The Mark (Interracial Paranormal Romance) (Toil and Trouble) (22 page)

“Save it,” he growled, his muscular body rippling beneath his dark suit. “If you ever lay a finger on my girlfriend again, I’ll stake you myself.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

He Loves Me

I followed Jack back into the hallway, still touching my neck gingerly and reeling from the surprise of his arrival. “What are you doing here?”

“I-” He tucked a midnight strand behind my ear as he shook his head. “I love you, Jade. You drive me insane and you can be quite insufferable. And we won’t even talk about how you still reek of that damn were.” His lips curled into a reluctant smile. “But not even the sun could keep me from your side tonight.”

I felt my heart flutter in my chest as he brought his lips to mine, melting into me. For a moment, I wasn’t in a tower in the Great House. There was nothing but that kiss and our love.

I took his hand and followed him down the winding stairs. I tried to ignore the dread that built in my stomach, like some wild animal scratching for freedom.

I didn’t think Jack could look past the Riley mistake to stand by me, but he’d proven me wrong. Now that he was here, I realized that there’d been a spark of hope that he’d show up. In spite of myself, I found that seed of hope blooming into optimism for the trial as well. Maybe everything would turn out alright after all.

We pushed out of the stone tower, weaving through the crowd of spectators all gathering around the entrance of the Great Hall, where the trial would take place. I scanned the multitude in awe. “There are hundreds of people. I’ve only seen the Great Hall once before, but there’s no way all these people are going to fit in the audience, right?”

Mom gestured at the fountains scattered around the court yard. “The water is enchanted,” she explained. “Those who can’t afford the hefty price of an audience ticket can watch the proceedings out here. For a modest fee, of course.”

“Twenty bucks!” A chunky creature with razor sharp teeth answered, all smiles. His skin was a purplish gray with three sets of eyes regarding our party with interest. “You lovely folks looking for a ticket?”

Jack squeezed my hand as we pushed inside. The first thing that popped into my mind was a cathedral I’d gone to as a child. Stained glass windows went from ceiling to floor. But instead of etchings of biblical figures, it told the story of the Watchers. Each of the master races had a representative—a vampire, a werewolf, a fairy, a troll, a demon, an angel, and a witch. Each race had a stained window that represented their story.

The vampires window was stained with blood and corpses. The werewolves window was defined by the luminescent moon. The fairies’ was dominated by nature, and so on and so forth.

Human slaves stood at each pew, ushering audience members to their seat. Our vampire host from earlier breezed down the aisle, her face flushed, probably full of that poor woman’s blood. “Follow me.”

As we walked down the aisle, all eyes turned to face us.

“Just ignore them,” Jack said firmly. “They don’t matter.”

“Right,” I said unconvincingly. The pews were lined with row after row of creatures that were hoping for a guilty verdict. The closer I got to the bench before the Great Table, I found myself wondering, wasn’t I guilty? The lawyer met his end because I came to see him, to warn him about the ghost. The woman was found after I did a summoning for her. Wouldn’t they both be alive if we’d never crossed paths? Would I even be here if I minded my own business?

Don’t do this to yourself
, Jack thought at me.
You’re a good person
.

“Yeah,” I said aloud. “And my goodness has landed me here.”

When we reached the front, I glanced up at the Great Table, the Great Judges lined up like the last supper. They all wore the same fine, ancient ceremonial robes, and they all had the same pinched, annoyed look on their faces.

Our host eyed Jack, Mom, and Riley. “The Accused’s support can be seated on the right, on the benches provided. Only the Accused will sit before the Great Judges.

Mom wrapped me in a bear hug, squeezing me tight. When she pulled back, the tears she’d been holding back broke free, streaming down her face. “It’ll be okay, baby. I promise.”

Riley was next. He came in for a hug, but Jack snarled. He jutted out his hand instead. “I’m rooting for you.”

“Thanks,” I said with a reluctant smile. “Really.”

Jack was last and brought me into his strong chest. I breathed him in—all his earthy undertones mixed with aftershave. I wanted to brand his scent on my heart in case I never smelled it again.

He took my face in his hands. “You’ll be alright, Jade. I know it.”

My lips twitched. “I love you, Jack.”

When he leaned in for a kiss, our host let out a hiss of disgust. He planted a kiss as soft as a whisper then nuzzled my cheek. “I love you too, Jade.”

I watched him slide onto the bench beside my mother then turned to face the Watchers.

Athanasia sat demurely to my left, flashing me a look that said she wanted to eat me alive. I didn’t have time to shoot a look of my own because the Great Judge hobbled to the front.

Everyone rose to their feet in a show of respect. The Great Judge was an old sage, as old as time itself. Magic kept her looks appearing 90 or so, her body gnarled and wrinkled. Her white hair hung in a single braid.

When she strut past me, a chill echoed across my skin like all the light had been ripped from the world.

Our host offered the Judge her elbow and she took it, stepping up onto a stone podium. She rammed her walking stick into the ground three times-one…two…three. After the third tap, candles lining the Watchers table lit up and all the talking died down.

“Year 2011, the fifth day of the eight month,” the Judge crooned, her voice like sandpaper. “The Watchers have convened to try Jade Catherine Murray, twenty-one, a witch and necromancer, for the crime of exposing the supernatural world through the unnatural death of two humans.” She gazed at me. “How do you plead, Miss Murray?”

“N-not guilty.”

The Judge closed her eyes. “Let it be known that the Accused has entered the plea, not guilty.” She turned to the Watchers table. “What say you for punishment if the witch is convicted?”

The vampire, a sultry looking man straight out of a Hollywood fantasy, licked his lush lips. “Antonio de Laurentis. I say if the witch is guilty she should be burned.”

A scruffy looking woman that was built like a linebacker flipped her long, fiery red hair over her shoulder. “Cassandra Renee Blake. Behead her, if she’s guilty.”

The fairy was next. She had short, pixie cut hair and wide set violet eyes that narrowed when she scanned me. “Delilah Rose Fallizc the III. It would be a shame to turn such a beauty to ash. Behead her.”

The troll pulled out a handkerchief and sneezed his grotesque face, bored. “Igor Vallagrant. Fire.”

The demon and angel looked normal enough. The demon’s features were aristocratic and attractive as his lips curled into a smile. “Lucian DeMalfour. The knife.”

The angel’s dark skin was almost translucent as she shook her head, like she thought the whole process was brutal and archaic. “Caliope Mulvayne. If the girl is found guilty, death by blade would be swift and more humane.”

The pagan picked at her nails. She didn’t look a day over sixteen. “Qarth. Behead her. Whatever.”

My body quaked as the Judge turned back to the front. “Five for death by beheading. Two for death by fire. So it is done. If you are found guilty, Accused, your punishment is to be carried out by beheading.”

A couple of whoops of delight echoed around the room, but one look from the Judge silenced them.

“Let the trial begin,” she thundered.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The Trial

The hall was silent except for the click of Ana’s stilettos.

“Tell us about your paid summonings that supposedly started all of this.”

I swallowed. “I was contacted by Melissa Brooks. She contacted NACA because her husband’s will was scant and she believed he left money to a mistress.”

The judge’s eyes perked. “Correct me if I’m wrong Brontes, but aren’t necromancers forbidden from using humans to control the dead?”

I raised an eyebrow. “We put a commercial tantamount to the ‘Psychic Friends Network’ on broadcast television. How is that not involving humans in supernatural affairs?”

“And then you set a spell on him, didn’t you?” Ana shot. “You wanted to shut him up and cover your tracks so you put a Mark on the human…which led to his demise.”

“Well there you have it,” Athanasia said plainly. “Two humans supernaturally murdered after crossing paths with Miss Murray. I think it’s obvious. Her gifts have corrupted her mind and she poses an insurmountable risk to the supernatural world.”