Fire Brand: Fated & Forbidden Series

by Kristen Strassel

  He was beautiful. Long and lean, but something was missing now without his feathers.

  It took everything I had not to kiss him. “Another first.”

  “One of many.” His lips were so close to mine, I was breathing his air. “Don’t think of this as an ending, Avila. Think of it as a beginning.”

  He crumbled just as we made contact, his remains scattered across my lap and into the sand. A wave washed most of it away before I had a chance to do anything. At least he’d get one of his wishes, to be one with the ocean.

  A crimson feather bobbed along the surface. I took it as a souvenir.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The girls usually woke me up when they came home in the middle of the night, unless I was dead drunk or I’d been summoned by the Queen of the known universe. Neither of those happened often, so I wasn’t surprised to find myself alone when I went to the kitchen to make some coffee in the morning.

  Even though Asher burned last night after his shift, I felt really good about our date. I laughed to myself, knowing if I said that out loud to either of my roommates they’d dispute what the night was. Or make gagging noises. I’d turn those two into romantics yet. It was the first time Asher and I had been together where I didn’t destroy him. It was possible. He’d encouraged me to think of the night as a new beginning, and it was.

  Now I had to figure out where to go from here.

  “You better have made enough coffee for all of us.” Teal looked like absolute shit when she appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. Smudged makeup all over her cheeks, hair in knots, clothes torn. And the smell. Holy starfish. Death had a rotten egg, low tide stench that tended to cling to clothes and hair, especially in mass quantities.

  My girls had been busy last night. They’d give me crap for not going with them. I wouldn’t let my guilt take away from my happiness. I’d done something important last night too.

  “How can you even think about coffee at a time like this?” Penelope groaned from somewhere behind her. “I’m going for a swim to wash last night off me, and then straight to bed. Wake me in time for the show. Until then, I don’t want to see anything but the inside of my eyelids.”

  I got up to make more coffee. “What the hell happened last night?”

  Teal practically collapsed at the table. “All hell broke loose. The League considers our visit to the castle a serious offense. There’s talk of dissolving The Bay as an independent state. They insist it’s a decree of the King, but I kind of doubt that, since he looked at you like you hung the stars in the sky during yoga. Whether Asher’s on board or not, The League wants us gone.” She stopped to snicker and take a sip of coffee. I was too shocked to protest that it was from my mug. “They’re fools. They’ll ruin both The Bay and Chronopolis. Teal and I took on a whole whack of them on last night. The ocean floor is more full of trash than ever. At least some of them could eat a mean pussy before they met their maker.”

  Her wicked smile disappeared behind the mug.

  “They said…Asher wanted that?”

  “I knew that was the only part you’d hear. Yeah, according to them, he’s all butt hurt that the sirens undermined his authority and ignored his orders.” That part sounded a little too accurate. “And they wouldn’t act on such a serious matter without his blessing. We know that’s bullshit, since they were all about viva la revolution before we came to visit. No one has fought us that hard since pirates claimed The Bay.” She shuddered, there was nothing good about the memory that brought. “How was your night? You look like the cat that ate the canary. Although in your case, I’m hoping it was the phoenix that ate the siren.”

  I tingled, thinking of Asher’s soft feathers on my skin. “It was really nice.” The operative word in that sentence was was, since after talking to Teal it seemed like more of an impossible dream than my meeting with Allendra. Last night had yet to leave me with any scars.

  “I take it he didn’t go downtown.” Teal sneered. My night was a failure in her eyes.

  “No, we didn’t have sex. And it was…refreshing.” It was exactly what I’d always wanted, someone who wanted to spend time with me, not just because they’d get to go downtown. Although, I was no longer sure that Asher’s intentions had been as pure as mine. “He wants me to come to the gala.”

  “The one where he announces his Queen? Don’t you even think about it. It’s a trap.” Penelope had returned from her swim, trailing water on the floor with every step. “He’ll make a fool out of you, or trick you into a place you can’t fight your way out of. We’ll be so outnumbered there, and as it’s a hoity-toity affair, they’ll be able to strip us of any weapons. Security reasons or some shit like that.”

  Teal scrunched her nose and drummed her fingers on the table. “I disagree. It could be the perfect opportunity to catch them off-guard. We’ll have to figure out a way to get more of our supporters in so we have a fair chance to fight.”

  “I like this idea,” I said. Provided it wasn’t a trap, everyone who was anyone would be there, and it would be the perfect opportunity to show all the surrounding Kingdoms that I was worthy of having my crown back.

  “Of course you do.” Penelope rolled her eyes before she poured a cup of coffee. At least she didn’t steal mine. “They’ve already beat us. You’re so blinded by what you want you can’t see what you’re going to get.”

  “Two out of three of us think this is a good idea.” That was probably stretching it, but I sort of had Teal on my side. I had to work that angle. “How can we stack the odds in our favor? That way if anything sketchy happens at that party—”

  I ignored my friends scoffing.

  “—we’ll know as it happens. We can play offense instead of defense.”

  “What if Asher’s the one doing the sketchy shit?” Penelope frowned.

  “We take him out.” Nothing personal, just business. If Asher was willing to put his people before me, I could do the same for him. In theory, at least. “And Chronopolis will get a new Queen no matter what.”

  Teal pointed at the tattoo. “What if the Blood Moon comes and he’s not your mate?”

  I swallowed hard. “I’ll consider other options.” I knew in my heart that Asher wasn’t the enemy. But I had to plan for all scenarios. That’s what a leader did. I had to start thinking like one again. It wasn’t enough to dress for the job I wanted. I had to play the part, too. “I have no plans of turning human.”

  “Good, because the first thing I’d do as a mortal is wring your neck.” Penelope laughed. “Since I’ve been outnumbered, what’s your grand plan for not getting shanked at this party?”

  “Why don’t we play as Siren’s Song?” I suggested. “Then we can bring roadies, better known as creatures willing to kick ass on our behalf if need be, and our equipment, or as I like to call it, places to conceal weapons.”

  Teal groaned. “They’ll never go for that.”

  “It’s not a bad idea.” Penelope surprised me by having a change of heart. “We’ll never have a better chance to mesmerize them. Even if they try to fuck with us, we’ll sing until they’re stupid. Then maybe Avila can get her guy.”

  “This isn’t about getting my guy.” Both girls gave me that look. “Not anymore. It’s more than that now. Apparently we started a war, and I’ve already lost one of those. I don’t make the same mistakes twice.”

  “You don’t know how good it is to hear that.” Teal got up and hugged me. “Losing your crown changed you. It’s been a long time since you’ve wanted anything but Asher.”

  “I don’t want to die.” It was hard to say the words out loud, knowing how real the possibility was. “And I don’t want everyone I love to lose what they worked so hard for.” Including Asher.

  “Nothing like staring mortality in the face to give you the kick in the ass that you need.” Penelope crossed her arms in front of her wet body, clearly not in a hugging mood. “How will you pull this off?”

  Good question. I had to think fast before the girls shot
holes through my theory. “I’ve already been invited to the gala. So getting in isn’t a problem. I’ll tell Asher we want to perform at the party as a gift.”

  “What if he’s in on the fix?” Teal asked.

  “Keep your enemies close. If I buddy up to him on the event planning, he’s bound to let a few important details slip.”

  Penelope shook her head. “He’s the King. All he plans to do is show up.”

  Sometimes these two were so literal. “I don’t expect him to ask me my opinion on the menu. Anything he’ll be involved in will be important. We’ll know what we’re dealing with.”

  “He won’t even tell you who his Queen will be.” Teal reminded me. My tattoo had gone past the itchy phase and now it burned. Its timing was uncanny.

  “He has a plan.” Or the girls were right, I only heard what I wanted to hear. “And now, so don’t we.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  It had been a long time since I’d been nervous to take the stage. Tension blanketed The Alibi tonight, the usual chatter and laughter had been replaced by a foreign buzz that gave me a headache.

  My bandmates felt it too. Teal drummed, but she couldn’t keep the beat. I’d tell her to get her shit together before the show, but I wasn’t in much better shape than she was. And Penelope stood by the stage door, peering out at the crowd.

  “Anything unusual out there?” She jumped at my question. I already had my answer.

  She didn’t turn away from the open door. “A lot of security tonight. I don’t think we usually have that much. Other than that, it’s hard to tell if there’s anyone out there we should be worried about.”

  A cold lump formed in my stomach. Fear. No, we weren’t letting anyone drive us out of our club or our Bay. I swallowed hard to make it go away. Didn’t work. “Have any of The League escaped you?”

  Teal stilled her drumsticks. “The problem is we don’t know how many people are actually working for them and in what capacity. Who the pirates are and who Asher’s pissed off. We’ve picked off about a half dozen main members of The League, the inner circle. I’m sure we’ve irritated many more. The League has rules of conduct, but their supporters are a complete wildcard.”

  “Would any of the rebellion soldiers have an ax to grind with us?” I needed to know exactly where we stood. “You said you took out a couple of them, too.”

  Outside of The Bay we had very few allies, which was awesome.

  “I wouldn’t rule anything out.” Penelope looked back at us, her face dark. Something told me I didn’t have the whole story, and I wouldn’t get it unless our lives were on the line. More than they were now.

  “Listen, we go on stage and kick ass. Don’t let anything interfere with that. Once we get up there, everything will feel right again.” I had to convince myself of this first. “We don’t show any fear. The Bay is ours.”

  Teal was lost in thought, her sticks rested on the head of the drum.

  “I have an idea.” I had to come up with something to make the show run seamlessly. There may have been a revolution brewing, but there were a lot of people who paid good money to see us play that didn’t care about a bunch of royal supernatural brats fighting over land and jewels. They came to escape their own problems. Those were the people we played for, and I refused to let them down. “I’ll start the show with my solo song, and then the two of you can join me on the next one.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Penelope was fixed on the crowd again.

  “Yeah.” That lump was back in my belly. “If anything happens, we’re not all in the same place.”

  **

  A hush fell over the crowd when I came on stage alone and strummed the first few notes of our opening number. It was my favorite song to play live, and I needed the energy to flow through me from the guitar, and act as a conduit for the rest of the room. I’d never had a problem casting a spell over people, and tonight, I had to send the right message.

  The regulars sang along with me, like they always did, and the shoving match for position in front of the stage began. It wasn’t the kind of song that a mosh pit would break out in the middle of, unless you were trying to get the attention of a siren. I tensed every time the barrier in front of me bowed from the weight against it, like evil could slip through the slightest crack.

  I hated not knowing what we were fighting against.

  If I could just keep them in a trance for the next two hours, we’d be able to get through this.

  Penelope and Teal always joined me at the end of the song. It had a big electric finish, and I kicked up the settings on my guitar to greet Teal’s beats and Penelope’s supporting baseline. But my guitar cried out into the darkness alone.

  That was the problem with playing solo. My bandmates got distracted easily. If there was a beautiful man who caught their eye, they’d lose all track of time.

  I couldn’t let the entire crowd know how much it pissed me off.

  “The rest of Siren’s Song loves a dramatic entrance.” I rolled my eyes at the crowd, and the regulars laughed. They were familiar with our antics. It was half the draw. “Please welcome Teal and Penelope to the stage.”

  Still nothing. I’d kick their asses after the show.

  “Any time now, ladies.” I turned around to see the top of Teal’s head taking her sweet time coming on stage. Her face was splattered with blood and her clothes were torn. What the…

  She grabbed my microphone. “Block the exits,” she demanded. “Don’t let anyone leave.”

  “Teal.” I put my hand over the microphone. “What the fuck is going on?”

  “They got away with Penelope.” She perched on the edge of the stage and I had to follow her to hear the rest. “I got distracted with some random guy. I knew he worked for The League, but the slippery bastard got away from me. I turned around and Penelope was gone.”

  “Who else was back there?” It was just the three of us when I came on stage.

  “A bunch of people. We always invite people to keep us company when you do your solo song.” The corner of her mouth quivered upward, but it only lasted as long as her quick glance toward me. In a split second, she was back to scanning the crowd.

  Penelope would stand out in any group, and if I knew anything, it was that she wouldn’t go quietly. Her dark hair, her long limbs, her colorful outfits were nowhere to be seen. Chaos erupted in the room, being ordered to shelter in place sent everyone into a panic.

  Shit.

  The song was only a couple minutes long. They couldn’t have gotten far.

  “She’s gone.” I knew it. After spending decades with Penelope, her absence caused an emptiness. Both she and Teal were a part of me, and I’d been ripped open. “We’ve got to get the hell out of here.”

  “Should one of us stay behind, just in case?” Teal always knew what to do, so to see her with her eyes wide, asking me what I thought made the situation that much worse.

  “No. That’s what they want. Stick to me like glue.” I grabbed her arm and she cried out. I’d meant to run off the stage, but she startled me. “Are you okay?”

  Teal winced. “I will be. I think it’s just a bruise.”

  I tried not to be alarmed, more so when I could barely budge her. “You’re turning to stone.”

  “No one’s ever gotten away from me before.” Her eyes were huge. “I feel like I’m moving in slow motion.”

  I’d threatened the girls with the consequences of this happening to me throughout my entire Queen 2.0 campaign, but that didn’t come close to preparing me for the reality. Teal’s limbs locked, like her elbows and knees ceased to exist.

  “He didn’t resist you,” I insisted. “If Penelope was still here, you would’ve put him in the ground.”

  She was still able to smile. “I didn’t finish the job and I let Penelope get away. Shit! I fucked everything up beyond all recognition.”

  “No!” Things were a hot, steaming mess, but I wasn’t pointing fingers. I couldn’t, I needed all of the
m to tug on Teal. “You did what you’ve always done.”

  “What we’ve always done doesn’t work anymore.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Eerie silence filled the club after the stampede to the open doors. Every second that passed was one lost. Penelope was that much further away. But there was absolutely no way I could get Teal out the door with an audience. They were already in a panic, and seeing Teal turn into stone would whip everyone into a frenzy.

  As much as we needed action, we had to keep up appearances, too. No one could know how weak we’d just become.

  “I need help!” I called to the security guards. The good thing about being a siren was I never had to ask twice. They rushed the stage, gasping when they realized how dire the situation was. “Get her…”

  I had no idea what to tell them.

  “Cover her up, and follow me.” I refused to be separated from Teal. One of the guards wrapped Teal’s stiff body in a blanket. Her voice was muffled, and I couldn’t understand what she was saying anymore, but for once, I didn’t want her to stop talking. As long as she still made noise, she was in there.

  The guard had to try twice to get Teal through the door. Her long, lean body must’ve been awkward to carry, and he had to move carefully. I pushed through the crowd outside The Alibi, the noise swelled to an unbearable level when they caught sight of Teal. Her rigor mortised legs stuck out from under the blanket. She looked dead.

  So much for the positive spin.

  My lungs filled with panic and cement, but I didn’t have the luxury of giving into it. I had to get to Chronopolis. The gates had seemed further away than ever. People came out of their house to see what the commotion was. Even though I’d always been very public, it wasn’t every day the fallen Queen was followed by a whole whack of security guards and a stone facsimile of one of her courtesans in tow. They called to me, but I couldn’t answer them. I had no answers. Only questions.