Shadows of Discovery by Brenda K. Davies
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Cole keptOrin beside him as they followed Lexi deeper into the earth. After a few minutes, a flickering light emerged from the gloom ahead of them. They stepped into a section closed off by a gate.
Lexi unlocked the gate and held it open for them to follow her through. A group of thirty or so refugees sat huddled together around a small, magical fire that created no smoke but threw off a lot of warmth.
They held their hands over the flame as they watched them with open curiosity and distrust. Dirt streaked their features, and the odor of unwashed bodies tinted the air but wasn’t overwhelming. One of the women cradled a baby against her chest as she retreated down the hall.
Boxes of food and water lined the walls. Blankets were spread across the floor and down the passageway; each of them created a small bed. Sleeping immortals occupied some of them.
“Andi!” a young boy exclaimed.
The child leapt to his feet and ran to throw his arms around her waist. Lexi’s face lit with joy as she embraced the boy.
“Hey, J, how’s it going?” she greeted.
“I’ve been pretty bored. Do you want to play checkers?”
“Maybe later. I brought some of my friends to meet you.” She kept her arms around the boy’s thin shoulders as she turned him to face Cole. “Jayden, this is Cole. Cole, this is Jayden.”
Cole extended his hand, and when the boy smiled at him, he saw the small fangs marking him as at least part vampire.
“It’s nice to meet you, Jayden,” Cole said as the boy shook his hand.
Some of the others smiled as they rose and came over to greet Lexi. She introduced each of them to him, Brokk, and Sahira before they retreated again. When the introductions ended, Jayden tugged on her hand and drew her further down the tunnel.
“This way, Andi,” he coaxed. “I’ve been practicing. Aunt Nessie isn’t very good, so I need a challenge.”
Lexi laughed as she sat near the fire and the boy broke out an old checkerboard. He laid it on the ground between them before setting the checkers on it. Watching her with the child and the rest of the refugees, Cole understood why she hadn’t turned Orin away when he returned to her.
His brother had used and manipulated her to get what he wanted. And he’d put her at risk by doing so.
Orin had pissed him off multiple times over the years, but none so much as now. He’d love to smash his brother’s head into the wall until only bloody mush remained.
Killing him wouldn’t do any of them any good and would probably send the refugees into a panic. Instead, he contented himself with his musings of battering Orin into pieces.
“Why do they call her Andi?” Brokk asked.
“It’s what she told them to call her,” Orin replied. “They’ve all taken a potion to make them forget how they got here, and none of them ever leave, but I guess she assumed it added protection.”
“Del used to call her Andi sometimes,” Sahira said. “When she was a little girl.”
Sorrow for her tugged at his heart while he watched Lexi and the boy lean over the board. They laughed and talked while moving their pieces around.
She’d loved her father dearly and probably given them that nickname for added protection as well as to have a little reminder of him. Her love for the child was evident, as was the refugees’ love for her.
The refugees gathered closer to watch as the game progressed. They smiled when she smiled, groaned when she did, and cheered when she or the boy took a piece.
“They love her,” Sahira stated.
“They do,” Orin said.
“And you used them to manipulate her,” Cole said.
“I did what I had to do,” Orin replied. “She doesn’t see them as fighters, but at least half of them are. They are lycan, vampires, and witches as well as humans, and they fought against the Lord. And for the protection I’ve given them, they’ll fight again.”
“You should have stayed away from her,” Cole bit out. “She’s not like you or me; losing just one of them will break her heart.”
“She should get used to that; the first war was nothing compared to what the second will bring.”
Cole hated to agree with him on anything, but he couldn’t argue that. Things were about to get a lot worse, and considering the condition of the human realm, that was saying a lot.
“Where do they go to the bathroom?” Brokk asked.
“There are toilets down here,” Orin answered.
“Del designed the tunnels so they could be lived in if necessary,” Sahira said.
“Why did he design them?” Brokk asked.
“You don’t have any secret exits and hiding places in your palace?” When none of them replied, Sahira continued. “Every smart immortal has numerous escape plans, especially with that madman on the throne.”
Cole couldn’t argue with that. Plus, he’d fought beside Del; the man was a methodical, military genius. He would never allow himself and his family to be trapped and killed inside their home.
“Come with me,” Cole said and nodded toward the tunnel they’d entered through.
They slipped far enough away so no one could overhear them but remained close enough to watch Lexi. The joy on her face made his heart ache. There was nothing between her and Orin; she’d done this for them and would continue to do so.
He wished he could protect her from the unhappiness her decisions would cause when some of these refugees inevitably died.
“Can you put a tracking spell on him?" Cole asked Sahira as he waved a hand at Orin.
“I can,” she said.
“I'm not going to let that happen,” Orin said.
Cole grinned at him. “It’s cute you think you have a choice. You either allow this to happen, or I’ll take you to the Lord. I will not take the chance of you running away when the Lord is threatening the Gloaming.”
When Orin glared at him, Cole smiled in return. “The choice is up to you, littlebrother.”
Brokk released a snort of laughter, and Orin scowled at the wall.
Cole turned to Sahira. “What do you need to make it work?”
“A spell and my blood,” she replied.
Cole pulled the sword from his back and rested the tip on the ground. “We can use this for the blood.”
“That works for me,” Sahira said.
When they all turned to Orin, he stepped away from them but didn’t try to flee.
“Wise choice, little brother,” Cole said.
“I won’t give you Varo,” Orin said. “If the mission for the harrow stone fails, I won’t tell you where he is.”
“I didn’t expect you to,” Cole said.
Orin was a heartless prick most of the time, but they were all still brothers, and he wouldn’t give Varo up, even if it might save him, which it wouldn’t.
“Go ahead,” Cole said, and Sahira stepped toward Orin.
Her hands started moving through the air in a graceful dance as sensual as it was eerie. It had always unsettled him how the witches could weave their magic so intricately through the air.
He wasn’t the only one it unsettled as Orin shifted uneasily beside him and Brokk shivered. Goose bumps broke out on Cole’s arms when the damp chill in the air intensified and the flow of it increased around them until it plastered his shirt against his chest and ruffled his hair.
As the breeze escalated, Sahira spoke. “What wanders free will never truly be free as long as they are bound to me.”
Without any warning, she seized his blade. He scented her blood on the air before the red liquid slid down the silver metal to stain the ground.
When she stepped toward Orin, he backed away, but Cole grabbed his arm and jerked him back. Orin fisted his hands but didn’t try to hit him. They both knew it would be a colossal mistake if he did.
They were once nearly equal power-wise, but that time had come and gone. He was a lycan who had found his mate and a dark fae who’d survived the trials to become king. Orin didn’t stand a chance against him, and he knew it.
When Sahira grasped Orin’s arm, the air crackled with her power before a loud snap echoed throughout the tunnel. Lexi and the others looked around, but no one rose to come to explore. They were probably all too tired to bother.
Cole released his brother when Sahira started speaking again.
“What wanders free will never truly be free as long as they are bound to me,” she repeated.
Smoke wafted from Orin’s skin as the smell of burnt hair and flesh filled the air. Orin’s teeth skimmed back, but he kept himself restrained.
The power suddenly sucked out of the air and retreated into Sahira. When she removed her hand from Orin’s arm, the bloody handprint she left behind burned brightly before vanishing.
Sahira smiled sweetly at Orin. “Now, you’ll always remember that you’ve met me.”
Orin glowered at her as Cole and Brokk smiled.