Why did he sound so damn matter-of-fact, relaxed even?
"So what do we do?" Chloe asked him.
Levi was staring at Catherine too intensely for Bash's liking.
"A few things can stop Stormhale magic, right, Cat?"
He knew the answer, that much was clear. He was testing Catherine, seeing if she was prepared to turn her back on her clan. Her family.
She nodded.
"Yes. Another Stormhale, for one. We're not allowed to fight each other with our lightning. If two powerful mages from my family truly attacked each other, the blast would burn everything and everyone in the vicinity to ashes."
"Indeed. And what else?"
She bit her lip, frowning a little. "Water. We're immune to most air magic, and lightning can't hurt us. But if we're in water…"
She didn't finish her sentence, gasping as she understood Levi's point at the same time as Bash.
"You could electrocute them all," Bash guessed. "If they turn up at the gates, you could flood them when they call their magic.”
Levi smiled. "The so-called lake behind the hill is no natural pool. It's a canal I carved. Not without reason. It’s a dangerous tool, because I’d risk hurting our side, too, but we’re not defenseless. However, with the Beauforts, all their mages, and who knows how many slayers, Drusilla could potentially take Oldcrest."
Shit.
"So, I assume we have a plan." At least, Bash hoped so.
"Indeed. We make alliances of our own. We have everything we need right here, but we're still missing trust. While the wolves stick to their borders and the vampires glare at the witches, the huntsmen stay among themselves. While we can't tell who might be working for the Stormhales, for the Beauforts, for the queen, it's unlikely that we can fight as one. I will need you to cross those bridges. All three of you, along with everyone else."
"I'm game." Chloe's quick agreement was unsurprising.
Catherine and Bash nodded.
Bash thought he knew what his mission would be. Talk to Jack. Speak to the huntsmen about opening up to the bloodsuckers.
"Good. Bash, I want you to start a self-defense class. In your spare time, you will train whoever wants to sign up. Level: beginners. Chloe, you will move from the dorm and take up residence where you belong." She opened her mouth to protest against moving in with him, no doubt, but Levi ended his sentence, surprising them all, with, "In Skyhall."
The house at the very top of the hill that Eirikr had built, the house her ancestors had inhabited until they were slaughtered.
“Why? That makes no sense. How would that help at all?”
"The world is changing, ma belle. It changed when you were turned. There hasn't been order on this hill since the days of the Eirikrsons. We have dozens of queens, ten kings. The person who plays at being queen on her island never had a chance. Our world has barely acknowledged her until today. But now, because you and Tom changed, whether we like it or not, Night Hill is once again seen as the seat of power to our kind. We are the true immortal power in this world. And there will be challenges. From the Stormhales, from the queen, from the Drakes, the Helsings, the Beauforts, the Rosedeans, and just about everyone who believes they can take our seat. My family, perhaps. Making our allies believe they stand a chance will take everything we have. They won’t fight for a dream. But they might fight for a place in an empire. Our homes are kingdoms. The seats of power for each of our houses. The world sees them that way, so it's time we do, too. Skyhall is no house. It’s a throne."
"You're saying they will see more of a reason to fight if we reinstate the order. If I march into Skyhall and act like I own it."
"You do own it. If our students are afraid, they'll look to the Hill. Its strongest holdfast cannot remain empty."
Chloe remained silent, and Levi moved on to Catherine. "As for you—"
She braced herself, ready for the worst.
"You will start an afternoon tea club in your house on the hill."
Bash thought about their orders. "You're trying to make us seem less threatening."
"We'll always be a threat to our enemies. I'm trying to show our potential friends who we are underneath the violence and bloodthirst. It's time to open this hill. We're enough, if we're together. This is just the first step to uniting Oldcrest.”
Bash could tell Chloe was trying to work out a way to protest, but Levi turned to them. “You had something to say, Cat."
She nodded. "I think you may not know the recent developments among my family."
Levi inclined his head. "You're probably right."
"My mother is a Stormhale, and she married one of the family slayers thirty years ago. I'm their first child; my little sister is the second. But my brother…" Catherine knotted her hands on her lap.
She hated speaking about her siblings.
"My half-brother isn't like Drusilla. He doesn't share her limits. He might be young, but he's…something else. If Drusilla gets him to fight us, he'd burn you all to a crisp before you can even think to use whatever magic you may possess."
Levi lifted one brow.
"Every mage needs time."
"Yes. But my brother's father was a scion. You may need a minute. Seth will be ready in a fraction of a second."
Levi groaned. "I hate nephilim." He turned to Bash. "Call Jack."
Catherine winced. "This is not common knowledge. If the information gets out, my family will know it came from me."
"Jack can keep a secret," Chloe promised.
"Besides, we need him to know what to expect. If he hears this now, he might get his shit together and prepare accordingly."
Bash wasn't fond of the turn in the conversation. "Jack is always prepared for a fight."
"Yes, yes." Levi was dismissive. "He gets his friends to run around the territory and attends whatever class he's supposed to take. But he does nothing to better himself. And right now, we need Jack Hunter."
He wanted to defend his friend, but come to think of it, had Bash ever seen Jack exert himself? He ran alongside them without breaking a sweat and while wearing suits. When he sparred with his cousin, he didn't even pant.
Bash knew what Jack was—every huntsman did. The kid of their High Guard and a minor god. The blood of a huntsman mixed with that of a true immortal.
What were his limits?
It irked Bash that Levi seemed to know more than he did about his best friend.
He nodded and pulled out his phone, sending a quick text.
We need to talk.
Wings and Fury
Cat didn't know why she was tagging along with Bash, but he hadn't protested, so she followed him down the west flank of the hill toward the lake.
They found the gate closed. Bash tried to open it, and winced.
"Shit. The bloody thing shocked me. Magic shields."
Cat chuckled. "Here, let me."
She stepped forward and opened it, ignoring his protests. The handle gave in when she tugged it down.
"Stormhale, remember? The hill is warded against outsiders."
Bash rolled his eyes, muttering something probably true about nepotism.
They spotted Jack by the lakeside as soon as they turned down the path. He was standing in front of the lake, practicing the violin. Although he hit a few wrong notes, the man played with feeling and skill. A rendition of a pop song Cat couldn't remember. It had never sounded quite so good.
He finished the song and turned to greet them.
"I didn't know you played," Sebastian said.
Jack shrugged. "I used to as a kid. I stopped after moving here. I didn't have an instrument."
"You could have bought one," Catherine pointed out.
"I didn't have the time," Jack amended. "Besides, I mostly played for my mother. No one here would care to listen to an average violinist. But I digress. Your text said you had to speak to me urgently."
Bash nodded. "Yeah. Something Levi said."
Cat saw Jack's back stiffen and his eyes narrow.
"I know what the Leviathan wants of me," he replied. "Just because he embraces being a monster doesn't mean the rest of us have to. Is that all?"
"There have been developments. Levi thinks we may need your monster. Whatever that is."
Sebastian glanced at Cat, and she could tell he wished she weren’t there.
"Look, I get it. I feel like that. Like I'm out of control. Like these new…gifts of mine make me a monster, because it feels unnatural. But it's who I am now. And whatever you are, you were born that way."
"You have no clue what you're talking about. You, Tris, even that damn sucker. You're human. Red blood runs in your veins. You may have been turned, infected, changed, but you're part of this world, made to exist on Earth."
"And you're not?" Sebastian snorted. "Your mom is a hunter, descended from the very first huntsman trained by Eirikr. The Venaris were the second. Whatever I am, we are brothers. The blood in our veins is the same. Or it was."
It happened so fast that Cat couldn’t have stopped it even if she’d been prepared. One moment they were all standing close together, and the next, she and Bash were both firmly pinned to the ground, her chest crushed under heavy weight. Cat was too shocked to even try to break free.
Two sets of humongous wings with pure white feathers had burst out of his back, destroying his suit in the process and pushing them down on their asses. Cat didn’t even think Jack had done it on purpose.
Jack’s wings moved, somewhat reluctantly, to extend at his sides. And now that he'd revealed his true form, his eyes were dark as night, hollow.
He tucked the wings behind him, and they slowly crawled back inside his skin. The glint in his eyes disappeared. Jack turned around. Four ugly scars ran from his neck to the bottom of his shoulder blades.
"Tell me we're the same now."
Sebastian was speechless.