Haven (22 page)

They were blocked from entering by a huge fight in front of the
door. The two males are going at each other and Xavier and Fallon were working
to break them up. Leo growled when one of the Ajos landed a punch, not on his
opponent but onto the side of Fallon’s head.

“Shit.” He pushed Liliana through the gathering crowd into a
side door. “Stay put.”

She nodded and he closed the door in her face. Turning, he
wasted no time wading into trouble. He released his beast and helped Fallon
pull the two creatures apart. The Ajo Fallon was holding bit into his arm.
Cursing, Fallon’s beast emerged and with his massive arm he slammed the guy
into the wall.

Blood already covered the floor, and now the wall was splattered
as Fallon slammed him again. His claws settled around the Ajo's throat, the
black tips poised to sink into its neck. Everything in the hall came to a stop.
Leo pushed the one he held aside and reached for his brother's arm.

“Let him live, Fallon.” They couldn’t kill him, it was one of
the rules of Haven. Rules even the Amanda were bound by, including high ranking
officers such as themselves.

Fallon shook his head, and threw the Ajo to the waiting
soldiers. “Make sure he’s banned.”

“Both of them!” Xavier shouted. “And find out who the fuck
spiked the power and make sure you bring them directly to me.”

Leo pulled himself back together and followed his brothers into
Xavier’s office. Liliana stood as they entered, her eyes roving his body to
make sure he was ok. He pulled her into his side and kissed her. She spotted
the blood on Fallon's arm and went to him.

She swept them all with a chastising look. “I need something to
clean this up.”

Leo smiled at her tone and walked into the ensuite bathroom to
get a towel and antiseptic. She cleaned off the blood and tended to Fallon’s
wound.

“You don’t have to do all that, Trouble. It will heal soon
enough.”

She still put on a bandage. “What happened?”

Xavier dropped his body into his chair behind his desk and shook
his head. He ignored her question. “Now. Leo said your trip to the shaman was
successful?”

LEO GRABBED LILIANA’S ARM, pulling her into his lap. He rubbed
her back as she repeated to his brothers what she’d told him. Xavier frowned
and reached his hand out for her bag. Fallon passed it over raising an eyebrow
at its weight. He pulled the chest from her bag and frowned as he opened it.
She leaned over his desk and pulled off a crystal from the top of the pile.

“What are they?” Xavier shuffled the crystals around.

“Copies of the Oras.”

“How is that possible?” Fallon asked Xavier.

“More important, how if he viewing these outside of Haven?”
Xavier asked grimly.

“He’s not. I think they were more so for insurance. This is the
first one he showed me. The one with Kita on it.” She passed it over.

Leo kept a close eye on her. At the first sign of stress, he was
hauling her to bed, kicking and screaming if need be. Xavier dumped the crystal
into his reader and fired up the Ora. They were all quiet as he flipped through
the images. He frowned when it stopped.

“This is nothing,”

Lialiana sighed. “I know. But there are tons of crystals. There
has to be something there.”

Xavier grunted in answer and pulled out another stone. The quiet
was interspersed with laden curses as he went through the crystals one at a
time. There were various crimes committed, and subsequently hidden by the
erasing of the Oras they were viewing. Several, punishable by death. Leo shook
his head.

“We’ll have to go through all of these with a fine tooth comb.”
Fallon murmured.

Xavier slowed down the playback as Kita’s image filled the screen.
She was in one of the viewing rooms with an Ajo. The door opened and Prince
Kedric walked in, joining the two as they made out on the sofa. Liliana’s
breath caught, a small gasp escaping her. Kedric smiled at Kita, running his
hand through her hair a second before he open hand slapped her across the face.

“Dear God.” Liliana whispered.

Leo rubbed her back in a soothing motion, his eyes not straying
from the footage. He didn’t know how much Liliana knew about her sister, but
from the tense set of her shoulders, she was in for a rude awakening.

***

Rolling his shoulders, Rugaba suppressed his sigh of
aggravation. It was rare for the Eminzu to call to him. Even rarer to request
his presence. He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
According to the Elder at the other end of the long oak table at which he sat,
they had an issue regarding Ofeere. He eyed the other ancestors, their jerky
movements broadcasting both their nervousness and worry.

“Let me make sure I understand. There is a noble demanding an
audience with this council regarding Ofeere?” Rue speared the elder with an
impatient look.

“She also claims there is danger to her youngest daughter
regarding this.”

Ru frowned. A noble family mixed in with Ofeere? He was curious.
He waved a hand for the elder to proceed.

The elder inclined his head to the soldier guarding the door to
their council room. The soldier turned and opened the heavy gold doors. A woman
stomped in, her hair in a single braid trailing her back. She wore a simple
black shift dress giving the appearance of a working class member. The sheen of
her hair and the obvious expensive jewelry around her neck and ears said
differently.

She opened her mouth to speak, but he held his hand up and
silenced her. He tilted his head as Leonalph’s mate’s distress flowed through
his body. What was her name again?

Liliana.

Right. He pulled out a communicator he used to talk with the
head of the Amanda. It would be his second call to him in the span of a few
hours. What was that female getting into?

Xavier answered on the first ring. “We’re taking care of it.”

Rugaba grunted and ended the call. He trusted Xavier implicitly.
He shoved Liliana from his mind and turned his attention back to the noblewoman
standing in the middle of the council room. He nodded to start the proceedings.

“I want out of my mating and punishment. And I want that maid
dead for what she did to my daughter.”

He turned to the elder and raised an eyebrow.

“A little back story, my lord.” The Elder cleared his throat.
“Lady Marcolev came to us some centuries ago because her husband and their maid
were having an affair. The youngest daughter is the result of said affair.”

“And the punishment of which she speaks?”

She lowered her head in what Rugaba realized was false shame.

“She ordered the maid, a Cagyn to take on her form and spend
time with the mate in question. As punishment for her part in the affair, she
was ordered to remain in her mating.”

“And I was forced to raise their child.” The woman inputted.

“Tread lightly in your words, Lady Marcolev. Don’t think we
aren’t aware of the way you handled your ‘punishment.” The Elder snapped.

“You claim the child is in danger, explain.” He didn’t want to
hear anything about a centuries old affair.

“I overheard the maid talking to someone at our back door. She
mentioned taking Liliana and forcing information from her.” She fidgeted with
her dress in nervousness. “I heard reference to a hiding spot, and freeing
‘him’.”

“With whom was she speaking?” Rugaba sat forward in his chair.
If they were talking about the same Liliana, then he was definitely interested.

“I didn’t see, but I knew the council would want to know right
away.”

He narrowed his eyes at her blatant lie. “I’m sure using the
information as leverage to end your punishment had no bearing on your
decision.”

Cheeks mottled, she lowered her head again. “More than anything,
my lord, I want justice for my other daughter. During their argument they
talked about how my daughter was killed and they helped get rid of the body.”

“You are certain, this is what you heard?” The Elder’s sharp
tone caused the woman to flinch.

“I wouldn’t have come before the Eminzu otherwise. I have
proof.”

Shock reverberated through the room. Rugaba had to admit to
surprise himself. She pulled out a comms pad, and turned it over to the guard,
who in turn passed it to the elder. With a few swipes video was displayed
against the far wall of the chamber. It was surveillance video, from a kitchen.
It showed the maid at the door, but not the person on the other side. The
conversation was easily discerned, and the more he watched, the angrier he got.
That something like this had been going on under his nose infuriated him. He
knew the voids covering the Earth were multiplying. He just hadn’t realized how
much he was missing.

Talk of a council to free the most evil being to ever exist was
bandied about as though the consequences of their actions wouldn’t end the
world. The ease at which they spoke about such matters was unconscionable. He’d
hunt every member of their council down and he would end them. Starting with
the one on video.

“Summon the maid.”

***

Her fingertips tingled as numbness traveled through Liliana’s
body. She alternated between hot and cold as shock doused her system. She watched,
bile rising to her throat as Kedric gripped his sister around the throat with a
glove riddled with spikes. Blood beaded on Kita’s neck, trailing her skin. Her
sister smiled through it, licking Kedric’s lips as he leaned in to kiss her.
She turned her head into Leo’s chest, breathing in his scent to calm herself.

She’d never really known Kita, but never would she have imagined
her sister was into something that dark. She chanced a peek, relieved to find
Xavier fast forwarding past the sex. He slowed the video when the smile left
Kita’s face. Panic widened her sister’s eyes. Leo’s grip on her arm tightened
as they watched Kita gagging, scratching at her own throat. The Ajo leaned over
Kita, licking at her wounds in an attempt to close them. He backed up hastily
when it didn’t work. Kedric lay her sister down on the floor, his mouth moving
in a jumble of what she imagined were panicked instructions to the Ajo. The two
males argued, her sister flailing between them. Tears crested Liliana’s eyes as
she watched what she knew were her sister’s last minutes. She now knew why the
prince had been so sure her sister was dead. Kita’s magic wavered, her form
changing between her base Eshu form and her human skin. The Ajo held his hands
up and backed out of the room, leaving Kedric and Kita alone. Kedric moved
towards the door. Kita reached out her hand weakly, her lips moving in a plea
Liliana was glad she wasn’t able to hear. Kedric shook his head and grabbed the
door knob.

The image went black.

Liliana rushed to the bathroom and barely made it to the toilet
before she threw up. Her stomach heaved, tears and saliva mixing as everything
she’d eaten that morning dispelled from her body.  She heard Xavier cursing in
the other room, the low murmur of Fallon and Leo talking. The images of her
sister’s death played through her head again and she gagged, clutching the edge
of the toilet. She held up her hand as Leo crowded the bathroom door. She shook
her head at him, her body bowing as she threw up again. She flushed the toilet
from the floor, waiting on the nausea to leave.

It took only mere seconds after it passed for fury to overtake
her body. Magic lit her skin, warmth flooding her. She stood shakily, walking
to the sink. She washed out her mouth, running cold water over her face. The
tears didn’t stop. Only sheer stubbornness trapped the sobs tightening her
chest. She dried her trembling hands and re-entered Xavier’s office.

“I want Kedric punished. No. I want him dead.”

Fallon sighed, Leo’s mouth tightened and he looked away.

“There is protocol-”

“Screw protocol!” She cut Xavier off. “He killed my sister!”

“Leaving her to die is not the same as killing her, Liliana. I’m
sorry.”

She could hardly breathe through her pain. Only the matching
fury in Xavier’s eyes kept her from trashing his office. “You aren’t going to
do anything about it?”

“He didn’t say that,
Ina
. We just have to go about it
differently.” Leo stood and gathered her in his arms.

“You can kill him now, Leo. I won’t stop you.” She whispered,
clutching her mate tight.

“We have to go to the Eminzu, Lily.” Fallon looked to Xavier for
confirmation. His brother nodded.

She pushed Leo away. “They didn’t help me before.”

“Calm down, we’ll figure it out.” Leo reached for her again.

She slapped his hands away. If they wouldn’t help, she’d take
care of it herself. She turned and walked out of the office. The spiked energy
hit her at the door, doubling her fury. Her form changed, her Eshu hair flowing
behind her, alit with her magic. She opened her shields, feeding on the
aggressive magic. She swayed as it saturated her. It strengthened her body,
goosebumps covering her skin as power flowed through her.

She would kill Kedric herself when she found him. She headed for
the portal room, growling at anyone who crossed her path. She dared someone to
attempt to stop her. She was headed to Legba and the prince would pay for what
he did to her sister. She would make sure of it.

PACING HIS BROTHER’S OFFICE WASN’T WORKING. Leo took another lap
anyway. He wanted to run after his mate, but Fallon had physically barred him
from leaving. He rubbed his shoulder, still feeling his brother’s grip.

“We have someone trailing her, Leo. She’ll be fine.” Xavier
sighed. “We have to clear this up.”

“I called ahead to the portal station in Legba. She won’t get
far. She can’t go to the royal house. The queen will kill her before she admits
her son did anything wrong.” Fallon pointed out.

Xavier nodded. “We need to contact the Eminzu first. Nothing
like this has ever happened before and I want to cover our asses.”

Leo tuned his brother out as he pulled out his communicator and
tried to contact Liliana again. He kept going back to the video, the images
playing through his mind. How could Kita have bled to death? It was hard to kill
a Demi. Only the darkest magic had the ability to do so. It was why his job was
so effective. No one wanted to die, the Demi especially.

“Something is missing, Fallon.”

His brother nodded. “No way had she died from the games they
were playing.”

Leo winced. What Kedric and Kita were doing could hardly be
called games. Fallon’s phone rang on his hip. He spoke quietly into it and hung
up.

“Lily just came through the portal. She’s safe.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. Xavier waved his hand to get his
attention. He scribbled some notes and ended his call with the Eminzu.

“Leo, I need you to request a formal meeting with the royal
family. If it comes from me they’ll get cagey and try to stall.” Xavier stood
from his chair. “Fallon go with him. I’ll meet you both there. Rugaba has asked
me to meet him in the council room.”

He didn’t need prodding. Worry for Liliana had him halfway out
the door before his brother finished giving instructions. He pulled out his
communicator and worked on getting a meeting set up as Xavier requested.

***

Rugaba’s fingers drummed on the table in impatience. The two
females bickered, their shrill voices riding his last nerves. He held his hands
up, finally tired of it. The women went silent, not entirely of their own
accord. They both clutched their throats, their mouths opening and closing in
panic.

“Now that I have your attention.” He intoned dryly. He released
them from his spell, watching with disinterest as they took heaving breaths.

“I want to know about the danger surrounding your daughter.” Rue
addressed the mother, he didn’t bother trying to remember her name.

She threw her hands up in frustration. “I want justice for
my
daughter. The Eminzu had us cover up her death for years citing bullshit about
the bigger picture. Liliana is not my daughter, she was my burden.”

The maid screeched and reached for the woman, going for her
throat. Rue lifted the maid with his power, pinning her to a wall.

“There will be no violence here.”

“She never deserved, Lily. She treated my daughter like shit!”
The woman screamed. “I don’t understand why she was made to suffer for our
sins.”

Rugaba sighed in relief as Xavier popped into the room, grateful
for the interruption. The emotions in the room were heightened and made him
uncomfortable. He let the maid down from the wall, slowly floating her to the
floor.

“You’ve been accused of conspiring to kill one, Kita Iliana
Marcolev, for that alone you are sentenced to death. I want details of your
part in her daughter’s death, and I want to know the circumstances of the
danger surrounding the second daughter.”

“I’m dead if I talk about that.” The maid raised her chin in
defiance.

Rugaba scoffed. “Just moments ago you were so aggrieved for that
same daughter, but when given a choice between her life and yours, you of
course choose yourself.”

The maid looked torn. Worry and remorse shrouded her face. “They
will kill me.”

“You will die before the night draws to a close, so your worry
is misplaced. Of course, death does not mean an end to your suffering. My
brother is very creative about getting information, I’m told.”

She spit in the mother’s direction. “I will say nothing of
Ofeere or anything to do with that, but I won’t go down alone for getting rid
of that whore Arian sainted as her daughter.”

The council reared back in shock. He suppressed a groan, clearly
this would take a while.

***

Leo rushed through the portal station, pushing past the crowd.
Liliana had only been out of his sight for thirty or so minutes, and the need
to reassure himself of her safety made him impatient. His heart settled into a
slower rhythm when he saw her standing at the lift station. He nodded at the
soldier in the shadows keeping an eye on her. She stood in the falling dusk,
her feet tapping, arms crossed over her chest. Her aggravation and anger still
burned across their connection, clearly she’d not cooled off in the time she’d
left.

She turned as though she felt his gaze and snorted in disgust.
“I knew there was a reason a lift hadn’t arrived yet.”

Fallon shrugged. “It pays to know people.”

She pinned her hands on her hips. “I’m going to the royal house
whether you tag along or not. You’re not stopping me.”

She blew out a frustrated breath as a lift floated silently to a
stop in front of them. Leo opened the door, waving for her to enter.

“I wouldn’t dream of stopping you.”

Her eyes widened in shock. Straightening her shoulders, she
entered the airlift. She muttered a reluctant thank you and moved over for him
and his brother to enter. No one bothered to break the silence as they rode to
the castle. Nervousness had his leg bouncing though. His mate was angry, and
rightly so. He only hoped she’d exercise caution in approaching the royal
family. They had right on their side, but one thing he’d learned hunting, you
could never fully prepare for how a cornered person would react. The queen was
renowned for both her temper, and the way she punished those with which she
found fault. He couldn’t imagine she’d allow them to sling around accusations
at her son without reacting.

They were met at the royal station house by four palace soldiers
in full dress uniform. Leo exited first, reaching back to help Liliana out of
the lift. He guided her up to the castle with his hand on the small of her
back. He mentally prepared for the confrontation ahead. Fallon stopped them at
the door, quietly speaking with the guards. There was a bit of a ruckus, as the
soldier refused them entrance.

The hairs on the back of his neck raised and he shoved Liliana
back into the airlift. He called out to Fallon as the platform beneath them
heated. He shifted into his Cagyn form, as flames erupted around him. Pissed,
he manifested his sword and charged through the fire. He’d traveled through
hotter temperatures than that every time he took a prisoner to Azreal. The
soldiers stared at him openmouthed as he cut down the first one to attack him. He
heard the whistle of air a moment before he ducked an arrow spinning past his
ear. Pulling a gun from the back of his pants, he fired into the guards’ tower,
grunting as the archer fell.  The courtyard fell silent as he held his gun
against their captain’s temple. It wouldn’t kill the male, but he’d surely wish
he were dead.

“I’m just pissed enough to fire my weapon whether you put yours
down or not.” He said mildly.

Fallon tossed the soldier he’d been fighting over the edge of
palace’s pod. The male’s scream got progressively quieter as he fell.

His brother peeked over the edge. “Damn shame. It’s gonna suck
for him when he finally hits the bottom.”

Leo shook his head. “Now. Are we going to have any other
problems?”

The remaining soldiers dropped their weapons. Leo glanced up
into the tower, his finger flexing. More weapons were tossed from the tower and
three pair of hands were held up, out of the openings.

“Well, all right then.” He pushed the captain from him and motioned
for Liliana to join him.

She shuddered as she reached his side. “If they’re fighting this
hard at the door. Imagine how hard they’ll fight once they realize why we’re
here.”

Leo nodded grimly. “Stick close to me, please.”

“Gladly.”

No one else barred their way through the rest of the palace and
before long, they stood at the heavy golden doors of the receiving room. Leo
sighed. He’d been mated in this same room, less than a week ago. How fast the
world changed around him. He reached for Liliana’s hand and squeezed tight. Her
fury and grief broadcasted loud and clear, her magic wild and wafting around
her. He briefly wondered what all that energy was doing to his son.

He wanted to put a pause on what they were doing and take care
of both his mate and his son. Maybe soothe the rough edges and calm Lily a
little before dealing with the heaviness they were about to go through. His
face tightened in anger and regret. He had a job to do, so he pushed aside
those thoughts and focused on what was ahead.

“What are we waiting for to go in?” Lily’s touch prodded him
from his thoughts.

“That would be me.” Xaiver said from behind him.

Leo lifted his eyebrows at the sight of his father next to him.
“Why are you here?”

“Support.” Ranolph left it at that.

They opened the door and entered the room together. The king and
queen were on their thrones in full regalia, clearly expecting trouble. Kedric
stood next to his mother, leaning on her throne, chin in his hand, his pose
insolent. Liliana stiffened next to him, her anger ratcheting up a few notches.

“What is the purpose of this?” Queen Kaylin was the first to
speak.

Xavier stepped in front of them all. “I’ve come in an official
capacity.” He pulled out a small box.

The room was silent as Xavier played the Oras they’d all earlier
seen from the point of Kita struggling. The prince blanched, his skin paling.
Queen Kaylin gasped as the video played out. When it was done King Leander’s
broke the silence.

“All I see, at most, is an ethical violation. Kedric’s only
crime was in leaving her to die. He’s not guilty of murder.”

Liliana growled. Leo tightened his grip on her hand.

“We’re not here for the prince.” Xavier shut down the Oras.

“The hell we aren’t.” Lily snarled.

Xavier shot her a quelling look before pulling up another video.
This one showed Liliana’s maid Bea. Leo pulled his mate closer to him.

“What’s going on?” Liliana whispered.

He shrugged. Hell if he knew. He didn’t think it would bode well
though.