Exile: Sídhí Summer Camp #3

by Jodie B. Cooper

  The curved walls became straight. Doorways with no exits appeared every few feet on either side of the corridor. The walls, the doors, everything was made of synth crystal.

  Sarah reached forward to touch the hard inner surface of a doorway.

  His gut clenched, and fear ripped through him.

  He grabbed for her hand. Unsurprisingly, he missed as her hand slipped gracefully through his grasp. "Touching old things of power is never a smart move," he said in a growl.

  Her eyes, cold as ice, glanced at him and dismissed him without another thought.

  The brush-off hurt a heck of a lot more than her cold attitude would have three weeks earlier. Meeting only through dreams, he could stand firm against wanting her as his mate. She had been nothing but an evil exile. That firm stance stopped the moment he laid eyes on her for the first time.

  The memory was the most vivid one of his entire life. He remembered her standing on the cabin deck, her glorious, moonbeam colored hair whipped around her slender hips and captured his very soul. He would take her beloved image with him to his grave.

  His big body trembled as reality hit him in the heart.

  He loved her.

  At the beginning of camp, he had tried killing the emotion by being hateful to her, but every harsh word he spoke to her cut him until he bled from the pain he knew he caused her.

  A slight movement pulled his attention to the very painful present.

  Sarah turned. Staring at him with an emotionless mask covering her face, she slowly and firmly placed the palm of her hand in the middle of a doorway. A single, sarcastic eyebrow shot upward annoying the hell out of him.

  He clenched his fist against his thigh. It was the only thing that kept him from reaching for her once more. Blast her. Even though he’d never uttered the words, she had to know he loved her. That he would die for her. She also knew why he refused to bond with her.

  He could easily overlook her blood-only diet. Every vampire craved blood, but she wasn’t just a blood-drinking exile.

  He could’ve even learned to accept her family, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t see past her evil reputation, a rep built on the torture and assassination of innocents. A bloody reputation she arrogantly admitted to.

  He swallowed a curse and knew he would even overlook her horrid past if not for his brother. He had a sinking feeling that his first contact with Sarah had not been her first contact with his family.

  He watched Brianna walk farther down the hallway, glancing at each doorway.

  “We need to talk,” Nick said quietly, motioning in the direction they had come.

  She shook her head. “No need, you’ve made your position quite clear. You don’t want me – the female who was supposed to be your mate – to be physically hurt, but you also hate me with a passion. My very touch disgusts you.”

  “Sarah,” he growled.

  “You needn’t worry about my continued unwelcome advances. I finally understand how much you hate me,” she said glaring at him. A hint of pain glimmered in her eyes, hitting him so hard he nearly gasped from the hurt he caused her. “Once we get out of here, I’m finding one of the Dyrst’Lye dragons. That should put an end to everything.”

  Nick snapped his teeth together. He hated it when people threatened things that went totally over his head. “And who are the Dyrst’Lye?”

  “Very funny. You’ve become more of a comedian than Mitch.” She turned her back to him, sliding her hands down the doorframe. “Everyone knows a Dyrst’Lye dragon can destroy the lifeBud before the organ fully blooms, but not after the mate bond is sealed.”

  “What?” Nick snarled in horror. Fear surged through him at the thought of forever losing her. If a person had their lifeBud destroyed, they could not mentally bond with their mate. He grabbed for her, but his hand grasped empty air.

  “Do. Not. Touch. Me.” Sarah glared at him, a look filled with lethal promises. The deadly expression was one he had never received from her.

  “I never said I hated you,” he said carefully, once again curling his hands into fists.

  She snorted. “As if you had to tell me how much I disgusted you when your actions spoke of your hatred. No,” she held up an imperious hand, “I’m sick to death of you not trusting me.”

  “And what have you said to convince me?” he demanded. He stepped into her private space, glaring into her ice-cold eyes. “Nothing, not one thing have you said to make me trust you. But even after all of that, I’d ignore your bloody reputation if I thought you weren’t the one who killed my brother.”

  With a sinking heart, he watched her eyes widen a bare fraction.

  ____________

  Sarah blinked and simply could not meet his gaze so she glared at the wall behind him.

  “What about my brother?” he questioned in a shaky voice.

  “Brother?” Her blood ran to ice, draining from her face in a rush. She carefully shook her head. There was no way he could know about her involvement with his brother. She firmly told herself that he'd been too far away to recognize her.

  She steeled her nerve and looked him in the eyes.

  “Yes,” he hissed, as his gaze burned holes through her. He was only a few inches taller, maybe four or five, but at that moment, he seemed to tower over her. “You keep rambling on about protecting your people, but you forget that I know exiles don't protect, they kill.”

  He sucked in a deep breath and looked like he was about to visit the gallows. “Seven years ago, my brother took me to the Alaska State Fair. He wanted to show me the massive vegetables they grew because up north they have so much daylight. He raved about it.”

  Nick swung away from her, stomping several feet away. He shoved a shaking hand through his tousled hair. “We were leaving the fair when I asked for another funnel cake. I remembered he laughed and told me to meet him at the car. God, I was only twelve, but his trust in me made me feel so grown-up.”

  “Please, you've said enough. I get it.” Her heart tightened painfully.

  “Do you?” He asked harshly, grabbing her arms, he lifted her until they stood eye-to-eye. “He was everything to me and you people, you filthy exiles killed him. I was running toward the car when I saw the assassin port behind him. The assassin was a girl, a mere slip of a girl with white-blond hair. She looked straight at me. Her eyes glowed red in the setting sun. I swore I'd remember her face, but she was a pre-pub and after puberty, she changed. Did you know he looked straight at me when she killed him? I shouted, but he never stood a chance. She thrust her sword through his back. Before I could take another step, they ported away.”

  “Richard was older. A sword through his chest wouldn't have killed him,” Sarah said softly, aching with the pain she'd inadvertently caused Nick. Could fate have dealt her any worse a blow? She didn't think so, at least not until he spoke again.

  “You’re right. A sword through his heart wouldn’t have killed him, but I'm sure over the next few weeks he wished he was dead. The assassin even sent us a lock of his hair wrapped in a black ribbon,” he said, glaring at her. “A black ribbon is Lady Sarah Trellick’s calling card. Isn’t it?”

  Heat filled his eyes as he softly added, “I never told you his name.”

  She stilled, knowing where this was going, knowing she couldn't argue. Pulling the Dyrst’Lye card had been the right decision after all. However, she had hoped at the time that threatening him with destroying her lifeBud would make him admit he loved her. She’d never been so wrong in her entire life. He really did hate her. He hated her with an intensity that few ever saw in an enemy, much less a lifeMate. Maybe finding one of the Dyrst’Lye wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

  “Having a lifeMate suddenly appear in my dreams threw me. Having you turn out to be an exile muddied the waters even more.” His hands tightened on her arms, pulling her up higher. “How you must've laughed at me. You would've only been twelve. The connection didn't click until a few days ago, not until after the explosion, but that's yo
ur calling card, isn't it?”

  “I can explain,” she said, grief welling up in her chest. “Please, give me that chance.”

  His eyes turned into bottomless pits of ice. She'd lost him.

  “Black ribbon is your calling card,” he bellowed in her face. “A simple black ribbon delivered to the surviving family member's home. A bloody war token, a way for everyone to know Lady Sarah has killed again.”

  A bloodcurdling scream of terror interrupted her answer.

  Brianna ran toward them holding her arm, blood streamed down the length of it.

  “Worms!” Brianna screamed.

  Worms? Sarah blinked, cocking her head to one side. Then she saw what Brianna ran from.

  Long, milky-white creatures dropped from holes in the ceiling, red spikes quivered along their fat backside. Six to eight feet long, and a foot around, they raced after the bleeding girl in an inchworm-like manner.

  Additional worms dropped from the ceiling. Snapping after their fleeing prey, rows of sharp teeth glinted under the luminous glow of the crystal tunnel. Dozens of ravenous creatures flowed across the floor.

  Sarah snarled, but deep down she was thankful for the timely interruption. Without giving it a second thought, she reached for the synth surrounding them and touched the energy.

  She stifled a smile as synth crystal once again answered her mental call. Fleetingly, she weighed her options. One, they could try to outrun the synth worms. Not likely, as the poisonous worms, guarding the synth tunnels, were notoriously fast and rabidly protective of their home turf. Two, she could port the three of them out of the tunnels. Also not likely, as she would have to make them both disappear and at the moment she was hurting. She might make their vanishing act a bit too permanent. Third, she could activate one of the doorways. That, she decided with a careless shrug was unfortunately her best option. As far as myth went, synth worms never ventured through any of the doorways.

  She considered calling Mac, but decided she was angry enough that she wanted the challenge of whatever lay beyond the unknown doorway. Or perhaps, she simply didn’t care.

  She knew from the former Chi’Kehra’s journal, the area she stood in was a Portal Hallway, a naturally occurring and very weird side effect that happened after the Ancients created the first ruins. His journal noted that once the ruins were operational, portals (or gateways) began opening without rhyme or reason - which, of course, presented her current problem.

  She would only have enough time for one shot, accidentally triggering a single portal. Who knew where that portal might dump them? Knowing her current run of luck, they might appear on the lawn of the White House in the mundane world. Now, wouldn’t that create a massive problem?

  At least appearing in the mundane world would keep her occupied and away from Nick’s condemning stare.

  She turned to the nearest doorway and quickly ran her hands down its frame.

  “Blast it Sarah, come on,” Nick snarled, reaching for her arm. “Those worms are fast.”

  Sarah slipped easily away from his outstretched hand.

  While, he was busy snarling at her, she simultaneously tapped her finger against a small key-like indention in the middle of the solid doorway. It didn’t do anything, but the burst of power and mental order she sent into the portal did do something. The door shimmered, blooming with life.

  The solid wall disappeared. The silent hum of power reached-out and touched the edge of her mind, as if the synth crystal was a sentient creature and curious about her.

  Black filled the doorway as an active gateway opened inside the frame.

  Sarah hesitated. She couldn’t see beyond the inky blackness. The portal could have opened anywhere, even a dhark lord’s courtyard.

  Running up beside them, Brianna’s shoes slapped against the floor.

  Nick obviously didn’t share Sarah’s hesitation.

  “Go!” he snarled.

  Brianna gave a startled cry and flew past Sarah’s elbow and into the black void.

  Sarah glanced to the side, briefly catching a glimpse of Nick shoving the girl forward. She whirled, but was so surprised at his actions he caught her off guard.

  With both arms wide, he swept her up in them and charged through the pitch-black portal.

  He stumbled, falling to his knees.

  She jerked out of his arms and scrambled to her feet. Waving her arms in front of her, she smacked against thick curtains. She shoved her way through them, leaving Nick and Brianna struggling on the floor.

  Sunlight blinded her, long enough for her to realize she had a slight problem.

  The sharp edge of a sword touched her neck. “That is quite far enough, Lady Sarah,” a deep voice said.

  She froze, inhaling the scents around her. Irritation churned in the pit of her stomach. Of all the places for them to appear, she had to pick a portal that dumped them in a dragon's lair.

  Chapter - Olitiau Portal

  Nick clenched his hand in the bark of a blue furble tree. The spongy surface crumbled under the pressure. Morags buzzed in the forest around him. An owl or a hibbet, he wasn't sure which, hooted from within the limbs high above him. It had been hours since Sarah disappeared. He knew she had to be with Guardian Alexander. The thought didn’t sooth him.

  The dragon lair had been a suite of rooms inside the guardian’s castle. Alexander had not been pleased with the intrusion, even less so when he realized Nick, Sarah, and Brianna had been separated from their cabin mates.

  The guardian flew them across the Sídhí forest and found the missing teens, including Clarisse and her dragon escort, Harry. As usual, the red-haired vamp created even more problems, revealing a portal that opened into the Dhark Empire.

  Nick ground his teeth together in anger as Clarisse and Harry admitted to being members of the Khr'Vurr terrorist organization. He had wondered at the true reason behind the camp. Never, not in a million years, would he have guessed it had something to do with Dragon Valley’s terrorist problem. The bomb that truly blew Nick away was Harry’s belief the Khr’Vurr hunted for Chi’Kehra, a creature out of nightmare.

  Having a Chi’Kehra appear, after four thousand years, would be worse than a horde of vicious umbra suddenly appearing in Clan Valley.

  Now, Nick and everyone else except Alexander and Sarah were cooling their heels in a small grove of trees in the middle of nowhere. He searched the pre-dawn forest for any sign of Sarah. Time had burned the mite poison from his body so the dark night was not an obstacle for his enhanced vampire eyes.

  Yeah, he could see just fine, but he was so angry he could barely think straight. He didn't doubt for a minute, Sarah had followed Alexander on his wild goose chase into the Dhark Empire's worst prison.

  Unable to consider the thought of losing her, he shuddered.

  Without warning, Sarah ported into the middle of the clearing. Red globs splattered her clothes. She reeked of blood, both human and other wise. Thankfully, none of it smelled like hers.

  The tight band around his chest eased and he charged to her side, relieved she was in one piece.

  “Where have you been?” he snarled, unable to keep the anger from his voice.

  She glided backward, easily avoiding his touch.

  “How did you get your bracelet off?” Beth asked furiously, pointing at Sarah’s bare wrist.

  He glared at the small shifter as she leaned aggressively toward Sarah. Too bad the fairies had tinkered with the silver, allowing the shifters the ability to change shape anytime they wanted. Tackling a hundred and twenty pound girl that turned into a deadly Sídhí animal, a werewolf or khatt, three or four times her size was not encouraging.

  Her words registered, and he realized the shifter was correct. Sarah had ported into the middle of the clearing. A feat that was impossible with the restrictive silver bracelet they all wore.

  Sarah chuckled softly. The sound sent a shiver of dread up his spine. It was only then that he noticed her eyes looked flat, void of emotion. Not her normal ice pri
ncess look, but completely dead.

  “Guardian Alexander needed a guide through TèVarrn Prison. My price was the immediate and permanent removal of the silver bracelet.”

  “He had no right to risk your life like that,” Nick said harshly, furious the dragon dared jeopardize her life.

  “You no longer have the right to question anything I do. We’ll be free of each other soon enough.” Lacking all emotion, her lips curled upward. Her dead eyes never flickered. “That is what you want, isn’t it Nicholas Andrews, to be free of the filthy exile? Fine. Your wish is my answer. I will never bond with you.” After a slight pause, she added softly, confusing the hell out of him. “You can thank me when the synth in your blood sings for a sweet little clan vampire. I’ve been promised you’ll probably meet your new lifeMate within the month.”

  Her words registered and he felt his heart shatter. He didn't want anyone but her. She darn well knew that. His animalistic growl bounced around the silent clearing. Shaking his head in denial, he rejected her words.

  She looked at him, staring in a cold, unblinking gaze. “You only want me when I’m hurt or you think you have lost me.”

  She chuckled and he heard the depth of grief in the sound, a touch of near insanity.

  He cursed. What the bloody hell had he done to her?

  Sarah turned, avoiding his eyes. “Guardian Alexander changed the Olitiau Portal to exit at the main camp grounds.”

  He heard her soft, dead words but he didn't care. He had to make her listen to him. He'd figure out a way to fix things.

  Sarah turned and walked into the surrounding trees, leading them to the portal.

  "Sarah," Nick said, hurrying to catch up with her.

  A creature of the night shrieked, a dozen more screams of hunger quickly followed.

  ____________

  The trees above Sarah exploded with screams of hunting meat eaters. Inhaling the rich scents of the night, she glanced up in time to see dozens of Rottweiler-sized bats diving toward her and the other teens.

  She smiled. The movement was more reflex then emotion. She felt numb inside. She had lied to the teens, her real price in helping Alexander retrieve his mate from TèVarrn prison was the services of a Dyrst’Lye dragon. The decision to destroy her lifeBud, the small organ in her brain that allowed Sídhí to bond with their mate, weighed her down with grief. Nick would never be her mate.