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XIARA EVORA WAS RIDING in a carriage around the Fae District when a letter wormed its way through a crack in the door. She figured it was an execution order and her eyebrows rose when she opened it. The skeleton plucked the address she’d been given from her mind and altered its course.
The Guardian of Nox was intrigued by the note that had summoned her to the Vampire District. It hadn’t been signed. It was just a request for her to travel to a house to assist someone in need. The letter and envelope disappeared now that its message had been received. “I wonder what this is about?” Xiara said as her chauffeur crossed a bridge that spanned the river. It was the same bridge she’d crossed earlier where Sorcha had been swimming with the water elementals.
Pale, gaunt faces with desperate eyes watched her through windows as she passed through the poorer suburbs where the masterless fledglings lived. She knew they were evil, but she still felt bad for them. Like the rogue shifters, they were losing their ability to control their hunger without someone to lead them and to keep them in check.
The carriage headed for a wealthy area and turned down a long driveway of a secluded property. Xiara climbed out and saw chunks of flesh and scraps of clothing scattered on the lawn. “Wait for me here,” she said to the skeleton, since she wasn’t sure how long she would be.
The door opened before she could knock and two familiar faces appeared. “Hey, girls,” she said to Eden and Sorcha as she stepped inside. “Who’s this?” she asked, hiking her thumb at the handsome man with the pointed ears, short black hair and pale yellow eyes. He looked almost exactly like the incubus she’d executed over two decades ago.
“I’m Malachi,” he said. “I look familiar because Tannic was my father,” he added when she eyed him warily.
“He’s my half-brother,” Eden explained as she closed the door.
“I guess you heard I was the one who executed your Dad,” Xiara said, wondering if they wanted retribution.
“We know he was a bad guy,” Malachi said. “We don’t hold it against you for just doing your job.”
The huntress was relieved to hear that, since she was pretty sure he was another member of the Assassin Guild. “What do you need my help with?” she asked.
“We killed our trainer when he tried to assassinate an illusion he thought was Sebastian,” Sorcha said.
“Is that the dead guy I saw scattered all over the lawn?” Ms. Evora asked.
“No, he was a master vampire. He was in cahoots with Wort,” the succubus told her.
“Your trainer was called Wart?” she asked, then snickered.
“His name is spelled with an o rather than an a,” Malachi said with a grin.
“So, what happened to Wort’s body?” their guest queried.
“A skeleton dragged him into the woods,” Eden said. “We had a feeling the Immortal Triumvirate ordered Wort to train a new batch of assassins and snuck into the prison to search his quarters.” She looked over her shoulder at a room at the end of the hallway.
Xiara looked as well and saw three small children peeking at them from the doorway. “Hi, kids,” she said and waved, knowing they could probably hear her clearly if they were half-breeds like the trio before her. “Come over here and let me take a look at you,” she said. The half elven boy motioned for the two girls to stay back and walked down the hallway on his own. She squatted to make herself less threatening and held out her hand. “I’m Xiara Evora, the Guardian of Nox,” she said.
“I’m Telian,” he said, staring at her in fascination as he let her shake his hand. “Why are you wearing that strange outfit?” he asked when she let his hand go.
Xiara glanced down at her black ripped jeans, lacy shirt and feathered cropped jacket. “I’m Night Cursed,” she explained. “This is the costume I was wearing when the Immortal Triumvirate turned me into their minion.”
The two little girls were creeping silently towards them. They came to a stop behind Telian. “Why is your staff glowing?” one of them asked.
Xiara shifted her weapon so they could see the longer blade more clearly. The fog that emanated from him was gray rather than white, since there were no vampires close by. “His name is Wrath,” she said. “He’s sentient and he has the soul of a grim reaper inside him.” Wrath pulsed and they let out gasps of awe.
“We couldn’t leave the kids all alone in Wort’s quarters in the prison,” Eden said. “We were hoping you would know somewhere safe where they can stay.”
“I know some people who I’m sure will be happy to take care of them,” the huntress said and rose to her feet.
“They’re not satyrs, are they?” Telian asked warily.
Xiara smiled and shook her head. “Nope. They’re fairies and elves who were mistreated by a very bad man. They’re all female and none of them are mean or scary.”
“Does this mean we won’t have to learn how to kill people anymore?” one of the girls asked.
The former assassins exchanged bleak looks, knowing exactly what the children had gone through. Malachi answered her. “You’ll never have to pick up a weapon ever again, unless you want to,” he said. “You can have a chance of a normal life, or as normal as anything can ever get in Nox.”
“We’ll go with you,” Telian decided, trusting this stranger with the platinum blonde hair held up in a ponytail. “Thank you for killing Wort,” he said to the other three adults. “I wish I was big enough to do it myself.”
“It was our pleasure,” Sorcha said and meant every word.
Xiara led the children to the waiting carriage and lifted them inside one by one. She climbed in after them, then saluted the former assassins. The skeleton took off, heading for a bridge that would take them to the Night Cursed District. Eden, Sorcha and Malachi waved in return.
“I need to send three letters,” Xiara said and recited the messages when the sheets of paper appeared. By the time the carriage arrived at the warehouse where she lived, Zircadion and Ivan were waiting for her.
“What is that thing?” Telian whispered when he saw the huge stone creature with wings standing on the sidewalk.
“That’s Ivan,” the huntress told him. “He’s a Night Cursed gargoyle. He might look scary, but he’s a good guy.”
“Is that an angel?” one of the girls asked as they peered out the window at the gorgeous female standing next to the gargoyle. She had a stunning body and red hair. Her dress was short and white. Her halo sat slightly askew and her wings were tucked behind her back.
“Yep,” Xiara said. “Her name is Zircadion. They’re going to take you to the fairies and elves who will take care of you.”
She climbed out of the carriage and helped the kids to the ground, then led them over to her friends. “I’ve sent a letter to Padavion to warn her she’s about to get three new housemates,” she said.
“The girls will love the new arrivals,” Zircadion said as she smiled down at the children. “Do you like to fly?” she asked and unfurled her wings.
Telian’s eyes went wide with anticipation. “We’ve never flown before,” he said. “Are we going to go very high?”
“We will go as high as you like,” Ivan said and scooped the little girls up beneath his arms. They giggled in excitement, trusting him utterly despite his ugliness.
Zircadion picked Telian up and held him on her hip as if she’d done it a thousand times before. “It looks like a storm is coming,” she said as the ever-present rain began to intensify. “We’d better get the rug rats to the cave asap.”
Xiara nodded, then waved at the kids as her friends took to the air and flew away with their charges.
