Balt

 

Piper made a shocked noise, staring, and then quickly nodded. She now looked far too nonchalant. “Oh. Any particular reason why she seemed to strike the fear of God into Gregor?”

“That’s my Yiayia,” I replied dryly.

“I think I like her already,” Piper commented.

“She’s pure ice,” I said matter-of-factly. “You’re fire. I don’t think it would end well.”

“Hm, okay. So, tell me, why do the Kazan’s have spies hanging around Athens?” Piper asked as we began to walk out of the alley. “Besides wheeling and dealing.”

I was impressed her clothes were only slightly mussed and she adjusted her top before we hit the crowds, flaunting her tan, flat stomach.

“I don’t know if Gregor is a spy, per se. More of a henchman.” I raked a hand through my hair. “It sounded like he was waiting on word from Filian, didn’t it?”

“My thoughts exactly,” Piper said grimly.

Pulling her into a shop, I leaned down and gave her a stern look. “Okay, that’s it for today.”

“What’s it?”

“SoA stuff. Filian, TLO, my family,” I said. “I want this to be about you and me.”

Patting my cheek, Piper said, “You know when it comes to us and our lives, things are never that simple.” I made a face and she laughed. “But I’ll try.”

The rest of the afternoon passed without incident. However, I couldn’t help glancing around at the crowd from time to time, checking to make sure there were no overly inquisitive or unfriendly eyes. And I caught Piper doing the same several times.

Later, Piper insisted we visit the Acropolis, to which I reluctantly agreed. It was nearing 6, so the sun was starting to dip in the West and the sky was filled with hues of coral. Walking around the white-stoned ruins, I had to admit, there was an air of magic and mystery about the place.

The crowds were oddly thin too. We wandered slowly from place to place and I began to enjoy myself. As we passed in front of the columns of the Parthenon, long shadows falling across the landscape, we both paused. Piper sighed and glanced around.

Her shoulders suddenly tensed and I followed her gaze.

Ahead of us, lit up with the crimson light of the setting sun was the Erechtheion.

My jaw grit as I stared at it grimly. I knew Piper could hear Frost’s voice echoing through the night as I could.

Meet me in Greece in two weeks’ time – midnight at the Erechtheion, under the eyes of the Caryatids.

Walking over, Piper stared up at them. The Caryatids – six stone women columns of the southwest porch – a testament to the skill of the ancient Greek architects.

Each of them was draped in a silky material and staring solemnly out across the city. There was a watchfulness to them that made my skin crawl. Here they'd kept vigil over Athens for thousands and thousands of years.

What had they seen in that time? Did Kazan ancestors stand in this very spot?

And did they feel as scorned as I do?

“Why did Frost choose this public place?” Piper mused out loud and then flinched as I looked at her. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. I was wondering the same thing,” I said, rubbing my temples. I was exhausted.

Piper walked over to me and wrapped her arms around my torso. For a moment, I was temporarily baffled. Part of me was still not used to this. And probably would remain that way – in awe that we were together like this.

Hugging her back, I whispered, “I’m fine, Pipla.”

“You’re tired,” she said, putting her chin on my sternum and looking up at me. “I can feel it. Let’s go back and order room service. Go to bed early.”

"Early?" I started to protest and then yawned.

“Come on, big guy,” Piper laughed, stepping back and tugging on my hand. “Let’s go.”

I followed her away from the Erechtheion, but I couldn’t help but glance back, feeling the accusing stare of the six stone women on the back of my head.

Kazan. They seemed to say with contempt. Cursed and foolish boy. You can’t escape your fate.

Shaking my head, I gripped Piper’s hand tighter and didn’t look back again.

But the whispers followed me.

A real Greek would know that.

 

The next morning Piper and I were sitting across from each other in bed, sharing breakfast and trying to ignore the two phones we had at our sides.

Licking her spoon, Piper eyed them and sighed. “How much trouble do you think we’re in?”

“AWOL for three days?” I asked. “I mean, we’re allowed a certain amount of flexibility, yes, but maybe not the kind where we fly off to Greece, fight, make up and share a bed.”

“Ugh,” Piper said, dropping her spoon on the tray and crumpling her yogurt container. “I’m so tired of this. All we have done since we were eighteen is kill ourselves for the SoA.”

“I know,” I said quietly.

With a sigh, Piper picked up her phone and I picked up mine. We turned them on at the same time and instantly chime after chime filled the room.

“Good lord,” she muttered.

Deciding to message instead of calling, I went through each of mine, glancing up in amusement as Piper swore more and more viciously under her breath. At one point, she raised her hand as though to throw the phone but catching my eye, quickly put it down.

“Damage?” I asked.

“Not bad. Said things got crazy.” Piper huffed. “But since when do I have to check in every day?" I gave her look and she rolled her eyes. "Oh, right. That. What about you?”

“Told the SoA we went off the grid to follow up a lead in Greece regarding Filian’s death and that we’ll check in as soon as we find out more. That it was too time sensitive not to pursue.” I shrugged. “Maybe not the most elegant, but at least it’s like 90% true.”

“Maybe 75,” Piper said with a wince. “Balt, listen, I have to tell you–”

A knock came at our door and we both looked at it, then at each other. Piper smiled at me and I shook my head, getting up. “You know, Weslark, it’s really not fair how you do that.”

“I know,” Piper said smugly.

Opening the door, I was excepting to be greeted by a hotel staff member or a maid.

Instead, I was met with a familiar face and I stared at him. And he stared back.

“Balt?” Desmond asked in bewilderment. “You’re here?”

“Dez!” Piper squeaked and I heard her scramble up off the bed. But not before Desmond had seen her on the bed and his eyebrows shot up. She was wearing a baggy shirt that slipped off her shoulders and sweats. I was only wearing sweats. Looking back at me, Dez fought down a smile.

“Hi, bud,” I said, grinning painfully. “I’m sorry, I didn’t – wait, what are you doing here?”

Ushering him in, I led Desmond through the messy room and out onto the patio. We sat down at the table shoved into the corner, the metal almost too hot to touch.

Piper followed, fixing her shirt and looking flustered. “I asked him to come here, Balt.”

“You dragged Dez into this mess?” I asked, momentarily irritated. But her pleading gaze made me sigh. “Ugh. No, I understand. But seriously Piper, you could’ve mentioned.” I paused as she gave me puppy dog eyes. “Right.”

“You were the one who asked me to look into it, Balt,” Desmond pointed out, still looking like he was trying hard not to laugh as his eyes flicked between me and Piper.

“I know.” I stared at him. “Sorry, it’s just so weird that you’re here. Didn’t classes end like yesterday? And you flew right out?”

"I've been chomping at the bit for the summer term to end," Desmond said excitedly, picking up the bag that was resting on the ground by his chair. "You won't believe what I've found."

Sitting up straight, my lungs emptied of air and all I could think was Dez, how could I have doubted you? You always come through.

“Not only what I’ve found, Balt – but where I found it,” Desmond continued.

Piper was leaning across the table, her blue eyes blazing. “Where?”

“It was by accident, almost. I was digging through the digital archives to try to narrow down my search. The Greeks have a prolific history and finding the right lineage of Kazans was difficult. Especially when it comes to shifters – back then each family had their own way of coding their history into the inanis literature. Very dense, but a good mystery. Anyway, I was poking around online and I found something odd…

“There was chatter online about the Kazan and the lion bloodline –from the past few years, mind you. A lot within the last year, though. So, I started digging and that lead me down all sorts of rabbit holes.” Desmond began pulling out stapled stacks of papers, all covered with dense, neat notes. “Apparently someone has been trying to convince the Kazans to give up secrets of an old ritual that creates shifters. Sacrosanctum – de animalibus sacrosanctum.”

I started and so did Piper as we stared at each other.

Dr. Hakedo, our family doctor and an expert in shifter lore, had said those words to us not even a month ago. I could still see his furrowed brow as he glanced around at us.

I’d like to know where they got the instructions for the rites – I thought they were long lost to history.

My mouth went dry and there was a pounding in my ears.

Were the Kazans in possession of those secret rites? And had they given them to the TLO? I stared down at my hands and curled them into fists. How could they be so selfish?

My grandmother’s face, impassive and dark-eyed, her hair shrouded by a black veil, popped into my mind. Her distant, cool voice.

We are the lion-born, take care to remember that, boy.

Desmond and Piper had fallen quiet, so I looked up and forced a reassuring smile onto my face. “Nothing like some family skeletons, eh?” I paused. “So. Did they sell them?”

Making a face, Desmond slowly shook his head. “I don’t think so. Otherwise, why would this person be so desperate to do business with them? If anything, I think they offended the Kazans by asking. According to one source, the head of the family denied knowing anything about it. You have to understand Balt – none of this is verified – it’s all rumors and chatters on the dark web.”

“You know how to access the dark web?” Piper asked, surprised. “Isn’t that illegal?”

“Uh,” Desmond pushed his glasses up his nose. “Well, not to be on there, not exactly.”

Laughing, I shook my head. “What else did you find out?”

"Well, I thought the stuff about the rites sounded interesting, so I started digging more. And apparently, these requests for information go back almost thirty-six years. The name Lilith Frost came up, but when I researched her – all I found out is that she was a doctor who died about twenty years ago. I wasn’t sure if she was relevant, but I thought I’d mention it.”

Lilian’s mother? I wondered, watching Piper nod her head out of the corner of my eye.

“She was the one to first approach the Kazans and get rebuked. By all accounts, she didn’t take it well. But, here’s where it got interesting. I found out that as far as anyone knows, the original rites have been lost to history – forever. However, according to various sources, the Kazan family created a new set of rites about a hundred or so years ago, but tried to keep it a secret within the family.”

“A new set of rites?” Piper echoed. And I could see her mind already working.

“Yes,” Desmond said, then he hesitated. “This was about where the trail ran cold, though. Then I got your message, Piper. And I realized that if the information did exist, it would be here."

“With my family?” I asked and shook my head. “They won’t tell you anything. Trust me.”

“Well, yes, but also in Mycenae, within Peloponesse."

“Mycenae,” I said slowly. I’d been there as a child – I remembered visiting one day as a family, having the entire ruins to ourselves and running around, exploring the twisting paths with my cousins. Walking through the famous Lion’s Gate. “My family lives in Peloponesse, Dez,” I said, shaking my head. “Barely twenty minutes from Mycenae. We can’t go there.”

Piper was on her phone. "It's only a two-hour drive from Athens. We are going there. If that’s where the answers are – I mean it has to be. Mycenae. It’s the acropolis of ancient Midea.” She sucked in a breath and looked at me, eyes shining. “The Lion’s Gate, too! It all makes sense. We can break this curse, Balt.”

“Break – you believed him, Piper?” Desmond asked, incredulous. Piper looked at him and he winced. Sitting back, Desmond glanced between us and took off his glasses.

“Something wrong?”

“Actually, the more I read about your family and these rites, the more I started to wonder if the Kazans accidentally created some kind of twisted ritual that does indeed affect your bloodline.” Putting his glasses back on, Desmond nodded fiercely. “I’m with Piper. We go to Mycenae and figure this out.”