Obsidian Prince, page 20
She chose the one that seemed most appropriately named for her current situation. “Elixir D’Amour.”
Alexander’s mouth made that pleased little twitch at the corners that she loved. This morning, his understated smile was less subtle than usual.
John buried his own smile behind his cup of coffee.
Later that morning, after Alexander had given her a quick lift to her house to put on proper clothes, they drove out to the forest near Bones Creek where the murders had taken place.
By the time Liliana and Alexander arrived, John had already gathered several people. The lovely campsite with the trickling stream on one side, a huge, centuries-old cypress with what looked like a lightning scar providing shade, and a stunning view of the surrounding hillsides had been stained a few days ago with the blood of a pair of soldiers, two friends who camped there on their day off.
Siobhan, Doctor Nudd, Detective Jackson, several members of Alexander’s Special Enemies and Tactics (SET) unit – everyone they needed was there, except Pete.
Liliana and Alexander had just hiked the short distance down the forest trail from where they parked the cars when Pete’s van arrived behind them. Liliana had been watching for it with her fourth eyes.
She felt a little odd about using her spider eyes with so many people around, but they were all either Others, or Normals like Detective Jackson, who were comfortable around Others. A few were even her clients. Not having to hide what she was among so many felt a little daring and scary, but…liberating.
She saw Sergeant Giovanni get out of the van with Pete. Liliana vaguely remembered that the two had planned to play a virtual reality laser tag game together on their day off.
As Giovanni and Pete came up the trail from Pete’s van, they were arguing. Liliana stopped on the edge of the trees a fair distance from the SET squad to watch them with her fourth vision.
She touched Alexander’s arm, stopping him from joining his soldiers. Softly, she said, “Sergeant Giovanni is very loudly griping about how horrible Eliot was. She thought he might be her next husband. She never would have dated him if she’d known he had Other ancestry. She is arguing that Others of any kind can’t be trusted.”
Alexander asked, “Are you going to advise me on what to do about that?”
“I am not. I am terrible at relationships. I don’t know how to fix this. I just thought you should know there is a problem. Sergeant Giovanni is dear to you. Pete is her closest friend and she loves him. She admires and is loyal to you.” Liliana pointed at the group of people waiting a short distance away. “But everyone here is some kind of Other except Detective Jackson. And Sergeant Giovanni is saying this loudly enough for some of them to hear.”
She pointed at John Runningwolf, standing in front of the small squad of SET soldiers in demi-badger form, his round ears folded back and prominent fangs bared slightly. Several of the others in demi-plant, demi-stone, or demi-animal form, also showed signs of anger. Keen hearing was a common trait in many Others.
“Sergeant Giovanni is now talking about Andrew Periclum. He seemed like just another soldier, a doctor even. He had so little concern for anyone that he did deadly experiments on his own people. Others have no real compassion, even for their own kind. They’re all basically sociopaths.”
A muscle jumped in the side of Alexander’s jaw. They were close enough to the trail in the quiet of the forest that they could hear the two arguing now. Liliana no longer needed to repeat the ugly words to Alexander.
“Doc Periclum was a sociopath. Sure. I’m not saying he wasn’t.” Pete’s voice was getting louder as they neared. “But that doesn’t mean all Others are evil, just because that one person was. That’s like saying all Italians like chocolate just because you do.”
“Others are beasts and plants, though. They don’t have real souls. Them passing as people most of the time makes them all big liars to boot.” At that moment, Sergeant Giovanni who was in the lead, stepped into the clearing and looked around. She saw a large group of Others from her Colonel’s special unit, plus Siobhan and Doctor Nudd in human form, all looking at her.
Her olive complexion darkened with a flush of blood, but instead of ducking her head in shame, she lifted her chin defiantly. She ignored the group, and smartly saluted Colonel Bennett, despite wearing civilian clothes.
Alexander stood there for a moment, not answering her salute, so she was stuck standing at attention and saluting. “I wasn’t aware of how strongly you felt about Others, Sergeant.”
“I apologize, sir. I shouldn’t have aired my personal feelings like that. I never would have if I’d been on duty. I had no idea anyone but Pete could hear me.”
Alexander sighed. He returned Sergeant Giovanni’s salute half-heartedly so she could put her arm down. “I’ll put you in for a transfer on Monday.”
Sergeant Giovanni’s face looked like Alexander slapped her. “Sir, I … I’m really sorry. I’ve never let my personal opinions keep me from working well with them before, though. I swear I can still do my job.”
“You misunderstand me,” Alexander said. “I assume you won’t wish to work for someone who isn’t human, who lacks compassion or a soul.” He paused for a moment while Sergeant Giovanni sputtered a little, then added, “Someone like me.”
She stopped, still. “But … you’re not…”
“I am.” He looked up where Pete hung back a little. “I had intended to discuss this with you privately, but it seems keeping my identity secret has caused more than one issue on my team.”
Pete stepped up beside Sergeant Giovanni. He glanced to the side and a few feet away where Liliana watched them with her second and fourth eyes. Her human eyes were aimed at her feet. Pete’s face was thoughtful, as if doing math in his head. He looked at Alexander. “You’re the Fae prince Lilly mentioned.”
Alexander nodded to him. “I gather she told you there was one in the area, but not who it was.”
“I don’t tell people’s secrets.” Liliana stepped up beside Alexander, human eyes on the grass and leaves on the ground between Sergeant Giovanni and Pete. She believed they would not come to blows, but to her surprise, she found herself preparing to defend Alexander from Pete if the worst happened. Not the other way around.
Alexander seemed far less concerned with Pete’s reaction than with Zoe Giovanni’s. He faced his sergeant, who had followed him loyally from assignment to assignment for years, believing he was human. “I am Other.”
Sergeant Giovanni shook her head in denial.
“My father was human, but my mother was a queen of the Sidhe.”
“Sir, you don’t have to say that to show what I did wrong. I know I messed up, but I also know you’re human. You’ve always been human.”
“Why? Because I care about the people I lead? Because I have protected you—and you, me?”
She tightened her lips in a thin, angry line. “Because Others aren’t like you, sir. I know I was out of line. I understand if you need to send me away from your SET unit, but you don’t have to lie to me.”
Alexander unbuckled his belt and handed it to Liliana who wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do with it. He handed her his hat as well. She put it on, since that seemed like the only logical thing to do with a hat[. He removed his camouflaged shirt and dull green t-shirt. He handed her those as well. She hung them on the nearest branch.
His gaze never left Giovanni as he shifted, growing more than a foot in height, plus a few inches more if you counted the crown of silver horns. His flesh became glassy black sharp-edged stone. Here, in the sunshine, up close, Liliana noticed a shimmer of green within him, like in rainbow obsidian, but slowly swirling like the colors in her fourth eyes.
Sergeant Giovanni’s face paled. She covered her mouth with her hand. Her head shook in denial.
“My nature is dangerous for anyone to know,” Alexander told Giovanni. “I never wanted you to be in danger because of me, so, I kept it to myself. It was never my intention to deceive you.”
Pete smiled a little sadly. “There are a lot of good reasons to hide what you are. One of my closest friends thinks Others aren’t even really people.” Pete took a deep breath before he stepped around so that he stood beside Alexander, facing Giovanni. “It’s why I didn’t tell you, either, Zoe.”
“Didn’t tell me …Oh.” She shook her head again. “You’re not one of them.” The statement was certain.
Pete gave her a rueful shrug.
“You’re not! You can’t be.” She didn’t sound completely certain. “I’ve met your parents.”
Pete grimaced. “I was adopted. I’m wolf-kin. You and I were pretty close before I found out how you feel, and then …” He shrugged. “I’m sorry, I just … I love how easy we are with each other. I didn’t want to lose that.”
Giovanni’s jaw set. Her dark eyes flashed. Her aura blazed equal parts orange with anger and the pale unclean yellow of pain. “Fine. Fine. You both put one over on the gullible Normie. Bet you thought it was hilarious listening to me rant about Others.” She drew herself to attention. “I’ll accept that transfer on Monday, … sir.” The last word sounded sarcastic. She marched back up the trail the way she came.
Alexander watched her go, his living stone face oddly more expressive of the sorrow and pain coloring his aura than his controlled human face was.
Pete took a couple of steps after her. “It wasn’t like that, Zoe.” But she ignored him and kept walking. After a moment, he stopped, letting her go. His shoulders slumped in defeat.
Liliana watched Sergeant Giovanni on the trail back to the cars. She let tears fall silently once she was far enough away she didn’t think anyone would see them. Liliana’s heart ached for the woman who just lost the two people she cared about most because she couldn’t let go of her prejudices.
Alexander walked up behind Pete. He put a giant stone hand on the wolf-kin’s shoulder, his face and aura filled with sadness. “It’s bad for morale to have someone with those attitudes working with my soldiers. I didn’t know or I would have found a gentler way to have her reassigned.”
Pete looked up at the graceful living statue of volcanic glass. He nodded agreement. “She was always the consummate professional on the job. I’m not surprised you didn’t know.” He turned to face Alexander. “Liliana told me the local Fae prince was unseelie.”
“Is that going to be a problem?” Alexander pulled his hand away from Pete’s shoulder and showed him his empty, weaponless palms, tension in the sculpted statue shoulders.
Pete shrugged. “Doc Nudd’s been like a second father to me. He’s unseelie. I really don’t care.”
Alexander made a graceful gesture with his hand. “Nudd told me that. I should have listened. He has always given me wise counsel. But I’ve had enough unpleasant experiences with seelie and their allies that I was hesitant.”
Siobhan piped up behind them. “The Colonel got bad advice from that Eliot git for a while is all.”
Pete glared at her. “You knew?”
Siobhan grinned. “Lilly’s not the only one who can keep a secret.”
Liliana wrapped Alexander’s belt around her hand, fiddling with the canvas end and the metal tip. She looked at her hands as she ran it between her fingers. “There have been a lot of revelations today. There is something else. The Kodiak-kin killed only two people.”
Detective Jackson hadn’t said much up to then. She’d been looking a bit unsure of why she was there, but that got her attention. “Yeah, I knew that, actually. Do you have some sort of a lead? Did you see something, Lilly?”
“I did.”
The giant living statue of Alexander glanced down at Detective Jackson, who stood no taller than Liliana, about waist high in his current form. He gave the petite Normal a respectful half nod. “I would appreciate it if you let the press continue to think the killer is in custody.”
Detective Jackson’s eyes narrowed at the giant, regal figure. “Justice for murderers is my area, Colonel. I’m not letting a killer go free to end someone else’s life on your say so.” She put her hands on her hips, not backing down in the least from the giant of oily black stone. “Why would you even think I’d mislead the press?”
“I suspect the answer to that question is going to be obvious in a few minutes.” He glanced at Liliana. “You’re certain I can wake the forest?”
Liliana nodded. “I have seen you do it in the near future. I have no idea how you will do it.”
Alexander’s expression twisted to irony. Even in demi-stone form, the expression made a dimple in his cheek. It was adorable. At least, Liliana thought so.
“Wake up the forest?” Pete said as they walked to rejoin the larger group.
Doctor Nudd joined them in a few long strides. “I’ve seen it done only twice in the millennia of my lifetime. A land ruler can awaken all sleeping Fae in an area at once and speak to them. They’ll all hear what he says.”
Pete blinked. “A land ruler. Like a king or a queen?”
“Any Fae that is land bonded.” Nudd nodded to the tall obsidian figure. “Our prince should theoretically be able to do it.”
“Theoretically,” Alexander stated drily.
“What do you want us to do, sir?” Lieutenant Runningwolf gestured at the double line of mismatched Others all in demi-form, standing at parade rest with automatic rifles, customized to the unusual size and shape of each, held with butt resting on the ground at their sides. Each wore a military uniform that was apparently made like Pete’s clothes, with stretching or loose sections to allow shifting from human form to demi. Some had slits in the back to allow wings or extra limbs to protrude like Siobhan’s jackets.
“You’re my backup.” Alexander gestured to the double line of soldiers. “I’m hoping this will go peacefully, but at least one of the creatures in this forest is a serial killer. If some of the beings awakened are not happy about me giving them orders, it may come down to a show of force.”
“Yes, sir.” Lieutenant Runningwolf’s long striped badger muzzle dipped in a nod. He turned to face the squad of twenty Others in two neat rows of ten each, all in demi form. “You heard the Colonel.” His deep, growly voice snapped. “Shoulder arms.”
The men and women, beast-kin and Fae, seelie and unseelie, moved as one to lift their weapons so they leaned against their shoulders, in a stance that looked precise despite their varied heights and shapes. It was a position that would make it easy for them to stand for long periods, while keeping the weapons at the ready.
“You may need to fight instantly, when given the order,” the badger-kin continued, speaking with authority to creatures twice his size or more in some cases. “However, you will do nothing unless attacked or given the order. Until then, hold steady and strong. No sign of fear or any other emotion. You are statues until you hear an order otherwise. Understood?”
“Yes, sir.” The SET squad chorused.
Lieutenant Runningwolf nodded in acknowledgement. He did a neat about face, his own weapon held across his body, at the ready. “We’re ready when you are, Colonel.”
A nod of the great crowned head looked majestic, but the dimple and familiar tiny quirk at the corner of the Fae prince’s lips made Lilly smile.
Chapter 18
Awakening The Forest
Alexander stepped in front of the two rows of men, with John Runningwolf just to the right and slightly behind him, guarding one flank. Liliana stepped up to the same position on his left. Being in front of so many strangers was uncomfortable, but no amount of discomfort could induce her to leave Alexander’s flank unguarded.
Detective Jackson chose to stand beside Liliana, unintentionally perhaps, also taking a protective position.
The small figure of Siobhan in human form, all three foot ten of her, stood in her leather jacket with her machine pistol in hand, directly in front of Alexander.
It was an odd position for a court guardian. Normally, they stood behind the one they guarded, far too large to stand in front of their charges. Siobhan was small enough that she could stand directly between her prince and danger, without obscuring more than his knees.
Doctor Nudd was still walking all around them, halting occasionally and touching a leaf or the bark of a tree. His craggy face was even more wrinkled than usual as he studied the birds and squirrels as if they held some secret he needed to know.
Alexander called to him, “Merlin.”
The Merlin of the court was the wisest advisor to the ruler. His position was usually right at the ruler’s side, close enough to whisper important information in his ear. At some point in history, the Merlin also became expected to be the most powerful wizard of the court.
Dr. Nudd dropped to one knee in front of the silver-crowned obsidian statue in camo pants. Siobhan stepped to one side to make room, watching the forest warily with her machine pistol in hand, unconcerned about Nudd being near the prince she guarded.
Alexander put a living black stone hand on his shoulder. “I am uncertain how this is done. Is there some information you could give me?”
Nudd ran a hand through his curly hair, making it even more messy than usual. “I don’t think you’ll have any trouble waking this forest up. It already feels like it’s watching us.”
Liliana nodded. “The Green here is rich and strong.” Her third eyes saw the pulsing flow just beneath the grass being pulled into every tree, especially the big cyprus that shaded them. Green men only made their homes in the most magical of forests. The longer they stayed in a forest, the more magical it became. The fact that one slept here with his family made her wonder if once it had been a place of power. And if the trees here would like it to be so again.
Nudd scratched his bristly cheek in need of a shave. “My concern is that this forest, when awake, may be more than we bargained for.”
Outwardly, the living statue of oily black stone seemed regal and still, but Liliana could see ripples of unease, shivers of beige uncertainty on the edges of Alexander’s aura. “You and the land are one, my prince.” Liliana touched his smooth stone arm and squeezed. “Call the Green. For you, it will come joyously, like a hound eager for the hunt.”
