***
“Must you be in here?” Allen asked Silas and Kralen as they stood at the door.
“Sorry, Elder’s orders,” Silas told him.
“I can watch her,” Allen told them. “She needs some privacy.”
“No,” Kralen said sternly.
“She hasn’t gotten out of bed in three days,” Allen reminded them. “She won’t eat. She won’t let anyone look at her ankle or the cuts from that damned guard throwing her to the ground. She won’t even talk… get out and let me take care of her.”
“No,” Silas said again, and crossed his arms.
A servant came and delivered dinner into the bedroom. He blurred from the room, ignoring Allen’s defensive posture by his Mom.
Emily listened to it all. She felt numb, not knowing if Chevalier was safe, if he’d found Kyle, or if he’d killed Exavior. She felt trapped in the palace, unable to move freely or go anywhere without being watched. She watched out the window while Allen took care of Alexis and tucked her into bed, then sat down in a chair by the fire, worried about her.
Quinn blurred into the room, and Allen looked over as they started a conversation too quietly and quickly for Emily to hear. She glanced over at them and watched as Quinn told something interesting to Kralen and Silas.
Allen stood up and faced them, “Are you going to tell her?”
Quinn turned around, “It’s nothing that concerns her.”
“I disagree,” Allen said, crossing his arms in a manner that Emily often used.
Quinn’s eyes narrowed, “You could hear that?”
“Yes”
“Hallway… now,” Quinn hissed.
“After I tell Mom what’s going on,” Allen said, and walked over to her.
Emily scrambled out of bed and ran for the door when Silas pulled Allen from the room. She slammed into Kralen, knocking him back a few inches. His hands shot out and caught her before she fell to the ground. She pulled her arms out of his grasp and tried to step around him, but he blocked her way. She gasped when Kralen fell to ashes and spun to face Alexis. The 6-year-old was upset and watching her Mom tearfully.
Emily picked her up quickly and headed out into the hallway, following Quinn, Silas, and Allen down the stairs as she gripped Alexis tightly in her arms. She caught up with them and took Allen’s arm, stopping them all from walking.
Allen took Alexis, and Emily put herself between them and the heku, glaring at them.
“We just wanted to talk to him,” Quinn said softly. “We weren’t going to hurt him.”
“Where’s Kralen?” Silas asked, looking up the stairs.
Alexis sweet little voice sounded, timidly, “I ashed him.”
Silas’ eyes grew wide, “Lexi, you turned him to ash?”
Alexis nodded.
“We just want to talk to him,” Quinn said again. “We’ll take care of Kralen in a bit, sounds like an accident.”
“Mom, the fight is over,” Allen said quickly. “Exavior got away, but they got the Chief Enforcer’s back.”
“Allen…” Quinn growled.
“Kyle’s hurt pretty badly, as are the other two, so they’re taking them to Island Coven for recovery… Dad’s going back there,” Allen told Emily as he kept an eye on Quinn.
Emily’s eyes grew wide and she ran up the stairs, followed by Allen, Quinn, and Silas.
“You can’t go to Island Coven,” Quinn told her as she started to pack.
Emily turned and looked at him.
“The Chief Enforcer’s are really badly hurt. Zohn and Chevalier feel it’d be better if you stay here,” Silas told her.
Emily picked up a chair and flung it at Quinn. He caught it and sat it down, “We’ll give you a little privacy for a few moments.”
Silas shut the door behind him after leaving.
“Can you find the battery and put it back in my car without getting caught?” Emily wrote in a notebook and showed it to Allen.
“Into the Aero? Yes. I saw where they put it,” Allen replied.
“I can’t, they’ll catch me and you have free reign of the building.”
“Won’t take but about 5 minutes, and then I want to go with you.”
Emily nodded and checked to see if the key was still in her jeans. She took them into the bathroom to get dressed as Allen left the room.
“Where are you going?” Quinn asked.
“She’s mad at me now too, happy?” Allen growled, and headed down the stairs. He replaced the battery in the Aero and came back up the stairs, then stormed into the room and slammed the door behind him.
Emily looked up at him as she slipped the .45 into the back of her jeans, “So?”
“Done, how are you going to get out of here?”
“Is anyone in the garage?”
“No, they thought taking the batteries was enough,” Allen said.
“I can knock Quinn and Silas out. Anyone else in the way?”
“Yes, Powans down there.”
Emily sighed, “Damn, it takes too long to knock them unconscious.”
“Wipe their minds? It’ll take them a few seconds to see the notes in their hands that remind them to keep an eye on you.”
Emily nodded, “It’s worth a try. Once we’re in the car, Thukil can’t catch up to us.”
“What about Alexis?”
“When we leave, you run to your teacher, understood?” Emily asked her.
Alexis nodded.
“Ready?” Allen asked.
Emily nodded and concentrated on the door. As soon as Quinn and Silas fell to their knees, groaning in pain, Allen opened the door so she could release them at the right time. When they went unconscious, she and Allen headed quickly down the stairs.
“Where are you going?” a Powan guard asked, and then turned around. “Why am I in the palace?”
Emily and Allen kept running. She erased the memory of each guard she came too, and they emerged into the garage as she heard someone yell to catch them. They slid into the sleek Aero and locked the doors. Allen didn’t fit in the seat, and his knees hit painfully against the dashboard when Emily floored it in reverse, slammed the car into 1st gear, and peeled out of the garage.
The Thukil Cavalry watched helplessly as she sped through the city and was soon out on the highway, the car pegged at 270mph. Once they were a safe distance from Council City, she slowed down to the speed limit to avoid getting pulled over.
Emily took a deep breath, “Why did they not want to tell me?”
Allen grinned, “Can’t you guess?”
“Oh… right…” Emily said, smiling slightly. “We should be at the ferry by morning.”
Allen’s cell phone rang, and he looked at it, “It’s Dad.”
“Don’t answer. I can’t handle him right now,” Emily said.
“What are you going to do if the guards won’t let you on the island?” Allen asked.
“Then I’ll tell them it’s the island or Exavior,” Emily said. Allen looked at her to see if she was serious, and noticed that she was.
“Why don’t you stop and eat? We’re far away from the city.”
“Not now, when we get gas I’ll eat.”
They drove for hours, stopping only for gas when the Aero was almost empty. Allen filled the tank while Emily went inside for the restroom and a cup of coffee. She came back out after paying and ignored the people looking at her car when she climbed inside.
“That’s not food,” Allen sighed.
“We’ll be there soon. I just need to stay awake,” Emily said, and belted herself in. She ran her fingers slowly over the soft gray leather on the steering wheel and remembered racing Chevalier in it. She smiled slightly and then on turned the car.
“Mom,” Allen said, looking behind them.
Emily turned in her seat and saw four identical silver Bugatti Veyrons behind her.
“Damnit,” Emily said, and gunned it, spinning out and quickly returning to the Interstate. She was in sixth gear at top speed, but the Ve
yrons kept pace.
“I don’t know if you can outrun those,” Allen said, glancing back at them. “They aren’t ranked a lot lower in speed than this car.”
“Did you see who’s driving?”
“No, but the cars looked like Valle to me. There’s a V on their hubcaps,” Allen told her.
“I can’t let them box me in,” Emily said. “They’ve done that before.”
“If you keep it floored, they can’t pass you, not in this car... but just remember you can’t out maneuver them, their reflexes are better.”
Allen’s phone rang, “Let me handle this… Hello, Dad.”
Emily kept a close eye on the silver cars behind her. They didn’t seem to want to try to box her in, but kept behind her closely.
“I know... but back off the Valle before Mom tries to out maneuver them and gets hurt,” Allen said, grinning slightly when Emily glanced at him.
“What do you mean?” Allen asked, frowning.
“Four of them… silver Veyrons.”
Allen glanced back at the cars, “Mom, those aren’t Equites, Valle, or Encala.”
Emily glanced back, “Damn… damn… maybe they aren’t heku at all.”
“Yeah, Mom, because lots of people can afford four of the world’s most expensive cars,” Allen said, and went back to his phone.
“Hold on, I’m going to try to lose them,” Emily said.
“Dad said, no. He said to wait for someone else to catch up to us… he thinks it’s Exavior,” Allen told her, and then explained to Chevalier where they were.
“Oh? Then maybe I need to stop and deal with it.”
“Mom, I’m begging you, just keep going… Dad’s called a coven near here, and they are waiting about 100 miles ahead for us,” Allen said. “They are going to escort us into the coven.”
“No… I’m going to Island Coven,” Emily said. “I have enough gas to make it without stopping, and that’s what I plan to do.”
“Dad says…” Allen started, but Emily took his cell phone, rolled down the window, and tossed it out. “Never mind.”
Twenty minutes later, Emily and Allen passed six black Ferrari Enzos. They pulled into traffic behind the Veyrons, but quickly fell behind and within an hour, couldn’t be seen. Jonesport was approaching, and Emily slowed down to take the corners and soon spied the ferry. It was docked and waiting for her, and was full of heku from all factions. She hit the brakes to the Aero just as she hit the pier, and skidded to a stop on the ferry.
Emily turned in her seat and saw the four Veyrons slow slightly, and then speed off to the north. She turned and relaxed in her seat, not really wanting to talk to any of the Equites, then cringed when Mark stepped up to her door.
“You can’t hide. Open it,” Mark growled.
As soon as she opened her door, Mark pulled her out of the car by her arm and slammed her against the side of it, holding her against the Aero by her arms, “What the hell were you thinking?”
Emily pulled her arm free and slapped him. He raised his hand to hit her, but lowered it slowly, “Get back in the car before you get hurt.”
She went to crawl back into the Aero, but saw a member of her Cavalry push Allen violently against the ferry’s cabin and start yelling at him. She ran up and stepped between them, putting her arms out to protect Allen.
“Back off,” Emily growled.
“It’s ok, Mom. I can handle him,” Allen said angrily.
“He overstepped and he knows it,” the guard yelled at him.
“Allen, get in the car,” Emily said, and walked with him. Once they were both back in the Aero, they locked the doors and waited the long ride to Island Coven.
When the ferry docked, Emily gently pulled the car onto the pier and then drove slowly through the city toward the castle. She stopped out front and looked up at the double doors, sighing.
“You ready for this? He’s livid,” Allen asked her.
“He’s not nearly as pissed off at me, as I am at him,” Emily said, her voice suddenly angry. She opened the door as the guards from the ferry fanned out around the castle grounds. She slammed the purple door shut and headed inside, ignoring the door guards.
Chevalier, Sotomar, and William were waiting for her inside the castle, all looking angry. Emily walked quickly up to Chevalier and slapped him hard across the face. She started to slap him again, but he caught her wrist.
“Enough,” he growled.
“Where is he?” Emily asked angrily.
Chevalier grabbed Emily’s arm and dragged her toward his office, then threw her inside and slammed the door behind him, “You have a lot of explaining to do.”
“Where is he?” Emily asked again, rubbing her arm.
“What the hell were you thinking taking off from the palace?”
“Where is he?”
“Then you turned Kralen to ash? How dare you do that… he was there to protect you.”
“I didn’t ash him. Where is Kyle?”
Chevalier looked shocked for a moment before the fury returned, “Those measures were put into place to keep you safe, but you seem to care about as much about your safety as Exavior does.”
Emily glared at him and crossed her arms.
“Why must you undermine everything I do to protect you?”
Emily turned and tried to leave, but the door was too heavy to push.
“I’m not letting you out until I find out what’s going through that brain of yours,” Chevalier snapped.
“What’s going on…” Emily said softly. She was surprised to suddenly find herself calm, “Is that every faction has now violated the ultimatum, and as soon as I check on Kyle, I’m enforcing it.”
Chevalier’s anger turned to concern, “What?”
“It’s over,” Emily whispered, and looked down at her hands.
“Em…”
“Let me out,” she whispered, and turned to the door.
Chevalier didn’t know what else to do, so he opened the door and stepped out with her.
“Where is he?”
“He’s in my room,” Chevalier said, too shocked to say more. William and Sotomar watched him curiously as Emily headed up the stairs.
“I thought we weren’t going to allow her to see him,” Sotomar said, irritated.
“She’s leaving,” Chevalier told them. “After she sees Kyle, she’s disappearing.”
“What?” William asked, frowning. “She can’t leave. Exavior’s still out there.”
Emily opened Chevalier’s door slowly and peered into the dark room. The fire was lit, but was the only light in the room and it cast deathly shadows onto Kyle. His eyes were closed, and Emily was almost at the bed before she could even see him breathing. She sat down beside him and took his cold hand in hers.
“Kyle?” Emily whispered, and softly touched his face.
When he didn’t respond, she pushed the blankets aside and frowned as she gently touched the deep gashes along his torso and the inflamed burns and bites across his body. Emily covered him back up and rubbed his hand gently.
“I’m going to miss you,” she whispered, her eyes filling with tears. “I can’t do it any more… all of this was because of me, and I didn’t have the strength to get away, to bring Damon and Samuel to Exavior so they would let you go.”
Emily let go of his hand and went over to his clothing. She dug around in his pocket for a cell phone and dialed Exavior.
“What?” he growled.
“You win,” Emily said softly.
“Emily? My love? What do you mean that I’ve won?”
“I’m leaving.”
“You’re coming to me?” Exavior asked, sounding excited.
“No, I’m leaving the heku and disappearing.”
“I’ll look for you and I will find you.”
“Then I’ll ash you and disappear again. This world isn’t for me. I’ve spent 13 years with the heku, and in your eyes, I’m still a young child. Someone who needs trained and disciplined,” Emily sai
d. “No more. I’m going to go out on my own, raise my children the best I can with what I have to offer and hopefully… someday… they will forgive me.”
“Don’t do this. Come to me, I will treat you like the adult that you are,” Exavior said, starting to panic.
“You tortured my best friend to get to me. Why would I come to you?”
“Love…”
Emily shut the phone and put it back in Kyle’s pocket. She leaned over the bed and kissed his forehead softly before leaving the room. Chevalier, Sotomar, and William met her outside in the hallway.
“Em, talk to us,” Chevalier said softly.
“I’ve told Exavior I’m leaving. He should leave you all alone now,” Emily said, and headed down the stairs.
Allen met her at the bottom of the stairs, and she wrapped her arms around him.
“It’s up to you. You can stay here, or come with me, but you can’t move between us anymore,” Emily told him, her voice cracking at the end.
“Don’t do this, please. I can’t choose between you,” Allen asked, holding her tightly.
“You have to choose. If you come with me, you won’t see your Dad until after I die… if you stay here then…” Emily’s voice gave out and the tears started.
“I can’t leave you unprotected. I’ll come with you,” Allen said, and looked up at his Dad. Chevalier watched them, in too much shock to speak.
Emily nodded, “I’ve seen Kyle… I’m ready to go.”
“Emily, don’t do this,” Chevalier said, and took her hand.
Emily pulled her hand away from him, “I’ve seen clearly for the first time in 13 years, I’ve seen what my presence has done to the heku. I’m sure it’ll take a few years before things get back to normal, but then, it’ll be like I was never here.”
“That’s not what we want,” William said. “You brought the factions together. You brought life to the Encala… no one has done that.”
“My best friend was tortured because of an infatuation with me,” Emily said softly. “Trust me, this is better for all of us. In my world, I’m a responsible adult, capable of taking care of myself and my family.”
“We aren’t treating you like a child,” Sotomar said. “We’re treating you like a valued friend, an important part of our lives that we don’t want to see hurt.”
Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series Page 53