Chapter Two

 

Malachi Cromwell pondered mistakes as he entered his great room. Simples mistakes could be waved away with an apology as long as you learned from them. Complicated mistakes – say like, joining up with an evil army and fighting against the forces of good – weren’t erased so easily. He’d made so many mistakes, both complicated and simple, he wasn’t sure if there was any way out of the mess he’d made of his life.

“You are troubled,” his oracle, Pet, said head tilted to the side.

As customary, Pet was covered from head to toe in thick black fabric, only a slit for its eyes relieving the cover. In the early days, he’d treated Pet like a tool, a weapon for his use against The Veil. These days, Pet had been utilized to help him redeem himself in the eyes of the very beings he’d once hated.

Throwing himself into his chair, he studied the toes of his boots. His conscience told him to release Pet. Freeing it would be one large step towards redemption, but selfishness kept him from doing something so drastic. He needed Pet’s foretelling abilities to stay one step ahead of his pursuers. These days, he was drawing fire from both sides with unforgiving Veilerians wanting his head, and betrayed Eturians wanting his heart.

“Being popular sucks,” he commented sardonically.

“The Veilerians will accept you eventually,” Pet told him, no emotion coloring its voice. “The Eturians have already put a plan in motion to kill you.” It paused, blue eyes flickering like a television rapidly changing channels. “Shadows,” it whispered.

Malachi shivered against his will. He had no idea of Pet’s sex, though he was beginning to suspect it was female. Females were notoriously hard to understand and Pet was no exception. He’d held Pet captive for over three hundred years, but it offered no complaints, had made no attempts to escape. He hadn’t even cared as long as its predictions came true, but now he was bothered by what he’d done.

Malachi knew his change of attitude was a result of his new relationship with his half-brother. He’d hated his younger brother, hated knowing Lucian was accepted by their mother and the Veil while he was reviled as an abomination.

Remembered pain had his hands clenching on the arms of his chair. The Veil, the community of non-humans that lived on the fringe of human society, had no use for half-breeds. Before he’d defected to the Eturi, Malachi had been pressed into service of the Guardian Guild. A bitter laugh welled in his throat. Halfings hadn’t been good enough to treat with respect, but the full blooded Veilerians had put them to use as guards, enforcers, and any other low level position they could.

Now that Lucian was on the High Council, those old regulations and beliefs were finally dying. His brother had also made it possible for Malachi to attempt to re-enter Veilerian society. The Council had granted him time to show them all how serious he was about returning as a lawful citizen of The Veil. Was it any wonder he felt a pang of remorse at his treatment of Pet? His brother was helping him achieve his dreams while he kept another captive. Sick with the realization, Malachi glanced at Pet.

“You are thinking of releasing me,” Pet said suddenly, its voice holding some strange emotion.

“Do you want to be released?” Malachi asked curiously.

Pet was silent for a long time while he pondered what he would do without its guidance. If it wanted to be freed, he would do it. He owed Pet that much, if not a lot more.

“I am a danger to you,” it reminded him.

He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know.”

“I could lead your enemies to you.”

Scowling, he sat up in his chair. “I bloody well know what you can do. Do you want me to fucking let you go or not?” he finally roared.

Pet looked at him, head cocked to the side. If he could have seen its face, Malachi would’ve known what it was thinking, but all he saw were those blue eyes. “Yes. Yes, I think I would like to be free,” it finally answered him.

Heart pounding, Malachi approached the invisible barrier that kept Pet confined. He’d had the magical cage constructed eighty years before. The warmage who’d built it had given Malachi the spell to bring it down, even though he’d never imagined releasing this valuable weapon in his own private war.

Malachi pondered how strange life was. Just six years before he’d torn himself away from the ranks of the Eturi to aid his brother and his brother’s mate. Since then, others had come to mean more to him. Werefolk, succubi, vampires, Amazons, and even a demon or two had found their way into his inner circle. They didn’t know of Pet’s existence, but he instinctively knew they wouldn’t accept his reasons for confining it. They were all good beings who believed in freedom; some more than others giving up their heart’s desire to achieve it. How could he keep this being who’d served him so well locked up?

His hands were shaking when he came to stand before Pet. The invisible wards gleamed violet as he began tracing runes on its surface. Pet watched him silently as the markings glowed black before disintegrating.

Mouth dry, Malachi paused before drawing the last symbol. His eyes met Pet’s as he traced it out. He hoped he wasn’t making a mistake. So much rode on his shoulders. If Pet killed him, Veilerians would suffer.

With an audible snap, the wards broke and the barrier fell. Pet continued to sit still, head tilting left and right as though it was looking for proof that the cage was gone.

Malachi held his hand out to Pet. It stood, black cloth falling to the floor without revealing skin. It was several inches shorter than him, its head barely reaching his chin. One gloved hand reached out, accepting his assistance.

Pet’s tiny fingers curled around his, delicate, yet he felt the strength in that hand. He guided it away from the chair it had sat in for centuries and gave Pet balance so it could step off the platform its cage had been built upon.

Malachi let go of Pet’s hand as soon as it was standing on solid ground. “I will give you money and a ride anywhere you wish to go,” he began, stopping when Pet shook its head.

“I have no wish to go anywhere,” it said, tilting its head to look at the room as though seeing it for the first time. “I will stay here. You would be lonely without me.”

There was no delight in its words, nothing to indicate how it felt about his loneliness, but Malachi couldn’t help his relief. Yes, he would be lonely without this odd creature. It had been a constant in his life for centuries even though he’d denied needing anyone or anything for so long.

“What-” he paused, feeling like a fool for not asking his question before. “What are you?”

Pet walked around the room, picking up snuffboxes and figurines studying them intently. He had a sense it was amused and curious about the world outside its cage. Shame nearly suffocated him. He’d done this being a severe disservice in the name of his cause. It had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and he’d taken advantage of that.

No longer, he swore as he watched it touch the brocade backs of the Queen Anne furniture. He would see to it that this creature, whatever it was, would want for nothing and have freedom for all of its existence.

“I am-” it paused. “I am a girl.” Pet told him solemnly.

Malachi felt a bark of laughter escape him. “What’s your name?” he asked, amused in spite of the burn of his shame.

“You call me Pet.”

“I know I call you Pet, but what’s your real name?”

Her hands were clasped together and he sensed she was trying to remember something. “Tiamat. I was once called Tiamat,” she whispered, head bowed.

Frowning, Malachi wondered why the name sounded familiar. Shrugging it off, he decided to do a little research later. “What are you, Tiamat?” he asked again. He needed to know what race she was. Perhaps her people were looking for her.

Her hands lifted and began waving around as though she were trying to explain. Finally, she raised her hands to the ceiling, whispering softly. Water began to drip from the stones. Shock held Malachi immobile. With another whisper, the water evaporated as though it had never been.

“Water elemental?” he whispered to the still figure across the room from him. His heart thundered loudly. He’d been holding a water elemental captive for three hundred years and she’d never attempted escape? “Why didn’t you ever try to leave? Try to hurt me or my people?” he asked her in complete bafflement.

Elementals were the strongest beings in The Veil. They were the physical embodiment of their element, able to call upon it at will. That this water elemental had never tried to escape or kill him for his actions was a puzzle.

Apparently it was a puzzle to her as well since she shrugged her tiny shoulders. “I felt…safe here. You are a kind father,” she mumbled, her shoulders hunching down.

A kind father? Malachi felt his eyes bulge. She thought he’d been kind to her by locking her away and using her for so long? Agitated, he rubbed a hand over his face. Jesus, he didn’t need this kind of confusion on top of everything else that was going on.

“Master,” a soft voice called on the other side of the closed door.

When he’d left the Eturi, he’d given his personal guard and followers the option of leaving to remain with the Eturi, or staying with him. To his surprise the majority had remained. Calling out to Hatot, the demon who’d once been his most prized scout, Malachi commanded him to enter without taking his eyes from Tiamat.

Hatot opened the door, his eyes focused on Malachi, until he almost ran over Tiamat. Eyes wide in fear and revulsion, Hatot sprang back.

“Milord!” he cried, looking about frantically. “Should I call the warmage? Has this creature harmed you?”

“Calm down, Hatot,” Malachi answered sharply. “Tia is no longer our captive. She is free to come and go as she pleases. Set up a room for her on the second floor. See that she has everything she needs.”

Tiamat’s head tilted to the side, studying Malachi solemnly, though she said nothing.

“What do you need?” Malachi asked the demon impatiently as he looked between him and Tiamat in confusion.

Hatot jumped as though forgetting he had come to his master for a reason. “The Amazons are here,” he told Malachi with a grumpy expression.

He sighed. “Make that room ready for Tia and tell Isola and Saga they may join me.” He dismissed Hatot with a flick of his finger, the demon running from the room. No doubt he would spread the word of Pet’s – Tia, Malachi corrected himself – release. His followers had always feared the odd creature and to see her walking freely would cause more chaos.

“I have to see the Amazons, but I’d rather they don’t know about you,” he told Tia as he turned back to her.

She inclined her head. “Yes, that is best. Isola is too curious to keep news of me silent,” she answered, surprising him with her knowledge of the females. He sensed she was amused again. “I know things about your life that you could never imagine, master. I will wait here for Hatot.”

Malachi opened his mouth to ask her more, but was interrupted by the sound of two female voices talking loudly on the other side of the door. Shooting Tia a speculative glance, he hurried across the room to intercept the Amazons.

He found them in the hallway, discussing the paintings that lined the corridor. Saga, at nearly six feet tall, was in the lead, waving her hands as she talked about texture and color. Her brown hair was pulled back in her customary ponytail, revealing the purity of her profile. Isola, or Izzy, was slightly shorter than her mentor and acted more like a frat boy than an Amazon of nearly a hundred years of age. Her dark hair had been cut short, spiking around her head.

They were beautiful, lethal women. The fact that he was now related to them through marriage meant he would never harm them no matter how much they irritated him.

“Malachi! Your eyebrows grew back!” Izzy exclaimed impishly as she caught sight of him. She smirked. “So when are you going to attend another movie night with us? It’s boring at Ruby’s place.”

Malachi bowed to them, manners overcoming his desire to strangle the Amazon. “I can promise you I will never watch another movie with your tribe again,” he told her through clenched teeth.

Lucian, his half-brother, had requested Malachi’s help with a friend and offered his home as base. Not seeing the danger beforehand with his sister-in-law’s hoydenish relatives staying there, he’d allowed the women to talk him into watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show. If had known they were going to spike his drink and shave off his eyebrows while he was incapacitated, he might’ve stayed at the hotel in town instead.

Saga grinned at him, correctly reading his body language. “Don’t be a spoilsport, Malachi. You’re family now, we get to torment you for eternity!” she gushed rapturously.

“I’m overcome with joy.”

The two women spluttered with laughter, leaning on each other at his flat tone. “Who would’ve thought the big, bad Malachi was so much fun?” Izzy asked, once she had herself under control. “You’re a riot!”

Rolling his eyes at the women, Malachi directed him further down the hall to his study. “What are you doing here?” he asked them once he was seated behind his desk.

Sprawled in the chair across from the desk, Saga shrugged one ivory shoulder. Malachi whole-heartedly approved of the clothing Amazons wore. Since they were always training or readying for battle, they kept to the basics: leather halter, leather pants, and moccasins. The females were sexy and dangerous, two qualities he had experienced firsthand when Lucian and his mate, Ruby, had first come together.

“Laura, Kate, and Delilah ask about you,” Saga told him with a smirk. The entire Blood Maiden Tribe took every opportunity to remind Malachi of his capture by the three females and the sex-a-thon that ensued while he was imprisoned.

“That’s good,” he murmured. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the females. They had been extraordinarily attractive and hungry in bed, but after so many centuries of sex, it held little appeal now.

Izzy pouted as though she had been expecting a better reaction. “We’re here to pick you up, actually.”

One of his eyebrows rose in question. As far as he was aware, there were no plans for reconnoiter tonight. The Amazons had offered him their help in locating and taking in Eturian generals to Council. That alone kept Malachi from wanting to toss the entire tribe into the Mississippi. They were aiding him in his struggle for redemption and for that he could forgive them nearly anything.

“Where are we going?” he asked hesitantly. Though he gave them plenty of leeway, it was never a good idea to just follow them blindly.

Saga shot him a dark frown. “You are such a man,” she growled, her teeth bared at him.

He blinked. “What’s with the hostility?” he asked in confusion.

“Saga, babe, he’s got too much testosterone running through that yummy body to remember things like birthdays,” Izzy said chidingly. She shook her head in pity at Malachi. “It isn’t your fault you’re a male. At least I don’t think it’s your fault.” She sat back in her chair, staring at the ceiling in deep thought. “Do you suppose babies pick what they want to be? I mean, I’m sure if someone had asked me if I wanted to be male or female, I’d have chosen female without question. So maybe it is your fault you’re male, Malachi.”

Malachi shook his head, trying to clear it of her usual twaddle. “Birthday? Whose birthday is it?” he asked, trying to bring the discussion back to saner waters.

Saga continued glaring at him, though she’d taken out her knife and was testing the blade with her thumb.

Izzy shot him a glance that suggested he was dumber than dirt. “You know. A little guy, about yea high,” she said sarcastically, her hand hovering about three feet above the ground. “Cute, smart in spite of being male, and loves you to death?”

Horror crashed over Malachi. He grabbed his phone to check the date. Sure enough, it was December twelfth. His only nephew, Dominic’s, sixth birthday was today.

“Shit!” he shouted, jumping to his feet. “Shit, shit, shit.” He hurried around the desk to the safe behind a painting of former VPA Chief, Ormond Steele. Swinging it open, he saw the brightly colored present just where he’d put it a month ago. He breathed a sigh of relief. His nephew had quickly become his reason for wanting redemption as a Veilerian more than acceptance as a Halfling.

Dominic was all that was innocent, his bright green eyes the only ones that looked at Malachi without recrimination. It was Dominic who fueled the justice Malachi sought from his former Eturian colleagues. They would tear down The Veil without thinking twice about the innocents who would suffer should their presence in the human world be discovered. Science and the unexplained did not mix well. Malachi knew the first to be tested in the name of ‘science’ would be the children who couldn’t protect themselves.

“So you didn’t entirely forget,” Saga said when he turned around with the present. She sounded both relieved and depressed. When he shot her an inquiring glance, she explained. “I’m glad you love our nephew so well, but I was really looking forward to kicking your ass.”

“I’m sure my ass is glad my brain remembers important things like my nephew’s birthday,” he said wryly. “Shall we go?”

*****

The party didn’t start until well after dusk because the birthday boy’s father was a vampire. It wouldn’t have been conducive to a good time for Dominic if his dad burned to a crisp at Best Burger. The venue was one of Dominic’s favorites, so his mother, Ruby, had paid an arm and a leg to rent the entire building for a few hours.

Malachi leaned against the dilapidated building, watching Dominic run around with his newest best friends, the Griffin triplets. Piper, the triplet’s mother, and Ruby sat at one of the tables eating a mound of food and discussing their pregnancies. Both females glowed with the inner light mothers-to-be shared. Their mates, Lucian and Connor, stood to the side alternately watching their children and their women.

It was an idealistic scene, one which Malachi both treasured and resented. The Amazons were there in full force, though their usual brashness was toned down in deference to the children running around their legs.

“Uncle ‘chi!” Dominic shouted as he dodged Anthony and Kenneth made a grab for him. Running full speed ahead, the birthday boy rammed straight into Malachi’s groin.

Groaning breathlessly, Malachi caught his nephew before he did any more damage. The Amazons who witnessed the blow smirked. Dominic ignored his aunts and wrapped himself around his uncle like a monkey. Anthony and Kenneth latched onto Malachi’s legs, begging him to walk with them.

Giving into their demands, he let the boys ride his feet as he walked across the outdoor eating area. Dominic’s little boy scent wafted up to his nose, nearly bringing tears to Malachi’s eyes. The fledgling vampire had burrowed a place into his heart, as well as the little Halflings on his feet.

Seeing Clara, the other third of the Griffin triplets, standing on the side with big tears in her eyes, Malachi swooped to pick her up as well. With all four children attached to him, his balance was precarious, but he couldn’t have been happier. Their warm little bodies were healing him, bit by bit. The sheer joy they took in life made him that much more determined to keep their world safe.

“Got your hands full there,” Connor, the triplet’s father, said with a quick grin.

Clara let go of Malachi to go to her father without a backwards glance. He sighed. “She’s already learning how to love ʼem and leave ʼem.”

“Shut up!” Connor gasped, a father’s fear of his daughter’s sexual maturity brimming in his eyes. Clara snuggled into her father’s neck, batting her eyelashes at Malachi.

“Face it, old man. That little girl’s going to run you in circles,” Lucian said as he joined them.

“Daddy!” Dominic shouted, throwing himself into Lucian’s arms.

Malachi winced, rubbing his ear. “How long is he going to be in the shouting stage again?” he asked as he lifted Anthony and Kenneth into his arms.

“It’ll be a while yet,” Kali announced as she joined them. The massive drag queen was wearing heels that put her nearly at seven feet tall. As the southern region’s only Oracle, Kali enjoyed a close friendship with the Veilerians who lived in and around Cypress Point, Louisiana. “Then, once they’ve stopped shouting the new additions will be starting. It’s a lovely cycle, isn’t it?” she smirked as she left them to join Ruby and Piper.

“Kids, the cake will be out soon,” Ruby called as she hefted herself to her feet.

Lucian immediately headed for his mate, hugging her and urging her back to her seat. Malachi shook his head slightly as he set the boys down. He would have never believed his half-brother could be such a family man, but the evidence was before his eyes.

The tightness in his chest increased. For so long, he’d stood on the outside of the circles that made up families. His own father had taken off before Malachi had known him, while his mother had ignored his existence, only tolerating him for Lucian’s sake. Being the bastard child of Liv Ravenswaay had come with benefits, yes, but there had been so much more Malachi had needed than a roof over his head and food in his stomach.

Connor clapped a hand on Malachi’s shoulder. “It’ll happen when you least expect it,” the werewolf warned before heading to ease his own mate.

He moved away from the party, easily finding the shadows for a little space. He had nothing to offer a female. His reputation was in ruins, he had no family legacy to pass on, and he was on a dangerous mission that could lead to his death. What female would want to join her life to his with so much at risk?

Rubbing a hand on the back of his neck, he stared through the iron bars surrounding the playground patio. Cypress Point looked peaceful under the beams of the full moon. Like most things in life though, Malachi knew that peace wouldn’t last. His actions against the Eturi would bring danger to his door and the door of his brother and friends. It was only a matter of time.

His neck tingled and he felt awareness creep over him. Someone was watching him. Glancing into the deep shadows draping the street, he saw nothing. There was an implied threat in the gaze watching him, but also a hint of curiosity as though the being wasn’t sure what to make of him.

“Malachi, we’re cutting the cake!” Ruby called out, her voice filled with laughter.

Whoever was watching didn’t plan to do anything now, the threat had lessened somewhat, though the curiosity remained. With one last sweep of his gaze around the street, Malachi turned to join his family in the birthday celebration.