“You mentioned that the high fae who fights with them, Perizada, wasn’t on the battlefield?” Myanin asked.
“Perizada was not there.” It was Alston who answered her. “She has, no doubt, realized that she is no match for me or the Order.”
Right.Or maybe she just got sick of the smell of bullshit because Alston was full of it. “So why are you here instead of there, attacking them while they’re worried about their mates and pups?” Even as the question left her mouth, she couldn’t believe she’d just suggested they attack the Romania pack and their allies, especially considering the wolves were probably terrified for the safety of their pack members.
As if he could see her hesitation, Ludcarab said, “There was another djinn on the battlefield.”
Had she not been a supernatural, her neck might have broken at the speed she snapped it around to look at him. “A male djinn?”
The elf king nodded. “Do your people not know that they’ve got djinn out doing battle in the human realm?”
Myanin didn’t answer that, instead asking a question of her own. “Was it the male your vamps were looking for when they found me?”
“We were following a possible lead when we sent the vampires to Indianapolis,” Sincaro answered. “How many djinn does your race have running around the human realm? Rumor has always been that the djinn, like some of the other secretive supernaturals, stayed in their own realm.”
She stayed quiet. Myanin wasn’t about to reveal that she wasn’t that high up in the chain of command anymore. A few months ago, she’d have known everything because of her post at the veil. But now, she only knew what they told her, which, lately, had been when to beat Lyra’s rugs.
Her mind went back to the fact that there was a male djinn on the battlefield, fighting with Vasile Lupei and his people. It could have been Thadrick. He seemed to have suddenly decided they needed to be involved in the other supernatural races’ issues. If he was fighting forthem, then shewouldbe fighting for the Order. It was as simple as that.
“We need to attack them at this stronghold. What did you call it?”
“The Keep,” Alston answered.
She nodded and began walking slowly around the circular room. “We need to catch them off guard. When you have your enemy retreating, you don’t back off.” Her training kicked in as her mind went into battle mode. “You press forward. You push and push until they’re at the edge of the cliff and then you shove them off.”
“Damn,” Cain muttered. “You got something against Vasile and his pack?”
She cut him a sharp glance. “I have neither love nor hate for the wolves.”
“But you do have your own agenda,” he countered.
“I could say the same of each of you.” Myanin turned to face the four males.
“Perhaps,” Cain agreed. “But when Ludcarab mentioned the male djinn, something changed in you. Are you a woman scorned, Myanin?”
She hissed through her teeth as she threw her hand out, allowing her power to flow. It hit the vampire in the chest, drove him into the opposite wall, then lifted him off the ground until he was ten feet in the air. His back pressed against the blades hanging on the wall behind him.
“Definitely a woman scorned,” Alston said dryly.
“My business is my own,” she seethed.
“Release him,” Ludcarab commanded.
After several deep breaths, she let Cain fall. He landed on his feet, as graceful as a cat, then stood and straightened his suit jacket. “I apologize if I hit a nerve.”
She nearly snorted at the “if.” They both knew there was no “if” he hit a nerve. He’d stabbed a nerve with a blade. “I apologize for reacting so sharply.”See? I can be calm.
“I agree with your idea,” Ludcarab said. “But you will not join in the battle. None of us will. That’s what soldiers are for.”
“You don’t get to tell me—” Myanin began but the elf king made a slashing motion through the air, stopping her mid-sentence.
“Yes, I do. I do get to tell you,” Ludcarab snapped. “You are more powerful than I am. I can concede that. I am not a fool, but I am a ruler. I have led a kingdom for centuries, and I know what I am doing. There cannot be multiple leaders if an organization is to be successful. And those who are not appointed leader must follow. That is how successful empires rise to power. You will either be able to follow orders or you will not. If you will not, then you might as well be on your way.”
Myanin looked at the other males, waiting to see if they would contradict him. They didn’t. Though they resented Ludcarab, they agreed with him. At least for now. Myanin knew that she was going to have to learn to pick her battles, especially if she wanted a chance to take out Thadrick, or at least the witch he was apparently infatuated with. She didn’t think she could take on Thadrick, but she’d have no trouble at all with the female called Jezebel.
“Fine.” Myanin relaxed her stance. “I can respect that. But if they have a djinn, wouldn’t it be wise to have one fighting on your side, as well?”
“Vasile will not allow the djinn to use even a quarter of his power. If anything, the djinn will use his power as some sort of diversion. Vasile knows that innocents would suffer if the djinn fought us openly, and that is one of his greatest weaknesses. The alpha will protect those he does not even know at the cost of the lives of his warriors,” Alston said.
