Which made her recent healing questionable.
“I’m not the monster you make me out to be,” she said quietly, sounding hurt. Again, at odds with the smirk on her full, red lips. “And I thank you for that most informative session.”
She seemed pleased, and I could only imagine she liked the idea of Arim’s pain. Angry, I opened my mouth for a caustic retort and found myself unable to speak, then unable to move.
“No, don’t say a thing. Don’t spoil this incredibly pleasing moment for me, Cadmus.” With a smile, she stood on tiptoe and kissed me on the mouth, a cool meeting of the lips that set my blood on fire.
Infuriated she could make me feel when my heart clearly belonged to Ellie, I fought through her spell and, to my amazement, began to move.
“You’re so much like Arim.” She chuckled. “Handsome, strong, and aggravating in the extreme. Don’t worry, Earth Lord, your Djinn is still waiting for you on the other side of the forest. But I’m afraid you’re going to have to face the Sarqua on your own. Ethim’s temper leaves a lot to be desired. Just ask Amanda.”
She vanished, freeing me to move and speak. “Son of a bitch!”
“Well, well, well,” the Djinn warrior I knew as Remir spoke from directly behind me.
Before I could twitch, a dozen Djinn appeared from out of nowhere and surrounded me.
“Ethim wants a word.” Remir smiled.
Of all the Djinn, I had given Remir the most trouble before Jonas had bailed me out of Foreia.
He smirked, his eyes pitch-black. “But not before we have a few things to discuss, considering we missed our chance before you left the last time.”
Three Djinn stepped forward and restrained me. Remir grabbed my wrists. Dark bands of energy crept from his fingers into my skin. The Dark burned with cold, and I fought the urge to blast Remir through the woods. It would hurt, but it could be done. Yet I knew I deserved some payback, if not for what I’d done to these warriors before, then for what I’d almost done to Jonas, their leader and friend, their brother.
I sighed. “Go ahead, Remir. I probably deserve it.” I grinned, knowing it wasn’t smart but was unable to help myself. “But I wouldn’t be too hard on me. Lexa just planted a kiss on these lips, and we all know the lady is decidedly choosy.”
Remir and his brethren scowled. The beating to follow didn’t surprise me.
It didn’t take long for me to black out, and I fell into a painful, empty sleep.
Chapter 16
Ellie
I felt frantic with worry when my father refused to go help Cadmus.
“He’ll be fine, Elliara. She wants a word with him, that’s all.”
Who the hell was this woman to whom everyone seemed to defer? Unfortunately, my father refused to answer me. In a snap, he teleported my mother and I next to him and grabbed our hands.
“Now, to my home.” Ethim teleported us into what looked like a massive, indoor tree house. Through a few windows, I saw nothing but leafy canopies.
Gnarled logs walled the main room and carried into the dining area. The ceiling seemed to consist of wooden crossed beams, smoother than the walls, which framed a series of massive skylights. In contrast to the natural simplicity of the place, my father’s home hummed with magic from the sparkling marble floors to the endless transparent ceiling. A Djinn servant nodded with a smile before disappearing again.
My father motioned us to an expansive marble dining table set for three. Glasses filled with what looked like wine complemented the fancy dining sets. Apparently, Ethim had told his people to expect us.
We sat for a moment in silence.
“Relax, honey.” My mother stroked my hair, its color about the only similarity we shared. “If your father says Cadmus will be okay, he will be. I liked him. And I don’t like all that many of your father’s kind.”
Ethim choked on the wine he’d been drinking. “My kind? Please, Amanda. Cadmus Storm is a Light Bringer, one of those dreaded pests who think they’re superior to everyone and everything.”
I frowned. “He’s not like that.”
The serving woman returned with a large tray of fruits. “She’s right, Sarqua. The Storm Lord was most unlike what I expected a Light Bringer to be. I found him pleasant, even humorous in our discourse.”
“Who asked you, Mera?” he grumbled.
