Page 12 of A City of Hearts and Feathers (The Order of Anubis #1)

CHAPTER TWELVE

K ahil never thought he would be someone with a food kink, but watching the surprise on Zoe's face when he set dinner in front of her was priceless.

"Why are you looking so surprised? You just watched me cook all of this," he said, a bubble of laughter in his voice that he couldn't contain.

"I know. It's just… No one cooks for me. I really appreciate it," she replied, unfolding a napkin and placing it on her lap. "What are we eating?"

"Lamb kofte, pomegranate fattoush, and couscous. Easy thrown together dinner. I'm thrilled that you are so impressed though. It does good things for my ego."

Zoe laughed. "I don't think your ego needs any encouragement. You flirt with absolutely everyone."

"And have you seen me talk with everyone? Or just you? Because I don't think only you counts as everyone," Kahil questioned, just to see her ears turn pink.

Zoe scooped some couscous onto her plate. "Ah huh. Well, I'm sure you are flirting with me just to try and get under my skin."

"Or under your clothes," he pointed out. She was as red as the pomegranate seeds in the fattoush.

"Keep it up. I won't let your bad manners annoy me," she said, pointing her fork at him.

"I'm not doing it to annoy you, Zoe. I'm doing it because you're pretty. Do you know how long it's been since I've guarded anyone pretty? Too damn long," he answered honestly. "It makes my work much more enjoyable."

Zoe shook her head at him. "You are incorrigible."

"And you can't take a compliment to save your life. What is wrong with English men? Have they stopped learning how to be charming to a beautiful woman?"

"Did they ever know how?" Zoe asked, making Kahil sigh in despair.

"It's okay, Zoe. You are back in the right city now."

"Is that so? Do you have some charming single guys you can introduce me to?" she asked. "I could use a date."

Kahil swallowed back the answer he really wanted to give her and changed the subject instead. "What other questions did you have about the Order?"

"So, so many," Zoe said and put her fork down. "I need to start writing them down. Mostly, I think I want to know more about the balance that you guys maintain. I've always thought light and dark were concepts. How do you know who is who? I mean, are all vampires followers of the dark because they are vampires?"

Kahil cut up his kofte and wondered where he should start first. Arslan had given him permission to tell her whatever she wanted to know, and Kahil didn't want the Order to be another family that kept secrets from her.

"The Order of Anubis has been around longer than we have had records," he began, recalling how Arslan had brought him into their fold and explained their history. "It wasn't until Arslan got a hold of a Sais manuscript in about 1175 CE that alchemy started to get involved in our initiations. He went to Egypt with Saladin's court after it was conquered and found the codex in one of the palace libraries in Cairo."

Zoe's fork was hanging mid-air. "You're kidding me. Arslan is that old! Do all of you live that long?"

"No, not at all. Arslan took the elixir himself, but it wasn't the right formula. He's cursed, but I'll let him tell you that story. Eat your food," Kahil prompted, and she quickly put the lamb into her mouth. "The elixir he found was designed by the priests of Sais to allow the one who drank it to 'see with the eyes of Anubis and have the strength of Set.' The sight is how we know who is light or dark or neutral. It has nothing to do with whether you are human or a supernatural creature. It allows us to look at what's in your heart, or your ka, as the Egyptians called it. It is your very life force. Your soul. We also have enhanced strength and healing, but we are slow to age. It helps when fighting non-humans and gives us an edge."

"And that's why you look about thirty-seven when you're over five hundred years old," Zoe said and then stared at his face like she'd never seen it before. "That's some remarkable potion."

"It has its benefits, but living a long lifespan isn't all that it's cracked up to be. I'm older than I should be because Arslan hadn't perfected the formula yet."

"And that's why you call yourself the failed experiment?" she guessed.

"It is. I was the first he tried the elixir on after himself."

Zoe tilted her head. "Why you, out of everyone?"

"I was dying, but I'll tell you that story some other time if you're a good girl," Kahil replied, trying to make Zoe blush again.

"You're going to have to do more than feed me and tell me I'm pretty to get me to be your good girl," she replied, making him choke on his beer. Zoe smiled like a sphinx. "Tell me how you all protect the balance. Do you just kill people off and topple governments?"

Kahil's mind was still focused on how he could make Zoe into his good girl, and he had to rearrange his jeans before he could answer her questions.

"Not if we don't have to. We are more of a protective force than an assassinating one. You can't just kill everyone to solve problems. We try and help people and supernatural creatures alike. We provide protection and aid."

"Such as?"

Kahil chewed thoughtfully. "For example, if a djinn is granting wishes that are hurting people, and we have one of those people come and complain to us, we will investigate it. If we find the person made poor wishes without thinking of the consequences, that's on them. If the djinn is being malicious because it just wants to hurt as many people as it can, we will trap it for the safety of others."

"And people just come to you with stuff? How do they know who to go to?" Zoe said, frowning. "It's not the kind of service you see advertised."

"The supernatural creatures know who we are, and humans will sometimes come to us through word of mouth. We have informants in the city who will report strange goings-on that we will look into if they are serious enough. It's not just dark ones playing up either. Sometimes people will rise up on the light side, and they might have a pristine soul but create a violent fanaticism in their followers." Kahil leaned back in his chair. "We will speak to the ringleader to change their rhetoric so that their message isn't being weaponized. If they don't listen, then we take them down. No, not necessarily kill them. We discredit them, destroy their influence and power. Whatever we need to do. Kerem likes to call it 'humbling the righteous.'"

"Humbling the righteous. I like that." Zoe smiled. "You guys are kind of like Knights Templar in a way."

Kahil's lips twitched. "They were like us, balim . We were around first, and they dealt with the human threats of their times. If they had the power of the elixir, they wouldn't have been burned by a French king after their money."

"True. I need another beer. Do you want one?" Zoe said, getting up and heading for the fridge.

"I'm okay. I still have wards and a few other things to check tonight. I need to have a clear head for it," he replied, admiring her ass as she leaned into the fridge. He really needed to keep a clear head. If anything happened to Zoe because he was distracted like a horny teenager, he wouldn't live to regret it because both Arslan and Kerem would kill him first. Her safety was more important than any attraction he might be feeling.

"Are you okay? You have the strangest expression on your face right now," she said, coming back to the table with her beer.

Kahil forced a smile. "I'm fine. Just trying to think of what you might want to know next."

"I want to know what I'm meant to do with the codex if we manage to find all the pieces. Whoever killed baba is going to be after me now, right?" Zoe asked.

"If they are still alive, they might try it. If they do, they won't stay alive for long," Kahil promised her.

"Thanks, but it still doesn't help me decide what to do with the codex once I have it. Do I sell it to the light or the dark? Do I keep it? Do I throw it in the Bosporus?"

Kahil knew what he was meant to say, but he hesitated to do so. He went with a less aggressive approach. "Whatever you do, it's your choice, and don't let anyone convince you otherwise."

"What would you do?" she asked.

Kahil didn't need to think about it. "I would give it to Arslan."

"Because he is your Grand Master?"

Kahil shook his head. "No, because he's been trying to find a way to break his curse since he put it on himself. We know that the codex contains spells of necromancy, but it also might contain information that could help him with his immortality."

"Is that why you are all being so nice to me? Because you want it too?" Zoe asked, her voice going small.

Shit . He really didn't want to upset her, but he wouldn't lie to her either.

"I won't say we don't want it. Arslan does, but he will make an offer to buy it like everyone else. He would want to get it from you as legitimately as possible," Kahil hurried to explain. "We are helping you because that's what the Order of Anubis does. Your family is neutral like us, and your father almost became a brother. We have always been allies. It doesn't matter what you choose to do with the codex. We will still be your friends."

Zoe swallowed hard and nodded. "Okay. I'm sorry I… I have been used a lot by people over the years, and I can't…"

Kahil placed his hand over hers before he could second guess himself. "I get it, Zoe. You don't have to be sorry for asking a completely logical question. We are here for you. You can trust the contract, if you can't trust me."

"Weirdly, I do trust you. Despite everything else going on, I know you won't hurt me," Zoe replied. She patted his hand. "I really shouldn't worry about such things until I actually have the codex together. One thing at a time."

"You will find it soon enough. You're clever as hell and will work out whatever clues Oman leads you to."

Zoe smiled so brightly, it felt like he had been punched in the sternum. "You are very confident in my abilities, Kahil. I don't think anyone has believed in me so much."

For some reason, the softness in her voice made Kahil want to take her in his arms and never let her go. This smart, gorgeous woman had been treated poorly by people, and it made him want to protect her from it ever happening again.

He realized he was staring at her, so he quickly said, "You're the brains. I'm the brawn in this adventure. You focus on the codex, and I'll make sure you live long enough to find it."

"Deal." Zoe moved their hands so she could shake his properly. "The brawn also has to cook because that was amazing."

"Deal." Kahil lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. "But you have to clean."