Daughter of Strife- Part 2 Page 3

  "Whatever on earth happened?" she asks, looking to all of us for an answer.

  Garin steps forward before anyone else can speak. "One of them got away and was attacking Scarlett. I shot him to stop him and save her."

  The Grandmaster raises an eyebrow at this and looks to me. "Is this true, Scarlett?"

  I glare at Garin. "No. He was injured and needed help. I was helping him. I was never in danger and Garin killed an unarmed man with a gut wound."

  The Grandmaster frowns. "That's concerning. This will be dealt with shortly. In the meantime, I'm happy to see all of you are alive and safe. As you may have guessed, the attack was not part of your Trial. We were betrayed by one of the families working for us here. A team of Inquisitors is on route to suss out the truth and make sure justice is served. We've cleared the area, and we have determined it's safe. All insurgents are dead or captured. And you all look healed from your poison. I believe I still need vials from a few of you?"

  I sigh and pull out mine. How she can be worried about the Trial right now is beyond me. But I hand it to her as she passes by to collect them.

  The sun begins to rise just as she tucks the vials into her pocket. "You have all passed this Trial. Congratulations. You have completed your Hospitaller training and now advance to Templar training. It's time to go home. Scarlett, you might want to find a way to tidy yourself."

  ***

  The mood is a blend of celebratory and solemn as everyone packs up and chats about the next quarter. I message Zorin that I'm fine and tell him what happened. His response is instant.

  "I stayed nearby, just in case. Do you want to talk?"

  Zorin is close?

  Do I want to talk?

  Yes. I want to see him. I miss him. I miss our cat. But I need a breath to myself. I need to scrub this blood off me, process what just happened, and unwind before I dive into my Nightfall life.

  "I'm okay. I need to bathe and then we are leaving. See you at home soon?"

  "See you at home."

  Home.

  I have so many places I can call home now, but my real home is still my modest farmhouse in Montana, though it's been ages since I've seen it.

  The camp is abuzz with activity. The Hospitallers are indeed excited about the discovery Corinne and I made. I can see Corinne gesturing to me and the skeptical looks on the faces of those she's talking to, so I know she's giving me some credit. But there are still the dead to account for, healing work to do.

  Speaking of, I need to check on Wytt. I gesture to Corinne, who comes over. "How's your brother?"

  "He'll be good as new in no time. He's with a doctor who's not letting him have visitors until she finishes the surgery to remove the bullet."

  "He's in good hands," I say, relieved that he's okay.

  She leaves to finish up whatever she's doing, and I am reminded I need to bathe.

  The problem is there's no great place to do that here. I find one of the wash basins and feel a wave of regret for what I'm about to do to it. I get a cloth and am about to duck it into the water when a hand stops me. "There is a better place," the voice attached to the hand says.

  I look up and see Nubia standing there, no child clinging to her now. She is alone, and her eyes are fierce. "I will show you where you can bathe," she says.

  I shouldn't follow her. Not after what her husband did. But I do.

  I grab a bag with a change of clothes from my tent and we weave through the tents and onto the sanded dessert. I see nothing on the horizon but more and more sand, as far as the eye can see. And from my late night flying battles with Corinne, I know there's not much else around here, so I'm curious where she's taking me.

  We walk for a time in silence, until eventually she stops near a rock. Nothing else, just a large white rock surrounded by sand.

  The sun is rising in the sky, heating the land around us, and the blood on my skin is drying to a flaky crust. My skin still itches from the healing scabs, and I'm still emptied out from the poison's effects. Basically I feel like complete and utter shit.

  Nubia lays her hands on the rock and to my surprise, the rock begins to glow and roll away from us, revealing a narrow passage leading underground.

  She descends into it, and I follow without a word.

  We walk down a long, winding path made of beige stone, and we don't stop until we reach a door.

  Nubia stops before the door. "I am taking you to one of our most sacred places."

  "Why?" I ask.

  "Because my husband was wrong for attacking students to make his point. There are other ways. Better ways. It is true that blood must be shed for change to take place. But mercy and kindness must also be present. Without those traits, we become nothing better than our enemies. And because you wear the blood of my husband on your body. Below ground runs what remains of the river once known as the Nile. It is now the River of Dreams. Our legends say that if you bathe in the River of Dreams, you will dream of the thing you need to know most. I will bathe with you, and my husband's blood will join me, and tonight I will dream of him. And you will dream of the thing you most need."

  My eyes burn with tears. "I'm sorry," I say, though the words are woefully inadequate. "I really am sorry."

  She nods. "I know. But sorrow is not enough. Action is needed."

  With that she pushes the door open and ushers me into an underground wonder. It's larger than I imagined, and the river rushes through the cavernous space with a gentle power. There are glowing underground plants lighting our way as we move closer to the water.

  Once there, Nubia strips bare, and I do the same. It seems we are doing this, whatever this is.

  I step into the frigid water with her, my skin prickling at the contact. I duck under, submerging myself in the moving water, as I aggressively rub the blood and bone off my hair and skin. Nubia stands in the downstream of me, her eyes closed, her arms lifted as if in prayer.

  And then she raises her voice in chant just as I push my head out of the water. I close my eyes, focusing, thinking of Set as the water pours over me.

  It is another kind of song for the dead. Different than the song sung for Kai, but with the same intention.

  The pulse of it sinks into my gut as I float in the river, eyes closed, mind spent from the exhaustion of the last twenty-four hours.

  The relief of completing my Hospitaller Trial settles on me slowly, reluctantly as my attention diverts between what happens next—namely heading back home—and what just happened.

  I don't have a version of my life that isn't filled with risk, death, blood.

  I used to.

  Or I thought I did at least.

  My normal worries used to include what next challenge my parents would plan for me, or how I was going to pass the test to become a pilot.

  Now they include decisions about who lives and who dies. About who rules and who falls from power globally.

  It's heady stuff, and I don't ever feel very ready for it. But here we are.

  When our time to take a stand comes, it's almost never convenient or easy. If it were, everyone would do it. Change requires sacrifice. It requires being all in. It requires mistakes.

  And sometimes mistakes can cost lives.

  Set didn't deserve to die. Not by my standards at least. But he did put himself in a situation where he couldn't win. Not really. Even if he'd killed us off, he wouldn't have gotten away. Even now more Knights are en route to clean up this mess. To investigate what happened. How we let rebels and traitors work for us.

  I chuckle a bit at that.

  They have no idea the kinds of rebels and traitors they have right under their noses.

  When Nubia's voice stops, her singing turning to sobs, I open my eyes, adjusting to the darkness lightened only by the glowing bits of underground vegetation.

  I swim to shore, as clean as I'm going to get without the aid of pressurized water and soap, and I dry quickly with the towel I brought, then dress. It's chilly underground, and I shiver from the
wet and cold as Nubia joins me. "Tonight you will dream, Scarlett. Take note of what that dream tells you."

  I pull something from my pocket and hand it to her. "Your husband had this on him when he died. I wanted to make sure it got to you," I say, handing her the ankh.

  She takes it in her hands reverently, her eyes distant. "I gave this to him the night of our wedding. It is the symbol for life. It was my reminder to him of the life we were creating together."

  She frowns and hands it back to me. "It also symbolizes the afterlife. My husband is not dead. He is passing through into a new life. That is why I sang for him, so he would find the right path to his new life. Keep the necklace, Scarlett. Remember you are playing with the lives of all in your game."

  She walks through the door and back up the winding staircase, as I follow her. We do not speak again as we head to the dig site. When we arrive I thank her. "What will you and the children do now?"

  I worry the Orders won't let her go, not being married to one of the rebels who attacked.

  She smiles sadly. "We all have our paths to walk. Mine will be hard for a time. So too will yours, I believe."

  With that, she walks away, and her older children run up to her, tears dried on their faces. They will not know how to process the death of their father. Not for a long time. Maybe not ever. Discovering the secret life of a parent is never easy. It's harder still when you're too young to make sense of it, and that life ends violently.

  I do not envy Nubia her path.

  But then, I don't envy my own either.

  It would be unbearable, were it not for the friendships that have become family in such a short time. Family isn't always made of blood. Sometimes it's made of sweat, of tears, of laughter in the middle of the night after a long day, of promises and secrets and bittersweet memories of kisses shared in the in-between moments of our lives.

  Corinne sees me from our tent and jogs over. "You okay? I've been looking for you. We're about to leave. The ship's arrived. They've got Wytt loaded in already. He has a private room as he recovers. Also, my dad's here. I wanted to warn you."

  Fantastic.

  Corinne is the only one here who knows that her father and I are enemies.

  Well, King Varian knows this too, of course.

  "I'm mostly okay," I say, gratefully accepting a LifeForce from her. "No poison this time I hope?"

  She chuckles. "I promise. Drink up. I have a few here. You need your strength. We both do. I've already downed five."

  I nod and drink all that she brought. By the end I'm finally feeling myself again. At least physically.

  Emotionally? Mentally?

  Eh. I don't know what it means to feel like myself anymore. This might be my new normal, this perpetual bouncing back and forth between loyalties, between ambitions, between friendships.

  "Scarlett, I know we haven't had a chance to really address this, but… " Corinne's purple eyes bore into mine. "Are we going to talk about what you took from that Angel? And about what her words might mean?"

  "Yes," I say. "When we're back at the Cathedral with the Dark Templars. Not here. Not around this group. It's too risky."

  She nods. "Fair enough. Keep it hidden though."

  Corinne and I pack up our tent and leave our belongings piled in its spot as instructed. In the distance, a great silver plane has landed near the dig site. Large enough for our whole group.

  At least those going back.

  The Knights assigned here on a full-time basis are so excited with the recent access to the cockpit that they wouldn't leave if you held a gun on them.

  I've already had Evie build a backdoor into the Hospitaller's database as well as the Angel ship directly, so I'll be able to access anything they discover. I'm also having Evie dig deeper into the ship's memory for more information on the Horsemen and the apocalypse. Because that opens up a whole can of worms I am not ready for.

  I already have more than my share of villainous plots to deal with. I don't need an end of the world horror to add to it.

  But we don't always get what we want when we step into the world to change it.

  "You ladies look ready," a voice from behind us says.

  I turn to see King Varian himself standing tall, blocking the sun, his dark hair pulled into his trademark tie at the base of his head, his purple eyes piercing, intelligent, always a step ahead.

  "Hello, Father," Corinne says, smiling. She hugs him then steps back. "I didn't know you were coming to collect us."

  It's an unusual move, but not unexpected. Not when I'm here.

  His eyes don't glance towards me. He gives away nothing. This is his game, I'm just trying to learn it.

  "With everything that's happened recently, when I heard your class was ambushed, I came straight away. You and Wytt are all I have left. I couldn't bear to see anything happen to either of you."

  Corinne's eyes well with tears but she sucks in a breath and they disappear. "We're fine. Wytt will be fully recovered in a few days. Scarlett organized us and made sure we came out of it in one piece," she says, casting a smile at me.

  She's not lying, but she's leaving out the part where she could have done that too, and without her Phasing it would not have been such an easy win.

  Varian nods to me, his eyes unreadable. "Scarlett, I am in your debt."

  I work hard not to scoff at that.

  "Corinne," Varian says, returning his focus to his daughter and heir to his throne. "Could you let Marian know we will be departing shortly."

  She nods and turns to go. I step to follow, but his voice stops me. "Scarlett, could I get a word with you privately?"

  Corinne raises an eyebrow at that, but shrugs and leaves. I turn to face Varian. "So about that debt you owe me," I say. "I don't suppose we can cancel all debts and call it even?"

  He chuckles. "You always amuse me, Scarlett. I do enjoy that."

  This pisses me off because I'm not trying to be amusing to him. He's treating me like a child. A toy. He needs to see me as something greater.

  With great care not to telegraph my moves, I rush him in a sudden push, seeking any of his flesh with my own so that I can crack his mind open and show him what I'm capable of.

  But I am still not fast enough, and I wonder if I ever will be, despite everything.

  He twists, escaping my grasp, and before I know it he's drawn his sword which elongates into a whip that twists around my neck from a distance.

  I grip it before it crushes my windpipe, but now I'm just in danger of losing my fingers too.

  "You're getting faster, but you're still not fast enough. Tell Nyx you're going to end up a pawn in this game he's playing."

  Blood pumps hard in my veins, flushing my cheeks as I bite down on my anger. "You'll have to tell him yourself," I saw, the metal whip cutting into my skin with each word. "I'm not his secretary."

  Varian laughs again, then pulls his weapon in. It uncoils around my neck and returns to him as a sword, which he sheaths, but he still keeps his distance from me. "I will be training you. Your first lesson is this: Learn to make your enemy your weapon, as I have done with you."

  I open my mouth to object, but he speaks before I can. "I have a mission for you, Nightfall."

  My mouth snaps closed.

  Shit.

  I was hoping this day wouldn't come.

  But I knew it would.

  I mentally cast a prayer out into the universe that he won't ask me to do something I can't do. I'm not ready to face up against Varian.

  Varian presses his eGlass and a transmission is sent to mine.

  "He has sent us blueprints of a facility in New York, as well as a file on a man named Jacob Parker," Evie says.

  "Who's Jacob Parker?" I ask Varian.

  "He's a competitor," the king says. "Someone who doesn't have the best interest of the kingdom at heart. He needs to be eliminated in a way that raises no suspicions. I need you to infiltrate his facility, use your ability on him, and make him kill himself. There sh
ould be something in his file that will give you proper motive. Everything must point to suicide. Are we clear?"

  I grit my teeth. "And if I refuse?"

  Varian cocks his head. "Come now, Scarlett, you and I both know what would happen if you refuse. I would arrest you for high treason and have you and your Dark Templars hanged for all the world to see. Everything Nightfall has worked for would be over. Is that what you want?"

  I shake my head, my jaws clenched, eyes glaring. He knows I can't afford to let that happen. But he could pull the rug out from under us at any time. He only waits because he needs me.

  Something has to be done about Varian. He's too dangerous.

  It's time I told Corinne the whole truth about my relationship with her father.

  Varian smiles and the rage building in me crests as he turns to walk towards the plane. "Congratulations on passing your Trial, by the way. I never doubted you'd find a way."

  To be continued…

  Ready for Part 3? It will be at least twice as long as the first two parts. Get it HERE.

  About the Author

  Karpov Kinrade is the pen name for the husband and wife writing duo of USA TODAY bestselling, award-winning authors Lux KarpovKinrade and Dmytry KarpovKinrade.

  Together, they write fantasy and science fiction novels and screenplays, make music and direct movies.

  Look for more from Karpov Kinrade in Vampire Girl, Of Dreams and Dragons, The Nightfall Chronicles and The Forbidden Trilogy. If you’re looking for their suspense and romance titles, you’ll now find those under Alex Lux.

  They live with their three teens who share a genius for all things creative, and seven cats who think they rule the world (spoiler, they do.) Find them online at KarpovKinrade.com

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  Also by Karpov Kinrade