“Powan is fifteen minutes south, heading to Thukil,” a strange voice said.
Emily tried again, “Kyle?”
When no one answered, Emily threw the microphone, frustrated, then saw two helicopters approaching.
“See it, definitely Valle.”
“Emily 2, can you engage?” Kyle asked.
“Emily 2 is off, will intercept in fifteen minutes,” she heard Mark say.
“Full force, no telling how many are on that boat,” Kyle said.
“Copy that, Island,” Mark replied.
“Equites 1 to Island.”
“Island here,” Kyle said.
“Second boat approaching fast, another Valle. This one has heku on board,” the pilot said.
Emily stood up on the bridge and looked around her. She couldn’t see anything but the helicopter overhead.
“Island, Valle boat 2 is going to reach the first before Emily 2 arrives.”
“Powan with 2nd Valle boat,” she heard a strange man say.
Emily headed out onto the deck. The wind from the one helicopter was strong, and she had to fight to keep from falling over. She turned to the radio when she heard a voice.
“Thukil to Island,” she heard a deep voice say.
“Go Thukil,” Kyle spoke fast.
“One Valle on deck. Do we take him out?”
“Affirmative, if you can knock him into the water, take the shot,” Kyle said.
Emily dove for the bridge and shut the door behind her. She grabbed the microphone and again tried to contact them.
“Kyle!” she screamed.
“Valle went back inside, Island.”
Emily looked out of the windows and could see a boat approaching from the horizon. Above it were two large black helicopters.
“Valle 2 is ignoring us and heading straight for Valle 1. Guessing they will intercept in 3 minutes.”
“Island copy, Emily 2, ETA?” Kyle asked.
“Emily 2 approximately 5 minutes away from Valle 1,” Mark said.
Emily pulled off the Captain’s coat and hat and again ran out on deck. She could barely hear the radio and the briefcase in her hand seemed heavier as she fought against the wind from the helicopter.
“Woman on deck of Valle 1!” she heard the pilot yell.
“Equites 1 breaking off to Valle 1.”
“Is she alone?” Kyle asked.
Emily fought to get back into the bridge. The powerful helicopter’s wind was too strong for her to handle, and she was afraid of being blown overboard.
“Not seeing anyone else. She just went back inside.”
“Valle 2 on intercept. They wouldn’t ram their own boat would they?” one of the pilots yelled.
“It’s not slowing!”
Emily looked out the window and the boat was closing in on her fast. She tried to turn the engines back on, but they sputtered and wouldn’t turn over. She saw the boat barreling up on her as hectic voices sounded over the radio.
“It’s going to ram!”
“Emily 2, get there now,” Kyle yelled, his voice frantic.
“Emily 2, ETA 2 minutes.”
“She’s out on deck again,” Emily heard the pilot say as she stepped onto the front deck. The pilot pulled the helicopter back to lessen the wind on her. She glanced once more to the boat as it headed for her, and then ran toward the back of the boat, still gripping the suitcase. She could hear the crash as boat hit boat just as she dove off of the back deck and into the cold water.
The air was sucked out of her as she submerged into the freezing water. She began to swim frantically away from the burning rubble of the two boats, determined to hold onto the briefcase that was slowing her down. She wasn’t sure what was happening when she saw three large splashes ahead of her.
Three heku appeared in the water ahead of her, “Stay back or I’ll ash you!”
Emily saw their mouths move, but with the sound from the helicopter, she couldn’t make out what he was saying.
“Get back!” she yelled again, but then she saw the closest one had on a green cape.
“Emily? We’re Equites,” one of them yelled when he got to her.
“Stay back anyway. I don’t know you,” she yelled at him. He smiled and then began to tread water beside her.
The second heku got to them and treaded water as the third arrived, “Behind you!”
Emily turned just as four heku came from the wreckage, and the three Equites swam for them. They fought in the water and Emily couldn’t tell what was going on through the splashes and screams. Slowly, the water around them turned red and the three Equites slowly swam back to her.
Emily turned to the side when a large boat approached. It slowed beside them, and before Emily knew what was happening, she was being pulled up onto the boat by Mark. Someone wrapped a blanket around her and Mark carried her down into the bedroom and sat her on the couch.
“Are you ok?” Mark asked. Emily could hear the engines roar as the boat began to move.
“Alexis?” Emily asked him.
“Alexis is fine,” Mark said, smiling.
Emily nodded and began to shake slightly.
Mark slipped his shirt off, “Go put that on.”
Emily took the shirt and stumbled into the bathroom. It took a while to get her wet clothes off, but when she was dry and slipped on Mark’s dry shirt, she immediately felt better. She picked the briefcase up and went back into the bedroom where Mark was waiting.
“Come, I made you some coffee,” Mark said, holding out a steaming cup.
Emily took it and tucked the briefcase between her knees so she could wrap her cold hands around the hot cup. She sipped the coffee slowly and wiggled her toes as soon as she could feel them. The carpet felt warm against her bare feet.
“Tell me again, are you ok?” Mark asked her.
Emily smiled, “Perfect, thanks.”
“They didn’t do anything to you?” Mark asked skeptically.
“How many did Council City lose?” Emily asked him.
“You first, answer my question.”
“No, answer mine.”
“Ok, not many. We suspect that the attack was to keep the city occupied while the two largest Equites covens were attacked.”
“How many?” she asked again.
“Four”
Emily leaned over. She felt like she was going to get sick. She rested her head against her knees.
“How many on the island?” she whispered.
“Are you ok?” Mark asked, laying a hand on her back.
“How many?”
“Forty three,” Mark sighed.
“And from the other coven?”
“Emily, this wasn’t your fault.”
“Tell me,” she said softly.
“The other coven lost eighty six.”
Emily wrapped her arms around herself.
“I know what you’re thinking… and this wasn’t about you. This kind of thing happened long before the Winchesters came around. The Equites have some very valuable political prisoners that the Valle want released,” Mark explained.
“But that many dead,” she said, her voice was starting to crack.
Mark rubbed her back softly, “Are you sure you’re ok?”
Emily nodded.
“The Elder and Kyle want to talk to you. They can’t figure out how the Valle got you when the Equites held them off.”
Emily sighed and turned her face back toward her knees.
“That’s a good size bruise you have on your cheek,” Mark said, still not believing that she wasn’t hurt.
“I’ve had worse.”
“Are you still going to tell me that they didn’t hurt you?”
Emily grinned slightly, “Just the bruise. Remind me never to tell a heku that they hit like my grandma.”
Mark got up and put some ice in a bag and handed it to Emily. She pressed it against the bruise on her cheek.
“We should be at the island in a few minutes,” Mark told her.
&n
bsp; Emily cringed, “Maybe I’m better off with the Valle.”
Mark frowned, “Why’s that?”
“Because Chev and Kyle are going to be mad after they talk to me.”
Mark chuckled, “However mad they are, can’t be worse than being with the Valle.”
“Why all of the helicopters? The Island has been attacked before and no one came to help,” Emily asked, still sipping the hot coffee.
“They are bringing support to the island. The injured from all three locations have been flown in. The island is very secure and is a good place for those that are injured to gather in safety,” Mark explained.
Emily frowned, “I don’t understand. Heku heal so fast, why bother?”
“Heku have a way of injuring a heku in a way that’s not so easy to heal.”
“How?”
“Bites… broken bones we heal from quickly, bites, not so much. Then there are those that healed incorrectly, like I did after the helicopter wreck.”
Emily nodded, “I remember now. I’d forgotten when Kyle was bitten, he took a few days to recover.”
Emily tensed when three strange heku entered, but when she saw their soaked clothing, she realized they were the ones that jumped from the helicopter to her in the water.
Emily ran up and hugged the closest one, “Thank you.”
The strange Equites looked at Mark with wide eyes and Mark just chuckled. Emily hugged and thanked each of them and then asked them to sit down.
Mark started to take off the handcuffs she still had dangling from each wrist, but stood up instead when the engines died down.
“We’re here, come on,” Mark said, and helped her to her feet. He debated taking the briefcase for her, but she had such a tight grip on it that he was sure she wouldn’t let him have it.
Emily stepped out on deck and faced hundreds of Equites, all looking at her anxiously. She felt exposed in just the guard’s shirt with the handcuffs, and turned suddenly and ran right into Mark. He caught her just as she began to fall backwards.
Chevalier was on the deck before Mark had Emily standing again, and she was in his arms. He hugged her tightly and she wrapped her arms around him.
“I’m ok, Chev, really,” she said. Emily looked up as Kyle also appeared on the deck.
She tried to pull away, but Chevalier’s strong arms held her.
“Seriously, I’m ok,” she said, laughing slightly.
Chevalier took a step back away from her and quickly ran his eyes down her, “How badly are you hurt?”
“I’m not,” she said, smiling at Kyle.
“Just one bruise?” he asked, touching her cheek softly.
Emily nodded, “Just the bruise, I swear.”
Chevalier reached down and pulled the handcuffs off of her wrists and then dropped them onto the deck, “Let’s get inside.”
“No,” Emily said, peeking around him to the crowd.
Chevalier laughed, “Come on, Killer… no time to be shy.”
Emily sighed and took Chevalier’s hand as he helped her off of the boat while she grumbled about the nickname.
Chevalier picked Emily up on the pier and blurred toward the castle.
“Stop!” Emily yelled when they got to the south lawn. The lawn was full of injured heku, laying in various stages of mutilation. Most of them were groaning in pain, and some weren’t moving at all.
Chevalier stopped, “What’s wrong?”
Emily wiggled out of his arms and walked toward the injured.
“Come on in, Em,” Chevalier said softly, and put a hand on her shoulder.
Emily moved forward, out from under his hand, and knelt by a heku who was in a lot of pain. He looked up at her with terror in his eyes. His body was covered in vicious looking bites that were swollen and smelled like decay, and he was breathing rapidly. She touched his face softly and smiled.
“Will you be ok?” she asked him, her voice calm and caring.
He nodded and watched her face.
“Can I get you anything?”
He smiled slightly, “No, Ma’am.”
She smiled when she saw his breathing slow and his body relaxed some.
“There are over 500 injured heku on this lawn, is she going to visit all of them?” Kyle asked.
Chevalier sighed, “I bet she does. Damn, was hoping she would go inside.”
Emily took the heku’s hand and turned toward Kyle and Chevalier, “Why are they alone? No one’s out here helping them.”
Kyle looked at Chevalier and shrugged, “They don’t need help healing.”
“Nothing can be done to help them, they’ll heal by themselves… why don’t you come into the castle,” Chevalier said.
Emily frowned, “That’s awful.”
She turned back to the heku and touched his arm softly, “If you need me, I’ll be around.”
He nodded and watched her stand up. Emily walked over to one of the unmoving heku and knelt down. She glanced quickly over his body and then back to his face.
“Are you ok?” she asked, and touched his cheek lightly.
Emily frowned. She could barely hear his breathing and he didn’t respond to her. She leaned over and laid her ear against his chest. His heart was beating too slowly.
“Lady Emily?” someone said from behind her. She turned and looked at him, “He’s gone already… he won’t make it.”
“Is he in pain?” she asked him.
“Yes, but it’ll be over soon.”
Emily turned and whispered, “I’m so sorry.” She let go of his hand as he turned to ash.
Emily leaned over with her hands on her knees and her head bowed. She couldn’t fight the tears. She looked up when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
“That’s enough, come in,” Chevalier said softly.
Emily shook her head and moved to the heku she had been talking to. She took his hand in hers, “Are you ok?”
He nodded, “Just healing slower than usual is all.”
“Ok, call if you need me,” Emily told him, and stood up.
Emily moved to the next moaning heku as she heard Chevalier tell everyone to leave her alone before heading back inside. She knelt down and touched his face softly.
“Can I help?” she asked him.
He looked up at her with panicked eyes and groaned. His body was shaking with the pain. Emily looked him over and other than some blood on his torn shirt, she didn’t see any injuries. She reached over and unbuttoned his shirt and laid it open. The center of his chest had been ripped open. The skin and flesh were torn around a fist sized hole.
“I don’t understand,” Emily said, looking down at him. “Will you heal?”
He shook his head frantically.
“They took his heart,” Mark said from behind her.
“Can he heal from that?”
“No, that’s why they did it. It’s a slow, painful death.”
Emily took the injured heku’s hand and put her other hand on the side of his face, so he was looking at her, “Do you want me to turn you to ash?”
The heku nodded and whispered, “Yes.”
Emily kissed his forehead softly and then stood up after his body had been turned to ash, no longer in pain.
“Why don’t you come inside? Chevalier wants to leave for the palace,” Mark told her.
“No, tell him to go. I’m staying here,” Emily said, and looked around at the carnage caused by the Valle.
“They will either heal or die, nothing can change that,” Mark said.
Emily frowned at him, “They shouldn’t have to be alone.”
Mark sighed, “Ok, I’ll tell him you’re not going.”
Emily heard him walk off as she knelt down at another injured heku. She went to as many as she could. Some healed while she held their hand, while others died in her arms. Several times her guards would come out and ask her to come into the castle, but she always refused. Just before dusk, the helicopter took off for the palace.
Emily stood up from an inju
red heku and saw a heku that looked strange. The rest were covered in blood and bites, but this one was withered and gray. She walked over slowly toward him.
“Don’t go there, Lady Emily,” one of the heku said to her.
“What’s wrong with him?” she asked.
The heku looked toward the one at the end, “He’s a rescued prisoner. He’s been starved for almost 150 years.”
Emily frowned “So he just needs to eat?”
“Yes, he’s been trying to get to you since he caught your scent. He’s too weak to move much though, but if I were you, I’d stay away.”
“Who is bringing him something to drink?”
“No one yet, I’m sure eventually they will get him a donor.”
“Hmmm.” Emily watched him for a moment.
“Don’t do it. He won’t be able to stop,” the heku was now starting to panic.
“I can stop him, he’s weak.” Emily took a step towards the starved heku.
The heku she was talking to reached out and took her ankle, “Please, don’t.”
“Lady Emily,” another heku said from beside her. “Don’t do it, it’s too dangerous.”
“Is he in pain?” Emily asked, her eyes still on the starving heku.
“No, he’s not himself either. He’s completely feral right now. Let the heku get him a donor,” a third heku said to her.
Emily looked over at the third heku and walked over to him. She knelt down and looked at the bites across his body, “Are you ok?”
He nodded, “Yes, Ma’am.”
“Why haven’t they gotten him a donor?”
“They will. He’s not going to die, and they are busy.”
Emily stood up and walked toward the starving heku. She rolled the long sleeves of Mark’s shirt up past her elbow. The starved heku looked up at her, his eyes focused on her neck as he hissed. She ignored the whispers that suddenly filled the night air.
He tried to lunge at her as she got closer, but he couldn’t get the strength to move off of the ground. Emily knelt down beside him and he turned toward her wrist as she extended it out to him.
“Hey!” Emily screamed as someone picked her up from the ground. The starving heku growled and grabbed out for her.
“That’s not going to happen,” Kyle said as he threw her over his shoulder.
“Put me down!” Emily yelled at him.
“It’s best this way, Lady Emily,” a strange heku said to her.
Equites : Book 4 of the Heku Series Page 44
