Blood Beyond Darkness (7 page)

My eyelids rose, and I took in the dimly lit space. I batted my lashes trying to clear my vision. There was no way I should be here. Bars lined in a continuous pattern down the long dark corridor. Wet, moldy straw clumped the floor in each cell and dotted the stone walkway in-between.

“What the hell?” I mumbled to myself. Why was I in the Queen’s dungeon?

“Fire has come.” A voice came down the aisle.

“Grimmel?” I took tentative steps, following the sound. In the murky corner, the dwarf slept in a rickety wooden chair; the raven stood on his shoulder. “How are you doing this? I thought I could no longer dreamscape or
dreamwalk?”

“Grimmel guides all minds.” Ravens were powerful dream guides, so he was pulling me into a
dreamwalk. He could interact with people in dreamwalks as if they were as real to him as the people actually in the room. No one else would be able to see me, but he could.

“Fire is faint and weak. No flame. No spark.”

“Hey, now.”

“Build fire. Blaze and burn.”

“Can you tell me what you want and why I am here?”

“Dark Knight escape.”

“Yes. Thank you for your help, Grimmel. West is going to live because of you.”

“Silence.”

I wasn’t sure if he was telling me to be silent or now West was gone, it was quieter.

“Help baby escape.”
Grimmel’s black beady eyes bore into me. He had adored my mother and helped her get me and Lily out of the castle. “Flame goes out. All for naught. Will lead to destruction.”

“What do you want me to do about it, Grimmel? She has the sword. She has taken my powers.”

“Baby cry too much.” He tilted his head. “Fight fire.”

“How?”

“Seek. Want.”

“Damn you Fae. Can’t you ever simply say what you mean without the riddles?”

Flapping his wings, Grimmel adjusted his grip on the dwarf’s shoulder. “You will know.”

With a shove of energy, I tumbled back to my bedroom in Lars’ compound.

When I woke, Nic had left. My mind flipped through the conversation with Grimmel, leaving me restless, and even more exhausted. I had no idea what he thought I would know. The raven was bat-shit crazy, so I pushed it from my mind.

The blinking of the clock told me it was nearing dawn. Sleeping twelve or more hours at a time was nothing new to me. Sleep was what I did most of the time. The overcast sky lightened as I continued to drift in and out of slumber.

My room lights flicked on, and my eyes popped open.

“Get. Up.” Alki’s voice boomed through the silent room. He was dressed in his training outfit of black sweats and black tank top. His body-builder physic rippled through the fabric. With his severe haircut, sharp Asian features, and his muscular form, he was intimidating. Not someone I’d want to meet in an ally.

I jerked with surprise but otherwise did not respond.

“I said get up.” He headed for my bed when I didn’t react. “We are training today. You are weak, both in mind and in body, especially without your magic. Now rise. I will not ask again.”

“Go away,” I grumbled, my mouth finding it hard to move after weeks of not speaking. “I don’t have my powers anyway. What does it matter?”

Alki grabbed my arm and with a sharp yank pulled me from my bed. I fell to the floor with a thud. “You can still fight. Your body is a tool. And the Dark Dweller is still in you.”

“Leave me alone.” I curled in a ball on the floor.

He scooped me up. “I told you I would not ask again.”

“Let me go.” I feebly pushed against his unyielding chest. He carried me downstairs like I weighed nothing.

“I am not training,” I protested. “You might as well put me down.”

He did not respond and continued carrying me outside. I wore only a tank and pair of sweats, so the chilly morning brought goose bumps to my flesh.

The hot summer was now bleeding into a nippy fall. Leaves of crisp oranges, yellows, and browns sprinkled the ground, most still clung desperately to the trees, holding on to their last bits of life. Time in the Otherworld was such a strange concept. During my first visit, I felt I had only been there for a day or two, and it had been three years. My time spent there recently didn’t feel much different, but when we returned it had only been a month. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to it. As most Fae, it did what it wanted when it wanted.

“Alki, set me down.” My voice grew louder and sturdier. It took me a moment to realize he wasn’t taking me to the training room. Before I could ask, he rounded the corner and stopped at the pool.

“
Noooo.” The word came out too late. I felt the release of his arms as I plunged into the freezing water. It felt like a bolt of electricity zapped my heart. Everything in me woke up, coming back to life. I breached the surface with a gasp.

“Do
not
insult the lives of those lost in your name. You think they would not wish to be alive again? If they had the chance, do you think they would squander a moment of it? They did not perish for you to live a half-life!” His words silenced any harsh words I was about to send his way. “Now get out of the pool. We
are
training today and every day until the war,” Alki’s dark eyes pierced me before he whipped around and headed toward the stone building on the property.

I shivered, moving slowly for the pool steps. His words hurt, but he was right. I had given up. I had always been a fighter, but I had let life beat me. This person was not who I am. I never let anything stand in my way. Yes, I’ve had a shitty couple of weeks, but the thought of all those people who had died in Seattle, Monterey, along with my biological mother ... I’m sure all would have chosen to deal with my problems if it meant they could live again, to see their loved ones and hold their children once more.

I was instantly awake. The icy water dripped from my skin, the cold air lashed through my hair. My heart pumped in my chest, confirming I was
alive
. Determination woke in my body, stirring the survivor in me. I was a warrior—and I would fight.

Every muscle and joint hated me. No, they hated Alki, but I had to feel and hear their complaints. The drills he put me through were agony: running in the mud, uphill; climbing the rope wall; doing pushups and sit-ups till I wanted to puke. I realized I didn’t like being “more human.” My body did not heal or recover as fast, and everything felt harder and tougher to do. He pushed me till I vomited and then passed out. Alki had no compassion with my lack of powers. I knew I needed to train. I could not depend on my magic supporting me anymore, and I needed to be able to withstand battle without them.

He finally excused me for the day, but training with Alki was far from over.

“You have grown weak in mind and in body.” Alki knocked on my scalp and my stomach with the staff he used in kicking my ass in
Bataireacht, a form of Irish stick fighting. “But this is the most important.” He tapped on my head again and then at my heart. “These are the most powerful weapons you can have.”

“Crap. We’re in trouble then.”

Alki frowned, not the least bit amused.

“Tough crowd,” I mumbled.

“Enough. You are in no place to joke. You no longer have your powers to rely on. How do you think you will be able to fight the Queen? There is no way you can beat her in your condition. You are unprepared and doomed to fail if you do not see the seriousness of your situation.”

All humor left my face, drawing my shoulders down.

“Your body we can train, and train we will, but your mind and heart are what will win the war.” Alki came around me, facing me. “And it will win, Ember. It must.”

Alki was right. Since I could no longer out-power her with my magic, I had to outwit her. Find her weakness. And my love and determination were my driving forces. I needed to learn so much more before I faced my aunt. I hated thinking of Aneira as a blood relative. Truth had become a humongous pain in my ass. Part of me thought I had been better off in ignorant bliss when I had no idea what true pain, loss, and betrayal could mean. This was my life. Coming to accept it instead of fighting it was the only way to save my sanity. There were no what-if’s; there were only what-now’s?

After Marguerite fed me an early dinner, I limped my way to Lars’ office. “Was giving me hyperthermia your idea of waking me up?” I said as I pushed open the door, walking in uninvited. The back of a pixie faced the Unseelie King. “Simmons!”

The pixie turned, his face lighting up. “My lady!” He flew to me, but stopped when Lars cleared his throat. Simmons flipped around, standing to attention.

“Everything I told you will get back to Torin and Castien?”

Simmons dipped his head. “Yes, sir.”

“You are dismissed, Simmons.”

Simmons bowed to Lars and zipped around to me. “My lady, it is so good to see you ... talking again.”

“I missed you, too.” I smiled softly at the little blond-haired, blue-eyed pixie. His 1960s fighter pilot outfit appeared cleaner than I had ever seen it. His swizzle stick sword hung from
his belt.

“Simmons,” Lars’ voice rang with warning.

“Wait for me,” I whispered. “I want to see you before you go.”

Simmons nodded and headed out. “I will, my lady.”

I shut the door behind him and faced Lars again. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Lars didn’t acknowledge my presence. He finished what he was working on before he sat back, his eyes surveying me. “It worked did it not? It got you out of your self-pity coma.”

Crossing my arms, I gave him a sour look. “Self-pity? You don’t think finding out my mother is not my real mother and my biological mother and father have been murdered by my boyfriend’s brother and uncle is not reason to flip out a bit?”

“I did not say whether it was deserved or not.” He
steepled his fingers. “However, before giving me the credit for getting you out of bed, it was not my idea. Someone else thought you needed a ... how did he put it ... jumpstart. It was his idea to get you back into training.”

“Eli?”

“Yes, or as I am starting to think of him: the lawn furniture.”

I couldn’t stop the small giggle that erupted. “Did you just make a joke?”

He pinched his lips.

“Be careful you might be susceptible to a thing called humor,” I teased.

His eyes narrowed.

“Never mind. It passed.” I sat in the chair across from him. “Now that I am talking again. I think we have some things to discuss. I have a lot of questions.”

Lars head dipped in firm agreement.

“How did Aneira steal my powers? Can I get them back?” I sat forward in my seat.

Lars peered at the ceiling in thought. “Through one of my sources in Seattle, there is a rumor going around in which Fae powers were transferred to a human by your magic.”

“What? Me? How is that possible?”

“During the electrical storm a bolt of lightning hit a Fae, going through him and connecting with the human who stood behind. If it had been normal lightning, I am sure it would not have done anything except perhaps kill the human. However, it was not a normal storm. It was strong Fae magic. Your magic.” Lars’ focus settled heavy on me. “Aneira obviously heard the rumor and was willing to try it.” A frown pinched Lars’ lips. “Proving this rumor to be fact.”

“Something I did caused it?” I placed my head in my hands and rubbed my face roughly.

“We cannot dwell on what has happened. We cannot change it. The focus is on what we will do now.”

I looked through my hands then propped my chin in my hand. “Probably better I don’t have my powers. I seem to only hurt people.”

“Ember, did you think you would be able to contain your abilities?”

“
Kinda. Yeah.” I sat up straight. “You made it sound ... if I continued to train and work hard, I would get a handle on them. Eventually.”

“Handle is the key word there. Not control.” He tilted back in his chair. “As a Dae, you will
never
stop working to contain them. As you know, Daes were always frowned upon, long before Aneira claimed them abominations and illegalized them. They were too powerful, even for their own good. Too much of something, especially magic, can be a dangerous thing. Daes were not immune to the overdose of magic in their system. Most ended killing themselves.”

I was aware of this possibility, but to hear it point blank from Lars’ lips, only confirmed my greatest fears. Once I got my powers back, every day would be a fight, a struggle for me to
restrain myself. There would be no relief, and there would always be the potential I could hurt, possibly kill, someone again.

“Right now, we need to center you being without them, until we figure out how we can get them back from Aneira. The only way I see you obtaining them again is killing her. Her death will restore them back to you. We need to get the sword in your hands.” He tugged at his cuffs, straightening his shirt.

My back curved into the chair. A silence grew between us before I whispered. “I want to know why you let Eli in here. You don’t like him, and I don’t want him anywhere near me ... so why is he here?”

Lars sighed. “You are right. I do not like the Dark Dwellers, although I do not like a lot of people.” He swiveled his chair, focus going out the side window where Eli stood watching us. The dimming skyline drew shadows across the rug. “Though I may not be fond of the Dark Dwellers, I respect them. They are loyal and fight to the death for their own. I admire such devotion.” He turned back, his eyes narrowed on me. “You are one of them now. No matter what you think he has done or what his deeds have been, he will die for you. As your Uncle, I cannot help respect his tenacity. We have all done things we regret. Even you, Ember, have blood on your hands. You unintentionally killed many people’s mothers and fathers.”

It was the truth. It sliced at my gut like thousands of razor blades. “But it was
my
mother he helped kill, which is not something I can get over.”

He pointed to himself and replied, “I killed your father. You find my action all right?”

The logic of his statement slammed into me. “No, it’s not okay, but you had to. Devlin was insane. He was killing people.”

Lars gave me a side glance. “Remember, tread carefully when you attempt to blur the line between right and wrong. It can be different from where you are standing.” He turned back to face me. “Be sure you understand
Elighan’s side before making any judgment.”

“I can’t believe you’re defending him.” There was more shock in my sentiment than anger.

“I am not defending him. I am merely suggesting there is more to Elighan’s story than Lily’s side.” Lars sighed. “You are so much like your mother. So stubborn.”

“Which one?” I snorted. I didn’t mean it to come out so derisive.

“Both.” One of his eyebrows arched. “You inherited stubbornness from one and came by it in your environment with the other. Aisling and Lily are both extremely tenacious, as you are.” His expression softened a little when he said Aisling’s name.

“You were in love with Aisling, huh?” I blurted. I put the pieces together, but I wanted to hear the full story from his mouth.

Lars stared at me, his yellow eyes glaring at me. Finally he looked away. “Yes. We were in love.”

“Tell me. I want to know
your
side
of the story.”

There was a full minute of silence before he began. “Aisling was married to Eris, who was abusive and controlling. Aisling was not the kind of woman you constrained. She was independent, determined, and full of life. I fought my feelings for a long time, but even I, a Demon, fell for her charms. There wasn’t a Fae who did not. She had a flare about her, and you felt alive in her presence. Our affair was full of passion. I was the one who first took her to Greece. My home town was a perfect spot to meet. Sometimes Devlin would join us. My brother and I were close back then. With her, we could be ourselves. There was no pretense. The three of us became friends. Light, Dark, Fay, Demon, we let go of prejudices and were ourselves.”

He blinked and looked out the window, his voice tightening with control. “I sensed Devlin was in love with her, too. I was cocky and young and did not even consider I could lose her to him. Aisling and I were deeply in love, but my need for power, my desire to have what my brother was achieving as the Unseelie King, consumed me. The more distant I became, the more she turned to him for comfort. Looking back, I can see how it happened; then, I did not. Let us say I did not react well to finding out Aisling’s feelings had shifted to my brother. Devlin and I fought almost to the death. We did not speak afterward. Aisling hated how she tore us apart, but none of us were able to walk away.

“Our feelings for each other did not dwindle, even after she chose my brother. With Devlin she felt safe and loved; with me, it was always a storm of hunger and desire, an addiction hard to break away from.”

Don’t I know it?

“So you continued your affair?”

Lars nodded. “We tried to stay away from each other, but most times we could not.”

My biological mother was married to a Fay while having an affair with two Demons. Go, Mom.

“I think Devlin knew Aisling truly loved me. But I craved power and was too self-absorbed to see what I had. His jealousy changed him. She left him, but by then she was pregnant. Eris believed the baby was his. He was too arrogant and narrow minded to see the truth.

“Aisling wanted to keep the baby. She knew the truth would come out as soon as you were born. She understood from the moment she discovered she was with child she would not be able to hide from Aneira and, thus, her own demise was inevitable. As you know, by Fay law, an association with a Demon in any way is cause for death. Being a princess and pregnant with a Demon’s child was the worst deed she could ever have done. Aneira would never let her own sister evade the law. Even if she had wanted to forgive Aisling, she would have made an example of her.” Lars turned to me with sadness in his eyes.

“Aisling understood her destiny but did not want the same fate for you. Lily was Aisling’s lady’s maid and best friend. She turned to her for help. Of course, you know Aneira was aware of the affairs for a long time and planned to secretly kill Aisling, blaming it on the Dark Dwellers.” A brief flicker of pain gripped his forehead, then it was gone. “I could have helped her if she had come to me.”