All For One [Nuworld 3] (18 page)

“Please tell me it’s not what I think it is,” she whispered.

The door opened just then and Darius walked into the jail. He didn’t hesitate but

walked slowly and deliberately to the entrance of the cell. His face was expressionless

and his hands fell casually to his side. Tara knew he was assessing the situation and

wouldn’t be as quick to pick a fight in public. She couldn’t hide the horrified look that

she knew covered her face, and Darius studied her for a moment, then focused on the

determined look on Syra’s face.

“You can’t think that it’s anything.” Syra emphasized every word, ignoring Darius’

presence. “Don’t you see? They will see your thoughts.”

Syra hesitated for a minute, then dropped her head into her hands again, and

muttered.

“My loyalty to the Runners is as thick in my blood as it is yours, Tara. We are tied

to Gothman, therefore I am loyal to him.” She waved a limp hand at Darius then

returned it under her chin. “It’s that loyalty that will keep me here and keep me silent.”

There was silence. Tara’s hands went to her hips as she studied her niece and

thought about what she’d just said. Syra thought she was protecting their nation from

the Tree People. She could guess why but she needed to hear the answer. Syra thought

if Tara and Darius heard what Syra knew they could inadvertently betray their nation

to the Tree People.

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Slowly, she turned and looked at Darius. His expression was stone-cold and not

readable. He looked back at her then looked at Syra as if trying to digest what he’d just

heard as well.

When Tara spoke, it was just above a whisper. “You’ll stay here for the rest of the

night. Syra, you could tell us anything. We don’t have to see the Tree People again and

they wouldn’t be able to read our thoughts. They have to see our eyes to know what we

know, am I right?”

Syra nodded.

“Don’t ever keep information from us again.” Her whisper was deadly.

Syra looked up quickly, like a defeated child. Tears welled in her eyes but again she

just nodded.

Then Tara walked up to Darius, standing inches from him but not touching him.

She looked straight into his eyes. “I want several blankets brought to her and a pillow.

Make sure your guards don’t touch her. Better yet, replace these guards with Runners.”

He looked at her, not blinking once, but without comment. “First thing in the morning,

she’ll be brought to us.” She looked at Syra. “And she’ll tell us everything she knows.

We won’t see the Tree People again.”

She slipped past Darius, leaving him alone in the cell with Syra. She went to her

glider and slowly, numbly, rode back to the house. It appeared The Waiting had come

to an end.

* * * * *

Andru opened his eyes to a beautiful sunrise outside his open window. He was

surprised to feel so refreshed so early in the morning. He’d waited for his sister to

return last night. She’d arrived within the hour to the minute. It bothered him, though,

when he realized that Roth easily brought her to the edge of the yard on a Gothman

glider. He then flew off in it. That explained how Mirak’s glider disappeared. Andru

meant to ask her about that this morning.

His sister slept with a small smile on her face. She had her knees pulled up to her

chest and slept in a ball, just as she had when they were children. Her long blonde hair

fanned across her pillow and several tangled curls covered her face. Andru stood next

to her bed and stared at her for several minutes.

As if sensing someone’s presence, Ana blinked several times. Andru plopped down

on her bed, pulled his legs up, and crossed them. He faced her with a crooked smile.

She pulled herself up in her blankets and sat as he did, facing him. She matched his

smile and stared back at him.

“You look just like you did when you were a kid.” Andru finally broke the silence.

He reached up to his sister and straightened a runaway curl.

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“Are you searching for a look of innocence?” Ana teased.

Andru’s face grew hard. “Leaving you there with him last night was one of the

hardest things I’ve ever done. Ana, he’s a man—you’re not a woman yet.”

Ana’s smile grew and she stroked her brother’s cheek. He nestled his face into her

hand.

“I don’t want you to get hurt…or in trouble,” he whispered, feeling overwhelmed

with concern.

“Oh Andru,” she laughed, and pulled her brother into her arms. “Don’t worry.

Roth is a good man. I’m as innocent now as I was when you left me.”

He pulled away and searched his sister’s face. He wanted to know what happened,

every detail of it. He wanted reassurance he’d made the right decision in leaving her

there unattended.

He knew how his Gothman friends treated her. She was his sister, with no claim to

anything by Gothman law, and inevitably she would be his responsibility. His friends

tested his limits by flirting with her but he knew when they found her alone they were

more aggressive. She’d be an outstanding claim to any Gothman. She was not only

beautiful to distraction, but any man who claimed her would guarantee himself in good

favor with the future Lord of Gothman. It was his job to protect her. Not only had he

figured this out on his own, his papa had spelled it out quite clearly to him.

“What are you saying?” His voice was barely audible.

Ana laughed, and jumped out of the bed. She walked across her room in her long

white nightgown and bare feet and grabbed some clothes. When she turned to face him

she was still grinning. “I think I like you worrying about me. You heard what I said. I

don’t owe you any more detail than that.” With that, she turned and walked toward her

bathroom.

Andru groaned and fell onto her bed. She threw him off unexpectedly when she

implied she didn’t have sex with Roth. That was good, although surprising. What kind

of man was Roth? Did Tree People have no sex drive? His sister looked pretty willing to

him. How could anyone not want her? And he still needed to confront her about the

glider Roth now possessed. Mirak would suffer incredible humiliation if anyone found

that Ana knocked him out cold, stripped his clothes off him, and then stole his glider.

There was just one other thing that rubbed wrong with Andru. He couldn’t believe

his sister hadn’t mentioned to Roth that she was a twin. And even if she hadn’t, no race

would enter another nation without doing research on the people. It would be easy to

find that Lord Darius and Lady Tara had twins. But Roth looked so surprised when he

saw him.

The expression Andru saw on Roth’s face when he’d pulled off the Runner gear

confused him. The man had looked really shocked. Maybe Tree People didn’t have

twins. But they were all of Nuworld, all of them created by Crator. It just didn’t make

sense.

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* * * * *

It took Tara a long time to fall asleep after she had returned home. Darius hadn’t

come home. She’d enjoyed a long bath that morning, soaking sore and aching muscles

in hot, steaming water. The sunrise was beautiful and she stood on the balcony off their

bedroom, leaning on the wooden railing and watching the rolling hills disappear into

the horizon.

Crator, please don’t let my people be in trouble.

She heard the faint sound of someone knocking on her bedroom door and walked

back into her room. “What is it?”

“M’lady?” Fulga pushed open the door. “Syra has arrived with two Runner guards,

she has.”

“Have her wait in the conference room. I’m on my way down.” Tara grabbed her

boots. “Oh, Fulga, ask her if she’s had breakfast, and if not, feed her.”

A few minutes later Tara entered the conference room and noticed the large platter

of sweet rolls on the round table. She saw her niece. “How are you?” Tara reached for

one of the rolls, and realized Fulga had brought enough for everyone to eat, not just

Syra. Fulga probably thought Darius would frown on her feeding Syra, and chose to

serve enough rolls for everyone in order to fulfill Tara’s request and avoid a reprimand.

Syra stood looking out one of the windows facing south, but turned now to face

Tara. She looked tired, for obvious reasons, but otherwise untouched. It had crossed

Tara’s mind more than once that Darius could have beaten her after she’d left last night.

She wondered where he was.

“Thanks for breakfast.”

“How about a hot bath?”

“Oh, that would be great.” Syra attempted a smile as she slipped a group of braids

behind her ear.

Tara called Fulga and asked her to prepare the bathroom at the end of the hall for

Syra. Fulga showed no reaction to this request but simply nodded and left. While Syra

bathed, Tara called Jolee and asked her to report to the conference room with Fartha

and Trev.

“Darius.” She spoke into her comm as she sat alone in the conference room.

“This is Lord Darius.” His voice sounded thick, almost guttural. She knew that

tone. Who was he trying to impress?

“Where are you?”

“I’ll be home soon.”

Tara sighed in exasperation. “You have thirty minutes.” She clicked off her comm

before he could respond.

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Once she would have worried about Darius cheating on her. But she had no doubts

he remained faithful. Whether he realized it or not, there were enough Gothman, as

well as Runners, who would contact her in a minute if he approached another woman.

Her comm beeped immediately and she prepared to take on her claim.

“Yes?”

“Tara, it’s Torgo. Has Syra told you anything yet?” He sounded tired.

“No.” That wasn’t entirely true. “But she will in about thirty minutes.”

“I’m on my way.”

Tara ran her fingers through her hair as she sat alone in the conference room

wondering what turmoil might be stirred up within the hour.

Torgo arrived first, not bothering to wait to be announced. She heard the front door