Promise of Shadows (21 page)

where you can pretty much figure on getting a good dose of food poisoning. The outside looks like a cross between a bomb shelter and a trailer. Inside the floors are sticky, and our sodas are flat, but it’s far enough off the beaten path that we probably don’t have to worry about any witnesses if we have to fight off an Acolyte attack.

I order pancakes, figuring there’s no way anyone can mess those up. After living with Nanda, I’m spoiled. My mouth waters as I remember her cooking. Even though I’m a little miffed she didn’t tell me what she knew about my birth, I still miss her. I hope she’s doing okay.

Alora gets a salad, while Blue and Tallon each order cheeseburgers. We’re the only ones in the restaurant, so our food arrives quickly. Alora’s salad is a plate of brown iceberg lettuce with a few shards of carrot and a couple of tomato slices that have seen better days. It looks so sad that I push my plate of pancakes into the middle of the table between us. “Here,” I say, cutting the stack in half. She gives me a look of surprise, and I sigh. “Don’t say I never did anything nice for you.”

She considers it for a moment before picking up the syrup and covering her half of the pancakes. “Thanks,” she says.
While we’re eating, Tallon’s phone rings. He answers it before going outside to take the call. Hearing his voice next to me is like nails on a chalkboard. Being in the same car, and now the same restaurant with him, is slow torture. Like having bamboo shoved under your fingernails, or being forced to listen to elevator music. All I want is for him to grab me and kiss me until I’m breathless. I want it so badly that my middle aches with the need to feel him against me again.
But that’s never going to happen. And that just makes it all the more painful to sit next to him. With sadness I realize that we’ll never be just friends again. It hurts too much to be around someone I can’t have.
Tallon returns and slides into the booth with a sigh. I swear he sits closer to me than before, and I inch closer to the wall. “That was North. She says that a couple of Hecate covens are reporting increased activity at a Node in Pittsburgh. She thinks that might be our best bet.”
Blue nods. “Three Rivers. There used to be a stadium in Pittsburgh called that. It was named for the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, which come together to form the Ohio River there.”
Alora bumps her shoulder into Blue’s. “Look at you, with your geography knowledge.”
“Actually, it’s sports knowledge. The Steelers used to play at Three Rivers Stadium before moving to Heinz Field.”
I barely register their banter, instead I’m thinking about the shades and Hera’s spell. Fear leaves me cold, and goose bumps form along my arms. “So that’s where Hera is going to strike.”
“Do we even know if she’s the one actually conducting the spell?” Alora asks. She runs her fork across our empty plate, then licks the syrup off the tines. The short-order cook watches her in open-mouthed fascination until he catches me giving him a dirty look.
I shrug. “Hades was pretty clear that she was the one who had the shades. He said that I had to kill her to set them free. But I guess Ramun Sol could be doing the actual spell.” I try not to think about Hades’s certainty that I’ll die.
Tallon shifts on the seat next to me, and every nerve ending goes on alert. I should’ve sat next to Blue. I would’ve, but he plopped into the booth next to Alora when we sat down, leaving Tallon with the option of sitting next to me or leaving. I didn’t want to make a big stink about it when he sat down next to me. I can tell he still has something he wants to tell me, but I don’t want to hear it. I’m pretty sure my fragile emotional state couldn’t handle an apology from him. Kissing him is one of the best memories I have. At least right up until he ran out of the room. I’m not going to let him ruin what I have left.
I’m so busy remembering how it felt to kiss him that I almost miss his next words. “North thinks she might know where Ramun Sol is.”
My heart pounds in my ears. The darkness swirls as I imagine ripping out the Æthereal’s heart. “Where?”
Blue glances at the kitchen staff and clears his throat. “Maybe we should continue this discussion where we don’t have an audience.”
The waitress storms over and glares at us. “There’s no smoking in here,” she says, before looking at us in confusion. The darkness has snapped back into place, and we all smile at her like we’re just a bunch of innocent kids enjoying lunch.
“Can we get our check?” Alora says, her voice all honey.
The waitress nods and digs it out of her apron before looking at us again. “I’m sorry, I thought I saw smoke.”
Blue digs a few bills out of his wallet and throws them on the table. “No big deal. Keep the change,” he says. Then we escape outside.
Tallon takes a deep breath. “North says that one of the Hecates she spoke with remarked upon seeing a bright streak on the Paths near Pittsburgh. That could be Ramun Sol. If we can get him to come to us, that might give us the edge.”
I snort. “And how are we supposed to do that? He took off running the night he killed Cass. He knows I’m stronger than he is.”
“Maybe. But I’m willing to bet that he wants revenge more than anything. If he thinks he has an advantage over you, he might be convinced to attack.” Tallon scowls, his lips pursed. I want to kiss him. Blue grins.
“Oh, I know that look. You have a plan.”
Tallon nods. “I do. And if it works, we’ll be able to stop Hera and kill Ramun Sol.”

finalizes his plan, so we find a place to stay for the night. I’m not tired, but Blue, Alora, and Tallon don’t look like they’ve gotten much sleep since I left for the Underworld. When Blue declares that he wants to spend the night somewhere, no one argues.

Especially when he pulls into the parking lot of a really nice hotel.
“We’re staying here?” I ask, looking at the fancy fountain in front of the hotel and the impressive entryway.
“Yes. I am sleeping in a big, comfortable bed,”Blue says, putting the car in park. “If we’re about to ride off to some ‘epic battle’”—he draws air quotes with his fingers—“I want to make sure I’m well rested. That’s not going to happen on a bed that feels like it was a brick in a past life.”
Alora looks at the hotel and sighs. “I’m with Blue. After two weeks of trailer hopping I’m ready for a hot shower and a deep conditioner. Oh, and cable. I need to catch up on my Hollywood gossip.”
Tallon says nothing, and I just shrug. “Okay.” I don’t have any money, so I figure they must have a way to pay for everything.
Blue and Alora turn to look at Tallon, who sighs. “You know we don’t have that kind of money.”
Blue grins. “Well, I guess you’ll just have to work your magic.”
We get out and head inside to the lobby.Tallon stands back and waits until everyone else has been helped before he approaches the clerk. When I raise a questioning eyebrow in Blue’s direction, he leans in close. “Tallon’s the only one who can get a room without anyone making a fuss. He can charm anyone.”
“What do you mean?”
Blue jerks his chin to where Tallon speaks in low tones with the clerk. “Watch.”
The clerk is shaking her head no, and for a split second I’m certain she isn’t going to let us have a room. But then she stills as Tallon keeps talking to her. The tension drains out of her; a small smile ghosts around her lips. After a few taps on the computer in front of her, she slides four key cards across the counter to Tallon.
He walks over and hands them to us with a murmured,“It’s over two hundred dollars a night. We need to be out of here tomorrow before they realize the Kensington family doesn’t exist.”
I look past Tallon at the clerk. She looks happy, if a little out of it. “What, did you just hypnotize her or something?”
Tallon directs a dark look at me. “Yes.”
Alora and Blue lead the way toward the bank of elevators, chatting excitedly about what they’re going to do first. I frown at Tallon. “How long have you been able to do that?” Tallon didn’t have the ability when we were younger. Or if he did, he never shared the secret with me.
He shrugs. “It came along a few years ago. It’s something my father was able to do.”
I cross my arms. “You didn’t ever hypnotize me, did you?”
“I tried,” he says, jogging to grab the elevator doors before they close. I do the same, and as I slink past him, a smile plays around his lips. His dark gaze meets mine and he leans in close. “It didn’t work.”
I open my mouth to ask him what he means by that, but the fact that he’s flirting with me short-circuits my brain. While we ride the elevator up, I examine him out of the corner of my eye. He wears his hair braided today, and even all twisted up it reaches his shoulders. My fingers itch to reach out and touch it. I bet it’s as silky as it looks.
The elevator dings, jerking me out of my daydream of stroking his hair. I clear my throat and look behind me, where Blue and Alora watch me with identical smirks. Oh gods, am I that obvious?
When the elevator opens, we split up. Our rooms are all right in the same hall, so it’s not like we have to worry about trying to find one another later. Tallon ducks into his room without a word, leaving the rest of us standing in the hallway in shocked silence.
Alora sighs. “I hate when he gets like this. Focused Tallon is an annoying Tallon.”
Blue shrugs. “You know how he is. When he’s scheming, everything else takes a backseat. Honestly, we’re lucky he got us rooms first.”
I glance at the closed door and try not to feel disappointed. I sigh. “So, what now? We hang out and wait for the brilliant Tallon to reveal his awesome and awe-inspiring plan?”
Blue shrugs. “Pretty much. Hey, at least we have cable again.” He takes off into his room, and Alora grins at me.
“I looked at the Strands while we were in the car. Blue’s going to sneak out and meet Jimmy. He and Ricki are staying in the hotel as well.”
I frown. “How does someone who lives in a trailer park afford a hotel like this?” If it hadn’t been for Tallon’s hypnotizing skills, we wouldn’t be staying here either.
Alora shrugs. “I don’t know. Good question, though.” She disappears into her room, and I enter mine, wondering if maybe Alora isn’t so hot at reading the Strands of Time after all.
I waste no time jumping in the shower, turning the hot water as high as I can stand it. It’s a mistake. There’s nothing to do but think as the water pours down on me. And I have entirely too much to think about.
Hades is my father. All this time I thought I was the product of some romantic affair, my father a random Æthereal. But instead I’m the offspring of an Exalted. And not just any Exalted, but the villain, the vættir equivalent of the boogeyman. The old stories aren’t kind to Hades. Where the other Exalteds, like Zeus and Apollo, are bright and dashing, Hades is dark and terrifying. Knowing he’s my father is more than a letdown. It’s a little scary. He’s the King of the Dead. When he shows up, people die. And now I get that honor.
I’m not really thrilled with that revelation.
Killing Ramun Mar was an accident. But the Acolytes? Their deaths clutch at me, eating away at my conscience in the quiet moments. But not as much as I feel like they should. Almost a thousand people died the night Ramun Sol killed Cass. Shouldn’t I feel a little guiltier about their deaths?
I haven’t had a lot of time to think about it, but now that I know who my father really is, I wonder if my lack of remorse is because of him. Am I programmed to just not give a damn about the people I kill? Is it part of wielding the darkness, or just a family trait? Harpies kill without remorse, but mostly because they see it as a badge of honor, the number of kills. I’m not proud of the deaths. I just don’t really care, like the kind of remorse little kids have about stepping on ants. It happened, and I know I should feel bad about it, but I don’t.
Thinking about my lack of regret is actually more depressing than the deaths of the Acolytes.
My brain is too full of questions that I have no answers for, so I turn off the water and get out.
I’ve just managed to get dressed in fresh jeans and a T-shirt when there’s a knock on my door. I drop the towel on the floor and pad to the door barefoot. A quick glance through the peephole reveals a nervous-looking Tallon. My stomach does a swan dive, and my heart beats triple time.
I can’t yank open the door quickly enough.
“Hey,” I say, trying to look like I’m not about to hyperventilate. “Are we meeting now?”
He shakes his head quickly. “Not yet. Can I come in?”
I want to say no. I could laugh, like I’m too cool for his games, before slamming the door in his face. But I don’t do any of that, because the truth is that I’m just glad he’s here.
I step back and he walks past me into the room. I close the door behind him and take a deep breath. The last time we were in a room by ourselves I threw myself at him. That’s not going to happen this time.
Maybe.
When I turn around, Tallon wears a sad smile, and I tilt my head to the side. “What?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Come here.” His voice is slightly above a whisper, and huskier than normal. It turns my legs to mush, but I still manage to stumble over to him.
He cups my cheek with a sigh. My breath flutters in my chest, and I have the wild irrational thought that maybe I’m dreaming. There’s no way this beautiful boy could be in my hotel room, looking down at me with eyes of the darkest violet. I have to be asleep.
But then Tallon leans forward, his lips brushing mine. Such a simple act. Lips touching. But the result is pure magic.
Electricity.
The contact sets off a flurry of tingles low in my belly, and I tiptoe to deepen the kiss. Tallon pulls back, and his expression is like a bucket of cold water to the face.The corners of his lips tug down, twisting his normally guarded expression into one of sadness.
“Tallon?” I move to step back, but he grabs my arm, squeezing too tightly.
“I’m sorry,” he says, voice low. At first I think he’s talking about the kiss, and a wave of hot rage crashes through me. But then I feel the cold bite of metal as the cuff locks around my arm. I look down in openmouthed shock. Tallon just banded me with a damper.
“No,” I whisper, pulling for the darkness. It’s far away, useless. The damper is a mute button on my abilities. Tallon has just crippled me.
What kind of a game is he playing?
I can’t reach the magic, but I don’t need it. I extend my talons and swipe at him, catching his cheek and parting the skin.
Tallon’s head jerks, and he looks over my shoulder at someone behind me. “Trust me,” he murmurs. I’m so angry that he’s just thrown a damper on me that I don’t even acknowledge his words. I scream and reach for him, but someone grabs my arm from behind.
“Temper, temper, little bird.” I throw my head back, catching the person behind me with the back of my skull. Hopefully I just broke someone’s nose. They dance away, and I spin around, my rage drowning out my normal fear. I blink, because I can’t believe what I’m seeing.
Ramun Sol stands in the middle of my hotel room wearing jeans and a T-shirt. He looks completely normal without his Acolyte get up on. Cass’s murderer is here, and I’m completely powerless.
The rage evaporates, an icy cloud of fear taking its place. I try to pull the damper off, clawing at my skin. I dimly register the pain, blood welling up and around the dark metal. Ramun Sol laughs at my panic, the sound high and mocking.
“Uh-oh, it looks like our little friend isn’t so brave without her shadows.”
He’s right. I’m terrified. The spirals of darkness on my arms have retreated into thin gray lines. I can’t even sense the darkness, much less call it.
I collapse on the floor, utterly hopeless. Tallon. He’s betrayed me. “Why?” I whisper.
Tallon doesn’t answer me. It’s Ramun Sol who dances close, his face inches from mine.
“Why? Because he knows that the bright will win. We’re the good guys. Don’t you get it? The world needs the light. The darkness is an aberration.” Ramun Sol shoots Tallon a knowing grin. “It also doesn’t hurt that our friend over there wants to get on grandma’s good side.”
I look at Tallon and then back at Ramun Sol. “I don’t understand.”
Tallon’s eyes lock on mine. “Hera is my grandmother. Typhaon is my father.”
There’s not enough oxygen in the room, and I struggle for breath. In the old stories Typhaon was a monster birthed by Hera in a fit of rage over one of Zeus’s affairs. Hades took pity on the creature and let it live in the Underworld, where it was responsible for keeping the drakans contained. But so many of the old stories are wrong. This one can’t be true, can it?
But it can. I remember my mother was just talking about a mission to the Underworld to save a friend from Typhaon. And Nanda and Mom were friends from way back. Did Nanda and Mom go down to the Underworld to save Tallon’s mom? Is that why Mom was so angry when he started to manifest darkness? Because she knew he was the child of a monster? It can’t all just be a coincidence, can it?
“No,” I say, shaking my head. Tallon’s father might be a dark lord, but I can’t imagine Tallon has sold me out to Ramun Sol.
Tallon shrugs, as though betrayal is a common part of his life. “I told you I was a monster.”
He did. It’s something he’s said to me more than once. I thought he was being dramatic. I should have known better. Tallon isn’t one for melodrama.
But looking up at Ramun Sol, I’m starting to think maybe Tallon is one for a little treachery.
Ramun Sol sighs. “Are you finished? Because I’d like to kill her now, if you don’t mind.”Ramun Sol strides forward and lifts me up by my hair. I clutch at his hand, trying to get him to let go. I hate the whimpers of pain that manage to escape.
Tallon doesn’t even look at me. “Yeah, whatever. Where’s my grandmother?”
Ramun Sol laughs. “You really think I’d tell you?”
“I gave you what you wanted. Are you going back on your word? ”
The Æthereal shrugs. “So? What are you going to do—tell your granny? Do it, and then we’ll see what the old woman thinks.” For some reason that cracks him up, and he begins to laugh. It’s the same sound as when he slit Cass’s throat, and something gives way inside of me. I don’t know whether it’s Tallon’s betrayal, all the lies I’ve been told, or the ache of being held up by my hair, but I snap. After all, I might not have my darkness, but I still have years of Harpy training.
One of the old sayings comes back to me:
A Harpy goes where Æthereals fear to tread, so a Harpy shall fear no Æthereal.
I’m already dead. Might as well take a little bit of Ramun Sol with me.
I let go of Ramun Sol’s hand and use my talons to swipe at his eyes. He drops me, and as I fall, I kick out at his midsection. He doubles over in pain, and from my spot on the ground I kick up, catching him in the face.
I have never had this much fun kicking someone.
I quickly climb to my feet just as he recovers. He reaches for his solar flare, and I instinctively run toward him. There’s a saying in the Aerie:
Do the last thing your opponent expects.
It’s good advice, and I manage to catch Sol in a flying tackle. The attack is enough to send him sprawling, and I kneel on his chest as I use my talons to rend his face.
Ramun Sol screams. The slices from my talons heal slowly, and he shudders as though each touch burns. At first I think his reaction is because of the pain, but then I realize he’s laughing. His eyes open, brightness like the sun leaking from them. “By the Rift, you Harpies are stupid.” I have a moment of shock before a flare of light sends me reeling backward.
I moan, each nerve ending on fire. Sol stalks slowly toward me, but I’m helpless to do anything but writhe around in pain. Without a word he picks me up and hurls me across the room.
I smash into a barrier, and then I’m lying on the balcony. Glass rains down on me. As I struggle to my feet, I dimly realize that he just threw me through the sliding glass door. Pain blossoms bright and hard, and takes too long to fade. I roll around in agony. Ramun Sol crunches over broken glass, his steps slow and deliberate as he approaches. I try to get up, to run away. But everything is slow to respond, and before I can climb to my feet, Ramun Sol is next to me. His boot presses into the small of my back, crushing my spine and forcing the air from my lungs.
“Oh, I am so going to enjoy breaking you down piece by ittybitty piece. You’re going to pay for what you did to my brother, vættir bitch.”