by Tenaya Jayne
Panic filled his eyes, and he took a step back from her. He was pushing her away. He wasn’t going to accept her love. A cold rage closed like a glass lid over her heart. She turned herself off and looked at him with sharp analysis. She would get him to answer her.
“You said you were still willing to help me. Why? Why would you be willing to help me at all if you don’t care?”
He swallowed, his eyes going flat. “You’re a beautiful woman. I wanted your body.”
“Is that all?”
“That’s all.” His voice didn’t even sound like him.
“Okay.” She was blasé.
She ran her fingers through her hair before grabbing the hem of her shirt and pulling it over her head. His eyes rounded as she dropped the shirt on the floor and began to unfasten her pants.
“What are you doing?”
“My body is your price. That’s fine. Take it. I need your help. If I have to whore myself to get it, I will.”
He exhaled a sound like she’d just punched him in the gut. He stepped forward and stilled her hands, shaking his head. “No.”
This time it was his eyes that filled with tears. The glass covering her heart shattered, and she felt the pain of what he’d done to her. He picked up her shirt and handed it to her. She grabbed it roughly and pulled it back on. Then she shoved him in the chest.
“What’s the matter? Not in the mood now?” Hurt mixed with contempt in her voice.
He turned away from her and hung his head.
“Look at me, coward.”
He turned back, wiping the tears from his eyes. She stepped into his space, grabbing his gaze hard with hers, her lip curling in a sneer.
“The truth seeker, who lies. You’re the liar, X. Not me… Tell me it wasn’t real! Make me believe it! Tell me!”
“Tesla…”
“Tell me it wasn’t real! Tell me you don’t love me!”
He was shaking. “I can’t.”
She didn’t try to hide any of the pain he caused her. She showed him. All the color drained from his face.
“Why would you hurt me like this? What for? When it’s a lie.”
“I…”
“No! I don’t want to hear anything else,” she cried.
She shook her head slowly and reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck. He grabbed on to her tightly, his breathing uneven. The truth throbbed in the space between them despite any words. She pulled on him, bringing his lips down to hers. It was the sweetest bitterness he’d ever tasted. He was at a loss, then her blood ran into his mouth. His eyes shot open.
“No, Tesla. Please. I’m sorry.”
She grabbed his axe and pack and slung it over her shoulder before reaching behind him, tearing open a portal and shoving him through it. His sight blurred in the Everpath. She pushed him from behind with both hands. He tried to turn to face her, then he was falling. He landed hard on the ground back in Contarren in front of Maggie’s house.
She threw his stuff on the ground at his feet. “Forget it!” she yelled. “I’ll figure out how to stop the wizards on my own. I don’t need you.”
“Tesla, wait!”
She strode away from him “No!”
“Please.” He was running after her.
She stopped and turned back to him, her eyes streaming. “I didn’t lie! You did!”
He tried to reach for her. She punched him square in the mouth, splitting his lips. Then she was gone.
Maggie and Merhl came up behind him.
“What in the hell did you do?” Maggie demanded.
He fell to his knees and put his head in his hands. “I panicked. She offered me the world. She offered me everything I could ever want, and I panicked…I hurt her. I wasn’t thinking clearly…” He laughed bitterly. “She saw right through me. She called my bluff. What do I do now?” He looked up at Merhl. “How do I get back to Regia? I have to fix this.”
Merhl looked furious. “Why would you hurt her? Can’t you see how special she is?”
X got to his feet. “Of course I can see it. She’s everything to me.”
Her eyes came back into his mind, all the pain he put there. He caused the pain. Realizing what he’d done to her, his chest tore open and gutted out.
“Damn fool!” Merhl yelled. “Tesla does things, reckless things, especially when she’s hurting.”
Maggie came up to him, an expression of sorrow on her face. “Remember what I told you about pain?”
His eyes widened. “Yes.”
“You hurt her. So, there’s your proof. Congratulations, dumbass.”
He picked up his axe, strapped it to his back, and walked up to Merhl. “Take me back to Regia. Please. I’m begging you.”
Maggie’s necklace flared. She held it up to her eye and gasped. “Oh, no…” Her voice filled him with ice. “You’re already too late, X.”
Chapter Fifteen
Tesla leaned against the grey wall and sobbed. She was feeling so much, she was flooded with sorrow, anger, and pain. She hadn’t realized before then the level of power he held over her. She ground her teeth together, rage taking over. It was all up to her. Screw her connection to X. Screw the blood lock. She pushed off the wall and stalked down the endless hallway. She’d end this shit right now.
“Where are you?” she yelled, her voice echoing. “I know you’re here, shadow. Come out and play with me.”
“Oh, yes…” the voice hissed sensually.
Darkness slithered along the floor toward her. She stopped. It pooled, and the dark thing rose up out of it.
“Are you ready to let me taste you, wall builder?”
She sneered. “Perhaps. After you tell me what you are.”
“Nothing. I am merely a probe. My only purpose is to find you.”
“Who do you work for?”
“Lachlan. The wizard king. His eyes are on you right now. He desires you.” The forked tongue flicked out and licked slowly over the pointed teeth. “As do I. Just one taste, please…”
A deep shiver of revulsion went down her spine, but she kept it from showing. She held her hand out to it, as though it were an animal. It slunk closer and grabbed her hand. It was like touching cold fog, insubstantial, and unstable. The tongue slithered out and caressed her skin. All the rage she was holding inside exploded. Her voice was fading. She would lose it soon.
As it licked her, preoccupied, she leaned down toward it and sank her fangs through the top of its head. Smoke filled her mouth and it laughed. She let its disease into her lungs, her eyes opening to its origins. She knew the door she needed to take.
She shook its hold on her. It backed away smiling. “Yes… Yes, you see the way now, lovely. Take it. You won’t be sorry.”
“No, but he will be. Now skulk off and die.”
It gave her a little bow and vanished. She wiped the back of her hand on her pants. Disgusting.
The door to Mordian lit up like a glow stick far down the hall. She ran to it. A storm was building inside her. She skidded to a halt, hesitating, her hands flat on the door. This was probably a one-way ticket. She’d bring the wizards death in a hurricane of her own making. She’d give herself over to its senseless rage and let it bleed her out. The faces of her parents loomed in her mind. She hadn’t said goodbye.
Then again, heroes didn’t always get the luxury of goodbye.
She kicked the door in and stalked through.
Silence and opulence met her. She blinked and looked around, slightly surprised, not sure what she was expecting, only certain it was not this. The pale green marble floor was pleasantly warm under her bare feet. She turned in a circle. It was a palace. Perfect. She could start at the top and work her way down.
Her rage shifted to neutral without her consent. The light, the fragrance on the air, the temperature, it all tickled the pleasure centers of her brain. The witch inside her roused and took a deep breath of her native land. Tesla blinked and shook herself, realizing the danger of this place hiding under the beauty.
She brought the raw pain in her heart back to the front and let herself drink it down. She glutted on the pain, her hands lighting up, her heart igniting the storm. She looked down, a circular mosaic medallion was right under her feet.
The power rose up and pushed out through her skin.
“It ends here.” She would have screamed it, but it came out like a hoarse whisper.
She put her hands together, the lightning gathering and building on itself. She brought her fist down on the center of the medallion. The floor cracked. Lightning rushing along the breaks, spreading them open.
Clouds filled the vast empty room. Thunder roared through the halls. Ecstasy filled her as she let her magic take over. No thoughts, just feeling. Only vengeance.
Over the sound of the thunder claps came a laugh. The laugh grew louder as a shimmering lit the air around her. It shrank down over her like a glass bubble. She hit it with a bolt from her hands. It shattered. The laugh echoed around her. She turned, looking for him.
A blast of wind shot through the room, blowing the storm clouds away.
“Show yourself,” she whispered.
“Gladly.” It was the same voice. The seductive, dirty voice.
A man strode into the room. Tesla blinked. He wasn’t the old man she’d expected. He was young and beautiful. A thin robe hung open on his bare, muscled chest. His hair was a rich dark brown and hung long over his shoulders. The color matched his eyes, a few shades darker than the olive color of his skin.
She shot a blast of electricity at him. It hit his skin and bounced off in sparks.
He laughed again. “That was impressive, but not impressive enough. I know you can do better. You can do all kinds of things, can’t you, wall builder?”
“I will kill you with—” Her throat seized. Oh, well. Talk was cheap.
“With?” he prompted, his demeanor completely relaxed.
She took a step toward him. He smiled, his eyes flashing hotly. Her brain was racing. He’d sent that dark thing looking for her because he couldn’t go himself. He wasn’t a world jumper. She just had to get close enough. His smile broadened as she took another step toward him.
“That’s right. Come here, pretty baby. I’ll hold still. You can try whatever you’re contemplating. I can promise you I’ll retaliate, but I’ll give you first strike.”
She stopped just barely out of his reach. His eyes devoured her slowly. A faint scent came off his skin, intoxicating the pleasure centers in her brain again. She shivered. Why was she moving so slowly? Why was she just staring at him? He was her enemy. She was close enough.
“Do it,” he whispered, licking his lips. “Do it. Do it. Do it… DO IT!”
She flinched, grabbing desperately at her rage. The ball of lightning hit him in the face as she spun behind him, tearing the air open in an endless loop portal. He faced her, his eyes blackened around the edges, burned by her power. She grabbed the front of his robe and fell backward, pulling him with her into the portal.
She had to get out and close it behind her to trap him. His hands locked around her wrists. The next second, the portal she’d made fizzled into nothing, and they were still in the marble room. It felt like he’d cut off her hands. She looked down, disoriented. It wasn’t his hands locked around her wrists at all, it was two metal cuffs.
“That was fast,” he said lazily. “I thought it would be harder to cage you. Oh, well. It was still a good move. You almost pulled it off. Now we can move on to other things… Tell me your name.”
The cuffs around her wrists felt heavy, like they were magnetically drawn to the floor. She couldn’t lift her arms, but more than the weight was the negative pulse. The metal sent waves into her, neutralizing her power.
He frowned when she didn’t answer and walked a circle around her. “Hmm… This isn’t enough. You might still get away.”
Tesla tried to move. She couldn’t. He knelt in front of her and locked cuffs around both of her ankles. His hands gripped the backs of her legs. He rose up slowly, his body skimming intimately against hers.
“There. That should hold you. At least for a little while. I know you’ll be able to get out of those soon enough. I look forward to when you do. We can play another game at that time. But for now, I know you’re not very comfortable. I can make that better.”
Her voice was gone, and her magic was locked. He bent down and picked her up. She was powerless against him. Strangely, she wasn’t really scared. She’d made a colossal mistake, but he didn’t seem anxious to kill her. She might be able to turn the tables.
He carried her through hallways made of the same pale green marble and took her through a door into an ornate bedroom. Her stomach twisted into a knot. What was he going to do to her? The huge bed was covered with a shimmery gold fabric. He set her down and propped her up on the pillows. Her heart beat so hard it bruised against her ribs. His face was very close to hers, and he smiled. Then he stood and backed away a step.
“What do you think? Do you like it?” He waved his hand around the room. “I confess it can be lonely. I like the look of you there on my bed.”
He frowned again when she didn’t speak. The next second he was snarling in her face. “Answer me.”
She shook her head, her eyes wide. He took a deep breath and backed away from her. “I’m sorry about that. It’s just…I’m so happy you’re finally here with me. I’ve wanted it so badly. I just want to talk. I want to get to know you.”
She shook her head again and tried to raise one of her hands. She lifted it three inches when the cuff dragged it back down. He narrowed his eyes at her then he grabbed her hand and unlocked the cuff. She touched her throat and shook her head. She looked at the fabric on the bed, struck by an idea. She dragged her fingernail on it, writing the word mute in the soft texture.
“You spoke to me.”
Ability is gone now. She wrote.
He locked the cuff back on her wrist. “Hmm...I don’t like that. It could be fun on one level, but I think I’d rather talk to you naturally.”
He climbed on top of her. She turned her head as he tried to kiss her. He grabbed her head roughly and forced her face forward. “Relax. I’m just going to loose your voice.”
But that wasn’t all. He kissed her obscenely. His tongue was long. It filled her mouth and probed halfway down her throat till she gagged. Heat rushed down her neck painfully. He pulled away and got off of her.
“There. Now tell me your name,” he ordered.
She coughed three times. “Tesla.”
“Tesla,” he repeated, his voice caressing it. “It suits you.”
She glared at him. “I’m sure it was unnecessary to kiss me.”
He laughed. “Oh, sweetness. That wasn’t a kiss. When I kiss you, you’ll know it.”
“Something to look forward to,” she said acidly.
He laughed again. “Perfect.”
“What’s perfect?”
“You. You’re not afraid of me. I’m all about changing that.”
He grabbed her ankles and pulled her down toward the end of the bed. He climbed on top of her again, propping himself on his arms and gazing down at her. He was wrong. She was afraid.
“What are you going to do to me?”
A small smile pulled into one side of his mouth. He really was beautiful, and totally disgusting. Debauchery oozed from his pores. He hooked his finger in the collar of her shirt and pulled it down an inch.
“Everything... Every, single, little, thing I can think of.”
He kissed both of her cheeks, her forehead, and her chin. His hands ran over her body. She held her breath and clenched her eyes tight. She couldn’t help the trembling that began in her core. He pressed his thigh between her legs.
“Yes,” he whispered against her ear. “Now you’re afraid.” He rolled off her, lying beside her instead.
He pressed his hand flat against her lower abdomen. Power surged out of his palm. His eyes cut to hers, and he smiled broadly. “I�
��d hoped you were a virgin… Thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me?” she demanded, her spine filling with steel. “You think I saved myself for you?”
Lachlan threw his head back and laughed. He shook his head but didn’t answer. His eyes moved slowly over her. “I don’t like your clothes.”
He held his hand up and muttered a few words. A pair of long slender scissors flew into the room. He caught them.
“Seriously?” she demanded. “You want to rape me, just get it over with.”
His expression smoothed out and he gazed at her evenly. “Rape…hmm… Not right now. Maybe later. Right now, I just want to do away with your drab clothes. They don’t please me. They don’t enhance your beauty. From now on, you will only wear things that are fitting for a queen.”
Tesla ground her teeth, furious that she couldn’t move. He slid the cold metal of the scissors into her shirt and cut it open. His mouth opened slightly as he looked at her heart. His breathing picked up a little. He looked back into her eyes, showing her how pleased he was with her. She closed her eyelids and turned her head away.
Lachlan chuckled as he moved to her pants and cut them off her. He wadded up the shreds of her clothes and tossed them to the floor. She held her breath, turning her mind to the cuffs. He’d said they wouldn’t hold her for long. All she needed to do was learn their molecular structure, then she could break them off.
He moved off the bed and just stood staring at her for a few minutes. No man had seen her fully naked before then. Her stomach knotted harder.
“What colors do you like?” he asked.
“I’m not playing,” she said flatly.
“Neither am I. Tell me what you want. I’ll give you whatever you ask, except your freedom.”
“Yeah? Go kill yourself.”
“I’m immortal. I can’t die.”
“Bullshit.”
“Maybe I should take your voice away. I don’t have to be nice to you. You’re not very grateful,” he said.
“Get used to it. Gratitude is nothing you’ll ever get from me.”