Soulmates were a fabled tale, passed down through generations, that spoke of someone with the power to bring you back from death or completely sunder your soul. Ilaria Celestino had never put much stock in the fabled tales as a pair of soulmates had...
The nervous chuckle that spilled out of Ilaria's lips unbidden made her want to die on the spot. She should have prepared better for this. What to say? What did he already know about them? Surely not much. There wasn't much to know now that she thought about it.
She glanced over to Lord Kiernan, trying her best to smile, but her mouth felt like it was sewn shut.
However, Lord Kiernan seemed perfectly at ease as he leaned back in the chair. "Well, that's a very long story. We wouldn't dare take up so much of your time."
"Not at all. I'm fascinated by the idea of soulmates, and since one of our very own lords has managed to find himself one, I'm even more curious about the prospects." Evercrest folded his large hands over his protruding stomach. "How did you know you were soulmates? Was it an innate knowledge?"
"Well, I can only speak for myself, of course, but I always knew I had a soulmate." Lord Kiernan smiled warmly at the other man. "It was just something I knew and accepted as a young boy. I doubted I would ever find her, but luck was on my side."
He was being so sweet. Warmth spread through her shoulders and seeped into her chest. Staring up at him, her heart throbbed with desire.
"And what about you, dear? Did you always know?"
That longing immediately melted away when she met Evercrest's gaze. "Oh, no. I didn't know. I never knew or believed they existed." She glanced over at Lord Kiernan, then down at her hands as her cheeks heated. "It was quite the shock to discover that I have always belonged to someone."
"Did you have another beau? Someone else you fancied?" Evercrest's bushy eyebrows lifted.
She could feel Lord Kiernan staring at her, burning a hole into her skin. Golden eyes flashed through her memory. "No. I haven't had much time in the past to enjoy such past times."
The older man chortled, belly jiggling with the action. "Almost as if you knew, deep down, someone else was there. My, my! I have read many, many stories about soulmates. Never thought I'd come across a living pair. Surely you've done the reading?"
As Ilaria shook her head, Lord Kiernan nodded. "I have. It's amazing how much makes sense after you've read the stories. Though, I think much of it is a bit fantastical."
Evercrest's dark eyes glittered. "So the legends of beings from beyond our world being in contact with you isn't true?"
Something moved in Ilaria's periphery. Turning to look, she scanned the shadows moving on the wall. Had she had too much to drink already? That was nearly impossible. She had barely had two sips.
A low chuckle emanated from Lord Kiernan's throat, his hand on hers moving to wave carelessly through the air. "I didn't say that, did I? No, other tidbits about soulmates aren't true. Deals with devils, though? That's very much real."
Something replaced the joy in Evercrest's eyes, and Ilaria wondered if it was fear. "What do you mean?"
"You invited us here," Lord Kiernan moved to rest his elbows on his knees, "to see if there was a way to exploit us. Soulmates have strong connections. A soulmate removed from their partner could be easily manipulated in any number of ways. Do not think I am naïve just because I am younger than you."
The shadows in the room grew darker.
Closer.
Ilaria pressed into Kiernan's side, glancing about the room as the shadows came to life.
Evercrest saw it, too. She could tell by the way his pudgy hands gripped each other until the fingertips turned white. "Are you threatening me?"
Kiernan rose to his feet, dark eyes dancing in the firelight. "Not at all, your lordship. You are not worth the breath. However, if you thought that you could easily pull us into your grasp, you are highly mistaken. I have seen things that would make you quiver like a cur. I have made friends with the things that lurk in the shadows. Have you?"
Lord Evercrest struggled to get to his feet, spittle flecking his lower lip as he seethed. "You lowly little pipsqueak! How dare you come into my home and speak to me like this?"
Ilaria caught something moving just beyond the large man. Something tall and lithe. There and yet not. It moved within the shadows, a form that took shape and then was nothing. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Her mouth ran dry as her stomach turned on itself.
Something other was here.
"You have something we want," Kiernan continued, lifting his chin.
Lord Evercrest sneered at him. "And what is that?"
"My dear Ilaria's father is in prison. Release him."
The fat man guffawed, outrage enflaming his eyes. "What right do you have to demand that of me? Leave now before I call my guards."
Lord Kiernan smiled. A slow smile spread across his lips, turning his features sharper. "You wouldn't get the chance."
Evercrest moved, and Ilaria thought he intended to push past them, but he never got the chance.
The shadows overwhelmed him. His mouth extended to scream, but he was silenced. Smoky and thick, they wrapped around his form like a shroud and shoved him back into his chair. Tendrils wrapped around the man's thick wrists, effectively trapping him to the furniture.
Ilaria gasped, pushing herself back into the couch to put more space between her and the thing. What the hell was that?
Struggling, the man's wide eyes flicked between Kiernan and herself. His words were muffled by the shadows.
Blinking, she watched in horror as the shadow became more solid. A being taller than any human or elf towered over the man in the chair. Its head was elongated, extending back into the shadow before it disappeared. Two orange flecks peered back at her, intense and piercing. Mists of shadow floated off of the being as it stood there, effortlessly holding Evercrest in place.
She knew it. She had seen it downstairs, floating from shadow to shadow. Ilaria took in several breaths, tears forming in her eyes as she beheld the creature. What was it?
Kiernan turned to Ilaria, taking a knee to look her in the eyes. "Look at me, Ilaria."
Look at him? No way. Not when that thing was right there. Shaking her head, she kept her gaze pinned on the being.
"He will not harm you. Trust me." Warm hands encapsulated hers, finally drawing her attention back to him. Kiernan smiled. "He will not harm Evercrest, either. Allow me to save your father."
No words came to mind. Ilaria only nodded, squeezing his hands firmly in hers.
Nodding, Kiernan rose to his feet and turned to the other lord. The softness to his face was gone, replaced by a dangerous light flickering in his eyes. "Let me show you why they call me the Devil of the Spire."
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