Demon Retribution (24 page)

The act shot a spike of melancholy straight
to her chest. “Please don’t bow, Ethanule. And you can call me Kyra
now.”

“See.” Anya chided, as if a point had been
proven.

Ethan gave a sheepish grin. “Apologies. An
old habit, I guess.”

“Very old, indeed,” she retorted with a
smile.

He took her hand and placed a kiss on her
knuckles. She blushed. No one had done that in ages.

A clatter of bottles hit the table, making
her jump. She gave Cale a questioning look, but he didn’t notice as
he distributed the drinks. Ethan motioned for her to take a seat,
and she perched herself next to Zoey who had claimed the chair next
to another demon. Sebastian said his name was Rex.

Then she heard Zoey mutter, “Hi,” in an all
too familiar tone. Rex smiled and returned the greeting in an
equally appreciative voice that was far too easy to translate.

Kyra shot to her feet.
“Uh-uh. No…
hi
. No
sideways glances.” She pointed for Zoey to switch seats with her
and narrowed her gaze at Rex. Zoey attracted the worst kinds of
males and this guy was a friggin’ demon. A strange demon at that.
Cale hadn’t even known who he was.

“Why do you get one and I don’t?” Zoey
whined, moving over.

Kyra set her jaw, though she couldn’t keep
her cheeks from flooding with heat. Cale’s expression remained
impassive, directed elsewhere, but he must have heard Zoey’s
comment.

I don’t get one, Kyra thought. She
understood their relationship perfectly, or lack thereof.

Teeth grinding, she gave Zoey a serious
look. In response she received a very sarcastic eye roll as Zoey
moved over. Kyra sat and took a long, and much needed, gulp of her
drink. It tasted sweet. She lifted the glass again and didn’t stop
drinking till it was empty.

Sonya snorted, amused, and then waved to a
woman behind the bar, presumably for a refill. All at once, the
demons lifted their glasses in some sort of silent salute before
taking a drink. Kyra got the sense it was a cultural idiosyncrasy
to which she wasn’t privy. As Ethanule pulled up a chair, Sonya’s
smile faltered. Kyra had to wonder if the two didn’t get along.

“So, Ethanule,” Kyra started. “Tell me what
happened after I left Evlon.”

His brow rose. “Starting out a little
thick.”

“Starting at the beginning. I’ve been in the
dark for a long, long time, and now I want some answers.”

The other conversations at the table died
down.

Ethanule swallowed and let out a breath. “We
were all taken by surprise by the attack. None of our seers, not
even your father, anticipated it. It was suggested later that the
Kayadon had some sort of cloaking magic, but we can’t be sure.” He
paused. “I sent you off in that little ship, expecting to see it
blasted to a million pieces, but others had started evacuating the
planet as well. The Kayadon were distracted enough, and you got
through.

“We sent Nadua next, then Analia and your
mother. Your cousins followed, and those who were closest to the
royal family. Most everyone else had to fend for themselves, and
those who didn’t have access off the planet went into hiding or
were captured…”

The group sat quietly, listening with mild
interest as though this were a retelling of a story they’d already
heard.

Ethanule took a drink before adding, “Your
father stayed behind. No one could persuade him to leave. He felt
responsible. Felt that his visions had failed him.”

The image of her father’s
bleak expression haunted her. She could still hear the sorrow in
his voice as he had spoken.
I am sorry, my
daughter. I have failed…everyone.

A perky female bartender approached with a
tray of drinks and made her way around the table. When she got to
Cale, she lowered her mouth to whisper in his ear. Kyra’s mind
hissed, and she had to resist letting it escape through her teeth.
He smiled at the woman, but Kyra couldn’t hear his hushed response.
With a pout to her lips, the woman walked back to the bar.

Put the kitty claws away, she told herself.
She had no claim on Cale.

Luckily, nobody noticed her mental hissy
fit, and Ethanule continued. “The King spent the following fifty
years sifting through the future, and putting together the book
that helped bring us all together. When he finished it, it was
smuggled out and entrusted to the Serakians who enchanted it so
that only the three of you can open it. However, the king charged
me with decoding it.”

“Why?” Kyra asked.

“Because it holds secrets that can be used
against you, against all of us, and he convinced me that I could
survive to find you, even though I did not always believe it.”

Kyra gave him a grateful smile. “Father was
right to have put his faith in you.” She placed her hand over his
knuckles. “It must have been difficult all these years.”

He turned his palm up to grip her hand.
“Thank you, Majesty.”

She pursed her lips at the title, but
decided not to comment. “Well, what’s happening on Evlon now? Is
Father alright? Are they hurting him?”

“When the book started its journey, the king
sent me away, and I haven’t had contact since. That was three
hundred and fifty years ago.”

Kyra hid her disappointment and floundered
for another question. Her gaze slipped to Cale, who could either be
staring at her hand clasped within Ethanule’s, or lost in
thought.

“Tell her your theory,” Nadua urged.

Ethanule hesitated. “I believe the Kayadon
want something from us. Something they don’t have and have been
unable to get.”

Kyra sat back. “Our magic,” she
breathed.

He nodded. “That’s the only thing we can
come up with.”

Zoey bumped her shoulder. “What’s going
on?”

Kyra swiftly relayed the conversation.

“That’s what I said. Tell ‘em that’s what I
said.”

“Zoey agrees,” Kyra obliged. They all looked
at Zo, and she managed to smile brightly and shrink at the same
time.

“They’re keeping our people alive,” Ethanule
said. “They haven’t sold a soul into slavery, like they did...” His
eyes flickered to Marik, and he trailed off. “From what I can
remember, life went on as normally as possible. People tried to
live as best they could. But they lived on the edge of a knife,
trying not to get noticed by the Kayadon soldiers that patrolled
every village. Any poor soul who drew their interest…disappeared.”
There was an underlying message in Ethanule’s tone.

Kyra made an effort to unclench her fists.
The wars of Earth had been terrible to behold. Atrocities had been
inflicted on people by those who had absolute power but little
conscience—acts that should only exist in the most evil of
nightmares. The Faieara had always been a peaceful race. They knew
nothing of war, or—she shuddered to think—torture. Of their own
accord, her hands came up to cover her mouth as if that would
protect her from the truth.

Cale’s grip tightened around his bottle.
“We’ll rip every last one of their throats out.” A surprising
amount of venom coated his words.

Sebastian gave Cale a censured look and then
leaned forward in his chair. “We intend to do everything we can to
free your people, but I will not lie, our thoughts are on revenge.
People will die. Theirs…and no doubt ours. I’ve made it clear to my
crew that they are not under any obligation to join us, and many
will end their association with us at the next stop.” He paused.
“We need allies.”

Kyra nodded, trying to look at the situation
from a tactical perspective. “What has been done so far?”

“We’ve sent out encrypted messages on some
underground channels. Anyone who’s interested will contact us.”

“What if no one responds to it?”

“There are other options. The Kayadon pose a
threat to all the races. There’s nothing to say that when they’re
done with Evlon, they won’t move on to the next planet. That should
be a powerful motivator.”

“So where should we start?”

“Spaceports and cities,” Sebastian
replied.

Ethan jumped in. “I could entreaty my old
faction and some other pirates I’m acquainted with.”

Sonya scoffed but said nothing. He scowled
at her.

“How about the dragons?” Kyra suggested.

“Yes, the dragons,” Nadua agreed. “They are
our allies. Or…they were.” She looked at Kyra, then to Analia,
suddenly apprehensive.

“I have to believe they still are,” Kyra
declared. “I spent some time with the clan of Legura,
remember?”

“Yes, but...” Nadua replied. “Theirs is but
one among many. What of the other clans?”

“I cannot say. Perhaps if we get one clan,
the others will follow.” She glanced at Cale. “Didn’t you say you
had a dragon pilot on board?”

Cale grunted in affirmation. “Aidan. He’s
from the Kanisae Clan.”

“Could he ask them for support?”

Sebastian frowned, and Cale ran his fingers
through his hair. Not a good sign. “He was exiled.”

She cursed under her breath.

“However, we’ll ask him,” Sebastian offered.
“It couldn’t hurt.”

The table fell into silent contemplation.
Zoey’s eyes drooped, and Kyra realized how late it must be. “We
should get some sleep. Can we continue this in the morning?”

Sebastian nodded. “We were only expecting
one extra. Do you mind sharing quarters for the time being?”

“That would work out for the best, I think.”
Kyra wasn’t about to let Zoey out of her sight anyway. At least not
until she grew more comfortable here.

Sonya pushed to stand. “I’ll show them the
way.”

Cale made no reply except to relax deeper
into his chair and motion for a refill. Kyra’s lips thinned.
Apparently, she and Zo were no longer his problem.

Sonya had just left Kyra and Zoey’s room
when an irate voice bellowed from behind. “What is your
problem?”

She turned to see Ethan beating a path
toward her. His expression said he hadn’t sought her out for his
pleasure. Thank the gods. At least he’d waited until she dropped
off the two newest crew members. It was difficult enough to keep
anything a secret around here.

“I figured it was clear,” she snapped,
sauntering toward her room with false nonchalance. The door
swooshed open at her approach, and she whirled on him. Her arm
stretched out to one side, palm on the door frame, an obvious
signal that he was not welcome.

“What is this grudge you have against me?”
His voice lost none of its barb.

Sonya only raised a brow, holding her
ground.

“And do not use the incident in the training
room as an excuse. Whatever your deal is, it goes further back than
that.”

She speared him with a look that, for anyone
else, would have been a warning to back the fuck off. She wasn’t in
the mood for this.

Ethan wasn’t taking the hint. “We are about
to go to war! So you and I are going to get past this.”

“Did you leave my pub solely in the hands of
Jade?” Sonya grumbled.

“You’re the one who hired her.”

“Ethan, just get back to work. We’ve nothing
to talk about.”

“The hell we don’t.” He moved so swiftly she
didn’t even see it coming. Grabbing her outstretched arm, he spun
her and seized her wrists behind her back while forcing her into
the room.

Dammit, she was sick of being overpowered by
guys today. And yet, a twinge of excitement blossomed.

Ethan walked her forward until her front met
the wall and the hard muscles of his chest crushed against her
back. The door closed them in.

Her breath caught when she felt his lips
flutter over the nape of her neck. Then he growled low. “Why do I
want you?”

Sonya got the sense he wasn’t looking for
her to answer. Still, she said, “If you knew what danger you are
in, you wouldn’t.”

“Are you talking about your little fang
show?”

She gasped. “You saw? And still you’re
here?”

“I know you wouldn’t bite me unless I ask
you to, and I have no intention of doing so.”

“
I wouldn’t claim you if
you begged me.”

“Then there is nothing for me to worry
about.” His teeth found the shell of her ear with a soft
pressure.

An unwanted shiver ran over her. “I thought
you were here to talk.”

“I’m finding I want to do a lot of
things.”

“Do you really think I’m
going to let you do
that
to me again?”

His lips curled. “Imagine my surprise when
the beautiful, flirty demoness turns out to be a virgin. One
question has been nagging me though. How is it possible?” His hold
eased a bit, but he didn’t let go. She could whip him with her tail
or gouge his eye out before busting in his nose with the heel of
her palm.

Instead, she said, “It’s an
easy accomplishment when you have two,”—she thought of Marik—“make
that three, overprotective brothers. Brothers who would show
you
your own spleen if
they saw you now.”