Chaos

by Iris Johansen

  She dropped the bucket and ran toward the door.

  She stopped in shock.

  That was not the jockey screaming.

  It was the horse. It was Nightshade!

  She threw open the stable door and stared in disbelief. The jockey was standing holding the horse’s reins to keep her still.

  And Reardon was beating Nightshade with a quirt. The lash came down again and then again before Sasha’s shock vanished and she launched herself at Reardon. “No!”

  She was reaching desperately for the quirt, kicking at his shins. Her boot made contact, and she heard him swear. Her fist struck his mouth.

  “Get the bitch off me!”

  And then Davidow was pulling her away from Reardon. She was fighting him, too, struggling to get back to Reardon. “Let me go. You saw him, Davidow. He was hurting her. That whip…He has to be crazy. Who would whip Nightshade? She’s the gentlest horse I’ve ever known.”

  “I was afraid you’d cause him trouble,” Davidow said. “Don’t be stupid. He can do what he wants with her.”

  “But it doesn’t make any sense.” But cruelty never made sense. Reardon’s expression as he’d lifted that whip had been a devil’s face. He was turning toward her now, those pale-hazel eyes flickering with rage. He took a step toward her. “Yes, I can do what I want with her. Because she belongs to me. Just as I can do anything with you.” The quirt came down hard across her chest. “Like this.”

  Pain.

  “At least that makes some sense,” she said fiercely. “Because I want to hurt you. She didn’t do anything. There’s no reason.”

  “She’s a racehorse.” The lash came down again across her hips. “She’s supposed to race. She acted as if she wasn’t even trying when she was out there today with Chaos. No horse I own will perform like that.”

  “She was trying. She was doing exactly what I wanted. They both were.”

  The lash came down again. “Then you’re the one to be punished. You’re teaching my horse not to do as I wish. Take her into the stable, Davidow. She doesn’t want me to beat Nightshade? Then I’m going to let her take her place.”

  “What a fool you are,” Davidow muttered as he dragged Sasha into the first stall they came to and threw her on her stomach on the straw. “You should have just let him do it. She’s only a horse. Reardon beats all his horses whenever he has an excuse. I think it gives him a rush. But Masenak isn’t going to like any of this. I’ll call him and see if he can do anything with Reardon to stop it. Until then just take it and don’t fight Reardon. If you just let him get his kicks and do a little damage, you might live through this.”

  Then he was gone.

  But Reardon had come into the stall.

  “Such a small, lovely body. Such a pretty back.” His hand ran down her spine. “I wonder how long it will take to heal…”

  And the quirt came down with full force on her back.

  * * *

  9 P.M.

  20 Hours to Race Time

  “Alisa, dammit, I don’t know what the hell to do,” Gilroy said the instant she picked up the phone. “He hurt her. I don’t care what Korgan says. I think I’m going to kill him.”

  “Sasha?” Her hand tightened on the phone. “What happened? Reardon? What did the son of a bitch do to her?” She jumped at the first thought she’d had. “Rape?”

  She saw Margaret raise herself on her elbow in her sleeping bag across the cave.

  “No,” Gilroy said. “That’s what I thought, too, when I saw her lying in the straw when I came into the stable an hour ago. Her clothes were ripped, and she was curled up in a ball in front of Nightshade’s stall. That’s what I asked her and all she’d say was that Reardon had beaten her because of Nightshade. Beaten her? She’s bruised and she has whip marks all over her back. Hell, she’s almost in shock. I did what I could. I examined her, and she doesn’t have any broken bones or pulled muscles. But she wouldn’t say anything more and just kept telling me to go away. She said she’d make sure Nightshade would be okay.”

  “Nightshade?” That was as bewildering as everything else in what Gilroy had told her. “Nightshade, instead of Chaos? What happened there tonight? Is there any way you can find out?”

  “How would I do that?” he asked sarcastically. “Go knock on Reardon’s door and ask? I guarantee if I did, he wouldn’t be alive for more than two minutes.”

  “Do you think I don’t feel the same way,” she said fiercely. “I’m just confused and trying to see my way clear to how to help her. You absolutely can’t get answers from her?”

  “I told you, I’ve never seen her like this. It’s not unusual for her to push me away. I doubt if she lets anyone close to her. But this is different. I don’t even know if she’s going to bounce back.” He was silent an instant. “I wasn’t exaggerating when I used the word ‘shock,’ Alisa. I need help. Tell me what to do.”

  She closed her eyes. Gilroy’s worry was profound and dead honest, and it was terrifying her. Tell him what to do? She was lost in ignorance, darkness, and hate right now. She had no idea what to do.

  Yes, she did.

  Her eyes flicked open. “Don’t be an idiot, Gilroy. Of course she’ll bounce back. Do you think she’d let that asshole get the best of her? She just needs help, and we’ll give it to her.” Her mind was racing, trying to make decisions. “And what you’ll do is stay with Sasha and talk to her and maybe hold her hand…if she’ll let you. It will take me at least forty-five minutes to hike to Jubaldar. While I’m on my way, you’re going to go over with me the placement of any guards that might give me trouble once I get inside. Plus any hints that will make it easier for me to get to that connecting access door to Chaos’s stable.” She got to her feet. “And you’ll stay out of Masenak’s and Reardon’s way. I don’t want Sasha to suffer any more trauma than she has already.”

  Silence. “You’re coming here? Korgan’s not going to like that.”

  “No, but I think that you knew it would come down to this when you phoned.” She was stuffing her .38 revolver into her backpack. “You’re very clever, and you realized I wasn’t going to be able to handle this long distance. You probably didn’t like the idea, but you liked Sasha’s condition even less. So you made a choice.”

  “You’re tough, and you’re the only one she really cares about. She’s just a kid.”

  “I didn’t say it was the wrong choice. I’ve got to hang up now. I’ll call you back after I’m on my way.” She ended the call and turned to Margaret. “That bastard Reardon hurt her. She needs me.”

  “So I heard,” she said. “Will you let me go with you?”

  “No, it’s my job.” She smiled shakily. “If she’s not hurt badly, I’ll be back in a few hours.” She drew a deep breath. “And from what Gilroy says, it’s not horrible. I think maybe she just reached the point of maximum intake and couldn’t handle any more.” She paused. “I’m not calling Korgan. I’ll let him know what happened when I get back.”

  “Which is not going to please him,” Margaret said dryly. “I’ll probably get the blame. He told me to take care of you.”

  “Which everyone knew was bullshit.”

  “It was probably his way of knocking on wood. I knew it was only a matter of time before you were going to go after her. Korgan’s too smart not to realize it, too.” She was suddenly beside Alisa, giving her a hug. “Keep safe,” she said quietly. “Don’t make me come after you.”

  “I wouldn’t think of it.” She grabbed her backpack and strode out of the cave. She could see the lights of Jubaldar in the distance. Five minutes later she was reaching for her phone and calling Gilroy.

  * * *

  “Hey, what do you think you’re doing, Sasha? You scared our Indiana Jones wannabe into shouting for help. You’ve spoiled his entire shtick.”

  It was Alisa’s soft voice, Sasha thought. No, it couldn’t be. She was just dreaming. Alisa couldn’t be here.

  “Open your eyes. I didn’t walk all that distance t
o have you ignore me.”

  It was Alisa. Sasha opened her eyes and saw her face. Wonderful face. Full of character and love. “Hi.” Her voice sounded a little woozy, and she cleared her throat. “I was hoping it was you.” No, that wasn’t right. It would have been bad to wish Alisa here when she’d been trying to keep her away. “I mean, I’ve missed you, and I’m glad to see you.”

  “I know what you mean.” Alisa carefully put her arm around Sasha’s shoulders, lay down next to her, and then cuddled close. “I’m glad to see you, too. Though I would have preferred it not to be like this. How bad are you hurting?”

  “That’s what Gilroy kept asking. He wouldn’t stop talking about it. So I told him to go away.”

  “Very rude. But he can be persistent, and it must have annoyed you. You wouldn’t answer any of his other questions, either?”

  She cuddled closer. “I just wanted to close my eyes and forget for a while. So that’s what I did.”

  “That’s what I thought you were doing, what you’ve always done. Fight as hard as you could and then go away for a while and rest and heal. But Gilroy didn’t understand, and it scared him.”

  “I don’t care. I wasn’t ready to come back yet.”

  “And you’re still not coming back, because this time it hurt too much.” She was gently stroking Sasha’s temple. “But it’s time, Sasha. You know it. And I do understand, so you have no excuse. Talk to me and we’ll get through it.”

  She tried to fight it, but Alisa was right. She could come back now. Alisa was here and she’d help to absorb some of the pain as she always did. Yet she couldn’t say the words. It was a few minutes before she said stiltedly, “I couldn’t stop it. I tried, but I couldn’t. I didn’t know how.”

  “Nightshade? It was something about Nightshade?”

  “Reardon was beating her because he thought she wasn’t trying hard enough. It was crazy. But Davidow said he always does it when he gets it into his head that he’s not getting his money’s worth from a horse.” She shook her head, her voice breaking. “But Nightshade was a champion when he bought her two years ago. He had to know she was giving everything she had in every race.” The tears were running down her cheeks. “Evidently he didn’t want to believe it. She’s so gentle…It’s no wonder she’s so quiet and well behaved. She wouldn’t have dared be anything else. I couldn’t stand it, Alisa.”

  “I know you couldn’t.” Alisa’s voice was low. “So you fought Reardon and he savaged you. You must have put up a good fight.”

  “Not good enough. If I had, I would have been able to take a whip to him. I wanted him to hurt.”

  “And he will.”

  “And I’ll never let him hurt Nightshade or Chaos or any other horse.”

  “I believe you.”

  She laughed shakily. “Are you just saying what I want to hear?”

  “No.” Alisa’s tone was suddenly passionate with feeling. “We’ll make everything you want come true. After what you’ve gone through, I just wish I could give it to you right now.” She kissed her forehead. “But I admit I was hoping you would answer a few of those same boring questions Gilroy was asking. Are you in much pain?”

  She tried to decide. She was feeling less numb now, and Alisa wanted to know. “My back throbs but I don’t think the lash broke the skin.”

  Alisa flinched. “How kind of Reardon. I must remember that. Gilroy said you don’t have any broken bones, either.”

  She nodded. “That’s what Masenak said. He was yelling at Reardon when he came and made him stop. He was accusing him of trying to ruin his chances of winning the race if I couldn’t sit a horse.”

  “So he helped you?”

  “He looked at my back and checked for broken bones. He wouldn’t let Reardon beat me any longer. I guess that was a help.”

  Alisa said bitterly, “And then tossed you on the floor of that stable and left you.”

  She frowned. “That didn’t matter. It’s where I wanted to be. After they left, I knew I’d have to check Nightshade and make sure she was okay. And Chaos was upset and trying to get out of his stall. I had to stop him.”

  “Which you did, and then just curled up by Nightshade’s stall where Gilroy found you.”

  She made a face. “And wouldn’t let me rest.”

  “He wouldn’t let me rest, either, but I might give him a medal for it.”

  Sasha suddenly jerked upright, fully awake. “He called and told you to come here? He shouldn’t have done that. This is my fault.” She was glancing wildly around the stable. “What if Masenak comes back? What if they catch you? You have to leave right away.”

  “No, I don’t. I have time. Gilroy is keeping an eye out for Masenak or Reardon, but I doubt if either one of them is going to be checking up on you. From what you said, they treated you like a piece of trash.”

  “You should still go. How did you get in here?”

  “You forgot how good I am with locks. Jubaldar’s security system looks like it was created by Neanderthals compared with Korgan’s XV series. All I had to worry about was dodging the guards, and Gilroy helped with that.” She paused. “I could get you out of here tonight, Sasha. Let me do it.”

  She shook her head. “And have Masenak and Reardon hunting you down along with me? Have them go through the stables with shotguns and shoot all the horses and Gilroy and any of the stable boys who got in their way? I won’t do that, Alisa. You’re the one who has to go.”

  “I didn’t think I had a chance. I’ll go.” She reached for her backpack. “After I put some salve on those bruises, and I brought some painkiller sedatives to make sure you’ll have a decent night. Sit up.”

  Sasha sat up while Alisa gave her the pill and then carefully removed the torn shirt and started working on her back. “Hurry.”

  “As quickly as I can.” Alisa’s voice was suddenly thick. “These bruises…Shit, he was a monster.”

  “Yes, he hurt Nightshade and she didn’t even know why. I told him he should be angry with me because I was the one who wanted to hurt him.” She was barely feeling the pain of what Alisa was doing because she was so intent on making her understand. “And I do, Alisa. The one thing I was so angry about was that I didn’t know how to kill him. Remember when I asked you to show me how to do karate and you said that wasn’t the time? It’s the time now, Alisa. I have to make all the pain stop because I can’t go on like this. I can’t watch it any longer.”

  “But we’re so close, Sasha. Just a little longer. We’ll make this happen.”

  Sasha wasn’t getting through to her. “I know you will. But I can’t wait for you or Korgan or Margaret to stop them. It might not be in time. They might do something else horrible like what they did to Nightshade. I’m here. I have to do it.” She paused. “I have to do it now.”

  “The hell you do.” Alisa turned her around to face her. Her face was pale. “You’re not thinking straight. You have to rest and then you’ll realize that you should leave this to us, leave it to me.” She was trying to smile. “After all, I didn’t get the chance to teach you karate yet.”

  “I have a gun.”

  Alisa looked as if she’d been struck. “Yes, you do. But we didn’t give it to you to help you go on the hunt. It was to protect you.”

  “Killing them would protect me. And it would protect you and all the other innocents they’d hurt and kill.” She stared her in the eye. “Because this is going to happen again, and it will be soon. They can’t help themselves. There’s so much evil that it overflows. I have to be ready for it when I see it coming.” She added quietly, “Or when I see I have to bring it to them.”

  “Don’t do this.”

  “Don’t worry, I won’t be stupid about it.” She leaned forward and went into Alisa’s arms and held her tight. “You have to go now. I’m not going to let them hurt you, too.”

  “Listen to me.” Alisa’s voice was hoarse. “I know I can’t talk you out of this, but just don’t do anything right now. Let me see if I can
get with Korgan and manage to come up with something that will satisfy all of us.”

  “Pull something magical out of your hat? Buy me four horses and change my life?” She smiled sadly. “You’ve done it before. But it might not work this time.”

  “And it might. Just rest and take care of Chaos and Nightshade tonight. Don’t decide anything. Let me work on it and get back to you.”

  “If you’ll promise to leave right now. I’m not in any shape to argue with you.” She shook her head to clear it. “I think that sedative you gave me is beginning to take effect.”

  “I’m gone.” Alisa released her and jumped to her feet. “It’s going to be okay. I promise you.” She was heading for the connecting door. “We’ll work it out.” Then she was out the door, silent, confident, moving like a shadow.

  And Alisa would do her best to work it out, Sasha knew. She was wonderful and clever, and she loved Sasha as much as Sasha loved her. But she didn’t realize that it was too late for her to step in and try to make everything perfect this time. She had to do this herself. She had to end it, or it might never end.

  And she had to keep it from ever happening again…

  * * *

  Alisa called Korgan when she was twenty minutes away from Jubaldar. The instant he picked up the call she asked, “How close are we to taking out Jubaldar?”

  He was silent. “Soon. We’re now looking at early on the morning after the race, just before Reardon leaves. The drones were delivered and ready to go. We’re sending the four riders we need to move Sasha’s horses tomorrow. Vogel and his team are on the north side of Jubaldar, and by the time of the race they should be in position to take out the main castle guards on command. Novak’s designating a team from his forces to send with me when I come back to take over—” He broke off. “Something’s wrong. Why the sudden interrogation?”

  “Because it’s probably not soon enough. If anything else happens, she won’t wait.” Her voice was shaking. “And she’s right, the odds are that they’ll do something terrible, because that’s who they are. I can’t take a chance. We can’t take a chance, Korgan.”