A Shade of Vampire 37: An Empire of Stones(8)

“Yes.”

An ‘I told you so’ seemed redundant, though it was on the tip of my tongue. I had known that the Acolyte cult had something to do with all this, but Tejus hadn’t listened to me, always saying that they had disbanded centuries ago.

“We don’t know—” Tejus began, but I silenced him with a glare.

“We can assume,” I replied heatedly.

“Fine,” he retorted.

I rolled my eyes and turned back to the map. I did wonder why Tejus had been so reluctant to consider the obvious possibility that the Acolytes were behind this—or at least playing a part.

“Tejus—” I began, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. He moved swiftly to open it, and a guard entered the threshold.

“Your highness, the announcement of the start date of the imperial trials is due to take place at The Fells this morning. As the barriers around Hellswan seem to be permanently removed, the Impartial Ministers decree that any absence will be an instant disqualification.”

Tejus nodded curtly.

“Tell Lithan and Qentos that their presence will be required. I will meet them there shortly.”

He shut the door and hastily made his way to his bedroom, returning a moment later, throwing on his robes.

“What about the search?” I demanded.

He glanced up at me as he strode back toward the door. “This won’t take long. We will resume the search as soon as I am done. I promised you, Hazel—I’m not going to break my word.”

“Can I come with you?” I asked quickly. “Then we can go straight from this Fells place, and we won’t waste time.”

Tejus paused, considering my request.

“You will not speak to anyone when we arrive, and you will not offer your opinion on any matter discussed, is that clear?” His voice was laced with warning.

“It’s clear,” I snapped back.

We glared at each other for a moment, before the corner of Tejus’s mouth twitched ever so slightly.

“Let’s go.” He turned away from me, and if I hadn’t known better I would have thought that he was laughing.

I followed Tejus dutifully across the castle till we reached the courtyard. He stood still for a few moments before his vulture landed gracefully a few feet in front of us. I braced myself for another terrifying ride, and hoped that it would at least be a short one.

“What are The Fells anyway?” I asked as Tejus lifted me up onto the back of the humongous bird. He jumped up behind me, and in one smooth motion the bird spread its wings and lifted up into the air as Tejus wrapped his arms tightly around my waist. I leaned back against his chest, feeling safe surrounded by his arms and the steady beat of his heart as the bird soared higher into the sky.

“The Fells are over there.” He released one arm from my waist and pointed up ahead. “They’re the geographical center point where all the kingdoms meet, so it’s often used for conferences between the rulers.”

I nodded, not really caring about the answer to my question as my mind whirred with thoughts of Tejus—embarrassingly conjuring up images of the time I had seen him naked in the labyrinth, and, more recently, wearing only a towel around his waist. He had told me before that he could sense when I was near him, our connection growing stronger with every mind-meld, but I hoped that he wasn’t engaging in complete mind-reading without my even knowing.

“Are all the kingdoms taking part in the imperial trials?” I asked, trying to distract myself.

“As far as I know, yes. They are.”

“Any stiff competition?” I teased.

I felt Tejus’s chest rumble with repressed laughter.

“No,” he replied.

I found myself smiling as the bird started to descend toward a break in the trees, and I instantly felt guilty. I shouldn’t be enjoying spending time with Tejus when Benedict was all alone somewhere, possessed by some malevolent creature. I vowed that for the rest of the day I would remove unwanted thoughts about Tejus as soon as they popped up.

A moment later I got a chance to test my newfound willpower as he jumped down from the bird, and reached back up to lift me off. His hands circled my waist, then rose higher as gravity pulled me down. When my feet were planted firmly on the ground, his hands stayed where they were a beat longer than was necessary, and I stepped backward, almost toppling over the large claw of the vulture.

I righted myself, and, avoiding looking at Tejus, I turned my attention to the scene before me. We had landed in a small meadow, with the wild thickets of forest surrounding the grassland causing it to be cast in shade. Directly in the middle there was a crumbling and ivy-strewn pavilion made of white stone. It had a domed top and wide arches that made up its circumference. Ministers were standing around in their dark cloaks, wrapped tightly to shield them from the damp weather. I saw Queen Trina standing under one of the arches, and my skin prickled in anger. She was talking to a wizened old man with a long beard that reached down to the floor. As I scanned the rest of the sentries gathered, I noticed five others just like him, all hunched over with age, all wearing thick, snow-white facial hair.