The Mourners by Aminah Fox

Author:Aminah Fox [Fox, Aminah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: 22nd Light LLC

Chapter Seventeen

When they’d first arrived at the Centre Royale, it was particularly bland looking in light of her expectations. The lobby had a wide waiting area with couches and tables evenly spaced throughout the room. Above them, chandeliers lit every inch of the lobby and reflected off the tinted windows, which kept their affluent guests’ stays private. Those guests, at the time, were staring at them, likely puzzled by their common attire.

The male receptionist shared a similar cold demeanor, unimpressed by the Disciples and Enochs guarding them, but he warmed the moment Starla flashed her smile and credit card. And perhaps ignoring the overwhelming number of stares they were receiving was starting to get to Elide—but this morning was different. After she’d brushed her teeth and dressed, she’d walked into their suite’s living room to find a Seeker waiting among the pack of Disciples, all chatting and joking with each other.

The Seeker, Cyrus Coin, was nearly as handsome as the Apostate. A skilled tracker burdened with honors and awards and notably polite, with a smile that could send any woman swooning over him and a father who was a well-liked reverend elder. His little brother Aiden more closely resembled their father, but he didn’t share Cyrus’s confidence. Aiden was an Enoch trainee that was shy, soft-spoken, and never had mail for Elide.

“Good morning, Elide,” Cyrus greeted with a smile. “I’m afraid your previous escort ate some bad fish last night and won’t be able to accompany you. So I’ll be escorting you in his stead.”

Elide nodded. She looked at him from head to toe. He wore the same formal brown coat he’d been wearing when they’d first met, but this time there was a raven pin on his lapel. Someone got a promotion, Elide thought to herself, staring at the bird. Was the Apostate spying on her? Or had Cyrus been sent to protect her?

Elide shook off the thought. It wasn’t as if Cyrus would learn anything interesting from Starla’s commitment ceremony shopping or whatever Adoann festivities Isadora had planned for them. And at the moment, Elide was hoping they would bore him enough to leave.

“Thank you for accompanying me,” Elide signed.

Cyrus smiled and said, “Shall we?”

He opened the front door, and Elide stepped out into the hallway. Unfortunately, when Cyrus followed her, two brutish-looking Disciples followed close behind them, walking in a matching stride that made Elide particularly uneasy. She wondered if they always looked angry to intimidate onlookers or if it was their natural disposition. Either way, people wouldn’t enter elevators with them, and curious spectators moved out of their way when they reached the lobby.

The lobby looked particularly festive this morning. String lights were being hung around the reception desk, and hotel workers were decorating large and undoubtedly expensive, strategically placed Christmas trees along the walls. A fireplace in the corner of the room was decorated with holly and a nativity scene.

The other guests looked happier this morning. And Elide was happy to see her friends walking into the hotel with breakfast in takeout boxes.

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