“Which tower did Maks say?” Lila asked as we walked forward, our dark bodies not exactly blending with the sand but it was the best we could do. At least Lila’s scales weren’t all glittering, picking up the light like they so often did.
“We stick to the right northern tower and look for a glitter of gold.”
“That’s going to be a bitch to see in the dark.”
I nodded. It was, but again, it was all we had, and still it was more than if we’d tried to figure it out on our own without Maks’s note.
I had a moment to wonder about Merlin. He’d been a pain in my ass as we’d worked our way through the Witch’s Reign, and I’d seen him briefly when he’d gone to speak to my mentor Ish, but that had been in a dream.
A funny twist in my gut caught me off guard. Not that he’d ever been that helpful, but what if he’d been killed? He was the one who put the Emperor to sleep all those years ago. If what he was telling us was true.
And why the fuck would I suddenly be thinking about him now?
A boom rattled well inside the rims of the Jinn’s Dominion and lightning arced through the sky, striking into the heart of their hold. Lightning on a clear night? That was anything but natural.
“Now, Lila!” The distraction was exactly what we needed. I shot forward, belly to the sand as I drew next to the northern facing tower.
I caught a glimpse of what exactly the tower was made up of as I zipped past it. The individual speckles of sand could still be seen, but they’d been heated until it was a tower of golden glass that reflected the light. A screech from the top made my hair stand on end and I couldn’t help my entire coat puffing up like I’d been touched by the electricity dancing through the empty sky.
A glance upward confirmed one of the Jinn’s dead crouched on the tower, looking back at the chaos in the center of the hold. Its wingspan was maybe twelve to fourteen feet, and the wings attached to the arms so they were all one limb. A thick tail lashed off its muscled back, but it was the face I couldn’t look away from. Human, but sunken so far that the teeth protruded and the eyes sat deeply into the skull. Gray skin covered the entire thing, clinging to the bones and muscle, showing each clearly, even in the dark.
I wasn’t sure if it was baring its teeth or if that was just how it looked.
“Deadshits,” Lila muttered. “That’s what I’m calling them.”
I shushed her and looked away from the deadshit—hell, it was a good name—and to the ground. A glimmer of gold caught my eye and once I had a bead on it, I raced along the line. The gold flickered and beckoned, and I kept my paws tight to it for fear of what would happen if I dared to step off.
The pathway took us through the first four levels of the rims with only a pause here and there. The central holding was boiling like a beehive that had been kicked. I pressed my body against the base of the last tower between us and the central stronghold. I stared up at the clear building. The glass was not what I expected; wouldn’t it be easy to break?
The lightning was gone as suddenly as it was there, and I knew whatever distraction we had was over.
“Deep breath, Lila.” I closed my eyes for a moment, orienting myself with what I recalled of the maps my father had drawn. The dungeons were deep, at least three levels down from the main floor. I let myself connect with my pride, finding them easily.
And Maks . . . he was there too, only he was on the main floor.
“Should we get him first?” Lila asked and I glanced at her.
“Can you see the energy?”
“I can feel it,” she whispered. “I can feel Maks closer than the others.”
I shook my head. “We can’t.”
And with that, I shot forward, Lila sticking close to me as we raced across the final open space. There was a moment where I looked up and was sure one of the deadshits flying across looked our way and my heart stuttered.
But before I could duck or dive away, he was gone, winging toward the north.
I slid to a stop against the central tower and the smooth glass. Well, shit, I hadn’t considered this.
“How the hell are we getting in there?” Lila whispered.
I gritted my teeth, thinking. “I could use the flail, but that will be loud and we need quiet.”
Lila stepped close and the sapphire glowed between the leather covering as she lifted the tip of her claw and flew upward, drawing a line of blue ice. The glass cracked, but it was quiet, a crackle of freezing water. I shifted to two legs and pushed against the center of the doorway she’d drawn. Four feet high, it wasn’t too big, and hopefully not too noticeable.
I shoved against the glass cube, the edge crackling as it split and the chunk slid inward in one piece.
I went to the end of the chunk and pushed, spinning it open wide enough that we could both slip through. Darkness greeted us, and I put my back against the chunky glass door and scooted it partway closed. I could still get my fingers around the lip, and that would have to be enough for when we came back.
I crouched and shifted onto four legs, a tiny groan escaping me. Too many shifts, too close together were not what I wanted to be doing, but no choice. I bit back on the rolls of pain and let my eyes adjust.
Lila tucked in close. “I can’t see anything.”
“Hold onto my tail,” I whispered and then I took a step forward. We were in a room, and ahead of us was a door with the slightest glimmer of light under it.
“Something touched me,” Lila hissed.
I whipped around. And then snickered. “It’s a dress, I think. We’re in someone’s closet.”
She giggled, nerves getting the better of both of us.
“Maybe Marsum dresses like a lady when no one is looking?” she whispered.
I grinned to myself. “I’d like to see that. Though I suspect he’d make an ugly woman.”
Lila tucked her head against me. “Horribly ugly.”
I hurried toward the door. It wasn’t closed tightly, and I slipped a claw under the bottom edge where there was a good gap and pulled it open. The lights outside the closet were not particularly bright, and we were indeed inside someone’s room. Flowers and perfume, it was a woman’s room. I hurried out and scooted across the room to a large bed. The smell in here was familiar, but I couldn’t quite pin it down as it was mixed with the heavy perfume of what could only be someone trying to hide bad body odor.
I grimaced and went for the main door as the handle twisted.
“Shit.” I hissed the word and shot under the bed, Lila right beside me. The door swung open and . . . Maks stepped in, followed by a curvy blonde woman who pawed at him. “I knew you’d come back. I knew you would.”
He didn’t answer, didn’t so much as look her way. “Go away, Nell. And stay out of my room when I’m not here. It stinks like your perfume.” Well, that explained the smell.
“I will not. I don’t know what happened to you out there, but do you think it was easy for me here without you? You said we’d escape together.”
“And you told Marsum, didn’t you?” he countered as he spun and grabbed her arms. “You are not my mate, Nell. We never bound ourselves together because you always hoped for more. I’m guessing Marsum turned you down? So, now you’ll settle for me?”
I could hardly believe what I was seeing, what I was hearing. This woman . . . she’d been with Maks? I wasn’t even jealous because it was obvious he wasn’t interested, and let’s be honest, he’d had to see me deal with Steve, someone I cared very little for even though he was my ex-husband.
She whimpered. “It’s not like that, Maks. You’re a caracal shifter, like me. I thought . . . I thought you’d be able to protect me. That’s why I came here.”
Maks snorted. “You were a diva from the time you realized what a diva was. Get out of my sight.”
She gave a huff and stomped out of the room. I stared at Lila and her wide eyes said it all. We were alone with Maks. Did we dare try to steal him away?
Would he fight us?
<
br /> There was only one way to find out.
On my belly, I shifted, cursing that I was doing it again. But if this worked, then I wouldn’t have to shift again.
I rolled out from under the bed and pulled my blades as I stood. Maks lay on the bed, his eyes closed.
“Hello, Zam.”
So much for surprising him.
Chapter Twenty-One
I pressed a blade to Maks’s throat while he lay on his bed with his eyes closed. “You ruined my surprise, Maks.”
His lips twitched, but his eyes didn’t open. “Did I?”
Lila sucked in a sharp breath. “Zam, you don’t want to kill him.”
I didn’t dare look at her. Here, deep within the Jinn’s Dominion, well inside the enemy’s territory, I didn’t know what to expect from Maks. “I love him, Lila, but he could still turn on us. Marsum could come through him, just like before. And if Marsum dies, then his power and assholeness goes straight to Maks.”
“If he’s not possessing me, he can only see through my eyes. If he’s possessing me, he can hear and feel everything I hear and feel,” Maks said softly. “So right now, he thinks I’m sleeping because my eyes are closed. He can’t hear me.”
That was good enough for me. I dropped the knife to the floor, and jumped on top of him, planting my mouth over his. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me back, rolling me over so he was on top of me, taking the kiss deeper. Lila groaned and I caught movement from the corner of my eye that told me she crawled back under the bed. That and her voice.
“You two . . . seriously? We are in deep shit and you two are making out like teenagers?”
Maybe she was right, but what was I fighting for if not the ones I loved? I ran my hands through his hair and breathed him in, as if I could hold this moment forever. I made myself pull back, pressing my forehead to his. “Maks. You’re sick. I can see it on you.”
He rubbed his cheek against mine, first one side and then the other, but he didn’t address my concern. “They’re in the third level below. The door to the dungeon is not far from Marsum’s quarters. I can help you get there. He’s leaving me alone for the moment.”
“Yeah, because your eyes are closed,” Lila muttered from under the bed. “Aren’t they?”
I ran my fingers over the closed lids. “Yes, they’re closed.”
Maks smiled, but the tension in his face was anything but happy. “Zam, if you cling to my back, and Lila too, I can keep you covered with my cloak. I can walk you past the door. Next to it is a heavy statue you can crouch behind.”
I kissed him again and he pushed off me, sitting up, eyes still closed. “Marsum thinks you’re faking only being able to shift into a house cat. He believes you are hiding your strength on purpose. He believes you are the female lion shifter he’s been waiting for.”
“I’m not,” I said.
“I know, but it gives you an edge. He knows you will come for the others, but he thinks you’ll come in guns blazing because that’s how lions do things.” He held his hand out and I put mine in it. His fingers closed over mine and he raised my palm to his mouth.
“I need to give you the emerald stone, Maks,” I said. “Maybe it can help you. Maybe it will stop Marsum and you can come with us.”
“No, if he knows I have it, he’ll take it from me,” Maks said.
Lila shot out from under the bed. “But my grandmother said you had to have it. And Zam is right. What if it helps you?”
I nodded, and then said, “I agree. That stone belongs with you. Can you use it against Marsum?” I took it from my bag and pushed the stone into his hand. “Try. Please.”
“If he feels me using magic, he’ll come looking,” Maks said.
I leaned my head against his. “Maks. I can’t leave you here. I can’t. You’re dying.”
“I know,” he whispered. “It is because . . . well, it doesn’t matter now why.”
“Yes. It does,” I said.
Lila leapt up and landed on his knees. “Tell us what happened. Please.”
Maks took a slow breath and then shook his head. “Marsum left me alone for a great part of my life because I was seen as weak, lesser, because I wasn’t as strong as he wanted. He had other sons, full Jinn far ahead of me. None are left. He killed them. When he sent me to the Stockyards, I was already sick. Ishtar’s necklace she gave me, it stemmed the illness. Victor took the necklace off me.”
“He wants you dead too,” I said. “Is he next after you?”
“He is.” Maks nodded.
I looked at Lila. “Maks, do you remember your mother?”
“Jinn don’t have mothers,” he said. “Or at least they aren’t kept around. As soon as they give birth they are removed. That way the next generation of Jinn are kept separate from any outside influence.”
I frowned. “Okay, look, long story short because we are running out of fucking time. We ran into your brother, a black lion who had been adopted into your caracal family. I know that sounds crazy, but he . . . he remembers you being taken by Marsum. They thought the Jinn had come for him, being a lion, but they’d come for you, Maks.”
His eyelids twitched and I slapped a hand over them.
A tremor went through his body and I felt the change in him as Marsum dropped into him. “Lila, hide,” I whispered.
I leapt off the bed and slid underneath, grabbing my blade as I went. This was not what I’d call the best act of bravery of the day, but we needed to get to the others. I shouldn’t have spent so much time with Maks.
But I knew this was the last chance I’d get. In my gut, every instinct said there would be no more after this, that this was the final goodbye.
He stood and did a slow turn, speaking to himself. Sort of.
“What are you up to, Maks? I thought for sure you and Nell would have gone back to your usual fucking.” He tapped a toe, a move that was not something I’d ever seen Maks do. “You’re hornier than a two-peckered goat. Did she leave you wanting? Nell never was a tease before.”
He strode around the room, and for a heart-stopping moment, I thought he’d open the closet and see our exit. I reached for Lila and drew her to me. Maks did a full turn around the room and then went to the door. “To my chambers, boy. I need to speak with you.”
The door opened, and we watched as Maks left.
I scrambled out and stood, tiny cobwebs drifting off me.
“You think with all that magic they could clean a little more.” Lila let out a sneeze. I looked at the closet and the long cloaks of varying colors. All cloaks worn by Jinn.
“Lila, I have an idea.”
She groaned. “Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like this?”
I hurried to the closet because I didn’t want to think about losing Maks—again. Inside were a variety of clothes, all made for Maks, far too big for me. I grabbed three shirts and slipped them on, one after another.
“Are you cold?”
“No.” Hell, I was already sweating with the added material. I next went for the pants. Three pairs of pants. Three thick cloaks.
I was weighed down with the clothes as I shifted into my four-legged form. I stumbled forward as my four paws touched the ground. The chain around my neck was much heavier than usual, which wasn’t terribly surprising.
Lila nodded. “Good idea. For once.”
“Shut up, you, and open that door.” This was going to be the tricky part.
We knew roughly where we were going, even without Maks telling us the doorway to the dungeon was near Marsum’s personal quarters. Lila flew to the door and sat on the handle, turning it easily. I grabbed the edge with my claws and pried it open. There was no movement in the hall and a few places we could hide if need be.
“Let’s go,” I whispered and slid out the door. Lila dropped to the ground and jogged along beside me, bouncing a little side to side. Good thing she’d not eaten yet today or her belly would have been dragging the floor.
At the T-intersection at the end o
f the hall, I again checked for movement before stepping out. We wove our way through the building, deeper and deeper until we were at the final doorway.
I was out of breath, and it wasn’t just the clothes. The tension around us rose with each passing second. Not once had we run into a Jinn. Not even a flicker of movement. Surely, they should have been crawling all over the place.
“The door,” I whispered to Lila and again she hopped up on the handle and it twisted open. Too easy, this was all too easy.
I swallowed hard and slid through the doorway. The interior of the hall was lit by torches set in the walls as they wove down a circular staircase. “Stay against the ceiling,” I said.
Lila shot up and I raced down the stairs, hugging the inner wall of the curve. Still no Jinn.
Three flights down, there was another door and this one had a guard. Before I could even shift, Lila was on him. She swooped down and touched the Jinn on the head, freezing him, then pushed him sideways. His head hit the stone footing and shattered.
An eyeball rolled toward me, chunky like a painted rock.
I shifted onto two legs. The extra clothes were not as much of an issue this deep underground, but the shift was. It left me breathing hard and seeing spots as I searched the guard’s body, found the keys, and pulled them out. I did a quick check of the energy of my pride. All three were in there, far to the north Ford tugged on me, and somewhere above my head was Maks.
I stripped off the extra clothes and piled them on the floor.
“Lila, watch my back,” I said.
I put the key in the lock and twisted, a dull click sounding like a gunshot to my straining ears.
The door moved easily as I pushed it open. The dungeon was not made up of cells, but tiny boxes that my eye and mind couldn’t make sense of, at least not right away.
Inside the box closest to me was the barest shift of movement and a golden eye caught mine. Horror like a wash of cold water rushed over me. “Darcy.” I breathed her name as I ran to the box.
Like ice, the glass box was slick and my hands skimmed it quickly as I searched for a way to get in. Darcy was crunched inside, her head pinned to her knees. Tears streaked her face as I tried to find how, how to get this fucking piece of shit open.
Jinn's Dominion (Desert Cursed Series Book 3) Page 21