Demon Untamed (Shadow Quest Book 4)
Page 21
Ethan remembered Uli Rings well. It was a lucrative spot—for those who knew their way around—and he was looking forward to revisiting his old hangout.
“After the meeting with the dragons, I’d like to show you around,” he told Sonya.
“I’ve been there before,” she replied as she washed a set of mugs.
“I know, but you probably haven’t experienced some of the more entertaining aspects.”
“If you’re talking about the sector of bars, brothels, and clubs, then yes, I’ve seen that too.”
He shook his head. “Nope, there’s something I think you’ll like better.
She huffed out an exaggerated sigh. “I’ve seen the dancing ladies too.” She wiped a spot on the bar clean before setting the cloth away.
“If I thought you liked dancing ladies, I’d have arranged a stage of them here while you were,”—he made air quotes—“sick.” Then he took on a thoughtful expression. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea.”
“Don’t even think about it.” She shot him a threatening glare, then turned to engage a disappointed male across the bar who’d been eavesdropping. She raised a brow as if daring the male to say something in Ethan’s defense.
“Ethan!” someone called from across the tavern.
He turned to see Kyra hurrying into the tavern. Zoey followed close behind her with a tight grip on the book.
“What’s the matter?” he asked as they approached.
Kyra blurted, “Zoey can read the book. I had it sitting there, open, and she, well, she sees it in English. I think it’s because of Portia’s spell.”
Ethan rocked back on his feet and then turned to the Earthling. “Is this true?” When she nodded, he demanded, “Show me.” He retrieved the book from her and placed it on the bar.
Kyra provided the way in, and Ethan flipped to the first page that he’d been unable to translate. Zoey began reading something that sounded much like a missive. “Tarians of the dark sector near the dead sun Gizahn. Though our people know not of the other, our fates are intertwined. I, King Alastair of the Faieara planet Evlon, must implore you to take action against a most destructive enemy that will prove all-consuming if left to their own devises.
“The enemy I speak of is the enemy of all. These beings, who call themselves Kayadon, have enslaved my people as they systematically destroy my world, and once finished, will seek out others, such as yourselves, to appease their unending hunger.
“You will require proof, of course. As would I. Truth of their atrocities can be found among the demons, who failed to save themselves from extradition and near annihilation, their planet now barren. Knowledge of their plight is widespread and therefore easily confirmed.”
Zoey glanced briefly at Sonya before continuing, “If, by some chance, you still doubt my words, then please ignore my entreaty and pray they do not find you.” Zoey paused, meeting Ethan’s gaze. “There’s a long list of numbers after that.”
“Transmission codes maybe,” he said. “And possibly coordinates.”
She turned the page and began reciting a similar note made out to the Vortian race. And then another to the people of Merose. She read through several more before Ethan stopped her.
“Come with me to the bridge. We must have Sebastian transmit these out as soon as possible.” He turned to Sonya. “Do you mind if I escort them?”
“Of course not. Go.” Sonya was surprised he’d even asked. Recruiting allies was far more important than slinging drinks. She only felt bad there wasn’t more that she could do to help. However, once the fighting started, she’d be worth her weight.
Shortly after Ethan and the girls had left, Cale entered the tavern and took a seat across from where she stood at the bar. She locked her jaw and raised her chin.
“Have you seen Kyra?” he asked smoothly.
Her tail flicked with a flurry of irritation. She hadn’t exactly expected an apology for nearly spilling his guts to Ethan, but she sure as hell deserved one. “Yes,” she replied simply, in no way hiding her annoyance.
“Well, do you know where she is?”
“Yes.”
He let out a peeved breath. “Will you tell me?”
“Nope.”
He bared his fangs at her and glanced around as if Kyra would appear before his eyes. Then, with a note of alarm, he asked, “Where’s Ethan?”
“Just like everything else, none of your business.”
“Is he with her?” A muscle ticked in his jaw.
Sonya shrugged, but had begun to study him a little closer. He appeared more stressed than she had ever seen him. She was loathed to admit how much he resembled Sebastian fretting over Anya—and what that meant. “Does it matter?”
“No,” he answered a bit too swiftly. A moment later, he added, “Dammit, Sonya, tell me where they are!”
Sonya tilted her head quizzically. Aggression rolled off him in waves, and she got the impression he was one breath shy of falling over the Edge…over Kyra. “It’s true. You really are acting like she’s yours…”
And because Cale was already mated, his attraction must truly be magically induced. She let slip a grievous breath, her heart sinking at the implication.
Cale stabbed his hands through his spiky blond hair, which was nothing less than a confession. “It feels like it. Yes.”
If she knew he would have accepted it, she would have moved to comfort him in that moment. “Is it just as you remember? Like with Velicia?” The words tumbled from her lips by accident, and she mentally scolded herself.
But Cale kept a blank face at hearing his female’s name. “Nearly. What about you? Isn’t it driving you crazy that they are together?”
Sonya thought about that for a moment. She could imagine herself in a fierce rage over such a thing as Kyra entirely alone with her male. She stilled. My male?
Oh gods, it’s happening to me too.
Covering the mental slip up, she shrugged. “Maybe if they were alone, but they’re not.” Which was nothing short of strange. She kept expecting to find Ethan sneaking into Kyra’s room at night, rather than hers, or engaging Kyra in teasing conversation, wooing her, but it hadn’t happened…yet.
But if that was what he wanted, she told herself she would let him go to Kyra without reluctance. At the thought, a protest gurgled up from somewhere deep inside, and she had to restrain a possessive growl. Thankfully, Cale didn’t seem to notice.
She lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. “Then again, I’ve decided never to take a mate. It’s too much trouble.”
Was she trying to convince herself, or Cale?
“You wouldn’t be saying that if it were real,” he retorted.
Good point. Keep ‘em coming.
“Then maybe your theory is correct,” she replied, waiting for relief to swell. Instead, an overwhelming surge of sadness accompanied her words. She couldn’t possibly wish it otherwise, could she?
A storm of confusion threatened her mind. In an attempt to distract herself, Sonya said, “That Zoey girl found something interesting in the book, so they’re all speaking with Aidan and Sebastian about it in the control room.”
“Why? What did she find?”
She popped open an ale and handed it to him. “Ethan said something about transmission codes before they left.”
That seemed to pacify Cale for now. He took a long swig of his drink and stared at his bottle. After a moment, he mumbled, “It’s strange, but if I could have claimed Kyra, I would have done so a thousand times already.”
Sonya frowned at the sorrow-filled longing in Cale’s expression—so opposite from the excitement he’d exuded when he had claimed his true mate.
Sonya couldn’t help but wonder what that might feel like, to claim one’s male…mate. Not for the first time, she imagined sinking her fangs into Ethan’s soft flesh.
Tendrils of anxiety crawled up her spine, wrapping around her ribcage and clamping her heart like a vice. It wasn’t the fear that unsettled her…it was the
anticipation. She popped open another bottle for Cale, even though his wasn’t quite finished with the first. After setting the drink down, she unconsciously began twirl a lock of hair between her fingers.
“What is it?” Cale asked.
She almost told him it was nothing, but instead replied, “I wanted to ask you something.” Her pulse jumped at what she was about to say. “What is it like to claim someone?”
Cale swallowed hard, and she knew she had caught him off guard. Out of courtesy, they never spoke of such things with him. Not since Velicia’s treachery.
After a long while, he answered in a steady tone that seemed forced, “It is pleasant. Like you and your mate are joined for an instant.”
Pleasant? That’s all? Sebastian made it sound like a mind shattering experience.
Cale flinched from the memory she had callously dredged up, and her heart cried for him. “I’m sorry, Cale. You deserved better.” Velicia had proved unworthy of her brother—her family—in every way. Like many times before, Sonya wished she had ended Velicia, and their mother, before the three of them had hightailed it off their planet.
She snagged Cale’s still-full drink and chugged the contents down. The burn of the alcohol was a welcome distraction from the cluster of emotions churning in her head. Unfortunately, it didn’t last long.
She set the empty bottle back down. “What do you think I should do?”
“You know I can’t answer that,” he responded reasonably.
She wanted to yell for him to guide her, but a confession hissed out instead. “I’ve never been scared of anything like I am of this.”
“I can tell. It’s not a good look for you.”
She glowered up at him and caught his teasing expression. Jabbing his shoulder with her fist, she grumbled, “Ass.”
“Just being consistent,” he replied, yet there seemed to be an alternate meaning behind his words.
She set to mixing a stronger drink and then handed it to him. “What are you going to do about your…situation?”
At length, he replied, “I have no idea.” He downed the mixture in one smooth gulp, and she poured him another.
Typical of Cale, he brushed away his melancholy and took on an impish mien. “So…you let a pirate board your ship, huh?”
Sonya bristled.
“Plundered your booty, did he?”
“Ugh! You’re such a pain!” She swiped her palm at him, but he bowed back, dodging the smack she’d intended to land on his temple.
Cale’s grin widened. “Well, you’re stuck with me, so you’d better get used to it.”
Against her will, her lips curled. He always said that when he knew he was getting on her nerves. But what he didn’t know what how much liked hearing it. That phrase eased a bone deep fear that she might one day lose one of her beloved brothers, just as she had Father.
* * *
Ethan leaned against a wall near the entrance of the control room, lost in thought.
In the book, there had been a little over a hundred different messages intended for a wide range of possible allies. All of the old allies had been included. Others were well known, but had never interacted with the Faieara before. And there were even a few new races nobody recognized.
There had also been instructions for Kyra to offer Faieara land in exchange for aid if she saw fit.
It was an odd bit of luck that the Earthling was able to decode what he could not. He considered the possibility that the king had anticipated her being magically gifted with the ability to read and speak any language. Perhaps he hadn’t wanted the messages sent out before his daughters were safely retrieved.
It made sense.
If any individual in that long list of contacts decided to inform the Kayadon, then the Kayadon’s efforts to find Kyra may have been doubled. Or they may have started seeking Marada itself, which may still happen. But finding a single ship in the vastness of space was nearly as impossible as trying to pluck a star out of the sky.
Hopefully the king’s messages would bring them help, but Sebastian said he didn’t want to rely on the messages alone. Ethan agreed. Within the hour, they were scheduled to dock at Uli Rings to speak with the dragons, a meeting that should prove interesting.
Zoey had pointed out an anomaly in the book regarding the dragon king. There was supposed to be a letter for him in the back of the book, but the page remained blank.
Aside from soliciting the dragons, they would need to recruit as many mercenaries as possible. Most of the current crew would be leaving the ship to avoid becoming involved in a potentially lengthy war.
Kyra sighed and straightened her spine. “I’ll be in my room preparing. Please inform me when we are to leave.”
Each day Kyra seemed to be closer to embracing the role her title demanded. If things had gone as they should, she would have made him a proud partner. Queen to his king. Still could. He wondered if that wouldn’t be best for everyone in the end. The theory that Cale had put forth already hung heavy between him and Sonya. She tried to hide it, but he could see it in her eyes whenever she looked at him. She thought about it constantly.
“Zoey?” Kyra called back as she left. Zoey collected the book and trailed after her.
Ethan rushed after them into the hall. “Kyra.”
Kyra halted and turned to him.
“I wanted to speak with you about what Sonya said. I’m sorry you had to find out like that.”
She pursed her lips. “Yes, that was a bit shocking. Exactly what did she mean?”
“Only that your father promised me my choice of bride if I succeeded in bringing you all home. Sonya assumes that with your sisters mated that I will want you as my wife.”
“And do you?” She raised a brow.
Ethan ran his hand through his hair. “The thought…the status it would bring me among our people…it was the driving force behind all my endeavors.” He paused. “Now? I no longer know what I want.”
She let out a weary sigh, her shoulders slumping. “That makes two of us.”
He offered a smile, but it probably looked more sad than relieved. “Do you think Cale is onto something?”
She shrugged and averted her gaze. “Portia doesn’t think it’s true.”
Ethan had forgotten about the witchling. Serakians could sense magic better than any other race he knew.
“She said love is not an emotion that could be forced. Rather, that it’s a state of being.”
“Love?” Ethan tilted his head.
Kyra’s head jerked up as if stunned by what she had said. “I’m speaking about the demon mate thing, of course.”
He recalled the way Kyra had looked at Cale in the training room. Like Cale had just placed a dagger in her heart. “Many demons don’t believe love is behind the urge to mate,” he countered.
Kyra frowned. “Hmm. To be forced to mate someone you may not even like? Sounds like a bad deal.”
The words took him aback, and a dull pang gouged at the pit of his stomach. He swallowed hard.
“Look, Ethan. I’m feeling a little nervous about this meeting with the dragons. You’ll be there, won’t you?”
“Of course. But why would you be nervous? You know them better than any of us. Didn’t you spend a few years with them on their planet?”
“I did, but that was eons ago, and I never had to negotiate for aid.”
“You’ll do fine. I’m sure their alliance hasn’t changed.”
Kyra nodded, but her lips tightened into a thin line. “Alright, I’m going to get ready then.”
“I’ll stop by your room after we dock and escort you down.”
“Thanks, Ethan.”
Ethan hurried to his room to wash up and change, during which he could feel the deep rumble of the ship as it docked. It wasn’t long before he and Kyra, followed by what looked like the rest of the ship’s inhabitants, stepped onto Uli Rings. They were greeted by smiling workers dressed in colorful outfits as a nearby troupe played a happy tune.
As they crossed toward the registration kiosk, Ethan looked up at the tall arching ceiling that offered a clear view of space. Always an impressive sight.
Moments later, Zoey and Rex joined them in the registration line. The Earthling appeared about to burst with excitement. “I can’t believe I’m in a friggin’ space city,” she squealed. “With…oh, oh, look.” She pointed to a couple waiting a little farther up in line before lowering her tone. “Aliens!”
Kyra turned to her. “Technically, we’re all aliens.”
“I know, but they actually look like it.”
Ethan regarded the couple’s bulbous heads and bead-like eyes. They weren’t the most odd-looking species he’d come across, nor the most hideous, but to Zoey, they were probably downright bizarre.
He craned his neck, searching for the rest of their group. He spotted Sonya standing a little farther back in line. Cale, Sebastian, and Anya crowded around her.
Sonya was watching him with those gorgeous violet eyes of hers. He shot her a smile usually reserved for the bedroom, making her flush. She swirled around to wiggle her backside at him as she fluffed her skirt. Then she finished with a lewd gesture and a teasing smirk.
Gods, she was sexy.
“Ethan.” Kyra tugged on his sleeve. “Lines moving.”
Registering went quickly enough, and they stepped aside to wait for the others. Kyra and Zoey browsed a nearby selection of trinkets, while Rex crossed his arms and leaned against a wall. The demon wasn’t huge, but he still emitted a palpable warning for others to keep their distance. It was typical of most demons, as if menace was embedded in their anatomy.