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Bain headed down a wide corridor.
I gripped my suitcase handle until my knuckles turned white. Some of my nerves came from carrying the artefact. If the package wasn't intact, there wasn't anywhere in the world the Witches' Council wouldn't find me.
I would be rid of the bloody thing soon, thank Hades.
The corridor stopped.
I almost ran into Bain. I caught myself at the last moment and swore under my breath.
He turned to give me a dark look, which I ignored.
"Ummm." When I said the corridor stopped, that's exactly what I meant. We stood facing a blank, white wall.
Bain snorted and even Izzy grinned.
Yep, apparently they'd both lost their minds.
Bain pressed a spot in the wall and it disappeared like it never existed.
Okay, I should have known magic was involved. Duh.
I stepped out into a wide, sunlit courtyard, and blinked at the sudden light.
The courtyard was neatly paved and edged with flowers. To one side, a huge fountain rained down a tinkle of water. A number of creatures were carved into the base of the black stone. A dragon, several griffins and others I didn't know, flew in a frozen battle, wings spread, mouths open to attack. I wanted to walk around it, to see who they fought, but Bain cleared his throat.
"This way." He gestured, palm up, toward a doorway on the other side of the courtyard.
I gave the fountain a last look, nodded and followed. I managed not to gape at the grandeur of the gardens, and the variety of trees and flowers.
The trees were all fruiting ones, and harmless, and the flowers were all fragrant.
I kept my lips apart and breathed through my mouth to keep from drawing in too much scent. Still, power crept in, danced under my skin and into my blood.
The sensation was like a drug. I forced myself to maintain control, even though I wanted to draw it all in and drown in it.
I concentrated on Bain as he spoke. "The Keeper's residence is quite small," he began.
I turned a surprised look on him. "Small?" I echoed.
He raised an eyebrow at me. He almost looked as though he might give me a mocking smile, but only managed a twitch at the corners of his mouth.
"Compared to other places in the Vault it is. The Alpha's residence, for example. This building is still twice the size of the Witches' Council, as befitting the Keeper of the Vault." He looked smug.
I shrugged. "The Council has to hide out in the open." Like I gave a fuck if the buildings in here dwarfed anything of the witches’. As far as I was concerned, they could all go to Hades.
"Indeed." He nodded once.
I followed him through the doorway and into what looked like a residence. Once my eyes grew accustomed to the abundance, perhapsoverabundance, of red and gold, Simple furniture, albeit well-made, was placed to make the best use of light from wide windows. Every table bore a vase of flowers, all fresh as if picked only moments before. The scent of the room would have overpowered even normal folk, but Bain didn't seem to notice. Perhaps he was accustomed to the cloying smell.
"Ah, this is Viva." An older woman stepped from a corridor and moved toward us with an easy grace. Her grey hair was tied in a neat bun, but she wore loose pants and a blouse in bright turquoise, which matched the casual way she spoke. A choker in the same shade sat at her throat, unadorned apart from light embroidery in the shape of vines.
"Calista Breakwater." Bain gave the woman a nod. "This is Viva Taylor. Calista is the Keeper's aunt."
I smiled, awkward and lopsided with anxiety. "Nice to meet you, Ms Breakwater." I had heard Calista was a formidable woman. She radiated power in her bearing and the steel in her eyes.
She gave me a shrewd look before her face melted into a warm smile which drew me to her immediately.
In the next moment, I reminded myself to be on guard. A friendly face could still mean a blade in my back.
