“I tried to warn you,” Zoelyn whispered as she flattened her bare hand against his chest and closed her eyes. For the first time in her life she willed her curse to work swiftly, and for the first time in her life it didn’t work at all. She could feel the warmth of his flesh through his armor, and yet she wasn’t draining him. She felt nothing through the contact aside from the solid muscle of his body. Slowly she opened her eyes and stared up at him in complete confusion.
“What now, little Undrae?” he asked softly, his head tilting to the side once more. His smile returned and it seemed far colder than it had before.
Quickly, Zoelyn pulled her hand back and stepped away from him until her back pressed against the wall. He advanced with each of her steps and flattened a hand against the wall on either side of her face. Leaning closer, he raised an eyebrow once more. “Weren’t you going to stop me?” he asked in amusement.
“Honestly, Seth, do you have nothing better to do than terrify young girls?” Jala’s voice cut through the room like a knife and the Crow King pushed off the wall with a smile on his face.
“If you would stop using them as guard dogs for your son, I would stop tormenting them,” Seth replied in a voice that was far more friendly than any he had used with her. Silently, he moved away from her, once more pausing beside Legacy’s bed.
Zoelyn slowly turned to look at Jala in utter confusion and willed her heart back to its normal pace. “You know him?” she gasped, once she was sure she could speak again.
Jala nodded and stepped into the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Pulling her night robe tighter around her, she nodded once more and looked at Seth. “He is a friend, and I knew he was coming for Legacy,” she explained softly. “He was supposed to be awake and alone,” Seth pointed out in a conversational tone.
“He was the last time I checked on him,” Jala countered.
“I didn’t understand. I’m sorry,” Zoelyn began, still wretchedly confused.
“As it turns out, this works out well,” Seth cut in with a smile before Jala could respond. “What?” Jala frowned, her expression growing confused as well.
Seth gently picked the sleeping child up and advanced on Zoelyn once more. “I didn’t know about the girl. Now I do, and I’m taking her with me as well,” he answered as his hand wrapped around her wrist tightly and yanked her closer to him. “Goodnight, Jala.”
Zoelyn tried to pull back from his grasp but it was like a vice on her arm. “Settle down, little Undrae,” he whispered in the same low voice that made her heart race. Vertigo washed over her as the shadows darkened around them. In a panic she realized her curse was not absorbing his magic either. Transport spells had never worked on her before, and now when she desperately wanted them to fail they were working.
“Seth, no!” Jala’s voice echoed through the shadows. She had been just a few feet away moments before, but now her voice sounded a thousand miles away. Fear welled in Zoelyn’s chest and she tugged against his grasp again.
The air around them darkened further and Seth pulled her closer. “Stay close, little Undrae. There are things in the Darklands much more frightening than me.”
Chapter 7
Merro
Neph settled against the wall, his gaze on Legacy’s bedroom door. The draw of magic had caught his attention, and then Jala’s entrance had prodded his curiosity past ignoring. He waited in silence until the bedroom door opened once more and Jala stepped into the hall looking almost frantic. Her pale hand was over her mouth and it took several moments for her to even notice him. Eyes widening, she looked from him to the room behind her, reminding him of a startled hare in every movement.
“This requires an explanation,” Neph said simply, his gaze moving to the empty room behind her.
“Neph,” Jala murmured and her shoulders slumped. Swallowing heavily, she pulled her son’s door closed and leaned back against it. “You want my secrets, then?” she asked after a long silence.
“As close as we are, I wouldn’t have thought there would be many. It appears I’m wrong, though. I won’t pry them all out of you, but I want to know why the herald of Death just took your son without a fight from you,” Neph replied stubbornly and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Are you going to trade me secrets? I’d love to know what War was talking about something in your vaults.” Jala crossed her arms in a mirror of his own and he could see the stubborn glint in her eyes.
“Fine, but not in the hallway. Let’s go to my room,” Neph shot back and waved a hand back down the hall. “The temple,” Jala suggested.
“My room,” Neph insisted and narrowed his eyes. “I may revere the gods, but that doesn’t mean I trust that they are on my side. The Divine watch over all, and I’ve never been anyone’s favorite.”
“Fine. Your room,” Jala relented and followed him quietly down the hall.
Neph waited for her to step inside and closed the door. With a flick of his hand, he activated the protection wards on the room and crossed to his chair. With a sigh, he dropped into the cushions and propped his feet up on the small table while watching her. She still had a frantic look to her eyes, but seemed to be calming a bit. “Why did Seth take your son?”
Jala swallowed heavily and gazed around the room. Her eyes settled on a half-full bottle of wine and she crossed to it in silence. Raising it to her lips she took a long pull and gasped as she lowered it. “It’s a long story in truth, but I will try to condense it,” she began slowly as she walked back to his bed and sat down on the foot with the bottle dangling from her hand. Eyes downcast, she turned the bottle and stared at the label for a long moment before speaking again. “When Jexon killed me, I didn’t expect to come back. Death despised me and I knew once I was in the Darklands I was finished. Within moments of arriving there, however, Seth appeared and took me directly to his master.” She paused and took another drink, swishing the bottle as she lowered it. “It was Finn sitting on the throne.”