Acca

by Christina Bauer

  Now, there has been the odd animal gift that’s come through, but so far, they’re all roasted and ready for eating. Still, Cissy’s a freaking genius.

  “There are even kittens,” I say sadly. “Tons of kittens. And a few baby pandas.” I take care to sniffle. “Which is why we have to go now.”

  “What about your dress fitting?” asks Mom. “We were going to do that today.”

  No way am I doing a fitting. Mom will wear me down until I agree to the ball. “There are simply too many kittens and pandas, Mom. Besides, Striga can cast a spell to make sure my dress fits. It’s all good.”

  Lincoln strides up to stand beside me. “Did you hear?” he asks solemnly. “The kittens are mewling. Poor little things. We can’t keep them waiting.”

  For the record, my guy has awesome hearing. Plus, he’s an even better liar than Cissy.

  I loop my arm around his waist. “That’s right. Off we go. We’ll check on the gifts and kittens with Cissy, exactly like we planned.”

  Although I’m not putting on the best show, Mom still buys it. “All right, I won’t stand in the way of animal health.” Mom kisses me goodbye and walks away. On second thought, I’m not sure she totally bought that story one hundred percent, but as long as I’m not going to the ball, I’m good.

  Once Mom’s gone, Lincoln arches his brow. “Gifts? Do you have a list of who sent them?”

  “Sure,” says Cissy.

  “Does it include Acca?” I ask.

  “Does it ever. They’ve invoked some fake thrax tradition where you have to give them a gift back of equal or greater value. It’s rude, in my opinion.”

  “But it’s a list of every noble in the House,” says Lincoln.

  “Sure.”

  Ah-HA! I can see where Lincoln is going with this and it’s an awesome place. Thanks to this gift stuff, we could have us a full list of all the Acca who could be exiled; it’s the exact information that Connor won’t provide.

  “It’s super long though,” says Cissy. “Sorry.”

  “Not a problem at all,” says Lincoln. “I have the perfect gift for many of them.”

  We quickly say our goodbyes and walk away. Cissy stays close. “I hope this isn’t a bummer way to spend the night before your wedding. There really are a lot of gifts that need your attention. As well as that long list of the House members. It won’t be enjoyable.”

  I smile. “Honestly? I can’t think of a better way to spend tonight.”

  Because I’m not going to fuss about the gifts at all. What I am going to do is plot with Lincoln on how to systematically break up Acca, while my dad takes care of Lucifer’s coin. And that’s what I call fun.

  27

  Twenty-four hours later, I’m standing in a stone passageway that leads to the Chapel floor. The place is packed. All the tiered seats are filled with dignitaries, and an even larger crowd is crammed onto row after row of wooden chairs on the Chapel floor. The hum of voices echoes through the stone hallway.

  This is really happening. In a few minutes, I’m about to get married.

  I fidget in my white gown. What’s wrong with me? I should be overwhelmed with joy. Instead, I can’t shake this odd feeling of foreboding that weighs down my shoulders.

  Cissy stands beside me, straightening out my skirt and veil. “You look gorgeous, Myla.”

  “Thanks.” The word comes out with a sigh.

  Cissy pauses. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Is it your father? He said he might be late.”

  I frown. “He did? When?”

  “Well, I didn’t want to worry you, but he couldn’t find some coin or something.”

  My tail does its up-periscope move over my shoulder. “What? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Dad picks this moment to march into the passageway. He looks stunning in his gleaming armor. His great golden wings arch over his shoulders. “Myla-la.” He shakes his head. “How lovely you look.”

  It’s my wedding day, and my father says I look lovely, so I should be all blushy and stuff. That’s not happening. My warrior sense won’t let the news from Cissy drop. “What happened with Lucifer’s coin?”

  Dad gives me his thousand-watt smile. “Coin?”

  “Don’t schmooze me. Cissy told me you couldn’t find it.”

  “I couldn’t, but that’s nothing to worry about. I’ve been personally overseeing the Pulpitums all morning. Nothing magical is getting in or out. That coin is somewhere close by and I will find it…After the wedding.”

  I stare between Cissy and Dad. “You didn’t tell Lincoln, either, did you?”

  My father steps closer and lowers his voice. “You only have one wedding day. We thought we’d take some of the burdens from you both.”

  My eyes narrow as my mind spins through this news. “You’ve been in the Pulpitums all morning.” A shiver runs down my limbs. “But the coin went missing yesterday. It was supposed to be in either my robes or the backpack.” I stare out over the crowd of supposed friends. Could one of them have taken it from me? It seems too horrible to be true.

  Dad’s eyes glow angel-bright. “Everything’s going to be fine, Myla. Whatever you’re worried about, it can wait forty minutes for you to get married. You need to trust us.”

  Cissy steps up as well. “We care about you and have taken tons of steps to ensure your day is perfect.”

  I nod slowly. When she puts her mind to it, Cissy is a marvel at organization. For the first time, I notice how my friend looks in her black velvet gown. As my only bridesmaid, Cissy’s wearing the colors of the house of Rixa. “You look beautiful, by the way.”

  “Does that mean you trust us?” she asks.

  I straighten my spine and tamp down my worries. “You’re both right. Whatever happened to the coin, it’s nothing that can’t wait an hour.”

  Somewhere across the Chapel floor, an orchestra starts playing Vivaldi. It’s human music, but sometimes mortals really know their stuff. This piece from the Four Seasons is one of my favorites.

  I step closer to the edge of the archway and stare out over the crowd. Everyone’s gone silent while the orchestra plays. There are so many faces it’s hard to pick out any single one. Ghouls, angels, quasis, and thrax…Every seat seems filled with a dignitary. The only big difference is that if you’re thrax, you’re likely to be glaring at a nearby quasi and vice versa. How sucktastic.

  The hate fest between Lincoln’s thrax and my quasis continues. Blech.

  My gaze locks on one quasi in particular. Mrs. Pomplemousse. She got a choice aisle seat right not a dozen yards in front of me. Something inside my soul goes on alert. I motion Cissy closer. “This is assigned seating, right?”

  “Oh, sure.” Cissy eyes her bouquet of white roses. “It took forever to arrange.”

  “And only major dignitaries got aisle seats, right?”

  “Everyone was fighting over them, so we had to come up with a system.” She gives me a conspiratorial grin. “I guess everyone wants a closer look at the demon who would be Queen of the Thrax.”

  I nod toward Mrs. Pomplemousse. “So how did a low-level quasi get that seat?”

  “Who?” Cissy squints at the old quasi. “Oh, her. Maybe someone switched spots. She looks pretty old and helpless.”

  I stare at the back of Mrs. Pomplemousse’s head. She’s still wearing that outrageous pillbox hat and veil. Something about her feels wrong…Like a “demon cloaked in a fake skin” kind of wrong. And Mrs. Pomplemousse hugged me in the hallway yesterday. That old bat could have used that opportunity to steal Lucifer’s coin. My mind whirs through other suspicious things about the old dame. Desmond was right outside her house, waiting to steal the codex. Why didn’t I see it before? She could have tipped him off where we’d be, and with the codex, no less.

  Desmond and Mrs. Pomplemousse could have been in cahoots.

  My eyes widen. Prescott said that the Lady takes many forms. What if the Lady and Mrs. Pomplemousse are the same person?
He also said the Lady can freeze a man on sight. That could just be lust powers, but it could also be the freezing abilities of a dyad demon. If she can freeze as well as shape shift, then the Lady has all the key powers of a pair of dyad demons.

  A super-charged dyad demon.

  And she’s sitting not ten yards away.

  But how could a single dyad demon have the powers of a mated pair? Most female dyads wouldn’t survive without their tether. When we fought Mourn and Dusk back at the ruined hospital, they certainly didn’t. However, those two were lesser demons. Greater demons often have untold powers, and I know for a fact that there was once a greater demon dyad pair: Drusus and Daria. My father fought them at the Battle of the Gates. Supposedly, that’s where Drusus and Daria died. An odd chill settles into my heart.

  Maybe Daria somehow survived. And kept Drusus’s freezing powers to boot.

  If that’s true, then Daria would fit the perfect profile of a combination lust monster, shape shifter, and freezy demon. Could that even be possible?

  One person knows whether Daria might have made it. My father.

  I grab Dad’s hand as the orchestra music swells. “Tell me about the Battle of the Gates.”

  “Now?” My father shoots a worried look at Cissy, who shrugs in a way that says “whatever, let’s humor her.” Dad slaps on a patient smile. “Fine. What do you want to know?”

  “The only dyad demons who were also greater demons were at that battle, right?”

  “Yes. Drusus and Daria.”

  “How did they die, exactly? Did you kill them?”

  “Me? No. One of my foot soldiers stabbed Drusus through with a sword. Good fighter. He cut their tether as well. Do you know what that is?”

  “Sure. A tether is a line of dark energy that connects dyads.” I stare at him with a “go on already” sort of glare.

  “That was it,” says Dad. “A number of warriors saw their tether cut. We never found the bodies, though. Not that we were going to expend a lot of trouble trying to answer that mystery. Dyad demons can’t live without a tether.”

  More bits of information fall into place. “Is there any chance Daria lived?”

  “What is this about, really?” asks Cissy. “Are you getting cold feet?”

  Dad sets his hand in my shoulder in a protective move. “If you want to call this off, we’ll do it. Whatever you want.”

  “What I want is information about Daria. Could she have survived?”

  “I’ve never seen a dyad survive having their tether cut.” My father bobs his head, considering. “That said, Drusus and Daria were also greater demons. Those kind often have unusual powers. You know, like archangels.” He purses his lips. “Although, dyads specialize in shape shifting, lust, and freezing people. Even if those powers were extreme, I don’t know how that would help them when their tether was cut.”

  “But it could happen.”

  “If Daria somehow managed to keep them both alive, maybe.”

  So, Drusus and Daria could still be alive, and they might have enough power to stay that way. Damn.

  My heart rate picks up speed. “What do you think happened to the bodies?”

  “Charybdis would be my guess. Many from that battle got pulled in there.”

  “That’s a magical vortex on Earth,” explains Cissy. “Basically, it’s a hole in the desert that pulls in supernatural beings. Every so often, it spits one out again.”

  I nod slowly. Charybdis. I remember Lincoln saying something about that. It’s a popular spot for demon hunting on Earth.

  My father scratches his cheek. “I suppose if Drusus and Daria survived having their tether cut, then they could have gotten dragged into Charybdis. It could have spat them out at any time. That’s a lot of ‘ifs,’ though.”

  I bob a bit on the balls of my feet. My warrior sense tells me I’m getting closer. “Let’s just say that somehow, Daria lived. Would she ever want to help Armageddon?”

  “Certainly. Demons can be very loyal, in their own ways. She fought on Armageddon’s side in the Battle of the gates. We’re in Antrum, though. There’s no way Drusus or Daria will get you here, even if they did survive.”

  “What about the demon alarms? Could Daria have gotten in, especially if she masqueraded as a quasi-demon?”

  “Perhaps. That said, even if someone did get through, you have the greatest warriors in the after-realms before you.” Dad’s eyes fill with worry. “Please, Myla. Enjoy your day.”

  At this point, Dad and Cissy are done humoring me. In fact, they both look not-a-little freaked out. And the music is about to switch to my processional. I steel my shoulders. This is ridiculous. Whatever this thing is with Mrs. Pomplemousse, Dad is right. It can wait.

  “Yeah. Sure.” I return my focus to the Chapel floor, but I can’t stop watching Mrs. Pomplemousse. She raises her right hand. A small cloud of black dust swirls around her torso.

  My breath catches. I saw this happen once before—back when we were fighting the dyad demons in the ruined hospital with Desmond. Mourn pulled in some black dust right before he tried to freeze Lincoln and me.

  Hells bells. I was right. Mrs. Pomplemousse is Daria.

  My eyes widen as Mrs. Pomplemousse raises her other hand. Something golden gleams in her palm. Oh-the-Hell-no.

  That’s Lucifer’s coin.

  I rush forward, screaming. “Dyad demons are here! Run!”

  Everyone stares at me in shock. From across the Chapel floor, Lincoln takes off for me at a sprint.

  Suddenly, a great burst of darkness erupts from around Mrs. Pomplemousse.

  This is just like what happened with Mourn and Dusk. The male dyad, Mourn, released a cloud of black particles that froze Desmond in place. There’s no forgetting the unique look of that darkness.

  And now, somehow, Mrs. Pomplemousse is releasing the very same power at my wedding.

  I can do nothing but stare in shock as the black motes of evil energy wrap themselves around me. My muscles turn heavy as my body stops moving. My last thoughts are to my igni. After all, they were what saved me last time.

  Find me, my little ones. Please.

  28

  I stare across the Chapel floor, my gaze locked with Lincoln’s. And this isn’t in a cute “I’m looking at my future husband” kind of way, either.

  It’s more of a “yipes I’m trapped under an evil spell” thing, which really blows.

  For Lincoln’s part, he became frozen while he was still running toward me. Now, he’s stopped midstride in the center aisle. My heart sinks. My guy’s only twenty yards away. However, the way things are right now? He might as well be in another realm.

  With all my (not insignificant) will, I focus on moving my body. Zip. I can’t even flinch, let alone reach him. Not good. From my peripheral vision, I scan the Chapel. Everyone else is stuck in one spot, too.

  Well, almost everyone.

  Mrs. Pomplemousse currently waits at the far end of the Chapel floor, alongside Aldred. They’re standing on the very same stage where Lincoln and I are supposed to take our vows. Gross. And after seeing the effects of her black spell? There’s no question in my mind.

  Mrs. Pomplemousse is the Lady Daria.

  She and Aldred have their backs turned to me, but I’ve no doubt what they’re up to: figuring out how to use Lucifer’s coin to release Hell on Earth. Well, I have one thing to say about that.

  No. Freaking. Way.

  Inside my soul, my wrath demon roars to life. These clowns have gone way too far. No one releases Armageddon on my wedding day. End of story.

  Closing my eyes, I call out to my igni again.

  Find me, my little ones.

  Sweet, childish voices echo through my mind. These are the sounds of the light igni, the power that sends souls to Heaven. They’re followed by a harsh cacophony of rough tones. That would be the dark igni’s song. Like always, the igni are speaking to me, yet their words sound like gibberish. Even so, they’re here and that’s good news. They can help m
e start moving again, exactly like they did in the battle with Mourn and Dusk.

  The igni’s song grows louder until a few small lightning bolts of power swim around my right palm. My little ones have arrived, which is great. Still, I need them to be cautious. Once again, I speak to my igni in my thoughts.

  You must surround me just enough to release the dyad’s magic. After that, I need you to connect me to Lincoln, the same as you did last time. Form a tether of energy between us. Can you do that?

  The voices keep babbling—after all, that’s what igni mostly do—but the tone becomes loud and angry. Huh. Actually, I’m not one hundred percent certain what they’re saying here, but I’ll assume they mean “yes, we’ll do that” anyway. It’s not like I have much of a choice.

  Wait for my signal. Start in three, two, one.

  A few dozen igni appear and swirl around my arms, reminding me of fireflies. The Lady Daria and Aldred face the far wall. However, the moment the igni appear? Those two baddies turn around and stare straight at me.

  Fuuuuuuuuuck.

  Mrs. Pomplemousse-slash-Lady Daria rounds on Aldred. “Give me the incantation, now.” The Chapel is so quiet, I can hear her every word. “Those little lightning bolts are igni. That one’s the great scala, and she’s using her powers to override my magic. We must activate the coin before the Scala breaks free.” She raises her hand, and yes, she’s still holding Lucifer’s coin. Eek.

  Let the record show that Mrs. Pomplemousse definitely stole Lucifer’s coin from me when we hugged outside my thrax suite-o-pink stuff. Not cool.

  Aldred sets his fists on his hips. “If I give you the incantation, you can open the portal. I cannot allow that to happen. It would violate the terms of the deal I made with Armageddon.”

  What is it with this guy and his magical agreements? Aldred made a deal once before with Armageddon, one that ended up with his daughter Adair being dead. I still can’t believe he went back to the bargaining table for round two.

  “Don’t be a fool, Aldred. I can’t hold this many people frozen forever. Hand over the incantation.”