AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And Solis is a beast unlike any other,” he says.
“Why is it too dangerous, though?” I ask. “In my experience, you just have to know your way around a city to protect yourself. And I would think the Gifted are powerful enough that you don’t have to worry about someone else hurting you.”
“Because—and this is something you should learn now, before you get entrenched in Ganivet politics—anyone could be an enemy agent.”
His eyes sweep down my form and back up again, like he knows exactly what I am. I just give him a confused glance. “What?” I ask.
“Nothing,” he says. “You look lovely.”
To my surprise, we turn left and Keon guides me up the spiral staircase. We pass the second floor, then the third. As far as I can tell, the compound is designed to confuse anyone who doesn’t know its passages, probably in case of invasion from a rival gang. “Can I get a map of this place?” I ask. “I feel like I’m going to get lost.”
Keon snorts. “We wouldn’t have survived this long if we handed out maps to whoever visits the compound,” he says. “I don’t know how long you’ll last.”
I frown. “Has Atlas been married before?”
“No,” Keon says. “He didn’t even want to marryyou, actually.”
“That, I did know,” I mutter, “but thanks for reminding me.”
“Thanks to my makeover, you’re going to stun him, though,” he says. “But until we know if you’re staying…no, you don’t get a map.”
I can hear music and voices from the fourth level, and as we walk, I realize the ceiling is nothing but a massive skylight. The voices get louder, a strange, rhythmic music pulsing through me. I don’t recognize the instruments—I’ve never heard Aelyd music before—and it seems to reverberate down into the pit of my stomach…or maybe that’s just Keon messing with me again.
“Are you ready?” he asks.
“For what?” I say.
“The party.” We reach the top of the stairs, where a ring of dark curtains surrounds us. On the other side, I hear the mingled voices hush, and my heart skips a beat when Keon takes my arm. “It’s right outside.”
I look at him with wide eyes. “I didn’t realize it would already be crowded.”
“Everyone is here to gawk,” he says. “And you’re going to wow them all.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
?
PENN
The curtain opens onto a solarium that takes up the whole fourth floor.
And there are at least a hundred people here.
Dozens of gleaming gold, silver, and onyx faces turn toward me, eyes of every color boring into me. I’m used to pressure, to being looked at—at least to a certain extent. But this is on a whole other level, the upper crust of Aelydon all gathered here to inspect Atlas’ new toy.
And none of them are wearing glowing clothes.
“I thought you were going to help me fit in,” I hiss at Keon.
I glance his way to see that he’s chuckling to himself, his arms crossed as he throws me to the wolves. “Why fit in when you could stand out?”
The crowd, which is almost all male, drinks me in like they’re dying of thirst. A few men even lick their metallic lips, long tongues sliding over smirking lips. Most are dressed in dark suits much like the ones you might see on Earth, though their jackets fold over in the front and have high, uneven collars. Their eyes are a rainbow of color, and I wish there was some consistency to what those colors mean, but Aelyd emotions are more complex than that.
If I had to guess, I would assume most of them are feeling something akin to lust.
They start to speak again amongst themselves when they realize there’s no big announcement coming–that I don’t do tricks or have a little song and dance prepared. Keon stays at my side, taking my elbow once again to lead me through the crowd.
Their skin is in every tone of metal, and now that I’m looking around, I don’t see a single woman here. I had hoped I might catch sight of Layla, but the room is full only of towering Aelyd males, some with a feral look in their eyes. That my best friend isn’t here actually seems like a bad sign, since I think everyone who’s anyone on Aelydon would be at this party.
