Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series (39 page)

“
It’s one to one… Quinn?”
Zohn asked, his eyes turning furious.

“
I think that after three
months on the compound, she needs a relaxing vacation, and I’m ok
to let Chevalier’s coven take care of her for a while,” Quinn
said.

Emily looked at Zohn, “When I get back, the
guards are on. I promise.”

“
It’s trouble, if you ask
me, you alone in Island Coven,” Zohn told them.

“
What’s that supposed to
mean?” Emily asked, standing up.

“
It means…” Zohn said,
standing also. “That you attract trouble, and need to be watched at
all times.”

“
I do not,” Emily growled,
and took a step forward.

“
I’ll help you pack,”
Chevalier said, stepping in front of her.

“
And we need to go over new
recruits for the Cavalry,” Quinn said, stepping toward
Zohn.

“
New recruits?” Emily
asked, looking up at Chevalier.

“
Yes, we’re talking about
expanding the stables and doubling the Cavalry,” Chevalier
explained to her.

“
Do I get to
help?”

“
Of course, no one else can
teach the horse parts.”

“
Sweet, for now though…
island,” Emily told him, and headed out of Zohn’s office. Chevalier
glanced once at Quinn and then followed her out.

***

Emily stretched and rolled over in the soft
bed, she opened her eyes and saw that the table already held a pot
of coffee and several types of muffins. She smiled at the smell of
the salt air, and the quietness of the island, and slowly got out
of bed.

“
Alexis?” Emily called
out.

“
She is down having
breakfast,” Anna said from the doorway.

Emily nodded and sat down by the fire for a
cup of coffee. She grabbed a muffin after getting dressed, and
headed out into the antechamber.

“
Good morning, Lady Emily,”
Anna said, smiling.

“
Anna, I need to know where
Chevalier’s interrogation room is.”

Anna frowned, “I’m not sure he wants you to
know.”

“
I know he has one. If
Quinn has one, then Chev does, just tell me where it
is.”

“
Maybe I should ask the
Elder,” Anna said, frowning.

Emily sighed, “Never mind, I’ll find it by
myself.”

“
Shall I get the child
ready to swim?” The change of subject seemed to brighten Anna’s
mood.

“
In a bit. I want to go out
for a little while,” Emily said, and headed out of the room and
down the stairs. She stopped in to check on Alexis, but she was
engrossed in a movie with a few of the castle guards, so she kissed
her and then went down into the prison.

“
Who are you?” one of the
guards growled at her.

Emily frowned, “Stand down. I am ok to be
here.”

“
A mortal in the castle? I
don’t think so, Sweetheart. Get back up the stairs and leave this
island,” he said haughtily.

“
Excuse me?” Emily asked,
shocked.

The other guard smiled, “Walk that tight
little ass of yours back up the stairs, and leave.”

“
Maybe she’s here as a
present,” the tallest guard said, and grabbed Emily’s
butt.

“
Stop it!” Emily yelled,
and moved away from them. “I’m Chevalier’s wife.”

“
No you’re not,” the
tallest guard said, laughing. “This must be a joke, the Elder’s
wife isn’t this hot, and she’s older. You must be a donor then, who
sent you?”

“
I’m not a donor,” Emily
said, backing into the corner as they stepped towards her. She
didn’t want to burn them, and didn’t want to call for help because
she needed to talk to David alone, “I’m Chevalier’s wife, and I
seriously suggested you back off.”

“
Ooooh, she’s a little
spitfire,” the shorter guard said. He blurred the rest of the way
to Emily, and then ran his nose up her neck, “Damn you smell
good.”

“
Get away from me,” Emily
yelled, and pushed against him with her good arm.

“
Did Gary send you?” he
asked her, and pressed his lips against hers. His hand slowly
followed up her waist and landed on her breast as she tried to push
him away.

Emily’s eyes were wide as he pulled away
from her slightly, and exposed his teeth. He slowly leaned toward
her neck.

“
Storm!” Emily screamed as
his teeth pressed against her neck.

“
Stop!” Storm yelled, and
the guard looked up at her, surprised.

“
Why?” he asked her, still
pinning Emily to the wall.

Storm spoke through clenched teeth, “Stop
fondling the Elder’s wife.”

The guard drew his hands back suddenly and
stood up, “What?”

“
If I’m not mistaken,”
Storm said, placing herself between Emily and the guard. “You were
also about to feed from her.”

“
She’s… she’s the Elder’s
wife?” the guard asked, his eyes showed the terror
building.

“
I told you that!” Emily
said angrily.

“
Both of you report to the
Captain, immediately,” Storm said. “Send for replacements before
leaving the door.”

“
Yes, Ma’am,” they both
said, and moved back to their posts, looking straight
forward.

“
Are you ok?” Storm asked
Emily.

Emily nodded, “I’m sorry. I thought they all
knew me.”

“
It doesn’t matter. Even if
you were a donor, the second you told them to back off, they should
have,” Storm said, glaring at the guards angrily.

“
How did you know all of
that?” Emily asked.

“
They just told me what
happened,” Storm said. “It’ll be easier than hiding any of
it.”

Two new guards walked down the stairs, and
the two trouble guards moved up the stairs slowly.

Emily sighed, “I don’t suppose we can keep
this from Chev?”

“
Not a chance, it’s too
serious of an offense,” Storm said. She walked past the guards, and
they saluted her and turned back toward the prison.

“
Peachy,” Emily said, and
walked over to David’s cell.

“
Emily!” David said,
surprised to see her. “How are you?”

“
Fine,” Emily said, and
moved up against the bars and whispered. “Come closer.”

David moved to the bars and touched her hand
softly.

“
Where is Chevalier’s
interrogation room?” Emily whispered.

David frowned, “Why do you want to
know?”

“
Please just tell me,”
Emily said. “I need to know.”

“
There’s a secret door by
his office… you touch the stone three up from the floor on the
left, and it slides the bookshelf back,” David told her.

Emily nodded, “He’s had you in there?”

“
Yes,” David said softly.
“Why are you going?”

“
I may not be, is the door
heavy?”

“
Yes”

“
Can you open
it?”

David nodded, “Yes.”

“
Can I open it?”

“
I doubt it.”

“
What would the castle
guards do if I wanted to take you in there?” Emily
asked.

David smiled slightly, “You planning on
interrogating me?”

“
No… what would they
say?”

“
They aren’t going to let
you in there. They’ll tell Storm, and she’ll tell the
Elder.”

Emily nodded, “I figured.”

David touched her arm lightly, “What’s
up?”

“
How can I kill a
familiar?” Emily asked him.

“
I’ve never been around
one, just kill him.”

“
I tried that, and he came
back,” Emily told him. “Shot him in the head.”

“
You did?” David asked,
shocked.

“
Well, no, I had him
shot.”

David grinned, “I figured. Maybe you can’t
kill him.”

Emily nodded and headed back toward the
stairs.

“
I still love you,” David
said, reaching out for her.

“
I know,” Emily said, and
passed the guards, headed up the stairs.

“
Lady Emily?” Storm said,
walking up with her customary clipboard.

“
Yes?”

“
The Elder will be here in
two hours, he’s flying in immediately.”

Emily sighed, “I take it he’s not coming
because he’s missed me after being gone for a week?”

“
No, he’s furious over the
actions of the prison guards,” Storm told her.

“
That was a joke. I know
why he’s coming.”

“
The child is still
watching movies,” Anna said, walking up to them.

“
I’m going for a swim
then,” Emily said, and headed up the stairs. The last thing she
wanted was another trial, but she knew Chevalier would want them
punished for how they treated her. She understood why, he had to
put a tighter hold on his coven when he left for the palace. It was
more important now than before that they follow his orders
implicitly.

Emily threw on her bikini and walked quickly
down to the pool. She had ditched the arm sling the day before, but
hadn’t been able to take off the hand brace yet. She slipped it off
just before climbing into the warm water, and then leaned back to
float in the peacefully quiet room.

“
I came as requested,” Sam
said, kneeling down beside the pool.

Emily rolled over and swam up to the side of
the pool, “What am I going to do about you?”

Sam shrugged, “I don’t know.”

“
First you kept Allen’s
change from me, then you let the Encala burn my ranch and kill my
horses, and then you betrayed me to them,” Emily said, and swam
over to the ladder. She crawled out of the pool and wrapped a warm
towel around her.

“
I would never do anything
to hurt you, I’m not able,” Sam told her.

Emily sat down on the lounge chair, and
leaned back, “You already have, numerous times. How can keeping
Allen’s blood drinking from us help me?”

“
You weren’t ready to
accept it.”

“
It’s not something you can
prepare for. You made it worse by waiting until he attacked
me.”

“
That was a mistake on my
part,” Sam said.

“
I can’t trust you,” Emily
said. “Ever.”

“
I can’t leave you, we’re
bound by blood.”

“
So basically, you don’t
care what I want, as long as you do what you think is right for
me?”

“
Yes”

“
So what’s next on your
agenda for my benefit?”

“
It’s time you leave the
heku,” Sam told her.

“
You want me to leave
Chev?”

“
All of them, it’s time for
you to go back into the mortal world.”

“
Sure, why not? I can
supply the kids with enough blood to survive. I’ll go
pack.”

“
I didn’t say you should
take the kids,” Sam said.

Emily sat up, “So you think I need to
abandon my kids, leave my husband, and move back into the mortal
world?”

“
It’s what’s best for you.
Your children aren’t mortal, and you are.”

“
Tell me how to get rid of
you.”

“
You can’t,
we’re…”

“
I know, bound by blood,”
Emily said, glaring at him.

“
I wish you would trust me
as much as Lord Ulrich did.”

“
I don’t trust you at
all.”

“
You know I’m right. You
know you don’t belong in this world. Look how much abuse you’ve
taken over the last 13 years,” Sam said softly.

“
I don’t belong in the
mortal world either. My children aren’t mortal, and I belong with
them.”

“
Those children shouldn’t
be. They aren’t natural and shouldn’t have happened.”

Emily shook her head, surprised, “What?”

“
If you care about yourself
at all, you’ll leave the kids, leave the heku, and get out while
you still can,” Sam told her.

“
Maybe she’s not the only
one that should get out while they can,” Kyle said, leaning against
the door.

“
How long have you been
there?” Sam asked, standing up defensively.

“
Long enough to have quite
a report for the Elder,” Kyle said, grinning.

“
I have no say in what he
chooses to do,” Emily told him. “He does what he thinks is best for
me, and doesn’t care what I want.”

“
We’ll see about that,”
Kyle said. “Em, Chevalier wants you in his office.”

Emily nodded and slipped her hand brace back
on before heading for the door, “What about Sam?”

“
We’ll take him with,” Kyle
said, motioning for Sam to follow.

“
Come on, Sam, time to face
the Elder,” Emily said, heading for Chevalier’s office.

Emily knocked softly on his door.

“
Come in, Em,” Chevalier
called out.

Emily stepped in and smiled slightly, then
moved to the side so Sam could enter. Chevalier stood up and
growled.