Darkest Knight (22 page)

“You keep doing that,” Maria said to me. She waved her hands in a rush of motion. “Do you always swoop in like that?”

“Only when the people I care about need help,” I said through gritted teeth. “You’re hurting my family!”

She scowled and folded her arms. “Well, I was hurt first.”

She stomped over to her velvet throne and threw herself onto it, then leaned back against the cushions. Waving her hand at the angel holding me like a sack of potatoes, she said, “Bring them to me.”

He obeyed, setting me down at her feet and jerking Barachiel over to an iron ring mounted on the cave wall. There was too much space between my father and me to reach each other. I knew Barachiel had strong magic he could use to free himself, but something or someone prevented him from doing it. I bet Maria had threatened to hurt me if he didn’t comply. I would never forgive her for that.

She held her hand open and the dark angel who did her bidding placed a slender, curved knife onto her palm. “Thank you, Soriel.”

Leaning over the armrest of her throne, she reached out to grab hold of Barachiel’s bound hands. “You won’t feel a thing,” she told him before slicing the blade across his wrist.

She yanked his hand up to her mouth and greedily clamped her lips over the wound. The sucking sounds she made while feeding echoed against the cave walls and sent a shudder of revulsion through me. I again looked at my father’s face. He was resigned to fulfill whatever bargain he had made, but I saw deeper thoughts in his eyes. He wasn’t about to let this go. His set jaw and the sneer on his lips told me someone would pay for his humiliation.

Maria finally released him and sat back, her lips red with blood. A drop of it dribbled from the corner of her mouth and she swiped the back of her hand across her chin. She smiled with teeth stained from her meal. “Take him away.”

Soriel unchained Barachiel from the wall and led him back the way they’d come. My father didn’t stumble, didn’t look up, just dutifully trudged beside his fallen brother. But I could tell by the stiff way he moved that he was furious.

Nausea burbled in my stomach and I couldn’t hold it back a second longer. I leaned sideways and threw up what little was left of the breakfast I’d had at Elmo’s that day.

Maria cringed at the sight of it. “That’s disgusting, Chalice.” She stood and yelled, “Soriel, get one of the squires to clean up this mess.”

“I’ll do it,” I said, searching for something I could use to mop it up.

“No, you won’t. It’s unbecoming for a knight to belittle herself with drudgery. You’re royalty now.”

I didn’t feel very royal, and I felt even less so when one of the pregnant women arrived with a bucket and mop. I’d never felt so ashamed.

Maria sighed loudly, making sure everyone could hear. “I’m bored.”

My gaze flitted around the room as my mind started working on a plan of escape. Aydin still slumped against the wall and made no eye contact with anyone. Soriel was the only fallen angel in sight, and as soon as the squire finished her chore she was taken away.

I heard a shuffling behind Maria’s throne and turned my head to see her gargoyle skulking toward Aydin.

“Stop!” I shouted at the creature, but it ignored me.

“Oh, dear,” Maria said, not moving a muscle. Her gaze followed the gargoyle as it slithered purposefully toward Aydin. “How did Shameena get loose? Soriel?”

Her angel slave stepped out of the shadows to show himself.

“Never mind.” She waved him away.

“Aren’t you going to do something?” I yelled at Maria, whose rapt attention had been caught by her ugly pet.

“Hmm?” She tried to ignore me.

“If you don’t stop her, one of them is going to get killed.”

“You think so?” Maria scooted to the edge of her throne and clasped her hands together, her eyes bright with excitement. She didn’t care. She
wanted
them to fight.

Aydin heard the other gargoyle approach and his body visibly tightened. A warning growl rumbled in his chest. His legs were chained together at the ankles and he was barely mobile. He stretched the length of chain binding him to the wall, but it didn’t reach very far. Shameena drooled as she got closer to him, her eyes gleaming with malice.

Aydin crouched low and stayed so still I thought he might have put himself into a meditative trance. Shameena slowed, cocking her head to the side and appearing confused. She was obviously unused to a docile opponent.

The female gargoyle’s nose twitched and she snarled, taking another cautious step forward, then another. Her muscles bunched and I saw the tendons in her scaly legs tighten as she prepared to spring.

If she got hold of him, he’d have a really hard time fighting back. Both gargoyles had wings and she could easily evade him, whereas he was like a sitting duck with wings that wouldn’t take him anywhere since his legs were shackled. My heart ricocheted inside my chest and I could hardly breathe. I knew there wasn’t a thing I could do, but I had to try. I leaped to my feet, but Soriel swiftly grabbed me to hold me back.

My sudden movement distracted Shameena and her eyes jerked away from Aydin for a fraction of a second. It was enough. He was on her in an instant, his arms wrapped around her neck and his legs squeezing her middle like pincers. She screeched and tried to tear herself away, but Aydin was motivated to put an end to this game. I sensed he’d had enough of Maria’s shit and his mood was darker than ever. I’d never seen him behave with such ferocity, not even in his bloody battle with Shui.

His jaws unhinged and his roar split through the air, making my ears ring. The rows of razor-sharp teeth glinted in the faint light offered by the sconces. He arched his neck back, then thrust his head forward with so much force it knocked Shameena off her feet. They both rolled in a tangle of wings, arms and legs, and I struggled to see past the giant angel who held me back.

Blood flew around the fighting pair like crimson rain. I couldn’t see who was injured and my breath caught as I waited agonizing seconds for what was surely the end of one of them. Both gargoyles became still. I couldn’t tell them apart now. There was as much blood as fur and both had their heads down. Then I heard that familiar sound, the same one I’d heard in the cathedral after I killed Shui. I’d heard it again soon after Shojin ripped out his own beating heart. It was the resonance of death that only a gargoyle can make. The sound of stone being made.

I watched, breathless, to see which one would come out the victor. Such a senseless battle. Maria could have stopped it, but she wanted even more blood than what she’d already swallowed. When Aydin reared up and kicked the dead chunk of rock that had been Shameena, I cried out in relief. Maria screamed in rage.

twenty-three

I FELT OVERWHELMED WITH RELIEF AND
terror, and my defiance was starting to wear thin. I needed rest. I needed time to think. I had to get away from Maria or I’d rip out her throat and that would get us all killed.

I slumped against Soriel and he had to hold me up by the shoulders to keep me from falling. I felt weak from lack of food and sleep and my legs would no longer support me. The dark angel lifted me up to carry me like a baby, then trudged toward the curtained doorway.

My eyes struggled to stay open, and they worked hard to focus on what little I could see. The black walls glittered and colorful rugs like runners led down a long hallway that got darker the deeper we went. Soriel strode forward with confidence, though I had heard no command from Maria as to where to take me. It must have been prearranged. The angel still hadn’t said a word and I wondered where he stood in all this. Sycophant or slave? Food or fun? Probably all of the above.

My heart hurt like someone had squeezed the life out of it. I missed my grandparents, especially my grandmother, whose tough love and compassion I sorely needed now. I missed Natalie and even Rusty. My life with the Hatchets had barely started and I’d already been forced to defect to the hellish Order of the Darkest Knight. My head was so full of rebellion that it ached. My soul knew this wasn’t right, that I didn’t belong here, and neither did Aydin or Barachiel. The deceived pregnant squires shouldn’t be here, either. Not even Maria belonged on this side of the veil. Insane as she was, her heart bruised with darkness, she was still Geraldine’s daughter. I would never forgive her for what she’d done, but I’d help her leave it behind if she let me.

We stopped suddenly in front of a door that Soriel kicked to open. The wooden plank swung in and banged against the wall. I peered inside, blinking at the darkness, my nose twitching at a faint scent of incense and candle wax. He stepped closer to the center of the room and dropped me.

I stiffened, expecting to land on the hard rock floor and have my breath knocked out of me, but I connected with something much softer. A fluffy pillow or cushion broke my fall. I stared up at Soriel, and I suddenly worried that he had more lascivious plans for this bed.

When Soriel moved to one of the wall sconces to light it with a flame from his finger, it brightened the room enough for me to make out a few pieces of furniture. Sparse, but elegant, and that surprised me. Why had Maria put me in such nice quarters? From the way she had treated me I expected to be tossed in a dungeon, not a palatial boudoir.

“Thanks,” I told Soriel because I didn’t know what else to say. I
wanted
to say get lost, but wasn’t sure how he’d react to that.

The dark angel twitched his wings and stepped toward me. I shrank back against the pillows. He shook his head and his eyebrows tilted up in an expression of worry.

“Why won’t you talk to me?” I asked him.

He was a handsome angel, darker-skinned than my pale father and much darker than the Arelim angels I’d seen. His black hair was tied back in a ponytail and he had thick scars all over his chest, back and arms. His eyes were mesmerizing, very large and greenish-blue like the ocean. He pointed to his lips and shook his head.

I frowned. “I don’t understand.”

He opened his mouth and showed me where his tongue used to be. I closed my eyes and heaved in a breath to calm myself. Was there no end to the cruelty in this place?

Soriel turned his back on me and walked from the room, closing the door softly behind him.

The spicy incense that lingered here had a tranquilizing effect. I yawned in spite of the flutter of nerves dancing in my stomach.

I grabbed a pillow and hugged it close, wishing it were Aydin. Could he come to me in my dreams here? Probably not, as he’d have to be physically close for that to happen and I didn’t know where he was. I only hoped he was safe and healing.

I heard a click and focused on the doorknob as it twisted in slow motion. I instinctively reached for my knife, but I’d been relieved of that weapon right after Maria snatched my breath. So I crouched on the bed and prepared to spring at whoever, or whatever, entered my room.

The door creaked open and Soriel stood staring at me. He brought a finger to his lips and pushed the door closed. From behind his back he brought out my knapsack, the one I’d left with Aydin inside the tunnel.

Knowing he was one of Maria’s pawns, I narrowed my eyes and whispered, “I don’t trust you.”

He stared without expression as he handed the bag to me and I wondered if Maria was setting me up again. So I asked, “Did you look inside?”

Soriel nodded.

I checked the knapsack to make sure everything was there. It was. My shoulders slumped in relief. “Does Maria know you brought this to me?”

Again the stare, but he followed it with a quick shake of his head. Silent though he was, he had learned how to express himself with body language and facial tweaks. It was as if he spoke without saying a word, but I knew what he
wanted
to say. He was asking for help, and not for himself. He wanted me to help Maria.

I peered in the knapsack at the ornate iron key and an idea sparked in my mind. I suddenly knew how to defeat Maria.

I slept surprisingly well after spending the night in the home of my nemesis, where both my father and my boyfriend were chained up like animals. The cave appeared brighter today, possibly because my brain had lit up with an idea that could save us all.

There was no daylight on this side of the veil because the sun didn’t shine here. Neither did the moon at night. The only source of
natural
light was an odd greenish glow on the horizon. I had no idea what caused it or why it was there, but its cyclic appearance indicated a passage of time. How that time related to the human realm remained a mystery, but solving it wasn’t high on my list of priorities.

I tried to leave my room, but the door was locked. I should have known. The room might look pretty, but it was still a prison cell. I hid my knapsack between the bed’s box spring and mattress. Just knowing it was there gave me comfort. Feathers to take us home, the horn of breath to give us life—should we need it—the changing charm and the scrying mirror. Life was good, or at least it would be good again.

Footsteps outside the door alerted me to company. I checked to make sure the knapsack was well hidden, then climbed up on the bed and waited.

The door opened and Maria stepped inside with a tray. There were a couple of steaming dishes on it and they actually smelled pretty good. She set it on the nightstand. “I brought you breakfast,” she said brightly.

I gave the plates a sideways glance. It looked like scrambled eggs and fried meat of some kind, plus a buttered roll sprinkled with nuts. My stomach growled, but I was too suspicious to eat any of it. I wasn’t a stranger to hunger so I had no problem ignoring the food, however I didn’t want to appear rude. I wasn’t sure how she’d react to being offended. For all I knew, she blamed me for the death of her precious Shameena and wanted to poison me as payback.

“Thank you.” I dipped the fork into the eggs and pushed them around. “Will you join me?”

She shook her head. “I don’t need to eat solid food.”

I frowned. “But you’re still human. Or at least part of you is.” Though from the looks of her, that was debatable. Her skinny physique made her appear undernourished and life-deficient.

She shrugged. “I’m fine without food. As long as I always return to this side of the veil.”

Now that was interesting. Because she was no longer completely human, she needed whatever this side of the veil would give her to survive. Fallen angel blood had nourished her, but I imagined she took in other sustenance as well.

I brought a forkful of eggs up to my mouth and sniffed, but didn’t take a bite. I wasn’t that brave. “These look like eggs. Smell like them, too,” I said.

She nodded. “They
are
eggs, but not from a chicken.”

I scrutinized the food. “Oh?”

“It’s a bird we call a craven. It’s a lot like a raven.”

“What’s the difference?” I asked.

“Instead of beaks they have noses. They have human faces.”

I dropped the fork and gently replaced the plate to the tray. I’d seen one of those birds yesterday. A tree had eaten it. I blotted my lips with a linen napkin and said, “I’m sure it’s delicious, but I’m not that hungry.”

“It’s okay,” Maria said. “You need to get used to your new home. There are quite a number of new experiences for you to try.”

Instead of rolling my eyes like I wanted to, I tried to look interested. “You said before that you were fine as long as you stayed on this side of the veil.”

“That’s right.”

“Well,” I said, leaving a meaningful pause before going on. “Your body has changed, grown accustomed to this side. But my body isn’t used to being here. I may not survive.”

She smiled. “Don’t worry about that, Chalice.” She sat on the bed and turned to face me. “We’ll do like I did while pretending to be Xenia and go back and forth through the veil. You won’t have to stay here all the time.”

That was a relief, though I didn’t intend to stay here at all. “Good to know.”

“We’ll have a cave in the human realm that’s just like this one and my Fallen will fix it so that it’s easy for us to cross back and forth.” Her cold fingers closed around mine as she peered into my eyes. “We’re sisters, Chalice. We’ll share everything.”

I didn’t like the sound of that. “Like what?”

“Like eternal life.” She hesitated before adding, “You can live forever. All you have to do is feed off the Fallen.”

I yanked my hand away from her and stood from the bed. I hugged myself as I paced in front of her. “No.”

“It’s really quite nice and very natural,” she said. “The Fallen are our family. They’re our fathers.”

I shuddered and hoped she hadn’t noticed. The last thing I wanted was to upset her. She appeared rational when calm, but out of her mind the rest of the time.

“Think it over,” she told me as she slid off the bed. “It will make life so much easier.”

Of course it would. Having my mind and body twisted like Maria’s would surely make
her
life easier. She’d finally have a like-minded companion, a replacement for her pet Shameena. It was a good thing I hadn’t eaten those eggs, because they’d be coming up right now.

“Oh, before I forget.” She stepped over to the dresser and slid out one of the heavy wooden drawers. “I have a gift for you.”

Maria was full of surprises. I watched her lift out a folded bundle tied with a shiny silk ribbon. “Your wedding dress,” she said as she handed it to me.

I backed up a step. “My what?”

“Surprise!” She giggled. “You’re getting married to your guardian angel today.”

To say my blood turned to ice would be an understatement. My entire body went numb, but only for a second. She surprised me, yes, but that’s because I thought I would have more time to prepare. Rafe coming here was a good thing. He was the main ingredient for making my plan work.

I smiled and pretended to be eager as I accepted her gift.

“Put it on,” she said.

“Isn’t that bad luck?”

“Nah, your guardian won’t see you until it’s time.”

I studied Maria’s face and saw the sadness in her eyes. I wondered if she’d ever had a mate among her Fallen entourage. She’d certainly had plenty of time to go through more than a few of them. I shifted my gaze back to the folded garment in my hands and plucked at the ribbon. It loosened and then fluttered to the floor. “This gown used to be yours, didn’t it?”

She blinked and looked away. “That was a long time ago.”

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not much to say,” she said. “My father found me an Arelim angel to mate with me, but it didn’t work.”

“The relationship didn’t work?”

She laughed. “What relationship?” Her eyes had that crazy gleam in them again and I was afraid I’d gone to far. “His seed didn’t work. I never got pregnant.”

I had a feeling it didn’t work out so well for the angel, either. “What happened to him?”

“He fell, as was expected. After all, he had committed the sin of sex and had to face the consequences. My father threatened to kill him if he chose to become human, so his feathers turned black instead.” She smiled sadly. “He was such a beautiful angel.”

“I don’t understand. The Hatchet knights…” I stopped when I saw her narrow her eyes at me. “Women like us
will
conceive her guardian’s child. That’s how it’s always been.”

“True,” she said, picking up the silk ribbon from the floor and twirling it around her finger. “But it turns out it wasn’t his seed that was the problem. It was me. I’m not human enough to conceive. I’m barren.”

“You know that for sure?”

“Oh, yes.” She fidgeted with the ribbon and retied it in a knot. “I tried again with the other Arelim angels my father brought for me, but it always ended the same. They fell, and I added them to all the others who feed me with their blood.”

What a waste. “Are they still with you?”