Dark Liaison (An Ema Marx Novel Book 2)

by J. D. Brown

  I removed the drain plug and stepped out onto the tiled floor. My brow furrowed at the reflection in the wide mirror. “You are a horrible judge of male character,” I told myself. “That’s one thing that didn’t change with vampirism.”

  After dressing, I went to the dining room hoping to catch Maria. I could really use some counseling. Cecelia, Sara, and Bridget sat at the table, sipping drinks and chewing something uncooked. They glanced up as I entered. Cecelia gestured to the seat across from her.

  “Come in, join us. I’ll have Rudo set an extra plate.”

  “Oh, no thanks, I had a late snack,” I said, thinking of the blood I drank with Jesu. This morning proved that I was not yet in control of the bloodlust. Resisting the urge was easier than trying to control the effects.

  The queen smiled and nodded at the chair. “Well, you’re still welcome to share the company.”

  “Thanks,” I said, sitting before her. “So, where is everyone?”

  “The men are interrogating the captives,” she answered.

  “What happens to them after the interrogation?”

  “They’ll be punished for the possession and consumption of a live human, in addition to any other charges my husband may find them guilty of.”

  My palms swiped against my lap, fidgeting under the table. “What’s going to happen to that girl?”

  “She was admitted to a hospital. The R.E.D. will take over from there.”

  I winced. “Is she… you know? Will she become like… like a…”

  “Vampire?” Cecelia nodded. “I’m afraid so.”

  My hands flattened against the table and my chest released a long stream of breath. “Okay… that’s not so bad, right? At least she isn’t dead.”

  Bridget snorted.

  I ignored her and glanced at Cecelia. “Where are Maria and Naamah?”

  “Naamah is being held with the others for the time being. He has information about Apollyon.”

  “But he’s innocent. He shouldn’t be in prison. I thought Jesu—”

  “He has information,” she insisted. “Besides, what’s to say he wouldn’t go back to his master with information about us?”

  I shook my head. “Naamah wouldn’t do that. He’s on our side.”

  The queen shrugged a shoulder.

  “He helped Jesu and me escape from Finland,” I told her. “He’s on our side.”

  Footsteps echoed as they hit the marble floor. I turned in my seat to face Jesu as he entered the dining hall. He was dressed, his long hair combed, his demeanor calm and unassuming. It struck me as an odd contrast from the troubled man in the bathtub.

  “What is going on here?” he asked, his tone light.

  “They’re keeping Naamah prisoner. Tell her that he is not a criminal.” I waved a hand to indicate the queen.

  Jesu crossed the room to stand near the head of the table. “I am sure King Nikolas and his men are just following protocol.”

  I gasped. “You’re taking their side?”

  “I am not taking anyone’s side.”

  “What about Maria, is she enduring all this too?”

  Cecelia looked to the side as she sipped her drink. I glanced at the others, waiting for an answer. Sara bowed her head. Bridget cleared her throat and then poked her food. I faced Jesu, but he looked as though he was also waiting for a response. A lump knotted in my stomach, triggered an uneasy feeling in my nerves.

  “Wh-What happened to Maria?” I whispered.

  When no one answered, Jesu narrowed his gaze at the queen. “Your Highness?”

  “Zey didn’t find her,” Bridget answered quietly. “Zey searched zee whole place, but she wasn’t there.” She lifted her chin to look Jesu in the eyes. “I’m sorry.”

  He nodded to himself. “My father must have kept her with him.”

  “Why would he do that?” I asked.

  “Leverage?”

  “We should talk to Naamah.” I pushed the chair back and stood. “Where are they?”

  Jesu placed a hand on my shoulder. “Ema—”

  “Listen to me. Naamah will talk to us. He trusts us. If he knows where Apollyon is, he’ll tell us and then we can save Maria.”

  Jesu hesitated and then glanced at the women still seated at the table as though waiting for their opinion.

  “Zat’s actually a good idea,” Bridget offered. “Naamah would trust another Neo-Draugrian over an Alpan, ne importe quel jour de la semaine—any day of the week.”

  “All right,” Jesu said. “I will go, but you…” He pointed at me. “…are staying here this time.”

  “Why do I have to stay behind?”

  He sighed and lowered his voice. “I am listening to you, Ema. Please do the same and listen to me.”

  “But I could be helpful.”

  “Please?” he said through clenched teeth.

  I opened my mouth to make another rebuttal, but was cut short as one of Nikolas’ soldiers marched into the room. I recognized him from the group that had shifted in the foyer yesterday. If memory served, this guy was one of the big ‘uns. Fortunately, he was fully uniformed right now.

  Cecelia stood and said something to the soldier in German. He bowed and then spoke back. She sighed. “Apparently you were right, Naamah has already asked to speak with you. He refuses to talk to anyone else, so my husband has arranged for this soldier to bring you to the holding center.”

  Jesu nodded. “I can leave immediately.”

  “No, not you,” Cecelia said. Then she jerked her thumb in my direction. “He asked for Ema.”

  Everyone faced me. A grin curled my lips and I tilted my head to the side. “Your Majesty, please inform this fine soldier that I can leave immediately.”

  “I am coming with,” Jesu added.

  “Hmm, I don’t know.” I put my hands on my hips. “It could be dangerous. Maybe you should wait here.”

  “Ema—”

  “Just kidding, you can totally come, but mostly because I don’t want to be the only one in the group that can’t speak German. We should make up our language and use it whenever they Dutch-out.”

  Jesu’s brow rose. “I cannot believe you just said ‘Dutch-out’ in front of the queen.”

  “She doesn’t mind, right, Cecelia?”

  Cecelia waved her hand at the soldier as if to say there you go.

  The man escorted us out of the castle and into the back seats of an Audi. The sun had just melted behind the horizon, a final strip of bright blue lingering below a sapphire-black night. I waited until the soldier drove us past the bridge and the narrow dirt path, onto the main road. Then I faced Jesu.

  “Why don’t you trust me?”

  “I do trust you.” Yet he avoided my gaze by concentrating on the scenery outside.

  My eyes narrowed. Something about Jesu was off, and had been off since we slept together, but right now I had to think of the issue at hand. “You don’t want me to talk to Naamah. So either you don’t trust me, or you don’t trust him.”

  His gaze flickered at the latter. He caught himself and refocused on the window, but he was too late.

  “You don’t trust Naamah? How can you not trust Naamah?” I demanded.

  Jesu shifted his weight and sighed. “Under normal circumstances, there would not be anyone I would trust more, but Naamah is being manipulated by my father right now. Neither Naamah nor Maria has gotten in touch with me since before you were attacked by Enki. I have no idea how bad the situation with my father is, and I do not know how desperate Naamah might be. All I know is you are my father’s top target. I could never forgive myself if he got his hands on you.”

  “Hey… I’m still sitting here next to you.”

  He scoffed. “You are missing a finger, Ema.”

  Heat rose to my face and I cupped my left hand over the right.

  “You were attacked,” he continued while glaring out the window. “You were caught phasing in public, you were in the middle of a raid, and now you are…” He sucked in a d
eep breath and glanced at me from the corner of his vision before retuning his gaze to the passing scenery. I watched his dark reflection in the window as he slowly released a breath. “I am doing a horrible job of keeping you safe.”

  “Jesu, I might be missing a finger, but I’m fine.” I nudged him. “I’m not a delicate little human anymore. Anyway, I doubt Naamah would have looked for us at the hotel if he didn’t have some good news.”

  Jesu tore his gaze from the window and faced me. “I hope you are right.”

  Chapter 20

  I assumed the holding center would be downtown. Instead, we drove an hour farther into the country. As far I could tell, we were literally in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by vast green fields and low mountains. A warehouse rose in the distance, bordered by a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire. A sign hung from the fence. I couldn’t read the German words, but the bright red image of a lightning bolt got the message across.

  We turned onto the dusty driveway leading to the electric fence. A cement booth stood just outside the gate. Our driver pulled up and spoke to the Alpan soldier in the booth while flashing an ID card of some sort. The guy nodded and pressed a button hidden somewhere inside. The gates squealed as they ebbed open and we continued closer to the warehouse.

  “Ema,” Jesu leaned close, his voice a whisper even though I was positive our driver couldn’t understand English. “The entire building is lined with an electric current inside the walls. If you try to phase out of the building, you will get shocked back into solid form and sliced in half by the siding, so do not even think about trying it.”

  I gulped and then nodded. “No phasing. Got it.”

  “Also… I should warn you that it looks worse than it is.”

  I considered the warehouse and shrugged. It looked gritty and abandoned, except for the few soldiers standing near the entrance. Our driver came around and opened my door. I slid out of the car as Jesu exited through his side and then joined me. He placed a hand on the small of back and led me forward as our soldier escorted us into the building.

  Inside, the walls were several inches thick, lined with a clean white plaster. A few lamps provided plenty of lighting in the windowless edifice. Desks stood scattered about. Soldiers stood in clusters, chatting amongst themselves, filling out paperwork, talking on the phone, manhandling Rebels in and out of cells. It looked just like any county jail, except cleaner and a touch more modern.

  Then I noticed the jail cells. Two thick layers of fiberglass made up each ten-by-six box. Sandwiched between the glass was a web of wire fencing. Crackles of blue electricity zipped through the wires at intervals. How freaking high is the velocity set to? It didn’t only line the walls, but also the top and bottom layers. My nerves jumped at each little pop of the current.

  The prisoners were no more than two to a cell. Those who were paired didn’t have enough room to sit. Instead, they leaned against the glass walls with their arms crossed. They didn’t flinch at the occasional spark of electricity. They just kept their tough-guy poker faces on and watched the Alpan soldiers. One of the prisoners locked gazes with mine and I did a double take, my attention instantly snapping at the recognition of Naamah’s scruffy jaw and curly hair.

  “Oh my God, he’s in a cage.”

  Suddenly, Nikolas’ giant body stood before me, blocking my view and my path to Naamah.

  “Good, you’re here,” he said.

  “Why is Naamah in a cell?” I demanded. “He’s completely innocent.”

  “He was found with the enemy, which makes him guilty by association.”

  “How dare you… you…” Jesu squeezed my shoulder and I cringed under his grip. “Ouch, stop it.”

  “You attract more bees with honey,” he whispered. Then he raised his voice to address Nikolas. “Your Majesty, you called us here to speak with Naamah ta Korento, Hand of the Neo-Draugrian crown.”

  “Don’t get formal with me, I’ve been here all day and need a drink.” Nikolas’ gaze narrowed. “I called her here. I didn’t want to. I offered to let him speak to you, but he said he would only talk to her. Why?”

  I shrugged my shoulders even though he referred to me in the third person. “How should I know? I would like to see him though.”

  “Will you tell him I came?” Jesu asked. “Maybe he will change his mind.”

  Nikolas looked to a group of men and called out. “You there.” The men stopped what they were doing and stood erect for their king. “Put the Neo-Draugrian in the interrogation room on the left. Then have Tancred fit this young lady with a wire.”

  “I’ll tell him,” I said to Jesu since Nikolas ignored his question. Jesu nodded in appreciation.

  Tancred pushed around desks and past soldiers until he stood next to me. He held a roll of white medical tape in one hand, and a length of black wire in his other hand. “Remove your shirt.”

  I locked my arms over my chest and balked. “Excuse me?”

  Jesu cleared his throat. “Tancred, perhaps this can be done someplace more private?”

  Tancred rolled his eyes. “Follow me.”

  Jesu gently squeezed my shoulder. “I will wait here.”

  I nodded and then sucked in a deep breath.

  Nikolas leaned toward his Second-in-Command. “Give her a strict debriefing, too.”

  Tancred bowed and then led me to what looked like a door to a utility closet. Upon opening it, I realized the room was much larger. Radio and recording equipment stood against the walls. A long board of switches and buttons sat atop a desk against the right side. A window ran the length of the room, and on the other side of the window sat Naamah.

  “You’re going to watch our conversation?”

  “We will also record it. Now remove your shirt.”

  I sighed as dramatically as I could before grabbing the hem of my top and pulling it over my head. Thank God whoever stocked the wardrobe in my room had thought to add plenty of pretty bras. This one was pale blue with tiny bows attached to the straps. The color made me think of Jesu. As Tancred’s hands came dangerously close to my breasts while taping the wire, all I could think was that I might need a vomit bag in three seconds. I could always vomit on his shoes. Once the wire was set, he backed away to give me room to put my shirt on. Which I did—immediately.

  “This,” he said while holding up something tiny and black, “is an earpiece. King Nikolas will give you instructions through the microphone to—”

  “Instructions? I need instructions to talk to a friend?”

  “You’re not simply talking to a friend.” He pushed my hair behind my ear and inserted the bud. “You are extracting information from a witness. You’ll say what His Majesty tells you to say, understood?”

  My ear felt awkward and violated. I wiggled the piece around, but nothing helped dispel the clogged feeling. My gaze went to Naamah in the adjacent room. His shoulders and back curled forward, his head hung. His eyelids hooded his gaze as he stared at his hands. I noticed the metal bands around his wrists.

  “Are you ready?”

  “He’s innocent,” I sighed.

  “Then this should go smoothly, right?”

  I glared at Tancred. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

  He opened the door. Nikolas waited outside. He nodded to Tancred and then entered the room as we left. Tancred pressed a number on a keypad below the handle of the door to the interrogation room. The door buzzed, signaling its temporary unlatch. He opened it and then pushed me inside. I remembered Jesu’s warning that all the walls of the building were lined with electric fences. I wasn’t the one in handcuffs, but I might as well be.

  Naamah straightened. A grin inched across his lips and then quickly faded as concern colored his features. “Your hand…?”

  Shoot. I pulled my arm behind my back and bit my lip. “It’s nothing.”

  His gaze lingered a moment before it rose to my face and he smiled again. “It’s good to see you.”

  A table and stool sat between us. I hesitated as
I glanced at the plain wooden seat. This was wrong. Naamah was my friend and I wanted to hug him. Heck, I will hug him. I marched around the table and then wrapped my arms around his shoulders and held on tight. He stiffened in surprise for a moment then wrapped his arms across my back.

  “How are you?” I asked, still clinging to him.

  “As well as can be, given the circumstances,” he answered in his soft Middle Eastern accent. “How are you, my friend?”

  I pulled away and looked him in the eye. “A lot has happened since I’ve last seen you.”

  “Yes, I imagine so.” He nodded. “Given the new company you keep.”

  I sighed. “King Nikolas is helping us.”

  “Is he? Raiding and killing the Rebels will only help convince them to join Apollyon.” He glared at his reflection in the two-way mirror.

  I wet my lips. “Yeah, about that…”

  Nikolas’ voice cracked loudly in my ear and I jumped. “Ask why he was looking for you and Jesu at the hotel.”

  I rolled my eyes. As if I wasn’t already planning to get to that. I went to other side of the table and sat. “Why were you looking for me and Jesu?”

  Naamah gave me a side-long glance, his deep black eyes focusing on my face. He placed both hands on the table, palms down, and then leaned forward. “Are you improving?”

  I blinked. “What?”

  “Are you ready to face Apollyon?”

  “Don’t answer him.” Nikolas’ voice croaked in my ear. “Ask him why he asked the receptionist to withhold his whereabouts in Berlin.”

  “Why did you tell the receptionist to not enter your information into the computer?”

  “Stop changing the semantics of my questions.”

  Naamah’s gaze narrowed as it bore into mine. “Is Prince Jesu allowing you to work toward your destiny?”

  His question caught me off guard. My destiny? Stopping Apollyon. Undoing the wrong I did by releasing him. Yeah, I could understand why Naamah might want to know about that. Guilt saddened my spirits. I hadn’t trained since Jesu and I left the hotel, and Naamah and Maria were counting on me so that they could be free of their debt.