The Helm of Darkness

  The Helm of Darkness, The Horizon Chronicles Book 2:

  Copyright © 2017 by Kim Richardson

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the written permission of the author. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Edited by Grenfell Featherstone

  Cover design by Damonza

  Printed in the United States of America

  First Edition, 2017

  www.kimrichardsonbooks.com

  BOOKS BY KIM RICHARDSON

  SOUL GUARDIANS SERIES

  Marked

  Elemental

  Horizon

  Netherworld

  Seirs

  Mortal

  Reapers

  Seals

  THE HORIZON CHRONICLES

  The Soul Thief

  The Helm of Darkness

  The City of Flame and Shadow (Coming Soon!)

  DIVIDED REALMS

  Steel Maiden

  Witch Queen

  Blood Magic

  MYSTICS SERIES

  The Seventh Sense

  The Alpha Nation

  The Nexus

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  The CITY of FLAME and SHADOW

  BOOKS BY KIM RICHARDSON

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  CHAPTER 1

  ALEXA STOOD BEFORE THE COUNCIL of Ministers. With her back straight and her hands clasped behind her back, she did her best to hide her emotions even though her nerves were in turmoil. She shivered despite the heat in the room.

  The recently polished floor gleamed with inlaid stones, and a blue sky peeked through the rounded glass dome through which Alexa could see other tall buildings floating around them. The sunlight through the glass heated the top of Alexa’s head like a hair dryer, and the chamber smelled of polished wood, stone, and metal.

  Seven determined-looking archangels sat behind a black half-moon desk on a dais that sparkled like a huge black diamond at the opposite end of the large round chamber. This time the rows of stadium-style wooden seats that angled along the wall around the chamber were all empty. If she hadn’t been so terrified, she might have thought it beautiful.

  Alexa was finally getting her day in court, but it wasn’t going as well as she’d hoped.

  Nearly a month had passed since she had encountered the pagan god, Hades. And while she had miraculously avoided being thrown into Tartarus, the angel prison, she still felt like she was a prisoner. She had been forced to remain in Horizon and under the archangel Ariel’s supervision until the day of her trial. She had been escorted everywhere by angels of higher rank, and she had never been allowed to roam unsupervised. Most of the other angels had ignored her, and that had been fine with her. She hadn’t been allowed any new assignments as a guardian. The pools had been declared off limits, and although she was still technically a member of the Counter Demon Division, she hadn’t been invited to any of their briefings.

  Alexa had become an outcast.

  To make matters worse, the archangel Metatron’s personal guards had always seemed to be lurking in the shadows whenever Alexa went anywhere. Their identical skin-tight dresses, red high heels, and sunglasses made them stand out from the normally dressed angels. Metatron wanted her to know that he was watching her. He was always watching, spying, and waiting for her to do something to implicate herself. One wrong move, and she knew she would end up in Tartarus. She wouldn’t give Metatron the satisfaction of arresting her, and she had been on her best behavior since her first day back.

  Too many unanswered questions needed to be resolved. Her relationship with Erik was one reason the council wanted to interrogate her. The memory of his warm lips, his strong arms, and his muscled chest still haunted her.

  But the real reason Alexa had been summoned to stand before the High Council was that she was missing a part of her soul. Even though she didn’t feel drastically different, the fact remained—Hades had left her spoiled, damaged, and broken when he had taken it.

  She had felt an empty hole inside her when it had happened. It was like having an empty stomach that constantly craved food. But it wasn’t just that she felt empty. There was something else. Something new had filled in the missing gap, something foreign. She felt different. Something was wrong. Something dark was inside her.

  Alexa brushed her dark thoughts away. She knew she was probably overthinking things, just as she usually did. All that mattered now was to be whole again. She needed to get the missing part of her soul back. She wanted to be a real guardian again. All her problems would be solved if she could reclaim her soul.

  She knew that Hades had to die. It was inevitable: his life for her soul. Unfortunately, Alexa had no idea how she was going to kill the pagan god.

  But first she needed to escape house arrest and get out of Horizon.

  Her ache for Erik was constant, and she wanted to be back in the mortal world just to see him. There was no point in lying to herself. She had feelings for him.

  She wanted to see her mother, too. The last time she’d seen her, she’d been a mess and looked like she hadn’t eaten in weeks. Alexa felt responsible and wanted to do something for her even though the Angel Code was clear: angels were forbidden from contacting their families. But Alexa didn’t care. Given the chance, she’d go see her.

  She’d been grounded by all her restrictions. All she could do was train and study. So, that’s exactly what she had done. With a new game plan in mind, Alexa had read everything she could find on Hades and the other pagan gods. She had brushed up on her demonology and had taken careful note of everything related to the Sensitives and their Houses. Alexa’s knowledge of Horizon, demons, and all things supernatural was limited because she was a rookie. But she was tired of feeling like a fool in front of the other angels. Even the mortals she had worked with knew more than her. She knew she needed to be better prepared mentally and physically.

  It could have been much worse. She could have been thrown into Tartarus to await her trial with the rest of the Legion’s criminals, defectors, and murderers. It was a miracle she’d been spared. But Alexa didn’t believe in coincidences, and she knew there must have been a reason they hadn’t tossed her into prison. She couldn’t help but wonder if she had been given her freedom as a ruse to get her to do something wrong.

  Alexa had never been to court when she was alive, and it was disconcerting to be in a room filled with judges now. Their attention was fixed on her. She was light-headed and gasped for air. This was far more intimidating and stressful than public speaking to her own classmates and teacher.

  Of course, her day in court wouldn’t have been complete without the presence of he
r biggest fan—Metatron the Fierce. He sat behind one of the long tables that separated her from the council. Alexa recognized Metatron’s personal guards, Michelle and Jasmine. They sat faithfully on either side of him. The only way she could tell them apart was that Jasmine was slightly taller, and her hair was a shade darker than Michelle’s. She could see that they were gorgeous, even behind their sunglasses. Their perfect features were like those of highly paid models. Metatron liked to surround himself with beauty.

  To Alexa’s surprise, a handsome young angel sat behind Metatron. He was the only other guardian in the room apart from her. His long legs stretched in front of him, and his arms were crossed over his large chest. At first glance, she thought he looked bored, as if he just couldn’t wait to get out of there. But the intensity in his eyes told a different story.

  His skin was the color of golden sand and shimmered like crystals in the light. It looked as if some immortal light shone through him. Or maybe he’d just doused himself in glimmer. His fair-colored hair curled softly against the nape of his neck and provided a stark contrast against his dark clothes. She had never seen him before. She would have remembered him if she had.

  His eyes were a stunning gray. She’d never seen eyes like that before. They were eyes that belonged in fairy tales. They were eyes that could trap you forever—eyes that could make you do things…

  He was resplendent in black, and every inch of him was corded with the muscles of a warrior.

  All the other guardians she’d seen looked like average human beings. Short, tall, fat, skinny, old, and young, they came in all shapes and sizes, and they all looked like ordinary people. But this guy was different. He didn’t have the monumental physique of an archangel, but he had that same mystical glow. What was he? Perhaps he was something else.

  Alexa wasn’t sure how long she had been staring at him, but when his gray-colored eyes met hers, he frowned.

  Alexa stiffened.

  She moved her gaze to Metatron and tried to still her fluttering nerves as she studied him. Metatron believed that somehow Alexa was a threat to Horizon. He had been livid that she and Lance had eluded his guards and had snuck back to the mortal world without authorization. At the time, Alexa had felt that shutting down the Hellgate had been more important than following the Angel Code. She knew she’d do it again if she had to, especially if she needed to save Erik. But Metatron was not sympathetic.

  What made matters worse, Alexa hadn’t seen Lance since they’d made the trip back together. No matter how many times she’d asked Ariel where he was, the archangel had always answered: Never mind that. Lance is where he should be.

  Alexa feared the worst. Had he been thrown into Tartarus? Had he been tortured? Did Metatron have something to do with his disappearance? Why him and not her?

  Metatron looked towards her, and Alexa flashed him a grin. She could see that he frowned behind his sunglasses. He turned his head away and clenched his jaw as he spoke with the other members of the council.

  It was flattering, she supposed, having the great Metatron attend her hearing, even though she knew he was committed to punishing her. His presence didn’t improve her mood.

  Her ears pricked when one of the council members mentioned Tartarus. Suddenly the chamber felt small and stuffy, and the stone floors rose toward her knees. Over the last month, every time her thoughts had moved to the giant black cube that was Tartarus, she had repeated the same words: I will not be afraid. The words had sustained her.

  The archangel, Jeremiel, the Minister of Ministration and Peace and head of the council, suddenly shook Alexa out of her reverie when he announced, “After much debate, we have finally come to a decision.”

  Alexa looked up and met Jeremiel’s dark eyes. Her knees began to shake uncontrollably. The next words out of his mouth would determine her fate.

  The archangel Ariel stood up and moved to stand on Alexa’s right.

  Alexa glanced over at Metatron, and this time he gave her a grin.

  Bastard. What did he know?

  “I must say this case is a particular one,” continued Jeremiel.

  His voice was throaty but calm. His white robe rippled around him as he leaned forward, and he intertwined his fingers on the desk. His intense black eyes, high cheekbones, and strong jaw made him look like a painting of a Native American from a mural. His glossy raven hair cascaded down over his broad shoulders.

  “It’s very unusual for an inexperienced guardian to be elevated so quickly. Not to mention that a petty officer was not assigned to you on your first field assignment. Perhaps if one had been assigned to you, things might have been drastically different. But as such, they are not.”

  Ariel clasped her hands behind her back and said, “That was my decision, and I take full responsibility for it.”

  Alexa had never heard Ariel’s voice tremble as it did when she spoke. It only made Alexa more nervous.

  “Alexa was born and raised in Coffin Grove,” continued Ariel. “She had firsthand experience. She knew her way around the town, and she knew its people. But that wasn’t the only reason she was my first choice. She excelled in her training, and her combat skills surpassed all the other rookies and even some of the more senior angels. At the time, I had complete faith in her abilities as a guardian. She had not been instructed to stay for such a long period, however. But she is still a rookie, and I should have paid more attention to the mortal emotions that still run through her—”

  “An irreversible mistake,” said Metatron.

  Alexa bit down on the inside of her mouth. She hadn’t realized her actions would have a direct effect on Ariel, who seemed to have had complete faith in her. She wanted to kick herself for being so selfish.

  Jeremiel looked at Ariel. “We will deal with your lack of judgment later.”

  Ariel hung her head slightly, and her eyes wavered as she stared at the ground. There was a peculiar quality to Ariel’s expression, as if she were hiding something, but it was gone before Alexa could be sure it had been there at all. Alexa felt guilty that she had not followed orders and had humiliated Ariel in front of her peers. She had let her down.

  Jeremiel looked impassive. “After hearing from both archangels Ariel and Metatron—”

  The floor wavered beneath Alexa’s feet, and the archangel’s words seemed far away. She could barely hear them.

  “We’ve concluded that apart from her entanglement with the mortal boy, which is still a very serious and significant offense, and despite the other matter of conspiracy to commit wrongful acts against the Legion—”

  “What conspiracy?” Alexa stiffened and it took a tremendous effort not to glare in Metatron’s direction. She tightened her hands into fists, and her nails cut into her palms.

  This was the first time she’d been accused of being a traitor. In her naiveté, she had believed she was here because she had kissed Erik, not because she was thought to have been involved in some secret plot to overturn the Legion.

  “…conspiracy to collaborate with the enemies of Horizon. You have been accused of violating the Angel Code,” continued Jeremiel. “But since we found no proof to substantiate these claims, all other charges against you have been dismissed.”

  The sound of a chair hitting the hard floor echoed loudly.

  “What?” bellowed Metatron as he adjusted his sunglasses on the bridge of his nose. “You cannot be serious.”

  Jeremiel’s icy glare cut through the chamber.

  “The laws are clear, Metatron, for all angels. All guardians must abide by them or suffer the consequence. It is my duty to uphold our laws, but in this case, there was insufficient evidence. There has been a thorough, independent investigation on all matters related to Alexa Dawson, and we found nothing to support these conspiracy claims. Alexa did break the Angel Code with her embarrassing behavior with the mortal boy, however, and you may rest assured that there will be a cost for such reckless behavior—”

  “Which is?” asked Alexa before she could stop
herself. Reckless and bold perhaps, but the thought of Tartarus still haunted her.

  Jeremiel looked down upon Alexa with the same look of disappointment a father would show before scolding a child. “You will serve one month of Orientation duty. You will assist the oracles with clerical work and with all matters concerning newly appointed guardians.”

  “That’s it?” said Alexa.

  She tried to read the blank, stern faces of the council members without looking too relieved.

  “You’re demoting me into an administrative assistant?” She tried not to smile.

  “And,” continued the archangel Jeremiel, “once your monthly duties are over, you will report back to the archangel Ariel where you will begin your probation. A petty officer has already been assigned to you.”

  Alexa stiffened and turned to look again at the unusual fair-haired angel who had been sitting behind Metatron. When their eyes locked, he shot her a disapproving look that indicated he hated the idea more than she did.

  “This has been a very particular case, and what happened to you was very unusual, Alexa,” said Jeremiel.

  Alexa looked at him with her mouth slightly open.

  “It’s not unusual. It’s a sign!” growled Metatron. “The kid’s in bed with our enemies.”

  “They found no mark or any other proof that Alexa had any type of alliance with our enemies,” said Ariel. Her voice was tinged with controlled anger. “Alexa has been cleared for duty, Metatron.”

  Metatron ignored her. “Marks can be hidden. We’ve all seen this before.”

  Jeremiel cast Metatron an irritated glance before continuing.

  He turned to Alexa. “Your petty officer will have full authority over you, and he will accompany you on all field assignments.”

  Alexa fought to control her anger.

  “Until when?” she asked as evenly as she could.

  “Until we decide you can be trusted to behave on your own,” answered Jeremiel flatly. “Considering what you did, your punishment is quite lenient, to say the least. Our decision was based solely on your actions prior to the discovery that the guardian Ryan was a traitor. Seeing as it was also your first assignment, you were given more leeway for your mistakes because you were a rookie. It is our responsibility not just to correct your mistake but make sure that you learn from it.”