Beguiled (Book 2 Immortal Essence series) (8 page)

“No. No. No. No. No.
The gods can’t know you’re doing this.”

He patted my knee. “Of course they know, Venus. The gods know everything.”

Sickness filled my stomach. “Impossible. They would never allow you to keep souls from returning to the Creator. Never.”
Tears filled my eyes. How long had they been down there? “I can’t believe
it
.” My teeth chattered, and I bit my tongue. “Why di
d you show me this?” I sniffled
, wiping at the tears falling onto my cheeks
. “
Why?
I just want my parents.
Can’t I have my parents?
”
Even as I spoke I knew
rescuing my parents
wouldn’t be enou
gh anymore. I couldn’t leave tho
se souls
in
such an
awful room
indefinitely. No way. Something
needed
to be done.
I had to help them. And Michael. Did he know what his father did?

“
I showed you my Room of Souls because your parents aren’t in the first or second degree of Helker as you may have been led to believe. You’re parents were murdered, and their
souls dwell in the cavern
with the rest.”
He motioned to the
cavity below
.

“You’re lying. Surely.” I choked on the words; unable to believe he spoke the truth.
The banquet room began to spin. And pain—an agony like I’ never experienced—filled every crevice of my being. My parents were dead. Their souls trapped deep within Helker, prisoners of th
is-this monster. “That can’t be.
” 

“I have no reason to lie,” he said softly, but without compassion.

“Who . . .
killed t
hem?” I asked.

“
The murderer is of no consequence
. When a body dies, I collect the soul and bring it here.”

I looked up then, searching his empty face for some semblance of empathy
.
There
was none. How ironic, I t
hought.
A
few weeks ago I
despised all emotion, and now I yearned t
o find some within the creature
before me. More than ever, I knew
I would not leave
without freeing their souls. Dead or not, I wouldn’t let them suffer at Ramien’s hands. Finding a
t a
tiny piece
of anger within my heart, I grabbed onto it, and held fast. “
You will give me my parents
.”

“I rather hoped you’d
say that
.”

My eyebrows rose in question. I hadn’t planned on
such a
response.
I was
prepared for a battle.

Ramien shrugged. “I’ll free your parents’ souls, allow them to return to the Creator.
For a price.”

I groaned. If it was money he was after, I could manage
a large payment
. Easily. Alayeah was a wealthy country. “How much?” I asked, grinding my teeth to keep the sorrow from my voice. I’d mourn my parents later.
First things first.

He snorted in disgust and popped a green grape
,
from one of the bounteous tables
,
into his mouth. “The price of your parents’ freedom can’t be compensated with money, dear Venus. There is only one thing in all of Kelari I desire. And I will take nothing else. But, upon payment, your parents will be released. Agreed?” He tensed up, like a coiled spring.

“What is it?” I asked, hesitant.

Do
not agree, Venus. There is another way to free your parents
.
Tortevia’s voice
rumbled
in my head.
I had my doubts. She’d been with me more than six weeks, but her voice roaring into my mind had only just begun. How could I trust her words?
Please, believe me.

My gaze went
to the Room of Souls. The endless rows of
jars filled with tortured souls.
The creepy spiders crawling all over them.
I had to agree to his terms, whatever they were. It was the least I could do.

Ramien
read my hesitation. “I promise. This is the only
way. Even your gods, Ith and Aetha, would
concur
that
the only way to release a soul is through me.” He stepped closer
, and I smelled the
syrupy stench of his breath.

What
other choice did I have
?
If only Zaren were here. He
would know what course to take.

“This is a limited time offer.”

I nodded. “
Fine.
Yes.
Agreed.”
My heart sank into my throat.

A radiant
grin
broke
across
his
face, and he
cheered
like a jovial boy.

6.
One

“What is it you want?”
A menacing anxiety filled in what
ever cracks hadn’t already
solidified with pain.
A part of me felt separate from what happened. The idea that I was in Helker, making deals, seeing tortured souls, and Angela’s face fall off—it all seemed unreal. My insides churned as I debated how I got myself into this mess. I should’ve been in bed, thinking of Zaren, and finding out how to help my sister, and my parents. Not wher
ever I was,
making deals with a demon
.

It is real.
Believe it. Ramien is deadly serious
.
Tortevia seemed disappointed. She told me not to agree to whatever Ramien wanted, but I didn’t see another way to save my parents. Whatever it was he wanted, I’d give it. Do it.
My parents needed me, and I was their only salvation.
 

“First things first. We need a toast.” Ramien took two
gemstone
goblets from a nearby table. They filled
of their own volition
with
a clear, sparkling liquid. He handed one to me. “Here’s to a
new
age
.
One where y
ou and I
rule
the Universe
—together
.”
He winked.

“You seem pretty sure
of yourself. What makes you think
I’d do anything
with
you?” I took a sip of the bubbly liquid, hoping to rid my mouth of its ashy taste.
The drink
was actually quite refreshing. I drained the glass.

“Because you said
‘
yes,
’
dear Venus.”

I swallowed and it felt li
ke sand going down my throat. “To w
hat?”

He sauntered over and pulled me by the shoulders to my feet “I’ll free your parents when you become my wife.”

“Your wife?” Michael burst into the room and pushed
Ramien
away from
me
. “I never agreed to
such BS
!
She’s . . . she’s . . .
”

Michael
rubbernecked
his gaze
between Ramien and me.
I knew the word
Michael
wanted to say.
I knew what he believed. Just like the night in the cave, the night he declared his love, the night I became immortal. He believed I was his.

Ramie
n completed Michael’s sentence
.
“Yours. Is that
the word you are too cowardly to say?
” Ramien seethed. H
is skin rippled,
fading in and out. “What a disgrace to your heritage.
Your birthright.
A true ferether doesn’t have emotion except those he creates by causing souls to suffer. How can you be my son if y
ou retain fe
elings for
her
?
” He spat out the word
s
, shoving a finger into Michael’s chest as he spoke.

“I won’t let you touch her again.”
Michael leaned into
Ramien’s as
sault. Fury radiated from him. N
ervous
, I
stepped
away from them
. The air
hissed
with
their
heated energy.

“You’re weak
,” Ramien continued, his voice lowered, more menacing
.
“
You possess unlimited power, but you don’t know how to use it.
I wanted to be your te
acher, train you, but alas . . . a teacher must have a willing student.
” He
paused a moment.
Then spitting in Michael’s face, he went on,
“You may think you can stop me, but—”

Michael suddenly had a gun
. It just appeared in his hand from out of nowhere. B
efore
I blinked
, he shot Ramien in the face.
Pieces of
Ramien
went everywhere, like paint spattering across a canvas. My stomach turned. White lights spotted my vision. Michael grabbed my
hand and said, “Run!”

My head spinning, I took off after him.
“
Where did you get a gun?
Is he dead?”

He answered my ques
tions quickly and succinctly
.
“
Out of thin air.
Not even close.”
Michael gave me a quick smile. “We’re getting out of here.”

“
Fabu
,” I said as I ran alongside him.
He saved me again. W
ell,
at least he was trying.
An
d I did want to be saved, but the Room of Souls crept into my mind.
My parents’ souls, p
ossibly
even
my sister
’s
were trapped below.
I had to help.

All the information I gathered from Palmo indicated my parents died because of me. It was my fault.
Some among the Chans even spoke of rumors that a rebel faction wanted Alayeah. To get it, they accused me of inexcusable crimes.
My family suffered the consequences
.
If Michael and I got out of
here, I
would
go to Zaren. H
e would help us get the souls out.
As reigning royalty in Alayeah, if I decreed it, I could dispatch an army into Helker.
First
,
we needed to escape.

When we reached the double doors at the end of the room, Michael pulled
it opened
, and we ran through.
The gilded hallway extended in both directions
way past what I was able to see
. “Which way?”

“Left,” he said pulling me along.

I followed since I had no idea where we were or how we got here. Everything was turned around. If I could fi
nd the door Michael and I entered Helker from, I would
be able to use Britorent and get us
home
.

“Do you know where we’re going
?” I finally asked.

He grunted in response.

After running for what seemed like hours
, we
still
hadn’t come to the end of the hall.
Finally I pulled on Michael’s arm. “Stop.”

“No, we ca
n’t. You don’t understand.”
Dread oozed from
Michael.

“We have to.
Running isn’t doing us any good
.”
For emphasis, I pointed at the long hallway, still without an end on both sides.

“
It is. It is
.” He let out a strangled cry. “There has to be a point to all of this.”

I stopped, and pulled on his hand
, making him stop
with me
.

Michael.”

“
Arghhhh
!” He started pacing. “Frank was bad enough, but Ramien is worse.
” Michael was agitated, talking fast, rambling really. He fisted his hands in his hair. “At first I thought it was cool. I mean
when Ramien showed up at Ith and Aetha’s, I was excited. The gods let me go with him as long as I promised . . .” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I mean you’ve seen him.
Ramien can morph. He can change reality. Alter the way others look
, the way he looks. And to taste a soul.” He let out a gravelly moan. “
It’s like the most amazing feeling ever.” His jaws clenched. “Ramien showed me how to do all of it. My new powers made me feel awesome.
Like a superhero or something
.
And I thought I’d be able
to
, I don’t know,
use them
help people . . .
help you
. . .
b
ut no,
it’s
like everything else in my life.
Ramien is shit
. What
. . .
god did I piss off—?
”