The Whispering Read online

  Tolan is the first to come up and congratulate me with a strong hug, a bittersweet smile on his face. Alorn is next, taking my arm in a warm shake followed by a hug before stepping aside for Ziri.

  “I am happy for you, Tharin,” says Ziri, taking my arm.

  I pull him to me in a hug. “Thank you, brother.”

  He steps back with a smile as he moves to wait his turn to congratulate Lily. Mellis hugs me tightly and when he pulls away, he wipes at his eyes. I slap him on the shoulder and break into a warm smile. I turn to find my aunt waiting her turn with my uncle standing behind her. I take their congratulations in stride but my mind and eyes wander to where Lily is. As others come up to express their happiness of our union, I become more and more anxious to get Lily alone and into our private suite. I arranged to have a suite two floors down from the royal level.

  After an hour I have had enough and excuse myself from a group of dignitaries. As I make my way to Lily my uncle Colsea stops me, pulling me aside.

  “Tharin, there is something I have for Lily, but I feel you should know,” he says.

  “What is it?”

  “Falsad. We captured him during the takeover at the tower.”

  “Who took him down?”

  “Ka. After Falsad’s capture Ka told me Lily shared with Sema about Lucas being trapped in Demus. The old king brought Falsad with us for Lily.”

  “No. I won’t let him near her,” I say, quietly.

  “You don’t understand. We also need to know what Kolinest and Harlu are up to. The attack came so suddenly we were unprepared with most of our men here at the Willow. He won’t speak to anyone but Lily.”

  “We already know what they’re up to, so there’s no reason why she should have to face him,” I reply.

  “That’s not the only reason and you know it. She has to release her brother’s body for him to be judged.”

  I curse under my breath, frustrated. I wanted Lily not to have to worry about anything else until we are at the doorway. I turn to watch her across the room with Marilyn, Glynnis, Julia and Bi’irea keeping a protective eye on her as people approach, congratulating her on her new marriage and becoming queen of the Oak. Tolan, Ziri and Mellis are also close by keeping an eye on everyone. Alorn is nowhere in sight, but I know he is close. I hear a crash near the buffet and a few muted yelps as Cessa attacks the array of meats. I smile. Lily must have called her to be a part of our wedding. I should have thought of it myself.

  As if knowing I’m thinking of her, Cessa abandons the food to come to me. She nuzzles my hand, her happiness evident by her loud purring. She sniffs toward Colsea who also reaches behind her ear to give it a good scratch.

  Keeping my hand on Cessa, I turn to Colsea. “I will be with her when she confronts him.”

  My uncle nods. “Of course.”

  Alorn appears at my side. “Ka wants us to meet him in the queen’s suite.”

  I nod and turn to Lily, but find she and the others have already gone. Marilyn and Bi’irea are sitting at a table and my uncle Lodus stands nearby speaking with relatives. In the shadows not too far from my aunt and Lily’s foster mother is Dalim. I am surprised to find him still looking after Marilyn. I thought he would delegate that duty to one of his men, but looking at the social worker, I can understand his wanting to stay close. As I said before, Marilyn is gorgeous.

  Colsea, Alorn and I make our way to the queen’s suite as Cessa lopes ahead of us, seeming to know exactly where Lily is.

  “Tharin,” calls Alorn, “there’s rumor that Harlu has taken over the king's suites at the tower. From what’s being said, he’s unable to get through the queen’s suites and has called for every witch and wizard, and anyone else with the ability to break the ward on the queen’s doors.”

  I figured as much.

  “Do you think they know of the garden and the doorway?” he asks.

  “I don’t think so. There’s another reason why he wants in. Lily.”

  “Why? She’s no longer there.”

  “Because he’s a sick bastard,” I answer. “He believes if he touches anything that Lily may have touched, sleep in the bed she once slept in, he’ll connect with her somehow and find her. He’s been trying to tie her to him since his attack on her in the garden.”

  Alorn’s face hardens. “He’ll die before he lays a hand on her again.”

  I nod, sharing his sentiment.

  We walk into the suites to find everyone sitting in the front room. Lily sits with her back to us in an armchair between the two long sofas, Cessa lying at her feet. I walk up behind her, grabbing a chair as I approach. I place it next to her and sit. She turns to me, smiling and taking my hand when I offer it to her. I relax into my seat and look around, stopping at Ka. Since the wedding ceremony and coronation he seems to have aged, considerably. His breathing is shaky and shallow, his skin sallow and his hands once steady, tremble as they grip his walking stick; and his hair and beard grayer than before and thinning. He is dying. The energy he bestowed upon me came from his core, I felt it. What he gave Lily was only superficial as part of the ceremony.

  He addresses the room but keeps his eyes on me. “The time has come. There are only three of us left to keep the realm from completely disappearing. It will be up to you, Tharin and Lily, to make sure that doesn’t happen. You must seal the doorway to Eirrell for good.”

  “Seal it?” asks Tolan, surprised.

  Ka is lost in thought for a moment before answering. “Yes, Tolan, seal it – it was part of the deal when I created Velesi. A promise to my father, the First Sidhe, that I would keep Eirrell safe from my brother. If the doorway should remain open long enough for Ko to get through, he will destroy Eirrell, but not before destroying Velesi.”

  “But how are we getting our people back to Eirrell?” asks Mellis.

  “It was never meant to be a return trip,” replies Ka quietly.

  The room is quiet as the truth of his words sinks in.

  “Mikas,” continues Ka, “was the Summoner who called the doorway to open and the only one who knew of its location. He passed the summoning to his descendants, and a true descendant would be able to call it forth. Although Tolan is of the same bloodline, he doesn’t have what a true Summoner has to call the doorway to appear. That is why the Mother gave him the Junsper Stone, to help guide him. Because of it we now know it is in the queen’s garden.”

  “What you’re saying,” I interrupt, “is that the doorway was never meant to be opened. Then why didn’t Mikas destroy it after he opened it during the rendering.”

  “Because I was a fool,” answers Ka honestly. “I wanted to be able to return to see my father, my mother and my sister one last time. But we allowed the building of the realms to get in the way, and before Sema and I knew it, centuries had passed and eventually, so did Mikas.”

  “So we have no choice but to save Velesi,” says Ziri.

  “Or die trying,” finishes Alorn.

  Julia reaches for Tolan and I feel Lily squeeze my hand tightly. We are all silent, each of us lost in our own thoughts. I glance about the suite and realize the only ones who can save our realm are in this room with me.

  Ka stands shakily. “You are right, Tharin,” he says, reading my mind. “It is everyone in this room who will keep the realm in place.”

  Without any warning, Ka lifts his hand and we are hit by a burning energy coming from his chest, even Cessa is pulled in. He lifts us up as a force from outside, from Gastah Point, blasts into the room causing a cyclone. I turn to Lily but she is caught up in the ritual as are the others. I turn back to Ka and his eyes light up as a side door opens and the two remaining Ancients are pulled into the room. Ka puts his hands out to them and they glide to where he stands. They place their hands on his shoulder and their eyes light up like their king.

  “Thirteen came to my aid when I created the realm, Tharin. And the thirteen here will keep it going,” Ka’s voice rings in my head.

  “Will it be enough?” I ask, as I
allow the energy to flow through me instead of fighting it.

  “No. Open the door to Eirrell and let the energy of my father fill you and Lily. Then it will be enough. Farewell King Tharin of Velesi.”

  The light within his eyes and of the Ancients grows brighter until I have to close my eyes before it blinds me. The roar of the cyclone deafens me until suddenly, everything stops. We drop to the floor hard. Cessa is up and roaring as she looks around for a shadowed area. She finds one and disappears.

  I help Lily up as everyone else rises slowly.

  “What the hell?” groans Mellis.

  “Wait,” says Tolan, “Where’s Ka?”

  We look around us and Colsea runs into the next room before returning, shaking his head.

  “He’s gone,” I say.

  “Gone? What do you mean, gone?” asks Lily.

  I look at their faces as I tell them, “He passed on the ability to keep the realm intact to all of us, all thirteen. What you’re feeling is the energy core of the realm that he ‘bestowed’ upon us and what was left in him and the remaining Ancients.”

  Tolan drops down on the couch, shaking his head in disbelief. He knew the two Ancients who sacrificed themselves so that Velesi and the Thirteen Clans can continue to exist.

  Julia looks about. “Thirteen? There are only ten of us, including Cessa.”

  Without a word, we look at the doors, windows and corners of the room in search of the other three Ka referred to.

  “Maybe you heard him wrong?” offers Colsea.

  “No, he said there were thirteen at the start and now thirteen to carry on,” I answer.

  “Now what, Tharin?” asks Ziri.

  “We leave early tomorrow for the doorway and close it for good,” I say. “We’re all exhausted so get some rest, we’ll need it.”

  “You think they’ll be waiting for us?” asks Mellis.

  “We have to assume they will,” I answer. I turn to Tolan and say, “Once you finish the summoning, Kolinest will feel the shift in the energy and come for you. He’ll easily break the wards at the queen’s doors. He’ll come in a fury and bring his entire army with him. Once he forces Lily to open the door, he’ll set off an energy explosion that’ll destroy this realm while he passes through the doorway and into Eirrell.”

  “An explosion?” asks Julia.

  “He doesn’t have the ability to destroy it by releasing the energy holding it together,” replies Tolan. “Kolinest plans to do what he did with Nameth. There are priests sworn to the practice of dark magic from the UnderRealm. They’ll be placed throughout Velesi and with each an assassin. The assassins, after receiving a sign to proceed, will simultaneously kill the priests creating a negative energy that will counter the energy coming from Gastah Lake causing an implosion within the core of the realm. It’ll destroy Velesi and everyone in it.”

  “My God,” says Lily. She looks at Tolan, “How many priests are there?”

  “Twenty-five,” he answers quietly.

  “Twenty-five?” repeats Ziri. He turns to Tolan, “Are you sure?”

  “Yes,” answers Tolan. “Nedleid spoke of it during my tenure with him. But it was a worst case scenario...but after Nameth, I’m certain of it now.”

  “He’s right,” confirms Colsea. “My men have reported seeing priests with a lone acolyte wandering throughout the realm. Their destinations are unknown. Each time my men would get close enough, they’d disappear.”

  “Wait,” say Julia, “we’re now holding the realm together, not just three. So wouldn’t that mean he can’t destroy it even with twenty-five priests?”

  “Maybe," I answer. "Ka sacrificed himself and the Ancients so we can keep the realm intact long enough to do what needs to be done. But one of the last things Ka said to me was for it to work, Lily and I have to allow the energy of his father to touch us.”

  “What does that mean? And what’s to stop Kolinest from giving the signal if he can’t get through to Eirrell?” asks Lily.

  “The Unnamed Sidhe,” Tolan replies.

  “How can one elf stop twenty-five assassins from killing the priests, or the priests to take their own lives?” asks Mellis, unable to wrap the idea around his head even as he asks the question.

  “I believe he can,” I answer.

  “Who is he really?” asks Lily, staring at me.

  “I really don’t know and it’s getting late,” I reply. “And Alorn,” I say directly to the warrior, “you’re going to have a big day tomorrow, so get some sleep tonight.”

  Alorn stares at me as I return his gaze. Finally, he gives in, nods and walks out of the room.

  Julia turns to Glynnis, saying, “We should find a room to share.”

  “I’m sorry mistress, the Lady Marilyn wanted to share suites with you and the queen,” replies Glynnis. “I will wait for the queen’s next call.”

  Glynnis bows and turns to Ziri. She nods to him, turns into her golden form and disappears.

  “Will you walk me to my room?” Julia asks Tolan.

  Tolan gives her a kiss, taking her by the hand and leads her out. Mellis lifts his arms and gives a loud yawn before moving to the couch and stretching out tiredly. He has been quiet all night, since father’s passing. Ziri takes the second couch, pulling his coat around him. Seeming a little put out, he turns his back on the rest of us and goes to sleep.

  I look at Lily, taking her hand again. She looks up and without a word follows me out the suite doors. When we step into the hall, Colsea is waiting for us.

  “We must hurry before your aunt comes looking for Lily,” he says leading us to a door down the corridor.

  “Coming to looking for Lily?” I ask.

  He glances at Lily and then says, “She is dead set on keeping your queen the Virgin Queen until after the doorway is destroyed.”

  I give Lily an arch look and she actual laughs at my expression.

  “You look beautiful tonight, Lily.”

  “Thank you, Tharin,” she replies, gently squeezing my hand.

  She seems to be over whatever struggle she was going through and more settled into the idea of being married to me. And that should be enough, but it isn’t.

  “Tharin?”

  “Yes, jai’loa?”

  “Will you teach me to whisper, tonight?”

  I meet her gaze, saying, “If that’s what you want, then yes. That is if we can dodge my aunt.”

  She laughs again and every time she does is a moment my world stops spinning and strives to be still. She is like the shields we use to protect ourselves from attacks, but in her case, protects me from myself. Because of her I haven’t fallen to grief and sorrow over my father’s death. She anchors me just by being who she is and by the simple sound of her laughter. Can I feel love any more than I do now? Can I feel freer of burden, here, with her…because of her?

  “I love you, Lily,” I whisper.

  She looks up at me and smiles softly. She lets go of my hand so she can wrap her arms around me, easing the pang of pain I feel when she doesn’t say it back. Instead, she tries to make me feel it through her embrace. It will have to be enough for now.

  I had assumed Colsea had told Lily what was waiting for her but I am wrong.

  We step through the door and Lily blinks to adjust her eyes to the dimly lit room. When she sees Falsad sitting in the middle of the room, she stops dead in her tracks. In each corner an elfin priest chants as chains made of Thessi’s gold bind the demon to his seat. No matter how hard he struggles, he can’t escape the chains and the wards placed on it by the chanting.

  The demon looks haggard and defeated, until he looks up and sees Lily standing before him. He leers at her and the powerful lust permeates his entire being at the sight of the queen. He licks his lips as if he could taste her, drooling on himself.

  “Lily, my lov…” he doesn’t finish.

  Suddenly, I am slammed against the wall behind me and I watch as all four priests are thrown across the room, hitting the walls hard enough to kn
ock them out. I look for my uncle and find him unconscious nearby. I try to get up but find it difficult to move, as if struggling against a storm. Lily. It is Lily’s will preventing me from reaching her. As if knowing my thoughts, Lily turns to me, showing me her eyes, Jarhan’s eyes. I calm myself and move toward her.

  “No, Tharin,” she says in the dragon’s voice. “You will not deny her this.”

  Lily turns back to the now terrified Falsad, hanging in mid air as if by a noose, the gold chains broken, strewn across the floor. Like a marionette with its strings tangled, Falsad struggles against his bindings as his arms are pinned to his sides, his legs kicking out uncontrollably.

  “M-mm-er-cc-yy,” he begs, a desperate gurgling sound.

  His cries fall on deaf ears as the dragon takes full control of Lily. She reaches toward the demon from where she stands and as if pulling on an invisible line, she forces the demon from her brother’s body. Falsad’s true form, a black oozing skeleton with melting flesh hangs next to Lucas’ body. The body once belonging to Lucas drops but Lily reaches out and catches him in mid air. She gently places him on the floor, as far away from the demon as possible.

  When she turns back to the demon, it is whimpering and begging but Lily continues to ignore its pleas. She steps up to him and lifts her hands, palms facing it and simply says, “Burn.”

  I told Lily once that you can’t kill a demon; you can only send it back to the UnderRealm. And that’s what I expected to happen. Instead, I watch as the flames of gold engulf Falsad and the terrifying and deafening screams of the demon echoes through the room. As the fire burns, black specks float to the floor, the last remnants of the demon settle in a pile of ashes at Lily’s feet.

  I rush to her, pulling her away from the demon’s ashes. I hold her to me, hoping to shield her from the terrifying scene but when she doesn’t return the embrace I pull away to look at her face. A single tear rolls down her cheek as she shakes. I hug her to me again and remain holding her until her body stops trembling and her arms find their way around my waist. And with the calm, the tears come and she lets go of what she kept inside for Lucas.