The Agrista (Between the Lines Book 1) (9 page)

  “You don’t have all the facts. You don’t
know
that he’s a traitor,” Cayden defended weakly.

  “Come on, Cayden. Blood means nothing! The whole reason everyone’s even in this mess is because Cailene betrayed Eva-” Cayden’s hard glare stopped Fallon’s tongue cold. Marie didn’t like the idea that they might be keeping something from her, and narrowed her eyes at the thought.

  “I believe Cerin was the one who was betrayed,” said Alex, deflating their squabble.

  “By who? Cailene? The little brat’s not stupid enough to fall for that,” Fallon rolled her eyes.

  “Marcel was at the castle, sitting proudly at Cailene’s side. His Umbra, Arécia, was caged, and she’d been tortured,” said Alex.

  “I don’t think anyone’s surprised that Marcel’s turned against us, or his Umbra. Except Cerin, apparently.” Fallon clenched her teeth, feeling the sting of betrayal.

“The creep that was running his hands all over that little girl, Johanna? Why would
anyone
trust him?” Cayden stiffened at Marie’s words. Marcel had a reputation for taking what he wanted. The serving girls didn’t stand a chance.

  “Marcel is our brother,” Fallon’s admission made Marie’s blood run cold. “Cerin can’t seem to get over that fact. I can. Like I said, a traitor’s a traitor.” There was nothing subtle about Fallon’s meaning as she disapprovingly raked her eyes over Marie.

 
That terrible man is my brother? What’s next?
Fallon was bad enough, but she was related to Prince Marcel, too? Marie wasn’t sure which was worse. It was like comparing rotten fruit.

  She dreaded meeting the rest of her siblings, and the inevitable question that was sure to surface with each new introduction: How far does the fruit fall from the tree? Like it or not, she was part of that tree, and it was full of nuts.

  “Aruzhan is smart, and the strongest of our kind. She must’ve used all of her strength to help Cerin escape. That’s the only way Cailene would be able to place her under Canticum Dormientum,” Alex reasoned.

  “Let’s say Cerin
is
in hiding. How in Lucidus’ name are we supposed to find him?” Fallon leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and giving Alex a clear shot of her cleavage.

  “Your sister, Laylia,” Alex mimicked her position.

  “Laylia?” Fallon crinkled her nose in distaste. No one had seen or heard from her in years, and the family was better off for it. “Why would
she
know where he is? She’d be the last person I’d tell. After
Mariella,
that is.” To add insult to injury, Fallon talked about Marie like she wasn’t in the room.

  “She may know something we don’t. Since we need all five of you to open the Agrísta, she’s the next logical step,” said Alex.

  “I agree, but we find ourselves at a similar disadvantage. How do we find Laylia?” Cayden spoke up before Fallon could object.

  “There have been whispers among the slaves. They suspect she’s on Anthros,” said Alex.

  “Anthros? Why would she go there?” Fallon guffawed.

  “It’s Laylia. Nothing surprises me when it comes to her,” Alex said tartly.

  “Laylia is unique, I’ll give you that, but Anthros? The planet’s under Mahömasén! She may be reckless, but she’s no fool. She values her life, at the very least.” Cayden shot Alex an incredulous look.

  “What’s Mahömasén?” Marie had kept quiet until now, listening and digesting, but she was starting to get confused.

  “It means
no magic
,” Alex explained.

  “For instance, if Alex and I went there, we’d be trapped in our human form, unable to change into our Umbraic form. That fact alone makes Anthros an incredibly dangerous place,” Cayden elaborated.

  “Oh,” Marie nodded, taking everything in. “And that’s where we’re going?” she asked, failing to keep the slight quaver from her tone.

  “That’s not even the best part!” Fallon’s eyes widened with excitement. Whatever she had to say couldn’t possibly be good. “There’s no place to hide in the Southern borders. The land is barren of night and shadow, dominated by the Anthro Pophagos – cannibals! The second they scent your blood, it’s over.” Fallon dramatically dragged her pointer finger across her throat. “The North knows
only
night and is ruled by the Nocté Bellatores. They thrive in darkness. They’ll slit your throat before you’re able to detect their presence, and that’s
if
you’re lucky. If they think you’re good breeding stock, they’ll steal you away to bear their young. If you’re not strong enough to survive the conception, they’ll toss you to the cannibals, half-dead. The Anthro Pophagos will smell the blood in seconds and rip you to pieces, so slowly that your heart will beat until the very last bite. You’ll be kept alive in agony for hours. Sometimes days, even!” Fallon leaned back, folding her arms behind her head. “You wouldn’t think you could survive that much pain, but you’d be amazed what the body can endure.” She smirked upon seeing Marie tremble.

  “Are you done?” Cayden asked flatly. “All of that is true, unfortunately. You should know what you’re getting into, Mariella. Anthros
is
dangerous.”

  “Know what I’m getting into? It’s not like I have a choice!”

  “You always have a choice.” Alex softly grazed the side of her hand with the tip of his pinky. The sudden spark of pins and needles momentarily distracted her from her racing thoughts.

  “Neither Alex nor myself will let any harm befall you. We will protect you with our lives.” Cayden placed his hand atop hers, forcing her attention.

  “What if
you
die?” Marie blurted out, unable to mask her worry.

  “A little faith goes a long way.” Cayden gently tousled her hair as if she were a child, but offered her no reassurances. “Now that we have food in our stomachs and know our next course of action, we should take this time to reflect and get some rest. We’re going to need it. We’ll reconvene first thing in the morning.” Cayden rose to his feet. “You two can stay here. Fallon and I will bunk elsewhere.”   

  “I want to stay with Alex!” Fallon pouted as Cayden shoved her out the door, slamming it behind him.

 
He expects me to rest after that? That’s a joke!
Marie stared at the bed in awkward silence, willing Alex to say a friendly word to break the tension.

 
“How are we going to do this?” Alex finally asked.

  “I don’t know if I can.” Marie took a shaky breath and threw herself down on the bed.

  “I was referring to the sleeping arrangements,” Alex teased in an attempt to lighten the mood.

  “We can share the bed, but don’t get any ideas,” Marie said, half-joking.

  “Upon my honor, I would
die
before thinking impure thoughts of you!” Alex’s words came out harsher than he’d intended, yielding an unsatisfied look from Marie.

  “Thanks,” Marie bit out, rolling her eyes. Alex meant well, but his heart and his tongue seemed to be of two different minds. “After Fallon’s little bedtime story, I don’t want to sleep alone tonight,” she added softly.

  Marie stuffed herself into the far corner of the bed, clutching her stomach while butterflies ran amok. Alex meticulously placed himself beside her, close enough that she was cognizant of his every move, yet just out of reach.

  Each warm exhale danced along the nape of her neck. The sensation brought a rose to her cheeks, stirring up repressed desire that was better off buried deep.

  Marie was by no means inexperienced, but after several sloppy breakups, she’d sworn off men for good and stopped putting an effort into her appearance. It may have been a cliché tactic too well-known among her gender, but so far, caution kept her out of harm’s way.

  Her breath suddenly caught in her throat when Alex gently rested his hand on her side. He held it firmly in place, as if waiting for permission or fair warning. He softly massaged the slope of her back with his thumb, leisurely sliding his hand forward over the curve of her stomach.

  “If you recall, I said no funny business,” Marie reminded him playfully, sounding more flirtatious than she’d intended.

  “Please don’t misunderstand. I’m trying to comfort you.” The hitch in his breathing told her otherwise. “Would you like me to stop?” His fingers stilled, no longer grazing her naval.

  “No,” she answered meekly, pushing herself back against his chest. He smelled strangely warm, like hickory smoke and cloves, baking in the summer sun.

  “I know you’re scared. I can sense it, not that it’s hard to see,” he sighed. “Were you at least able to relax at the hot springs?”

  Panicked thoughts came rushing back with an image of her hazy reflection, now branded in her memory. She shot straight up with a sharp gasp.

  “My face!” she squealed, suddenly remembering the reason she’d rushed back to camp. “My face and hair are different!
Surely
, you’ve noticed? Since you don’t seem the slightest bit fazed, I’m assuming you know why,” she attempted to keep the urgency out of her tone, but anxiety flooded her delicate features, giving her away.

  “It’s nothing to be afraid of,” he reassured her with a laugh. “That’s how you’re supposed to look.”

  “Elaborate.”

  “Genes aren’t nearly as sporadic here as they are on Earth. Anyone with enough worth can determine how their child will look before they’re born. It’s the reason royals are renowned for their beauty. It’s guaranteed.” That didn’t sit right with Marie. A parent shouldn’t put so much stress on physical appearance. A parent should let nature take its course and love their child unconditionally, no matter what they look like.

  “I understand the concept, but what does that have to do with me? This wasn’t the face I was born with.”

  “Actually, it
is
. Your real father placed an Inpei on you. An Inpei is a weak concealment spell of sorts. They’re nullified by preset triggers. In your case, it was cast to tarnish your natural beauty, to assure that you’d stay hidden. Human babies often change hair and eye color as they develop, so your surrogate parents didn’t think anything of it when you’d changed, but in truth, it was the Inpei taking effect. The spell wore off when you were reunited with me, your protector.”

  Marie had no idea what she’d looked like as a baby, because her
father
– and she used that term loosely, now more than ever – had burned all of her pictures in a drunken stupor. That was just one of
many
wonderful memories she had of her childhood.

  There was no way to verify what Alex was saying, but there was nothing to discredit it, either. She’d trusted him enough to take her this far, and she wasn’t about to stop now. Something inside of her intrinsically bound her to him with blinding devotion. Something she couldn’t explain.

  “I meant to warn you, but in all honesty, it slipped my mind. I apologize for my folly,” the sincerity in his voice melted her anger into acquiescence.

  “So...this is my face now, huh?” she chuckled, examining a lock of her raven hair.

  “It always was. You were always meant to be this beautiful,” Alex raised his arm to touch her face, but recoiled halfway and swiftly turned his back to her.

  “Thanks, I guess? Kind of a slap and a hug,” Marie blurted out in anticipation of awkward silence. Her efforts only intensified it. The fact that they were no longer facing each other somehow made it worse.

  Marie felt comforted that her new visage didn’t signify the apocalypse; though, considering the current conditions of Quinque, this world might have already been through one. With everything else going on, her looks were the least of her concerns. Still, she couldn’t help but feel self-conscious lying next to Alex.

  Being so close to him made her extremely aware of her own body, because it reacted to
every
movement of his. Each exhalation was a sigh that filled her with warmth, licking her nerves in anticipation of his touch. Every small movement he made tugged at the sheets, unintentionally pulling her just a little bit closer.

  Jolts of excitement raced through her body every time his flesh accidentally grazed hers, leaving it sensitive and tingling for more. She felt drawn to the heat of his soft skin, as if there was a magnetic pull. She longed to reach out and touch him, but she kept to herself, tucked into her little corner.

  She hadn’t been this nervous around a boy since high school. As much as she missed the butterflies, experience had taught her to fear them. Still, she was thankful for the embarrassing thoughts running rampant through her imagination. Flashes of them tangled in the sheets. Fantasies she’d never admit to. It kept her mind off of tomorrow.

  “You’re scared about tomorrow. I can feel you shaking,” Alex blurted out, unable to stand the silence any longer.

 
So much for being distracted
. “The only way I’ve been able to stay sane is by thinking about something else.”

  “I can see the appeal, but you have to acknowledge the truth. This time tomorrow, we’ll be in Anthros.”