The Celestial Kiss (18 page)

I didn’t doubt he was correct, considering the complexity of the maze that protected their home.  And that was above ground.

“So, what’s a girl like you want to go to Gehenna for anyways?”

“I don’t.”  I looked for Julius, but in the dark it was useless.  “I’m not really sure where we’re going.”

Desmond laughed and it echoed around us.  “What are you cooking up, Julius?”

“You’ll see soon enough.” 

That turned out to be true, as it was only a few minutes later that Desmond stopped and began to climb a ladder on the wall.  He moved something that made a heavy grating sound and then he was gone.  Julius went next, then turned and offered me a hand.  It struck me as odd, and even if it hadn’t I’d not have taken it on principle.

There was a gap between the last rung and the hole I was trying to climb out of, but I managed to pull myself up.  The effort left me breathless, doubled over in an alley, while Julius and Desmond snickered at my exhaustion.

The air here smelled different, salty and stale, almost like the diner. But as we emerged from the alley, I realized what it was…the sea stretched alongside us, the water rising right up to the ledge at our feet, being slapped over the bannister with the force of the wind.  I pulled my sleeves further down over my hands, but couldn’t deny the sense of awe that swept over me.

The water was a marvelous thing.  I’d seen it in the distance the night James had taken me to the library, but this was incomparable.  I didn’t even care what we were doing there anymore.

We walked along the dock until Desmond found a small wooden boat tied up to one of the beams.  He untethered it and Julius got in.  He looked at me expectantly.  “You scared?”

“No.”  I said automatically.  But I was.  I’d never been this close to the water, never breathed its scent, much less been in a boat or swam in it.  The wind was causing the waves to slam the shore.  I could only imagine what it would do to that little boat.  I stepped in slowly, hands out for balance, and considered it a small victory that I didn’t fall.  I immediately plunked myself down, ignoring the smirk from Julius.  Desmond handed us the ores and then got in. 

I could not imagine where we were going.  There was nothing on the horizon, save for some tiny lights that could have been fireflies in the distance.  Surely we weren’t going to paddle all the way there?  Desmond set off in that direction, though, and Julius rowed behind me while I actually began to wonder where the Hell we were going.

We appeared to be rowing against the wind; it burned my face as we pushed on, Desmond steering us for a bit of marshland.  As we neared it, the wind caught in the reeds.  My ears had to adjust to the silence again as we came to a slow stop.  I followed Julius out of the boat, and didn’t deny his help when I felt the wet sand pulling at my shoes like it wanted to suck me under into a watery grave.

The marshland only surrounded the outer edge of what I realized was a small island…barely big enough to house a one story building. But the weeds and cat-lilies obscured it, so that until Julius pulled me through the wet grass, I half expected to walk straight into the water.  “Welcome to Gehenna.”

Desmond pushed the door open, but there was nothing inside besides a more oppressive darkness than what we left behind.  Still, he led us further into the building, and as we drew deeper, I realized two things: 1—it was much bigger inside than it had appeared and 2—it was most certainly not abandoned.  Noise echoed off the walls, growing closer with each step, until we reached the end of a hallway and Desmond opened that door.

The men and women inside were all too focused to look up at us.  I was grateful as I watched them hurl themselves at each other, grunting and yelling, dodging and jabbing at each other.  Fists and kicks were flying through the air, and the distinct smell of sweat permeated the stale room. 

“There’s our guy.”  Julius tipped his chin in the direction of a slender man dressed all in black who was engrossed in what looked like a staring contest with a woman in red lipstick and a shaved head.  Julius grimaced and pulled up the hood of my jacket so that the shadow obscured my face.  “Hang back.”  He suggested.

Desmond skirted the room with me, a few feet behind Julius at all times, as he approached the man in black.  Though he was not particularly tall (maybe an inch or two shorter than Julius), he was imposing.  “Ace.”  Julius crossed his arms, but Ace’s concentration went unbroken.  “You remember me?”

Ace’s eyes flicked over towards us.  They were disconcerting, a most unusual green with a sort of starburst pattern in them.  He looked like he could have hypnotized us with them.  He returned his attention on his opponent, but the eerie feeling didn’t disappear.  I suppressed a shudder.  “Yeah,” he spoke with an accent that was unlike anything I’d ever heard.  It was distinctively
not
British, but that was probably the closest thing to it. “From the diner.”

But this wasn’t the man Julius had been with the day I’d run away.  Though he too was a hunter, this was not the guy Julius had pinned against the wall that day.

“You worked with my sister once.”

“And you’re here because?”

“You want to look at me when I’m talking to you?”

He spared Julius a glance again.  “Not really.”  He looked back at the woman, who seemed annoyed by the interruption.  “Your sister’s easier on the eyes.”

Finally, Julius’ patience seemed to reach its end.  He grabbed a fistful of Ace’s shirt and dragged him close.  Nobody looked up, but the woman yelled and called Julius a few choice words which he expertly ignored.  “Now I have your undivided attention, why don’t we finish the conversation we started a few weeks ago?”

But Ace had apparently noticed my presence, because he grinned. It made his crooked nose look even more twisted. “What the Hell did you bring her here for?”

“I’m glad you asked.  Let’s take this outside.”

Desmond led us out the building, Julius never releasing his grip.

I was incredibly grateful for the fresh, salty air when we emerged and the wind that slapped my face.  Though nobody had bothered to glance my way, I felt entirely exposed in there.

“I’ve a feeling this is going to be a good story.”  Ace looked at me.  “Take your hood off.”

I looked at Julius for confirmation or permission.  Either way, he gave it with a curt nod, so I shook the hood loose.  Ace let out a low whistle.  “You must be out of your mind, bringing her here.”

“Oh?”  Desmond asked.  “Why is that?”

“You know why.”  Ace spat.  He looked around, like he expected people to descend upon us. 

“This is Lilith.”  Julius explained.  “Lilith, this charming young man calls himself Ace.  Ace here is sort of like a hunter.  I brought you here because I have a feeling he knows something he isn’t telling you.”

I shook my head, looking between them.  “I don’t understand.”  I didn’t know Ace, obviously.  How could he have been withholding information from me when I didn’t know him?

“I’ll explain.  Ace has been following you.  I don’t know when he started, or why, but I’m guessing it’s not a coincidence that he was at the diner the same day you and I were.”

“I’ve never seen him before.”

“Maybe not, but he’s seen you.  And I’ve caught him lurking twice now.  You want to tell us why?”

Ace stroked the stubble of his chin, thoughtful.  “Isn’t it obvious?  I’m a hunter…she’s the prize winning buck.”

Desmond snorted in disbelief.  “We’re all the prey to you.  There’s something you aren’t saying.”

My eyes narrowed.  I would take answers from whoever was willing to give them.  “How do you know each other?”

“Ace and I go back a little while.  We exist in the same social circles, so to speak.  The morning at the diner he was hanging around outside…think of it as standing guard, while his friend and I had a chat inside.  Two days ago, I noticed him watching you train with Delilah.  He was there last night too, and probably would have been tonight except I cut our session short.  So, Ace, what do you want with Lilith?”

Ace smirked.  “I’m sure you’d like to know.”

Julius grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. 

“I would.”  I glared at him.  “Are you working for Xian?  Or Arich?”

“I work for no one.”  Ace said, trying to loose Julius’ grip.  “Like I said, I’m a hunter.  And I’m a good enough one to know that she’s not your run-of-the-mill vamp.  And the fact that you’re hiding her behind your silly little hedges and teaching her to fight…well, that tells me she’s valuable to someone.  So, I’ve been watching and waiting to make my move.”

Julius ground his jaw together.  “You’ll not be making it.”  He pulled tighter on Ace’s arm until I heard a crack.  Ace howled in pain.  When Julius released him, he dropped to the ground, cradling his shoulder.  “Stay away from my family.  Stay away from Lilith.”  His voice was a cold enough warning, but having just watched him snap a man’s arm, it held even more venom.

Ace rocked on the ground, his sallow face twisted into agony.  “I’m not just going to let it go.”  He warned.

“I was hoping you’d say as much.”  Julius grinned.  “I’ll be looking forward to our next encounter.”

Our encounter with Ace haunted me the rest of the night and well into the next morning.  I’d never seen him, but he’d managed to follow me.  How long had he been doing it?  Had he been there the whole time, at my father’s home, watching?  Or had he seen me at the diner that morning and tracked me down after?  Either way, I didn’t believe he was stalking me of his own accord.  James and Julius had made the mistake of thinking I was valuable, too, but I didn’t believe it was Ace’s entire motivation for finding me here. 

I’d pestered Julius and Desmond the entire way home…how had he known Ace was following?  What exactly was that place?  And if he was a hunter, why didn’t Ace take the first opportunity to take us out?

They didn’t offer much, except Desmond did graciously tell me that the place they called Gehenna was a sort of training grounds.  I suggested that since Ace had been spying on me during training, that maybe he just wanted to recruit me, but Desmond and Julius had both laughed.  “Trust me when I say that’s not what he wanted.”

I went about my usual routine, but the whole day I was anxious to get outside at night and resume my training.  Julius had told me he’d take over from here on out, and it was a more exciting prospect to have him beat me to a pulp every night then to have to listen to Delilah’s yells.

By nightfall, I was out of my mind with the weight of everything that fell upon me, and restless to boot.  There were plenty of books around to occupy my mind, plenty of questions that I could puzzle over, but I didn’t want to focus on the endless stream of unknown again.   A walk in the gardens before meeting Julius seemed like the perfect distraction.  After all, it was the place where just a few days before I’d let all my troubles go and forgotten to fear my enemy or question his motive.  It was that desire to alleviate the pressure that had me strolling through the halls, making my way to the exit. 

The halls were dark and quiet, as I was accustomed to.  They filled up in the hour following dinner, so much so that navigating through the masses was an impossible task.  Other than that, it was quiet around here, and I liked it that way.  I wouldn’t have minded spending more time with Janna, or having James actually acknowledge my existence once in a while, but other than that, the solitude was generally peaceful. 

Once I reached the bottom of the stairs, though, there was a shift in the air… one that coaxed my skin into goose bumps.  I was no longer alone.  Three figures stood silhouetted in the entryway, directly across from me.   The front door hung wide open.

Something was wrong.

My feet kept moving though my brain wanted to turn the other way.  When I saw the figure in the middle I realized what was going on.  The small girl that stood between two strange men stared at me in a sort of shocked terror.  She looked particularly small beneath the weight of a heavy arm draped threateningly over her narrow shoulders, but I knew I’d seen her before.

I stared at the men, every bit human, trying to understand how they’d gotten past the first line of defense, much less made it through the maze. I didn’t have much chance to question it because I realized suddenly why the little girl looked familiar.  She was the one who had watched me in awe yesterday at the werewolves’ camp.  Had they taken her from there? 

I took another step closer, and froze in place to the sound of a loud click.

A shaft of moonlight from the oculus glanced off the object in one man’s hand, steel and small and pointed right at me.  My breath caught momentarily in my chest while I eyed the gun.  “What are you doing here?”  I demanded.  The words sounded strong to me, though I felt that I must be trembling as much as the young girl who was staring at me with wide, terrified eyes.

The man with the gun shook his head, stepping slowly forward.  “If you’re a good girl, then nobody will need to get hurt.”  He smirked.  “Good girls don’t ask questions.”

His face was younger than his voice suggested, though dark and unshaven.  He couldn’t have been much older than Julius; His companion, too, seemed just slightly older than myself.  I looked between them and found the courage to speak again.  “What do you want?”

“Lots of things,” The man answered gruffly.  “And you’re going to give them all to us.”

“Or the girl’s going to die.”  A second gun was pressed to the young girl’s temple, and though she shook violently, she did not scream.  It was in her dark eyes, wild with terror, but only a small gasp escaped her.

All I could manage was a nod.  My dry mouth couldn’t have made any audible noise even if my brain had known what to say.

Clearly calling the shots, the first man stepped close enough that I could see the relish burn in his hard eyes.  “She’s just a child, herself.”  He mocked.  “How old are you, anyways?  Sixteen?  Seventeen at the most.”

“Please,” I tried again, “we have nothing of value here.”

But he seemed not to hear me.  Instead, he turned to his companion, who I didn’t recognize.  He seemed to know me, though, because he nodded some sort of confirmation.  “It’s her.”

Before I knew what was happening, the first man had seized my upper arm tightly enough to leave a bruise and pulled me toward him.  From the corner of my eye I saw them release the young girl, pushing her forward so that she took off at a run without as much as a backward glance.  “Don’t struggle,” He warned, “and maybe when we’re all squared away, I’ll let you walk freely.”

It wasn’t an enticing promise, and the fact that they didn’t bother hiding their faces suggested that they did not intend for me to survive whatever was in store anyways.  Shit.  I’d spent the last week learning self-defense, but those old rules and standbys went right out the window now that there was a gun involved. 

They appraised me together, moving closer until I was backed into the wall.  The man dusted a cold finger along my collar bone.  Refusing to move my eyes from him, I noticed the thick scar that cut across his cheek.  A cold shock choked the air from my lungs when I finally recognized him as one of the men from the night I’d been bitten.  He was the one who’d thrown me into the wall.  But why was he here now? 

He smiled, now that we’d been reacquainted.  “Good to see you again.”  And then his fingers delved down to grab the medallion that hung at my neck.  He wrenched it free at once.  There was a tiny metallic noise as a piece of the chain broke on the floor.  In its absence, I felt exposed and inexplicably vulnerable.  “I’m sure that’s worth a pretty penny.”  He said, looking down at the antique piece in his hand.  The statement garnered the attention of his comrade, who looked eagerly over his shoulder on tip toes.

I assessed him with the assumption that this was the other man from the alley, but he didn’t seem the least bit familiar.  He grimaced and shifted uncomfortably, as though my necklace were cursed.  He looked at his friend through narrowed eyes.  “Is it what I think it is?”

Wide-eyed, the first man managed a nod.  Seconds later, he released his grip on my arm, brushing his hand across his pants as though my skin had repulsed him.  “We’re done here.”  He said.  Still, the gun was pointed at me, and yet I couldn’t bring myself to feel fear when I didn’t understand half of what was going on. 

The second man looked at me grudgingly.  Suspicion soured on his face.  A long index finger stroked the trigger, almost an impulse of its own.

              Standing at the other end of that human weapon, I knew how quickly it could end.  All of it. It was an uncomfortable truth that in a second, a twitch of his finger could end my life.  It stopped me from moving and made me feel dizzy at the same time.  

              They began to retreat backwards into the night, slowly and without the gun moving off of me.  I closed my eyes, trying to deny the fear.

              When the gun went off, it stole the breath from my chest, and I closed my eyes tighter, waiting for an impact that never came.  I opened my eyes in time to see the two young men running out into the night like their lives depended on it.  A strange sound escaped me, something like strangled relief, and I turned around.  My ears were still ringing from the blast and the echo and the blood rushing through my ears, so I hadn’t heard him, but I could see my name forming on his lips. 
Lilith
.  The King lay at the foot of the steps, not far from me. 

              His own blood leeched out around him, a rapidly growing pool of crimson.

              I ran to him and dropped to my knees at his side. 
Find the wound. 
Those three word suddenly seemed all that I was capable of thinking.  If I could find where he’d been shot, I might be able to staunch the flow.  But there was so much blood…already it was soaking into his white shirt, and making it impossible to see anything.  I ran my hands over his stomach, his chest, until I found it.

              Still, the King was trying to speak.  Sound was returning to me slowly, but I couldn’t make out anything he was trying to say.  “Hi…”  He swallowed, and it seemed to take a lot of effort.  My hands were trembling…I think my whole body may have been trembling.

“Shh.  I don’t think you should be talking.”  I pressed harder against the spot and opened my mouth to scream for help when I heard the footfalls like thunder.

              Julius didn’t make it entirely down the steps before phasing, jumping as a wolf over his father.  His back legs didn’t even get any traction before he peeled out the door.  James dropped down opposite me, checked his father’s pulse with a finger on the neck and then looked up at me.  “Are you hurt?”

              “The King…your father…”

              Suddenly the queen was there, and she took James’ place across from me.  James tried to pull me away, but I wasn’t letting go until help came.  I shook him off and managed a single word, “No.”

              “I’m here.”  Delilah announced, coming over to kneel next to me.  Her hands pushed mine away, and I let James drag me back that time.  She knew what she was doing.

                James helped me up.  I might have swayed if it weren’t for his arms anchoring me.  “Are you hurt?”  James demanded again, tilting my face into the light as though he were inspecting for any signs of damage.  He sounded calm and dignified, but when I managed to look at him, I saw that his eyes were blazing with something like anger. 

“No.”  I blinked.  The hall had filled up with people now.  An older woman came in and started giving orders, directing people about.  I didn’t hear what she said, but the King was still trying to speak.  His wife leaned her head to his lips, held his hand, and shook her head.  Whatever words he was attempting to say, they weren’t being heard.

“He’s in good hands.”  James assured me, grabbing my chin so that I had to look at him.  I blinked, but his words were lost on me.  I was far away, reliving the day that man in the alley had thrown me against the wall like it was his God-given right.  I thought of the way he had looked at me tonight, like he was intrigued and disgusted.  I thought of the way he had teased that trigger…he’d wanted to shoot me.  He’d gotten the King instead.  But was it an accident, or just a way to get away?