Page 19 of Deadly Reckoning (Broken Ashes #7)
Neith
“I have received some books from the Elders to give to Neith,” Ty starts a frown on his face.
“Why don’t you look very happy about that?” Reed questions.
Ty sighs, “Because I’m not. The Elders are tricky, and they’re always self-serving.”
I nod, “Yeah, that’s pretty much the general consensus. We’ve been warned about them by pretty much everyone who we’ve told about them.”
Ty nods, “And for good reason. I just want you to be careful about what you read. I can almost guarantee that they haven’t given you all of the books that they have about angels, and that the ones that they have given you only have the most basic amount of information in them.”
Raiden nods, “Yeah, we were expecting that. We’re going to look over it all with a very critical eye. We have managed to find some stuff ourselves, so at this point we’re really just trying to see if what we have managed to find out matches up with what the books say.”
“Good, I’m glad you’re aware of it all. I really wish we could get in contact with your mother. She would be the best person to help you,” Ty says with a frown.
I smile sadly, “Yeah. I think if there were a way though, Sully would have found it. He’s spent a long time without Wynonna.”
“Yes, you’re right, and he did look for a long time. He never found a way to communicate with her though,” Ty says sadly.
It makes me so sad that they’ve been split up like they have. I can’t imagine being forced to stay away from the guys for any real length of time, and Sully and Wynonna were together for centuries before they were forced apart.
“Thanks for that, Ty. I’ll come and grab the books now if that’s okay?” Doc asks.
Ty nods, “Of course. I’m assuming that you still want the digital files for the wolf sales and not the physical copies?”
Evander nods, “Definitely.”
Ty smiles, “I thought so. Doc, come and grab them whenever you’re ready.”
Even though I know that Doc’s going to do it, I still grin with surprise when he appears on the screen with Ty.
“Magic is so fucking cool,” I mutter, and the guys on either side of me chuckle.
Within a couple of moments, Doc’s back, and we’re all saying goodbye to Ty.
There was a lot of information to digest in that phone call, but I can’t help but focus on Dimitri. Everyone just looks at each other for a moment and then looks at me. It’s clear that their thoughts are on the same thing that mine are, or they’ve just all correctly guessed where my thoughts are.
Coen clears his throat, “I need to talk to you all about Dimitri.”
“Why didn’t I like that he was in prison?” River asks, shocking me.
“You didn’t?” I ask.
Several of the guys shake their heads.
“Well, that’s interesting,” Raiden says, his gaze thoughtful.
Evander nods in agreement and then looks at Coen, “Sorry, what did you want to talk to us about?”
He looks at me, “I’ll start from the beginning, because the guys don’t know how Dimitri works.” I nod, and he gives me an imploring look, “Love, I know that this is difficult, but all I ask is that you listen to me, and that you remember that I would never do anything to hurt you.”
I nod, “I know that, Coen.”
“Is this about the singing thing?” River asks bluntly, “Also, dude, I had no idea that you could sing.”
Coen grins, “Yeah. It does. So, I watched the trial, and I knew that Neith was going to need me. As I was making my way to you, Dimitri knocked.”
“Knocked?” Doc asks curiously.
“Yeah, Dimitri can speak into your mind, but it only works long distances with people that he has a connection with or those that are doing a job for him. Like with the head in Ireland,” I explain.
“It works across realms?” Raiden asks incredulously.
Coen’s eyebrows rise, “You know I hadn’t considered that. But it clearly works across realms. Dimitri was in the SID prison at that point.”
“Which means it also works through the wards that are layered over the prison,” Griff points out, looking more impressed than anything else.
“Dimitri is a hellhound, and nothing quite works how you think it would with him,” I add, as an explanation. “Kind of like me.”
“Wow,” Reed mutters. Looking at Coen, he adds, “Sorry, you were saying?”
Coen looks at me and continues explaining, “He knocked, and told me that I had to get to you, that you would need me,” Coen says, and I gulp.
“I was there for some of it. I was on the receiving end of some of his vitriol. I remember what he was like, how he spoke, and he wasn’t like that when he knocked, he was Dimitri.
I didn’t have time to be tactful, and I had a feeling, something that I had been thinking about for a while.
I knew that I may not get another chance to ask him, so I asked him if he was being controlled in a similar way to what I had been. ”
My breath catches in my throat.
Of all the things that I thought Coen was going to say, that wasn’t it.
Coen watches me closely as he continues, “He said that he had. When I first fell under Kylen’s control and realized how complete it was, I immediately thought of Dimitri and how his personality changed so suddenly and completely.
Especially how he treated you, he fucking loved you more than he loved life. ”
My gaze drops to my lap.
Everyone stays silent, and I’m really grateful for it because it gives me a moment to compose myself. I’m even more grateful when Ransom’s hand reaches for mine under the table and he threads his fingers through mine.
After a moment, I look back up, although I don’t say anything.
Doc looks at Coen, “So he is being controlled like you were?”
Coen nods, “Yes. However, I’m not sure that he’s being controlled in the same way. I think he’s being controlled even more completely than I was. His control changed who he was completely and must have been incredibly powerful.”
“So he’s not as deadly when he’s not being controlled?” Griff asks.
My smile is sharp, “He’s deadlier. But the Dimitri I knew had a moral compass, albeit a somewhat grey one.”
“And if someone threatened Neith, then all bets were off,” Coen grins.
“That might be why he wants to see you?” Reed suggests gently.
I start to nod, and I feel the hope begin to stir and squash it, “Or he could just be playing us all.”
“For what purpose?” Raiden asks softly. “He has nothing to gain.”
“We’ll leave it for now, but I did think that you should know,” Coen says. “It’s up to you what you do with that information. If you want to just ignore it, that’s fine, and I won’t bring it up again.”
I tilt my head slightly as I study his expression, “But?”
Coen smiles, and he gets up and comes around to my side of the table. Ransom lets go of my hand as Coen turns my chair and then crouches in front of me.
Taking one of my hands in his, he places his other hand on my cheek and says, “I completely understand if you don’t want to believe me, or if you need proof until you can believe it’s possible.
I get that you don’t trust him, and I don’t completely either.
But if it is true and he is being controlled like I was, I can’t just leave it, I can’t drop it. I have to do something.”
I nod, honestly, I get it. I really do understand.
“Okay, for the time being, I don’t want to be involved. I have been burned by Dimitri so many times that I can’t help but think that this is just a trick.”
“I get that,” Coen says. “I was thinking of trying to get in contact with Kar and seeing if he knew anything.”
I nod, “That would probably be a good idea. He’s always said that something wasn’t right. That’s why he stuck around when we left.”
“I know,” Coen replies.
“If you need a hand, let me know,” Griff offers. “He helped Neith when none of us could, and although that doesn’t excuse his behavior, it does mean that I’m willing to look into it if he really is being controlled.”
“Thanks, man,” Coen says with a surprised smile.
“Count me in as well,” Raiden offers. “I’m curious about a lot when it comes to Dimitri. I especially would like to know why I don’t like that he’s in prison.”
“Yeah, that is odd,” I mutter. “I mean, I know why I don’t like it, but none of you have any connection to him, it shouldn’t bother you at all.”
“Alright,” Van says, effectively ending the conversation, which I am incredibly grateful for. “We will leave that conversation for the moment and come back to it at a later date. Neith, did Sully get back to you? Did he find anything at the pub?”
I frown, and then fish my phone out of my pocket. I’d actually completely forgotten that I had called him, and he was checking to make sure that the Blue Fucker wasn’t watching his bar, or had hired people to watch his bar.
“Erm, sorry, I forgot to check. Yeah, he says he can’t find any sign of the Blue Fucker and that all of his staff have been thoroughly questioned under oath and everything is good,” I finally reply to Van as I read out the text.
Reed grins, “To be honest, I’m not surprised at all.
Sully is a scary motherfucker, and they’ve obviously got history.
I’m surprised that he was brave enough to get so close to Calia and Eamon.
He must have had some pretty strong warding or something on him in order to hide from them.
Although I suppose there is a lot of land, miles and miles of it, between the wolves' pack house and the compound house where Calia and Eamon live, although it was risky, it probably wasn’t that risky. ”
“Well, at least we don’t have to worry about Sully’s place being compromised,” Griff says, with a relieved sigh.
“Not for the moment at least,” I reply, my eyebrows drawing down.
The Blue Fucker needs to be gotten rid of for so many reasons, but now that he appears to have his focus set on me again, thanks to the Choosing exposing that I’m actually alive, it’s putting those I care about at risk, and that’s pissing me off.
“You should probably see when we can go over and speak to him about Murray,” Coen suggests.