“She’s coming with me,” Xander said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Riley frowned. “And face the possibility of a Shadow-Veyn tracking her to the abbey?”
“She’s coming with me,” Xander repeated. “Sire.” A gentle bow of the head, but his eyes were hard, face tight.
Riley stiffened, and after Alice settled her hand on his shoulder he nodded. “Fine, but Kyra, are you ready for this?”
His change of tone drew her attention.
“Once the charm has been broken there’s a large possibility that the Daemon will know, and that means…”
“Don’t worry,” she interrupted. “Frederick will know I’ve already gone.”
Chapter18
Kyra
Kyra trailed a step behind Xander, the beautiful white marble a distraction. The walls glittered as if silver had somehow been woven within the bricks, the light leaking through the open slits creating bursts of colours across the stone.
She had never seen an abbey, never mind walk through the labyrinth of entwined corridors and halls. Xander had barely spoken, his sunglasses securely in place as he stormed down each pathway with purpose, and she scrambled to keep up behind. Energy seemed to pulsate, a gentle and comforting vibration that she was confident she could feel if she had time to place her hand on the cool marble. She settled for running her fingertips along the wall as she walked.
They passed rooms, some empty and as pale as the ones on the outside while others looked like classrooms and studies. Through one of the slits in the outer wall she could make out a square courtyard, the greenery vibrant even from the distance. Druids passed them, all male, young and old muttering beneath their breaths as they passed. A few approached, but were quickly dismissed with a cutting word or two from Xander. Most kept a wide berth as they went about their day, their expressions a mixture of anger, fear and indifference.
Xander stopped when the corridor split into two, head cocked as if he were listening. A room was stationed opposite, and before she could have a curious peek inside a man appeared and quickly shut the door. More whispering, more prickly stares.
“Why an abbey?” she asked quietly, wanting to speak over the inaudible murmurs. “Are there monks here?”
Xander remained silent for a few more seconds before he made a sharp right, not looking back to see whether she was following behind. “Before the war, but no more. Druidism is a recognised religion, although it isn’t wildly practiced even amongst the Breed.”
She had noticed some of the older men in white robes, red and black embroidery around their cuffs. The designs were similar to the ones the younger males had tattooed around their wrists, or that Xander had across his body. Designs that Dirk also had.
She knew little about the druids other than they were born only male. Her parents hadn’t considered she needed to know about other Breeds, believing it would distract her from duties. When she had finally broken free from them she had immediately thrown herself into research, not wanting to be ignorant as she carefully created her new life.
Out of all her studies there was very little literature on druids, and even less on Daemons. It had seemed strange to her knowing that Daemons existed, had been learning their languages and runes since a babe and yet the majority around her believed they were simply tales told to naughty children.
“Can you tell me about their markings?” she asked, gesturing to the man in the robe who had decided to follow them down the last two corridors at a distance.
“You ask for knowledge that isn’t freely given,” he said without turning to her.
Kyra bit her lip. Knowledge was power, she knew that, it was why she tried to learn as much as she could when she was free. Her knowledge could possibly save her life. Or it could be her downfall.
“Dirk had markings similar across his back, tattoos like…” She hadn’t even seen him move, his arms swinging only a few steps ahead and then suddenly she was pressed against the wall, an angry male grumbling down at her.
He was almost nose to nose, his chest close enough she could feel the vibration of his growl. “How have you seen his tattoos?” His arms remained at his sides, fists clenched.
Kyra blinked up at him, her own temper bumbling just beneath her skin. “Excuse me?”
“How have you seen his tattoos?” he repeated, his gaze burning her through his aviators. It infuriated her more that she couldn’t see his eyes, only her own reflected in the mirrored glass. “In what position were you in when you saw his bare flesh?”
It took a second for Kyra to realise what he had asked, embarrassment making her anger burn hotter. Her palm tingled, her hand lifting but before it could connect to his face he caught it.
A muscle in his cheek twitched, his grip tight.
“Am I interrupting?” a velvety voice sniggered.
Xander stepped away, but turned to block her from view. “Edwards,” he grunted in some sort of greeting.
Kyra stepped out from behind him, but Xander moved to block her once more.
