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KADE SINCLAIR ATE THE meal that appeared on the dining table for him without tasting it. His thoughts were torn between focusing on his task and thinking about Sorcha. He could still remember the feel of her soft lips from their brief encounter three nights ago. In his dreams, she’d been the match he was searching for. Waking up had brought harsh reality crashing back down on him.
He pushed his empty plate away and it vanished along with his silverware as he stood up. He wanted to get to the Magic Guildhall early. His plan was to lurk in hiding and scan the guildmembers for potential candidates. Five months had passed since he’d formed a triumvirate with Sebastian and Raum. The master vampire had found his match in Eden, but neither Kade, nor Raum, had been lucky enough to locate a suitable woman of their own yet.
The warlock was dressed in brown trousers and a black long-sleeved shirt. He grabbed his dark red cloak and pulled the hood up out of habit. After being shunned for being a half breed for his entire life, it was instinctive for him to hide his face. Human witches didn’t care if he was half fae. They were fascinated by his purple eyes and chiseled cheekbones. Full blood fae scorned him for being inferior. Mixed bloods like him were the lowest beings in the fae hierarchy.
“Sorcha is a half breed like me,” he murmured. He wasn’t exactly sure if she was half fairy, or half something else. They hadn’t gotten into what their heritages were. They’d been too busy making out to talk.
He caught himself smiling as he daydreamed about the witch again, then shook his head to clear his mind. He needed to stay on track. That meant putting aside his distractions. He needed to focus on finding the dangerous and powerful woman Xiara Evora had told him to locate.
Kade teleported to an alley in the City Square, then made his way to the Magic Guildhall. “You, there!” a haughty voice said imperiously before he could camouflage himself to lurk in hiding. The warlock turned to see a high-ranking guildmember descending the stairs. “Take this to Lord Dallinar,” the fairy ordered. “If you hurry, you should be able to catch him before his meeting with the Guild Masters starts.” He was strong enough in magic to still have wings. He made sure they were spread out so everyone could see them, not that many people had arrived yet. Most guildmembers would be making their way to the city center by carriage, or on foot.
It was tempting to tell the fairy he was busy, but Kade couldn’t blow his cover. He bowed submissively and took the package while hiding his scowl. The fairy strode back up the stairs and entered the guildhall. Carriages were turning up to deliver the Guild Masters and their guildmembers to the Immortal Triumvirate’s headquarters. Kade obediently hurried across the square. He passed the stone statues of the fairy, vampire and werewolf in the fountain without giving them a second glance. He idly wondered what would happen to the fountain once their leaders had been overthrown.
He joined the throng that were climbing the stairs. Two Night Cursed security agents examined them all. Their eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses, but the CIA and FBI agents seemed to be vigilant as they scanned the influx of people. They didn’t stop anyone to ask them what their business was. Everyone here was heading for the large chamber where the Immortal Triumvirate would be holding their latest meeting.
Kade crossed the bland, uninspiring smooth gray stone floor and climbed the stairs to where two more agents were standing guard. They also wore dark sunglasses. One was wearing a nametag, which was rare for Night Cursed beings. His name was Lyle and his expression was as bland as his colleague’s. His head turned slightly when Kade walked past him. The warlock could have sworn the agent was looking at him as if he knew him. Then Lyle turned his head away again and the moment passed.
Kade hadn’t been inside the Immortal Triumvirate’s chamber before. It was a huge, circular room, with three large wooden desks sitting across from the doors. The desks sat on a raised platform, but the chairs behind them were empty. Kade was dismayed that he wasn’t going to be able to hand over the package and leave. He couldn’t just leave it on one of the desks when he didn’t know which one belonged to Lord Dallinar.
He followed his fellow guildmembers to the area where Guild Master Onvier was sitting. The auburn-haired, orange-eyed elf wore a bright yellow tunic and pants with a burnt orange cloak over it. The combination was enough to sear Kade’s eyes. He received strange looks from his colleagues as he took a seat in the back row. He pointed at the package when a few of them raised their eyebrows. They realized he was just there to deliver it to someone and went back to ignoring him as if he didn’t exist.
Guildmembers from the Vampire, Magic, Shifter and Demon Districts sat on padded wooden seats that formed rows in an arc. Walkways divided the four different sections. All four Guild Masters had desks in front of their guildmembers. Three of the sections were crowded, but one was far emptier. Only a few hideous demons in various colors were seated behind Raum, who was wearing his handsome human form. The demon turned his head just far enough to smirk at Kade, knowing he was there to perform a ridiculously menial task. Apart from that small interaction, the pair pretended they didn’t know each other.
Most of the guildmembers had taken their seats before the Immortal Triumvirate arrived. Lord Kreaton and Lord Graham had come by carriage. Lord Dallinar teleported to the platform and hurriedly tucked his wand into his pocket. His lilac hair was disheveled and his black tunic was on inside out. Kade was too far away to smell the alcohol fumes that were probably wafting from him. The fairy’s eyes scanned the room almost frantically. Kade acted on instinct and held the package up. Lord Dallinar’s emerald green eyes lit up before he could control himself. He nodded at the courier and motioned for him to stay where he was.
Kade resigned himself to having to sit through the meeting that he had no interest in attending. Lord Kreaton and Lord Graham strode down the aisle to the platform. They both wore black, but the master vampire wore a suit and the alpha werewolf wore a t-shirt and jeans. Lord Graham’s ginger hair and beard were even messier than Lord Dallinar’s pretty purple locks. Compared to them, Lord Kreaton’s lank, black, unwashed hair looked neat and tidy. The fairy was small and dainty compared to the stocky werewolf and tall, robust vampire.
A final few guildmembers hurried to take their seats, then the meeting began. Just as Kade had figured, it was long and boring. It centered around the poor conditions the population of Nox were living under. It was obvious their leaders had little interest in figuring out a way to change things. They uttered empty platitudes that things would eventually improve without offering a single solution. Lord Dallinar couldn’t lie, so he mostly kept his mouth shut. He flicked frequent covetous glances at the package the courier was holding.
Nothing was resolved during the meeting. Frustrations were running high and cutting remarks were exchanged between the Guild Masters. It seemed Guild Master Latour and Guild Master Reed didn’t like Onvier much. The master vampire and alpha werebear exchanged several exasperated looks when the Magic Guild Master said something they disagreed with.
By the time the meeting wrapped up a couple of hours later, Kade was glad he could finally approach Lord Dallinar. “I was instructed to give you this parcel, my lord,” he said.
Lord Dallinar snatched it from him with unseemly haste. “You’re dismissed,” he snapped, then used his wand to teleport away.
“Who was the package from, courier?” Lord Kreaton asked.
Kade kept his eyes lowered when he responded. “It was from one of the members of the Magic Guild, my lord.”
“It’s probably another performance enhancing potion,” Lord Graham said, then snickered.
Raum was right behind Kade as they exited from the stone building. “Have you had any luck finding your lady yet?” the demon asked in a low voice. As always, he wore a dark suit, a crisp business shirt and a tie.
“Not yet,” the warlock replied, barely moving his lips. “You?”
“Alas, no,” Raum said. “But I’m narrowing down my search,” he added with a grin, then sauntered towards the Demon Guildhall. Kade scowled at the hell spawn’s impeccably dressed back. It was annoying to hear his rival had some leads. Kade hadn’t found even a single woman who he thought would be a good match for him yet. His thoughts immediately strayed to Sorcha. They lingered on her as he headed across the square to recommence his search.
