“Good. That’s what we want too. Glad we’re already on the same page.”
For a moment, Devdan was certain that maybe he had succeeded in drinking himself into a stupor and was hearing voices. He had sensed the presence earlier too, but had written it off as the vodka messing with his magical senses. But honestly? He hadn’t had that much vodka. He looked up to see MaLeila, standing just across from the table he had sat himself at in the closed restaurant of the hotel. She wasn’t by herself. Tsubame and Nika were with her, as well as a dark haired blue-eyed man, but MaLeila always possessed the ability to capture his attention when she was just in the room, let alone by talking.
He took a moment to take her in with all his senses. He visually took in her dark hair in a crown braid, milk chocolate covered skin, almond shaped eyes, a petite feminine body that was barely 5’2” but stood a little taller because of her shoes and was dressed in a shiny flowing dark pink brocade halter dress with wide billowing sleeves that he was sure exposed her back. He inhaled her scent, so strong that he could also just taste it, one that he’d never quite been able to pin but was best described as the flowery and honey scent of spring in Georgia, back before urbanization and large cities. He felt her aura, always a shining beacon to him even when she was trying to be discreet. And her voice kept playing over in his head, still unable to quite register that she was in his presence again.
He wanted to be angry that still after severing of the bond that forced them together and close to four months of being apart, she still had the same effect on him. A bigger part of him was relieved she was back. He wasn’t willing to show how much power she had over him though, and carefully restrained his aura, which innately reached out towards hers, and fixed his face with a scowl.
“How the fuck did you get through the loop?” he asked.
She didn’t seem affected by his apparent cruelty one way or another and only gave him a deadpan look as she said, “I’m the one that showed you how to create a magical loop. Of course I know how to pass through them. And even if I didn’t, Tsubame’s with me. She could do it too.”
“Right,” Devdan muttered and then said, “Just when I didn’t think this mess couldn’t get any fucking messier it does.”
MaLeila’s response was to roll her eyes. Then she looked at the bottle of vodka on the table, the glass in his hand, and then back at him.
“As much as I’m sure you want to continue drinking yourself into a stupor out of despair, we’ve got to go ahead and see how we’re going to deal with this mess before the Thorne’s decide that the best way to deal with it is to rain bombs on Algeria in effort to destroy the insurgents and extremist that they’ll tell everyone have managed to invade,” MaLeila said.
She reached over to grab the vodka and the glass. He glared at her from across the table and put his hand around the neck of the bottle much like he had when Adina tried. MaLeila didn’t back down though and instead put her hand on top of his and grabbed hold of the glass in his other hand. Until now, he hadn’t been aware of little they touched each other over the years outside of protecting each other in a fight or pretended to kiss or when she stayed his hand when he was getting ready to shoot someone she didn’t think necessarily deserved it. All those times he hadn’t gotten a chance to focus on how small and soft her hands were despite years of fighting off enemies.
“Stop being such a fucking asshole,” she snapped. “I don’t know how you got yourself into this mess, but drinking isn’t going to get you out. You can drink yourself silly after we’ve won.”
While he was temporarily taken aback, she took the bottle and the glass from him and took it over to the bar at the other side of the restaurant. Then she walked back over and sat down right across from him making everyone else, including Adina and Marcel who had been keeping their distance from him, follow suit.
She always did act like she owned a place when she was determined to get something done. Devdan didn’t think that would ever change about the girl. In fact, Tsubame’s influence may have exacerbated the trait.
“Now we’ve got one story from the news,” MaLeila said. “Now tell us what the fucking hell is really going on.”
He let Marcel and Adina alternate explaining while he continued to glare at everyone in the room with his arms resting on the table. It took a while, so long that MaLeila did eventually go back to the bar and come back with glasses for everyone and something weaker than straight vodka.
“Now I understand why you needed that vodka. And I thought I was a trouble magnet,” MaLeila teased with a small smile as she poured him and herself a glass before passing the bottle around the room. Devdan resisted the urge to smile back at her.
When Marcel and Adina were done, for a moment everyone sat back in their seats, sipping on wine. Then they all looked at Tsubame who was twirling the wine in her glass with a smile on her lips, looking as though they had just gotten through talking about something as mundane as a funny story about a long deceased family member.
“I’m guessing you want my say in all this?” Tsubame asked.
“Well you took over a world once. We’re pretty sure you’ve got some say in this,” MaLeila replied.
“Well, you’ve lost any chance at making yourself look good to anyone in important places outside the ruling African magical families. Good job with that by the way. Even I couldn’t get them to cooperate when I initially began to take over. But I can’t really blame them. I had been married to the heir of one of the leading European families and though we were estranged at that point, technically we still were married,” Tsubame said wistfully. “I ended up having to go to war with them. You’re going to have to resign yourself to going to war too.”
“When me and Bastet discussed this, war was not involved,” Devdan snapped.
“Maybe it wasn’t, but diplomacy was thrown out the window the moment you challenged Anya and you let the other families hold her hostage. If you’re anything like Marcel, you hate diplomacy and wanted to openly fight anyway. Now you’ve got the chance to fight. Don’t tell me you aren’t looking forward to it,” Tsubame said.
Next to him, he felt Adina staring at him and the dark haired man that had come with MaLeila stared at her as well. It appeared they’d both be explaining some things later.
“Besides,” Tsubame continued. “The world thinks you want to start a revolution and take over Algeria and you’ve already done a pretty good job getting started if you ask me. So why not finish the job.”
******
Devdan didn’t need Adina to repeat back to him what he’d said in order to know that she followed the events that he had told her. She was the type to silently ingest what was told to her while making sure the events were straight in her head. Therefore, Devdan simply lay quietly next to the woman on the bed, both too tired after the last few weeks and the evening of planning to do much else.
“It certainly explains much,” Adina said rolling over on her side to face him. “Their auras are nearly identical. I almost couldn’t tell the two apart.”
Devdan could. Instantly. But that was none of her business.
Before Devdan could reply, there was a knock on the door of their suite. The only reason he got up to even answer it was that he sensed MaLeila at the door. He swung it open but blocked the doorway. She still had on her dress, but her braid was undone, leaving her hair in big puffy waves, and she looked like she could use a few hours of rest.
“What?” he asked.
MaLeila covered her mouth as she yawned, confirming Devdan’s assumptions that she was tired. Then she said, “Can you just let me in and we can skip the part where we’re assholes to each other?”
Devdan sighed and let her in the room, guiding her to the living area. MaLeila paused for a moment when she saw Adina standing in the doorway of the bedroom, but then silently acknowledged her with a nod before continuing to follow Devdan. She sat on the couch and Devdan sat adjacent to her in the armchair.
“Give us a minute, Adi
na,” Devdan said.
Once Adina closed the door to the bedroom of the suite, Devdan asked, “What are you doing here?”
“Is Bastet okay?”
“She’s fine. Back with the Magic Council at the Vatican.”
“Is she safe there? Do we need to go get her?”
“She’s fine. She’s not here so why wouldn’t she be safe?”
“Because I know this was all her idea. Only she could have put you up to coming here and doing… whatever this is you’re trying to do. Seems like you’re trying to take over the world like Tsubame, except a lot less subtly,” MaLeila said dryly.
“It didn’t start out that way.”
“I believe you,” MaLeila said in a way that Devdan wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth or being sarcastic. Then she added, “Who’s that girl?”
“Adina.”
“I know her name. Who is she to you? And why is she in your suite with you this late?”
“You are aware you’re in my suite at a late hour too.”
“She was already here.”
“I’ll tell you if you tell me who Dominik is.”
“A friend.”
“You got a friend, a male friend, to follow you from… Germany? That’s what his accent sounded like,” Devdan shot back. “A thing for white men with blue eyes I see.”
MaLeila flushed and Devdan resisted the urge to smirk. She was still easy as ever to mess with.
“Technically, Marcel’s not white. He’s as black as you are… literally.”
“But you thought he was white when you first dated him. Not your type anymore? Is that why you moved on to Dominik?”
MaLeila bristled. “You know damn fucking well I’m not that shallow. And if you’re just going to sit here and be a fucking asshole then I’ll leave you to your little fling!”
She got up and started to leave, but Devdan stood up and reached out to grab her arm and pull her back.
“Sorry,” he said quickly resisting the urge to cringe at the way she glowered at him. It didn’t used to be like that. Usually she was cowering from his anger or coldness. When did it become the other way around? Where did all his anger and wariness of her disappear to in the last few months? “I wasn’t trying to be an ass. Just what are you doing here? Not in the hotel room, but here in Algeria with Tsubame trying to help me.”
MaLeila didn’t immediately respond, dark brown eyes darting away from him, trying to find a place to land that was anywhere other than his face before landing on his face again finally.
“Because you’re my… friend?” MaLeila said as though she were trying out the word and it didn’t quite fit. He silently agreed with her. Something about it didn’t sound right. But Devdan also didn’t think there was a word that could accurately describe what they had been. More than siblings or close friends. Less than lovers, but certainly close to it.
“You were my friend…” she amended, trailing off once again before rolling her eyes and said, “You were something to me. And we both did a lot of stupid shit that got in the way of whatever it was. But regardless, it meant something and I wasn’t going to let you be killed or defeated while I could have done something to help.”
She looked like she wanted to say more, but then she shook head and decided against it, instead slipping her arm out of his grip and reaching to grab the hand in her own. She squeezed it lightly, avoiding his gaze again and saying much more with her actions than she ever could have said with her mouth, yet still he was unable to figure out what she meant.
She let go of his hand and looked back at him. “Anyway, I only wanted to know about Bastet. Sorry for bothering you.”
That said, she hurried across the room and left. After the heavy door closed behind her, Adina came out the room, staring after where MaLeila had gone. Devdan did the same. Both stared at the door for a long time before Adina finally spoke.
“So that’s her,” she stated.
“What about her?”
Adina didn’t reply and only made her way back into the bedroom. Devdan followed behind her shortly, glad that she hadn’t answered because he wasn’t sure he was ready to hear it.
19
Total regime changes in countries was messy business, and MaLeila was suddenly glad the thought of ruling anyone hadn’t crossed her mind until Tsubame made her entrance. Because it wasn’t just about ruling people and telling them what to do. It was about taking control of the economy. It was about making sure they had farmland and ways to grow food. It was about making sure the majority of people had homes and jobs and that those that didn’t had access to at least basic human necessities. It was about making sure people had access to education. It was about infrastructure, entertainment, recording history and important events, and a large number of other things that MaLeila had never thought twice about, which was why MaLeila was glad Tsubame was there to guide them. It certainly showed that the woman was much more intelligent than she ever let on.
However, no matter how intelligent they knew the woman was, no matter how much experience she had, everyone gave her a sideways look when she suggested that Devdan undo the loop and let the U.N. forces from the embassy try to storm the hotel. Tsubame ignored them, looking at a bunch of large maps of Algeria pinned all over the restaurant they were using as a meeting place. The maps showed different aspects of the country. One was of the geography. Another of the infrastructure. Another showing the economy and a bunch of others MaLeila wouldn’t be able to read on her own.
“You know how you take a country?” Tsubame asked. “You don’t show them that you can destroy them. That’s asinine. Not only does it make the people angry at you, it also leaves you having to rebuild from the ground up. You take a country by showing them that while it’s certainly possible for you to destroy them, you would choose to protect them instead. That you have not only the desire, but the ability to look out for their needs and be unafraid to do what needs to be done in their defense regardless of who thinks you’re wrong for it. If you prove that, the people will eat right out of your hand and practically worship you. People are like a woman and leaders and conquerors are like the men vying for that woman’s adoration. And one of the easiest ways for a man to impress a woman is to show her his strength, that not even death would stop him from protecting her.”
Tsubame then turned to Devdan and said, “Ready to show the Algerian people, particularly their dissatisfied youth, that you can protect and defend them?”
MaLeila followed Tsubame’s gaze to Devdan, who was sitting in the corner of the room with his arms crossed. He nodded his head once, jaw set in determination. And while she was sure everyone else in the room still had their doubts, MaLeila was absolutely certain that by the time all this was over, the U.N. forces would be defeated and Devdan would be leading a revolution in a country that wasn’t even his homeland. Or maybe it was. Who knew where the man’s roots could be traced back to? Regardless, MaLeila had never seen Devdan as the leader type. The type to always defend and protect, but never a leader. Then again, Tsubame had determined that was what qualified him to begin with.
The mission was the first time in months that MaLeila wouldn’t be wearing some fine dress. Tsubame may be comfortable wearing her dresses for a fight, but MaLeila never would be, at least not any time soon. She opted for wearing a jumpsuit that fitted in the torso with slightly flowing sleeves and legs with flat boots and her hair wrapped in a tight bun that was held together by a dozen hair pins.
The next evening, a few hours or so before Devdan was to remove the loop, MaLeila made her way to where he was holed up in his suite. Dominik insisted on going with her, because while he couldn’t open portals, he was certainly skilled at other forms of dark magic that the Magic Council slightly frowned upon, but that certainly weren’t forbidden to dabble in or would have the council knocking on the Voss’ doors. When she arrived at the suite, she didn’t bother knocking. She simply used magic to fiddle with the locking mechanism. In hindsight, she probably should
have knocked because as soon as she opened the door, she found Devdan and Adina, standing face to face. Devdan torso was bare and while Adina was decent, her hand was down the man’s pants, jerking at his dick.
The decent thing for MaLeila to do would have been to back out the room while profusely apologizing, but she must have been around Nika and Tsubame much too long and picked up their indifference towards walking into sexual situations. At least indifference in the sense that it wasn’t awkward. The tight squeezing of her chest, the instant narrowing of her eyes and downward tilt of her lips certainly told her that she wasn’t indifferent in all aspects. And for one brief moment, MaLeila wondered if this was how Devdan had felt when she first started dating Marcel, when he saw them kissing, when she rejected him when he kissed her even though it had been for good reason.
“I see we’re interrupting something,” Dominik said with a good-natured smirk.
“I suppose I should have knocked,” MaLeila said dryly right back, eyes not leaving Devdan and Adina though she had fixed her facial expression to one of amusement even though she wasn’t amused.
“No fucking duh, Sherlock,” Devdan growled, snatching Adina’s hand out his pants.
MaLeila smiled and decided to go the teasing route, hoping it would hide her simmering rage. She thought she was past this with Devdan.
The Immortal Queen Tsubame: Ascension Page 19