The Guardian (Callista Ryan Series) (13 page)

             
“Perseus’ cowardice, while it saved his life, actually proved beneficial to my cause. I had suspected that the kingdom would not fall without the demise of its king, but soon after the battle, Perseus surrendered to Paulus and was taken prisoner by the Republic. The Macedonian kingdom was officially taken over by the Republic, and, as Emeric had suggested, the city of Thessalonica became a major trading operation. It united Europe and Asia in a way that the continents had never before known possible.”

             
Callie sat, wide-eyed, on the couch as he was speaking. “And what happened to Perseus?” she asked.

             
“He was kept in prison for the rest of his life, and died there two years later. Most of the kingdom viewed him as a traitor, even suggesting that he should have committed suicide rather than surrender as he did.”

             
Callie felt uncomfortable. “So, because of you, a man who had done nothing wrong lost his kingdom, the respect of his people, and eventually his life in prison?”

             
Alex looked at her evenly, unapologetic. “Sometimes it is necessary for one human to die in order for millions of others to prosper,” he said. “Nothing is ever simple.”

             
“And who says that’s your call?” Callie asked. “What, you can sit up here and allow your precious leader to play god, while in the mean time you destroy innocent lives?”

             
“He wasn’t exactly innocent,” Alex said with a small smile. “Perseus at one time was the mastermind behind his own brother’s murder. He convinced his father that Demetrius, the king’s eldest son, was a traitor, and thereafter had his father poison Demetrius. That is how Perseus was able to take the throne in the first place.”

             
“Regardless,” Callie said. “It shouldn’t be your business to dictate who lives and who dies.”

             
“We simply stop humans from doing the same on a massive scale,” Alex said. “There was a time when we could not interfere in the business of humans. Emeric was—detained.”

             
“And?” Callie challenged. “Did the world end?”

             
“No,” Alex replied, anger seeping into his normally cool expression. “But the lives of six million Jews did.”

             
Callie felt as though she’d been slapped. She paused, the air draining from her lungs. “The Holocaust?” she whispered.

             
Alex stared at her for a second, his face grim. When he spoke again, he chose his words deliberately. “Our interference is the only thing which allows the human race to exist. Genocide, disease, conflicts between states—all threaten to wipe out the species. Luckily for you, humans parent Guardians, and therefore we have an interest in keeping you alive. We help your people to overcome disaster and catastrophe so that you won’t become extinct, and thereby allow our own species to multiply.”

             
Callie swallowed. “But I don’t understand,” she said finally. “All those things—genocide, disease—they all happen. Right now, they’re happening.”

             
“And we have people working those cases,” Alex replied promptly. He gestured towards the door. “Shay is as close as any scientist to discovering the cure for certain major diseases; and as for the wars going on, be assured that there are always Guardians around, subtly manipulating the course of events in order to save the most people possible. We cannot prevent what you humans get yourselves into; all we can do is strive for the best possible outcome.”

             
Callie was about to reply, but right then Shay flew in through the door. Callie was startled by how pale she looked. “Shay?” Callie asked.

             
Alex stood and walked swiftly to the woman’s side. He murmured something to her, and she shook her head. She leaned up and whispered something in his ear, and when she was finished, his expression was murderous. He flew out without another word.

             
“What’s going on?” Callie asked, standing up.

             
Shay looked across the room at her, her lips pinched together. “A woman from the village has been spreading words about you,” Shay said.

             
“Me?” Callie asked. “How? I mean, no one even knows I’m here.”

             
“Emeric believes, and Alex will soon come to agree, that it is time for you to meet the villagers. He has called for a meeting. Tonight.”

              When Shay emerged from her bedroom later that day, Callie was having trouble standing still. She was leaning against the counter, twisting her fingers between each other and tapping her heel in rapid motion. She had never been able to be calm in the face of stress.

             
She heard Shay come out, and turned to find a solemn look on the woman’s face. “Are you ready?” Shay asked.

“Should I be nervous?” Callie asked.

              “That is not for me to decide,” Shay replied.

             
“Thanks for the reassurance,” Callie said, her legs beginning to feel shaky. She allowed Shay to lift her, though she was amazed at the woman’s strength given her slight height.

             
When they flew across the canopy, time seemed to be passing in slow motion. Callie couldn’t squelch the mammoth-sized butterflies that had taken up residence in her stomach. This all seemed so official and alarming, like something horrible had already happened. She couldn’t stop herself from thinking about the first night she had met Emeric, the way he had told her that she was a security threat. What if they decided to take that stance again?

             
It didn’t help that the sun was beginning to set, and Callie knew that night would fall quickly. Last night had been nerve-wracking, every shadow seeming a threat. She didn’t know how she would handle tonight, knowing that she could be in trouble.

             
The trees broke apart and Callie saw a beach, washed of color in the evening light. From way up here, the sight of hundreds of creatures below, standing on the sand, took her breath away. They looked like doves. Their wings blended together into patches of cream and ivory, fluttering and swaying in the breeze. It seemed a peaceful sight from so far away; only when Shay and Callie descended did Callie hear the frantic buzz of suspicion and paranoia in their voices.

             
When Shay landed, she placed Callie on the ground and began to walk towards the water. The hum of voices faded, giving way to the sound of the ocean. Callie, not knowing what else to do, and not wishing to stay solitary in the sea of probing eyes, followed her. The crowds split for them, making a broad pathway. Callie was consumed by their gazes; so many eyes regarded her warily, some even hatefully. She walked more quickly, staying close to Shay.

             
After a while, Shay stopped, her attention trained on something in the distance. Callie nearly ran into her, but managed to still her pace. She saw immediately what Shay was looking at. Emeric stood atop the tide, the waves crashing around his ankles, looking out at his people. Alex stood a bit behind him, calf-deep in waves. Emeric’s eyes met Shay’s, and then Callie’s. He didn’t look away from Callie for a moment, and she felt as though he were speaking to her. He seemed determined, authoritative.

             
In a flurry of wind, he lifted himself several feet into the air. The crowd hushed, all eyes pulled to Emeric’s floating figure. “Friends,” Emeric began. “We will speak in English tonight, as we have an American guest. We all are aware that we have a human in our midst. She is the reason that we gather here this evening.”

             
Callie was impressed by his tone. He seemed relaxed, fully in charge. And yet she couldn’t keep herself from dreading that his next words might be orders for her death.

             
“I cannot, at this point, tell you why she is here. Simply understand that, at the time being, she does not pose a threat. She is closely monitored, and she has the potential to be of great use to us in the coming weeks. We all know that it is a volatile time amongst our people. The Sirens have become more threatening with each passing year. This human may be what we have been searching for in combatting our enemy. You are not to associate with her, as she is none of your concern, and doing so may inhibit her progress here. Your orders are simple: ignore her, and she will cause no harm to you. Interfere, and I am afraid that there will be consequences.”

             
He finished speaking, though no one began to talk. His stony stare pinned each village member in attendance with the spoken threat, and they acknowledged him by remaining quiet. Callie shifted, uncomfortable with the way he had talked about her. He had referred to her like she was a poisonous snake, fatal to any who came too close. Honestly, what could
she
have done to them?

             
These powerful, intimidating, majestic creatures couldn’t actually be afraid of her. They were so other-worldly, so unapproachable, that she felt like a child in their presence. The absurdity in the thought that they might actually be afraid of her made the whole meeting seem unreal.

             
From the back, one woman cried, “What about the threat of exposure?”

             
“What do you plan to do with her later on?” another asked. “How do we know she isn’t one of them?”

             
Emeric held up his hands. “All valid questions,” he said soothingly.

             
“If she is so harmless, why should we ignore her?” a third yelled.

             
“She’s a spy!”

             
“She will spread word of our existence among her race.”

             
“We will be hunted by the humans soon enough.” And a cacophony of angry shouts in various languages began to take place. Callie inched closer to Shay, her heart racing as she stood in a crowd of people hungry for her blood. She felt close to tears, close to unconsciousness, but she remained frozen. Emeric, meanwhile, was attempting to get the crowd’s attention with his shouts, but none could be heard atop the livid mob.

             
“We should simply kill her now. This has gone too far!” a last yelled.

             
Suddenly, a cracking sound rippled through the crowd, and several people gasped. Others cried out in wordless sobs.

             
Callie craned her neck, barely able to move, and saw that a man had fallen. His back was marked with two parallel rivers of blood, each spurting out onto the sand, drenching the ground a ruby brown. Behind him, Alex stood, holding a wing in each of his hands. Callie realized suddenly that these were this man’s wings, that Alex had ripped them out, and that now this man was dead. She grabbed Shay’s arm for support, the sight robbing her of her ability to stand steadily. A soft keening sound tore from her throat, though no one could have heard it. She hadn’t seen so much blood in four years.

             
She understood in the back of her spinning mind that this must have been the man who had uttered her death sentence. The murderous expression on Alex’s face bespoke his vengeance, and Callie saw that he was fairly twitching with fury. He looked around, daring others to cross him.

             
When no one did, he threw the wings on top of the man’s lifeless, bloody body, and walked slowly through the crowd. Only then did Callie notice that the crowd had begun to gather more closely around her, having prepared to move in for the kill. They dispersed now, distancing themselves from the irate beast walking towards Callie. Alex continued to move until he was positioned just behind Callie, and, without looking at her, nodded to Emeric.

             
Emeric cleared his throat. “As I was saying,” he started again. “Interfere, and there will be consequences.”

             
Silence dominated once again, the group holding its collective breath, afraid to say a word.

             
“I dismiss you,” Emeric said. No one moved, each petrified into stillness. Emeric watched them for a long moment, and then roared, “
Now!
”

             
And then, in a tornado of wind, wings were whipping forth in every direction, and a layer of people lifted into the air. They disappeared into the trees, each eager to flee before they, too, became a victim.

             
Callie looked around, her eyes snagging on a straggler. One woman was left, standing alone on the beach, watching Callie with curious irritation. It was the blond woman that Callie had seen once before, and she now crossed her arms and regarded Callie, seeming almost impressed. In another moment, she spread her wings and flew away, and Callie shivered.

             
“Are you alright?”

             
Callie turned and saw Emeric standing beside her, having drifted down from the sky. His voice was soft now, having lost the dictatorial edge he’d used to address the masses. He was looking at her with gentleness, his gaze almost tender. Callie nodded, drawing a breath.