Belador Cosaint

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  He'd finally accepted that Kizira's death was not his fault.

  During the months since she'd died, Quinn had done some hard soul-searching. He now realized that if the war between Beladors and Medb had somehow miraculously ceased, he and Kizira could never have had what they'd once shared when they were young. They would never have managed a stable life with mutual trust and affection at its center.

  Too much heartache under the bridge.

  The hardest thing he'd been forced to accept was that Kizira had never fully trusted him with the knowledge of their daughter or she'd have told him sooner, before the point of her death. She allowed Phoedra to live for thirteen years with no father. No parent at all it seemed, if what Reese insinuated was true--that Kizira had not been part of Phoedra's life either.

  Quinn struggled to process that last part.

  He wouldn't hold it against her.

  As a child of the Medb, Kizira had been taught to never trust anyone. The fact that she'd successfully hidden Phoedra from the powerful coven spoke of Kizira's true nature and her love for their child.

  If he could find his daughter now, he'd have the chance to explain all of that to Phoedra and then work to gain her trust.

  As he made it to the rear of the building, he stepped onto a dirt-and-gravel parking area ravaged with weeds. He suddenly realized that if the kidnappers were actually here, he'd finally see Phoedra for the first time.

  And she'd see him.

  Hell of a way to be introduced to your child.

  His heart jumped into hyperdrive the closer he moved toward the walk-in door next to a tall garage door. The harsh cut of tire tracks showed someone had been in a rush and turned hard on their way into the building. He was no tracker like Storm, but those tracks appeared to be fairly new compared to softer-edged ones nearby.

  Pausing at the walk-in door, he leaned his ear close, listening for voices.

  He heard nothing at first and tested the rusted doorknob. Locked.

  Using his kinetics, he slowly turned the tumblers until a tiny click sounded. He opened the door and stepped inside the pitch-black space.

  When his eyes adjusted, he made out the walls of a hallway with a door on each side. Offices, most likely. Slowing to listen at each door and hearing silence, he continued moving to the one at the end, which he hoped allowed him to peek into the garage without drawing attention yet.

  He listened and caught a conversation.

  Someone with a deep baritone voice was saying, "... and that's not okay. You said we could turn this bounty quick. What are we doing here? I need my money."

  A younger, less gruff male voice replied, "I did not say it would happen in a day. Didn't I pick the perfect spot to grab her and get us out of there? No one is following us through that bolthole, but I can't just jump to the next spot without sending word first."

  "That's bullshit, man. Where are we going next and when are we getting paid?"

  "You're on a need-to-know basis, Charlie."

  "Well I fuckin' need to know now, Turbo. I can't stay around that ... that, hell whatever she is. She hurts my head."

  Was Phoedra using a power? Were her abilities already evident? What were her gifts?

  Or had being under duress caused her gifts to surface?

  Who knew, since she was the product of a powerful Belador and Medb priestess?

  Turbo said, "Her hands are contained. Stay away from her and you'll be fine. Touch her and you'll hurt a lot worse when I'm through with you."

  "I'm not going near that thing. She's your problem."

  They were afraid of Phoedra.

  Those words were music to Quinn's ears right now, but that didn't dismiss whoever was paying Turbo to kidnap her.

  Quinn had his hand on the doorknob to open it when Charlie said, "What's that noise outside?"

  Quinn dropped his head against the door. Was Reese trying to get in?

  "Shit, man, someone's fighting out there."

  "Take Buzz and go check it out."

  Quinn jerked upright. Had a demon attacked Reese? He turned to rush out, then hesitated. What about Phoedra?

  He had to keep them both safe.

  He had seconds to make a decision.

  If he could take down two of the kidnappers outside where Phoedra wouldn't be caught in an energy crossfire, that would up his odds of getting to Phoedra before the third guy could use her as a hostage or turn her into a human shield.

  Plus, he couldn't leave Reese to fight off a demon even if she had her powers. She'd admitted that she hadn't practiced with them much.

  Quinn raced outside where light flashed from the far end of the building.

  When he made the corner, ashes were floating in the air.

  Reese had disposed of what had probably been a demon, but two guys with nonhuman energy--had to be the kidnappers--had her by her arms, which meant she couldn't get her fingers on her medallion.

  She dropped to her knees.

  That pulled the one on her right off balance.

  She jerked her left hand free and nailed him in the groin. He doubled over, cursing, and reached for a fist of her hair, yanking her onto her back.

  The man on her left lifted a hand and swirled it into a fireball, preparing to strike Reese with it.

  Quinn dove into his mind and drove energy into it, then withdrew just as quickly.

  Fireball guy's eyes rolled up in his head. He fell to the ground, slapping his body with the fiery hand, which caught his clothes on fire, but he was stone-cold dead in the next second.

  With that one down, Quinn ran to Reese, who was still pinned to the ground by the one she fought. Quinn didn't want to kill that one yet if it wasn't necessary.

  She grabbed her medallion and hammered a wild chop of power across the back of the guy who still cupped his groin with one hand.

  His hand fell away from her hair as he dropped face-forward, and she sat up, shoving hair out of her face by the time Quinn reached her.

  Lifting her so she could stand, he asked, "Are you okay?"

  She looked at what was left of the body smoldering on the ground. "What'd you do to him?"

  "I stopped him from hitting you with a fist of fire. The rest was self-inflicted."

  Reese twisted around toward the front of the building. "They came out of the street-side door. But there's one more in there."

  "I know. I was inside when the third one sent them out here because they heard you fighting what I assume was a demon."

  She whipped her head back to him. "You were inside? Is Phoedra in there?"

  "Sounds like it. Now we have two against one. Let's do this. When we get inside, I'll take on the last guy and you protect Phoedra."

  Amazingly, Reese didn't argue. "I'm in. Let's go."

  Quinn led the way, sneaking up to the rear entrance of the building again. He'd made it inside and down the hallway with Reese right behind him, when he heard a grinding noise that caused his heart to miss a beat.

  The garage door motor had been engaged and the van engine cranked.

  Shoving the door open, Quinn ran into the garage, but fifty-gallon barrels blocked his way.

  He couldn't blast them out of his way without risking harm to Phoedra. He did an about-face and rushed back the way he'd come.

  Reese had already raced out the door ahead of him.

  The van blasted through the half-open garage door. Metal squealed and twisted.

  Reese launched herself at the van, grabbing a door handle and getting dragged.

  Using his kinetic power, Quinn lifted the rear wheels to take away the van's traction. He tried to lift the entire van into the air, but the front end was blurring out of shape as if something had a grip on it.

  What else could he do without endangering Phoedra or Reese?

  In a blink, the van vanished from the front to the back as if someone had passed a majik hoop over it. That had to be the bolthole opening up and swallowing it.

  Quinn lunged and grabbed the back doors of
the van, yanking with his kinetics engaged to rip them off. Energy wrapped the van, burning his hands, but he wouldn't let go.

  Phoedra was shouting, "Help!"

  In a massive flash of power, the van lurched forward, out of Quinn's hands, and disappeared.

  "Fuuuuck!"

  Wait a minute. What happened to Reese?

  Yelling came at Quinn from a distance and, out of nowhere, Reese barreled toward him in midair.

  He caught her against his chest, falling back as momentum sent them skidding through the dirt.

  She slapped the ground next to him. "Damn! Damn! Damn!"

  Catching his breath, he pushed them to a sitting position that ended with her on his lap. Her face, arms and hands were scratched and bleeding in some places, but she paid no attention to her injuries.

  "I'm sorry, Quinn. I almost had the door open, but I couldn't let go to touch my medallion. I could see Phoedra. She looked okay. He was shouting at her to stop messing with his head, so I think she's got some type of defense."

  "I know. I heard one of the men we took down say he was afraid of her. That she hurt his head every time he got close. The only positive is that Turbo, the name of the guy who still has her, warned his associate not to touch her or he'd suffer worse. I think she's at least safe until she ends up wherever he's taking her. Based on what little I heard, he hadn't intended to leave for another day or two. We still have time to find her."

  "But she was right here," Reese said in a pitiful voice. "We should have had her."

  He put his head against hers. "I know and I appreciate what you did, but I don't want you harmed either."

  "I'm in this until she's safe." She lifted her head and put her hands on his cheeks. "I'm tough and I'll heal. We can't hold back no matter what if ... I mean when we get another shot."

  "First we have to find where he went."

  Reese's disappointment washed away. "That's right. Give me a minute." She jumped up and looked around, then she took five steps. "This should be about where the van disappeared."

  Quinn followed her and took up a guard position to watch for demons. He knew from experience that she was vulnerable when she attempted remote viewing.

  Reese clutched her medallion in one hand and closed her eyes, sitting perfectly still with her legs crossed. She leaned forward, squeezing her eyes tight. "Don't do that."

  "What?"

  She paid him no mind and kept muttering. "Stop it. Just one more ..." Opening her eyes, she looked up at the sky, raised her fist and shouted, "Do not summon my inner bitch, Universe. She doesn't play nice."

  Quinn's heart hit his feet. She couldn't find Phoedra. "It's okay, Reese. Thank you for trying."

  "What?" She pushed to her feet and dusted at the layer of dirt covering her. "I know where she went."

  "You do?" That booted his heart back up close to his throat.

  She held up a hand. "Let me be clear. I know the city he took her to, but I only got a glimpse before he sealed the bolthole behind him so I'm not sure where they are in that city or if he is only driving through."

  "Doesn't matter. I'll arrange to get you home then I'll leave immediately to go after her as soon as you tell me where she is."

  "No."

  Shock robbed him of words at first. "Why not?"

  "First, you needed me to find her just now, which means you might need my remote viewing again. Second, she doesn't know you."

  He took that one straight to his heart and it must have shown.

  "Oh, hold it, Quinn," Reese said in a rush. She put her hand on his arm. "Let me rephrase that. Phoedra doesn't know you yet and might think you're another person trying to grab her. She's known me for two years and trusts me. I need to be there for her, for both of you."

  He couldn't argue with that logic. He had yet to even see his daughter's face. Contrite over his thoughtless decision, he said, "You have a valid point. I didn't mean to sound unappreciative, as I am anything but."

  Giving him a wary look, she said, "Does that mean you're taking me with you?"

  "Yes, of course. You're working just as hard as I am to get her back and I welcome the aid you offer." He admitted the truth. "I had not intended to put you at further risk, but I would be a fool not to acknowledge that we are better as a team." When she gifted him with a smile, he felt forgiven and moved ahead. "Now, where are we going?"

  "New Orleans. I got to Tulsa on a one-way teleport, so how do we get to New Orleans?"

  "Give me a minute." Quinn called to Trey telepathically. This is Quinn. Is Daegan somewhere you can reach him?

  I could, Quinn, but Daegan is leading a team that's on the trail of a missing Belador teen and we're a little shorthanded.

  With the Beladors spread thin, Quinn was not about to bring his dragon king here to help retrieve Phoedra at the cost of putting another person's child at risk. Don't bother Daegan. I can handle this.

  When he closed the telepathic link, Quinn explained to Reese, "We'll have to do this the old-fashioned way."

  She frowned. "We'll need a credit card to rent a car. Did you bring any with you?"

  "Yes, but we're not driving to New Orleans."

  Taking a look down at herself then glancing at him, she said, "I doubt they'll let us through airport security looking like this and with no luggage. That just screams suspicious in this day and age. Also, I have no ID with me. I only carried cash when I left my apartment today."

  Quinn had started punching numbers into his phone and paused long enough to ask Reese, "How did you plan to get home with Phoedra if you had no way to rent a car or fly?"

  "I had a plan."

  When she said nothing more he said, "But you aren't sharing that plan?"

  She clammed up tight.

  Using her words from earlier, he said, "You know what, Reese? Sometimes you say a lot with your silence."

  Chapter 19

  --------

  Reese finished washing up in the small lavatory on the airplane Quinn had arranged. She had avoided the mirror, but finally stared at the face looking back at her. "What was I supposed to do? Tell Quinn I had one more teleporting ticket home once I found Phoedra?"

  Her reflection, aka Miss Guilty, offered no help.

  "I'm so not in the mood to argue right now," Reese muttered, looking away and brushing her hair to help it air-dry. With no way to pull it back, she had to leave the curls to do as they pleased.

  Even after she'd admitted to Quinn that she had no credit cards or travel ID for leasing a rental car or purchasing an airline ticket, he'd surprised her by not pressing her for more. Like not asking for her secret plan of escape had she found Phoedra on her own.

  Even worse, he'd hired a private jet, which had been ready to lift off with only two passengers in a half hour.

  A. Half. Hour.

  Who did things like that?

  Quinn had taken it all in stride, acting as though he chartered a Learjet from Tulsa to New Orleans at the snap of his fingers every day.

  Did he?

  In the weeks after she'd come home from Atlanta, she'd searched the internet for information on Quinn just to figure out more about him.

  She'd found nothing.

  And yes, if she were telling the truth, she'd been stalking the guy. It was a new experience for her and she wasn't sure she'd give it up any time soon. Not now that Quinn had popped back into her life.

  Who was this man and what kind of stupid money had he paid to make this airplane happen?

  What would he do when they found Phoedra?

  She caught Miss Guilty's eye again and snarled, "I know. It's not what will he do, but what will I do? I don't have any choice. I have to return Phoedra. Hassling me is not helping."

  Finished with her cleanup, she dressed in a pair of jeans with a long-sleeved, dark-blue, button-down shirt, which she left untucked and with the sleeves rolled up on her forearms. He'd had the set of clothes waiting at the plane by the time they arrived.

  He'd made one freaking phone call
, spoken so quietly she hadn't even heard the actual words, and clothes had been delivered.

  She'd never heard of Josef Seibel Caspian sneakers, but the shirt had a Burberry tag. She didn't want to know how much this pair of casual gray shoes had cost.

  She should tell him not to buy anything expensive like this again. These would end up like her cheap running shoes by the end of this trip--dirty and worn hard.

  Being tough on clothes and shoes was just the nature of her life.

  Who had anything delivered that quickly to an airport in a strange city, with a no-hassle phone call?

  The same man who had a Learjet waiting at a moment's notice.

  A man with unlimited resources.

  Reese didn't begrudge him wealth. In fact, it meant he could give Phoedra a better-than-average life, but that wouldn't happen immediately.

  From every appearance, Quinn was accustomed to a world where only the perpetually loaded could reside. On the other hand, he didn't hesitate to get dirty, and he wasn't put off by her mouthiness or any of her usual tricks. He made for an interesting puzzle stuffed into one seriously sexy body.

  She jerked herself back to reality. It would be nice to have a button that could send her hormones back to hibernation.

  But the more she was around Quinn, the more she had to face that what she felt ran deeper than hormones. If she lowered her guard and admitted it even to herself, danger waited in that direction. She could not be the woman in his life. Not when she would forever put him at risk as a demon magnet.

  Still, deep inside she was just a woman who wanted that one chance to dream. That one chance to believe she wouldn't have to spend her life alone.

  Just one chance to know the feeling of being cherished.

  All of that was nothing more than fantasies. She mentally jerked herself back to the mission.

  Stick to finding Phoedra.

  What would it be like when they found the kidnappers?

  Quinn had clearly never met his daughter.

  Did it bother him that Kizira had kept him in the dark all these years about their child? His child?

  At one time, Reese would have cheered Kizira for protecting Phoedra. Now that she knew the kind of man Quinn was, Reese admitted that such a judgment would have done Quinn a horrible disservice.

  Just look at what he was doing now. Not only did he want his child, but he was fighting with everything he had to get her back from kidnappers.