“I’m not done. You’ll need to coordinate so that they help as you’re going in to get the babies. And you don’t even know if you’ve got a way in yet. There’s no sense kidnapping some poor scientist until you know you can get to the babies.”
“Was there any clue to tell you where they were?”
“None. I didn’t notice any windows or distinguishing marks in the room. It was fairly dark, besides the glow emitted from each pod. I couldn’t even see what the walls looked like.”
He turned back to the room. “I need a team to come with me to pick up the Leyak Kelly that has taken over the body of a Dannan. She’s our key to finding the babies.”
I tuned that part out. I didn’t want to know what they would do to her. She’d been my best friend up until an hour before, so the thought of her being held or tortured was gut wrenching.
“We also have Dumadi stewing in the dungeons. He’s not seen a living soul since he was captured. He’s bound to be breaking by now,” a man at the table said.
I leaned into Cindy and asked, “What is he?” in the slightest whisper I could manage.
The he in question leaned forward and looked at me. “Heis a Yama. We are the reapers. When you die, we will escort your soul to the next plane. And no, I can’t tell you what comes next.”
My jaw dropped. I was speaking to death. I mouthed at him wordlessly.
Laughing, he leaned forward and pushed my mouth closed with one finger. “We don’t get that too much anymore. The Unseen all know us, and we don’t reveal ourselves to humans. It’s refreshing to meet someone that has no idea what’s going on.”
“I don’t think you all realize how rare and wonderful you are. I’m thrilled to be among you,” I whispered.
Alexander cleared his throat and walked back to the table. “Stop distracting me,” he hissed. “I’m attuned to your voice, and when you speak, I listen.”
He had it bad. I grinned at him. “Sorry,” I said without an ounce of remorse.
He rolled his eyes and returned to speaking to the crowd.
Cindy leaned into me. “Wow,” she whispered. “He’s got it bad.”
I was beginning to hope he did. The more I saw him dealing with his people, the more I wanted to find out what that legend about Dannan men was all about.
The meeting dragged on for several hours. Someone eventually brought Alexander a chair to sit in, and he moved back to sit beside me at the table. I caught several glares as people spotted me sitting at the main council table, but I didn’t care. I was finally in the middle of it, helping. We were going to save those innocent babies, and I’d found them. I was on cloud nine.
At the end of the day, not much had been decided. A group was dispatched to prepare a chamber that could accommodate the pods. The group was comprised of three younger Unseen, who could navigate the internet and hopefully already have everything we’d need on site.
Another group was dispatched to take Kelly into custody, and another immediately went to the cells to get Dumadi and question him extensively.
I didn’t want to know how they questioned the prisoners, and I sure didn’t want the details about Kelly.
Cindy opened us a portal back to the castle before returning to her home. I gave her a hug and thanked her for keeping me company. I hoped to see her again.
Once back in Ireland, we found Roan and updated him. I let Alexander do all the talking. By that point I was beyond exhausted. We ate dinner, and they talked about the science behind it all. I drifted as I chewed.
“Hey,” I said as his face popped into my mind. “Where was Doryu?”
“He was there, didn’t you see him?”
“No,” I exclaimed, less sleepy that I had been before. “Where?”
“In the crowd. He waved at you a couple of times,” Alexander said with irritation.
“I’ll have to make it a point to go see him soon. I don’t want him to think I was being rude.”
Alexander grunted, causing Roan to give him a look of consternation. He shrugged and took a sip of wine.
Were they getting tired of waiting on me to make a move? Maybe they thought I was interested in Doryu.
Iwasinterested in Doryu. He elicited a primal response in me. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t also interested in both of them. Alexander was a dominant leader, a little spoiled, but I valued his opinion and friendship. And the more I saw his leadership, the hotter he got. I’d been attracted to him when I first saw him, but the imprisonment had quelled that hunger. The more I got to know him the more it grew back.
