“That's not what you think it is,” I gushed, finding a place on the ground to stare at.
“Amory tried to convince me that change was coming, that we had a chance. But I didn't believe him. And then he was gone....” Solomon trailed off, staring at the place on my neck where the tattoo hid beneath thick layers of hair.
“And if you are Delia's daughter....” Zaphira filled in a blank.
I watched their eyes put the pieces together. Amory spoke with them before he died about the Resistance, about a possibility for overtaking the throne. And then he was killed. And now, here I stood with a royal blue, glowing serpentine tattoo as the last Oracle's granddaughter. It didn't take a genius to figure out who I was.
I mean, it would have taken me a lot longer to jump from A to Z. But these people were immersed in the culture, with a full knowledge of the history of our people. They didn't need someone to walk them through it.
They were also apparently trustworthy enough for Amory to approach. I wondered if I should trust them too. I wondered if I should connect them with Avalon. But how?
I smiled. I didn't know what else to do. They smiled back, also unsure what to do or say. I could see the questions in their faces, but now was not the right time. Now was absolutely the wrong time. I saw Kiran approaching from a short distance and decided to play things a little risky.
“Do you know who Gabriel is? Uh, the priest from Peru?” I clarified, just in case there were several Gabriels.
“Yes, we do, of course we do,” Solomon agreed quickly. “I heard he disappeared not that long ago.”
“He did,” I agreed. I nodded my head enthusiastically, hoping they would pay attention and follow my rabbit trail. “With me,” I added, giving them a meaningful glance and then Kiran was with us again.
Kiran slipped his arm around my waist immediately, drawing me to him. Our magics entwined themselves together naturally and he buried his lips in my hair for a tender kiss letting everyone around us know how difficult it was for him to leave me even for a moment.
“How did you get along without me?” Kiran gazed at me affectionately, his hand gently sliding back and forth along my side. “Hello, Zaphira,” he greeted the Regent's wife graciously.
“Just fine,” I answered, my mind already on the goal, “Kiran, we were just talking about some of our old teachers from Kingsley. Did you know that Charles Lambert is good friends with Gabriel? Gabriel told me so himself,” I finished bravely, turning back to Solomon and Zaphira with serious eyes.
“Well, darling, I don't know if they're still good friends,” Kiran tried to cover for Mr. Lambert. I could feel his anxiety in how his arm tensed around me and his cheeks turned just a shade darker. “They went to school together of course, but that was two hundred years ago.”
“No, they are still good friends!” I exclaimed adamantly. “They must have something in common to have kept in touch after all this time!”
“You're probably right, Eden, but Gabriel disappeared not that long ago. Did you forget?” Kiran's voice grew tight and strained, his message was clear.
“Yes, I did forget. I apologize,” I smiled humbly, trying to read Solomon's expression. I decided to stretch my luck one more time and then leave it up to Solomon and Zaphira. I didn't say anything that could condemn me or Charles Lambert, on the other hand if they were looking for the Resistance, I had given them enough clues. Or just damned the Resistance. Either way, “Isn't Mr. Lambert here tonight?”
Kiran looked at me dumbfounded for a moment, trying to figure out what I was up to. He was speechless, and he turned to Solomon, wanting to explain me away, but no words came out.
“I think you're right, Eden. I think I see him standing not far from here,” Solomon's rich voice lightened the mood. “If you'll excuse us, I think we'll go say hello.”
I nodded my approval, and tried desperately to keep the smug smile off my face. I might have just sent Mr. Lambert to his death, or successfully recruited important people into my cause, assuming Mr. Lambert was still connected to Avalon. The most I knew about his involvement in the Resistance was an empty French apartment, but Gabriel had spoken of him as if he had been helping Amory for years. I would not know for a while either way, but I couldn't help but be proud of my cunning conversational skills.
Solomon took my hand and kissed it reverently, and Zaphira held my gaze for one long moment before bowing imperceptibly to me. Their gestures were not so grand that they were noticed by those around us, but the heaviness with which they displayed gratitude and hope felt staggering to me. I did not expect any kind of veneration from them; I just merely wanted to show them the right side of the war. I stood stupefied, forgetting how to breath until they walked into the crowd, leaving Kiran and I alone.
“What did you do, Eden?” Kiran sighed. He leaned against a tall table and looked like something terrible was just about to happen.
“I didn't do anything,” I insisted. I leaned into him, and ran my fingers across his brow, brushing a stray strand of hair into obedience that had fallen across his eyebrow. His magic flared next to me in nervous anticipation. He wanted a kiss, and it was more than his magic telling me so, his eyes gazed intently into mine willing me to take another step forward.
I obeyed his silent request, deciding this was the kind of show people wanted to see. I tipped my chin toward him innocently and as he dipped his mouth down to mine, our lips pressed against each other in soft familiarity. The world stopped spinning in that brief moment; the only thing existing in all of the universe was our kiss. Our lips, barely touching, felt as if there had never been a more connected moment between us. His lighter-magic tugged at mine, demanding more intimacy. I fought against the urge to wrap my arms around his neck and pull his face to me and never let go.
I stepped away from him, reaching out to hold his hand, instead of pushing my body against his as we had stood all night. I shook my head, trying to recall my senses, my devout dedication to the Resistance and.... Jericho.
The attraction between Kiran and me was absolutely ludicrous, and I desperately needed to stop indulging my impulses. He cleared his throat next to me, and tried to catch my eye, but I was determined to focus on something else.
Anything else.
“There you two are!” a pleasant, elderly voice tinged with a light German accent exclaimed. I lifted my eyes to see a blonde-haired woman who looked to be about sixty in human years, so she was probably at least four hundred Immortal ones, approaching us. Sophisticated and chic in a long lemon chiffon gown, her hair pinned up elegantly and her sapphire blue eyes sparking, she approached us with an air of dignity and grace, but stern discipline at the same time. “I've waited patiently for others to pay their dues, but honestly I couldn't wait any longer to meet the bride-to-be!”
“Hello, Anastasia, how are you?” Kiran greeted the woman graciously. He was generous with everyone we spoke to, always indulging anyone who wanted to carry on a conversation, no matter how dull or tedious, for as long as they wanted an audience with him. I lost my patience infinitely sooner than he even seemed to grow bored. I wondered if I would be taught the same mental fortification to talk nonstop with people who were in love with themselves, or if it came with practice.
“Delightful darling,” she gushed, kissing his cheek. “Now, introduce me to your bride before I steal her away and learn all her dirty secrets myself!” She smiled at her joke, and her face glowed with contagious good humor. Her German accent dignified the happy lilt in her voice.
“Of course,” Kiran bowed his head out of respect for her, “Eden, this is Anastasia Gandler, she is the headmistress of Briar-Rose, our Swiss boarding school.”
“Kiran's old school, before his father shipped him off to the America's,” she laughed and I joined in with her politely. “I suppose we'll forgive his highness though, if it meant he found you there.”
Neither Kiran nor I responded to her. We both knew what that meeting had brought about, and neither one of us wanted to remember all of the inbetween.
“You did meet at Kingsley, didn't you?” she clarified, feeling our awkward tension.
“Yes, we did,” I found my manners, “it's a pleasure to meet you. I still have so much to learn; I wasn't aware there was a boarding school in Switzerland.”
“That's right, darling,” Anastasia looked me over with a new interest at my lack of knowledge. “You didn't know because you were raised human, is that right?”
“Yes, that's right,” I agreed. I felt Kiran's hand tighten over mine, but we were already involved in the conversation, I couldn't walk away now.
“After your mother left you with your grandfather? Do I have that right?” She asked with courage and a flawless audacity that I had to admire. I smiled, proud that this crowd didn't seem as stuffy as I thought they would be.
“Have you seen Eden's ring?” Kiran burst out, trying to change the subject before I could answer. “It was my grandmother's.” He extended our intertwined hand forward and then let her take my hand to inspect the emerald on my finger. Our magics met each other then and she snapped her head up at me as if I slapped her.
“Lovely, Dear,” she mumbled, barely concentrating on me at all anymore. “Oh, there's Charles Lambert, I think I'll go say hi!” She looked back to us then and into my eyes. Her face was the same confused jumble of questions that Solomon and Zaphira had worn and I swallowed nervously under her scrutinizing glare. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Eden.” She clasped my hand between the two of hers and held it tightly to her for a few more moments before leaving us. We watched after her as she sought out Charles Lambert.
“Our English teacher sure is popular tonight,” Kiran commented dryly.
“Who would have thought?” I mumbled. “Personally, I hated his class.”
“That's too bad,” Kiran sighed. “He’s moving into the castle in two weeks. Father hired him to be our tutor. He's going to run our schooling here.”
I just looked at Kiran, unwilling to believe the words that came casually out of his mouth. Mr. Lambert, although a secret part of the Resistance, hated me. He really hated me.
And I suspected he wasn't the only one tonight that hated me. Mr. Lambert, in a few very short weeks, would be my full-time teacher. My magic wouldn't leave Kiran's alone and actually seemed to enjoy the close proximity of his electricity. Likewise, Kiran's magic seemed to be enjoying the connection just as much. I was in the middle of an engagement party toasting the fake happiness to my fake marriage. And tomorrow I would have to go through it all over again.
No, Mr. Lambert wasn't the only one who hated me.
The entire universe hated me.
Chapter Fourteen
Out of breath and out of excuses, I let Kiran lead me to the dance floor for the fifth time tonight. I tried to avoid eye contact as he took my hand in his and slipped his other arm around my waist. I looked out on the sea of dancers, all dressed in exquisite gowns or crisp tuxedos and marveled at my place in the middle of it all.
I let Kiran lead, barely thinking about the steps at all, as he moved me around the floor, he was an expert dancer and there was no use in trying to even pretend I knew what I was doing. Although our engagement party had very much felt like a bad dream, the Summer Solstice Ball felt much like a fairy tale. The ballroom of the castle glimmered in opulence with the lofty golden chandeliers decorated in streaming golden flowers draping down in thin ribbons to cascading bouquets laid flat against the walls. A full orchestra guided dancers across a matching golden floor after they had feasted on some of the finest delicacies I had ever eaten.