Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.

A/N: Hi. Sorry for the wait. This chapter will be split between Curran explaining and Seleyda being further explored. *wink*wink*

Un-beta'd

Chapter 2- Court


"Alright, recess!" Kate shouted, slamming her hand on the massive table. "Barabas! Escort the guests to the waiting room." Barabas nodded, keeping a firm hand on Drew and Ana's shoulder. Seleyda glared at the ashen faced Curran and grim Kate before following them.

"Curran?" Kate asked once the door clicked shut. "Do you know her?"

Curran shook his head. "I knew her mother." He suddenly couldn't swallow properly. "She was my fiancee."

"What?!"


"What the hell, Ana!" Drew shouted. Ana winced. "Why didn't you tell me she's from here?" He paced around the circular room, like a stalking predator, muttering obscenities. Half of which weren't even anatomically possible.

"How was I supposed to know?" ana exclaimed. "I may know Eda better than you, but that doesn't mean I know everything there is to her past!" She gripped her arms violently. And the little that I do know already features in most of my nightmares.

"Wait, a second." They turned to look at Seleyda. "This is Atlanta?" They nodded. Hurt, fear and confusion coloured her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Didn't you take a look at the clearance stamp from the airport?"

Seleyda rapidly shook her head. She spun wildly, her body shimmering as she fought to remain in human form. Barabas detached himself from his spot against the wall, his eyes flaring green. I'm not suppposed to be here, I can't be here. "Seleyda?"

"I have to leave." In a flash, Barabas was at the door, hands spread out to cover its width. Seleyda skittered back, pupils dilating. "You don't understand!" She screamed. "My mom-" she took a deep breath and continued in a louder voice," - she told me to never set foot in Atlanta."

Barabas' eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"I don't know!" She screamed. "It was a ritual we had. Every day when I wake and before I close my eyes to sleep she would always say, ' And you must never set foot in Atlanta.' She curled up into a ball on the floor and threw her arms around the girl, humming soothingly. Drew stood staring; transfixed by the sight before him.


Curran raised both his hands, palms facing a fuming Kate. "Let me explain."

Kate huffed, but dragged her chair so that she was oppsite him. It dimly resembled an interrogation, which made Curran chuckle in memory. (A/N: Magic Bleeds) He quickly turned it into a cough as he saw the look on Kate's face. Slowly, she placed her sword, Slayer, on the block of wood between them. "It had better be good," she growled.

He ran a hand over his face. How am I supposed to explain this without her trying to take a hack at me and not sound like the idiot that I was? "I became Beast Lord after bringing in Andorf's head, as you may know." Kate nodded. Of course she did. I was there when Raphael explained it to her. " What Raphael didn't, or rather couldn't tell you- he was a little too young to remember the details, you see- was that a number of the older shifters was completely against having me as their new ruler. I may have proven myself to be fit to rule, but I was too young." Curran smirked to himself at the memory. "The exact word they used was inexperienced." Kate snorted. They both knew Curran was more than capable of ruling the shapeshifters of Atlanta. "We would've eventually tore each other apart-" Kate shuddered. Curran smiled at her."- but Mahon convinced me to try his plan, which he said if it failed, I could still have the heads of all the old biddies who've sat too long and grown too fat on their thrones." Kate grinned, but then sobered up.

"What does this have to do with your fiancee?" Curran winced. This was not good.

"Mahon suggested that I take a bride from amongst the ranks of the shapeshifters." He braced himself for the explosion.

"WHAT!" Kate shot upright, fuming and cursing away. Her sword was in her hand and it smoked, fueled by her anger. "How the hell did that fucking bear come up with that stupid idea? A bride? To the brand-spanking-new-fifteen-year-old-hormone-riddled-BEAST-LORD-OF-ATLANTA?" She screamed.

"It would bridge the gap between me and my people, since they know nothing of me," Curran tried to explain. "It was only on the engaged state, since I wasn't legally of age to marry. Yet." Now I sound like Mahon. "Kate, please, listen to me. I'm with you now, aren't I? I didn't marry her, nor will I ever be able to marry her, since she's dead now." Curran winced as a sudden thought hit him. Kate stopped, seeing the look of pain in his face. She strode back to his side. Wrapping both hands around his skull, she kneaded careful circles into his temple. Slowly, Curran relaxed.

"Better?" Curran nodded. She went on for a couple more minutes, before settling down. "What's wrong?"

"I'll have to report her death to Aunt B." Kate frowned, crossing her arms.

"Aunt B? Why on earth would you have to-" Kate's eyes widened. She backed away from the table. "No way. Nuh-uh. You've got to be joking with me. Please tell me this is a joke. Curran?"

I'm sorry. "Angelique Maitland's middle name is Medrano." He rested his pounding head on the heel of his palm. "As in Beatrice Medrano's niece by her older sister." He sighed. "Alexandria will be heartbroken to hear this; she's Angie's mother."

"Angie?"

"Please, Kate. I can't possibly tell you how sorry I am about this whole mess. Before today, I would've never believed that Angelique still lived, or even had a daughter. She'd left us with a lot of unanswered questions and even more so with the arrival of her daughter. In face, I'll be sorely hard-pressed to believe that anything short of a silver cannon could've killed her." Curran stared at the grainy table, thinking hard. "I'd been given the choice of choosing my br-fiancee," he hastily changed as he glanced up to see the look of bloody murder on Kate's face, "from the five that Mahon selected. I didn't choose Angie because she was the most biddable-" The word tasted sour in his mouth."- I choose her because she had the strongest beast-form alive, second only to B and me."

Kate was silent for a moment. "Was she pretty?"

A weak, relieved, exasperated laugh erupted from Curran. "I just told you she was one of the strongest shifter alive and you ask me how pretty she is? Good lord, Kate!" Kate crossed her legs, tapping them impatiently against the arm chair. "Okay, okay." He took out his wallet and flipped it open. Kate edged closer, curious. Curran smirked at her. She scowled. He flipped up the photograph of him, Kate and Julie from Christmas, revealing a thick seam slicing the leather across the center. The seam unravelled itself as Curran ran his right thumb across it; it was a slim knot. "She dabbled a little in magic before she became a shifter at thirteen," he explained at Kate's confusion. "Never lost the knack for it. Could channel shifter magic into her own too." Kate's expression became pensive, thoughtful.

The knot came off, revealing a yellowed photograph of a woman with long pinwheel curls and laughing eyes that were still green. Her lips were a work of art; full and luscious at the bottom, begging to be ravished upon, cupid-bowed and sensitive on top, a succulent treat in the night. They were forever in one type or another of smiles. Her posture was straight and tall, but not stiff. She radiated love and kindness, even from the grave, shining with joy everyday that he knew her. With a pang, Curran realized he'd loved her, not just as the surrogate mother she tried to be. He shied away from his last memory of her, before she broke his heart.

"Oh," Kate murmured. "I see where Seleyda inherited her bearing from." She examined the picture, no bigger than a two-by-four centimetres photograph. "They both carry themselves like queen, don't they?"

"Yes," Curran agreed, slightly distracted. "B used to say she would've made a fantastic queen, like those of old. She'd gone even as far as to say she's the equal of some ancient Egyptian queen. Nefetiri or something like that."

"Nefertiti?" Kate corrected, eyes suddenly piercing. "Is that what she meant?"

Curran nodded. "Why?"

"Curran, Nefertiti was the co-ruler of one of the most notable pharaohs of Egyptain history, Akhenaten. The only one more famous than her is Cleopatra. Nefertiti and her husband started a religion revolution, Curran, and might have won if they had lived longer. She contributed a major part to the conversion and was a legendary beauty, which she used to full potential for her husband. Do you understand, Curran? Aunt B was implying that Angelique would take the same role as Nefertiti took, to forge a new era and make you a great ruler. Mahon might have had the same idea as well," she added in a low voice, but Curran heard her nevertheless. "Damn it all, they were both trying to make you their puppet." Curran blinked. "Were there any other reasons why you chose her, Curran?"

"I don't-I don't believe it," he said. He clenched his jaw and thought carefully. "I chose Angelique because she was also from Clan Bouda. If you recall-"
Kate nodded. '-before I took up the reins, they were an exceptionally small clan. I figured the best way to make peace with them was to make sure they didn't go into extinction, which they were extremely close to. She was a great fighter, which I would need if they ever turned on me-" he levelled a rage-filled glare at Kate. She flinched. It's not for me, she thought. It's for the shifters who tried to kill me. "-as they did on you. I'm so sorry, Kate, I-" she pressed a finger to his lips.

"No need. You would've fought for me as I did, if anything had happened to me." Kate smiled. Curran smiled, relieved, and got up from his seat. He crushed Kate's smaller form to his, breathing in her scent.

"Yes, I would have." He sighed. "But Beatrice still needs to know about this."

"Couldn't we tell her at a better time? I mean, with the mess Andrea has left across the city...things are a little touchy between you and the boudas."

"I know, but the last time I withheld information about Angelique from her, this was my souvenir," Curran said, indicating his nose, with its uneven ridge. Kate stared, then shuddered. Curran winced, knowing exactly which lecture he was about to receive VIP treatment to. The you-should-have-gone-after-her-and-chased-her-to-the-end-of-the-world-and-now-look-what-you've-done-to-my-baby-girl-how-am-I-supposed-to-tell-Alexandria-about-this lecture. He could feel the wounds from the last time he'd heard that one. It was close to six hours long. Not that he could blame Aunt B.

A/N: Thank you thank you for the reviews (even though there were only two). But I'm not complaining. Here's chapter two. R&R please.