The Inner Circle (Return of the Ancients Book 3) (20 page)

I banged on the door, shivering in the icy wind. But on my third knock, the door swung open ominously.

I hesitated, and after calling Jareth again by whispering his numbers in a shaky voice, I finally stepped inside and quickly scanned the darkened room.

It was empty. Completely empty. Void of furniture.

They really
had
moved away.

Perhaps the flicker of light that I’d seen was the last Fae leaving.

And suddenly, I was utterly devastated. Shattered. I guess until that moment, I hadn’t really believed that Rafael was leaving.

Hot tears threatened, and I sank to the cold floor, shivering. But I was too miserable to even cry.

I don’t know how long I was there on the floor, cringing, but gradually, I became aware of footsteps shuffling overhead.

I held my breath.

Was it Melody?

I waited, listening. 

I heard a deep voice speak and another answer.

Taking a deep breath, I got to my feet and tiptoed to the stairs, pausing to listen.

The voices were a little louder. Male voices.

A shadow moved, but before I had a chance to even be scared, Ajax bounded down the stairs to greet me.

My heart leapt with joy. The fact that Ajax was there meant that Rafael was as well.

I found myself grinning.

Ajax flattened his ears. Nudging me with his shoulder, he crouched low and crawled up a few steps before turning around to look at me.

I knew he was trying to tell me to follow him quietly. He hadn’t betrayed me before. I looked into his dark eyes and decided to trust him again.

Feeling safe with Ajax as my guide, I tiptoed silently up the carpeted steps after him.

Once upstairs, Ajax paused in front of a door at the end of the hall and stood alert, tense with stifled energy. The fur along his spine bristled.

I stopped.

The voices were louder. I was certain one of them belonged to Rafael.

Ajax stood where he was, regal, silent, and then with a dangerous glint in his eye, he pushed the door open.

It let out a loud squeak.

The voices stopped immediately, but after a few seconds, they resumed as Ajax disappeared inside.

I waited, but when Ajax didn’t reappear, I inched forward on my stomach like a marine scrambling through the jungle underbrush.

A dim shaft of light fell from the narrow crack of the open door. Holding my breath, I peered into the room.

I couldn’t see anything at first. But when my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I saw Rafael sitting cross-legged in a chair, clad in pure white with his feathered mask at his feet.

I gasped.

For a brief moment, Rafael glanced in the direction of the sound.

Ajax held still.

I held my breath, not daring to move, but my heart sang. Rafael
hadn’t
left me after all.

With a shrug, Rafael turned away and gritted his teeth into a smile. “You broke our agreement. You let the mutant tulpa loose for your own purposes, did you not?” he asked coldly. “I can no longer trust you.”

“But we can share purposes,” Marquis replied, stepping into view. “Join us, my son. To be one with the Brotherhood is a relationship like no other.”

Ajax’s fur rose as Blondie’s dark whisper of malice slithered through the room, “Join us, Rafael, and we will aid you in your quest of cleansing the Fae.”

With each word, Blondie’s voice deepened. But for the first time, the lull of his voice had no power over me.

I was cautiously optimistic that Al’s hat was working.

To my absolute horror, my phone rang. The sound echoed loudly through the empty house.

I couldn’t believe that I’d neglected to silence it.

Knowing it would be the end of me if I were caught, I leapt to my feet and dove for the stairs, trying to silence my phone along the way.

I’d just reached the bottom, and the front door was in sight when my feet were knocked out from under me.

My phone flew out of my fingers as I hit the ground. Hard. The wind was knocked from my lungs.

Unable to breathe, I looked up into Marquis’ sneering face.

“What have we here?” he asked, grinning from ear to ear.

He blinked in rapid succession, but not fast enough to prevent me from catching a brief glimpse of his vertical pupils. With a wild-eyed and cruel expression, he grabbed me by the back of my neck and hauled me to my feet.

Managing to catch my breath, I kicked him then, thrashing around wildly, but he was much stronger than I was.

Cruel fingers squeezed my arms, and then I was slammed against the wall.

I felt something crack and a sharp pain seared through me, rendering me unable to move. My legs gave out, and I collapsed to the floor.

“You’re an unexpected bonus,” Marquis said with a laugh, squeezing my arm in a punishing grip as he p
roceeded to drag me back up the stairs.

I’d seen people dragged in movies, and I always figured it would hurt, but in reality, it was beyond excruciating. He seemed to delight in banging me into every corner and wall as he pulled me back to the darkened chamber.

Tears of pain clouded my vision, but I saw Melody clear enough.

She was standing in the middle of the room, and Marquis picked me up to throw me to the ground at her feet.

I couldn’t move. I hurt too badly. I just stayed as I was in a pathetic huddle as she looked down her nose at me.

I wasn’t sure what was worse. Seeing the mutant tulpa or being alone with Melody. They were pretty close. I managed to avoid eye contact as long as possible, but I finally looked into her eyes, I was surprised at the murderous rage simmering in them.

“It is time for you to die,” Melody told me with shocking fierceness. A cruel smile formed on her lips.

There was no way to defend myself. I couldn’t even move. And honestly, with the amount of pain I was in, I was surprised that I was still breathing.

Rafael swam into my field of vision. His jaw was clenched tight, and his face was hard. “Free her,” he ordered.

I watched the smile drain from Melody’s face.

“Why risk many when one will suffice?” Melody hissed. “Let me kill her and have done. I fear that your heart is not with us, my prince.”

She attacked. As her fingers closed about my throat, from somewhere, I found the strength to fight back like a madwoman, kicking, twisting, and biting. Judging by her shrill curses, I found my target more than once.

Abruptly, she was knocked back, but she took me with her, maintaining her grip on my throat as my breath came in short, shallow gasps. I could feel my consciousness beginning to slip away.

Dimly, I heard Rafael roaring, “Do not harm those precious to me. I will protect them!”

“You find this human precious?” Melody shouted back, astounded.

He responded with a single word of “
Yes!
”

And with that single word, he struck Melody back.

She dropped me at once. The cold fresh air burned my lungs as I dropped to my knees.

Pandemonium ensued. As Blondie jumped towards me, Ajax became a muscle-bound brute of a dog, turning into all teeth and raised fur as he launched himself at the Mesmer like a missile.

Blondie squealed, a high-pitched shriek.

Marquis was in the corner, wrestling with Rafael and Melody. I wasn’t sure who he was trying to help, if either of them, but then Rafael shoved him roughly to one side and he fell to the ground.

In two giant steps, Rafael was at my side, spreading his arms wide to shield me with his body.

S
uddenly, Melody appeared behind him.

I couldn’t even warn him. My chest hurt too much. My ribs were broken, and I knew I was critically injured. My breath was little more than a choking rattle.

Helplessly, I watched Melody draw a slender knife from her belt. I saw her hand rise and then fall as she plunged the weapon into Rafael’s back.

Rafael gasped, and turning white, fell to the floor writhing in pain.

With a look that could strike fear in the heart of anyone, Melody hovered over Rafael and spat in a low voice, “Those who succumb to feelings of love will never be powerful. You know this.”

“That is your belief, not mine.” Rafael gritted his teeth. The pain was heavy in his voice.

I could see the knife handle protruding from his shoulder, and although he was bleeding, the wound itself didn’t seem mortal. I knew the real danger lay in the slim iron blade, releasing lethal poison into his body and causing excruciating pain.

I wanted to help him, but I couldn’t move. In fact, I couldn’t feel my legs anymore, and it was all I could do to stay conscious.

Slowly, Melody straightened. A malicious smile formed on her sharp face as she turned aside and raised her hand.

Ajax’s barking—that I suddenly realized had been a continual background noise— abruptly ended in a high-pitched squeal.

I closed my eyes, knowing that it wasn’t good. Desperately, I summoned Jareth once again. But still, he didn’t come.

Where was he when I really needed him?

Marquis returned. Taking in the extent of our injuries, his eyes flashed a startling bright yellow that revealed pupils narrowed into razor-thin slits.

He drew his brows into a frown. “Do not let them die,” he said, sounding quite alarmed. Prodding me with a toe, he added, “The human body is too frail.”

He stepped forward and stretched his hand out in my direction, but Melody drew him back sharply.

“Leave her be,” she ordered crisply.

Marquis hesitated. He appeared uneasy. And as he spoke this time, his voice vibrated into the impossibly low bass of a Mesmer.

“Do not let them die, Melody,” he repeated in deep, reverberating tones.

But Melody’s only response was an arrogant toss of the head. “Do not even
think
to mesmerize me,” she grated harshly. Pointing at me, she added, “It’s better if Sydney is no longer here.” Fishing in her pocket, she pulled out her trion.

At that, Rafael gave a hoarse cry and lurched to his feet. Reaching back, he twisted the iron knife free and flung it aside.

It happened so quickly that Melody had no time to react until it was too late. Falling back an unwitting step, she gasped, “Iron should immobilize you!” Her voice held a note of rising panic.

Rafael’s gray eyes narrowed threateningly, and there was a hard edge to his voice as he replied, “Purebloods have more secrets than even
you
know of, Melody.”

A look of fear mixed with horror crossed her face. Apparently unwilling to take chances, she shifted, instantly disappearing into a cloud of mist.

If I could have, I would have breathed a sigh of relief.

Marquis actually did. With his delicate mouth splitting into a wide grin, he said, “Then you are joining our side, at long last, my son.”

Rafael’s gray eyes swept him from head to toe. “Never!” he swore emphatically.

Marquis’ nostrils flared. “But have you not just made an enemy of Melody? Why if not to join our cause?”

“I may be an enemy of your enemy,” Rafael replied coolly. “But I will never be your friend.”

That wasn’t what Marquis wanted to hear. His mouth twisted in raw anger. “Then you now stand against us?”

With a contemptuous toss of his head, Rafael answered him, “Marquis, I never stood
with
you.”

The vein on Marquis’ temple began to pulse. He tapped his foot and, glancing down at me, shook his head. “Why risk all for a mere human?” he asked. “You can live without her. You don’t need her like we do.”

At that, Rafael closed his eyes, and I could barely hear his reply. “Not so,” he whispered. “I need her more.”

“Can you walk away from eternal life? From a relationship deeper, closer, and far superior to even that as a lover?” Marquis voice took on a tantalizing tone. “Listen to me. I’m your father, and I—”

“Marquis may be my father, but this relationship ends here,” Rafael said quietly. “My father died when I was a child.”

“Not so,” Marquis objected, striking his chest, “Marquis is still here.”

Rafael said nothing. He simply turned his back upon him.

But clearly, Marquis wasn’t finished yet. “To become one with the Brotherhood is ecstasy and wisdom beyond measure!” he shouted.

“You are dead to me,” Rafael said in a voice scarcely above a whisper.

Upon hearing those words, Marquis drew back in outright alarm and then from nowhere, Blondie appeared, dragging himself into view. His body was broken and bleeding. His injuries were severe.

It was obvious that Ajax had nearly finished him.

“They’re coming,” Blondie wheezed between rattling breaths. “Leave. Must leave.”

Marquis let loose a string of curses, and leaning back, slammed his fist against the wall several times. But then bending down to scoop up Blondie into his arms, he warned, “This isn’t over yet. This is only the beginning.”

With that, they too disappeared in a cloud of mist, and we were left alone.

Rafael knelt at my side in an instant.

I looked up into his handsome face. I wanted to smile, but everything was starting to get dark. I couldn’t really control my body anymore, and the lack of feeling had crept into my arms.

Rafael sent me a comforting smile. “Hold on, Sydney. You’ll feel better in a moment,” he promised as he brushed my hair back with his hand.

I looked up into his unwavering gray eyes and silently tried to tell him that I loved him. I wanted him to know that. Just in case.

His eyes softened as he placed his hands over my chest, and as I watched, his fingers began to glow. After a few moments, sparks shot out of his hand to form into a ball of pure white light that expanded to cover us both.

The first thing I noticed was the pain in my arms and legs. It was like the ants you feel when you first move after your limbs fall asleep. Only multiply it by one hundred. Thankfully, the sensation didn’t last long.

Afterwards, each breath suddenly became easier. The bubble disappeared with a slight pop, and I sat up on my own to suck in huge gulps of precious air.

I’d come perilously close to dying, and now with my sudden new lease on life, the only thing I wanted to do was to hug Rafael and tell him that I loved him.