“Yes. But I’ve talked to them before, many times.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“At first I kept on forgetting because of the spell I was under. And later…”
She nods; there’s no need to explain. “So they’re still sentient on some level?”
“No. They’re fully conscious. Awake and aware of everything that happens around them.”
“Really?” I can almost see her mind racing as she tries to take in this new information. “Well. Perhaps in some hive-mind kind of way…”
“They’re fully individual, and they still have all their normal human feelings.”
Her eyes widen in shock. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Jack Pendragon knows, but he never told Jonathan.”
“Holy mother.”
“The half-dragons know where the White Lord is, and they promised me he will help Daniel.”
“You’re serious about this.”
“You have to go right now.”
“Can we trust them?”
“I trust them with my life. With Daniel’s life too.”
She gives me a long, penetrating look before she nods. “Okay.”
“Don’t tell anyone where you’re going.”
“Of course.”
Something in me relaxes when I see the calculating look in her eyes. I’ve looked into Sofia’s spiritfire before and I know for a fact that she’s a stone-cold badass. If anyone can get Daniel out of here safely, it’s this woman.
Chapter 6
My sisters come to me anguished and distraught, their gleaming, scaled bodies twisting and winding through my dreams. I have to help them!
The one they love is in danger. Terrible danger!
They bow their beautifully horned and crested heads before me, cowed by their fear. The Alpha has stepped into the darkness! Their message to the boy has enraged him beyond all reason. He believes they have turned against him, and he is so desperate to keep his position that he is planning to murder his own child!
At the thought of such unnatural wickedness, my claws unsheathe themselves, gleaming like daggers, and my wings spread out to their full magnificence, lustrous and powerful.
I cannot allow this abomination to continue.
But my sisters plead with me, their voices low and exquisitely beautiful, begging me to stay my hand.
The boy is not ready yet. To push him into power now would be to ruin him.
We have to be more subtle and strategic. We have to—
*
“Wake up. We haven’t got much time.” Gunn gives my shoulder a little shake.
I squint up at him, confused. “What’s going on?”
“We’re getting out of here.”
“Huh?”
“This place is poison. It’s time to go.”
As I groggily wipe the sleep from my eyes, I sweep my gaze over the massive room, taking in the expensive furniture, the thick oriental rugs, the heavy drapes, the black marble floors, the heavily gilt-framed oil paintings, the crystal chandeliers.
I’ve been stuck in this luxurious prison for months now. Perhaps it’s not such a bad idea to get out, especially now that Daniel won’t be around anymore.
“Where are we going?”
“The Green Lady’s secret village.”
“Really?” I try to remember what they told me about her. “You mean we’re going to Brazil? To the Amazon?”
“Yes. We need to travel light, so pack only what can fit into a small backpack. You won’t need much. Some comfortable summer clothes and good walking shoes.”
The Amazon rainforest!
There’s an unexpected flutter of excitement in my chest. “I’ve always wanted to go to the Amazon. Ever since I can remember.”
“Well, you’re getting your chance, so get moving.”
His voice is so cold that I break my normal rule and look him square in the face. “Are you in a bad mood or is it just—”
Gunn looks terrible.
His skin is ashen, his lips blue-tinged, and his normally dark blue eyes almost gray in his expressionless face. “Oh my God!” I reach out to grab his hand. “Gunn? Are you okay? What happened?”
“I talked to Zig.”
“About what?”
“Don’t play dumb, Jess.”
Oh. That.
“He told you.”
“That you tried to kill yourself?” He shakes my hand from his and crosses his arms over his huge chest, as if protecting his heart. “Yeah. He did.”
“I didn’t try to kill myself.”
“You asked a slayer to run his sword through your body. What would you call it?”
I shiver, suddenly immeasurably relieved that Zig refused to listen to me last night. To think how close I came… The thought makes my stomach drop.
“I wasn’t trying to die. Honest. I just wanted… I just wanted it all to stop.”
“And just exactly how would that be any different from dying?” The raw emotion in his voice would’ve told me that something is wrong even if he hadn’t looked like a ghost. Gunn is always so controlled, so perfectly patient and supportive, that I’ve sometimes wondered if he’s got any messy human feelings or emotions of his own.
Well, I’m not wondering now.
“I’m sorry if I upset you. I didn’t mean to.”
“You’re sorry you upset me?” The pain on his face is so unexpected that I almost soften.
But then I remember.
“Jonathan told me one of the main duties of Black keepers is preventing suicide, so I realize you might feel—”
“Shut up, Jess.”
My mouth snaps shut in astonishment.
“I get it, okay? You hate me. I’m the enemy, the evil Dragonkeeper who lied to you your whole life and whom you’ll never forgive for as long as you live.” I watch the muscles in his chest tensing as he draws his folded arms tighter against his body. “Fine. I accept that. What’s done is done. But could you please do me the fucking courtesy of not telling me how to feel about your suicide attempt. Please. Could you at least do that?
“I’m sorry. I just—”
“And stop saying you’re sorry for Christ's sake.” He turns his back on me and stomps out the room. “Zig is coming with us for protection. We leave in twenty minutes.”
Turns out, it’s not quite as simple as that.
For one, I first have to deal with the two people I made shine-sick, both of whom are refusing to eat or sleep until I accept them as my worshipful servants for life.
“No. I won’t do it. I’m not having anybody pledge themselves to me again.”
“Yeah.” Gunn’s face is unreadable. “I heard what you did to the Skykeepers.”
“All I did was set them free.”
“Sure.” He shrugs his massive shoulders. “If you say so.”
I fight the urge to explain my actions, deciding not to force the issue. Gunn is obviously still angry at me, and I’m not ready for another argument. This morning’s strange outburst was bad enough.
“What will happen if I don’t allow them to pledge themselves to me?”
“They’ll die.”
“Really?”
“There’s no other way.”
“Like hell there isn’t.” I lift my chin, determined not to let this new, mean version of Gunn intimidate me.
God knows, I didn’t become a freaking firemaster for nothing.
In the end I convince Gunn to bring Jacob and Paula to my room, and when they arrive, I use my firemagic to order them to eat well, sleep well, and to look after themselves and their families until I return. Easy as that.
Granted, I don’t actually manage to cure their shine-sickness—if anything, the bowing and scraping get a lot worse, and their spiritfires remain bright but completely colorless. But I do convince them to stay alive and healthy until I can come up with another plan, and for now that’ll have to be enough. Because the moment I draw my magic to me, I remember we’ve got an even m
ore serious problem to deal with.
When they leave the room, I turn to Gunn. “You’re not going to like this.”
“Since when did that stop you from doing anything?”
I ignore his tone. “We have to take Jonathan with us. He had an argument with his father about the way they treat the women—”
“Out of the question.” He draws himself up to his full height, then takes a step closer to tower over me.
But I’m far too used to his size to let it intimidate me. “His father is going to murder him. The plans are already in place.”
“Even Jack Pendragon won’t—”
“There’s no doubt about it. The half-dragons can read his thoughts.”
A slight frown. “They could be lying to you.”
“No. I can see into their minds too.”
“You’re in contact with them now?”
“No, I told you. They come to me in my dreams, or when I’m lost in my magic. When I drew my firemagic to me just now, I remembered what they told me while I was sleeping.”
“You don’t owe them anything.”
“Actually, I owe them a lot. But that’s not the issue here. There’s no way I’m just going to leave and let Jack Pendragon kill Jonathan.”
“You can use your firemagic to bind him.”
“My sisters warned me that Jack Pendragon is working on ways to counter my firemagic with his bloodmagic.”
“They’re not your sisters.” His body language makes it clear he’s still spoiling for a fight, so I decide to ignore his comment.
“Anyway, it’s too risky to use my firemagic and then simply leave. Jonathan will have to come with us; there’s no way around it.”
“You seem very eager to keep him close to you.”
“For God’s sake, Gunn.” I roll my eyes all the way to the ceiling. “I’m not about to fall for him and have his creepy little Pendragon babies, okay? I can see his bloodmagic coming a mile away. You need to trust me on this.”
He hardens his jaw. “He’s dangerous.”
“I’m not leaving him here to die.”
“It’s an insane risk to take.”
“There’s no other way.”
We leave about an hour later. Gunn might hate Jonathan, but he’s not a murderer, and once I manage to convince him that the danger is real, he gives in reluctantly.
Zig speaks to Jonathan, who agrees to come with us immediately. I don’t say goodbye to anyone, and as far as I know, neither does anybody else.
We take Gunn’s car. Gunn drives, Zig rides shotgun and Jonathan and I share the backseat. The long, winding drive from the house to the front gate passes in complete silence.
“They’re not going to let us through,” Jonathan says as we near the exit.
I catch Gunn’s eye in the rearview mirror. This is a problem. The prison-like guardhouse at the gate is protected by armed patrols, snipers in watchtowers, solid steel barriers and spike strips to shred your tires.
“Can’t you order them to open up?” Gunn asks.
Jonathan’s face tightens. “You obviously haven’t heard the news. After our little disagreement yesterday, I’m now officially a prisoner in this house.”
“Your father grounded you?”
“Yeah. If with grounding you mean telling security to shoot me on sight if I try to leave the compound.”
“So what’s the plan?” I ask in the uncomfortable silence that follows.
Jonathan glances at me quickly; since that moment when he almost strangled me, he hasn’t looked me in the eye once. “Jess will have to use her firemagic,” he says, addressing the guys in the front. “She can order them to let us through and then tell them to forget all about it.”
From here, two guards are clearly visible in the watchtower, both armed with those long, rifle type guns that snipers use. “Are all the guards keepers?” I ask.
“No,” Jonathan says. “They’re regular people.”
I think of those silent men with their cold eyes that never miss a thing. Of the way they handle their weapons, as if it’s part of their bodies. Of their casual strength, their lightning-fast reflexes.
“They don’t seem like regular people to me.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.” Jonathan is still avoiding my eyes. “They’re all ex-soldiers, obviously. The best of the best, recruited from all over the world: Navy SEALs, British SAS, Russian Alpha Group, Israeli special forces… But they don’t belong to the Order. None of them has any magic of their own.”
“Then I can’t use my firemagic on them.”
“You have to.”
“I can’t. It will make them shine-sick.”
When he finally meets my gaze, his usually glittering green eyes look hard and dull. “There will be at least six of them waiting there, all heavily armed. They won’t hurt you and they can’t hurt Zig, but if you don’t use your firemagic to stop them, I’m dead.” He tilts his head at Gunn. “And there’s no guarantee he’ll survive either.”
“I’m not going to enslave anyone else.”
“Then we’d better turn back right away.”
“Can’t you use your bloodmagic to Enthrall them?” Gunn asks Jonathan.
“No. I’m not strong enough. My gift has always been for Seduction rather than Enthrallment.” A bitter little smile. “For all the good it ever did me.”
“Then how did you hide a whole plane from the White Lady’s sight?” I ask, thinking back on the time he came to rescue us in the Pendragons’ private jet.
“My father was in a coma at the time. With the Alpha out of the picture, I could draw on the power of the half-dragons. I could never have done it on my own.”
“They’ll help you again.”
“They can’t. This time he isn’t in a coma. He’s the Alpha and they have to obey him, whether they want to or not.”
“Actually, they don’t,” I say. “That’s just another lie he told you.”
“No. I felt it myself. When I shrouded the plane in illusion, I simply took their magic from them and used it for myself.” A flash of shame plays over his features. “Even at the time it felt like a violation. I was afraid they’d turn on me at any moment. That I wouldn’t be strong enough to master them.”
I think back to that terrible flight. “Did you know they helped me to handle the pain I was in that night?”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s true. They came to me—in another reality of whatever—and they offered to carry my pain for a while. If it hadn’t been for that, I’d never have made it. I remember them telling me that they could only help me for a little while because they were caught up in a very difficult task. At the time I didn’t know what they were talking about, but I realize now they must have been helping you create the illusion that hid us.”
“No,” Jonathan says. “It can’t be. I had full control of their power the entire time.”
“That’s what your father believes too. But he’s wrong. The half-dragons aren’t puppets; they share their power with you because they choose to, not because they must.”
We’ve almost reached the guardhouse. Gunn slows down as two heavily armed guards approach us.
Jonathan gives me a dubious look. “Are you saying they’ll help me now?”
“Yes.”
“You’d better be sure about this.”
By now the guards are at our window. There’s no time left for doubt.
“I’m sure.”
Jonathan nods once, then closes his eyes for a few seconds. When he opens them again, they’re shining with an unnatural green glow, and within moments the whole world is turned on its head.
It’s evening instead of morning.
There are comets streaking through the sky.
No. Not comets; something else. A plane. No. A helicopter. The sound suddenly deafening above us.
“Go!” Zig tells Gunn. “Drive!”
We’re racing through dense urban streets filled with lots of traf
fic. There are blazing lights and all the smells and sounds of a city: gasoline and rubber and garbage and food and horns bleating and sirens howling and the constant roar of thousands of cars.
Under the city’s steady hum, another reality.
People talking close by, the voices vaguely familiar. Amazed at first. Stressed. Then frantic. “It’s an illusion! Don’t let them escape!”
There are people on the pavements now, their faces lit by the neon glow of the city’s lights. Strangers all of them.
And then: a familiar face in the crowd.
I recognize one of the guards as he comes running after us. “It’s them! In the Maserati! I need back-up!”
I look around, realize that Gunn’s truck has morphed into one of those sleek, expensive sports cars you only ever see in movies. Gunn suddenly looks far too large behind the wheel and he’s driving like a maniac, hurtling us deeper and deeper into the heart of this strange city, tires screeching.
“I’m getting confused.” Gunn’s voice is very calm but I notice that his hands are clenched on the wheel. “I can’t see my way past the Enthrallment any longer.”
Jonathan stares ahead of him, his eyes lit from within with an eerie green light. I don’t think he heard a word Gunn said. Around us, the streets are now narrower and darker, the sounds less frantic but somehow more spooky.
“Just do what I say,” Zig tells Gunn. “I’ll navigate until we lose them.”
“Do you know where we are?”
“I am not susceptible to illusion.”
“Then let me stop ahead. You take the wheel.”
“No. The spell is too complicated; we shouldn’t make any changes to reality right now. Just do what I say and we’ll be fine. Sharp left, now.”
Zig navigates us through the narrow, winding streets of this strange city, which is only becoming more bizarre by the moment. There are big groups of people on the street, dressed in exotic robes and wearing masks. It looks as if we’re in the middle of some kind of carnival. There are horses and street vendors and musicians and a noisy, colorful procession through the streets. Gunn drives slower and more carefully as the crowd around us thickens.
“You need to get us out of here. Someone is going to get hurt.”
“Go left into this lane.”
Treasurekeeper Page 6