Текст книги "Pure"
Автор книги: Jennifer L. Armentrout
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Текущая страница: 12 (всего у книги 24 страниц)
What did the servants think when they saw me—or any half who wasn’t in servitude? Were they even capable of thinking? If I were one of them and I had some critical thinking skills left, I’d be outright hostile toward the “free” halfs.
The icky feeling in the pit of my stomach was hard to acknowledge, so I started jabbering as Seth led me past several small doors. “Stairs—more stairs? Would it kill them to put a damn elevator in one of the buildings?”
Seth started up them. “Maybe they think the gods would be unhappy with elevators.”
“That’s stupid.” The long car ride had made my legs feel like jelly.
“We only have to go up eight flights. I promise.”
“Eight?” I eyed two more servants heading down the stairs, hands empty. One was a middle-aged female in a plain gray dress. She wore thin-soled shoes and no socks. The skin around her ankles looked bruised and red, as if it had been rubbed raw. Cringing, I glanced at the male servant behind her.
A sudden cold shiver crawled over my skin.
The older male half had dark brown hair that curled around a strong chin and cheeks weathered by the sun. Fine lines jutted out from the corners of gentle brown eyes… that were looking straight at me.
His eyes weren’t the glassed-over eyes of a servant. They were keen, intelligent—seeing. There was something familiar about him, something I should know.
CHAPTER 15
“COME ON,” SETH URGED, TUGGING ON MY HAND.
“We’re going to miss it.”
With surprising effort, I refocused on Seth’s back and started up the stairs again. The line of Seth’s shoulders seemed unnaturally tense. At the landing to the fourth floor, I spared a second to look over my shoulder.
The half-blood servant stood below, staring up at us. Our eyes met for a second, and the half stepped back, hands balling into fists. Then he spun around, disappearing down the stairwell.
“That was strange,” I murmured.
“Huh?”
Hadn’t he noticed how alert that servant had been? Seth stared at me like I’d just made out with a daimon. Guess not. “Nothing.”
Seth inched open a door. “You ready?”
“I guess.” I was still thinking about that servant.
“We have to keep back, but we should be able to see everything from here.” He motioned me through.
I stepped onto what turned out to be a balcony overlooking the Council below. I started forward, but Seth pulled me back.
“No.” His breath stirred the hair around my ear. “We have to stay back against the wall.”
“Sorry.” I wiggled free. “Can I sit?”
He smiled gamely. “Of course.”
I slid down the wall and stretched out my aching legs. Seth did the same, managing to be as close as possible. I elbowed him, but he only grinned. “So what’s the big deal?”
“Aren’t you at all interested in the Council hearing?”
I faced the Council below, fiddling with the string on my hoodie. “Interested” wasn’t the word that came to mind; “terrified” seemed more accurate. These pures could make or break a half-blood. Leaning forward, I scanned the crowds through the slats of the balcony railing.
A sea of red, blue, green, and white moved around the floor, taking seats with others who wore the same colored robes. I looked at the white robes and saw a coppery redhead moving with the grace of a ballerina through the throng of pures.
“Dawn Samos,” I whispered. She made white sheets look good.
Seth leaned forward. “You know her?”
“Lea is her sister. Do you think she’s come with Dawn?” I paused, remembering how Lea had fought beside me. “I… I’d like to talk to her.”
“She didn’t come, but she did stop by your room after… everything.”
“She did?” Surprised, I watched the throng of pures. “That’s surprising. Did… she look okay?”
“Her arm was broken and she was a little bruised up, but she’ll be okay.”
I nodded, watching Dawn sit down and smooth the robe out around her. She kept looking around—looking for someone. Before I could really study any more of the Council pures, I realized that non-Council members were also in attendance. Toward the back sat Marcus and a raven-haired beauty I’d only seen once.
“Laadan—the woman with Marcus is Laadan. She was the pure who pretty much came up with the deal to give me a chance to stay at the Covenant.” I tucked my hair back. “I forgot she was here.”
Seth nudged my leg with his. “I’ve heard of her. She doesn’t seem too bad.”
A familiar dark head slid into the seat beside Laadan. Aiden had changed into white slacks and a white buttoned-down shirt rolled up to the elbows, showing off his powerful forearms. The edges of his hair curled around the collar, giving him sort of an untamed look. I watched as he turned to Laadan and said something. She smiled and patted his arm while Marcus shook his head.
Something struck me. Marcus was dressed like he normally was—dark slacks, a suit jacket—looking more like a Wall Street stock trader than a demigod. Laadan wore a deep red dress made out of crushed velvet. I scanned the back crowd, noticing that some wore the colors that matched the robes. “Why is Aiden wearing white?”
“He’s owed a Council seat.”
I looked at Seth sharply. “What does that mean?”
Seth arched a brow. “Since his father’s seat is still open and will remain so, he’s owed a seat on the Council.”
“So? He doesn’t want that seat.”
“That doesn’t matter. Aiden still has to show his respect to the current Council members. That’s why he’s wearing all white. The other people dressed like that? They’re either next in line or ones who will campaign for seats when others open up.”
I turned back to Aiden. He’d leaned back, one arm thrown over the empty seat beside him. “He never told me that.”
“Shouldn’t you have known that?”
“I really don’t pay attention in civics class.”
Seth snickered. “He’ll probably take his seat one day, when he settles down. All the pures do.”
I wrapped my arms around my waist. “What do you mean by settles down?”
Seth’s heavy stare settled on me. “I didn’t mean anything.”
But he did. His unspoken words hung between us. Most pures thought hunting and killing daimons were below their station, but the female pures found it dangerous and thrilling—sexy. My insides twisted into raw knots. The idea of him with someone else made me want to dropkick something—or someone.
A sudden silence descended on the crowd as the Ministers from all four Covenants entered. I recognized Lucian and Minister Nadia Callao, a tall female who I’d only seen a few times in Carolina. They took their seats together, as did the rest of the Ministers. One—a man with dark hair graying at the temples, a full face and piercing blue eyes—stepped to the center of the raised dais, his green robes heavily adorned with gold thread. A golden laurel wreath sat atop his head.
“Who is that?” I asked.
“Minister Gavril Telly. The house you’re staying in is his. The woman in green is Diana Elders—the other Minister of New York—but Telly is the head of the Ministers. He’s the one in charge.”
Telly started the opening session with a prayer in ancient Greek. I had no clue what he was saying. The language was beautiful, almost musical, but went on for so long I leaned back and yawned.
Seth grinned. “Don’t go falling asleep on me.”
“No guarantees.”
I didn’t fall asleep though. Minister Telly eventually started to address the crowd in heavily accented English. I couldn’t place where he was from, but his voice carried the same lilt Seth’s did, just with a hell of a lot more authority.
“We have several urgent issues that must be addressed during this Council Session.” Telly’s voice rang through the building. “Most importantly, we are here today to discuss the… unsavory situation that has arisen over this past summer.”
“They’re going to talk about Kain, aren’t they?” I perked up, eager to see how the pures would handle this.
Seth shrugged. “There are a lot of things they could talk about.”
Telly paced the length of the dais, the long green robes trailing behind him. Raising one arm, he signaled to the section of the theater underneath us. I strained forward, but Seth got a handful of my sweater and held me still. Two Guards eventually came into view, escorting a woman dressed in nothing but a gray tunic that ended above the knees. She didn’t even wear shoes. They brought her to stand below the center of the dais, and then forced her to her knees.
Apprehension blossomed in the pit of my stomach. The dark-skinned woman wasn’t a daimon from what I could tell. She looked like a normal half-blood—perhaps a Guard or a Sentinel. Her legs were toned enough for someone who’d spent years training and fighting.
She lifted her head defiantly, and a hushed murmur carried through the crowd of pures.
“Kelia Lothos.” Telly’s upper lip curled. “You have been accused of breaking the Breed Order by having inappropriate contact with a pure-blood.”
My eyes widened. Caleb had told me about her—and her pure-blood boyfriend, Hector. I twisted back to Seth. “Seriously? Their most pressing issue is a half having sex with a pure?”
Seth’s amber gaze met mine. “So it seems.”
Shaking my head in disbelief, I turned back to the drama unfolding on the floor below. “Damn Hematoi.”
“How do you plead?” Telly demanded.
Kelia started to stand, but the Guards forced her to stay down. “Does it matter how I plead? You have already found me guilty.”
“You have the right to tell your side.” Minster Diana Elders rose, slowly approaching the center of the dais. An open kindness marked her expression, softening the set of her lips. “If you feel that you are not—”
“It is not her fault!” A voice cried out from deep within the audience as a pure in green robes came to his feet. His complexion was swarthy, much like Jackson’s. “She has done nothing wrong. If anyone is to blame, then it is me.”
“And so it begins,” muttered Seth.
I ignored him, transfixed by this pure-blood coming to Kelia’s defense. This was better than watching daytime soaps.
Telly drifted to the left of the dais. “Hector, no one here holds you at fault. Halfs can be just as beautiful as pures… and as manipulative as any daimon.”
Hector—Kelia’s pure-blood lover—pushed down the aisle. “Yes, she is beautiful, but manipulative? Never. I love her, Minister Telly. That is of no fault of hers.”
Telly scoffed as he came to the edge of the dais. “A half-blood and a pure-blood cannot fall in love with each other. The idea is as absurd as it is disgusting. She has broken the law. Perhaps she should have thought of that before she acted as a common whore.”
“Do not speak of her like that!” Hector’s face flushed with anger.
“How dare youspeak to methat way.” Telly drew himself up. “Proceed carefully, or your next action might be mistaken for treason.”
Kelia twisted around. Concern and fear filled her eyes—and so did love. My heart twisted for her—for them. “Hector, please don’t. Just leave.”
Hector’s dark eyes fell on Kelia, mirroring the same emotions displayed across her face. “No. I can’t let this happen. You’ve done no wrong. I should have never—”
“Hector, please leave,” Kelia begged. “I don’t want you to… see me like this. Please!”
“I’m not leaving,” Hector said. “You’re not guilty of anything!”
“I’m guilty of loving you!” She pulled her arms free of the Guards. They seemed too stunned by the explicit outpouring of emotion to do anything. “Don’t do this! You promised me you wouldn’t do this!”
Promised what?What Hector was doing was heroic, romantic, and swoon-worthy. How could she not want the man she loved to stand up against the entire Council for her?
Hector rushed down the main walkway, and the Guards finally snapped out of it. They positioned themselves between the half and pure.
Hector halted, his hands clenching at his sides. “Stand down.”
“Are you going to allow this to continue, Minister?” asked Lucian, speaking for the first time since the session began.
Telly exhaled slowly. “Kelia Lothos, how do you plead?”
The crowd of pures watched, excited and horrified, eager to see how Kelia would respond. But it was Hector who did.
“She pleads not guilty.”
An elderly female Minister stood. The red robes swallowed her frail body. She reminded me of the Crypt Keeper I’d faced when I was seven. “Enough. Sentence the half to servitude and remove this pure from the session!”
A clap of thunder insidethe building sent me back from the railing into Seth. Above us, the air started to thicken and darken. As impossible as it seemed, dangerous-looking clouds began to form—and they were coming from Hector. He was using the element of earth, the electrical power creating an indoor thunderstorm.
Hector met Telly’s stunned gaze. “I will not allow you to take her.”
Chaos broke loose on the floor below. Hector surged forward, and the cloud above us flashed with lightning, filling the air with an electrical charge. The ministers came to their feet, full of shock and anger.
“Please! We can discuss this civilly!” cried Diana. “Can we not—”
Another crash of thunder drowned out her words. I pressed my face into the gap between the slats for a better look at the what was happening below. Unsurprisingly, the Guards who’d held Kelia back didn’t look willing to attack a pure. We were trained from birth to never do so, not even in extreme cases like these. They moved back warily as Hector grabbed hold of Kelia, pulling her to his chest.
“The half-blood is found guilty!” Telly shouted. “Seize the half and send her to the Masters! Remove the—”
Hector thrust Kelia behind him as the cloud cracked, shooting streaks of lightning throughout the room. Pures shot from the benches, pushing at each other as they hurried out of the way. Worried for Aiden, I searched him out in the madness. He stood in the center beside Laadan, his expression a steely mask.
“I will kill anyone who dares to take her.” Hector’s voice was low and steady.
“You would stand against your own kind—for a half-blood?” Telly’s face was pale with anger.
Hector did not hesitate. “Yes. I would for the womanI love.”
Telly backed off. “You have sealed your fate.”
I didn’t understand those words. Pures were neverpunished for messing around with halfs. About the only thing they were ever punished for was using compulsion or other elemental powers against other pures, but…
The cloud continued to darken, and Seth pulled on my arm, but I held onto the slats of the balcony railing.
“Guards!” Telly ordered, and Guards from every corner descended in a flurry of white. All of them were halfs, except one.
The pure-blood Guard had eyes the color of rich soil. He stared at Telly, his fingers wrapped around a Covenant dagger. The other Guards reached the two lovers,
managing to break Kelia from Hector’s hold. She screamed and fought them, breaking loose once to only be tackled to the floor.
Overhead, the cloud darkened even more. A bolt of lightning snapped from the cloud, striking the floor near Telly. “Take him down!” said Telly.
“No!” screamed Kelia. “Stop this, Hector! Please!”
The pure reached Hector before he could send another lightning bolt. A horrified scream rose in my throat, muffled by Seth’s hand. The pure-blood Guard—the only one out of all them who could strike down another pure—shoved the titanium blade into Hector’s back and twisted. A sucking sound shot through the building and the ominous cloud fizzled out.
Seth jerked me from the railing. “You can’t scream, okay? I doubt they’re going to be thrilled if they find us here. Promise me you won’t scream.” He eased off after I nodded. “We need to get out of here.”
I barely heard Seth. Horror and anger slammed through my heart and my fingers dug into his arm. Kelia’s screams filled the air until they were abruptly cut off. All of this was impossible, cruel, and horrifying.
Seth gave a weary sigh “I guess it’s a good thing Aiden came to his senses.”
Ice drenched my veins, stealing the very air from my lungs. I twisted around, facing him. “You knew this was going to happen. You brought me here on purpose!”
The tawny hue of his eyes glowed. “I didn’t know it would go this far.”
“I don’t believe you.” I pushed against his chest, feeling sick. “You knew what they were going to do!”
Seth looked away, the hollow of his cheeks flushed. “I only know what Aiden’s future would’ve held if you two had continued with that insanity.”
I pushed again, and this time, Seth let go.
I spent the rest of my first day in New York holed up in the dingy room. I didn’t want to be here—or anywhere near here. Raw knots formed in my stomach, and I was furious with Seth.
But I was also furious with myself.
I plopped down on the edge of the hard mattress. I only know what Aiden’s future would’ve held if you two had continued with that insanity.
As much as I hated to admit it, Seth had been right.
Aiden was the kind of man who would’ve done exactly what Hector had done. If Aiden had loved me and I’d ended up in Kelia’s position, he would’ve fought an army of Guards and received a dagger in the back.
I lowered my head to my hands and drew in a strangled breath. My heart yearned for Aiden like he was the very air I needed to breathe, but at the same time I understood—really understood—that, even if Aiden had loved me in return, we could never be together.
What had he said to me that day in the gym? That if he loved me he’d take everything from me. What I’d seen proved that I’d also take everything from him—even his life.
A soft knock drew me out of my troubled thoughts. I crossed the two feet to the door and opened it.
Seth stood there, arms folded across his chest. “Alex—”
I shut the door and locked it. Seth may’ve been right, but I still didn’t want to see him. If I had to deal with his gloating face, I’d really punch him. I sat back on the bed and scowled at the door.
A minute passed, and then the knob turned, first left then right. Squinting, I leaned forward. There was the unmistakable sound of the door unlocking.
“What the hell?” I sprang to my feet.
The door swung open. Seth stepped into the little room. “I fried your lock.”
My mouth dropped open. “You arrogant son of—”
“Shush.” He shut the door behind him and surveyed the room with another disgusted look. “I still can’t believe they stuck you in this craphole. I’m going to have to talk to Lucian about this.”
“Why would Lucian care?”
He strode past me and bent at the waist, pressing his open palm into the mattress. “Lucian cares more about you than you realize.” He straightened and smiled. “You should come to my room. You’d like it.”
I rolled my eyes. “Not going to happen.”
Seth looked disappointed, and then his eyes fell on my skeevy bathroom. “I have a Jacuzzi tub in my bathroom.”
“Seriously?”
“Yep.”
The idea of a nice long bath teased me. I shook my head, dispelling the dream. “Seth, I really don’t want to talk to you right now.”
He dropped down on the bed and winced. “Well, we need to talk.”
I tipped my head back, groaning. “Does what I want ever matter to you?”
“What you want always matters to me.” His face was serious. “By the way, I liked the other jammies you wore that one night. The thermal and flannel shirt aren’t very alluring, but those little shorts were nice.”
My gaze narrowed on him. “It’s freezing in this room and this,” I marched over to the bed and tugged on the itchy blanket, “is not touching me. It probably has fleas.” I turned back to him. “What do you want, Seth?”
He cast his eyes down. “I’m sorry you had to see that today.”
That wasn’t what I expected.
“But you needed to see it,” he continued, his gaze flicking up, meeting mine. “I know you… love him. Don’t deny it, Alex, I know you do. And I know that no matter what Aiden says to you, he still cares for you more than he should.”
I opened my mouth to deny that, because Aiden had told me in many different ways that he didn’t, but I stopped. Did it matter if Aiden really did care for me? I whirled around and sat beside Seth, staring at the frayed carpet.
“I think you know that, Alex,” he said softly. “I’ve said it before. Eventually you two would’ve gotten caught. No one—not even me—would’ve been able to stop the Council. You know what Aiden would have done.”
“I know.” I rubbed my palm over my thigh. “He would have done exactly what Hector did. I just didn’t think they’d do that to their own kind.”
“This place is a different world. I’ve been here a couple of times. It’s straight Old School. It doesn’t take much to insult Minister Telly and he’s no fan of half-bloods… even the Apollyon.”
I lifted my head, looking at him. “What do you mean?”
Seth’s lips thinned. “It’s nothing that I’ve been told, it’s just a feeling I get.”
“Is he going to be the one questioning me during my testimony?”
“I don’t know.” Seth smiled then. “He’s nothing to worry about.”
I really didn’t believe him, but I was too tired to poke further. “I hate this place.”
He leaned over, brushing my hair back off my neck, exposing my scars. “You’ve only been here a day, Alex.”
“I don’t need more than a day to know.” I turned my head, startled to find our faces mere inches apart. “Do… you like it here?”
Seth’s eyelids lowered, fanning his cheeks with long lashes. “It’s not the worst place.” He was quiet for a few moments and then his eyes flicked to mine. “You really have realized that Aiden is sort of a lost cause, haven’t you?”
I blinked tightly and turned away. I suddenly wanted to cry, because it was true. “I guess that fills you with some sick sense of satisfaction, doesn’t it?”
“I’m not a terrible person, Alex.”
His sharp tone brought me back to him. “I didn’t say you were a terrible person.”
Seth smiled tightly. “Then why would you think I’d like to see you hurt? And I know you’re hurting.”
Now I felt guilty. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m just out of it.”
He relaxed. “That’s the second time you’ve apologized to me. Wow.”
“It’ll be the last.”
“Maybe.” He scooted back, lying down on his side. He patted the tiny spot left. “This bed really sucks. You sure you don’t want an upgrade?”
I sighed. “Seth, you can’t stay here.”
He shrugged. “I don’t see why not.”
“My uncle is right next door.”
“So?” He patted the bed again. “He’s not even in his room. He’s downstairs with the rest of the pures. They’re having their opening party fest.”
“It doesn’t matter.” I climbed over his legs and sat beside him. “This bed sharing thing has to stop.”
Seth looked up at me, his face the picture of innocence. “Why? It keeps the nightmares away, doesn’t it?”
A retort died on my lips. Damn him.
“You haven’t had one in a while. What did I tell you about needing—?”
“Oh, shut up.”
Seth chuckled, and then told me about his first visit to the New York Covenant. I told him about some of the towns Mom and I had lived in. After a while, his eyes drifted shut and there were no more stories. I watched him for a few moments. What in the world was I supposed to do with him?
I eased down onto my side, careful not to wake him. I stared at the scruffy white wall for what seemed like hours. My mind wouldn’t shut down, which was strange. Usually Seth’s presence easily lured me into sleep.
Tonight was different. I missed Caleb, hated where I was, and wished more than anything that things could be different between Aiden and me. Tonight I felt more alone than I ever had before. Maybe everything seemed so much more real here, so much more cold and stark. Seeing Hector slaughtered had destroyed whatever little seed of hope I’d still carried deep inside me that there would be this wild, beautiful fairytale ending when it came to Aiden.
Beside me, Seth’s breathing slowed into a deep, steady rhythm. I flipped onto my back and looked at him.
Seth was staring at me, definitely not asleep. He looked curious and even a bit confused. In this miniscule bed, lying on my back gave him little room. As it was, he already was using one arm as a pillow and his other was clamped to his side. I sucked in my lower lip and sat up. Reaching behind me I picked up the pillow and offered it to him. He took it, his eyes narrowing inquisitively. We stared at each other, and then Seth seemed to understand. I expected him to say something conceited or dirty.
But he said nothing. Quietly, he lifted up and slid the pillow under his head. Then he lay down on his back and stretched out his right arm. His chest rose sharply as he waited. I ran a hand over my face and squeezed my eyes shut. What was I doing?
I didn’t really know. I was tired and I hated this place. The room was cold, the coarse blanket was left on the floor, I wantedAiden… and I stopped making excuses. I lay down, resting my head on the crook between his shoulder and chest. My heart pounded strangely.
Seth remained still for a minute, maybe two. Then he moved his arm down, circling my waist, pulling me closer. My body fit against his, my hand resting on his chest. Under my palm, his heart hammered as wildly as mine.
