The Dark Light (25 page)

She was dressed from head to toe in white, all six foot whatever of her. Her dress was sheer, yet somehow managed to cover
what it was supposed to. I’d never seen such perfect features. Full lips. Straight nose. And her eyes? As gorgeous as her skin and framed with scarlet lashes.

It sounds like I’m making a big deal about this. Maybe I am. But here’s the thing: Vermillion Blue was wrapped around Sol like cotton candy on a stick, and Sol didn’t seem too sorry to be in that predicament. Her long arms squeezed his shoulders like a boa constrictor dancing with its prey, her amble chest crushing his. And she was kissing him. On the mouth! As if the whole world wasn’t standing at the door and watching.

Suddenly, I felt very plain. Very plain and very boring.

“I thought he only cared about defeating the Suzerain,” I muttered.

Delane caught my comment. He leaned in to my ear. “Vermillion’s an exception to most rules.”

Apparently so.

Vermillion released Sol from her clutches and then, much to his delight, it was Delane’s turn.

I tracked Sol’s path as he moved to the side of the room. He didn’t appear any worse for the encounter, nor did he appear shocked that Vermillion was squeezing the life out of Delane, too. What a welcome. I guess they really did do things differently over here.

Then it was my turn.

I wasn’t going to hug her. Seriously, I was not going to have my face mashed against that chest. She approached like a figure skater, all gliding and elegant, looking down on me from up there on Blue Mountain. I put out my hand.

“Mia Stone,” I said.

That threw her. She hesitated, looked back at Delane, and then tentatively offered me her hand. “Vermillion,” she said, her voice clear and light.

“Good to meet you,” I replied hastily, and shook.

It was only when she’d stepped away that I noticed the room; Vermillion had a knack for eclipsing most things around her. It was a kitchen, much like the kitchen at my father’s house, with a table and benches, a range, and a row of low wooden cabinets, though the walls were painted pale blue and every surface held a vase containing some kind of flower. There were mirrors everywhere. I guess Vermillion didn’t like to lose sight of herself even when cooking. Who could blame her?

“You have to tell me everything,” she said, watching me as if I might change my mind and decide to join the love fest. Once it was clear that I wouldn’t yield, she turned her attention back to the guys. “I didn’t expect to see you so soon. Solandun, the last I heard you were on the Other Side.”

“I was,” said Sol, still safely out of her reach. “It’s a long story. We came through the valley from Bordertown.”

Vermillion again glanced at me. “The valley? But why?”

“It’s the Solenetta,” said Sol.

Vermillion spun back to Sol, and the draft from her hair wafted across my face.

“It’s here,” he said. “It’s back.”

For all her “faults,” Vermillion was a good listener. As we sat around the table and talked, she never once interrupted Sol’s tale.

“I never expected this,” she said, once Sol had finished. “If the Solenetta lands in the Suzerain’s hands then war could quickly follow.”

“That’s why we have to get it back.”

“And we will,” she said. “We must. But I’m shocked. No word of these events reached me.”

“There was no time,” said Sol. “We barely escaped from Rip’s before the sentinels were on us. But the guardsmen will know by now—Malone’s men will have seen to that. Can you help us?”

“Help you?” she asked, tossing her hair in a cascade of scarlet tresses. “I would crawl naked across the Wastes to ruin that monster’s plans.”

Sol smiled. “We’d settle for knowing which safe house Malone’s men are using.”

“That shouldn’t be difficult,” she replied. She rose like a pre-Raphaelite vision bursting into life. “Now take some rest. Get cleaned up. I’ll have news for you within the hour.”

* * *

Get cleaned up.

I had to concede Vermillion that point. Stringy didn’t come close to describing my hair. I hadn’t been near a toothbrush in two days. Vermillion was all fresh and larger than life. Me? I looked like a gutterscamp. I was pretty sure I stank like one too.

I was given a room on the top floor, homelier than the one at Rip’s, but clear of the chaos and clutter of my own room in Crownsville. The bed was waist high, with a pillow top that screamed to be slept on, and a comforter in crisp, bright lemon.

An hour ago, I would have welcomed a nice, comfy bed, but I was still kind of sulking about seeing Sol in Vermillion’s arms. Why had I thought the Sons of the West would be a bunch of guys like Rip and Old Man Crowley? No wonder Delane had warned me. He’d known who waited to welcome Sol back to Orion.

I flung open the closet where Delane had promised I’d find clean clothes. An entire wardrobe hung inside, everything from the gray uniforms I’d seen on the gate guards to flowing gowns of lavender and green—Vermillion’s, no doubt. I decided to stick with my jeans and closed the door. No point trying to compete with Vermillion Blue.

The sound of running water brought me to the window. A
tiny walled yard lay below with a gate that opened onto the alley behind the house. Steam rose from a wooden cubicle tucked in the corner. From the shoulders up, there was Sol.

I’d seen Sol without a shirt before, but catching another sight of him, I knew the image of Sol by the river that lived in my memory was simply a shadow of Sol in reality. His tanned skin was tight across his triceps and shoulders, so I could see their every movement in perfect definition. Water cascaded from pipes on the wall. Hopelessly yearning, I thought of the Falls of Verderay and Sol and me swimming in the green water. Only hours had passed since I’d listened to Sol’s tale on the grass outside my father’s home with my hand locked in his. It felt like a million years.

Don’t do this, Mia.

I wasn’t used to handling this stuff without Willie! It’s a best friend’s responsibility to keep this kind of daydreaming in check. Without her, my senseless crush had spiraled out of control.

“I’ve brought towels.” Delane waited at the bedroom doorway with arms full of linen.

Great.
There was no way he hadn’t seen me peeping at Sol.

“So the shower’s outside?” I mumbled, pointing to the window, trying not to seem like some sort of pervert. “Rustic.”

“Don’t let Solandun stay out there too long,” Delane replied, as he entered the room. “He’s an infamous hot water thief.”

“I’d settle for a bucket of water right now. Any temperature. I stink.”

Delane laughed. “I’m pretty sure that’s me.”

He lingered like a little old woman with something to say. After being confronted with Vermillion Blue, I really didn’t think I could face another lecture.

“You look tired,” he said.

“Just nervous. Worried about Jay. Part of me wants to go up there, bang on the door, and tell them to hand him over. Not a great plan.”

“We’ll think of something.” He took the linen to the bed, cringing slightly. “Mia, I want to apologize for what I said earlier.”

“You don’t have to.” I really didn’t want to dwell on Sol. I had a feeling it wasn’t healthy. “Delane, it was nothing. Silly, really.”

“It’s not my business what you do with Solandun.”

“We’re not doing
anything
,” I said, and thinking of the way Vermillion Blue had kissed him, I meant it. “It was just the valley. We were all freaked out. And then there’s Jay and the Solenetta and . . .”

Nobody had ever looked at me the way that Delane looked at me then. He looked
sorry
for me.

I spun around, wanting to hide my face. Only, now I could see outside. Sol had left the shower. He stood in the yard, towel
wrapped low around his hips, the Lunestral visible in all its glory. The water from his hair and shoulders dripped down his back, the sunlight casting life into the dream bird.

He was perfect to me.

Defeated by my feelings, I reluctantly faced Delane. “It’s me who should apologize,” I said. “You’re right. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him since I first saw him.”

Delane didn’t reply.

“And it’s not because it could never be,” I blurted, not sure where the words were coming from. “He’s different from other guys. He’s so committed to everything he does. He never thinks about his own safety to help someone else. He risked his life for us in the valley.
Twice.
”

I started to pace, the words pouring out of me.

“And he didn’t want to tell me about my dad,” I continued, “but he did it anyway, because he knew I needed to hear the truth. And the way he loves Brakaland. Delane, you should have heard him talking this morning about the places here. At home, guys just moan about how everything sucks and everything’s lame, but they never
do
anything about it! Sol’s family is in the West, yet Sol’s
here
, trying to change this world for the better. He even came to Crownsville to fight.
Alone.
I can’t even imagine what that must have been like for him. But he did it, because it was the right thing to do.”

I stopped. Delane’s eyes were wide like a guy who’d just had a bomb dropped on his head. I must have sounded crazy to him. Just another girl who’d fallen under Sol’s spell.

“I guess you’ve heard it all before,” I stated, embarrassed.

Delane’s shocked expression faded gradually. He leaned against the bed and let out a deep breath. “Actually,” he said. “No.”

No?

“But all the girls you mentioned . . .” I trailed off.

He began to smile. “Mia, those aren’t the parts of Solandun girls usually focus on.”

I snickered. “He is hot,” I said, sheepishly. “Did I mention that?”

Delane faked a look of deep thought. “I’m sure you meant to.” He stretched back on the bed, propping himself up on his elbows. “Are you going to tell him how you feel?”

“No way!” I exclaimed, as I sat on the comforter. “I’ll get over him. Got no choice, right? I mean, even if we didn’t live in different worlds, he’s still got Vermillion draped all over him.”

Delane pulled back his head. “You think Solandun’s with
Vermillion
?”

“Well, aren’t they? It was hard to miss that greeting, Delane.”

He laughed, hard. “That’s too funny. Mia, Vermillion’s rarefied Simbia. Notoriously emotional. Notoriously
loving
. Get my point?”

I think I did. We had a name for that type in Crownsville, too.

“So they’re not together?”

“Never. Ever,” he said.

The news made me feel slightly better.

“You’re not going to tell him about any of this, right?” I asked. “Sol, I mean.”

“I won’t say a word,” Delane replied. “And I’m still sorry for what I said earlier.”

“We’re buddies, Delane,” I said, and flopped onto my back beside him. “If you can’t tell it to me straight, then no one can.”

* * *

Sol had left some hot water, and after washing the valley out of my hair, I felt ready for anything. I relinquished the shower to Delane, then retired to my room to dress and towel dry my hair as best I could. There really was something to be said for confessing. I felt lighter—freer. What had passed between me and Delane would remain a secret. It was time to get my head out of the clouds over Sol, and focus on Jay.

I hadn’t heard Vermillion return, but as I left my room I caught her and Sol’s voices coming from the kitchen. I went downstairs.

“. . . word of what happened has reached the West,” said Vermillion, as I approached. “They’ve known for some time. If news of this latest development reaches them, they might decide it’s time to destroy the Solenetta.”

“Which is why we have to get it out of Brakaland before they find out,” said Sol.

“You’re not tempted to destroy it yourself?”

“No,” Sol replied. “Never.”

That surprised me. The second I got back to Crownsville, I planned to hurl the thing into the river. Well, perhaps not. But there was no way I was keeping it, regardless of whether or not Willie thought it was the perfect accessory for prom.

I entered the kitchen to find them at the table. Sol had changed clothes, swapping one gray shirt for another. His hair was damp from the shower.

“The boys are being held in the Velanhall,” said Vermillion. “It’s no secret.”

“Jay?” I asked.

Vermillion looked up on hearing my voice. She gestured for me to join them. “Solandun has been telling me your story.”

“Has anyone seen the boys?” I asked.

“Periodically. They’ve been taking them to the Nonsky Fault.”

I slid onto the bench beside Sol. “Where’s that?”

“It’s a Barrier weakness,” Sol replied, “less than a mile from here.”

“They’re planning something up there,” said Vermillion. “There’s a camp of sentinels. They’ve been taking the boys.”

“You think they have solens?” asked Sol.

“What use would they be without someone to use them?”

I didn’t understand. “Can’t anyone use them?”

“Not without a spell to create the reaction,” Vermillion replied.

“And there’s no spell powerful enough to harness an entire solen’s power,” I added. “Other than the Solenetta.” I smiled at Sol. “See? I pay attention.”

“Whatever they’re doing isn’t working,” continued Vermillion. “They bring the boys back to the Velanhall a couple of days later and then no one returns to the fault for weeks. Another caravan left the city yesterday, heading for the encampment.”

“With the boys?”

“We don’t know. The wagons were covered and the spies we sent haven’t yet seen any children. But whatever they’re doing, they’re making ready for another attempt, probably to open the Barrier. And now the Suzerain returns. Coincidence?”

“Unlikely,” said Sol.

“I heard a rumor that a new boy arrived recently and that he is Balian.” Vermillion glanced pointedly at me. “I am guessing that is your brother. I sensed Balia when you arrived here.”

“My father’s from Brakaland,” I said. “I don’t know about Balia.”

“Then maybe they know something we don’t. Maybe they really do have solens and they think this boy is their shot at an Equinox. But without the Solenetta it could never be a true and lasting reaction.”