The Tainted Web (The Godhunter, Book 7) (3 page)

I followed Arach down the hall to his wing of the branch, (Branch of the branch? Whatever) in an awkward silence that lasted all of three seconds.

“Do you not want to be with me anymore?” Arach's eyes darted over to me and then away. “With us?”

“
I want to be here,” I sighed. “I wouldn't have come if I didn't  but as far as being with you goes, it's not just up to me. My men need to approve of you and Trevor has the last word. You're supposed to be buttering him up, showing him that you all can get along, not patronizing him and raising his hackles.”

“
I can't help but be as I am,” he frowned. “I don't know what butter has to do with anything.”

“
Never mind,” I shook my head. “Maybe it's better that they see you as you are, no charm to sway them. I'm not even sure I'll be able to handle another man anyway. It's pushing my limits, having four. Five kind of seems ridiculous.”

“
You'll barely be taking any time away from them at all,” he stopped walking and faced me, his eyes started to slant up like they did when he got passionate about something. “Can't you spare a day or two from your world to spend a month or two in mine?”

“
It sounds fair,” I agreed, “but again, this is not entirely my decision. We need to have this discussion with the others if you truly want an answer.”

“
Of course,” he took my hand and started walking. “I apologize for my attempt at haste, I've been waiting so long to resolve this and now that you're here, it takes all of my control to not just reach out and take you. Dragon's are not creatures known for their diplomacy.”

“
I know,” I smiled a little, “and don't think I don't appreciate how much time has passed for you, or how important this is. I know you've shown restraint already.”

“
You have no idea,” he gave me a wicked grin. “But enough of this,” he opened a door on his left, grandly. “Your people await.”

I walked into a room even larger than the central room of our suites. I guess it had to be, to house all of the fire fey who had joined Arach. They all jumped to their feet, coming toward me in a happy wave of multicolored limbs and eyes. Soft, rough, and even slimy skin all brushed against me and I reached my arms wide, welcoming the attention.

“How have all of you been?” I laughed as I found individuals to hug. “Isleen, how has the new council been going?”

I'd suggested to Arach that he create a council of advisers to help him gain insight into what was going on in the daily lives of his people. Isleen was the leanan-sidhe representative.

“It goes well, Queen Vervain,” she smiled and backed away so others could greet me.

“
Feargal, Breck, Neala, Ciaran,” there were so many faeries to hug, Neala was still in her phooka(dog) form, I had yet to see her as a human. “Where are the others?”

“
What others?” Arach scanned the faces of our people.

“
The Hidden Ones and the pixies.”

“
Ah,” he smiled, “the Hidden Ones are named so for a reason, Vervain. They're the most fearsome creatures in Faerie, to bring them to court would cause a riot.”

“
They have every right to be here,” I was getting mad and the fey could sense it. They stepped back a little, watching our interaction avidly.

“
Of course they do,” Arach touched my cheek gently. “And I love that you want them here but
they
love to terrify the other fey. I promise you, they don't take affront to being left behind. They well know their affect on others and without it, without them, the Hunt would not be as powerful a deterrent to those who might hurt the House of Fire or break the laws of Faerie. I've made sure that they know their importance to us.”

“
Oh,” I frowned, still feeling the ache of my missing subjects. “Okay but what about the pixies?”

“
You know how they're viewed by most fey,” Arach shrugged. “It's a kindness to leave them behind, trust me.”

“
Not enough magic,” I frowned, thinking about how even the fey could be racist, though I guess elitist would be a better term. The pixies had the least amount of magic of any fey, they weren't even immune to their own element, and most lived on the outskirts of their kingdoms. The fire pixies lived just outside of Castle Aithinne, in the Forgetful Forest and as much as I wanted them to move into the Fire Kingdom, they felt more comfortable there so I'd let them be. “I'd really wanted to see them.”

“
You can see them if you come back with us after the Ball,” he smiled mischievously.

“
Yeah, like my guys are going to let me go back to Castle Aithinne with you,” I scoffed.

“
Why not?” He frowned. “If we can come to some kind of an arrangement, why not start now?”

“
Arach,” I growled. “Stop pushing or I'm leaving right now.”

A small whimper came from my left and I looked down to see Neala amid a pack of phookas.

“She's not leaving, Neala,” Arach reassured her.

“
Who are these guys?” I knelt down by the fey dogs and reached out a hand for them to sniff.

One of them shifted, tumbling forward as he became a human shaped toddler, and fell into my arms. He giggled, tossing dark hair out of his fiery eyes, and placing a wet kiss on my cheek.

“Oh,” I laughed, “now I know you. You sat on my lap once. You've gotten big.”

“
It's been almost-”

“
Yes, I know,” I cut Arach off. “I get it.”

“
I've brought your crown for you to wear tonight,” he continued as if I hadn't interrupted. “I have a dress as well, if it would please you to wear it.”

“
A dress?” I remembered the dresses I used to wear in Faerie. They were magnificent. I'd kind of regretted not taking any of them with me but it's hard to pack up things a guy gave you while storming out on said guy. So I'd left everything except my sketchbook. “Okay, let's see it.”

He held a hand out to me and I put the naked baby down to take it. The child transformed before his feet touched the floor, once more becoming a dog. Then Arach led me over to an adjoining chamber, in which a massive four-poster bed crouched and leered at me. I turned my back on it resolutely. It was definitely not going to see me naked.

“Here it is,” Arach took a dress from the armoire in the corner and held it out to me.

It was yellow. Somehow I'd been expecting it to be red. You know, fire and all that. I was a little surprised but then I looked closer. Calling it yellow had been a disservice. It was more what yellow wanted to be, it was the thought of yellow, or rather what you thought of when you looked at yellow. It was warmth, like sunlight, a pale, shimmering heatwave.

A heatwave, that's what it was exactly. It wasn't mere fabric at all but something that should never have been able to pose as fabric, enchanted into taking its shape. I reached out for it carefully and the closer I got, the warmer it was. It had an indistinct shape, not because of the drape or cut but because of how it wavered in and out from itself, blurring from pale yellow to bright white. It did have a well formed neckline though, hemmed with brilliant canary diamonds, and then a belt of the same stones. I had the impression that the stones were what was keeping the whole thing together, bespelled by some fey seamstress.

“
That looks rather dangerous,” I rose my brows at him. “I might catch the castle on fire.”

“
Only you can feel the heat,” he laughed. “It's been made for you, to make you feel comfortable here. Everything and everyone else will only see the beauty of it, no one will get burned.”

“
No one will get burned, eh?” I looked at him meaningfully but of course, he didn't get my meaning. So I just took the dress from him, admiring how it flowed out and in again horizontally. “You won't be able to see through this, will you?” I peered at it but couldn't seem to make out anything of the room behind it.

“
No,” Arach laughed as he took it from me. “Would you like to wear it or not?”

“
Yes, please,” I smiled and he gave it back.

Chapter Four

“
Please tell me that's not what you're wearing,” I said when I got back to my suite.

“
What's wrong...” Azrael started to say as he looked up but then he caught sight of what I was wearing and stopped short. “Is that?” He got up from where he was sitting and started to come over.

“
Great balls of fire,” Trevor exclaimed from the doorway of one of the bedrooms.

“
Nyet,” Kirill said from the terrace as he too came forward. “It is great dress of fire.”

“
It's amazing,” Azrael had reached my side and was holding a hand over the shimmering form of my dress. “Is it safe?”

“
Perfectly,” I smiled bright and turned in a circle so they could admire the dip in the back and the short train that seemed to shimmer up like heat over asphalt.

“
Holy fire of Hades,” Odin breathed as he walked out of his room. “You look smokin'.”

“
Yes, yes,” I laughed. “Everyone get the fire jokes out of the way now before we go downstairs.”

“
That's a pretty impressive crown as well,” Trevor eyed the sharp points of my fire crown which looked like, well, fire. It was gold, the metal shaped into flames and set with yellow diamonds and rubies in the shape of more flames.

“
Yeah, if I don't burn you with my dress, I'll stab you with my crown,” I laughed and then looked back at Az, who was the only one not dressed up for the Ball. “Now please tell me you're going to change.”

“
You don't like my shirt?” He teased.

“
I don't think anyone here will get the Harry Potter reference. I've tried it before with Arach and it failed horribly,” I eyed the picture of the Grim Reaper on the front of his T-shirt, which proclaimed that he was the original Death Eater. Azrael was the inspiration for the Grim Reaper, so the shirt was a little more personal than usual.

“
Well, if you insist,” he sighed and tromped off to a room to change.

“
He's been dying to show you that shirt,” Trevor laughed. “Get it? Dying?”

“
Har, har,” I smirked. “Now
you
look fabulous. All of you.”

Trevor had on black leather pants with a long sleeve, dress shirt in saffron. I think he'd chosen it to match his eyes but it happened to match my dress as well. Kirill, had on blue dress slacks and a button down black shirt. His hair hung in a thick curtain down to his ass with a small braid at his right temple. It was a very fey look and I wondered if Roarke had suggested it.

Odin was in a suit, dark gray Armani. He looked as polished as his dress shoes, his hair pulled back tightly into a queue that fell to mid-shoulder. It showed off the angles in his face and the rugged handsomeness was set off by the addition of a black leather eye patch. He smiled and brushed invisible lint from his shoulders.

“
Smooth,” I laughed, “very smooth. You look like a pirate mob boss.”

“
Well how about me?” Azrael walked out of the bedroom and the room got quiet.

He was wearing some loose silk trousers in deep black. Over them, he had on a full silk tunic in blinding white which shimmered and pulled at all the colors in the room, till it collected pieces of them and became a kind of iridescent transient color. It was cinched at the waist with a thick gold belt, studded with diamonds. Off the belt hung a beautiful scabbard, the diamond encrusted hilt of a sword sticking out of it to peer at everyone haughtily. His black wings framed his beauty perfectly, providing enough shadows for his diamond eyes to shine, giving the impression that he was so pure, it glowed right out of him but his short black hair, with its careless bangs hanging over his eyes, made him look a little wicked.

“Sweet Angel of Death,” I whispered and walked over to him. “You look like a dream. My dream.”

“
Da,” Kirill snorted, “very pretty. Sparkly.”

“
He'll fit right in here,” I admired the proud lift of his wings above his shoulders, stroking my hand over the shimmering blue-black feathers. “The House of Air may try to steal you.”

“
Truly?” He looked concerned.

“
No, sorry,” I shook my head. I'd have to be more careful here, my men didn't know much about Faerie. “Just a joke.”

“
Speaking of which,” Trevor frowned over at me. “We don't have to worry about anything like that happening with you, do we?”

“
You mean, will Arach try and abduct me?” I smiled. “No, he's trying too hard for a long term relationship with all of us. I doubt he'd want to piss you guys off by stealing me again. Or piss me off, for that matter.”

“
Best to be on guard,” Odin said. “Just in case.”