The Ghost and the Darkness Volume 1 (The Fallocaust Series Book 2) (34 page)

“I’m going too?” Perish’s wavy voice said nervously behind me. “I’m not going back to Skyfall?”

Elish shook his head before he took the paper out of my hand with a gentle sweep, and placed it inside the folder Killian was holding. “Silas thinks you’re with Reaver and Killian, you’ll be answering to Reaver for now.”

I smirked as I saw Perish’s face light up, at least he could keep Killian busy. They could be emotional about things together. He could be the new Reno since mine decided to get himself involved in chimera politics.

“Another thing...” Elish’s purple eyes shifted to the cockpit as if making sure it was closed tightly. With a small downturn of his mouth he turned back to me, before nodding me over to the side of the plane, away from Perish and Killian’s inquisitive stares.

“The others who were kidnapped, it’s obvious what these terrorists are trying to do. The others were pets and the partner of Kessler’s son. I think Reno was only captured because his engagement had only recently gotten announced, before then he was a pet like the others,” Elish began, his arms smoothly folded over his overcoat with such an elegance it always looked choreographed. “I am asking of you, Reaver. To, at least temporarily, assume ownership of my own pet. Considering this –”

I pursed the corners of my eyes with my fingers and groaned. Elish’s violet icebergs cut me in half as I sighed and shifted my stance.

Elish continued, ignoring my display.

“– considering this involves his ex-boyfriend. Not only is he at risk in Skyfall, he is at risk for being taken as well, and rest assured... Kerres would rather Jade die than be with me.”

“I’ll take him but I really dislike him being called my pet, can’t he just be your pet and tag along?” I asked, feeling another weight of responsibility rest on my shoulders. I could hear the bones creak and wane in my head.

Elish slowly shook his head, for a brief moment his cold countenance slipped and I saw the smallest glint of apprehension in his eyes. The first non-cold emotion I had seen. Deep down he really did love this kid. I knew it. “I would feel better if you had direct responsibility for him, a companion would not carry the same burden.”

There were more than a few emotions running through my head, but while my mind quickly sifted through them, one kept rising to the surface. Pushing the others aside to dig itself into the matter in my brain.

Elish trusted
me
with Jade?

I wasn’t happy with this; I already had Killian to look out for. Not to mention the fact that Killian listened to me, I didn’t know if this pet would.

“I will.” What was I getting myself into?

“And for your agreeance, I will not return until I have Reno with me. I will promise you that.” Elish turned away from me and walked back into the cockpit.

I sat with Killian, who was flushed and looking pale, and threw a supportive arm around him, pulling the boy close to me. I was giving his back a supportive rub when I heard the first shrill shriek come from the cockpit. Killian jolted and looked at the front of the plane, his blue eyes wide and full of shock.

I kept rubbing his back. “Guess what? I got you a new pet!” I said sweetly.

Jade burst through the cockpit, looking like Satan in an overcoat. His yellow eyes immediately flared at me. “Don’t even... don’t you fucking even say anything, Reaver!” He snarled before he stalked to the other end of the plane only to start taking the top off of one of the crates.

Because in the deepest fathoms of my heart I was an absolute dick, I grinned at him. “That’s
master
, Cicaro.”

The dark-haired pet’s body shook from an eternal rage. I wondered what exactly he was angry about though. Being my new pet, or Elish ditching him with the fugitives. Like most chimeras he had always wore his own mask in front of us but now it was breaking from his face.

“Perish, mind the plane,” Elish said from the door frame. Perish, more than happy to get away from this situation, got up and ran into the cockpit.

Then things got a bit real, I looked over and saw the crate’s lid forgotten against the metal ribs of the plane with Jade standing behind it. He was holding a large knife.

“Very frightening, I’m the picture of fear.” Elish stepped towards him, his tone biting cold and soaking with derision. “Put that away before you hurt yourself or is that your intention? I thought we were over your penchant for masochism.”

Jade’s face twisted in an inhuman aguish; he brandished the knife at his master. I could see his boots shaking as he tried with every ounce of control to not break his brazen stance. “Fuck you!” He managed to scream, his voice seething with agony. “You said you would never leave me again! You promised me!” He held the knife up and as he did I saw his knees buckle more. I barely needed to tune my hearing to hear his heart thrashing inside his chest.

Elish took another silent step towards him, the closer he got the more Jade dissolved into himself. The cicaro sunk to his knees before bending forward in his own grief; his shoulders shaking and trembling with his body.

In that moment I honestly thought Elish would be moved by Jade’s inner agony, I expected to see him take the kid into his arms and hold him, while admitting his love and putting a smile back onto his face, something to show at least a shred of empathy.

Heck, I felt bad for him.

But, as if to hammer in the cold indifference he had to people’s suffering, he reached behind Jade’s neck and removed his collar. With a soft jingling of chains he wrapped the leash loosely around his hand before he rose with the knife.

“You have no choice in the matter, maritus.”

Without another word, with his pet shaking on his knees, Elish swept past me and Killian and back into the cockpit.

Killian leapt up from me and put his hand on Jade’s back. When Jade made no move to maul my boyfriend, I got up silently and walked myself into the front of the plane.

“Leave, Perish.” I pointed to the door. Poor Perish, even amongst the people who were nice to him he still got bossed around all the time.

Perish sighed; he wasn’t as snappy with my orders as oppose to Elish’s, he took off the co’pilot headphones and slunk out of the room. I closed the door behind him.

Elish didn’t even look up, he stared forward as he steered the plane. I tried not to become lost in the breathtaking view we had of the sky and turned my attention to him.

“I know your funny language, maritus means husband, doesn’t it?” I crossed my arms. In truth I didn’t know much of the language but Killian had spent his time in the greyrifts apartment trying to learn it, and he had told me what that word meant.

Elish’s eyebrow twitched just slightly. “Silas likes crafting punishments to each chimera; my punishment was to marry my cicaro. Though in all respects he gets treated no different.”

Interesting, though it made sense. If he forced Killian and me to get married I would be a bit annoyed at how happy it would make Killian but I wouldn’t care. Equalizing this master and pet relationship would be torture for someone like Elish.

“Well, I don’t give a fuck how you treat your pet, but give him fucking something. I don’t give a shit that you need to be all cool and dead inside to keep up appearances but give the kid something before you drop him off. He’s obviously madly in love with you.”

The blond chimera was silent, but I saw his hands grip the wheel a bit harder. “My cicaro knows me well; I do not have to say anything to him.”

“Which is why maybe now you should, but what do I know, right? Him waving a knife around is an obvious window into his solid mental state.” I smirked but it faded when I realized he could see me through the plane’s window.

Suddenly a loud clang of metal sounded in the cockpit, both Elish and I turned to the door but as I went to open it, Killian was on the other side trying to get in.

“He fucking jumped! He grabbed a parachute bag and just fucking jumped!”

“Idiot!” Elish snarled, showing more emotions than I had ever seen on him. He pressed a button on the plane controls and rose before he ran past me. I followed.

Perish was gripping onto the steel frame as he tried to pull the door shut. Elish pushed him aside and looked out the open door, wind tossing everything around that wasn’t crated or nailed down. I saw Elish’s mouth move in a few curse words before he closed the door.

As quickly as it came the wind died down to nothing as the cabin pressurized. With his face unnaturally angry Elish stalked into the cockpit and slammed the door. A moment later I felt the sickening feeling in my gut as the plane started to descend.

Killian was bawling his face off. I held him in my arms as he tried to tell me what had happened in a wobbling voice. I caught the gist of it, which was basically what I had expected: He tried talking to Jade; Jade got pissed off and grabbed a parachute.

I assumed he knew how to use it since Elish was landing the plane; I hoped we weren’t going down to the surface to find a body. What an end for the poor little fucker.

I held Killian as I watched the mountains of the greywastes start to peak over the windows like a slowly closing jaw. As soon as the plane landed Killian pulled away and quickly opened the door. He leapt out and ran into the open world before I could stop him.

Elish was out too, though the expression on his face made me stay several paces away from him. It wasn’t a look of pure anguish that Jade had had, or even an expression of burning anger, but on Elish I knew it translated the same. It looked like he was forcing down an imminent nuclear meltdown with just his lips.

I saw Elish’s eyes focus on one area blocked from my view by the plane. I jogged to that side of the plane so I could get a good look, mostly to appease my own morbid fascination.

I immediately saw the remains of a white parachute, flattened against the grey rocks like the air let out of a balloon. Then about ten feet away from that, Jade was walking away with his shoulders slumped and his body constricted on itself. He was alive though but for how long I didn’t know.

“Come here, Jade,” Elish said sternly.

Jade’s body tensed. I could see the faint rising and falling of his shoulders as Elish’s voice hit his ears. He stopped but didn’t move.

With Killian beside me I tip-toed over to where the action was, keeping our shadows hidden by the side of the plane. I motioned Perish over too and all three of us stood like hens watching it all go down.

“Is that collar really that important to you? It looks so uncomfortable.” Elish’s voice was a low but soothing temper, with only a slight air of being condescending.

Jade turned around, the anger was gone from his face. Now his yellow eyes glistened in the faint shreds of winter sunlight. “Get your digs in, make all the poisonous remarks you want and leave like we’re all waiting for you to do. The moment you leave, I’m going and Reaver doesn’t give two shits if I follow.”

“And where will you go?” Elish asked in an air of bemusement. “Going to farm rocks? Become a raver?”

“Anything is better than being shipped off for my slaughter.”

I saw Elish’s left eyebrow raise. He took a step forward towards Jade.

The pet didn’t move, his gaze never left the rocky grey ground and his boots stayed firmly planted. He was defiantly standing his ground against the oncoming shadow.

“Slaughter?” Elish’s tone turned curious. “Why would you think such an odd thing?”

I saw Jade’s arms shake and the small white disks of his clenched knuckles. Jade turned his face away from him as Elish took the last step, until they were facing each other.

“You’re leaving me alone with these psychopaths with my head slowly getting more and more fucked up. You’re leaving me to die, aren’t you?”

“You are such an idiot, maritus,” Elish said with a smirk. He reached a hand out and I saw him caress Jade’s cheek. “Is this what this tantrum is about? You think I am putting you in harm’s way on purpose?”

Complete and utter silence around us; Jade’s yellow eyes burned into the ground with fierce anger before he jerked his hand away from Elish’s touch.

“No, no, no, come here,” Elish said under his breath, only I could hear it and possibly Perish.

Jade stood frozen and rigid, unmoving but obedient to his master’s touch. I had felt that way when King Silas had touched me. I shuddered at the thought but buried it inside me.

Elish ran his fingers up the line of Jade’s cheek bone, before he traced the pet’s neck. I watched as Jade’s steeled face started to show signs of wear.

The next thing that happened shocked me. I hadn’t thought Elish had listened to me, but he cupped Jade’s jaw into his hand and stroked his cheek with his thumb, before he leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips. Then as Elish pulled away, he took Jade’s hand and I realized on the pet’s bare hand I could see matching silver bands.

“I am not forcing Reaver to caretake you because I want you to die. If anything this hand I am being forced to play should tell you... I am doing the opposite. Skyfall is too dangerous for you, and any permanent damage to your brain will take at least a year if not more to become fatal. Really, mellitus, do you still doubt me that much?”

Jade’s eyes rose, he looked at him sadly before I saw his lower lip tremble. A moment later Jade put his arms around Elish. I heard the girls behind me
aww
at the adorableness of it. I was just fascinated that I had actually gotten through to Elish.