Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
The door of Alpha Romeo opens, and I push myself out of it.
Marcus stands at attention, holding it open while I straighten my jacket, buttoning up the top two buttons.
The area around the Council Towers looks deserted and menacing.
A mockery of the human faith, the once cathedral takes the entire span of my sight.
Pale walls stretch in front of me, the bell tower on the right reaching for the night sky like an accusing finger at whatever creator has made this rock in the space we call Earth.
The domed roof in the back of the building softens the look, but all that is destroyed by the frescoes, statues, and broken pieces of crosses littering everything around us.
Not even architecture is safe from their anger.
Disgusted at what I’m looking at, I stride towards the arched entrance.
My walk is leisurely, unhurried. Marcus stays a step behind, guarding my back.
I can feel eyes on me, watching from all sides, making sure we are alone.
There is no one at the entrance, leaving the wide doors open in invitation.
The Council wouldn’t dare to place guards at their door, showing weakness to all that they can’t take care of themselves.
That is the first thing I noticed when I came to this country.
It suits me just fine, so I never said a word about it.
Taking the steps one at a time, I pause, reaching for my phone. Dialing Andrei, I turn around in a slow circle, my gaze penetrating the darkness, searching for those that track my every move. Andrei answers on the second ring.
“Sire.” His voice is but a breath in the speaker of his phone.
“Summons seem to test my patience and my peace.” Speaking loud enough that I can be heard inside the Tower, I keep turning around, shoving my hand in the pocket of my pants.
The sound of fabric snapping when I flick off the side of my jacket echoes around me.
“Remind me again why I am not vacationing somewhere else?”
“You wanted to show your respect to the Council, Sire.” This time, speaking louder, Andrei plays the word game well.
“Ah, yes!” Musing out loud, I finish the circle, spotting nine strategically placed Guardians.
The Council is seeing me as a serious threat if they haven’t sent random errand boys to watch my every move.
Good to know. “I get disrespected while showing respect. It serves me right for wasting my time, I suppose. I will be famished when I return…shortly.” Putting emphasis on the last word, I flick my fingers at Marcus to start walking.
“Make sure there are enough humans there. All female, of course. I hunger for more than just blood this evening.” I’m confident he understands the meaning behind my words. We will be in deep shit if he doesn’t.
Flicking the phone off, I slide it in the inside breast pocket of my jacket. Its weight drops, pulling on the fabric at my shoulder, settling right above my heart. As with everything else, even my clothing is carefully planned. No room left for mistakes.
The inside of the Council Tower opens up in front of me like the gaping mouth of a great beast as soon as we enter.
An oriental runner, in reds and gold, is rolled in the middle of it, softening our otherwise silent steps.
Tall candelabras, holding what looks like ten large pillar candles, are placed every few feet, their flickering flames when we walk past another alerting the occupants of this place.
So, the Council is paranoid. They just don’t want everyone else to know about it.
A smirk pulls on my lips, one I don’t hide.
Let the bastards see that I’m onto their schemes.
We are almost halfway through the vast space when a murmur of voices reaches my ears. They have sectioned the open area, closing off the front part from the throne room. At the arched doorway, two sentinels stand guard, one on each side, their gazes locked on something behind me only they can see.
Marcus is more anxious than ever, forcing me to close off my connection to him.
I know the moment he feels me cut him off.
The air grows cold at my back, but I ignore him, not slowing or speeding up my progress.
I don’t stop at the sentinels to wait to be announced either, forcing them to move along with me as I enter the throne room like a king expecting everyone to bow at my presence.
It’s an empty space with only eight thrones.
Lots of candles placed around are giving off enough light for the glazed eyes of the crumpled humans on the ground to see the faces of their masters.
A few gasps stop all the chatter.
“I have been summoned.” A slight tilt of my chin is all the respect I can fake at the moment, my disgust ringing clear in the last word.
“Here I am.” Stretching my arms out on both sides, as if expecting applause, I look from one Council member to the next, ignoring the lurking onlookers hiding in the shadows like worms. All eight of them are here.
Irina and Niklas, glaring at me, as I expected.
Khan, Abraham, and Sharif sit between Elizabeth, Kali, and Eshe.
Four male and four female gods, as they call themselves.
Killers is what I call them.
“Sebastian, you finally grace us with your presence.” Kali’s soft voice reminds more of a gentle breeze than the monsoon she really is. Her long, dark braid drops in her lap over her jeweled colored sari. The tiny gem between her thinly-shaped eyebrows blink at me in the candlelight.
“I will remind all of you. I was granted permission to enter your territory.” I don’t turn around to see the sentinels falling back to their posts when Irina flicks her red painted nails at them. “I don’t sneak around like a rat, hiding.” The jab hits the target before I’m done speaking.
“How dare you disrespect us!” Khan booms, his thin, goatee-braided beard quivering from the volume.
The robes shift on his body, the handle of his katana sticking out of them.
The crystal that makes up their thrones chimes with his voice.
The echo amplifies from the vibration. Huh!
That’s quite interesting, and something to look into later.
“As I said, I’ll remind you again that I asked permission to be here. It was granted.” Placing my hands in my pockets, I lift an eyebrow at Khan. “If that is not revoked, and I’m being summoned like a petulant child, I would say the disrespect is pointed my way, not yours.”
“We have a reason to summon you. Does your arrogance know no bounds?” Irina spits at me angrily, barely staying seated on her throne. The crystal chimes softly again. Interesting indeed. Niklas glances at her, and one side of his mouth lifts in a triumphant smirk, but he schools his features fast.
“Let us not waste precious time, then. I’m here to answer your questions, or accusations, if there are any.” A storm is churning in my gut, but I hold tight control on it with everything in me.
“You have one of the runners,” Elizabeth says bluntly, reclining on her throne, the yellow gown shifting when she crosses her legs. Her dress is silky and elegant, unlike Irina’s see-through one.
“Ah, that I do!” Grinning at them, I can’t help but chuckle when confused and stunned eyes meet my gaze. “I have great plans for that one.” Nodding at them as if what I just said is an inside joke amongst us; I shrug a shoulder.
“Excuse me?” Kali stutters, outrage twisting her face.
“Hey! I am not to blame because you still have those pests running around!” Glaring at her, I fist my hands, displaying all the anger I was hiding from them. “I got my hands on one. It is my right to punish as I see fit for the disrespect they show to us.”
“Oh…” Eshe breathes, her midnight skin gleaming in the candlelight. I’m taken aback by the disappointment I see in her eyes. What is going on here?
They all watch me intently for a while. I glare, my fangs peeking from my pulled back lips. All of them but Eshe and Khan look convinced. I do have a reputation after all. With a calculating look, Khan clears his throat. Eshe looks sick, making my mind whirl with implications.
“Very well.” Lifting himself off his throne, Khan comes in front of me. “I will go with you to witness this punishment.” He dares me to deny him with his glittering eyes.
“Sure.”
Shrugging, I turn around, walking out without waiting to be dismissed.
The murmurs start to double in volume behind me.
I don’t stop, nor do I look to see if Khan is following.
I can feel his power like a slimy slug gliding and prodding at mine.
His car is waiting next to ours, as I expected.
There was no way I was getting out of this without them checking the girl first. We split ways, and I settle in the back seat a moment before Marcus gets behind the wheel.
“That went to shit fast,” he growls.
“Just drive.”