t give me all this power and let me live. Gaillean knows it too. Or at least I suspect he does. That’s why I believe he gave me the blades.”
Theria let out a yip of surprise. “You plan to fight the Ancients?”
“If necessary,” Silver slid a single knife out of its sheath and checked the blade before replacing it. “We’ll hold the demonic realm; they have no power there, away from their precious twenty-one worlds.”
“Why not bargain with them?” Theria was obviously grasping for alternatives. “Their vow for Alda’s death sounds like a fair trade.”
“They break vows easily, for no higher power holds them accountable to them. Plus, one life won’t buy my freedom.”
“What if you agreed to hunt all of the half-Ancients?”
Silver considered it. “They might go for it, but they would never accept the suggestions from me; they’re arrogant enough to need to believe they thought up the idea themselves.”
Chapter Twelve
PRESERVING THE PEACE
How true, Kate thought as she looked into the water, watching Silver’s interaction with her familiar. Hard as it was to admit, the fallen princess knew them better than the Council would ever admit, and she had become suitably cautious and cynical from the knowledge.
Gaillean appeared, as she’d known he would. Both of them watched over his daughter almost unceasingly. They knew the whereabouts of Silver and all those whom she operated with at every moment of every day.
“Her idea,” Gaillean began. “It could work.”
“But convincing the others would be difficult; I don’t know if they’d accept her as the Council’s hunter.” Kate shook her head in disappointment.
“They have to. We must convince them.” Gaillean was adamant, and Kate could understand why. If this worked, they would save his daughter from the execution that had been planned since her birth.
But Kate wasn’t so sure it would work, and perhaps this showed because he continued. “If they can sentence Silver to death, it would be easy enough to do the same to Romana.”
Kate’s maternal instinct kicked in, even though she knew she was being played. She knew no matter what happened now, she had so save Silver, or her own daughter would surely follow.
And that was not happening. Ever.
“What did you have in mind?” She asked, her golden eyes locking with his.
“We persuade them. Keep tabs on all of Llewellyn’s progeny; each one is insane in one way or another, with the right provocation we can make them appear to be too dangerous for the Council to allow them to continue to exist.”
“All of his children?”
“We’ll start with Kobos’ co-conspirators. Maybe that will be enough, if not; I don’t care how many of those psychopaths we must condemn if it keeps my daughters safe.”
Kate met his solemn gaze once again and considered his plan.
“I’m in,” She replied. “But do you realise how many Council rules we would be breaking?”
“I don’t care.” Gaillean repeated. “I’ve been a slave to their rules long enough.”
“I agree.” Kate inwardly shuddered as she thought of the consequences for what they were about to do. “But we must never be discovered, I will not risk them killing our daughter as our punishment.”
*
Romana woke with Marten plastered around her. Her lover liked to take over the entire bed when he slept, but fortunately he liked to take her with him rather than pushing her onto the floor. She loved the feeling of just being wrapped in his embrace while she rested. But the mental call that had woken her refused her the pleasure of just laying with him.
She turned intangible using her powers over the air currents, dressed quickly, and then teleported away with a last kiss to Marten’s cheek.
“Mother,” She greeted Kate as she arrived on the banks of the lake where corpse of the previous isle of the gifted remained after the dragons’ attack so many years ago. “What can I help you with?” She was relieved to see her mother, especially since she hadn’t heard anything of Kate, Silver or demons for nearly two months, and the lack of news had been beginning to worry her.
“It concerns your half-sister.” Kate began. “Yet is also concerns you.”
“What has Silver done?” Romana was concerned, not only by Kate’s sombre expression, but by the panic that rolled off of her mother in waves.
“It’s more a case of what she won’t do.” Kate explained. “We brought her back to defeat Alda, but she has rightly guessed that the Council has planned to kill her afterwards to preserve the peace. So she swears she will not aid us.”
“You want to kill her?” Romana wasn’t shocked, Kate had never liked Silver, but she was not heartless enough to say she wouldn’t be saddened at losing the only sister she’d ever had.
“No, but the Council will do if we cannot create a reason for her to exist. They think of her as too powerful, but she is second in power to you. Once they realise this, there is no guarantee you will not also face the same sentence.” Kate sighed. “Personally, I am unsure whether Silver deserves to be saved, but if saving her saves you I would do it a thousand times over. Your father, of course, wishes both of you to remain alive.”
“How does this concern me?” Romana was grateful to be in the loop, but she didn’t think Kate would have popped in just to inform her of the plan if she wasn’t in it.
“I need you to persuade her into it. She must kill Alda for her to be considered able to finish off the other problematic half-ancients.”
“How many half-ancients do we need to worry about?” Romana replied. “Surely keeping us alive is not worth the chaos they will unleash on this world.”
“Never say that!” Kate scolded. “You are the most precious thing on this planet to me and you are NOT dying to satisfy that Council of cold-hearted, evil, calculating…” Kate trailed off, looking for the right word to describe her brethren. She waved it off in the end, clearly unable to find any word strong enough. “Anyway, Gaillean and I will prod the others into action. We plan to make it so that you are both under the protection of the Council and so no vote taken without all Council members in agreement will be enough to warrant
your execution. But we can only do that if you are both valuable to us. You must prove your ability to control Silver, and she must prove her ability to follow orders from you.”
“How am I supposed to give her orders?” Romana demanded. “I have no idea where she even is! And she wouldn’t listen to me even if I did manage to pin her down long enough for her to have a conversation with me!”
“You shared the same body as her for twenty years.” Kate retorted. “You must have some idea what to say. You have her memories.”
“I don’t look at them.” Romana informed her mother. “The events she remembers broke her mind. I know that if she wasn’t strong enough to handle them, I definitely won’t be.”
Romana knew the memories were there, she also knew accessing them would be easy. But in truth, she was afraid. She didn’t want to look at people with Silver’s memories colouring her judgement. And she didn’t want to lose any more of herself to the Silver Eyed Wytch.
“Why not allow me to kill Alda?” Romana asked. “I could do it.”
“But you would never have forgiven yourself for murdering your own cousin. Silver hasn’t got that problem – she’s cold and can choose to ignore the boundaries of right and wrong if they get in her way.”
“I could’ve done whatever was necessary.” Romana argued, determined not to be less than Silver in her mother’s eyes.
Kate’s face shone with warmth and power in a way that almost made Romana’s eyes hurt.
“How many people have you killed since Silver’s death?” She asked.
Romana didn’t have to think. “Five.”
“Five in around twenty years,” Kate confirmed. “Since her reincarnation Silver has caused the deaths of hundreds. That’s only in the few years she’s been free of her brothers. She does not think of their faces like you do, she certainly does not send their families money as you do. You are a better person, she is the better killer.
Romana sank to the muddy ground. “I’ve been training; I could kill like she does if I wanted.”
Kate moved closer and stroked a hand through Romana’s hair. “For you, killing will never be easy. That is the way it is supposed to be, to callously dispose of life the way Silver does is a terrible thing. Something I would never want you to be able to do.”
Kate’s eyes widened as she glanced at a spot behind Romana on the muddy bank.
“Gaillean,” She began, and Romana twisted round.
“Your mother is right in this, Romana.” The primal, wild looking man who walked towards them addressed her.
But she was speechless, her eyes glued to the man who, if his distinctive hair was anything to go by, was the father she shared with Silver.
“We need your half-sister to do this because of her lack of empathy. You must do your own task now and persuade her to do as she is told.” His voice was deep and rhythmic and it washed softly yet powerfully against her ears.
“But she won’t. You can torture her for years; threaten her followers, even burn down whatever she owns. Silver will never do as you ask for she simply does not care. She won’t save us.”
“Her familiar may help you.” Gaillean told her. “Kate, we must go; the others wish to hear of our progress.”
Kate gave an audible sigh and an eye roll, and then stepped quickly into the water of the lake to teleport away.
“It was a pleasure meeting you, daughter.” Gaillean said briefly, walking past and patting her on the head before he too disappeared, vines covering him as he teleported.
Romana, refusing to dwell on the disturbingly disinterested father she had just met, took off into the woods ghosting as air through the branches.
She had to find Silver, that much was clear; but more importantly she had to find her sister’s demonic familiar and somehow get it on her side.
This wasn’t going to work. Ash and Icarus would rather die than betray her. Silver’s familiar would probably be even more territorial and possibly even more stubborn.
She had to try. She owed the other woman a life debt she doubted she would ever fully repay. Delivering Kate’s message was a simple favour in comparison.
She located Silver’s old hideout easily. Time had not dimmed her memories of the place and she still came to the caves occasionally in secret. It was a quiet place to think – something that was becoming more and more of a luxury with the power and responsibility she now held.
“Silver?” She called out; extending the courtesy of anonymity should her sister wish it. She could have just reached out and searched with her mind, but she felt this might work a little better if Silver felt she had the choice to reveal herself.
Perhaps she should have searched the place mentally, as within seconds of her calling out the name she was pounced upon by a white hellhound and pinned to the floor. Five more of the demons raced snarling around the corner into the living area like a pack of feral wolves.
They circled her, three russet, one grey and one black. The white one on her chest growled low and still wet blood dripped from its scales and fur onto her robes.
Romana turned incorporeal instantly, self-preservation causing her to coax her power into the form of fire and conjure balls of deadly flame into her hands as she misted backwards till she was standing.
“You are Silver’s familiar, I assume.” She addressed the white one as it shifted into the circle created by the others.
The white one gave a snort, “Hardly. Why do you seek our mother?”
“My name is Romana,” there was some bristling at that and she realised they recognised her name. “I need to talk to her about hunting our cousins.”
“Mother will take no part in the Ancient’s schemes.” The grey one cut her off when she would have continued. “You shouldn’t either if you wish to stay alive for the foreseeable future.”
“If she hunts Alda the Council may choose to employ her to rid them of the rest of the half-ancients.” Romana quickly relayed the deal.
There was a round of barking laughter at her words. “You believe our mother would take the word of any of the Ancients?” One of the russet coloured ones sniggered.
“Gaillean and Kate have not lied to us.”
“Of course they have, there is no honour among the powerful. Just because they are your parents does not mean they are not manipulating you in the same way they manipulate mother.” The grey one growled. “Kate sent our mother to her death. It is purely your fault if you choose to believe in their hollow vows.”
“Can I at least talk to Silver?” Romana asked. “I think Kate and Gaillean are honestly trying to help us.”
“Protect you, maybe. Kate does not care about anyone else.”
“We are bound, so that protection extends to Silver now.”
Romana watched as one by one each hellhound except for the black one denounced the Ancients. In fact, the black one had not spoken at all; it simply stared at her with dark eyes, almost as if it was judging her and her conviction.
This, Romana realised, was Silver’s true familiar. It was proportioned in a way that made her suspect it was a female, even if it did have a larger size than the others.
“I believe what they have said, and you can accept their offer or doom us all to die. It is Silver’s choice.” Romana interrupted the others as she spoke directly to the black hellhound. “But if I die, so does Silver, so that should give her some motivation to do as the Ancients ask.”
“They won’t let you die, so they will not let mother die.” The white one growled. “Your bond is a curse to them, if indeed it even exists.”
The last part caught her off guard. “You doubt it even exists?”
“Mother came close to dying when your midsummer party was ambushed, yet you felt no ill effects. It should have drained you, yet the kingling said you were fine. The Ancients could have lied in an attempt to leash our mother, or they may have broken it to release you.” The grey one informed her.
“Or maybe it only goes one way.” Romana thought out l
oud without realising it, before cursing herself for her lack of censure. “I will leave their deal with you, since you seem unwilling to show me to my sister.”
Chapter Thirteen
REVALATIONS
When she was sure the girl had left, Silver stepped from the shadows of the hall towards her hounds.
“What do you think?” She asked Theria as she gently scratched behind all of their ears in praise for their performance.
“Romana is perceptive.” Her hound replied after a period of long thought. “Yet she thinks with her emotions, something that could get you both killed. It is likely she has not seen any trickery attached to the Ancients’ offer because she does not wish to see her parents in that light.”
Silver nodded. “Bran and Lucan, you are to follow her and make sure she arrives back in Morendor in one piece. Cicero, find me the kingling and bring him here. Loke and Willem, go with Cicero.”
The hounds barked and bounded off. And for once Silver had complete confidence in others to do the tasks assigned to them. Their keen senses and speed would ensure their tasks were carried out properly.
“What about me?” Theria asked.
“I want you to stay with me while I talk with the kingling; your insights into people’s thoughts are good. After that I need you to follow the wytches of the Coven. I want to know where they go, what they do and who they see.”
“You’re just giving me something to do.” Theria whined, her eyes alternating between sadness and annoyance.
Silver frowned. “I’m asking you to tail the wytch queens of this world. It’s dangerous and vital that you should not be discovered. I do not ask this of you lightly.”
Silver's Redemption (Soul Merge Saga Book 3) Page 15