Lightning Strikes Twice (Unweaving Chronicles Book 2)

by Sarah K. L. Wilson

  I looked back at him, blushing when I realized that he was standing there in nothing but his smallclothes. I tried to keep my eyes only on his face.

  “I went to look for the scintellex again,” I said as his grin turned intimate. “And don’t look at me like that. We have work to do.”

  He grabbed his clothing from where I laid it out on the bed and began to tug it on.

  “Leave everything here. We won’t be able to take it with us,” Kjexx said. I caught a glimpse of his physique, despite my best efforts, as I shrugged the cloak on. “And don’t think I didn’t see that look. You might play coy, but I think you like me.”

  “Do you have a weapon?” It felt strange to see him dressed in a simple black coat and trousers instead of the wild leather-and-fur clothing he usually wore — like a tiger dressed in finery.

  “Always,” he winked as if he meant something I didn’t understand, “but specifically a sword for tonight. I’m allowed to wear one to the Ball, provided it is tied in the sheath.”

  I nodded. “Then we are as prepared as we can be. Ready to storm the Heart of Veen?”

  He grinned. “With pleasure!”

  I was too nervous in the coach ride to take in much of anything. It felt strange to ride in a palanquin on wheels, even more so when it jolted and jarred along the street, making my belly churn. But none of that mattered. We were almost there. We would need to pretend to have a good time. We’d need to blend in, and then we’d need to infiltrate to the Heart of Veen and rescue Rusk and steal the scintellex.

  “I didn’t think you’d be anxious. I thought you were more of the ‘jump head first’ sort.”

  What was wrong with me? He was right that I wasn’t usually like this, but usually I didn’t have so much at stake, and Kjexx was just as bad as I was, just running into things without thinking. What were we overlooking? If only Rusk were here to be a voice of reason.

  “We’ll be alright.” I needed to say it out loud, if only for myself.

  “Of course, we will be,” he said, taking my hand and kissing the back of it. “Here we are. Pretend you are here for a party.”

  He led me out into the too-bright night. The Heart pulsed before us, casting its scintillating red glow across the white-and-deep-blue of the snowy city. Why did Axum feel so unreal? Even now, when Rusk’s life hung in the balance, our future depended on my quick resources and I was married to a man I hardly knew, it was too bright, too colorful and my motions were too quick one moment and too slow the next. I couldn’t help but focus on how foreign this world was, how strange it was to see a crowd of people with ghostly ko wavering above their heads.

  With a start, I remembered to disguise my ko, meditating and slipping slightly into Ra’shara.

  “You’re afraid someone will recognize your ko?” Kjexx whispered as we followed the flow of fancy-dress party-goers, outlined with red light.

  “Can you see it?”

  “It’s blurry but still there. It’s better that it’s there. No one knows you here, but everyone will think you’re hiding something if it’s gone completely. This way, you’ll just look drunk.”

  “Good. We should pretend that I am. Then I can stumble away from the party and you can come to my aid. It will give us an excuse to seek the quieter corridors.”

  He nodded, but I saw that his attention as absorbed with nodding to a lovely woman in a red dress and a black mask. She and her companion regarded us coldly while Kjexx took my elbow leaning in towards me, but winking at the woman in red. Her posture softened. Apparently, Kjexx’s grin worked on everyone.

  “We’ve got a problem,” Kjexx said.

  “Another one?”

  “Emperor Catane is greeting everyone personally at the door.”

  I strained to look past the line of party-goers, but I couldn’t see Catane from here. The press of people was tight, there was nowhere to go on either side, no escape. He would recognize me immediately, ko or no ko. What were we to do?

  “Drink this,” Kjexx said, handing me a small vial.

  “I don’t think so,” I whispered back. “I still remember last time you offered me something suspicious.”

  He frowned. What was he trying to do to me? And then, with a chuckle, he pressed through the crowd to the woman with the red dress and began to whisper in her ear. Her companion squared his shoulders, but his expression was hard to see under his mask.

  What was he doing? Flirting? Did he really think he could charm one woman into getting us past Catane? She must really be some one important if he thought that would work, but she didn’t seem important. She was prettier than the rest of the crowd, but that was all. Was Kjexx just a fool who thought a pretty face was all that mattered?

  The crowd continued to flow forward and now we were pressed between twin lines of the Black Brigade. This was it. We were going to be found out and then Catane would kill us and Rusk, too. I swallowed, feeling my palms grow sweaty. I should have brought something with me, some kind of weapon. I wouldn’t go down without a fight.

  Kjexx was ahead of me, still whispering to the beautiful woman in red, his hand caressing her cheek, and his other hand drifting to the small of her back. I felt a twinge of worry. Was it possible that he had planned to abandon me here all along? Had he made some sort of deal with Catane to hand me over? Had all of this been a ruse?

  I could see Catane through the crowd, carefully inspecting each person who paid him homage. His eyes drifted over the crowd, searching. Could he see me? I quickly averted my eyes, sure that he would know it was me if he caught my gaze.

  It was too late. If I ran, his guards would seize me. If I got to the front of the line Catane would know it was me. My heart pounded in my chest. My blood was loud in my ears. It had been a trap all along and we’d fallen for it.

  Without warning, the woman in red began to vomit. Around her the crowd shrieked, dodging away, appalled. The guards took a step towards her, and Catane’s gaze whipped to where she was. She fell against her companion, convulsing, and at that moment Kjexx seized my arm and hauled me backwards through the line of guards and into the tiny servant’s entrance to the side. In the commotion and screaming, no one saw us leave.

  Gripping my hand tightly, he raced down the corridor. I struggled to keep up, almost tripping over my slippers, still shocked by what he’d done. Rusk would never have done that — hurt an innocent woman for a diversion. This was too much like something I would do. I didn’t even feel bad about it, but I should, shouldn’t I? I should be horrified. What would I be like in the years to come without Rusk’s tempering influence? Kjexx just made me more of who I was — and that wasn’t good for anyone.

  We whipped around a corner and then huddled in an alcove, gasping and catching our breath. We were currently in the servants’ halls. I recognized them from before, and they were deserted with all the staff frantically working the party.

  “Follow me,” I said, gripping his hand and leading him towards the staircase I knew would be at the end of the hall. “I can’t believe you did that. How did you get her to drink the vial?”

  “I told her it would give her an experience like no other. Don’t ask me why she thought that experience would be good. You would have done the same.”

  “Exactly the problem! Will she be alright?”

  “When it wears off she’ll recover.”

  That didn’t sound hopeful. But we had two worlds to save, what was one woman’s health compared to that? What was her life worth in comparison? Rusk would have been horrified.

  “Just don’t do something like that again, alright?”

  “No promises.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four: Surprise

  WE FOLLOWED THE ROUTE I took in Ra’shara, clinging to the walls, our masks and fancy clothing labeling us as strangers to any servant who might pass by.

  “If anyone finds us, we start kissing and pretend we came here for privacy,” Kjexx whispered.

  “Like that would fool Catane.”

  “Well
, obviously, we won’t do that if it’s Catane,” Kjexx said with a grin. “In that case I recommend kissing him.”

  “What?!”

  “Always attempt a surprise attack. They are the most likely to succeed.”

  “Shh! I have a world to save.”

  He winked, clasping me around the waist as we went around a corner, almost as if we were dancing. I wouldn’t get to dance with him — certainly not tonight. If I wasn’t so worried about trying to save Rusk, I’d probably be a lot more heartbroken about missing the most anticipated party of this country.

  “Let me guess,” Kjexx said as we found the hidden staircase, “You wish you were dancing downstairs and drinking wine from the central fountain.”

  “There’s a fountain of wine?”

  “And dim lights, and everyone in masks, flirting, dancing and generally making love to one another.”

  “It sounds wonderful. Wait, isn’t this nation divided?”

  “Oh, they’d kill each other in a heartbeat, but they like to flirt and dance first. It reminds me of someone I know.” He nudged me in the ribs.

  “You need to stop teasing me. We’re almost on the upper level.”

  We turned a last corner and arrived in the sky-lit corridor, but now that it was dark it didn’t glow red. Instead, there were tiny red pinprick lights glowing through the glass — the lights and fires of the city. I wasn’t sure which way made the windows more breathtaking. Was it any wonder that Catane didn’t want to give up all this power and beauty? Did I really blame him for fighting to keep it? After all, I had married Kjexx for Rusk’s life. What else would I do if something I loved was threatened?

  I stumbled as I thought the word ‘love,’ I’d been trying very hard not to remember that I loved Rusk. It was too painful to dwell on. It had been painful enough when he had simply rejected me, but now that I had betrayed him, it was even worse.

  “Here it is,” I whispered as we drew up on the gold-inlaid door. It felt almost exactly the same as it had in Ra’shara, only brighter and stranger. What was wrong with Axum, that real life was stranger than the meditation world? I shook myself. I was only stalling with all this speculation. Catane was downstairs greeting guests, so this might be our only shot. We needed to get in there and get Rusk and the scintellex before we lost our chance, and hope to the heavens that it wasn’t a trap.

  I pulled the door handle, but it didn’t budge.

  “Did you really think it would be unlocked?” Kjexx whispered.

  “It was in Ra’shara!”

  “In the shadowland where you come and go freely?”

  He had a point, but now what? Kjexx pulled a tiny velvet package from his pocket and unrolled it.

  “I didn’t just get invitations today,” he said as he pulled a pair of crooked tools out of the package. “I dealt with a few things in town. For instance, one of my men is retrieving our things from the inn and settling that bill. Another has been dispatched to inform the Black Talon of our wedding.”

  He’d done all of that? Thinking of someone travelling to spread word of our marriage made it feel more real. I chose to think about other things.

  “Do you know how to use those?”

  “Give me a moment,” he said.

  There were a series of taps and clicks as he worked. I held my breath. Was there someone on the other side? Could they hear this? Would they be preparing to attack as soon as the door was open?

  There was a loud click, and then Kjexx threw the door open before I had time to gasp. The library was empty, but I was frozen in place, sudden fear filling me. With three rooms, we couldn’t possibly check all of them at once. There could be an enemy waiting in any one of them. After all, someone had been wearing that filmy nightgown the first time I’d come here.

  Kjexx pushed past me, his sword untied and at the ready. He headed for the middle door and I angled for the left side. That’s where Rusk was.

  “We stick together,” Kjexx whispered, pointing at the middle door. His ko seemed brighter than normal, as if excitement infused it.

  I shook my head. Rusk came first. I grabbed Kjexx’s belt and pulled him after me toward the conservatory door. The large, leafy plants looked too green and too bright in the real world, even brighter and fuller than they had in Ra’shara. My steps seemed painfully slow. Why did this world react so strangely to everything I did? Warm humidity greeted us and I let go of Kjexx’s belt to push through the leafy plants, rushing to where I knew the golden cage would be.

  “Are you sure he’s here?” Kjexx asked.

  “Of course,” I whispered, but why hadn’t I seen the cage yet? I should have seen it from the door.

  There it was! I ran to the cage, flinging myself at the golden lattice.

  It was empty.

  Chapter Twenty-Five: Balcony

  “He’s not here!” I couldn’t keep the note of panic out of my voice.

  “Then let’s get the scintellex first.”

  “He has to be here!”

  Kjexx grabbed my hand, pulling me to the door.

  “Stop! I need to find him.”

  “Don’t you see that the room is empty except for plants and that bird cage? We’ll look for him after we get the scintellex. We need it, Tylira!”

  I chewed my lip, panic rising. I’d bet everything on this. I had been so certain that I could save him. I pushed past Kjexx and ran to the next room. Maybe there was something I’d missed. The library was the same as ever. There was nothing there of interest to me, so I kept running to the middle room.

  I’d only just glanced in here before and I hadn’t realized what a wondrous place it was. Strange tools, and items that looked like they had come off one of those starships, were placed in carved brackets and glass-enclosed shelves. Candles and lanterns were dispersed throughout the room with mirrors backing them to shed as much light as possible on the depository. Catane loved these things. There wasn’t a speck of dust or dirt anywhere. And in the center of the room, on a broad, flat granite table the scintellex sat in a glass dome. The base of the dome was golden and a tiny keyhole sat in the center.

  Kjexx hurried over with his bent tools.

  “Just give me a few minutes. Keep an eye on the door.”

  I flew back to the door, watching the library. I thought that I had almost noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. Was someone here? Should I check the bedroom? But what if someone was in there and they heard us? What if Rusk was in there? I started towards the bedroom door, when I heard a faint groan.

  That voice! It must be Rusk, no one else sounded like that, but it sounded like it came from the conservatory. I ran back into the leafy room, but it was still empty. What had I heard? Where could he be? My heart was pounding so fast that I could hardly think straight. Was there somewhere I hadn’t looked? I looked up, craning my neck to try to see past the thick, leafy fronds. Was that something glittering up there? I scanned the walls, and there it was, a metal cleat on the wall, behind the stalk of a large plant. A thick rope wound around it.

  I ran to the cleat. Should I just unwind the rope? I’d never be able to bear the weight on my own, to let it down. I hurriedly unspooled it from the cleat, wrapping the rope around my waist, and then backing up to wrap it around the bole of a thick tree. Slowly, carefully, I began to play out the rope. It stung and burned my hands, tearing at the flesh. I wrapped my pretty dress around the rope, trying to ease the tension.

  In the place where I first saw the cage, a golden cage descended. There had been two of them all along! And there, inside it, was Rusk. He seemed dazed and he favored his right side as he struggled to stand. He wore only his breeches, and they were ripped and torn. His bare chest and back were a mass of splits and cuts. Some, horribly deep, but the flaming look in his eyes was hot with hope and love.

  “Tylira,” he whispered, as I fought the rope, lowering him the last inches to the ground and then raced to join him. “it’s you.”

  His fingers grabbed the lattice and my hands f
ound them automatically. He shook with the effort of staying upright.

  “Rusk, you’re alive!”

  “You have to go, Tylira. You can’t stay here. They’ll cage you, too.”

  “I’m going to free you.” I searched the cage. Where was the lock? Where was the door?

  “Tylira, I need to say something.”

  “Where’s the door?”

  “Tylira, please for the love of life, listen to me!” His voice had a pleading tone.

  I froze.

  “I love you. I will love you forever. I’m sorry we fought. I don’t care what your goals are, or where you’re headed. You were the best thing in my whole life.” His voice sounded thick.

  “I…” Oh, Sweet Penspray. It was like all the tension and conflict between us had dissolved, but instead there was the yawning chasm that had to exist now because I was married to someone else.

  “Don’t say anything. Just run as fast as you can. The things they do… they’re merciless. They’ll break you.” He fell into a coughing fit. “Please, run while you can. Let me die knowing that you lived. Please, Wild Girl.”

  Tears ran down my face. “I just need to find the door.”

  His words were so gentle. “There is no door.”

  “What?” There had to be a door. How did they give him food?

  “There is no way out, but death.”

  “Then how did he do that to you? Those whip marks…”

  “You know how.”

  Of course I did. Of course. Catane wove pain and torture with the Common. Well, he’d see how I could weave it, too. If Rusk was going to die, then I was dying with him, and that meant I could pull this whole house down on Catane’s head.

  I just had one question.

  “Why do you keep saying ‘they’ instead of ‘him?’”

  Rusk’s hot-honey eyes widened, but before he could speak another voice interrupted from the doorway of the conservatory.