Bonus Chapter 14
Bonus Chapter
Azrael
“Alascer,” the mountains whispered venomously. “It was fucking Alascer.”
Oh, look at that, the game was afoot, as they said. I smiled, as I sat back on my bike outside on a busy street in downtown Denver. Should I pat myself on the back for being the one that helped her find her voice again or was it just a coincidence? “Was it?” I asked.
Neither, I decided. She was a smart girl, that sharpened rose. She was blooming slowly, but surely, those petals of hers growing their own thorns. Pretty soon, she would grow and flourish and become something even worse than her precious Claim, I was sure.
Now, every game had rules, none as much as mine. The mountains were treading far too close to the board I was still setting up. It wasn’t time for anyone to get involved, so I had to play this carefully.
“Did you know?” he half-snarled.
His voice was low, which told me that his precious sharpened rose didn’t know he was making this phone call. I wondered who she thought he was calling. Or maybe she wasn’t wondering at all. She was smart enough to know the rules. The mountains didn’t have to tell her anything if he so chose.
“So, she finally spoke to you, congratulations.”
“Azrael,” he bit.
I leaned back on my bike, taking in the people who were walking up and down the city street, unaware of who sat in their presence.
“Stay out of it,” I told him. “Focus on healing the rose before she slashes something with her thorns that will kill her. She survived, now it’s time for you to force her through the healing process, no matter the monster it turns her into. ”
“You’re the only monster here, Azrael. This a secret you won’t be able to keep.”
My smile sharpened. “Wake up, dear brother, you have a monster sitting at your table, and she looks just like me.” I hung up and turned to the café just across the street. I could see him sitting at the table, waiting for me. Waiting for the meeting I called. A lord through and through, I supposed.
He checked his watch, clearly irritated that I was so late. How could I be late, he would ask, I had a watch I checked a thousand times a day.
I started my bike back up, revving it once before I sped off down the street, earning a few angry horns as I did. He didn’t deserve a second of my time, my only goal was to waste his.
So, they knew about Alascer. The timetable was speeding up, which could prove to make things a little difficult. They weren’t as smart as me though, no matter how vicious the rose was. It would take her a long time to learn all of my little tricks. I still had hold of all the cards.