Born of Shadows

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  "Are you going to talk to me or just keep breathing in my ear?" she asked.

  "I like breathing in your ear."

  "You're a sick man, Cai. I thought I raised you better."

  Normally he'd find that humorous, but not at this moment. Right now, those words cut him. "Don't do that."

  "Do what?"

  "Fault find with me. I know you're joking. I just don't want to hear you bitching at me, okay?"

  "That's it. I'm officially worried. Do I need to come get you?"

  Would he ever grow up in her eyes? "I'm not a kid, Shay."

  "I know you're not. You're the only human being in my life, other than my husband I've ever been able to rely on. And I can't stand to hear you upset. It makes me want to hurt someone for you. I love you, Caillen. I want you to know that."

  He held those words like a lifeline. "I love you, too."

  Then he heard Syn in the background. "I have his coordinates. I could get us there within two hours. You want me to fuel my ship?"

  That succeeded in making him laugh. "Tell your crazy-ass husband that I definitely don't need his help. If I so much as see his shadow, I'll shoot him myself." It was so nice to have a conversation without pretense or worrying about vocabulary, syntax or enunciation. "Here, I won't keep you guys. I only wanted to check in.

  "All right." Her tone was reserved and by that he knew she was still concerned about him. "Stay safe and remember I'm only a call away when you need me. And if you change your mind, my crazy-ass husband can get me to you in two hours."

  He shook his head as he reached for the shut off button on the link. "Thanks." He hung up and sighed even while a smile continued to tease the edges of his lips over her last words.

  How had his life become so complicated? He'd had many times in the past when he'd wanted to lie down in the gutter and let the universe take his soul back. Times when the crap he had to deal with had rained down on him with a fury so foul it'd left him temporarily bitter.

  This was nothing like those times and yet he felt so defeated. Lost.

  Hurt.

  He couldn't explain the emotions that shredded him. They were there, tearing at his confidence. Making him wish his father had never found him.

  Enough whining. Damn, Cai, you are turning into an aristos. Gah. What is wrong with me?

  This was absolutely not him. He had money and power. There was nothing wrong with him other than stupidity.

  Not wanting to think about it anymore, he closed his backpack, then lay down on the couch so that he could stare out the portal window at the stars that had guided, protected and soothed him every day of his adulthood. What he wouldn't give to be back on his ship, making a deadly run through a hostile sector...

  But as he stared at them, his thoughts turning blank, an image jumped into his mind from some place he couldn't even begin to fathom.

  It was the sight of a dark-haired Qill with a sassy walk that said she'd rather kick his ass than kiss his lips. Actually he wouldn't mind the former if he could get the latter.

  Yeah.

  I am a seriously sick bastard. He had no idea why she appealed to him, but in the end, he knew one thing.

  He was going to be stupid for her and she was definitely going to get him into a world of hurt.

  Some temptations were just more than a mere mortal could deny and she was one of the biggest ones he'd ever come across. Yeah, next time they met, he was definitely going to allow her to lead him astray.

  Desideria entered the large suite of rooms to find her mother's migraine meds. A migraine her mother swore was brought on by being surrounded by men who possessed what she called manginas.

  She reached the nightstand and searched through several bottles until she found the right one. As she closed the drawer, the small bottle slipped from her hand.

  "Great," she breathed. She'd had a bad case of dropsies since she'd awakened. No doubt it was from her nerves and the fac>

  Worse, the bottle rolled beneath the bed to the far side, out of easy reach. She bent down to pick it up, then froze the moment her head was near the vent that ran under the bed. She heard a faint voice saying the most shocking thing she'd ever heard in her life.

  "Sarra will be dead before she leaves that ship. If you can get Desideria in the process, all the better. I'm even willing to have her become a state hero who died valiantly while trying to save her mother if you can deliver both their heads to me."

  "It's harder than you thought. There are cameras and security everywhere."

  "Are you telling me you're too incompetent to bypass them?"

  "Never."

  "Then I suggest you get started. The sooner this is over with, the better for all of us."

  "It will be done."

  "Good because if the next transmission isn't a newsfeed saying they're dead, there will be one about how a certain someone had a mishap of her own and was flushed out an air lock."

  Desideria pulled back, her heart hammering. Someone was going to kill her mother...

  Her own life didn't matter to her. Well, not entirely true. She didn't want to die, but her life was insignificant compared to her mother's. As part of the High Guard, she'd taken an oath to lay down her life to protect her queen. Should she fail to keep her mother safe, her own life would be forfeit too.

  All members of the Guard would be executed should the queen die by assassination during their watch.

  She had to warn her mother before it was too late. Leaning in closer, she tried to hear more of their plotting, but the voices were too faint. Muffled as if they realized someone might be listening.

  Desideria moved closer to the vent...

  Now the voices were gone entirely.

  Damn.

  Grabbing the medicine, she quickly made her way back to the ship's forward deck where her mother was talking to Pleba while the other aristos drifted near them. She didn't know why, but the bright clothing reminded her of birds preening around each other.

  Except for her mother who was dressed in dark brown and black. The Qillaqs believed the body was a work of art and that it should be displayed and appreciated--why work to perfect something only to hide it beneath layers of fabric? Which was why her mother's dress was made up of leather straps that barely covered the parts of her body other races found vulgar when exposed.

  Even so, Desideria was very conservative compared to the rest of her group. While she was proud of her body, she was still shy about flaunting it. She was extremely muscula, but compared to the other women in her family, she was rather heavyset and too many years of her mother and sisters insulting her weight had made her very self-conscious over showing too much of it lest they start in on her again.

  Her mother paused as she saw Desideria approach. She held her hand out for the medicine in an imperious gesture that irritated her.

  Desideria hesitated. "May I have a word with you, My Queen?"

  "Speak."

  She swept her gaze over the Guard, making a mental note of who was missing. "Where are Xene and Via?" One or both of them had to be the muffled female voice she'd heard through the vent. No one else would be allowed close enough to her mother to kill her.

  "They had to go to the restroom. Would you like to join them?" She held her hand out again. "My medicine."

  "Mother--"

  Her mother cleared her throat sharply at Desideria's use of a title that was forbidden whenever they were in public.

  She clenched her teeth in frustration. "Beg pardon, My Queen, but my news is extremely important."

  "Then speak it and give me my medicine to cure my headache instead of adding to it."

  "I..." She bit her lip in indecision. What if the killer wasn't working alone? Another member of the Guard could very well be in on it. Right now, she didn't dare trust anyone until she knew where their real loyalties lay. "It's of a private nature."

  "There is nothing private from my Guard. You know this."

  Why was her mother being so ridiculously stubborn?
Was it to keep the others from thinking she had favor toward her daughter? Or was her mother just that stupid?

  Desideria debated what to do. Ultimately, she had to speak. The longer she kept silent, the closer the killer could get to striking distance. Taking a deep breath, she handed her mother the bottle and told her what she'd heard. "I have reason to fear for your safety."

  Her mother went perfectly still, then cackled. "While we're here? Please. I know you want to prove your worth. But there's no threat here unless they plan to bore me to death."

  Several of the Guard laughed.

  Desideria was humiliated by her mother's rough dismissal.

  Peria, the Head Guard, stepped forward. "Why don't you take a small break, child?"

  And Desideria really could have done without that slap. Honestly, she wanted to cry, but she wasn't about to give them the satisfaction.

  "I just now overheard a plot to kill you."

  That at least got her mother's attention.

  Until she burst out laughing again. "Don't be a fool, child. No one here has the balls to come after me. Now go take your break and leave us."

  Desideria was mortified as she summoned what tiny bit of dignity she could find and turned away while they laughed at her.

  "An attempt at a summit?" Peria's mocking tone sent a wave of nausea through her body. "Really? What was she thinking?"

  "Perhaps I was impulsive to appoint her so soon." Her mother sighed. "I had such ambition for her. Oh well. I only hope Narcissa and Gwenela don't turn out to be disappointments too. I should never have bred with her father. So much for thinking of adding to our bloodline with an offworlder. I should have known better."

  Those words were like a kick in her gut. I hate you, you sanctimonious bitch. But she didn't hate her mother. Not really. She was hurt and lashing out.

  It was bad enough when other people mocked her. When her mother did it, it was so much worse. All she wanted was to make her mother proud of her. Why was that such an impossible task?

  How will I ever face the others again?

  None of them had any respect for her at this point. They thought her inept.

  Worse, they thought her weak.

  Lost in her thoughts, she didn't pay any attention to where she was going until she collided with a solid wall. At least that was what she thought it was until she realized it was a man.

  A huge, powerful man with a body so hard it was like touching granite.

  Gasping, she looked up and froze.

  Dark brown eyes glowed with warmth as a slow smile spread across the face of the devastating male she'd noticed earlier. And her collision laid to rest any speculation about the body obscured by his voluminous robes. He was as honed as any warrior she'd ever seen.

  The teasing light in his eyes faded into a look of deep concern. "Are you all right?"

  It was difficult to think of a response when the pleasant masculine scent of him was thick in her head and his eyes captivated her so. Oh, he was gorgeous. "Fine."

  His intelligent gaze sharpened. "You don't look fine... I mean, you do look F-I-N-E, but something's bothering you. Can I do something to help?"

  She hated to be that transparent to anyone. Great. Just great. Now I'm humiliating myself with strangers too. That was all she needed. "You're right. You are bothering me. Now move out of my way." Her tone was sharper than she meant it to be, but she couldn't control her anger over her own stupidity and embarrassment.

  He held his hands up and stepped aside to let her pass. "Pardon me for trying to help."

  Desideria took three steps, then turned back to apologize for her rudeness.

  He was already gone.

  Weird. And fast, not to mention silent. She wouldn't have thought he could move like that, especially while swathed in that much material.

  Part of her was bothered that she'd been so curt with him. He didn't deserve it. She hated whenever she took her anger out on the wrong person--like her mother always did. She tried so hard not to do that to others. And here, she'd slapped at someone who was just trying to be nice.

  "This is not my day." At this point, she really wanted to crawl under something and die.

  Die...

  She'd blurted out to her mother what she'd overheard. If whoever the killer was caught wind of that...

  Dying was a very real possibility. Drek... What had she done? Her actions might very well have facilitated things. I've got to find out who it is. Immediately.

  Because if she didn't, both of them would die.

  8

  Caillen sat with his father in the summit chamber, surrounded by nobles and officials, bored out of his mind. The room was round so that they could all see each other should someone give in to the need to yawn, the sadistic bastards, with dim lighting that seemed to suck all the energy out of the very marrow of his bones. Yeah, there was definitely something being emitted by the bulbs that was dimming his intellect. He could feel his IQ slipping at least one point per minute.

  Maybe more.

  At this rate, he'd be reduced to a vegetative state within the hour.

  It explained much about their current leadership... his father notwithstanding.

  In the center was a chair that was occupied by the officials and reps who'd come to beg council attention to certain matters regarding their worlds.

  Gods what I wouldn't give for one of the senators to go mental and pull out a blaster and kill someone.

  Hell, at this point, they could kill him. Anything to get him out of this. But at least he'd helped his father get a treaty with the Krellins. That had pleased the man exponentially.

  "We're a small system and the rights to our crops..."

  Caillen zoned out again so that he wouldn't have to hear the sharp, nasal whine of a governor wanting more funding for his wardrobe. Oh wait, he wanted funding for his poor people. Yeah... that was what the man was pitching.

  He arched a brow at the two million credits' worth of rocks sewn onto the governor's jacket and adorning the man's corpulent hand--wouldn't those help his country's finances just a bit?

  And he knew exactly what those stones were worth. Appraising them even at a distance was a talent he'd acquired from a friend of his who was a pirate and jewel thief. After spending years around Chayden and his pirate friends, he could price a stone faster and more accurately than most experienced appraisers.

  How bored am I that I'm trying to guess carat weight visually?

  Shoot me.

  The governor finished his plea, then left the senior officials to decide his fate. Unfortunately, the leader of those senior officials was his father, which meant Caillen was stuck in this room until hell froze over.

  I feel my life ticking away... C'mon, assassin. Please strike.

  Boggi cleared his throat. "Next are the Qillaqs who are here to inform the council of their intentions toward the Trimutians."

  Well at least he'd have his hot babe Guard to stare at for this one. That should help a little even if she'd snapped his head off earlier. So much for his promise to get her into his bed. She'd effectively nipped his erection.

  At least for the moment. There was still dinner and if he played his cards right...

  Dessert.

  Yeah, he could just imagine her spoon-feeding him what he needed most to turn this shitty day around. And if what he suspected about her was right, she'd chisel a smile on his face not even the League could remove.

  His father sighed as an apprehensive tremor ran through the room. It was so thick, it was tangible.

  Leaning toward his father so that he could whisper, Caillen frowned. "What's up?"

  A tic worked in his father's jaw. "It's the way the Qillaqs negotiate. It's embarrassing, really."

  He'd opened his mouth to ask him to elaborate when the door opened to show the Qillaq delegation. For one split second, all the blood drained from his brain to one part of his anatomy as the queen and her Guard entered in outfits so skimpy they didn't really cover anything.

/>   Oh yeah, he could see straight to the business end of the queen's body, and her breasts were only covered by a thin gauze that highlighted the fact she'd rouged her nipples to make them more prominent through the material. He knew many places in the universe where going out like that in public would get you arrested.

  Or laid.

  His tongue thick, he looked past the queen to the woman he'd spoken to earlier in the hallway.

  With her hair now braided down her back, she was dressed more sedately in a burgundy halter top and tight pants. Still, that top plunged deep between her breasts making him wish she'd dressed more like her queen.

  Yeah, gimme a bite of that... He'd say that if the other officials had dressed like this it would have kept him awake, but honestly their bodies were best covered. No need in making everyone sick.

  These on the other hand made him wish he was a Qill.

  Slap my ass and call me yours. She could lock him to her bed and keep him there as long as she wanted.

  Baby, what is your name? He wouldn't be able to sleep tonight until he knew it.

  He wouldn't be able to focus on anything until he knew her scent.

  The men in the room shifted uncomfortably while the women curled their lips in distaste. Yeah, jealousy was a bitch.

  Never one to let anything interfere with his decorum, Boggi cleared his throat. "Queen Sarra, please state your case to the council."

  She came forward to sit on the chair with a seductive gait that was probably causing the older members to wheeze. When she sat, it was with an open posture that made him want to laugh--poor queen had no idea that he was used to negotiating with women a lot hotter, sexier and more naked than she was at present. If she wanted his mind numb, she should have sent in her little Guard woman dressed like that to speak for her.

  He doubted he'd be able to even remember his own name if Ms. Cutie back there were naked. He caught Darling's amused smirk from the other side of the room. There was a challenge in that stare and it was one Caillen planned to meet.