Echoes in the Dark (7 page)

Bri
and Sevair matched Luthan’s sigh. Magical creatures were usually cryptic.

Bri
stared at Luthan. “Have you had any visions of her?”

He
could feel a prophecy coalesce, didn’t want it. “No.” The vision came in a
flash anyway. Despite his wishes he’d become expert in deciphering flashes of
prophecy. “Only that she and I will meet you on a road, still summer.”

After
searching his face, Bri nodded. “Then we’ll leave.” Again she shifted. “This
place makes me nervous.
I
don’t want to be kidnapped.”

Luthan’s
jaw flexed before he said, “I did what I had to do.”

Wincing,
Bri said, “I didn’t mean—Before my time. Anyway, let’s go home. I’ll contact
Calli at her estate and give her the info.” Bri took Sevair’s hand and led him
to the roc.

Sevair
still scanned the buildings. “Perhaps some time in the future we can visit….”

“Maybe.”
Bri mounted the roc, then Sevair settled behind her. With a short, “Bye!” they
flew away.

Luthan’s home

L
uthan flew,
intercepted Alexa and Bastien, Raine and Faucon in the air and led them to his
home. A few minutes later they all landed in the yellow cobblestone courtyard
between the small manor and the moat.

Alexa
and Bastien went inside, but Luthan lingered to talk with Raine and Faucon,
neither of whom had dismounted.

He
convinced these two that all was well, he’d explain everything to Bastien and
Alexa. Raine and Faucon could return to Castleton. He sensed they were glad to
go, and didn’t want to spend any more time together. Faucon would grimly escort
her to the Castle, flying with Distance Magic, and they wouldn’t need to
converse or interact. Their relationship was interesting, and he made a note to
tell the Singer—No, he would not be reporting anything of importance to the
Singer.

Faucon
had the opposite reaction to Exotiques than Luthan. Luthan had never spoken to
the man about his innate attraction to Exotiques, could only imagine that
Faucon heard a siren’s song of love where Luthan experienced a painful clash of
sounds screaming “wrong.” But of the two of them, so far Faucon had been the
one most emotionally hurt.

Raine
looked back over her shoulder, frowning, as her volaran rose into the sky.
Wanting again to be reassured that she wasn’t abandoning her friend, Alexa, or
the new Exotique. Luthan sent her mental soothing—
All is well, I promise.
This is not like your own experience, the Singer will cherish the lady.

And
you are an honorable man,
Raine replied, her expression easing. She waved.

He
waved back, then entered his home, passing his housekeeper, who’d brought
brandy and tea to the shabbily masculine sitting room where Bastien and Alexa
waited.

Now
to convince Alexa not to storm the Singer’s Abbey.

5

L
uthan strode in.
Bastien lounged in his chair, sipping brandy. It was good to see him there.
During the two years they’d lived together, after Luthan had put aside his wild
ways, the seat had conformed to Bastien’s butt. That was years ago and Bastien
was a hardened warrior now. He was even a Marshall like their father, not a
troubled young man with strange and spiking Power that went with his striped
black-and-white hair.

He
was grinning, watching his bondmate pace the room. Since Alexa was an Exotique
and smaller than Lladranans, and the shortest one, too, it took her more paces
than it would have anyone else. Luthan noted that Bastien watched
her
butt. “So what’s so wrong about the Singer Summoning the next Exotique?”
Bastien prodded his wife.

She
scowled and stopped in front of him, fingering her jade baton, her best magical
weapon. That would have made Luthan nervous except Bastien was a good judge of
his wife’s moods. Bastien continued, “You just wanted her to bond with you and
the rest of the Exotiques first, before you handed her over to the Singer.
Raging curiosity, lover.”

Alexa
pouted then plopped herself on Bastien’s lap. He wrapped an arm around her, and
Luthan felt a stinging surge of envy.

Bastien
met Luthan’s eyes, his expression unusually sober. “Fact is, we Marshalls have
been working as a group on the complex Summoning spell. We had the chorus
harmonies right, but…” He shrugged. “We lost Partis, and his was the voice with
the strength and timbre and heart that brought the Exotiques through the
Dimensional Corridor.”

Luthan
froze as he noticed tears dribbling down Alexa’s cheeks. He didn’t think he’d
ever seen the strong woman cry.

Bastien
cradled her against his chest, gave her a cloth.

“It
was Partis’s voice that drew me,” Alexa said between quiet sobs. “He comforted
me for the loss of my friend. He was so strong and so gentle. Such a serene
man.”

“An
amazing quality in a Marshall. They tend to be fierce and passionate,” Luthan
said, pouring her a cup of the tea she favored and that he kept on hand,
dumping in a couple of lumps of sugar and stirring it.

She
sniffed, took the cup with watery eyes, steady hands and a crooked smile. “A
compliment, thanks.” She drank, then sighed. “We Marshalls
are
determined.” She patted Bastien’s cheek. “Even him.”

Bastien’s
arm tightened on her. “Determined that you aren’t going to face the Dark alone.
I am your Shield.”

The
Shield was the defensive person of the Marshall Sword-Shield pair, though
Bastien had many years of outright battle as a Chevalier himself. He tucked her
head under his chin. “We were training Marwey for the main solo, but she didn’t
have the range. There’s a young Chevalier we were encouraging to test for
Marshall.” He rubbed Alexa’s back. “Just as well the Singer brought her over.
Mirror magic, you said?” He raised his brows.

“From
what I saw.” Luthan squinted to bring details back. “The Singer called the cave
the ‘Summoning Cavern’ so—”

Alexa
continued, “—Other Singers have brought people through. She had some sort of
crystal that showed Calli this world when she was growing up on Earth.” Alexa
shot Luthan a dark look. “I’m still mad at you for hurting Calli and Marrec.”

Luthan
closed his eyes.

Bastien
said, “It was more than a year ago, give it a rest. And he made a mistake,
didn’t you?” he asked Luthan.

Luthan
opened his eyes and stoically met Alexa’s frowning gaze. “No. It wasn’t a
mistake. I followed the Singer’s orders.” He walked to a table and poured
himself a short brandy, downed it. His jaw flexed. “I am sorry for any upset I
caused—”

“To
Marian and Jaquar and Bossgond and me and Bastien—” Alexa obviously still kept
a list and a grudge.

“I
didn’t upset Bastien,” Luthan protested.

“You
upset me. My upset disturbed Bastien,” Alexa ended frostily.

No
way to escape this. Again. “I am sorry for the upset I caused, but looking
back, I believe that Amee, and destiny, was well served by my actions.” He sank
into a large, comfortable chair. “The Singer was right in that instance.”

“I
don’t think so,” Alexa said. “I think that if she, or you, had considered the
matter, you’d’ve found a better option.”

Luthan
shrugged. “I don’t know. Perhaps.”

“It’s
past,” Bastien said.

“
But,
I am done with being her representative,” Luthan said.

Both
Alexa and Bastien straightened. Bastien nodded. “Good.”

“Good!”
Alexa echoed.

“When
she first requested I become her liaison to the Marshalls and other segments of
Lladranan society, I thought it was good the Singer and Friends would be less
isolated in the Abbey. At first she kept me well informed and I knew why she
gave the orders she did and followed them, even if I did not agree totally with
her. The past year or so, though…” He shrugged. “After that last illness…she’s
become secretive, autocratic. I’m done with her, and will tell her so…soon.”

“Hmm.”
Alexa finished her tea and set the cup on a side table. “Now the new Exotique
will be the one to integrate the Singer and her Friends into the rest of
Lladranan society. What did you say her name was, again?”

They
hadn’t been introduced, but Luthan thought back, recalled the trilling of the
bird’s mental voice. “Jikata.”

Alexa
gasped. Her mouth dropped open. She put a hand on her heart. “
The
Jikata?”

Luthan
frowned. “It’s a title?”

Alexa
was shaking her head. “No. She’s a singer.”

“Of
course,” Luthan said.

Alexa
hopped off of Bastien’s knees and strode over to Luthan. “I mean she’s a
popular singer in our world.” Her hands waved. “A local star going
national—international.”

That
was gibberish to Luthan.

Alexa
began pacing again. “A…a well-known troubadour?”

Luthan
shared a glance with Bastien, for Alexa to be impressed meant the lady was
someone.

“Wait,
wait,” Alexa muttered. “Didn’t I hear…yes!” Her eyes went bright. “I read that
she had a four-octave voice.”

This
time they all shared a glance.

“The
requirement for the City Destroyer spell while unloosing Marian’s weapon knot,”
Bastien murmured.

“Wait
’til I tell the others! Especially Marian.” Alexa settled onto Luthan’s lap,
looked up at him with a winning smile. “She’s from Colorado, too. How did she
look? Tell me all about her.”

He met
Bastien’s gaze over Alexa’s head. His brother smiled and raised his mug to him.

So
Luthan told Alexa all he knew of the Summoning.

L
uthan waited up
after Alexa and Bastien went to bed, prepared to convince Circlet Marian and
her husband Jaquar that Jikata should remain with the Singer.

He
sat in his firelit study. Like all the other rooms in the small manor, it was
comfortable but worn. The walls had faded to an even duller color than the
original beige. The sturdy wood and leather chairs showed nicks and scratches.
Occasionally there was a settee or couch with a dim pattern reflecting his
great aunt’s taste.

He
still liked this place. Couldn’t imagine living in the great, cold castle where
he and Bastien had been raised by a whining, disinterested mother and a
dictatorial father.

Since
Bastien had formed an unexpected bond with their father before his death and
told Luthan about their father’s foreknowledge of his own death, Luthan
understood the man better. Luthan didn’t despise his father anymore, but he
would never be able to respect his sire.

Tonight
the Sorcerers—Circlets—would come, Exotique Marian and her bondmate Jaquar.
Since the weather was clear with only a few drifts of mist, they wouldn’t ride
lightning, but fly on volarans. He didn’t know what experimentation they might
have been conducting when they felt the Summoning, but they’d been on their
island in Brisay Sea. His stable master had been alerted.

Luthan
would wait for them, get the confrontation out of the way when there were only
two of them, no matter how formidable. Taking the Exotiques one at a time was
the best strategy.

Besides,
he didn’t want to go up to bed. Bastien and Alexa tended to be noisy in their
lovemaking. He didn’t begrudge them that, but it did remind him of his loneliness,
his single state. The invasion of the Dark’s Nest was preliminarily scheduled
for less than three months from now, perhaps as little as a month, determined
by the building of the Ship and the trip. Though they hoped they’d survive,
they were all prepared to die.

He’d
never thought he’d die single, always had believed he’d find a bondmate—was
that fantasy or wishing or a vision that had gone awry?

It
was near midnight when the doorharp sounded. He rose from the chair where he’d
been dozing and went to the door. Beyond the thick wood he sensed great Power.
Marian and Jaquar were here.

With
a low whistle, he set the spell torches lighting around him in the entryway,
then opened the door and bowed. “Salutations.”

Marian,
the Exotique Circlet, was tall and voluptuous with long, dark red hair, blue
eyes and a slightly olive tone to her complexion.

“Salutations,”
Jaquar said. He was tall with silver streaks of Power at both temples and eyes
a little darker blue than Marian’s. Some old strain of Exotique blood was in
his background.

Neither
of them appeared angry, but both looked as if they had prickly questions.

“Come
into the sitting room,” Luthan said. “I have brandy and mead.”

“Prepared
as usual,” Marian murmured. “I don’t sense the new Exotique here.”

The
skirmishing had begun.

Luthan
continued to the sitting room, poured brandies for Jaquar and himself—he was
drinking more tonight than he did in an entire month—and Marian the mead she
favored. As the couple sat together on a loveseat, Luthan caught a half smile
on Jaquar’s face. The Exotiques’ men were enjoying him trying to handle their
women, and Marian could literally be a force of nature. She was a weather mage
like her husband.