In the Beginning... (6 page)

****

Emily left Mickey in the sitting room,
needing to think. Even though she'd learned so much about the
Dardaptoans, the idea that they could live close to two thousand
years or more was unfathomable to her. She also couldn't imagine
being without someone special for six hundred years. Yet Rydere was
letting her go? She settled on a small bench and watched the sun as
it started to set. If she was destined for someone and was lucky
enough to find that person, she'd grab on and hold tight with
everything she had.

So why was he letting her go? Had he realized
he'd made a mistake? Did he...not want her anymore?

Why didn’t that thought make her happy?

She’d studied him for the last week. She’d
sat in his office most evenings while he dealt with the small
concerns that running such a hotel consisted of, even offering her
opinion on situations the several times he’d solicited it.

His job was no different than her position of
head of Taniss. He just had many more people depending on him. And
he shouldered his responsibilities well.

He was a fair leader, reasonable in his
requests and equitable in his dealings with his people. He was
available when they needed him and he cared for them a great deal.
And he’d ruled them for over four hundred years, always alone
except for his three advisors.

TI supported a world-wide staff of six
thousand people so she had some inkling of his responsibility. Yet,
Rydere’s leadership went so much deeper than mere employer. He was
their king.

According to his own admission, he’d waited
six hundred years for her, but now he was sending her home because
she wasn’t happy with him. Why would he care?

Emily needed to know the answer to that. She
stalked around the garden, pausing when she saw Josey on the far
side. Josey tossed a toy for Free to chase, though her cousin’s
demeanor was tense. Josey wasn’t happy, that was clear. Emily
started toward her.

She didn’t make it. Free started barking
wildly as half a dozen dark shapes came out of the shadowed grove
and encircled Josey, issuing deep growls that the blonde
couldn’t hear.

The closest shape sprang, knocking Josey to
the ground. Both Josey and Emily screamed, but Emily was too far
away to help. Free attacked, but the little Border collie stood no
chance against the larger wolves.

The wolves ignored the dog, shaking her off
with almost human movements, staring at Emily as she continued
screaming Rydere’s name. Screaming for help.

One was behind her as she turned and ran; she
could feel its hatred, feel it’s breath as it burned against her
skin. So close.

She tripped, slamming hard to the path.
Gravel bit into her skin, mud soaked her white tunic. The beast
behind her pounced, his teeth inches from her neck, his weight
pinning her. She grabbed for a stick inches from her on the path;
she swung, but it jerked the branch out of her hand with its
teeth.

She fought, certain she was going to die,
ripped to shreds by some beast her mind refused to identify.

She screamed; the word on her breath his
name.

Then it was gone, and she heard a voice
yelling her name; yelling at her to run, to get inside and get
help.

She stumbled to her feet as Rydere attacked
the first of the beasts surrounding her. He slashed with his knife,
doing more damage than she’d have expected. Another man passed her
with a keening cry, a warrior yell of both anger and despair, as
she neared the doors. Cormac.

Hands pulled her inside the building. Theo
held her. Thank God. “Josey! You have to help her! Help him!”

“Stay inside! Go to the king’s suites and
stay there! The alarm has been sounded, and there is no one in this
tribe that won’t die to protect you. Go!”

Emily couldn’t leave, not while knowing that
Josey was outside, hurt. That Rydere might be. She could see
everything that was happening through the window. Rydere still
fought, though he was bloody. God, what if they killed him? What
would his people do? What would she do? He couldn’t die, he
couldn’t. He couldn’t.

Aodhan and several men tried to pull her away
from the door before storming into the gardens. But Emily had to
watch.

She screamed as Rydere went down beneath the
largest of the wolves. Aodhan struck out, killing the animal. The
wolf’s body dropped to the ground and turned into that of a
man.

It was the last of the wolves. Cormac ran in,
Josey cradled in his arms, not stopping to give Emily a chance to
check on her cousin. Aodhan and Theo lifted Rydere between them,
wrapping his arms around their shoulders.

Emily held the doors open as they pulled him
inside. “Rydere?”

He lifted his head, relief
visible in his pain-filled orange eyes. “
Rajni
, are you hurt?”

“Just bruises, I’ll be ok.” Emily tried to
fight the urge to run her hands over him, to check for injuries
herself. The urge was too strong and she started at his shoulders,
her hands touching as much of him as she could. “How badly are you
hurt?”

He didn’t answer and she saw that he'd fallen
unconscious.

“We’ll take him to your
suite,
Dhan
Emily,”
Theo said. “Run ahead, see that he has clean clothing. Have Jambu
fetch bandages and warm water. Go on. We'll bring your
Rajni
.”

****

She felt useless when they stripped the
ruined clothing from his body. Aodhan had called for a doctor and a
blonde woman arrived five minutes later.

“He’ll need blood,” the
doctor said after stitching the worst injury. “But he should be
fine in a few days, a week at most. He was lucky. If you’ll excuse
me, I need to assist with my brother’s
Rajni
.”

Aodhan turned to Emily. "Go
to your cousins,
Dhan
Emily. They have need of you."

"But he—" She wanted to go to her cousins, to
be with Josey, but Rydere looked so vulnerable.

"We will care for him." Aodhan smiled
reassuringly. "And when he is settled we will come to you. He needs
much blood, and we know our feeding is still uncomfortable to you.
Go."

His hands were insistent as he nudged her
toward the door. Theo was just visible leaning over Rydere. Emily
left.

****

Mickey and Mal waited outside the suite Josey
had been sharing with Cormac.

"Em!" Mickey threw her arms around Emily and
held tight. "Oh God, we were so worried. Are you ok?"

"Bruises. Josey?"

"The doctors, healers, are with her." Mal
rubbed the chill from her arms as she stared at the closed suite
door. "They won't take her to a hospital, Em. They say it would be
too hard to keep Josey safe there after blood tests have been ran.
That the human doctors can’t help her now anyway."

"Have either of you seen her?" Emily shoved
the thoughts of her and her cousins not being human away.

When they shook their heads no Emily opened
the door. No one stopped her, and she hadn't expected anyone would.
Rydere had said she was their queen, after all. "Come with me."

Cormac stood by the head of the bed, his face
harsh and pale. Terrified. The female doctor—healer—and another
hovered over Josey.

"How is she?" Emily asked.

"Hanging on," the blonde woman said. "She's
young and healthy and seems to be fighting to stay with us. She has
a chance."

"Just a chance?" Cormac demanded, his eyes
still trained on Josey's blood and dirt-streaked face.

Her cousin looked so young and vulnerable on
the green silk comforter.

"I won't lie, Cormac. You could lose her;
they intended to kill her in the most painful way possible and they
got a good start. If she had been alone in the gardens, we wouldn't
be here now. Whatever—whoever—distracted them saved her life. See
she's fed as often as she will take it. Keep her wounds clean, and
she should pull through. Her recent humanness is in her favor.
You're looking at a month minimum recovery time. Probably closer to
twice that."

An hour later the doctors left, after having
examined Cormac's injuries. He sat by the bed, his eyes trained on
Josey the entire time his hands were being stitched.

Aodhan and Theo arrived shortly after. Mickey
threw herself into Theo's arms, sobbing. He rocked her until she
calmed. Aodhan's hand rose to hold Mal's shoulder and pull her
closer; for once she didn't pull away.

Emily was afraid to ask the question on the
tip of her tongue. Aodhan seemed to understand. "He's...better.
He's sleeping, now. But he asked me to check on you one more
time."

"I'm fine, just bruises." They'd almost died,
just that quickly, and she had only bruises to show for it. "I need
to change clothing. I need...I need...to see..."

Mickey hugged her. "Go, Em. I'll stay here
with Josey. So will Mal."

****

The suite had been darkened, only one light
burning when Emily entered. Guards had been posted outside their
door and bars covered the windows.

Rydere slept, stretched over the center of
the bed. His large body took up so much of the space. Large and
strong. Thank God or the goddess he was always mentioning. Cotton
pants rode low on his hips, barely covering anything. His bandaged
chest rose and feel with even rhythm. His body was strong, healthy,
toned.

She shuddered as she remembered how he had
looked fighting the wolves; how fiercely he'd battled. How he'd
yelled at her to get inside where she would be safe. Was that why
he'd rushed outside? To save her?

Instinctively she knew it was. Her fingers
were gentle as they ran over the bandages, over the damage he’d
gained while protecting her and Josey.

His body stilled beneath her exploring hands.
She looked at his face, seeing his eyes burning as he stared at
her. He lifted his hand to her face, rubbing at dirt she hadn't
realized she'd missed. "Emily, my love? Are you hurt?"

"No."

"How is your cousin?"

"They say she should pull through." Emily's
breath shuddered out as she pulled her hands back. "In time."

"Guess you won't be leaving soon, after all."
His words were soft, his hand gentle as it traced the cut on her
lip. "If I could, I'd kill those Lupoiux bastards all over again
for what they've done to you and your cousin."

"What were they? And why...Werewolves."

"Lupoiux. We've fought with them for
millennia. I knew you'd be a target as soon as word of your
existence got out. I'm sorry, Emily. For not keeping you safe. I
should have."

"You couldn't have predicted what
happened."

"Your home wasn't safe from me, was it?"

"No." And it hadn't been, but she understood
him now. It might not have been noble, or honorable, what he'd
planned for her, but she understood it now. Wasn't she now feeling
her own stirring for vengeance against the creatures who'd harmed
her cousin, harmed her…harmed Rydere? "But I almost understand why
you did it. My grandfather must be stopped."

"And I had no right involving you in my
battles with him."

"But if you hadn't, we wouldn't be here right
now," Emily said.

"No." He tightened his hold
on her hand. "I wouldn't have found you. I wouldn't have known I
had my
Rajni
in
this world. I cannot regret that, Emily. I regret what's happened
between us; that I've hurt and frightened and taken from you. That
your cousin was unprotected and nearly killed because I failed you.
But I cannot regret having found you."

Emily didn't doubt he spoke the truth. It was
in his eyes and the tension of his body. She'd moved closer as he
spoke, until she was curled against him. "I'm not hurting you, am
I?"

"No. But you can't stay long." His tone was
filled with regret as he brushed his lips over her forehead.

"Why?"

"Because I am not strong right now, and I
need you too much."

Emily tensed, then before she could stop
herself she leaned closer and covered his lips with her own. He
jerked in surprise. His hands wrapped around her upper arms and he
pulled her over his chest, careless of the bandage. He took control
of her like he'd done from the very beginning.

Emily didn't care. He was alive, she was
alive, and she wanted to feel it.

Her hands slid into his hair, pulling his
head closer to her.

He tried to pull away. "Emily...I won't be
able to stop myself again."

"Shh. I don't want you to." She recovered his
mouth with hers, then pulled back when he shifted to lean over her.
"But don't hurt yourself."

"I won’t hurt myself by
loving my
Rajni
."
He pulled her tunic over her head, then flicked open the front
clasp to her bra.

His hands were just rough enough as they
cupped her breasts and squeezed. Emily arched against him, hungry
for him to take her in his mouth. He obliged.

“Do not stifle how you want
your
Rajni
, my
dove. Tell me. Better yet—show me.”

Emily did just that.

*************

Theodric Sebastos felt a
rush of anticipation like no other he had ever felt, but for once
the prognosticator could not determine why. All he knew was
that
this
place
was where he was supposed to be
at this exact time in his life.

The man at his side was also supposed to be
there. For a moment, Theo tried to read Aodhan’s future; the
darkness he saw surprised him not. He had so rarely seen the fates
of those closest to him.