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Angelo Dominarus sat in the shadows at the head of the long table, his fingers steepled in front of him, the heavy ring that sat on his forefinger glittering in the dim light of a single candle. Along the table sat eight other men - and women - all listening to the report of the pale, fearful man who stood at the end, under the harsh glare of a single electric light. The man had been set to watch the house they'd sent the thief to, and told to report back when she was caught, as they'd expected her to be.
"She hasn't been seen by her friends or family since then, and she's not shown at the appointed rondevue point." He looked up towards Angelo, trying to pierce the shadows, to get a look at his master's face. "She's done no better than any other thief. I do not..."
Angelo raised one finger, the man falling silent, trembling. "It is not for you to understand, Gydien. You merely do as you are told to do, and do not question our orders or our motives."
"Of course, master." Gydien bowed, dry-washing his hands. The nervous habit bothered Angelo, but he didn't let his irritation tinge his voice. The man served his purpose, and for now he would live. "What else do you wish me to do?"
"Have Lizabet watch the other woman, and wait for our orders." He paused, his lip curling as Gydien bowed again. "Now get out of our sight."
"Yes, master. It shall be done as you say." Gydien backed out of the room, bowing with each step, until the massive doors were slammed behind him, leaving the nine in silence and shadow. Angelo reached one pale hand down to switch off the light that had kept Gydien blinded to those around the table, and they waited as their eyes adjusted. They were more comfortable in the dark.
"How much longer must we put up with his existance?" Penara had a distinct note of disgust in her voice, and her eys met Angelo's with a dark desire written in them, a desire to see the little man squirming beneath her heel as he bled to death.
"Patience, Penara. When he has served his purpose, you may have him to so with what you please." Angelo watched the woman subside, though he knew she was the most volotile of his companions, and the least controllable. "Is there anything anyone else wishes to bring up?"
There was silence around the table for a while as the others thought about how best to word what they wished to say. They had not gotten this far in the human world by being brash and impulsive.
"If the thief fails to complete either the job she was offered or the job we expect her to complete, who gets the delight of destroying her?" Davyd smiled slightly, his features a nearly blank mask, only the slightest twinge around his eyes giving away the concern her felt.
"She is mine to kill, regardless of her success or failure, Davyd. Or have you forgotten whose line she hails from?" Angelo frowned, his eyes narrowing slightly. He'd been irritated to find that the blood of the woman who'd killed him still held strong in the world of men. And ran strongest in another woman, who could bring him back the power he craved, or could once more be his downfall.
"I have not forgotten, my lord. I simply asked, as if she fails, it is possible the blood of the Rohan woman does not run as strong in her as orginally thought."
"I doubt she will fail in both the tasks before her." The melodious voice of Niniva came out of the shadows across from Davyd. "And if she succeeds in either one, we will have our power returned to us. And no matter if she succeeds or fails, she will still die, so why does it matter who will kill her, Davyd? Personally, I'd much rather get my hands on that handsome pair of elves that so nearly put me out of business. I'm sure I will get much use out of them before I finally kill them." Angelo watched, as did every other man at the table, as she licked perfectly red lips, a deep breath threatening to make a nipple peak over the low-cut neck-line of her outfit.
"Niniva, would you quit teasing the men?" Penara glared at the other woman irritably. "You will never make good on the threats you make everytime you breath in that outfit."
Niniva shrugged. "And? They enjoy the show as much as I enjoy having their attention. No one is getting hurt."
"Not yet, anyway. You keep doing that, and who knows. One of them may not be able to hold on to their self control. And there is no way I'm going to help you if that happens." Penara looked over at the third woman in the group, who shrugged silently. Alyca tended to stay out of the arguements between the other two women.
"Enough." Angelo spoke silently, and they all turned to him. "We will wait, and watch. After all, we have the time." He smiled, a cold gleam in his eyes. He would have the rings, one way or another, and the last of the elves would be dead, along with the blood of Rohan and Gondor that still ran in the veins of the mortals.
Kystrel heard the sounds of more people in the house, and growled, kicking the door again. It didn't budge, and the thief turned her attention to the room she was in, using her fingers to explore where she was. There were shelves with what felt like towels and bedsheets on them, made of wood, which made her frown. Everything in this house she'd see so far was made of wood, except for the tub, made of stone, and that weapon. And the floor was warm under her feet, pleasently so, instead of cold like she'd expected. On top of that, she couldn't recall seeing any signs that there was electricity in the house, and the tub had been her only clue that there was possibly running water.
She sat down on the floor, leaning against the door, her brow furrowing. The oddities of the house could be because it was old, and the owner didn't want to disturb the antique look of the place. But it was the owner that puzzled her most. He'd been able to hear her enter from his room, which had to be upstairs, from what she'd been able to glean of the layout before she entered. And she'd been silent as a cat.
"He could have been patrolling the house, Kystrel," she whispered to herself, shaking her head as she did so, dismissing the thought almost as quickly as it had come. If he'd been patrolling the house, he'd have been wearing more than a loincloth that was barely decent. But he shouldn't have been able to hear her breaking in! She'd been nearly dead silent.
She was startled by the sound of something moving, and managed to get halfway to her feet before the door opened. She grabbed the door frame to keep from falling over backwards, turning once she'd regained her balance. Haldir stood watching her, and she could see he held some clothing that would be more comfortable than the shirt she was in now. He handed them to her silently, then stood back, and waited.
"What are you standing there for? I'm not changing in front of you."
He raised an eyebrow. "You are welcome to change in the closet. Though I suspect you'll find it rather difficult to change one-handed in the dark."
Kystrel stared at him, her jaw dropping. When she tried to speak, nothing came out but an indignant squeak, and she saw the smirk that tugged at the corners of his mouth.
"It isn't as if I haven't seen you without clothing already." His eyes flicked briefly to the bandage. "Though if you really are that modest, I will turn away."
Haldir watched as Kystrel turned a rather fascinating shade of red, the theif nodding sharply. He smirked slightly, turning to face the door, listening to the rustle of cloth behind him. A soft curse told him she was having trouble, and he turned slightly, about to speak when she growled.
"Don't you dare!"
It was several minutes more before he heard her coming towards him, and turned, his smirk returning at the startled expression on her face.
"How? No one else hears me," she spoke, confusion and annoyance in her tone. She glared at him through dark grey eyes, and he merely took her elbow in his hand, guiding her out of the room, and downstairs. The twins looked up, curious, when he entered, and Haldir groaned internally when he saw their eyes light up in delight.
"Ah, so this is the woman..."
"... who managed to best both..."
"... the brave Haldir..."
"... and fair Legolas!"
He sensed Kystrel stiffen beside him, and frowned, looking down at her face. She was staring at the twins, her grey eyes wide with shock. Following her gaze, he nearly cursed. The twins had their hair pulled back into identical tails, the tips of their pointed ears visible.
"Wha....?" She gestured towards the twins, her mouth working soundlessly. Elledan and Elrohir looked at each other in confusion, blinking when they realized they still had their hair pulled back. Legolas muttered something uncomplimentary from his seat at the table, the Mirkwood elf studiously cleaning his fingernails.
Kystrel decided she'd stepped into a madhouse, and when she got herself out of there, she was packing up her apartment, and leaving. She hoped April wouldn't be too miffed if she called her from the airport to tell her she was in town to stay.
"Kystrel." She started, realizing that was the fourth time Haldir had called her name, and she looked up at him, her eyes wary. "The table is over here." He was pulling her in the direction of the table that dominated one side of the room.
On an impulse, Kystrel reached out to brush away his hair, and she nearly shrieked, pulling away with a strength born of sudden fear, and bolted, ignoring the pain that shot through her shoulder at the sudden movement. She hit the front door, her hand scrambling at the knob, wrenching it open to flee into the descending dusk. Her bare feet pounded against the ground, her heartbeat thudding in her ears. She couldn't have seen what she thought she saw, she couldn't have!
An arrow slammed into a tree as she passed it, and she froze, whirling. Haldir stood almost two hundred feet away, his bow drawn, another arrow tensed to fly if she decided to turn and run. She shivered, shaking her head. No. No way. There was no way he could be that accurate over that distance. She began to back away, her eyes fixed on the arrow with morbid fascination.
Haldir could see the fear and disbelief in Kystrel's eyes, and he silently cursed, knowing if he moved now, she'd run, and with her would go any information she had about the person or people who wanted the rings. "Kystrel. If you run, I will have no choice but to put this arrow through your heart."
"Can't." She shook her head, her voice high-pitched, the woman verging on the edge of panic. "No one is that accurate over that distance, can't be." She was still backing away, her chest heaving with each fearful breath. Haldir remained still, noting the disturbance behind her in the trees as Legolas dropped silently down, though the Lorian elf kept his eyes fixed on Kystrel.
"I can. Kystrel, come here. I do not want blood shed."
She laughed, the sound just shy of hysterical, no amusement in it. She spun to run, and slammed into Legolas, the Mirkwood elf wrapping one arm around her to keep her from going anywhere. Haldir lowered the bow, coming forward as Kystrel slumped. He looked down at her, hissing at the blood staining the bandage on her shoulder, and slid his bow so it hung across his back, picking up the light body.
He glared at the twins as he carried her back inside, the two having at least the grace to look abashed. Once upstairs, he stripped off the shirt, and the bandages, using the linen strips to staunch the bleeding. She'd ripped the wound wide open again with her running, and Haldir grimaced, carefully cleaning it once more, and rebandaging it with fresh herbs before tucking her into his own bed.
Stalking downstairs, he scowled as he came into the kitchen, where the twins waited, their hair loose again, and hiding their ears. He said nothing, his anger palitable as he put together a tray with fruit and bread to take upstairs for Kystrel. The silence streched on, uncomfortable and strained.
"We apologize for frightening the woman." Elledan's voice was a whisper, breaking the silence first.
"We forgot we left our hair back." Elrohir was as apologetic and silent as his twin, the two giving Haldir penitent looks.
The elder elf was not about to let them off easily. "Apparently you also have forgotten that elves are no longer thought to be real, and for her to see you as anything but human endangers us. Now I cannot let her leave, even once I find out who hired her, and why. I will not have your foolishness endager all of us." His tone was steely, and quiet, his eyes flashing like grey storm clouds. "And you two will not be leaving anytime soon on one of your little excursions again. You have the patrol of the grounds until I say otherwise, is that clear?"
They nodded, sporting identical miserable expressions, and Haldir gave them a last frown before he stalked out, going back to his room. Kystrel was still passed out, and he set the tray on the table, pulling one of the chairs nearer the bed, settling into it to sleep.
Author's Notes: Thank you to my reviewers!
Maaa - I update when I can... It can be quickly, or can take some time, depending on how busy I am.
Alexis Ravenlockes - Thank you. I am glad you are enjoying it. I will be keeping it going, and I hope you continue reading, and find the rest of it as interesting as you found the first chapter.