by Cait Ashwood
“This is simply unacceptable.” Aryan of Amberfoot had remained silent up until this time, but now he chose to speak up. “My people are farmers, not fighters. As the largest food-producing village, I can’t allow my people to work the fields unprotected!”
Cyr coughed. “I can send a garrison to Amberfoot, with the councilor’s permission.”
Before Aryan had a chance to look too happy about that, Cyr continued.
“Of course, you would be responsible for their rations while they’re protecting your village. Calanon will continue paying their wages, as a gesture of good faith.”
Cyrus couldn’t be outdone in generosity. “All the weapons you need will be at discounted prices, for the lot of ye. I’ll have my smiths increase production of wagon wheels and shoes, and I’ll send a few journeymen out to each of the cities if the Seekers will be kind enough to get them there.”
“Of course, it would be a pleasure.” Ace inclined his head and Cyrus gave a grunt in reply.
Reid shifted in his seat. “I do not see Nikita here. Is she to have any part in the preparations?”
Zeche looked up from his nail grooming, giving the leader of Ebonwallowe an icy stare. “Nikita has volunteered men to stakeout Zaddicus’ compound.” He hesitated, then shrugged. “Though I suppose ‘volunteered’ is a rather strong word.”
Hound snorted. He’d heard the Ravens were helping out. He hadn’t gotten a bill yet, but he sure as hell was waiting for one. Nikita would probably wait until the final casualty tolls were in, then run them for everything they had. But if it helps us get Lily back and take down Zaddicus... it’ll be worth everything. The fact that he still lived had never sat well with Hound, but with the man impossible to find, he hadn’t been able to do much about it.
“So that’s it, then,” Karina interjected. “We’ll all work on increasing our garrisons, or at least training our general populace with weapons. Seeker presence will increase in our towns, and the Ravens are watching for signs of action from the enemy.”
Ace nodded. “You are all, of course, welcome to make any additional preparations you deem appropriate. We felt it was necessary to apprise you of the situation, even with our limited intelligence. The Order was wiped out last time due to information hoarding and isolationist policies. We cannot afford to have those cripple us again.”
Cyr nodded. “We may be divided geographically, but being of one mindset will stifle the enemy.”
“Are there any further questions?” Ace scanned the room, as did Hound.
There were several unhappy faces, and quite a few voices unheard from. Hound hadn’t needed to have contact with most of these leaders in the past, and trying to puzzle them out was a bit of a riddle. One particularly sour face came from Gael of Fish Head. His people had lived relatively well in the Order’s absence, fishing the lake for sustenance. They hadn’t been so generous with their neighbors, however, and had earned a rather nasty reputation as a result. Bastard likely feels we should have all the information already and the problem solved. Ace was right in one respect, though. They couldn’t avoid giving the leaders time to prepare their towns for a possible attack. If the Order had shared the information about tainted individuals when they’d discovered it, the Seekers might have been able to protect them from Zaddicus’ attack when it came. Instead, they waited for a chance to gather more information. That single call had almost wiped humanity from the face of the planet.
And speaking of the taint... Hound’s eyes searched the shadows as the last of the leaders filed out. Zeche rose and closed the door behind them. Only then did Amelina remove herself from the shadows, hands tucked up the sleeves of the opposite arm.
“Since you didn’t stop the meeting, I presume they were all clean?” Ace’s raised eyebrow didn’t evoke much confidence, but Amelina inclined her head.
“I would not have permitted you to discuss strategy otherwise.”
Hound sighed. “Well, at least he doesn’t have pawns in place in leadership positions yet.”
Zeche gave a grim nod. “Yet.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Lily stared at the small stack of the books on the table, tempted to start ripping them to shreds. She’d read them all days ago, and gave one or two a re-read just to have something to do. When Stryker said he’d had somewhere he could take her, she hadn’t imagined there was literally nothing to do here.
There might be more to do if I could leave my room. The familiar temptation danced in front of her, mocking her. Stryker said he couldn’t protect her if she left this room, but he’d already changed her domicile twice, moving her in the dead of night in absolute silence. Wherever he was, it was infinitely worse than the life she’d left behind. He didn’t laugh, hell, she hadn’t seen him even smile since their time on the surface. Tension lines in a face much too young for them were the status quo down here, wherever ‘here’ was.
She heaved a sigh, flopping back on the bed and throwing her arm over her face. Bored didn’t even begin to cover it. She was anxious, hyped-up, and had no way to expend that energy. The spring equinox was coming soon, and it was always a busy time for the Order. Guess I’m not one of them anymore. In her sleep, she kept seeing Rowan’s face as Stryker phased her away. She didn’t even know if he’d survived his injuries. Her twin brother wounded, possibly killed, and why? Because she didn’t want to have kids?
Lily groaned, the thoughts chasing themselves around in her head over and over again in well-worn paths. She was no one, in the greater scheme of things, and certainly not someone worth dying for. That would be Brana, if anyone. Not me. I’m worse than useless. She rested a foot on the end of the bed, her leg bouncing with nerves. It wasn’t even that anything was making her nervous. She’d been here for at least a week and seen Stryker for maybe two or three hours the entire time. She had no one to talk to, nothing to do, nowhere to be, and no one knew where she was. She was all but forgotten down here.
I’m going insane. I think I’d even hug Brana if I saw her right now. She chuckled, the sound quickly overcome by hysteria. When the bout passed, she sat up on the bed, staring at the door. It wasn’t locked. He never locked it, trusting to her fear to keep her inside. Vex had stopped by a time or two at first, but even the other woman had stopped after Stryker moved her the second time. Not that she was great company or anything, but it was something different. What she wouldn’t give to even eavesdrop on a conversation. Surely that wouldn’t be too bad? She could sneak out, stick to the shadows, and reassure herself that humanity still existed, that she was still alive. The room was much too small to allow her any kind of exercise, and she felt like she was rotting away in this underground hellhole.
She wasn’t conscious of making the decision but found herself smiling as she closed the door behind her without making a sound. It didn’t seem to matter which way she went; the hallway was of rough, unworked stone and there were no lights in either direction. She’d gotten better at picking things out in low light conditions, saving candles and lanterns for the few periods when she wanted to read. Stryker had mentioned that it was hard to smuggle supplies to her, so she tried to be as conscientious as she could about saving materials. Or, she had been, but not anymore. He was the one that had dragged her into this place, and he could very well take better care of her, or at least stop by and chat from time to time.
Lily wandered down the hallway, grateful for fresh air moving against her face. She’d been allowed a single bath since coming to this place and was only given a single change of clothes. They were dark, loose-fitting pieces that had felt odd for the first few days. Now she was thankful not to be in the lighter colors of the Order. The black cloth helped to camouflage her and her dye-darkened hair wasn’t visible in these tunnels.
She walked for at least half an hour, keeping track of her turns before she finally noticed a change. Her nose picked up the scent first: freshly roasted meat. Her stomach growled loudly and saliva rushed into her mouth. She’d had only bread and jerky her en
tire time here, and fresh, warm food sounded heavenly. She swallowed, picking up her pace as she followed her nose through the compound. There were sconces on the walls now, mostly unlit, but the sign of civilization was comforting. Tip number two you’re going crazy: seeing a torch is almost enough to make you weep from happiness. She shook her head at her own emotions, then narrowed her eyes. There was light at the end of the next T intersection, and it nearly blinded her.
Lily gave herself a few moments to adjust, blinking rapidly, before she crept slowly toward the light. She was so fixated on the light that she didn’t notice the slight alcove to the side of her path. Something shot out of the darkness, grabbing her by her arm and pulling her back into the pitch-black alcove. Pulse hammering, she opened her mouth to scream, but instead found some foul-smelling cloth forced into her mouth. She yelled anyway, the sound instantly muffled.
“Looks like I’ve found myself a pretty little pet, mmm?” The voice even sounded dirty, whispering against her ear in a tone that promised much worse than empty threats.
Lily grunted as she was pushed face-first into the wall, the man’s shoulder digging in between her shoulder blades as his hands forced hers together behind her back. The rope was rough as he wound it around her wrists. He made these odd licking sounds behind her and she shuddered, squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to work the cloth out of her mouth.
“Not trying to scream on me now, are ya?” He abandoned her wrists and pulled the cloth out himself.
Lily spat, trying to rid her mouth of the taste. “Stryker will have your head for this.” That was all he let her get out before the cloth was back, and this time it was in proper order. He forced it over her tongue and pulled it back hard, forcing her lips to crack as he tied the material behind her head. He tugged on it a few times to test the fit before finally turning her around.
He wasn’t as dirty as she’d have expected, and his eyes were more intelligent than a common thug’s would be. She stared at him, trying to find something, anything she could use against him. There was no insignia, no sign of who he worked for, no clues.
“Stryker, hmm? Way I hear it, he’s not in too good with the Master right now.” The man chuckled, shrugging. He pulled her arm hard, yanking her so that she fell against him.
He smelled almost clean, not at all how a mugger should smell. Lily struggled to get off him but froze when something hot and hard pressed against her thigh.
“Keep struggling. I think I like it.” Despite his words, he got her standing up before he opened his mouth again. “Still, don’t want to go fucking the prodigal son’s toy without permission. Come with me, pet.”
Lily’s eyes widened and she tried to cough, but the man kept shoving her forward with each step. What’s wrong with me? She should be terrified, or fighting, or... something. Instead, she was relieved. Something was finally happening.
All this time trapped in the dark had convinced her of a few things. The first of which was that she was never going to escape the curse of her blood. It didn’t matter how she felt about it, or what she wanted. She wasn’t strong enough to keep herself safe, and one way or another, someone was going to find a way to use her. Secondly, if she ever got the chance, she was going back home. Not because she particularly wanted to be there, but because her safety was generally assured and people there cared about her, in a fucked up way. At least they didn’t shut her up in dangerous underground holes for days at a time with nothing but a few books for company.
The man was rough when it came to directions. She groaned as he tugged at her arm yet again, convinced he was going to yank her shoulder out of its socket. She let the leg on that side cave in and fell against him. If he’s going to be a bastard about it, at least make him work for it. They collided into the stone of the corridor and he tripped on her feet, sending them down in a tangled heap.
“Hey, what’s the bright idea?”
She glared at him but didn’t try and shout through the gag. There wasn’t much point to it, anyway.
He pulled her up, and once again she was thankful not to be wearing the Order’s robes. The V at the center surely would have dislodged and exposed her. As it was, the man pressed her up against the wall, forcing one knee in between her legs.
“Keep that up girl, and I’ll have my fun before taking you to the Master.”
The terror hit her unexpectedly, seeming to come from nowhere. This isn’t how this should be happening. While it was mostly ritualized, relations between Seekers and the Order were always founded on respect. Of course, some of the girls found ways to sneak the boys in before their mandated service, and their quiet but passioned cries had kept her awake on more than one occasion. But this? Underground with some old man forcing his way on her? This was not how any of this was supposed to happen.
“You gonna behave for me now?” He leered at her, as if fully aware of the effect he had on her.
Lily forced herself to nod in the semidarkness.
“Good. Not much further, now.” He was only slightly gentler as he pushed her along the corridor.
They rounded a natural bend in the path and the sound of fighting reached them. Swords clanged off each other in a rapid rhythm and Lily found her breath catching in her chest, though it had nothing to do with the gag. Who was fighting down here, and why?
She must have slowed down because the man was pressing up against her from behind. “That would be the young masters training.”
Lily took another step forward to put some space between them. She’d already wanted a bath; now she wanted to scald herself until her skin melted off, and even then she might not be clean enough.
She didn’t give much thought as to who the ‘young masters’ were. The sound of weapons in practice reminded her of home, and she had to fight off a fierce wave of homesickness. I should never have left. She would have been happy to have the only weapons she ever heard be of those in the practice yards. She’d trained some herself, as all the Lilies were required to do. It was part of the program, the ‘don’t let the Order be defenseless and kidnapped ever again’ program. Still, from what she’d seen of Stryker, she was no match for him.
Her captor pushed her around a corner and she stumbled, falling hard on her knees. She cursed into the gag, not that he could hear her or make it out, and struggled to make her way back to her feet.
The weapons stopped.
Suddenly self-conscious, Lily froze, looking up slowly to see the people in the room. Her eyes registered Stryker, and even Vex, but the man leaning against the wall captured her full attention. He was older, probably close to Zeche’s age. He seemed strong and well-muscled, but that wasn’t what stood out to her. No, the feature causing her mouth to drop open in horror was a diagonal scar across his face.
She could hear her dad telling the story like it was yesterday. Then Gwyn, she just runs in to free the women. Meanwhile, I’m out there with an entire company at my back, but that’s not how Zaddicus wants the fight to go down. No. He wants it one on one, and I was more than happy to oblige. My one regret is that I only sliced him across the face and couldn’t get in a killing blow. The world would be a better place without him in it.
That scarred face stared back at her, and an interesting expression crossed his features. He pushed off the wall behind him, ignoring Stryker’s stammering protests and pushing right past him.
How do they know each other? This can’t be happening! She remained on her knees, panic-stricken as the infamous man that almost killed her mother stalked toward her.
“So, you’re the dove my son has kept in hiding, hmm?” He crouched down in front of her and lifted her chin, turning her face to either side as he studied her.
Son? The bottom dropped out of her stomach and she tried to catch Stryker’s attention. There was simply no way it could be the truth. They didn’t even look that much alike.
“Well, you are a pretty little thing, I’ll give you that.” He turned his head just enough that his voice would carry back to St
ryker, but his eyes never left her face. “I can see why you wanted to keep her away from the rest of the men. They’d have quite the field day with her.”
Lily blanched at his tone and its implications but was helpless to do anything about either.
His eyes flashed briefly and then glowed a steady green.
Lily could scarcely resist the urge to cover her chest, feeling like he was seeing right through her. Her arms moved reflexively and she whimpered as the ropes cut into the soft skin of her wrists.
“And you are your mother’s daughter, to boot. Very interesting.” Zaddicus nodded slowly as his eyes returned to normal. “I presume you’ve seen the error of their ways though, haven’t you, little one?”
Stryker finally found his voice. “She has, father. It’s why I thought she’d be a perfect addition here.”
So, it’s true. The parents he spoke of... he meant Zaddicus. The confirmation didn’t hit her as hard as she would have thought. So much in her life was out of her control at this point that it was merely another bump in the road.
“Time will tell, my son. Meanwhile, I’ll let you have her to yourself this equinox, as a reward.” Zaddicus’ smile was cold as he stared down at her. “If she conceives, I may make her yours permanently.”
Stryker moved into a stilted bow. “My only desire is our success.”
Vex made a noise in the back of her throat that sounded very much like disgust.
Zaddicus raised an eyebrow but didn’t otherwise respond to Stryker’s remark.
Lily stared at him, mumbling nonsense through her gag. If what he was saying was true, then it had all been a ploy from the very beginning. This entire time, all he’d wanted was to please his father, and she’d fallen for it, fallen hard. A few coins, some empathetic conversation, and she’d played right into his hands. I’m not cut out for this world. I just want to go home. It seemed like only yesterday Jasper was teasing her, being an annoying shit as always. He never went too far, though, having some innate sense for when she couldn’t take any more ragging. And then there was Brana. I wish I could tell her I’m sorry. I was just jealous. Looking at the trio before her now, she was never going to have that chance.
