Perilous Light (17 page)

I did not understand it either. As far as I knew, there had never been a Guardian with no tie to Energo. Having an Essence and Guardian who were born somewhere other than Energo was strange enough, but Charlotte and Kevin were born of a mother from Energo; Liam was not.

“
Does it matter?” Monty looked as though years of weight had been lifted off him as he cradled Emma. Although she was still unconscious, her breathing had become more pronounced, and she had more color.

I wondered how Charlotte would react to the news that Liam was a Guardian. I expected she would be happy considering how close the two had grown. Liam and I would need to continue the conversation another time, but for the moment, we focused on how grateful we were to have secured Emma and to have made it out alive. James and Lawson set to work preparing a fire. Liam, Monty, and I didn’t help, as none of us were willing to leave our vigil.

Finally, Charlotte stirred. “You are still here.” Her beautiful blue eyes looked up at me, and she reached up to touch my face.

I leaned into her hand as she caressed my cheek, enjoying the warmth and comfort. “Yes, I am with you now and always.” I smiled down at her and allowed myself to enjoy holding her.

Chapter Eighteen

Kevin

The people of Alak seemed to hang out at the same places all the time. After securing support at the meeting, we sat around a table at the same hole-in-the-wall pub. I was finally becoming more relaxed with my surroundings, but felt stressed about how I was supposed to lead an army of nations back to Energo.
As great as the meeting had gone, the added support didn’t guarantee success. I thought about asking for advice but figured everyone would be just as unhelpful as before. Even after talking to the tree, I still didn’t really get what I was supposed to do. It also didn’t help that the support wasn’t unanimous. The Nordicos, Alexander’s people, announced they would be abstaining. Bry had told me that for a nation to refuse to follow a Pact decision was unheard of.

“
Is it me, or does Alexander have some personal vendetta against me? It seemed so intense.”

Bry set down his drink. “Do you know anything about the history of the Nordicos?”

“
I hadn’t heard of them before this week.” I didn’t like the looks I received when I admitted that. “What? No one gave me an orientation. I hadn’t even heard of Energo before a year ago.”

“
Ada, would you like to do the honors?” Bry asked. I could count on one hand the number of times I had heard Ada talk since meeting her.

Ada let out a sigh. “I assume you know that your sister is not the first Essence to be born to an Essence?”

I nodded, eager for her to continue.

“
The other was born after the Sutonti nation invaded Energo, and a soldier forced a Guardian to kill the Essence with a Guardian sword.”

“
What? Why would he do that?” Less than a minute into the explanation, she had already lost me.

Ada blushed. It was rather cute, but I tried to ignore her when I noticed Samantha looking my way.

Bry picked up the story. “He was seduced by a Sutonti woman.”

“
Oh.” Ada must have blushed because she was embarrassed to talk about a woman seducing someone.

“
The soldier should have been tried for the crime, but he escaped with the help of his lover. He obviously could never return to Energo, so they left for Sutonti.”

“
But they were turned away at Sutonti as well,” Henry threw in. “Killing the Essence had not been part of the Sutonti king’s intentions when they invaded. He had wanted the Essence alive because he wanted her for himself.”

I thought about how many events in history occurred because of a guy who wanted a girl. I couldn’t help but look over at Samantha.

“
So, the rogue soldier and the Sutonti woman found some unclaimed land and recruited a handful of followers from Energo and Sutonti to help build a new nation. They called it Nordico.”

“
Wait, so that’s how the Nordicos developed?” I asked.

“
Yes, the two groups created a new people with many of the strengths from each nation.” Henry seemed to enjoy his part in the storytelling.

“
They have the physical strength of those of Energo and the Sutonti ability to live in water,” Ada said.

“
Wow. Okay, so I get that. So why does Alexander hate me so much, yet defend Blake if he is so anti-Energo?”

“
Because of your mom.” Ada quickly looked down.

I had a feeling I didn’t want to hear the rest of the story, but I had to know. “What about my mom?”

“
Suffice it to say, Alexander had an interest in her and was very disappointed when she chose to run to your world instead of turning to the Nordicos for support.” Bry did not share his sister’s embarrassment, and met my eyes as he talked.

“
Oh.” I had to hear about guys wanting my sister
and
my mom. Great.

“
It should not surprise you, Kevin. Beyond beauty, as the Essence, your mother also held great power. Many wanted to get their hands on it,” Bry said. “And you are evidence of how she spurned Alexander.”

So Alexander hated my very existence. “And he supports Blake because…?” I wanted to get the topic away from my mom’s love life.

“
My best guess is that he feels camaraderie with Blake. They were both rejected by your mother.” The words sounded funny coming out of Ada’s singsong voice.

I wondered if I looked as shell-shocked as I felt. “Why didn’t my mom go to the Nordicos? At least Nordico has some connection to Energo. Why go somewhere more foreign?”

“
She did not trust them. There was only one place she knew she would be safe from the politics of Energo, and that, of course, is where you were raised,” Samantha answered.

“
I assume Alexander is unaware of what Blake did to your mother. I thought about telling him in order to get his support, but it was not my place. Perhaps he would listen to you.” Bry finished off his drink, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

“
Wait… you want me to convince Alexander to get the Nordicos on board? You think his thing for my mom is enough?”

“
I do. He mourned your mother’s passing. I believe he feels enough for her, even after being jilted, to want to avenge any wrong done against her.”

“
And explain to me again why you didn’t tell him earlier?” It would have been nice to have had my greatest adversary on board before the first meeting.

“
I had to let you take the lead. You had to be the representative, not me.”

“
Sure.” I rolled my eyes. Bry always spoke in absolutes about what was necessary, but he usually failed to give any explanations. “So when do you want me to talk to Alexander?”

“
How about right now?” Bry gestured behind him. Alexander sat at a table surrounded by some of his advisors, all large men with long blond hair.

I took in a deep breath before pushing back my chair. After stalling for a moment, I finally took a few steps toward Alexander’s table. It was humiliating to have to ask for his help again.

He looked up as I reached the table. “Can I help you, child?”

“
We need to talk.”

“
So talk.”

“
Alone.”

“
There is nothing you could possibly want to discuss that cannot be said in front of my advisors,” Alexander challenged.

“
It’s about my mother.” I hoped the mention would be enough.

“
Your mother is dead.” His voice sounded cold, and I started to doubt Bry’s belief that Alexander would help if he knew the truth.

“
Maybe not,” I said offhandedly.

Without warning, he jumped out of his seat, grabbed my arm, and dragged me over to an empty table in the corner of the pub. Too surprised to protest, I stared at him as he pushed me down into a chair. “Talk, boy.”

My previous fear of Alexander had not been from his physical strength, but I started to reevaluate it. There weren’t too many men who dared push me around like that. As much as I wanted to regain some self-respect and simply walk away, I knew I couldn’t. “Blake kidnapped her and has been keeping her in some weird catatonic state. With my Mom close to death, a new Essence was chosen, my sister.”

“
Where is she? We leave now.” He stood abruptly.

“
Suddenly Blake doesn’t seem like the man of the year, huh?” I instantly regretted my comment.

Alexander grabbed me by the collar of my shirt. “I asked you where she is.”

“
I don’t know exactly. I think it’s called Icentris. Blake’s son is supposed to be taking my sister there now.”

“
Icentris? The prison holding Macon? And why is Blake’s son with your sister?”

“
He’s one of her Guardians. She claims we can trust him.”

“
Why would Blake want to imprison her? It makes no sense.” Alexander returned to his seat with a far-off expression.

“
He’s power hungry and wanted her out of the way.” I didn’t actually know his motivations, but those seemed logical.

Pure rage flashed across Alexander’s face. “That snake! I should kill him for hurting Emma!”

“
So does this mean that we have the support of the Nordicos?” I attempted to keep my optimism at a reasonable level.

“
No. You do not.”

“
But—”

“
Let me rephrase it. You do not have our support. We do, however, support getting revenge for what happened to Emma. Now if your goals and our goal happen to coincide, then so be it.” I could have sworn there was a faint smile behind Alexander’s eyes, but I pretended not to notice.

“
Okay, then.” I didn’t want to push my luck, so I let it slide.

“
I must prepare my men.” Alexander shot out of his chair and was across the room before I even registered his words.

By the time I got to my feet, he had started walking out the door of the pub with his advisors on his heels.

Bry strolled over with a grin. “I take it he is on board?”

“
Yeah, he’s on board.”

“
Okay, now it is time to start planning.” Bry never ran out of energy.

Samantha appeared beside me. “I think he deserves the rest of the night off.”

“
Fair enough.” Bry returned to the others. It surprised me how easily he gave in. Maybe he had planned it that way all along.

“
Come on. Let’s get out of here,” she said.

I followed Samantha outside in a bit of a daze. Between getting too much information about men interested in my mom and the stress of how we were going to fight off Blake, I really needed a break.

***

Samantha led us through the winding streets of Alak. We didn’t talk, but it was a comfortable silence. When we’d first arrived in the city, it seemed like an endless row of buildings and canals, but Samantha showed me an amazing park in the middle of the city.

After following a winding path lined with white trees, we ended up sitting on a rock overlooking a small pond. A wooden bridge spanned the length of the pond, lit up by twinkling lights. With the skyline as a backdrop, the view was incredible, and we were far enough in the park that the sounds of the city had faded into a dull hum. The night was warm, but a slight breeze kept blowing Samantha’s hair into my face.

“
If my hair is bothering you, I will put it back up.” Samantha shrugged, and I couldn’t tell if she meant it as a joke. “I wanted to get the smoky smell out of my hair.”

“
It’s not bothering me at all. It’s pretty.” I went with honesty. Even if it did smell like smoke I wouldn’t have cared. Man, I had it bad.

As we sat on the rock, I couldn’t help myself. Before I knew it, I was running my fingers through her hair. I usually went for brunettes, so it surprised me how much I liked her nearly white hair.

“
Thank you.” She smiled awkwardly as though she wasn’t used to compliments.

“
So, are you strict about the ‘no physical contact’ rule?” Mortification engulfed me as the words tumbled out of my mouth. They sounded fine floating around my head, but not so much when I heard them out loud.

“
Excuse me?”

“
I mean, I heard that things are pretty strict in Energo, and I didn’t want to get in trouble.” God, I was seriously making things worse. I decided to just take a chance. I leaned toward her, gently cradling her head in my hand. I’d kissed plenty of girls, but I’d never been as nervous as I felt in that moment. At first, she didn’t respond, and I wanted to kick myself. Then, her hands were in my hair, and she was kissing me back. It felt so good to feel her body pressed against mine. The kiss was perfection. We were both a little breathless afterward, looking at each other with amazement.

“
I guess you don’t follow that rule,” I said with a chuckle.

“
I never had a reason to worry about it before.” She smiled, and I realized that it had probably been her first kiss.

“
Wow. I’ve been waiting a long time for that.”

“
I bet you were,” Samantha joked.

“
Can you blame me?” I figured two could play that game.

“
I admit I was wrong about you, Kevin.”