Evigheden Read online

  Adjusting my sunglasses, I frowned at the sidewalk. The sun was too bright and the people who passed us on either side of the street were too damn happy. However, thanks to my friend I didn’t have to stay stuck in my mind for too long.

  Dristan sniffled beside me and wiped at his eyes under his sunglasses.

  “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  I didn’t wait for him to follow me into the bustling shop and grounded my teeth together as I took note of the long line and full tables. So much for not being crowded, I thought to myself as I fell in line behind some college students looking ten times their chronological age.

  “These fucking contacts hurt,” he hissed falling in line beside me.

  “Did you put them in wrong?” I wasn’t really worried about whether or not if his contacts were in wrong. He should’ve made sure the things were in right before rushing me from my bed.

  Being experiments, specifically designed to handle what the laws of the normal courts and society couldn’t handle. We had to keep a low profile and make sure we blended in with everyone else.

  Unfortunately, thanks to the mad scientists who had designed us, we had eye colors only CGI teams could think of. Which wouldn’t be so bad except people tended to not respect personal space or know when to compliment and be done. No, it was always the same thing, who gave you those eyes, your eyes are so pretty, can I have your eyes, and other bullshit questions that made no sense.

  Couple it with the constant one-night stands who tried to get pregnant just to bring a kid into this God-forsaken world for a pair of eyes, the scientists really did a number on all of their experiments.

  I didn’t know how many times I had to lash out and defend several members of my own sect because they couldn’t keep their eyes hidden, or more importantly, their dicks in their pants. I rolled my eyes on the thoughts and tried focusing in on what Dristan was saying.

  “Shit, probably, I’ll be back.” he didn’t waste any time beelining for the employee bathroom all the while digging at his eyes like fire ants were eating away at the jelly.

  I grunted, not bothering to say a word. It was his stupid idea to come out in the first place, now he wanted to complain about his contacts. Granted, sometimes we tended to not pay attention to the proper way of putting in the damned things.

  Staring at the menu I hadn’t even known it was my turn until a happy voice interrupted my internal debate about vanilla, hazelnut and just plain coffee.

  “What can I get you?”

  My eyes snapped up to see a young girl, easily in her early twenties with dark brown eyes and hair with blonde highlights. She was cute in an innocent type of way, but if we were at a club one night…well, I wouldn’t turn her down that’s for sure.

  Instead, I tried to think about what Dristan would want and what our code names were. What was our code names again? Pursing my lips, I just spit out the first thing that came to my mind.

  “Two mountain green, dark roast, large cups with crystal boba.”

  “Can I offer you a muffin or—”

  “I just want the coffee,” I said through a yawn, pulling out my wallet and handed her the cash. If I stood here any longer, I was probably going to go to sleep and wouldn’t that just open me up for a string of taunting jabs from my friend and subordinate.

  Dristan decided on that moment to emerge from the employee room with his contacts in place and his cheeks free of tears.

  “Names?” The young girl looked between Dristan and me, obviously trying to figure out the relationship and the most obvious get a look at our eyes. Underneath my hazel contacts were a dull gold-silver while under Dristan’s sky-blue contacts were a haunting gun smoke white.

  “Dean and Drake.” Dristan said eyeing the baked goods, “throw in one of those chocolate chip muffins and bacon croissants, please.”

  “Really?” I asked him.

  “I’m hungry,” he snapped under his breath as he handed the flirtatious girl the money.

  Stopping my urge to punch him in the face, I slapped him on the shoulder and headed for the back table pushed into a corner and plopped my ass in the seat closest to the corner and stared out the window.

  Sunny days, a headache out of this world and a need for sleep never made for a good cocktail. Granted, the headache was from my lack of sleep and maybe too many shots of whiskey last night. However, my friend had a point; I needed to collect my fees for Vance and see what—or rather who—was on my roster for the night.

  Narrowing my eyes on the scene outside of the coffee shop, I allowed my mind to wander in the shallow river of irrelevant thoughts.

  People living normal lives, going to their seemingly normal jobs with only their stories floating through their heads. Unlike Dristan and me, these people didn’t have to worry about keeping their identities hidden from the strangers around them.

  If we had been forced to live among these people bustling their way to jobs, breakfast dates, personal errands and whatever else I knew for a fact Dristan would fit in with the normal standards. Given his easy going personality and seemingly simple way of thinking, he’d always be a crowd favorite, hands down. But me? I was a fish out of the damn water.

  I didn’t like dealing with irrelevant conversations that only filled the space with noise. Taking orders from someone in a position higher than mine was like gargling with ornament hooks and just the idea of friends was beyond my ability to comprehend.

  I sighed heavily, pushing my hair back from my face. “Fuck,” shaking my head, I started to turn back to see just where Dristan was with the coffee when someone shifted into my line of sight and made me stop.

  Luminous River—otherwise known as Lysandra Ross— glanced over her shoulder before crossing the street and was shoving her hands in her jean pockets. For once her ombre slate gray hair was laying in loose waves down to her waist. While the late summer wind blew back the strands and showed off her outfit for the day.

  Narrowing my eyes on her, I took in her standard black threads. Tight black jeans, a fitted long waisted tee shirt with the sleeves covering her hands. Her knee-high boots allowed her the ability to kick ass, should the occasion arise. However as I looked closer at her, I didn’t see her beloved whip; maybe it was thanks to the tightness of her shirt and pants she couldn’t bring it with her. Then again, the thought didn’t make sense. Even I had my sword hidden under my pant leg.

  Tilting my head toward her, I took notice of the Chanel bag hung on her shoulder and smirked. I was willing to bet the weapon in question was probably hidden within the confines of the leather bag.

  Judging from the oversized sunglasses she was wearing, I had a feeling she was either hungover from a long night of stress drinking. Then again, she could be dealing with the same demon Dristan was with her contacts.

  I smirked again, just watching her make her way toward the very coffee shop I was in. So, Gold and Honor weren’t the only guard members who frequented the little shop when someone forced us to wake up before the sunset. Good to know, considering I was like a damn moth to Luminous’s flame.

  Tracking her like a hawk, I wondered just what was going on in her mind. Naturally, her face was unreadable and her gaze behind the sunglasses gave away nothing. But who was I kidding? I had a nosey itch in my bones just begging to be scratched and fighting the urge to not go to her was like fighting a bull bare handed. An extremely stupid idea.

  “What in Sam Hill are you smiling at?” Dristan finally made his appearance from the congested line at the counter.

  Shoving my own coffee in my hand, he glanced out the window to locate the source of my smile.

  Keeping an eye on Luminous my smile faltered as I took the coffee, “I have gas.”

  Raising a brow at me, he lowered the cup from his mouth before finally shrugging, “well, keep it over there.”

  I snorted and kept watching Luminous out of the corner of my eye. It was hard to not growl in frustration when I saw the jackass walking beside her, running his fucking
mouth ninety-to-nothing.

  Lovett Joker O’Qhuinn was probably the most nauseating person I’d ever known in my life. Maybe it was because of the way he clung to Luminous like a wet suit. Maybe it was the fact he thought he was better than anyone in any of the guards.

  Whatever the case was, I hated the kid. Especially after he handled the red order assigned to Svenia. Overstepping—no matter the position—was out of the question and warranted a punishment. Unfortunately, as long as the son of a bitch was hanging on Luminous’s arm, I couldn’t do anything. Not to mention the little—monumental fact—Svenia had stepped off into Silver territory knowing full well it wasn’t her place.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you now?” Dristan’s voice cut through my venomous thoughts toward the other man and brought my attention around to my friend.

  “Nothing.”

  He made a face before looking over his shoulder toward the entrance of the shop where Luminous and Lovett were quickly approaching. Finally, he shook his head and turned back to face me.

  “Why are you jealous of some dude?”

  Tearing my narrowed eyed gaze away from the happy couple I stared at my friend, “I’m not. Hurry up and finish your coffee so we can go.”

  “You need to calm the hell down,” Dristan grumbled and went back to nursing his coffee and picking apart his chocolate chip muffin.

  “What?”

  He nodded to my empty coffee cup, or rather what was supposed to be a cup. The paper thing was now crumbled in my hand and slowly dripping the excess of the caffeine.

  Tossing the thing, I rolled my eyes and wiped my hands on a napkin.

  “Rumor has it,” Dristan mumbled as he picked up his coffee, “the ball this year is going to be something special.”

  “Meaning?” I asked, not entirely interested in what the three guards had come up with for the annual gathering.

  The Moonlight Mask Ball was the only time Silver, Gold and the dreaded Honor guards were allowed to act as if they weren’t opposing sides and nothing more than a group of associates.

  For whatever reason Onyx Elite and the scientists who had programmed us had gotten the bright idea to come up with this annual event to force all of the experiments to come together like one big happy family. Unfortunately, none of us felt the same way as the scientists. So much so, for the past few years we had had problems even the scientists couldn’t tame us. From bloody and broken fights to near-death experiences, the ball had forced the judges to change a few of the rules.

  Granted, the changes were simple enough; no weapons, masks must cover partial or all of the face and nobody was allowed to talk about any guard business while under the roof of the banquet hall. No red orders were to be executed before, during, or after the ball ended for the night. In truth, it was simplicity at its finest, but in reality the scientists as well as Onyx Elite were overreaching when it came to expecting us to remain on our best behavior.

  “Apparently the colors this year are black, silver, gold and red.”

  “Combing all the colors of the guards and the black courts?”

  “Exactly, anyone can wear any of those colors and get away with it. Because you know,” he motioned to his face, “the masks and whatever.”

  “Right,” I checked my watch, still uninterested in the ball. “Let’s go, I want to go back to sleep as soon as I can.”

  Not giving Dristan a chance to respond, I shoved my way from the chair and left the little coffee shop before either Lovett or Luminous could see us. We didn’t need to see each other and right now. And if we did, I couldn’t promise anyone I wasn’t going to hurt Lovett.

  Dealing with Luminous’s smart mouth or Lovett’s over willingness to show off his fighting ability wasn’t in the best interest of anyone. Besides Lovett wasn’t as skilled as Dristan with his footwork or as talented as myself with his longsword. The only thing he had on anyone was his brute strength.

  “Why are you scowling now?” Dristan caught up with me in a matter of seconds and scanned the busy streets.

  “I’m not,” I really needed to learn the art of controlling my facial expressions. At this rate I was going to face the Honor Guard’s shooting range if I didn’t pull my shit together.

  “Yeah, ok, anyway you know Svenia is getting her merits removed and a lashing out of this world, right?”

  “I figured as much. That’s the kind of thing that happens when you make the mistake of stepping out of our territory into Silver’s.”

  “It was her red order to fulfill, though.”

  “I’m aware of that.”

  “Then why aren’t you doing something about it?”

  “Because, Dristan, it was her decision to not lure the offender back into our territory. I’m not going to get in the middle of Onyx Elite’s rules.”

  “I’m not saying— “

  “Just stop, Dristan, that’s an order,” I warned and spun on him, “what she did was wrong, and she has to answer for the problems she caused. She knew what to do and how to do it. Therefore, I am not going to intervene with the punishment she brought onto herself. Do you understand?”

  He raised a quizzical brow at me and crossed his arms as we stopped in front of an abandoned building.

  “What good is she going to be if the guard ruins her limbs completely?”

  Indifference had become a friend of mine when it came to feeling anything for my guard members. I didn’t make it a case and point to check on my friends and really didn’t care as far as their feelings and sufferings went. It was easier to not care about others, especially when we faced death every single night. There was really no reason to develop any kind of feelings for anyone.

  Taking a deep breath, I looked around to make sure nobody was eyeing us or trying to find out what we were doing.

  “I don’t care what is happening with her and you would be wise to get in line with me. She made her bed now she has to lay in it.” Pushing through the worn door without so much as a backward glance to him, I took a look around the seemingly normal lobby style room.

  “Heartless bastard, aren’t you?” Dristan tossed his empty cup into the trash before following me down the hidden staircase to the Gold Guard’s headquarters.

  “Don’t you just love it?” I pushed open the door and had to frown at the scene before me. “What the hell happened now?”

  Guard members of all ranks and stations were yelling over one another while the monitors displaying the daytime news flickered in and out of focus. In fact, everyone was acting as if someone above us were dead which wouldn’t make any sense because if that were the case. All of our superiors would be blowing up our phones demanding answers.

  “It’s fucking anarchy in here,” Dristan frowned as he looked around the room.

  As if the yelling weren’t bad enough, fingers were being pointed, arguments were being torn apart at the seams and if we didn’t get everything under control sooner rather than later, I was worried Onyx Elite would send their hounds through the tunnels just to shut Gold Guard up permanently.

  “Probably because of Silver Guard’s special angel killing off our top commanders.” Svenia took residence on my other side and stared at the officers continuing to make their protests over the nonsense.

  “What?” Dristan and I looked at her in confusion.

  It was hard not noticing her bruises or the fresh cuts littering her face. Nothing about her current state made me happy or want to jump for joy. I wasn’t such a heartless fuck I didn’t want to apologize for being callous towards her the other night. But at the same time, if I showed her mercy then everyone in my guard—and Onyx Elite—would question my authority. Not to mention try to depose me as sect leader.

  Nonetheless, bruises or not, she raised a perfectly manicured brow at us while a sinister smirk kissed her thin lips.

  “Luminous River was the one behind the deaths of our commander’s deaths.”

  “What?” I asked again, this time a little more forcefully than I intended. Shaking
my head at her screwed look, I pinched the bridge of my nose. “What do you mean she killed our commanding officers?” I may not have been close to Luminous, but I had damned near stalked her for half of the night and knew she wouldn’t so something so stupid.

  “Hard to believe right?” Svenia’s smirk grew into a full-blown smile as she nodded, “Luminous River, sect leader of Silver Guard, squadron eight, took that god-awful whip of hers and sliced and diced Rollings, Blankend, and Songz.”

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I knew Luminous to be heartless, headstrong, and on certain occasions trigger happy. But what had the top three Gold Guard members done to deserve her wrath? Especially with her whip. The woman was worse than a fucking western cowboy. She knew how to throw the damn thing and knew moreover how to kill someone with it before her opponent could even think about their own move.

  Still it didn’t make sense to kill people—no matter the guard—above her station. She was the furthest thing from stupid, but if she had really done this the obvious question was why?

  I opened my mouth to ask Svenia for the specific details of what had happened when the unmistakable warning tone of the BCs summoning alarm overtook the office, forcing everything to go deathly silent.

  “Judges of Onyx Elite are requesting an audience with sect leader Demir Losett of squadron ten.”

  My heart stopped and my brain backfired. This was not happening. Not right now. The only reason the judges of Onyx Elite would want to see me would be to assign me a Diamond Order or worse, a Black Diamond Order. Both of which were only reserved for the worst of the worst when it came to human beings, experiments and otherwise.

  I swallowed the bile rising in my throat, trying to think of any and every avenue to ignore the judges’ orders and what was coming down the pipeline. There was no way I was going to believe the report Svenia had shown me until the judges demanded an explanation and evidence. At least that was the deal I was making with myself for the time being.