by Aliyah Burke
She’d just released a breath when a meaty hand shot into the small space she’d hidden in and grabbed her by the throat. The person dragged her out and tossed her on the ground. Seconds later came the familiar prick of a hypodermic slipping into her skin and shooting some liquid into her.
“Here she is!” he hollered.
Above, lightning jagged angrily and thunder boomed. The winds whipped the trees around, bending them to their will. She squinted up through the chaos and tried to make out who’d grabbed her. The rain stung and she couldn’t pry her eyes open long enough to see.
A roar she equated to a tornado bore down on them. This wasn’t natural—there was no way something like this could come up so quickly. Before it had just been rain. Now, she wasn’t sure what to call it.
Armageddon.
“Get away from her!”
Her skin prickled and she instantly tried to see through the mess for Lian. He shouldn’t be here—these men would eat him alive.
“Who are you?” Seger demanded. She recognised him from the rasp of his voice. He was one who got his rocks off by torturing her.
“I’m here for the woman.”
“Sorry, she’s coming with us.”
Ricky grabbed her arm and dragged her closer to him, the rocky ground tearing at her skin. She’d not even known he was here. He wasn’t the one who had pulled her from the small hole she’d been hiding in. Ricky was hired muscle but he was quiet. There were times she wondered if he didn’t feel bad for what she was going through. Still, he hadn’t ever helped her either. She remained limp, not fighting him yet neither did she go willingly.
“I said, let her go.”
The wind died a quick death, as if someone had thrown the switch on a fan. In the space of a heartbeat, everything had been quelled. Well, only in regards to the wind. Rain, thunder and lightning continued to play a part. The water sheeted down but at least she could see Lian.
Huh, look at that. He seems dry. Not to mention well dressed.
“This needn’t concern you. We have to take her home. She’s a danger to herself and one to others.”
Lian barely blinked. “So you shock and shoot her to keep her under control?” His disbelief dripped from his words. The look on his face confirmed to her how he didn’t believe their words. “Are you the bastard who put the bruises on her?”
Seger scowled and glared back at her before returning that look to Lian. “We do what is necessary. She’s a murderer and needs to remain sedated and controlled so she doesn’t do it again.” He waved a hand and Ricky yanked her to her feet. “Not anything to concern yourself with.”
Lian gave a smile, which was more a baring of teeth. “I disagree. You see when I met her last night, she wanted to kill herself. Not me. She was bleeding and has proof of abuse on her body. I can only imagine what you have done to her mentally if you did what I saw physically. I won’t let you take her.”
For the second time in a long time, she was met with a feeling of hope. Whoever this man was could he, would he, truly help her?
Exhaustion consumed her and her legs began to shake. They wouldn’t hold her up any longer and Ricky’s fingers dug in tight as she collapsed. He jerked her up.
“Stand up, damn it!”
Lian’s head snapped in their direction. A bolt of lightning sank into a tree near them and thunder boomed simultaneously. Everyone but Lian jumped. She focused on his eyes, even as Ricky muttered behind her. Lian’s gaze had brightened and she wondered if the lightning hadn’t come from him.
Whatever they gave me is fucking with my head because that’s just insane. Why would lightning come from his eyes? Doesn’t make sense.
As she wobbled there, more versions of him appeared. They gave me some good shit. Lian held her gaze and moved his mouth. She shook her head, unable to understand what he was saying. Any of the hims she saw. No longer containing the energy to fight the drugs, she closed her eyes and gave in to the hovering darkness. It was her friend, always had been. It was what came after that scared her. No matter how many times she experienced it, the fear was always there. And the pain. Thankfully, right now, it was just peaceful darkness waiting for her with open arms.
* * * *
She stirred and lifted her eyelids. Something was wrong. This wasn’t a sterile room with bright overhead lights. There was no beeping and she wasn’t strapped to a table. The ceiling looked familiar, something from recent memory.
“You are awake.”
That voice. She turned her head to find someone watching her. Nope, correction. Not someone. She remembered him. Lian. Lian Yang.
“Lian,” she said, throat dry.
“You remembered my name. Are you up to giving me yours?”
Not so much, but he had saved her from Seger. “Lana.”
“That will do for now, Lana.”
The way her name slipped from his tongue was soothing and nearly arousing all at the same time. She stared at him and took in his swimmer’s build with lean musculature. His black hair fell in shaggy waves about his face. His skin depicted his Asian heritage and black eyes, which watched her closely, completed the package. All around good-looking.
“You saved me?”
“A second time.”
She shook her head. “I never asked you to.”
“I know.” A slight smile lifted the right side of his mouth. “I will get you some tea. Do not leave. You are safe here.”
She doubted that but she didn’t have the energy to run again, so she merely closed her eyes. When he whispered her name, she’d not even realised she’d gone to sleep again. He stood near, holding a tray. She slowly sat up, discovering she wore a shirt similar to the one he’d put on her before.
Her skin heated as she thought of him seeing her naked. Lian placed the tray over her lap and poured the tea for her. There were small tea cookies on a saucer as well.
“Why are you doing this? I told you, I won’t tell you anything.”
“But you already have.”
She stared at him. “What did I say?”
This time it was a full smile he gave, and her heart skipped a few beats. Men shouldn’t be that good-looking.
“You gave me your name, which is what I wanted from last night.” He moved to the door. “Drink your tea and eat some cookies. The soup will be ready soon.” A slight bow then he walked out.
Lana stared after him for a while and tried to figure him out. The part of her that distrusted all who claimed to want to help reared its head. For the first time in her life, she ignored it.
She admitted to herself she had zero left to give. Her body had basically been so beaten it had shut down.
So I stay alert but accept the ability to rest.
Chapter Two
Lian stared at his hands as he carried the tray to the counter. They trembled a bit. A fact he wasn’t a fan of at all.
What is it about her? He placed a small bowl of soup on the handcrafted wooden tray. Stainless steel silverware he set upon the cobalt blue linen napkin. A porcelain teapot and matching cup also joined the tray. He placed a few crackers on a dish and it was also set down.
He was a man who prided himself on not losing his calm and always remaining in control. However, seeing the fear on Lana’s face had ripped it all away as if removing cobwebs with a broom.
No one will hurt her again.
He gripped the handles and lifted the tray before leaving the kitchen. After a brief pause at the doorway, he walked in. Her eyes were closed and her chest rose and fell slowly. The previous tray he’d brought lay to the side.
“Lana.” He called her name twice more before her lashes lifted, exposing tired, dark-brown eyes. He noticed how panic and the need to flee flashed across her expression before she controlled it. She was an expert at hiding her emotion.
“Soup.”
She’d not slid down as she slept, so he just settled it across her lap and took away the other tray, resting it on the dresser. This time he sat in the chair
in his room. Lana peered at him once more before lifting the spoon and tasting some soup. Then she looked at him again. “It’s chicken.”
“You expected something different?”
“Let’s just say my most recent soups have been more watery salt than actual stock, there were definitely no noodles or vegetables.”
“Where was that?”
She paused before taking another bite. “I’m not sure.”
He could sense the truth of her words. Her confusion also. “No idea?”
“I don’t even know where I am now.” More food went in her mouth.
“You’re in Pennsylvania. Is there family I can call for you? Just give me your last name.”
“No.”
He noted the quick response. “Are you sure?”
Her expression remained solemn.
“Positive. He killed them all.” Her hand wobbled and the spoon clattered against the bowl. “I’m alone. The last name, though, is Tennesol.”
Lian rose and walked over to sit on the foot of the bed. “One of those men killed your family?”
A deep breath expelled from her chest. “Not Seger or Rick specifically, but the ones who did work at the same place.”
“Why were you in this clinic?”
He watched her withdraw into herself and violated his own promise of not touching her again. Placing his hand under her chin, he turned her face towards him.
“Lana. Tell me.”
“I apparently have something a group wants. A group called The New Order.”
“What is their goal?” He had to pull on years of experience in keeping his emotions to himself to keep hidden what he felt at the revelation of that group’s name. He’d dealt with them before but wanted to know how much she knew.
“From what I’ve gathered, they are trying to stop some supposed man or defender of the world from finding the one who will make him regain his waning strength. They failed to stop it during the thirteen hundreds, but the time is coming again.” She shook her head. “And they thought I needed to be admitted.”
He dropped his hand. “They spoke of this to you?”
“No, of course not. Why would anyone speak to me? They merely talked a lot while assuming I was asleep or unconscious. It didn’t matter, there was never any intent on their part to let me go.”
She spoke frankly. No tears or telling him how bad it had been for her. Admiration grew along with something else. An emotion he wasn’t ready to acknowledge.
“Why would they assume you were this key they sought?”
She worked her lips from side to side and he swore she blushed. “A mark on my skin.”
His heart kicked up a bit. There were almost too many coincidences happening here. After all this time…no, he couldn’t, wouldn’t, allow himself false hope.
“Like a birthmark?”
“Sort of. I haven’t ever seen another birthmark like it, however.” A sneer. “Not like I’ve had the opportunity to see a lot of them on others.”
“May I ask what it’s of?”
She canted her head to the side, weighing his words. “Stars.” She laid the spoon down.
“Finish the food.” The hair on his neck stood up.
She gave him a look that said she really wanted to argue with him before dutifully picking up the spoon and demolishing the rest of what he’d placed there.
“Where is the mark?”
Her mumbled response had him repeating the question.
“Inner thigh.”
Fury replaced his curiosity. “They found it how?” Were he before those men again, he would have killed them.
“I don’t know. They knew about them when they captured me.” She touched her neck. “As often as I was strapped to the table, I’m sure they would have found out soon enough. I had no privacy.” A slight shrug. “There was just none to be had there.”
Anger still pumped through him. “And while you were there?”
Her laugh was without any humour. “They discovered new ways of trying to get me to talk.”
Outside, thunder boomed and she glanced out of the window before giving a quick shake of her head. He reined in his temper best he could.
“You are safe now, Lana Tennesol. They will not hurt you again,” he vowed.
She blessed him with a smile, something he sensed she didn’t do often. “You don’t need to protect me. More will be coming after me. I’m valuable to them. I can’t stay and put you in danger.”
“Where would you go?”
She toyed with the blue linen. “I have always wanted to see the Pacific Ocean before I die. I will make my way there and hope to reach it before they find me again.”
He frowned at her word choice. “You are not dying.”
“Everyone does at some point, Lian. All that varies is the time it occurs.”
He inched forward on the bed until their hips touched. “You will live for a while longer, Lana. Have a family. A husband.”
Sorrow filled her face. “No. There will be no husband and no family for me.” Her fingers fiddled with the quilt top.
“Why?” Yes, he was prying.
“Along with the scars they gave me, they also took away my ability to have children.” Lightning hit a nearby tree and she jumped. “You have weird weather.”
He was pissed. The weather outside showed it. Clouds—dark and angry ones—raced in accompanied by lightning and more thunder. What kind of savages were these people? Never had he experienced such a need to protect before. It steamrolled him.
“I am sorry,” he said.
“For what?”
“What has happened to you.”
“Did you play any part in it?”
“No.” His response adamant.
“Then you have nothing to apologise for.”
Her statement was so matter of fact it gave him pause.
“I should have killed them all,” he snarled.
“They would only be replaced.” Another shrug. “Probably already have been.”
Warmth spread throughout him and he glanced out the window. The tingles which encompassed his body hadn’t happened before. Had something changed? Was this woman and her nearly-too coincidental story truly part of his life?
He turned away from the window as the clouds parted making way for the moonlight to shine in. Time had passed without him truly recognising the fact. Lian turned back to his visitor and paused. The inside of her wrist, bathed in moonlight, pulsed. As he stared, she rubbed the skin then removed her hand. The mark that glowed there took his breath away.
It couldn’t be!
He grabbed her, ignoring her startled gasp. “What is this?” His question was raspy and his entire body came alive.
She remained silent and he peered at her face. He wasn’t counting on the sorrow he discovered. Along with resignation. He realised then that the mark was not new to her. The remaining veil lifted from his eyes and he understood who had been put before him.
Double-checking, he pulled her wrist closer to him, out of the light, and as expected, the mark faded. Her gaze dropped as did her shoulders. Back in the moonlight and it reappeared.
“Give me your other wrist.”
When she did and he placed it in the stream of moonbeams, another mark appeared. Her thin arms trembled. He looked at her again. There was no spark left in her expression and it tore at his gut.
“Do you know what this means?” he asked, ensuring to keep his voice gentle.
“Yes.”
He couldn’t bring himself to release her. His thumbs were over the marks and he could feel them throbbing faintly. They weren’t as strong as they would get but they couldn’t be ignored.
“Tell me.” He had to hear the words from her lips.
“More torture.”
It took a moment for the uttered words to sink in. He ran his gaze over her once more, ignoring the feelings of lust. Faded scars riddled her body and he felt horrible at what she’d been exposed to.
“No. I
will never hurt you, Lana.”
She lifted her head and he read the need in her gaze. Not sexual need, but a desperate need to believe. In him and his words.
“I know you have no reason to trust me,” he said in ancient Chinese. “But never will I harm, always shall I defend, and forever shall I honour you.” The words fell from his lips, as if he’d practised saying it over and over when in actuality he’d not given them a single thought since he learned them so long ago. It was natural.
He held her gaze as the effect of the words kicked in. Her eyes widened and she began to move away. He tightened his hold. Glyphs popped up on his arms and chest, moving sinuously along his skin. His chest warmed and he knew those glyphs—although beneath his shirt—moved as well.
“Wha…what are you?”
“Yours.”
“This…this can’t be real.”
“Look at your mark.”
They did simultaneously. The one on her left wrist had been circled by a ring of tiny stars, each one a different colour, providing a stunning and vibrant display. Thin lines moved from each star to meet behind her original mark. The entire image began to radiate warmth and light.
“It’s a trick of the light.”
“No.”
She gulped. “Something in the food?”
He picked up on the desperation in her tone. “No.” The sooner she came to understanding the better.
“I’m hallucinating.”
Taking her right hand, he turned it so the inside of her wrist was up. Then he placed his beside hers—he used his left—and waited for her to see what he wanted, needed, her to see. He didn’t say a word as he paused. Sure enough, it didn’t take her long to jerk her gaze to his.
“They’re identical.”
He raised his brow while she furrowed hers.
“Why are they identical?”
“We are bound together.” His was on the left and hers the right, representational of yin and yang.
She blinked at him. “Bound?”
He exuded patience. “Look within. Search your soul. You know what it means.”
“…born of their blood and rage…” Her words, hesitant and faint, trailed away.
