“That’s because they communicate at some weird level the rest of us can’t hear,” Lottius said
“The worst part is that Queen Coronis had them living at the institute away from their parents, so most weren’t close to their families,” Gus added. “Safety to most of them is being with each other, not their parents.”
“I don’t care,” Katia said. “With my parents gone, Angelia is the only family I have left. Immediate family,” she added, glancing at Lottius.
“Then why aren’t our people out there scouring the world for them?” I asked.
“We are. My hunting team goes out daily to search for them,” Gus said. “The few times we thought we’d located them, we found them gone.”
I went in search of my father after my friends left. He wasn’t in his quarters. Downstairs, Sir Malax met me before I entered the throne room.
“Your father is having a hearing in the council chambers, Princess,” he said, bowing.
“Oh. Okay. Then I’ll see him tomorrow.”
What is it, daughter? Lord Valafar asked.
I just wanted to say goodnight and thank you for being so nice to my friends, I said.
He chuckled. Join us. I need your help with something.
“He says I can go in now,” I said.
“This way, Princess,” Malax said.
I followed him past a room with guards down a short hallway to an inner door, which he pushed open. I’d never entered the room, though my father had pointed it out the day he gave me the tour.
The room was circular with a high ceiling. The walls had etchings of the Principalities standing over people in various states of agony. There were twelve mini-balconies with dukes and duchesses in black ceremonial robes. I recognized a few from my party. Above them were galleries for observers, but they were empty now.
At the front of the room sat my father, his chair larger and more ornate than the elders’ chairs. My focus shifted to half a dozen men and women kneeling on a dais in front of him. They appeared to kneel near the eyes of a giant mural of a raven painted on the floor. From their suits and trench coats, they were not from the island. Their psi energies also indicated they were mid-to upper-level Hermonites.
“Come,” Lord Valafar said, and patted the arm of his chair. I teleported to his balcony.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
He narrowed his eyes at the six men and women below. One of them is guilty of spying for the Guardians. They all claim to be innocent, yet they were known associates of the Guardians and the Outcasts.
According to Lady Nemea, Outcasts were Hermonites who refused to join us in our fight to reclaim the world. Some had human parents or grandparents and were sympathetic to humans.
They know the penalty for spying, Lord Valafar continued.
One woman wailed and fell forward until her head pressed on the marbled floor. “I’m innocent, sire.”
“Silence!” Lord Valafar bellowed. He wasn’t the same man who’d joked with my friends during dinner. The hatred toward the Guardians in the room was palpable and it wasn’t coming from my father alone.
I moved to the edge of the rail of the balcony and studied the six men and women. Why would they spy for our enemies? What’s their punishment?
A decade in the dungeons with their psi energy drained so they cannot attempt an escape. Without looking at me, he added, You are a powerful Psi, Lilith. More powerful than anyone in this room. Get inside their heads and find out the traitors.
“Congratulations, Princess,” Master Kenta said the next morning when I joined him. He handed me a sword. “I heard you fingered some traitors.”
Last night, I was thrilled when my father had asked for my help. Now all I felt was guilt. So the couple had close ties to the Outcasts and met with the Guardians a few times. Was their punishment justified? No one had gotten hurt and I was still here on the island.
“Why would our people spy for them?” I asked.
“Because of you.”
“Me?”
“The Guardians would do anything to have you on their side. Whoever controls the Kris Dagger… I mean, whichever side you are on will run things when you unite our people.”
I frowned. According to my father, I was the only one who could command it. Surely Master Kenta didn’t mean whoever controlled me would run things. Lady Nemea’s words flashed through my head—my father indulged me because he wanted me to choose him. Even though she’d changed it to love, I wondered if she’d really meant it. Why would I choose anyone else but my father?
I’d read enough about the dagger to know that it was not a force to be messed with. It could create worlds or destroy them, depending on the wielder’s will. I would never knowingly hurt anyone with it. On the other hand, until the previous night, I had never thought I’d knowingly send someone to the dungeons, either.
“Lilith?” Master Kenta asked.
I smiled at him so he wouldn’t see how terrible I felt. “Too bad the dagger is completely useless now.”
Master Kenta’s eyes sharpened. “You’ve seen it?”
“Yes, but I felt nothing. It just sat there like a steak knife. I wasn’t impressed.”
Master Kenta frowned. “That’s strange. You and your father retrieved it from a cave on Coronis Isle because you linked with it and commanded it.”
I stared blankly at him. “What? I was on Coronis Isle? When?”
“Your father tracked you down and the two of you went to Coronis Isle to retrieve the dagger.”
“This was before the Great Battle?”
“Yes. Even while under the Guardians, you knew you could trust him. He outsmarted the Guardians and helped you retrieve the dagger.” A gleam entered his eyes as though he derived pleasure from the idea of defeating the Guardians. My hands tightened around the hilt of the sword.
“He hasn’t said anything about it,” I said.
“Your father is a modest man, Lilith. Queen Coronis had hoped to have you by her side, but the Guardians attacked Coronis Isle that very night while you and your father were in the cave, retrieving the dagger. Once you got it, the Guardians ganged up on your father and took you with them. Again.”
Rehashing the past was pointless. It only pissed me off. “Let’s train.”
He stepped back, bowed, and lifted his sword. “Show me what you can do with a real sword.”
I was riding high on pissed-off energy, and it made me vicious. Unstoppable. Like the day before, people stopped to watch us. This time, I didn’t let them distract me or check on Green Eyes, even though I felt his eyes on us.
“That’s enough for today,” Master Kenta said an hour later.
He kept rubbing his temple and looked a little frazzled. I glanced around and frowned. The courtyard had cleared, which was unusual. There were always minions and guards around. I dropped the sword, bowed toward Master Kenta, and teleported.
Lil? Green Eyes said as soon as I appeared in my room.
I don’t want to talk right now, I snapped, peeling the sweaty clothes off my skin.
What happened? What did he say?
I sighed, turned on the water in the shower, and let it run over my hand. Who?
The bastard Kenta, Green Eyes practically snarled. Did he say something to piss you off?
The concern in his voice was sweet, but he wouldn’t understand. As a minion, his problems were completely different from mine.
I blew out air, but before I could respond, something brushed my psi energy and the anger drained out of me. I closed my eyes and savored the calm. I’m okay now. I can handle it.
I know, but you still affected everyone nearby earlier.
I frowned. What do you mean?
You are a powerful psi. When angry, you pulse.
Pulse?
Release energy in short bursts. If a ping is a tap, your bursts are like a punch. No one can withstand it for too long. We get headaches. Minions, on the other hand, have no defense against it. Their psi energy could be da
maged and they could lose their ability to teleport or telepath.
Could that explain why Master Kenta kept rubbing his temple and the minions had left the yard? How do you know these things? And you said, “We get headaches and minions have no defense…” If you’re not a minion, why are you pretending to be one? And where did you get the book on the Kris Dagger?
Do you want to talk about Kenta or what?
I want to talk about the book and your weird behavior. Tell me who you are and how you know so much about me.
I can’t.
Then we’re done talking.
Lil. He said my name and sighed.
Goodbye. I was surprised when he didn’t push, but the gentle brush against my energy happened again. I liked the feeling accompanying it. It made me feel warm and happy but, at the same time, tingly.
After showering, I changed and went to the family room for lunch. Lady Nemea had already had minions lay out my lunch. I ate under her watchful eyes. I bet she was making sure I used the right fork and spoon.
“You are unusually quiet today,” she said when we started our lessons.
I shrugged. “I’m being a model student.”
And I was. I listened and cooperated so well that I must have scared her, because she kept frowning. Like Master Kenta, she ended our lessons early.
“Do I release energy when angry?” I asked before she left.
She gave me a strange look. “Yes, but it’s nothing most of us can’t handle.”
“What about minions?”
She shrugged. “There’s nothing we can do about that. We told them to head to the city and stay there. The distance and the shield dampen the effect.”
“There’s a shield around the city?”
“And the island.”
As soon as she left, I headed to the library, where Master Rahm waited with the history pre-test. I hated history with a passion, but I didn’t complain. I was all about controlling my emotions.
“You are unhappy,” Master Rahm said, his irises narrowed.
“You’re an empath now?” I asked rudely.
“No.” He studied me. “What’s wrong?”
I made a face. “I did something I shouldn’t have done.”
“What did you do?”
I shook my head. “Last night, I… It doesn’t matter. It was a mistake.”
“You helped find the traitors.”
I cringed. “Everybody knows?”
He nodded. “Our people are very proud of you.”
“Then why am I not proud of me? Why do I feel so awful?”
“Because you don’t like hurting people.” He studied me with knowing eyes. “You know, I knew this woman once, a human, who through no fault of her own picked up a man from a lineup and swore he was the one she’d seen robbing a convenience store. After the man was convicted, she started having doubts about his guilt and tried to do something about it. At first, she tried to visit him, but he was too angry and didn’t want to see her.”
Fascinated, I nodded. “Then?”
“She found a way to have the case reopened and eventually set him free.”
I frowned. “Are you saying I should find a way to set the spies free?”
Master Rahm shook his head. “I’m not saying anything, Princess. Whatever you decide is up to you.”
I wasn’t interested in freeing the spies. Ever. I’d deal with the guilt some other way.
-9-
Days rolled into weeks. I still couldn’t find the stupid crystal Lord Gavyn had given me. In fact, I’d given up on ever finding it. I hope whoever had stolen it wouldn’t use it against him.
Between my morning and evening practices, Lady Nemea’s debutante lessons, and studying with Master Rahm, I had little time for anything else except nursing the guilt over the couple in the dungeons. They were never far from my mind.
I hated feeling guilty. Hated feeling like I should do something to set them free. Since I couldn’t think up a way to do it, I focused on studying my butt off and memorizing the names of every minion in the castle. I shamelessly interrupted their chores in my room, the kitchen, and the storage areas. I visited the kitchen so often that Bilal, the head cook, always had treats waiting for me. If I could, I would have eaten lunch with her and the others in the kitchen. They finally stopped pressing their hands to their chests. Instead, I got a nod and a smile, or a slight bow.
My dislike of the Guardians only grew as Master Kenta continued to regale me with Guardian stories between sword practices and sparring—Guardians chasing Coronis and her followers from Xenith’s cities and marooning them in the frostiest part of the land. I already knew about that, but not about the number of Hermonites who’d lost their children because of the harsh conditions. Then there were Guardians destroying businesses without provocation, putting hundreds out of jobs, slaughtering our people, and leaving children without parents, wives without husbands, and vice versa. That they would kill their own for humans made no sense.
I didn’t lose it again like the first two days. I came close a few times, but the gentle brush on my psi energy often calmed me down even though I had no idea who was doing it. I knew I wasn’t the one doing it, and my father wasn’t either.
“How can I stop shooting off psi energy?” I asked him one evening.
“By controlling your emotions,” he’d said.
My father could be so doting one minute, and curt the next. I realized his moods had nothing to do with me and didn’t take it personally. Instead, I teased him or shared silly anecdotes until he smiled or laughed. He tested my knowledge of history whenever he could, which drove me crazy. The worst part was that I always had this weird feeling we’d done this before—the endless Q&A, the disapproval when I complained.
Master Rahm, on the other hand, was easygoing, patient, and an amazing teacher. When I complained, he always listened.
“Stop,” I said several weeks later, imitating the commanding tone my father often used when he wanted to get everyone’s attention.
Surprisingly, Master Rahm responded and stared at me with wide eyes. Immediately, I felt bad. I wasn’t my father or my sister, and ordering an older person like my tutor just seemed wrong.
“Please,” I added in my normal voice. “I can’t do this anymore.”
“Do what, Princess Lilith?”
“Sit in here every morning and afternoon studying the same things.”
“But your father said you’re not ready for the Academy.”
“Then let’s change venues,” I said and got up. “Study outdoors? Walk on the beach? Visit the Academy? At least focus on something else every other day?”
He pursed his lips. “History is your weakest subject, Princess.”
I sighed. “I know. I just need a break from the monotony of it.”
“Okay. We can use the gazebo and focus on languages for the next couple of days.”
“Thank you,” I said with relief. “You are the best.”
“Then we’ll go back to history,” he added.
“I take it back. You are a slave driver.”
He kept a straight face and waited.
“Fine. Can we do it in another language?”
“We’ll see. Come on. Gazebo it is.” We teleported outside and the two guards followed. I was learning to ignore them. As always, workers teleported in and out, pruning hedges and maintaining the gardens, but Green Eyes wasn’t among them. He tended to appear during my sessions with Master Kenta.
A servant brought fluffy cushions for the already-padded wooden gazebo benches, and another brought out a pitcher of lemonade and two glasses.
“Okay, we’ll start with French,” Master Rahm said in French, picking up a book. “Let’s see how fluent you are.”
I chuckled. “I understood everything you just said,” I answered in fluent French.
His eyebrows shot up. “Nice.” He put the book down. “Describe the gardens.”
I did, standing on the gazebo bench to see the pond and the
colorful birds floating in it.
“Very good. What other languages can you speak?”
I shrugged. “Pick one.”
“Okay, describe the gardens in Latin.” After forty languages, he said, “Your grasp of languages is impressive. From now on, we’ll study history in a different language every day. No eye rolls or groans. Your father insists you learn our history, Princess Lilith.”
“Why? I already know about Coronis, the Guardians, and the Great Battle.”
“To prepare you for your future, you must learn from your past,” Master Rahm said. “History is more important than metaphysical training or math.”
“Meta what?” I asked.
“Your abilities or powers over elements.”
“But I want to see what I can do.”
Master Rahm’s expression became reflective. “Next week.”
True to his word, Master Rahm helped me work on blocking people from my mind, hiding my energy, and reading thoughts without anyone knowing it. All I had to do was will it, just like Green Eyes had said. The ease with which I mastered these stealth moves said I must have known how to do them before. Another thing I learned from the Guardians.
Everything always came back to the Guardians.
“What was my life like with the Guardians?” I asked Master Kenta one morning.
We were by the gazebo, taking a break after an intense round of handto-hand combat. I’d fought asking him this particular question, preferring not to dwell in the past. But after walking the streets of Mount Hermon City, I’d wondered how and where I’d been raised.
Master Kenta chugged water, then wiped his lips and squinted. “The old man who took you in didn’t raise you among the Guardians. He knew your father was searching for you, so he chose to live among humans.”
Now, that was a surprise. “Humans?”
“He was married to one, a Gypsy. You stayed with his wife’s people. When you turned sixteen and your powers started to show, he took you back to the Guardians’ community.”
Was the old man the face I’d seen when my father had smiled? I tried to recapture that image, but it evaded me. “Who was he?”
Forgotten (Guardian Legacy Book 3) Page 13