by Cara Lake
Ziad Nejem, her sanguini friend who had been missing for months since the Eunomi last visited Ophiuchus to save Tyr and Irina from the Discordants. Had Ziad been here all that time? She peered more closely at the writing, trying to see if she could recognize his hand. It looked familiar.
Why would Morana hold Ziad prisoner? A vague whisper of a conversation echoed in her ears. She recalled a joke she had shared with Cassi, a warrior friend on the day Ziad had disappeared. They had been directed to a brothel in search of a Discordant called Abrasax.
“I was told to go to the Gilded Lily,” said Cassi. “I hope she wasn’t lying.”
Tani spotted a sign with a large golden lily painted on a red background. Music was blaring from inside. “Who told you?”
“An Ophiuchi class-A bitch called Morana.”
“Why did she help you? Does she have a grudge against Abrasax?”
“I got the impression she’d sell her own mother,” said Cassi, as she cased the building for a way in. “She would probably sell her whole family, for the right price.”
“Oh. So what did you give her?”
“That’s the weird thing—she asked me about Ziad, whether he had a female or not.”
Tani gaped “Ziad!”
“Yeah. I should have mentioned it to him but I forgot. You don’t think she might try and kidnap him or something, do you? Use him as a sex slave.” Cassi and Tani were both laughing now at the thought of Ziad enthralled to a woman. “Not Ziad. He’s a beautiful guy, but he’s too wrapped up in his work to bother with females. She probably needs his healing abilities for something.”
“I’m sure he’d be happy to help. Ziad’s the most generous male I know,” Cassi said.
They had thought nothing of it, distracted by their task and even after it became clear that Ziad was missing, neither she nor Cassi had put two and two together. Damn! Tani was now positive that Ziad had been here. But if that was the case…where was he now?
There was nothing else to see in the room other than a few drops of blood splattered on the blue floor. Tani wished she had the power of revelation, the ability to open the mind’s eye to the residue of previous events. It was a gift that very few wiccani possessed. Those who did were often members of the Eunomi Enforcement Squad, their skill particularly useful when investigating the scene of a crime. It was imperative she touch base with Antares so he could follow up on this lead. Maybe he could get an EES member to come and take a reading. Ziad was a close friend of hers, a healer of great skill and renown. She wanted him back, safe where he belonged.
Tani left the library and quickly returned to her room. Dressing for comfort and practicality rather than effect, she left the house wearing a gray tank under a white shirt, black combat pants and a jacket that hid a multitude of weapons sheathed in a variety of hidden places. The urge to feel more like herself and less like a spoiled lady of leisure was too strong to ignore.
First stop Sami’s house, then Antares. Tani wanted to meet the cousin Lorcan had spoken of, the young girl cast off by her family for giving birth to a child born of rape. Tani hoped her insight would give her a better understanding of the man who was disturbing her equilibrium.
* * * * *
Jaro cursed violently on leaving Phenex’s presence. He hated having to follow his orders, but as a slave he had no choice. To disobey would be suicide, especially after the moronic stunt he had pulled last night. His brief moment of defiance had cost him dearly, his body and face still aching and swollen. Many of his wounds were beginning to heal, although his face was still ravaged. For quick healing he could thank his Lyrani blood, inherited from his father, a Lyrani by birth. Usually it was a blessing but definitely not now. If he was slower to heal, then someone else would have been charged with this particular task. The order dispensed by Phenex that morning had him strung up by the balls. He would rather have plucked out his own eyes, cut off his hands and been whipped another hundred times than have to do what Phenex commanded. He had no choice.
“Jaro,” he had said, “I need your service. There is a pretty package awaiting me and I want you to go fetch it. I need not tell you that the Lady Sitri is not to know about this package.” Phenex raised his brows, making it obvious to Jaro what kind of package he was collecting.
“Where am I to go, my lord?” asked Jaro, expecting to be directed to one of the many brothels in the city. “You will need to reclaim this package by stealth, follow and retrieve. Here are the details.” He proceeded to give Jaro a description and the current whereabouts of the package.
The universe was surely laughing at him, playing a cosmic joke. He had planned to avoid her after witnessing that scene with Lorcan last night. She was detrimental to his health, his body and heart still bruised, not only from the previous night’s battle, but from the savage beating he’d received courtesy of his brother. And now he was charged with her kidnap and giving her to Phenex! His gut churned with nausea, the thought of Phenex with her killed him. Lorcan and her, well, that had already driven a knife in his chest—but Phenex and her, the thought of his master’s hands on the redhead’s pale flesh forced the knife deeper, slicing into his chest to leave a gaping hole.
Fuck! The whole situation was insane! He didn’t even know this woman, had only just learned her name, and apart from that heated moment of frenzy in the alley she might as well be a figment of his imagination. She was every fantasy he’d ever had come true. If he could have conjured the woman of his dreams into being, she would be it. Tanith Laska. The redheaded witch.
* * * * *
The three suns were high overhead by the time Tanith entered the maze of alleyways that led to the bazaar. As she walked, Tani’s skin prickled, the hairs on the back of her neck standing to attention, sending fight-or-flight messages to her brain. She was being followed. Heart galloping in her chest, she entered the more open crowded square of the bazaar, hoping to lose her pursuer in the heaving throng. Turning, she caught a glimpse of dark hair before the jostling mass carried her pursuer out of sight, at which point she sped up, darting into the side street that led to the young urchin’s home.
There wasn’t much time before she was due at Lorcan’s. Her stomach churned in anticipation of that meeting. Evading a tail was a concern and a time-consuming irritation. Who was it following her and why? Was Morana merely keeping an eye on her? Tani lengthened her stride, hoping to lose them in the twisting maze of alleyways.
Hugging the side of a building, Tani almost tripped over a pile of debris lying on the road. A small hand diverted her wobble and Tani stared down, surprised to see a pair of blue-gray eyes appraising her cautiously. “Watch out,” said the small boy she knew as Sami. “Folks leave stuff all over the place here. It’s a death trap.” He smiled engagingly. Tani pulled out a coin in thanks, pressing it into his palm before he could protest. “Well then, thank you for saving my life,” she said.
Sami gazed down at the coin as if he’d never seen one before. His doubtful expression morphed to a grin. “I could be your guide,” he said, hope shining in his eyes. “You’re a newbie here, aren’t you? I saw you the other day in the bazaar. You was looking for something. Did you find it?”
How perceptive he was, this small undernourished child. If only he knew the truth. “In fact, today,” she said slowly, not wanting to frighten him, “I was looking for you, or rather your mama.” He tensed, suddenly on the alert. “It’s okay,” Tani soothed, realizing how skittish he was. “I don’t mean any harm. I just want to talk to her. We have a mutual friend.”
His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Who’s that then?”
“Rodach.” Tani surprised herself, calling Lorcan by his surname as Sami had before, voicing the word as if it were a magickal spell. Sami visibly relaxed but still looked a little doubtful. He chewed his lip until he finally came to a decision. “Oh well, if you know Rodach, it’s probably okay.” He had obviously decided that her link to Lorcan gave her the stamp of approval.
“Is your mama at
home or at work?”
He hesitated before answering. “She went down to the river to wash clothes. She should be back soon.”
“Can I wait for her at your house?”
“Outside, not in,” he said, erring on the side of caution. She knew his trust would need to be earned. “That’s fine. It’s too nice a day to wait inside.” Tani turned with him, fighting the urge to take his small hand in hers. He was such a small, frail thing. Her heart so big with compassion and love, it was all she could do not to take him in her arms and hug him.
He broke into a run. “Mama’s back!” he shouted, darting toward a thin blonde figure carrying a large basket. The woman looked up at his shout. The tired features of her face, prematurely aged by the harshness of her existence, broke into a smile at the sight of the small boy running toward her.
Tani was just about to break into a jog and follow him when a large hand wrapped around her waist from behind, a second one snaking around her head to clamp over her mouth. Her assailant was a hard wall of muscle and smelled foul, of stale sweat and dried blood. Tani nearly gagged, cursing herself silently for the lapse in concentration that had allowed her stalker to attack. Warrior training kicked in. She slammed her head backward, connecting with his jaw, the loud crack vibrating pain that rattled every tooth in her mouth. The shock caused him to slacken his grip, allowing Tani to twist, her hand grabbing between his legs to jerk his balls as hard as she could. The force of her assault had him roaring at the double whammy and he lurched sideways, releasing her from his grasp.
Tani sprang away, turning, prepared to attack again, not wanting to give him time to regain his balance, realizing too late that she should have run. Her assailant had backup. Five huge bodies surrounded her, leaving no avenue for escape. Each male, including the first attacker, was two hundred and forty pounds of brute force. With their shaved heads and yellow eyes it was clear they were shedu and in service to the warlord Belial, each one wearing the crimson mark of their overlord on his massive chest.
Acting on instinct, Tani spun around, scissor-kicking the thug who had closed in at her back. Her foot made contact with his chest. He grunted, toppling back but not far enough for her to make a dash past. More hands snatched at her waist and she jabbed this attacker’s face with her right elbow, punching another who had advanced to the side with her left. She kicked again and again, spinning as fast as she could to break out of the circle.
They were not unscathed, her warrior blood leaving them in little doubt that she was not the easy catch they had expected. But Tani was outnumbered and before long five pairs of hands had overpowered her and she found herself facedown in the dirt.
“Be still, bitch!” The first assailant dragged her up by the hair, jerking her head back, knife at her throat. Too late, Tani remembered the weapons she had stashed beneath her clothes. They hadn’t searched her yet and had seemed unprepared for such resistance, so perhaps there was a chance they wouldn’t find them. No such luck. The thug behind began to pat her down, his hands lingering on her breasts and between her legs.
Tani sucked in an angry breath. Energy hummed as the air around her turned static and a shock wave of such intensity exploded, the mental force of it almost knocking her over. She barely had time to turn in order to see where it was coming from when the physical manifestation of the raging fury barreled into them, knocking her assailants over like ninepins.
Covering her ears to block out the loudest sound she’d ever heard, a roar of such savage ferocity she thought the ground would quake, Tani found herself encircled by an iron weight. She flew sideways, caught in the grip of two massive arms, steel bands that clamped her body but somehow managed to cradle her fall as she crashed to the ground.
For a moment all was still. Tani opened her eyes, locking on to two molten orbs of liquid mercury that poured into her, the shock of the contact sparking a jolt of adrenaline that punched her heart into orbit and sent it spinning crazily in her chest.
Frozen, locked by some invisible force, Tani almost forgot to breathe. Inaction cost them both dearly.
Chapter Thirteen
Abduction
Jaro couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t move. Blood sang in his ears, pumping violently through veins that throbbed with barely contained fury and an overwhelming sense of possession. And now as he stared down at the soft, pliant female form in his arms, his redheaded witch, he couldn’t remember how he’d got there. Wait a minute! His redheaded witch? Lorcan’s face intruded and the bubble burst.
He had only seconds to register the frown of confusion that crossed her beautiful amethyst eyes before a sledgehammer of a punch suckered him squarely in the jaw. A storm of crashing blows rained down on him from all directions and the redhead was wrenched from his embrace.
Déjà vu. Shouts. Grunting. “It’s Phenex’s champion!” Sharp stabs of pain in his gut, liver, kidneys. “Take him! Belial will pay well for this bastard’s capture!” Red clouded his vision but it was too late. A succession of blows to his head. Shooting pain the length of his spine. He blinked, trying to keep focus on the girl. He reached out a hand. Blackness fell.
One moment Tani’s vision was blinded by a river of mercury silver, molten liquid with slivers of indigo banking its path, a waterfall gushing into every vein in her body, the heat of it snaking to light a fire in her core. The next, it was gone. A freezing chill ripped through her body at a cellular level as the mountain that had steamrolled into her with such force was wrenched backwards and she was left vulnerable in the dust, not just physically but emotionally, her soul crying out, shattered by the loss of fire in her blood. Neurons sparking, her brain blew a fuse, short-circuiting as if trying to repair a lost connection.
The lack of direction in her rational thoughts left her exposed to the rough hands of her attackers and she was hauled to her feet and tossed over a shoulder. A calloused hand grasped her neck, forcing her mouth toward another hand that held a rag. Tani tried to twist her head away but the pressure on her neck increased, causing her to gasp for air. The intake of breath was her undoing and she slipped into the unconscious slumber of a drugged sleep, hoping that somehow Antares might hear of this and get word to the Eunomi trackers.
* * * * *
When he next awoke, Jaro couldn’t move, but this time there were no amethyst eyes holding his gaze and paralyzing his thought processes. No. This time his hands were bound in chains behind his back and his feet were shackled. Blinking his eyes into focus as consciousness kicked in, he struggled against his restraints but they were too tight. A sharp kick to the gut. “Get up, dog!” Two hands rough on his neck, hauling him up against a large truck. Jaro regained his balance as the shock of daylight gave way to a scene that made his blood boil.
The redhead lay twenty feet away, bound like him, a leather ring around her neck attached to a leash held by one of Belial’s men. She was unconscious and it took all of his self-control not to lunge for her in that instant, so strong was the instinct to protect. He hissed his annoyance, the sound alerting his guard that he was fully awake. Hands lashed out, tugging his hair backward, exposing his throat to a knife that drew blood, a sign of vicious intent. “Agron was a friend of mine and you’re responsible for his death. If I didn’t think that Belial will pay good coin for you, you’d be in pieces by now. So play nice ‘cos I’m not averse to slicing you up a little.”
Jaro recognized the harsh rasp that spat in his ear. Halvin. Well, he had payback of his own to dish out to that bastard. A bastard who liked to batter and reap unspeakable acts on defenseless females. At least Agron had died in the arena. Halvin wouldn’t have that honor. Not if Jaro had anything to say about it.
Jaro reined in his fury, storing the rage in his gut where it could fester and grow, feeding it on bile and acid, making it stronger. When it finally erupted, Halvin wouldn’t know what hit him. He stilled, letting his muscles relax, causing Halvin to let him go with a kick to the shins that sent Jaro to his knees. He stayed where he was and focused on m
ore important concerns.
Luckily he recognized the scenery. They were at least a two-day trek on foot from Serpens. He must have been out for a while or drugged to keep him quiet. Probably drugged because his face was still swollen and bruised and the drugs would have slowed his natural healing. Then again he had taken another beating, adding an additional layer of wounds on top of those he had sustained before.
Three trucks containing supplies of some kind were parked at the side of the road that snaked through an open area of moorland. Probably weaponry, he surmised, knowing Belial for one of the largest arms dealers on Ophiuchus. Behind him, he knew, lay the deep stretch of forest that swathed the outer edges of Serpens territory and ahead, rough and wild, damp marshes dotted the landscape for a hundred miles toward the city of Arushka, Belial’s stronghold.
Jaro counted twelve men. Belial himself was not present. He had most likely traveled ahead, leaving this contingent to do his dirty work, weapons running and kidnapping. The redhead was popular. It couldn’t just be her ethereal beauty that had both Phenex and Belial drooling over her and in the dim recesses of his mind, Jaro recalled Lorcan mentioning Choronzon’s interest.
Choronzon, Lord of the Abyss, leader of the Discordants. Not the type of male to take an interest in a female unless she was worth something. Belial clearly didn’t know of the Discordant leader’s interest or he wouldn’t have captured her unless he had a death wish or he was planning to sell her on to Choronzon for his own gain. Whatever his plans for the redhead, Jaro knew they weren’t good.