Dragon: Bridge & Sword: The Final War (Bridge & Sword Series Book 9)

by JC Andrijeski

  Not to mention the unending supply of alcohol and sex, which the construct could clearly feel breaking him down in deeper, more insidious ways.

  They used more subtle machinations on him, too. They gave him bright spots, moments with the illusion of making an impact, even if it was simply to prevent the murder of one more child seer or human. They gave him jobs that almost felt real, that might actually make a difference to some of the people living under occupation here.

  Then, there were things like this.

  Blatant attempts to provoke him. Open displays of derision and disrespect. Repeated attempts to put him in his place, to make him angry to the point of unreason.

  He could not help noticing that the timing was usually stellar for any one of these different angles into his mind and light.

  He could feel the threads his old guardian pulled.

  Not only around Allie and the fact that he could feel his marriage disintegrating from afar, unraveling more with every hour he spent here. Not only that he missed his daughter desperately––and his son––and his fucking wife, who he couldn’t seem to stop thinking about no matter what he was doing. Not only because they couldn’t have picked a worse day to remind him how far away he was from all of them, or how little he could do to control what was happening to himself or them, or how little he could do to in any way salvage some shred of the life he’d left behind in coming here.

  He could feel older resonances there, too.

  He felt resonances with his childhood, with the war, where he’d also been widely disliked by the other soldiers in his fighting force. He felt connections to Elise, his first wife, who they’d also managed to take from him.

  The subtle key turns and tugs worsened as he fought with emotions that wanted to rise, even as the construct toyed with different levels of his light across the spectrum of his reactions, looking for openings, for any way inside the parts of him he struggled to protect.

  There were precious few of them left now.

  The constant threading and tugging and examining and prodding kept him in a near-constant state of tension. That tension occasionally bordered on panic. It was as if he was forever gearing for a fight in some less-conscious part of his aleimi.

  Worse, it made him paranoid. More so all the time.

  “Fine,” he said, looking back at Ute. “Then get the fuck out.” He motioned towards Raven with one hand. “Take her with you.”

  “But we were told to bring her to you, brother,” Ute said innocently. “Your uncle specifically requested––”

  “I’m not interested in what he wants,” Revik said, cold. “Not in relation to her. So unless it’s a goddamned order––”

  “It is an order, brother,” Raven broke in, her voice clipped, more infiltrator-like. “For both of us. So you might as well stand down.”

  Revik glanced at her, weirdly relieved she’d at least spoken like her normal self.

  “He would like us to discuss the best means of reorganizing this City under occupation,” Raven added, her blue eyes lifeless as they examined his. “He would like a transition plan in place, including for the recruitment of infiltrators and other seers.”

  She made a matter-of-fact gesture with one hand.

  “I know the City, Dehgoies. You do not. He assigned me to get you up to speed on this, brother. And to act as your advisor and consultant as you determine the best means of governance here. In the interim, at least.” Her eyes narrowed. She put her hands on her hips. “He would also like us to discuss our son.”

  Revik felt his jaw harden all over again. “No,” he said, cold. “As to the City’s governance, fine. I will work with you on this. Maygar is off the table.”

  There was a silence.

  Then Raven gave an outraged laugh, staring up at him.

  “Really?”

  “Yes, really.” Revik fought the charge building in his light, keeping his voice even with an effort. Averting his gaze, he looked back out the round window, folding his arms. “He was a part of my agreement with Menlim. He’s off the fucking table, Elan.”

  “Menlim disagrees.”

  Revik looked over, his jaw hardening. “It was implied.”

  “Again. Your uncle disagrees.”

  “He’s not my goddamned uncle,” Revik growled, his voice openly hostile. “And if he––or you––go anywhere near my son, the deal is off. It’s way off, Raven.”

  Raven gave another outraged laugh, her blue eyes widening.

  “Your son?” she said, her voice openly derisive.

  “You’re goddamned right.”

  “I see. I didn’t realize he was your son now, Dehgoies.” Bowing with that harder smile still on her lips, she gestured a mock-respectful motion with one hand. Her voice grew sarcastic, despite the genuine anger he could hear there. “See, strangely, brother, I seem to remember you ignoring ‘your’ son for about thirty-five years after he was born––”

  “You didn’t tell me he existed before then––”

  “––Then threatening his life when he made the mistake of looking at your bitch mate.”

  Revik clenched his jaw, folding his arms tighter.

  Staring up at him, she scowled back, her eyes shining colder.

  “I also seem to remember you saying that Shadow threatening to kill him if you wouldn’t negotiate for his life was ‘the first good thing you’d heard about Shadow.’ Am I mistaken in these things, Illustrious brother? Is my memory perhaps faulty?”

  “I mean it, Elan.” Revik stared at her coldly. “Don’t test me on this. Or try pulling some bullshit maternal card. Maygar isn’t a bargaining chip. Not for me… and certainly not for you to gain power under this fucked-up empire you’re helping Menlim build. I’ll break your neck if you go near him. I don’t care if you are his mother. He’s off the fucking table.”

  Raven folded her arms, staring at him.

  Her lean arms being wound together the way they were pushed her breasts up and together, and nearly out of the dress. Still staring at his face, she slid her leg out artistically through the slit in the silk material so that it lay bare to the thigh, tanned and muscular against the blue silk.

  Revik knew the pose had to be deliberate––and calculated.

  Grunting in disbelief, he blew contempt at her when he turned, staring pointedly at her leg before refolding his arms.

  “Give it a rest, Elan,” he said. “I’d sooner fuck one of the City’s sheep.”

  “I hear you’ve had everything but lately, brother,” she returned sweetly.

  “There isn’t enough alcohol in the world, sister.”

  Sighing, she threaded black hair out of her face with her fingers, looking at Ute, then at Hilo. Shifting her weight, she brought her leg back inside the dress, letting the pose drop as she made something akin to a “well, I tried” motion with one hand, blowing out her cheeks in an unmistakably irritated sound.

  Ute quirked an eyebrow back, clicking under her breath.

  After what must have been a more detailed conversation between the three of them in the Barrier, Raven flicked her fingers at Ute, then made a swift series of gestures to Hilo. The male seer nodded, gesturing back.

  Revik followed their fingers with his eyes. It was obviously a version of seer sign language, but it pulled words and phrases together in a kind of code, or shorthand, maybe.

  He clearly wasn’t meant to be privy to the conversation, in any case. Nor was he allowed in the part of the construct they were accessing to speak via the Barrier.

  He sensed the sign language was just punctuating that fact.

  Another heavy-handed way of letting him know where he stood.

  Eventually, the conversation ended.

  Hilo and Ute barely glanced at Revik before they turned to leave. Ute’s look was openly contemptuous, holding even more hostility than usual. Both turned their backs on him, walking out of the high-ceilinged chamber shoulder to shoulder.

  Revik found himself alone with Raven, who watc
hed him with narrowed eyes, her light guarded behind that same construct he could only just feel.

  “Menlim has agreed to table the conversation about Maygar,” she said.

  Revik felt his shoulders relax. He knew she probably noticed, but he almost didn’t care.

  Anyway, the construct would have felt his relief.

  “…For now,” she added coolly. “In the interests of expediting the more immediate areas in which he requires your cooperation, brother.”

  Revik nodded, keeping his face still.

  He wouldn’t argue this with Raven. There was no point.

  He knew she loved Maygar––in her way. He also knew she wouldn’t blink if she could use their relationship to gain leverage under this new regime.

  Knowing Raven, she would tell herself it was for Maygar’s own good.

  “Have you heard the rumors?” she said, blunt.

  Revik frowned, looking her over. Weirdly, she disarmed him more now when she spoke straight with him, dropping the coy demeanor. He knew she was smart enough that she might have figured that out, but it still got him to relax his guard somewhat.

  Either way, he didn’t speak, waiting for her to continue on her own.

  “Your wife,” Elan said, her voice hard. “We are told she left her people. She did not tell them she meant to do it. There was apparently no prior warning at all. She left in the middle of the night with only one companion. And weapons.” Pausing, she gauged his face. “She also took the key with her, brother. The map our contact told us about.”

  Revik didn’t move. He fought not to react to the probing stare he felt on her.

  “Did you know she would do this, Revi’?” she said.

  Forcing his face to remain still, Revik sighed, clicking at her. “How would I know anything about what my wife is doing right now, Elan?”

  “She left with a male,” Raven said, still studying his face. “Does that not interest you at all, brother?”

  Revik fought not to react, still focused out the window.

  “The rumor is she is in a relationship with this person,” Raven added. “…’fucking like rabbits’ is how it was phrased to me. The whole camp knew about it.”

  Still watching his face, she shrugged.

  Revik felt the artifice behind the motion.

  “I guess they are exclusive,” she added. “Under agreement of some kind. Whatever she is up to, she brought him with her. Presumably to keep her bed warm wherever she intends to go now. There was some controversy in the camp about this companion of hers, in addition to her leaving. Not all of them trusted him.”

  Revik felt heat rise in his chest.

  He couldn’t stop it, couldn’t even dial it back for the first few seconds, despite clamping down on his light with an iron fist. He stood there, fighting to control his breath, and the pain that wanted to twist into his sight.

  “You have heard about this,” she said, her eyes appraising. “That, or you knew on your own.”

  He shook his head, keeping his face still with an effort.

  “No,” he said.

  She smiled at him, nodding, but he saw the knowing there.

  Of course they would know when things changed between his wife and whoever she was with. He’d expected this.

  Of course he’d expected this. He’d been hearing the whispers for weeks.

  They had a damned plant on their team. Even if that person hadn’t been with Allie in Denver or the base in Langley, the two groups would be talking. The team with Balidor would be talking to those in Allie’s group. Some of them were sleeping with one another. Neela and Poresh. Chinja might still be involved with Anale.

  Staring out the circular window, he fought with his light, telling himself he was being fucking stupid.

  He knew this. He fucking knew it.

  They would have known about Allie and her new boyfriend before he did.

  “You don’t need me to tell you anything about this then, brother?” Raven said, her voice holding a faint humor as she studied his face. “You’d rather I didn’t gossip?”

  Revik didn’t mean to ask it. He didn’t intend it. But he asked anyway.

  “Who is it?” he said, his voice neutral. “The male. What is his name?”

  She quirked her eyebrow at him. “I was about to ask you that.”

  Revik clicked at her, anger coiling around his light before he could pull it back. “Bullshit. Who is it, Raven? Are you going to tell me?”

  “Brother.” She let out a low laugh. “You can believe me or not, but I was fully intending to ask you this. You really do not know?”

  “How the fuck would I know?” He motioned around the room, emphasizing the point with sharp flicks of his fingers. “I am here, aren’t I? Not there.”

  “She is your wife,” Raven reminded him sweetly, pulling out that coy smile. “I would have thought you’d have better access to her light, brother. Certainly better than me.”

  Revik controlled himself with an effort.

  Clicking more sharply under his breath, he averted his gaze.

  “You’re really going to hold this over me?” he said, his voice cold. “To what possible purpose, Elan?”

  “I really don’t know anything, Revi’. Honest.”

  He didn’t look over, but heard her smile.

  When she still didn’t speak, he exhaled a short breath.

  “Menlim has a plant there,” he said, his voice subdued. He made a conciliatory gesture with one hand, inclining his head. “There is no possible way he would not know who it is. If you tell me his name, in return, I’ll tell you whatever I can about them. Menlim would want that, yes? Information on this person?”

  “What makes you think he needs that from you, brother?”

  Revik felt that heat grow harder in his chest, making it hard to breathe. He didn’t speak, staring out the window without seeing the trees beyond the carved wooden trim.

  Smiling, Raven shrugged with one hand.

  “I wasn’t given a name, brother,” she said. “Truly.”

  Revik turned. He caught her watching him, curiosity in her eyes. Still looking him over, she grinned.

  It wasn’t a coy grin that time, but a real one.

  “Gaos. You really want to know who it is.” When Revik averted his gaze, she laughed. “Hulen-ta. You are dying to know, aren’t you? You would give your left hand to know.” That humor reached her voice. “Poor Revi’. What are you going to do? Go after him? Castrate him, brother? When you’ve fucked half the unwillings in the City?”

  He clicked at her, exuding impatience.

  Even so, he felt some part of his light flinch from her words.

  Was that what this was? Revenge?

  Was Allie doing it like this to get back at him?

  It hadn’t felt like that. It hadn’t felt like that at all.

  Sickness wound back through his light.

  It hit him hard in the chest, before he could push the memory back at all. He fought it, blanking his mind and light, killing every shred of feeling before those impressions could gather back behind his eyes.

  He lost track of the other seer in that.

  When he finally got himself under control, he took a breath. He looked back at Raven once he had, but she shook her head at him, clicking as she seemed to be thinking, still watching his face. That time, a near-anger touched her words.

  “Gods above. What fucking hypocrites men are. Here you are, acting wounded… I hope he’s got his mouth on her cunt right now. It would serve you right if he was about four hundred years old, with extensive training in the arts, brother.”

  Revik felt his jaw harden.

  “Are you finished?” he said.

  She wasn’t finished.

  “What did you expect?” Contempt filled her voice. “How many times did you think you could leave her before she was finished with you? She is the Bridge, brother. She could have anyone she wanted.” Watching him frown, she let out another laugh, genuine enjoyment in her eyes. “G
ods. I really do hope he’s good. I hope he fucks her until she passes out, Revi’. I hope she can’t make coherent words for an hour after––”

  Fighting to control that harder pain that wanted to twist back on his light, Revik shook his head, making his voice cold.

  “I find it interesting you’re such a champion of my wife’s rights all of a sudden,” he said, staring back out the window. “I seem to remember you having less of a ‘sisterly’ perspective on our marriage in the past.”

  She laughed at him though, her voice marveling.

  “Gods. This is driving you crazy. It really is.”

  “Are you here for any real reason, Elan?” he said.

  “You’ve felt them together, haven’t you?” she said, still studying his light. “She is enjoying him, isn’t she? From the look on your face right now, she’s enjoying him a lot––”

  “I don’t have time for this shit.” Not caring how it looked anymore, he pushed past her, walking towards the only doorway in the high-ceilinged room.

  She followed him though, still watching his light.

  “Gods.” She laughed. “Are you watching them fuck every night? That’s almost hot, brother. Twisted. But hot.”

  Revik closed his light, lengthening his strides.

  He struggled as he walked, still fighting the memories. He could feel it now, in the construct. They wanted him to see it, to remember. They pulled his light, coaxing it back there, tempting him to look, to keep looking––to feel it. They wanted him to see it, to experience it again and again. They wanted him to draw the obvious conclusions.

  Menlim. Salinse. Raven. Fuck knew who else.

  He could feel Raven pulling on him even now, trying to figure out what he knew, what he’d seen and felt in his view of Allie with that other male.

  He felt the construct messing with him, trying to get him to lose control, to react past where he could think, past where he could pull his light back.

  He’d known this would hurt.

  Of course he’d known.

  He’d known he would be jealous. He’d known, braced for it.

  But nothing could have prepared him for feeling his wife’s confusion about who she was with, her frightened realization that she wanted someone else. Her guilt.