The Silent(15)

Leo said, “An exchange?”

“It seemed like the fairest way,” Sura said. “Our sisters needed help that Kyra could give. We have practices that could help Kostas and his brothers control their magic more. She would come here first. If she proved trustworthy, her brothers could be sent.”

Leo raised an eyebrow. “Kostas didn’t approve this, did he?”

“Sirius did,” Kyra said. “Kostas is furious with both of us right now, but I text him regularly. He knows I’m safe and that I’m doing something important.”

Leo smiled. “Guts. Ava would say you have them.”

Kyra shook her head. “That phrase has never made sense to me. Everyone has intestines.”

Sura raised his hand for another beer. “I’d like to know who you’ve brought with you, scribe.”

“Excuse me?” Leo finished off his bottle. “Who I’ve brought?”

“I see two women watching us from the noodle stand,” Sura said, waving. “Can I assume they are both Irina?”

“What?” Kyra blinked. She thought she had good instincts, but she hadn’t spotted either woman. One appeared Thai and the other European. They disappeared by the time she’d looked twice.

Leo shook his head. “You’ve got good eyes. Yes, they’re Irina. One from Bangkok and one local.”

“I thought I recognized the taller girl,” Sura said. “She’s come up to the village before. She trains in one of the gyms here in Chiang Mai.”

“Trains for what?” Kyra asked.

“Muay thai,” a cheerful voice called in an American accent. “I’m Ginny. What’s your name?” She stuck out her hand.

“Kyra.” She took the woman’s hand, somewhat cowed by her energy. “I’m Kyra.”

“Nice to meet you.” Ginny sat down next to Kyra and raised her hand to get the waiter’s attention. She held up two fingers and motioned to the table.

“And I’m Alyah,” the other woman said, sitting next to Leo. “From Bangkok.”

“From the scribe house,” Sura said.

“Yes, but don’t hold that against her,” Ginny said. “She’s still okay.”

Superficially, the two women couldn’t have looked more different. Ginny looked more human than any Irina Kyra had met. She didn’t have the reserve or formality and reminded Kyra more of Ava’s easy manner. Maybe it was an American thing. Her skin was suntanned, and she had gold streaks in her long brown hair. Her smile was easy and bright. The Thai woman was shorter, her body compact and strong. Kyra could see defined muscles in her arms and shoulders. Her hair was cut in short layers around her face, and she didn’t smile easily.

But both women moved with the innate confidence Kyra associated with the Irina. They were warriors. Survivors. Women with centuries of history and an extensive command of magic. Kyra could feel it surrounding them. Feel the warmth and energy they projected. Without even trying, Irina always made Kyra feel small.

Sura nodded at Ginny. “I know you.”

Ginny smiled. “And I know you. Nice tattoos.”

“Thank you. I did most of them myself.”

“I thought so.”

Leo clapped his hands together once. “That’s what it is. The tattoos. I’ve been trying to figure out what Kostas and Sirius want. It’s the tattoos. They’re human, but you’ve found a way for them to help you with your natural magic. That’s why Kyra is here.”

Sura nodded. “You are correct.”

Ginny said, “Oh, that is way cool.”

“It is way cool,” Sura said cautiously, eyeing Alyah. “And what does the Bangkok scribe house think of Grigori using Sak Yant?”

“The Bangkok scribe house doesn’t have an opinion about it,” Alyah said. “My task—with Leo’s help—is to start a dialogue with you. I’m not here to talk about tattooing. Sounds like scribe business to me.”

Sura still looked skeptical. “A dialogue about what?”

“You have options,” Leo said. “The Bangkok house considers Chiang Mai part of its territory.”

“There is no scribe house here,” Sura said.

“But there are humans,” Leo said. “And protecting humans from Grigori is the mandate of every scribe house and every individual scribe, warrior or not.”

Kyra sat up straighter. “The Grigori here don’t hunt humans.”

“So they say,” Leo said. “Kyra, I cannot simply take their word for it. We have to ask questions.”

Before Kyra could respond, Ginny spoke up. “So ask questions,” she said. “I live here. I train here. I keep an eye on things. I don’t answer to any overbearing scribe house, but I’m Irina. Ask me if you want to know.”

Leo said, “Fair enough. Have you witnessed or heard reports of any attack on humans by Grigori in Chiang Mai in the past two years?”

“Yes,” Ginny said immediately. “And those Grigori were killed by Sura and the Grigori I assume are his brothers.”

“How do you know it was them?” Leo asked.

“Dude, the tattoos are pretty distinctive. The Thai scribes use a similar style, but the letters are Old Language, one hundred percent. The tattoos these guys were flashing were all Sak Yant. Hard to miss.”

Alyah turned to Ginny. “Why must you use ‘dude’ so often?”

“It’s a great word. Don’t hate on ‘dude.’”

Kyra asked, “Are you from California?”

“Yes, I am.”

Kyra smiled at Leo. “Like Ava,” she said. “Ava says that word too.”

Leo was staring at her. Alyah nudged him.

“Hmm? What?”

“You’re staring,” Alyah said. “Don’t stare.”

“I’m… concentrating.” Leo cleared his throat. “So there have been Grigori attacks, but Sura and his brother Niran have defended the city. Sounds very much like Kostas and his brothers.”

“I agree,” Kyra said. “I’ve been with them for three weeks. And if my opinion means anything in this—”

“It does,” Leo said quickly.

“—then I would say that though their methods differ, their objective is the same as my brothers’,” Kyra continued. “Sura and Niran obtained their freedom at great cost; now they are trying to live their lives and protect their community from other Fallen and the Grigori who might try to exploit the humans here.”

“And protect our sisters,” Sura said. “And try to engender discipline within our kind for those who choose to pursue it.”

Ginny’s eyes shone. “So you do have kareshta up there.”

Sura said, “We do.”

Ginny and Alyah exchanged a look that made Kyra want to question them alone. Before she could suggest the three go for a stroll through the market, Leo spoke again.

“So now we know,” Leo said to Alyah. “They have kareshta.” He turned to Sura. “The mandate of the Irin council is that kareshta are to be protected. So what do you need? And how can we help you get it?”





Chapter Eight





Leo tried to keep his eyes on the road as Ginny drove over the twisting mountain paths that led to the temple where Sura and his Grigori lived. He had no problem letting Ginny drive, but the blank space before him where the steering wheel should be was disorienting. He kept his eyes on the road as she swerved around potholes and dodged motorbikes and scooters.

Sura and Kyra had left the night before, but not before giving Ginny directions to their compound.

She’d left. And Leo had not a single minute alone with her.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Ginny said.

Alyah was sitting in the back seat. “That you’re a terrible driver?”

“No, I’m an excellent driver, and I wasn’t talking to you.” She elbowed Leo. “He’s thinking, ‘How do I get some of that fine Kyra of my very own?’”

Leo raised an eyebrow. “How old did you say you were?”

“Old enough to know what a lonely, lonely scribe is thinking when he goes all quiet.”

“Who said I was lonely?” Leo said.

“Your puppy dog eyes,” Ginny said. “Alyah, am I right?”

Leo looked over his shoulder. Alyah looked like she was very deliberately keeping her mouth shut.

“What do you two know about being lonely?” Leo said. “Irina have never been prohibited from socializing with human men. It’s not the same.”

“True,” Ginny said. “But we’re crap at relationships with them. Ask Alyah.”

“Don’t bring me into this,” Alyah muttered from the back seat. “If you want to torment the scribe, do it on your own.”

Leo was leaving that one alone. Alyah had made it very clear from the beginning that she was a warrior uninterested in a mate. They were colleagues, not friends.

“So…” Ginny wasn’t letting up. “Give us the details, man. When did you meet her? What’s her favorite color? Dogs or cats? Are you planning on marking her and making tiny, adorable babies?” She glanced at Leo. “Come to think of it, between the two of you, they’d probably be Amazonian babies. There are some very good genes happening with both of you.”