His eyes jerked up now, though not to me, past me, seemingly towards the upper level of the building.

"Jaden, what are yo-"

"Follow me." With that he walked towards the right side of the building.

I did as he said. We ended up near a high wall made from a chunk of rock. It was large enough to dwarf the building and seemed to make up most of its backside. Jaden stopped at its base, turned around, took off his coat, and started to empty his belt of weapons.

I stood there, awkward once again. "Jaden, can you please tell me what-"

"Take off your coat." He said it without looking up.

My brow furrowed, but I was too nervous to argue. I took it off.

He grabbed it immediately, threw it on top of his pile of weapons, then looked at me. "You said you can keep a secret, right?"

This caught me by surprise, mostly because of his expression: completely and utterly focused on me. How can he possibly be so inattentive one second, then give me a look like that, that makes me feel like I've never really been looked at before?

"Umm . . . yeah," I said, then considered his words. Wait, did I say that? When did I say that?

"And you want to see the meeting?"

I stared for a second then sighed. "Of course, that's why I came."

A corner of his mouth tipped up ruefully. For the situation it was totally uncalled for, I really wasn't going to keep much gumption with him doing that.

The assumption proved true. Despite all my wiser instincts, I followed him. Right up and over the stone wall and in through a dubious-looking crevice.

We were now crawling inside of the teeny-tiny, dark, space, later I would have to ask him how on earth he knew this was here, but for now he had warned me to be quiet, so I was concentrating on placing the balls of my feet gently.

Jaden barely made a noise ahead, despite the fact that he was quite a bit large than me. When I knocked a rock with my foot his head turned.

"Sorry," I mouthed, though it was most likely too dark to see.

He turned back without a word and started moving again. I hoped whatever look he had given me wasn't another exasperated one. I shook my head slightly. All the sureness I had gained from my resolution back at the lodge that we just weren't going to be close was lost the moment he included me in on this plan of his. I could already feel myself falling back into worrying about what he thought of every move I made. . . .

My heart started to beat faster when I heard muffled voices ahead.

Jaden hadn't told me much of what we were doing. I knew we were going somewhere where we could at least hear what was going on in the meeting, and I knew that I wasn't allowed to speak about it to anyone, ever.

I also knew in my head that it wasn't right and probably not very smart but . . . My eyes lifted to the boy ahead of me . . . Yes, I am that pathetic.

The voices were louder now, suddenly light filtered onto Jaden's face. He stopped and ducked his head back.

I started to crawl beside him and reached his knees before his hand went up stopping me. His eyes were focused intently into the hole, my ears perked when I heard Thoran's voice.

"We let you have the southern portals already, with no resistance. I'm not willing to discuss this absurdity."

"Absurdity?!" shouted a slivery voice. The accent was odd. Though I couldn't see I would bet anything it was a Meoden. "What's absurd is the amount of land we allow you to keep in our dimension. Tell me, where is our place in yours?"

"I've seen dozens of keepers near the caves of deep Sharadeen," came an unfamiliar young voice, "don't try to pretend you don-"

"Vaan, be silent." It was Thoran now. Jaden's eyes flickered. "Demian, this talk is pointless. Neither of us is going to be giving up land anytime soon, I suggest we move on to other topics."

There was a pause then a voice like none I had ever heard. "Agreed," it, he, something, said. My heart thumped double-time for a split second. It was full and cold. Not cruel, but wrong. A Meoden to be sure, Demian from what I had followed of the conversation . . . perhaps he was worse than Sylvanus.

By the time I came back to my senses, I'd lost the line of discussion going on below. I looked over to Jaden. It would be much easier to keep up if I could actually see. His hand had fallen from its halting pose. I took a small breath then carefully moved forward a couple inches . . . he made no reaction, so I crawled up the rest of the way till I was lying beside him. His face turned, then I looked at him warily.

Another expression I couldn't read, undeniably intense though.

He looked back down, and I let out a very quiet breath only to suck another back in before peering over the edge.

"Demian, we can't control what every single civilian chooses to do," said Boron. I saw him immediately to the far right of a long, stone, table. Thoran sat beside him, closer to us.

Apart from that, all I could see was another Meoden to the left. It looked normal enough, for a Meoden. Dark, purplish, skin. Silver eyes . . . it did have a peculiar sort of crown on its head, fashioned from dark metal. I wondered if it was Demian.

"Control yourselves first, gatekeeper, our camp was not attacked by civilians!" That was the Meoden beside Thoran, his voice was vengeful and rasped.

Thoran's gaze remained calm.

"Atmas, you're speaking out of turn . . . though now that we're on the subject we might as well discuss it."

My throat constricted. There was the voice again. Part of me wanted to pull my head back inside the hole, but a much larger part had to see the face that matched it.

We were only about six or seven feet up, but it was dark enough that there was little chance at being seen. I moved my head further out, giving me a full view of the long table below. Sitting on the right side with Thoran and Boron were the other four men I had traveled with. Then there were three Meoden, apart from the one I had already seen, that sat on the left side.

Though I took in a study of each, my gaze was quickly drawn to the one at the head of the table. His dark hands were strumming on the stone-top. Following up them were dark, muscular, silver-veined, arms. Whatever he was wearing was an afterthought to his face, broad and structured, dark, but redder than the other Meoden. His eyes were different too, deep maroon instead of silver.

I couldn't take my eyes off of him.

"I've been informed it was you and Cornelius, Thoran," Demian continued. His tone was so commanding, so powerful. I blinked my eyes clear. He held the type of surety that could convince some of practically anything . . . and a pushover like me into everything.

"No doubt you have," said Thoran. I was grateful to move my gaze to the familiar man. "What is it that you would like to discuss?"

A corner of my mouth tilted slightly. Demian may have been intimidating . . . but it didn't keep Thoran from retaining his usual, self-assured, attitude.

My eyes turned to Demian with a bit more security. His red glare was hard on Thoran, but he didn't get the chance to answer.

"What would he like to discuss?" rasped the crowned Meoden. "You slaughtered an entire encampment!"

The younger men from the order seemed to shift slightly. Thoran looked to Demian.

"We broke no laws. It was out well beyond the borders."

"Beyond the borders, you say? . . ."

My skin began to quiver at the voice. It sounded disturbingly familiar. I scanned the faces at the table, but none were speaking. Then, something in the shadows.

"It's our dimension, it's all . . our . . borders." He said the last words slowly as he slithered in to sit in the empty seat between Demian and the other Meoden.

My throat, which I thought could constrict no further, dropped to the pit of my stomach. My hand moved forward, palm down, as if I could claw away, but I was frozen. I don't know how I had born the sight of this creature once before, but now it seemed too much to take.

Sylvanus, in his full sickening splendor.

"Come, Demian, can you imagine if we were attacking settlements in their dimension?" he whispered, leaning towards the larger Meoden. Then he shifted his eyes to Thoran and a cruel smirk grew. "They would throw such a fit."

My chest began to rise up and down beneath me, the cramped space feeling suddenly hot.

"Sylvanus," reputed Demian, raising his hand, "I would not add to the list of headaches you've caused me recently." His eyes shifted back to Thoran. "Still, he has a point. What have you to say?"

The grim-faced man raised his chin a fraction. "I say, the next time you see a battalion of armed soldiers in our lands, go ahead and attack. We took down a camp of militia. As it stands, rot like him go into our homes and prey on the vulnerable." His intensity was sobering. Demian looked down, casually, continuing to strum. "What is the military advantage of that?"

Sylvanus, who was leaning back, mocking boredom at Thoran's reply, straightened up loosely, eyebrows raised. "I have appetites, Thoran. A group of middle-aged do-gooders are hardly my idea of a good meal." pansy My skin shivered. I don't know why, but as soon as he said it I looked over to Jaden. His eyes hit mine in the same second. They were intense and searching, too much to bear with everything else. I looked back down.

Disgust covered the face of every man below, though Thoran still sat solidly. Demian himself appeared irritated.

Sylvanus simply resumed his backwards lean, smiling pleasantly.

They went on for a long time talking about this. I listened For the first time in a while Boran straightened forward and spoke. "To me, this seems the same as the land issue, we're not getting anywhere by talking about it. No one broke any direct laws. Let's move on."

Demian stared for a moment, then complied. "The group was of little consequence-" Sylvanus looked less smug at the words "-I have nothing else to bring forward."

My spirits lifted. Sure, I had wanted to come to the meeting, and part of me was truly glad to have seen the political interactions . . . but being around Sylvanus, hidden or not, wasn't really worth the knowledge gained.

I peeked at Jaden. He was still looking down, so I did the same.

"Of course, we have one more subject to go over," said Thoran. His tone was controlled, but with the slightest hint of a sigh, as if he didn't really want to discuss whatever was coming.

Demian nodded. "I assumed you would."

Sylvanus' hands clapped flat onto the table, his first act in a while. "Oh, goody! Is this the part where we get to talk about me?"

Demian raised a hand to him.

Thoran's face hardened. "His behavior is in complete violation of the treaties. He's been in contact with dozens of humans. Our scouts have spotted him in the towns at least twice . . ." It seemed like Thoran was going to say more, but he stopped short.

Demian flicked a small pebble off of the tabletop. "Come now, Thoran, he's done all these things before . . . these are hardly the main issues."

I had a hince then, and for the first time I saw emotion on Thoran's face.

"Or should I say, issue?"

I bit my lip down hard.

"Taking a girl from a town that close to our borders is inexcusable," said Thoran.

As soon as he spoke the words Jaden's eyes shot to me. He hadn't known, before now, that it was Sylvanus who first found me. Whatever his feelings were, I couldn't handle them here. . . .

I didn't look over. I put all my focus into ignoring him as Thoran continued.

"In any other case this would mean immediate dismissal from the council," continued Thoran. "I demand the same for him."

Demian was beginning to look bothered again. "He'll be punished appropriately, I assure you."

Sylvanus chuckled.

Thoran leaned forward. "He has gone too far this time. More must be done!"

His voice was severe. I worried over Demian's reaction. The creature looked upset.

Sylvanus smirked happily again and leaned forward. "My dear Thoran, you seem to be getting all worked up over nothing. After all, the girl came of her own free will."

My body started to shake.

"If you and the fat one hadn't come along and spoiled everything, well . . . who's to say she wouldn't have enjoyed what I had planned?"

Thoran's face went cold, everyone's did.

My suck-it-up plan was failing fast.

I tried to tighten my fist, but instead it fell flat in drained defeat.

Then, suddenly a hand wrapped over mine, squeezing protectively. My breath sucked in, but I didn't look up, too afraid that I would meet his eyes again and lose all strength of will.

Below the men were silent. It was like the room below had been sapped of life.

"Besides," started Sylvanus again, throwing a hand in the air, "I would have brought her back once I was finished with her . . . that's more than I can say for your boys."

My eyes tightened, spilling tears. Jaden pulled my hand firmly, drawing my attention. I looked over unwillingly.

"Let's go," he mouthed, then he tossed his head towards the tunnel.

I blinked my eyes shut again, then obeyed without a word.

Chapter 11.

Incentive AS SOON AS we reached the rock wall, he grabbed my arm and swung me around to face him.