Wrath

“Wait. How many brothers are still alive?” I asked.

“Oh, darling, they live much longer than we do,” Rina said. “I know of at least six brothers, but when Tristan first came to us, he said there are more who have been in hiding. Perhaps all of them, back to Andronika’s son. Is that so, Tristan?”

“I’d heard rumors, but never confirmed it myself,” he clarified. “I don’t think Lucas even knows. When I was still with them, though, I knew of at least nine who were still alive.”

My jaw dropped. “And they’re all missing?”

“The ones we know we about, yes,” Rina said. “As well as some of their descendants.”

Wow. I hadn’t realized there were so many.

“What do you mean by missing?” Tristan asked as he settled against the back of the couch, his leathers squeaking against the leather cushion. “As in none of our people have seen them? Or as in they’ve disappeared from the face of the earth and not even the Daemoni know where they are?”

“Our people have not seen them anywhere in some time. They have tried to force Daemoni to talk, but have learned nothing, and our new converts also say they do not know anything.”

“So either the Daemoni don’t care, or Lucas is keeping it under wraps,” Tristan said.

“Correct,” Rina agreed.

“Do you think they’re dead?” I asked. “Did they kill them?”

Rina shook her head. “No, I do not sense their deaths. My instinct tells me they are in trouble, however. And I believe we can help them. You can help them.”

“And you think their taking Dorian has something to do with it?” Tristan asked.

“I do not know for certain, but I believe it may be related.”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “But we still don’t know if it’s Lucas or Kali who has Dorian. Could they have them all?”

Rina didn’t answer me, but her head tilted the other way. A moment later, the door to her office opened and Mom entered. Rina nodded at her, Mom closed and locked the door, and came over to join us. I asked my question again, thinking Rina had been mentally distracted by Mom, but it was Mom who answered.

“Our people are still trying to find out more information,” Mom said, “but no, right now, we don’t know if it’s Lucas or Kali. My sense tells me it’s both, but my sense isn’t always reliable when it comes to Kali.”

“Which may be why you can’t sense Dorian either,” Tristan suggested. “If she has him.”

“Or it may be because there’s a powerful cloak on him, which could be done by any strong warlock,” Mom said.

“Like Owen,” I muttered.

“It’s possible,” Mom agreed as her gaze dropped to study something on the floor.

Rina’s eyes drifted over to the fireplace again, but she seemed to be farther away, her voice distant. “Nothing breaks the heart more than the betrayal of those we trust most. But we cannot permit such pain to consume us. Others’ actions and decisions cannot break us unless we allow it, which we must never do. We must forgive and we must heal. We must learn to open our hearts and love again. Otherwise, our souls will become as dark as theirs.”

Was she saying Owen had allowed himself to be broken? That his soul had become as dark as that of the sorceress he once despised? Such sadness filled Rina’s voice, I didn’t think she only spoke of Owen’s heart, but of ours as well. And not only of his decisions, but of others before him. He hadn’t been the first Amadis to abandon ship, and each time someone did, her heart must have truly broken.

“They are like my children, so each time is like losing Noah all over again,” Rina said, apparently listening to my thoughts. She returned her focus to us and lifted her voice. “We must move on, however. There are many who need our love and attention. Sophia, please brief them. You understand and can explain the technology better than I, no?”

Mom nodded. “As I told you on the phone, the Normans are on edge and with good reason. The Daemoni are doing all they can to instigate war. They’re hoping for World War III, if they can pull it off.”

“And all of the Norman politicians are in Lucas’s pocket?” Tristan asked. “He just has to tell them to move, I assume.”

“No, not all,” Mom answered. “Many yes, hoping to be protected by Lucas when all hell breaks loose. We have a few who actually take our advice as well. But most Normans are leery of the Daemoni and of us. They don’t trust anyone who’s not completely human, and they’re working together to figure out how to eliminate all of us. Alexis, you and Vanessa already experienced the silver ammunition when they caught you in Alaska?”

“But silver’s only good against the Daemoni,” I said. “I mean, getting shot didn’t exactly tickle, but it won’t incapacitate us like it will the Daemoni.”

“Except for the few in higher power positions and certain departments, the Normans don’t know that,” Mom said. “They’re still testing, trying to figure things out. In fact, civilian Normans don’t know we even exist—yet—and most of those in lower positions or smaller governments have only heard rumors.”

“We need to try to keep those rumors unproven,” Rina said. I looked at her with my brows pushed together, not sure I understood.

“We need to protect our secrecy as long as possible,” Mom clarified. “The Daemoni have technically broken our treaty of secrecy by not only telling some of these power-hungry Normans about us, but Lucas has convinced them we’re the dangerous ones. If such a rumor spreads to the masses, we could be in big trouble. For now, however, we still have our secrets, and we need to keep it that way.”

“We also have our relationships to manage,” Rina added. “We have worked hard over many years to build rapport with those authorities who are willing. We do not want to jeopardize losing those liaisons.”

Tristan stretched his arm over the back of the couch as he studied Rina, then Mom. “We appreciate the information—” he looked over at me with a glint in his eye, knowing how I hated politics “—at least, I do—but why are you telling us this? Does it have something to do with Dorian and the Summoned brothers?”

“It’s information we’ll be sharing with all of the Amadis,” Mom said, “but you and your team really need to understand the danger out there because you’ll be traveling so much.”

I cocked my head. “Where exactly are we going? Do you know something?”

“I sense Dorian, and maybe the others, in America. I believe on the East Coast, and if Blossom’s spell is working right, north of Florida. Unfortunately, this is the best information we have at this time.”

“So we start in Florida or Georgia and work our way north,” Tristan said. “Hopefully Blossom’s spell will keep us on a path.”

“There’s a problem, though. You probably shouldn’t flash,” Mom said.

“What?” I sputtered, thinking I heard her wrong. “Why not? What are we supposed to do?”

How could we do covert operations and free ourselves from danger if we couldn’t make a fast escape?

“The Normans are testing new technology, and not only weapons, but things like force fields that can stop a flash. In fact, they’ve created invisible walls even they can’t pass through, supposedly to protect their own people.”

“Like the wall on the Canadian border?” Tristan asked.

“Yes,” Mom said. “And there are others. Smaller contraptions with an electromagnetic field that interferes with the magic that allows us to flash. They’re basically traps—making us appear out of nowhere right where they want us. A few of our own have been caught with these. Even some of the smallest counties and cities are trying these to find proof of the rumors. Others are putting up your standard checkpoints, but not for drunk drivers. They’re looking for non-humans. These are becoming really popular in the United States right now.”

“Wait. This is happening in the U.S.? Checkpoints and traps?”

“Yes, honey. And if you get caught, any of you, you must be very careful in how you handle the situation.” She seemed to be directing this especially at me, but Tristan caught on to her meaning before I did.

“We have to keep our calm and work with them,” he said.

“Correct,” Mom replied. “We don’t want to prove the Daemoni right that we’re dangerous. We don’t want to expose our secrets if we don’t have to. We need to be cooperative.”

“You must protect the relationships we have, as well,” Rina added. “Please take all precautions to do so.”