by Sue Lyndon
Fear twisted his insides as he imagined the terrible things the scoundrel was doing to Betsy at this very moment. He needed to move faster. He exited his ship and ran to the house, his boots crunching over the dry ground. Light spilled from several windows, and he crept around the structure to peer inside each opening. He saw empty hallways and rooms. No sign of Betsy or Teyya or the men who’d taken her.
Strong currents of wind hit Edek in the face, and he glanced up to see several black circular shapes blocking out the stars and moons. His men were starting to arrive. He swallowed hard and yanked his ax from his belt, using it to pry a window open. As it slid up, he looked over his shoulder and spotted over ten bodies moving through the darkness. Moonlight glittered off their swords, axes, and knives.
No one approached him or spoke. He crawled through the window and two of his men followed on his heels. The others would find another way inside, and at least two would keep guard on the perimeter lest Teyya attempt an escape. Edek had trained them well. They weren’t afraid to face down aliens twice their size on the battlefield, and they certainly weren’t afraid to infiltrate the house of one criminal Kall and his cronies.
“Lanzo is dead?” A loud voice boomed from a nearby room.
Edek paused in a doorway to listen to the exchange, holding his ax at the ready.
“Yes. Lanzo is dead. I swear it. I slit his throat myself,” said another voice.
“His warrior brother? Edek? Did you end him too?”
“Of course I ended him, Teyya. Lanzo, Commander Edek, and every last servant are dead. There are no witnesses.”
Edek bit back a laugh. The criminals Teyya had hired weren’t honorable in the least. Once they received their bag of coins as payment, they’d likely move on to a district on the other side of the planet, far from Teyya’s reach.
As the conversation continued with the criminals taking turns describing the supposed deaths, Edek edged into a dim hallway. Most of the orbs lining the walls and ceiling were dark, only a handful lighting the house. He took deep breaths as he followed the voices, hoping to detect Betsy’s scent.
At least Teyya had wanted her captured alive. Edek vowed to find a way to secure her freedom—true freedom—if he wasn’t too late. Her days of slavery would be over. He’d petition Sumlin District for a marriage license and make her his wife. He no longer cared what his people thought.
Edek loved her. He was willing to throw his position of commander away for a chance to love her freely, if it came to that. He was even willing to leave his homeworld and settle on another planet if it meant they could be together. Regret washed over him as he reached the room where Teyya still conversed with the criminals. If he’d realized the depth of his feelings for Betsy before today, she wouldn’t be in danger right now. Nor would Lanzo be on the brink of death. Edek pushed the emotions swelling in his chest away and readied himself for battle.
Hard. Deadly. Unforgiving.
The faint breathing of his men sounded behind him. Four. Possibly five of them now. A roomful of criminals was no match for even one Kall warrior, let alone four or five. They would pay. Every last one of them.
Edek burst into the room with a thunderous roar, his ax swinging high above his head.
Chapter Seven
Screams echoed throughout the house. Metal clashed against metal. Angry shouts in Kall rang out. Even from Betsy’s location in an upper level bedroom, the sounds of battle became deafening and made her wince. She strained to listen for Edek’s voice but couldn’t make it out among all the noise.
It had to be him. Edek. No one else would come for her. Her heart raced with fear as she imagined the fight raging below. She’d been taken by five men. Including the pervert, that put Edek against six men. One man against six. The odds weren’t in Edek’s favor, but she still prayed for a miracle.
She grimaced as she twisted her wrists around inside manacles that were identical to those she’d worn on the day of auction. Sore spots became bloody as she focused on her right wrist. Pull. Twist. Pull. Twist. She almost had it.
Tears burned in her eyes and she bit her lip, trying to block out the pain. She knelt on the dusty floor. If she got one of her wrists free, she could stand a fighting chance should the unthinkable happen. Edek was a strong warrior, but she wasn’t sure how skilled the men downstairs were in comparison. She moaned as the metal dug into her flesh and pain shot up her arm.
As worry for Edek occupied her heart, the sorrow she felt over Lanzo’s fate broke it to pieces. The tears brimming in her eyes rolled down her cheeks. He was dead. Two men had held him down while another slit his throat. Blood had streamed into the air and he’d slumped in his chair in the dining room. Teyya had made her watch.
“Ah!” She pushed the manacle off her wrist and hand. It clanked to the floor in a cloud of dust. She coughed and stood up, not bothering to attempt freeing her left hand. The chain connecting the two manacles was short. She gripped it with her left hand and leaned back as she swung the loose manacle. If she swung it hard enough, she could put a decent sized gash in someone’s head.
She lowered her arm and strode to the door. As she kicked and pushed it, footsteps sounded on the stairs. She stepped back, hoping it was Edek but fearing it wasn’t. Gripping the manacle, she took a deep breath and prepared herself for the worst.
The door opened and Teyya burst inside, covered in blood and sweat. In one hand, he clasped a long knife, and in his other hand he held a large brown sack. The same sack that had been placed over her head as his men dragged her away from Lanzo’s home.
She glared at him as he advanced toward her. She clutched the chain, hoping to get one good swing in before he reached her. Swallowing hard, she listened for Edek’s voice, praying he wasn’t wounded.
Her mind spun as she processed the noises of clashing weapons below. If the fight was still raging, it meant Edek was still alive. Fear replaced her moment of relief as Teyya licked his lips and then wagged his tongue at her, the way he’d done weeks ago at the auction.
A few more steps and he was close enough. It was now or never. Betsy let out a scream and swung the manacle at his head. He ducked and caught her in his grasp. She kicked and yelled, biting into his arm until she tasted blood. His knife clattered to the ground, and she continued to struggle as he tried to place the sack over her head.
“Edek!” she managed to scream. A second later Teyya cut her air off, squeezing her throat. She clawed at him, digging her nails into his forearms.
“Betsy! Betsy!”
Her heart nearly stopped.
Edek. He was alive! Relief filled her to hear his voice.
Welcome air rushed into her lungs as she fell to the floor. Teyya kicked her leg and gave a frustrated growl. Grasping her throat as she gulped in precious oxygen, she watched as Teyya snatched the knife up and faced the door.
“Here! I’m here, Master!” She grimaced at the amount of blood dripping from her wrist and covering her dress, some of it hers and some of it Teyya’s.
Edek appeared in the doorway with an urgency surrounding him. His intense gaze zeroed in on her first. Rage flashed in his eyes, and he turned to look at Teyya with a hatred unlike anything she’d witnessed before. It was as if he’d gone completely mad. She hardly recognized him. His eyes, normally similar to a human’s, glimmered completely black. He raised an ax and snarled deep in his throat, a sound so fierce it made her insides rattle.
She sat up and scooted to the farthest wall, and a second later the clash of weapons pierced the air. She winced at the loud noise and watched as two huge Kall became locked in battle before her. Please God, please let Edek win. Clasping a hand over her mouth, she stifled a scream as Teyya sliced his knife through the air, coming dangerously close to Edek’s neck.
Edek lunged forward and swung his massive ax as if it weighed nothing, swiping it along the side of Teyya’s face. The pervert cried out and clasped the side of his head, and Betsy’s stomach rolled when she saw his ear lying on the floor.
Teyya’s movements became sloppy, and he stumbled and failed at every attempt he made to wound Edek with his knife. Finally, he didn’t duck quickly enough as Edek struck a deadly blow to his neck. Blood spurted from his mouth, and Betsy covered her face, unable to watch a second more of the violent death.
She heard the ax swing several more times, followed by grunting and gurgling noises that made her even sicker to her stomach. After a few moments of silence, she felt a hand on the top of her head, and she uncovered her face and peered up at Edek. His ax was affixed to a belt around his waist, and his eyes no longer resembled black orbs. Instead, she saw concern and kindness reflecting in his gaze.
He knelt and lifted her hands. “Are you hurt? What did he do to you?”
“I’m fine. Lanzo…your brother is…” Her voice shook and her face crumpled. “I’m so sorry, Master.”
His death would haunt her forever. She’d never stop missing him. His kindness and love had helped her feel at home on this strange world, and his wisdom and comforting words had soothed her in her darkest hours.
Tears fell silently down her face. She held still as Edek slipped a small knife into an opening on the left manacle and freed her from the restraints. He tossed the contraption aside and it clattered to the floor.
“Lanzo might make it,” Edek said, running his hands up and down her arms. “The servants took him to the Holy Ones. He told the cook to tell me Teyya had you. I never expected their rivalry to go this far. I’m sorry I didn’t protect you, Betsy.”
“Wait. Lanzo is alive?” Hope tempered her sorrow, the warm emotion rising up and prompting a million silent prayers for his survival. “They cut his throat,” she said, reaching for Edek. “There was so much blood. I didn’t think he could’ve possibly made it.”
“He’s old but he’s tough. If anyone can help him, it’s the Holy Ones.”
Betsy wanted to believe him, but the image of Lanzo’s throat being slit kept replaying in her mind. She blinked and willed the visions to stop. Voices and footsteps drifted up from below, and she tensed and shot Edek a questioning look.
“It’s all right,” he said, grasping her hand. “It’s just my warriors.”
She stood with one foot out the doorway and gazed down the very steps she’d been dragged up earlier kicking and screaming. Tremors besieged her body and she couldn’t stop shaking.
Edek swept her up in his arms and brushed his warm lips over her forehead. His features softened as he stared at her. “I’m happy you’re undamaged, Betsy.” His voice sounded heavy with emotion. Tears glistened in his eyes, but he blinked them back and kissed her again.
She smiled at his choice of words and blinked back fresh tears of her own. She’d known he harbored tender feelings for her, and he’d told her she was special to him, but she’d never imagined he’d be driven to the brink of tears because of her. He gazed upon her with concern and love. “Thank you for coming for me, Master.”
“Close your eyes,” he said.
She obeyed, and he carried her downstairs and into the cool night. Having no desire to glimpse the aftermath of the battle, she didn’t dare open her eyes until after the hatch of his ship thudded shut.
“This is Desta,” Edek said, gesturing to the Kall who sat in what she presumed was the pilot’s seat. She’d never been in a small Kall ship before.
Desta nodded at her and began working the controls. The ship hummed to life and a dashboard with dozens of tiny green and blue screens lit up.
“He’s flying us back home while I tend to your wounds,” Edek explained as he sat her on a blanket.
“I’m fine,” Betsy said. “Just a few scratches.”
Edek ignored her and fetched a white box from the rear of the ship. He opened it and she peered inside at the medical supplies. The ship rose in the air with a speed that made her stomach roll. She focused on regulating her breathing as Edek cleaned and bandaged her wrist. Next, he directed a beam of green light on her swollen lip, and the throbbing in her face miraculously subsided. The taste of blood left her mouth.
She gradually stopped shaking, but her insides continued to twist with turmoil. Lanzo’s life hung in the balance. By the time they arrived on the mountain he might already be dead. She despaired over the possibility of not being able to say good-bye.
“Can you use that healing beam on Lanzo?” she asked hopefully.
“Not on such severe wounds.” Edek stroked her face and lifted her into his lap. She settled against his chest and breathed in his scent, taking comfort in his presence. She shut her eyes and swallowed past the lump in her throat. Her stomach kept rolling with the movements of the ship and the persisting anxiety over Lanzo’s fate.
“I just hope he’s all right. He saved me. If he hadn’t bought me, Teyya would have become my master. I might not even be alive right now. I have so much to be grateful to him for.” If not for Lanzo, she wouldn’t have met Edek. She wouldn’t belong to a loving master who thought nothing of risking his life to save hers.
He covered her with a blanket and snuggled her closer, surrounding her with his strength and loving protection. “Lanzo isn’t like most Kall, as I’m sure you’ve already determined. As a child he refused to fight anyone, much to the dismay of our father. Our father tried to force him into warrior training,” Edek said with a laugh, “but Lanzo never showed up and spent his days with the Holy Ones instead.”
“Why did he never become a Holy One himself?”
“Holy Ones are raised on the mountains from birth. They are the children of slaves, slave children smuggled away under the cover of night while their masters are sleeping. So now you see why Lanzo couldn’t own you himself. They are a peaceful people but they condemn the very idea of slavery and shun the laws of our planet.”
“They remind me of the monks on Earth, living alone in peace and reflection.” Betsy recalled visiting a Buddhist temple during a trip to Tibet. It had been the last trip her mother had taken before falling ill. It felt like ten lifetimes ago.
Edek cleared his throat. “We’re almost home. I want you to rest while I see to Lanzo. Desta will stay with you. He’s my second in command. You can trust him.”
“But I want to come with you!” She pressed a hand to her stomach as the ship descended. “Please. Let me see Lanzo. Even if he’s dead, I have to see him.”
He sighed. “I had a feeling you’d say that. Fine. Desta, head straight for the monastery.”
The ship lurched into the night sky.
*
Edek and Betsy stepped out of the ship. The stars and moon shone down on the mountain, reflecting off snow-covered treetops and the frozen pond in front of the monastery. Candles flickered in the windows of the grand structure. He grasped her hand and they followed the lighted stone path to the archway leading inside. The building contained no closing windows or doors, only open space, yet warmth surrounded them as they entered the magnificent hall. Fire pits blazed in the center of each corridor and room, illuminating the bronze walls.
A Holy One appeared from a doorway, a white shroud covering her face and falling over her shoulders. Edek froze and pulled Betsy to his side, his heart pounding. A white shroud meant Lanzo still breathed.
“Come,” the Holy One said.
Edek and Betsy followed her into a room containing an altar decorated with thousands of burning candles. A body draped in white rested on a bed at the foot of the altar. Orange Heslla flowers were scattered atop the white sheet. Edek approached and gazed down at Lanzo’s pale face. Splotches of blood stained the thick bandage wrapped around his neck.
“He’s breathing,” Betsy whispered. She squeezed his hand and started to cry. “He’s breathing, Master.” She rushed forward and knelt beside the bed and bowed her head.
Edek turned to the Holy One. “Will he live?”
The Holy One lifted her thin white shroud up. Tears rolled down the woman’s cheeks. “If he does not, he will be missed and mourned like a holy brother.” She replaced her s
hroud and departed the room in a rustle of fabric.
Edek approached the altar and squeezed Betsy’s shoulder. Her hands were folded together atop the bed. The candlelight danced over her hair, and he regarded the Heslla flowers and smiled. Lanzo had been correct. The shade of her hair matched the flowers perfectly. He knelt beside Betsy and strained to hear the words she whispered.
A prayer. To her god. A strange Earth god Edek knew nothing about. He knelt beside her, lowered his head, and folded his hands to mirror hers. They maintained a sleepless vigil together until the candles burned down and sunlight streamed through the open windows. A group of Holy Ones arrived to give Lanzo a purification bath and replace the bandage encircling his neck.
Edek hovered over them as they removed the bandage. Astonishment brimmed within him to see the wound nearly healed. Betsy leaned over his shoulder and her eyes went wide. She covered her mouth and stepped back. Happiness shone in her eyes. Lanzo was healing—and fast.
But he hadn’t woken up yet and this disconcerted Edek. The Holy Ones, who didn’t speak often, remained silent as they bathed Lanzo.
“He’s going to make it.” Betsy clasped a hand over her heart.
A cough startled the whole room, and the Holy Ones backed up from the bed. “Of course I’m going to make it.”
Edek rushed to his brother’s side. Lanzo smiled up at him with tired eyes. “I heard Betsy’s voice. Where is she?”
“I’m here.” She scurried into place next to Edek and peered over Lanzo. She traced her fingertips over the fresh bandage. “You’re alive!”
Lanzo sat up on his elbows and groaned. “Holy Fires, I’m naked.”
Edek and Betsy laughed as a Holy One approached with a thick blanket. After covering Lanzo up, the Holy Ones lined up to place their hands on his head, each wishing him a long and happy life in the oldest dialect of Kall before exiting the room.