Black Riders. Samuel I Sinclair

have stayed fearful, but when his brother started to laugh again, his fear turned to terror, and his eyes darted to his brother.

      “So you’re telling me that you are a beast blessed by the good graces of The Master of the Lower World, and now you work as, what, an executioner who takes the lives of the…the…what would you call the two of us now?”

      “The desperate and deranged,” Christine replied. “And they are the best people for me because they are more like customers than victims.”

      “Customers?” Izac started.

      “Keep your mouth shut, brother, please,” Adrian pleaded. “You don’t know how dangerous this weapon can be.”

      “Oh, so we have a man with more of an education than I had expected. This is so delightful,” Christine said cheerfully but still in her new voice.

      “Educated in what regard?” Izac asked, puzzled.

      “Why don’t you tell him, and I’ll get ready, love,” Christine said in her original voice and removed the cloth keeping her hair in a bun.

      “Such creatures known as demons,” Adrian said cautiously, “and those above them, I do believe, have the most dangerous weapon in the world.”

      Izac looked puzzled but remained silent.

      “Sex and seduction. Once they start with a victim, they don’t stop until they perish.”

      “Though they are not quite victims when they are so willing to commit such a vile action,” Christine added.

      “So what?” Izac said indifferently. “We’ve been caught, haven’t we? So why don’t we just go out having a little fun for all our troubles?”

      Adrian looked from Izac to Christine.

      “Please.” His eyes begged her. “He is but a boy and knows not all the ways of the world.”

      Christine seemed satisfied with his pathetic pleading.

      “Very well. I don’t have the urge with you, boys, anyway. That is to say, if you do as I ask, then I won’t.”

      Adrian was going to hesitate but knew the safety of his brother was on the line, so he acted fast.

      “What is it you want?”

      “What I want is to learn everything there is to know about you and your history.”

      Adrian found it incredibly hard to start but knew he had to in order to protect his brother. And when he did, he couldn’t stop himself from telling everything.

      6

      His brother was unplanned, and this created problems. Adrian had been born into the not completely wealthy but still ranked high in society Adavitch family. His mother, Lynn Adavitch, once known as Lynn Flairwein, had been the daughter of a wealthy tradesman who owned a successful empire in the silk and fur trade.

      His father, Henry Adavitch, had enlisted in the royal guard the moment he could, secretly earlier. His mother had once told him this was to prove to his seven brothers and six sisters, himself being the runt of the litter, that he was the strongest of them all.

      When his regiment was assigned to guard a set of caravans that contained his mother and her father’s most priceless treasures, it was love at first sight. They quickly married, but there were less than romantic motives for his father. All married couples were entitled to the money the other had in their possession, and when Lynn’s father passed on because of mysterious circumstances, she was given control of the entire trade empire.

      Lynn never cared about money and didn’t mind spending it to make her husband happy. This quickly changed when she became pregnant. After having baby Adrian, she wanted to spend more time with her family. She requested that Henry retire from the royal guard, and her business advisors ran the empire.

      Things were going great in the lives of all three, as Lynn was still gaining more money than she was spending on Henry or young Adrian. Adrian was given the best teachers money could buy, and though he wasn’t the perfect student, he was still very intelligent. He was being groomed for enrollment in any profession linked to the royal guard. But the good times didn’t last.

      After five years, Lynn became pregnant again, and this time was different. The child was born prematurely and at the cost of Lynn’s life. This caused more than just pain and loss to Henry and Adrian.

      According to the laws set forth by His Majesty, a person was only entitled to their spouse’s money while they lived. When they perished, it was passed evenly into the surviving next of kin who might only access it after seeing eighteen cycles.

      This meant that Henry was unable to use Lynn’s fortune for another thirteen years. Which drove him back to the royal guard and, worse, to drinking and violence.

      7

      “Hold on a moment, Adrian,” Christine said. “I believe that we should relive these next moments.”

      Adrian had been unwilling to even talk about this to anyone because of the trauma his father had caused, and he didn’t like the feelings he was experiencing up until this point. When he looked over at Izac, he could see he was feeling the same way.

      Before he could ask what she intended to do or if she would mind not doing it, she brought out a sapphire crystal skull and whispered something into it. When she finished, darkness began to leak out of the skull’s eyes. It leaked out into the area until the three could see nothing but each other.

      “What’s going on here, Christine?” Adrian shouted across the darkness.

      “Just relax and let the shadows show you.” She giggled.

      Before he had time to react to her answer, the darkness faded, and he saw where they now were. He felt like crying.