by Roux, Lilou
“Yes.”
She limply threw up her arms. “Okay. Lead the way.”
THREE
As far as Stella was concerned she was pretty sure that if Nero had wanted to kill her then he could have done so a couple of times already, especially after she had seen him fight. The man had skills and speed and could have snapped her neck in the blink of an eye. She knew that thought should have scared her to hell and back, but strangely enough it made her feel safe around him. And when he offered answers she had been searching for for years, she really hadn’t been able to turn her back and walk away from him.
Remembering how he had carefully phrased his few answers, she knew that some of his explanations so far had been quite shaky, and yet for some inexplicable reason she understood that he wanted to be honest but that he simply couldn’t spill the beans on a sidewalk in the darker parts of the city. Besides, she supposed a place with people that knew about the creatures she had come face to face with tonight was probably the right place for her to get her answers. And to panic later. Since Stella was sure, at some point it would all catch up with her and she would panic.
When Nero’s wicked smile pulled her out of her thoughts, she almost did panic but only asked warily, “What?”
“Well, it’s about the lead the way part.”
“What about it?”
“I tend to use a rather uncommon mode of transportation.” Rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, he inhaled deeply and then seemed to give up. “Okay, let’s face it, you know by now those creatures weren’t human. And to top it off, I’m not human either, but contrary to the other guys I don’t eat people.”
When nothing else spilled from him, Stella nodded. “Interesting, and especially the last part is rather reassuring.”
They looked at each other and burst out laughing at the same time. Shaking her head, Stella went on, “I’m still not entirely sure whether I’m dreaming or not, but you’re right. What I saw tonight certainly wasn’t human, so yes, I know now there’s more to the world than I ever thought there is. And honestly, it feels good.”
She had always felt like the odd one out, the freak with eyes that couldn’t stand the light and weird hair and extremely pale skin. Hearing Nero, who by all means looked incredibly human and yes, yummy, say that he was something else, felt strangely relieving. And battered the mold she had always tried to squeeze in. “So…what are you? Can you tell me that much?”
He stepped closer to her, his eyes still smiling. “I’m a roamer, a creature of the shadows. That and that I move around the city by walking shadows, is all I can tell you for now. I’m sorry.”
Looking up at him, she searched his eyes and saw honesty and nothing malevolent whatsoever in them. “It’s okay.”
Stepping even closer, Nero bent and surprised her by sweeping her off her feet, picking her up and cradling her to his chest. Stella felt his deep voice vibrate against her. “Close your eyes.”
She did.
When she opened her eyes, her heart was still thundering inside her chest, and as her feet touched ground again and she looked up at Nero, she wondered what was to blame more – the man or the traveling they had just done. She had kept her eyes closed as he had moved, but with the wind brushing her hair and covering her like a cool but pleasant blanket it had almost felt like flying.
“You okay?”
Nodding in reassurance she gathered herself and then looked around, trying to figure out where they had gone. Her jaw very nearly hit the ground. They stood in front of a skyscraper she had never seen before. Her eyes flitted around, taking in buildings she did know and yet her mind couldn’t comprehend. There were no skyscrapers in this part of the city.
Seeing her distress, Nero guessed, “You’ve never noticed the Tower before now, right?”
“I’ve lived here all my life,” was all she could utter.
“The Tower is only visible to those who are supposed to see it.”
“The roamers.”
He nodded with a smile curving his lips.
Craning her head back, Stella took another look at the giant building towering over the city. It was sandstone and glass, fortress and progress wrapped into one architectural piece of art. The Tower, it certainly fit. “So it’s like Hogwarts. But modern.”
“We do own a castle, a little outside of the city,” he said, as if feeling slighted.
“Of course you do. I guess every self-respecting secret society does.”
Chuckling Nero rested a hand at the small of her back and led her through the revolving doors.
The interior surprised her; the beauty took her breath away and the professional and yet welcoming feeling to it all made her feel at ease. But most of all she was grateful for the light. Beautiful lamps covered the walls, and their light was soft, warm and felt natural since it didn’t hurt her eyes at all. Maybe some sort of gaslights, she wondered. The downstairs floor was designed like any reception area, offering a high front desk, lovely flower arrangements and smiling faces. Though these smiling faces were honest for a change.
“Night, Patroller Nero.”
“Night.” He smiled at the receptionist while walking along towards the elevators with Stella in tow. “I need a quick audience. Think I will fit in?”
“Sure. Head right on up.”
The doors pinged and slid open, welcoming them inside. “Thanks.”
Once inside Stella almost gasped when the mirror parted to reveal another elevator.
Nero stepped into it, a smile on his lips at he looked at her. “No need to worry. The other one just doesn’t go to where we are headed.”
“Huh,” was all she said before following him.
Judging by the lack of illuminated numbers passing by and the time it took them, Stella was sure ‘head right on up’ had been quite literal and that whoever they were about to see lived right on the top floor. A rather private top floor, if a special elevator headed there.
Nero turned to her. “Like I promised earlier, I’ll answer your questions. Afterwards. For now, I need you to let me do the talking. I’ll explain later.”
Stella searched his eyes; they were piercing and gentle and warm and serious at the same time. Something in their dark depths simply tugged at her, made her trust him. “Okay.”
Another ping and the cab finally spat them out again.
And right into a giant room at the end of which stood a throne. Yes, a throne! So either the guy had a very big ego (and psychological problem) or he …
No, she couldn’t bring herself to finish that thought.
Instead, Stella’s eyes busied themselves by shooting question marks in the form of daggers at Nero while he motioned for her to relax and to follow him silently. The room was dominated by dark wood, heavy wooden furniture and thick rugs, and was simply masculine, utterly void of thick candles, flowers or other more feminine touches.
As they drew close, Stella felt the gaze of the man on her like a heavy weight. His eyes didn’t give away the slightest thought or hint of emotion, like merciless mirrors rather than windows to his soul, while his face stayed polite.
“King Vago,” Nero greeted when they had reached the throne.
King?
Did he really just say King?
The man on the throne got up, unfolding his very tall, broad and muscled frame, and went down the few steps of the dais to meet Nero, greeting him in a way that friends would do, not King and servant. Yet he never lost the powerful presence of authority he carried. There was something about this man, that demanded respect and even a bit of fear – at least from her, since Stella had the feeling his eyes had never left her out of their sights ever since she had entered the room.
“How was the patrol?”
“Full of surprises.”
“So it seems.”
The King’s dark gaze finally settled on her, fully and directly, taking her in from head to toe in one invisible sweep.
Up until that point Stella hadn’t even wasted one thought on her appea
rance, not after all she had been through that night. But when facing a King? It certainly changed things. And it sure made her wish she could have freshened up a bit.
Would it have really killed Nero to tell her that little bit? A King, for Christ’s sake. At least a little forewarning would have been appreciated. She was a girl after all and grew up with fairy tales. Granted this one was rather dark, but Stella was sure that the same rules applied. Believe in true love, beware the evil Queen-slash-witch-slash-stepmother and respect the King. Come to think of it, most of the time the King turned out to be a quite nice guy. Well, if Vago was one of those, he was pretty good at hiding it.
“I take it you have a very good reason for bringing a human here?”
“She is shadow touched, my King.”
Whatever that meant, it made King Vago step closer and take another look at her, making her feel about as at ease as stock at an auction. “Indeed, it does seem so. And what do you intend to do with her?”
“Train her. She was attacked by reptiles tonight and showed promising possibilities.”
Her head snapped around to look at Nero just in time to see the men exchange something more than just spoken words.
“Did you taste it?”
What? Taste it? What the hell were they talking about?
“Not yet.”
Okay, she was missing something big here, and it was seriously starting to piss her off ‘cause she was pretty sure it still concerned her. She was about to open her mouth, but then caught herself. Nero had promised her answers – and so far he had kept his word, biting her tongue, she decided to hold up her end of the bargain.
King Vago nodded slowly, obviously in thought as his brow furrowed, his gaze settling one last time on her before he turned and sat back down onto his throne. “Do so and tell me what you think. Four weeks, Nero. And don’t let us regret it.”
FOUR
Nero knew, could actually feel, that Stella was almost bursting with questions and thought it wise to quickly lead her to the twenty-second floor where part of his team and other patrollers lived. For what he was about to tell her, he figured they could need the privacy.
The moment he closed the door of his apartment behind them, she spun on him. “What the hell was that all about?”
God, she looked beautiful. Hands on her hips, eyes full of live and daggers and fire. Though the last one sure as hell wasn’t the same kind he felt rushing through his veins at the moment. Turning away from her and those dangerous thoughts, he pulled off his coat and threw it over the arm of his couch before moving to the minibar.
Going for the whiskey he held up the bottle, “Want some?”
“What I want are answers. That you promised me.”
“Don’t worry, you’ll get them.” After filling two glasses, he came over to the couch, motioned for her to sit down and placed a glass on the table in front of her. “Though I do believe you’ll need this to…digest them all.”
Nero stood, his glass in hand, frowning and not sure where to start or how to make this any easier for Stella, given how much she had gone through this night already.
“Nero, just spill it. The waiting is just making it worse.”
Nodding, he looked her straight in the eyes. “I’m not human. I’m a shadow roamer. A creature of the shadows, neither light nor darkness but belonging a bit to both. And so are you. Well, half of you anyway.”
“What?” Shaking her head as if to clear it, she frowned at him. “Are you saying I’m a roamer?”
“Half, yes. You’ve lived like a human so far, haven’t you? You must have wondered about your sensitivity to light, your need for darkness.”
She snorted. “I’ve thought that I was odd. A freak maybe, but I’ve certainly not gone as far as to say that I’m not human.” Shaking her head in disbelief, she ran a hand through her hair. “How can this be?”
He couldn’t help his lips from twitching. “The usual way. Except it’s forbidden.” When her brow furrowed, he went on, “We try to make sure the humans stay to the light and protect them from the night as much as we can, to keep a sort of balance. Nature does as well, in another form. Children between roamers and humans are therefore very rare.” He let that sink in while he took a swig of his whiskey. “What can you tell me about your parents?”
“My father raised me. My mother died…during childbirth.”
So her mother was probably the roamer.
Apparently reaching a similar conclusion of her own, Stella went for the glass in front of her, picked it up and knocked it back down smooth. Setting the glass back, she cocked her head at him. “Okay, so I’m half human and half roamer. But what does this mean exactly? That still doesn’t explain what you and your King were talking about.”
“Need another one?” He pointed to the glass.
“Depends on how much there’s still coming.”
“I’ll make it a double.”
“How reassuring.”
Busying himself at the minibar, he explained, “I’ve never met a shadow touched, a halfling, before you. I only know stories about the few that have existed and those didn’t end well.” She had gotten up, probably unable to sit still any longer, to look out at the city from a tower she had never noticed before. He could feel her gaze, her fear and wished he knew how to make this easier on her, but knew that only the truth could do so. “As in they would go crazy, their dual natures fighting each other for dominance and they couldn’t function properly in either environment. They had to be killed after becoming a danger to the people around them.” He brought back her glass, caught her eyes in his. “After what I’ve seen so far tonight, my guess is coping in the human world is becoming more and more difficult for you. Your eyes, your restlessness, not being able to sleep…it’s just going to go downhill, drastically, if you stay in the light that is the human world.”
“You really don’t sugarcoat.” Quickly the shock was replaced, when realization and horror dawned. She swallowed, staring up at him, “The four weeks time…”
“…is the time I have to show them that you belong with us. That you are a roamer. Maybe even a patroller, a fighter, like me.”
Stella held up a hand. “Wait a second. So you’re saying that if I don’t become some sort of warrior in the next four weeks…I’m dead? That my life is in your hands?” Her mouth went wide. “Oh God, I’m doomed.”
“Hey. I already saved you twice tonight.”
“Twice?” He just looked at her, saw it click into place. Her jaw dropped. “You mean from your King? Then why the hell did you bring me here in the first place?”
“Because I knew he would see the same thing I saw in you. A strong woman. A roamer.” He left it at that. It was the truth after all, part of it anyway. Yes, he saw a roamer in her, a likeness to the King’s older sister Alba to be precise, who had disappeared about twenty years ago.
She exhaled, running a hand through her hair, the exhaustion of the night’s events showing now and taking over after the adrenaline had been used up. “How can you be so sure that I’ll make it?”
Nero laughed to lighten the mood. “’Cause I’ll be the one to train you, of course.” It got a small smile out of her, which was enough for now. “Starting tomorrow. So after what happened and all I’ve dumped on you tonight, I guess it’s time I showed you to your room so you can get some sleep.”
“That does indeed sound rather tempting, especially if it comes with a memory-wipe.”
“Sorry, no can do.”
“Thought so. But then at least give me a phone so I can call my roomie.”
FIVE
When Stella woke up, she knew, could feel in her blood, the sun was up and climbing the sky, but had to frown when she found her room was still pleasantly dim. Sitting up she took in the curtains, which looked too light to be the reason for this, and then climbed out of the bed for a closer inspection. It was the glass of the windows. It somehow absorbed and softened the harsh sunlight. Well, that was certainly practical.
>
Looking out over the city she realized it was probably close to noon already, and then, seeing the dots mingling below, had to shake her head. She couldn’t believe that she had never noticed the Tower before.
Under the hot spray of the shower Stella let the water pound her neck and leaned her forehead against the cool shower tiles. She hadn’t panicked yet. All that talk about her not being human, about getting killed…the memories of her attackers…the four weeks threat…and she hadn’t panicked. Her brain probably hadn’t caught up yet or it would have told her to run as fast and as far away from these crazy people as she could. Right? Except…she didn’t think them crazy. Although everything Nero had told her had sounded madly insane, it had rung true inside of her. After everything he said, she should be scared for her life, so it confused her like hell that she felt relieved and, yes, even excited instead.
Okay, so she was scared because of the four-weeks/sword-of-Damocles thing, but she also wanted to learn more about the world she had been thrust into. About the world she apparently belonged to. Sighing Stella made a pact with herself, to wait with the panicking to see what this day would bring.
After finishing her hot shower she came back into the room to find underwear, a pair of sweatpants and a tank top waiting for her on the bed. A note lay beside the clothes.
Morning, I hope you slept well.
Meet me on the 15th floor when you’re ready.
Nero
Well, he was indeed a man true to his word. Looked like training would start today. An unconscious smile curving the side of her mouth, Stella got dressed and followed his instructions, taking the elevator to the lower floor.
Whereas the floor of the patroller’s living quarters was homey and totally comfy looking, this one was brighter regarding the lights and clean and sweaty at the same time. Seeing all sorts of treadmills lined up to face the windows and other training equipment she had no idea how to use, immediately gave her the feeling of having stepped into a gym, which probably wasn’t that far off the mark given her reason for coming here. People mingled about, chatting or pushing their limits, but she couldn’t find Nero among them.