Tempt (Terraway Book 4)

by Mary E. Twomey

  “Oh, your arm! Are you okay?”

  Kabayo’s amused expression didn’t fade as he watched me fawn over him. “You’re just as burned as I am, but you’re concerned about me? I can see why Ezra’s so taken with you.”

  “He won’t be after what I pulled. Whatever. Father of the Year time had to end someday, right?”

  “Let me show you how this works.” He patted my back and stepped aside so I could have some breathing room. “I didn’t want to tell you this until my land was secure, but I got word that Von, well, he was killed by a Matruculan vamp hunter while you were here moving the stone.”

  He said those words, exactly like that. Like he hadn’t shattered everything. Like he hadn’t ripped something precious away from me. Like my insides weren’t bleeding all over his throne room floor.

  The world stopped spinning, cotton filled my ears and all the revulsions in the world felt like a distant playground. Everything horrible and hefty hit me over the head at once, knocking me like a ton of bricks dipped in heavy metal. I clutched my chest and stumbled back, too beyond coherency for tears. “What? He… Von… No! No!”

  “He was out looking for you, and got caught without Mason or you there for backup. It was quick, if that helps you. The hunter brought Ezra Von’s severed head, if you wanted to say goodbye.”

  Guilt I couldn’t process tumbled over me, pushing me onto the ground as I screamed the only word that found its way to my lips. “No! No!”

  Mason came busting in through the wood double doors, his shoulders forward as if readying for a fight, with Finn following on his heels. “What?! What’s wrong? What did you do to her?”

  “Von! How could you not tell me? He was my… No!” My heart felt like there was a vice around it, keeping normal beats on hold and less potent than they were supposed to be. Von added color and warmth to my cold and focused life. He was good for me, and up until our last conversation, he’d been good to me. I didn’t have many people around who were both.

  “What about Von?” Mason asked, scrunching his nose at me in confusion.

  “I was just making sure it worked. You’re the first person I’ve ever bound myself to.” Kabayo displayed his arm to me. The pink burned loops had turned a horrible black with a blue glow around the scar, looking like an alien infection had taken over his arm in a decorative X-shaped fashion. “See? You’re in agony, so I got a signal that you need help. I’ll get that whenever you’re like this, and I can be there.” He waved his hand to dismiss my angst. “Von’s perfectly fine. He’s not dead. I was just testing the connection.”

  I looked up, my vision going from foggy to seeing red. “You… You what? You made that up just to jerk me around? You’re a bastard!” I picked myself up off the floor, unsure if I wanted to lunge at Kabayo to choke him, or if I wanted to run home to find Von and make sure it wasn’t real.

  Kabayo shrugged unapologetically at my accusation. “That may be. But this connection is the best gift I can give you. If you need me, I’ll be there.” He picked up my backpack, which I hadn’t seen on the floor, tucked behind his throne. He handed it to me by the straps, afraid to touch the bag itself.

  “The only thing I need you for is if I wanted to make some glue the old fashioned way,” I jabbed, speaking through gritted teeth, my fists clenched at my sides. “That was below the belt, Kabayo.”

  “I wish you all the luck in both our worlds when you have to go before Ezra. You’ll certainly need it.”

  I gulped, never having known a father who I’d disappointed for legit reasons. I held my head high and nodded once at Mason. “Do it to it. Let’s go home.”

  20

  Crappy Jewelry from Ezra

  We landed ungracefully in a heap of limbs smack in the middle of the council room in Ezra’s mansion. I groaned without apology. “Oh, man! I meant my home, not here. You did that on purpose,” I accused Mason, who was the first to stand.

  I was a little nervous about the whole Ezra thing, but knew I could handle myself in a fistfight. If Ezra threw the first punch, no matter how much bigger than me he was, I could figure something out. My biggest concern was finding Von. I tore open the doors and bolted out into the mansion. “Von? Von?” I called, hoping to see his face to confirm Kabayo had been lying. I entertained a brick of anxiety that sank in my stomach and wouldn’t dissolve until I saw Von with my own two eyes.

  When I rounded the corner that led to the foyer, I ran smack into Ezra. I backed up in surprise, my hands raised in a defensive position in case Ezra decided to haul off and hit me instead of yelling first. His hands flew to my arms, and I knocked them away in an outward sweeping motion. This time my hands balled into loose fists, hovering a few inches in front of my chin, ready to fend him off if he struck me.

  Ezra held up his hands in surrender. “Steady, darling! You’re here? Who found you? Where have you been?” Then he wrapped me in a hug that crushed the breath from me and confused my fight.

  “Huh? What’s happening? What is this?” I was stiff, unsure if this was part of the attack, or if he really was genuinely glad to see me.

  “It’s a hug, you daft girl.” Ezra pulled back but did not release me, his hands gripping my biceps. “You gave me such a fright! I didn’t know if you’d been abducted or if you’d run off! I didn’t even know which world or which country you were in. You can’t do that to me!”

  I let him shake me, since it seemed he needed the release, and I needed a few seconds to catch up. “You’re not mad?”

  “Of course I’m mad!” he shouted, though his eyes said worry, not anger. “I take Bev to the hospital, I turn around and you’re gone! You and the stone, just gone! Where were you? Who found you?”

  “Mason.”

  “What happened? Did someone abduct you? No one’s been able to find Captain Finn, either.” He shook his head, flustered, and pulled out his phone to call someone. “Danny? We found her. Yes. I have no idea. You can come home, though.” He brought me to the living room and called Lynna to bring me some tea. Then he left a message on Von’s phone before sitting me down on the white leather sofa, his earnest eyes imploring me to talk to him. “Are you hurt? Your face! It’s swollen across your cheekbone. And your hands and arms are all torn up. Is that a bruise? You can’t take off without a Puller!”

  “I’m fine. And Finn didn’t abduct me. If anything, it’s the other way around.”

  “When you say it like that, it makes me sound like the damsel in distress,” Finn said, making his presence known as he rounded the corner, his hands shoved behind his back, like he was restraining himself to endure a flogging. “Good afternoon, Ezra.”

  Mason followed in behind him, his angry expression telling me that even though he was on two legs, I was sitting in the company of a wolf, not the man I’d made out with.

  “‘Good afternoon’? You make off with my daughter, and then stroll into my home with a ‘good afternoon’?”

  “‘Make off’ sounds so cheap. Can’t we say I ran away with your daughter? Far more the-other-side-of-the-tracks, if you ask me.”

  The fire in Ezra’s eyes matched the fight I feared from him. I didn’t know what to expect, so I opted for explaining before he could get too worked up. “Finn, knock it off. Seriously, do you have any friends? Ezra, I left to get a jump on things, sneak in with only one guide rather than take the whole entourage.” I explained to Ezra my side of the story, and our subsequent journey through Silo that only knit his eyebrows closer together in what I swore looked like concern. I left out my part in the whole zombie war thing, pretty sure that might push him over the edge. My story skipped from dropping the stone in the well to Mason showing up and bringing us to the mansion.

  Mason was furious. He stomped behind the couch, placed one hand on my shoulder and jerked my head to the opposite one. “Then how do you explain this?” he roared, exposing my stitches to Ezra.

  I would not be the small one. I didn’t care how big Mason was, he stretched my stitches on purpose, tearing
at the tender skin just enough to make me wince. What’s worse is that he spoke like he had the right to scold me.

  I twisted out of his grip and stood, jumping away from him with my fists raised, just in case. We fumed at each other, upper lips curled in loathing we couldn’t get a cap on. “You want to jerk me around? Come and get it, jackhole! Don’t sneak behind me. Look me in the eye when you try to rip my stitches!”

  Mason fumbled, which I hadn’t been expecting. “Clearly I didn’t mean to rip your stitches.”

  “Clearly? Clearly?!” Anxiety swarmed up and choked me around the neck. It was pretty good timing, actually. Kept the string of nonsense curse words trapped inside of me for the time being.

  Ezra held up his hands, the sweeping movement in my periphery making me flinch as I prepared for a blow. His face fell to pity as he took in my defensive stance that was aimed in too many directions. His voice was gentle as he lowered his hands at a snail’s pace. “Sweetheart, you don’t have to be afraid of me. I’ve never raised my hand to a woman.”

  “I don’t know the first thing about you to know if that’s even the truth,” I pointed out.

  Ezra squared his shoulders and drew something black out of his pocket. “Then let’s start with the basics. I’m the ruler of the residents of Terraway who live Topside, and that includes their descendants. Give me your hand.” He extended his arm slowly, and I hoped as much as I guessed that he wouldn’t hurt me. I placed my hand in his, retracting it twice like a gun-shy animal before I let it rest there. He lifted the black bit of leather that looked sort of like a bracelet with swirls burned into the sides, turning it left and right to show me it wasn’t anything more than a strip of leather. Finn and Mason both gasped as Ezra tied the bracelet around my wrist, working on a complicated knot as he spoke. “This is a karsel bracelet. I would imagine it works much like an anklet a prisoner would wear, only you’re of course not a prisoner here.”

  “What?”

  Ezra finished off the knot and traced his finger along the burn marks on the leather. “These are parts of a charm meant to keep you here. I lost you and the stone once; I won’t lose you both again.”

  “What are you talking about?” I started picking at the leather lace to untie it, but it was proving more problematic than I anticipated.

  “That leather’s bound to the mansion. You can go anywhere you wish in my home, but the bracelet won’t let you leave.” My dubious look drew out more explanation from him. “You can try to walk out the door, but the bracelet will remain here. It’s attached to your arm until I remove it. Not Mason, not Von. Only me.”

  I stared up at him, doubtful. “I’ve got news for you, Ezra. I’m just going to cut it off the second you leave. It’s a piece of leather, not titanium.”

  “I would advise against that. Whatever pain you inflict on the leather will mirror itself onto you. If you try to cut the leather, the knife will only slice into you, leaving the bracelet untouched.”

  My nostrils flared as I fumed. “I’m not your prisoner! I don’t belong to you! I didn’t even mean to come back here. Mason screwed me over on purpose.”

  Ezra stood straighter, looking down on me imperiously. “You did this to yourself the second you went to Terraway on your own. The stone belongs to Terraway, and the council speaks on their behalf. Going off without informing us? Unacceptable and irresponsible. Sitting on the council, as you have, means you’re accountable to them, as well. You’ll stay here until I say otherwise.”

  “We’ll see about that.” I was livid. I was girl on a mission. I had never been grounded before, and this felt like that kind of punishment. There was no thanks, no job well done. There wasn’t even a “Hey, that sounds rough. You alright?” It was a swift and harsh judgment I didn’t have the patience for. I clawed at the backs of my hands as I marched away from the guys. I tried the front door, just to see if the whole thing was a bluff. I flung open the door with a triumphant smile, but the second I tried to step a toe out onto the porch, my foot bounced back, like it had hit an invisible trampoline. Frustrated, I kicked over and over, drawing eyes and sniggers from the peanut gallery. I whirled on Ezra. “Let me out! I don’t live here, and I’m not your prisoner!”

  “Would you feel more comfortable resting in your bedroom? It’s been fully stocked for your use for months now. New clothes, new shoes, whatever you need will be ordered for you. But until I can trust that you won’t disappear the second my back is turned, you’re staying right here. My house is more secure than yours anyway. It was only a matter of time before you moved in. Your mother will be living here, too, as soon as she’s given a clean bill of health.”

  Ice banged around in my veins at mention of the person I’d run from in the first place. My voice was level, lest I speak too loudly and tear a hole through the roof. “I will not live with Bev ever again. I made a promise to myself, and you won’t make me break it.”

  “You have to stop!” Ezra exclaimed, motioning to my hands. “You’re bleeding! Don’t you feel that? Mason, do something!”

  Mason ran for me, and I panicked. “No! Don’t touch me!” I didn’t want him to pull so much anxiety that I submitted to incarceration.

  His arms were rough as he tried to get a grip on me for a decent pull. I twisted away, but he was persistent, and ended up accidentally knocking me backwards into the wall.

  I didn’t think it through. I didn’t think at all. Before I knew it, my hand swung out and slapped him across the face. Mason dropped his grip on me, and I gasped at the horrible thing I’d done. Sure, I’d gutted zombies, but slapping Mason was a level of violence I was ashamed of.

  I was Bev. I hit someone instead of using my words. I hit Mason, who despite everything, I cared a great deal for. My voice was quiet with disgrace. “Mason, I’m sorry. That was awful. I… let me get you some ice.”

  “Don’t. Move.” Mason snarled at me, holding his cheek as it throbbed in betrayal.

  Ezra’s voice was laced with disappointment. “You have every right to defend yourself when a full-grown man throws you up against the wall. The Omen-Puller bond is based on trust, not force.”

  “Trust? You want to talk about trust? I turn my back and she’s gone!” Mason turned to aim his hurt in my direction. “No note, no message, nothing! You know this is my job now. You’re jeopardizing my career and Von’s! I get that you were mad at me, but Von? You did this to him, too. And what about Ollie? You brought him in on the secret, and then left him to deal with all of it by himself. You know what I was doing when you ditched? I was taking care of your mother, because that’s what friends do.” He shook his head and exhaled, his cheeks puffed out. “I don’t know what I ever saw in you.”

  I hung my head as the guilt washed over me. My lower lip quivered at the public recitation of my sins, but I kept my tears tucked tight inside me. “I’m sorry, Mason. I shouldn’t have run. You’re right. It was selfish.”

  Finn gave a disgusted “pfft.” “Nothing about your trek through Silo was selfish. You did right by the council, and right by Terraway. You ran away to keep the people you love away from danger. Ending a famine and a drought while keeping your family safe isn’t selfish.”

  I was a person who could hit her friends. I couldn’t think of anything worse. Sure, Mason had been rough, but I could’ve gotten out of the hold a dozen different ways. “I’m sorry, Mason. I’ll fix it.” I turned on my heel and darted for the kitchen, yanking open the freezer and pulling out a bag of frozen peas.

  “What are you doing?” Mason shouted, making me jump when he stomped into the kitchen, not stopping until he was in my face.

  I dropped the bag of peas, afraid of too many things in that moment. I was afraid Mason would lose his temper and shove me, sure. I was more afraid that I would become a person who struck the people she loved. “P-Peas,” I explained, reaching down and retrieving the bag with trembling fingers. “For your cheek.”

  “Huh?”

  I pointed to the place I’d struck him. “I
h-hit you. Mason, I’m so sorry.”

  Mason studied my sorrow, and his shoulders dropped a noticeable amount. “What are the peas supposed to do? Is that some Topsider remedy?”

  Carefully, I placed the cold bag on his cheek. “Takes the sting out.”

  Despite our feud, Mason chuckled. “Well, whataya know. I’m cured.” He took the bag off his face and set it on the counter. “You shouldn’t have run. You hurt me.”

  I nodded, keeping my chin down so I didn’t appear to be arguing. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you, but that’s exactly what I did.”

  He ran his hands over his face, exhaustion dawning on his senses when the fight finally reached a crest. “I was too rough out there. I’m surprised you only slapped me. You should punch me next time I lose my temper like that.”

  “I can’t believe I hit you. I’m so ashamed. Please forgive me.”

  “Come here.” Mason motioned me forward, but I was hesitant to sink into his open arms.

  “I don’t want you to pull. I’m serious. I deserve to feel terrible for hitting you. Don’t take that away from me.”

  Mason nodded, but still beckoned me to him. The solid embrace didn’t solve everything, but it was a start. He forgave me enough to be kind, and I trusted him enough to hug me without pulling.

  “Are the two of you quite finished?” Ezra rubbed his forehead, exasperated. I wasn’t sure how long he and Finn had been watching our exchange, but suddenly there they were. “October, you’ve been four days without a Puller. You look haggard, darling. Let Mason help you.”

  I kept my voice low, but laid down the law all the same. “I don’t care how I look. Pretty matters zero in this line of work. I’m a person, not a show dog.”

  “You’re still scratching your arms!” Ezra pointed out, flustered.

  Crap. I really needed to start paying better attention to that.