The ground sloped downward, leading them deeper into the mountain.
Ranger clamped a hand on his shoulder. “Dakota told me about Ryleigh. I can’t tell you how sorry I am, Jackson.”
Unable to speak, he simply nodded, grateful Ranger had waited until they were alone to bring it up.
“Are you sure she’s…” His bloodshot eyes betrayed him. He’d waited until he gained control of his own emotions. Emotions he shouldn’t feel as a Cymmeran male with no mate. Somehow, Ryleigh managed to evoke feelings where there should be none.
He shrugged and shook his head. There was no way for him to be positive, but it certainly didn’t look good. “I don’t…” He couldn’t do this right now. Couldn’t even deal with the thought. “Later, okay.”
“Yeah, man.” He patted his back and moved on.
Jackson rounded a sharp curve.
An ice creature lurched toward him.
Obviously, they hadn’t destroyed them all in the caves of Argonas. That was all right. Jackson welcomed the fight.
He plunged his sword into the creature with such force he knocked him against the wall. The tip of his sword clanged against the unyielding rock. He yanked his sword back and kept walking. Ranger and Dakota would finish him. Jackson had only one objective. Find Chayce. He strode deeper toward the center of the mountain.
Jackson’s vision wavered. He braced himself and waited for a portal to open, praying Chayce would emerge and make a target of himself.
Wisps of black smoke swirled in the center of the passageway.
Jackson ached for the chance to get his hands on the traitor who’d destroyed everything. His body trembled with the need for revenge.
The smoke thickened, converged into a mass. Dissipated.
Sword held in front of him, Jackson crept forward. No source appeared, but the smoke still rippled in front of him.
A monstrous ice creature burst through the wall at his side.
He ducked and rounded on it, hefted his sword and took aim.
Smoke gushed into Jackson’s mouth and nose, filling him, gagging him. It forced its way down his throat, thick, heavy, blocking his airway.
His back slammed into the wall.
“Get it off.” A hoarse croak. All he could manage. He needed air.
“Jackson!”
The clash of weapons rang in his ears. Close. Too close.
He tried to suck in air, could barely get it past the fullness in his throat.
He fought, swinging his sword wildly.
The smoke simply dissolved, then reformed.
He spun and dropped to his knees.
“What is this thing?” Ranger’s voice. He grabbed Jackson beneath his arms and dragged him backward.
The smoke creature followed.
Evil invaded Jackson’s senses. The stench from the caves battered him. Death. Decay. But this creature was alive. Intelligence oozed from it.
Jackson cleared his throat. He tried to blow it out. He waved his arms frantically to disperse the smoke.
The creature only tunneled further into his head. It probed his mind, tearing through memories and knowledge and…wait…knowledge. No way was it getting the knowledge his father had bestowed. Jackson crammed the information into a corner of his mind behind a wall of steel. This thing might kill him, but it would never get what Chayce sought.
A roar rattled the walls. Dirt and pebbles rained down on him.
Ranger plowed his shoulder into him, wrapped his arms around his waist, and knocked him flat on his back, knocking the wind from his lungs, forcing the creature out.
Starved for air, Jackson heaved in a breath of the dank, moldy air.
Dakota stood over him, straddling Jackson’s legs, fighting off two ice creatures.
“Get down!” Ranger grabbed the back strap of Dakota’s breastplate and yanked him down on top of them.
Flames shot through the tunnel, scorching everything in their path.
Jackson threw his arms over his head.
The creatures who weren’t burned fled deeper into the tunnels.
Ophidian’s heavy footfalls shook the ground as he gave chase, hurling a steady stream of fire after them.
Dakota rolled off Jackson and grabbed his arm.
Ranger grabbed him from the other side, and together they hauled him to his feet.
“Is it gone?” Ranger examined his eyes.
Jackson shrugged. He still couldn’t rid himself of the odor gagging him. The taste of it in the back of his throat threatened to make him vomit.
“What was that thing?” Dakota stood ready, feet apart, sword drawn, staring in the direction the creatures had fled.
Jackson spat, then wiped his mouth with his sleeve. He had to get rid of the taste. His head reeled, and he grabbed the wall to steady himself. “No idea.”
A slice marred Dakota’s cheek, and blood seeped steadily down his face and neck.
Chayce shimmered into view down the tunnel. His laughter echoed off the stone walls and ceiling.
Jackson lurched away from the wall.
Dakota charged Chayce.
“You may have been able to keep my monster out this time, but you won’t forever. I will have that knowledge, Jackson. Then I will destroy you as I destroyed your mate and your prophet.”
“Nooo!” Jackson hurled himself at Chayce.
Chayce disappeared as the portal started to close.
Dakota heaved his sword into the portal in a desperate attempt to nail Chayce. “Ugh…”
Jackson had him this time. “He’s in the human realm.”
“How do you know?”
He called the energy he’d need to open a portal, leashed it between his hands, and lifted them above his head.
“I recognized the background.”
“Where?”
“Ryleigh’s house.” The house Daygan had burned to the ground.
He tore open a doorway to the human realm and dove through.
Chapter 7
Evergreen scented a cool breeze. It tickled Ryleigh’s nose and brought memories of Christmas. She and Mia had always decorated their tree on Christmas Eve. Their grandmother had made fresh oatmeal cookies with lots of raisins. She’d hand Ryleigh and Mia each one of the beaters to lick clean while she plopped spoonful after spoonful of cookie dough onto the pan.
While the cookies baked, Grandmother made hot chocolate. When it was ready, the girls twirled candy canes around and around, making small foamy whirlpools in the center of their mugs.
Evergreen would forever be the scent of home.
Home? She couldn’t be home. Couldn’t go home. Their home had burned to the ground. Thanks to Daygan and his savages. But Daygan was no longer a threat. She’d killed him. Jackson had been so angry.
Jackson.
She tried to snuggle closer to him, but she couldn’t move.
Strong arms held her. The rhythmic rocking as Jackson carried her soothed her, made her sleepy. She started to drift. When he put her down, maybe he’d tend to the ache in her side. But where was he carrying her? Actually, what was he even doing there? She’d entered a new realm without him. Where he had no hope of finding her.
Jackson? The hallucination evaporated.
Her eyes shot open.
She stared into the dark eyes of a woman.
Her thin shoulders didn’t look strong enough for her to lift Ryleigh, never mind cradle her and carry her any distance.
Instead of lulling her, the rocking motion now brought a wave of nausea as she struggled to hold on to consciousness.
Wind whipped the woman’s long, dark hair, braided with gold, behind her. Dark wings, interspersed with the same gold flecks as her hair, spread wide from her back. Thin as crepe paper, nearly transparent.
The woman wove expertly between enormous evergreens without disturbing a single branch.
Ryleigh tried to lift a hand, to prod the woman’s face. Maybe it
would disappear beneath her touch. Her hand remained paralyzed at her side. “Is this a nightmare?”
“Close your eyes.” Steel hardened the melodic voice.
Ryleigh ignored the command.
They plunged straight down.
Her stomach lurched into her throat. She desperately tried to throw her arms around the woman’s neck, to cling as they spun and dove. Her muscles still betrayed her.
They stopped abruptly, and the woman dumped Ryleigh on the ground, jarring her shoulder and hip.
“Hey.” The paralysis finally released its grip. She sat up and massaged her shoulder, but thought better of any sharp retort. Better to figure out what was going on before saying something she’d regret. She had to remember she was the intruder here. “Who are you?”
“Who I am is none of your concern. Stay quiet, and be happy you’re alive. If you were a man, you’d already be dead.”
“Where are my men?” She’d seen three of her men attacked and had no idea what had happened to the others. If this woman was telling the truth, it didn’t bode well.
“The fate of your men rests entirely on you.”
Okay, so they were probably alive for now. As long as she didn’t screw up, maybe they’d stay that way. Ryleigh stood and rolled her wrist. The crunch of bone moving against bone made her flinch. She started to mend the bones as she assessed her situation.
The woman folded her wings neatly behind her and adjusted the shoulder straps of the gold dress that flowed to just above her knees. From the front, she could almost pass for a normal woman. If not for her slight build, deceptively frail if the strength of her arms was any indication.
Another woman, whose resemblance was eerily similar to the first, set down beside her in the small clearing, dumped Tatiana on the ground, and folded her wings.
“Tatiana.” Ryleigh fell to her knees beside her and gripped her hand.
The pulse in her neck beat strong. Her breathing, while shallow, seemed normal.
“Tatiana.” She gently shook her shoulder. “Wake up.”
“She’ll wake soon enough.” The woman who’d dropped Tatiana stood over Ryleigh, staring down at her. “Why is she awake, Cyenne?”
Uncomfortable in the submissive position, Ryleigh reluctantly released Tatiana’s hand and stood. “Who are you? And where are my men?”
“The only one that matters is right there.” She pointed a slender finger toward Tatiana.
“I had three men with me. I demand to know what you’ve done with them.” No sense mentioning the others if they hadn’t found them.
Another woman emerged from the forest into the small clearing. “Cyenne. Luna. Why is she awake?”
Cyenne bowed her head. “I’m sorry, Princess Maje. She woke while we were en route. I had no way to subdue her while flying.”
The woman waved off the excuse and pinned Cyenne with a glare. She pulled a tube from a belt around her long skirt.
The same kind of tube the other woman had shot something from in the jungle. Something that had knocked her out almost instantly. Ryleigh lifted her hands in front of her and backed away “No. Please. Wait.”
Cyenne and Luna each grabbed one of Ryleigh’s arms in viselike grips.
Maje lifted the tube to her mouth.
“Stop.” Ryleigh had no weapon. No escape. “Please, listen.”
The princess inhaled deeply.
Ryleigh struggled, trying to rip her arms free. No use. No matter how delicate they appeared, the women had holds like steel. She swept her foot behind Luna and shoved her to the ground.
Maje blew into the tube with one short, sharp exhale.
“No.” Noah lunged from behind the thick trunk of a nearby tree and dove in front of her. He slapped a hand over his shoulder and crumpled to the ground at her feet.
“Remove him.”
Cyenne released her and bent to grab Noah.
Luna glared at Ryleigh and climbed to her feet.
“No.” Throwing herself at Cyenne, Ryleigh braced for the sharp sting of a dart.
“Wait.” A familiar woman’s voice issued the command.
Ryleigh released Cyenne but planted herself firmly in front of Noah.
Payton strode from between the trees on the opposite side of the clearing.
Princess Maje gasped, her eyes wide as she ogled Payton. “It is not possible.”
Cyenne and Luna fell to their knees and bowed to Payton. “Your Highness.”
Rays of sunlight poured between the trees, almost blinding Ryleigh. A woman appeared before her as if from nowhere. The streaming sunlight surrounded her in a halo of golden light.
“Kneel,” Luna commanded Ryleigh.
“Excuse me?”
Cyenne and Luna grabbed her wrists, one from either side, and yanked her to her knees.
“Kneel before the queen,” Luna hissed beside her ear.
“Queen?”
Princess Maje stepped forward, took one of the woman’s hands, and pressed the back of it to her lips. “Queen Allura.”
One of the women shoved Ryleigh’s head down.
She acquiesced. If this woman was their queen, she’d do well to show the proper respect. Maybe then she’d get some answers. Ryleigh waited until Cyenne and Luna stood, and then she raised her head.
“Rise.” Queen Allura strode toward her. “Who are you?”
Before Ryleigh could answer, the queen spotted Payton and stopped short. Tears sprang into her eyes, and she pressed a hand against her chest. “Payton?”
Payton frowned. Her catlike green eyes darkened. “How do you know my name?”
The queen rushed toward her, arms wide.
Payton lurched back.
Queen Allura stopped and turned a glare on Ryleigh. “What have you done to her?”
“Done? I haven’t done anything.”
The queen returned her attention to Payton but remained firmly rooted where she was. “Step forward.”
Payton obeyed immediately, tentatively moving to the center of the clearing, her expression blank.
“Explain.” The queen’s command echoed through the forest, rattling leaves from the trees.
Payton’s frown seemed genuine. “I don’t understand.”
“What is your name?”
“Payton. But you already knew that. How?”
The queen tilted her head, her unwavering attention pinned on Payton’s face. “You don’t remember?”
Payton shook her head, her mane of blond hair drifting across her face in the breeze. She pushed it behind her thin shoulder.
Realization struck Ryleigh hard. Payton shared the same frail figure as the other women in the clearing. The same catlike eyes, tilting up slightly at the corners. All of Ryleigh’s suspicions about the woman careened to the surface.
“How did you get here?” Queen Allura demanded.
Payton gestured toward Ryleigh. “Queen Ryleigh brought me.”
“Queen?” Allura huffed out a breath. Her eyes narrowed. “How did you come to be with her?”
“Her mate, King Maynard, rescued me from the dungeons of Argonas.”
“King Maynard? Of Cymmera?”
“Yes.”
The Queen’s attention lingered on Payton another moment before she turned to Ryleigh. “Who are you?”
“My name is Ryleigh Donnovan. I am Queen of Cymmera.”
The queen’s flushed cheeks paled. She eyed Ryleigh’s disheveled state. “Queen? I have not heard Cymmera has a new queen.”
“I haven’t been there long.” She wasn’t about to give a full account of her life to this woman with no clue who she was.
The queen gestured to Cyenne.
She yanked Ryleigh’s T-shirt sleeve up over her shoulder, revealing the tribal tattoo that marked her as queen.
“My apologies, Your Majesty.” Queen Allura offered a stiff nod. “Will you please tell me how my daughter came to be with you?”
> “Your daughter?”
“Yes. My daughter, Payton, went missing long ago, yet here she is among strangers. I demand an explanation.”
If Payton’s horrified expression was any indication, she was just as confused as Ryleigh, so she probably couldn’t offer any answers.
While Ryleigh wanted to tread carefully, she still had men missing. Men she was responsible for. “Of course, Your Majesty, but first, I had three men with me. Can you please tell me if they are all right?”
The queen glanced at Luna, who nodded.
“Very well, thank you. My…uh…” She hesitated, then choked out the word, “…mate, King Maynard, found Payton in the dungeons of Argonas. She’d been tortu…uh, hurt.” Heat flared in her cheeks. If this woman was truly Payton’s mother, she didn’t need the details of the torture the young woman had endured, first at Daygan’s hand and then Chayce’s.
“What was King Maynard doing in Argonas? And how did you come to be his mate? Cymmerans mate only once, for eternity, and Queen Dara is long gone.” Her eyes narrowed. Suspicion darkened them.
“No, ma’am. I’m talking about Jackson Maynard. He was taken to the dungeons and tortured by the man who killed his father.”
Her expression softened, and she appeared truly saddened by the news. “My condolences. I hadn’t heard about King Maynard. Please, forgive my lack of hospitality. We don’t often have visitors.”
“No worries. I understand.” She couldn’t blame the woman for being suspicious. They’d shown up in a realm they should have no knowledge of with her missing daughter in tow. Ryleigh would have been suspicious too. “I thought this realm was uncharted?”
“It is, my dear. Purposefully so. Just because something is uncharted doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.” She opened her arms to Ryleigh and Payton. “Now, please, join me. Walk with me.”
Ryleigh gestured toward Noah and Tatiana. “I can’t leave—”
“Of course, my soldiers will see to them.”
She clapped her hands.
Women emerged from the forest. They leaned close to their queen in a hushed conversation. Ryleigh couldn’t make out anything they said, not for lack of trying to eavesdrop.
Payton clung to Ryleigh’s arm, her hands trembling wildly. “Do you know what’s going on?”
Battle for Cymmera Page 13