“I never wanted you to have to do this,” Devin whispered. ‘I wanted you all for myself from the first moment I met you. I’m sorry I was never strong enough to stop this. I’m sorry I cannot protect you like I should. I’m sorry for letting your grandfather down.’
Devin’s fingertip still rested on her face as Arianna replied. ‘My choice Devin. This was my choice.’ She didn’t want to have the contest, but it was her choice to go through with it to protect everyone she loved. By having this competition, her clans avoided all-out war.
‘And my failure. I won’t fail here no matter who shows up,’ Devin promised her.
Arianna smiled slightly before he pulled his hand back. The moment was broken. One ding reverberated through the house signaling that someone waited at the gate.
“The first to arrive,” Devin commented, looking back down at his papers. “You better go welcome them.”
Arianna nodded and stood up to walk past Devin. As she neared, she paused. ‘To hell with rules,’ she told him before leaning down, and catching him by surprise as she hugged him. Arianna wanted to savor the moment but knew that she had to go. ‘I make my own rules.’
Chapter 4
Arianna stood just within the doorway of the main house and watched as Jackson approached the first contestant. Beyond the large, wrought-iron gate, a blond-haired, blue-eyed guy stood perfectly still, like stone. He wasn’t alone. Two imposing-looking men hovered just behind him. The blond man was gazing beyond Jackson as he spoke to him, and stared at Arianna. She felt his gaze even a hundred yards away. He was handsome in the perfect-illusion way. His night human form was ever present, even in his day human form. The sidhe night humans had perfected the balance between night and day humans, leading to uniquely perfect-looking beings. The young man nodded to Jackson, and waved away one of his retainers. Arianna tried to decide if those men were twins or not, as the two older, forty-something men looked identical, even down to what they were wearing. The young man confidently approached Arianna.
“Welcome to the games, Rhys McKinny,” Arianna said, attempting to sound cordial, but it was difficult. She was disappointed that anyone had showed up at all. She hoped their planning would lead most of the contestants away, and then it would be easy for her team to win. Thomas assured her that no matter what they did, the leaders of the clan would find her, but Arianna didn’t want to believe it. Rhys was proof that this was going to be a long competition.
Rhys’ retainer moved first, dropped to one knee, picked up her hand, and kissed it. Rhys followed suit and did the same. He lifted his head and peered up at her with his sky-blue eyes. Arianna tried to keep her surprise to herself as she looked down at the perfect-faced man kneeling at her feet. Rhys looked as perfect as a doll. All of his facial features were symmetrical. He stood at least as tall as Gabriel, but was much more lithe. Rhys gracefully stood and waited for Arianna to invite him inside. His shoulders were not as broad as Turner’s, but somehow Arianna knew he would be as much of a force to reckon with as her best friend and lycan, Turner Winter.
Arianna broke her stare from the first arrival and nodded to one of the maids.
“Sirs,” the young girl said, barely above a whisper. “I can show you both to your rooms.”
Arianna turned back to look outside the door. There would be more coming, but she didn’t see any at the moment. Even without turning around Arianna sensed the stare of Rhys’ retainer. The older man watched Arianna as she exited the entryway and turned to go down the opposite hallway. It was creepy to be watched, but she knew that it would be her life while all the men arrived and gawked at her. Arianna easily followed the thread binding her to Andrew and found him waiting in the hall. He wordlessly took her hand and led her to her own rooms.
‘I don’t know if I can do this,’ Arianna said as soon as their hands made contact. Everything about Andrew felt right, and touching his skin calmed her excessively beating heart. Rhys and his retainer made it all more real. She needed to protect her people, but this was going to be the hardest thing she even could imagine doing.
‘Trust that Thomas is right,’ Andrew replied. ‘He would have never let you come here if the odds were not in your favor.’
‘I just hoped that no one would show up.’ Arianna was disappointed. Andrew snaked his hand from hers and around her waist. She needed more comfort.
‘With a prize like you on the line?’ Andrew raised an eyebrow as he opened the doorway. ‘I doubt we’ll be able to keep any of them away.’
Andrew pulled her through a sitting room filled with couches and chairs that faced the roaring fireplace. The side room had a lush king-size bed in the middle of the room. Everything was tinted in deep blues and purples, and they were surrounded with an abundance of luxury textures. Again Arianna began to miss her home. She wanted her old, ratty comforter. That was soothing, not this. This was odd and nothing was natural here. Andrew drew Arianna with him as he sat down on the bed.
‘You look so tired.’ He brushed a few stray hairs off her face.
‘You’re just trying to get me into bed with you,’ she protested, as he pulled her down next to him.
‘And why not?’ Andrew smirked. Arianna playfully batted his arm. Andrew knew how to distract her, and was trying his best to do it. ‘Yes, I am.’ He smiled at her and winked. ‘So that you can get some sleep before this all begins. You need your strength.’ They had traveled the whole daylight hours they normally slept.
‘I need more than strength.’ Arianna snuggled up to his chest and pulled at the buttons on his shirt so that she could touch the smooth skin beneath her hands. ‘I’m going to need some luck, too.’
‘That’s why I’m here,’ Andrew replied as she closed her eyes. ‘I’ll provide all the luck you need.’
‘Mmm hmm,’ Arianna nuzzled close and was immediately to sleep.
* * * * *
Arianna didn’t sleep as long as she wanted, but there was nothing she could do about that. The rest of the competitors had arrived as one large group, chasing the scent of Turner. It was easier to sleep with one strange scent in the house, but when she was bombarded by multiple new people at once, she begrudgingly had to wake up. Her defensive response kicked in the moment they all entered the house. Andrew was beneath her, still awake when she opened her eyes and smiled at him. He had also sensed all the people that arrived. His smile was a little more forced with the strain of everyone in the house. Arianna climbed up so that she was nose to nose with him and softly kissed him without saying a word. Andrew relaxed a little and pulled her closer to him.
Alone time was rare these days. With training and running around, she was only alone with Andrew when she was sleeping. Now adding twenty or more people to the estate, she wouldn’t be alone outside her room. Andrew slid his hands down her arms leaving goose bumps in their wake. Arianna shivered a bit at his touch.
“Um,” a male voiced coughed from the corner of the room. “I’m not sure we have time for that right now.”
Arianna’s head snapped up defensively even though there was only one person that was able to sneak around the house so silently. Gabriel was sitting across the room from the bed. He smiled at Arianna as he looked up from his book. He had been there for a while. Arianna blushed, knowing that her uncle saw her kissing Andrew. Andrew’s hands moved back up her arms over the skin that was still sensitive from a moment ago. Arianna sat up and smacked him. He had known all along that Gabriel was there, and was still tempting her.
“At least I’m glad to see that even asleep you realized the threat of all the extra people in the house,” Gabriel commented as he stood up. Arianna jumped up and hugged her uncle. It had been a month since he dropped her off at the wurdulac estate. Gabriel and his immediate family were her last living relatives.
“Then they are all here now?” she asked into his chest. She already knew the answer but still hoped that her senses were wrong.
“If you mean all your people, then yes. I brought Nixon and Nelson alon
g with Turner and myself. Thomas just arrived.” Arianna pulled back and smiled at the older man. He continued to age. He looked older than the last time she saw him. “If you mean the competitors, there are still two not here yet, and they only have five more minutes. We better get to the meeting room soon. Everyone is waiting in the dining hall, and it is time to greet all your unwanted guests.” Gabriel offered her his arm, and she reluctantly took it. This was no longer something that was going to happen in the future. This was happening now.
Chapter 5
Arianna stared at each of the men before her. The oldest was the dragur Jan Larsen, at thirty-two. Arianna cringed inwardly that he had arrived on time. It was bad enough to be forced to marry someone in the room, but someone fifteen years older than her who had already been widowed with children of his own was a stretch. Arianna was thankful that at least none of the leaders over thirty-two had come, just their sons and grandsons. The youngest was Loan Durand at eighteen, only a year older than Arianna. Arianna looked back to the clock hanging above the opened doorway arch leading into the hallway. Two more minutes and the uruku night human, Nate Childs, would be late and disqualified. Everyone waited in anticipation for Arianna to begin talking. She sat still, watching the clock. As the hands converged and struck midnight, Arianna nodded to Thomas who proceeded to close and lock the gate.
Twelve competitors lined up before Arianna with their retainers right behind them. Each man participating was allowed one person on the grounds to watch over the event, and to help care for them. These men ranged even more greatly in age from the youngest, the vrykolakas Nik Katsulas’ younger brother Polo whom Arianna had helped a month ago, to the oldest, Arianna’s great uncle Gabriel who was there as the retainer for both Devin and Turner. It helped to not only have Turner and Devin there, but also Gabriel, his son Patrick, and Patrick’s tengu Ken. Of the twenty-five men in the room at least five were already on Arianna’s side. While not good odds if everyone else ganged up on them, it would work to their favor since everyone else wouldn’t get along. Traditionally, the clans had always fought and were in disagreement on every issue. She could easily see that the lines were still drawn between the men.
“For the duration of the games, there will be strict security—including the need for permission to exit and enter the property. Nate Childs didn’t make it by the appointed time, and thus the first contender is eliminated.” Arianna walked back over as Thomas entered the room. The men all stood and watched Arianna like a piece of meat. Her every movement captivated them.
“He is about two miles out and should be here soon,” Thomas added. “Would you like to greet him or would you like us to take care of it?”
Arianna looked over to Andrew, and he shook his head no. “You will need to take care of it. Please be careful; he won’t react well to being told he is out.”
“I can help if you’d like,” Rhys offered from the end of the line. His retainer didn’t seem to agree, but Rhys didn’t even look back. In typical leader quality, he ignored the person sent there to help him.
“Okay,” Arianna hesitantly agreed. Rhys had to have some motive for being so helpful, but since he offered she wasn’t going to turn down the extra strength.
All the men present were strong. Each man was either the head of their clan or the next in line. Rhys was no exception. He was the current head of the sidhe people, and had been leading them since he was fifteen. Ten years of running his clan had only made him a stronger force to deal with. If he wanted to offer to break the news to another family head, she wouldn’t stop him.
Rhys followed Thomas out the door and to the front gate. Arianna followed them with her senses, but didn’t physically leave the room. She knew what was happening outside as much as any of the other men in the room. She felt the temper flare and the anger behind the muffled words being yelled. She also felt the immediate calm come over the man as his rants faded. Nate dismissed his retainers and followed Thomas and Rhys back into the estate. Thomas knew that if needed they would need the men as hostages. Any competitor eliminated could remain at the competition to watch, but they couldn’t keep their retainer around. Arianna waited for them to return. Nate Childs was alone behind Thomas, and his anger had been calmed. The men in the room were more or less uninterested in the proceedings outside, as they were content to watch Arianna as she waited.
“Now that everyone has returned, I’ll lay out the rules for you and explain how this is going to work. You may choose to proceed by my rules, or you may leave the competition,” Arianna continued.
“This isn’t a position that you can take,” an older retainer complained from behind one of the contestants. Arianna knew who the heads of the family were, but not the retainers. They knew who would be competing, but not who they would bring with them.
‘His grandfather,’ Devin informed her. Devin, of course, knew who everyone was in the room.
Arianna moved over a bit to view the older man. He looked nothing like the man in front of him, and it was hard to believe that he was actually his grandfather. The retainer was old and grayed with pale, blotchy skin. Dark, beady eyes stared at her as he challenged her authority. His ward was light bronze in coloring and only shared a nose shape with his grandfather. Loan Durand stared at her, trying his best to apologize with his gaze. His mix of ethnicity gave his eyes an almost amber color that complimented his caramel-toned skin.
“Actually, yes, I can do this any way I choose,” Arianna replied. She was getting used to old men complaining that she was calling the shots after a year of dealing with her own council of dearg-duls. Not a single one liked to hear her having an opinion.
“These games are to be arranged and held by the head of the family. They make the rules, not the girl being competed for,” the retainer replied. His hawk-like gaze tried to bore his point into her. Arianna didn’t even flinch. He didn’t intimidate her.
“Then we completely agree,” Arianna replied and moved back to sit down. Loan let out a sigh of relief that she wasn’t going to argue with his old-fashioned grandfather. The man caused enough problems for the Loogaroo night human family since Loan’s father replaced the older man.
“So to continue-” Arianna began again.
“No, we don’t agree. Here you go again, telling us what to do. Where is the head of the Randolph family, and why is he not here to oversee this?” the man demanded.
Andrew growled, trying to keep his night human in check at the man’s rudeness. Obliviously the older man was used to getting his way. Arianna was grateful that Andrew was never allowed into the dearg-dul council meetings. She doubted her council would remain intact if she did bring him along.
“You are speaking to the head of the Randolph family,” Devin replied from down the row. He was also sick of how Arianna was treated. They all thought she was a prize, but he couldn’t wait until they finally realized that she could easily crush them into submission with her strength.
“Not possible. Where is Randolph?” the man asked, not even deeming Devin worthy enough to look at.
“I am the current head of the dearg-dul, lycan, baku, and tengu,” Arianna replied, letting a bit of her power break forth as Gabriel did to command the baku into submission. There was only one thing night humans respected; strength. “My grandfather is dead, in case you didn’t get the update. And trust me, if he were alive, I know what his solution would have been to this mockery of clan rules. Not a single one of you would have been left alive.”
Arianna stared from face to face as she talked. Several of the men were cocky enough to think they would have outlived her grandfather had he come looking for them, but the majority knew that Lord Randolph had risen to power based on his own cunning and strength. If he had ordered them dead, they would have been dead. Even the older man knew he was no match for the former Lord Randolph. Lord Randolph was the first to ever control more than one clan when he won the lycan over with favors that brought them more land and power. The night human world was secretive, th
ough, and none beyond her clans had been told of her grandfather’s passing.
“Any more interruptions?” Arianna asked the group. The men all answered with a no. Loan looked relieved to have his grandfather silenced.
“First, welcome to the Meyer estate. Each of you has been assigned a room. Your retainer has been assigned the room across the hallway. There are two main rooms you are allowed to spend time in. First is the room we are standing in, the dining room.” The room had a large fireplace on one side with couches and chairs around it, looking nothing like a dining room. All the dining tables had been pushed against the wall to make room for everyone to stand in one row. “All meals will be served here in a buffet style. Blood is available, so please don’t bother any of my staff. It isn’t their job to feed you. The second room is through any door on the north wall.” Arianna pointed behind her. “That is the training room. Retainers are not allowed in the training room, but can view the proceedings through the one-way mirror on the north wall. All heads of families can likewise use the library for two hours each morning after we finish with the competitions. There has been a desk placed there for each of you along with one for myself.”
“That’s not fair,” Nik Katsulas complained. “What about the rest of us that aren’t the heads of the family yet? They get to spend more time with you, and that’s against the rules. We all are supposed to have equal access to you while the competition is going on.”
Nik was sulking just like the information Arianna had been provided with outlined that he would. As the prodigal son of his family, he was used to getting everything just the way he wanted. Arianna was a little surprised to find all her readings about him correct. She couldn’t picture any nineteen-year-old that still behaved like a spoiled brat, but now she was witnessing it. His younger brother, Polo, stood behind him, sheepishly looking away. Arianna had saved Polo only a month ago from a painful demise—blistering to death in the sun. He seemed to be embarrassed by his brother.