Queen Alpha (NYC Mecca #2)(10)
My voice was filled with steel when I addressed the council this time. “Well, it’s my wish that you unseal them and allow my palace magic born to look them over. Times of war require us to take some risks. We may all die either way, but it’s better to stand true and fight than to cower in ignorance and hope for the best. You will show me this room after the meeting, and I will do as I see fit with the information within. Do I make myself clear?”
I let the mecca energy leak from me, and that, teamed with the pure command and arrogance of my order, had the council looking very uncomfortable. Some even took a step back to distance themselves from me. I hated playing the dominating queen, but I was starting to see that a firm hand was required at times. Especially with the council. They were old and powerful, used to having all the knowledge and manipulating things behind the scenes. Not happening on my rule any longer.
Despite a few dirty looks, no one argued with me again, so I moved on. “Next thing on our agenda is the alpha meeting. How much do you think it is wise for us to reveal to them? What actions are we going to request from them? I agree it’s not time to tell the general shifter population yet, but the leaders should know almost as much as we do. I expect them to start training their shifters to see and understand the signs of the Tuatha de Danann. Water is an issue. We must have guards assigned to large bodies of water around our packs. Our magic born need to be recalled to the royal mansion. They’ll have to start working with me and the bear king. We need to take action now before it’s too late.”
Torine addressed me, his features without any expression: “You said there were fae who would stand with us. How are we to know the difference between those who are our enemy and those who are our allies?”
Good question. My knowledge of the Tuatha de Danann was practically nonexistent, but I had been reading as much as I could about the history of fae from the book Kade had given me. It let me in on a few of their secrets, and after meeting that fae in Astoria Park I had to believe that some of them didn’t want us dead. She had come to warn me, and said she’d be back when she had more information.
“The Otherworld is apparently divided into two main sections, each of them ruled by a king or queen, and they are each in possession of a treasure … or weapon … which they use to control the mecca and rule their people. They battle among themselves, trying to take the other’s power. The Otherworld is much smaller than Earth, a landmass akin to the size of America. We have met only one side. They call themselves the light fae, which I’m coming to understand is the court of summer. The dark fae are from the court of winter. There are smaller courts within those, the Spring Court and Fall Court. I have no idea of their power, or whether they have weapons also. At the moment it looks as if the dark court is trying to destroy us and the light is our ally. How to tell them apart … I have no idea.”
“What are these weapons?” one of the councilmen asked, seeming intrigued.
I shook my head. “We don’t know for sure. The history vaguely suggests that a spear and sword are two of them, but this may not even be true.”
“Why are they attacking us?” Glenda asked, her voice ringing out, wavering with intensity. “I truly don’t understand what we can offer them. They already have equal mecca power on their side of the veil. Why now? Why kill the Red Queen?”
Intensity was good. It meant they were finally starting to believe me, to believe it was the fae who killed the Red Queen and not some sort of sneak attack the bears were trying to foist off onto another enemy.
Before I could answer her, a low voice cut through the room. “The mecca is compromised.” The basement area fell silent and at first I wondered which of the council had spoken, until I realized it was none of them. Finn started to growl low and menacing, and if I had been the stranger in our midst, I’d have been very nervous. My familiar slid his massive body around until it was before me.
A huge male stepped up out of the shadows and I wondered how long he’d been there. I recognized him straight away: Seamus, the male magic born of our packs. His hair was pure white, like his skin, although he seemed to have a little more color than many of the others. His icy-blue eyes cut through me and a shiver traversed my spine. He was powerful and determined. I could see that in the way he strode across the room.
“The mecca is visible to my eye now. It was never this way before the Red Queen fell. The balance is no more and the fae will come for the power. They will destroy us all to get it.”
I didn’t like the way he had crept into our meeting, but magic born had a way of doing that. Ignoring my instinct to reprimand him, I turned back to the council. “Seamus is right, the power is no longer balanced. This is what the light fae told us. She said that the dark now want to rule Earth, and they plan on taking it soon.”
Returning my gaze to Seamus, I let hard eyes linger on him for a few extra seconds. My power was judging and assessing him. I saw nothing of concern, but I would remain on guard. There was an offness about him. Even Finn felt it.
My next words were lower, contemplative. “What I don’t understand is why the queen’s death changed the mecca. It was the catalyst for all of this. What was she up to in those days before she died? What did she see or know which caused the Tuatha to send out a hit on her and all the heirs? In the Otherworld, the light and dark battle all the time, but we have never been part of it.”