by Megan Duncan
“He should be arriving any moment now.” Titan seemed almost dismissive of my father’s apology. “Ahh! Speak of the devil!” He thrust his fist into the air as the mass of dancing bodies made way for his son. Titan’s son had the same dark, caramel skin of his father, and was covered in numerous tattoos. Tribal patterns wrapped around each of his forearms, traveling up to his shoulders and connecting at his collarbone at a sharp point like an arrowhead. He was nearly as tall as Titan, with shaggy brown hair and the dark shadow of a beard blanketing his jaw line.
Father and son embraced in a bear-like hug before turning to face us. “My son, Ronon! This is Cathair, king of the Zakarian region and his daughter, Claire.” My eyebrows rose at the mention of my name, up until that point Titan hadn’t even acknowledged me. My father fisted his hand in greeting; placing it upon his chest, but Ronon overlooked him almost immediately. His aggressive eyes landed on me as his lips pulled up into a victorious grin that only got wider when Arrick wrapped his arm possessively around me.
As curious as I was about Titan’s son, I didn’t like the way he was dissecting me with his eyes. Yet, I couldn’t deny one thing; the two looked so much alike that it could only mean that Ronon was his real son, and not an adopted child like most vampire parents had. But, if that were true then that meant his wife had survived being poisoned, right? So, where was she?
“Now the entertainment can begin!” Titan shouted enthusiastically, as he pulled his son under his meaty arms, directing him toward the head of the party. Neither of them gave us a second glance as they walked away. Something was seriously askew here. My father came counting on Titan’s need for revenge, but I was starting to think that Titan had buried that need; buried it under women, booze, and blood. The question was; what would it take to bring him back to reality?
Before I could start questioning my father, who looked as confused as I felt, the music picked up speed and the dancing couples broke away as they made way for belly dancers. The women gyrated to the music, bouncing their hips from side to side, pulsating their bodies to the beat of the drums. They moved with impeccable timing, each movement matching each other’s in one cohesive dance.
I was still distracted by the bombshell Titan had just dropped on us as I watched the women’s bodies spin in perfect circles, twirling and dipping as they swayed with the beat. As enthralling as they were, I couldn’t help but let my eyes wander over to Ronon. My curiosity kept overpowering me. If he was truly Titan’s son, then that meant he was like me. A pure born vampire. Knowing I was different from everyone else, in a way, made me feel special; but it was also a little lonely. Could Ronon really be like me? And if he was, could he do everything I could do? My hand rose to the stone that was tucked in the crease of my dress, and I watched as Ronon’s eyes found my mine and then traveled to my fingers.
His eyes narrowed for a moment, and I felt the unmistakable sensation of someone trying to read me. It was the tiniest nudge at the edge of my consciousness. I immediately concealed what I was feeling, pushing away at his intrusion. Without the slightest reaction, he lazily dragged his eyes toward the dancers like he’d never even noticed I was there. Arrick squeezed my hand, completely oblivious as to what had just happened, singing along with the exotic dancers. I wondered if Ronon knew about me, that I was vampire born like him, or did he just think I was another pretty face in the crowd?
Deciding it didn’t matter what Ronon was, or what he thought about me, I joined in with Arrick’s singing as we watched the entertainment continue. Centered among the dancing women was a young girl with a massive snake resting atop her shoulders. The snake’s body wrapped possessively around one arm, while in the other she clutched its head. The snake’s tongue flicked out at her as she caressed it with her cheek like it was a cuddly kitten. I took in a gasp of breath, surprised by the complete absence of fear in her eyes. At any moment that reptile could coil around her neck and choke her to death, or even worse, spring on her with fangs more deadly than any vampire. As if she heard my intake of breath, the girl’s ice blue eyes locked onto me with precision. She beckoned me to her as her hips danced from side to side, the snake’s head curling into her hair. I looked behind me, certain she couldn’t possibly be looking at me. Everyone cheered as she pointed, and I shook my head at her. Sure, I loved dancing but I wasn’t about to make myself the center of attention. There was a big difference between dancing at a party and dancing at the center of a crowd of onlookers.
The tinkling jingle of beaded dancers grew closer as two girls approached me. They offered their hands, begging me to join them on the dance floor. I shook my head again, and looked to Arrick like he could do something to stop them but he was clapping, nodding for me to join them. Had he lost his mind? All eyes were on me, and I knew my only options were to run; or get up, dance and get it over with.
Taking a deep breath, I rose to my feet at the roar of the crowd. My ears picked up the sound of Arrick’s voice cheering me on, and even my father shouting, ‘That’s my daughter!’ Everyone was acting way too happy. Maybe Titan’s servants put something in the wine? I felt like myself, but then again, I was being towed by a nearly naked dancer toward a girl with a gigantic snake on her shoulders.
I probably should have been terrified, but there was something about the feel of the snake’s scales on my bare skin that was incredibly erotic. Or, maybe it was the wine infused blood that was talking. The snake coiled around my left arm and wrapped itself once around my neck like a scarf. Its head curled through my hair as my hips began to sway. I focused my eyes on the only person I wanted to dance for, Arrick. Without blinking, I swung my body in beat with the music as the other girls danced around me. Arrick’s eyes widened at my movements, making my lips pull up to reveal my fangs in all their glory. I let the world around me disappear; pretending all that existed was just the two of us. But, there was a fracture in that bubble as fine as the tiniest hair. Another small nudge at my senses was enough to disrupt my focus. I blinked, bringing my eyes toward Ronon, not liking at all what I found. Before, he seemed utterly bored watching the dancers, but now he was leaning forward in his seat, his eyes devouring my every movement. I couldn’t stop the growl that rumbled in my chest. I had been dancing for Arrick, but the way he was watching made me feel like he thought I was dancing for him.
The snake hissed angrily as I quickly unraveled him, and handed him off to the nearest dancer. The crowd clapped stupidly; completely oblivious as to why I stopped. I offered a fake smile, marching back to my seat and despite myself; I risked a glance toward Ronon. I planned to sneer at him, but the smile affixed to his face only irritated me further. What was he getting at? He had to have known that I wasn’t interested, that I was only dancing for Arrick. I didn’t want to leave any room for confusion, so the second I took my seat I locked lips with Arrick, not even caring my father was sitting beside me. I’d be embarrassed about my father watching me suck face later. Right now I needed to be sure Titan’s son wasn’t getting the wrong idea.
Arrick and I both caught our breaths when I finally released him. “I didn’t know you could dance like that.” His words slurred as he spoke. A server passed by offering to refill his cup, but I covered it and shook my head violently at her. I’d never seen him act so carefree before, and I didn’t like it. We’d done enough to amuse Titan. He needed to give us an answer.
As the snake dancer left the party began to calm back down. The music lulled to a steadier beat, and even the conversations dwindled to a mild hum. For the first time since the party started I felt like I could think. I poured Arrick a glass of water, knowing he would probably feel like crap the next evening. Perhaps the regional wine here was stronger than anything we had back home.
As the liveliness of the night calmed, my father took that as his cue to get up and approach Titan. I followed his every step with my eyes, careful to keep my vision averted from Ronon. I had enough guy drama in my life already, I didn’t need any more. My father cleared his throat trying t
o get Titan’s attention. At first I had thought he was kissing one of the ladies sitting on the arm of his chair, but when he pulled away I saw that I couldn’t have been more wrong. His lips were covered in crimson before he licked them clean. I’d only ever seen a vampire drink from someone once before, and that memory had haunted my dreams ever since. The sight of Ana’s face flashed through my thoughts, and I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to erase it. This region was like another world; vampires drinking from humans, limited modern technologies, living in the desert. It was blowing my mind.
When I opened my eyes again, Titan had dismissed the women around him and he and my father were talking privately. I was desperate to hear what they were saying; praying that Titan wasn’t playing any more tricks and my father was finally able to get through to him on the seriousness of our situation. I looked around making sure no one was paying attention to me. Arrick was leaning back in his seat, rubbing his temples and Ronon was being distracted by two ladies who were begging him to join them on the dance floor. Certain that no one would notice, I pushed out my senses and tried to focus on my father and Titan. I just wanted to hear what they were saying.
“Spying is very dangerous, ya know.” Arrick whispered from behind me, sounding more like himself.
“I’m not spying. I was just trying to listen,” I admitted, trying to convince both him and me that it was totally different.
“Trust your father. He knows what he’s doing.”
“I know he does. I just… I just can’t help feeling like something isn’t right. Like there is something they aren’t telling us.”
“Yeah, like there’s something in this wine!” he said, pushing one of the glasses away from him.
“Obviously.” I rolled my eyes as I slumped back into my seat beside him. “Do you think I’m being paranoid?”
“No. I think you’re probably right, but I also think that your father knows Titan is hiding something too. But you’ve got to look at the bigger picture.”
“What picture is that?”
“That we should trust your father’s judgment.”
“You’re right,” I sighed in agreement.
I could feel that the night was drawing to a close. The sky would be lightening soon, and my eyelids were getting heavy. It had been a long journey here, and an even longer night. I was ready to get some sleep, and hopefully leave the next night. With any luck my father was knocking some sense into Titan, and he and his army would be joining us.
I was just about ready to call it a night, when I saw Ronon join in on their conversation. Several times during their exchange he looked up at me, but I didn’t look away. I met his eyes with clear annoyance, even though I knew I was truly only annoyed with his father. I’d never even heard Ronon speak, but I prayed to Nyx that he had enough sense to trust my father’s word. The world was on the brink of war, and they needed to decide if they were going to join the fight.
Chapter 14
To say I was thoroughly exasperated was an understatement. Tonight was the third night since we arrived in Titan, and he still hadn’t made a commitment to joining in the fight against Baal. I didn’t even see my father last night; he spent the entire evening closed up in Titan’s throne room. What the hell was taking so long? That was the million dollar question. When my attempts at sneaking into the throne room failed, I tried bribing Titan’s guards, and when that didn’t work, I attempted to enlist Mikel as my personal spy. Sadly, none of those plans worked either.
Titan was the king of feasts and parties. Even though he spent the evening locked up in his throne room with my father, the courtyard was filled with partygoers each night, and tonight was no exception. I wasn’t sure what annoyed me most; that fact that Titan hadn’t answered us yet, or the fact that everyone in his region partied like they didn’t have a care in the world. Maybe they ,really didn’t have a care in the world? These people probably didn’t even know the truth; that Baal was back and on the rampage.
A devilish, fangy grin crept across my face as I toyed with the idea of telling the truth. Sure, revealing that the deadliest enemy known in history was on the war path would certainly cause a panic, but it was better than not knowing, wasn’t it? I knew I’d certainly prefer it if I were still human. I’d rather spend my time preparing myself than wasting it partying the night away.
“What are you up to?” Arrick asked as he stepped up behind me, pulling my body against his as we stared out the open window.
“What makes you think I’m up to something?” I asked, keeping my tone even.
“’Cause I know you, silly,” he answered, laughing heartily.
“So, what if I am up to something?” I joined in his laughter, stepping away from the window and dropping myself on the bed.
“Well… if you are, then I’d like you to let me in on it.” He winked at me. “I know you’re sick of waiting around, hell, I am too!”
“Then let’s do something about it. Clearly diplomacy isn’t going to work here.” I knew we’d had the conversation a dozen times just in the past three nights, but I was hoping Arrick was getting as fed up as I was.
“What are we going to do, force Titan to join us?” his voice was full of doubt. “That’s not going to work, Claire.”
I folded my arms across my chest and glared at him. Of course I knew that wasn’t going to work. I might not have gotten as far as figuring out how to make Titan do what I knew was right, but there had to be a way. There had to be.
“Listen,” Arrick ordered as he leaned over me, tugging at my pouting lip with his fingers. “Tonight is a big night. I think Cathair is finally getting through to Titan.”
“What’s so big about tonight?” I stirred with excitement. Did Arrick know something he wasn’t telling me?
“It’s the last night of the shifting festival.”
“Yeah, so?” After the first night, Arrick and I curled into bed and talked until we both fell into a deep sleep. He told me that the feast wasn’t just because we had visited Titan. The real reason was because of the shifting festival, which was a celebration in honor of the men and women who were joining Titan’s secret army. An army which we had yet to physically see. I couldn’t help but wonder if it actually existed, and I also couldn’t help but still feel the amount of partying was going a little overboard.
Wow, had I always been such a downer?
“During the last night, Titan chooses who will join his army.”
“And you think after this he’ll decide whether or not to help us?”
“That’s my best guess.” He looked around like there was something more and I raised my brows at him, showing that I wasn’t going to let him go until he continued. “I spoke with Mikel, and he said he overheard a little of the conversations between Titan and Cathair.”
“And?” I kept the sharpness from my voice. I asked Mikel to spy for me and he said he wouldn’t do it! Did he not trust me, or was it just because I was Cathair’s daughter?
“He thinks Titan sounds scared, and that he might be waiting until this festival to end so that he’ll have a larger army before he’s willing to commit.”
“Goddess! What the hell is he so afraid of?” I couldn’t take much more of this, we were wasting time. Any moment now I was going to march into the throne room and demand Titan join us, or he could go to hell. In my eyes not fighting with us was the same as fighting against us. Hadn’t he accused my father of the same thing?
Arrick shook his head, clearly disappointed with my temper. “The last time Titan went full force against Baal, he attacked his wife. I don’t blame him for being afraid. If I were him, I’d be hesitant too.”
I slumped back to the bed with a heavy sigh, Arrick was right. I kept focusing on the fact that Titan hadn’t agreed to help us, that I was forgetting why he was tentative in the first place. No matter whom I asked, no one seemed to want to reveal what happened to Titan’s wife, but if I had to guess… she probably didn’t survive.
“You’re right,” I ad
mitted.
“Now, can you promise to behave yourself?” he teased.
“I can,” I tapped my chin, pondering my answer, “but for how long I have no idea.”
We laughed our way out of the room, following the servants as they guided us to an outdoor arena. I was so thankful I had Arrick with me to not only to keep my temper in check, but also relax me. With him around I felt balanced. When I was sad he brought me joy, when I was angry he calmed me, and when I was scared he drew out the strength I had inside me. I hoped I did the same for him.
Our walk led us up several dozen stairs along the wall surrounding the citadel. I felt a slight wave of dizziness as we walked the length of the narrow path with only a short one foot wall separating us from a deadly drop. The servants guided us half way around the circle before we reached a catwalk that floated above the city and connected to the outdoor arena on the other end. Blinding lights lit the area, and when we finally reached the other side I sighed with relief. It was totally ridiculous that I was a vampire who couldn’t let go of her human fear of heights.
The arena was set up much like any stadium. It was already filled to the brim with no visible open seats. The capital was big, but I didn’t think there were truly this many people. If this event was as big as Arrick made it out to be, maybe people from other cities within the region came here to witness it.
We entered at the top of the arena with the seats descending below us, surrounding a dirt field that had been raked with perfectly straight lines dragging from side to side. There were five massive rocks placed throughout the arena; two on each end, and one in the middle. The rake lines circled around the stones as if they were being dropped into a smooth lake, and their ripples were bounding outward in flawless precision.
The jubilation of the gathering crowd infected me, and I swallowed back my sour attitude as I took a seat at the head of the arena with my father, Titan, Ronon and Arrick. Banners waved in the hands of the onlookers as they cheered for the event to begin. I could feel the surge of excitement blowing off the people and I felt myself growing excited too. I might have been upset with Titan, but it was evident how much his people enjoyed this festival. It was clearly important to them, and though I didn’t understand it, I had to respect it.