Sought...Book 3 in the Brides of the Kindred series (49 page)

Let’s hope they’re not far from the
Scourge home world, then,
Deep said grimly.
If they’ve gone
too far we’ll never find them.

I have a net big enough to cover three
sectors.
Lock sounded confident.
Unless they’ve folded
space, we’ll find them. Never fear.

Are we almost there yet?
Kat asked,
feeling like a little kid. As fast as they were traveling, she had
the strange sensation that they already had been on the astral
plane longer than on any of their two previous joinings.

It’s just ahead. Look,
Lock
murmured.

Their incredible speed slowed until the
white and black blurs rushing past them became planets and stars
again. It reminded Kat of how space looked when the Millennium
Falcon was coming out of light speed in the
Star Wars
movies. Just ahead she saw the dirty, gray-brown ball of smog and
pollution that she recognized as the Scourge home planet. It was
only about the size of a billiard ball in the sky but it was
getting closer by the minute.

I don’t see their ship,
she sent,
feeling disappointed.

Don’t worry,
Lock told her.
I’m
casting the net wide and far.

Kat felt a moment of intense concentration
from him, as though he was preparing to do some hard physical
labor. Then the Scourge home world and all the space around it in
every direction was blanketed in a silvery, shimmering net so
beautiful and vast it took her breath away.

Oh Lock,
she whispered, totally awed.
This is your finest work yet. It’s gorgeous.

Let’s just hope it does its job,
Deep
said.
Open your mind and feel for the tugging, Kat. Is Lauren
anywhere near here?

Kat deepened her concentration.
Well,
she’s not on the planet,
she sent with relief. Despite being
ninety-nine percent certain that Lauren and Xairn had left in the
small silver ship they’d seen blast off, she’d had a nagging fear
that Sophie and Liv’s cousin had somehow been left behind. But
apparently that wasn’t so—she didn’t feel Lauren anywhere on the
surface of the deadworld. She made one more sweep to be sure…and
her mind touched something new—something so shocking and harsh she
drew in a ragged gasp.

What? What is it?
Deep demanded,
sounding concerned.

Something on the planet. Something dark.
Burned me…shocked me,
Kat choked. Her astral form was tingling
all over. It was as though she’d grabbed a live electrical wire
with her bare hands.

The AllFather,
Lock sounded grim.
He must still be there.

Did he feel you, Kat?
Deep asked
urgently.
Does he know we’re here?

I…don’t think so.
Kat shook herself
mentally, trying to regain control.
He’s angry though. So much
rage…hatred…betrayal.

No doubt because Xairn flew off with the
only female who could fulfill their twisted prophesy,
Lock
sent.
This changes things, we have to hurry. If he feels us out
here…
He let the sentence dangle ominously and Kat had an idea
she didn’t want to know what might happen if the leader of the
Scourge found their vulnerable spirits wandering so far from their
physical bodies.

We have to hurry anyway.
Deep sounded
strained.
Taking us this far and holding us here is almost
beyond my power. Quickly, Kat, avoid the planet and feel for the
tug of Lauren’s mind in the space around it.

Got it,
Kat sent.
Just give me a
little time.

Time is what we don’t have. Hurry!

She didn’t bother answering. Taking a deep
breath she pictured Lauren in her mind’s eye. The delicate
features, the long, silky black hair and warm mocha skin, the high
cheekbones so like Sophie and Liv’s. And of course her striking
amber eyes.
Lauren,
she thought, feeling her way along the
net, searching with every ounce of concentration she could muster.
I haven’t known you long but I can tell you’re strong. Brave.
You’ve been through so much but your spirit shines through it all.
Let me find you so I can give your mom some hope. She loves you so
much! Please let me tell her that her daughter is coming home
soon…

At last she felt the faintest tug imaginable
from the far distant corner of the great net. It was so miniscule
Kat nearly ignored it, almost waved it away like a tiny mosquito
buzzing near her ear. But then the feeling began to grow and she
knew it wasn’t her imagination—the tug really was Lauren, and she
was somewhere on the edge of the shining net Lock had cast.

This was the part Kat liked the most. As the
seeker, Deep provided the power to get them to their destination
and hold them in place. Lock, as the finder, wove and cast the net.
But as their focus, it was Kat’s job to track down the person they
were looking for and fly the three of them to the exact spot where
that person was.

Hang on boys, here…we…go!
She spread
invisible wings and lunged forward, slicing cleanly through space
as a swimmer diving into a pool slices through water. The feeling
of speed, the exhilaration of finding what they were looking for as
she followed the tug forward, grew stronger and stronger within
her…

Kat, watch out!
Lock sounded more
alarmed than Kat had ever heard him.

What? What’s wrong?
She wanted to
look behind her but they were moving too fast.

It’s coming…he’s coming for us. Look to the
planet! Look to Zlicth!

Finally managing to backpedal, Kat turned
her gaze to the quickly receding Scourge home world…and saw
something that nearly stopped her heart.

A finger of darkness was extending from the
planet. A searching tendril of black slime which made even the
blackness of space seem faded and pale in contrast. But this finger
was huge—a tentacle of pure evil big enough to engulf them
completely like a snake swallowing a mouse.

If it touches us,
Kat thought, her
blood turning to ice.
If it even brushes us we’ll be caught. I
just know it!

The AllFather,
Deep sent.
He must
have felt your probe after all.

What can we do?
Kat sent back, trying
not to panic.
How do we get away?

We can’t. Not unless we leave now,
Lock sent.

But I don’t
want
to leave! We’re so close. I can feel Lauren and we’re almost to
her.

Then we can tell her mother that she’s
safe,
Lock sent back.
But if we stay here and the AllFather
catches us in his web, we’ll never get back to our physical bodies
and be able to tell her anything at all.

Kat wanted to cry. To come so close and then
not be able to finish what they’d started was too much, too awful.
I don’t—
she began but Deep interrupted her.

Kat’s right—we shouldn’t leave without
seeing this through.

I agree but I don’t see how,
Lock
argued.
If we don’t leave now—

There is another way.
Deep sounded
determined.
Go on Kat, take us there. If the AllFather traces us
I’ll…distract him.

That was all Kat needed to hear. She dived
forward again, following the tugging which was growing stronger in
her mind.
Find me,
Lauren’s life force seemed to be saying.
Find me, find me, here I am!

There!
Kat couldn’t keep the triumph
out of her voice as a small silver spaceship came into view.
There she is! I knew it.

Quickly, then
Lock urged.
The
AllFather is just behind us. His arm grows long and if he catches
us…

Too late.
Deep sounded so grim that
Kat turned her attention from the spaceship to look behind them
again. Rolling toward them like a black, oily cloud that smudged
and dirtied the very space it moved though, was the AllFather’s
trap. Kat could feel the tingling, burning sensation again even
though she wasn’t touching it…yet. A sudden , awful thought filled
her mind.

What were we thinking? We’ll lead him right
to them!

Lauren and Xairn aren’t on the astral
plane,
Lock told her.
So while the AllFather might sense
them, he won’t be able to hurt them. Not physically, anyway. Hurry,
Kat, we have no time to spare.

He’s getting too close,
Deep sent.
You two stay together, I’ll distract him.

Stop!
Lock’s mental voice was urgent.
Don’t you think I know what you mean by ‘distract’ Deep? You
can’t sacrifice yourself for us—I won’t allow it.

What makes you think I’d sacrifice
myself?
Deep’s voice was filled with mocking laughter but it
sounded hollow to Kat.
Don’t be foolish, Lock. The AllFather
won’t know there’s more than one mind wandering the astral plane.
If he gets me, he’ll think he has us all. But he won’t get me—I’m
just going to lead him a on a little chase while you two look in on
Lauren. So hurry!

Kat wanted to protest but there didn’t seem
to be any way to stop him.
I love you, Deep!
she sent as
strongly as she could.
Be safe and come back to us or I swear
the AllFather won’t have to do a thing to you—I’ll kick your ass
myself!

You and your Earth vernacular. I don’t
see how you could hurt me by planting your sweet little foot on my
posterior.
Deep laughed again in her head.
But I’ll be sure
to come back so you can demonstrate.

Do that, Brother,
Lock sent.
I
love you too.

And I love both of you. Goodbye.
And
then there was sudden silence from the spot where Deep had been.
Looking over her invisible shoulder, Kat saw something bright whiz
daringly close to the foul finger of darkness. The inky black
tendril hesitated and then seemed to make a decision. It swooped
after the bright thing so fast it was a blur in space.

God!
Kat’s heart was in her throat.
She hadn’t realized the AllFather was so
fast
on the astral
plane. Watching him chase after Deep’s spirit was like watching a
striking cobra after a mongoose.

Don’t waste time watching,
Lock told
her, sounding stern.
Deep is playing the decoy so that we can
get the information we need. Hurry, Kat. Hurry!

You got it.
Forcing herself to look
away from the horrifying spectacle, Kat turned her attention toward
Lauren and gave their mission her whole concentration again.

There was nothing else she could do.

Slicing through space, Kat dived straight at
the silver ship and passed through its skin easily. She could feel
Lock behind her but he said nothing as they looked around the
cockpit they suddenly found themselves in.

Xairn’s massive form was hunched over the
controls and he seemed to be concentrating fiercely. Kat felt a
stab of panic as she realized she didn’t see Lauren.
But I feel
her here! Where is she? Where—

“Oh, that feels
so
much better.”
Lauren came forward from a hidden compartment at the back of the
ship. She was wearing one towel draped around her body and blotting
her still-damp hair with another. Kat guessed she must have just
come out of the shower.
Who knew they had showers on these
ships?
she thought as she watched.

It was a standard feature on the older
models,
Lock murmured.
Warriors used to have to stay away
from the Mother ship for much longer—each ship had all the comforts
of home. Well, as much as it was possible to have in deep space,
anyway.

“I am glad you’re feeling better.” Xairn
glanced up, his red-on-black eyes widening briefly as he took in
the way the thin towel draped over Lauren’s curves. Then he looked
back at the controls hastily. “It must be a relief to get the
remains of the
dravik
off your skin.”

“It certainly is.” She settled in the
passenger seat beside him, still patting her hair. “I just wish I
had some other clothes to wear. I’m afraid your cape is
ruined.”

“That’s quite all right.” Xairn’s deep voice
sounded slightly strangled. “I’m certain we can find you
something…suitable to wear in the place we are headed.”

“Where is that? Where are we going? Are…are
you still going to take me home?”

He nodded stiffly, still not looking at her.
“I have sworn to do so and I will keep my promise. But it wouldn’t
be safe for us to go back to Earth now—not before we make a few
minor adjustments.”

“Adjustments? To what—the ship? So your
father can’t trace it—right?”

Xairn shook his head. “That is not what I am
referring to at all. We’ll need to adjust our DNA—both of us—before
I can safely take you back to your home planet.”

“Our
DNA?”
Lauren sounded horrified.
“What are you talking about, Xairn? I don’t want my DNA
adjusted!”

“I’m sorry but it’s necessary.” He stared
straight ahead as he spoke, his broad shoulders tense. “Which is
why we’re heading to the Maw Cluster at this very moment. The best
genetic manipulators live there. They can help us reach our
destination safely.”

“But…” Lauren made a helpless gesture. “How
far away are they?”

“About a hundred thousand light years from
Earth.”

“
What?”
Lauren demanded. Then she
took a deep breath and put a hand on his muscular arm. “Xairn, I’m
trying really hard not to get upset or excited here. But it sounds
to me like we’re going in the opposite direction of where we need
to be.”

“Lauren…” Xairn looked pointedly at her hand
on his arm and Lauren withdrew it hastily.

“Sorry. But look, how can you even get us so
far away and back again before we get old and die? I mean, I’m a
cupcake baker, not a physicist but I don’t see how it’s
possible.”