On Wicked Ground (Solsti Prophecy Book 4) (9 page)

“Yes.” Ashina set her box on a table. She folded her arms and leaned against the wall. “Physically fine, but emotionally stunned. She needed some time to soak it all in.”

“Yeah, I bet.” He shook his head. “And, I guess congratulations are in order? You have a new member of the family. Well not new, but new to you.”

“Thank
you
, Caine. You found my granddaughter.” She reached up to give him a quick hug. “I’m forever grateful.”

So am I.
Caine felt like he’d stumbled onto the most incredible treasure in the realm. “Did you tell her…everything?”

Ashina shook her head. “No. It’s such a long story, with so many ups and downs. I told her the bare bones. Details can come later. It’s a lot to take in.”

Hell yeah. Caine’s brain was spinning and he wasn’t the one with legendary powers. “I’m gonna head up to the balcony.”

He made his way through the quiet facility. Sleek marbled halls stretched in numerous directions. Watcher headquarters held offices for Arawn and the members of his inner circle, as well as areas for the tech group, the spell department, the weapons-makers, the medical wing, a cafeteria, and so on. Most who worked here were Lash demons, the exception being the spell group with its assortment of witches and mages.

Guards and sentries patrolled the exterior of the facility and monitored security camera feeds inside. Though the coordinates were encrypted, one could never be too sure. Caine reached an elevator and rode up to the fifth floor, which was the top. As soon as the doors opened, the scent of moonflower hit him like a triple shot to his head, heart, and groin.

He stifled a groan. He’d been intrigued with her the first time they’d met, tempted by her steely femininity the next. And that was before he knew she was a Solsti. Hell, Solsti or not, his cock didn’t care what her lineage was. His muscles twitched to find her.

He strode to the north side of the building, where a set of French doors opened to the calm night. Two guards stood just inside, as was to be expected. Any civilians would be watched, whether they knew it—or liked it—or not.

Caine nodded to them and walked outside.

The balcony was massive, stretching fifteen feet out from the building and running its whole length. A four-foot-tall stone balustrade served as a railing. Tables, chairs, and a few chaise lounges dotted the flagstone floor.

He didn’t immediately see her, though her scent announced her as did the presence of the guards. Was she cloaking herself? That may not be the best idea…
There she is
.

She was so petite, he almost missed her, curled on her side on one of the loungers. She faced him, watching him, eyes widening slightly in recognition. A small smile played across her face.

He crossed the flagstones. “”Hey.”

“Hey, yourself.” She pushed up to a sitting position.

“Feeling better?”

“A little. My head hurts, though I can’t tell if that’s physical or mental.”

“Maybe a little of both.” He lowered himself into a wide wooden chair opposite her and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “So…”

What to say? He didn’t know where to start. Not only was she a girl he wanted to get to know better, she was a Solsti. A living legend.

“So…yeah.” She shook her head.

“Did you know?” he asked.

“Were you looking for me tonight?” she asked at the same time.

They both chuckled. Both said “no” at the same time.

She giggled and covered her mouth. “What a crazy night.”

“That’s for damn sure.”

“Thank you for getting me out of the club.” She dropped her hands and thank gods, because her full pouty lips drew him like a siren. “And for bringing me here to get patched up.”

“I couldn’t leave you. You might have been gone before that shit went down, if not for me.”

“I guess.” She picked at a thread on the blue scrub pants she now wore.

No more leather. She’d showered, and the scent of fruity body wash mingled with her own. Her skin and hair were free of soot and dust. She wore a black tank top, and her short hair had dried. Shiny and blond, it framed her face perfectly, setting off wide green eyes.

“How are you feeling?” He winced, realizing he’d just asked that.

“Better now that I’m clean.” She grinned. “But overwhelmed, in general.”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “I bet. Want to talk about it?”

“Talk about it.” She shook her head as she echoed his words. “What can I say? I’ve been sitting here for hours and I still can’t quite believe it.” She looked out into the night. “I mean, I grew up hearing the stories, never imagining they’d be real, or that I’d be…part of it. Or how I’m alive.”

“I can assure you, that was one of the big questions from our meeting.”

“What else did you talk about? Anything you can tell me?”

He raked a hand through his hair. “Well, I was at Hell’s Gate to keep an eye on those elves. That was my assignment. So I had to give details on that.”

“Did you have to give details on…everything you did?” She swallowed hard, darting a nervous peek at him.

“I did say that you and I talked.”

“Oh.” She looked down.

“I didn’t say exactly
where
we talked.”

She bit her lip and looked up. “Thank god.”

“I also told them this was the second job I’d seen you on.”

Her eyes flashed. “Am I in trouble?”

“No.” He held up both hands. “You’re a Solsti. You can pretty much do whatever you want.”

“What about Sebastian? Ashina said she wants to talk to him. I won’t let him come here or be brought in, if you guys are going to throw him in a cell.”

“What makes you think we’d do that?” He searched her face, puzzled. Hadn’t she been shown every courtesy since she’d arrived? But the flicker of wariness that danced across her eyes yanked him back to her reality. Her line of work obviously kept her guard up. As he’d expect from anyone with half a brain and balls enough to steal from high-rolling gangsters.

“I don’t know.” She ran her fingers through her hair. “Arawn has a fierce reputation. And well, my dad and I…are thieves.”

“Arawn has way more on his plate to worry about than thefts, unless it involves weapons that can harm on a large scale. No offense. It’s just that this whole evil-lurking-thing, no-one-knows-when-it-will-strike, takes up most of his time.”

She sat up. “Oh my god, the evil. What is it?”

“We’ve been investigating a vampire named Elegia. We think she’s the one.”

A funny look crossed her face. “Vampire?”

“Yeah. I know it sounds weird.” Vampires on Torth were weak and rare, often forced to drink animal blood and live on the fringes of society. Sometimes they lived in forests, catching small mammals for prey.

She tilted her head. “One vampire shouldn’t be hard for the Watchers to take down.”

“True. But reports are that this one is…” He blew out a breath. “Apparently deranged and brilliant. We’re ninety-nine percent sure she resurrected or re-engineered the black lily of Evena.”

Alina’s jaw dropped. “The plant that’s supposed to make you stronger? I thought it was extinct.”

“Yeah, so did a lot of people. Until one of her lieutenants attempted to pump it into Earth’s water supply.”

“Why? Wouldn’t that just make humans stronger?” Her brows knit together.

“That’s the logical train of thought. But she’s crazy, and her lieutenant is dead.”

“Huh.” She sighed. “I thought this night couldn’t get any weirder.”

He chuckled. “How about we backtrack?”

“Backtrack?” She tilted her head, inadvertently exposing the smooth arch of her neck. “What do you mean?”

Gods, she probably had no idea how tempting she looked. “What did you take from Mulvari’s house?”

“Oh, that.” She swatted a mosquito, which probably thought she smelled delicious too. “A transportation amulet.”

He nodded. “That would come in handy. I was in that room.”

“I know. You looked at me. Totally freaked me out.”

“Freaked you out?” He couldn’t suppress a grin. This little tough girl didn’t seem freaked out by much. “Is that a good thing?”

She held his gaze. “I didn’t know if you were on to me.”

Hell. He couldn’t help but notice her, but he’d been working. “How did you get it out of its case?”

“When Sebastian set off the charges at the front, I undid the blood protection spell and then smashed the glass. Then I ran into the hall—”

“—and into me.” 

“Yeah. Then outside, I climbed the back gate, and fell down a ravine. I can’t see as well at night as you guys can.”

He nodded. “It was a perfect heist, until you got bitten.”

“Yeah. Damn dogs.”

They sat in silence for a minute as that night played out in his mind. “The bite, was it bad? And did you get hurt when you fell?”

“The bite’s healing. See?” She tugged up the wide leg of the blue cotton scrubs, revealing a bruised ankle dotted with scabs that mimicked the pattern of a hellhound’s sharp teeth. Her brows furrowed. “But the ravine was the weird thing. Well, one of the weird things. I was trapped under a pile of dirt and I guess I made a tree crash down on me. I couldn’t move my body out of the mess, and then I wished I could move the debris off me, and then…it did.”

“You moved stuff with your mind? And you didn’t think—”

“I didn’t know what to think. But I’d heard the rumors about the Solsti. I was afraid to believe it. I don’t remember the whole first half of my life. I—”

“Wait.” He reached over and laid a hand on her knee. “What do you mean, the first half of your life?”

She shook her head. “It’s a big black void. No memories. The first thing I remember is being twelve and Sebastian finding me in an underground cave.” Sadness darkened her delicate features. “I know that sounds lame.”

“Not lame. It sounds kinda terrifying for a kid. How did you get there?”

She raised her shoulders, then dropped them in defeat. “I feel stupid saying I don’t know, but it’s also scary not knowing.”

“Hey, I’m sorry.” He shifted to her lounger. They sat side by side, her legs dangling, feet not touching the flagstones. She was so little. He was struck again with respect that she had scraped by and survived, even if her life was unconventional.
And now she learns she’s a Solsti.
“We can talk about something else.”

“Good idea.” She leaned toward him and bumped his shoulder with hers. “I’m tired of talking about me. Let’s talk about
you
.”

“Not much to know.” Her nearness was intoxicating, her scent fresh and undiluted by anything else. Unlike at Hell’s Gate, where hundreds of bodies had been throwing off hormonal aromas.

“How long have you been a Watcher?”

Caine blew out a breath. “A hundred years.”

“What made you join?” She wiggled her toes, making her flip-flops slap softly against her feet.

“I always wanted to. Ever since I was little. I signed up as soon as I was old enough.”

“What about your family? Do they worry about you going on dangerous jobs?”

“My family’s dead.” A raw hollow feeling pushed the words out. He’d been saying them for years. “Our village was attacked.”

“Oh, Caine. I’m so sorry.”

“It was a long time ago.”

“But still…” She curled her tiny hand over his, her touch infused with warmth and strength.

He didn’t reply. The images of blackened trees spiking into the sky seared his eyelids. Thanks to his photographic memory, he could never unsee them. And the regret at not being there to defend his family beat in time with his heart, a rueful echo of pain, no matter the decades that had passed.

“I don’t know anything about my family. Well, except my dad, who adopted me.” Her voice was soft and sincere, barely above a whisper dancing in the air between them. “So, I don’t know what I lost. If I lost them, or if they lost me. But you…you had family and then… I’m sorry.”

To his surprise, she shifted her hand to his shoulder. “We can talk about something else.”

A change of subject sounded like the best idea ever. He took her hand and held it between both of his. “Good idea. How about our own version of twenty questions?”

She drew her lips in, then released them with a pop. “Okay. Why not?”

“What’s your favorite gadget?”

“Gadget?” She wrinkled her nose.

“What you use when you work. And don’t say lock picks.”

“Pfft.” She turned so she was facing him and bent one knee on the lounger. “I have two sets, and they’re awesome, but I have something better.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “I’m all ears.”

“I have this bracelet.” She leaned forward, excitement creeping into her voice. “It looks like a regular silver bangle, but you press a button and it uncoils into a rope with a hook at the end. That’s how I climbed the gate at Mulvari’s.”

“Nice.” He rubbed his thumb across her knuckles, frowning at a series of scrapes.

“Your turn.”

“I have a favorite dagger. It’s all I have from my father…it’s elven-forged steel, and it has his name and my mom’s carved into the handle.”

“That sounds nice.” She tilted her head. “Hmm, what’s your favorite drink?”

“Dragons blood.”

She made a gagging sound. “Oh, gods, your throat must be coated in iron, I can’t drink that.”

“How about you?”

“Fire balls.”

He nodded, liking this convo more and more. “What’s the most interesting place you went for a job?”

“Hmm.” She cast a glance to the dark sky. “I’d have to say the men’s restroom at the Pentagram.”

What?
“Seriously?” He turned to see her eyes dancing with mirth.

“Seriously.”

He shook his head. “I do
not
want to know what you had to do in there.”

She grinned. “Ha, ha. How about you? Most interesting place?”

“Rivkin.” He didn’t have to think about that one. The wood nymphs considered all forms of entertainment and the comfort of guests to be their specialty.

She rolled her eyes. “I do
not
want to know why you liked Rivkin so much.”

“Touche.”

She curled both legs under her and leaned against the chair’s back. This meant she took her hand away, and damn, he missed touching her. Not acceptable. He reached for her uninjured ankle and grasped it, stretching her leg out over his thighs. She raised an eyebrow but didn’t protest.