by Anna Bowman
Rayn glared at him. She didn’t seem to care about this new revelation. She rose to her feet.
“Where. Is. He?”
Jank saved Solomand from having to answer.
“Minuet’s men have him.” His voice was constrained.
“What?” Rayn turned to him with a savage look. “How could you let that happen?”
Sol cringed at the accusation in her tone.
“We didn’t let it happen, Rayn,” he said softly. “We needed it to happen. It’s the whole reason we came here.”
Rayn shook her head in disbelief, pacing back and forth on the deck.
“Why?”
Solomand leaned forward on the side of the ship, cringing as the air stung his back.
“He’s dying. Rayn.” He hated saying it aloud. “It’s a damned miracle he’s lasted this long. The only thing that can save him now is a proper surgeon—his father, to be specific.”
He hated to admit it out loud. The thought of sending Tristan into Corcyra had never been what he wanted.
Rayn pushed hair from her face.
“But, if he’s a traitor…” A wild look crossed her face.
“They won’t kill him, Rayn. It’s not their way.” He tried to move his fingers again and was rewarded with stabbing pain in his hand. “They’ll make him well first.” What happened after he wasn’t going to think about. It wasn’t going to come to that. “We will get him out of here.”
Jank cleared his throat.
“Sol…Ivan’s been gone too long.” His voice was hoarse. “We’ve got to get the hell out of here soon, or we’ll be swarmed by jackass pelicans.”
He was right. But there was no way in hell Solomand was going to leave Ivan behind.
“Get ready to fly, Jank.” He slumped down with a series of winces into a seat. “We’re not losing anyone else.”
Chapter 58
Rayn
Rayn fought to come to grips with the many thoughts inside her head.
I am a member of the Black Recluse. Her fingers tightened on the edge of the skiff as she peered over the swirl of approaching lights. My father was Benjamin Ivers. Her stomach tightened. LeFrost killed him. Her hand moved to the Drakon as she drew it close into her shoulder, inching the barrel over the edge. Focus! If she got too distracted, she’d be no help in getting Ivan and Zee back. Zee. She’d asked Solomand what they would do if she wasn’t with Ivan.
“We’ll have to leave without her.”
There had been a choked kind of horror in his words, and she knew it would kill him to abandon her. She understood why they would have to. LeFrost would not harm her, and they would all come to a nasty end if they didn’t get out fast. Zee was safer than all of them now.
The Governor’s mansion came into view. The wind stung her eyes, and she loosened one hand from the rifle, moving her goggles into place. The Drakon rattled, sliding to one side.
Shit.
She hurried to push it back into place.
“Rayn! On the roof!” Jank’s voice carried over the roar of the engine.
Sol was trying not to talk if he didn’t have to. He leaned forward over the back of the seat. His shirt was now plastered to the wounds on his back. Rayn cringed, reminding herself to breathe.
A bullet ripped through the sails.
No, you don’t!
Rayn saw him standing in the open. Anticipating his movement, she squeezed the trigger, catching him as he ran. This was who she was: an elite sniper for the rebels. It wasn’t that hard to believe.
Bastard!
“Ten o’clock!” Jank was shouting again.
Rayn swiveled the rifle barrel until the next man was in her sights. He toppled before he could get a shot at them. She did not miss a single mark.
They passed over the iron gate, and she saw Ivan, locked in battle with LeFrost’s bodyguard.
“There he is!”
Ivan was up against the bars. In spite of the guns littering the ground around them, the two Slavs fought with their knives. This was not a fight between the Coalition and Rebel fighters. This was a duel between Ice Wolves: the elite mercenaries of the Northland. There was something in the man’s cruel smile that made Rayn’s skin crawl. He was enjoying this fight far too much.
Zee was nowhere in sight. Rayn’s heart sank. Why did everything have to go so horribly wrong? She looked through the scope again, trying to get Aleksei in her sights; but he kept moving, dodging Ivan’s every attempt to reach him with his knife.
Hold still, damn you!
She glimpsed his eyes in the scope as he looked at the skiff. It felt like he was looking right at her, a sinister grin spread on his face. Rayn’s hand remained steady as she pulled the trigger.
Shit.
The bullet only grazed his shoulder.
“Son of a bitch!”
She was out of ammunition.
“Rayn! Get the Cannon!” Sol was next to her, crawling across the deck to the compartment.
“But, what about Ivan?” Rayn asked, hooking the Drakon’s sling over her arm and scrambling across the floor. She wasn’t letting it go even if it was out of ammo.
“I’m going to tell him to get the hell out of the way,” Sol said, pulling on the compartment door.
Rayn helped him, hoping Ivan could manage in time. The Skiff tilted as Jank began to circle. And one hand grabbed the mast. Sol’s slid into the open door, hoisting the long barrel up to her. He cringed as he bent over, handing her each piece of the gun, and—finally—the wall-destroying rounds.
Rayn wrapped her leg around the mast, using both hands to fit the gun together. She took the rounds from Solomand, and dropped one into the barrel, charging the handle back.
Let’s see how you like this!
She let herself go, sliding toward the edge of the skiff, bracing her boots against the side of the deck.
“Ivan!”
Solomand’s yell carried down to the fight, and both of the men looked up at him. Ivan nodded in understanding and moved out of her line of sight. The Slav looked up to the 30 mm cannon staring him in the face. He laughed, looking like he was impressed. Rayn shot it at him, and the cobbled sidewalk exploded, bits of stone flying everywhere.
The bodyguard was crouched low, shielding his head from the shrapnel.
“Damn!” She’d missed him, but he wasn’t presently attacking Ivan.
She let the gun slide away, leaning over the edge.
“Ivan!”
He looked up, thin lines of blood ran across his face where his opponent had come too close. She reached her hand out.
“Come on!”
Ivan hesitated, glancing back at Aleksei. The Slav was rising to his feet, lunging forward.
“Ivan, now!” Solomand was next to her, extending his right arm over, bracing himself with the other.
Aleksei had almost reached Ivan. Rayn rose to one knee, raising her revolver. She would not miss again.
The Slav stopped, the grin still on his face. He yelled something in Slavik at Ivan, who turned to face him, fists balled. The roar of another airship overshadowed the pathetic noise of their own engines. It was accompanied by a high-pitched sound that made her stomach turn.
The Pandora! That’s it. We’re dead.
“Ivan!” Jank lowered the skiff. He turned, hesitating once more before taking both her and Solomand’s hands.
Sol cried out in pain as he and Rayn hauled Ivan into the skiff. The Slav toppled onto the deck.
“Hold onto something!” Jank hollered.
The engines made a horrible screeching noise as they shot up and out of the city. Rayn slammed against Sol and Ivan as the force slid them against the aft part of the airship. A breath caught in her throat as she looked up at the hulking shadow outlined with red flashing lights about to overtake them.
This is it.
It felt like a massive weight was pressed on her chest. She found Solomand’s hand in the dark, her fingers closing around his.
A flash of light shot
from the Pandora’s cannon. There was a terrible splintering sound as the shot ripped through the skiff. Solomand’s arms closed around her as their airship shuddered. They were spinning toward the desert, the burning of their ship reflected on the river beneath them. The water swallowed her, sucking her down into its current. She had no breath left to hold. Gasping, choking, she thrashed through the bottomless liquid. Everything faded to a wet blackness.
Chapter 59
Rayn
Rayn slowly became aware of a screeching noise in the darkness. She followed it, forcing herself from the black sleep. The sun was warm on her face. She opened her eyes slowly, turning away from the bright light.
Where the hell am I?
She used her arm as a shield against the sun, propping herself up on her elbow. Her coat was laid out beneath her over a hard, grainy surface. It felt like something stabbed her in the chest every time she breathed. As her vision came into focus, she saw Sol, Jank, and Ivan were lying in a row next to her.
Groaning, she sat up and leaned forward, her head throbbing. A shadow blocked out the light.
“Here.” Rayn glanced up, squinting as her head pounded. The sun behind his back, the Falcon squatted down, holding out a canteen. She took it, cringing at the painful jolt that ran from her lower back up her spine. It faded to a dull throb as she drank. The water was cold against the abrasive dryness in her throat.
Elbows resting on his knees, the Falcon studied her with his dark eyes. She stopped drinking to take a breath, wiping away the water trickling down the side of her face.
“Are they ok?”
She looked at Sol. His upper body was more covered with bandages than not.
The Falcon’s eyes flickered to Solomand.
“They’ll be fine,” he said. His head tilted back, becoming a silhouette in the sun behind him. “I patched him up, but I’m no Highcourt.”
Tristan.
Rayn felt ill. Was he even still alive? The Falcon’s eyes narrowed.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Rayn cringed, pressing her aching head with the palm of her hand.
“I guess. I feel like…well, shit.”
The Falcon’s mouth turned up in amusement.
“You have multiple minor abrasions and lacerations, a possible fractured wrist and you nearly drowned. More than likely, you are dehydrated, and will no doubt suffer from varying shades of blue and purple for the next few weeks.” His head tilted slightly, his eyes locking with hers as he scrutinized her. “But, that’s not what I was asking?”
His eyes narrowed further. “I want to know if you are alright.”
Rayn’s eyes moved to Sol again: Solomand Black…her husband. All the information that had ripped through her mind like a tornado the previous night began to settle. Her hand involuntarily moved to her stomach, and she closed her eyes, trying to shut out the disturbing reality. She understood why Sol didn’t want to tell her.
“You knew too, didn’t you?”
The Falcon’s expression did not change.
“Yes. I was the one who took you to Port Ashbury for your father.”
Port Ashbury.
Suddenly Rayn remembered where she’d seen him before. It was the day Solomand turned her world upside down. But before that had happened, there was a mysterious looking stranger in the bar that caught her attention.
“You were there.”
Lemuel’s gaze narrowed. “Yes. I was there many times.”
Of course, he was.
“Why?”
“I owed your father a favor. We used to work together but had a disagreement over one of my research projects.”
Rayn suspected it was more than that. “You mean sleep walking?”
Lemuel’s brow wrinkled.
“Yes. He believed it was wrong. I believed that was irrelevant. It was effective.” Lines formed on his eyes as they squinted. “So, he left and got himself mixed up in the political dealings of Corcyra, which ended in a senseless bloodbath.” He looked like he didn’t really want to talk about it and sighed. “He asked me to help him, and I refused. He knew I couldn’t compromise myself.”
He grew quiet, staring stoically off in the distance before clearing his troubled gaze and turning back to Rayn.
“And that’s enough questions answered by me. You didn’t answer mine.”
Rayn’s shoulders slumped, the deluge of unpleasant realities catching up, threatening to drown her in an entirely different way. She forced herself to meet his eyes, and sighed, too exhausted to try to tell lies. There was no keeping secrets from a man like him, anyway.
“No.” Her voice sounded more like a croak. She took a shaky breath, wiping her nose with her sleeve. “But I will be.”
The Falcon studied her for a moment longer, then nodded, satisfied. He stood and stepped noiselessly to a black rucksack. Rayn took another sip of water. The bandage on her wrist smelled like flowers and pungent spices-the same scent she had smelled from Iminho’s tent.
Kree medicine.
The Falcon rummaged through his bag, pulling out a handful of small, green balls: kanji fruit. He handed one to Rayn.
He took a bite of the fruit in his hand. There was that amused flicker in his eyes though. He walked over to Sol and the others, placing one of the fruits and a canteen next to each of them. Rayn bit into the smooth rind, savoring the crisp sweetness in her mouth. She didn’t realize how hungry she was.
“Thought you had business in Olbia,” Sol mumbled, reaching a shaky hand for the canteen.
“Sol!” Rayn’s heart jumped.
“It’ll wait for me,” The Falcon replied.
“Why’d you come back?” Sol croaked, between sips of water. Rayn cringed at his swollen, bruised eye.
The Falcon sat on his heels. “You know me, Sol. I won’t leave my bet up to fate.”
Sol gulped too quickly, and spluttered, choking on a mouthful of water. The Falcon took the canteen from him and set it down.
“Isn’t that cheating?” Sol winced with every movement.
“It’s called winning, Sol.” The Falcon shook his head slightly like Solomand was an idiot for not knowing that.
“Lemuel…” Sol’s head was still raised. “Thank you.” He sank back to the ground.
The Falcon looked thoughtfully at Solomand.
“Majea iskawew…Aminaksew.”
He turned to Rayn.
“I have to go.” He whistled in a shrill, melodious way. “Make sure the other two drink water while I’m gone.” He glanced at Jank and Ivan.
Rayn nodded. The screech of Lemuel’s falcon answered his whistle, echoing off the canyon walls as he left through the narrow opening.
Rayn’s heartbeat was normal, so long as she didn’t think about anything. She crawled painfully to Solomand’s side. His eyes opened, and he smiled, slightly.
“Hello, Rayn Storm.” He tried to sit up.
“Be still.” Rayn frowned.
Idiot. She thought, in a more gentle way than usual.
“Why did you have to get so…tore the hell up?”
Sol let his head fall back to his rolled-up coat.
“I’ll heal. But the look on that Airman’s face when I told him to stick his head in a cannon…that will last forever.”
Rayn laughed, then winced at the stabbing in her side.
“You should have saved it for after you got away.”
She sniffed, trying to sound annoyed. A hot ball of anger began to grow in her chest against her will, knowing what she did now, what LeFrost had done…
“If…” she swallowed, staring into his steel-blue eyes. “If I’d have known, I would have killed him.”
There was sadness in Sol’s smile. He raised his hand. A warmth spread through her as he brushed her cheek, and the anger subsided.
“I know you would have.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me before?”
Her voice cracked. Sadness for things she didn’t even remember rose up.
Sol’s hand fell to his side, and a deep sorrow filled his eyes—so intense she could feel it herself.
“Because sometimes it’s not about revenge, Rayn. It’s about protecting the ones you have left.”
His hand trembled as it laced through hers.
“Why can’t it be both?” Rayn whispered.
“Oh, Rayn...there was a time when all I thought of was ripping that man’s head off with my bare hands.”
“What stopped you?”
He took a shaky breath.
“It was killing me, and I needed to live: for you, for Tristan, for what family I had left.”
Rayn’s fingers closed around his, finally seeing past the secrets and lies to the real Solomand Black: a man who had lost everything and would fly straight into hell if there was a chance it might save his friend. She didn’t remember loving him before, but she knew she did now.
“Was it a boy or a girl?”
Sol’s eyes closed.
“A girl.” His voice wavered.
Rayn’s eyes clamped shut, and she was quiet for a while. Finally, not being able to bear the silence any longer.
“It’s not Rayn Storm,” she said, blinking back tears. “It’s Rayn Black.”
Solomand struggled to sit, ignoring the pain as he leaned toward Rayn. His fingers combed through her hair.
“You’ll always be Rayn Storm to me,” he touched his forehead to hers.
Gently, Rayn’s hand trailed along his neck.
“I still don’t remember you,” she whispered, sounding sad. “Except in my dreams, and then it’s not as you are now.” Her fingers tugged at the chain on his neck. She pulled back to look him in the eyes. “Now I understand why you wanted to kill that Airman in Blackpool.”
Sol’s head dug into her neck as he laughed.
“Would you have done it?”
“Hell yes,” he said without hesitation. “He made me think I might lose you in an entirely different way.” He took her chin in his hands. “I was stupid to ever think I could be selfless enough to let you go. I’ll never make that mistake again.”
She ran a hand through his smoky-black hair.
“It was a stupid idea, and if you didn’t look so damned awful last night, I would have slapped you for it.”
Solomand’s shoulder shook as he laughed, wincing.