"I looked too—same thing."
"Did they talk to the boy?" I asked.
"He was home—his parents confirmed it. They said he'd given the bracelet to Andree."
"Did you talk to him?"
"Didn't see any need."
"Well, if we get the opportunity, I'd still like to question him."
"I know where he goes to school."
"Good enough."
"What else are you planning to do?" Lok asked.
"Before I was slapped into the past earlier, I was planning to go to Pridded."
"There's already an agent there."
"You think that'll stop me?"
"I see that was a stupid statement," Lok admitted. "When will you know if you're going and will you take me with you?"
"Are you a sadistic slave driver? Because I assure you I already have one of those," I pulled the cloth away to look at him. He smiled. Actually smiled. It was like the sun breaking through a cloud, just as I imagined it might be.
"Oh, now you want to be seen together," I snapped, slapping the towel over my eyes again.
"I do prefer taller women. With dark hair. I can change my ways."
"Don't bother. You've already fucked up the vision."
"What vision?"
"You're not going to shut up, are you?" I pulled the towel away again. "Let's go." I grabbed his arm and skipped us to Pridded.
Chapter 6
"This is it," Lok said. We'd arrived at a warehouse, with parts of it still in use. I could hear hovertrucks backing up for loading down the way. "These kids come here and trade prescribed meds after school," Lok added. "The one who was grabbed forgot her purse and ran back for it. They never found her."
I was looking around the area—I could see markings on the floor. "What are these?" I asked.
"No idea," Lok said. I walked around them—they were spaced evenly apart—in the form of an equilateral triangle. "Looks like something from those old witches' tales."
"Then let's see if we can get an expert's evaluation," I said. Wylend? I sent.
Love, what do you need?
I just need a little advice, I returned. Do you have someone who can come to Pridded?
Where on Pridded?
Shoordeed Warehouse in Parid.
Wylend and Erland both came ticks later, surprising Lok.
"Wylend, Erland, this is Lok, ASD," I introduced Lok to them.
"Love, I wish you would call me more often," Wylend pulled me against him and kissed my forehead.
"Can you do anything about a headache, and do you know what these are?" I pointed out the symbols on the floor.
"May the stars never fail," Erland said. "Who did this?"
"We don't know yet," I said. "But this is where one of those children disappeared."
"This is forbidden spellwork," Erland said, walking around the triangle of symbols. They'd been drawn on the concrete with colored chalk.
"What does it do?" I asked. Wylend put his fingers on my forehead, causing the throbbing to go away.
"It's a transference—you trade one body for another," Wylend said softly.
"Like Nidris did for his brother?"
"No," Erland shook his head. "That was a simple spell, making someone look like someone else. With this, you're moving a spirit into another body. You're trading souls around. It's called soul-shifting."
"That's not scary or anything," I said, feeling cold all over.
"It doesn't last long—both bodies begin to die quickly; that's why it's forbidden," Wylend said.
"What's the purpose in it, then?" I asked.
"It's the ultimate disguise," Erland told me. "If you're sitting in jail, awaiting execution, you trade off with your jailer, who's executed in your place. But in order for you to stay alive, you have to keep trading bodies before the one you currently inhabit dies. You leave a trail of dead behind you."
"Unless those dead are consumed by monsters who have a taste for flesh," I suggested. "Before they die, of course. Has anybody checked on those children we found on Bardelus?" Erland whipped out his comp-vid and punched keys.
"That's not good," Erland muttered. Lok was following the conversation, his usual scowl plastered across his face. "There's only one left out of the seven, and he's dying. They haven't managed to save any of them."
"This just gets worse as it goes along," I sighed. "Wylend," I dropped my head against his shoulder, "who would know how to do this?"
"Reah, I will have to do research and get back to you, love. Will you not come home with me now or visit soon?"
"I'll try to visit soon," I said.
Keep your promise, Erland's voice sounded in my head.
"Tomorrow," I said.
"Good. Very good." Wylend leaned down to kiss me. Erland removed the markings with power and he and Wylend disappeared.
"Are you married to him as well?" Lok asked dryly.
"I'm only engaged to Wylend," I huffed.
"We have multiple mates on Falchan. It is rare to see the ai yevu."
"The single mate?" I asked, translating the phrase into common Alliance.
"Yes. The direct translation is my only."
"So," I said, changing the subject, "we have someone who's trading souls with child after child after child, possibly because the Ra'Ak has a taste for the young and tender," I almost gagged when I said it—it made me feel so ill.
"Sounds like a Karathian or something similar," Lok observed.
"Yes—something just like that," I sighed. "Is there anything else we need to see here?"
"I think we found more than enough."
Lok filed his report from my apartment; I sent one to Lendill as well. I got a response right away, in the form of Lendill Schaff.
"Reah, this is disturbing—are you sure of Wylend and Erland's information?"
"Lendill, ask them yourself—they weren't lying. They just didn't know right away who might be able to do this sort of thing. There's no doubt about those children on Bardelus, there's only one of the seven left."
"Fuck." Lendill flopped onto the sofa next to me. "Reah, do not stand in front of another bullet, I beg you," he put his arms around me.
"Honey, I sure don't want to do that," I muffled against his shirt.
"Good. Come to bed with me?" He murmured softly. We left Lok munching on a sandwich in the sitting room and closed the bedroom door.
"Reah, we only got the once," Lendill undid a button, placing a kiss. His mouth was warm as he nipped my collarbone. I remembered the time before with Lendill—in his office. This was our first time in a bed. He didn't disappoint. Whatever it is that he has, it comes through when he fucks. I was begging him, I think, before all was said and done. He gave me everything I asked for, and then some.
* * *
"Reah, I have to go," Lendill gave me a gentle kiss early the following morning. "Norian is here to take me back."
"How did you get here in the first place?" I asked sleepily.
"Larentii," he said. "I'll see you soon. Send mindspeech." He kissed me again and walked out of the bedroom. When I got up later to have my morning tea, I found Lok sitting on my sofa.
"Have you been here all this time?" My fists were on my hips.
"You have two extra bedrooms. I borrowed one. You have plenty of room; I'm thinking about moving in. It'll be easier to communicate."
"And you decided that."
"Yes."
"Unbelievable." I shook my head and went off to make tea.
"I don't have any Falchani black," I said, handing him a cup of my brand. It wasn't as strong as what the Falchani normally got.
"This will do; I have some black in my hotel room. I'll bring it when I move in."
"Uh-huh," I muttered. I ended up skipping Lok to his hotel room three times, to move his things, and then he had his cup of tea while I prepared lunch.
* * *
"What is this? It's very good."
"It's evil, that's what it is." It was; a sandwich made of
ham and thinly sliced fowl, with a good white cheese in between, dipped in batter then deep-fried. I didn't make it often—I could hear arteries clogging just by looking at it. You could dust it lightly with confectioner's sugar if you wanted—I preferred mine with a bit of fresh jam.
"You call this the evil sandwich?"
"Yes, the evil, heart attack inducing sandwich," I agreed, taking another bite. Lok laughed at me.
"What are you doing?" I'd hauled out my comp-vid and went looking through dates of death for the six children on Bardelus, discovering that the seventh had died overnight.
"Look," I pushed it toward him, "these children died around three days apart. That means that the one doing this has to move on to a fresh victim every third day."
"Sounds logical," Lok stuffed the last of his sandwich in his mouth and chewed thoughtfully, going over my research. "They all died around mid-afternoon," he observed.
"Shortly after school was out," I said, agreeing with his assessment. "This is the extra child that some witnesses are reporting—the one who's doing this, that is." I pulled my comp-vid back and sent a quick message to Plovel, telling him that we were dealing with the culprits in the Reth Alliance, now. Then I sent the same message to Lendill, asking if it were possible to warn all children to be wary of strangers approaching—including other children they didn't know.
"That'll be hard for the teens to accept—they love to interact with those they don't know." Lok said, watching as I put the message together.
"Let's go to Farrahn," I said. "Just to see if there's anything there." Lok nodded, so I skipped us there.
"How many of those creatures are there?" Lok asked as we made our way through a playground where three children had disappeared.
"I saw six power flashes when they got away on Bardelus," I said. Lok whipped out his comp-vid and sent that message. "They didn't know?" I asked, trying to remember if I'd sent that information to Lendill earlier. I guess I hadn't. He would probably yell about it when I saw him next.
"He's asking if you forgot to tell him something," Lok turned his comp-vid around so I could see the message.
"Yeah, he'll yell the next time I see him," I grumped. Lok's black eyes gleamed with humor; he was enjoying himself. It was times like that when he reminded me of Dragon. I kept that information to myself.
"Look—chalk smudges," I pointed out the blue dust on the floor of the old gymnasium. "What do they use this for?" I looked around—there wasn't anything apparent.
"According to my records here, the teens gather at the end of the week and drink alcohol," Lok said, consulting his comp-vid.
"Why haven't they torn this down?" I looked at the ceiling, where old tiles and insulation were dangling precariously. Windows were broken or vandalized, brick crumbling—the place was a hazard. And now, three teens were missing and likely doomed if not dead already. Actually, likely Ra'Ak fodder already; these had been missing eleven days. I shook my head. "Lok, we need to find these things and the humans who help them."
"I agree," He nodded. "Are we ready to go back, now?"
"Yeah."
* * *
What do you wear to a tryst with the King of Karathia? I dithered after getting a bath and primping. Wylend and I had never had sex. Something always got in the way. Now that it was a planned thing, I got shaky over it. The dress he'd labeled his favorite was for a formal affair, in black silk. It did look good in contrast to my white-blonde hair, piled on top of my head. I remembered wearing jewels he'd said belonged to his mother. She died in the coup that killed his father.
I still had the tunic and loose pants in purple that Nefrigar had manufactured somehow. I slipped into that, along with the silver shoes that matched the embroidery. I hadn't seen my patron Larentii for a while and it made me wonder where he was.
I'd broiled a steak for Lok before going to get dressed, and he'd even cleaned up the kitchen after he ate. He'd settled in the media room afterward to watch the news vids for anything new that might come along.
"I'll be back tomorrow," I told him before skipping away.
* * *
"Here's my love, now." Wylend smiled at me. "You look beautiful." I'd skipped into his sitting room and found Corolan there with Wylend.
"Little girl, you don't know how we worried over you," Corolan sighed, leaning down to kiss me before folding away.
"I have champagne on ice, love," Wylend settled me on the wide sofa and poured a glass for me. I love champagne. This one was perfect. "Are you nervous?" he asked me.
"Um-huh," I nodded as I sipped my drink.
"It's just me, love. Nothing here to be frightened of. Do you think I won't know how to treat my Reah?" Wylend removed his jacket, and then his shirt. I'd never seen him without a shirt. He was muscular—more so than I imagined. "I work out with Corolan and Garek," he smiled at me. "It's not all sex with them, you know. And if you ever want either of them, all you have to do is say it."
"They're not obligated," I muttered.
"They know that. They want you, Reah. I think Corolan has a permanent erection around you."
"Wylend, Corolan's erection isn't the one I'm concerned with, right now."
"Is it mine that you're focused on?" Wylend leaned in to kiss me. And then kissed me again, touching my mouth with his tongue. When I parted my lips for him, he took full advantage. "Yes," a thrust with his tongue. "See," another thrust. "Here," he took my hand and placed it over the bulge in his pants. They were quite tight, there. "Rub this, Reah. For me." He guided my hand; he was still kissing me and pushing me back on the sofa. "Undress me. Please."
I fumbled with the button, and then three more buttons, freeing the erection we'd discussed earlier—he hadn't bothered with underwear. His hips and thighs hard with muscle, I had a bit of difficulty pushing his pants down. Wylend didn't care. Once they were lower than his knees, he pushed me back all the way and kicked them off, not caring where they landed. Now, his hands were under my top, fingers stroking ribs and the underside of my breasts. In a flash of movement, the top was over my head and gone.
"These are perfect," he lowered his head to a nipple and nipped it with his teeth. Grinding his erection against me, he sucked the nipple into his mouth before turning his attention to the other one. Had I thought this to be slow? Wylend was nearly frenzied. His hand at the small of my back, he worked the tie loose and pulled the silk pants down.
"These—you must buy more of these," he whispered, kissing the top of my lacy panties. I would have to—he ripped them away with power. "Are we ready, Reah?" Two fingers slipped inside. "Ready enough," he sighed and took me swiftly.
* * *
"So beautiful." I woke later to dim light in Wylend's bedroom. Corolan lay beside me on Wylend's huge bed. I frowned—when had Corolan come?
"I haven't come. Yet," Corolan murmured, reading my thoughts and brushing my left nipple with a knuckle. "Tell me if you don't want this, little girl. The stars know I do." Corolan leaned down and kissed me. His loving was slow and erotic, making me crazy after a while, and I was begging him with my body to increase his pace. Smiling down at me, he gave me a little before backing off again. Corolan had my hands in his, both raised over my head. He refused to let me use them while his body worshipped mine. That's the only way I can describe it. His skin against mine nearly drove me wild. Now I knew why Wylend wanted Corolan in his bed. Corolan thrust faster after I begged him to do so; I came, and then came again, crying out with the pleasure.
"Yes, that's what I wanted to hear," Corolan said softly, before his thrusts increased and he took his pleasure as well.
* * *
"Sleep, Reah." I moaned when Corolan left the bed early the next morning. I did sleep, for perhaps another click or two, before someone else lifted me from the bed and carried me to Wylend's private bath.
"Father will not come to you, because he knows I desire this." Radolf had come from somewhere, and he carried me into the shower after using his ability to turn it on and set it at t
he right temperature. I was a little sore from the night before. Radolf took care of that, loving me in the shower and then meticulously washing my body. Wylend found us huddled together in bed, my head on Radolf's shoulder while he sipped tea that had been left in the bedroom for us.
"We wore our little Queen out, Radolf," Wylend chuckled.
"I can't move," I moaned.
"You don't have to," Radolf murmured. "The palace will wait on us today. They'll feed you by hand if you wish it, heart's love." Radolf was stroking my hair when my heart seized.
"Fuck!" I shouted and skipped away.
* * *
Lok had two blades out, facing Ra'Ak spawn on school grounds. These spawn no longer resembled the humans they'd once been; they'd changed already. Students, ranging in age from twelve to fifteen, were huddled against a fence at Lok's back while teachers pressed against them, trying to keep them calm. Lok didn't know to take their heads and there I was, clad only in a towel, staring at nearly a dozen hungry spawn.
"Reah!" Aurelius appeared, tossing a Ranos rifle to me. I started shooting the moment it reached my hands.
* * *
"Nice outfit," Lok commented dryly after the spawn dusted.
"Don't be an idiot," I muttered, pulling my towel up and attempting to secure it better. "We need to check every one of those students. If any one of them can't speak when normally they do, then they were bitten."
"I'll help," Aurelius went toward the crowd still huddled against the fence. Norian, Lendill, Gavin and Tony showed up to help, just as the local authorities did. Gavin, Tony and Aurelius would know if any of those children were spawn, just by Looking or sniffing. They sorted three out of the crowd. I felt ill.
"We can't kill them here," I was brushing tears away. The students had been traumatized enough already. "How did you know to come?" I turned to Lok.
"I came to speak with Andree's boyfriend. He was one of those you just shot. And what did you call them?"
"Those are Ra'Ak spawn. So, Andree's boyfriend really hasn't spoken to anybody since the incident, has he? His parents covered for him and this is what they got." I shook my head. "You have to cut their heads off, or shoot them with a Ranos pistol or rifle. That's the only thing that will kill them," I added.
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