Opening the door, Jess entered her room, still slightly drunk on the moment. So when Alyss pounced on her as soon as she stepped inside, she nearly jumped out of her skin.
"What in the hell is going on, Jess?" she demanded.
"Jeez!" Holding a hand over her heart, Jess took a couple of labored breathes before looking at her sister, saying "Let’s sit down, I'll explain everything." Luckily Alyss didn't protest and allowed Jess to fill her in.
When she had finished, she asked, "How did you get the obsidian?" Not sure if Alyss would answer.
"I was hired to steal it," Alyss said matter-of-factly. When Jess' eyes widened in shock, she went on. "Please, you knew. I know you did," she said accusingly. "You never once asked me how I paid off the rent without having a steady job."
"I, um, didn't want it to be true, I guess." Jess said, plucking at the thread pills on the wool blanket they sat on top of on the bed.
"Don't give me that; your judgment," Alyss spat. "We needed the money and we were behind on rent already."
"Yeah," she said straighter, "but I didn't expect you to start breaking the law."
"Whatever. Can we please focus on what's important now?" Alyss jumped up from the bed to pace around the room.
"Fine," Jess huffed. "Who hired you to steal the obsidian?"
"I'm not sure. It's mostly done anonymously. I get untraceable emails from someone with a job and money offer. When I have it, I usually send a reply to the same email and drop off is arranged. Once that's done, money is transferred into my account." Stopping, Alyss turned to her sister. "It's all really impersonal to protect those involved."
"That's not helpful," Jess grumbled.
"Yeah, I know." Puffing out her cheeks, Alyss heaved out a sighed, stopping in the center of the room to look at Jess. "What are you going to do, about the Unseelie I mean? And the Fomorians." She had a funny spaced out look on her face for a split second. Jess could relate though, this was all completely bizarre.
"I don't know. I mean I know I have to help them but I don't know any of them and-" she hesitated.
"And, what?" Alyss pried, coming to sit back down beside her on the bed..
"It's weird, but I'm worried if the Unseelie can be trusted," she confided. "I mean they were kicked out of the Seelie court for a reason and what if I let them back in when this is all over and it all falls apart?" Alyss put a comforting hand on her knee and gave it a little squeeze.
"Lyss, they want me to be queen! I don't want to screw up before that even happens."
"I'm with you whatever you decide. We'll figure it out." Alyss, always the rock.
Right then, Jess forgave her for stealing, for the most part. She knew that Alyss only wanted to help provide and only found one way to do it. Granted it wasn't the smartest decision, but Jess couldn't condemn her reasons behind it. She wanted to protect her sister, just like Jess would have done.
Jess smiled back at her baby sister, thinking that it should be her that was the rock, the one to provide, being the oldest. All she seemed to be was in the way sometimes. She was barely through with a couple of simple math classes when she caved and settled for an associates in business. When she called it quits after nearly running out of the graduation ceremony, she just took on more hours at the bar and worked at the concessions stand in the stadium during the summer.
"Now, tell me all about what had you all dopey looking when you walked in here," Alyss said, drawing up her legs to tuck them under her, ready for any juicy details revealed.
They spoke until well after noon before they both fell asleep on the bed, they'd always been somewhat close, except the last year or so, after their parents had died. Jessandra guessed it was so they could deal on their own first.
A knock at the door woke them just after 7 o'clock in the evening. Pushing Alyss' arm off her head, Jess stumbled to answer it, thankful for the dark gray yoga pants and baggie off the shoulder, rose colored sweater rather than her usual boy shorts and camisole.
Opening it, she found Kaer waiting on the other side.
"Good night, Princess Jessandra." Kaer smiled widely. "I'm here to escort you both to the dining hall for first meal."
"Okay," she said, around a yawn, going to cover it with her hand she found what may or may not have been dried drool on the corner of her mouth and chin.
Kaer's lips quirked, but didn't say anything else before stepping away from the door to wait as they dressed.
Shutting the door, Jess walked over to the dresser, where someone had unpacked her things. Pulling out her singular pair of jeans, she tossed them on the bed, jerking Alyss awake.
"Wha-?" She sat straight up, looking bleary eyed around the room.
The older sister in her was satisfied by Alyss' reaction. "Breakfast."
"Ugh. Can't I get mine later?" Alyss grumbled as she went to roll over and get comfortable again.
"I don't think it works that way here," Jess found a dark red tank top and clean pair of socks. "I have no idea if the kitchen is open between meals or not." Peeling off yoga pants and sweater, she snatched the bra she had slinked out of before passing out off the floor and quickly donned both it and the clean shirt before her sister rolled back to sit up.
Through the grumbling, Jess was able to decipher something along the lines of "Not enough sleep, better have coffee," from her sister's lips.
"I think your bag is in your room," Jess informed her, leaning down to tug on the jeans.
Alyss just nodded, waving a hand in her direction. "They have great coffee," Jess said, after she snapped and zipped in the comfy blue cotton and started to look for her messenger's bag.
Head snapping up, Alyss looked at her, dead serious, "No joke?"
"Best I've had in a while," she replied, seeing her drag herself off the bed and fumble to put her shoes on.
"Ok. Let's go," she said, walking past Jess and through the door she held open for her. "But there had better be coffee. And the best damned coffee, too."
Kaer asked them how their day was and if they'd slept well, when they met him outside. He wore a dark blue button down dress shirt tonight, same open tabs at the back for his wings, dark blue jeans and black utility boots. The boots seemed to be a standard for everyone in Fallon's immediate guard, Roshea wore the same the night before, too.
Kaer led them to an opposite cavern from the residences, where it opened to a mess hall of sorts. Five rows of tables lined the room, filled with people enjoying what looked to be breakfast. The room was loud and filled with more people than she thought had occupied the Fomorian caverns.
They maneuvered themselves past the throng of people, all eating and conversing, some children running around and between them, happy squeals coming from all of them, even a large mutt looking dog chased after a wayward little girl dodging between tables. When Kaer finally stopped, he guided and helped them both to sit at a large table in the back of the cavern. Only the table they sat at had individual chairs, the rest had benches for seating. Though these chairs were a mix between a child’s seat and an adult’s. Instead of a normal backed chair, these seemed to have shorter supports to rest with. The moment Kaer sat down in one of the chairs, Jess understood their unique design. Anything higher and it would be uncomfortable for the winged males to sit down on. The benches made more sense now too. Suddenly, her skin began to tingle. Whipping her head around, she looked for Fallon. When a hand rested where her shoulder met her neck, she relaxed, knowing the fleeting touch was from him. He slid between the seats to sit down beside her.
"Good evening, Princess," he said, his lips ticked up on one side in a half grin.
"Good evening, Mo rí," Jess greeted back with a tad of a blush and sly smile on her face.
Picking up the pitcher in front of them on the table, he took the cup at her setting and filled it with what looked like orange juice. "Princess," he started, setting her now full cup in front of her and moved on to fill her plate with scrambled eggs, a slice of ham, toast and a scoop of fruit. "I am not your king."
"No, but you are my leader in all this right now," she said sincerely, meeting his gaze for a moment. He nodded in understanding, just before Alyss spoke up.
"What does Mo rí, mean?"
Jess quickly explained while Fallon turned to speak to a couple males on his end of the table. They spoke in another language. One that sounded lyrical and ancient, like when he had called her “dearest heart” earlier that morning.
Seeing Kaer, who sat across from Alyss, finish adding food to Alyss' plate Jess asked him, "Is it custom to fill the guest’s plates at the table?" Alyss looked interested to hear the answer as well.
He smiled when he answered, dimples showing, "Only custom to fill female’s plates at the table we sit at." He went on to pour himself a glass of orange juice.
"Why?" Alyss asked around a mouth full of egg.
"Jeez, 'Lyss. Manners much?" Jess scolded and they all chuckled.
"It used to be just the female you were mated to. But in the last battle, many warriors lost their lives. The surviving males would honor their memory by caring for the widows at the meal table." The silence at the table that followed his words was deafening.
Sensing the change in mood, Fallon turned back to them, seeing Jess push her food around a little, reality having rained on the good evening she was enjoying, he reached a hand out to brush a wave of hair over her shoulder to see her face. Hearing Kaer clue him in, Jess looked up, her eyes meeting his.
"It was thousands of years ago, grá," he whispered, seeing that her heart ached at the story.
"But for you, it must feel so fresh. Since you live so long," she whispered back, reaching to take his hand when it dropped from her hair
Hands clasped tightly, he moved them to rest on her thigh. "Not as bad as you might think. None here were alive then. Our ancestors suffered, yes, and we still honor them, but it is not our heartache to bear." With his free hand, he nudged her chin up.
Below the table, she could feel her hand begin to tingle with his markings. A sexual zing had her breath catching and a blush tinting her cheeks. She tilted her head down to hide it and leaned closer to Fallon, who rested his forehead to her temple. Jess felt a little silly but brushed the feeling away and just enjoyed the closeness for a moment.
"Alyss was wondering about the children, Princess," Kaer's voice interrupted their stolen moment. Breaking apart, they let each other's hands go, looking to him.
"Children?" Jess croaked.
"Yeah," Alyss said, taking a second to swallow. "None, even the boys, have wings."
"Ah," Fallon said, coughing around a chuckle. "None of the children are born with wings. They grow during puberty, which is usually between eighteen and twenty-two for us."
"Huh," Alyss said, grabbing a second helping of toast. "Why not born with? I imagine growing wings has to be worse than teething."
They all laughed a little at that. Fallon sobered before answering, "Trust me, you wouldn't want to bear children with extra appendages with the risk of catching or getting hung up in the birth canal." The men laughed again this time at the girl's mutual shutters of horror the image he created for them.
"Good point," Alyss grumbled, putting down her second slice of toast, appetite lost.
Fallon leaned forward again to speak to Jess quietly. "Princess, have you made a decision?"
She put her fork down before taking a deep breath, "Yes, I have."
"And?" He was all business now.
"I'd like to offer a joining of the two courts," her hands shook but her voice was clear. "Can we have a meal of some sort like a Thanksgiving?"
"Thanksgiving?" Fallon was confused at this.
"Oh," Kaer chimed in. "A moment of truce between two people as they share a meal."
"Ah. I see." Fallon thought about it for a moment. "Yes, I believe a meal could be arranged for this evening." Looking up, he scanned the room before spotting someone in the crowd and motioned with one hand for them to their table. The female wore worn jeans and a white t-shirt that had a logo on the top left reading "Joe's Perk Café." Her black hair was swept in a neat ponytail and she wore no makeup, of which she didn't need, she was model gorgeous without it, with sultry lips and thick eyelashes that framed doe brown almond eyes. She rounded the table to stand between their chairs, forcing Jess to move her hand or risk it getting twisted or pinned. Her back to Jess, she leaned her head down to listen to something Fallon said.
"Yes, Mo rí. I will see to it before I start my shift." The sound of her husky voice had Jess' back up. When she left to do his bidding, he went on to talk to Kaer about having a table moved up to the building topside.
Alyss scooted closer to ask what the plan was. Before Jess could divulge it, however, Fallon and Kaer both stood, their chairs scraping as they pushed them back. The sisters looked up at them, questioningly.
Kaer spoke first. "I'm off to have a message delivered to the Unseelie Queen. Good evening, my lady's." He bowed a little at the waist before taking his leave.
Fallon spoke after he left. "And I need to take care of some unrelated business before coming to check in with you. I thought perhaps you'd like to gather some more items from your apartment. Roshea could accompany you. Finn and Keegan will keep watch as well."
The sisters quickly glanced at one another before they both answered at once, "Yes!"
Their excitement made him smile. When he started to walk away from the table, Jess halted him. "Wait, you haven't eaten." He had been conversing with everyone at the table, sometimes sipping orange juice but never made a plate for himself.
He winked at her concern. "I ate a couple hours ago," he said, before turning to squeeze past a group of males standing and telling stories. Jess was left to stare at him dumbly. That playful wink sent a little shiver through her. A particularly loud clang jarred her from thoughts of his especially hot ass and she began to dig into her breakfast again.
Roshea drove them to their apartment soon after they had finished eating. Alyss had a paper cup of hot coffee she had been moaning and sighing over from the same vendor in the market that Fallon had gotten theirs at the night before. Jess had learned her name was Gillian and she made a mental note to add her to the Christmas card list.
In their third-floor apartment, the two of them had begun to load every duffel, suitcase and grocery bags with clothes, toiletries and shoes. Sorting when they got back to the caverns, would be a bitch.
When Jess came out of her room with a picture of their parents, Alyss was forcing a pair of high heeled boots in a bag of shoes. Looking up and seeing Jess come out into the living room, Alyss recognized the frame and the picture in it.
Standing, Alyss went to look at the photo with her, wrapping a hand around her sister's shoulders and squeezing tight. Their parents were wrapped around one another on the Rockefeller ice rink, laughing so hard they needed to keep each other up.
"Do you have the photo album?" Jess asked, moving to tuck the frame safely between a bundle of clothes in one bag.
"Yeah," Alyss said, frowning. "But Jess, we're coming back, we don't have to take everything."
"I don't think I will be," Jess said softly.
Alyss stood in quiet shock for a moment before striding to her older sister and taking her by the shoulders, this time in a stern grip.
"You're just helping them get through this. You're not joining a cult. We don't belong in their world." Alyss spoke to her as if she were a child, but Jess understood she was just scared of the unknown. Both of their lives had changed so dramatically in such a short time.
Breaking the hold on her arms, Jess grasped Alyss' hands tightly. "Maybe you don't. And that's okay, Lyss. But I do, or at least I will once I come into my powers, whatever those will be. I certainly don’t belong here. Besides," Jess took a shaky breath. "They want me to be queen of the Seelie. And they already have plans for me after that happens."
"Their plans, not yours," Alyss interrupted.
"Whatever they are, I don't think I can walk away from them. I don't think I want to," Jess' dead pan expression told her sister how serious she was.
"It's because of him, isn't it?" Referring to Fallon. She watched her older sister's back go ramrod straight.
"No," she said, firmly. "Not the way you're thinking at least."
"And which way is it?"
Jess went to sit on one of the two barstools on the island between the kitchen and living area. "It's for all of them, Lyss. They honor men lost, hundreds of them, in the battle fought under an alliance with our grandfather who betrayed them in the end, spitting on that sacrifice. Their women are held prisoner while the men do their dirty work to keep their mates alive." Jess took a deep breath. "They face extinction." She looked up at her sister, who had unshed tears in her eyes that mirrored her own.
"What would mom do?" She asked, seeing Alyss give her a deadly glare. "I don't think she'd walk away, do you?" A pregnant pause filled the room. Neither of them moved until finally, Alyss walked to Jess and wrapped her arms around her, squeezing tight.
"She'd stay and help. She'd fight," she said hoarsely, pulling away. "Just like we will."
Jess snatched her sister's hands before they slipped away, holding them close to her chest. "We?"
"We're a team, sis. So, yeah, we."
A tear fell down Jess's cheek as she stood to hug her sister again, a watery giggle sneaking past her lips.
Arriving back at the Barr, everyone, males and females, hauled in a bag or box from the car towards the back. Seeing the large table set up in the center, Jess presumed it must be in preparation for the Thanksgiving dinner. When Alyss reached the steps, an electronic chirp echoed from Roshea's pocket. Juggling the box she carried, she pulled a cell phone out, glancing at the message on the screen and cursed. "Shit. Jess!"
Just as they all turned to look back, Alyss heard the clicking of a gun being cocked before a man's voice told her to "Stop right there."
She dropped the box to put her hands out and up, making clear she was unarmed. The man holding the gun ascended the steps, keeping the gun trained on her. He waved it slightly, gesturing for her to move against the wall. Circling around her to the top of the stairs, he stepped uncaringly on the makeup that had spilled out from the toppled box, the sound of the plastic cases cracking under his boot bounced around the marble walls before silence settled once again. "Don't move," he ordered walking into the opening of the room.
Alyss didn't listen and started to edge behind him. Just as she had gotten around to better disarm him, she caught sight of Jess and Roshea, who had bent down to her knees on the unforgiving floor. Keegan and Finn were nowhere to be seen. Catching her sister's eye and the minute shake of her head, she froze.
"What were you doing? What are in the boxes?" The man asked, his voice demanded answering.
"They are supplies, sir," Roshea answered, keeping her eyes downcast.
He frowned at her for a second before telling them to "Get up." As they raised themselves, Alyss jumped to stand back where he had left her.
"Go on." He waved them all to go ahead of him down the stairs. "Banner is waiting."
After reaching the bottom, they saw what looked like all of the Fomorian females and children lined up against the wall to the left of the stairs, and the males facing them in three rows. Through the chaos, the difference in population between the two sexes did not go unnoticed by Jess. More men stood next to the lines or walked between them, guns held threateningly. They all wore tunics in a metallic gray, something she'd never seen without the use of CGI in movies and the previous night, on Queen Brianna. Complete with thick black leggings, each had dark brown boots made of some sort of leather that laced all the way up to their knees. They looked handmade, but no less hardy than those that Fallon and his men wore.
"Against the wall," their captor said, nudging Roshea with his gun.
As they moved to comply, Jess scanned the males for Fallon, not seeing him. Pressing her back to the rough rock wall, Alyss and Roshea flanked her.
"Don't react," Roshea whispered under her breath, lips barely moving.
Not sure what she wasn't supposed to react to, she just jerked her head once in understanding and remained still, wondering what they were waiting for. Looking around the market, she could see one man standing atop a table that usually had baked goods on it. He watched as the other men brought in stragglers from what Jess assumed were the depths of the cavern's maze of tunnels. His uniform differed from the rest with a lighter gray vest and bands that circled from his wrists to his forearms. Though he looked to be watching the action and all that was happening with a watchful eye, a sense of disinterest seemed to project from his demeanor. With dark blonde brows above hard, brown eyes that kept watch on the other guards as they rounded everyone up, his mouth was hard and sculpted, with a slightly deeper bow to it that drew her attention. From what she could tell, they lacked any laugh lines. His hair was cut short, parted a little off center and gelled neatly. His face looked almost painted with perfection. If she were closer, she’d look for signs of make-up.
“Banner.”
Her head jerked up at Fallon's voice, spotting him entering the marketplace from the residence side of the cavern.
"Ah, Fallon." The man called Banner jumped down from his perch and strode to meet Fallon, both coming to stand between the males and females. "I don't appreciate being kept waiting when I come to call." His hands were empty of a weapon, though, he wore a fancy looking buffed leather holster around his waist. Judging from the size of the case, it was clear to hold a monster of a gun. There was no snap or anything keeping it from being drawn in an instant, so she had a good view of the handle. Polished silver with a twist of crusted gems and what looked like diamonds wrapping around it and disappearing under the leather.
The tension in the room was so thick, Jess swore she could taste it, a bitter shock that roiled her stomach. The Fomorians all remained silent, but she could tell the majority of the females looked frightened while the males just looked royally pissed. Roshea had been tipped off, by text, of the Seelie guard in the cavern. While she warned not to say anything lest she say something wrong by accident, and to kneel, Finn and Keegan must have flown up and through the manhole in the ceiling of the building, taking their burden with them.
Fallon kept his eyes on Banner, never once looking her way. This odd feeling to need him to glance her way and somehow let her know it was going to be alright, seemed to make her panic a little when he didn't.
Fallon didn't dare glance her way. If he looked at her, Banner might suspect. He wanted nothing more than to go to her and take her away, but that just wasn't possible. He kept his eyes trained on Banner's shoulder, knowing the guy had a problem with people looking him in the eye. It went against his nature not to make eye contact, but the momentary discomfort was worth keeping the situation, Banner specifically, calm. When the Seelie king's general got a nod from one of his men he walked to the head of the line of women and waited as a guard demanded them to "Kneel."
Reluctantly, they all bent down, knees touching the hard unforgiving ground. After the last female had lowered herself, Banner followed behind the same guard giving orders as he swept their hair and clothes aside, inspecting their necks and shoulders one by one. When he reached Alyss, Fallon watched her tense and he secretly willed her not to resist. When she didn't, and allowed the general to jerk her hair and pull at her shirt, they release her when they found nothing. He let out a small breath he had been holding, only to suck in another one, remaining still when they moved to Jessandra. His wings gave a minute twitch as a snarl began to swell in his chest just as they yanked at the tank top she wore. He felt time stall, for it seemed like their inspection of her was lingering compared to the other women's. When they finally did let her go, they moved on to Roshea. After the last female, he saw all three women relax as the guard stepped away from the line and moved to stand between the two lines, watching for a reaction from the males. The bastards knew they couldn't stand to watch someone manhandle their females, driving them crazy with a natural born instinct to protect them. They became feral like.
Some moved on to tip over a couple carts and tables of wares, fragile pottery and glass shattering as they did, simply because they could. To retaliate or raise a hand to a Seelie guard was punishable by whipping or worse, and not just the male, or female for that matter, but also their mate. None of the males were willing to take that risk.
Banner smiled as two men played soccer with a grapefruit before one of them kicked it with so much force to the other that it cracked open, splattering juice and pulp on the receiver and onto the wings of some of the males who still remained in line.
"Alright, garda," Banner said, approaching Fallon again. "Let's get out of here." When he stood in front of Fallon again, he spoke in a low tone. "King Sylus wants to see you soon. He'd like to know how his favorite pet is managing lately."
Fallon controlled the desire to roll his eyes. The Seelie king liked to consider all of those under his control as pets. Broken and trained to do his bidding, without the freewill to nay say him.
"Fine." He said, begrudgingly. "I will visit court in two days’ time." His least favorite place.
"You know he doesn't like to be made waiting for too long, daor," Banner said, spittle spraying a little with the last word, landing on Fallon's cheek, reminding him of the king's lack of patience as well as Fallon's real position. A slave.
"I understand, ginearálta," Fallon said, nodding and moving his gaze down at the ground, looking every part the slave that Banner saw him as.
Soon, you bastard, Fallon thought. Soon, I will no longer be your ward. Then who will save your snarky ass?
"Later, Fallon," Banner said with a cocky grin as he turned around and led the rest of his men out of the cavern, filing up the stairs.
When the last Seelie guard had gone, the Fomorian broke away from their line and moved to clean up the mess they had left behind. Someone already had a broom and pan, another brought over a trash can. Shards of glass and clay tinkered and clanged together as they were brushed into the metal dust pan and dumped into the plastic trash bin.
Seeing a woman struggle to right a heavy table, Jess and Roshea rushed forward to help. Barely finished with getting all four legs back on the ground, Fallon startled her when his hand snatched her upper arm in an unrelenting grip. Gasping at the sudden pressure, she was forced to stumble along with him as he dragged her through the cavern, back to her room. Closer now, she saw Keegan and Finn exit from the doorway and stop at the sight of Fallon nearly dragging her in their direction. Their eyes jerking from whatever they saw in Fallon’s, and lowering to Jess' slightly panicked expression, they high tailed it out of his way and towards the mess in the grand cavern.
"Fallon," she panted, having to practically run to keep up with his long, hurried stride. "What is it? What's wrong?" His fingers didn't loosen their grip on her arm, nor did he answer her.