Kesstel stopped just inside the circle of bodyguards that surrounded me and Mr. Wilks. He wore simple, but expensive designer gray jeans and a black jacket over a white and blue shirt. His white-blond hair was pushed back off his forehead, the tips falling around his ears. He didn’t care at all about the women who were openly staring at him, some near, some far. He waited for me to get to his side before he nodded a greeting to Mr. Wilks, but he didn’t bother to open his mouth. He glanced at me then turned and walked away.
I followed after him.
When we were a comfortable distance away, Kesstel looked down at me. “Your fur is all ruffled.”
My brows wrinkled as I gaped up at him. “What am I, a cat?”
He smirked. “Might as well be. Cats are easier to tame though.”
I whacked his arm, even though it hurt me more than him. I shook my stinging fingers and scowled at him. “Between the two of us, you’re ten times more cat-like.” Okay, more tiger-like. But I didn’t want him to take it as a compliment. “Besides, who’s taming who?” I challenged.
His lips pursed. “I think we’re both changing each other,” he amended.
I paused and had to agree. We both had changed a lot since he came into my life.
“What did Mr. Wilks say to make you breathe fire like that?” Kesstel led me around to the other side of the U-shaped mezzanine and leaned against a wall next to an empty table. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked with hooded eyes at the councilman across the room.
I sat down at the table and followed Kesstel’s gaze. A small group of important people were collecting around the man, their movements polite and controlled. The bigwigs of two cities meeting each other, if I had to guess. The question was, at the end of the night, would they be on equal terms, or would one city take the upper hand? Hunters were biologically human, but they couldn’t resist fighting for the top dog position. But it wasn’t my fight. I was happy to stand way off to the side and let the politicians duke it out. Then I’d do whatever I wanted.
“He doesn’t like me,” I muttered. “I think. He’s kinda hard to read because he’s so cutthroat. He loves Bethany to pieces, but everyone else is just a tool in his fingers.”
“Sounds about right.” Kesstel’s lips thinned. “He always hated that I never bowed to him, and he took great joy in trying to lord over my life.”
A wry smile twisted on my face. “Yeah, that doesn’t surprise me.” I paused. “He doesn’t want me by his daughter, and he doesn’t want me to go with you to Las Vegas.” I glanced up and grinned. “What do you think? Should I stay home and be a meek little mouse?”
Kesstel breathed a laugh. “I take it Miss Wilks helped you dress up?” He looked at my outfit. “It has her fingerprints stamped all over it.”
I lifted a brow. “What? Do I look that bad?”
He smiled at me. “No, not at all. You’re always pretty, and right now, you look very beautiful. But I do admit, it throws me off to see you all dressed up. It’s just not quite like the Jyn I know.”
I was grateful for the dark atmosphere, because it hid the heat in my cheeks. Then again, Kesstel could probably see just fine right now anyway. I cocked my head to the side and tried to brush off his comment. “You also look very beautiful right now. I almost didn’t recognize you.”
He reached out and gently pushed my forehead with his finger. “Mind your manners.”
I laughed. “What, I can’t call you beautiful?”
He scoffed. “I’m a man.”
“A bred-to-be-handsome one.”
He rolled his eyes at me in a very unlordly manner. “Behave.” He lifted his hand and flagged down a waiter passing by.
“Yes sir,” I muttered.
Kesstel talked with the waiter for a second then looked at me. “Do you want something to drink?”
I shook my head, since I was still fine from the Coke, and looked at the small crowd amassing below. Only one hundred Hunters were on the mission list, but there were easily over three hundred on the floor, not counting the people on the mezzanine.
The crowd was divided into three distinct styles. Across the room from me was a large group of people, standing close to one another, most of them wearing the same shade of dark green somewhere on their body, be it their dress or a bandana around their head. Very few of them were talking to someone not wearing a matching color. Right under me was a larger group of Hunters in mostly sky blue clothing. Their clothing was more in line with the usual style that I saw among the rich people in Eden, with a flare of club glamour. These people were obviously more outgoing. Their expressions were less guarded and they were openly talking to the Eden Hunters. The largest group were obviously Eden Hunters. It wasn’t just because their styles were a dead giveaway. It was the fact that there was no color-coordination among them. The Eden Hunters took up most of the dance room and stuck out like a sore thumb among the stricter dressed Hunters as they spread out to mix with the rest of the crowd.
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It was at that moment that Bethany stepped onto a box placed in front of the bar. The box was just tall enough to lift her above the crowd, so everyone on the dance floor could see her. Most of the people on the floor weren’t even dancing; they were simply talking and milling around sipping drinks. The last heavy beat of the song ended, leaving the low sound of talking in its wake. A single light beam from above landed on Bethany, making her hair glow like gold and her opalescent dress shimmer. Diamonds sparkled on her wrists and shoes.
Instantly, the noise stopped and every eye zeroed in on her.
I stood up and walked over to the glass railing and leaned against the steel bar that topped the glass. Kesstel walked over and stood next to me, his wrists resting casually over the rail. From here, I had a perfect view of nearly the whole floor and the mezzanine, with the exception of right against the wall right under me.
Bethany smiled like a goddess and lifted a mic to her mouth. “Welcome, friends and visitors. My name is Bethany Wilks, the hostess of the night.” She paused when the crowd erupted into cheering, Eden Hunters easily the loudest of the groups. She waited until the noise died down before going on. “Tonight is the eve of a historical occasion. It’s been over fifteen years since the Hunters of the American Gates have pooled their strengths together like this. I just wanted to take a moment to recognize each Gate individually and thank them for their willingness to help our nation at this desperate time.”
Another cheer rose up and filled the room.
She grinned. “From the Northeast, the Quebec Hunters, led by Logan and Mila Fortin. Welcome.” She motioned with her hand to the dark green group of muscular men and women standing stage left.
Everyone cheered, the loudest noises coming from the crowd around the cool and collected group. They were obviously the fans brought by the Quebec party. A man with a strong jaw and straight nose stood in the front, his huge arms crossed, and looking imposing. His clothes were dark, a dark green shirt and black leather pants. At his side was a handsome woman, her chin high in the air, looking like she’d just as soon stab you as smile at you. Dark green sequins shimmered on her dress as she planted a hand on her hip and leaned to the right. Everything about them screamed ‘power couple.’ The rest of the group stood behind them, a clear wall between them and the rest of the crowd.
Bethany motioned her hand to stage right. “From the West Coast, the Redding Hunters, led by Ben Saito and Miranda Johnson. Glad to have you here.”
The group in pale blue lifted their hands as the people cheered. In the front stood a man with black hair and sharp eyes. He wasn’t the tallest, compared to the Eden Hunters, but what he lacked in height, he made up for in presence. With his laid-back smile, and a flamboyant pale blue shirt over stylishly ripped jeans, it was impossible to overlook him. At his side stood a tall, thin woman with short curly brunette hair. Her long black dress with splashes of blue glitter accentuated her delicate features and large eyes. Just like Ben Saito, her magical presence was obvious.
“Last but not least,” Bethany pulled everyone’s attention back to her. “I want to point out my own people. The Eden Hunters. Led by Jack Davis and Laurel Harris.” She opened her hand out to the people in front of her.
The Eden people cheered the loudest yet, their sounds ringing off the black rafters overhead. In the front of the group was Blood Sword and Eden’s S Ranked Healer. He lifted his hand and waved, his open shirt, red vest, and black pants not losing to anyone else in the room. The Healer beamed and waved a hand, the stone blinking on her wrist matched the belt that looped her waist over her maroon pants and multi-colored shirtdress.
“Now that all the introductions have been made, it’s time to get down to business,” Bethany said. She pouted her lips. “Sad, but true. As amazing as it is to finally get so many heavy hitters in one room, there is a very urgent reason why.” She waved her hand and the light over her disappeared, leaving the strongest lights in the room coming from the accent wall behind the bar.
From the ceiling, a huge white screen started to roll down, covering the vast accent wall. When it was all covered, an image of the US map was projected on the white screen. I was taken back a second. I grew up seeing that map, memorizing the cities and sad history associated with it. This was the first time seeing the new shape of America without the Florida peninsula. All that was left was a jagged rounded edge as if the peninsula had never been there to begin with.
Gasps and mutters rose in the crowd. Shocked people actually pointed at the map and talked animatedly to their companions.
I glanced around at the people and frowned. Oh, right. The government had withheld this information. How much longer would it be before the general public found out?
Bethany called their attention back to her. “Most of this should not be new information,” Bethany said from her location on the box. Her whole body was backlit against the image, leaving just a shadow and a tiny glimmer of her clothes around the sides. “But just to make sure everyone is on the same page, I’m going to go over it all again.” She turned and pointed at the map.
“Yesterday, a Portal opened up in the Las Vegas ruins. It caused a large earthquake that shook up Eden and the Redding a fair bit, and even Quebec felt the tremors,” Bethany explained. “As a result, a part of America sank into the ocean. No one was lost that we know of, since it was already an abandoned area. But it proves how dangerous this event is. If we leave the Las Vegas Portal alone, is it going to trigger another earthquake? Or will other Portals open near it?”
She paused. “As you just heard, it is not a Gate. Yet. It is just a Portal, but it has unloaded a very large amount of monsters into the area. In fact, the day the Vegas Portal opened, all the monsters in Eden, Redding, and Quebec Gates were gone. Based on the monsters that have been spotted in Vegas in the last 24 hours, we are speculating that nearly fifty percent of the missing monsters of various ranks were somehow transferred to the Vegas Portal.”
*****