Fae Chronicles 01 - Fighting Destiny (6 page)

"Sit Synthia. We have business to discuss," Alden growled as if he was upset with me. Nothing new there.

I sat, not because he had told me to, but because my legs wouldn't stop shaking with need and lust. Much to my utter horror Ryder sat beside me—way too close for my state of mind. "Talk."

"The Prince has a job for you," Alden said without any emotion on his face.

"No."

"No?" Three voices said as one, Alden, Ryder and the damn Demon who had just walked back in.

"Need a dictionary to figure the word out boys?" I offered lamely.

Alden pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance, "This isn't a
would
you, it's a you're
going
to Synthia."

I smiled coldly. "Well then, why didn't you just say so to begin with Alden? And what if I flat out refuse? Besides, with my past history being what it is—you sure you want me working with
them
?"

"Then you will receive a mark and it won't bode well for your coven for refusing a direct order. Past history aside Synthia, this is something you
will
do."

I growled.

Adam who was swallowing a sip of his own coffee spit it out and cussed.

"Syn," Adam warned with stark fear in his eyes.

I swallowed past the swelling in my throat. "What's the job?"

"Impersonating the Light Heir at the Engagement Ball," The Demon said smoothly as if I hadn't just been threatened, yet again today.

"I think I'd prefer death, besides Alden, that's a waste of my talents and you know it," I snapped. Impersonator? I was not a freaking impersonator. I was one of the best enforcer’s in the entire state of Washington—don’t even get me started on the jobs requiring my skills as an assassin!

"Enough! Do you know why no one else has asked to join your coven Synthia? Because they're afraid you'll get them killed like everyone else you grow attached to! If anyone gets too close to you, they die. Adam stay's beside you because he knows if he doesn't; you'll probably get marked and become an easy target. Damn it girl, you know what happens when you’ve been marked."

Ouch, that was going to leave a bruise on my ego. My eyes swung to Adam who wouldn't meet them. "Adam?"

"Syn..." He said carefully, as if he didn't want to go there in front of our present company.

"Fine, I'll impersonate her."

"It's not just impersonating, that is only part of what we want you for. You will be told the rest later on." Ryder said, "I was informed you could cloak your appearance and take that of another so well that it would be completely undetectable?"

I officially wanted to scalp Alden Indian style. I just needed a really cool doeskin skirt and a very sharp knife to do so. I nodded, it was the only confirmation he would be getting out of me.

They all looked at me expectantly. I looked back at them bored already.

Alden spoke first after a few moments of silence, "Change."

"Can't. I've never seen her before," I snapped with exhaustion showing in my tone.

"Ristan?" Ryder raised an eyebrow.

I chewed my lips while Ryder dusted off an invisible piece of lint from his jeans. The Demon materialized a tabloid with a picture of a blonde beauty on the cover. The two would have cute kids together. I studied every detail I could see and memorized it to mind. I straightened up and pulled the glamour around me from head to toe.

A small sliver of magical current shimmered over my skin rippling in the air around me. I looked down, taking in the tight jeans and designer top she had been wearing in the photograph was now on me as well.

"That is incredible," Ristan said with wonder in his voice.

"She didn't change," Ryder said narrowing his eyes on me with close inspection that I felt all the way to my OPI Paint
Your Toronto-Toes
.

"She looks just like her," Alden said stepping closer, unaware of the death wish I had for him at the moment.

I felt a moment of panic, no one had ever seen through the glamour spell before. Not even my friends. "What do you see then?" I asked narrowing my own eyes to mirror his.

"You," He spat angrily and it had never sounded more like an insult than now.

"Sorry to disappoint you, guess I'm not up for the task."

"If they see you as Arianna, than it doesn't matter what I see. The assassins will mistake you for her as well," Ryder sneered.

I almost choked on my own tongue, "Assassin's?"
Now they tell me this?

Everyone in the room ignored me and the three men started discussing me as if I wasn't even there. It felt as if something bigger was going on here, something that wasn’t being said to me, or Adam. More Fae bullshit, games within games.

"She looks exactly like her," Ristan said excitedly.

"But will it hold up against Fae, or is it only me who can see her true form?"

He didn't have long to wait for an answer as the door was opened and tall dark and kiss-me-lips I'd been about to make out with in order to get inside, walked in. "Next time brother, a little heads up would be nice."

He stopped turning to look directly at me and bowed low at his waist. "Arianna, I wasn't aware you would be joining us today."

I rolled my eyes and looked back at Ryder who was grinning mischievously now. I bit my bottom lip under his penetrating gaze.

"Dristan, do you see anything off about Arianna today?" He asked carefully.

Dristan stopped and narrowed his eyes, his head tilting to the side slightly. "Am I supposed to see something different?"

"Good, now about letting that little wraith of a Witch seduce you...don't do it again. Is the Ball still on schedule as planned?" Ryder asked.

I let the glamour fade since it took energy I didn't have to keep up. The moment I did Dristan cussed and threw a left hook. I ducked barely avoiding it and dropped like a sack of potatoes and came up behind him.

"You bitch!" He snarled, angry with my appearance.

"So I've been told, do try
not
to attack me again," I said coldly.

"You fucking drugged me!"

I ducked his second punch and landed a solid kick in his side before Ryder pushed me away, none too gently causing me to hit the wall hard. The wind left my lungs violently as I landed on my ass at his feet.

"Enough Dristan...Syn will be working with us."

"Put this stupid bitch in her place Ry, her kind need a reminding of where they belong," Dristan snarled.

I said nothing, I wasn't afraid he would do it. I was just tired of hearing dire predictions about my immediate future today. I lowered my head and remained silent as the room grew tense once more. I hurt everywhere, my ego was bruised that I had been caught, I'd killed one of the only Witches who had wanted to join my coven and I'd played kissy-face with a freaking Fae.

"What no snappy comment?" Ryder said.

"Are we done here?" I asked after a short pause.

"For today, you will be here at seven, tomorrow morning. Wear something appropriate to train in. We only have a short time to teach you what a Fae Princess should act like and from the looks of it—it's going to take a lot more time than we have.

Adam and I left the Dark Fortress as fast as our feet would take us, both refusing to speak of what had happened inside. I'd had enough shit for one day. I'd known why the two had stayed with me, but hearing it was a reality check.

I was going to be covered in bruises from head to toe come morning when I had to face his
High-nass
again and I wasn't looking forward to it at all, I'd rather face an angry mob of Witch haters than face him again.

"Syn—"

"Not now Adam, its fine." I snapped, hurt over the entire mishap. I'd killed today and while everyone else thought it was okay—I had to live with it forever. They could pretend it didn't happen, me on the other hand—I had her soul
inside
of me now. I'd been basically dry humping the Dark Prince and it was
not
something I wanted to talk about.

We walked into our apartment building in deafening silence. I couldn't bring myself to say more than "I'm fine," I'd grown up with Adam and Larissa. They were the closest thing to family I had. It hurt to hear that they only stayed beside me because of it, but what hurt the most was Adam had stayed in the coven instead of moving on to study war-craft as he had wanted to. That knowledge sat heavily on my heart.

He had wanted to be more than just a tech guy for me, but he'd stayed because I was reckless and a loose cannon. Okay that was a little harsh. I wasn't a loose cannon—I just didn't take shit from anyone.

"Syn, we need to talk about this." Adam said as we entered the ancient elevator to our floor. It creaked loudly and just as I was afraid I would be stuck dealing with the problem of the truth, the alarm went off.

"Sorry, I just can't deal with this and the Prince in one day Adam. I need to go in and check on Larissa anyways. See you tomorrow?" I mumbled already heading out of the elevator back into the stark white dreary lobby.

"Don't you have to meet up with pretty boy tomorrow?"

I groaned, "Yeah, thanks for reminding me."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I opened the door to the apartment and checked the safeguard spell before tossing my keys onto the coffee table and heading into the kitchen. "Honey, I'm home," I mumbled, inhaling deeply of something divine.

Larissa could cook like nobody's business and did often. My stomach chose that moment to make its needs known. The smell of freshly baked bread lingered inside the room as Larissa must have been baking while we endured the Fae.

Larissa lifted her sparkling green eyes and smiled, "You're alive."

I exhaled and threw my limp form into the small wooden chair next to the little nook table we'd bought secondhand. "Barely, you almost inherited my entire OPI collection today."

"Seriously? How bad was it?" She asked limping to the sink to wash the jar out before tossing it into the recycle bin. She tossed her chestnut-brown hair over her shoulder and turned to me with a curious look on her beautiful face.

"I killed Chandra today," I blurted it. Shit, I really needed to get a filter for my mouth. I watched as Larissa's eyes grew wide in horror. I chewed my lip nervously as she digested the news.

"Was it within sanction?" Her question caught me by surprise. How easily we could kill one another without remorse, but not me. I took it in and beat the crap out of myself over it. Sanctioned or not

"It was. We got caught, they had Adam and I chained to a wall, the Fae Prince never left the building—instead he was inside the vault when I opened it. We were drilled for information, she was going to spill the beans...it was a set-up, Alden set the entire thing up!"

Larissa exhaled and shook her head, her eyes flooding with guilt.

"But then you knew that, didn't you?"

My stomach clenched from the knowledge. How could she have known and not told me? The desire to eat was suddenly gone. I closed my eyes before pushing off the small table and standing up.

I entered my room in a daze, had Adam known? No, no—he'd been just as distraught as I'd been. I wanted to cry, to scream at those who could have stopped what I had done—I'd taken a fucking life! I walked to the small cherry wood dresser I'd brought from the Guild and tried to find something clean to wear to bed and gave up with a sigh when I found the drawer empty. I missed the Guild's laundress, it beat doing my own laundry any day.

I could still smell sulfur and ash on my skin. And Fae. The bathroom was an ugly olive green from the seventies, but at least the water worked. Who cared what it looked like? Rent was cheap and unlike the other places that we could afford, this one was close to the Guild.

I turned the water on, watching the steam curl around to lick my skin gently and beads of condensation forming over my hand. I closed my eyes, but the instant I closed them, all I could see was a devastatingly primal pair of golden eyes.

It was like he was watching me, as if the Fae Prince was sitting inside
my
bathroom! I instantly opened my eyes and started to strip down to nothing. It didn't take much, he'd trashed most of my clothes and in my haste to redress I had only ripped them more. The entire walk home had been one of shame.

I sank into the water, letting a blissful sigh steal from my kiss swollen lips. Freaking Fae had made them puffy and I'd be damned if I hadn't enjoyed it. Sparks had flown from his touch, the fire he'd created inside of me and the feelings I'd felt were dangerous and exciting. It was why they were considered the most deadly of the Otherworld. They could make you like it as they fucked you to death.

I let my nose sink beneath the water, holding my breath as the heat from the bath blistered across my lips, hoping it would erase his taste and touch—only it didn't. The moment I popped back up, I could still feel it. His kiss, his mouth,
his
fucking taste. My traitorous body wanted more, my mind wanted him dead.

I quickly washed, ignoring the darkness of the dimly lit bathroom and ugly green walls. After I was done scrubbing my skin raw to get his touch from my skin—still unsuccessfully, I growled and got out. I looked in the mirror and noticed I was bruised below one eye, more than likely from fighting against him. Thankfully I heal quickly—it was some sort of running joke within the Guild that Adam and I should been brother and sister in truth as we healed much faster than the others. My azure blue eyes were too bright from using magic. My normally platinum blonde hair was a few shades darker when wet, making my skin look pasty white.

It wasn't as if I had a lot of spare time for tanning though, my spare time was used for reading so that I could escape from reality for however much time I could. This was never enough, in my opinion. I turned while wrapping the towel around my body and picking up to discard my clothes in the trash.

I groaned, frustrated with how today had turned out. I'd killed a fellow Guild member. Sure, I'd passed their sick little fucked upped test, but I didn't want the job. I hated the Fae and everything about them stunk in my book. I wanted nothing to do with them. I left the bathroom, ignoring Adam as he entered the small apartment, leaving Larissa to deal with him since all I wanted to do was sleep and forget. Tomorrow I had a job to lose.