Immortals of Indriell- The Collection

by Melissa A. Craven

  “Yeah, the tattoos.” She shoved him playfully, but it almost sent him stumbling to the floor.

  She’s so strong already! She was progressing so fast, he worried sometimes that she might be progressing too fast. That’s why he’d finally told Gregg. He needed help getting her through these last few weeks.

  “They look different than I remember,” Allie said.

  “Work in progress. I’ll show you the plan sometime. I was thinking you might draw my next one.” He quickly pulled a gray and blue Cliffton tshirt over his head. He needed to be more careful. If she started asking too many questions too soon, he might not be able to avoid telling her before she was ready.

  I can’t wait till this is all behind us and we can finally move on.

  Allie sat at the bar and watched as he set about prepping for dinner.

  “That’s a lot of food for five people.” She eyed the trays of meat that could easily feed a family of four for a week.

  Or my family for one night. Crap! I didn’t think this through.

  “Er … when it’s my week to cook, I like to do it all at once. How do you like your steak?”

  “Just short of mooing.”

  “That’s my girl!” He was grateful she bought his lie, but Aidan hated keeping her in the dark.

  Allie’s startled gasp caught him by surprise. Her heart was racing like she thought she was in danger. He whirled around to see what had her so scared. It was just his mother.

  How has she held onto her sanity on her own all this time? She really had no idea how incredible she was.

  “Relax, it’s just my mom.” He winked, trying to set her at ease. He shouldn’t have said anything. Especially when her eyes widened at his comment. She was curious now. But he flashed his cockiest grin and went about finishing the kabobs.

  “Dinner smells wonderful, son, but I see a lot of meat and very few vegetables,” his mother said as she and Sasha joined them. Sasha cast him an anxious look. She’d just caught Naeemah up to speed and he knew their mother wasn’t pleased with them any more than Gregg was.

  “Hey, the kabobs have fruit, peppers and onions!” Aidan defended his meal, but he was fairly certain Naeemah would insist on stuffing him with salad. She was so pleased with his performance of late, she was more and more on the clean diet kick, but he was digging his heels in. Aidan draped his arm around his mother’s shoulders and braced himself for her wince. He knew she couldn’t help it, but sometimes it still hurt.

  “Just like your father.” She hid it like a pro but he knew it killed her. That was one of his biggest motivations for hiding behind his carefully constructed facade—so Naeemah wouldn’t worry about him. He wasn’t sure it helped.

  Aidan suddenly felt Allie’s hand slip around his. He glanced down at their joined hands as she squeezed his gently. The warmth of her touch and the sincerity that came with it nearly took his breath. It struck him in that moment that it didn’t matter anymore. It didn’t matter that even his mother couldn’t stand his touch. Allie couldn’t possibly know how much that little gesture meant to him. He would move heaven and earth to get her through the next few weeks and the months after her Awakening.

  “Allie, I’m delighted to finally meet you!” He barely heard his mother chattering away with the girls. “Please call me Naeemah.”

  “Th-thank you.” Allie stared at Aidan uncertainly. She felt his mother’s age and her power, and it left her unsettled.

  God, I would give anything to just have this done!

  “Aidan Loukas McBrien! Front and center! Right bloody now!” his father called from the steps above.

  Here we go.

  “Coming Da!” He winced. “I know I’m in trouble when the Scots comes out.”

  “What’d you do this time?” Allie giggled.

  “I brought an unruly redhead home for dinner.” He rushed up the steps to face his father’s ire.

  He met him half way and Greggory McBrien was in full fury.

  “Just listen Da—”

  “What do you mean by telling me that you’ve kept a bloody unknown a secret for over a bloody month and you want to bring her over for dinner? In a bloody text message?”

  “Da I—”

  “Do you have any idea what could have happened? Her family could have ties to the Coalition!”

  “I know Da, but—”

  “She’ll have to be dealt with, son. If her parents have breeched our region without permission, they can only be—”

  “Da! Will you just listen to me for one second?” Aidan pleaded. He could not face it if Governor McBrien did the right thing and sent Allie away. True, taking her from her parents and letting her assimilate safely, somewhere far away was a solid, rational solution. He refused to let that happen because he knew it would never work for Allie.

  “I know you’ve got some kind of crush on the girl. She’s your age, she’s—”

  “Her parents are mortal, Da!”

  “What?”

  “She doesn’t even know what she is!” Aidan begged his father to understand.

  “It’s not possible. One of ours would have taken her when she was a child.”

  “They’ve moved around so much, it never happened. She loves her parents. They’re the only constant in her life. Can you imagine? Not knowing? Don’t take her away from her family. Don’t take her away from me, please. I think she might be my equal.”

  “Your equal?” His tone fell flat from shock.

  “She isn’t manifested yet. But she’s so powerful we couldn’t tell at first. It took me several days of digging into her story for me to connect all the dots. By then, we were all determined to keep her here. She senses us strongly already. She’s close, Da. Just a few more weeks.”

  “Your equal?”

  “I know it’s hard to believe, but she’s so different with me. So normal.”

  “Son, we cannot leave a girl on the cusp of her Awakening with mortal parents. It’s too dangerous. Why have you waited so long to tell me?”

  “I was afraid you’d do something rash. And I’ve decided not to tell her until after.”

  “After? After her Awakening?”

  “It’s soon, Da. I think it would be too much of a shock now. I don’t think she could contain it. Everything in me tells me that this is the best solution for her.”

  “Aye, we cannot tell her now. You should have come to me sooner. I would have listened.”

  “I wasn’t so sure about that,” he said dryly. “She’s a very stubborn girl. I think it would do more harm than good if you ripped her from her family. Just … don’t decide tonight. Let’s go have dinner. Meet her. See how she is with me. Talk to her and then you tell me if you have the heart to send her away?”

  “Your equal?” Gregg shook his head in disbelief. “I won’t promise you anything, son. We have to do what’s best for her in the long run. But I will give you tonight and I will listen to your side of it. If she really is as powerful as you are, she’ll need our protection.”

  “Thanks, Da.” Aidan breathed a sigh of relief as they made their way back down to the grotto. They paused at the entrance, watching Allie with his mom and sister as they made a salad together. Aidan saw his father’s shoulders stiffen. There was something in his eyes he hadn’t expected. He was almost certain his father would look at this situation with a hard heart—doing what he thought he must, no matter what. That was why Aidan kept Allie a secret as long as he dared. He was counting on her to melt that firm resolve, but he hadn’t anticipated that she could do it so quickly. Gregg followed her every movement, his eyes glued to her in fascination.

  “She’s beautiful. And strong,” he finally said. “That hair. It is very rare. She has the Indriell line in her somewhere, just like Sasha, but it’s stronger in this girl. The silver, gold and copper hair was a characteristic of Indriell nobility.”

  “Can you give her a chance, Da?”

  “Aye. Maybe we can get her through her Awakening at least.”

  �
��We could help her. We could give her everything she needs and let her stay with her family.”

  “It’s not likely to work, son. But we will discuss it. Your mother’s already sold on her, so you’ll have one more on your side.”

  “Mom, really? How can you tell?”

  “She’s my Complement. We don’t always need words, although I’m sure she’ll have plenty for me later. Come, let’s join them.”

  “Sorry, Nae,” Gregg said as they joined the others. The color drained from Allie’s face when he turned his attention on her. She glanced at Aidan, her eyes full of confusion, but he just gave her shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. He couldn’t face it if Gregg sent her away. He let his hand linger long enough for Gregg to see that his touch didn’t bother her.

  “Allie! Greggory McBrien, it’s nice to finally meet you.”

  “Oh no. There’s two of you!” Allie could see their bond but she didn’t understand it yet.

  That’s it, babe. Show him how powerful you are. He won’t want someone else raising you.

  “I’m starving, let’s eat!” Aidan brought two plates to the table. He would have to let Allie do all the convincing for now. He was almost trembling he was so hungry. It took everything he had not to devour his food without chewing. He was good at hiding his appetite, but if he waited much longer, he would lose that control.

  Naeemah arched her brow at him as he slathered butter on an overly browned dinner roll.

  Yeah. Ma. Butter! He shoved the bread into his mouth.

  “How did you come to be with your adoptive family?” she asked to distract Allie from the way Aidan shoveled food in his mouth. He winced at the swift kick under the table. Gregg’s warning to rein it in. With a deep breath, Aidan focused on taking it one bite at a time and let the others handle the conversation.

  After dinner, Allie was distracted. He knew she must be feeling uncertain about his parents. She sensed them very strongly, especially Gregg. She also knew that Aidan realized what she was feeling and that had all sorts of questions reeling in that bright mind of hers. He needed to get her to relax. She was much too anxious.

  “Is she alright?” Sasha whispered when Allie slipped into the bathroom.

  “She’ll be fine.”

  “Greggory McBrien, we will do no such thing to that poor child!” They both heard their mother’s voice drifting up from the downstairs study.

  “I don’t want to, but we cannot leave her with mortal parents,” Gregg sighed.

  “And why not? They live just down the beach. We could keep a sharp eye on her at all times. If we ever felt like we needed to step in, we could.”

  “Crap, Aidan! Can she hear?” Sasha jumped from her seat at the foot of his bed. “That vent in the bathroom links right up with the study!”

  “We have to get her out of there!” Aidan rushed to the door.

  “Allie!” Sasha rapped loudly on the door of the hall bathroom. “We’re going out for coffee!”

  “Come on, Lex!” Aidan shouted, desperately trying to drown out his parent’s conversation below.

  She caught his gaze when she stepped into the hall. He could feel the tension coiled inside her like a spring about to burst.

  I’m never going to survive these next few weeks! He could hardly stand the confusion in those crazy green eyes. She had no idea what life was about to throw at her, but Aidan was determined to be there for her through it all. She’d literally turned his world upside down, but he was all the better for it. Whatever she needed to get through this, he would give it to her. And after, when the storm settled, they would be there for each other.

  ~~~

  EPILOGUE

  Gregg: Eight months later

  “Are you sure, Nae?” Gregg leaned back in his leather chair at the museum office. It had been weeks since he’d seen his wife and hearing her voice on the phone just wasn’t enough. He hated being home without her, but he wasn’t sure it was safe for everyone to return yet.

  “Positive. She’s in Atlanta. Liam and Aide have watched her like hawks all summer. She hasn’t left the city in weeks.”

  Naeemah had been their center of communication for the last several months since the incident with Allie and Quinn. She spent most of her time with the children, but she frequented Europe, Chicago, Atlanta and Cleveland to facilitate the bulk of their communication in person. Gregg was equally active, seeing to their Senate duties and spending the time alone to dig into Livia’s past. The woman was an enigma. He didn’t have enough information on her yet to understand her interest in Allie. Nor why she flew all the way to New Zealand last year to meet with Lily Carmichael. The fact that the Carmichaels moved to Sydney the following day did not escape him. It was long past time he questioned Lily and Carson. He and Naeemah had agreed in the beginning to leave them out of it for as long as it seemed wise to do so, but he suspected they knew much more than they let on. He knew now that Kassandre would have had her reasons for leaving her child with them.

  “There’s been no sign of Quinn since they left Chicago,” he said. “Greyson and Scott swear she took him to Atlanta with her, but they haven’t seen him since.”

  “There’s too much about this woman we do not understand yet,” Naeemah said. “Her place in the Coalition is unprecedented. She’s in a position of power and acts of her own volition. We do not know enough about her or what she wants with Quinn to attempt a rescue yet.”

  “Aye. For the moment we seem to be at a stalemate. I’ll meet you where we planned. We’ll give it a few more weeks and then we’ll decide if it’s safe to come home. We will wait and watch. When next we see Livia or any of her people with Quinn, we will act.”

  “And in the meantime, we will take comfort knowing he is not in a Coalition prison,” she said.

  “Aye. See you soon, Nae. I cannot wait to have my arms around you again.” He knew he didn’t have to voice his fears that Quinn might very well be in a place far worse than a Coalition prison. She knew it as well as he.

  “See you soon.” Naeemah’s voice faded as he ended the call.

  “Sir! You can’t see the curator without an appointment!” Gregg heard the bustle of activity outside his office.

  “He will see me.”

  Gregg shot to his feet at the sound of the familiar voice belonging to an ancient Immortal—one he knew couldn’t possibly still live.

  It cannot be…

  The man burst into his office and Gregg’s sharp bladed katara left his hand to quiver in the doorjamb beside the intruder’s head.

  “Lucky for me your aim is off, my friend.”

  “Ash?” Gregg felt all the blood rush from his face and he dropped back into his chair, more stunned than at any other moment of his long life.

  “I am now known as Navid.” The dark haired man cautiously took the seat opposite Gregg’s desk.

  “But … I saw it done … my bond with Kass nearly broke me when you both died.” Gregg remembered the night nearly fourteen years ago when he witnessed the brutal execution of Ashar and Kassandre. There was nothing he could have done to save them. It was madness. He and Naeemah had barely escaped the Coalition slaughter themselves. The loss of his dearest friends struck him hard.

  “Much of what you saw that night was not as it seemed.”

  “Or do my eyes deceive me now?” Gregg embraced his power, uncertain if he could trust this man who wore his dead friend’s face.

  “What would I know about Kassandre that no one else on earth would know apart from yourself and her mother?” Navid asked.

  “Say the words.” Gregg refused to utter them himself.

  “She is the seventh.”

  “How did you survive? Where’s Kass? Why have—”

  “Kass could not be here.”

  “I don’t understand. How could I not know she still lives?”

  “I cannot give you all the answers yet. You know better than anyone how her gift works.”

  “Aye, that’s Kass code for shut the hell up. It is far too
dangerous for you to be here, my friend. You must be in dire need of my help. What can I do?” For Ashar to risk exposure, it could only be about Allie. He could see Kassandre’s guiding hand in all of this. He had ever since he first suspected she was their daughter. It was the one thing that kept him from asking too many questions too soon. He knew it was no coincidence that her child practically landed in his lap. It was what she wanted.

  “You are holding one of our most treasured secrets,” Navid said.

  “And a handful she is.” Gregg smiled fondly.

  “She is so much like her mother.” Navid laughed.

  “Do not fool yourself. That girl is you wrapped up in a feisty redheaded package. She’s the best of you both.”

  “You’ve connected all the dots just like Kass always said you would.”

  “Aye, but I’m having trouble with too many dots now. That’s why you’re here?”

  “Yes. Lily and Carson’s part in this is nearly over. They can’t tell you anything you don’t already suspect. You cannot question them. Just let them maintain the family life they have built for her. Allie must continue to believe we are dead. It is the safest course for you both. But you all need to come home. It is safe as long as you keep a careful watch over Allie and all of her friends. And remember, prophecy is deceptive in that it is often only understood after it is too late. Allie’s grandmother meant this particular prophecy to be deceptive in more ways than one.”

  “Her grandmother, the Queen? What news of Alísun?”

  “Still captive and not our priority yet.”

  “It’s all wrapped up in Allie, isn’t it?”

  “She is only half of it, my friend.”

  ~~~

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