Linda Welch - A conspiracy of Demons (30 page)

Mother of God.
I felt as if hands around my throat
were strangling
me.
Pride didn’t hire Dark Cousins,
he
worked for
them.
Lynn’s threat to expose him went farther than damage to his career. Reporters would delve deep into every aspect of his life, including his associates, and one in particular wanted to remain in the background.

“Do y
ou see
where this could lead
?”
Darja asked us.

“I should think it is obvious,” Royal said.
“He is using these politicians, guiding them, controlling them.”

“
Power
,
”
Gryphon said.
“Power he can wield to the Mothers’ advantage.”

His tone made my jaw clench
.
And that he called them Mothers - a title Gelpha diligently avoided - instead of Cousins, demonstrated his distress.

“Do you wonder why the Mother’s were ousted so easily, why they submitted to our conditions?”
Gryphon
asked me, then answered the question himself. “They were few to begin with, and we proved that with our superior numbers we could capture and kill them. They left rather than
suffer more loss
. The Ancients such as Dagka Shan took their followers to hidden regions and virtually disappeared, the rest assimilated into human society
.

“
Several
Cousins died a natural death, for although they are prestigiously long-lived, all things must die in the end.
Some
have been slain.
”

Yeah, Phillip Vance,
alias
the Charbroile
r, put down a few Dark Cousins.

“
Now
less than a score remain,
”
Gryphon concluded.

“In the US?”
I asked.

“In the world.
”

I blinked, wondering if I misheard.
I knew the Gelpha vastly outnumbered the Mothers, but so few? How many Cousins had I seen? Gia Sabato, Daven Clare,
Jacob, Dagka Shan, and three who came with Gia and Daven to collect Shan
from the High House. Seven. More than
one third of the entire Cousin population.

Gryphon continued. “
T
hey cannot breed in either sphere. To do so they
must return to the dimension from wh
ich
they originated, where their species began.”

Another kicker. I always im
agined little Dark Cousins some
place.
“But
apart from
the Gat
es
to my world, they are all
closed.
The Cousins are trapped
.
I mean trapped
in
. . . .” My voice failed for a few seconds. “They want Bel-Athaer back because they think
all
the Gates
will
open up again.”

Gryphon’s eyes
seemed
to
seethe
beneath his brows.
“Yes.
They
have bided, awaiting the right time
, the right circumstances. To re
gain
Bel-Athaer
,
they
need an army
to overcome us
, and we believe they will have it within the decade.”

“T
hey’ve w
aited
for centuries, plotting to take Bel-Athaer back? And what army?”
W
eightless
ness
floated
in my stomach.
“You don’t mean.
. . .
”

Gryphon’s gaze went from one councilor to another. “They can manipulate the Ways and the Gates. Suppose the Gates
between the two planes
wer
e no longer hidden from humans.”

Silence descended while the councilors mulled it over, and I wanted to jump on the table and yell at them. Why couldn’t they see what Gryphon was leading up to?

“Very well,”
a
councilor
finally said
. “The humans discover us. How does that help the Cousins regain Bel-Athaer?”

I stood, pushing my chair back with my shins.
“
A new world opens up, an
alien
world.” My pulse thumped like a jackrabbit. “The President would investigate. He’d have no choice.
”

Gryphon nodded.
“
As Miss Banks said, emissaries will be dispatched.
Think of the many times
,
throughout the history
of the world
,
humans have sent
peaceful
emissaries
to other countries and what ensued. Think of recent events, recent wars, when the America
ns thought they were threatened
.
”

“He
send
s ambassadors, they
go
in with an army at their backs,” I added.

“
And I do not believe the American president will be the only actor in the arena. He will tell the world and ask for global cooperation
,” said Gryphon.

“Surely you present a worst
-
case scenario, Sire,
”
said Darja. “You presume the meeting of our nations will lead to bloodshed.”

“I do.
Perhaps the conflict would be im
mediate as panicked Gelpha tried
to defend their territories from a
perceived threat
.
Failing that, I can think of numerous ways in which the Mothers
could bring two nations to war
.”

I thought of the propaganda our politicians wield like
weapons to malign their opponents
.
They could make
people think the Gelpha
were vicious, evil warmongers. Plant a few Gelpha in the Mothers’ control among the populace
, ha
ve them commit acts of atrocity - w
e wouldn’t stand for it, not in the end. We’d march in and
conquer
Bel-Athaer.
And the Mothers would march in with
us, with
their
army
.

I
hunched, rubbing my forearms in agitation
.
I
t sounded farfetched, a
nd yet. . . .
If Gia Sabato was anything to go by, twisted and devious didn’t begin to describe the lengths to which Cousins would go.
Was this the real reason Gia wa
nted me to bring down the Seers?
They were a power in Bel-Athaer, and wanted to be rid of a child ruler. But I fixed that, the Seers were imprisoned
and a young boy held the Seat.

A
boy
who
s
e
rulership would not be nearly as much a
challenge to human invaders.

“We do not claim to know the Mother’s intent, we presen
t a possible scenario,” Gryphon continued.
“
This could be the beginning of a far-reaching plan which will not come to fruition until after we who sit in this chamber are
dust
. However, we can no longer ignore the threat. Partitioning the Mothers does not ensure the safety of future generation
s
. We are decided.
They are not invisible. They can be found if you know what to look for.
We will assemble a force
to
remove them from the other dimension
.”

I came to my feet.
“You’re going to war, in
my
world!”

“Not war,” Darja said. “And humans will be none the wiser.” She patted the back of my hand as if I were some little kid
who
needed
reassurance
.

I snatched my hand away. “If someone gets in the way, the Cousins will go right through them.”

“We will do everything in our power to avoid human loss, but we are fighting for our children’
s future
,” Gryphon said.
“Would you
sooner
we did nothing, and humans died to secure Bel-Athaer for the Mothers?”

Royal had not said a word since we got here. His face looked as if it had never learned to smile.

As Royal and I left the High
House, silent and numb,
I said a silent,
heartfelt
thank
you
to Rio.

Rio
didn’t scare easily and his ethics were questionable
, but
eve
n an
ex-gangsta with ties to a crime family
could not
disregard a plot to control our government and send our
young men and women to war o
n an alien world
.
He wanted to warn me, but
self-preservation was his middle name. He
would not willingly lose
Gia
for any reason
, and
knew what her Dark
Cousin brethren
would do if he came to me openly
, s
o sent that message on the sly
.
He hoped I’d figure it out.

Royal dropped me off and headed for his apartment to pack a bag to take to the High House. Gryphon wanted him in Bel-Athaer to h
elp with recruiting a stealth force
.

I squashed the tiny voice which said,
so much for not letting me out of his sight.
I should be grateful he’d given me a little breathing space.

The house was dark, the blinds still down. The streetlamp
outside my house
was out again
,
but moonlight guided my feet along the path. I fumbled the key in the lock and opened the front door.

“Tiff!” came Jack’s whispering yell. With the lights off, I didn’t see him or Mel, but the panic in his voice made me fly into the hall.

“Wrong way
!” Mel screeched from somewhere nearby.

I found myself pinned to the wall by my neck. Fingers like steel bands
held me. I groped for my Ruger
and a fist sank
in
my midsection. Air
expelled in a
whoop.
I couldn’t breathe. I tore at the hand with my nails – one hand – one hand held me. Another hand slid inside my jacket. A thump followed by a metallic clatter as my gun hit the wall and dropped to the floor.

My belly on fire with pain,
I
tried to draw in air
.

“Who told you?” Gia Sabato hissed. Her hold eased enough for me to breathe but not get free. She slapped my hands away from
my neck, then slapped my face. I saw darkness splintered with stars
.

“Who told you?” she ground out between her teeth.

“Don’t know . . . what you . . . mean.”

The pressure
went
as she stepped back. My legs gave way. I slid down the wall and landed hard on my rump.

The light came on.
Gia
moved from the light switch to the wall facing me. Her eyes held a seething ferocity which made me want to wet my panties. I’m not big on cowering, but
it took everything I had not to.

There is something about Gia -
she seems to gather shadows.
I
n the bright light of my hall,
long
hair
draped her shoulders
like a dark cowl and smoky smudges surrounded her eye
s. Her lips were not bright red
tonight, they were as pale as her alabaster skin and hollows accentuated her cheekbones. In a clinging, shin-length black gown with long sleeves and a
plunging neck which revealed the tops of her breasts
, she looked like the vampire heroine in her novels.

“
Fabulous outfit. Just back from a book signing?
” I wheezed.

She
came
back
at
me in a shot. Her breath fanned my face.
“
How I
’ve missed that flippant tongue.
”

“You bring out the best in me.”

A long red nail traced down my cheek. “
I admire your
sense of humor
in the
most trying of circumstances.
Take now, for instance. If I rip out your throat, will you die laughing?”

I resisted the urge to flinch away from her.
“You won’t. We’ve been through so much together. We’re practically girlfriends.”

I swiveled my eyes to take in the hall, but Jack and Mel were not here. Neither was M
ac. I couldn’t blame him for not
barreling in to save me. My smart boy recognized evil in the form of Gia Sabato and
hid from
it.

She moved back again. “So, girlfriend, how do the Gelpha know
our plans
?”

“I’m a
fraid that’s my fault.
I’
m
good
at putting two and two together. If one of your toadies hadn’t killed my friend, I’d be none the wiser. But I followed the clues, and they led me to Robert Pride, which made me take a close look at the circles he moved in. Lo and behold,
a Mother sat
dead center, a big
fat
spider in a sticky web.”

She pressed an index finger to her chin. “Is it as simple as that?”

“Nothing simple about it, sister.” My midsection didn’t hurt as bad so I shuffled into a more comfortable position. “You
must
have spies in the High House, what did they tell you?”

“Agents. They informed us of the council of war and your participation.”

Thank the good L
ord I didn’t mention Rio.
This was why he warned me not to tell anyone but Royal. He knew if we spoke his name at the High House, it would get back to Gia.
“How did you get Gelpha to work for you?”

“What else
Miss Banks:
money, land
,
and position in
Bel-Athaer.”
She sat on the staircase’s second step, knees drawn up to her chest.
Every line of her body exuded grace,
even in a casual
position.

I desperately wanted to escape, but knew I could not.
My hall is narrow, only six fee
t separated us;
she’d
be in
my face in a second
.

“Bel-Athaer is ours. We only wanted our world back. It was to be a peaceful takeover.”

“
And pigs can fly. You needed an army
because
the Gelpha will resist, not roll over
.”
My brain click
ed on something she
’d
said. “Was?”

“
We are . . . going away. There are still deep, dark places on your world where man
and
Gelpha
have
not set foot.
”

Did I imagine the barely-there tremor in her voice?

“I don’t believe you’re giving up.”

She snorted delicately.
“
They cannot sense us, they will never find us.
But give up? No.
We are a long-lived people. We can wait. We have someth
ing you do not -
time. Y
ou and your lover will be
long
gone
when we return
, and in Bel-Athaer we will be little more than a myth.”

I recalled what
Gryphon
said:
“
They are not invisible. They can be found if you know what to look for.
”

“
You think you can hide?
It may take a while, but they’ll find you.”

“
Believe me, they will not.
I hope
knowing we are alive and free but beyond their reach
chews at them
the way the
ir
acid chewed at my
sibling
’s flesh and bones when we were evicted from Bel-Athaer.
” Her dark eyes became black pits. “Y
ou didn’t know that
?
They t
ossed
their victim
s
in a tub filled to the brim with hydrofluoric acid and fastened a grid on top. Imagine immersion in acid, Miss Banks, with no way to escape.”

I’ve seen it happen in horrific, garish detail in
blood-and-guts
movies.
Bile rose up my throat.

“Do you think they intend to confine us?” She coughed out a bitter laugh. “No. They will kill us.”

She rose languidly and moved to look d
own at me. “
I regret what happened to
your friend. I had no hand in it, nor prior knowledge.”

“And if you had? Would you have stepped in?”

She held my gaze and said nothing.

A bitter taste filled my mouth
. “I thought as much.”

“I must be on my way.
” Her head
tipped to one shoulder
.
“
You may not believe me, but it
was
good
knowing you, Miss Banks.”

She went through the door without looking back. Seated on the floor, I watched her
fade
into the nigh
t.

I crawled to the front door, slammed it and sat with my back to it. Mac poked his nose through the banister
s
at the top of the stairs. Mel and Jack materialized in front of me.

“Goodness!” Mel exclaimed.
“See what happens when you forget to activate the alarm before you leave?”

“She would have got
ten
in anyway, guys.”

“I think my hair turned white!” Jack pawed at his head. “It did, didn’t it!”

“Calm down. And for gosh sakes
sit
down. My neck hurts enough without having to look up at you.” I cautiously f
ingered
my neck.

Jack and Mel hunkered down. “You have some horrible bruises,” Mel said as she peered.

“Figures.”

“I thought I’d go out of my mind. Do you know how it feels to see you in trouble and not be able to help?”

That should
have made me feel good
. It meant they cared.

Jack left off mauling his hair. “What are you going to do?”

“Nothing much I can d
o except tell Royal.
He’s finishing up a few things before he goes to Bel-Athaer to help them organize. It’s why she told me, so he
can pass it along
to the Gelpha
.”

“She’s lying about going into hiding. She wants
Big Guy
to tell the demons so they don’t come hunting, then the Cousins can
carry on with what they’re doing, whatever it is
.
”

I agreed with Jack.
Wheels within wheels.

I went in the kitchen an
d used the land
line to call Royal
.

“Hello, Sweetheart.”

Despite my anxiety after Gia’s visit, the warmth in his voice made me
want to
melt. I
leaned on
the counter. “When will you head over?”

“In a few minutes.”

“Good. I have something to tell you.”

A brief pause, then, “You sound subdued. What is wrong?”

The lump in my throat hurt.
“Better I tell you to
your
face. I’ll see you in a min.”

I
disconnected
, then went to my usual place, a kitchen chair at the old, beat-up white table.

Royal whisked
in
the house less than two minutes later, so I knew my phone call
lit a fire
under him. He strode in looking disheveled, or as disheveled as Royal could look, long copper-gold hair loosely pulled back in a pony tail instead of a tight, neat affair which made
him
seem
to wear
a short haircut.

He immediately noticed my bruises. “Good God
, Tiff, your neck. . . .” His hands on my elbows brought me to my feet. H
e held my chin and moved my head from side to side. “What happened?”

“Take a seat,” I suggested.

He dragged a chair
over
and put it next to mine, but facing. When we sat down, he held my hand, anxious eyes still on my discolored neck.

I told him everything. Mel and Jack hovered in the background,
suggesting
what I should say, which I ignored.

His eyes darkened and seemed to roil as if a tornado of mica chips churned in their depths. “
Had I
her neck between these hands. . . .”

“What about the Cousins leaving and everything. Do you believe her?”

“
I think it was a last ditch attempt to get us to back off, but failing that . . . t
hey are not fools, they know we can take them. To hide and plot their return seems logical
, but
i
f her aim is to make us
abandon our plans and disband our forces
, it w
ill
give them only a brief surcease
.
W
e will
soon
know if
she lied
.”

His lips worked together as he cogita
ted. Then his shoulders relaxed and
a tiny huff of air escaped his nostrils. “It makes no difference, we will hunt the Cousins, wherever they may be.”