Page 55 of A City of Hearts and Feathers

"Cut it out, you two," Arslan said as they pulled into traffic.

"Keep your eyes on the road, old man," Kahil clapped back.

Zoe tried to focus on the city and the change in landscape as they drove. Lydia lived on a private estate just outside of Sariyer. It backed onto the Belgrade Forest, and it screamed wealthand privilege. There were security guards at the entrance, both armed and serious looking.

Kahil snorted when he saw them. "Look at these fucking amateurs."

"Play nice. We aren't here to start any fights with their inferior security guards," Arslan chided him softly. He lowered the car window and said, "Zoe Kartal, here to see Lydia at her request."

"Go on through to the temple entrance. They're waiting for you," the guard replied, pressing a button on the fence to open the gates for them.

Arslan put his window back up before looking at Kahil in the rear-view mirror.

"I wasn't going to come with you, merely be on the property as back-up, but if she wants to meet Zoe in the temple, I'm not going to risk leaving either of you alone."

"Why? What is wrong with the temple?" Zoe asked, looking at Kahil.

"Too few exits. You'll see what we mean," he replied. He ran his thumb over the back of the hand a few times, but Zoe wasn't sure if it was to reassure her or himself.

The driveway was a paved brick stone, and on either side were trees and verdant gardens. It was like they had driven into an old-growth forest, and Zoe found it a little disorientating after spending so much time in the city. They drove past another road that Kahil said went to the mansion, but they kept going further into the forest.

"Is it me or is there something weird about this place?" Zoe asked, staring at the looming trees.

"In what way?" Arslan replied.

"I don't know if I can explain it properly, but it's like it doesn't feel real."

Arslan winked at her in the rear-view mirror. "Not just a pretty face, are you? What you are feeling is Lydia's magic. These grounds were cultivated unnaturally fast using earth magic. Everything is real, but it doesn't feel aged like a real forest would."

"Lydia is all about her aesthetic," Kahil said with a roll of his eyes.

The trees thinned to reveal a parking lot, and they pulled up beside a shiny red Lamborghini. Zoe got out carefully, slightly paranoid that she would accidentally bump against the gorgeous car.

The sun was setting as they followed a torch lined path through the trees. Zoe was suddenly very glad to have Kahil on one side of her and Arslan on the other. The sense of magic that she had been feeling since they entered the estate now grew even stronger.

A group of women waited at the front of an entrance into a cave. There was a torch on either side of it, and it was strewn with flowers. The pretty decorations did nothing to hide the ominous feeling Zoe got when she looked at the black gash in the rock.

"What kind of priestess did you say Lydia was?" she asked. She suddenly wanted to take Kahil's hand and get the fuck out of there.

"She serves Kybele, an ancient Anatolian goddess. Some have likened her to the Greek Rhea, and in Rome she was called the Magna Mata, the great mother," Arslan explained.

A priestess came forward. "She was ancient, child, before the Greeks and the Romans ever came to this place. The high priestess honors you tonight to let you even enter such a sacred place. She's waiting for you inside. The lions will guide you."

"Lions?" Zoe squeaked out. Golden eyes glowed in the dark entranceway, and a lioness appeared. Zoe had never seen one soclose before, and she backed up into Kahil. He placed a warm hand on her back.

"Don't worry. They are well trained and won't hurt you," he said softly.

"I will go first," Arslan added quickly and stepped in front of Zoe. The priestesses had smiles on their faces that Zoe didn't like. She knew intimidation when she saw it, but she had seen Kahil fight, so she tried not to let it bother her. She had thought the idea of bodyguards extreme, but now she felt relieved to have people on her side.

"I'm right behind you,balim," Kahil whispered in her ear, his breath warm on the back of her neck.

Zoe followed Arslan into the darkness of the cave. She thought it was going to smell damp and earthy. Instead, the air was warm and heavy with incense. Zoe hoped she wasn't breathing in anything that would make her hallucinate. With the way things had been going with enchanted songs and poisoned wine, it wouldn't be a shock to her that Lydia would try to get her high.

Zoe felt a large body bump against her leg, and as her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she saw they were surrounded by lionesses. She dared to let her hand brush against the silvery fur of the one beside her. It sent a thrill of danger and awe through her. Did her father ever make this strange journey through the darkness? She couldn't remember seeing Lydia's name in his organizer unlike his weekly catch-up with Akamos. She didn't know what that said about Oman. If he was dark, Arslan wouldn't have offered him a position in the Order. Zoe didn't want to think too hard about it.

It wasn't lost on her that Akamos had surrounded himself with as much light as possible while Lydia chose to have her temple deep in the dark earth. Zoe didn't know what to make of any of it. Kahil had told her that it was easier to go with thetide, and she was starting to understand why. She could go crazy asking questions and second-guessing everything.

The narrow pathway opened to a main cavern, and Zoe bit back a gasp. There were other cave passages leading into the unknown. Some of the doorways were filled with priestesses looking down at her; others were pitch black. They reminded Zoe of the photos she had seen about the underground cities in Cappadocia.

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