Captives of New Pompeii (2 page)

“Who are you?” The woman spoke Latin, but
her voice had a foreign inflection, one Felicia did not
recognize.

“Lie still. I’ll get the doctor.”

“Doctor? I do not need a doctor.” Or did
she?

How had she gotten to this place? For that
matter, where was she?

Very slowly, she lowered her arm and tried
to open her eyes. The light was real. Centered directly above her,
a strange round lamp blazed directly into her face. She heard
voices in a room beyond where she was lying, speaking rapidly in a
language she didn’t understand.

Had she been taken from the temple? Who
would do such a despicable thing? The woman had claimed she had
been sent by Venus, but Felicia knew that was not true. If Venus
had sent another messenger, there would have been signs. Felicia
would have sensed a kindred spirit.

She rolled to her side then her stomach,
easing her legs off the high table. The only table she had seen
that was anything like this was the altar used for…sacrifice! Her
toes touched the cold floor and she launched herself sideways. She
would not be sacrificed by an imposter.

Her stomach heaved and her head pounded,
protesting with each step she took.

She saw movement out the corner of her eye
and shifted her head to the right.

“No one is going to hurt you.” A man
approached slowly, hands extended. “There is no reason to be
afraid.”

The man was more believable than the woman
had been, but Felicia was not convinced. She found a corner and
slid down the wall, tucking her legs up under her robe and wrapping
her arms around her knees. “Why have you taken me from the
temple?”

“Which temple do you mean? There are
several.” He held a thin tablet in one hand and moved his fingers
over its smooth surface. It wasn’t wax or papyrus so how did he
intend to record her answer. Light erupted and images formed,
rising from the tablet at his command.

Felicia trembled, her abdomen quivering as
her chest began to burn. Only the gods could command light and form
shapes out of nothing. “Are you… Am I dead?”

He set the tablet on the altar she had just
crawled off of and looked into her eyes. With ordinary features and
kind green eyes, he appeared to be a man like any other. “You are
not dead, but you would have been if we had not intervened.”

“Where am I?”

“Would you like some water before we talk?
Will you come and sit with me?”

“Where am I?” The second time was a
demand.

He crossed his arms over his chest,
appearing a bit disappointed in her attitude. “Have you ever been
on a ship that travels across the water?”

What an odd question. She felt no swaying.
They were not on a ship. “I have seen such vessels.”

“Well, this is a ship that travels across
the sky. We are taking you to a new home, one not unlike the one
Vulcan destroyed.”

“Vulcan destroyed Pompeii?” She covered her
throat with her hand, sinking deeper into the corner. “Where are
the other survivors? How many escaped?”

“I don’t have exact counts from all twelve
ships, but I’ve heard between seventy-one and seventy-three hundred
survived.”

“Then thousands, no, tens of thousands still
died.” Tears blurred her vision and she had to look away from his
compassionate eyes. No wonder she felt alone and weak. So many
lost, so many… She’d sensed a disturbance in the Earth’s rhythm,
something had been wrong for days, but no one believed her. “Did
Mount Vesuvius burst apart?”

“Did you see the clouds of ash?”

She shook her head and lowered her hand to
her lap. The man had a pleasant smile and an approachable manner.
Still, she had to remain vigilant. “Venus sends me dreams of things
that are to come. I have been dreaming about Mount Vesuvius for
weeks, but no one heeded my warnings.”

“Then you were taken from the Temple of
Venus.” He drew the tablet to him and tapped out a quick pattern.
Could he write with the tip of his finger?

“I am the high priestess,” she admitted, not
yet ready to share her name.

“Felicia?” He smiled and she knew her
expression must have confirmed his guess. “Please, call me Aiden.
I’m glad I finally found you. I’ve been searching for you for
days.”

What little comfort she had felt as her
panic ebbed was eroded by the cunning in his eyes. He was trying
hard to seem casual and nonthreatening, but she could sense danger
lurking beneath his friendly façade “Why have you been searching
for me? How did you know my name?”

“When Venus realized her husband was going
to destroy Pompeii, she dispatched myself and others like me to
transport her children to a home she has prepared for you. The
occupants of Pompeii have always been faithful to her and she is
not willing to let you perish because of Vulcan’s jealousy.”

“That did not answer my question.” Feeling a
bit more self-assured, she pushed to her feet but remained safely
ensconced in the corner.

“Venus told me your name.” He slowly walked
around the table, blocking her only escape with his tall body. “She
told me to awaken you and ask you to reassure the others that this
is her will.”

“If this was her will,
she
would have
told me.”

“You said you dreamt about the volcano, yet
when you warned your people they would not listen. Does that mean
it was Venus’ will that all of Pompeii die?”

“I do not know.” He moved steadily closer,
making her feel small and vulnerable. “You are trying to confuse
me.”

“Your people would not listen to you, so
Venus sent someone else. That doesn’t reflect badly on you. It
reveals the foolishness of those who would not listen. If they had
heeded your warnings, this relocation would not have been
necessary.”

The closer he drew the harder she found it
to concentrate. “If you are a priest of Venus, why was I not warned
of your coming?”

His brow arched and he leaned his hand
against the wall, caging her with his body. “Does she tell you
everything she does? I thought you were her servant, not the other
way around.”

“That is not the point,” she flared. “Where
are the others? Everyone must be terrified. I must comfort
them.”

“Everyone is fine. Let’s focus on you. How
do you feel? Would you like something to eat? You’ve been in stasis
for six days. Do you feel weak?”

Up close, his eyes were captivating. Rings
of lighter green made the emerald shimmer. His hair was short on
the sides and in back, but the top was left longer, revealing a
charming tendency to curl. She’d never seen clothing like his,
formfitting yet conservative. Only his long-fingered hands were not
covered. Did Venus require him to keep himself hidden from view so
she could enjoy his body in private?

The thought sent an odd ache deep into her
belly. Surely she did not desire this strange man! She never
reacted that way to men. She must be hungry. “What is stasis?” The
word echoed back to her as her mind sifted through the unwanted
distractions.

“It is a sort of trance or a sleep so deep
your bodily functions are turned off for a while.”

“This is not harmful?”

“There can be side effects, but nothing too
drastic. Some experience muscle weakness, others hunger or chills.
All the side effects are temporary.”

“I see.” Did he have to stand so close to
her? It was disquieting.

“All your friends are in stasis right now,
so you don’t need to worry about them. How is your head? Do you
feel any pain?”

His questions reminded her that the female
had said she was fetching a doctor, not a priest. A fresh surge of
suspicion set her in motion. She ducked under his arm and ran for
the door.

“Felicia, wait. If you go dashing down the
corridors, I’ll have to sedate you.”

“Sedate me?” She spun to face him, robes
swishing around her legs. “Who are you really? You are no priest.
More like a physician.”

“Can’t I be both physician and priest? Many
priests have other vocations before they find their calling.”

“I have known priests who claimed to be
chosen by Venus. You are nothing like them.”

His gaze searched hers for a moment as if he
sensed the wealth of meaning behind her casual comment. But he did
not know, could not possibly know the indignities she had suffered
in the name of worship. His brows drew together in silent question,
but she simply looked away.

“I seem different because my home is very
far from yours. Many of our customs are bound to be unusual.”

Shivers shook her shoulders and cramped her
upper arms. Was this one of the side effects he had warned her
about? “If we are traveling through the sky, show me.” She crossed
her arms, rubbing the muscles in an attempt to loosen the painful
spasms. “I want to see the stars floating past our sails.” Her
teeth were chattering by the time she finished the sentence. “What
is wrong with me?”

He slipped past her and left the room. She
closed her eyes, thinking she had driven him off with her
obstinacy. It served her right. Now she would suffer in
solitude.

Blessed warmth settled around her shoulders
and sank into her arms as he wrapped a thick blanket around her
body.

“Can you walk?”

She tried to shift her foot forward but her
leg refused to respond.

“I’m going to pick you up, all right?” She
managed a shaky nod and he swept her into his arms. “Damn. You’re a
tiny little thing. Aren’t you?”

Too miserable to argue, she clutched the
blanket to her chest and rested her head on his shoulder. She’d
never thought of herself as particularly small, but she fit rather
well in the cradle of his strong arms. He brought her to the high
table and started to place her upon it. She wrapped her arms around
his neck and clung.

“Please.” She sobbed. “I will do whatever
you ask. Do not slit my throat.”

He stilled, holding her high against his
chest. “Why would I slit your throat?”

It took her a moment to gather her composure
enough to meet his gaze. The amusement she found there only added
to her confusion. “Is this not an altar?”

“This is not an altar.” Very slowly he sat
her down. “No one will hurt you, Felicia. I won’t let them.”

He touched a marked area on the edge of the
table and the section behind her lifted, angling until it pressed
against her back. She tried not to react to the wondrous happening,
but she could feel her eyes rounding. “Are you a demigod?”

A smile transformed his face. His common
features took on princely appeal and she felt surrounded by the
intensity of his gaze. Perfectly curved lips framed even, white
teeth. Had his mouth always appeared so enticing? She wanted to
touch his lips with hers and feel the heated rush of his breath as
they shared their first kiss.

“I told you what I am.” His voice dropped as
he gazed into her eyes. He didn’t touch her, but the sudden heat in
his eyes told her his thoughts were not all that different from
hers.

“I do not believe you.”

He chuckled. “All right. You tell me. If I
am not here to usher your people to a new home, who am I and why
have I accosted you?”

“I have not yet decided what you are,”
Felicia told Aiden, her big blue eyes warm and guileless. “But I do
not sense any immediate danger from you.”

“That’s something, I suppose.” Aiden smiled,
clasping his hands behind his back to keep from pulling her back
into his arms. She’d felt so damn good snuggled against his chest.
He hadn’t wanted to set her down. “Are the chills easing? Your
teeth have stopped chattering.”

“I am feeling much warmer now.”

Her smooth cheeks were slightly flushed and
her soft-looking lips had deepened from pink to rose. She opened
her mouth just a little and brushed her tongue over her lower lip.
Did his attention make her nervous, or was she wondering what it
would feel like to kiss him, to— He gave himself a firm mental
shake. She was his patient. He had no business imagining her in his
bed. Or on his desk. Or right there on the treatment table.

With a self-reproaching smile, he took a
step back. He was spending too much time with Caleb. It wasn’t good
for his moral fortitude. “I’m glad you’re feeling better. I’ve been
returning everyone to stasis after a brief examination, but I’d
like to leave you conscious. I think it would be comforting for the
others to see a familiar face when they awaken to all these
changes.”

“You want me to help you perpetuate these
lies upon my people?”

She was a feisty little thing. Even
surrounded by wonders so inexplicable she’d thought he was a
demigod, she remained defiant when it came to her people. How could
he honor her dedication without abandoning his role entirely? “What
have I told you that was untrue? Pompeii was destroyed. I can show
you images of the destruction.”

“I have no doubt it was destroyed. I saw it
in my dreams.” She looked down at her hands for a moment then
asked, “Are we really on a ship that moves across the sky?”

“That’s easy enough to prove.” Then he
thought about the repercussions of being caught with a conscious
Pompeiian and sighed. “But I can’t take you out of this room
dressed like that. And we will have to be extremely careful.”

She nodded and shrugged off the blanket, so
he helped her down from the treatment table. Shika had gone to
awaken the next six patients, so he needed to move. They had found
the inhabitants responded better when they were awakened in small
groups. Adults would suppress their own fears and focus on
children, and men would protect women. The standard social dynamic
made it easier for them to insinuate the new information and
explain what to expect. So far the Pompeiians had adjusted
remarkably well.

The only exception was the clerics. Each
time they came across a person dressed in robes, they were awakened
individually. They’d identified three priests and six priestesses.
Though each had been more inquisitive than the average refugee,
only Felicia remained argumentative once he claimed to be empowered
by the gods.