Chapter Six
Ryan was led through the ivory halls of the manor. The Council had called the massive estate home for decades, and the man himself had only stepped foot inside for official business. He’d never been called in before. Somehow, he felt like he was being led to the principal’s office but knew this was much worse. The five beings he was on his way to see literally held his life in their hands.
Two guards opened the doors when Ryan and his guides approached. They passed through the arched threshold without a misstep. Ryan was led to the center of the massive room and told to stand.
The room was like an indoor coliseum, it was so large. Twenty-foot ceilings rose high over his head. Towering columns held it aloft, and nearly every surface was made of glittering white marble. It looked sterile compared to the real world, untouched by dust.
At the far end of the room across from him was a short dais with five chairs occupied by the members of the Council. They sat in their stone thrones, brimming with superiority and displayed in front of a massive mural containing the symbol of the Light.
Age was speculative with Fay. As a result, some of the members looked barely out of their twenties while one in particular looked like the Crypt Keeper’s father. Some species could live for thousands of years and aged incredibly slowly. Others would live for only a few hundred, meaning they looked much older much faster. Regardless, they all held the same expression: utter disgust.
“Ryan Ursy,” a woman who looked no more than thirty declared loudly. Her voice echoed easily through the expansive space and held a level of power that made Ryan uncomfortable. “Do you know why you’ve been brought before the Council?”
“No,” he lied.
“Don’t be coy,” the eldest looking man croaked in a thick, English accent. He sounded angry and bitter. “You know exactly why you’re here, boy.”
Ryan arched a defiant brow at being called “boy”. He was well into his fourth century of age, far from being anything considered a boy. But, he wisely didn’t speak.
“You’re here,” the middle-aged man at the far left began, “because you’ve broken one of our rules.”
Again, Ryan remained silent. While Ryan was fairly certain he knew why they’d summoned him, he wasn’t about to stupidly say it just on the off-chance their summoning was for another reason.
The woman who spoke first motioned to someone out of Ryan’s line of sight. A moment later, Sam Jackson’s twin emerged. He reached into his jacket pocket and retrieved a cell phone. Never breaking eye contact, he unlocked the screen and shifted it so Ryan could see it. His heart sank. Displayed on the screen was a long-distance photo of him and Mai at the silos.
“Fuck,” he muttered on a breath.
“Fuck is right,” the ancient man replied with a heavy breath, like speaking was as tiring as running a marathon.
Ryan’s gaze gradually drifted back to the five.
“It has come to our attention,” the woman continued, “that you have been deliberately engaging in a relationship with Mai Danvers, a known djinn and enemy of the Light.”
“She’s not an ene—”
“You will be silent,” she snapped angrily. Her voice was cold like ice and chilled the much larger man, silencing him whether he wanted to be or not. “It is well established that relations of any kind are prohibited with those outside of this clan, especially those who consistently flout our rules.” Her voice turned bitter. “Now, on the charges of treason—” Ryan flinched, and his stomach dropped. “How do you plead?”
His natural instinct was to refuse the charges, to deny any allegation, but he couldn’t. They had proof, actual tangible proof, that he’d broken their laws. He could tell they wanted him to be ashamed of it, too. By the way they all eyed him, judging him from their thrones, Ryan could tell they wanted him to show some kind of remorse, but he didn’t. If given the chance, he’d start a relationship with Mai again and again, regardless of their rules.
Standing a bit taller than before, pushing his chest out, and raising himself to his most intimidating stature, Ryan opened his mouth to speak. He wasn’t given the chance.
The doors to the sanctum shot open, and to his horror, Mai was the source. She charged forward like a woman with a plan, her eyes set solely on the Council.
“What is the meaning of this?” the ancient man bellowed as powerfully as his frail voice could manage.
“Mai,” Ryan hissed through his teeth, drawing her eye when she came to stand beside him. “The fuck?”
She said nothing to him and instead turned her attention back to the Council. “I’ve come to speak on his behalf.”
“We don’t want to hear anything from you,” the middle-aged man growled hatefully.
“Ryan Ursy had no control over his actions,” she told them confidently, ignoring the outburst. “I had him under my influence the entire time. I used him as a meal, nothing more.”
“Mai, what the—”
“Is this true?” the woman asked him.
“No,” he snapped before turning his attention back to Mai. “What are you doing?”
She gave him a sideways glance but refused to speak to him.
“Detective Ursy broke no rules. He is innocent of the Council’s charges,” Mai continued.
The Council hesitated. They shared glances to one another, silently speaking and wondering how they should proceed. They’d clearly had an idea of what they planned to do, and now they weren’t entirely certain. If Mai had indeed controlled Ryan, then they couldn’t very well condemn him. They considered her kind devious and honestly believed her more than they would anyone else randomly coming to the man’s rescue.
Djinn fed off adoration like most Fay, and like most Fay who did, they had their ways of doing so. Some enchanted their food by song, others by releasing pheromones. Some djinn even fed their long-term targets drops of their own blood. A human would die from something so small, their bodies burning up from the inside out because they couldn’t adapt to the power of it, but other Fay were susceptible. In fact, it was how djinn chose to feed off other Fay, something that was strictly forbidden for other species, but much harder to enforce with the ethereal monsters.
So, it was possible Mai had enchanted Ryan, and the Council knew it.
“Can you prove he was under your control?” the woman asked finally.
“How would you like me to?”
Ryan couldn’t believe what was happening around him. Mai was trying to wash his indiscretion away. She was trying to take the blame because she knew what’d happen to him otherwise. While he might’ve been flattered, he didn’t feel guilty for what they did.
And he knew she hadn’t controlled him before. The only time Mai did anything to him was to feed.
“Enough,” Ryan snapped, doing his best to take control of the conversation again. “Look, she didn’t make me do anything, okay? I started and continued the relationship because I wanted to, and I’d do it again.”
The Council bristled at his statement, and Mai growled. He didn’t care that he was digging himself deeper.
“Shut up,” Mai hissed. “Just let me get you out of—”
“No,” he interrupted. “You don’t need to protect me. Jesus, I don’t give a shit what they do, okay?” He could see the Council’s expressions darken, but he didn’t care. “I love you, Mai, and you’re not going to stand there and take the blame for this. Just because they say it’s wrong doesn’t make them right.”
The room fell silent immediately, and the air became thick. Mai stared at Ryan, wide-eyed, while the Council was finally rendered mute. His declaration was more shocking than her sudden appearance.
“What?” Mai finally mumbled.
Ryan took a breath and let it out slowly. He squared himself on her, turning away from those meant to be judging him.
“I love you,” he told her again. “I have for a while, now.”
“Oh,” she said on a breath.
Ryan fought the urge to smile. He’d never seen Mai speechless before, and he was a little glad to be the one to do it. But it was true. He loved her. He thought about her all the time, counted the seconds until he could talk to her again, and hated leaving. If it weren’t for the Council, he’d have done something about it years ago, but the threat of them finding out always loomed overhead. Now, it didn’t matter. What could they do, punish him twice?
“So.” Ryan turned back to the Council. “Do what you want,” he said. “I’m not going to repent.”
They were silent for a moment before the woman spoke again. “Take them away,” she told the guards. “We need to convene.”
Reluctant and unsure, the pair let themselves be taken away.
****
Mai paced while Ryan remained motionless. She couldn’t stop moving, filled with nervous energy for more than a single reason.
While she hadn’t shown it in front of them, Mai was indeed afraid of the Council. They were powerful creatures and likely a great deal more dangerous than she was, and she knew it. The only reason she’d had the courage to storm into the meeting like she had was because she knew they feared her, too. The Council didn’t have to know she had little control over her powers. They just knew she was djinn. That was enough for now.
But, eventually, they’d realize the truth. Her hope had been to get Ryan out of the mansion before that happened, and she would take on their wrath. That plan changed when he declared his love, however. Now, she wasn’t sure how to proceed.
“How’d you find out where I was?” he finally asked.
She paused. “Marcus called me,” she said. “He was pissed and scared. I think he just wanted to yell at me for a little while, but I hung up on him.” Ryan smile wryly. “Did…” She slowly stepped closer, “Are you really in love with me?”
He chuckled. Ryan reached forward and took her wrist, pulling her to his chest. She fell easily under the guidance, but she still wasn’t sure what to think. People had told her they were in love with her before, but she knew it was only because of her influence, because they were attracted to the succubus in her, but Ryan seemed sure.
“Yeah, I am,” he told her as he hugged her close. “Why, you surprised?”
“Well, yeah.” She nodded.
Smiling again, Ryan dipped forward and kissed her. Mai felt the difference this time. She felt something softer than lust, something warmer, but no less exhilarating. She’d never tasted love before, but now she recognized it. That was why he was so intoxicating to her, why he was so addictive and the one she craved.
“I love you, too.” she whispered when they parted. Ryan kissed her forehead tenderly and hugged her close. “And I’m sorry.”
“Why?”
She took a deep breath and let it out in one, long sigh. “Because it’s so complicated.”
His laugh rumbled in his chest before it broke free from his lips. “Yeah, well, from what I’ve heard, it’s never easy.”
Mai nodded softly. She hadn’t been in love before, so she assumed he was right. If the sonnets, stories, and songs were anything to go by, love—real love—was painful and complicated. It scared her a little, especially when Ryan could suffer for it.
“They’re ready for you.”
The two parted to see one of the guards who’d led them into the room was waiting impatiently for them to follow. Holding hands, they did.
When they reentered the “throne room”, Mai felt better for it. When she’d charged in initially to save Ryan from the narrow-minded Council, the air was tense and she was afraid. Now, well, it hadn’t truly changed, but she felt better for having Ryan there, for holding his hand. She wanted to handle this situation diplomatically, but now knowing what she did, she’d lay the entire building to waste if they tried to hurt him.
“We’ve come to a decision,” the woman in the center declared. She didn’t look happy. “Because the ursanthrope tribe has always served the Light loyally and ‘thropes tend to,” she physically grimaced, “mate for life.” She hesitated, as though she had to fight rising bile. Mai had to keep her feet planted so she wouldn’t race forward and slap that smug look off her face. “The Council has decided against our initial judgment and are willing to offer you a one-time alternative.”
Ryan shifted. “Which is?”
“Banishment,” she said with a small but vindictive smile tugging at her bird-thin lips. “You will be exiled from the Light. Everything we have provided for you will be rescinded and you will have until sundown tomorrow to leave the city. For all intents and purposes, you will be alone. Every luxury that was provided to you will be closed, including ever contacting other members of the Light.”
“What? No!” Mai yelled angrily. “That’s ridiculous.”
“The alternative is imprisonment,” the ancient man chuckled evilly. “For the next millennium.”
“That’s bullshit!” she told them hatefully.
“Mai,” Ryan snapped sharply, forcing her to silence herself. He looked at the Council. “I accept banishment.”
“Ryan.” Mai couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Ryan was willing to leave, to turn his back on everything, including family and friends. “No.”
“It’s not your call.”
“The hell it isn’t.” She was growing angrier. “You’re not going to do this, least of all for me.”
“It’s my choice.”
Her mouth hung open. She struggled to think of something that would make him rethink his obviously idiotic decision, but she couldn’t. He had to know how stupid it was to leave the Light. Through the centuries, Ryan had made innumerable enemies in the Dark. Without the Light’s protection, those enemies could hunt him down without retribution for breaking the treaty between the factions.
“Accepted,” the woman replied. “Step forward.” He did, and she rose from her seat. They met at the base of the dais. “Your mark.”
Ryan handed over his tattooed wrist. She wrapped her thin fingers around his arm, and as her eyes glowed fiery red, something began to happen. Ryan bit back the pain, but a deep, guttural growl could be heard throughout the room. A second later, the tattoo was engulfed in black, looking as any tattoo would, but Mai knew what happened. The woman had burned his mark, burned the ink from his skin. In a few days, it would heal and disappear, as though it’d never existed. When that happened, he’d be truly expelled.
Releasing him, the woman looked down at them with cold, emotionless eyes. “You have until sundown tomorrow to leave the city,” she repeated.
And with that, they were dismissed.