Revenant (8 page)

The
man was a monster. I couldn’t let myself believe anything that came out of his
mouth. Was he lying now about finding the spell I’d been
searching for
? As long as Luke’s spirit was in
Dean’s body, Gage could force him out and into the
in between.
Would the same be true if Luke transferred to another
body? A body he had full
control over
?
Was there a way to somehow tie Luke to a new body so completely that Luke’s
spirit couldn’t be forced out?

Gage’s
fingers wrapped around my arm possessively and his expression darkened. “I am a
patient man, Colina, but I will not wait forever. If I do not get your best
efforts willingly, there are other ways to ensure your cooperation.”

The
urge to pull my arm out of Gage’s grip was strong. I wanted to get away from
him, to be free of the
hold
he had on me
both physically and emotionally.

Gage
seemed to notice my inner turmoil. “Come, come.” His voice turned soft and
soothing. “I know you only have eyes for that one.” He motioned Luke’s way. “Now,
after we eat, we can talk more about the spell I’ve found. But for now,” he
raised his voice, “we all need to drink, eat, and be merry!” He waved his hand
and music filled the air. The sound came from a far corner of the room, where a
group of musicians sitting in a circle played instruments.

“Just
because we live down here doesn’t mean we can’t have all the amenities. It’s a
good life.” Gage let go of my arm and grabbed my hand, guiding me to the
closest table. There were bowls of fruit and plates full of colorful, exotic-looking
foods on its surface.

Gage reached over and grabbed an oddly shaped
yellowish fruit from one of the bowls. He held it up in front of me. “This is a
star fruit from Indonesia.” He raised it until it was at my lips, watching me
expectantly.

He wanted to feed me? That was a gesture more common between lovers. What
would happen if I refused? I hesitated for a moment before taking a bite. It
tasted like pineapple and kiwi.

He gave me a smile. “Isn’t
it tasty? I like to
surround myself with exotic things.”
He’s looking at me with such…intensity
.

A shudder
went
down my spine.
Sonja said that Gage “desires” me
. The
thought made me nauseous.

Steeling myself, I asked the question that had been zooming around in my
head since he’d abducted me. The one question I’d been too scared to ask up
until now. “What do you plan to do with the zombies?”

He sat down in a chair and motioned for me to sit next to him. “Our
mutual friend
has a dark side.” He
laughed as though he’d just told a joke. “I have a taste for the finer things
in life, but our friend has one deep desire—to create chaos.” He watched
a group of people drinking wine at a nearby table. “The world is always on the
brink of war. People are always itching
for
a reason to destroy each other.”

When he went silent, I prompted him. “And do the zombies give them that
reason? How?”

He reached out and grabbed a handful of grapes. “Imagine a thousand
undead suddenly appearing in Times Square.” He dropped the grapes onto his
plate, watching the fruits scatter and roll. “Picture them ripping through the
terrified crowd, tearing folks limb from limb.” His eyes shining, he gave me a
wide smile. “Everyone in the magical community is already at each other’s
throats.” He reached out, grabbed my hand, and planted a kiss on it. “We have
you to thank for that bit of chaos. The death dealers, who were once
the most
formidable group, are now on the run. Word
has spread about what we’re trying to accomplish here. Any death dealers tired
of playing by the rules—rules that have made them weaker and weaker over
the years—are coming here, seeking my protection. I’m more than happy to
welcome them into my ranks. It is truly sad to see how far they have fallen.
There was a time when no one was brazen enough to try and take on the death dealers.
How times have changed.
Whole guilds
have fallen to angry mobs or the
Redeemers
.
The general population is just itching
for
a reason to go after all the mage-born. Why
not give it to them? Hand it to them on a silver platter.”

I stared at him in horror. “Why massacre so many death dealers if you
want them to join you?”

He gave a wave of his hand. “Motivation, of course! You think they'd just
come running to me if they weren't dying right and left? I have the Redeemers
to thank, really—after all, they are my scapegoats.” I stared at him,
wide-eyed, and he continued. “Think how glorious it will be. Everyone will
start fighting each other, and with that
chaos
comes exciting possibilities.”

“That’s what you want? Chaos?” I whispered.

He brought his face close to mine and said in a low voice, “No. That’s
what
our friend
wants. I’m more
interested in power. Being at the side of such a dark creature puts me in the
perfect spot. Opportunities will arise for me to assist the most powerful
beings in the universe. A demon can’t be bothered with day-to-day
administrative hassles. I’m more than happy to step in and help out where I
can.”

“And take whatever you can,” I said through clenched teeth.

He leaned back and gave me a grin. “Of course. And in this glorious
adventure, I could use allies.”

I didn’t say a word, just sat shaking my head back and forth.

He rolled a grape between his fingers. He watched me for a few minutes in
silence before saying, “You’ve been wonderful so far. All you have to do is go
along with our plans and your friends will be safe.”

“And if I don’t?” I demanded.

His voice and eyes turned cold. “Then everyone you care for dies.” After
giving me a long look
, his mood suddenly
changed again from cold and deadly to smiling and charming. He gave me a wide
grin as he reached out and patted my arm. “I know, I know. The answer upsets
you. Believe me, I don’t like being the bad guy. I would rather you did these
things of your
own
free will. I’m hoping
that, in time, I can bring you around to understanding how vital you are to our
operation. There is a place for you here. There is a place for you next to me.”
He stood. “Now, eat up. After
dinner,
I
will show you something I’m very proud of.”

It had
been
days since I had a decent meal, and so I gave little thought to table manners
and grabbed at the food. Gage occasionally pushed a glass of wine in front of
me, but I refused to drink. He might force me to be his dinner companion, but I
was set
on leaving every indication that
I wanted to be
anywhere
but with him. He
tried to bring up one conversation topic after another, but finally gave up
when I no longer bothered to spit out
one-word
answers between mouthfuls of food.

The
fact that I wasn’t a cooperative dinner companion didn’t stop him, however. He
was a guy who loved to hear himself talk.
That
works in my favor
, I thought as I stuffed my face.
The more he
says,
the more
information I’ll learn that could eventually help me—and everyone else—get
out of here.

The
crowd had eaten, drank, and danced for hours. I had been a captive of Gage’s
all night. Anytime I tried to leave his side, he squeezed my hand a tad too
hard or gave a glare that left little doubt of his wish for me to remain by his
side.

My
gaze constantly drifted to Luke. He had Caleb and Jacob seated on either side
of him at a table in the corner. Luke’s eyes never left me the entire night,
the frown
on his face apparent even from across
the room.
If he’d been free of his
bodyguards and shackles, I had no doubt he’d be jumping over tables to rescue
me from Gage’s company.

Don’t trust Gage,
Luke had said. And I didn’t. I
knew he was only using me. Once I’d done what he’d asked, I had no doubt that
he’d dispose of all of us. It meant I had to be clever, and I had to make sure
Gage needed me right up until the moment we could escape. I didn’t yet know
how, or when, but we had to break free.

When
I’d first been taken by Gage
, escape was
far from my mind. I had been too full of misery. Forced to spend my nights
making zombies, seeing Luke every evening in shackles—I’d seen nothing
before me but darkness. But now it was there once again: hope. It glimmered
somewhere deep inside me.

I
forced my eyes back to Gage as he squeezed my hand. He seemed to be enjoying
himself. He’d eaten and drank more than anyone else at the party. All through
the night people flocked to our table, clambering desperately for his
attention. The person who currently had it was
the
short,
redheaded man who’d witnessed and clapped loudly when I’d woken the
dead in the fields. From the way the two talked to each other, it was obvious
they were long-time acquaintances.

The
man kept sneaking glances my way. I did my best to ignore him, but when he
suddenly swung the conversation back to me and Gage gave my hand another
squeeze, I had little choice but to pay attention.

“She
is such a wonder. Tonight she looks like an angel in that dress,” the redheaded
man said, giving me a look that made my stomach turn.

Gage
covered my hand with his. It was bad enough when he reached out and squeezed
it, but the fact that he was now holding my hand made my skin crawl. I tried to
pull my hand out of his grasp, but his fingers tightened.

Gage
is attracted
to you.
Wendy’s words floated through my mind.

“She
is a wonder,” Gage said, giving me a wide smile. “Mr. Fintan here was just
telling me how much he enjoyed watching you raise zombies.”

There
was a dangerous glint in Gage’s eyes. He expected me to answer, so I did. “So…glad
I could oblige.”

“Fintan
was thinking—once you’ve finished your work for me, you might enjoy going
with him and helping him with a project we are both invested in.”

I
was speechless.

Gage
gave me an amused look. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?” He let go of my
hand.

He’d held on so tight that my fingers were white.

Fintan
was giving me a hopeful look. “I know my establishment is not nearly as grand
as what Gage has here, but I think you would find it comfortable. I can
certainly compensate you well for your time.”

Gage
picked up the glass of wine in front of him. He took a long sip before saying, “You
saw for yourself what she can do. She is an incredible asset that any mage
would be thrilled to have by their side.”

They’re sitting here talking
about trading me like a baseball card
. Would Gage really hand me over to this man once his army
walked? And if I went with Fintan, what would happen to Luke, to Dean, to
Wendy?

“How
long…” I stumbled on the words and tried again. “How long do you think this
project
of yours is going to last?” I
asked Gage.

I
could see the laughter in his eyes. “Hopefully not too long.” He looked over at
Fintan. “I would say, at the most, six months. Maybe less if we can find a
solution to a little problem we’re having.”

Fintan
frowned at Gage’s answer. “I’ll have collected more than enough readers by that
time, Gage, my boy. Surely I won’t have to hold onto them for that long?”

“I’m
sorry, Fintan, but I can’t hand her over to you sooner. I need to keep her
close. She has become invaluable to me.” Gage reached out to grab my hand
again, but this time I quickly moved it away.

This
seemed
only to amuse Gage
even more. He
finished off the last of his wine in one mighty gulp. He set the empty glass on
the table and pushed his chair back. “If you will excuse us, we’ve some
business to attend to.” He stood and waved toward the middle of the room. There
was a large group of people dancing. “Fintan, stay and enjoy the fun. I’m sure
the party will continue into the wee hours.” Gage looked down at me and held
out his hand.

Would
Gage
really
hand me over to Fintan when I
finished here
? Or was he using it as a
threat to make sure I stayed in line? The man was deranged. There was no way of
guessing what he might do.

I
pushed back my chair and got up without offering my
own
hand to him, but he grabbed my elbow and led me across the room
and out
the door.
Once out of the room, I
jerked my arm out of his grasp.

He
gave me a slow smile. “I hope you enjoyed yourself. You’ve looked so sad since
I brought you here. I thought I would throw a party and liven things up a bit.
What did you think? When we first got here it took quite a bit of work to get
this place in order.” He swung his arm out and motioned to some of the side
tunnels. “Parts of the mine collapsed years ago, taking a couple dozen miners
with it. They eventually closed the mine and the inhabitants of the town moved
on
. Their bad luck; our good fortune.”