Sherrilyn Kenyon - [League 02]

by Born of Fire (v5. 0) (lit)

  “We have to run.”

  “No, Syn. They’ll kill you. Don’t do this. I don’t want to watch you die in my arms. Please.”

  Syn grimaced at her as those words tore him apart. The fact that she cared . . .

  He turned around with his arms raised so that they could apprehend him.

  Merjack approached them with an evil grin. “Nice move with the smoke cover, rat, but wholly ineffectual.” He lowered his blaster until it pointed straight at her heart. “Now drop your weapon or I’ll kill the woman.”

  Syn complied without hesitation.

  Shahara’s heart thudded as his blaster clamored to the floor. This was it, her worst nightmare come to light. Syn would be going back to jail.

  Please let me wake up . . .

  But she didn’t, and the closer Merjack got to them, the more she regretted the bargain she’d made.

  Merjack sneered at Syn. “Hands behind your head and down on your knees with your ankles crossed.”

  She heard Syn’s angry, ragged breathing as he did what Merjack ordered. She knew how much it galled him to willingly subject himself to their custody. Her heart ached at seeing him in that vulnerable position.

  Even so, there was no fear, no submission in his eyes—something she found incredible given how severely he’d been beaten before and how much Merjack wanted him executed.

  He was amazing in his defiance.

  Merjack turned his gaze to her. “Now the chip, Seax Dagan.”

  Shahara stepped in front of Syn in an effort to shield him with her body. “You had no right to involve my sister,” she snarled, wanting to tear Merjack apart. “Where is she?”

  “She’s in good health.”

  “She better be.” And Shahara was far from relieved by his assurance. How could she trust a man so ruthless?

  “Now give me that damned chip.”

  Looking over her shoulder, she saw Syn there with his gaze on the floor. The air around him was rife with anger and disgust.

  She turned her attention back to Merjack. Why do you need Syn?”

  He raked her with a disparaging lip curl. “You’re so naive. Now give me the chip and stand aside, seax, or I’ll kill you both.”

  She laughed darkly. “I don’t think you’re that brave. Your son may be president of your tiny little planet, but even he can’t protect you from my brethren should you kill me without a warrant for my death.”

  Fear flickered in his eyes a moment before Merjack got control of himself.

  Holding to the thought that her threat gave him pause, she considered fighting. But Merjack had them effectively covered. And as she looked past his shoulder, she noted his men kept emerging from the smoke, their blasters aimed straight at them.

  No, she couldn’t fight against a number that large. Not even Syn was that good.

  For now, she had to stay alive. Alive she could do something for him.

  Maybe.

  “Are you going to give me the chip, seax, or not?”

  Syn held his breath, waiting for her to decide. He couldn’t understand why she was even bothering to talk to Merjack.

  Why hadn’t she fought against him before his men had surrounded them?

  Shahara took the chip from her pocket and handed it to Merjack.

  “No!” Syn shouted, lunging at her as she handed it over. Someone hit him across the back of his head. Pain exploded, dulling his sight, and he fell forward on all fours.

  Shahara didn’t so much as flinch.

  “Good job,” Merjack congratulated the man who’d struck Syn. He turned to face Shahara. “Now to you, seax. I believe we agreed on a million credits for the delivery of Syn and the chip. Should I just credit your account?”

  Syn couldn’t breathe as he heard those words.

  No . . . she wouldn’t have done this to him.

  She wouldn’t. Not his Shahara. Not after all they’d been through and shared.

  But looking up at her, he saw the truth. She wouldn’t even meet his gaze.

  Merjack holstered his blaster. “You’ll be happy to know we released your sister this morning, just like I promised. She should be safe and sound at home.”

  “She better be.”

  Shocked to the core of his being, Syn stared up at Shahara.

  It had all been a trick? Everything they’d shared? Every word she’d uttered?

  Every gentle touch?

  Disbelief tore through him.

  She’d sold him out from the very beginning.

  No wonder she’d taken him back to her place that first day. She’d never been in any real danger. Merjack had known she’d taken him. Had planned for her to get him to take her to the chip.

  And, like a fool, he’d fallen for it. Every bit of it.

  Just like he’d fallen for her. I am the most pathetic creature ever born.

  And she was worse than Mara. At least his ex-wife hadn’t killed him. She’d only threatened to.

  Shahara knew that chip was the only way he could ever barter to save his life. Without it, his testimony was worthless. No one would ever believe a filch.

  “You bitch!” he snarled, rushing for her throat.

  Another soldier clubbed him across the back.

  Shahara came forward and stood above him.

  He looked up at her through the blood stinging his eyes from the first blow and saw the callousness of her face.

  Just for an instant, something flickered in the depths of her gaze that belied the coldness of her voice. Or maybe he just imagined it, like he’d imagined the fact she had a heart.

  “What was it you said, Syn? We all use each other.” She shrugged. “What can I say? I needed the money.”

  He glared at her, hating her for everything. So that was the price for his life. One million credits. He supposed he should feel honored. It was a high price for a piece of shit gutter rat.

  But it was a bargain for the heart he’d given her—for what he would have given her had she only asked.

  One of the guards wrenched his arms behind his back and cuffed them together, then pulled him to his feet. They hauled him out of the room and to the lifts.

  Shahara stood, watching them.

  Merjack laughed as he entered the lift with Syn and three guards. “I always love dealing with seaxes, don’t you, rat? They’re so loyal to the letter of the law.”

  Syn couldn’t speak as he glared at the woman he’d stupidly given his heart to. The one woman he’d deluded himself into believing would stand at his back and protect it.

  In the end, she was just like all the others.

  When will I learn?

  Well, the good news was that he’d never be betrayed again. He wouldn’t live long enough for it.

  Shahara watched the doors close, then she sank slowly to her knees. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to end. She’d hoped to convince Merjack that she’d killed Syn and he would content himself with the chip alone.

  She’d never counted on him following her back to the hotel and capturing Syn. Damn him!

  What was she going to do? Every part of her screamed in rebellion of what she’d done. Syn was innocent and she’d just given him over to his executioner.

  So much for her oaths.

  What have I done?

  Tears welled in her eyes, but she blinked them back. She couldn’t let her emotions rule her. She had only a tiny bit of time before Merjack learned the truth of what she’d really done.

  And when he did, he would kill them both.

  CHAPTER 20

  On trembling legs, Shahara strode into the Overseer’s Trigon Court that was located in Central City on Gondara. Here was the highest bastion of law and order in the entire Ichidian Universe. This was where every law in their world was made and the only place one could be repealed or overturned. The overseer was the high judge of a five-judge panel and her verdict on any case was final and supreme.

  Not even The League could override one of her decisions. She was the voice of the law and sh
e was the last hope Shahara had of freeing Syn from prison.

  Centuries after The League had thrown off the chains of the warlord tyrant Emperor Justicale, their leaders had come together to ensure peace and law for everyone—to make sure that no other warlord ever proclaimed himself dictator again. They established the five judges and assigned them the task of seeking out injustice and crime on any planet.

  As a seax, she was their soldier who was charged with finding injustices and reporting them, as well as bringing in any criminal wanted by the high court.

  All seaxes had sworn to listen for tales of political corruption or human rights violations, investigate it and report their findings to the overseer. Once they found their evidence, the overseer’s court heard the testimony and passed judgment.

  It was also the overseer’s prerogative to review any case on any planet that seemed to be a miscarriage of justice and retry the case.

  In their world, the overseer was the most powerful person alive. And even though Shahara had never before met her, she was an integral part of the overseer’s world.

  With a confidence she didn’t feel, she approached the secretary’s desk.

  A few years older than her, the man’s hair was already turning gray, giving him a distinguished appearance. He looked up from his work. “May I help you?”

  Shahara lifted her chin. “I need to see the Overseer.”

  “Your name?”

  “Seax Shahara Dagan.”

  He checked his computer log. “I’m sorry, Seax Dagan. You don’t have an appointment, and the Mistress of Justice has a number of meetings this afternoon. I’m afraid I can’t squeeze you in today. Would you like to schedule an appointment for next week?”

  Next week? Was he kidding?

  Syn would be dead by then, and that was the one thing she could never allow.

  “No, I don’t.”

  He looked back down, dismissing her.

  Fiercely determined, Shahara sidestepped his desk and headed straight for the office behind him.

  “Wait! You can’t go . . .”

  The two guards who flanked the door went to grab her. Shahara sidestepped the first one and shoved him into the other, unbalancing them. Sliding herself into the office, she slammed the door shut in their faces. She locked it tight while the secretary’s muffled voice continued to berate her from the other side.

  Her entire body quivering in fear, she turned around slowly.

  The office was rather barren given the amount of authority the overseer was charged with. All it contained was two chairs set before a large, ornately carved desk. Flags from all the organized worlds and empires were set along the left wall, while an electronic map of all the planets, colonies, and outposts took up the opposite side of the room.

  The place was huge, no doubt to intimidate all who entered. It certainly had that effect on her.

  The overseer stared at her from over her computer with a puzzled frown. “Excuse me,” she said in a gentle, yet haughty tone. “Just who are you and how did you get in here?”

  Taking a deep breath for courage, Shahara forced herself to walk the long distance to the overseer’s desk. “I’m here to right a gross injustice, Mistress.”

  Probably in her mid to late sixties, the overseer still retained a face that could only be described as beautiful and serene.

  As a young woman, she must have been stunning. As an older woman, she was dignified. “Everyone who walks through those doors has that claim.” She sighed wearily. “And I haven’t the time to listen to your story today. Make an appointment with my secretary and come back when it’s more convenient.”

  More convenient? Shahara was aghast at her words. She couldn’t believe they came out of the mouth of the very person all the worlds depended on for fairness. “No time for justice?”

  The woman laughed as she leaned forward on her elbows, folded her hands together, and rested her chin on top of them. “To be so shocked by my words, you must be one of my seaxes.”

  “Yes. I’m Seax Shahara Dagan.”

  Her smile was patronizing, but contrite. “Well, seax, justice takes time, and time is one luxury I don’t own.”

  Those familiar words haunted her, tugging at her memory. As the overseer turned away with a mannerism she was all too familiar with, a strange sense of déjà vu prickled the tiny hairs on the back of her neck.

  Now that she thought about it, she knew the exact curve of the overseer’s jaw—a jaw she’d kissed numerous times. She knew the little dimple in the left cheek that had tormented her with devilish taunts and quips.

  Drawing closer, Shahara noted that the overseer’s eyes were as dark as space. If she’d had any doubt before that, that threw it out.

  “Oh my God,” she breathed.

  The overseer looked up, her face impatient. “You’re still here?”

  Too stunned to think better of it, she blurted out, “You’re his mother . . .”

  The overseer lifted her brows and stared at her as if she were crazy. “I have no children.”

  Shahara shook her head, knowing better. “Yes, you do. You have a son named Sheridan Digger Wade and you had a daughter named Talia. And if you don’t hear me out, I swear I’ll let everyone know exactly who you are and what you did to them.”

  Panic sparked in the obsidian depths a moment before the overseer could mask it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  More knocks pounded on the door. It sounded like they were using a battering ram. “Mistress?”

  Shahara gave her no reprieve. “Are you sure you want them in here for this?”

  The overseer hesitated a moment longer before she pressed her intercom button. “I’m all right, Briun,” she told her secretary. “Just keep the guards outside until you hear from me.”

  “Yes, Mistress of Justice.”

  She looked back at Shahara, and this time Shahara noted she finally had the overseer’s full attention. “Now what can I do for you, Seax . . . ?” She paused and closed her eyes. “Forgive me, I forgot your name.

  “Dagan. Seax Shahara Dagan. I’m here to get a fair trial for your son.”

  Disgust and hatred flashed deep in the woman’s gaze. She curled her lip. “Like father, like son. I’m sure whatever he’s accused of, he’s more than guilty of it.”

  “No,” Shahara corrected. “Sheridan is a good, fair man. Nothing at all like his father.”

  “I don’t believe you. Evilness like Indy possessed runs through the genes.”

  “And half of his genes come from you, Mistress. Believe me. Sheridan has saved my life more than once when other people would have left me to die. He’s not his father’s son.” She hesitated before she added, “But he is yours.”

  There was something in her gaze . . . like those words had chipped away some of her ice. “What is it you ask for him?”

  “I was approached by Seax Traysen on your behalf. He asked me to escort Sheridan”—it was so odd to keep using that name, but she wanted to ram home his identity to the overseer—“in order to gain proof of assassination and corruption on Ritadaria.”

  “The Merjack case?”

  “Yes, Mistress.”

  She glanced down at the miniature flags on her desk. “Did you find it?”

  “Yes . . . with Sheridan’s help.”

  She nodded. “Very good, seax. Now how does this relate to a new trial for a convicted felon? A felon I’m sure more than earned his sentence for treason and theft.”

  Shahara wanted to choke the woman for the obstinacy she had—for the same obstinacy she’d given her only son. What would it take to make her see she was wrong?

  What would it take to make Syn’s own mother at least hear his case?

  Thinking, she scanned the certificates and honors lining the walls behind the overseer. And as the dates of the overseer’s commissions registered in her mind, she had an epiphany. “How long have you been the overseer, Mistress of Justice? Twenty years?”

  “Twenty-three to
be precise. Why?”

  Her stomach turned to stone with those words. It was just as she suspected. No wonder Syn had never come forward to clear his name.

  It would have meant facing the woman who’d told him that if she ever laid eyes on him again, she’d have him imprisoned. It would have meant facing the woman who’d tried to kill him when he was an infant, and who had twice abandoned him to a world that hated him.

  The harsh reality of that made her wince, but at least she finally understood why Syn had preferred to remain a criminal rather than clear his name.

  Honestly, she couldn’t blame him for the decision.

  “Do you realize, Mistress of Justice, that your son has been running from tracers and assassins for twenty-three years because he’d rather be killed by them than ask anything from you? Even a fair trial, which is the very least of what he deserves?”

  Shahara boldly looked the overseer up and down, noting that she took her words in stride. “From the outer looks of him, he has far more of your genes in him than his father’s. But then, I guess maybe I’m wrong. Unlike you, Sheridan would never allow an innocent man to die without a hearing. He’d at least take the time to listen to the case before he condemned the person to a death he didn’t deserve. And he sure wouldn’t condemn someone for his own actions that they didn’t have any part in. He’s remarkably decent that way.”

  She felt her eyes water as she thought about Syn and the son he continued to claim in spite of everything Mara and Paden had done to him. “You should also know that unlike you, he still provides for his son even though he’s not the biological father . . . and his ex-wife, like you, has tried repeatedly to kill him and arrest him, not for his crimes, but for those of his father.”

  Poor Syn, to have been relegated to such cold-blooded bitches in his life.

  “As a young man, he crawled out of the sewers you abandoned him in and went to med school on his own dime. He became a surgeon until a reporter exposed his past. Even then, he didn’t become his father. He built a shipping company and was leading a respectable life until I screwed him over.”

  “What of Kiara Zamir? Did he not rape and murder her?”