Proditor : Book 5 of the Heku Series (40 page)

“
Guess who I found?” Emily
said, and sat down.

“
I thought we killed you,”
Chevalier hissed.

Kyle came in and shut the door, “Apparently…
he healed.”

“
He’s been watching me in
private,” Emily said, wrinkling her nose.

“
You are banned from
turning into a cat,” Chevalier told him, and Sam glared. “Kyle,
take him to prison.”

Kyle grabbed Sam roughly and hauled him out
of Chevalier’s office. Emily shut and locked the door behind him,
and then dropped her towel. She crawled into Chevalier’s lap,
facing him, and kissed him softly.

“
Took you long enough to
join me,” she told him, and then kissed slowly down to his
neck.

“
And I thought you needed
some alone time,” Chevalier said, and untied her bikini
top.

***

Chevalier kissed Emily’s shoulder softly.
She leaned back against him and put her feet up on his desk.

“
Ever wish we could move
back here?” she asked, and pulled his cape off of the desk to pull
over her.

“
Mmhmm.” Chevalier moved
Emily’s hair aside and started to lightly kiss her neck.

She gently ran her nails up the outside of
his thighs, “Or will you just agree to anything I ask right now, so
I don’t get up?”

“
Exactly,” he chuckled, and
bit lightly at the nape of her neck.

“
Can you stay for a
while?”

“
Afraid not, as soon as I
take care of the guards, then I have to go,” he told
her.

“
Storm said you’re pretty
mad.”

“
Furious,” he said, and
went back to kissing her neck.

Emily shivered and grinned, “Maybe I should
get you mad more often.”

“
So… how close did he come
to feeding?” Chevalier asked, and looked at her neck.

Emily turned in his lap to face him and
pressed her body against his.

“
About this close,” she
whispered, and ran her teeth along the vein in his neck, and turned
her bite into a soft kiss.

Chevalier ran his fingertips lightly up her
back, “I see.”

There was a knock on his office door, “Sir,
they are ready,” Storm said.

“
Be right there,” Chevalier
called out.

“
Tell her you’ll be there
in twenty minutes,” Emily whispered, and flicked his earlobe with
her tongue.

Chevalier brought her face to his and kissed
her softly.

She pulled away from him and sighed, “You’re
going, huh?”

Chevalier nodded and Emily let him up. She
watched him get dressed as she wrapped in his cape. He turned and
looked at her, “You’re coming.”

Emily frowned, “No I’m not.”

Chevalier pulled her to her feet and kissed
the top of her head, “I need you down there. Get dressed and meet
me in the courtroom.”

“
I’ve been through enough
trials in the last month already,” Emily said, and then slipped her
bikini on after Chevalier headed to court.

She went upstairs and put on a light green
summer dress. She decided against shoes and headed down to the
courtroom.

Emily blushed slightly when everyone turned
to look at her as she walked into the room. She ignored the eyes on
her and walked down the aisle, then headed up to the top platform.
Kyle stood up and moved to the side, so she could sit down between
Storm and Chevalier. Emily smiled slightly when she saw Chevalier’s
eyes follow down the length of her body as she sat down. He
chuckled slightly and turned back to the trial.

“
I approve your request to
join Island Coven,” Chevalier said to the six heku standing before
him. “You’ll be on probation for the first fifty years. One tiny
infraction and you’ll be sentenced.”

“
Yes, Sir,” the tallest
heku said, and glanced at Emily quickly before turning back to
Chevalier.

“
You may go,” Chevalier
said.

Storm stood up, “Now that the Lady has
joined us, we call forward prison guards Cole and Chad.”

The two guards Emily had problems with
earlier stepped forward, along with the guard’s Captain.

“
I’m not sure what’s more
disturbing,” Chevalier said, his voice furious. “The fact that you
thought you could fondle and then feed off of my wife…”

He paused while the gathered heku gasped and
talked quickly among themselves. Emily blushed when they looked at
her and felt Kyle’s hand on her shoulder.

“
Or that you thought she
was a donor, and when she said to leave her alone… you didn’t,”
Chevalier finished.

“
I thought it was a joke,
Sir. I had no idea she is your wife,” Cole explained.

“
Did she tell you who she
is?” Chevalier asked.

Cole sighed, “Yes, she did.”

“
And what did you say to
that?”

“
I said she couldn’t be
your wife because your wife isn’t that hot, and she’s
older.”

“
I see…” Chevalier said,
and Emily glanced at him, surprised at the shadow that crossed his
face.

“
Let’s start with her
walking down into the prison,” Storm said. “What is the correct
procedure if an uninvited donor walks into the prison?”

Chad glanced at his Captain and then spoke,
“We’re to escort the mortal back up the stairs and remove them from
the donor list.”

“
Is that what you did?”
Storm asked.

“
No, Ma’am,” Chad
said.

“
What did you do then, in
lieu of policy?”

Chad grimaced, “I told her to walk her tight
little ass back up the stairs and leave.”

“
And…” Storm
prompted.

“
And then I…” Cole sighed
and looked down at the floor. “Then I grabbed her ass.”

Chevalier’s hands balled into tight fists,
“What exactly made you think that was ok?”

“
Nothing, Sir,” Cole
said.

“
Then what happened?” Storm
asked them.

“
I didn’t know who she is.
I thought Gary sent her as a joke,” Chad said.

“
Then what did you do?”
Storm asked again.

“
Damnit, then I savored her
a bit and decided to feed,” Chad said, glancing nervously at his
Captain.

“
At any time did she tell
you to stop?” Storm asked.

Kyle squeezed Emily’s shoulders lightly.

“
Yes, Ma’am, she
did.”

“
Then why didn’t
you?”

“
I told you,” Chad said. “I
thought the whole thing was a joke.”

“
Were you aware that the
Elder married a mortal?” Storm asked him.

“
Yes, Ma’am.”

“
Were you aware that she
visits the island?”

“
Yes, Ma’am.”

“
Do you often,” Storm
asked, now sounding angry, “Feed from a mortal that has asked you
not to?”

“
No!” Chad said anxiously.
“Never.”

“
Captain? Do you have
anything to add?” Storm asked him.

“
No, there is no defense
for that,” the Captain said.

“
Lady Emily?” Storm
asked.

Emily jumped slightly and looked at up her
with wide eyes, “What?”

“
Do you have anything to
add?”

“
No”

“
We didn’t miss
anything?”

“
No,” Emily lied, but
couldn’t stop the deep blush from creeping into her
cheeks.

Chevalier turned his chair toward her and
whispered, “What are you leaving out?”

“
Nothing,” she whispered
back.

Chevalier reached out and touched her arm
softly, and Emily saw the blank look cross his face as the entire
incident flew through her mind and she knew he could see it. He
drew his hand back and turned, even more infuriated, toward the
guards.

Emily cringed and glanced at Storm. If
Kyle’s hands weren’t on her shoulders, she would have left before
the punishments were handed down.

“
I have never seen such
disobedience from members of my coven,” Chevalier growled. “I
expect complete compliance with any rules set forth by me, and the
lack of regard of those rules will be dealt with
harshly.”

Emily saw the terrified looks on the faces
of the guards.

“
Is this what happens when
I’m gone?” Chevalier yelled at Storm.

“
No, Sir,” Storm said,
standing tall and looking at the guards.

“
Do I need to find a
babysitter to come and watch over the coven in my
absence?”

“
No, Sir,” Storm told
him.

“
If I need to make an
example out of you two, then so be it,” Chevalier said. Emily
thought briefly about asking him to calm down, but the look on his
face was too full of rage and she turned back to the
guards.

“
Punishment is death,”
Chevalier growled. “Because it was my wife, then I will do it,
myself.”

Emily tried to stand up to leave, but Kyle
held her down. She was finding it hard to breathe, and the room was
shrinking in on her as the heku watched Chevalier beside her.

“
Captain,” Chevalier
hissed. “You’re demoted to guard. If you can’t keep better track of
how your guards follow the policies, then you don’t belong in
command.”

“
Yes, Sir,” the Captain
said.

“
I’m leaving in the
morning, and I’m putting Mark and Emily in charge of this coven
until I return,” Chevalier hissed. “One little toe out of line and
you’ll be killed. Is that clear?”

Emily’s body tensed. She knew he was
furious, but she couldn’t understand how he could put her in
charge.

“
Clear this room… guards,
take Cole and Chad to the prison. Storm, get me anyone that ranks
higher than a Lieutenant… immediately,” Chevalier ordered
loudly.

Emily watched as the heku cleared quickly
out of the room, while Cole and Chad were hauled away to the
prison. Kyle let go of her shoulders and sat down in Storm’s
chair.

When the room cleared out, Chevalier slammed
his fists down onto the desk, shattering the thick marble top.

Emily jumped and moved away from the falling
marble. Kyle put his hand on her arm to keep her from running off.
She looked at him, panicked, and he smiled reassuringly at her.
Mark came into the room and stood behind Kyle. He seemed to know
that it wasn’t a good time to talk.

Two Generals, four Captains, and six
Commanders came into the courtroom and stood in perfect rows before
Chevalier.

“
I’m severely disappointed
in how this coven has been run in my absence,” Chevalier hissed.
“Specifically in regards to the guard staff.”

Storm joined them and stood behind the guard
officers.

“
I have half a mind to
replace all of you, because of the lack of obedience from those
subordinate to you,” Chevalier said angrily. “I’m leaving in the
morning, and I’m putting Mark and Emily in charge of the coven. No
one is to so much as sneeze, without consulting one of
them.”

Emily fought to control the fear she had
growing within her.

“
Policies are to be
reviewed with the entire guard staff. Every procedure, every
protocol, needs to be covered in the next two days. Anyone showing
disobedience will be killed, period… no second chances,” Chevalier
said. “Is that understood?”

“
Yes, Sir,” the leaders
said together.

“
Get out of my sight and
begin retraining your staff,” Chevalier growled.

The heku turned on their heels and blurred
from the room.

“
Emily, breathe,” Kyle
whispered.

Emily took a deep breath, but her hands were
shaking as she glanced back at Mark. He smiled at her, seemingly
unaware of how terrified she was of the coming week.

Chevalier turned toward them. His furious
eyes made Emily push her chair away from him some, “Did you bring
your Thukil uniform?”

Emily shook her head, “No.”

“
I’ll have it sent over,”
he said.

“
Chev?” Emily said, still
fighting to breathe. “I can’t… take care of a coven… I don’t know
what to do.”

“
Mark will help you, you
two are the only ones I can trust,” Chevalier hissed.

“
Maybe Kyle…” Emily started
to say, but Chevalier growled, and she stopped talking.

“
You and Mark, and I want
this place run like a police state.”

“
Yes, Sir,” Mark said
confidently.

“
I have some guards to
punish,” Chevalier said, and his chair flew back into the wall,
smashing into pieces as he blurred from the room.

Emily turned quickly to Kyle, “Don’t
leave.”

Kyle smiled, “It’ll be ok. Just ask Mark if
you have any questions.”

“
But why would he do this
to me? Am I getting punished?” Emily asked.

Mark chuckled, “No, it’s an honor.”

“
No it’s not!” Emily said
frantically.

“
Calm down, I suspect he
just wants everyone in the coven to know your face. The last few
times you’ve come here, there have been problems… twice now the
pier guards wouldn’t even let you in,” Kyle reminded
her.

“
You don’t have to worry
about punishments, Em. I’ll deal with those,” Mark said.