Black Orchid (Svatura)

by Abigail Owen

“A form of control. We get it,” Sheila snapped. “Can you take us her room?”

  Zara looked as though she was going to tease them a little with the information. Nate grabbed her arm. “We don’t have to take you with us, you know. I can knock you out and stuff you in a closet. We’ll be long gone before you wake up.”

  She glared but then rolled her eyes with a huff. “Yes. I can take you to her. But how are we getting out of here?”

  “Leave that to us,” Nate said. He didn’t want to admit that they hadn’t figured that part out yet. He was hoping Sheila might be able to get them out of there. At the worst he figured he could bring them out a few at a time the same way he’d gotten Desmond in.

  “Whatever,” Zara said. “Follow me then.”

  “Wait,” Sheila said. Zara turned back to face them. “Is she in one of the rooms up in the labs?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay, I’ll get us up there. Once we’re in the hall, you take over and show us where.”

  Zara shrugged. “You’re the boss.”

  Desmond took Nate by the shoulder again, and the choking sensation slipped over him along with the cloak of invisibility. They followed Zara, who, to be fair, went along with all of Sheila’s whispered directions. Without incident they made their way up to the hallway where the labs were located.

  “Okay, stop,” Sheila said.

  Zara looked over her shoulder, eyebrows raised in question.

  “We need to be invisible until we get off this floor. Desmond, you up for it?”

  “I’m fine,” he said. But Nate heard the strain in his voice.

  “We’re going to have to break into the room,” Zara warned.

  “That’ll trigger security. The faster we can get out of this area, the better chance we have of getting out of the base before we’re found.”

  “Zara, is there anyone else we could be trying to find and take with us?” Sheila asked.

  “Not really. I didn’t hear if they got anyone else tonight.”

  “They didn’t,” Desmond’s grim voice informed them.

  “Okay, so just Maggie. Let’s do this,” Nate said.

  Under Desmond’s cover of invisibility, they all moved as one down the hall until Zara stopped them at a solid metal door. “In here,” she whispered.

  “Are you sure?” Nate asked. Once that door was open, there was no turning back.

  “I’m sure. I followed them here when Maddox came down to see her.”

  Nate tried the handle on the off chance that it’d been left unlocked. No such luck. A sense of deja vu came over him… a random memory of helping Ramsey get Lila out of a similar situation.

  “When the door is open, move fast,” he said. “They have guards who’ll be here in minutes if I recall correctly.”

  “Got it,” Desmond said.

  They shifted around so that Nate could take up a position in front. “On three, let go of me Desmond. One… Two… Three.”

  In the same instant that his body became visible, the door slammed inward and across the room, taking parts of the frame and wall with it. Nate heard a woman scream. Sticking his head inside the door, he saw Maggie strapped to a table with Melanie bent over her.

  In an instant, Nate was filled with an all-consuming black rage. This woman had so much to answer for. So much pain, so much evil. He’d be damned if she’d ever do this to another person again. Not when he could do something about it.

  Without another thought he used his speed to be at her side before she could do more than gasp. Taking her head between his hands, Nate twisted sharply. He felt her neck snap with a sickening crunch. He let go, and her limp body flopped to the floor, her head lolling at an awkward angle.

  Nate stepped over Melanie’s body to where Maggie was strapped down on a metal table, still out cold. He ripped off her restraints, then moved back to the doorway to guard the entrance to the hall, ignoring the looks of incredulity from now visible Desmond, Sheila, and Zara.

  “Wow. Rage much?” Zara muttered.

  He ignored her too, watching as Desmond gently lifted Maggie into his arms.

  “You’ll have to hold onto me,” Desmond said.

  Zara and Sheila both took an arm. In a blink they disappeared. Nate scooted further into the hallway to give them room to pass.

  “Nate?”

  His heart slammed into his ribs at the sound of Talia’s voice. He looked down the hall to find her standing at the end with six guards grouped behind her.

  “Go,” he whispered to the others, taking care to move his lips as little as possible.

  “Not without you,” Desmond whispered back.

  “Get them out of here. I’ll buy you time.”

  “We’ll come back for you, mate.”

  Nate breathed a silent sigh of relief, knowing that at least his friends had escaped. He turned his focus on Talia and the guards. He just needed to hold them off long enough for the others to get far away from here.

  Chapter 33

  Adelaide awoke from a fitful sleep with a gasp. Frantically she searched the room until she realized that she was in the Vyusher castle. Not at home in Australia with Nate downstairs asleep on the couch.

  “Nate,” she whispered.

  Something was horribly, terribly wrong. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to recall the dream out of which she’d just been jarringly pulled.

  She’d been walking through the field in Colorado where she and Ellie had practiced sometimes. But it was daylight. Sun had warmed her skin as she’d wandered in silence. She could hear the rustle and flutter of pine needles and aspen leaves as the wind wound its way through the trees. Everything was fresh and fragrant, the field blanketed in green grass and wildflowers in an abundance of bright colors.

  “Adelaide!” Nate’s voice had thundered through the air, and she’d felt the vibrations throughout her body.

  She’d spun in a circle looking for him, only to see nothing. And then, suddenly, clouds had streamed through the sky, like watching days of movement in fast forward. The sunlight dimmed and was gone. The wind whipped her hair around her face, and all the color had faded to greys.

  “Adelaide,” Nate’s voice had called her again. Only this time it sounded as though he’d groaned it.

  “I’m here,” she’d called out. Desperate. Frantic.

  “Adelaide.” His voice growing fainter.

  Adelaide had caught a flash of something in the woods. Without a thought she’d run toward it. “I’m here. I’m here, Nate!” she’d called as she sprinted across the field. The tall grass had scraped and scratched against her legs, but she didn’t care.

  She’d stopped at the edge of the trees, searching. And then she’d seen him. Nate stood in the darkness, pale as a ghost.

  “Nate,” she’d called, more softly.

  He’d looked in her direction but kept scanning the area with his eyes as though he couldn’t see her standing right in front of him. “I hear you,” he’d whispered.

  “I’m here. Right beside you.”

  He kept searching, but his gaze had passed over her.

  I’m here. See me, she’d silently urged him.

  “Don’t leave me,” he’d choked out.

  “I won’t. I’m right here. God, what’s happening?”

  “Talia. She’s the one—”

  “What?” Adelaide’s heart had felt as though it had stopped beating altogether. This couldn’t be happening.

  “She’s trying to take you away from me again,” he’d said. And in that instant, her heart came smashing back to life.

  “Fight it!”

  “I’m trying. Don’t leave me!”

  “I won’t. I’m right here.” Adelaide had felt the wet tracks of the tears sliding down her cheeks.

  His hectic gaze suddenly stilled, and he gave her a soft smile. “There you are.” He reached out for her.

  She took a deep breath and returned his smile. Adelaide reached to touch his hand, but she was too far away. She tried to s
tep closer but found that she was paralyzed.

  “I can’t move. What’s going on?”

  The dense fog started rolling around them, like the mist from a witch’s cauldron. Adelaide felt forces pulling her away from Nate.

  “Don’t leave me!” he shouted.

  “Don’t forget me,” she yelled back. She started fighting, thrashing to get free of whatever was carrying her away. “I’ll find you. Just hold on.”

  And then she’d come back to her body with a rush. Now she shuddered, convinced it hadn’t been just any dream. Adelaide threw the covers aside and bolted out the door.

  She went straight to Selene’s room, pausing only to knock perfunctorily before entering. Griffin’s head popped up from where he lay on the bed beside his te’sorthene. He gave a little warning growl that cut off abruptly.

  “Adelaide?”

  “Something’s wrong. I think they’ve caught Nate.”

  Selene, who’d been sitting up groggily, jumped out of the bed, with Griffin right behind her. “Why do you say that?”

  “A dream I just had. Talia’s got him. She’s trying to make him leave me again.”

  “Again?” Griffin asked.

  Adelaide ignored the question. “Please. We have to do something.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t just—”

  “I’m sure. Maybe I’ve picked up your ability to enter people’s dreams. But I know without a doubt that he’s in trouble.”

  “It could be Maddox controlling your dream,” Selene pointed out.

  Adelaide clamped her mouth tight to keep from swearing at her friend. “I. Am. Sure,” she said through clenched teeth.

  “What can we do, though? We sent Desmond with Nate to get information, but we still don’t know where Nate took him. Even if we did, we’re not prepared to go in.”

  Adelaide turned to Griffin. “What about Desmond? Can you hear him at all?”

  He shook his head. “I lost him when he and Nate were picked up by Maddox’s teleporter.”

  Adelaide had never felt so helpless, or useless, in all her life. The trembling started inside her. She doubled over, hoping to keep her beast at bay.

  “Adelaide? Are you okay?”

  With sheer force of will, she pushed the dragon back down deep where it couldn’t break free. Once she’d regained control, she stood upright. But before she could say more, another knock sounded at the door.

  “Enter,” Selene called.

  A plump, motherly looking woman entered. “Angelica?” Selene questioned.

  “Ma’am. I thought you’d want to know right away. Your parents…”

  “Yes?”

  “They’ve woken up, My Lady.”

  Selene paled. “When?”

  “Just now.”

  “I’ll be there directly.”

  Angelica nodded and scurried from the room.

  Adelaide watched Selene closely. Her friend had thought for decades that by removing her parents’ powers, she’d driven them insane and that they’d eventually taken their own lives. But then, miraculously, they’d been discovered at one of Maddox’s bases after a battle. Unfortunately, they were in a stasis similar to the one that Talia and others had been in. Until now.

  Selene turned to Griffin. “Get our family first, and then have Oren—” She choked off the word as she remembered. She took a steadying breath. “Contact Xavier. Have him gather the High Council immediately.”

  “What about Nate?” Adelaide asked.

  Selene frowned. “I doubt it’s a coincidence that my parents would wake at the same time that you had this dream. We’ll try to find him, but we don’t have a clear path there yet. My parents are the more immediate concern.”

  Adelaide opened her mouth to protest but closed it on a slow exhale. She wanted to scream and rail and go running out into the night to find Nate. But Selene was right.

  “What can I do?” she asked.

  Chapter 34

  Selene stood in front of what had become her throne on a dais in the main hall. She could feel the weight of exhaustion and responsibility and impossible choices weighing her down until she thought she might buckle from the pressure.

  She’d spent the last three days going nonstop. She still couldn’t believe that her parents were awake and well. And, now, word of their recovery had spread through her people. She waited, patiently… always patiently… for the angry voices around her to quiet down.

  Finally, finally, silence descended on the room, and Selene rose gracefully. She had no idea how the next moments would go. And she couldn’t even say with certainty that she knew how she wanted this to turn out.

  She glanced at the Jenners and Pierces lined up off to the side. Griffin wasn’t there, still hiding his inability to morph back to human from all but her Council. She felt his absence like an added stone in her already heavy burden.

  “The rumors you have heard are true,” she started. “My parents have woken from their stasis. They have no memory of the last century or so. We don’t know why they suddenly woke up now, although Dexter Pierce’s mother’s memory has also been restored. We do believe those two facts are linked.”

  “Where are they? Why can’t we see them?” a voice from the crowd called out.

  “They asked that I make the announcement before they appeared before you.” She nodded to Angelica, who opened a door leading to a small chamber. Her parents moved into the room to stand beside her. Their dear faces made her heart swell with love and gratitude that they were alive. Her father was still a mountain of a man, although his dark hair had some grey at the temples now. Her mother was a lovely, older version of Selene.

  Her father gave her an encouraging smile, his eyes twinkling just as they used to, despite the seriousness of the situation. The room hushed. And then, slowly, everyone who could morphed to their wolf forms and bowed low before the old King and Queen of the Vyusher. Sadness flitted across her parents’ faces. They might be awake and alive, but they still had no powers. Gideon had forced Selene to remove their supernatural abilities long ago.

  Her father held up his hand.

  “We cannot morph any longer. That has not changed. But we thank you for your warm welcome home.”

  “Who will rule?” a voice from the crowd called out.

  “We cannot rule,” Selene’s mother answered in her sweet, soft voice. “Not when we can’t be part of the pack.”

  “You can!” someone shouted. Selene kept her bland expression with difficulty as she recognized Xavier’s voice. Her High Council had been in deliberation about who would rule these last days, still with no solution. Selene had decided to let the people determine their own course.

  Xavier stepped forward. “We have a Svatura here now who can make people into wolf metamorphs. It’s her special power. So you do have the option.”

  “No,” Selene snapped. She was sick of having this argument with him. Without Desmond there to temper his father, Xavier was back to being a royal pain.

  She turned to face the people staring at her. Selene never snapped. “There’s a fifty-percent chance that they would die. And even if they survived, it’s not guaranteed that it would work quite right.”

  She thought of Griffin, trapped in his animal form, hiding from life. For her.

  “Just because it didn’t work for your te’sorthene doesn’t mean it wouldn’t work for Harold and Marguerite.”

  An excited murmur, tinged with anger, moved through the room, followed by shouts of “What does he mean?” and “What have you done?”

  “Griffin?” Selene called mentally as she waited for the outcry to die down.

  “Just outside the door. Have Angelica let me in.”

  Selene nodded, and Angelica opened the door. A moment later Griffin padded in on all fours to stand beside her. Total silence followed in his wake.

  “It did work for my te’sorthene,” Selene said.

  “Why can’t we hear him then?” Xavier asked.

  “We don’t know. He hasn�
�t bonded to the pack yet, we think.”

  “And he can’t get out of the morph,” Xavier added.

  This time, the furor that arose threatened to escalate into all-out violence.

  *****

  Adelaide watched in horror as the Vyusher seemed to turn against Selene and Griffin. More and more people shifted into their wolf forms. They bared their teeth, snarling and snapping. The angered barks and growls filled the room with a deafening welling of sound. A few wolves even lunged at Selene, only to slam into Griffin’s shield.

  She knew the time had come to do something. If anyone could help them right now, it was she. Granted, she didn’t have Nate here to help her stop the shaking and to prevent the transformation that she feared, but Adelaide had to take that chance.

  Accessing her power to see relationships, Adelaide focused in on the white strands of glittering light that she could see connecting every wolf in the room. Every single one except Griffin. But now that they knew of his existence, maybe she could do what she’d been unable to before.

  Reaching out, she laid a single finger gently on one of the relationships crossing directly in front of her. Voices, sharp and scared, filled her head. The wolf pack’s thoughts splintered around her, through her, in her. But her practice with telepathy paid off, and she was able to quiet the voices. She couldn’t silence them completely, but she could concentrate at least.

  Before, when she’d tried to change a relationship, she’d physically wrestled with it. It’d worked with Ariel, but not with her and Nate or with Griffin. Now, instead of trying to force the connection with Griffin, she closed her eyes and concentrated on the gossamer-fine thread itself. Through only a gentle touch, she tried to do what she’d seen her father do countless times when he healed someone’s body.

  She imagined how she felt with her own family. She thought of the love and understanding and acceptance she received through that relationship. She grew that feeling inside her own heart first, and a warmth started to spread through her, the tendrils starting deep inside and then unfurling slowly throughout her being.

  Then, holding on to a picture of the devotion she’d seen between Griffin and Selene, she imagined feeding the warmth through her fingers and into the relationship she touched. She pictured a glow deep within her spreading from her fingertips and into the line, lighting it up from within and making it glisten with a light that hadn’t been there before.