People spread out quickly, forming search parties. Darius held Reo’s head between his hands, staring into the wolf’s intelligent eyes. No words passed his lips, but Reo yipped and dashed out of the room, followed closely by Darius.
Hugh was getting ready to follow when Daniel stopped him. “You have to stay here.”
“The hell I will! That’s my daughter out there! Again!”
“Someone has to stay here in case anyone finds her. The people will naturally return here with information, and they will be more at ease knowing you are here to guide us.”
“I can’t, Daniel. This is too much. I can’t do it.” His words seemed hollow and dead, as if all of the fire had drained from the proud warrior. He could face down an army and never flinch, but first Pip’s abduction, and now with the threat to his daughter?Once again, he had been pushed to his breaking point.
“You can, and you must. You are Hugh, Lord of Maj. Dearra is fighting for her life. Will you, as her father, do less?”
“Go then, Daniel, but return to me often. I need to know what is happening.”
“We’ll get her back, Hugh. Dearra has survived Breken, wolves, and sickness, this year alone. She would never let herself be bested by something as low as Jacob.” Daniel gripped Hugh’s arm and then turned turning to join in the search.
***
Dearra felt the course cloth wrapped around her eyes, and she tried to lift her hands to remove it, but they were shackled together with astrong chain that ran between her manacled wrists and ankles.
“Uh, uh, uh!” Jacob said in a sing-songy voice. “I’m afraid the blindfold needs to stay, my sweet. That sword of yours is far too interfering. We wouldn’t want any visitors to interrupt us.”
“Jacob.” Dearra said his name. Her voice came out in a croak. Her head split at the effort, reminding her of the blow she had suffered.
“Don’t try to speak, my love. You have had a nasty injury to your head, I’m sorry to say, but it was necessary. Besides, I do so prefer you silent. I don’t want to criticize my future bride, but you do have a bit of a temper, my dear.” Jacob walked away from her. She soon heard what sounded like the scrape of metal as he rifled through something.
Dearra was terrified. This wasn’t a fair fight. She was unarmed and alone. Panic surged through her.
I’m here, Dearra. I’m with you. Thank Tolah you are alive. Darius is with me. We’ll get you out of this.
Brin! Even thinking was painful, and Dearra winced as she rode out the fresh wave of pain. I can’t see, Brin. I don’t know where I am. He’s insane! Please, Brin! Please, help me!
Don’t go to pieces, Dearra. What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you feel?
I…I hear water.
Good, Dearra! What else?
I smell the sea, and the floor beneath me moves. I think I’m on a ship.
Excellent, Dearra. You’re doing very, very well. What else?
“Ah! Here we are,” Jacob said, his voice calm as he neared. “You really have been a bad girl, Dearra, teasing me so.”
Dearra heard metal scrape on metal, and the smell of coal burning reached her nose. He must have a brazier going for warmth. It was a risky thing, especially if they were, indeed, on a ship.
“I have thought and thought how best to make sure you know who you belong to, and honestly I can come up with only one way. I flatter myself, but it really is quite brilliant.”
“What—” Dearra struggled to form the words.
“I’m so glad you asked! A brand, of course! It was so obvious once I paused long enough to really consider. Surely, even you see can see the wisdom in it. I thought at first I might brand your face, you know, so everyone would know you are mine at first glance, but then I thought, ‘Who would want to look at that all day?’ No, the thigh is the place. That way, you will see it often, and it will serve as a warning to any man who gets that far.” Jacob laughed cruelly.
“No!” Dearra’s voice came out only slightly stronger than before, and she pushed herself closer toward the wooden wall behind her.
Jacob took hold of one of her legs, and she felt the cold blade against her skin as he sliced her pants to her hip on one side. “Dearra, don’t be such a baby,” he said. “It will be over so fast you will hardly feel it.”
Jacob ran his fingers along her exposed skin and a wave of revulsion washed over her. Dearra gagged.
Jacob slapped her hard across the face and resumed his exploration of her.
Breathe, Dearra. It’s going to be alright. Don’t give up.
I can’t, Brin.
Yes, you can! You keep breathing, do you hear me?
Tell Darius I love him.
Don’t you dare give up!I decided you were my soulmate, a true warrior worthy of my friendship, and I have never been wrong yet! Don’t you dare ruin my perfect record, now!
I’ll try, Brin.
Just breathe, dearest; we’ll do the rest. Breathe.
Jacob stopped his pawing of her in order to retrieve the brand from the flames. She clenched her hands into fists, bracing in anticipation of the pain.
Jacob sounded almost excited as he stepped still closer. “Only a moment, my sweet, and then it will be over,” he said.
Dearra felt the blazing heat, even before Jacob held the branding iron against her flesh. She smelled the acrid aroma of burning skin, and then nothing more as blessed unconsciousness reclaimed her.
Chapter 30
“If you make me wait one moment longer, I swear I will have you melted down and made into a bed pan. Now, what is going on?” Darius tried to be patient, he really had, but when Brin started talking to Dearra about not giving up, his patience failed him. Hearing only half of a conversation was annoying under the best of circumstances; this was almost physically painful by comparison.
Brin thought for a moment before answering. Thankfully, the boy could not hear his every thought, just as Dearra could not. Had Darius been able to, Brin knew the young man would be completely useless. He needed to keep the Breken focused, and telling him that Jacob had branded Dearra like a cow was not the best way to do that. Darius, we need to go back to the keep and get help. He has her on one of the ships.
“Which one, Brin?”
I don’t know, and that’s why we need help. If we start for one, Jacob may see us, and…well…it would be best if we hit them all at once. It’s not going to be easy. Remember, it’s likely no one but Jacob, and perhaps one other, is involved here. The captains of those ships aren’t going to take kindly to being boarded by Maj.
“I don’t care if they are pleased with the situation or not; we’re getting Dearra back if I have to rip the planks off of every ship out there.”
Fine. You go right ahead and be the big, strong hero, but if Dearra dies because you couldn’t control your manly self, then I will see to it that you follow closely behind her.
Now, are we going to go get help, or not?
Darius felt the blade warm in his hand until it glowed from the heat. “Peace, Brin’du Drak’Tir. We will go back to the keep for help,” Darius said, and he felt the sword cool slightly in his grasp.
***
A great horn was blown to bring everyone within hearing distance racing back to the keep. Darius explained the situation, frequently interrupted by Brin as he offered more information. Hugh had sent for Captain Koukai, and together they conspired together in the Great Hall.
“He has agreed to help us,” Hugh said after Koukai left. “He has granted permission for us to search his ship, and he will seek permission from the other captains to do the same. We will take three boats with five warriors on each boat and go into the harbor. Jacob will see us, but there’s no helping that. Ten men will stay on land and search the ships tied to the docks. The rest of the people will stay here at the keep or in their homes. It will be a tense enough situation for the other captains, without all of Maj hovering on the beach.”
“When will we know everything is in order to proceed?
” Daniel asked.
“Very soon. As each captain is asked permission, a flag will be raised on deck. A white flag will signal consent to search, a black flag refusal. We’ll deal with that as we need to.”
Daniel quickly picked twenty-five Maj warriors from the throng of willing people and headed to the docks with Hugh, Darius, and of course, Carly, who would not be left behind. The two ships at the docks were first to be searched, since their captains, frequent visitors to Maj, had been first to give their consent.
Hugh was pleased with this turn of events for he worried that if Jacob hid within one of those ships, he might have the opportunity to slip away while attention was on the ships in the harbor. Both of the docked ships proved secure, and all attention shifted to the masts in the harbor, waiting for a sign.
Darius waited with the others on the dock. It killed him not to be on one of the boats on his way to search, but as there was no way to know which ship Dearra was on, there was really nothing for him to do but wait and watch.
At last, the first white flag was raised, and then another. Two of the small boats got into position, ready to board. Five minutes passed, until, finally, the third flag was lifted. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as the white banner snapped in the ocean wind. As one, the men and women secured the boats to the larger ships and went aboard.
***
“I had so hoped this would end better, my darling. I really expected I would be able to sneak you away in the night, and the two of us could be together, always, but it seems fate conspires against us.”
Dearra came more fully awake, and she tried to process the words Jacob had spoken. The burning pain in her leg had decreased, but it was still enough to be a distraction.
“I will have to escape, of course. I can’t let them kill me, but I can’t let them have you back either. I couldn’t live knowing that man was touching you.
“You need to be protected from yourself, Dearra. I will take care of you.”
Dearra thought his voice sounded strange and she worried he may have finally snapped. He was speaking to her, but also to himself, as if trying to convince himself his actions were right. Dearra moaned, and tried hard to focus on what was going on. He’s going to kill me, Brin.
I hear him, dearest. We are searching the ships now. We will find you.
“I suppose I will say goodbye now,” Jacob said. “I really am sorry things didn’t go better, my love.”
Dearra heard him kick over the brazier and open the door to leave her alone in the room.
***
Darius watched in shock as, one by one, the Maj search parties came to the decks of the ships and signaled they had been unsuccessful. It wasn’t possible. She was on a ship, Brin had been sure of it.
Had they missed her?
No, surely not. Darius was sure they had been thorough in their search.
But if not on the ships in the harbor then where?
Reo whined and pawed at Darius as he and the others continued to watch the ships in the harbor. “Shhhh. It’s all right, boy,” Darius told him, but Reo persisted in his whine until it erupted into a full bark. Annoyed by the behavior of the wolf, and overcome with worry, he snapped, “What?” at the wolf.
Startled by Darius’s sharp words, the wolf skittered a little, then turned back on him and sent the sharpest image Darius had ever gotten from the animal: an image of fire.
Darius turned and looked around. A hundred yards down the beach, tied to the much smaller dock, rocked the caravel the people of Maj had readied for Pip’s rescue, and from a window at the back of the lumbering ship came a distinct plume of smoke. He didn’t hesitate to speak, but ran wildly to the ship.
We’re coming, Dearra! We see you!
I’m going to burn, Brin, I can feel it! Hurry! Oh please, hurry. I don’t want to die like this.
Hurry, Darius.
Darius needed no encouragement. The muscles in his legs screamed as he pushed them for more speed. When he reached the caravel, he flew up the ramp until he was on board, made his way quickly below decks, and watched in horror as the still sluggish fire licked at Dearra’s boots.
He swept her up, as mindful of the chains as possible, and tried to carry her away from the fire, but Jacob had bolted the chains to the floor, and they stopped Darius short.
Daniel, Carly, and Hugh joined Darius in the ship’s hold. Daniel and Carly grabbed the blankets Dearra had been sitting on, and used them to beat down the fire.
“I can’t find the key,” Darius told Hugh, still fighting against his nature to stay in control.
Hugh wrapped a large hand around the chain and Darius did the same. “On the count of three?” Hugh asked. He looked at Darius, awaiting his reply.
Darius nodded.
Hugh counted, “One…two…three,” and the two men pulled together, muscles straining, and the section of wooden decking holding Dearra’s chains tore away. “Go, Darius,” Hugh told him.
Darius took off with Dearra in his arms and made for the safety of the beach. He removed the blindfold tenderly, but the chains, unfortunately would have to wait until they could get her back to the bailey where the smithy tools were kept. “It’s alright, Dearra,” Darius crooned. “You’re going to be ok, now.” Tears flowed silently, drawing trails down her soot stained cheeks. “I swear, it’s over, Dearra. Please, don’t cry. He won’t hurt you anymore. It’s over.”
Dearra shook her head. She wanted to tell him that she knew she was safe now. That wasn’t the reasons for her tears. She wanted to tell him she had thought she would never see him again, and that pain had been more crippling than the head wound, or the brand, or even the fire. Her tears were not tears of fear, but of relief.
Dearra was with him, now, and all was well, because they were together. She wanted to tell him all of these things, but the words wouldn’t come. In the end, she settled for smiling at him with all the love she could muster before simply saying, “Darius.”
Darius pulled her close, crushing her in his embrace, trying to protect her bound hands as he did, and then he kissed her.
“Um…Darius?” Daniel said, hesitant to interrupt the moment.
Darius lifted his lips from Dearra’s, and saw Carly, Daniel, and Hugh standing before him. He chose to ignore the scowl on Hugh’s face, stood, and swept Dearra into his arms.
It was a couple hours before they were able to remove the chains Jacob had used to bind Dearra. Search parties were sent out after Jacob. Darius longed to join them, but each time he strayed more than a couple of feet from Dearra, she would reach for him and pull him back to her side.
***
The three ships that had been anchored in the harbor left within a day of Dearra’s rescue. Though they had complied with the request to be searched, they felt it was an attack on their pride to be so accused. The other two ships, along with their crew, stayed to help in the search for Jacob.
Eventually, all of Maj was forced to admit he was gone, probably having paid to be hidden aboard one of the other trading ships in order to slip beyond their reach.
Dearra was content just to see him gone, but it was hard for Darius to let it rest as easily, and he longed for vengeance.
Chapter 31
Two days later it was April 3, Dearra’s birthday. It wasn’t the celebration Darius had hoped for, but he held her hand as they walked alone on the beach where they had first kissed. Hugh had come around, and was again allowing his daughter some free time with Darius. Though Dearra became a woman that day, she was still a subject of Maj, and she followed his wishes.
“You look beautiful, Dearra,” Darius told her. “And a dress! I don’t often get such a treat,” he teased.
“It’s not as painful on my leg as the pants,” Dearra said, quietly.
A flash of pain marred Darius’s face before he was able to tamp down the murderous rage that welled up inside of him each time he thought of the burn, still fresh, on Dearra’s thigh. “I have a present for you,” he said, casually cha
nging the subject.
“You have a present for me? Really? We leave in only a few days. When have you had time?”
“A man never reveals his secrets. I actually have two presents, in a way.” Darius held out two wrapped packages for her. “Here.
“Open the one on top first. That isn’t my real present, it’s more of a…surprise.”
Dearra cocked a brow at Darius (it was unusual for him to be flustered, so) before unwrapping the item. It was the pin she had bought for him. He must have found it in the bushes where Jacob had abducted her. Smiling, she reached out and pinned it to the cloak he wore.
“Thank you, Dearra. I love it.” He reached out a hand and stroked her cheek. “And such a surprise!”
Dearra laughed, and cuffed him lovingly on the arm.
“I see my kitten still has her claws,” Darius said, jokingly. “Now, open the real present.”
Dearra’s hands shook with suppressed excitement as she opened the second package. In her hand, she held the figurine of a solid gold dragon, perfect in every detail. The sun glinted on its surface making each scale seem alive, as if the little statue would, at any moment, move in her hand.
“Oh, Darius! It’s magnificent! I’ve never seen anything to equal it. How did you ever pay for something like this?”
“It’s not polite to ask that question, Dearra. Just do me a favor and enjoy your gift.”
“Yes, Darius,” she said with mock deference.
“I took one look at it, and I knew you had to have it.”
Ah, Dearra? Maybe we should be heading back.
“Not now, Brin.
“Why is that, Darius? Why should you think of me when you see a dragon? Surely my temper isn’t that bad.”
Really, you two. Everyone will be waiting for us.
“Just a minute, Brin. Tell me, Darius: why?”
“Well, I just thought, you know, with Brin and all…It made sense.”
I’m serious. They’re going to send out a search party any minute. I think I hear them…Yup, that’s them. Time to go back.
The Destiny Series Boxed Set: Books 1-3 Page 29