Release In The Dark (DARK erotic romance series) (22 page)

But I'm the only one who feels
drained and empty, rather than euphoric, at the Emperor's death. As
news of the Emperor's death spreads through the States, morale soars
among the rebels. They fight with renewed courage and hope, pushing
back and running the disheartened Imperial soldiers to ground.
Commanders are captured or killed, and troops start surrendering.

Jaxon has been keeping track of
the rebels' progress through radio transmissions and intercepted
messages on the watch. “Go,” I tell him more than once.
“Go. Fight.”

His reply is always the same.
“They don't need me. You do.” But Jaxon is a leader, a
soldier, a fighter. Even though he remains by my side, he keeps
close contact with some rebel leaders and soldiers, speaking and
messaging them through that dead soldier's watch. Jaxon has been an
honorable Commander and a trusted resistance leader. Many soldiers
remain loyal to him, and rebel leaders from other cells know and
respect him.

I listen intermittently to the
transmission, and I know that victory is imminent. The Unified
States is unified no more. The states had been unified by blood, and
they are now freed by blood. One by one, the rebel army takes back
the various states, releasing them from the yoke of the Imperial
Army. The people celebrate with wild abandon as the states regain
their freedom and independence.

The nightmare is over. I should
wake to a new dawn, yet when I open my eyes, it is still night.

I sit up and lean against the
smooth cave wall, watching the shadows dance at the mouth of the
cave. The wind whispers through the grass and leaves, rustling them,
nudging them awake.

I look around. Where is Jaxon?
He has probably gone out to search for food and water. He usually
leaves only after he thinks that I am fast asleep.

The rustling grows louder, and
rushing footsteps and panting reach my ears. I stare at the cave
opening, inching instinctively into the shadows. A figure ducks into
the cave, and I exhale in relief. Before I can utter a sound, Jaxon
scrambles to me and thrusts the watch in my face.

“
Here! Listen! Listen to
this!” he pants, as he fights to silence his breathing.

A solemn voice is droning from
the watch.

Our heads bent low, we stare at
the screen of the watch which flickers with static as a male voice
continues reading the announcement: “...following their capture
and trial. They have been found guilty and sentenced to death.
Binison Lay, former Executive Minister of the Unified States, Faylen
Day, former General of the Imperial Army will be executed, together
with three former Commanders of the Imperial Army: Zik Anarr, Tobimen
Jaz and Rikk Yoman. In accordance with the new law, they will be
executed twenty-four hours after their sentence. The execution will
be carried out tomorrow at noon, and will be broadcast to all in
front of the Justice Prison in the Central City.”

At the end of the announcement,
I blink and look up at Jaxon, but my grip remains on his wrist. My
cold, trembling fist remains on his wrist like a vice.

I force myself to breathe,
taking sharp, ragged breaths so that I don't pass out.

When I can finally trust my
voice not to quaver and crack, I turn to Jaxon and say, “We
have to go.”

Jaxon studies me intently for a
moment, and says quietly, “I have been asked to witness, to
assist in the executions, but I told them...”

“
Then you should,” I
tell him firmly. “You must.”

“
But...can you...?”
he begins slowly.

I straighten up. “Yes.
Yes!”

He nods, turning the watch over
absently in his hand. “They hope to lure the rest out by
broadcasting these executions,” he murmurs.

“
The rest?”

“
Yes.” He turns to
me. “They are after the Empress. But no one knows where she
is. Or no one would say.”

“
I think...someone knows.”

Jaxon blows out a breath. He
knows who I am talking about. “But no one knows where Owen
Vesparr is right now.”

“
He was the favorite of
the Empress. Her favorite sex Slave. She may send for him again.
Or he may look for her.”
Hopefully. And give up his hunt
for me.

“
If Owen is found, you do
know that...”

“
...that he'd be executed?
Yes. I know.”

But I know that Owen won't allow
himself to be captured alive.

I shake my head to clear it,
refusing to think of Owen. “We have to leave. There is no
time. I have already wasted enough time, moping around for nights
and days. The execution is at noon, and you, you have to be there
before noon. But—” I stop and frown. “How are we
going to...”

“
I managed to get my hands
on a motorcraft,” he says. “It's hidden not far from
here.”

I stare at him. Jaxon, always
ready, always looking out for me, protecting me. While I had been
near catatonic after shooting the Emperor, Jaxon had been quietly and
efficiently making sure that we are safe, prepared, equipped with
everything necessary for our survival.

Food and water—check.

Shelter—check.

Means of communication—check.

Means of transportation—check.

Jaxon should be in the Central
City right now. This fight is his. He has been helping the
resistance even while he was a Commander in the Imperial Army. He
did it, fought for what he thought was right, at great risk and
danger to himself. Jaxon will always stand up for what is right,
even if he gets shot for it. I saw him do it ten years ago, when he
was a young teenage soldier. And I know I will see him do it again.
This is who he is, the man I love.

And I know that he is more than
ready to see this fight through. Only very skilled and trusted
resistance fighters are called upon to assist and witness the
execution. The execution will be broadcast to all, but only a few
will be present at the actual execution grounds. The execution must
be carried out properly, fairly, humanely. This is a message, to the
enemy and to the people. With the execution of these key officials,
it signals the death of an era of terror and oppression. The states
are free, and must remain free. There must be justice, freedom,
equality, pillars upon which to rebuild the shattered states.

It's time.

“
Once we reach the Central
City, will they...arrest me? Prosecute me?” I swallow hard.
“I shot the Emperor. I should have just...”

“
No. He would have died
anyway. The poison that he had been forced to take would ensure that
he died a horrible, excruciating death. He would have bled through
his eyes, nose, mouth, lungs, slowly going blind, choking and
drowning in his own blood. Even if you didn't shoot him, he would
have died. You gave him an early, quick release, something he did
not deserve.”

Bowing my head, I step into his
embrace, and circle him tightly with my arms. “Promise me that
after this, when all of this is over, you won't fight anymore.
Promise me that you won't go after him,” I whisper.

Jaxon looks into my eyes and
says, “I won't hunt Owen Vesparr down, even though he is a
criminal. If he leaves you alone, I won't go after him. Though I
can't promise that others won't be looking for him. But—if he
ever comes near you again, I—will—kill—him.”
His eyes blaze at his deadly promise.

I close my eyes and nod against
his chest. “Will you be able to find Dr. Rolin?” I ask
quietly.

“
Yes. I think I can find
that weasel easy enough. I'll make him undo what he did to you. And
I'm sure you're not the only one. I'm sure he injected many other
Slaves and Sirens with that serum as well. Once we find him, and the
other doctors who concocted and administered this serum, we can get
the surviving Slaves and Sirens to come forward. They deserve to
have a chance to rebuild their lives and build a family for
themselves.” Jaxon brushes a strand of hair from my face.
“We'll have a family. You—are my family, my love, my
life,” he says softly.

I smile up at him as he kisses
my forehead. “Did you know—” I say coyly. “—that
you have been my hero since I was eight?”

His brown eyes crinkle in
amusement and happiness. “I hope—I'll certainly try—to
be your hero for life.”

We kiss for a long while before
I mutter against his lips, “Shouldn't we get going?”

“
Yeah. But I want to kiss
you some more.”

I lean in and give him a big,
noisy, wet kiss. “All right, that's all you'll be getting for
now, lover boy. Let's get you to the Central City.”

The motorcraft that Jaxon has so
carefully stowed away in another small cave brings us right into the
heart of the Central City in a few hours. Traveling through the
night, we reach just before daybreak.

The rebel leaders have already
been notified of Jaxon's arrival. They meet us at the appointed
place and time, and speak in hushed, urgent tones to Jaxon once we
disembark.

Glances and frowns are thrown my
way as they huddle together, their voices gradually rising. Finally,
Jaxon breaks away from the group and strides towards me with quick,
grim steps.

“
The execution time has
been brought forward,” Jaxon tells me quietly. “The
prisoners are scheduled to be executed...in one hour's time. I have
to go. The execution will be broadcast on that large screen in the
city square, just in front of the Justice Prison. Will you be all
right?”

“
Of course. Don't worry.
I'll make my way to the square.”

He nods distractedly, and go
back to the others. I watch him speak rapidly to the other leaders,
and there is some head-shaking and hand-waving. Finally, one of the
leaders, a dark-haired woman in her early to mid thirties, detaches
herself from the group and approaches me. “Zoey Whard?”

I nod, releasing a shaky breath.

“
I'm Lyndea.” She
gives a quick, curt smile. “Jaxon insists that one of us
should stay by your side. I'm it. If you'll come with me,”
she says, inclining her head.

Wordlessly, I follow her. If I
protest and insist that I don't need an escort, Jaxon would just be
worrying about me when he should be concentrating on his task. I
might be a tad peeved that he thinks I need to be babysat, but—I
realize that my shutting down and shutting everything and everyone
out in the days and nights following the Emperor's gory death has
worried and frightened him. He was worried that I would lose my
mind, and he would lose me.

Lyndea leads me into an
alleyway, and we walk between two tall buildings and emerge on a
dirty sidewalk opposite the Justice Prison. I stare up at the prison
walls and the rusty, barred windows.

This is the oldest prison in the
Central City, where the most dangerous and notorious criminals are
kept. Many of the inmates in the Justice Prison have been in there
for decades.

We make our way to the front of
the Justice Prison. A large screen is mounted on two tall poles,
spreading across the entire stony facade of the Justice Prison. I
turn from the screen to stare at the large, rippling crowd gathered
in front of the screen. The sea of angry, tired, sad, silent faces
spread far beyond the Justice Square. There is no joy on the faces
of all these people who have turned up to watch the execution of
their former tormentors and oppressors. They simply wait in silence,
remembering their dead and trying not to remember their own terrible
suffering.

Hundreds and thousands of people
have made their way to the Central City from the outer towns to
witness the first executions following the fall of the Unified
States. So many had suffered and died under the policies and orders
of these callous, greedy officials and officers. The survivors, the
families of those who have been taken, tortured and perished, have
all turned up to see justice being done. To find some sort of
closure, and hope. With the deaths of these criminals, many hope to
see the birth of a better tomorrow. With the blood of these
monsters, they hope to bury the ghosts of the past and start to heal.

I push into the crowd and Lyndea
follows me somewhat reluctantly. I don't stop until I am standing
directly in front of the screen. I have to watch this. I have to
know that I won't flinch from this.

Everything that I went through,
everything I did, must have steeled me, not broken me. I have to
know this.

The crowd grows more and more
restless as the minutes tick by. The hour draws near, and murmurs
grow and gather into shouts. I keep my eyes on the screen, standing
my ground even when shoulders and fists jostle against me.

The screen flickers, and the
shouts and unrest subside rapidly. Everyone watches the screen
expectantly.

A hush descends on the crowd
when a face comes into focus. It is a rebel leader. I recognize him
as one of the rebel leaders that Jaxon had spoken to earlier. The
speakers at the side of the screen whine to life as he begins to
speak, his voice and expression solemn, “Today, we are here for
peace, for law and order, for justice. Not violence. Not vengeance.
Justice. There will be no more violence and riots and bloodshed.
For all the lives that have been lost and sacrificed, let us respect
them with our silence and our restraint. I know that many of you
want to see these criminals tortured, but that is not the way to move
forward. We are not barbarians, like them! They will be executed
according to the law, not tortured. Let there be no violence on the
streets, let us remember and respect our dead on this day.”