Talent For Trouble (22 page)

CHAPTER TWELVE

Darak’s words sounded so serious. She wasn’t sure how to take them, but a little part of her heart stood up at attention, wanting more. Slowly but surely, the irreverent StarLord had worn away her defenses. She was afraid she was very much in love with the rogue and feared it would end badly for her when he moved on to someone else.

But would he?

Those last words sounded like maybe she might have a shot at winning his heart. The thing was, she didn’t know enough about Geneth Mar society and Darak, in particular, to know what to expect of a more permanent relationship with him. Would he still want to be with other women?

Jana had unbent her moral code a lot since awakening aboard the
Circe
free of the collective, but there were some things she would never compromise on. If she was going to be in a permanent relationship with anyone, she wanted it to be exclusive.

But, then, she thought of what Seta had told her. According to the voluptuous navigator, Darak hadn’t been with any other women since Jana had been rescued. Jana wasn’t sure how much to believe of that claim, but her fragile heart wanted to believe it was absolutely true and that the reason he hadn’t sought pleasure elsewhere was because he was falling in love with her and wanted to be faithful only to her.

A girl could dream, couldn’t she?

After all, Jana had had her youth stolen from her by the collective. She had never been through all the normal things a young woman would go through when discovering attraction for someone else. All those innocent adolescent experiences had been denied her. As a result, she didn’t know what to make of Darak and his solemn words.

So, she said nothing as he moved closer still, taking her in his arms and placing a tender, powerful kiss on her lips. He deepened the kiss, and moments later, she found herself lying on her back, the soft fabric of the sleep sacks beneath her.

They made love by the firelight, Darak’s gentle touches saying more than his words. Jana felt like she was the only woman in the universe to him in those moments when he joined their bodies and pushed her toward fulfillment.

Darak was her lover in every sense of the word as she finally gave up resisting and let her heart fly free. She gave up denial and embraced the fact that, even if he could never fully return her love, she had given her heart—if only for this short time—to Darak of Geneth Mar, rogue and StarLord, the kindest man she had ever known.

* * *

Jana woke deep in the night to the sound of the wind whipping around the ruined tower. They were safe and warm by the fire and within the protection of the tower, but the wildness of the wind called to something in her spirit. She remembered nights like this from when she was a little girl.

She remembered how her mother would hold her. And how her father would let her stay up late with him by the hearth while he told her stories of his youth or of fantastical beings and the ancient Wizards who had once lived up on this very hill. In this tower.

And now, she was here. And she was one of the Wizards. And her lover was a Mage Master. And he actually seemed to care for her in a way she had dreamed of when she was a little girl. He might not be her husband. He might not ever have that kind of staying power or ability to commit to her, but her heart was brimming with love for him, and his power sparked off her own in delicious ways.

He made her feel good in so many ways. Accepted. Cherished. Cared for. Almost…loved in return.

But she wouldn’t talk about feelings if he didn’t bring it up. She didn’t want to be so needy. She didn’t want to put him on the spot. She was very much afraid that if she asked where she stood with him, his answer would crush her fragile heart.

She watched him sleep, loving the way his face relaxed into sleep. He looked almost boyish, but she knew him well enough to know that, although the boy still lived within the man, the man was deadly and strong. A good combination in a warrior such as he.

Jana made herself stop gawking at him and get up. She dressed in her outer robe and went to sit in the exact center of the domed room. The mosaic of the floor came to a point here, a focus, if you will. She thought it might be a good place to start her experiments with the crystals that never left her.

She planned to rejoin the collective tonight, so she would have her answer by morning. Either she’d be lost again—in which case, Darak would find her and try to get her out again—or she would know more about their next move. If they even had one.

She had to know where Kol was, and if he’d already left the planet. If so, there was no point, really, in staying on Mithrak. But, if he was still here, she needed to know where, so she could hunt him down like the dog he was.

Taking a moment to focus herself, Jana began the careful exploration of the blue crystals and how they might help her rejoin the collective on her terms…

What Jana discovered that windswept night shocked and amazed her. Not only could she join the collective, but she was operating on a whole new level with the aid of the crystals. She was no longer simply a cog in the wheel—a mind to be used and pillaged at will.

No, the crystals did something. They made her something different. Something above it all. A mind to rule the others and never be subjugated to the collective again.

She was gaining an appreciation for how it all worked. She saw the structure of the collective from above and knew there were just a few minds like hers, free to use the collective power for their own ends and direct it like the puppet masters she had always envisioned.

Further, she realized the crystals in her skin made her one of the masters now. She was in the collective, but the others didn’t seem to recognize the power of her mind or her individual identity. They simply were aware of her and moved on, sensing the crystals that shielded her identity from them as their smaller crystals did their best to try to shield their identities from her.

Proximity had a lot to do with it, as well, she realized. The closer minds were more open to her while the other puppet masters who were farther away were better hidden.

She saw Kol’s oily mind, right away. He was close. Closer than she would have guessed.

They could reach his camp by tomorrow afternoon if they left in the morning after breakfast. And then, she would have her revenge. And perhaps after that, she could get on with her life…if she was still alive.

Realizing she could disconnect from the collective at will, she let the connection go, sealing her mind away from them. Silencing the Voice.

She felt a moment’s pride for being able to do that now. She had gained control and confidence over the voyage to get here, and when she stopped to think about it, she realized just how far she’d come.

She went back to the sleep sacks, which Darak had joined together so they could share them, and slid under the covers with him. Morning would come in a few hours, and she had a plan now.

Tomorrow, she was going to kill Kol.

When dawn came, Jana was awake first. Much as she would have liked to bask in Darak’s embrace a few moments longer, she was also eager to be on their way. She had a task to complete before she could get on with her life, and today was the day.

She left the bed and dressed, noting Darak’s sleepy movements behind her as she poked at the fire. They would need water, so she put on her cloak and wrapped her head in the warm scarf she had been wearing on this journey. The wind was still up, so she would need it.

Taking the old bucket with her, Jana went around the back of the tower to the old well.

Darak watched her go with fondness. Jana had come so far, so fast. He had seen her at her most fragile, and it made his heart feel good to see her find her footing at long last. She was regaining her confidence and, with it, her sense of self.

She had been a powerful woman, even while her mind had been subjugated by the collective. She had been a warrior. A woman to be reckoned with. A leader people looked up to, not because they feared her, but because—as the Plectarans’ loyalty had proved—they respected her. Perhaps they even loved her.

She had been formidable, then, and Darak knew she could be again. He was beginning to see the signs, and it pleased him no end. He liked strong women, and he especially liked an underdog who had been beaten down, only to come back stronger than ever before.

He saw that in Jana, and it made him admire her all the more.

There was no question in his mind that he was developing strong feelings for her. Where those feelings might ultimately lead would depend entirely on her. She had been forced into things too many times for him to be willing to even hint at manipulating her for his own gain.

For he was coming to realize that his life would not be complete without her in it in some way. He didn’t want to think too far ahead yet, because everything was so up in the air, but when he let himself consider the future, he couldn’t picture his life without her in it.

He just had to cultivate the patience to let her come to terms with their relationship—if there was going to be one—on her own. He couldn’t force her. He would never force her. Not for anything in the universe. She would come to him on her own, or he would let her go… No matter how badly it broke his heart.

He was working on breakfast at the fire when he sensed a presence behind him. Darak stood and whirled, but he wasn’t quick enough. He froze—not of his own volition—but because he’d been hit but a swift, incredibly strong, telekinetic wave. The maker of the wave stood just inside the door to the circular chamber, a smug expression on his hated blue face.

Kol had found them.

And Darak was well and truly trapped. Much as he hated to admit it, Kol’s telekinesis—backed up by the full power of the collective—had stopped Darak in his tracks. He was getting a firsthand lesson in what made the collective so damned formidable.

One on one, Darak thought he probably could’ve taken Kol. But, with the collective power of all those hijacked minds and Talents behind him, Kol was stronger than any single person. Maybe Micah and Jeri—two of the most powerful minds on Geneth Mar—could have stood their ground, but Darak wasn’t certain.

He couldn’t even reach out to Jana with his telepathy. Kol held Darak’s Talent in check as easily as he held his body in mid-motion. Darak couldn’t even speak. He was caught, with no visible recourse. And he couldn’t warn Jana.

She walked in from the outside, her scarf still tight around her head, and stopped short as she took in the scene.

“Kol,” she whispered, dropping the bucket she had taken from the well. Water sloshed over the sides.

“Ah, my little Jana. I’ve missed you.”

Kol’s voice was oily smooth. Repulsive. Jana remembered it well. So much had come back to her about the past in the last few days. She had almost all of it now, and what she still didn’t remember, she could piece together from the Plectaran reports when she got back to the
Circe
.

If
she got back to the
Circe
.

Somehow, Kol must have sensed her intrusion into the collective and come here to pre-empt her. She wasn’t as ready as she would’ve liked to have been, but perhaps, this was for the best. Kol had apparently come alone. She hadn’t sensed anyone outside—and she had been checking.

The puppet master could have fooled her, but any minds he brought with him should have been detectable. Which meant, he was probably here on his own. Cut off from the collective, as was his usual style. Operating on his own, using all the power of the collective that was still at his disposal through the tiny shard of crystal in his palm, but not sharing his own mind with the other puppet masters who together were the Voice.

“How did you find me?” she whispered into the quiet of the chamber, buying time as she figured out how to play this out.

“I had your memories of this place from when you were a child,” Kol said unexpectedly. “I knew if you ever came back to Mithrak, you would probably not be able to resist visiting this shrine to the lost ways of your people. This place draws our kind and always has. It is a natural place of power, which is why we could never destroy it completely—no matter how hard we tried. But we made it work to our advantage. We’ve had sensors on the gate since we claimed Mithrak for the collective. We knew about you and your sister long before we culled you. I watched you grow and wanted you for my own.” He licked his disgusting dark blue lips as she remembered his many cruelties.

“I’ve tracked many others in this tower since you were taken. They come here, betray themselves by being drawn here, and I get their images sent directly to my files. I make note of them, and on my next trip through—if they are old enough—I take them for the collective,” he went on. “So, when you got here last night and the sensor at the gate sent me your image, I had to come see for myself if it really was you. The scarf hid your pretty face, but I saw enough to make me believe my little Jana had finally come home.”

His smile sickened her. But maybe there was a way to play this to her advantage?

“I’m not really your little Jana anymore, am I, Kol?” she asked in a purring sort of voice as she moved slowly toward him.

Kol’s hand was still outstretched, the crystal sliver in his palm glinting as it focused the collective’s power on Darak, keeping him immobile. Kol’s eyes followed her movements, his expression one of greedy avarice as he watched her body move. She felt dirty just from the look he was giving her, but she had to brazen it out. Darak’s life—her life—and a whole lot more was riding on the next few minutes.

She had to think. If Kol didn’t realize she had been messing around with the crystals in her body and spying on him from inside the collective, then she might just have an ace in the hole. If he expected her to be the same as she’d been before, he had another think coming.

And, if he’d only seen her with the scarf covering her face, she had a little surprise for him…

“You’re still as gorgeous as you ever were. A little thinner, perhaps, but that’s an improvement,” Kol had the audacity to say.