“Actually, I did,” I shouted into his ear. I took a small step back, realizing that I was never going to be able to feel his magic, because he had none left; I had taken it. Now he stood before me a hollowed shadow of himself, with dull and lifeless eyes, in sunken black circles. He was ghostly white, and trembled while standing as if the effort to remain upright was tremendously tiring.
“Then you won't mind coming upstairs with me?” he asked with practiced politeness, his eyes menacing in their dark sockets.
“Not at all, as long as you don't mind leaving with me,” I shouted, smiling at him with the same set of manners. I felt in control. Even if Titans surrounded the room, Sebastian was weak and helpless. And that was all that I needed to fuel my vengeance.
“Eden, if you finish what you started, I'll go anywhere with you and do anything you want,” he yelled desperately, his voice gruff and strained.
“Then it's a deal,” I agreed quietly, glancing up at the Titan lined balcony and wondering if, even with Sebastian's willingness to leave, our escape plan was suddenly good enough of an idea.
Chapter Twelve
The crowd cleared a path for Sebastian; with every step he took, the people in his way took a step back. Immortals who were wildly enjoying themselves on the dance floor, solemnly and respectfully stepped out of the way for the once-Immortal prince. They shrunk away from him as if he were poison and most of them couldn't even look up from the ground.
I felt the chill that followed him, the bad energy and the fear that if they touched him, they would become like him. I thought that would make me feel powerful, and I would find vanity in single-handedly ruining this man's life; instead I felt everything but pride. A treacherous pang of guilt crossed my heart and I too followed after Sebastian with eyes lowered to the floor, temporarily ashamed of how I humbled this royalty.
He walked proudly up the staircase, head held high, and chin jutted forward. I glanced back down at the dance floor. The music had quieted and those dancing were temporarily stilled. I spotted my team easily in the crowd and watched as they moved into position.
At the top of the stairs, Sebastian walked towards the DJ box and the door behind it. I half wondered if he was just going to walk out of the building with me trailing behind, but realized that was way too easy of an option.
Behind the DJ booth were two doors, one that led to the surface and one that led to a private office, filled with Titans waiting for me. Unfortunately, Sebastian chose door number two.
We walked into the office, and three Titans stepped in front of the door, to guard the exit. Although the room remained silent, the energy buzzing rampantly about the room was not. It screamed at me, calling me a traitor, demanding my blood to save their beloved crowned prince; it cried hungrily to avenge what I did to Sebastian.
My blood ignited with electricity, every sense at its sharpest. I looked around at the olive-toned Titans, each man different but identical at the same time. These dark haired, unquestionably strong creatures, held the keen look in their eyes of those trained and disciplined in the military style and they all, without exception wanted me dead.
Sebastian motioned to a mustard colored, velvet chair sitting in the middle of the room, across from a large, imposing, cherry wood desk. I took it, feigning unconcerned and crossed my legs to maintain the semblance of lady-like behavior. Sebastian walked around the desk, taking his seat in a high backed, brown leather chair with bronze detailing and wide, dark wooden armrests.
He didn't speak for a while. He moved papers around on his desk, stacking them neatly to the side and then rested his elbows heavily on the cleared space. He stared at me for a moment, and then his head drooped into his hands, covering his face and rubbing his eyes as if he was fighting to stay awake.
A knock at the door jolted Sebastian back to life; he sat up straighter, pushing himself forward in the chair. The door opened and in walked Bianca, Sebastian's mother and his father, Jean Cartier. Bianca's face, twisted into hatred, stared at me with enough contempt that I thought I would burst into flames. His father, too, looked at me with eyes that would kill me if they could.
“How dare you come here!” Bianca shrieked at me. She stayed near the door, clinging to her husband for support. “How dare you show your face here!”
“Mother, please,” Sebastian sighed, “we have her now. Look, it's worked to our advantage.”
“Yes, you're right,” Bianca calmed down considerably, but her tone was marred with venom. “You will give Sebastian back his magic this moment, you little tart. Right now!” She finished loudly and so forcefully that Jean Cartier adjusted his hold on her to keep her from stumbling.
“Or what?” I asked, finding my confidence, and hiding the fact that I couldn't give back Sebastian's magic, even if I wanted to. “You can't hurt me, he can't hurt me,” I motioned to her husband. “This Guard is not enough to hurt me. If I don't give Sebastian back his magic, then.... what?” I asked haughtily.
“Then I will rip your pretty little head off!” the princess shouted, her long blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders and shaking with ferocity. Even with her face contorted into hatred, she was strikingly beautiful. Although her perfectly poised English accent emoted a violent rage, she still remained a princess, even in a fit of fury.
“Mother, please calm down,” Sebastian soothed with a replica of his mother's accent. He stood, walked over to the princess and laid a gentle hand on her forearm. “We have to take her to Uncle Lucan, you know that.”
Sebastian stood taller than his mother. He towered over her and came close to his father's height. She looked up at him and her expression immediately changed. She turned from an angry woman who promised my death to a loving, caring mother broken by her son's suffering. She reached a trembling hand to his face, caressing it gently; he bent down to kiss her on the forehead.
“Kiran is dying, and I am not. Eden is meant for him,” Sebastian whispered compassionately. “I will take her to Lucan; he will know what to do, I promise. He will not let me suffer like this forever.”
Bianca's eyes flickered with uncertainty. The frown lines around her mouth returned and I could tell that she did not believe Lucan would do anything for her son. Her eyes flashed to mine for a brief moment, but instead of hatred, for the briefest of seconds, I saw hope.
“All right, take her to my brother. Go now. I want our entire Guard to travel with you though.” She looked up at her husband who nodded his agreement.
“Not all of the Guard, but very well, I will only leave a few.” He smiled down at his mother and his father patted him on the shoulder. Apparently, the Grand Duke of Canesburry was a man of very few words. “We will leave immediately.”
“I have a team of people with me, they will never let you take me,” I spoke up, pretending to protest. I needed to include the other guys and get them to the surface. Once there, we could easily escape. Or at least, I was confident we could escape.
“They are already in our custody, you stupid girl,” Jean Cartier announced, his French accent thick with hatred.
I shut my mouth, biting my lip to keep from spitting something sarcastic back, and then crossed my arms defiantly. I would play this game until I was safe, until I was back on the streets of Paris.
“Leave us,” the princess suddenly demanded. “I would like a word with her before you go.” She leveled her clear blue eyes at me, and I squirmed uncomfortably in my chair. I wasn't afraid of her magic, I knew that I was stronger. I was however, a little uncomfortable with her callous determination.
“Darling, you can't be serious.” Jean Cartier tensed his grip on her arm. “She is a monster; I will not tolerate you being alone with her, unprotected.”
“She cannot hurt me anymore than she already has,” Bianca whispered huskily to her husband and I looked away before my face betrayed the guilt rising inside of me.
Jean Cartier tipped her chin up towards his mouth and kissed her sweetly before leaving the room without another word. She waved her hand at the Titans lining the walls of the office and they too filed out, although reluctantly. The last was Sebastian who stopped at the door and turned to me. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but instead took his mother's hand and kissed it, bowing respectfully before closing the door behind us and leaving the king's sister and I alone.
She stood staring at me, her blue eyes turning to ice, and sending a chill down my spine. She wore an elegant silver ball gown with diamond detailing. A small, matching silver crown sat centered on top of her head where a giant ruby glinted and shined, reflecting the golden glow of the above light fixture. Her apparel reminded me that she was royalty, and I was not.
“Is there a way to save him?” she asked coolly, her words and demeanor carefully controlled.
“No,” I answered quickly, but then thought of the leverage I had in Avalon and immediately retracted the word with my concrete sincerity, “Maybe. I haven't had reason to try.... yet,” I finished, hoping to sound not only convincing but confident as well.
“My son is a reason to try,” Bianca appealed. Her eyes melted into sapphire orbs of sorrow.
“So you say,” I remarked slowly.
“You were friends with him once; surely there is a shadow of goodness still left inside of you.” She fell to her knees at my chair, gripping my hand between the two of hers before I could react and pull away.
“I am not the one that has lost my moral compass,” I accused harshly, hardly able to comprehend her pleading. “Your family destroyed mine; they have murdered or taken everyone I have ever loved! How dare you ask me to spare your son, when here he stands with you. I cannot have the indulgence of being surrounded by my family!” I half shouted at her, pushing her away and moving to the far corner of the room.
I wanted to hate her in the same way that she hated me. I wanted to laugh and mock her attempt to convince me to save Sebastian, but I couldn't. The sickening, guilty waves of an undeserved compassion washed over me and I fought with wavering resolve to say no to this woman.
“You will not help him?” she asked quietly, her eyes daring to meet mine one more time.
I jutted my chin forward and crossed my arms defiantly, “He has already requested my help. I will give him what he asked for.”
“He is my son,” she begged desperately, her voice breaking and tears falling from her blue eyes turning them into clear pools of mourning.
“And he is my enemy,” I vowed menacingly.
She turned her back on me and her shoulders shook with the weight only a mother could bear. I swallowed the lump in my throat and walked out of the room. I was at war. I reminded myself and continued to remind myself that I was at war with forces of dark evil. Bianca could look as heartbroken as her callous heart would allow her to perform, but she was my enemy. Her son was my enemy. Every single member of that godforsaken royal family was my enemy and if I wanted to give this kingdom any hope of freedom, I was going to have to break every last one of them, starting with Sebastian.
Outside the office door, the Titan escort waited for me. Sebastian leaned against the wall of the DJ booth, looking tired and bored. When the door closed behind me, we moved as one unit in silence through the other door. Surrounded on every side, Sebastian walked next to me.