Valle : Book 2 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  “Oh, we learned a lot about her the few precious weeks we had her. She has a temper, and she’s stubborn. If she thinks she can save you, she’ll come right to us.”

  Chevalier froze, the enemy Elder was right. He hissed slightly and pulled at the chains.

  “I’m sure you think your Elders will send someone to get you… we don’t really think that’s going to happen. We’re sure they will be glad to get rid of you. You are a liability, falling in love with a mortal.” Sotomar sat back comfortably in his chair.

  “Emily is well protected. They won’t let her risk her life to come and get me,” Chevalier growled.

  “Oh yes, she is, isn’t she? Kyle is a problem. We’ve had to take precautions against him. However, David’s not a problem. You honestly think someone that well-spoken and educated would be an Encala? It was so convenient when you released him. It’s too bad you never fully trusted him, though. It would have made this all unnecessary if you allowed him to guard Emily alone.”

  Chevalier sat still and watched the Valle.

  “Our problem was that we can’t kill you. She would know instantly if we did that… that essence ring has been making things more difficult. So how to keep you alive yet restrained? Not an easy task, I tell you, not one of the ‘old ones’. Then we figured it out, and… well… here we are.”

  “You know this will mean war,” Chevalier hissed.

  “Oh, of course, but as soon as we get the baby, we’ll be too strong. We don’t want Emily, our blood tests showed us she has none of the Winchester abilities… but the baby does. You keep your mortal, and we’ll take the new born.” He grinned.

  Sotomar stood up and left the room quickly, shutting and locking the door behind him.

  ***

  “Emily, calm down. We don’t know anything yet,” Kyle said, forcing her back onto the bed.

  “You said they found his car destroyed… what else needs to be said?” she yelled, fighting against Kyle.

  “Nothing… heku can easily survive a car wreck with a little time. He’s out there, and we’ll find him. I sent over 75 guards to the area. We’ll find him.” He tried to assure her.

  “I should go. I can find him,” she said angrily.

  “No, you need to stay here. This is where Chevalier would want you to be,” he said, and then stood up.

  Emily screamed. She knew she couldn’t fight off the heku in her room, yet she felt helpless sitting in bed while he was out there alone and hurt.

  “He’s right, Emily,” David said, kneeling beside the bed. “You have to think of your health and the baby right now. We’ll find him.”

  Emily turned her face away from him angrily. She could feel her temper burning. She knew she could take them both out if she wanted, and then she would be free to leave. Her head began to hurt as her blood pressure rose and flashes of light swam before her eyes. She knew she was losing. Her body had given up on her. Not wanting to show a weakness, she turned onto her side away from Kyle and David.

  ***

  Chevalier could feel her. He knew she found out about him and was worried. He was relieved to feel her frustration. He knew that meant that the others weren’t allowing her to come and find him. She was afraid, and that feeling sent a new rush of anger through him.

  Opening his eyes, he let his senses out into the room. They had taken a lot of precautions against his strengths, and that infuriated him. There was metal and strings of wires everywhere he looked. Electricity was one mortal finding that could incapacitate even the strongest heku. He was bound with a chain that electrified if he pulled too hard and closed the circuit.

  Chevalier jerked his head up and looked at the door as a heku in gray robes walked in and sat down in the chair across from him.

  “This will go smoothly, if you will cooperate,” the heku said.

  “Depends on what it is you want.”

  “Merely to talk… about your Emily,” he said.

  “What do you want to know?” Chevalier’s eyes narrowed.

  “Nothing too important. I’m sure you will find the questions harmless.”

  “Uh hu,” Chevalier answered slowly.

  “Simple enough… your baby… when is it due?”

  “In 6 months,” Chevalier said, watching the heku. He couldn’t see his eyes because of the hood of the robe.

  “See… this is where we come to a problem. We know when she is due, and you have lied already.” As the Valle spoke, Chevalier’s body was wracked with stabs of electricity from the chains around him. The muscles in his neck stood out violently as he stiffened in pain and groaned.

  The pain finally stopped and Chevalier dropped his eyes back to the Valle.

  “Let’s try another. Did you kill Emily’s husband?”

  “Yes,” Chevalier hissed.

  “See, easy enough if you don’t lie to me.”

  He didn’t respond, but just glared at the Valle.

  “Does Emily possess any of the powers of a Winchester?”

  “No.” His teeth were clenched.

  “Good, good. Now we’ll get more general. Was Emily’s morning sickness very bad or extended beyond expected?”

  Chevalier frowned, “No.”

  “Has she had any telepathy or precognition since becoming pregnant?”

  “No.” Chevalier was getting irritated at the stupid questions.

  “Has she had any medical conditions that could hinder a successful pregnancy?”

  “Yes,” Chevalier hissed.

  “What?”

  “Blood pressure… and I’m sure this is really helping.”

  “I see.” The Valle stood and left the room quickly.

  ***

  “For me? Do it then,” Emily said, moving a step toward Kyle.

  “No, we’re not meeting their demands. There’s no way we’re going to exchange you for him,” Kyle said, frustrated.

  “Why not? He could be hurt, right? It’s not that easy to keep a heku captive, which means that he could be in bad shape. What if he dies?” she yelled at him.

  “No, Emily, it’s out of the question. Now that we know the Valle have him, we can go and get him,” David said finally.

  “That’s right, we’ll go and get him,” Kyle said, agreeing.

  “When?” She turned on them.

  Kyle couldn’t help but take a step back as the fierceness in her eyes fell on him.

  “As soon as we can get ready. We already have the Council’s approval, now it’s just a matter of tactics.” Kyle put his hand softly on Emily’s shoulder, “Now it’s more important than ever for you to stay in bed, keep your blood pressure down.”

  “Get your hands off of me,” she hissed at him.

  “Don’t do this, not now. We can’t concentrate on getting Chevalier back if we have to worry about you.” He was pleased with the look on her face. She hadn’t thought about that.

  “Where is he?” she asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

  “We don’t know yet. We have eyes all over the Valle though, and it’s only a matter of time before they find him,” he assured her.

  “Get out,” she said, looking out the window.

  Kyle and David both bowed and headed out of the room.

  The next morning, Emily watched as Equites from different covens gathered outside of the castle on the north lawn. Lined up in perfect rows, they stood straight and still. Kyle moved among them, pinning different colors on each of them to differentiate the squadrons. The heku were all in black, head to foot, and from this distance, looked like one gigantic clone army.

  Emily watched them from her balcony as more arrived. She did a quick head count and there were almost 700. It seemed to her that although there were at least four standing to face the others, Kyle was in charge. She could hear him shouting orders, but from this distance, she couldn’t tell what was being said.

  Emily watched them until well after dark when she could no longer see them, but still heard the shouts of instruction and training. She
shivered and looked up at the clear sky and the stars, then brought her knees as close as her expanding middle would allow and wrapped her arms around them tightly, rocking slowly into the night. Emily cried silently as the baby kicked from inside, a subtle reminder of the one she missed.

  ***

  When electricity suddenly flowed through Chevalier’s body, he pulled hard against the restraints as his muscles contracted.

  “Let’s try that again shall we? What is the gender of the baby?” the Valle asked patiently.

  “I don’t know,” Chevalier said, growling.

  “Very well. We might try that one again later. What food is she craving?”

  “Why do you care?” Chevalier hissed.

  “What food is she craving?” he asked again.

  “Brussels sprouts and pizza.” Chevalier’s shoulders sunk. He felt like he was betraying Emily in revealing anything about her.

  “How much weight has she gained?”

  “She won’t get on the scales, no one knows.” Chevalier couldn’t help but grin slightly. Now it seemed so insignificant, but at the time, it infuriated him.

  “It amazes me how much you let that mere mortal get away with,” the Valle said matter-of-factly.

  “Then you don’t know her well. She’s not a mere mortal.”

  “Hrmph,” he said writing something down. “Any falls?”

  Chevalier frowned, “No.”

  “Any injuries at all?”

  “Just those you inflicted.” Chevalier emphasized each word.

  The Valle ignored the implication and went on, “Is she openly ready to do anything necessary to ensure the safety of the baby?”

  Chevalier couldn’t help but laugh, “Yes, if she thinks it’ll help… She doesn’t usually agree with the doctors though, so that’s a trick question.”

  “Hm, I see. Any food aversions?”

  “You mean besides blood?”

  The Valle glared at him, “Don’t push it.”

  “No”

  “That will be all for now,” the Valle said, standing up and leaving Chevalier alone again.

  Chevalier’s internal clock was perfect, and he had been held in that chair for twelve days. He knew that the Equites were coming for him. He could feel the hope in Emily’s emotions. He also knew they wouldn’t let her go with them, which pleased him. Each day the Valle would come and ask him questions about Emily. Most of them were small and meaningless, but those that mattered, he normally got punished for lying. Some lies they believed, others they didn’t.

  He reached out again and again, trying to get some sort of message to Emily. If she knew he was not in pain, not injured or dying, she may be happier to stay put in the castle where she belonged. He knew in the end, that neither Kyle nor David would be able to stop her if she set her mind to it. He admitted that’s one of the things he loved about her, no matter how much trouble it caused.

  Again he shut his eyes and focused on her emotions. She was sleeping. He could always tell when she was asleep because her emotions were slow and flowing. She wasn’t sleeping much lately, which worried him, so he was glad she was finally getting some rest. He growled softly when he felt her wake up and become excited. He knew she had another one of her plans.

  ***

  Emily slipped into the black pregnancy jeans she loathed so much and pulled on a black sweater that fit tightly against her stomach. She tied her hair up into a bun and pulled on her black running shoes, then headed out to join Kyle and David on the north lawn. The plan was formulated in her head. It made sense, and as she felt the time was nearing to attack the Valle, she knew she couldn’t put it off any longer.

  “Ooooh no you don’t,” Kyle said as she approached.

  “Emily what are you doing?” David asked, walking towards her.

  “I’m coming with you,” she said, and took her place among those facing the troops.

  Kyle sighed and took her arm, “You aren’t coming.”

  “Yes I am,” she said sternly.

  “No, you’re not.” He met her gaze and stood his ground.

  “You can’t leave me behind. I’m the best weapon you have,” she said. She grinned when Kyle glanced nervously around to see if anyone heard what she said.

  “Hush, Emily, now is not the time,” he hissed.

  Emily got right in his face and whispered, “Unless you want me to demonstrate what I can do, I suggest you let me go with you.”

  “No, period. Chevalier would kill us all if we let you join and I’d rather turn to ash than to face him.” Kyle was serious.

  David was now with them, “We could let her go. I’ll watch her and that way we don’t have to worry about her here alone, getting into trouble.”

  Kyle turned to David angrily, “What?”

  “It makes sense. We take her, and then we can watch her.” David shrugged.

  “That’s insane,” Kyle scowled at David.

  “Think about it… If we leave her here, she’s going to elude the guards and possibly try to follow us. We’ll be lucky if we can save her before the Valle find her,” David said, watching Emily intently.

  Kyle turned to look at Emily and was surprised at the look on her face. He glanced from Emily to David, unsure what to do.

  “You will let me go with you?” Emily asked David, though it didn’t sound like a question.

  “I will if I feel that that is what’s right for you,” he answered, meeting her eyes.

  “That doesn’t work on me,” she said, staring back at David.

  “What doesn’t?” Kyle asked, confused.

  Suddenly, David looked paler and afraid.

  “No use trying again,” she said, smiling slightly.

  “What’s going on?” Kyle asked.

  Emily took a step toward David, “He’s trying to control my mind.”

  “What??” Kyle asked, turning on David.

  “What were you going to do? Tell me how to leave here? He wants me to go with you,” she said, advancing on David.

  David took a step back, “That’s not true! I thought if I could get control of her mind, I could make her stay.”

  The image struck Kyle, the hulking heku was backing down from the tiny mortal woman whose pregnant bulge made her look even more fragile. The look in David’s eyes was terrified.

  “You are a Valle,” Emily said, coming toe-to-toe with him.

  “I am not, don’t be silly,” David said uneasily.

  “Where is he?” Emily asked angrily.

  David glanced at Kyle, “I don’t know, I swear… I swore my allegiance to the Equites.”

  All eyes were on Emily and David. The foreign Equites troops were shocked that a heku would back down to a mortal. The troops that knew Emily were ready to attack David.

  David’s eyes grew wide as he screamed and fell to the ground, clutching his chest. His body convulsed against the cold ground and his screams continued to pierce the darkness.

  Emily felt a hand on her shoulder, “Stop,” Kyle said, too quietly for the others to hear.

  Emily looked up at him, and then back to David as he lay, cowering on the ground.

  She walked over to him and knelt down, “Where is he?”

  David looked up into Emily’s eyes and understood, “Please… don’t…”

  “Where is he?” she demanded, in a voice that was uncharacteristic for her size.

  David’s body shook with fear, “He’s in Nevada.”

  Kyle looked at Emily, amazed. She was getting more information out of this one heku than all of the death crews combined.

  “Nevada is a big state, David,” Emily said, almost sweetly.

  “I don’t know anything more, I swear,” David whispered, his entire body shaking. He dropped back to the ground and screamed. Murmurs came from the troops as they watched curiously. One of the heku they understood as a superior officer was writhing around on the ground in pain as the frail mortal girl watched him.

  David’s body finally fell silent and h
e began to beg, “Stop please… he’s in Orovada.”

  Emily stood up and scanned the troops, then blushed when she realized they were all watching her. She glanced down to David who was still crying on the ground.

  “Get him back to the prison,” Kyle said, watching David. Three of the guards broke rank and picked him up by the arms, hauling him off to the dungeons.

  Emily turned to Kyle, “I’m going, and we’re leaving now.”

  He whispered to her, “We can’t leave tonight. We aren’t ready.”

  Emily looked at the Equites, “When?”

  “When we are ready. This isn’t going to be as easy as the last time. This time they are ready and waiting for us. I’m sure David has filled them in on everything we’ve done, so we have to re-do all of the strategy and tactics. We have to come up with a whole new plan,” he said sadly.

  Emily set her jaw, “I’m going.”

  “Em…” He looked at her.

  “I can kill more heku than any of them,” she said, pointing toward the gathered forces.

  “I know, but they want you. We’d be handing you over.” He was watching her eyes and knew he couldn’t stop her.

  “I’m going, and we leave in the morning,” she said as she walked past him and stood with the commanding ranks.

  Kyle sighed, “He’s going to kill me,” he grumbled as he faced the troops.

  “We leave in the morning. Get with your troop Commanders and make final preparations,” Kyle called out to the 725 gathered heku.

  Emily joined Kyle as he talked to his troops. “We’re the second in, we take the southernmost side of the city and work our way to the middle. The orders are simple… kill anyone you see, check every door, every vent, every wall.”

  Deep into the night the troops were given orders, practiced formations, and finalized orders for the morning.

  “Sir,” one of the heku called to Kyle.

  “What?” he asked, not paying much attention.

  “We’ve already lost a troop member,” the heku said, laughing.

  Kyle turned to him and followed his stare. Off to the side, Emily was curled up on the grass, asleep.

  Kyle shook his head, “Just let her sleep.” He slipped off his coat and laid it over her.