“Right.” Drawing a deep breath, Layla felt steadiness pour through her now on Adrian’s winds.
“I love you, Layla Price.” Adrian spoke again as he pulled her close.
“I love you, too.” Stepping into him, Layla gave Adrian a brief but deep kiss. As they parted, each man of her Bind gave her a meaningful nod, and Layla nodded back as she stepped to an empty spot by the fireplace. Liberating the small white Intercessoria teleportation cube Heathren had given her from her dress pocket, kept on her at all times now, she watched gold sigils flow through it as she held it.
And then she took a deep breath and clenched her fist, speaking clearly, “Heathren Merkami.”
Disappearing in a flash of light, Layla arrived at Heathren Merkami’s penthouse in Lourden with a high whine in her ears. Standing before her in his stunningly white and silver-chrome apartment was the elegantly chic Fallen Ephilohim, slender and tall yet somehow vastly intense as he came to her with a relieved sigh. Layla had expected Heathren to be in his Intercessoria battle-leathers today, considering everything that had just happened. But instead, he wore a white silk shirt and grey slacks with a grey snakeskin belt and boots, a slim grey peacoat on also as if he were chilly, ornate golden cuffs curling around both his wrists that Layla had never seen.
The Fallen Ephilohim’s pale silver-white eyes were deadly serious as he pulled back from kissing Layla’s cheeks briefly in greeting. As usual, his fierce Archangelic beauty stole Layla’s breath for a moment as he gazed down at her from his slender height, his straight dark brows sensually brooding, his high cheekbones and cutting jaw the kind of beauty gods possessed. Though his long silver-white hair was casually braided over one shoulder to his waist, he seemed less angelic than usual as Layla noticed a less otherworldly shine about him. Heathren was only half-Archangel, his mother human – but as Layla reached up, cradling his intensely beautiful face in her hands, she saw scars on his cheekbones today, swirling through with tiny sigils of gold-white magic as if he’d been hurt.
“Heathren! What happened to you?” Layla asked, noting that though Heathren was as elegantly poised as ever, he moved stiffly like he was in pain as his full lips smiled wryly.
“I’ve had a run-in with a demon from my past, Layla,” he spoke as he took her hands down from his face, “rather than one from yours. The sigils you see in my flesh are helping me heal – and yes, there are more on my body where the demon injured me. But that is not important right now. What is pertinent to our case is that Hunter capitalized on my absence from the front lines, decimating our Intercessoria forces at Petra a week ago to the point that Intercessor Central didn’t get word about the battle until it was too late. Insinio was helping heal me, so neither of us was there when Hunter and his Binds attacked. It was a deep loss, and I am sorry. I know your father Ruslan was a casualty at Petra, and my inability to protect him is inexcusable.”
“It’s not your fault, Heathren.” Layla spoke softly, feeling tears sting her eyes at Heathren’s words about her father, combined with everything else that had happened today. A deep synergy pulled between her and Heathren now ever since they had done meditations together weeks ago to teach her etheric magic. Smoothing her hands down his silk shirt and firm chest, Layla found she was unable to stop touching him in his strangely human state right now. As if his current weakness and wounds called her to come bolster him through the ether, Layla found herself compelled.
“I know it’s not my fault. Still. I should have been there.” Heathren spoke with a hard set of his jaw, his pale silver eyes shining more fiercely. But even as he stewed, he suddenly seemed to realize how his energy was churning – and hauling Layla close. With a wry smile, Heathren removed her hands from his body; and Layla felt a devouring sensation, like his injuries were eating her energy through the ether. It was almost vampiric, and Layla startled as Heathren held her hands.
But as he let them go, the sensation ceased.
“Layla. Thank you for your concern, but I called you here right now not to aid my situation, but yours.” Heathren explained as he watched her more tenderly. “We’re setting a trap for Hunter. Or at least, we believe we can—”
“And sorry to say, but you’re the bait, Layloo.”
Another voice spoke up now as someone moved out from Heathren’s palatial white and chrome bedroom. It was Layla’s ex-boyfriend Luke Murphy who had entered the living area – looking just awful with gashes all over him and his Irish-black hair in disarray. Layla actually gasped as she saw him, moving quickly from Heathren to Luke. Wearing light grey slacks and a white shirt of Heathren’s that barely fit Luke’s Crossfitter frame, he was cut and bruised in a dozen places, a nasty gash ripping across his chest where he slowly buttoned up Heathren’s shirt, wincing. His knuckles were black as if he’d broken them from brawling with his bare fists; and even though Luke was healing, Layla could see it was damn slow. As she frantically touched Luke’s chest and face, he smiled wryly – his emerald green eyes blitzing with Storm Dragon lightning as he gently pulled her hands away like Heathren had.
“I’m okay, Layla, stop.” Luke spoke even as he winced again. “I healed some when I shifted back down from my Dragon, and Heathren healed me more – even though he shouldn’t have with the condition he’s currently in.”
“My god, Luke! What happened at the hospital?” Layla spoke quickly, horrified.
“Madness.” Currying one hand through his thick Irish-black hair even though he winced, Luke growled now, his eyes flashing with emerald storms. “Hunter hit us hard at Mercy General, Layla. Our only saving grace was that he wasn’t there personally. We had over two hundred Royal Dragon Binds all roar in at once – Sirens from the water, Storm Dragons, Desert Dragons, and Phoenix from the sky, and Crystal Dragons just fucking heaving up from beneath the hospital and smashing shit up. We’ve got magical warning systems at the Seattle hospital for when patients go wild, but generally the International Twilight Hospitals aren’t hit like this from clan-feuds or anything. Like the Red Letter Hotels, they’re a sacred organization in the Twilight Realm. Clearly Hunter doesn’t give two shits, though. I fought hard with mynullaxand managed to bring a number of Binds down, but the damage was done.”
“Mr. Murphy is being modest, Layla.” Heathren approached them with an intrigued shine in his pale silver eyes now as they pinned Luke. “He personally killed over twenty Royal Dragon Binds at the hospital battle just now, andnullax-liberated thirty more from Hunter’s Bind. Those thirty are in Intercessoria custody, being interrogated as we speak for anything that might help us in the battles to come. Many of the doctors and nurses at the hospital fought well, but I believe it was Mr. Murphy’s actions as his Dragon that got Hunter to abandon the attack.”
“Luke’sactions?” Layla blinked incredulously. “And what do you mean, that Hunter abandoned the attack?”
“I mean, that Hunter never finished that fight, Layla,” Heathren spoke with a fiercer excitement now. “I believe he was surprised that Mr. Murphy’snullaxwas strong enough to take away his Bind upon his fighters – which is why he called them all back suddenly from that battle, though he let Antigua and Chambord continue to their end. Hunter showed fear of Mr. Murphy’s ability in Seattle. Which is how Mr. Murphy’s and my plan was devised, just now.”
“So what is this plan?” Layla asked as she looked from Heathren to Luke.
“The plan tonullax-blast the shit out of Hunter’s army, Layla.” Luke spoke viciously as he returned her gaze, his green eyes blitzing with wrath. “And take out hundreds of them, maybe even a thousand. So we can get some fighting room at last.”
CHAPTER 5 – DECISION
Layla blinked at Luke’s fierce words as they stood in Heathren Merkami’s glass and chrome apartment, her heart leaping at the possibility of breaking Hunter’s dominance over his Binds. As her drakaina both celebrated and feared deep inside, that this was still somehow Hunter’s Bind-influence running the show and calling up surprises, Layla decided to embrace it. If Hunter’s own Bind was somehow working through her to wreck his ruin, she’d let it.
Despite the precisely-coordinated strikes he’d opened with at Chambord, Antigua, and Seattle.
“Tell me more.” Layla spoke now as she glanced at Heathren and Luke both. “How do we get an edge on Hunter with yournullax-magic, Luke?”
“Come.” Heathren suddenly answered before Luke could. “This is not a short talk. Let us continue this discussion over a cup of tea.” Gesturing effetely to a setup of tea already brewing on the tile breakfast bar of his palatial apartment, Heathren invited them over to the white and chrome kitchen to continue their conversation. Pouring Earl Grey into beautiful white china cups, he mixed in honey for everyone. As Heathren blew on his tea and sipped, the three of them stood around the counter rather than sit, as Layla waited to hear what the Fallen Ephilohim and her Storm Dragon ex had to say.
“To ream Hunter a new one, and hopefully take a number of his Royal Dragon Binds from him, we start with my ability, and Heathren’s power.” Luke began cryptically as he lifted a dark eyebrow at her, cradling his cup and blowing on it. “And you’re the lynchpin that’s gonna make Hunter walk right into our trap.”
“How? What do you mean?” Layla frowned, deeply curious about what he and her Intercessoria liaison were planning.
“When Hunter attacks the Red Letter Hotel Paris in two days’ time,” Heathren chimed in now, his silver-white eyes gleaming, “I believe he will come in force. He will not split his Bind-army when he comes for your heart on summer solstice – not like he did today attacking multiple smaller locations – but will bring all his own Royal Dragon Binds and Nadia’s conscripted people from Petra in to attack you at once. That is how he functions when he’s finally decided to wreck his retribution on someone for resistance to his aims. We’ve seen his pattern over and over – with King Ruslan’s old empire in the north, with King Lethou Mathii’s strong city in the Sahara, and at Petra with Nadia and her hidden Binds.”
