Guardian (23 page)

I inclined my head and bent at the waist. “King Rapha. It is my extreme pleasure to visit your beautiful kingdom.”

Rapha inclined his head with exaggerated majestic tolerance. The shadow royalty are, almost without exception, little more than walking, throbbing egos, making negotiations with them a challenge to navigate. On the flip side, however, if you knew how to use it to your advantage this inherent weakness could become a formidable weapon to be used against them. Having much experience with shadow royalty from my days as a Court Warrior on Olympus, I was well versed in the intricacies of dealing with Rapha’s type.

“What brings you before me today, Monad Warrior?”

“We have news of one of your subjects, your majesty.”

Rapha lifted a charcoal gray eyebrow. “How have you come upon this information, Warrior?”

I stepped forward, trusting Ian to stay silent until I’d set the stage for him to broach the real reason for our visit.

“She was injured in a fight in a human restaurant. We carried her to Tana for healing.”

Rapha’s gray face hid any surprise he might have felt at this news. He cocked his head. “You just happened to be in this restaurant when my subject was attacked, Monad Warrior?”

I blinked. I wasn’t expecting Rapha to be this intuitive. Now I had a choice to make. I could either lie and risk him finding out that I lied, thereby blowing any chance Ian and I had to get what we’d come for…or I could tell him the truth and risk his ire for causing the girl’s injury.

And I had to make my decision quickly, Rapha wasn’t known for his patience.

I sensed that Ian was about to step forward and spoke quickly, before he could interject something that would derail our train. “I know because I was the one who injured her.”

Ian’s aura hit my back like a sunlamp set on high. I turned slightly and threw him a glare. He frowned at me but backed it down a notch. Around us the shadow forms shifted and moved closer.

Rapha turned in his throne, dropped his second foot to the floor and leaned his elbows on thick knees, frowning. “Explain quickly, Monad.”

Shutters in windows high above our heads slammed open and the air in the room suddenly exploded with movement as several enormous, black ravens sailed into the room and headed toward us.

Ian, who had reached for his sword when the windows slammed open, laughed softly and dropped his hand. I felt the blood leaving my face and stepped instinctively closer to him, shaking my head as I grabbed his arm. “It’s not the ravens, look behind them.”

He followed my gaze and I felt him stiffen. “Holy mother of the gods.”

Chapter T
hirteen

Follow the Angel

T
here appeared to be five ravens in all. They had glistening black bodies that looked to be about two feet long. Their wing span was nearly as wide as the spread of my arms and their heads were bigger than my fists.

These were really big ravens.

Trailing behind each thick bodied bird was a black, shadowy mass that even now was beginning to morph and grow beyond the birds’ size and shape. They looked like the birds’ shadows at first glance, except that nobody else carried a shadow in the well lit room, and they clung too tenaciously to their hosts.

I’d only encountered a shadow monster once, and I’d hoped never to encounter one again. Inextricably tied to their hosts in order to move around…these monsters were not limited in any way by their hosts’ destructive abilities…or lack thereof. They were just as deadly attached to a caterpillar as they were to a gargoyle.

I turned to Rapha, needing him to understand…and fast! “She attacked me in her shadow form. I was defending myself.”

Rapha’s brilliantly colored green eyes stared intently at me for several beats.

The first raven was mere inches from Ian and he’d pulled his sword. I noticed the shadow men had stepped away from us. Even they weren’t anxious to get too close to the king’s executioners.

Ian swung at an outstretched piece of shadow but the thing jerked away and came back at him, ripping a long strip of flesh from his forearm before he’d even had time to complete the backswing of his sword. Ian grunted and swung again, with no better results. This time, though, he was able to anticipate the follow-up attack and dance away from it.

It didn’t matter. He was surrounded by all five of the ravens now.

I turned to Rapha. “Your majesty! I appeal to your well-known sense of fairness to hear me out! Call off your executioners so that I might explain.”

Rapha smiled and I shivered. But he lifted a hand and the ravens gave one final squawk and shot upward, toward the vaulted ceiling.

I watched them settle onto a series of perches along the base of the curved ceiling. The perches were built so that, when the ravens settled onto them, they all but disappeared, seeming to become part of the artwork on the walls and ceiling. I had to squint to see the dark outline of the shadow monsters behind them.

Unfortunately, the deep red blood running copiously from Ian’s body gave evidence enough that they were real.

I untied the soft belt at my waist and wrapped it tightly around Ian’s muscular forearm to stop the flow of blood. Not for the first time that day I wished I had my powers. With them I would have been able to heal him.

Ian’s eyes found mine and flashed a question that was all too easily deciphered. Did I know what I was doing?

Despite my inner qualms I gave him a brief nod in response. I had to didn’t I? We were out of options.

Turning back to King Rapha I did the only thing I could to save us. I fell to one knee and bowed so low my forehead touched the floor in front of me. “I beg your kind forgiveness, your majesty. I injured your subject by accident. And as soon as I saw her condition we rushed her to Tana. She heals even as we speak and will soon rejoin you. I know how deeply you value each of your loyal subjects and came only to tell you of her whereabouts. If it is your desire, I will do all in my power to return her to you immediately.”

A long silence greeted this nauseatingly submissive declaration. I bit my lip and remained in supplication. I knew I could not stand again until the king spoke, or risk his ire. To Ian’s detriment it seemed.

That was the only thought which kept me on the floor as the seconds ticked by. If I thought Rapha would send the ravens after me instead of Ian I’d be up and kicking a little ass by that point…powers or no. The shadow king had just stomped on my last nerve and I’d decided I was deathly sick of being everybody’s whipping spirit.

I sent Ian a silent plea to stay still and not speak. I knew his ego was being bruised by my subservient behavior in an obvious attempt to protect him. He wasn’t built that way. But I also thought he was savvy enough to realize that what I was doing was our only option. The question was, did he trust me enough to let it play out.

Fortunately Rapha ended the uncomfortable moment before Ian’s ego reached a breaking point.

“Rise, Monad Warrior. I accept your apology and your offer to escort my daughter back home.”

Holy shit!
As I stood up my gaze flew to Ian. He gave his head a little shake to tell me that he hadn’t known. I turned to Rapha. “Zillah is your daughter?”

He smiled at me. “So you would have me believe you did not know, spirit?”

The ravens squawked and Ian stepped forward. He apparently couldn’t take it anymore. “Your majesty.” He bowed deeply, showing the utmost respect without supplicating himself on the floor as I had. “Can you tell me why your daughter would have attacked the Monad and me?”

Rapha’s face darkened to charcoal and my heart picked up with alarm. But the ravens remained on their perches.

“I have not seen my daughter in over a year. She has rejected her place by my side.” I was surprised the king would reveal so much to us. It must have been an indication of his frustration and concern for his daughter.

Ian nodded. “I assumed as much. Your majesty, may we approach? The Monad and I have things we need to speak of with you and I believe you will want these things to be said in privacy.”

Rapha’s eyes widened slightly. He glanced toward his shadow warriors. Then he gestured toward the doors we’d entered through. “Leave us!”

As the men turned and headed out of the enormous room the king let his gaze slide toward the ceiling in an obvious reminder that he was not unprotected.

As soon as the doors closed behind our shadow escorts Ian bowed again, this time going to one knee. “Your majesty, King Rapha of RiverIsle, it is with humbleness and regret that I pass on the news I have of your daughter. Your invaluable help will certainly be needed, both with your daughter and with a growing problem the Monad and I have been constrained to resolve.”

Rapha cocked his head again. “Constrained? By whom?”

An odd question. Ian stood up. “I represent Queens Tana and Faerydae.”

Rapha nodded. “And the Monad?”

“I represent Olympus.”

The king frowned. “Go on.”

Ian explained as best he could what we’d been up against, without intimating that we thought the problem went as high as the Council of Gods on Olympus.

“What do the humans have to do with your…problem?”

I frowned. Another odd question. I suddenly wondered what Rapha knew of the problem we’d outlined for him. “Your majesty, what knowledge have you of this plot?”

He turned a gray face toward me, his piercing green gaze pinning me with a nerve tweaking focus. Finally he sighed. “I know nothing specific. Only that some of my people have been drawn into it…led by my daughter.” His thin lips curled in disgust at this last admission.

Ian nodded. “We were unable to get your daughter to tell us who she follows. We know who some of the players in this plot are, but we need to trace it back to the one who is pulling all the strings. We were hoping you might be able to help us with that, King Rapha.”

The shadow king’s eyes narrowed. “Ah, so we finally come to the true cause of your visit here.”

Ian dipped his head in silent concurrence.

I glanced at the ravens. Still sitting quietly. I allowed myself a deep breath. Maybe we’d passed through the worst of it.

“For example, what do you know of the meeting between Aubrie and someone high up in the plot… here on RiverIsle…tonight?”

Rapha gave an outraged cry and the ravens lifted from their perches.

I grabbed my long knife from the waistband of my faery breeches and glared at Ian. He stood still and tall, refusing to look at the approaching ravens.

“Stop! Your majesty.” I screamed. “You must hear us out on this!”

Rapha turned a hostile gaze to me and flung a hand into the air. The ravens whipped by close over our heads.

I felt the sting of a shadow monster hit on my shoulder and flinched but it was a minor hit, merely a scratch. It could have been much worse.

The ravens returned to their perches. I gulped and closed my eyes in relief. It was a lot easier dealing with hot headed idiots in the Council Chambers on Olympus. They weren’t allowed to bring their pets into those chambers.

Rapha looked at me as he spoke, studiously ignoring Ian. “I know nothing of such a meeting. I will send my Shades, my warriors, out tonight. They will sit in the shadows and watch. If anything occurs that should not on this soil, you will know of it as soon as I do.”

Ian lowered his chin in silent approval.

I glanced at the ravens and bit my lip. If we survived that long.

It hadn’t been easy to persuade Rapha to allow Ian and me to join the watch parties. We followed the very last party out of the castle. I gave a sigh of relief when we escaped the watchful eye of the eerie ravens and their deadly accessories.

The air was thick with moisture as we left Shadekiind and stepped onto the road leading to the bridges. The night was so black, with a thick layer of clouds blocking out the moon, I wouldn’t have been able to see at all if it weren’t for the bright white of the stones beneath our feet.

As we crossed the bridge and headed for the dense wood, a wisp of sound caused me to turn. To my shock Shadekiind was gone. All that was left in its place was a sparkle of water and the peaceful sound of the river dancing lightly over rocks on the shoreline. I turned to ask one of the Shades what had happened and saw that Ian and I were alone…or at least appeared to be.

A voice whispered across the edge of my hearing, disabusing me of that notion immediately. “Use your powers, spirit. Someone comes.”

I looked at Ian, he threw a hand up and sparkling dust fluttered over us just as an unwary footstep kicked a rock across the glistening water of the Isle River. “This is where the castle should be.” A woman’s softly pitched voice said. “I’m sure of it.”

Deeper tones responded. “It doesn’t matter, we’ve only to find the place we were to meet.”

I watched as Aubrie and Dawnia moved quietly along the river’s edge, looking worried and out of their element. The air sighed around us as the Shades moved past, falling silently in behind the unsuspecting intruders.