Gideon's Promise (Sons of Judgment Book 2) (3 page)

“It’s so sad,” Riley murmured, crimson eyes fixed on the ceiling. “We have to find them.”

Octavian touched her cheek. “Go to the bedroom. Lock the door and stay there until—”

Riley, as Gideon expected, shook her head, nose wrinkled in outrage. “I’m coming with you. I’m the strongest one here,” she said when Octavian started to protest. “You need me.”

“Hey!” Gideon muttered. “I resent that.”

“She’s right,” Reggie said. “Not about being stronger, I mean, she is, but we need all the help we can get. If something has Mom...”

“It’s not Mom.” Magnus barged in through the backdoors, followed closely by both their parents.

Gideon’s knees nearly buckled. He stomped across the distance and yanked his mother into his arms.

“You okay?”

His mom chuckled and patted his back. “I’m not the one screaming if that’s what you mean.”

“Then who is?” Octavian demanded.

No sooner had he spoken when the sound abruptly stopped.

“That’s not weird...” Reggie murmured hesitantly. “Or creepy.”

“I’m guessing this isn’t normal?” Riley mused.

“Not at all,” Liam Maxwell replied evenly as he swung his silvery eyes over the room. “Has everyone left?” The question was directed at Magnus, who nodded.

“I locked up.”

“Okay.” His father turned to them, face set. “Octavian, you and Gideon stay here and keep close to Riley. Magnus, you and Reggie come with me.” He turned to his wife. “Stay with Riley,
mo chroí
.” He touched her face, murmuring
my heart
in Gaelic. “I’m going to search the grounds and return quickly.”

Kyaerin Maxwell nodded without argument. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze and stepped back.

Gideon watched the trio stalk out the back door and disappeared from sight.

“We should go into the next room,” Octavian suggested. “I don’t like how blindsided we are here.”

“But we’ll be in the open out there,” Gideon argued.

“Better than being ambushed,” Octavian countered, already moving towards the door with Riley, leaving no room for further argument.

Their mom followed, giving Gideon no choice but to take the end.

Octavian made Riley and their mom sit at a table, the furthest one from the door and left them there as he hurried to the bay windows and peered into the darkness. Gideon stayed close to the women, not because he thought they would need his protection, but whatever wanted to hurt them, would have to go through him first. He tightened his grip on his blade.

“I don’t see anything,” Octavian said, a note of impatience in his voice.

“Maybe it was the wind,” Riley suggested. “I saw a documentary once about abandoned castles and how the wind through the cracks sounded like ghosts.”

It made sense, except it didn’t explain the sense of utter gloom that had followed, or the fact that that was the first time any of them had ever heard such a thing. But no one corrected her. Gideon was too busy listening to every whisper, rustle, and creak. Maybe he was listening a little too attentively, because when the front doors opened, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

Octavian was next to him in a flash, guarding the women as their mother dragged Riley out of her seat and drew her back, away from the doors.

“Who’s there?”

Being the only one with a weapon, Gideon stepped forward.

A small, pale face poked in through the opening. Bright, green eyes blinked at him, then at Octavian. It was a girl, eighteen-nineteen at the very most, with hair the color of moonlight and an expression torn from every heart wrenching novel he’d ever read, sorrowful and afraid.

“Who are you?” Octavian demanded when she continued to stand huddled by the door.

She wore a dark cloak that formed a puddle around her feet. It made Gideon suspect that it wasn’t hers; it was much too big for her tiny frame and designed for someone taller, a man perhaps.

“I ... I’m sorry,” she whispered, looking close to tears. Small hands unfolded from amongst the miles of fabric and wrung anxiously. “I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Gideon.” His mother appeared at his side. She rested a tender hand on his arm, lowering his weapon.

“Mom—!”

She pursed her lips at him, warning him not to argue. “She’s just a little girl.”

“So was the devil!” he retorted. “We have no idea who she is. She could be dangerous.”

“He’s right,” Octavian agreed, never once taking his eyes off their guest. “We can’t ... Riley!”

It was too late. The redhead was already across the room and guiding the girl inside. The door was shut behind them and they were all trapped with a possibly very cleverly disguised threat.

“You’re freezing!” Riley slipped an arm around the girl and ushered her towards the kitchen. “I’ll make you some hot chocolate...” she paused, grimaced. “You can drink hot chocolate, right?”

The girl showed the first signs of a weak smile. “Yes. I love it.”

Relieved, Riley beamed, and together, the two disappeared through the swinging doors.

For a moment, the three of them simply stood there, not fully understanding what just happened. Then Octavian was gone in the blink of an eye with only the clack of the kitchen doors as indication to his destination. A second later, they heard Riley’s outraged protest and the violent clang of a pot striking marble.

Exchanging a bemused glance with his mother, Gideon went to join the party.

The girl was cowering on one side of the preparation table. Riley was on the other with Octavian standing between them as big as life and as mean as a prodded bear. He wielded no weapon, yet the sheer size of his balled fists was enough to scare most people. Gideon had large hands, but Octavian was just massive all around and when he was pissed, most smart people ran.

“You better start talking,” Octavian was warning the girl in a tone that suggested there was no other option.

“Octavian, stop it!” Riley snapped at him. “You’re scaring her!”

“I’m going to do a whole hell of a lot worse if she doesn’t answer my question,” his ever gracious brother shot back.

Whatever color the cold had bit into the girl’s cheeks had receded, leaving the hills ashen with a hint of gray that made Gideon edge closer just in case she fainted.

“P ... please...” Her voice broke with terror.

“Octavian, enough!” Their mother moved to stand next to the girl. Her arm eased around the tiny creature’s thin shoulders and she was propelled away from a furious and glowering Octavian. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

Wide, green eyes darted nervously between Gideon and Octavian. “Imogen ... I’m Imogen.”

His mother smiled. She smoothed the girl’s hair away from her tear stained face. “That’s a beautiful name. I’m Kyaerin. These are my sons, Gideon and Octavian, and Octavian’s wife, Riley. We won’t harm you. You have my word.” With a last comforting smile, his mom turned to the rest of them. “Octavian, stop terrifying the poor thing and get your father and the others. Gideon, can you get a seat for Imogen please? She must be exhausted.”

“I am not leaving you or Riley alone with her.” Octavian folded his arms as though to infuse his defiance. “Not until I know why she’s here.”

Their mother looked about to put the law down, but Imogen beat her to it.

“I didn’t know where else to go,” she said softly. “My mom always told me that if anything ever happened to her that I should come here and you would help me.”

“Help you?” His mom stole glances towards Gideon and Octavian before returning her attention to the girl. “Help you with what, sweetie?”

Silver tears rained down her pale cheeks. Her face crumpled and her entire body heaved. But unlike the delicate sobs they were all expecting from someone so small, they were rewarded with an earsplitting screech that shattered every piece of glass in the room.

T
he room imploded. Pieces of pottery exploded, sending sharp shards in all directions. Light bulbs burst overhead, showering them with glittering fragments and the ground shook beneath their feet. Gideon was sure his own brain had combusted, but he couldn’t think to check and see if blood was seeping from his ears.

Across the table, Octavian had pulled Riley into his chest, protecting her from the bits of debris flying around them in a whirlwind of chaos. His mother was on the ground, clutching at her ears, face morphed into one of agony as the girl wailed. Not knowing what else to do, Gideon marched over and clamped a hand over her mouth, smothering the inhuman sound.

The girl, terrified once more, stared up at him with those enormous eyes of hers. Her damp lashes were sharp star points around the wide contour. She sniffled, but didn’t struggle.

“Stop.” He commanded softly. He released her when she blinked and bent to help his mother off the floor. “You okay?”

She nodded, shaking the bits of glass from her hair. “Yes, I wasn’t expecting that.”

“I don’t think any of us were,” Gideon muttered, eyeing the girl.

“I’m sorry,” Imogen whispered, looking on the verge of crying again. “I didn’t mean to...”

His mother turned to her automatically. “It’s all right. Why don’t we get something hot inside you and you can tell us what happened, okay?”

Imogen said nothing.

At least she wasn’t crying again, Gideon thought.

Riley pulled away from Octavian and tipped her head up to peer at him. “Are you okay?”

He gave the slightest of nods. “You?”

“Yes.” She touched his chest before moving to pick up the sauce pan she’d set aside.

No sooner had she filled it with water from the tap when the backdoor flew open and his father, Magnus, and Reggie marched in. They came to an abrupt halt when they spotted the disaster that had become the kitchen and Imogen.

His father came out of his surprise first.

“Who’s this?”

One arm still securely fastened around the girl, his mother replied, “This is Imogen. She’s what we heard earlier.”

Glass crunched under his father’s shoes as he crossed the distance and moved to join his wife and the imp held securely to her side like a lost waif.

“Hello Imogen,” he said gently. “Are you hungry?”

Imogen shook her head.

With a kind smile only a man like his father could pull off in the face of everything that had happened, he instructed Reggie to grab a stool from the other room. He then motioned Imogen into it when Reggie placed it at the preparation table.

Like Octavian, his father was a big man that somehow appeared gentle and harmless at first glance. But Gideon had seen his father in battle, had seen the ruthless way he struck down whatever was in his path. It was a side of him he kept very carefully tucked away for his wife’s sake. Unlike her sons and her husband, she was naturally a gentle person. She was the sort to run to the aid of her fallen enemy rather than see them suffer. Of all the women Gideon had ever known in his many eons of existence, his mother was a rare gem that needed protecting at all cost.

“There you go.” Riley slid a mug of rich, warm chocolate in front of Imogen, who took it gratefully and wrapped thin, white fingers around the ceramic.

Gideon studied the girl, trying to determine what she was. It was clear she wasn’t human. But she wasn’t a Caster, nor was she a strigoi. He considered possibly a demon, but then they would see her true demonic form. There was no concealing that from them. She had to be a veil creature. It explained why she hadn’t returned with the other demons back to hell. Unlike demons, veil creatures were free to roam the earth because of their partial soul so long as they didn’t harm the humans. Unfortunately, there were so many different kinds that it was impossible to tell what race they were unless asked, which was, ironically, rude.

“Why don’t you tell us what happened?” his mother coaxed gently once Imogen was comfortable.

The girl stared at the ripples of her own reflection in the drink, seemingly not hearing the question. His mother opened her mouth to repeat it, when Imogen spoke.

“My family was attacked tonight,” she whispered. “I’m the only one left.”

“Attacked?” His mother exchanged a horrified glance with his father. “By whom?”

Imogen sniffled. “Strigoi, or at least I think ... it was dark and they waited until everyone was sleeping. I ... I was under the stairs.” Her bottom lip quivered. “I like to read down there. My sister hates ... hated...” Her voice hitched and Gideon braced himself to lunge for her if she started shrieking again. “She hated when I kept the lights on so I always snuck downstairs. I woke up to my sisters screaming. My dad found me. He told me to run and come here. He said you would know what to do.” She looked at them then and Gideon was struck by the full force of her desperation, of her hope and terror. “You will help, won’t you? Please!”

“Of course we will!” his mom said at once. “But let’s get you cleaned up and in bed. We’ll talk more in the morning once you’ve rested.”

“I can’t rest,” the girl protested. “My family needs me to save them.”

The tense silence could have been cut with a knife. No one in that room believed her family required saving anymore, not if it was as she said. Otherwise, one of them would have already arrived. The fact that she was alone was proof of that. Yet no one had the heart to tell her as much.

“We will go to your home,” his father said gently. “If there is anything we can do, we will. I promise.”

This seemed to comfort her. She relaxed and gave a grateful nod.

“In the meantime, why don’t you finish your drink and I’ll take you upstairs,” his mother suggested.

While Riley and his mother fussed over Imogen, his father motioned for the rest of them to follow him into the other room.

“I don’t think there’s anything any of us can do for her family,” Magnus said at once. “If they were attacked by a strigoi, they are dead.”

“But it is still our job to find those responsible and seek justice for her,” his father replied curtly.

“Why would a strigoi attack her family?” Reggie wondered. “They don’t hurt other non-human creatures. It’s not like they can drink their blood.”

“Maybe it wasn’t a strigoi,” Gideon voiced. “She never said she saw what it was, only that she heard her sisters screaming. It could be anything. A demon, perhaps.”