Rage whipped through me in an icy blast, freezing me at the top of the staircase. Every muscle locked as I silently listed the reasons I couldn’t rip his head off his shoulders.
“Shit,” he muttered as he saw my face, but at least he was smart enough to put a few feet between us. “I meant no disrespect.”
“Mind your own damned business,” I growled, and started down the steps.
“If you’ve opened up a vein for the first time in your life, I’d say I have the right to be…” He shook his head slightly like he was looking for a word that wouldn’t get him killed. “Aware.”
“Not here.” I glanced over the railing and saw Olivia, Avianna’s bodyguard, crossing the foyer.
Lachlan followed my line of sight and nodded as we made it to the landing where all three staircases converged, then continued down to the foyer. We didn’t speak until we were behind the steel door of the war room.
“Not yet.” I took my place at the head of the table, then devoured the meal Serge had thoughtfully left for me, but it did nothing to satiate my hunger because it wasn’t for food…it was for her. Once my stomach was full, I looked up to find every member of the Order staring at me with the exception of Hawke, who was polishing a dagger.
“I have a human in my suite,” I announced as if it was another item on our action list. “I suspected that she’d seen the demon in the park, and I was right.”
“Impossible,” Ransom blurted, blanching.
“Fuck me,” Lachlan muttered and rubbed his hand over his face.
“Really?” Benedict leaned forward in his chair, his eyes flaring with curiosity.
Hawke lifted his eyebrows and set his dagger on the table.
“She saw him.” I leaned back in my chair. “Described him to me. I tracked her down last night and found her fighting for her life from the same piece of shit. She definitely saw him.”
“You…tracked her down,” Ransom said, low and slow, his eyes taking on a dangerous sheen.
“Pretty sure I just said that.” I stared him down.
“Alone?” he snapped, then swung his gaze toward Lachlan, who shook his head in warning. “You knew, didn’t you?”
“Aye. Afterward.” He crossed his arms over his chest as his jaw ticked.
“You could have been—” Ransom started.
“She’s a witch,” Benedict interrupted. “If she saw through the glamour, she has to be a witch. There’s no other explanation.”
“This isn't a test. You don’t get extra credit for answering first,” Ransom fired back, waving his hand across the table at Benedict.
“Enough.” I didn’t even have to raise my voice. They obeyed, focusing their eyes forward on me. “When I found her, she was nearly dead. I brought her back here to heal.”
“And to question, right?” Benedict arched an eyebrow.
My fangs elongated.
Benedict sat back, his eyes widening slightly.
“We have a problem. There was obviously a plot to kill my sister. Those demons weren’t surprised to see us, and then they hunted the only other evidence—Lyric.” I wanted to shred the demon apart again at the thought of it.
“They wanted a song?” Ransom blinked.
“That’s her name, you idiot. The human’s name is Lyric,” Lachlan shook his head.
Hawke watched with narrowed, interested eyes, but remained silent as usual, no doubt waiting for all the information before deciding what he deemed worth his time.
“And this human is the reason you stayed tucked away all last night while the nobles circled like vultures, hoping for a glimpse of your sister?” Benedict put the pieces together.
I nodded. I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off the woman, not that I was about to offer that piece of information. “Tell Xavier to expect us tonight,” I said to Lachlan.
He nodded.
“Hate to point out the obvious, but O’Flannery is going to have the Consortium up our asses if he finds out we’re holding a human.” Benedict drummed his fingers on the table as though already seeking a solution.
“I’ll deal with O’Flannery. An assassination plot against the royal family trumps everything else.” The Human Consortium—those who knew of our existence and lived within the Covenant—were a key part of keeping the peace.
“It was easier when we could just kill everyone,” Hawke muttered, earning a look from every other warrior. “Just kidding,” he added with a flash of a smile.
He wasn’t.
“Right, and on that note, Benedict and Hawke are with me. We leave for Xavier’s in two hours.”
Lachlan’s gaze snapped in my direction.
“Avianna is in residence. I need you here,” I answered his unspoken question. “Lyric might not be happy about it, but she’ll remain on the estate and is under my protection. Is that understood?”
They all nodded.
“You need her to identify the demon who attacked Avianna?” Ransom guessed.
“He’s dead. I messengered the body back to the demons last night.” A cruel smile toyed at the edge of my lips.
There was a grunt of approval up down the table.
“So, then why is the human our…guest?” Ransom asked, leaning forward slightly.
I could very well snarl that it was my decision and they could live with it, but that wasn’t how our species had survived this long. In this room, and this room alone, we answered to each other. “Because if she can see through glamours, there’s something supernatural about her, and there’s no telling if she can track me. Until we’re certain, she’s a…liability.”
“Track you would imply—” Benedict started.
“I fed her. That’s how I saved her life.”
The entire room fell silent for exactly the length of six heartbeats. Then it wasn’t.
“You fed her?” That was Hawke.
“Then she can’t be human. Humans wouldn’t survive a feeding, right?” Benedict.
“You’ve never fed anyone.” Ransom.
I slammed my fist onto the table, and silence reigned again. “Enough. Make the arrangements.”
Phones appeared, and calls were made. Xavier would be at the opera house at the designated time. Within a half-hour, everything was set, including the one heinous task that lay directly ahead of me.
“Alek.” Benedict followed me out of the chamber. I paused, giving him time to catch up to my side. “I am at fault for Avianna’s attack.” He held my gaze as the bitter scent of regret filled the air between us.
“How?” I continued walking up the stairs.
“When I went for the car, I found Cassandra among the nobles and told her to have the nobles ready for Avianna’s arrival, since she’d just arrived early.” His jaw ticked. “I thought I was following protocol, especially if Avi expected a formal reception.”
“You were following protocol.” We reached the main level of the residence and found Serge waiting for us along with Benedict’s talem, William. I turned to face Benedict at the head of the stairs. “This was not your fault.”
My thoughts spiraled for a moment. If Benedict told Cassandra that Avi was early, then others would have heard. Hell, the news would have been all over the estate before we’d even had the chance to make it to the park. That meant two things. There was in fact, a plot on my sister’s life, and there was a traitor among the nobles.