-24-
I slowed down when we reached Kieran’s office. A man was in the office, but he wasn’t alone. The man was making out with some blonde, his back to us. Keiran and Kim? The dark roots said it wasn’t my friend Kim. From Bran’s memories, she’d been dating him before I went to the island. I had to see the man’s face to confirm that he was Keiran. I chose the perfect landing spot and directed Locke in next to me. Lottius and the sisters appeared beside us.
“Get lost, Guardians,” he mumbled. The rudeness and voice said he was our guy.
The sisters giggled. Lottius was busy staring at his ass with such lustful heat, I was sure he’d burst into flame. He stopped kissing the woman, sighed melodramatically, and mumbled, “Later?”
But the girl was staring at us with her mouth open. He turned, violet eyes widening underneath thick lashes. Bran’s memories flashed in my head—tall, dimpled chin, chiseled features and brown hair with purple highlights, and a Gothic array of earrings, chains, rings, and bracelets. We had the right Keiran.
He’s hot, Lottius said.
“Hi, Kieran,” I said.
He blinked. “You remember me?”
“Of course.” I glanced at the girl he’d been kissing, who looked like she was about to crap bricks. “So, you and Kim are…?”
“Complicated. I’m surprised to see you considering everything that’s happening. I mean, I thought… Never mind. What can I do for you, Lil, uh, Princess Lil…? I’m not exactly sure what to call you.” He was a nervous mess.
“‘Princess Lilith’will do,” Locke said, stepping forward as a bodyguard would, which was cute. He barely reached Keiran’s chin.
I didn’t correct him. “Can we have a table? I’m starving.”
“Uh, a table in my restaurant?” he asked.
“You still serve the best food in L.A., don’t you?”
“Of course. A table for five?”
“Make it ten. We’re expecting company.”
We followed him down a broad hallway and through some double doors. The hostesses watched us with petrified expressions. Whispers followed us. I made eye contact with a few customers and smiled. Mount Hermon Island was in the Pacific Ocean and two hours behind the continental USA. It was too late for little children to be eating out, so most of the clients were adults.
Keiran led us to a window table with a beautiful view of downtown L.A. I took a window seat and had a clear view of the entrance and most of the L-shaped room. He placed CC menus in front of us. He was nervous, but I pretended not to notice.
“What would you recommend, Keiran?” I asked. “I’m starving.”
“She hasn’t eaten in days,” Lottius said.
Keiran studied her, then me. “May I ask why?”
“No, you may not,” Locke said.
I hid a smile. We placed our order and he left. We were still drawing attention, which was distracting. We would like privacy, please.
The staring stopped.
We were in the middle of our meal when the Guardians arrived. The pulsing powerful psi energies made the hairs on the back of my head rise. Everyone at our table must have felt them, because they stopped eating. The customers gathered their things and teleported out of the restaurant. Then the Guardians moved closer and surrounded us. Luckily, most of them were old friends of mine.
The guys looked nothing like what I’d seen in Bran’s memories. Remy had grown a moustache and beard, Sykes’s hair was shorter, and Kim and Izzy looked more gorgeous than Bran had viewed them. They had two new members of their team, a boy and a girl. I wondered what their powers were and if they were my replacements.
I waited for a flood of memories and emotions. Maybe a flash. A smidge.
Nothing. The lack of connection bothered me. The echoes of the past were like stars—there, yet out of reach. I had expected more. A feeling of coming home, perhaps.
The Senior Guardians appeared behind them a moment later. Cardinal Janelle…no, Aunt Janelle was what I’d called her. She looked the same. My insides softened when our eyes met. It was the first real emotion I had felt since seeing them. Where was my grandfather? Surely seeing him would trigger something stronger.
My eyes locked with Cardinal Seth’s. He wore sullen arrogance like a cloak, and Cardinal Moira was breathtakingly beautiful. The seniors stood protectively close, but not so close that they couldn’t hurl weapons.
Our amulets and daggers are not glowing, Kim telepathed the others.
I told you she couldn’t possibly have turned evil, Izzy retorted.
Of course, they expected me to be evil. Guardians were so naïve. Just because someone was a Hermonite didn’t necessarily make her evil.
She looks amazing, Sykes finally said. He was the flirt. I felt nothing toward him. With his blond locks and hazel eyes, he was cute in a boyish, surfer-dude sort of way. He reminded me of Gus, Lottius’s mate.
I don’t think she remembers us, Remy said. He was the serious one, the leader of the group. The two new additions thought I looked like Goddess Xenia, which was flattering. The seniors had their shields up.
“Hey, guys. Join us,” I said, and waved at the empty seats.
No one moved.
“Of course, I remember you, silly. Remy, I always liked you better without facial hair. And Kim, you look exactly the same.” I studied her, then Izzy. “Like your new short ’do, Izzy. And you’re right. I’m not evil. Sykes, I don’t know if I like your hair this short. It makes you look old.”
Their expressions didn’t change. Okay, no red carpet. I pushed my chair back and they all reached for their weapons. Now, that was a reaction I hadn’t expected. It hurt and ticked me off. I was tempted to reach for the Kris Dagger.
“You know what? I didn’t come here to fight. Just take me to my father and we’ll leave. I don’t even care why you kidnapped him. Just hand him over.”
“We don’t have your father, Lil,” Aunt Janelle said.
“Why would we kidnap him?” Cardinal Seth asked.
“Because every Hermonite is evil in your book,” I said calmly. “Where’s my grandfather, Aunt Janelle?”
Cardinal Seth lifted his hand and stopped her before she answered. “We are not here to play games, Lil,” he snapped. “You took your grandfather last night and you’re here to gloat.”
My stomach hollowed out. “Grampa has disappeared, too?”
Seth laughed. “You are good, but I know all the tricks your kind throws.”
“My kind?”
“Just because you were once one of us doesn’t change what you are. We were told your memories were erased, but from your display a few minutes ago, you remembered and told your people where we live. They’ve attacked us nonstop for the last several days. Your people destroyed our enclave and annihilated our support staff.”
“We did not attack you,” I said. “If anyone did, it’s the bunch of rebels who left the island two days ago when they realized they couldn’t control me. Chances are they are working with Gavyn’s stupid dark lord friends.”
“Do you really expect us to believe you?” Seth asked. “You grabbed your grandfather and put him out of harm’s way, then came out of hiding to finish us.”
“Aunt Janelle?”
“Your grandfather has been acting strange the last several days, taking off alone,” Aunt Janelle said.
I glanced at Lottius. Sir Norath said the same thing about my father.
She nodded. They were meeting.
“I guess I was wrong,” I said. “You don’t have my father. Come on, guys.” I got up. “I know people who can help us rescue him and my grandfather. Excuse us, please.”
Cardinal Seth stepped forward. “You’re not going anywhere.”
The man was seriously beginning to piss me off. I didn’t know much about my relationship with this particular Guardian, but I doubted I liked him. He had serious issues.
“Cardinal Seth, I don’t need your permission to leave. I’m not a Guardian. You have no idea what the people who kidnapped them are capable of.”
“I’m a hunter; I know how demons think.”
“I’m not talking about hunting or fighting. They will drug them, drain their energy, and keep them hidden where we’ll never find them. I have to find them. They are the only family I have left, and I will not let you or anyone else get in my way. So, step back.”
“You are not leaving,” Cardinal Seth said. “You’ll have to go through me and every one of us here before—”
A blinding light flashed to my left and I turned. Bran had arrived. Perfect timing. A tall black dude appeared beside him. Dante. He was gaunt, and not as dashing as I’d seen him in Bran’s memories, but then again, he’d been living in the dungeon for almost a year.
“What’s going on?” Bran asked, walking to where I stood. Dante kept his distance.
“We don’t have to tell him anything when he associates with his kind.” Cardinal Seth sneered at Dante.
“Stop it, Uncle Seth,” Kim said.
“Put a sock in it, Seth,” Aunt Janelle said at the same time.
Cardinal Seth turned to glare at them. “You cannot believe anything the girl says.”
“I do,” Kim said.
“Me, too,” Izzy said.
Remy and Sykes lifted their fingers and nodded.
Cardinal Seth glared at them before turning to Aunt Janelle and Cardinal Moira. “She’s no longer the girl we knew. Surely you can see that.”
“Of course she’s not,” Aunt Janelle snapped. “She’s been through a lot and it’s not over.”
Bran stopped in front of me, eyes steady on my face. “What’s going on?”
“My father and grandfather are missing,” I said.
“Taken by her people,” Cardinal Seth said, pointing at me.
“I’ve tried telling him we didn’t, but he’s so angry, he won’t listen. Sir Malax and Lady Nemea left the island two nights ago with half the guards. They drugged me and drained my energy again, so she must have used crystals with my energy to lure Grampa and Father. I promised I’d take him home tonight. We must find them.”
He nodded. “Sorry I bailed out on you. Again. But I had to get Dante out.”
I walked to Dante. The Kris Dagger vibrated in its sheath, but I ignored it. “I’m sorry you were imprisoned for nothing.”
A smile touched his lips. He bowed and pressed a hand to his chest. “It wasn’t for nothing, Princess.”
I wondered why my father had done it. “We need to go.”
“We cannot hunt with them.” Cardinal Seth indicated me and my Hermonite team. “We can’t trust them to watch our backs.”
I wanted to laugh. He was such a petty person, and a sore loser to boot. “You don’t need to trust us, because I am going to get my father and grandfather. You wait here.”
“Lil, you cannot fight these people on your own,” Bran said.
“We can help,” Remy added, and the rest of the younger Guardians nodded.
“Only if you promise not to kill them.” Confusion flashed on the Guardians’ faces. “After what happened on Coronis Isle, I swore to make amends for the innocent people and families we’d hurt. That is why I came with them,” I indicated my team with a nod. “They can subdue people without using a weapon or killing them. I will not send anyone to Tartarus if there’s a chance he or she can change.”
Disbelief flashed on the faces of the Guardians. If I had unsheathed my dagger and attacked them, they wouldn’t have been more shocked. I overheard a mental exchange between Remy and Sykes.
“I’m not talking about demons, Sykes,” I said. “I don’t like to generalize. Dark lords are Hermonites, but not all Hermonites are dark lords. I’m talking about the ones that are not evil. People like you and me, people who love each other and care about their children and worry about their future. People who have no interest in destroying humanity or souls…” I sighed and smiled sadly at Aunt Janelle. “No, I haven’t been brainwashed, Aunt Janelle. What I’m saying is that you can fight and subdue them—just don’t use Guardian weapons. I cannot look into the eyes of my people and tell them I am the one who killed their wives, husbands, brothers, and sisters again.”
Cardinal Seth laughed. The sound was cold and bitter. “What about my wife? My child?”
I searched the memories Bran had given me. There was no mention of Cardinal Seth’s family. “I’m sorry you’ve lost so much at the hands of the dark lords, Cardinal Seth. But killing innocent people won’t bring your family back or take away the pain.”
A spasm crossed his face.
“Someone has to be the bigger person and stop the raids. It is my duty, my destiny to make both sides understand that.”
I actually caught their attention that time. Even Cardinal Seth was listening. I just couldn’t tell whether he did with an open mind. His face was an unreadable mask and his thoughts were jumbled static.
“The reason Sir Malax took my father and grandfather was so we would blame each other and continue raiding and destroying each other. They even attacked your compound so you’d retaliate. And to make sure you destroyed the island, they made sure you’d meet little or no resistance. If I hadn’t woken up…” I glanced at Locke, then the sisters. “If my friends hadn’t protected me and restored my psi energy, I would still be in a coma. The people left there do not have the training or the powers to defeat you.” My eyes met the Guardians’ one at a time. No one spoke. “Sir Malax made sure of that when he left with all the knights and senior guards. What we don’t know is whether they went willingly. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt.” I glanced at Bran. There was awe and love in his eyes. He squeezed my hand. “When we go in, we go to retrieve my father and grandfather. If my way fails, then we regroup here and reevaluate. However, I don’t plan to fail.”
Silence followed.
“I have a question,” Sykes said.
“Yes?”
“I’ve heard you talk about your energy being drained, being drugged, and knights deserting the people. What kind of life are you living on this island?”
I smiled. “Most of the time it’s…” I glanced at Lottius.
“A paradise,” she said, then winked at Bran. “With hot minions.”
Bran smiled. “Come on, we’ll pay my brother a visit. We’re going to a private club at the Ritz-Carlton, L.A. Live.” He glanced at Remy and the younger Guardians. “You guys know the way.”