djinn wars 03 - fallen Page 23

  Against all odds, the cavalry had arrived.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Aldair began to splutter, “You have no proof,” but, emboldened by the presence of these apparent elders, I broke in,

  “And you killed Rafi, too. Or at least one of your gang did.”

  One of the female djinn, with hair like rippling copper, spoke for the first time. “Is this true, Aldair? Alif and Nizar said they were beset, but they were unable to identify who had attacked them.”

  “It’s true,” I said quietly. “We buried Rafi yesterday.”

  “An oath-breaker and a murderer,” the lead djinn intoned. “You have much to answer for, Aldair, as do Khalim and the rest of his followers.”

  “Who are being attended to as we speak,” another djinn added. “So do not think that help will come to you, Aldair.”

  His eyes were glittering, and I could see the way his bare chest rose and fell. Cornered, but wild animals were often at their most dangerous when cornered. “You will take their side, those who would debase their djinn heritage by lying down with mortals?”

  “What, you mean like what you were about to do with me?” I snapped, and the djinn elders almost looked as if they were fighting back smiles.

  “I would watch your words, if I were you, Aldair,” the copper-haired female djinn said. “True, there are not many of us with mortal blood, but those who possess it and have been recognized by their parents are just as much a part of our world as you are. Or rather,” she added, distaste clear in her fine features, “more so, because at least none of them have cast themselves into darkness by ignoring oaths that all of us swore to uphold.”

  His hands knotted into fists. Clearly, he could tell he was outmatched, but even with all that, he refused to surrender. Maybe that was because he knew he had no real alternatives. What did the djinn do with oath-breakers, anyway? Based on what Jace had told me about the djinn not being all that organized politically, I somehow doubted there was “djinn jail” someplace where Aldair and the rest of his cronies could be locked up.

  “I claim the right of combat with Jasreel al-Ankara,” Aldair said then, his eyes seeming to bore into those of the leader of the djinn elders.

  “You have no such right,” said another of the djinn, one who hadn’t spoken yet. He was dark, like Jace and Zahrias, and I wondered if he might be some sort of distant relative. “You forfeited such rights when you allied yourself with Khalim and the rest of his band.”

  “Not so,” Aldair replied. Now the slightest of smiles touched his mouth, and I wondered what he was playing at. I just didn’t know enough about how djinn society and its laws — or lack thereof — to know what sort of angle he was trying to manipulate now. “That is, we have two oaths at work here. While you may think it incontestable that I have broken the one, on the other, I have the compact Jessica Monroe made with me. She is not free to go until I release her, or Jasreel stakes his own claim by besting me.”

  “Which he has already done before,” said the redheaded djinn woman. Her voice sounded almost amused, but then she went on, in sharper tones, “So I am not sure what you think you will accomplish by all this.”

  “I will accomplish maintaining my claim on this woman,” Aldair told her, the set of his jaw seeming to indicate that he would never back down on that particular point.

  “To what end?” the leader of the djinn present demanded. “As an oath-breaker, you have already doomed yourself to exile in the outer circles. You cannot take this woman with you. She will surely die.”

  At those words, my heart seemed to stop in my chest. So there was some sort of jail for djinn after all…and apparently one that no mere human could possibly survive.

  “What care I for that, as long as Jasreel does not have her?” Aldair said.

  A long silence. The redheaded djinn woman murmured something to their leader, and he slowly nodded.

  “You shall have your combat, Aldair al-Ankara,” the elder djinn said slowly. “And if you lose, you forfeit all claim to this mortal woman.”

  “But if I win — ”

  “If you win” — the djinn sent a pitying glance in my direction, but his voice never faltered — “if you win, she will be yours, even into the outer circles.”

  “Yes,” Aldair said, and this time his eyes were focused on me, hateful, piercing. I wanted to look away, to avoid that terrible gaze, but I made myself stare back at him, chin up. He couldn’t see how terrified I was. I wouldn’t allow it. “She will be mine…even unto death.”

  There must have been a good deal of mopping-up taking place on the grounds of the Ghost Ranch, but I didn’t see any of it. Instead, the redheaded djinn woman took me by the hand, while two of the other djinn, both male, flanked Aldair. In that next instant, we were blinked out of the room where we’d been standing, only to appear in the dining room of the El Monte Sagrado resort.

  The shattered glass from the rogue djinns’ entrance appeared to have been cleaned up, although I noticed no one had bothered to repair the bar. Bags and suitcases and crates were stacked in neat piles near the entrance. I assumed that was because of the preparations to move to Santa Fe. Maybe it was easier for the djinn to send everything whizzing across the miles if it had all been neatly packed first.

  I didn’t have time for further speculation, however, because in that moment Lauren and Dani began hurrying past…and then came to a skidding halt when they saw the contingent of unfamiliar djinn, Aldair clearly their captive, standing in the dining area. By then the djinn woman had let go of my hand, but the two male djinn who held Aldair by the arms didn’t seem to have any intention of letting him go.

  “Jessica?” Lauren blurted, even as Dani bowed very deeply, his hands pressed together before him.

  “Honored ones,” he said.

  They seemed pleased that he had shown them the proper respect. The eldest djinn smiled and said, “Greetings, Danilar al-Harith. We would have speech with your brother, and with Jasreel al-Ankara.”

  “Of course,” Dani said, then disappeared.

  It appeared that the Taos djinn were now more or less in possession of their full powers. Was Miles packing up his equipment, since it was no longer needed? Despite my predicament, I couldn’t help wondering where he would go now, what he would do. Richard Margolis wasn’t exactly forgiving of those he thought had failed him.

  Lauren remained there, staring at us as if she expected the entire group to blink out of existence the same way we’d appeared here. Her gaze flicked to Aldair, and she shivered. Not looking at him, she said, “Nizar and Alif came back a few hours ago. They told us they’d reached someone who could help, but….”

  “But you did not believe them?” the redheaded djinn elder inquired. She smiled. “I suppose I can see why you would wonder if assistance was truly on its way. After all, we had left you more or less alone until now.”

  “I — ” Faltering, Lauren glanced over at me. It was clear enough that she felt out of her depth, but I didn’t have any words of reassurance for her. Not when I had the specter of this “combat” and its possible consequences hanging over me…and Jace.

  He appeared then, with Zahrias only a split-second behind. At once he rushed over to me and took my hands in his. Oh, the wonder of his flesh against mine, when I’d been sure I’d never see him, let alone touch him, ever again. But I couldn’t allow him to be too joyful. This reunion might be horribly short-lived if Aldair had his way.

  “Jessica, are you all right?”

  “Yes, Jace.” I hesitated, then added so only he could hear, He didn’t touch me. Not really. I decided it was better not to mention that one kiss, and I didn’t feel comfortable sharing any more subvocal speech than those few words in the presence of the djinn elders.

  Despite the lack of detail I’d provided, Jace appeared to relax almost visibly. Lord knows what horrible visions he’d been torturing himself with.

  But then the lead djinn said to Zahrias, “We have put a stop to the activities of K
halim al-Usar and his followers. Your people need not fear any further harm from them, as they are already being sent into exile. However, Aldair claims that a compact still exists between him and Jessica Monroe, and he will not give her up voluntarily. To prevent her from being sent to the outer circles with him, Jasreel must face him in combat.”

  Zahrias scowled at that revelation, but Jace only turned from me so he could level a glare at Aldair.

  “I welcome the chance to show him once and for all that he has no hope of defeating me,” Jace said. The light in his eyes was almost eager. It could be that he intended to finish Aldair for real this time. I had no idea how a djinn battle even worked. Was it to the death, or to first blood? Or some rule I couldn’t even imagine?

  “We shall see,” Aldair said. “You may not find it so easy to cheat this time, now that I know the tricks you employ when you think no one is watching.”

  “I have never cheated — ” Jace began, and Zahrias held up a hand.

  “You will have the opportunity to prove yourself soon enough, Jasreel. Let us make the preparations — if, Jasreel, Aldair, you feel you are ready.”

  “I am ready,” both men said, almost at the same time, and then glared at one another.

  It was still hard for me to believe they were brothers, except for something very subtle around the brow. By then Lauren had sidled up beside me. “How do djinn even fight?” she asked in an undertone.

  I could only shrug. “I don’t know,” I replied. “But I have a feeling we’re about to find out.”

  No one seemed to care that it was nighttime, the sky black as pitch, with no moon. Almost at once I realized that was no impediment, not when you had fire elementals among you. A ring of dancing flames encircled the open area on the resort’s grounds where Jace and Aldair faced one another. I wouldn’t say it was bright as day, not with such a baleful orange-yellow glow lighting the fighting grounds, but it did allow us to see clearly what was happening.

  Before we’d gotten here, I’d — well, I hadn’t exactly pleaded with Jace, since I knew the only way to avoid certain death was for him to fight and win. But I had tried to get him to tell me what to expect, and he’d only shaken his head and dropped a kiss on my cheek. Against Aldair’s protests, the elders had granted me a few minutes alone with the man I loved.

  “Jessica,” he’d said, “what good is it for me to say things that will only worry you? You’ve returned to me, and that is a miracle. And I have beaten Aldair before, and I will do so this time, and over and over as many times are necessary until he is no longer a threat. I will not risk losing you again.”

  “All right,” I’d replied. I could tell he was going to be intractable on this, and for all I knew, it was for my own good. Not once had Jace ever done something that wasn’t intended to keep us safe and together. “But…why does Aldair keep going on about you cheating? I don’t believe him, but….”

  Jace had taken me by the hands and pulled me to him, kissing me. I wanted to lose myself in that kiss. I wanted him to keep on kissing me, awakening the fire of desire in my veins, because maybe then I might stop worrying about what was about to come next. And if he kissed me enough, it might erase the memory of Aldair’s lips on mine, the way he’d violated my mouth with his tongue.

  “Beloved,” Jace said, “the answer is so very simple. He contends that I cheated, since otherwise he would have to admit that I bested him. In his mind, I am so beneath him that it is impossible that I might have beaten him fairly.”

  “Beneath him because you’re half mortal.”

  Dark eyes searched my face then, and Jace nodded slowly. “So he told you that.”

  “Yes.” A second went by, then another, as my heart thudded in my chest and I searched for the words to ask the question. But, as my mother always said, the simplest way was usually the best. “Jace…why didn’t you tell me?”

  His fingers threaded through mine. “In all honesty, I find it difficult to say for certain. There was such a long time when you didn’t know what I was at all, and then afterward…the opportunity never seemed to present itself. And perhaps — perhaps I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know whether you would love me more, or less, because I had mortal blood in me.”

  I knew I needed to clear up that misconception right away. “Jace, I love you because you’re you. Whether you’re all djinn, half djinn, part sea monkey…I just don’t care.”

  To my relief, he smiled. “Alas, no sea monkeys. Only divided straight down the middle, djinn and mortal.”

  “I can handle that.” Right then, I recalled something else Aldair had said. As much as I really didn’t want to bring him into the conversation, I wanted to know what he’d meant. And also, Zahrias and the elders had given Jace and me this time together, our little calm before the storm. Could anyone blame me for stretching it out as long as possible in an attempt to delay the inevitable confrontation between the man I loved and the man who hated him?

  “Jace….”

  “What is it, beloved?”

  Oh, how I loved hearing him call me that. I wished we could stand here together forever, tucked into a little alcove off one of the conference rooms. But even as I tried to extend it, I knew this time we shared was borrowed. Soon, Aldair would be coming to collect on his debt.

  “Aldair said something I didn’t quite understand.”

  At the mention of his brother’s name, Jace’s brows drew together, but his tone was even enough as he asked, “What was it?”

  “Right after he told me you were half mortal, he said something that made it sound as if having djinn powers wasn’t necessarily automatic. As if, had you been born here, you wouldn’t have even necessarily known you weren’t completely human.”

  “It is complicated, and I don’t have time to explain it all right now.” I tilted my head at him, indicating with a raised eyebrow that I didn’t much care for that reply, and he went on, “I promise you that once I have defeated Aldair again, I will tell you anything you wish to know. But it is true that those children who are sired by djinn but left with their human mothers don’t necessarily exhibit djinn powers. They might have their own gifts — many of those who possessed true psychic talents had a djinn strain in their blood — but they would never be able to tap into their elemental powers the way they could if they were raised in the djinn world.”

  I still didn’t completely understand, but I knew I’d have to leave it at that for the moment. It was strange enough to think that there might really have been psychics and people with other special gifts in the world before the Heat came along. I’d never believed in any of that stuff, after all. Then again, if I was willing to believe in djinn and angels and a God who was apparently so annoyed by what man had done to the planet that he’d allowed his creation to be wiped out of existence — well, after all that, a few psychics should be fairly easy to accept.

  I said, “But your powers developed because you were raised in the djinn world by your father.”

  “Yes.”

  “So…where is he? Why hasn’t he intervened in some way, told Aldair to back off?”

  A long pause. I could see the way Jace’s lips pressed together, how a flicker of pain passed over his eyes. When he spoke, he sounded tired. “It is not the djinn way, to interfere in the doings of one’s children once they have reached their majority. We live for so very long, you see, and to have parents meddling that entire time….” The words trailed off, and he shrugged. Voice too casual, he continued, “I am not sure whether my father has even admitted to himself how his favoritism caused such enmity between Aldair and me. Also, we quarreled when I told him that I intended to take a Chosen and throw in my lot with the One Thousand. I think he was not that pleased that Aldair had apparently chosen the same path, but he’d held his tongue. But when I told my father of my own plans, he lost his temper, and told me that he didn’t want to see me make the same mistake that he did.”

  Maybe it wasn’t the best time to be probing, but I couldn’t let Jace
make a statement like that without asking, “So what did happen to your mother?”

  His face darkened, and he shook his head. “Those were different times, and long ago. It was better that my father took me in.”

  Once again I wondered exactly how old Jace was. Very, very old, if that off-hand comment about Helen of Troy was to be taken at face value. I’d have to let it go for now, though. The last thing I should be doing was upsetting him with memories of his mother when he was about to face an opponent who had nothing to lose.

  I went on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “We’ll talk more afterward. I mean, we’ll have all of eternity to learn more about each other, right?”

  A light came into his eyes, which before had been shadowed, troubled. He reached out with one hand to brush the hair away from my face, then said, “Yes, beloved. We will have all of time.”

  I remembered those words as I stood in the cold night air, Dani and Lauren on one side of me, Zahrias and Julia on the other. Although Dani and Lauren were snuggled up against each other, Lauren clearly glad of the warmth Dani provided, I didn’t see any such closeness between Julia and Zahrias. Not that I’d really expected to. Maybe some kind of attraction did exist there, or maybe I’d manufactured the whole thing, reading more into stray glances and hesitations than I should have. I had a feeling that Zahrias had asked Julia to stand next to me as my friend, and he needed to be nearby since, as the leader of the Taos community, he was responsible for making sure I had a good vantage point.

  Right then I wasn’t sure if I wanted to see. Jace and Aldair faced one another in the open area Zahrias had designated as the fighting grounds. Their chests were bare, as were their feet, but they didn’t seem to notice the cold. But why would they? They were djinn after all, impervious to the effects of the elements.