Rogue

by Karen Lynch

  The warriors were all business. Before I knew it, I was in a vehicle with Nikolas, Chris, Jordan, and Geoffrey. The four warriors who had flown with us climbed into the other vehicles with Geoffrey’s team.

  Geoffrey drove, easily navigating the busy streets. “We scouted the address you gave us and saw a female there, but she doesn’t look like Madeline.”

  “Madeline is using a warlock glamour to mask her identity,” Nikolas told him.

  “Which warlock?”

  “Orias.”

  Geoffrey let out a whistle, and I began to wonder if there was anyone who hadn’t heard of Orias. “It’s no surprise no one can find her. How are you going to know for sure if it’s her?”

  “We have a way to see through her glamour,” Nikolas answered vaguely. Despite what had happened at Westhorne last fall, few Mohiri knew about my Fae heritage. The rest were on a need-to-know basis.

  “You got the warlock tied up back there?” Geoffrey joked lightly. “Ah, here we are.”

  My breathing fogged the window as I leaned close to it to stare at the glass building that was so tall it appeared to disappear into the Vegas sky. Somewhere up there behind one of those windows was my mother. Not that I was looking for a mother-daughter reunion. But it was surreal to know that in a few minutes, I might actually talk to her for the first time.

  “Are you ready?” Nikolas’s eyes were dark with worry.

  “I’ve been ready for this for a long time.”

  Armed and alert, Nikolas, Jordan, Chris, and I entered the marble lobby along with two of the warriors from the California team. The rest took up positions outside in case there was trouble.

  I barely noticed our surroundings as we waited for the elevator to arrive, and by the time we stepped off the elevator on the forty-second floor, my heart was pounding. Nikolas’s warm hand captured mine and squeezed it gently, and I gave him a small smile.

  We stopped in front of door 4220, and everyone but Nikolas and I moved away from the door. We’d decided on the plane that the two of us would talk to Madeline while the rest waited outside. Too many visitors might spook her and make her less inclined to talk. She knew Nikolas well and I was her daughter, so she might open up to us. In any case, she wasn’t running this time – unless she sprouted wings.

  Nikolas rang the doorbell and I could hear the faint chimes ringing through the condo. I pictured Madeline walking quietly to the door and peering at us through the peephole. Her eyes would grow round in shock when she saw who was on the other side of the door, and she’d pretend no one was home and hope we would leave.

  Several long minutes passed. Nikolas knocked this time. “Madeline, we’ve had our people watching this place, so we know you’re in there. We just want to talk.”

  Silence.

  I moved in front of him. “An hour of your time, and we’ll be out of your life forever. You owe me that much... Mom.” Okay, maybe I put more than a little sarcasm into that word, but really, who could blame me?

  The deadbolt clicked and the door opened as far as the metal security guard would allow it. A blue eye peered out at me warily, and I sucked in a sharp breath. “I’m sorry but you have the wrong address. My name is Claire and I have no children.”

  “Now that really hurts,” I replied dryly.

  “I don’t know who you are, but I’m calling the police if you don’t leave.”

  I leaned closer to her and spoke softly. “Before you do that, I think you should know I can see through glamours... even Orias’s.”

  Shock and recognition flashed in her eyes before she could hide it. Her lips clamped together, and the door slammed shut. It wouldn’t do her any good. We weren’t going anywhere, and neither was she.

  Seconds later, the door opened and I stood face-to-face with my mother.

  The photos I’d seen of her had not done her justice. Madeline had a good five inches on me, and her figure was svelte in the blue pants and cream top she wore. Her platinum blond hair was pulled back into a simple chignon that flattered her delicate features and sapphire blue eyes. I could see why any man, including my father, would fall for her.

  When I’d met Tristan, I’d thought it was strange having a grandfather who looked only a few years my senior. That was nothing compared to having a mother who looked like she could have been in my senior class. I should have kept the money I’d given Roland and Peter. I’d need it to pay for therapy when all of this was over.

  “Come in.” Madeline’s rich voice was laced with anger and resignation as she stepped back to wave us inside.

  I went first and Nikolas followed me closely. My mother or not, he wasn’t taking any chances. Normally, I’d tell him he was being overprotective, but I let it pass because just bringing me here was a big step for him.

  Madeline locked the door and led us into the living room that was tastefully done in browns and creams, with floor-to-ceiling windows that provided an amazing view of the Strip. She seated herself in a leather chair, and Nikolas and I sat on the matching couch. I looked at her and wondered what I should be feeling, being in the same room with the woman who had given birth to me and abandoned me when I was just a baby. She was Tristan’s daughter and the woman my dad had loved. Yet all I saw was a beautiful stranger. All I felt was cold detachment.

  “You look like Daniel.” It was said in a very matter-of-fact way, no emotion coloring her tone.

  “I know.”

  We stared at each other for a long moment. She looked away first. “It’s been a long time, Nikolas.”

  “It has. I’d say you look well, but I can’t see past the glamour.”

  Madeline’s brows drew together and she swung her gaze back to me. “And how is it that you can? Did Orias give you something to see past it? Did he tell you where I was? I know Adele would never betray me.”

  A small smile touched my lips. “Orias and I are not exactly on the best of terms, and Adele didn’t give you up. She is amazingly loyal to you.”

  “Then how did you find me? How can you see me now?”

  “Some very resourceful friends of mine found you for me. As for how I can see you, that’s irrelevant.” I saw no reason to beat around the bush, and I got right to the reason for our visit. “You know the identity of a Master and we want to know who he is.”

  She started to shake her head, and I said, “He had my dad killed. Your husband. He’s spent the last six months trying to kill me and everyone I love. I know family means nothing to you, but you must have felt something for my dad once upon a time.”

  Madeline recoiled as if I’d slapped her. “You know nothing about what I felt for him.”

  “You’re right. I don’t.” Anger slipped into my voice. “I don’t know how you can love someone and hurt them so completely. I don’t know how you can stand back while they are murdered and let the one responsible walk free so he can destroy other families. I have no idea what a person who does something like that is feeling. So why don’t you enlighten me?”

  “I know you are angry because I left you –”

  I couldn’t stop the harsh laugh that burst from me. “I don’t even remember you. My dad gave me all the love I needed until they took him from me. You have the information I need to find them, and that is the only reason I’m here now.”

  Silence fell over the room, broken by the soft patter of raindrops against the windows. I looked at the sky and watched dark clouds roll in.

  “I loved him.”

  I turned back to Madeline. “What?”

  “Your father.” Her hands entwined on her lap. “I met him in college. I knew he was human and it could never work between us, but he was... He had a way of making you feel like you were the only person in his world.”

  I didn’t know why she was telling me this, but I knew what she meant about my dad. His life had revolved around me, and he’d always made sure I knew how much he loved me. I’d been his world, just like he’d been mine.

  “I should not have married him, but I was in love,
and I couldn’t think of leaving him. I knew it wouldn’t be long before he realized I was different, so a month before our wedding, I told him what I was.”

  Shock rippled through me. “He knew what you were?”

  “I told him I was Mohiri, but not about my Mori because I didn’t think he could cope with that. It was a struggle for him to learn about the real world, but he said what I was didn’t matter to him.” Her eyes and voice grew soft. “Even when I said I would not age, he wanted me to stay. So we got married. Those two years were the happiest of my life.”

  I didn’t need to ask what had ended her blissful state. I was born in the third year of their marriage.

  Madeline looked almost apologetic when she spoke again. “I was content with just the two of us, but Daniel wanted a child. He talked about how wonderful it would be, and I loved him so much that I let myself believe it was what I wanted, too. The day you were born, he was the happiest I’d ever seen him. I thought that would be enough for me to be happy too, but I was wrong. I loved my daughter – you, but being a mother wasn’t something I had ever wanted. I did it for two years, and then I couldn’t handle it anymore.”

  “You left your child with a human who had no idea what would happen to her when her Mori emerged,” Nikolas said in a hard voice.

  “I could sense no Mori in her,” Madeline replied defensively. “I thought she was human like her father.” She looked at me. “I came back sometimes to see how the two of you were doing, but neither of you knew it. If I’d seen a sign that you were different, I would have gone to your father. You looked happy together.”

  “We were happy. Until he was killed.”

  Pain flashed in her eyes. “I went to him and warned him he might be in danger. He didn’t believe me. The last thing I wanted was for him to get hurt.”

  Bitterness welled in me. “He’d didn’t get hurt, Madeline. He got murdered.”

  She flinched and got up to walk over to the window where rain was running down in rivulets now. “Part of me died that day. No matter what had happened between us, Daniel was the only man I ever loved.”

  “Did you even care about what happened to your daughter after he died?” Nikolas asked harshly.

  Madeline turned away from the window. “Of course I did,” she snapped. “Sara disappeared after her father died, and there was no trace of her. I thought she had died, too, at first. I don’t know why I forgot about Daniel’s brother, Nate, but it was years later when I remembered him.”

  I knew why she hadn’t remembered Nate. Aine had hidden me so the vampires could not find me. She’d made everyone forget that Nate even existed. It surprised me to hear Madeline had looked for me, but it didn’t change how I felt about her.

  Nikolas leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Tell us about the Master.”

  The agitation on Madeline’s face immediately turned to fear. “I-I can’t.”

  “Yes, you can.” I had to force myself not to yell at her. “Why are you protecting him?”

  “I’m not protecting him. You don’t understand.” She began to pace in front of the window. “I can’t tell you because I don’t know who he is.”

  “You’re lying. A day before my dad was killed, you went to visit a friend of yours in Portland and you told him you knew about the Master.”

  She stopped pacing to stare at me. “Jiro Ito? How do you know about him?”

  “His son, David, was there and he overheard you talking to his father. You said you knew the identity of a Master, and you needed the money he was holding for you so you could disappear.”

  “Jiro’s son was there?” She shook her head. “He misunderstood what I said. I told Jiro that a Master was after me because I’d seen him, but that I didn’t know who he was.”

  I folded my arms across my chest. “That makes no sense. If you saw him, you can describe him. And how did you come to see him in the first place or even know he was a Master?”

  Madeline looked almost terrified when she returned to her chair. “I was in New York to see Adele, who was opening a new night club there, and I ended up at a party on the Upper East Side. I –” She swallowed and her hands clenched the arms of her chair. “Something happened to me at the party. One minute I was having a drink and the next I woke up in a cage in the basement of a place I didn’t know. There were vampires everywhere, but none of them talked to me until one named Eli came in. He taunted me about being his Master’s new toy. When I heard the word ‘Master’ I knew I was dead.”

  “Khristu,” Nikolas breathed.

  “A few hours later, they took me upstairs to meet the Master. I remember walking into a room and seeing him sitting by the fireplace. I remember every minute I was tortured by him for two days. I remember wishing to die. But I can’t remember anything about him.”

  The fear in her voice was real as she relived the ordeal. “I’m sorry.” No matter what my feelings were for her, no one deserved to go through that. “Did they drug you to make you forget?”

  “He compelled me to forget him.”

  My eyes jerked from her to Nikolas. “But we can’t be compelled by vampires. Can we?”

  “A Master is not a normal vampire,” Nikolas replied.

  “He made sure I remembered everything about my time there, except him.” Madeline’s voice shook. “He said he was going to enjoy playing with me for a long time.”

  The air in the room was charged with her fear, and it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. At that moment, lightning zigzagged across the sky, and I jumped.

  “How did you escape?” Nikolas asked her.

  “I didn’t. He released me.”

  My mouth fell open. “He let you go?”

  “Something happened. I don’t know what. I was chained in his sitting room and I heard voices outside. Then he came in and said something that made me go to sleep. I woke up in Central Park filled with an overwhelming urge to run.” She swiped a finger under her eye. “The first thing I did was go to Portland to warn Daniel. I’ve been running ever since.”

  Nikolas shook his head. “Madeline, why didn’t you go home? Tristan would do anything to keep you safe.”

  She sniffed delicately. “Whatever he did to me made me afraid to trust anyone, especially the Mohiri. Adele is my closest friend, and I can’t even trust her completely. He stole that from me. He released me from my chains, but he still robbed me of my freedom. Until I can get rid of this compulsion, I’ll never be free.”

  Orias’s conversation with Madeline suddenly made sense to me. “Orias is trying to find a way to break the Master’s compulsion, isn’t he?”

  “He’s been working on it for ten years, but nothing can break it.”

  “The only thing that can break a Master’s compulsion is his death,” Nikolas explained.

  The weight of his words hit me. “She can’t tell us where he is unless she can break the compulsion, but in order to break it he has to die?”

  “Yes.”

  Despair settled over me, crushing every hope I’d pinned on finding Madeline. She was supposed to have the answers, to lead us to the Master, but she was as confused as the rest of us. Where did that leave us?

  “Are you okay?”

  I tried to smile at Nikolas and failed miserably.

  “We’ll find him. It’ll just take a little longer than we thought.”

  Madeline straightened her perfect chignon. “So you are Mohiri after all. I’m glad you found our people, Sara.”

  “Actually, it was Nikolas who found me.” I laid my hand on the couch between us and he covered it with his. The action did not go unnoticed by Madeline, and her lips parted in surprise. Neither Nikolas nor I bothered to answer the question in her eyes. As far as I was concerned, she’d lost the right to know about my life the moment she’d deserted my dad and me.

  “What will you do now?” she asked, and I could almost hear the “with me” at the end of the question.

  “We’ll keep looking,” Nikolas answered.
“Keep fighting.”

  “We found you. We’ll find him, too.” I let go of Nikolas’s hand and we both stood at the same time. “We should be going.”

  Madeline walked us to the door. “Sara, for what it’s worth, I really did love your father. And I loved you, too. I still do.”

  I held out my hand and she hesitated before she took it. “Thank you for talking to us. I hope Orias can find a way to help you.”

  Her eyes glistened and she held my hand a few seconds longer than was necessary. “Thank you.”

  “Goodbye, Madeline.”

  Nikolas opened the door and I gave my mother one last look before I walked through it.

  Chapter 21

  My whole body sagged the moment the door shut behind us. Talking to Madeline about the past had been harder than I’d expected. Add to that my disappointment that she couldn’t help us, and I was feeling like I’d been put through an emotional wringer.

  Jordan ran up to us. “What did she say?”

  “Not here,” Nikolas said. “We’ll talk outside.”

  Rain was coming down in torrents when we left the building, and we made a mad dash for the vehicles. As soon as we settled into our SUV, the others looked at us expectantly. I sat back during the drive to the airport and let Nikolas tell them about our conversation with Madeline.

  We were all subdued by the time we piled out of the vehicles at the airport hangar. Nikolas went to speak to the pilot, and I found a seat at the back of the small jet. I reclined my seat and closed my eyes, hoping that would discourage anyone from trying to talk to me. It had been a long day, capped off by a huge setback, and I needed a little time to process it all.

  “Sara?” I opened my eyes as Nikolas settled into the seat next to mine. His expression told me there was more bad news.

  “We’ve got some bad electrical storms moving through the area, so we’re grounded for a few hours, at least. Geoffrey’s team has a safe house nearby, and we’re going to wait out the storm there. It’s more comfortable than an airport hangar.”