Page 7 of Taken By Fury
“Pen and paper will not help. When I was moved, I was inside a windowless van. I had no idea where I was going, or where I ended up.”
“You lie. I saw you when I was tracking another. You came out of the back of a car and seemed to know exactly what you were doing.”
He was trying to rattle her, but it would not work. Zander could do no worse to her than what had already been done. Zolar had already taken everything from her.
“I wasn’t being moved. Obviously,” she bit back.
His steel gaze never left her. This demon, a prince of a species she knew so little about, was devastatingly handsome. Had their lives been different, she might have wished to explore him in a more personal manner, but right now she had to remind herself he needed to be protected. They all had to be protected. Besides, all she had to go on was the information Zolar provided to her. She had never been allowed to see Zander, or his brother Orien when they were being held captive. Their photos had been glued to their files and had given her a slight glimpse of what they looked like. Zander’s photo did not do him justice, that was for sure.
It was also her understanding that Valarians could shift into a more demonic-looking form. One with leathery wings, horns on their heads and a long tail, which was very similar to what the Concosa looked like.
Turning from his intense stare, she looked through the bars into a dim corridor that was lit by iron sconces and watched the shadows play on the wall.
“You must know from your time with Zolar that we can sense your emotions.”
She did but didn’t bother to reply. What was the point of confirming his comment?
“The fear coming off you smells rancid like rotting meat.”
“Lovely.” She still refused to turn back and look at him. “It surprises you that I am afraid?”
“It doesn’t, but that is not the only emotion coursing through that cold blood of yours.”
This time, she swallowed and gripped the bars, her fingers turning frigid.
“You also stink of deception, but then I am sure you know that. Curiosity is also to be expected. After all, you are human and your species has always wanted to dissect what it doesn’t understand, or that which differs from them.”
This time, she looked over her shoulder to study his reaction. No, she didn’t wish to dissect him, but study him? Most certainly. She was a scientist, and it was in her blood. Her mother had been a scientist and her father an archeologist. Both were curious by nature.
“What I find most interesting, however, is your desire.” He stood, his frame unfolding to over six feet, which meant he towered over her.
She gripped the bars until her knuckles turned white. He stepped closer until he was only inches away and the heat from his body seeped into hers. It took all her willpower not to curl into his warmth, to ease the chill that had now seeped into her bones.
“You wonder what lies beneath my clothing. I assure you, I am very much a male, no different from your humans.” He pulled a strand of her hair through his fingertips. “We fuck the same as you. Back in the days before our city was lost, it was not uncommon for our kind to come together in pleasures of the flesh. There were even some who chose humans as their mates.” His lip curled as he dropped her hair and stepped back. “Humans cannot be trusted anymore.”
“Your queen is human, as is the protector’s mate.” She wondered if the women still held human DNA after their mating, or were they now Valarian?
“That is only somewhat accurate. The queen holds our DNA and Fang’s mate was destiny. You, on the other hand, are nothing but a traitor to both races.” He then stepped through the bars as if they didn’t even exist and his footsteps echoed down the corridor until there was nothing but silence.
Sheila finally released her grip on the bars and went to the bed where she grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her before sinking onto the mattress. There had to be a way to escape, but how to get out? They were under the ocean and clearly, she couldn’t swim to the surface. Even if she could, then what? Her choices were simple. Either bargain with Zander or hope that the queen set her free. Staying here was not an option because it placed the others in danger. Contrary to what Zander thought of her, she did not have ice running through her veins. Her life was already in ruins, but she could try to protect those that were there.
* * *
Zander stormed up the stairs,more irritated than before. That female got under his skin and the fact he allowed it to happen made him want to punch a wall. There was only one thing that would calm his pissy attitude and bring him peace, and that was exploring his home world. Atlantis, or Oshivana as it was known in his language, had disappeared long before he was born. As a child, he recalled how he and his two older brothers would gather around their tutor’s feet and listen to stories of a world they had never known. The pictures in his mind had not done justice to this place.
He recalled a warm, sunny day when the tutor had taken the three of them outside for their lessons. They were deep into a story the tutor was telling them about Oshivana when a tall male, his waist-long, silver hair whipping about in the breeze, appeared. Zander recalled the scarlet robe embellished with gold, and the silver staff he carried in his left hand. He announced himself as one of the Oracles, which caused the tutor to stand and bow while he and his brothers had looked on with wide eyes. Oracles rarely appeared and when they did, it was usually before the king.
He pointed his staff at Greydon. “You will fulfill the prophecy and reclaim the throne.”
Greydon had risen to his feet. “Reclaim the throne? I don’t understand. Father is king and holds the throne.”
The Oracle shook his head. “No. Not this throne. You will reclaim Oshivana and become its rightful king. I have seen it, but your path will not be easy.” He narrowed his gaze. “This visit and the words I speak shall remain here amongst you until such time that it will not.” Then he vanished, leaving them in stunned silence.
After that day, things changed. His eldest brother had always expected to be king one day, but not to a lost world. Greydon had stepped into a role of student under the Oracle’s guidance and his training was never spoken of. Just as that day and the prophecy had remained a secret. Zander and Orien understood the part they would play in the future and just how important their brother was to them all. It was why, on that fateful day when Threydor, the leader of the Concosa demons, had killed their parents, both Orien and Zander knew they had to make certain Greydon fled to safety.
Now outside the palace, he breathed easier. The ocean above him was like a calming balm and even his blood circulated to match the ebb and flow of the waves. He had been alive for three-hundred and fifty-odd years and never had he felt this much peace in his soul. He still thought of Lomara nearly every day. His heart ached for his mate. While he was grateful Greydon had managed to kill Threydor at some point, he still wished he could have taken the bastard out himself.
He took a moment to close his eyes and simply feel the energy of Oshivana. The power of this world vibrated around him. Like everything in the universe, it had an energy of its own. Opening his eyes, he continued to embrace the magic of his home. Its power now filled him, and it sent a tingle to his gut that said he needed to shift and fly for a bit, so he did. His wings unfurled from his back, his ears elongated to points while the horns on his head thickened and raised. With a swish of his tail, he pushed off and took flight. Following his gut, he headed east. Flew over now abandoned homes that still looked as if people should live in them. He half expected to see children playing outside while their mothers tended to their gardens, but those gardens no longer grew the food they once did. The world was quiet. Not even wildlife lived here anymore. It was a dead city inside a bubble of magic that kept it from being taken over by the ocean itself.
