“Why are you here, and more importantly, how did you find us?” Kitar starts. He is suspicious of us, of our motives. I suppose I can’t blame him; we arrive out of the blue, looking no better than a bunch of vagrants. We certainly smell like we need a good wash.

“We came through a portal from Ever Vale that Nostra opened,” I say, addressing Amos and ignoring the look of annoyance on Kitar’s face. “We were escaping. Queen Adrielle found Nostra’s hamlet where he has been keeping the common folk and some of Clan Lux safe. She destroyed it and nearly killed Nostra in the process. Despite what you said, he’s a good man.”

“Good man? He did nothing when his sister cursed us all. I watched my friends, my family, turn on one another until there was no one left. Nostra didn’t raise a finger to stop it. A whole clan was wiped out in a matter of months. It would have been us too, had we not escaped that place,” Kitar says angrily.

“We are sorry for what happened. We have all lost a great deal,” Ezra says in understanding. I squeeze his hand tighter in mine. “But your anger is misplaced,” he continues. “Nostra has done everything he can to help us these last one thousand years.”

“One thousand years?” Amos laughs deeply. “I may be old, older than you three clearly, but it has not been that long.”

“Not here, perhaps. But in Ever Vale, a thousand years have passed,” I say. “These men have lived under Queen Adrielle’s rule for that long and they still remain good at heart. That is quite a feat.”

That seems to shut both up suitably. A little bit of the arrogance seems to dissolve.

“You’re all a thousand years old? You’ve suffered that witch for that long?” Kitar asks, shocked.

“Us men are. Accacia and Lissandra, the girl whose head you almost removed, are both a lot younger.” Kitar has the good grace to look a little ashamed at that.

Amos blows out a breath. “Well damn, there’s me thinking I was a pretty good-looking older man. You two make me feel wholly inadequate.”

“I doubt that,” I say. Amos is charming, yes, but he knows his worth.

“So, if you are all from Ever Vale, what Clan are you from?” Amos asks.

“Clan Lux is my guess. Did you not see the teeth, brother?” Kitar says.

“Ah, I see. Your desperation to get inside makes perfect sense now. The sun still has the power to kill you all, I take it?”

“Yes, it does,” Devin confirms.

“So why did Nostra help now? After all these years, what changed his mind?”

“Adrielle was too powerful back then, and Nostra not powerful enough. There was little he could have done at the time. The magic Nostra had before he sacrificed it for us all today was developed over the years. When Queen Adrielle cast the curse, he did what he could for the clans. He helped hide the leaders’ daughters and he spelled them all with a locator ring, so that one day the three chosen clansmen could find them and bring them home to break the curse as the prophecy foretells. He was not a coward then and he most certainly isn’t now,” Devin says vehemently.

“What prophecy? Rings? Chosen clansmen? What are you talking about?” Kitar asks, firing one question after the other.

“Slow down, brother, let them explain,” Amos requests, studying the spelled stone in his hand.

Ezra points to it. “That stone will take you to the missing daughter of Clan Aequalis. Together, you and she will help break the curse.”

“This makes no sense.”

“It will,” Ezra says. “I can’t do magic like Nostra, but I can remember the prophecy well enough…”

Ezra recites the words. When he is finished, both Amos and Kitar remain quiet for some time until eventually Kitar speaks.

“You expect us to believe this? How can we trust a word you are saying? There is no proof…”

I stand in annoyance and step in front of Kitar.

Careful, Red, remember his sword, Devin warns. Ezra moves forward in his seat, ready to step in should he need to. He still forgets that I can move as fast as him now.

I hold my hand out to Kitar, showing him the ring that remains on my finger. “I am your proof. I am daughter of Stella and Atlas. I am the missing daughter of Clan Lux. Ezra, Devin, Rhain, they are my men. They are the men I choose to love, who love me in return. We are one piece of the prophecy. My friend, Clover, she is the missing daughter of Clan Terra and has already joined with the fae. There is a woman called Danika, who belongs to Clan Spiritus. Her men, the wolf-shifters, are searching for her now. Not an hour ago, three Dark Angels passed through the portal here on your land in search for their missing clan daughter. Now it’s your turn. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Nostra’s final source of magic brought us here. You have a job to do and you must do it now.”

Amos leans back in his seat and crosses his arms against his chest. A slow smile spreads across his face. “I think you can come out now, Rai,” he says.

From the corner of the room walks a man who looks slightly younger than the two sitting before me. He is not dressed as smartly, but instead has on a pair of soft grey slacks and a tight, white t-shirt. I can see the ripple of muscle beneath the material. His golden eyes match his hair colour, which is also streaked with grey. He appears to be weighing up what I have just said. I know this man’s sudden appearance is supposed to surprise us, but it doesn’t. There are always three, after all. The statues outside were a big sodding giveaway.

“Nice to meet you, Rai,” I say.

He strides over to us and stands behind the sofa upon which Kitar and Amos sit. He doesn’t bother with niceties, he simply asks the next pressing question. “Tell me, what if we choose not to fulfil our part of this prophecy? You see what we have,” he says, swinging his arms wide. “What’s in it for us?” He crosses his arms across his chest, looking faintly amused.

Arsehole.

You can say that again, Devin responds.

“You get to help your people…” Ezra starts.

Kitar laughs bitterly. “There are none left but us. We are our people. This is the remains of Clan Aequelis.”

“Then you get to help the people of Ever Vale, the other clans. You get to defeat the one person who is the reason all your people are dead. Isn’t that enough of an incentive?” Devin asks.

Rai tips his head to the side, as though weighing up his options. “If I am correct in thinking, this curse will only break if all five daughters and their chosen men come together. After that happens, if that happens, what’s next? Somehow, these women overthrow the Queen? They take command like the prophecy foretells?” He barks out a laugh. “What a ridiculous notion.”

“Do you have a problem with that?” Ezra stands. I glance at him. Oh dear, he isn’t a happy vamp. This could go south quickly.

“My brothers and I, we don’t take orders, especially from a woman. We are the leaders of our kingdom,” Kitar snaps, standing. The pair level hard gazes at each other.

Can you believe this guy, Devin? What a chauvinistic pig.

They are demi-gods; their clan was destroyed because they were out for themselves. They turned on one another because every single one of them thought they were better than their kin, their friends.

And yet these three have not. They remain together, unharmed and working in harmony, given this mansion they live in and the fact they are still alive.

Good point, Red. Where are you going with this?

You’ll see.

“This woman is the bravest I know. You will do well to hold your tongue. I will not tolerate someone belittling her capabilities.”

“Ezra, it’s okay,” I say, placing my hand against his arm. He looks at me briefly, the anger boiling in his grey eyes, but he sits back down. I take a seat again, my gaze falling on all that is left of Clan Aequalis. “Tell me something, when the rest of your clan turned on one another, when the power they were given went to their heads, how come you three didn’t do the same? How come you have been able to live side by side for all these years without such a consequence?”

Amos looks at me thoughtfully, twisting the hair of his beard as he does so.

“You are quite the observant one,” he says sarcastically. I let it go, he can be as sarcastic as he likes, providing he does what is required and locates their missing clan daughter. The other part, the love part, that may well be a little trickier, but we could worry about that later. He gets up and walks to a shelving unit lined with books.

“Amos, what are you doing?” Kitar asks. There is a note of concern in his voice.

“I am getting my book, brother. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, Amos, of course not,” Kitar mutters.

Amos reaches up and pulls a brown leather-bound book from the shelf. It looks familiar. Then I remember the statues out front. It doesn’t take a genius to work out which statue represents which of the men. Amos clutches the book against his chest and sits back down.

“When the curse was cast, for us it is almost thirty years ago now, I suppose you could say that we were each gifted with a particular power. Kitar was given his sword to exact punishment. His sword you’ve already seen. Rai, my golden-haired friend here, he was given the scales of justice. He is able to weigh up and consider any decision to our favour.”

“And what about you?” Ezra asks.

“Knowledge,” Amos says, laying the book on the coffee table between us. “This book, it is just a physical representation of my gift. I am not so precious about showing it to others. Kitar here always gets a little antsy when I bring it out in the company of strangers.” Amos taps his forehead with his finger. “But all that I need is up here. It is that knowledge, Rai’s objective decision making and Kitar’s protection that somehow brought us together when we needed each other the most. We escaped from Ever Vale, a mutual decision made at a time of great conflict with the intention of going our separate ways, and we did for a while. Only ten years ago did we make acquaintance again, deciding to pool our resources and our gifts. We have built a life here, a successful one. A life which suits us. We have no need to ever go back. My knowledge of the Queen tells me she will not be easily defeated, if at all. Look what she has done to Nostra already.”

“Yes, but…” I start.

“You are here because the Queen is too powerful for you to stay in Ever Vale. Why would we go back there? Why would we risk our lives for this prophecy, a prediction of something that is not set in stone? There are too many eventualities that could go wrong. It is illogical and downright foolish, and that is why we will not partake.”

“Aren’t you forgetting one important factor?” I ask.

“I believe we have considered everything,” Rai says.

“Not everything. The missing clan daughter. She is here, somewhere on Earth. She is the future of your clan. If you find her and fulfil your part of the prophecy, she will take command of Ever Vale. She will rule.”

“Alongside you and three others, it would seem. There is no gain for us.”

“No? Ever Vale is a whole world. Here, you are just businessmen. You might be rulers of your little kingdom, but you are not as all powerful as I suspect you’d like. It’s not so easy here to become gods, is it?”

Kitar glares at me, his ego bruised, it would seem. I suppress a laugh.

Nice one, Red. I can hear Devin’s chuckle resound in my head. I remain straight-faced. I know men like these. Power is their currency, and right now I am offering them more power than they’ve ever been able to obtain here. All they have to decide is whether it is worth the risk.

Amos looks at Rai, who already appears to be weighing up what I’ve said. I can practically hear the cogs twirling, the scales balancing in his head.

“You have made quite the argument. I can see why these men adore you so.” Rai considers me for a moment. “You’ve convinced me enough to at least find our missing clan daughter, for no other reason than the chance to meet this chosen one and decide whether she is worthy enough. Though I highly doubt she will be.”

I roll my eyes, choosing to ignore the remark. Right, more like your desperate need for power.

Yes, we shall need to watch these three. Power is a drug to them.

Amos and Kitar stand. “Until then, you can rest here in our little kingdom,” Amos says.

“I shall escort you to your rooms. Follow me,” Kitar orders.

“Room, we shall need only one,” I respond.

The three demi-gods look at me with stunned expressions.

“Another bonus of the prophecy, having three men at my beck and call. Not bad, for a woman,” I say, turning on my heel. I hear Ezra’s low chuckle and Devin’s laugh follow me as we head upstairs.