Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  “I have an idea. Can I borrow your phone?”

  Kyle handed his cell phone to her. She dialed and then waited.

  Emily smiled slightly, “No, it’s Emily.”

  “No, I’m fine… I have a question for you though.”

  “Exavior…” Emily sighed and rolled her eyes. “Thanks Sotomar. My question is… how do I kill a familiar, or get him to take a hike?”

  Mark grinned, “She called the Valle Council on your phone.”

  Kyle cringed, “Yeah, I know.”

  “Because Ulrich was yours.” Emily stopped in the hallway and leaned back against the wall.

  Emily’s eyes narrowed, “Stop calling him my boyfriend.”

  “How far from the body? Wait… here…” Emily handed the phone over to Kyle.

  “Ooooh no,” Kyle said. “I’m not authorized to talk to the Valle Council.”

  Emily shook her head and put the phone back to her ear, “Ok, so how far?”

  Emily sighed, “No, Exavior, I’m pretty sure the heku here can manage that.”

  Emily shut the phone and handed it to Kyle, “They said the only way is to remove his head and separate it from his body by at least a few feet.”

  “Who’s the boyfriend?” Kyle asked.

  “You are.”

  “Nice,” Kyle said, frowning.

  Mark stifled a grin, “I take it Exavior offered to come help do it?”

  “Exavior’s an idiot,” Emily said, and headed up the stairs.

  “Is that what you want then? One of us to decapitate Sam?” Kyle asked.

  “I don’t even know,” Emily told them. “I’m going to leave him in prison for a while and see what happens.”

  “I’m headed out to check on the guards, want to meet me in the barracks?” Mark asked, watching them from the ground floor.

  Emily’s shoulders dropped, “I suppose I have to.”

  “I wouldn’t say you have to, but, it is our new mission.”

  “Great,” Emily said, and disappeared into her room.

  Chapter 12 - Guards

  Mark stepped into the barracks and all eyes fell on him. He walked through the rows of cots and chairs, checking to make sure each heku had a copy of the Island Coven Policies, and was reading it. Some of the guards watched him nervously, while others glared at the intrusion of the Council City Captain. He ignored the looks and went about what he was assigned to do. His mind was also weighing through how to include Emily without risking the guards retaliating.

  Chevalier walked into the bedroom, covered in blood and grinning, “That felt good.”

  Emily glared at him and whispered, “How could you put me over the guards?”

  “It’ll be good for them,” Chevalier said, slipping off his blood covered shirt.

  Emily pulled on her cowboy boots and stood up to face him, putting her hands on her hips, “Retract it.”

  Chevalier grinned and blurred to her, lifted her up, and pressed his lips against hers. He set her back onto her feet and caught her wrist when she tried to slap him.

  “I’m not retracting the order,” he told her, then brought her wrist up to his nose and inhaled.

  Emily pulled her hand away from him and moved backwards, “Tell them Kyle and Mark will be in charge.”

  “No,” Chevalier said, and took a step toward her.

  Emily crossed her arms and stood her ground, “Do it.”

  Chevalier pushed her against the wall and held her shoulders while he softly began to kiss her neck.

  Emily struggled against him, “Get away from me.”

  “No,” he told her. Chevalier let go of her shoulders and started to unbutton her shirt.

  “Stop telling me no,” Emily growled, and fastened the buttons he had undone.

  “No,” he chuckled, and tore her shirt off.

  “I’m warning you,” she said, pushing against him.

  “Noted,” he whispered, picked her up, and blurred her to the bed.

  Emily screamed at him and kicked toward his face. He caught her foot and pulled off her cowboy boot, then pinned her legs to the bed.

  “No kicking,” he said, and ran his lips along her jaw as his hands worked at the button on her jeans.

  Emily brought her knee up and was able to catch him directly in the stomach. He growled, and pressed his lips to hers, pinning her body to the bed with his. Emily slid her hand through his hair and clenched her fist tightly, pressing her lips harder against his.

  ***

  “Tell them Kyle and Mark are in charge,” Emily said, looking into Chevalier’s eyes.

  “No,” he told her, grinning, and then kissed her bare shoulder.

  “Come on… why are you punishing me?”

  “It’s not a punishment. I have my reasons.”

  “They can’t be any better than my reasons for not doing it,” she said, and got out of bed, wrapping the sheet around her.

  “I bet they are. Just do it, it’ll be good for you and them,” he told her, and slipped his hands under his head.

  Emily glanced quickly in the mirror as she passed and then turned for a closer look. She brought her hand up to the puncture wounds on her neck, “Damnit, Chev, you bit me?”

  Chevalier chuckled, “You shouldn’t fight me.”

  Emily glared at him, “That’s going to look just great when I’m trying to order your guards around.”

  “They’ll know it’s from me… maybe it’s my mark,” he said, laughing.

  “What are you going to do next? Pee on my boots?” she asked angrily, and disappeared into the bathroom.

  “If I peed… then I probably would,” he said, and Emily’s temper grew when she heard the amusement in his voice.

  Emily came back out dressed and saw that Chevalier was still lying naked on the bed on his back, with his hands under his head.

  She tossed a blanket at him, “Cover up before the kids see you.”

  Chevalier chuckled, “You can’t seriously be mad.”

  “Yes I can! You bit me and then you’re sending me out to get glared at by your guards,” she said, sitting down to pull on her boots.

  “They better not glare at you, and they aren’t going to care that I bit you.”

  “I don’t want them to think that you keep me around for sex and blood,” she said, standing up and tucking in her shirt.

  “I’m sorry, ok? I can’t help it when you fight me though,” he told her, and got up to get dressed.

  “You have the control of a peanut,” she said angrily, and then slipped on a turtle neck sweater.

  Chevalier grinned slightly, “Where you are concerned, that is true.”

  “What?” Emily yelled when someone knocked on the door. Mark and Kyle came in and Mark had a tray that he sat down on the table.

  “They’ve all re-read the policies and are lining up for drills,” Mark said, and frowned slightly.

  “Were you attacked?” Kyle asked, turning to Emily.

  “Yes,” she snapped, and started to tie up her hair.

  “Do we need to deal with them?” Mark asked defensively.

  Chevalier chuckled again when Emily said, “Yes.”

  “Sooo… where are they?” Kyle asked, wondering why he was having to prompt her.

  “Sitting on the bed, laughing,” Emily replied, and turned to the table to eat dinner.

  Mark and Kyle both turned to Chevalier, shocked.

  “She deserved it,” he said, grinning.

  Mark turned back to Emily, “Are you coming out for the line-up?”

  “Way to defend me,” she growled, and took a bite of spaghetti.

  “You’re on your own with this one,” Kyle said, slightly irritated.

  “No… I’m not coming out for the line-up. Chev is here and he can babysit his own guards,” Emily told them, and threw a piece of garlic bread at Chevalier’s back, hitting him squarely between the shoulders.

  “Let her be. I told her to start tomorrow when I can get some things here,” Chevalier
said, still laughing slightly.

  “I’m not doing it,” Emily said, and sent a meatball flying. It landed with a dull thud against the back of Chevalier’s head.

  “You’re asking for it,” Chevalier said, amused.

  “You’re asking for it,” Emily mimicked him.

  In one movement, Chevalier blurred to Emily and threw her over his shoulder as he headed down the stairs.

  “No! I’m not in the mood,” Emily screamed as Mark and Kyle followed them.

  Chevalier pushed the door aside and stepped into the pool room just as Emily bit his back, “Ouch, damnit, Em.”

  “I’m seriously not in the mood for this,” Emily yelled.

  With very little effort, Chevalier threw Emily into the middle of the deep end of the pool and laughed.

  Emily surfaced and swam to the ladder, obviously livid. She climbed out and peeled off her soaked turtle neck, and then glared at Chevalier as she struggled to get her wet jeans off and then pulled off her t-shirt and grabbed a towel. Chevalier glanced at Mark and Kyle, and they were conveniently facing away from her.

  Emily wrapped in the towel and pushed on the door, but it wouldn’t budge. She tapped her foot and waited for Chevalier to open it. He chuckled, and pushed the door open easily. She passed by him without a word and headed up the stairs angrily.

  “Em… it was a joke,” Chevalier said when she stepped into the bedroom.

  Emily turned to him and put her hand on the door, “You better make very good friends with your hand,” she said, and slammed the door in his face.

  “I think you’ve been cut off,” Kyle chuckled.

  “Seems so… let’s go see how those guards are doing,” Chevalier said, still grinning, and walked down the stairs.

  ***

  Emily rolled over and looked out the window. Anna had already been in, and the curtains were opened some. She was still irritated from the night before, and could tell she was going to be in a bad mood. Alexis was already down eating, and she crawled out of bed and grabbed the hot coffee from the table and sat down in front of the fire.

  “Good morning,” Chevalier said as he came in and shut the door.

  Emily ignored him and grabbed a piece of bacon. She pulled her knees up to her chest and watched the fire.

  “Are you still mad?”

  “Am I still stuck babysitting your guards?” Emily snapped.

  “Yes,” he said, and fought to keep from grinning.

  Emily finished her coffee in silence and went into the bathroom to take a shower. She locked the door, but heard Chevalier come in anyway.

  “Your Thukil uniform arrived,” Chevalier said, and admired the sleek curves of her body as she showered.

  Emily washed her hair quickly and wrapped in a towel before stepping out of the shower.

  “I’m leaving in about an hour,” he said as she walked past him again, purposely bumping into his chest with her shoulder.

  Emily dropped her towel and walked naked to the wardrobe and pulled out the Thukil Cavalry uniform. She ignored how Chevalier watched her as she got dressed, and then fastened the cape around her neck. She wrapped the gun belt around her hips and slid the .45 into the holster, and then flipped the left side of her cape over her left shoulder and pulled on her riding glove, hand brace, and the deep green cowboy hat after putting on her black cowboy boots.

  “Em, I don’t want to go away with you mad,” Chevalier said, and wrapped his arms around her.

  She twisted out of his arms and went to the mirror to straighten her collar pins.

  Chevalier sighed, “I’m sorry.”

  Emily turned toward him, “Happy now? I’m dressed as Cavalry Barbie.”

  “Actually,” Chevalier said, grinning. “Yes I am. I like it.”

  Emily glared at him and opened the bedroom door. She smiled when she saw Silas, “Do you get to stay?”

  Silas nodded, “Yes, I’m your escort, but I’m not supposed to help.”

  “You mean babysitter,” Emily said, and glared at Chevalier.

  “I also brought horses and these,” Silas said, and handed Emily a walkie-talkie.

  “Emily…” Chevalier said, and Silas nodded at him.

  “I’ll meet you downstairs. The horse is waiting by the front door,” Silas said, and walked down the stairs.

  Emily turned toward Chevalier.

  “I’m sorry,” he said again, and stepped toward her.

  Emily turned on her heels and walked down the stairs, adjusting her uniform collar so it covered the bite marks.

  She stepped out into the cold morning and patted the neck of the racing horse Silas brought for her. She clipped the walkie-talkie onto her belt, and then easily slid into the stallion’s saddle.

  “Mark’s been busy,” Silas said, riding up next to her on an appaloosa mare. “He’ll be glad to get some help.”

  “Sure he will,” Emily said, and keyed up the walkie-talkie. “Where do you need me?”

  “I’m taking care of some problems in the barracks,” Mark said. “Will you go see if you can figure out what’s going on at the pier? They called for one of us about fifteen minutes ago.”

  “Sure,” Emily said, and then kicked the horse into a fast gallop. Just as she arrived at the pier, she heard the helicopter taking off overhead. She got off of the horse and walked onto the pier. The guards were all blocking the end of the pier with their dogs.

  “What’s up?” Emily asked, walking toward them.

  The guards split and Emily saw four mortal men standing on the ferry, glaring at the guards. She walked up to the end of the pier, “Can I help you?”

  “We demand to be let on this island for an inspection,” the oldest man said.

  Emily crossed her arms, “You demand?”

  “Yes, I demand.”

  “What, exactly, gives you the right to demand anything of us?” Emily asked him.

  “I’m Brayden from the V.E.S, and we suspect there are mortals on this island in dire need of our assistance,” he said, watching her carefully.

  “You mean me?” Emily asked, raising an eyebrow.

  Brayden looked closely at her, “You’re… you’re human?”

  “Yes, and I’m not in dire need of anything from you, so go away. You aren’t getting on this island,” Emily told him.

  “As V.E.S., we want to inspect the premises,” Brayden said.

  “As V.E.S., you have the right to turn around and kiss your own asses as you sail away from this pier, now get lost.”

  The guards all grinned at the small mortal men, and the way they glared at Emily.

  “You’ve obviously been brainwashed…” he started to say to her, but she pulled the .45 out of the holster.

  “You have until three…” Emily said.

  “Just hear us out,” Brayden said, putting his hands up to her.

  “One…” Emily said, and pulled back the hammer on the .45.

  “We can help you.”

  “Two…” Emily said, and leveled the gun at his head.

  “You can’t stay here with these dangerous creatures.”

  “Three…” Emily said, and shot the planks at his feet, sending shards of wood into the air.

  “Run!” Brayden screamed, and the four of them ran as fast as they could to the other end of the ferry.

  Emily motioned to the Captain to go back to the mainland, and she holstered her gun and turned around.

  “That was… impressive,” one of the guards said, grinning.

  “Yes, well if they come back… I’m going to shoot him in the nuts,” Emily told him, and got back onto her horse.

  The guard’s eyes grew wide and he turned back to face the water.

  Silas was grinning behind her, “Why haven’t they made you part of our Cavalry?”

  “Because Chevalier’s an idiot.”

  “Commander?” Mark asked over the walkie-talkie.

  “What?” Emily was still irritated.

  “Is the pier clear?”

&
nbsp; “Yes”

  “We’re lining up for drills on the north lawn.”

  Emily sighed and headed her horse over to Mark.

  “See, you’re a pro,” Silas said, matching her speed.

  “Right, I scared off some mortals,” Emily said. “Let’s see what else is going on.”

  “I can’t wait to see you and Mark shape this place up,” Silas said. “Rumor has it, that it’s been kind of going downhill since the Elder moved to the palace.”

  “Why did he make me do this?” Emily asked. “What the hell did I do to make him think I can bring order to his coven?”

  “You can, I have no doubts,” Silas told her.

  “If I’m so good, then why do I need a babysitter?”

  Silas grinned, “Just in case it takes them a while to listen to you. Course, you’re in a bad mood now, maybe I’m here to protect them.”

  Emily glared at him and then turned back as she passed the rows of heku guards lined up before Mark. She slipped off of her horse and handed the reins to Silas as he waited quietly behind them.

  “What’s up?” Emily asked.

  “Lots of problems in the barracks, fights, disturbances, general misbehavior,” Mark said, eyeing some of the troublesome guards.

  “Who’s the worst?”

  “This guy over here,” Mark said, and pointed at a grinning guard in the second row who was slouching and missing part of his uniform.

  Emily walked over to stand before him, and he looked down at her as she stood toe-to-toe with him. Mark glanced at Silas, and he shrugged and quietly whispered that she was in a bad mood.

  “Is there some reason you feel like causing trouble?” Emily asked him, putting her hands on her hips.

  The guard grinned and looked down at her, laughing, “Because you can’t stop me. I’m not afraid of the little Elder’s wife or his Council City cronies.”

  Some of the guards grinned as he spoke, but their faces fell suddenly when the guard fell to his knees. A groan escaped his lips as he clutched at his chest, then fell back onto the wet grass, writhing in agony as his chest burned deep within him.

  Emily stopped the pain and looked down at him, “You have 2 minutes to get into your uniform and return to this line in proper formation. Is that understood?”

  The guard stood up slowly and nodded before blurring away.