Chapter 6
Angelica was sitting in an overstuffed chair next to the window waiting for Zachary to wake up. PIT members had been coming and going from the castle for the last several hours but she couldn’t bring herself to leave again. She glanced up at Zachary seeing nothing had changed and sighed.
Syn stood against the wall behind Angelica with his arms crossed over his chest. He watched as Angelica’s head started to relax against the high back cushion of the chair he’d placed in here for her and her eyes slowly closed.
He had enjoyed their nap together but in his opinion it had been too short… only a couple of hours. Thankfully, he had regained enough of his power by then so that the sun had left his eyes. He pushed away from the wall with the intent of putting her back to bed when his attention was suddenly drawn to the phoenix within the barrier.
The dark flames burning around Zachary’s body were abruptly drawn back into him giving the effect of an explosion in reverse.
Zachary opened his eyes and frowned. He’d just been talking to Tiara in the darkness, but she had once again slipped away from him. Black flames erupted in his eyes, turning them an almost sinister shade of onyx.
Syn reached out and placed a hand on Angelica’s shoulder. “Your phoenix rises,” he said quietly.
Angelica pushed herself out of the chair, nearly stumbling straight from her sleep, with silent tears falling from her eyes. Things had changed. Zachary was kneeling on the floor now with his head bowed and the flames that had been holding him suspended were gone.
She quickly closed the distance between them. “Zachary!” she whispered through the instant tears of happiness.
Zach lifted his head and looked directly at Angelica through the barrier.
She raised her hand to touch it but paused in mid-air then took a startled step back when she looked in his eyes. “Zach?”
Syn was instantly behind Angelica, pulling her back against his chest in a secure hold. Wrapping his arms around her, he stared unflinching and with a bit of curiosity into Zachary’s black flaming eyes. It was the fire that bled from the eyes of a phoenix when they were truly anguished. That anguish, combined with the rage he could feel coming off Zachary was the cause of the man’s temporary madness.
“Do not approach him,” Syn warned. “He has yet to regain his sanity.”
“He will,” Angelica said softly. “Trust me on that one.” She looked her friend in the eyes, trying not to flinch when they seemed to be searing a hole directly into her soul. “It’s alright Zachary. You can calm down now. You’re safe back at the castle.”
Zach narrowed his eyes and very slowly pushed himself off the floor. He stood there for a moment just staring her down. Suddenly, Zach was standing in front of her with only the barrier separating them. He pressed his hands against the barrier, making it sizzle with the amount of power he had to have been using on it.
“I’m calm,” Zach said quietly. “Now let me out.”
Syn remained silent as Angelica continued to stare at Zach. He didn’t have to say a word because he knew she was seeing the same thing he was and his mate was no fool.
“No,” Angelica said and raised an eyebrow at him. “I will release you when Zachary is the one in control.”
“I am in control,” Zach thundered.
“Since when do best friends lie to each other?” Angelica asked calmly, refusing to be intimidated by Zach’s thunderous voice.
Zach lowered his head for a moment before whipping it around to glare at the door.
“This is your doing!” Zach snarled and slammed his hands against the barrier with enough power to make it waver, taking on the appearance of running water that had been set aflame. “Turn this damn thing off!”
Angelica turned her head toward the door to see who Zach was yelling at.
“I’m afraid I have to side with your best friend on this one,” Storm said, leaning against the wall and rubbing his temple. At least he’d been smart enough to send Ren away for this… far away. He didn’t think Ren was ready to deal with this kind of rage, and seeing Zachary as he was now… he knew he’d been right.
Pushing away from the wall, he walked over to the desk and sat on a corner of it. “How long you stay in there is entirely up to you, Zachary.”
“You would keep me in here?” Zach hissed, part of him hating the fact that Storm had this kind of power over him.
“If it meant the protection of this city and the citizens left in it… then yes,” Storm answered honestly.
The door to the office suddenly opened and Jason stepped in looking very refreshed, showered, and with a clean change of clothing. He’d come to the office to let Storm know that he could finally feel Tiara’s presence again through the ring. He wasn’t sure if he could find her, but suddenly feeling her existence pop up out of the blue again had excited him.
He’d barely made it in the door when he froze seeing Zachary in what looked like a half-frenzied state. He stared at the other man feeling the fine hairs n his arms stand up and fought off the urge to back out of the room. Since when had Zachary’s eyes turned black?
Zach glared at Jason, then at the ring on his hand. “You’re not worthy of that ring,” he growled softly. The soothing stillness of his voice was suddenly shattered as he rammed both of his palms against the barrier again, sending ripples of fire across it once more.
Jason narrowed his eyes as Zachary’s words finally pushed him to the end of his very long fuse. Striding forward, he made it to the middle of the room before seeing Storm holding a hand up to warn him not to go any closer. “I’ve been worried sick for the last two days about you and Tiara… while you’ve been doing what, sleeping?”
Zach placed his hands on the barrier trying to burn his way through it while looking Jason straight in the eye. “I’m awake now!” Zach responded, sounding like it was more of a threat than a statement.
“So is Tiara,” Jason growled back.
“The ring is working again?” Angelica asked already knowing Tiara’s disappearance and Zach’s anger was connected in a major way.
“Yeah, as of just a few minutes ago,” Jason placed his hand over the ring not liking the way Zachary was looking at it. He didn’t have to have the power to read Zachary’s mind. Even from this distance, it was obvious that nothing would make the caged man happier than to bite his finger off just to get at the ring and find Tiara for himself.
Angelica looked at Zach with a thoughtful expression. “That’s when you woke up. Don’t you see? Don’t you know what that means?”
“She wasn’t kidnapped Angelica. She left with them willingly.” Zach corrected her with a hard tone in his voice.
“If she hadn't left when she did, she would have been killed,” Jason snapped. “Is that what you wanted?”
“She admitted that she had planned on running from us anyway.” Zach was still looking at Angelica. “And I know she wasn’t lying.”
Jason, Storm, and Syn were curious about the communication between Zach an Angelica. To the two of them, a world of meaning was silently being passed back and forth… but to the observers, it gave them the feeling they were intruding on a private conversation.
“You heard this?” Storm asked Jason.
Jason’s shoulders slumped and he gave Zachary a dirty look. ‘Snitch,’ he mentally flung the word at Zachary.
“Yeah, that’s what she said,” Jason conceded after a moment.
“Can you track her?” Storm asked indicating the ring.
Jason closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment before shaking his head, “As long as she’s not in danger I can’t track her, all I’m getting is emotion.”
“What emotions?” Syn asked curiously.
Jason frowned, “Sadness… she’s very sad right now… and confused.”
Angelica had continued to hold Zach’s gaze with her own and saw some of the fire leave his eyes upon hearing Jason’s words. Zachary loved Tiara and it appeared Zach did as well. Some would say that since Zachary and Zach were one and the same… that they would feel the same emotions. Yet Zach was more tuned to the phoenix side of his psyche, while Zachary was its very human counterpart.
Talking about Tiara and knowing she was all right was calming the phoenix, but it would take a lot more before Zachary was again in complete control.
“Zach think… what was she running from? Tiara had to have a reason or she wouldn’t have left at all.” Angelica kept her voice soft hoping to keep Zach’s temper at bay. She raised her hand and placed it against the barrier opposite of where his hand was pressed on the other side… their palms barely an inch apart.
Zack raised dark eyes to Jason wondering how much he’d told them about what happened inside the mausoleum.
Jason held his hands up in a defensive manner, “Hey, you’ve already told them more than I have. Wearing her father’s ring makes me her protector… not yours and not PIT’s. So if you go choosing sides, then I’m announcing right here and now just whose side I’m on… Tiara’s.”
“Fair enough,” Storm nodded, “But we should still be worried. If she’d really planned to run away, then wouldn’t you think she’d have taken you with her? Like you just said… you are wearing her father’s ring.”
“Well… it did seem a little spur of the moment,” Jason added looking down at the ring. He’d heard what Nile said about her father being a demon and it didn’t really matter to him. “I still say she left to save us all. I mean, that master demon was kicking our asses with its army of the damned and here walks in this stronger, silver-haired demon being all nice and acting the hero to her and…”
“We had a deal!” Zach thundered striking the barrier again with his fists, not liking the picture Jason was painting of Tiara’s so called savior. “It doesn’t matter in the slightest why she left… the point is she’s gone and I have to find her!”
Storm whipped his head around to stare at Zach and stood to his full height. Syn simultaneously pulled Angelica back from the barrier and away from the trapped phoenix. The two shared a brief glance between them and mentally sighed. Now they had a better understanding of Zach’s anger and the real reason behind it.
Angelica took a closer look at her best friend and the amount of power he was pouring into the barrier. She’d always known what he was, but had never questioned it because he didn’t mention it. She’d been smart enough to never make a deal with him… come to think about it, he’d never offered her a deal.
It was common sense to not make a deal with a demon, or even a half-demon under any circumstances. It made Angelica wonder just how much or how little Tiara knew about demons themselves. Her eyes widened just a fraction. Was it possible that Tiara didn’t even realize what Zachary truly was? She gave Zach a soft but accusing stare.
Storm ran a hand through his bangs and glanced at Jason’s ring, pausing when he saw the ring for what it really was and to whom it had belonged… Deth. That would make Tiara a half demon since she had said the ring belonged to her father. With Zachary also half demon and one of the most powerful ones at that… then any deal he and Tiara had made was binding.
“I can’t believe I never made the connection.” Storm whispered. “Deth is Tiara’s father.”
“So,” Jason fisted his hand around the ring, “That doesn’t make her evil… does it?”
Storm ignored Jason for a moment and walked toward Zach. “Myra was obviously between a rock and a hard place. Think about it, becoming lovers with one of our worst enemies would have been considered almost treasonous to a lot of members here. In order to hide the child from Deth, she kept Tiara inside PIT’s protective walls. Additionally, she kept Tiara’s heritage hidden in order to keep her safe from us by telling everyone Tiara’s father had died.”
He stopped about a foot away from the barrier when Zach turned his gaze from Angelica and focused his attention on him. “The real question is… what did Myra whisper into that child’s ears to make her keep her mother’s secrets?”
Seeing the dark intelligence shine in Zach’s eyes, Storm continued, “Would Myra whisper that if we ever found out she was half demon… we would kill her? Or that everyone would hate her if they found out she was the daughter of Deth? How long would Tiara have been able to hide the truth? Wouldn’t her power eventually give her away? Has anyone even taught her to handle powers like that?”
“Tiara did get really mad when Nile started saying those things about her father,” Jason offered starting to catch on to Storm’s train of thought.
Storm still didn’t look at Jason… he was more interested in the flames that were dying in and around Zach. “So, Nile told her secrets right there in front of two of her teammates. What do you think was going through Tiara’s mind? Probably what her mother had whispered to her over and over. They will hate you… they will hunt you like they do your father.”
“And still, Tiara refused to leave with that demon until he agreed to kill Nile so that we would be all right,” Jason added, “That means she was trying to save us… all the while still believing we’d hate her now that we knew her secret.”
Zachary leaned his forehead against the barrier and closed his eyes as most of his anger returned to a dormant state inside him. “Let me go.” This time his voice was sincere.
“Look at me,” Storm instructed then felt a terrible weight lift from his shoulders when he saw that Zachary was back with them. “Before I release you, I want you to answer me this… was it you who made a deal with Tiara or was it Zach?”
Zachary sighed knowing Storm had warned him a long time ago not to ever make a deal with anyone. It would be considered an abuse of his power and the free will of human life was not something PIT was meant to tamper with. However, when it came to Tiara… he didn’t give a damn about rules.
“Both of us,” he answered honestly.
“And did ‘both’ of you know she was also half demon when you struck the deal?” Storm pressed needing answers.
“No, but it wouldn’t have mattered.” Zachary replied grudgingly.
Storm’s lips hinted at a slow smile, “Good answer. But before I let you out of there, we need to make some ground rules.”
“And they would be?” Zachary gritted his teeth having a feeling whatever it was, he wouldn’t like it or Storm would have already let him out of his cage.
“For starters, we are not going to just grab Tiara and bring her back against her will,” Storm pointed out. “If she does come back, it will be her choice and not forced. And since you have already broken the rule of deal making once… I guess it’s only right that you do it again.”
“What?” Zachary narrowed his eyes wondering what Storm was getting ready to offer him.
“Make a deal with me that when you find Tiara, you won't drag her back here against her will.” Storm crossed his arms over his chest and there was no trace of humor on his face or in his eyes.
“And leave her out there with the demons?” Zachary demanded.
“Make the deal or you stay here.” Storm informed him in a tone that sent chills through the room. “We are not in the business of kidnapping.”
Zachary gritted his teeth not wanting to make the deal. “What about Singapore?”
“Shut up and answer him,” Angelica snapped but inside she was fighting like hell not to laugh since Storm had just contradicted himself. No kidnapping… good one.
“Fine,” Zachary growled. “It’s a deal.”
*****
Guy slung another seashell as hard and far out into the water as he could. What good was having a team when half of them were either missing or out of commission? He mentally yelled for his sister again, his worry beginning to escalate into borderline panic.
If Tiara was here… she would have been able to help him find Carley, but first he had to find Tiara and he didn’t have the slightest idea where to start looking. Of course if Carley was here then maybe Carley could find Tiara. It was an unending vicious circle.
“Damn it!” he grabbed another shell and hurled it as far as he could.
Carley watched him from her place by the cliff wall. When she had reached the castle, she’d immediately felt for Guy through their link. Following the pull on it, she found herself down on the sand watching him walking up and down the shoreline picking up the poor little seashells and throwing them right back into the ocean.
It didn’t take much to guess what kind of mood he was in. Carley sighed heavily… better get this over with. She came around the side of him and pasted a happy little smile on her face as she bent down and looked up into his face.
“Peek-a-boo,” she giggled trying to cheer him up.
Guy instantly dropped the shell and reached for her… his arms going straight through her image.
“Did you forget I’m dead?” she couldn’t resist asking.
“Where the hell have you been?” Guy demanded. “It’s bad enough that Zachary decided to self-combust and Tiara is missing in action… but you had to disappear during the battle, too? I thought some demon got a hold of you and dragged you to hell or something.”
“I’m sorry,” Carley said in the most apologetic little sister voice she could muster. It wasn’t hard because in the face of his anger and worry she did feel bad for not coming and letting him know something sooner.
“Then tell me what happened to keep you away for so long. Surely you knew I would be worried, so why didn’t you come when I called?” Guy asked seriously wanting to shake her.
Carley made a stubborn face at him, “For your information, I am not a beeper. I’m not telling you where I’ve been either. All I can say is that it was something very important.”
“Something so important you can’t even tell me… your own brother?” When she crossed her arms over her chest and drifted back a couple steps Guy’s shoulders slumped, “So we are keeping secrets from each other now.”
“No… it’s just that… someone was in trouble and needed my help… and I promised not to tell.” Carley pouted at him not liking that he was mad at her. She didn’t know how he did it but he’d always had a way of making her feel all of five years old. “It’s probably the only secret I’ll ever keep from you.”
Guy watched his sister and knew she wasn’t lying. She wasn’t telling him where she’d been, but she wasn’t lying about why she’d been gone for so long. “Fine, okay, just next time you hear me calling, how about popping in right quick with a ‘still here, not sucked into hell yet, see you later’… okay?”
Carley smiled and rushed toward him to wrap her arms around him just enough to pretend she was hanging from his neck. “You’re my favorite Guy in the world,” she smirked at the name play.
Guy’s face suddenly lost all expression. He’d never thought about that. “That’s it isn’t it? You went and found yourself a little ghost boyfriend and have been off having a fling.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her glad she was back.
Carley let go of him smiling and quickly turned away from him not sure if a ghost could blush or not. She did have a slight crush on someone, but just as luck would have it… the person wasn’t a ghost.
“Have not,” she mumbled.
Guy smirked, “If you say so.”
Carley finally registered what Guy had just told her and swung back around to stare at him in shock. “Wait a sec, you said something about Zachary self-combusting? What happened? Is Jason all right? Fill me in on everything I missed.”
Something inside Guy clenched tightly and his mind started going a mile a minute. He ground his teeth and began filling in the blanks for himself. Carley was looking at him and could tell he was fine… so why did she ask about Zachary and Jason… and not Tiara?
He suddenly knew exactly where his sister had been. She had been with Tiara this whole time and didn’t want anyone to know.
He spent the next few minutes slowly letting Carley know everything that had happened that he knew of and paid close attention to her reactions. He was about to ask why she hadn’t said or asked anything about Tiara when his cell phone beeped at him. Taking it out of his pocket, he glanced over the text he’d gotten, rubbing his temple as he did so. Closing it silently, he put it back in his pocket and gave Carley a hard stare.
“Are you sure you don’t have anything else you need to tell me about where you’ve been while we still have some privacy?” Guy asked hopefully.
Carley mashed her lips together and shook her head no. Damn, this was hard to keep silent about… but she’d made a promise.
“Then come on,” he nodded toward the steps, “It looks like Zachary woke up a little while ago and Storm has called a meeting.”
“A little while ago… really? That’s great!” Carley smiled and shot past Guy toward the steps, connecting the dots and estimating that Tiara and Zachary had woken up at roughly the same time.
“Hey Carley,” Guy called out stopping her flight. When she turned to look curiously at him, his expression darkened. “If you’re going to keep Tiara’s whereabouts secret, then you might want to act at least a little worried about her.”
Carley’s eyes widened in surprise and she turned her back on him before quickly shooting up the stone steps ahead of him.
Guy’s hands fisted at his sides as he narrowed his eyes on Carley’s disappearing image. He trusted his sister but really… he hadn't seen this one coming. He tried to relax his tense muscles knowing if Carley wasn’t worried about Tiara, then she was probably alright… least he hoped so.
