Marie Harte - Aftershocks

“Hey, back off, old man,” Cadmus growled, pulling Ellie into his arms. “Just take my arm and you’ll see where to go.”

Ellie didn’t understand. “But I can show—”

“He’s not putting his hands on you, at all.” Cadmus glowered, and Ellie had to blink at the complete role reversal between Light Bringers. Now Cadmus seemed as remote as his uncle had been, while Arim screamed temptation.

“Very well, youngster,” Arim said with a straight face, though Ellie would swear a smile teased at the corner of his mouth.

Arim reached out to Cadmus and everything blurred. The next thing Ellie heard were loud voices, a doorbell buzzer, and her father’s startled, “What the fuck are you two doing with my daughter?”

Hell on earth, and all in her little apartment. Was nothing sacred anymore?

Cadmus stared at a male version of Ellie in helpless fascination. Good Light, but Ellie was his spitting image. Ethim had the same high cheekbones, the same stubborn nose and strong chin, identical bright blue eyes, though his glowed with a fierce anger that had Arim braced for attack. The Djinn’s aura was Dark, so much so that Cadmus had no trouble seeing it.

Yet the Darkness of the man in no way detracted from his physical presence. Ethim il Ruethe looked like a walking piece of art. It was all Cadmus could do not to reach out and touch the man to see if he were real.

His skin and features were unnaturally attractive. Cadmus had just spent the last few weeks among the Djinn, but he’d never seen a creature so physically striking, save Ellie. Glancing at her, he noted the guarded look in her eyes as she stared at her father.

Interesting.

He’d known from her many comments she had no close ties to the man. But watching the two, he thought perhaps her distance was mostly of her own making. Ethim glared at Arim and Cadmus, but his gaze softened with love and worry when he lit on his daughter.

“I asked what you’re doing here.” Ethim’s tone shifted, seeming to echo throughout the small room, commanding obedience.

“I don’t think so.” Arim waved his hand, and the compulsion to answer the Djinn faded.

“Don’t think you can come in here and take charge like you try to do everywhere else. This situation goes beyond the Light Bringers now. At least, it’s beyond you.” Ethim looked past Arim to Cadmus and nodded. “Jonas mentioned some of his troubles, but I have to admit I never thought he’d bring you back here.”

Cadmus thought it telling Ethim had yet to address his daughter.

“Why are you here?” she finally asked, her voice flat.

Ethim drew himself to his formidable height and his features tightened. He pursed full lips and frowned. “I just wanted to see for myself that you were all right. I know you’ve been having trouble with the university and wanted to offer my assistance.”

Ellie blinked. “You did?”

“You didn’t think I would notice your troubles? I see everything, Elliara.”

She blushed and darted a glance at Cadmus, who strove to look uninterested. Elliara? A beautiful name, and one that spoke of Djinn ties, a connection that for some reason she wanted to sever.

“It’s Ellie, Ethim.”

He looked like he wanted to argue, but a glance at Arim and Cadmus and he changed the subject. “Are these two bothering you? I’ve found a suitable place where we can stash the Earth Lord until a time where he may be of some use.”

Arim’s expression darkened. “It’s funny you mention his use. What exactly do you intend for my nephew? The last I knew Jonas was doing us a favour by keeping Cadmus safe. Now, it seems, there’s an agenda we know nothing about.”

Cadmus shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I have no clue what you’re talking about. I had a slight altercation in Foreia so Jonas whisked me away. If you’d open the doors to Tanselm, we could take care of everything right now,” he challenged his uncle. Oddly enough, he didn’t want Arim to make it that easy.

For over a year, Cadmus had been dying to return to his homeworld. But being around Ellie again made him long for time with her alone and without distraction. If Arim took him back home, he would have no excuse to stay behind with Ellie.

“You know you can’t return home without an affai ,” Arim explained matter-of-factly. “So work your magic and find her. I have the feeling time is moving us towards something we’re not quite ready for.”

“I know.” Cadmus had felt a shift in the possibilities of the future for some time. His clairvoyance had deserted him of late, and the only visions he now had involved sex with the alluring blonde next to him. “But I can’t see it, no matter how hard I try.”

“Would one of you care to explain just what’s going on here?” Ethim asked again, this time with more patience. “If you’d like, we can take this conversation someplace safer. I have space in Foreia that would be perfect for you, Earth Lord, while we—”

“No,” Ellie blurted, surprising everyone. “Cadmus is fine here, and with everything otherworldly happening around me, I feel safer having him around.”

She wouldn’t meet Cadmus’ gaze and refused to respond to his mental questions.

“Safer with him around?” Her father sounded as incredulous as Cadmus felt. But satisfaction danced through his soul. Ellie didn’t want him to leave. Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter.

She nodded. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, pushing me out of this. But I’m already a part of it.” She shrugged with a nonchalance that didn’t fool Cadmus in the slightest. “I might as well see this through to the end. You know, make sure the Djinn are taken care of.”

Ethim beamed, a blazing display of affection that made Cadmus cringe. The Darkness seething in the Djinn was curiously compelling, and he wondered if Ellie found it hard to refuse her father anything.

“I see. Well then. I’ll leave you two alone. Protected, but alone. Arim? There are things we need to discuss.”

Arim glanced from Ethim to Cadmus, then focused on Ellie with a puzzled frown. “I suppose, as long as you stay put,” he directed to Cadmus. “We’re not even close to being done our discussion.”

Cadmus felt threatened by Arim’s steady regard. He prayed his uncle couldn’t see the uncomfortable Darkness seething within him. “Fine, sure. I’ll be right here, protecting Ellie.”

Arim snorted his disbelief before turning back to Ethim. “How about Shathra in the between ?”

“It’s in Shadow.” Ethim considered. “That will work. Ellie, call if you need me.” He disappeared without a whisper, and Arim soon followed, leaving Ellie and Cadmus alone at last.

“So,” Cadmus said slowly, taking in her unsteady breath, her wandering gaze that rested briefly on his lips. “You don’t feel safe?”

“It was the best I could do to get my father out of here. When he gets that look in his eye, you just want to disappear.” She began roving the living room, straightening pillows and magazines that didn’t need straightening.

“If my presence here makes you uncomfortable, perhaps I should go with Ethim,” he said quietly, wanting her to look at him.

At his words, she stilled, her back to him. She was so tense, so uneasy, and he didn’t understand what her father had done to make her so unnerved.

“It’s not my father, it’s you,” she said through her teeth and turned to face him. Her eyes were so bright they glowed, and he took a step back at the sheer vehemence of her tone. Dark, hungry energy slid through the air, caressing and curling around him, drawing him closer to the precipice he didn’t want to cross.

“I can’t stop thinking about you. You’re all I can see and hear. All I can think about.” Her breath caught, and she glided nearer, stalking him. Her nipples beaded through her T-shirt, and Cadmus swore he could sense her desire as if a living thing. “You’re like a spell that’s taken me over. Magic in my once-normal world.”