Page 53 of Elemental Hope
“This won’t take long. I don’t think there’s any need for us to come back out to the cottage. I’ve made an arrangement with Imelda.”
Evrain swallowed. “Okay.”
“You will provide the blood she requires. In return, she will leave you alone. Members of the Octis Coven will observe. She has agreed that Nathaniel and I can also be present.”
“You trust her?”
“In this, I think I do. This way, she gets what she wants. The Coven witness her success, consolidating her position as leader. And she avoids any more destruction of Octis property. She won’t be so careless this time,” he said. “Yesterday’s fiasco damaged the trust that the coven members had in her ability to act in their interest.”
Gregory’s words sent a chill through Evrain’s body. The situation was becoming more and more dangerous. “I’m concerned how they will react when they discover that all the trouble they’re going to is for nothing.”
“I don’t think we have any other option.”
“Well, it’s too late to change anything now. In a few hours it will all be over one way or another.”
“Very well. There’s a developed parking area on the south side of the highway at Beacon Rock. Do you know it?”
Evrain looked at Dominic, who nodded. “I don’t but Dominic does. We’ll find it.”
“We’ll see you there just before sunset. It’s set back from the road and little used in the evening. It’s neutral ground. Accessible to everyone and private enough for our purposes.”
“Very well. I want Nathaniel there to protect Dominic.”
“He’ll be there.”
“I want to spend some time scouting the area to make sure we have an escape route should we need it. So we’ll get there a bit earlier to check the spot out. You realize this won’t just be a case of using a sterile needle and a test tube, Evrain?”
“Not dramatic enough?” Evrain asked.
“A ceremonial knife will be used to open a vein and a small amount of blood will be allowed to drip into a copper goblet. You’ll have to be channeling at the time. I suggest that the simplest thing to concentrate on would be the creation of a small flame. Coryn will stand with Dominic because I may have to channel too. Nathaniel will protect them both if it becomes necessary.”
“As plans go,” Evrain said, “this one isn’t great but it’s the best we have.”
There wasn’t anything else to say. Evrain ended the call. The remains of his soup had gone cold but he ate it anyway. He pushed his dish away then reached for Dominic’s hand. He wasn’t going to admit to being scared but Dominic was intuitive enough to know it. Dominic’s touch and his understanding silence were comforting.
.
Chapter fourteen
After arriving at the designated meeting point, Dominic found a spot to wait with Coryn and Damon. While Gregory, Nathaniel and Evrain discussed their plans and circled the site again and again, considering every eventuality, he, Coryn and an unusually subdued Damon sat on one of the huge boulders at the edge of the lot, watching them. Dominic turned to Coryn, smiling. “I’m sorry Evrain gave you both so much grief about the agrimony over dinner yesterday.”
Coryn chuckled. “Well, he didn’t lose his temper completely, though I think Gregory’s ears were burning for a while. Did Evrain give you a hard time?”
Dominic swallowed as he remembered. “Yes, quite hard, you could say that.”
Coryn stared at him curiously then grinned. “Ah, I see.”
“He was more upset with himself than me. He just couldn’t express it properly. He feels guilty for getting himself caught by Symeon. He thinks that led to all this.”
“It did, in a way,” Coryn said. “But sooner or later Imelda would have taken more drastic steps. At least this way we have a modicum of control.” Coryn tilted his head back, gazing at the cloudless sky. “Are you scared about what’s going to happen later?”
Dominic ran his fingers over the sparkling granite they were sitting on and chewed his lower lip. “I’m scared for Evrain. I just want this all to be over so that we can get back to some kind of a normal life. I’m just a gardener.”
Coryn put a comforting hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “I think you need to face up to the truth that a life with Evrain is always going to be anything but normal.”
Dominic thought about that statement as they sat together in quiet companionship watching their respective partners pace around, deep in conversation. The time went by far too fast and it wasn’t long before the sun began to sink below the horizon. There were a few dense stands of trees dotted around but the parking area was situated on a flat plain in the river valley. There was an expansive view to the south. The sky turned vermillion and amber, then pink. Heavy gray shadows fell across the area. Small pieces of crystal in the rocks caught the light and glittered. On any other day, Dominic would have been able to appreciate the beauty of it, but today the dark shadows just seemed ominous and the red light spread a hint of hell across the landscape.
He drew in a sharp breath. In the distance he could see the lights of a cavalcade of vehicles approaching their way down the road. He counted five cars, all proceeding at a measured pace. They turned into the parking area then drew up in a semicircle on one side opposite where Gregory and Evrain had parked.
