Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series (27 page)

The six heku were brought back in. The
members of the Cavalry were asked to stay, and they moved back
along the walls.

“
Why,” Zohn started,
standing up. “Why would you try so hard to kill the
Winchester?”

“
We didn’t do anything to
her,” Bryce said. “Stanton worked on his own.”

“
I did, well, myself and
the three that were killed… honorably I might add,” Stanton
said.

Chevalier growled, “How do you figure? They
were hiding like cowards in the room of a mortal.”

“
A Winchester… dangerous
work, we know what she can do.”

“
Why though? What’s the
purpose of killing her?” Quinn asked, frowning.

“
To clean house, of course.
We couldn’t get rid of the Council with the Winchester around. We
all know that she is attached to every one of you, and wouldn’t let
anything happen,” Stanton said bluntly.

“
So you wanted to kill
Emily to get to the Council?” Quinn asked.

“
Sounds about right. You
have to realize how weak the Council has become. We suspect it’s
because of the mortal, in the palace even.”

“
Are you still saying that
none of the five heku around you were involved?”

“
That’s exactly what I’m
saying.”

Zohn shrugged, “He’s lying.”

“
I am not!” Stanton
scowled.

“
He is lying,” Richard
confirmed.

“
So did the orders to kill
Emily and replace the Council come from Lord Victor?” Quinn
asked.

“
I am acting alone,”
Stanton said again.

“
This is getting old, and
the matter needs resolved before Emily returns in a few days,”
Quinn said to Zohn.

“
I agree. I’ll take Elizir
down to the interrogation chamber. He’ll talk,” Zohn said,
grinning.

“
I won’t talk because I’m
telling the truth!” Elizir yelled.

“
Good, then you have
nothing to worry about… Richard, come with,” Zohn said. He and the
Chief Interrogator led Elizir down to the prison.

Quinn watched the rest of the heku in the
trial area, “The rest of you from Katorga Coven can return to your
cells for now.”

***

“
Where’s Kyle?” Emily asked
as she crawled out of the helicopter.

“
He’s on a mission,”
Chevalier told her.

“
When will he be
back?”

“
It’ll be a while. He’s
taking care of an entire coven,” Chevalier told her. “The ones that
were staging the attacks.”

“
Oh,” Emily said, and
headed down the stairs.

“
We moved Allen into his
own room on the fifth-floor.”

Emily shrugged, “Fine.”

She went in to her room and into the
bathroom, locking the door behind her. Chevalier sat down to wait
for her. She came out a short time later wrapped in a towel and
drying her hair.

“
Feel better?” Chevalier
asked.

Emily shrugged.

“
Is there anything I can do
to help?”

“
No”

“
Do you want to
talk?”

“
No”

Emily crawled into bed after checking for
snakes, and rolled onto her side. She turned to Chevalier when he
put a hand on her arm.

“
Here’s your meds,” he
said, holding out a little pill.

Emily took it, not wanting to fight, and
then rolled over to sleep.

“
Ready to go back?” Emily
asked, holding tightly to Alexis. It’d been two years since the
Katorga Coven tried to kill her and remove the Council, and all was
back to normal.

“
Sure,” Allen answered and
pulled the reins. “Do I have to go? It seems stupid.”

“
Yes, you have to go. Will
you all trust me?” Emily frowned. She’d been over this with both
Allen and Chevalier, and she wasn’t going to bend.

“
An orthodontist though?
Honestly? Who cares that my teeth are a little crooked.”

“
Deal with it, we’re
going.”

“
Dad said…”

“
You’re going,” Emily told
him, and stopped the stallion in front of the stables.

“
3pm?” Allen asked,
slipping off of his mare.

“
3pm,” Emily confirmed, and
walked her horse into her stall.

Emily glanced over at a group of Cavalry
members standing around looking at something. She slipped off of
the stallion and walked over, “What did you find?”

“
Look at this,” Mark said,
holding something out to her.

Emily walked up and looked at the bones and
tissue in his hands, “Oh my God, put that down!”

“
What is it?” Silas asked,
stepping back.

“
Owl pellets, seriously,
put it down and go wash your hands,” Emily said with a disgusted
look on her face.

“
What’s an owl pellet?”
Mark asked, looking closer at the bones in his hand.

Emily took another step back, “It’s what the
owl spits out after they eat a mouse whole… you have the inedible
parts left in your hand.”

“
And you think it’s gross?”
Mark asked, a mischievous grin crossed his face.

Emily pointed at him and stepped back again,
“Come near me with that thing and so help me… I’ll ash you.”

“
How can someone as tough
as you are, be afraid of this?” Mark asked, and took a step towards
her.

“
I didn’t say I’m afraid of
it,” Emily said, carefully watching him. She grabbed the cattle
prod from a shelf and started walking backwards.

“
Going to floor me over a
dead mouse?”

“
Yes, I am.”

Mark chuckled, “You put a cat in my
bedroom.”

“
You can’t prove that was
me,” Emily said, stifling a grin.

“
You moved my desk to the
roof.”

“
Again, can’t prove that
was me…. Silas, stop him,” Emily begged, still walking
backwards.

“
You haven’t had a personal
guard in 18 months, I can’t help you now,” Silas told
her.

“
Well… I want one now,”
Emily told him.

Silas grinned, “It doesn’t work that
way.”

“
I don’t suppose you’re the
one that exchanged my hot blonde donor for the little old man,
either?” Mark asked, gaining on her.

“
I wouldn’t!” Emily yelled,
and put a hand out. “Get away from me with that thing.”

“
If you don’t like them
dead, do you mind them alive?” Mark asked, and took a squirming,
live mouse from Silas.

Emily’s eyes grew wide, “Seriously… not
funny anymore.”

“
How can you be afraid of
mice? You work in a barn,” Silas asked, laughing.

“
Any ideas who put Ferris
Bueller on the missing guard report?” Mark asked, raising an
eyebrow.

Emily grinned, “Ok, so that one was
funny.”

“
Or how about who might
have put pink dye into the laundry when they were washing the
Cavalry’s white shirts?” Silas asked, stepping to move around
Emily.

Emily backed into someone and spun quickly.
She had bumped into Kralen, who was smiling. She quickly turned
back to Mark and Silas, and felt Kralen’s hands on her
shoulders.

“
Don’t do this, I’m
serious!” Emily yelled, and pushed back against Kralen.

“
I have a deal for you,”
Mark said, and stopped moving forward.

Emily’s eyes narrowed, “What?”

“
Tell us what you thought
the ancient’s room was for two years ago, and I’ll let you
go.”

Emily blushed, “No.”

Silas put his mouse on the ground. The
scared little creature ran from the heku, which put him in a direct
path towards Emily. She screamed and clawed her way onto Kralen,
hanging on with her arms and legs. She suddenly found herself
surrounded by the palace’s door guards and the rest of the Cavalry,
all on defense.

“
You screamed?” the door
guard asked, looking around for an attacker.

Emily was looking at the ground, “Where’d it
go?”

“
Where did what
go?”

“
She’s afraid of a mouse,
stand down,” Mark told them, laughing.

“
Lady Emily?” Derrick
asked, pushing through the crowd. “The Council wants
you.”

Emily was still watching the ground from
Kralen’s back, “I’m not getting down until you tell me where it
went.”

“
Where what went?” Derrick
asked, scanning the ground.

“
The mouse.”

“
You can’t go to the
Council’s summons because of a mouse?”

“
It ran off, Em, you’re
safe,” Mark said, amused.

Emily crawled off of Kralen and smoothed
down her shirt, “This isn’t over.”

“
I’m sure it’s not,” Mark
told her.

Emily followed Derrick into the palace,
keeping a close eye around her. She heard the Cavalry laughing
behind her and ignored them.

She didn’t stop scanning the ground until
she got into the trial area of the council chambers. She looked up
and blushed slightly when she saw them all looking at her. There
were two heku standing before them, and she walked forward to stand
beside them. Her eyes grew wide when she realized it was Exavior
and Sotomar.

“
First off, Lady Emily, are
you injured?” Zohn asked, somewhat irritated.

Emily frowned, “No, believe it or not, I’m
not always hurt.”

“
We heard a scream,” Quinn
said, concerned.

“
Nothing I can’t handle, I
assure you,” Emily said, grinning.

“
I apologize for taking you
away from… whatever it is you were doing,” Zohn said.

“
I was in the middle of
being tortured by the Cavalry. Something I’m sure I’ll reciprocate
when we’re done,” she said, smiling sweetly.

Chevalier’s eyes narrowed, “Do I want to
know?”

“
No, you don’t,” Emily
said, and glanced at Sotomar. “Nice to see you again.”

“
You too, Child,” Sotomar
said, and bowed slightly.

“
Enough with the
pleasantries,” Zohn interrupted. “Emily, we’ve brought you here
because Sotomar has come to seek the release of their Chief
Interrogator.”

Emily frowned, “Since when has the Council
asked me when someone wants a prisoner released?”

“
Since you are the one that
put him there,” Quinn chuckled.

“
Oh yeah, that’s right,”
Emily glanced at Exavior and then back to Sotomar. “You haven’t
replaced him yet?”

Sotomar smiled slightly at the rude
question, “Yes, we did, and he is retiring.”

Emily shrugged, “I guess it’s ok. It’s been
two and a half years. That’s long enough.”

“
And the stipulations?”
Sotomar asked.

“
Stipulations? Wasn’t he
breaking one of your stipulations when I ashed him?”

“
Yes, he was.” Sotomar
obviously wasn’t over that misconduct.

Emily thought for a moment, “Let Chev set
the stipulations while I talk to you alone for a moment.”

Sotomar frowned, “Ok.”

The Council watched as Emily led Sotomar out
of the council chambers. When they left, the Council turned their
attention back to Exavior.

“
Do you love her?” Quinn
asked bluntly.

“
Yes,” Exavior
replied.

“
Do you wish to marry
her?”

“
Yes”

“
Would you break any rules
to get near her?”

“
Yes”

Chevalier growled, “Then let’s not let him
go.”

“
So you would risk Emily
disappearing, just so you can be near her for one moment?” Quinn
asked, frowning.

“
I believe that if she were
to do what she has warned, she would take me with her,” Exavior
said, amused.

Zohn raised his eyebrows, “You really
believe that… that’s surprising.”

“
Of course I do, it’s
true.”

“
Let’s make this simple… no
rules…” Quinn said.

“
None?” Exavior asked
questioningly.

“
None... but if Emily turns
you to ash again, you’ll be banished.”

“
Deal, she won’t do it
again… she loves me.”

“
I see,” Quinn said, and
leaned back in his chair.

Emily and Sotomar came back into the council
chambers. She had something clutched tightly in her hand, and
Sotomar was laughing. They turned to face the Council.

“
So?” Emily
asked.

“
We’ve agreed to let him
go.”

“
I agree that he may go,”
Emily said, smiling.

Chevalier’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“
Might we ask what you are
up to?” Zohn asked her.

“
No, you may
not.”

“
What did you give her?”
Zohn asked Sotomar.

Sotomar smiled, “Something private. Not
dangerous though, I assure you.”

“
We have set but one
stipulation,” Quinn told the enemy Elder. “If Emily turns him to
ash again, he will be banished.”