Broken (37 page)

But all thoughts of Prince Luca disappear as my eyes and Nathaneal’s meet, and he lets me know he’s not leaving without me.

How I’ve missed him!

Memories stolen from me at birth suddenly burst through their hiding place, memories of my mother’s beating heart, of healing fingers splaying across her stomach, of reaching for them with my tiny hand, and feeling frustrated with the pulsing wall keeping us apart. Someone, somehow, had just shown me my future and I needed to reveal it to the boy who would share it with me, so I forged a connection between my pre-natal spirit and the pre-pubescent prince who was standing over my mother’s body with his hand on her belly.

Noticing how Prince Luca’s arm crosses my chest, Nathaneal stiffens; every muscle of his beautiful face hardens, and my heart breaks with the knowledge that more pain lies ahead.

From the corner of my eye I spot flashes of blue, then purple wings, beating fast into passing blurs. It’s Jezelle and another female angel. They sweep across my vision carrying two
lamoraks
, surrounded by golden halos.
My parents?

And now Nathaneal and his remaining team are going to try to bring
me
home too.

‘Tell your soldiers to throw down their weapons,’ Prince Luca commands from over the top of my head. ‘It’s not as if you are in a position to do any bargaining. You must have noticed the legion of soldiers outside awaiting my command. You’re in my world now, Nathaneal.’

Nathaneal glances over his shoulder at Skade’s grey sky. ‘I believe I just left it.’

Luca growls like a bear. ‘You know you can’t win this, so why put your team through the ordeal of a battle. If you haven’t noticed, I hold the prize right here in
my
arms, and this time she comes home with me.’

‘Don’t speak too soon,’ Nathaneal says calmly, prompting another rumbling sound from Luca’s chest.

‘You’re an ambitious young prince, but your heart is bigger than your brain. Hasn’t your team done enough for your foolish romantic quest? Look at them. They’re exhausted.’

When he doesn’t look, Luca shrugs. ‘You fell in love with the unattainable and yet you expect your friends to fight for you. Your inexperience is showing. Real kings fight their own battles.’ His smirk is disturbing. He turns it on Nathaneal’s team, lingering on each of the four remaining angels. ‘Feeling a smidge weary after that lengthy journey, are we?’

‘What’s your point?’ Nathaneal snaps.

‘How long do you think you can hold out against an army that will keep coming a dozen, a hundred, even a thousand at a time? They have orders to annihilate you all, to do whatever it takes. Once the battle begins, there will be no mercy for your team. But if you accept my terms the four standing behind you will be allowed to leave immediately. They’re good soldiers, I’m sure you’ll agree. No need for them to die. Are you willing to put their needs before yours, give them the reward they deserve?’

Michael says softly, ‘Remember you’re negotiating with the one who talks with forked tongue.’

‘Michael, my past adversary,’ Luca drawls, ‘I see the high court has found a new job for you as a consultant. How interesting that you would accept a position so clearly beneath you.’

‘What are your terms?’ Nathaneal snaps.

‘It’s simple. You will lay down
all
your weapons.’

‘What of Ebony?’

‘She stays with me, I thought that was clear.’

Michael says, ‘Nothing is ever clear with you. What of Nathaneal? What is your intention?’

‘You ask a lot of questions for someone who is second in charge. Nathaneal will cease to exist. That can’t come as a surprise,’ he spits out over the team’s sudden cries of outrage.

Nathaneal lifts his hand and his team falls silent. ‘We didn’t come here to negotiate.’

But that’s not fair! Not to him, and not to his remaining team members.
Nathaneal . . .
I forge a mind-link though I probably shouldn’t because I don’t know yet how to select who can and cannot listen. But right now I don’t care. I
have
to talk to him . . .
negotiate for your life, please
.

His eyes plead with me to understand.

But I don’t want you to die!

‘Perhaps you should check with the rest of your weary team before you make such a selfish decision on their behalf,’ Luca says.

Michael’s voice suddenly resonates through the tunnel as clear as church bells ringing, ‘Cousin, I will fight alongside you until the end of days.’

Isaac follows with his own declaration, ‘Bring on the first hundred!’

‘Is this your view too, Uriel?’ Luca asks the angel with white hair and unusual yellow irises. ‘To follow a prince into a battle you cannot hope to win, a prince who is a mere fraction of your age?’

Luca gives a mocking laugh, but with each word Uriel utters, the Dark Prince’s smile tightens.

Uriel shrugs. ‘This isn’t about age, or whether the odds are stacked against us. It’s about doing what is right. And you have taken what is not yours to take.’

‘What about you, Solomon?’ asks Luca.

Solomon, a big angel with stunning sea-green eyes, black curly hair and chocolate skin, straightens his broad shoulders and spears Luca with a look of such deep loathing it makes me wonder what past grievances have passed between the two. ‘I’ll do whatever it takes to dismiss this scourge, my prince.’

A tear pushes through my determination not to cry.

Luca hisses like a snake. ‘You arrogant fools! Do you really believe you can hold up against an entire legion of Skade soldiers?’

Isaac murmurs, ‘I’ve had worse odds.’

The angel with sea-green eyes says, ‘Yeah, I remember,
sunshine
. That battle lasted thirty-seven days and by the end we’d whipped their butts.’

Luca’s whole body jerks. ‘I have underground tombs with seals so secure I can keep you imprisoned for all of time. And there is something else you insolent idiots should know. When you are so weary and can’t hold up your swords a moment more,’ he glances at Michael, ‘or your bow, I will separate your heads from your bodies and fling your dismembered parts throughout the distant reaches of space.’

‘Don’t hold your breath, Luca. We don’t tire easily.’

Nathaneal’s calm voice infuriates Luca. He screeches, and multiple voices reverberate through the tunnel. ‘Have it your way, for today you will all die!’

46

Ebony

An unexpected male voice bellows into the tunnel, startling everyone, ‘I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Prince Luca.’

Everyone turns towards the blue light of the Crossing entrance. Most of us recognise the self-assured, somewhat cocky, somewhat arrogant tones of Prince Gabriel.

Nathaneal nods at me with that gorgeous smile-wink of his. We’re not out of this by a long shot, but the odds have improved because Gabriel would not have come alone.

He looks superb as he lands on the bridge and strides down the tunnel in his war uniform with black chest armour and matching helmet, his visor raised to reveal the family’s stunning blue eyes.

‘I thought you might need a hand,’ he says when he reaches his brother, flicking a look back to where his troops are starting to pour through the blue light and forming rows along the bridge.

‘Is Jordan safe?’ I call out even before acknowledging Prince Gabriel’s presence. I just have to know. ‘Gabriel, is Jordan all right?’

Gabriel holds my glance a moment too long, his eyes darting left, then right, as if Jordan will appear suddenly in his line of vision. With a furrowed brow he whispers to his brother, ‘We thought he was with Ebony. Amber said he was kidnapped by the same angels who took her.’

‘No, no, no!’ I scream out. ‘He was chained to a wall in an underground cave on the ridge.’

After Nathaneal gives him a slight nod Gabriel says, ‘I’m sorry, Ebony, I don’t know where Jordan is, but I’ll send word to the Brothers to begin an intensive search of all caves in the area.’

Nathaneal sneers at Luca and hisses, ‘What have you done with him?’

‘Well, that would be my business.’

‘You keep your sordid hands off Jordan!’

Luca laughs. ‘My “sordid hands” are all over that boy. And soon he too will belong to me.’

‘That’s not going to happen, Luca.’

‘It’s too late for your paltry promises, Nathaneal.’

Losing control, Nathaneal moves as if to attack us both. White light shudders out from him in waves, altering the air between us.

But Luca raises his hand to my throat, blocking my air and burning my skin at the same time. They eye each other until Nathaneal’s threatening stance eases and Luca lowers his hand enough for me to breathe again and heal.

Nathaneal shifts his eyes to mine, and the anguish I see there is gut-wrenching.

But then Luca taunts him, ‘You let that boy down so many times it’s a wonder he can stand to be in the same room as you.’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘Jordan and I have a covenant. He begged for it and I was kind enough to oblige him. What could I do?’

‘Explain,’ Nathaneal says.

But Luca is having too much fun. ‘For the record, I don’t have to tell you anything, but since I’m feeling benevolent I suppose I will.’

Luca smiles. ‘It started with Solomon.’ He looks at the super-big angel with coffee-coloured wings. ‘Really, Solomon, how hard could it have been to protect a human girl? Ebony tried to protect Jordan and she didn’t have the benefit of Guardian-how-to classes. She didn’t even know she was an angel for sixteen years! Unfortunately, protecting Jordan didn’t turn out well either, did it, Princess?’ He glances down at me, and then grins at Nathaneal. ‘Anyway, when Solomon called
you
for help, you failed the boy too. Big mistake on both your parts because the girl whose soul you missed was Jordan’s mother.’

‘You bargained for his life with his own mother’s soul!’ Nathaneal’s voice oozes disgust.

‘Well, not quite, but we can deal with that trivial point later. Back to the covenant, Jordan gave me the chore of deciding when he dies. I felt sorry for the boy, and since I’m more experienced in these matters than he is I agreed.’

I try to break free, desperate to attack him, but his grasp is so strong and so tight, it’s like being wrapped in a steel cage. I can’t feel my powers. So I resort to words and logic.

‘That was a dream Jordan had in his own bed. Your covenant with him is not binding.’

‘Oh yes it is, and I’ll tell you why – when we agreed on the terms, Jordan wasn’t dreaming.’

‘You can’t get into my house,’ Nathaneal insists.

‘Normally, with all your confounded protections over it, I wouldn’t. But Jordan invited me into his dream and, well, I happened to be in the area.’

‘You mean, you were watching and waiting like the predator you are. Still, I don’t believe Jordan invited you. That would mean . . .’ Nathaneal’s voice trails off, and his troubled eyes scan Luca’s amused ones.

‘That’s right. He was thinking nasty, dark thoughts about
you . . . or someone
.’ He shrugs.

Nathaneal remains silent. I can tell by his serious face that he’s really worried.

‘Don’t worry, I don’t want Jordan yet. Why would I, when I have –’ he looks down at me – ‘my new toy.’ He nibbles on my ear, an action meant, I’m sure, to provoke Nathaneal.

It does. It drives him crazy. Michael and Gabriel hold him back and talk him into calming down.

But Luca’s not finished yet. He whispers at my ear, ‘As soon as we deal with this riff-raff, Princess, I’ll take you home like you asked earlier, like you
pleaded
.’

I shut my eyes tight. I couldn’t stand it if Nathaneal believed him.

Prince Luca calls over to his general: ‘I’ve developed an appetite to get this over with. General Ithran, deploy your legion. Send up a hundred at a time. I want them all eliminated. And start with this foolish love-sick prince.’

The general’s first lieutenant flies in and the two military men converse through mind-links, their eyes flitting over Gabriel’s soldiers. A moment later the first lieutenant rockets out with the sound and speed of a jet, drawing everyone’s attention to his dramatic departure. And while all eyes are on
him
, the general draws his sword on Nathaneal.

‘Behind you,’ Michael warns, then moves to defend himself as Luca’s Prodigies rush over and attack the team.

Meanwhile, Gabriel disappears in a blur of movement over our heads, promptly returning with his troops, who march down the tunnel looking and sounding just as intimidating as Luca’s first hundred, who fly in and meet them halfway.

The only soldiers not moving are the six Gatekeepers surrounding Luca and me.

The battle gains momentum quickly. Everywhere around us swords clash, sparks erupt into flames, arrows soar. Michael’s arrows are the most identifiable, leaving a trail of bright burning lights through the air, almost always hitting their marks.