#
It didn’t take long for Rhane to contact her. She agreed to meet him in half an hour at the center of the city. He checked his watch. The subway was the only way to get there in time. He suppressed an inward groan. Underground again.
It was rush hour, too many people, too many smells, and too many sounds. A terrible headache had developed right around the time the ceiling had collapsed in the tunnels. The pedestal had been programmed for organic download, activated by his touch like the fake statue in the basement of Mack Ventures. Likewise emitting monkshood in the same manner, the scent caused considerable pain to those who were sensitive to it. The sensory overload from the crowd didn’t make things better.
Each time the steel doors opened, fresh air rushed in and afforded him a little relief. Moving air and a visible exit relaxed him further. He wasn’t trapped with the walls closing in, a disintegrating floor, and the caving ceiling…
stop.
He forced his thoughts to redirect. This time York had seen the vision, except for the grand finale involving the fire-breathing monstrosity. Rhane really didn’t want to think about the possible implications of such symbolism.
He glanced up at the subway map. Only one more stop. He wasn’t usually so jumpy, but what had happened in the tunnels was literally his worst nightmare come true. The fall left him disoriented under a hundred feet of water with no idea if there was a way out. He couldn’t see to find Kalista. Rocks hammered down from everywhere with lethal force. His lungs had burned, every instinct begging him to flee. But he couldn’t have left without her. Yes, she would have been fine as long as she was conscious. He knew that. But losing sight of her after the cave-in, Rhane had no way of knowing if Kalista
was
conscious. It was solely willpower that enabled him to remain submerged, find her, and reach the surface.
The doors opened, returning Rhane to present business. Zijin Cheng, the Forbidden City. It was the subway’s last stop. Home to many emperors throughout the ages, the city had been built to dazzle the senses and harmonize the earth with the heavens. Instead, it had become the object of conflict and war. The city was a prominent piece of Chinese history, and conversion into a public museum helped it finally achieve its original purpose.
Rhane wanted desperately to shove through the crowd and breathe outside air again, but waited politely as everyone else bustled through the doors. Then he calmly stepped off the train. At the red and gold Meridian Gate, he purchased a ticket. He’d seen the palace many times before, but the elaborate architecture of the overhanging roofs and upturned eaves still impressed him. He absently counted stone gargoyles interposed along the path to the Imperial Gardens. He was nearing four hundred when he spotted the woman on the bridge.
Of mixed descent, she was surprisingly tall. Dark auburn hair framed her round, pale face. Honey-colored, almond shaped eyes stood out boldly against otherwise delicate features. As usual, her lips were painted red. Always up to date with modern trends, she wore a rather painful looking pair of sky-high heels in the same shade as her lipstick. The scent of cherry blossoms wafted from her skin.
“Cixi, always a pleasure,” he said without inflection.
Without looking up from the water, the woman smiled thinly. “And you’re ever the charming liar.”
He leaned against the bridge beside her, but faced the opposite direction. “Is that why you chose such a public place for this meeting?”
“One has to be careful to whom they lend trust.”
“You’ve trusted me in the past.”
She lifted her eyes, leveling a honey gaze on him. “I trust you, Whytetree. I just don’t trust the devil inside of you.”
“I only need information.”
“Let me guess. Now that you’ve found your pet, the powers that be won’t let you keep her.”
Rhane narrowed his eyes. “What do you know about it?”
“Knowledge isn’t free.” She slid a green and black fingernail along the railing. “What shall I get for helping you?”
Both time and his patience were running short, so Rhane wasn’t in the mood for Cixi’s usual coyness. “Somehow I keep finding excuses to let you live.” Grabbing her wrist, he squeezed with enough force to make her notice. “But don’t you ever forget my purpose with regards to your species. I haven’t.”
She tried to wrench her hand away and was successful only on the second attempt. Flecks of anger dotted her eyes. “Fair enough. Your contact, Tsai, brokered a deal with the Americans to smuggle The Siren’s Heart out of this country. And then he arranged another to bring it back.”
“The statue he sold to the Americans was only a replica.”
“So the true Heart remains with you?” Rhane shook his head. For the briefest of moments, her expression widened excitedly. Then the emotion was quickly smothered. “The true statue must have never left this continent,” she finished indifferently.
Rhane pretended not to notice Cixi’s blunder. “It would seem not.”
“There are whispers that the Fallen has been freed from his entombment…and his curse was lifted. He is free to mark a human symbiote.”
It was all Rhane needed to hear. He started to walk away but stopped, looking back at the woman carved of long and graceful lines. “Be careful, Cixi. Stay out of sight.”
“Why did you come here, Rhane? I suspect I’ve told you nothing you didn’t already know.”
“Maybe I wanted to see an old friend.” Rhane smiled and turned away, wondering why Cixi’s eyes had become so sad.
Chapter 46
The Hellespont Providence traveled through frigid Pacific waters, churning a trail of foam in its wake. The steel leviathan was headed for a ship yard in the United States, carrying 152 crewmen and several hundred tons of commercial cargo. Dozens of freight containers were below deck, stacked and ready to be unloaded. Hidden inside one of those containers was Gabriel, waiting patiently for the moment when his feet would touch the earth again. For hundreds of years, he had been imprisoned, fully conscious but trapped inside his own body—blind, deaf, and paralyzed. A living tomb.
In a bid for power, Gabriel had greatly miscalculated. His rebellion led to civil war, months of fighting, and casualties on a scale beyond what was acceptable. The bloodshed captured the attention of a race whose existence was once only a myth.
Balance
, they whispered.
Balance must be restored
.
Those voices of detached arrogance had floated in Gabriel’s head even as all feeling left his body.
Blight will return
.
Hatred seethed in Gabriel’s mind as he remembered how numbness crawled into his body. Staring in his feet and legs, creeping upward until there was nothing.
Unmatched, it will bring death to us all
.
For centuries, he had known only darkness and thoughts of revenge. The desire consumed him. To defeat ones so mighty, he needed power that rivaled even his. He needed the siren.
Gabriel’s skin rippled and convulsed, pulse racing as his two hearts beat faster. His hot breath steamed in the chilly darkness of the shipping container. He could still smell her scent on the desert wind.
#
A black shadow breezed past as Bailen whisked through the front door just before Kali closed it. She’d had only one condition when Rhane practically demanded that she take the dog home: Bailen had to have a bath. The request caught Rhane off guard. But he had agreed, if somewhat reluctantly. The couple of hours that followed explained his lack of enthusiasm.
As soon as Bailen heard the word bath, the dog took evasive action. Rhane chased Bailen all over the manor before catching him. Hauling the dog to one of the downstairs bathrooms, he locked himself and it inside. What sounded like World War III came next. There was a lot of growling, some yelping, and several crashes. Rhane and Bailen finally emerged. Soaking wet and with suds dripping from his hair, Rhane had glared at Bailen with open hostility. Bailen wagged his tail, looking very smug. That superior air vanished when he forced the dog to ride in the bed of the pickup all the way from Hunter’s Valley to the Metts’ residence.
But actually having Bailen at her house was a smooth transition. Lisa was away trying her case, and Greg wouldn’t be home for another day or two. The hard part would come when he arrived, and Kali had to explain the presence of the new family pet. It would be especially difficult since Greg was allergic.
Honestly, Kali was grateful for the dog’s company. For the past two days, Rhane had been tense and distracted whenever he came around, which wasn’t happening often. He kept saying he was trying to figure things out. But it was a lame excuse. A guy only said that when he was deciding whether or not to break up with his girlfriend, and since Rhane and Kali weren’t actually dating, she didn’t know what his real problem was. Kali had repeatedly tried to talk about the desert. But Rhane completely shut down whenever she approached the subject. If she wanted answers, she would have to find them elsewhere.
She watched Bailen dart from the kitchen to the living room wagging his tail playfully, but Kai wasn’t fooled. The dog was carrying out his bodyguard assignment, checking the house for danger. When she headed for her room, there came a clatter and scrape of several chairs being knocked aside as Bailen dashed to reach the stairs ahead of her. He bounded up to the second level, stopping on the landing to throw back his head and sniff the air. The dog took off to the left. A moment later, he streaked past to right. Then Bailen reappeared and was ready to stand still. Sticking his massive head between the railings, he looked down at Kali impatiently.
“Satisfied?” she asked.
He responded with a huff of approval.
Kali looked at him and couldn’t help wondering if he was really a dog. If she hadn’t already seen Warren and Bailen together in the same room, she would have had a hard time believing two weren’t one in the same.
Now that she had Bailen’s permission, Kali climbed the stairs. The third step groaned in its usual manner. At the top, she scratched him behind his ears. He really liked that and nudged her hand appreciatively with a cold nose.
“Rozzy, I’m home!” she called. When no one answered, Kali looked at Bailen. “Was anybody home, boy?”
Bailen wagged his tail. At the same time, a loud hiss came from behind him. His honey-colored eyes danced with mischief as one ear flicked in the direction of the noise. Kali peered past the dog’s gigantic form and spotted Moses. Back arched and fur sticking out in a frazzled fluff, the cat’s eyes were narrowed into dangerous slits. Her miniature but sharp teeth glittered through a partially opened mouth. Flicking her tail stiffly, Moses hissed again.
“Moses? What’s wrong, girl?” Rozzy’s worried head peeked around the corner. Then her face relaxed. “Oh. It’s only my sister and the return of Godzilla. How was school?”
Kali shrugged. “It was high school. You remember how that was. And his name is Bailen.”
Rozzy scooped the cat up and held it protectively against her bosom. “Yeah, well whoever named him dropped the ball.” Under Rozzy’s calming strokes, the cat was soothed. Though, it still glared at Kali. “I can’t wait to watch Mom and Dad freak when they see him.”
“I can.”
“So, when am I going to meet this new guy of yours? Unless your taste has drastically changed, I’m gonna climb out on a limb and guess he’s a hottie.”
“Since Greg has forbidden him to come near this house again, probably never.”
“Oh, that’s too bad.” Her eyes slid toward the direction of Kali’s room. “So…is it really the end of Cal and Kali, then?”
She frowned. “Why would you bring Cal up?”
“Don’t be mad.” Rozzy backed away.
Kali’s eyes narrowed. “What did you do?”
“I’m sorry, but he was so sad standing there. I said you weren’t home, but then he just sat on the porch looking very pitiful and hot.”
“Rozzy!”
“I’m sorry! Go and talk to him.”
Kali couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “He’s still here?”
Rozzy blinked innocently. “I said that, didn’t I?” She darted into her room and closed the door. “He’s in your room,” she called.
“I do not believe this.” Kali pushed her room door open. The last person on earth she wanted to see was sitting on her bed. Cal looked up as she entered. His expression held an apology, but she didn’t give him time to utter it. “I thought avoiding you in school was a clear sign that I didn’t want to speak to you.” She turned her glare to Bailen. “You’re fired.” The dog stretched his muzzle in a toothy yawn, ending with a little whine. Then he sank to his haunches.
“Kali, I want to talk.”
“Then go call your shrink,” she spat. “You kept the number, right?”
“I’m sorry for avoiding you at school.”
“Don’t beat yourself up about that bit. The avoidance was mutual.”
“Give me a break. I’m trying to apologize.”
“Apology accepted. Now feel free to go.”
To her dismay, he shook his head. “I don’t want things to be over between us.”
“Maybe you should have thought about that while you were leaving bruises on my face.”