Daughter of Discord (Star Mage Saga Book 1)

by J. J. Green

  “I have, actually. That was why I was looking for you.”

  “Huh?”

  “When I got back to my home town, I found out my parents had returned and they’d been looking for me. After they went away and left me, they opened a business that turned out to be really successful. They came back to find out what happened to me. The first thing we did after meeting up was go to a splicer. I had the treatment overnight and it seems to be working. Another month or so and I should be cured.”

  “That’s great, Bryce. I'm really happy for you.”

  “Thanks, but there’s more. My parents are opening a branch of their business. They want me to run it. That was why I came straight here to try to find you. I guessed you’d be trying to get offplanet. I can help you. You can come with me and help me run the business.”

  “I appreciate the offer,” Carina said, “but I really can’t. Thanks for the meal. I have to go now.”

  What she’d said wasn’t strictly true—she had longer than thirty minutes before she was due in the crew section—but Carina wanted to cut the conversation short. She knew Bryce meant well, but simply by saving him she’d irrevocably cut ties between them forever. It was kinder not to drag out the moment.

  She stood.

  “But Carina...”

  “Bye, Bryce. It was good knowing you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Stefan argued with the spaceport official, but it didn’t do any good.

  “I am very sorry, sir, but there really is no other way. It isn’t far, sir. Just a minute’s walk across the public area.”

  “You do understand who I am?” Stefan asked the woman through his teeth, throwing sharp glances at passengers entering the departure area of the spaceport who were lingering, curious to see what the problem was.

  Faye pitied the poor spaceport clerk who had been called upon to explain that there was no private entrance for exclusive passengers—even Sherrerrs—and that they would have to walk across the public departure area like everyone else.

  “Yes, sir,” the woman replied, looking plain terrified. “As I said, I am very sorry, but it’s unavoidable if you wish to board a shuttle at this spaceport.”

  The autocar had left after depositing them at the departure area entrance. The children stood waiting quietly. Nate had placed their bags onto a trolley. He wouldn’t be coming with them aboard the Sherrerr starship, Nightfall, and neither would Olivia, Faye had been delighted to discover. Her personal maid wouldn’t be spying on her any longer.

  The three Sherrerr guards from the estate that would be coming with them shuffled and adjusted their grips on their weapons as they scanned the bystanders. Though the dangers of an attack were slight, they did increase the longer they stood around in public.

  “Perhaps we should just go through, Father,” Castiel suggested. “I don’t like standing here with all these people watching.”

  Stefan’s head snapped around at his son’s words, but the storm that threatened didn’t arrive. “Oh, very well. But this won’t be the last you’ll hear of this,” he said to the clerk. The relief that had begun to flood her face upon hearing Stefan give up his objection was replaced with tension.

  They set off through one of the doorways into the departure area, drawing more attention to their retinue. The clerk hadn’t been exaggerating—the entrance for private passengers was less than a minute’s walk across the busy space. Stefan had had his temper tantrum over nothing.

  They were about halfway over when Faye saw her. Carina. She was walking directly across their path.

  Faye stopped dead in her tracks.

  “Ow,” Darius cried.

  She had been holding the little boy’s hand, and she must have gripped it so tight she hurt him. Faye quickly let go and tried to compose herself and walk on before anyone spotted her reaction. But it was too late. Darius had picked up on her heightened emotions and he was looking up at her curiously. Then he turned his attention to the crowd to see what had caused her reaction.

  “Carina,” shouted the little boy.

  “Darius, no!”

  Faye tried to grab her son’s hand but he was too quick. He sped around Stefan and between the two bodyguards who were walking in front.

  “Carina!” he shouted again.

  This time, she heard him.

  Faye watched in horror as her eldest daughter turned to see little Darius running toward her, his arms outstretched. Joy filled Carina’s face as she too spread her arms. When the little boy reached her, she lifted him into the air and then grabbed him into a hug.

  All the Sherrerrs and their staff had drawn to a halt to watch the strange spectacle. Carina put Darius down and squatted so that she could talk to him face to face.

  Faye couldn’t hear what they were saying over the general hubbub of the departure area. She only hoped that Darius would remember in time that the subject of Carina was prohibited. There was still a chance that her daughter would escape her husband’s clutches.

  Stefan was white-faced and rigid. “Darius,” he barked. When his son didn’t hear him, he instructed a guard to retrieve the boy.

  Faye held her breath. Her heart raced. She thought she was going to faint. Perhaps she should pretend to faint and cause a distraction, but that might excite Stefan’s suspicions. She could only hope that her husband’s rage at being an object of public scrutiny would distract him enough to fail to make the connection.

  No!

  Darius was dragging Carina over to them by the hand. Faye let out an involuntary gasp. Her son probably wanted to show everyone the person who had saved him from the Dirksens. Her poor, sweet, kind, thoughtless boy. Parthenia turned to eye her curiously.

  The guard met the pair and took Darius’ other hand. He was telling him he had to come back to his father.

  Please, Darius. Please do as you’re told. Carina, leave now. Go!

  Stefan had his hands on his hips as he watched and waited for his son to return. Then his stiff posture slackened. His hands fell to his sides. He’d noticed something. He took a step forward to peer at Carina.

  Faye willed her daughter to look away so that Stefan wouldn’t see her face, but it was hopeless. Carina was clearly deeply interested in their group. Her eyes were scanning them. Though the effort nearly killed her, Faye avoided her daughter’s gaze like she was avoiding death itself.

  In her peripheral vision, she saw Stefan’s head turn toward her, then back to her daughter.

  “Guard,” Stefan said, “seize that woman.”

  “Carina,” Faye screamed. “Run!”

  A moment’s confusion flitted over her daughter’s features, then she got the message. She turned to speed away, but she only made it a few steps. The guard who had gone to retrieve Darius caught up to her. As he grabbed her arm she swung at him with the other and punched him in the side of the head. Dazed, he let go, but the other guard had reached her by then and kicked her in the back. She fell forward. The third guard fired from a distance, stunning her before she hit the ground.

  Faye’s legs went weak. She found herself on her knees. Stefan had her. He had all her children, even the one who didn’t belong to him.

  Darius was by her side, sobbing. “I’m sorry, Mother. I’m so sorry. I forgot.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Carina was aboard a starship. She could tell that much from the slight vibration of the ship’s engine through the floor. Slowly the memory of what had happened filtered through to her. She’d been shot and stunned, heavily. Her stomach cramped with nausea and fingers seemed to be digging agonizingly through her skull. She felt like she’d been out a long time.

  Swallowing the saliva that was flooding her mouth, she risked opening one eye a slit. All she could see were two pairs of feet in expensive shoes. One was a man’s feet and one was a woman’s. The woman’s feet were tied to chair legs. Carina moved her own feet and hands slightly, just enough to discover that she was also bound.

  “The resemblance is quite rema
rkable,” the man said. “Even at this angle. I don’t know what took me so long to see it. I must have been too preoccupied with our son’s disobedience. I should beat him for it, but I can’t at the moment. I’m too pleased with the stupid brat for bringing me this prize. Hmm. She’s taking a long time to come around. Maybe she isn’t made of such stern stuff as it seemed when she tackled the guard.”

  He stood. Carina watched his legs as he walked over. One foot lifted as he prepared to kick her. Carina swung her feet forward and swept his other leg from under him. He crashed to the floor. In a heartbeat Carina was on her knees. She scooted over and drew back her head to strike his. If she could hit him hard enough in the right spot she could knock him out. But someone grasped her hair and pulled her upright. The hand then threw her down onto her knees.

  “Should I stun her again, sir?” a voice asked.

  The man was getting to his feet. “No, that won’t be necessary.” He straightened his pants. “But some kind of reprimand is in order.” He went behind Carina and kicked her in her kidneys. The pain that erupted left her unable to breathe. She drew in a great whooping gasp. Her vision swam.

  The waves of pain eventually began to subside, and Carina could look about her. The man had returned to his chair and was watching her, his hands on his knees. The woman, who appeared to be restrained by her hands as well as her feet, was pale and scared.

  “Sit her up, guard,” the man said. “Looking at her face while she’s lying down is making my neck ache.”

  Hands grabbed her shoulders and hauled her over to the wall, propping her into a sitting position. Carina gazed at the man and the woman. She realized she’d seen the man before. He was the haughty one who had arrived by shuttle at the Sherrerr stronghold. Yet he hadn’t been anything more than a visitor. He didn’t belong to the military arm of the Sherrerrs. Was it possible that he knew she’d absconded from there? Carina was unsure of why she’d been captured by this family that she’d helped.

  The man had to be Darius’ father. The little boy had seemed troubled when he spoke of him, and now Carina could see why. Behind his handsome face deep arrogance and cruelty seethed.

  The woman was drawing more of her attention. She seemed even more familiar than Darius’ father, though Carina couldn’t remember where she’d seen her before. Was she ever so slightly shaking her head? The woman had known her name—Darius must have told her, and she’d remembered. She’d told her to run, wanting to protect her from capture. Why?

  “I have to say,” the man said, “I’m more than a little disappointed. I was expecting a heart-warming family reunion. Yet you two are acting as though you don’t even know each other.”

  “We don’t know each other,” said the woman. “I’ve no idea who this person is. She’s entirely innocent, and she rescued your son when he was kidnapped. Yet this is how you repay her.”

  Something was going on that Carina didn’t understand. Saying nothing seemed the wisest course of action. The man didn’t appear to know about her mage powers, which was her greatest fear. The way Darius had acted, the woman had to be his mother. She was a mage, according to what the boy had said. So it was also probably her who had sent Carina the elixir ingredients, gems, and the polished pebble. But her husband was clearly evil. He’d trussed her up like an animal ready to be slaughtered. Why had she married him?

  The realization dawned that Darius’ father held his mother captive. It was just as Nai Nai had warned. The father used the mother for her powers and treated her like a slave.

  “Oh, Faye...” the man said regretfully, as if a thought saddened him.

  Carina’s heart froze. She fought to keep her features still. She mustn’t show any reaction.

  The man went on, “Do you really believe after all this time that I can’t tell when you’re lying?”

  Carina’s throat was tight. She wanted to scream, to shout, to do anything, but she couldn’t. She mustn’t. The pieces of the puzzle had all slotted into place at once but Carina could do nothing. Faye was her mother’s name. The resemblance to herself was there, yet she could hardly believe it. Was it possible that this woman with the haunted eyes, her gaunt face ravaged with pain and sorrow, this broken shadow of a woman, was really her mother? What had she been through that had done this to her?

  This woman was her mother. Darius was her half-brother, and that retinue of children in the party were probably her half-siblings too.

  The enormity of her realization threatened to overwhelm her. Nai Nai had said her father had died and her mother had disappeared. Carina had assumed that, after all the time that had passed, her mother was dead too. But she was still alive. She’d been kept captive all those years and forced to bear children for her vile husband.

  Carina wanted to vomit. She wanted to run to her mother and hug her, tell her she would be okay, tell her that she would rescue her. She had to get her away from this evil monster.

  Trying to keep her face expressionless, she gazed at her mother. Tears welled up in the woman’s eyes. Carina looked away lest her emotions betrayed her. Her mother was right. They had to do everything they could to prevent her husband from confirming their relationship and knowing that she was also a mage.

  Then she could work on getting her mother out of there.

  The man steepled his fingers and brought them to his lips. “I want the wand,” he said to the guard.

  A message spoken into the guard’s comm button resulted in a long, slim, metal instrument being brought to the door a few minutes later. The husband took it and looked up its length before going over to Carina’s mother and laying the instrument against her arm. She screamed.

  “Good, good,” the man said. “Just wanted to make sure it was working.”

  “I don’t care how much you hurt me,” her mother said, “you aren’t going to make me implicate a stranger.”

  “But I’m not going to hurt you, my dear. I’m going to hurt her.”

  The man approached. Carina struggled and lashed out at him with her legs as she had before. He tutted and stepped away. “Keep her still,” he told the guard.

  The guard pinned her into the corner with a heavy boot to her stomach. Her mother’s husband approached again and laid the instrument against her head. White-hot pain blinded her. She tried to go inside herself as Nai Nai had taught her and ignore the signals of her nerves, but she couldn’t. The torment was too strong. It beat through all her defenses and she became aware that she was screaming. Then the pain eased a fraction. She was on her side, curled up, lying in her own vomit.

  The husband tutted. “Disgusting. I prefer to use the wand because it creates less mess. No blood, you see. And then you go and do that.”

  “Please, Stefan,” Carina’s mother said. “Don’t do this. She’s a stranger.”

  “Maybe she is,” he replied. “Maybe she isn’t your daughter and a mage. So what? Then she’s a nobody. If I torture her to death, it won’t matter.”

  Carina caught a glimpse of the thin metal bar before the pain descended again and she was lost to it. There was nothing in the universe but her and the agony. When the pain lifted once more, she was in another part of the room. She must have been trying to get away from the torture instrument, though she had no recollection of it.

  How often the man touched her with the bar, how long the pain went on, Carina didn’t know. She lost track of time. She forgot why it was happening. She screamed herself hoarse. She begged for death. Anything to stop the dreadful agony descending once more.

  The man said nothing as he carried out the torture. At least, if he did, it was during the moments when Carina lost all sense of what was happening around her. It seemed as though he was in no hurry to stop. He was only enjoying himself as the session drew to an inevitable conclusion.

  Finally, dimly, she heard her mother’s soft words. “Stefan, stop. You win. You’re right. She is my daughter and a mage. Carina, please forgive me.”

  Laughter erupted from her husband. The man laughed
so hard he dropped the torture instrument. “I already knew, you fool. I already knew.”

  Chapter Thirty

  She didn’t know how long she drifted in and out of consciousness. Whenever Carina woke, her surroundings were the same: a bare room, harsh lighting, and the steady, subtle thrum of the starship’s engine vibrating the floor. When she could finally stay awake she found that she was no longer bound tightly. Restraints around her wrists and ankles were fastened by a line to the wall.

  She sat up and was amazed to see no evidence on her skin of the torture her mother’s husband, Stefan, had put her through. Her nerves remembered, however. They jangled painfully with every movement that she made. Carina recalled her torturer’s laughter after he had wrested the admission from her mother through forcing her to watch her daughter’s agony. He said he’d known all along that she was a mage. But how?

  Her hand flew to her side and she felt for her canister of elixir. It was gone. Of course. The guards must have searched her after she’d been captured. They’d given the canister to Stefan and he’d known what it was.

  Carina gingerly shifted herself to the edge of the room, where her restraints were attached to the wall. She could rest against it for support, though the pressure on her back made her wince at first. The door to the room was smooth on the inside, with no security panel or other means of opening it. She was in a cell of some kind with no hope of escape. She could only wait until someone decided to check on her.

  She had no fear that she would be left to die in there. Stefan would want to make her use her mage powers for his benefit. He would be back soon.

  She tried to process everything she’d learned. Darius must have told her mother her name, and her mother would have guessed she might be the daughter she’d been forced to abandon. Nai Nai had told her that her mother had disappeared, but the old woman died when Carina was too young to press her for more information.