Wish For Me (The Djinn Order #1)
Page 17
Again, I was in shock. After hearing what had happened between my mother and Karaman, I would think Elena would be more inclined to keep Irving and I apart.
“I never knew Karaman,” Elena said, as though she knew what I was thinking. “I was only eight when you were born and didn’t even know you were half-Djinn until you were ten years old. Mom and Kit kept it from me. They said it was for my safety. I say, that’s bullshit.” She never said what she thought were their real reasons for keeping her in the dark about me. I never asked.
“Why can’t you just make your wishes and give Irving back to me?” I questioned her instead.
Elena shook her head. “It doesn’t work that way, kiddo. No one can be the possessor of any one Chronolier twice. Irving will never be yours again.”
“Irving will always be mine,” I growled. My fingers curled into fists at my side.
My aunt held up a hand. “That’s not what I meant. The truth is, after I make my wishes, Irving’s Chronolier can be claimed by anyone, putting us all in danger. So we decided I wouldn’t make any. At least, not yet.”
“What do you mean, not yet?”
“My two remaining wishes could prove to be useful on our expedition and I don’t want to waste them on stupid shit.”
“Our expedition? You know about Rasputin then?”
“Yes.” She exchanged a look with Irving before switching back to me. “He is the reason we were in the Hindu Kush. We were looking for the Army as well.”
“How do you know about the Army?”
“All hunters know about the Army of Brass and Steel.”
Of course they did.
“Kit and I are going to help you two hunt down The Four,” Elena said.
“The who?”
“The Four,” Irving said. “But the brothers are only called that in casual conversation. In reality, they are the Djinn Order.”
My eyes widened upon recognizing that name. “You mean Lord Con wasn’t the only Balzar?”
“No. He had three brothers whom were never seen because he forbid them from integrating themselves into our society. They were outcast into the far reaches of the universe, and from what Lord Con told me, there was a good reason for that.”
“Okay. So where are the Balzar Lords?”
“That’s one of our more pressing problems at the moment. Unfortunately, the location of The Four, including Lord Con, is unknown.”
“Then how are we supposed to find them?”
Irving leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “My uncle may be able to help us.”
I raised a brow. “By your tone I can tell that’s going to be a problem.”
Irving nodded once. “You’re the half-Djinn daughter of the traitor Karaman and the hunter Madeleine Delvaux.”
“Oh yeah,” I said. “That.” Sighing, I let my head fall back onto my pillow. “The Sultan is going to hate me when he finds out.”
“He will not hate you,” Irving countered. “My uncle is kind beyond measure and would never judge you for something out of your control. Edwin and Ada, especially Ada, are quite a different story. They will not like this at all and may try to thwart our mission by convincing the Sultan not to help us. He trusts them even more than he trusts me, and may do as they ask.”
“So it’s Edwin and Ada we have to convince, not the Sultan.”
“Precisely.”
“But hopefully they’ll be understanding when they hear about our plan to put down Rasputin,” Elena said. “They will know how important it is that we find him before he finds you.”
I raised my head. “Me? Why me?”
Elena licked her lips. A nervous reaction that made me equally as nervous. “Because he can’t ever know that you exist.”
“Why?”
“Because people will die, people we all care about, if he ever finds out you are alive,” Irving said.
I groaned. “If I have to ask why one more fucking time, I’m going to locate mom’s crossbow and put one in each of you.”
“If they won’t tell you, I will,” a voice said from right outside the doorway.
We all looked up as my mother entered my room, said crossbow in hand, looking as though she hadn’t slept a wink. I felt the space fill with tension until I swore I heard the drywall start to give. I reached for Irving’s hand and gripped it tightly.
“You want to know why, Glory?” my mother said, her expression tired yet fierce. “Because you are the daughter of Madeleine Delvaux.”
She lifted her crossbow and examined the trigger. She clicked it a few times before peering at me over the bow’s mechanical limbs.
“And Rasputin,” she said. “You are the daughter of Madeleine Delvaux and Karaman Rasputin.”
—INTERMISSION—
The Djinn Order, Act Two
DREAM OF ME
Glory St. Pierre never thought so many lies could hold so much truth, especially when her entire life has been one of those lies. Now that she knows who she really is, she must find a way to come to terms with it before the Djinn sorcerer Rasputin and his steel army descend down upon the human and Djinn realms, wielding magic so dark even her own Djinn lover, Irving, is wary of it.
Their only hope to save the realms are a couple of hunters and the Lords of the Djinn Order, four powerful Djinn who have remained elusive for centuries. Armed with her only granted wish, a fabulous airship, and the Djinn she loves by her side, Glory will embark on a quest to find the four lords and enlist their help. But there is a reason the lords have been in hiding, and once this tiny band of adventurers awakens them from their slumber, they will set off a chain of events that has been in the making since the beginning of time.
There is no turning back now.
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A. Star is a fan of dirty passion. She loves to read it, and she damn sure loves to write it. She is the author of the Mythos series, the Djinn Order series, and the Knights of the Joust series. She is a night-owl and a coffee junkie, and the only sneaker she would be caught dead wearing are Converses.
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