Chapter 15 #2
“Chances are he kept tabs on your mother after he left, and found out that she was pregnant. It sounds like he’s been looking for you all through the years.
He must have found out that she was killed by Jace and sent Vaurice to find Edward, to find out whatever he could.
” Seton motioned toward the file. “I’ve included as much information as I have on the demon lord.
You’d better be prepared to meet him. I have no doubt he’ll be summoning you soon. ”
I could barely breathe. While I always knew that I was part demon, the fact that my father was a demon lord, and he was looking for me—at least for information on me—made everything far too real. This overshadowed the news that Seton was the son of a Fae Queen and one of the Black Dogs.
I wrapped my arms around my shoulders, leaning forward as I tried to catch my breath.
A shocked look on his face, Orik said, “So what do we do? We can’t let him get to Kyann. What does he want with her?”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I mean, does he want you to join him? Does he want to make certain you’re not going to interfere?” Orik paled. “And if he knows about you, does he know about all of us?”
“No,” I said, not wanting to accept it. “Surely they won’t watch you?—”
“They probably will now, but I doubt if they’ve been able to piece together your entire life in the past day or so,” Seton said. “However, you have to plan for all the possibilities. It won’t be long before he knows all about your friends.”
I didn’t know what to do. I felt totally exposed and vulnerable, and like I had put every person who was important to me in danger. I wasn’t prone to panic, but right now, I felt like all I wanted to do was run as far away as possible.
Penn took hold of my arm. “Kyann, sit down.” She turned to Seton. “She’s having a panic attack.”
“I’ll get something,” he said, crossing the room to an apothecary table. He brought out a small bottle of pills. “Here, take one of these,” he said, handing me a pill as Orik poured a glass of water for me.
I took the pill and put it on my tongue, following it with a sip of water. I sat there, Penn gently rubbing my arm as Orik put a hand on my shoulder. Slowly, I felt the panic subsiding and I shuddered once more, then let out a long breath. The medication worked fast.
“I’m okay,” I said after another moment. “All right, so what do I do? Advise me, Seton.”
He returned to his desk. “We need to know why the demons are here. Why do they want to control the Underground? I’d have you meet with Saturn, but if they’re watching you, that might not be the best idea.”
“Lazenti—I can ask Lazenti to talk to him,” I said. “I’ll use a burner phone to text him, just in case they’ve been tapping my phone.”
“I think your phone is safe. Let me see it,” Seton said.
I handed it to him. He examined it carefully, then asked me, “What’s the passcode?”
I opened it for him, and he flipped through the apps.
After a moment, he opened his desk and brought out a USB cord, plugging my phone into what looked like a plastic box about the size of a deck of cards.
The box had a touch screen on it, with green, yellow, and red lights at the bottom of the screen.
Another moment and the green light lit up.
“You’re clear. I doubt if they’ve had time to try to bug anything. When did you meet Vaurice?” Seton asked.
“Just yesterday,” I said.
“Then they haven’t had time to do much,” Seton said.
“Unless they planted something before. You said that Ezerian has probably been watching me for awhile?—”
“No, I said now they’ll be watching you,” Seton said. “Not the same thing.”
“Wait,” Penn said. “Since Vaurice was trying to find out your name, that probably means they knew you were around the area, but not exactly who or where!”
I thought back to meeting Vaurice. “You’re probably correct. But now, we have to go on the premise that Ezerian knows who I am. From now on, we need to make certain to use security alarms on our houses and the business—and make certain we arm them when we go out.”
Orik worried his lip. “I’ll have to get an alarm system. With six kids, two of them newborns, I can’t take any chances.”
“The company will pay for it,” I said. “Since this is my fault.”
“It’s nobody’s fault ,” Penn said. “You didn’t know this was going to happen.”
“No, but it’s because I exist that this happened.
” I leaned back in my chair. The pill was definitely chilling me out.
“I never expected this to happen. I just met my uncle. And now I find out my father is in town, trying to take over the Underground. Not only is he a demon, but he’s a demon lord. And I have a half-brother.”
I had no idea what to say or think. It had been so much easier before, when I had no clue where any of my family was.
“What’s Ezerian like?” I finally asked.
Seton pointed at the folder. “I put as much as I could find out in there.” He sighed, then made a tsking sound.
“All right, I’ll tell you what I know. Ezerian is a fierce warrior.
He won’t have any qualms killing anybody who gets in his way, but I don’t think it’s ever personal.
In a sense, he’s far more ruthless than a sociopath.
He makes decisions solely on what’s best for his mission or goal.
He would never have killed your mother in the way that Jace Trask did.
He doesn’t kill for sport, but for business. ”
I felt my breath rising in my chest again. “Ruthless?”
“He doesn’t care. If it serves the need, he’ll do it.
And because he doesn’t let his ego interfere with his decisions, he’s more dangerous than if he were narcissistic.
He’s smart, and organized. There was a raid in the Black Forest around 1908 or so, where a group of demons snuck in and tried to set up a stronghold.
Luckily the 37 th Silver Wolf Brigade—a shifter military organization under the umbrella of the Worldwide Shifter Alliance—managed to stop them.
The Arosiens didn’t expect any type of counter attack, and they were unprepared. ”
“Let me guess. Ezerian was in charge of the covert attempt?” I asked.
“Not exactly. But he oversaw the regiment of demons who made the attempt. When they failed, he showed up and instantly ordered every single demon involved killed, except for a handful who were assessed to be potential leaders. Solimentary had a couple researchers who saw the raid go down.” Seton shook his head.
“How did they find out about what Ezerian did?” Penn asked.
“We have agents everywhere. What do you know about Solimentary?”
“Not much,” I said. “Penn?”
“Only enough to know that I’d like to know more. Now that I’m pariah in the Crystal Court, I’d love to find a place where my talents can be used. I was part of PortalWatch, you know. I’m busy with my online store, and with helping Kyann and Shadow Blade, but…”
“You feel adrift,” Seton said. “I’ll talk to my people.”
Penn nodded. “Thank you. Whatever comes of it, thank you for offering to help.”
“Solimentary is a library of arcane knowledge. Some of the oldest Elven families are dedicated to its upkeep. Since I grew up among the Elves, in one of those families, I was given the opportunity to take my place with them. Most people see the Elves as elitists, but they aren’t.
They’re just…their age makes them stand outside of the world. Just like full-blooded Fae.”
Penn scooted forward in her seat. “You’re part Fae. So am I. Do you feel the same sense of rejection that I do?”
He shook his head. “No, because I grew up with a family who accepted me for who I am—all of me. If Nimah would have kept me, it would probably have been different. But she couldn’t bring herself to be the object of scorn, even though she was a queen.”
“My mother’s dying,” Penn said.
“I’m so sorry,” Seton said. “Tell you what, you can come over and talk any time you want to about what it means to be part Fae.”
“Thanks,” she said, her voice low. “You were saying about Solimentary?”
“Oh, yes. Solimentary. We have tens of thousands worth of records. On all Supe groups. On Demonkin. On humankind. On…beings that you’ve never heard of—and should hope you never hear of.
We curate all the information, file it, keep it safe and protected.
We’ve buried stories that would change the history books if anybody knew about them, but it would change the world in ways that are too terrible to imagine. ” Seton stopped, then shrugged.
“How old are you?” I asked.
Seton let out a long breath. “Being half-demon, half Fae? I’m over five thousand years old. Give or take a few hundred.”
I blinked. The man sitting in front of me, the man who was helping me navigate learning to deal with my powers, was older than the pyramids.
He was older than Stonehenge. The thought of living that long stupefied me.
How much had he seen over the eons? And yet, he seemed so young, and so…
fresh. Wisdom? Yes, but he didn’t seem world-worn, and that , made me like him even that much better.
* * *
“So, what do I do?” I asked.
“We know that Ezerian is going to contact you—that’s a given.
I suggest you move first. Contact Vaurice and be blunt.
Ask for a meeting. Tell him what you know about him being your brother.
When he asks how you found out, just tell him you’re a PI and you find out secrets for a living.
” Seton glanced down at his phone. “Meanwhile, I want to double your appointments with Devon. You need to gain control of your powers as soon as you can. Of course, new ones will emerge as you go along, but you have to feel more secure about the ones you’re now experiencing. ”
“All right. I’ll call him tomorrow. Seton, what should I tell him?”
“Don’t tell him about your father?—”
“Hold on,” I said. “I feel terribly uncomfortable using that word. Yes, technically he may be my father. But I’m not going to be calling him daddy any time soon.”
“All right.” Seton hesitated, then added, “I know you. You’ll tell Sophia, Dante, and Carson even if I tell you not to. But you must extract a binding promise from them to keep their mouths shut. I can’t allow this to get around.”
I held up my hand. “I promise. I vouch for my crew.” I turned to Penn and Orik.
“No way am I going to tell my wife,” Orik said. “And if I don’t tell her , I’m not telling anybody else.”
“I give you my word,” Penn said.
“All right, so I’ll call Vaurice tomorrow and get myself invited to meet Ezerian.” I stiffened. “What if…what if he’s looking to kill me? To eliminate an unplanned accident?”
“He won’t be,” Seton said. “Ezerian has a lot of children. I don’t think he’s going to freak out over having a half-human daughter.”
I let out a long breath and counted to ten. “All right. I trust you. I’ll see if I can get in to talk to him and if I can find out anything. Meanwhile, Penn, can you tell Seton about my uncle’s house?” I turned to Seton. “We need to figure out what to do to cleanse this house. Maybe you can help.”
I wanted nothing more than to get out of here, to go somewhere and let everything sink in.
My mind was whirling and I felt so overwhelmed I wanted to just shut down.
While Penn and Seton discussed the house, I walked over to the window in his office and stared out as the evening lights began to twinkle.
The city would be ablaze in a shimmer of light within another hour, and traffic would speed along in a blur, people on their way home, on their way to dinner, to a movie, to the theatre.
And Seattle would never know that, beneath the surface, my father was waiting to reach out and grab control over as much as he could.