HEART OF THE CHOSEN (CASTE BOOK 1)

Chapter 35

The next day, I got up at dawn. Not a sound in the suite, Thomas was asleep on the couch. I gazed for a moment at his sublime sleeping face. A knock on the door snapped me out of my reverie, and I rushed to the entrance to find out who could be bothering us at such an hour. I heard Thomas wake up while through the peephole I discovered, amazed, a beautiful blond surrounded by two other women with a rather strange look.

“Who’s that?” asked Thomas, his voice roughened by a sudden awakening.

“I don’t know, there are three women behind the door, what should I do?”

“It’s Prisca Burton Race,” declared a feminine and suave voice.

I watched Thomas, who nodded to me to open the door. I complied and the three women came in, looking me over from head to toe. Prisca, who I assumed was the tall blond with long, wavy hair and steely blue eyes, immediately reminded me of her father Magnus. This detail obviously didn’t attract my sympathy, even if I had to agree that her more pleasant face and her milky skin must have come from her mother. An elegant mole adorned her fleshy mouth, and her outfit, a beige trouser suit over expensive heels, enhanced her slender and graceful figure. Behind her was a tall, black-skinned woman with shaggy hair that hung almost to the ground. The other was an Asian girl with long hair pulled back into a ponytail. One wore dark leggings and thigh-high boots that came up above her knees with a tank top revealing broad bare shoulders. The second was decked out in a black wrap over large matching pants, all that was missing was a sabre harnessed to the back. Their unique and relaxed outfits, although feminine, contrasted singularly with the very classy look of their mistress. Both kept looking around them as if Prisca was going to be attacked at any moment.

“Everliegh Burberry,” Prisca greeted me, shaking her head, “I present to you Chun and Jendayi. They accompany me wherever I go and will help us in this mission. Blake says you think my brother is here, I had to come.”

“Uh… actually, I’m not sure.”

“Could we talk about it in private?” Prisca asked, her eyes not averted.

Thomas got up and introduced himself to Prisca before asking the two Amazons to join him for breakfast at the hotel bar. Prisca invited me to sit on a chair after I ordered room service to eat too.

“How do you know that Carmichael is alive?”

“In reality, I don’t know,” I confessed, “it’s an intuition.”

“How so, an intuition?” she asked suspiciously.

“I don’t know. To be honest, it’s hard for me to describe what I feel... I think I would have felt it immediately if he had been killed.”

“And what makes you say he’s here?”

“Again, I don’t know, but when I arrived in Amsterdam, my instinct pushed me to this place. It can’t be a coincidence, can it?”

“Maybe,” Prisca said thoughtfully, “but the strangest thing is that you can have such a close bond with my brother. I had never heard of such a connection between two castes. On the other hand, I’m not surprised, Carmichael told me a lot about you and your particularities.”

“What did he say, exactly?”

“That you were of formidable power and that you shared this singular gift of attraction with him. So I trust you if you say he’s alive.”

“Prisca, I don’t want you to get your hopes up. Maybe it’s just my imagination?”

“We’ll see about that in due time.”

She returned her azure eyes to the centre of the table. Room service arrived and the young maid set up breakfast just as the Van Durens decided to get up. They greeted Prisca, whom they obviously knew, and sat down next to us. Salomon got up in turn, his eyes were puffy and bloodshot. Judging by his crumpled appearance, his evening had lived up to his expectations. When Prisca saw him arrive, a broad smile formed on her full lips. Salomon widened his eyes and threw himself on her, hugging her.

“Prisca! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you.”

“Well,” she said noticing his appearance, “I see that you’re having fun in my absence!”

“Uh… yes, I spent a completely surprising evening, this city is a treasure trove of herbs of all kinds.”

“It’s not good for you, Salomon,” she snapped.

“So what! I’m not like you, Lady-eternal. I decided to burn my life at both ends, it’s my choice!”

“Anyway, the Red Light District wasn’t what we expected,” Marcus said, putting down his cup of hot coffee.

“You went to see prostitutes!” Prisca revolted again.

“Don’t worry,” Joseph reassured her, “there wasn’t anything tempting. Not even one of ours hanging around, and all those girls in shop windows… it was creepy!”

“That’s good,” she concluded turning to me. “Where is the place?”

“The bar is called Abraxas, there’s a door at the back that leads to the basements.”

“We’re sure it’s here.”

“Yes,” I answered, “Blake sent one of his caste spies there a month ago. He told him it was full of our people, and the back door was only accessible through a door guarded by five castes, powerful ones, no doubt. The bartender is one too and he monitors the entrances and exits, and asks a lot of questions to new customers.”

“So we have no idea of the forces present in the basement enclosure.”

“Indeed, but Blake managed to find a plan of the building. Obviously, the door leads to a staircase which leads to three long corridors. One of them gives access to a staircase that leads even lower into the depths.”

“We’ll therefore have to separate, and I propose that it is you, Everliegh, who takes this sector. Your gifts are very powerful and protect you. If there are still prisoners below, then my father must have considered them very dangerous. We’ll see on the spot if their number deserves an escort. Salomon, you’ll have to estimate as soon as we arrive the number of consciences that you manage to capture. The Van Durens, you will remain upstairs and concentrate in case your clairvoyance alerts you to hostile arrivals.”

“And me?” Thomas asked, entering with Chun and Jendayi.

“You are powerful, aren’t you?”

“In effect.”

“We three too,” revealed Prisca, pointing to her female disciples, “your strength and your speed will be too much combined with ours. Egeria must have felt something already and will let my father know as soon as it becomes certain for her. It’s also for this reason that we didn’t come more numerous and…”

“Might as well warn you,” I said cutting her short, “Egeria is mine.”

“That’s out of the question,” retorted Prisca.

Carmichael’s sister was apparently unaware of my animosity towards the caste white-haired priestess. I had to clear things up right away because, Lord of the Eastern Territory or not, Prisca wasn’t going to stop me from settling accounts with this old Egerian witch. Her look of a great lady hardly impressed me.

“I don’t think you understood me well,” I declared, my voice firm, “I’m not asking your permission. And let it be clear, if one of you decides to take care of her for me, they will have a new adversary on their back.”

I turned around and went back to my room. I took a deep breath to calm myself down. Prisca wasn’t my queen or whatever, so she had no right to decide for me. I had seen the outraged looks of my companions and her acolytes, but I didn’t care. Nobody would rob me of my revenge, especially not a Burton Race.

I put on jeans and a fitted sweater. I wanted to go out for some fresh air, but Blake had forbidden me, of course. He was too scared of castes spotting me because of my damn overdeveloped magnetic talent, let alone the police! I collapsed on the bed and began to contemplate how I was going to get rid of Egeria. The coldness with which I thought of her approaching death surprised me. How could I have come to this? How could I even conceive of taking the life of any person? But Egeria wasn’t just anyone and she had had more than her life count considering her age, already much older than Magnus and Blake. So, I finally felt it was doing her a big favour. But I had to admit that a corner of my conscience was not at rest. I thought back to that day with Ethan, where we had pulverized Sophie Desveniel the traitor, Gilles one of Magnus’ servants and maybe Gregory, the Master Hand’s deputy and perverse r****t. Thinking back to the redhead, I clenched my fists to control my anger. I could only hope I had killed him along with the other two, at least, I was trying to convince myself of that. That’s where I was. My placidity astonished me, but I must not let myself be overwhelmed by my emotions, the success of my plans depended on it. Someone knocked at the door. It was Prisca.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?” she asked in her celestial voice.

“If you want,” I said softly.

She sat down on the chair facing the bed. I sat up and looked her straight in the eye. If Prisca had come to change my mind, she was going to be disappointed.

“I’m not used to people talking to me that way.”

“I’m sorry,” I say in a cold tone, “but my decision will not change an inch.”

“I didn’t come to convince you, Everliegh, but to understand.”

“Oh!” I blurted, surprised, suddenly thinking that maybe I had misjudged her.

“I would like to know what she and my father did to you.”

“Why?”

“You hate Magnus, that’s a fact, and I heard about what you and your brother did to his servants, it’s very impressive. But I don’t understand what you have against Egeria.”

“That’s my business.”

“I only want to point out to you that she’s perhaps about the oldest existing caste in this world and that I don’t approve of your decision. What assurances do I have that you’ll not reserve the same outcome for all caste immortals?”

“None, indeed.”

“Everliegh,” she continued after a long inhalation. I know that Blake spoke with you about the fate of my father and that you finally approved his capture on the condition that he be locked up in Mortain, why?”

“To keep an eye on him,” I lied, in a calm and visibly effective tone.

She watched me with her translucent gaze, and we stood staring at each other for a moment.

“Mmm. I’ll try to trust you, but promise me you won’t let anger get in the way of our goals.”

“I can assure you of that.”

She got up and went back to the living room. Salomon was waiting for her and invited her to a tete-a-tete on the banks of the Amstel. Prisca smiled and accompanied him, very happy that the handsome native American offered her respite after our stormy interview. Obviously, these two knew each other more than intimately. The Van Durens had gone out with the Amazons and Thomas was alone and quietly seated on the couch. He surveyed me with his translucent eyes, but he didn’t say a single word to me.

“Are you still mad about last night?”

“Of course!” he said, acerbic. “You think your words will slip out of my head overnight!”

“Thomas…”

“You told me what you thought, but listen to me!” he cried, his gaze charged with intensity. “My life became complicated the day I set foot in Mortain, but now I have my son, and I can’t do just anything. I know you’re not ready for that kind of relationship with me, but I’m asking you to think about it.”

“For the moment, I have other things in mind and…”

“Your revenge, that’s it!” Thomas cut me off, furious. “You think I didn’t guess that!”

“Listen, you don’t know what I experienced there…”

“So tell me, Eve!”

“That’s out of the question, damn it!” I said, raising my voice.

He grabbed my wrist so fast that I didn’t have time to protect myself with my invisible wall. With his hands, he grabbed my neck and roughly slammed his mouth against mine. An electric shock shot through my body and I felt a rush of heat go up to my hairline. Using my arms, I tried to push him away, but all effort was in vain, he broke my every will. I lost control and kissed him back. The second my tongue found his, Thomas relaxed and pulled away from the feverish grip of his hands. He let his fingers slide down my bare arms, and a long, languid, delicate kiss ensued that brought me the comfort that I found myself enjoying. The blood in my veins burned me, but Thomas maintained a certain distance between us. He knew I wasn’t ready, but I let it go. After all, he was the most handsome man I had ever met, and he still cared about me. I owed him that kiss.

A door noise broke this moment of tenderness and I immediately moved away, wiping my mouth automatically. Thomas froze with emotion.

“It’s for tonight,” Prisca said, pretending not to have surprised us.

She took her cell phone, speaking in a language that was unknown to me. Salomon looked at me curiously then came forward.

“Eve, you know I love you like my little sister,” he said putting his hands on my shoulders, “but tonight you’re going to have to be careful, you better not have anything happen to you. Nothing, little rascal!”

His playful concern touched me. Of course, I could have told him that my fate didn’t matter to me, but I didn’t want to disappoint him so I nodded to reassure him.