by K. N. Banet
“I bet,” he said, nodding slowly. “What would happen if you had been the kid’s mate?”
“Depends on the families involved. Some let the youth live with the other family and spend the rest of their childhood there, growing to know their mate so they could go at their own pace. Some would keep the two away from each other completely, not to see each other again until the wedding day.”
“Um…”
“Yeah, let’s not…” I covered my mouth with the back of my hand.
I grew up in the modern era, an era of cars and electricity—an era when child labor was outlawed in most nations and a violation of rights in others, when adult men who looked at a fourteen-year-old and saw a future wife were considered the bad guys. I agreed with all of those premises, but I was smart enough to know that old habits died hard. There was a time when none of those things were wrong, and everyone had agreed with them. The current batch of male nagas were from the old times. There was a time when girls wouldn’t have batted an eye at being trotted in front of potential future husbands because they were finally ‘women.’ My mother had instilled beliefs in me that Adhar disagreed with. I had fought him every step of the way until I was dragged into the room where the nagas were celebrating my first birthday after I ‘came of age.’
All of them were so fucking disappointed I couldn’t have children with them one day. They wished me a happy birthday, gave me a present, then most excused themselves, thinking that would save me from their hurt feelings. The resentment would never pass, though.
“Let’s…just forget about it for tonight. One battle at a time, right?”
“Yeah,” I agreed as Raphael pulled my hand down from my mouth. I looked at him, glad he was there. He didn’t look disappointed, nothing but concern and trust in his eyes. “Four nagas have human mates. One is pregnant with a little girl. This battle will continue when it’s time for me to step in and stop them from parading her around. I should contact her parents and let them know it won’t happen while I’m still alive. They’ll think they’re doing what’s right for her and the species, but no child deserves what I went through.”
“Maybe by the time it’s her turn, you’ll have stopped what’s killing the nagas, and they won’t feel the need to force her into it,” Raphael said hopefully.
“I can only dream,” I whispered. “I’m going to talk to Nakul. I need to get back on track.” When I started out of the room, Raphael took a step, but I shook my head, making him stop. “I’m going alone.”
24
Chapter Twenty-Four
I slowly walked to the basement to clear my mind. The past was ages ago, and I didn’t need it haunting me while I tried to talk to my uncle. Especially since I was talking to him about the very real life and death threats I was dealing with now.
I found the enclosure in the back corner of the basement’s main room. It was a cozy living room type area with soft couches, armchairs, and a massive TV on the wall. The only thing out of place was the glass box that held my uncle, who looked up as I walked closer. I turned to the TV and shook my head as I realized it was on. The enclosure had a perfect view of it.
I need to talk to Sorcha and Cassius. This is weird. I don’t like that they have this.
“Hey, I’m going to open the enclosure and let you out. Don’t rush up on me.” I pushed the lid off, jumped back, then took several steps farther back. He moved slowly, slithering up the side and over the top. He was a large snake, something I hadn’t taken the time to appreciate when I saw him coming out of Raphael’s clothes. I was a good size to scare humans, but he was something else. He was definitely over ten feet long and well-fed. He dropped to the floor and looked at me for a moment.
The next time I blinked, he was a man.
“The sleep was nice,” he commented, turning back to the glass home. “Good sun rock too.”
“I take it you haven’t been able to use any of that stuff before, huh?” I crossed my arms, watching him carefully.
“No, I haven’t. I don’t get to be a snake very much anymore,” he whispered. His fingers touched the glass. “Thank you for allowing me to stay in snake form for some time, it felt like home.”
“I bet. So, here’s the deal. I’m going to feed you, we’re going to talk, then I’m going to make arrangements with the local witch coven to dig into your memories. I don’t know how that’s going to go, but you should know I’ve already contacted Mahavir and Adhar to move locations, so they remain secure. I never knew you had visited them before I caught you.”
“Ah…they…they didn’t know what I had been doing…” Nakul looked at his feet, guilt seeming to weigh him down. “Do you think they aren’t safe?”
“I think someone meddled with your mind, you knew the locations of two nagas, and one of them has had a child since you went to prison. Letting them stay where they are isn’t a risk I’m willing to take. I should have gotten to them sooner, but I had the immediate worry of not dying to deal with.” It hadn’t been a major concern until Mahavir confirmed the suspicion Cassius had put in my mind ages ago. And I was just tired.
Nakul looked up, his eyes lanced with pain.
“Who had a son?”
“You’re an uncle twice over now,” I said, refusing to smile. “Mahavir’s son turns sixteen this summer and no, I’ve never met him, and don’t plan to. I won’t participate in a little party before you ask.”
“I’m glad to hear my brother found happiness, and it was fruitful,” he said weakly as if he had a bad headache, which was common in people who had their memories tampered with and thought about it too hard.
“Are you okay? Let’s get some food in you.” I gestured to the stairs and spoke gently, not wanting to upset or make him feel any worse. He was a prisoner, my prisoner, and I wasn’t aiming to be cruel to him.
“My head hurts…” He started rubbing his temples as he walked.
“Yeah, I bet,” I said kindly.
He went up the stairs first. I trailed behind him, keeping a close eye on him. Once upstairs, I was glad to see Raphael waiting in the hall.
“Can you clear out the kitchen? I’m going to get him something small to eat, so he feels a little better. He’s going to need the energy for later.”
“We’re taking him somewhere?”
“Witch coven is already preparing to go through his memories.” He nodded and went into the kitchen. Less than a minute later, he looked back out and nodded.
“It’s empty. I’ll be around, but I’ll give you two some privacy.”
“Thanks.” I watched him leave, then ushered Nakul into the kitchen.
“Sit down and wait. Stop trying to think about it. The witches will be able to tell us what memories were messed with, what type of magic did it, and if it can be fixed. If they can’t, they’ll at least clean up the damage and make it so you don’t hurt so much from the missing memories.” It wasn’t easy magic, but I knew that when I found out Nakul had the problem, and I still promised to get him the help.
There was a reason I had never done this with Raphael. It was dangerous, for one. It also exposed the person to the witch coven doing the magic. It was a similar story if it was a fae going through the memories. Those were the two big players in the memory manipulation business. There were some small groups of supernaturals who had their own versions of memory tampering, but many of them were very secretive, using their magic to protect themselves and their secrets. I couldn’t reasonably assume any of them were the culprit.
I was willing to risk Nakul because I could actively work to make his memories less dangerous. Raphael wasn’t the same. On top of that, I just liked Raphael more. I was willing to work with his memory loss rather than subject him to reliving many of his memories while others watched. Because I’d never wanted to sleep with someone more in my life, but that’s beside the point.
I went through the fridge, found a few small containers of store-bought yogurt, grabbed a spoon, and slid them to Nakul, who opened one and starte
d to eat slowly. Next, I grabbed a glass. He needed water. Hydration was important, and he probably hadn’t eaten or drunk anything substantial since before the breakout.
“Why didn’t you stay in the prison?” I asked as I put the glass of water in front of him.
He was silent, taking another bite of yogurt.
“I…It seemed like the thing to do. Leave, follow you home, help you. You hate me, but I have never hated you, Kaliya. When I visited Mahavir and Adhar, they didn’t know what I was doing, but they told me what you were, what you did. I was…proud to see there was once again a naga warrior. And maybe you could make the change that I seemed unable to. So, escaping to help you was my only option. You are my niece.”
“By marriage,” I reminded him. There was no blood relation. Our lines were from two different original nagas. I didn’t know the genetics, but I didn’t consider him blood-related in a close, immediate sense. That was why I didn’t consider his brother, Mahavir, my uncle, and why I was considered eligible to the poor sixteen-year-old boy, who was probably being pressured to believe he needed to be my mate.
“Fine, but I remember the day you were born, and your mother let my mate hold you. Before even your father, those women cooed over you. Then he got to hold you, then your brothers, then me. I was there in the house, helping them. We’re family, so I helped you.”
“How did you find me on that rooftop?”
“I…I don’t know,” he whispered. “Why…How did I know to follow you there?”
I reached out, about to console him and tell him to stop, stopping short and putting my hand carefully down on the counter.
“Stop trying to think about it,” I said softly. “It’s okay. You found me, you helped me, and now, I’m going to help you, okay? Stop thinking about it.”
“No, no, no,” he started to chant. I stepped back as he clasped his head and hissed in pain. I pulled a drawer open behind me and slowly picked up a knife, keeping it under counter level and out of sight.
“No, what, Nakul?” I asked softly.
“No, I don’t want to kill you,” he said, looking up, his eyes crazed. “I don’t want to.”
“Then don’t.”
I can’t be here now, and I need to secure him. I need back up, but fuck, he’s really fragile. Has he been fighting a spell this entire time? If I run out or shout, he could snap.
Nakul’s hands began to shake as he put them on the counter and pushed himself to his feet.
“I really don’t, Kaliya. I would never betray our people that way. You have to believe me.”
“I do. I know. Everything you ever did was to try to help us.” In your own sick way, driven by insanity and grief.
“Make it stop,” he whispered. “Make it stop.”
“Make what stop? I can’t help you unless you tell me what’s wrong.”
His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed like a dead body a moment later. I gasped, dropping the knife on the counter and walked around to see him on the floor, staring but not seeing.
“Oh, gods.” I swallowed a lump in my throat. “Did he just make himself brain dead?” I knelt down. “Nakul, you can’t die on me. I need you right now.” I tentatively reached for him.
His reflexes were just as good as mine. The moment my hand was close, he had it, grabbing it faster than I could comprehend, just like my own reflexes when I needed them—a lightning-fast strike.
I hissed aggressively, my fangs going down at the threat, using my free hand to hit him, causing his grasp to free while he hissed in pain. I got to my feet just a little faster, but he didn’t try to tower over me. He launched himself at me and sent me into the counter, where the ledge hit me square in the center of my back. I couldn’t hold back a scream as it brought to life all of my injuries.
I fell on my ass with Nakul over me, his mouth open and fangs exposed, his hands on my throat. As he darted in for a killing bite, I grabbed his neck and squeezed, holding him back. With my free hand, I rained down punches on his ribs. He smartly straddled my torso, not my legs, leaving them flailing as I tried to buck him off. He ignored the punishing blows I delivered and continued to squeeze my already bruised and aching neck, trying to break my hold and bite me.
One solid buck knocked his weight up enough for me to pull a leg in and knee him where it hurt. That one he felt, releasing me and falling to the side into the lower cabinets next to us. I shoved him off completely and looked for a weapon. I still didn’t want to kill him. I groped around, realizing my impact with the counter knocked the knife off, but I couldn’t see it.
I ended up pulling open a cabinet and grabbed a pan, but he hit me hard and knocked it from my hands, sending it across the slick kitchen tile. I once again stopped his mouth from getting to me. I was just grateful he was so unused to being in his snake form, he went for the more humane kill. Over the years, he had gotten into trouble at the prison for killing southern cell block inmates just like this when they tried to test their mettle against him as one of the northern cell block inmates. When I had originally sent him there, he had misbehaved a lot.
One of his hands had my neck again while he tried to hold me for a fatal bite.
I didn’t see his other hand until it was too late. The knife caught the light and began to stab down into my stomach. He skimmed my ribs once before I realized what he was doing. He got four hits on me before I was able to use one of my hands to grab his wrist.
I knew this kill. This was how he killed his victims. He butchered them with a hundred knife wounds, just like his wife and son had been killed. I would not allow someone to use a naga to butcher me like this. I wouldn’t kill him either. I wouldn’t destroy my own species like that—not this time. The kitchen knife slowly sank into me as he overpowered me. I watched it go in slowly.
Before I could do any more, a savior finally came.
The pan swung over me and hit him, sending him flying and knocking him unconscious.
I fell back against the cabinets, looking down at the pain in my abdomen, seeing the damage clearly as the blood began to soak through my shirt and hit the floor. The knife was buried a good three inches in the lower right quadrant of my abdomen. There were four other holes, one of which had skidded my ribs. I tried to put my hands over it, wondering if there was really any way I could slow the bleeding.
“Kaliya!” I was picked up roughly and put on the countertop. I saw Raphael over me, his hands covering mine over my stomach.
“He was spelled,” I said weakly. “He tried not to. He didn’t know…” I winced. “Shit. This might be the fucking end of me.”
“No, no, Kaliya, you aren’t dying,” Raphael promised frantically. “What can we do?”
My vision swimming, I could barely focus on his words. All I could really focus on was his warm chocolate eyes and the black creeping into them. I really didn’t want to die before I had a chance with this good guy, and he was so good. He had a goodness to him that made him risk his life when he really didn’t have to. He was a fucking guy who could have hidden, but instead, he helped me at every turn. Through all of this, I knew if I looked over my shoulder, he would be there watching my back.
“I always want the good guys like you,” I admitted, blood loss quickly making me dizzy.
Raphael’s hand was still pressing down as Leith ran over with more fabric of some sort to stop the bleeding.
“We’ll...talk about that later, Kaliya. Please focus.”
I looked down and nodded slowly, the sight of all my blood making my head spin, and black spots began creeping in.
“Yeah, that…Um. Need a healer.”
“The witches! Can we take you to the witches?” He was leaning so close to me now.
I tried to nod before everything went black.
25
Chapter Twenty-Five
Suddenly wide awake, it felt like someone set my abdomen on fire. I tried to sit up, screaming and ready to fight.
“Hold her down!” someone screamed the harsh military-lik
e order. “Keep her fucking down so we can finish!”
I caught a flash of blonde hair in the low candlelight. I was surrounded by people. Someone put their hands on my head, grabbing both sides, and pushed me down where my head found a pillow. I screamed louder as the fire intensified.
“Stay down, Kaliya!” a woman’s voice ordered. “We’re almost done. You weren’t supposed to rise until this was over. I’m sorry.” Her voice, even with steel in it, was compassionate. I needed that. It penetrated the pain and made me realize where I was.
A piece of leather was shoved into my mouth, and I used it, sinking my teeth and snake fangs into it. No venom came out, something I was grateful for. Whenever I was healed like this, wide awake for the event, it was a fifty-fifty chance of me nearly giving myself an aphrodisiac high from my own venom. While that was inconvenient, it was even worse when I was with the witches. Naga venom was too unique to just hand out or make readily available to anyone. Not that this coven would try, but I always had to be careful. They knew I would kill every one of them if they stole something that belonged on or in my body.
It wasn’t an idle threat. At least one witch in Phoenix was already dead because of that very type of crime, though that one hadn’t been in the coven.
I screamed with a closed mouth, holding onto the leather, glad they thought of it so quickly, so I didn’t bite my tongue open or nail it with a fang.
“We’re almost done, Kaliya. I need to clarify something since you’re awake. The healing is free, but the scars aren’t. Choose now, so we don’t have to do this again in a few weeks when it’ll be harder.”
“She has a couple, one might form under her jawline,” the brunette said in the professional, hurried way a nurse would in an emergency surgery.