War Machine: Book One in the Destiny In the Shadows Series

by Maggie Lynn Heron-Heidel

  “The pike at the top of the wall to pull us up. It’s better than waiting around to be-”

  I stopped talking as a red laser beam appeared on his forehead. I gathered there was one likewise on mine because he froze, too. A voice broadcasted from a megaphone somewhere. “Lay your weapons down or we will shoot.”

  He dropped the falchion and put the lasso down slowly. I did the same. I knew we were screwed. No need to fight it anymore. “Now walk to the end of the pen and wait at the gate, hands up.”

  We did so. Men surged around us as the gate opened and then we were taken away.

  * * *

  I had been kept in cells before, but this one took the cake.

  It was a repurposed meat locker, one where the chilling system had not been turned off. Considering I had been stripped of my outer garments, I was freezing. If Cain was also feeling cold since they took his clothes, too, he certainly didn’t say so. Both of us were pacing in endless circles to keep warm with movement. We ignored the one chair in the room.

  After about a half hour of this, he finally broke the silence. “So, Dantenn must have been real thrilled to be dragged along to rescue my ass.”

  I watched him pace, limping along. He had hidden it well in the ring, but once we were led out, it had become apparent it was hurting him terribly. “How’s the leg?”

  “I bound it up after last night’s fight. Muscle might be torn. I don't know. I won't complain. But that dirty son of a bitch went right for it today and landed a punch before I could stop him. It’ll be fine.”

  Considering how he was still hobbling along, I wasn’t convinced. “I’m not impressed with stoicism, Cain. I’ve perfected the act myself. How much is it hurting?”

  “Enough to piss me off that I wasn’t fast enough to avoid it and madder still that Michael stood by and did practically nothing while I saved his worthless hide!” I cringed back at his roar. He stopped and looked at me. “Sorry. Not your fault. Talk to me about something else. So what did you have to do to get sour puss Dantenn to go along with this? As it is, I’m still torn between happiness that you cared enough to try and save me and irritation that you thought I needed it.”

  The answer to his query was not going to lessen his agitation. He had gone for the topic I was least inclined to want to discuss. “I had to promise to give Dantenn a chance.”

  He stopped pacing for a minute and snickered. He rolled his eyes and started walking faster. “You’ve got Dantenn trotting along on a leash and always have, haven’t you? One tug and off he goes. Is that why you don’t like me? Because I don’t sit and beg like him and Michael?”

  “Hardly,” I said quietly, shivering. I hoped that they had at least escaped, unlike us.

  Unfortunately he took note of my silent quivering. “I always did wonder what was under that robe of yours, but this is so not how I pictured it. I'd give you something, but all I have are these pants and I know you’re going to want me to keep them on.”

  At least his humor hadn’t abandoned him. I looked down at my leather undergarment. I was much relieved he hadn't commented on the underwear. I’m sure it was coming, but I had nothing to say to that crack or the one about his pants.

  I glanced over at his form. They had taken his shirt. For someone who had spent so much time getting into trouble and wounded, he still remained mostly unscathed. It contrasted with my dark, scar-lined skin. But the nasty claw marks down his back would change that unless they got attention. He caught my eye and I looked away.

  I heard him grunt. “You know, I’m beginning to understand you a little better. After spending all night having buyers looking me over along with the kid, I now get the hawk-eyed expression you keep. You’re used to everyone looking at you with dollar signs in their eyes-”

  If he appreciated my cold, hard laugh, he didn’t let on. I pointed one finger at him. “You will never understand me until you have spent every night of your childhood sleeping next to a man, wondering if that will be the night he turns over and decides to rape you.” He swallowed harshly under my gaze. I sniffed disdainfully. “That is the reality of every slave at one point in their lives, if not their entire lives, even down to the men. It is a reality that you didn’t care about until now. Don’t you dare speak to me of understanding.”

  He met my blazing eyes evenly, stepping up to me. “I’ve never taken a pleasure slave. I won’t. It disgusts me, but it comes down to one fact. I am but one man and one who can do solely nothing to stop it. Don’t think that I haven’t tried to speak up. There is no way to change that city and I am not willing to go down the path you have.”

  I forced myself not to cringe under the judgment in his voice. “So you would have me do nothing?”

  His sudden grin confused me, especially as he stepped up even closer. I shied away a little as he smirked. “No. I would have had you come find me. Two is better than one, right?”

  Somehow I was confused. I blinked. Then twice. I’ll even admit to a third time. “What?”

  Then he blinked. The lips pursed. “You know… allies? I figure I’ll be discharged from the service for this whole fiasco anyway, so what the hell?”

  I looked to the sky and then back at him. All I saw was honesty. And that bothered me. I never encountered that, not unless I was home in MoiRai. I blinked again. “What?”

  He just stared at me. “Do I really have to spell it out? Providing there’s no more murder involved, I’ll help bring down the slave trade.” He cocked his head. “You have no idea what to do with an offer of help, do you? Either that or you really do find me that unappealing, but I don’t believe that for a second-”

  “Let’s focus on finding the nuke first,” I interjected, sensing his ego taking off. “And getting out of here.”

  “Well, duh,” he snorted, turning away. “I just don’t believe in belaboring the obvious. We’ll get out of here; don’t you worry. Maybe Dintenn will come and save us. That’ll really make his day.”

  I swear this man had set out to completely bewilder me at every turn. I just stared as he went back to pacing despite his wound, and looking at the walls. But I couldn’t think about Cain’s offer now. I was too cold. I jumped up and down a few times trying to ward off the chill. Why they had placed us here was beyond me. Maybe they intended to freeze us alive.

  I nearly jumped out of my skin when he cursed loudly and grabbed my arm. “For Heaven’s sake! It’s not worth freezing over! I have had it with listening to your teeth chatter!”

  There was not much choice but to go along with it as he scooped me up and sat on the chair, tucking his own feet under us. He glared down at me. I was pretty much frozen in stature and in reality. “Oh, it’s not that bad. I told you I didn’t mind being used, didn’t I?”

  Skin on skin was something I was not used to. It terrified me. But the way he was rubbing his hands up and down my arm, and what he could reach of my feet, was delightful. “It’s just not a regular occurrence for me. It’s nothing personal.”

  “I can believe that,” he muttered. “Tell you what? Talk about something more pleasant to distract yourself. Tell me about MoiRai. You’ve gotten me curious. Sounds like a nice place.”

  I didn’t have to picture it. Long repressed, happy memories came to my mind in an instant. “Well, we’re so high up in the mountains that when the light fades in the sky, you can clearly see all the stars. There are so many more than are visible in the city. The horizon sparkles with it.

  “The wildlife around us is not afraid. Elk come to us as friends and the local wolves bring their pups every year to show their young what a human looks like. During the summers, hummingbirds fly around the temple feeding on the gardens’ flowers. When we meditate outside, they whiz around us.

  “Many who come to us never want to leave. If they choose to stay, they work alongside us. The warriors work in the gardens along with everyone else. Dantenn hates weeding,” I added with a laugh. “The only thing he used to like about it was catching bugs as children and let
ting them loose around me to try and get my attention.”

  Cain listened silently through all of this. Much to my surprise, I had spent so much time talking that I had relaxed. It was then that I noticed he was gently stroking the scars on my wrists. I watched with amazement as his hands tenderly traced mine, but this time the feeling was different. Usually that kind of contact sent me off into a fit of PTSD. But now as I watched, I felt no panic. My mouth fell open in astonishment and I looked up at him. A lopsided smirk came to his lips. “Took you that long to notice, huh?”

  “I’m confused,” I admitted. “Usually one touch is enough to send me running.”

  Smugness radiated off of him as he threaded his fingers through mine. “Sounds like paradise up there. You’ve sold me.”

  I realized now I was in a very vulnerable position. Not only was I essentially sitting in his lap, I had made my postal code sound so irresistible he would go there. Not very good thinking on my part. “You might find it very boring, after all-”

  He chuckled. “Yeah. All the tranquility and peace would get to me after a while. The main attraction is its inhabitants, or one in particular I should say.”

  I felt my cheeks blushing before I could stop myself. I ducked my head, but he had caught it already. “Are you blushing? I never noticed that before with your copper skin.”

  “I am not!”

  The chuckling increased in volume and tempo. “It’s alright. I’m rather pleased with the fact you haven't turned pink under any of the innuendos I’ve tossed your way. You went for this one instead. You like the idea of me staying with you.”

  This was such dangerous territory. “Hardly. I’ve come to recognize that there will be absolutely no way to shake you off if your mind is set to it-”

  I inhaled sharply as he trailed his hand up past my feet and up to my knees. His chuckling had stopped. “Somehow, I don't think so. Otherwise I would have been smacked by now. You respond to me. You don't respond to anyone else.”

  “You arrogant thing you!” I objected, intensely aware of his roaming fingers. “How would you know that?”

  I yelped as his arm that had been supporting my back dropped and my head slipped from his shoulder. He caught me only an inch further than I had been before, but it put me in an entirely different position. I was forced to look up into his eyes as my head was thrown back, bare throat exposed. He leaned in. “Am I wrong?”

  I opened my mouth to answer him and promptly decided it would be best to close it. He was eyeing my lips with desire, intent clear in his eyes. That only added to my problem. I had two options now. Put up with this or fall back onto the floor.

  My breathing sped up to the point I was having trouble getting sufficient air. It certainly did not help that as my chest went up and down fighting to breathe, he watched every movement. His eyes dipped lower on my body and then back to my lips. A triumphant smile twisted on his mouth. “You were saying?”

  What was I saying? My brain had gone totally blank as his head dipped lower…. closer. My cheeks were burning at this point, thinking about what he was going to do. Then I didn’t have to worry anymore. He almost dropped me as the door flew open.

  We had both been so into this that we had forgotten we weren't alone. Three men came in, jabbering away in Arabic. They spoke so quickly that I couldn’t catch it. But I did catch it when one pointed at me. “She’s the one. Take her.”

  I struggled to get up off of his lap and barely managed it without tipping over. I prepared to fight but that seemed very unnecessary at the moment. Cain had gotten up and taken a vicious swing at the nearest one. But he went down before he even got there. He dropped and I saw a Taser dart gun in the man’s hand, one that he aimed at me.

  Chapter Nineteen 02:13:47:54 to potential nuclear explosion

  I was getting tired of being knocked out. Even more wearisome was the feeling of waking up in some unknown location, especially when one was tethered to a hard, cold surface and discovering there was a table full of torture instruments next to them.

  Hang PTSD. I ignored the pressure at my wrists and eyed the scalpels and corkscrew-like instruments to my left. I was so screwed… probably literally, too. There were guards at the doors and manual guns on their hips. Why try getting free? I would be shot before I got my second wrist loose.

  Even more disturbing was the fact there were three more chairs around me, each with one of my friends in them. They were bound, too. Dantenn had his eyes closed in what I recognized as a deep state of meditation. Michael was looking at me with horror and an even paler complexion than the last time I had seen him. And Cain…

  I was seriously worried about him. He was in rough shape and had the blood all over him to prove it. And from what I could tell, it was all his.

  I looked back up at the ceiling, out of things to say. Whoever decided upon this had overstepped his hand. Dantenn would never talk, Cain would never betray his city, Michael had nothing to give as far as I knew, and I was the party stuck in the middle. I tested all of the restraints. They were solid. I was going to have to soldier through this. I had been tortured before and survived it, but it was not an experience I wanted to repeat.

  To my surprise, Cain spoke first. “Who is Delegato?”

  “Tiranshyck’s eldest son,” I muttered. “Let me guess, he’s assumed control of his daddy’s empire?”

  “He’s absolutely delighted we stepped in and fulfilled his wish,” he replied. “Tiranshyck’s days were already numbered and he was having a good time gloating about his father’s death before I broke his nose. They didn’t Taser me properly, unlike you.”

  I chuckled darkly. “Delegato’s a stupid bastard to think killing me wilI be enough to open your mouths.”

  His eyes were dark as I glanced back over at him. He could see I knew he would never talk. I looked over at Michael who was still staring at me with a tormented expression. “You happy you came on mission yet? Real glamorous, isn’t it? It’s not like your comics.”

  His question surprised me. “Did you know who I was when you first spoke to me?”

  Where did this question come from? It was one I certainly had not been expecting. It left me with a query: to lie or not to lie? He was not going to enjoy me being vivisected in front of him. Lie and he might be in less distress. Tell him the truth and he'd sing like a canary. To which benefit would I lean? To mine or to his?

  I did the right thing. But I looked away so I wouldn't have to see when the damage was done. I hoped God would forgive the lie. “‘Course I did. Why would I have bothered with you otherwise?”

  Much to my irritation, Cain barked out a laugh. “We’d have bought that if you hadn’t skewered yourself by coming to get us.”

  “I didn't come for you,” I growled, concocting more falsehood. I was tempted to laugh. Dantenn’s meditation was looking strained now. His fingers had twitched from their relaxed state. “Tiranshyck’s men would have known to whom the nuke was sold. The records should still be here. I came for them.”

  Silence held for a minute. Michael spoke. “I don't know whether to believe you or not.”

  That was good and bad. It hurt knowing my character was being questioned and that was bad because I needed to be cold. Being around these people didn’t facilitate that.

  “She’s lying. Your dad wasn’t supposed to attend that party, remember? Your appearance was a fluke. But it is a good lesson to always take everything she says with a grain of salt. She’s good at faking it. Then again, I wouldn’t know. Dantenn might, though.”

  I looked over at Cain, patience lost. But I never got to say anything further. The double doors banged open and in waltzed the adult version of the child I once served.

  He sneered at me as he placed down a number of small boxes. I was not comfortable with the fact I could hear movement from within each one. “Tales of your beauty have been most exaggerated.”

  Ah, that voice. I should have been feeling terror right about now but I was blissfully numb. His mask was t
he same, only larger since he had grown into manhood. It hid a ghastly deformity that had twisted his mind far longer than his father’s tutelage had. Murky brown eyes shiftily took in my form and thin lips were lifted in a sneer. He reeked of bad cologne and some spice, perhaps garlic. He stepped over to my left and faced the others. “I assume you all know the rules to this game? Would you care to see her live? I hope so for her sake.”

  He left that statement hanging. “Time to talk. I will begin with the MoiRai warrior. I have only one question for you. Where is the Temple of the Mountains?”

  My stomach crawled at this question. Our temple had been concealed in the mountains since it had been looted and burned to the ground sixty years ago. The reconstruction was made into the valley behind the peak. Unless someone knew their way in, they would get lost and perish on the slopes. An underground tram had been installed for visitors, but all we had to do in case of an attack was to cave in the tunnels. No one would find us then.

  To breach our keep, you had to know the coordinates. Only the most trusted were privy to that knowledge. Even I had refused it be told to me. I knew my way in by foot, but had flat out refused to know the latitude and longitude. But Dantenn knew. He was Master’s son.

  I knew exactly why this demon wanted this knowledge. Our temple held riches beyond measure. Long ago had our wealth been destroyed, but to this day our library still held documents of ancient past. They were worth a fortune. And with the sheer amount of men Delegato had at his beck and call, they could easily storm the keep, enslave our people, and plunder the goods.

  “I know she would rather die than betray you. But you? Would you like to watch her perish? I’m talking to you, warrior. Answer me.”

  Dantenn said nothing as Delegato picked up his switchblade and dug it into my skin. I forced myself not even to twitch or vary my breathing as it cut a line up my chest, red blood spreading across my brown skin and pooling between my breasts.