Chapter 35
ARIANNA
Gaelan went to his meeting about an hour ago; he set me up in the library next to his office with a massive pot of tea and a slice of lemon cake.
I’m sitting in the window with the most perfect view of the gardens surrounded by daemon history books.
I have the little daemon book I got from the boxes my aunt May had, but it’s small compared to what Gaelan has in here.
The library is enormous; it’s like something out of a bookworm’s dream. The wall-to-wall bookshelves, made of dark wood, are filled with an array of books. There’s a comfortable-looking sofa in the middle with another fireplace opposite—he even has a bar in here.
I found a book about ancient daemon clans. It stated that there was only one clan that lived in Westrey, but that they’re all gone. It said that they were a peaceful race of daemons—the same as my aunt's book, but this one goes into much more detail.
According to the passage I read, the clan of Westrey was the only clan powerful enough to defeat Tate, so he ordered them all to be slaughtered.
The Blood Bringer came and destroyed the whole village.
The only one to survive was the Book Reader, but she later died from a poisoned arrow to the heart.
I wonder if she was the same “me” that Gaelan told me about. The first Book Reader
I turn the next page, and there’s a whole section about The Blood Bringer.
The Blood Bringer, born of Hell, is a soul that is deadly and unstoppable. If you cross her path, say your last goodbyes because she will kill you and think nothing of it.
The Blood Bringer was not born; she was made by the King of Hell himself. She was created to bring death and destruction and to aid him in controlling the evil he breeds. She is a firstborn of Hell, one who is ruled by none.
She moves from clan to clan, through villages and towns, killing all that stands in her way. Tate captured her when she was young, and because of her, Tate controls almost all the underworld now.
They call her the Blood Bringer.
The Blood Bringer bears a scar that runs down her left cheek, a mark given to her by Tate as a reminder of who she belongs to.
The only mark that will tell you who she is.
No one knows where he keeps her; they say she dwells in the darkest parts of the land, places only the horrors and reapers go, and that she is powerful.
The only hope for everyone is the Book of Power, but the Reader has been missing from this place for centuries.
I flip through some more pages, hoping that it will give me some kind of clue as to who the Blood Bringer could be, but it sounds like Tate keeps her hidden until he needs her.
A part of me wonders when he’s going to let her out again.
The other part is terrified of what will happen if he does.
The book makes it sound like no one can defeat her.
If what it says about the Book Reader being the only one to survive her destruction is true, I need to find my book now.
Picking up the next book, I scan over the first few pages, and I stop when I see a drawing of the necklace I have on.
It’s a hand-drawn picture with words I can’t understand underneath; it appears to be written in an ancient language I’ve never seen before.
I hold it closer to the light to get a better look, my eyes running over what looks like a mix of symbols and letters.
I frown when the letters start to shake on the page, a golden glow emanating from each one before they shift and move into a new order.
The symbols start forming words, and the writing begins to make sense. I read out loud.
“By birthright I call to thee, by birthright I summon thee, by my birth I ask that you bring it to me, the powers that run through me. This key is my guide; this is my light and life. So, mote it be.”
I lift my head and look around the library, expecting some kind of breeze or power to suddenly rush through me. It sounded like a spell; I then remembered the cuffs on my wrist and sighed. No matter what I do, nothing is going to work while I have these on.
Then why did the letters shift like that? I didn’t do anything to make them move. It's like I have someone knocking on my door and I don’t have the key to open it. I’ve never seen a letter like that moving in a spell book before.
Everything keeps changing and keeps getting confusing. Frustrated, I almost throw the book across the room, but I stop, knowing I can’t do that to an excellent book. I place it down gently instead. It’s always one step forward and three steps back.
Rex comes padding into the library and flops down next to me, whimpering before lifting his head to lick my cheek. “Hey buddy, what’s up?” He licks my face again, then looks toward the door, where I notice Mark is standing, watching me. I smile at him. “Hey Mark, is everything okay?”
He walks into the library and then bows. “Yes, my lady.”
“Mark… please call me Ari.”
“My apologies… Ari. Lord Gaelan asked me to check on you. His meeting is taking longer than expected. Do you need anything?”
“No, thank you. I’m going to go for a walk in the gardens. Tell him for me, please?”
Mark hesitates, then sighs. “He asked that you stay in the library.”
I narrow my eyes slightly. “Why?”
“He wishes you safe, my lady—Ari.”
I suck in a breath to calm my irritation before I stand sharply. “Is that so?” Walking straight past Mark, I make my way to Gaelan’s office, Rex not far behind me. I reach for the door handle and pause when I hear Gaelan.
“We leave in a moon. Westrey belongs to Ari, and it’s time that she got it back.”
A voice I don’t recognize responds angrily, “The land is dead. The clan left a long time ago, and you are asking us to risk it for one person?”
A loud bang sounds before the door bursts from its hinges, and a man comes flying out, skidding across the floor before hitting the wall opposite. Gaelan comes marching out. He bends down and grips the man by the neck before lifting him up.
“Question me again and I’ll see to it that fighting a few daemons is the least of your worries.
Do you understand me?” The man nods quickly before Gaelan drops him to the ground.
Whoever this man is lands with a hard thud that makes me wince.
“Get out!” Gaelan growls. He turns, his chest is heaving, and the blue of his eyes darkens to almost black.
He cracks his neck and rolls his shoulders like he is trying to shake the rage away.
When he sees me, the anger leaves his body. “Rose? Is everything okay?”
“Yes, are you okay?”
He comes over to me, leans down, and kisses my cheek. “I am now.” He takes my hand and leads me toward the kitchen. “I’m going out later this evening, but I’ve arranged dinner and some company for you.”
I pull my hand from his and stop walking abruptly. “I’m coming.”
He turns and frowns at me, his eyes shifting to his office door before returning to me, realization dawning that I had heard him. “No, you’re not,” he says and begins walking toward the kitchen again.
“You can’t go without me, Gaelan.”
“I can and will. You are not coming,” he barks at me.
Rex whimpers behind me—I think he can feel my anger rolling off my body.
I get that Gaelan is worried, but I can’t stay here, not when I feel like I must go.
That place is where my ancestors are from; it may have the answers that I didn’t see the first time.
My dreams took me there for a reason, so I’m not backing down.
If he won’t take me, then I’ll go alone.
“Gaelan?”
He stops, turns to me, his eyes flashing dark blue, before they narrow as if he heard my thoughts. He comes over to me, towering over me.
“I lost you again. Do you have any idea what it was like for me to wake up and find you missing? To wonder if Macy had got you again?” He fists his hands and starts pacing. “Where was I going to find your body this time?”
He turns back to me, and the hurt I can see on his face breaks my heart.
I walk over to him, lift my hand to his face, trying to give him comfort.
“Gaelan, you can’t always protect me. The past has shown us that, perhaps, this time it can be different.
I want to make it different. I’m not ready to die.
” I step closer and look up into his bright blue eyes. “I’m not ready to lose you or Trelor.”
He sighs. “Rose—”
I shake my head and cut him off. “Don’t leave me out, don’t push me away, let me come. Let me try to help.” I plead.
“Fine, but if you’re coming, you’re going to need a weapon.”
He takes my hand and leads me back toward the bedroom. I can’t help the smile that graces my face—I’ve never had a weapon before.
Shit just got real.
When Gaelan said weapon, he didn’t mean just one. What he meant was a full suit of armor, in white, with weapons on every square inch of my body. I feel like a kid whose mom made them wear an oversized coat with the idea that they would grow into it.
I can’t move my arms, and my body feels like it's enclosed in hard rubber. If he thinks I’m going to be able to reach for a weapon when I need it, he is very wrong.
I’m more likely to fall and start rolling around on the ground like one of those Weeble Wobble toys my mom had when she was a kid.
I look over at Leah, who is trying her hardest not to laugh at me, and a few of the other guards are also biting their lips to stop the snickers. I don’t blame them; I look ridiculous.
They are dressed in what appears to be regular clothes, with perhaps one weapon.
Sighing, I look up at Gaelan. “Gaelan? Do I seriously have to wear all of this?”
“Yes, you do.” He lowers his head and kisses me, the smirk on his face when he pulls back making me lift a questioning eyebrow. He is enjoying this a little too much. I sigh and lift my arms up, trying to loosen the jacket a little more. Gaelan grins at me, his eyes dancing with amusement.
“If you laugh, I’m going to take it all off,” I warn.