Before the Storm

by Claire Ashgrove

  Closing my eyes, I breathed in deeply. Kale had been right. I couldn’t save her. I’d come here for nothing, and if I wanted to leave alive, I had little choice. One by one, I opened my fingers.

  At the last instant, I couldn’t do it. My attack had thrown her off focus, and she huddled into herself, one hand tucked beneath her chin, nursing it like a feeble child. She paid me no attention.

  I dropped my hand to my waist and unfastened the cuffs. Holding them loosely, I edged around the toppled table. If I could just grab her, it would only take a second to snap on the restraints. Cautiously, I took another step forward and reached for her elbow. Just a little closer.

  She whirled on me with a vicious growl.

  Before I could pull back, she latched onto my arm and gave it a furious twist. Agony raced through my shoulder as something cracked. Dropping to my knees, I let out a scream. Tears rolled down my cheeks.

  My pain fueled her. She dragged me across the room like I weighed nothing and threw me into a barren wall. The back of my head slammed into stone. Once more, my vision blurred. When I sagged to the ground, the fight beaten out of me, she roared in triumph. Again, the vile smile contorted her face. “Your soul belongs to me, pitiful human.”

  I lacked the strength to fight. Or maybe it was the will. I no longer knew anything except the brutal reality that the woman who’d nurtured me as a child intended to kill me. Her own daughter. I’d let heartache delusion me. I never should have ignored Kale’s warnings.

  She reached down and grabbed me roughly by the shoulder. With strength her frail body shouldn’t possess, she pushed me up the wall until my feet touched the ground. Then higher, until my toes dangled uselessly. Distantly, it occurred to me if I kicked, I could knock her over. But as her unholy gaze burned into mine, and her fingers tightened cruelly. Weakness infused me. My pulse slowed dangerously. Deep inside my soul, something shuddered. Where her palm met my shoulder, I experienced pain, but it felt cold and distant. Otherworldly.

  “Halle!”

  The shout rolled over me, hollow and insubstantial. I didn’t recognize it. Through bleary vision, I saw a man burst into the room. In the same instant, yellow-green light blinded me entirely. My mother let go with a bone-chilling howl, and I fell to the floor in a heap, too weakened to move anything more than my heavy eyelids.

  Kale stood on the other side of my mom.

  I let my head loll against the wall in a moment of relief. He’d come for me. I wouldn’t die here, wouldn’t fail him.

  Another flash of light filled my closed eyes. She shrieked again. Kale bellowed in fury. Something thumped heavily.

  Groggily, I opened my eyes.

  On both knees, Kale arced a hand across his body. I waited for the accompanying streak of blue I’d come to recognize so well from our sparring sessions. But once more, nothing happened. He swore and tried again.

  With vile laughter erupting from her lips, my mother rushed him. He toppled backward. The back of his head bounced off the hard floor and he went utterly still. My mother pounced on him. Sitting astride his lap and cackling, she clawed at his chest. Blood streaked across his shirt front, and still, he didn’t move.

  “No!” I cried, feebly.

  In a frenzy, my mother scraped through skin, carving wide gashes into Kale’s flesh. My stomach heaved at the sight of his blood. All the hours we’d spent together cycled through my memory. The night he’d shown me Tufty, the countless hours spent pouring over antique scrolls, quiet moments of mutual contemplation, angry outbursts in the halls. His touch, his smile, his laughter.

  A roar I didn’t recognize as my own ripped from my throat. With strength I didn’t know I possessed, I surged to my feet and threw my hands in front of me.

  Above my mother’s head, the ceiling cleaved in two. A tremor raced through the entire room, nearly toppling me sideways. My mother looked up, bloodied claws raised. Enraged, she hurtled off Kale and threw herself at me.

  Two steps into her charge, a violet streak of lightning cut her down. As she fell, a second charge split the atmosphere. It surged into her shoulder, arcing her body so violently she nearly bent in half. She fell in a crumpled heap.

  I willed my legs to hold and waited for her to move.

  When she didn’t, I sagged to my knees. Blackness pulled at my mind, tugging me away from the pain in my body. But Kale kept me from succumbing. Pushing past the agonizing wounds, I crawled on hands and knees to his side. His chest bled freely, turning his shirt into a crimson sponge, but the bone I’d expected to see, I didn’t find. I stretched a hand toward his, and when our fingers touched, I laid my cheek on the floor and closed my eyes. I could go no further.

  Kale’s shallow breathing rasped around me. He needed help. Hell, we both did. And quick. No doubt the entire compound had felt the stone shake as it cracked, and someone would come to investigate. I had to push on. Somehow.

  I forced my eyes open and swallowed hard. With what energy I could summon, I tried to lift myself up. But my arms gave before I managed more than a few inches. I collapsed again, a whimper slipping free. God, please. Help me.

  Instinct ordered me to try again. I wanted to. I wanted nothing more than to drag my ass up and get off the damned stone floor. In my heart, however, I knew it would be futile. Even if I could manage to haul myself to my feet, no way could I help Kale. And nothing would make me leave him behind.

  I shoved upward again. Damn it, I wasn’t giving up.

  The sound of heavy boots pounding on the stone outside the door clanged into my awareness. My breath caught. Bracing my weight on my forearms, I looked at the open entryway. Fear sent my pulse into an erratic rhythm as a shadow barreled down the mezzanine floor.

  “Come on, up,” I muttered to myself, dragging one knee beneath me to better support my swaying body. If I could at least shut the door, I might buy myself a little more time.

  The commotion outside intensified. Shouts broke out, distant yet still close enough to be concerning. More running feet trampled through the cavern. I hauled another knee beneath me and struggled into a crouch. The room swayed dangerously, but I closed my eyes and focused on drawing one breath in after another until my equilibrium leveled. When I looked again, I felt steadier.

  Slowly, I leaned to the right, fingers outstretched for the edge of the door. As my fingers grazed the wood, a hand grasped the knob. The door flung backward, out of my reach.

  Marcus bolted inside.

  Relief trumped terror, and I sagged onto the floor again. “Thank God.”

  His gaze snapped to me, then fell on Kale. “Fuck,” he muttered. He turned a scowl on me. “I thought you two were going to stay put?”

  “I…” I snapped my mouth shut. What could I say? It was obvious I hadn’t listened.

  Marcus waved my explanation off and stalked toward Kale. “Never mind. There’s not time. Your uncle came back before we got down here.”

  “What?” The thought of Allen somehow managed to refill my stamina. I stumbled to my feet even as my incredulous question ricocheted off the high walls. “We saw him leave.”

  “He must have sensed us. More likely, he set a trap and we fell right in.” He gestured at Kale’s shoulders. “Can you help me get him up? I think I found a place we can hide. At least long enough I can figure a plan.”

  I nodded feebly. But no amount of effort could make my body move. I was too beat, too stunned, to lift so much as a finger. A trap? How was that possible?

  “Halle,” Marcus scolded in a hushed whisper.

  Right. Kale. Uncle Allen was coming. We had to move.

  I bent to grasp Kale’s shoulders. Yet the sudden pitching of the room sent me stumbling. I hurtled forward, barely managing to catch myself with the back of one hand before I landed directly on top of Kale.

  Marcus caught me by both shoulders. Gently, he eased me to my feet and closer to the door. Concern shown in his tawny eyes as he searched my face, then my neck, and then can
vassed my body all the way down to my toes. “You…” As if what had happened finally clicked in his head, he glanced at the other body in the room. That of my mother’s.

  Regret washed over his angular features. “Christ, Halle, I’m sorry.” He shoved a hand through his hair then hurried back to Kale. “Take it easy. I’ll get him. Head back to the ladder. I’ll meet you there.”

  Sure. I’d get right on that as soon as I figured out how to make my feet shuffle forward. I let out a heavy sigh and pushed the screaming pain in my limbs to a corner of my mind. “She…she was trying to kill him.”

  “And doing a damn good job of it.” He bent and heaved Kale’s limp body into a slumped sitting position. “Save the play-by-play. You can tell me when we’re out of here. We’re no use to him if we get caught.”

  “If? I believe it’s more of a question of when, Marcus Wintergrave. And from the looks of things, I’d say the answer is now.”

  The all-too-familiar masculine voice boomed through my head, snatching me out of my stupor. My gaze snapped to the doorway. Shock claimed whatever sense I had remaining, and I stared, wide-eyed, at my uncle’s sneering face.

  Thirty-five

  Marcus flew into action before I could fully process he was moving. He lunged at my uncle…and promptly hurtled backward into the wall. His head slammed against the stone, and he let out an agonized moan.

  Cold fingers latched onto my upper arm as Allen laughed. He kept his focus on Marcus, though, not addressing me. “Didn’t think I’d see you again here. Especially after Surana made it clear how unwelcome you are.”

  Surana? I knew that name. My uncle’s thugs had said it the day Kale knocked me sideways in the woods. Jadukara. Wolf. She’d possibly chased us. My brow furrowed. Marcus knew her?

  “Fuck…you,” Marcus wheezed. He cocked his head and spit at Allen.

  Allen’s laughter intensified. “And just as I was about to thank you for bringing my long-lost niece to my doorstep.” He tugged on my arm and dragged me closer to his side.

  I tried to squirm away, but his fingers clenched so tightly, I could have sworn his nails scored into my bone. Gasping in pain, I stopped fighting. From the corner of my eyes, I caught the movement of Marcus’s fingers.

  “It’s useless to try,” Allen said, still chuckling. “The wards against you—that’s why you had to have her, right? Your magic is useless here, Noita. As are you.” He leaned out of the doorway and bellowed, “Guards!”

  In answer, three hulking skeleton-like creatures formed a solid wall behind him. He stepped aside, allowing them into the room, and for the first time, his gaze turned to me. Malice glinted in grey eyes that were identical to my father’s. “She, however, is quite useful to me. Much more than this worthless vessel.” With the toe of his dress shoe, he kicked Kale’s leg.

  Indignation shot through my veins. It was all I could to do keep my mouth clamped shut against a response similar to Marcus’s come back. Wisdom held reflex in check though—if I spoke, I sensed it would be worse for me.

  One lift of my uncle’s hands instructed the three ghastly creatures to shuffle inside the room. They marched toward Marcus, leaving a trail of foul odor in their wake. I wrinkled my nose and grimaced against the reflex to gag. They had clearly been men once. Tall, robust, and definitely strong judging by their size. But now, their hair covered their heads in scant patches, their exposed skin was grey and leathery, and their gaunt faces held a chilling emptiness that reflected in their eyes. Soulless was the word that came to mind.

  Likely, I wasn’t far from the mark.

  One reached for Marcus’s shoulder, and I had to look away from the fleshless fingers that clasped into his shirt. My stomach protested with a violent lurch.

  Allen glanced down at his watch and muttered an oath. “A pity we can’t catch up, Halle. I have a meeting at City Hall in twenty minutes. I’m afraid you’ll have to remain with your friends a little longer.”

  He thrust me straight into the arms of the third guard. Bony appendages locked around my upper body tight. I cringed as the aroma of rotten flesh filled my nose.

  That atrocious smell knocked my common sense aside. “What do you want from us?” I blurted.

  Allen paused, half-way through the door. “Want with you?” A chilling smile pulled his expression into tight lines. In that instant, something shifted in his features. The vision of the man I knew so well changed. Flesh sank more deeply against his facial bones. His lips thinned. The white veneer of his teeth assumed an ashen pallor. “My dear, I think you know perfectly well.”

  He reached a hand out and ran an icy finger down my cheek. “You had me fooled, but I should have known what you were when your father told me how you tasted.”

  He drew his fingertip over my mouth, summoning a shudder from deep inside me. God, this wasn’t happening. Not with Marcus present to hear my shame. To witness my humiliation.

  As if sensing my desire to hide, the guards dragged Marcus closer, grunting against his attempts to free himself, ushering him toward the door. His gaze met mine, and I closed my eyes.

  “Now you’re here,” My uncle continued, unfazed by my reaction, seemingly taking delight in taunting me. His finger drifted down the curve of my jaw, stroked the length of my neck. “And I have you to myself. You will serve my desires perfectly.”

  At the thought of him abusing me the way my father had, every warring instinct I possessed surged to the surface. I bucked against my captor’s restraint. My gaze locked with Allen’s, narrowed with hate. “You’ll die first!”

  A hollow, mirthless laugh slipped from his lips. “You won’t have the opportunity to try.” He dropped his hand and turned for the door once more. “You’ll be locked away, where your magic is useless, and your friends will watch as I drain your soul. Your blood will be mine, and then perhaps, your sister’s. I have little use for her these days.”

  “You son of a bitch!” I screamed at his retreating back. “Don’t you touch, Faye!”

  He stopped and looked at me once more, the picture of innocence reflecting in his face. “Or what, Halle? You might call me more names?” He nodded to the creature that held me.

  One twist of my left arm sent agony ripping through my body. I sagged, rendered helpless as my shoulder threatened to rip out of the joint.

  “You’re not in a position to make any useful threats, windwalker.”

  With that, my uncle strode away, leaving Marcus and I struggling against his guards as two more stalked in and hoisted Kale to his feet.

  * * *

  The guards herded us down the tunnel Marcus had traveled earlier, into a damp and humid cavern where the clang of machinery was deafening. Two barred-off recesses in the hall faced one another, like jail cells from another era. The faint glimmer of yellow-green lacing through the steel bars, however, marked the cells as distinctly magical.

  Without a word, they shoved us inside, giving Kale’s limp form the barest of consideration. He toppled in a heap, and Marcus had to jerk sideways to prevent Kale’s face from smashing into the stone floor. My own weakness left me swaying precariously, one hand gripping the top of a narrow wooden bench to keep from falling. But anger kept dizziness from consuming me.

  I eased onto the bench and glowered at the thick iron bars. “Fucking asshole.”

  Marcus gently laid Kale on his back and crouched at his side. He tore at Kale’s bloody shirt as he spoke. “He was just trying to upset you. He won’t touch Faye.”

  “How do you know?” I snapped.

  His gaze lifted, and even in the dark, I could see the seriousness in his eyes. “There can only be one windwalker. She’s useless to him.”

  Kale’s soft groan prevented me from arguing further. His color had worsened, and his breathing was more labored. Worry urged me to his side. I clasped his hand, rubbed my cheek over his knuckles, and looked to Marcus. “We’ve got to do something for him.”

  Marcus shook his head. “No, you
have to rest. You’re not much better than he is, and I sure as hell can’t heal you both.” He gestured at a long, thin bed of reeds atop a hard, rotting, wooden platform. “At least lay down. Let me check you out first.”

  On that thing? I gave him an incredulous look. God only knew what kind of despicable creatures had occupied it. Maybe even died atop it.

  “It’s not much for comfort, granted,” he continued, a touch of amusement lacing his words. “But it’s bigger than the bench and drier than the floor. We’ve got to make do with what we have. And I’m going to need your help, eventually.”

  He had a point. Oh, but that bed looked so far away. And I was so tired. I let out a heavy sigh and shook my head.

  “Halle—”

  “Can’t make it there.” I lowered Kale’s hand and stretched out alongside his battered body. “My skin burns. And I’m so…tired…”

  “Your skin burns?” All trace of humor vanished. He stepped over Kale purposefully and knelt near my hips. “Where?”

  Closing my eyes, I answered, “All over.”

  My T-shirt shifted as he tugged at the hem. “Mind if I?”

  All I could muster was the energy to shake my head.

  A cool breeze washed over me as he pulled my shirt over my ribs. An oath hissed off his lips, and then warm fingertips drifted over my skin. “Jesus, you’re lucky.”

  To my own ears, my words sounded slurred as I asked, “What do you mean?”

  “This is bad stuff. It eats from the inside out, not the outside in. She was attacking your life force.”

  Oh. Well, I guess that explained why I was so worn out. Why even breathing felt like a monumental effort of will.

  “Most people can’t survive long enough to have wounds erupt on their skin.” His palm smoothed over my abdomen, leaving behind a pleasant tingling sensation. “Good thing you’re made of tougher stuff.”

  Yeah. Scales. I smirked, though I couldn’t make the words come out. Instead, I lay unmoving, tracking the path of Marcus’s hands and fingers as they soothed the burn. Bit-by-bit the feeling that I’d rolled in a mound of fire ants began to fade, leaving me with just the overwhelming exhaustion.