“Aerolus,” she whispered, smiled, and curled towards me. Or she tried to. The large T-shirt she wore hampered her mobility.
With a wave of my hand, I made it disappear, and before she could tempt me beyond reason, I closed my eyes. I tucked her close, pleased when a touch of her magic wrapped around me.
I didn’t feel the least threatened by her Shadow. My Light welcomed the darker magic.
Despite being used to my brothers’ constant presence in my life, I rarely felt at peace with anyone outside my family. Yet within just a few days of being with Alandra, I felt comfortable, even safe with her.
To a point, my conscience demanded to be heard.
But I didn’t want to dwell on our trust issues, not to mention the small matter of her being my affai. So I settled her closer to me.
If only love and trust automatically went together.
I drifted off to sleep, debating how soon, if at all, to tell her what was growing in my heart.
Chapter 13
Dark Lord Balen
The Aellein court was in session, beauty abundant in the pale-haired, striking nobles of the shadowed race. Amidst a flowered clearing surrounded by massive green- and blue-leafed trees, whose canopies interlocked to provide shelter from the warm sun, the slender, devious nobles of the Aellei gathered.
A horseshoe of rilk-wood tables sat around a small stage in the middle of the grassy clearing, where everyone had centered their attention.
Queen Lidra occupied the throne on the large dais. Next to her, several tomes had been placed on a grand table. The volumes were dedicated to preserving the Aellein way of life with rules, laws, and — being Aellein — the varied loopholes designed to avoid such legalities.
An outsider, I stood in an obscured section of trees as I watched the treacherous creatures debate with a zeal that made their work appear as play. They cursed one another, danced merrily with jibes and prettied insults, and continued to skirt the one issue I’d been called to witness.
Had I not been pressed to resolve the matter, I might have enjoyed their banter instead of viewing it with annoyance.
At least two dozen men and women from the ancient houses of Aelle occupied the court, a dazzling spectacle of blinding magnificence, outshone only by Queen Lidra, the most glorious Aellei of them all.
I eyed her hungrily, knowing that soon I would have her again. Such a vain creature, like most of her kind. Yet she truly deserved the banquets and statues made in her image. Or at least the image she preferred to show her subjects.
The Aellei were master illusionists, and the queen the greatest of all.
Long, white hair fell to her hips that swayed with a latent sensuality when she moved. Lidra was slimmer than those I normally bedded. But she was so very talented with those hands, that mouth. Her eyes glittered like blue gems, similar to the cold fire my kind were known to harness.
The blue flame of a Dark Lord burned through flesh and blood into the soul.
Her magic pulsed, alluring the more I looked at her. A trap of Shadow magic she never turned off. Clever girl. When she subtly glanced over her shoulder and winked at me, I responded with a twisted grin.
I appreciated a woman who knew her worth and that of those around her. Lidra might appear to be a young beauty without a care, but I knew better. She had over a thousand years of worries accumulating at her door. Tonight, she’d seen Captain Zartic before the man had had a chance to drink from the healing well.
Though he’d obviously tried to mask his many bruises, the Der warrior was in no shape to fool his queen. Or her Dark Lord.
Once again, efforts to regain what I needed had failed.
I shot a telepathic message of my heady disappointment to Lidra that had her shifting in her seat. I imagine the pain from my mental displeasure hurt. A lot.
“That is enough for today,” she said and rubbed her head. “It’s obvious none of you understand the harm her disappearance may cause. Alandra must be handled, and it must be done immediately.”
She glanced at Zartic, who stood straight, a shadow of guilt in his gaze. She added, “We’ll reconvene when the moon rises. If you haven’t collectively decided on a course of action by then, I’ll decide for you.”
A tall, older-looking nobleman stood with a scowl. Surprising for one of his kind, Lord Sava didn’t seem to mind looking his age. His lined face and thinning hair only added to his air of wisdom and uniqueness among the Aellei, who prized beauty and youth, usually above all else.
At a glare from Lidra, Lord Sava shut his mouth. He surprised me by glancing knowingly at my hiding place. He didn’t mention it. Instead, he turned and regarded the gathering with a huff of irritation.
“Well, Aellei, let us adjourn to my tower to discuss our best chance of getting Alandra back.” He shot Lidra an angry look. “Shadow knows what will happen to the young criminal if we don’t come up with a means to return her home.”
