Prince of Magic (14 page)

"You hitched a ride out of Level Thirteen with Ariana. Why didn't you depart with Fynnian and Ciro?"

What was left of Diella's smile vanished. "Oh, no, I couldn't do that. They scared me. They scare me still."

Ariana began to panic, because it seemed that she was drowning. How was that possible? One moment she'd been standing behind Sian thinking unlikely and unwanted thoughts, and the next… she was drowning. She could not breathe. She could not see, for the murkiness of the water that threatened to drag her down.

She forcibly pushed her panic aside. This was a dream, nothing more. There was no water. She was not drowning. If she wished it, she
could
breathe.

Even though she continued to tread water, she took a deep breath. The murkiness of the water cleared a bit, so she could see what surrounded her.

She was not alone. Just a few feet away there floated another woman. A dark-haired, harshly attractive, very thin, grinning woman.

The woman mouthed words Ariana could not hear, and still she knew what was being said.

This ocean is mine. Drift deeper, witch. Leave it to me.

No
, Ariana responded. She didn't know why, but her heart reacted fiercely to the woman's claim.
This place is mine
.

The evil grin faded, and the woman swam closer. With every stroke, Ariana felt the darkness that threatened to choke her grow stronger.
I can take you, witch, if I wish. I can take this life, this body, this man who thinks he can stop me. They will all be mine
.

It would be easy to convince herself that this was just a bad dream, but suddenly Ariana knew it was not a dream. Not at all.

This was her first battle. The first of many, if Sian's prophesy was correct.

Ariana called up every crumb of power that rested inside her. She called upon all her strengths, as well as the might of her ancestors. She drew from her family. Her mother's sunshine, her aunts' incredible abilities, her grandmother's force, her cousins' power. She called upon Duran's strength, even though he had never known a touch of magic. They all came to her. Her family, her blood, made her stronger. They made her strong enough.

This is my ocean. This is my life, and I will not step back and give it to you or anyone else
. Ariana felt a surge of energy, a confidence that went well beyond anything she had ever known.
Get out
.

Enjoy what little is left of your pathetic life
. The dark-haired woman didn't swim to the surface. She screamed in anger, and then she vanished. Ripples in the water drifted softly from the place where the woman had once stood.

Ariana swam to the surface in a leisurely manner. She was alone in the ocean—
her
ocean—once again, and the light above called to her. The light of the sun. The light of her life.

What little is left…

Ariana opened her eyes, and it took her a moment to orient herself. No wonder she had dreamed of swimming. She was floating on air. She glanced around and acquainted herself. Apparently she was floating above Sian's bed, and her clothing was not as it had been when she'd come to his room. She felt a cool breeze on the rise of her breasts, and a similar coolness on her bare legs.

"What have you done?" she snapped. When she tried to move, she discovered that she could not. Not only was she floating, but her hands and feet were bound. A moment ago she had felt so powerful, so strong. And now, she was helpless.

Sian sat nearby, watching her with an aloof air. Those cold eyes of his barely reacted to her awakening.

"What have you done to me?" Ariana snapped. "Release me this instant! When the emperor discovers what you've done, he will have you… he will have you…" Oh, she did not want to stumble over her words at this moment. "You will be sorry."

"Very good," he responded emotionlessly. "Almost believable. Do you really think I'm that gullible?"

"I think you have lost your mind."

"Perhaps, Ariana, love," he said with a sarcastic edge to his deep voice.

"How dare you call me…" Oh, what if he really had lost his mind? Was there anything more dangerous than an insane enchanter? "Sian Sayre Chamblyn, release me this instant!"

He stood slowly, studying her face. No, studying her eyes, as if he could see beyond them. "Ariana, is that you?"

"Of course it's me, you… you…" She could not find a sufficient word for a man who would bind her, halfway undress her, and leave her floating above his bed.

"So, you no longer want a tumble?" With that, he reached out and caressed the globe of one mostly exposed breast and then the other, using the back of his hand and barely touching her. Deep inside she reacted, as a woman reacts to a man who touches her just so. She tried very hard not to show that she felt anything but revulsion.

"I most certainly do
not
."

He withdrew his hand. "So. you truly are Ariana."

"What gave me away?" she asked sharply as Sian began to untie her wrists.

"I suspect demons don't blush."

He unbound her hands and feet, and then, with a wave of his hand, gently lowered her to the bed. As soon as she was able, Ariana leapt up and sat on the edge of the mattress, quickly and efficiently fastening her bodice. "I don't understand what happened, but do you care to explain, before I go to the emperor, why you felt it necessary to undress me?"

Sian regained calm. "You are only partially undressed, and you did it yourself."

"I did no such…" Ariana stopped abruptly. The woman in the water… the ocean, her life… That had been no dream.

"Who was she?" Ariana left Sian's bed sharply, anxious to escape. Anxious not to appear too comfortable there.

"Empress Diella," Sian answered. "Apparently her dark soul was left behind in. Level Thirteen, and she hitched a ride in you when we departed."

Ariana stepped away from Sian. "She's been with me for five days and I didn't know it?"

"Apparently she was gathering strength in order to take control."

Spine straight, Ariana did her best to appear unaffected. "I sent her away. I don't know if what I said or did was sufficient, but I don't feel her with me now. Of course, I didn't feel her presence for the past five days either." Was the thin, evil woman still lurking inside her somewhere? "She said my life would be short."

"She was trying to frighten you," Sian said gruffly.

Ariana didn't precisely believe her teacher's words. Yes, the demon had been trying to scare her, but she had sensed a touch of truth in the telling. "Do you think she's still here? With me?"

Sian sighed tiredly. "I don't know." He shook off the problem as if it were a small, pesky bug. "I did glean some useful information from her, concerning the Isen Demon."

Ariana was grateful for anything which would turn her mind from the position she had found herself in upon waking. "Then I suppose it was a worthwhile exercise."

"Can you keep a secret?"

"From whom?"

"From everyone."

Normally, she would say no. She hated to lie! She was like her mother in that respect. Neither of them had ever been good at card games where bluffing was a part of the strategy. "If I must, I will try."

"Eventually it will no longer be a secret, but until I decide how to proceed, secrecy is best."

"All right."

Sian watched her closely, as if he wasn't sure who she was anymore. As if he wondered if Diella still lurked and listened. Finally he shared the news. "The Isen Demon has taken Prince Ciro. The emperor's son is lost."

Sian wished he could be sure that Diella was gone, but he could not. The demon spirit could do a lot of damage in a short period of time if allowed to rule Ariana's body unchecked.

Now that he knew more about the Isen Demon—even though he still had not found a way to stop it—he felt he could spend more time looking for a way to be completely and finally rid of Diella.

As he searched through yet another sheaf of papers from ancient ledgers, his mind went back to certain words Diella had spoken that afternoon. Something about a black-haired brown-eyed sentinel who would be glad to give her what Sian would not.

He should not care. If Diella made use of Ariana's body in such a way, it would not affect her ability to fight. Eventually they would find a way to be rid of the demon, and what happened between now and then was of little consequence if Diella's interests were simply sexual. And yet, he did care. Ariana had blushed mightily when he'd brushed the backs of his fingers over her breasts. They were nicely shaped breasts, very soft, and he was certain that no man had ever touched them the way he had this afternoon.

Like it or not, he could not allow Diella to rise up and make use of Ariana in order to fulfill her own need for physical sensation.

Most of the palace residents slept at this late hour. The sentinels who had the night watch remained alert, and there were a few residents about who preferred the late-night hours to daylight. But for the most part, the hallways were empty and eerily silent.

He would simply check on Ariana and assure himself that she was asleep. And alone.

Sian made his way down the stairwell at a brisk pace, and without making a sound. He was sending this girl, this
woman
, to her death, and it bothered him more than that death that she might end up lying with a sentinel, with her body under the control of a spirit other than her own. And if it was Ariana herself who chose the handsome sentinel?

The thought still bothered him. He was allowing himself to be drawn too close to the girl, in an entirely emotional way. He was not an emotional man, so the unexpected connection worried him. It would be best if he turned back now and returned to his research.

The hallway was deserted, and Ariana's door was locked. Locks had never been a problem for Sian. He touched the door handle, spoke a soft word, and the latch moved silently.

He opened the door and stepped into a dark room. There had been gently flaming lights in the hallways he'd traveled, so it took a moment for his eyes to adjust. Ariana slept beneath a soft, pale-colored coverlet, her blond curls stretching across her pillow, one arm thrown across her face as if she were hiding from a light that was not here.