Dark Flight (The Shadow Slayers) (5 page)

“Stay safe.” He kissed her forehead then flashed, obviously not ready to include Kara in the discussion.

“Humph,”
she grumbled, and then she turned and looked around. The level of activity on the island lately was mind-blowing. The men were putting the finishing touches on the new houses they’d constructed for Brakken’s females—and if that wasn’t the most optimistic thing Kara had ever seen, she didn’t know what was. Liberating the ladies from Brakken’s clutches wasn’t going to be an easy feat.

At the edge of the square, smoke billowed from a long brick forge and cooling steel sizzled from shallow troughs of water. A team of blacksmiths was cranking out row after row of carefully crafted breastplates—but these were no normal breastplates. They had thick metal collars extending up from the shoulders to protect the neck at any cost.

Imagining swords slashing at her clansmen’s necks, Kara felt reality crash down full force. These men lived without shirts, as though the idea of being covered was offensive. They wouldn’t wear the cumbersome metal if they didn’t think there was a good chance they’d die without it. How could Gavin think he didn’t need her help? They needed all the help they could get.

When a somewhat familiar warrior strutted by, Kara waved to him. “Hey, have you seen Lord Gavin?”

He stopped and smiled. “It would be my pleasure to take you to him.”

Given the enthusiastic expression on his face,
she wanted to tell him
that this didn’t involve a threesome, but she settled for “Thank you”.

He held his elbow out for her, as though she needed to be guided around the island on his arm, and she took it to be polite. She wasn’t into the whole “lady of the clan” thing, but she saw how it affected the men when she rejected their courtesies.

“What was your name again?” she asked. He was slightly sweaty, but it was a nice sweaty—fragrant in a way that messed with her insides and made her breath quicken.

“Ted.”

“Ted?” She never knew if their names were going to be some combination of consonants and vowels she’d never thought could be paired, or if they were…well, Ted.

“Tedadianthus, if it pleases you, my lady.”

“Ah. That’s a really nice…Ted.” When they turned and headed toward the west woods, Kara figured Gavin was seeing to the construction. It was early in the morning here on the island, but everything was already a-bustle.

Being the middle of June, it had been a warm day in San Diego, even near the beach, and she was still wearing her skin-tight denim capris and her hot pink tank top. Guilt picked at her, making her wish she’d changed into her work boots and brought her tool belt to lend a hand.

“You’re quite a novelty here, Lady Kara,” Ted told her. “No offense intended, of course.”

She looked over at him like she’d been caught. These guys didn’t know how Kara got her rent covered, did they? If Gavin thought her working at a bar was embarrassing for the clan, what would the men think about Kara’s questionable apartment manager duties—including fixing every toilet on the sixth floor last week? What was supposed to be a simple job of installing new angle valves to avoid water leaks had turned into a much messier project.

“I’m a novelty? How?”

He put his other hand over the top of Kara’s arm when he guided her over a fallen branch. “The women here enjoy their harems, and those in the Shadowland are off limits. And then there’s you—a true anomaly.”

“Ah.” So it wasn’t the handiwork that made her different here, but the fact she’d been faithful to one man.

She should have felt uncomfortable talking with Ted about this, but the men on the island were nothing if not forward. For better or worse, she was part of a Demiáre clan now, and she’d come to terms with the fact that her clan-mates found her love life not only fascinating, but perhaps even their business. “Yeah, I know most females wouldn’t enjoy living without a harem like I do.”

“Thank the Maker,” Ted replied, then he glanced down at her. “I didn’t mean it.”

Kara laughed. “Yes, you did. And that’s okay, Ted. I get it.” He pursed his lips, still looking repentant. “So where is Lord Gavin, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Inspecting the houses near the pond in preparation for the arrival of the new females. We’re almost there.” Kara murmured something encouraging in response, then Ted’s hand tightened on her arm. “What do you think they’re going to be like? Brakken’s females?”

Kara paused to consider it. “I honestly don’t know. Maybe they’ll be too damaged from their time with Brakken to want anything to do with you guys.” When Ted’s face fell at the thought, she added quickly, “Or maybe they’ll want their own harems as soon as possible to work off their stress.”

Ted smiled, like the clouds had parted to shine on him alone. “Could be, my lady. Could be.”

Kara stifled a chuckle. “I’ll put in a good word for you when I meet them.”

Ted stopped at the threshold of a huge, Mediterranean-style house and kissed Kara’s hand. “Bless you, my lady.”

She patted his arm. “You’re all right, Ted.”

The heavy fall of Gavin’s footsteps sounded before she saw him. “Kara?” he said in alarm as he stepped outside. His chest and pale buckskin pants were covered in a light construction dust from whatever was being built inside, but the coating got thicker at his forearms and hands as though he’d dipped them in flour. “Are you all right?”

“You tell me.” She gave him a look that would send a lesser warrior ducking for cover. “I need to talk to you, Gavin.”

Gavin exhaled and ran a powdery hand through his thick blond hair. “Excellent. Thank you, Ted. I have her.” He looked her over from top to bottom, as though trying to divine what had her so upset. “Should we go somewhere private?”

Her eyes narrowed on his. “That’d probably be a good idea.”

He turned and walked deeper into the woods, past four large houses as the last of the tool-wielding men cast curious glances in Kara’s direction. “Will this do?”

They’d positioned one of the houses overlooking a small pond, and this particular house was finished down to the elegant tile adorning the back patio and the gauzy gold curtains framing the interior windows. The doors opened not only onto the natural beauty of the island, but someone had even taken pains to strategically place large pots with beautiful flowering plants. Above the patio, an elaborate deck extended halfway to the water.

Whoever got this house was one lucky lady. Maybe Gavin had built it for Rachel. Now all he had to do was rescue his baby-mama without Kara around to interfere in the heroics.

Her hands found her hips and gripped tight. “You son of a bitch.”

“What?” Gavin’s head bobbed in surprise.

“Is there anything you’d like to tell me?”

“No. Nothing I can think of. What is this about, princess?”

“You know of any black-wings that might want to talk with me in exchange for helping you?”

Gavin’s complexion turned ruddy, but given the hard outlines of his bunching muscles, his pigmentation looked like it might have more to do with him being about to explode than any embarrassment at being caught in a whopper of a lie. “Who told you about Mazeki?”

“No, you don’t get to ask the questions. You lied to me. Again!”

He scowled, his hazel eyes narrowing. “I did no such thing. An omission to protect you isn’t the same thing as a lie.”

Kara’s throat clogged up. “It is to me. I can’t believe you don’t want my help. I honestly can’t believe it.” A tear threatened to form in the corner of her eye, but she swore to her eye that she’d gouge it out if it dared. “All that training—for nothing? Seriously, Gavin? What the hell has this past eight months been about if you don’t trust me to be part of the team?”

“Oh, princess. You know I’d trust you with my life.”

He stepped forward like he wanted to hold her, but she put a hand up to stop him. “Let me guess—you just don’t trust me with mine.”

Gavin reached down and plucked two weeds that had sprung up between the patio tiles, then he turned and chucked one toward the pond with all his might. “Motherfucking pile of wing dust!”

“Excuse me?”

He turned back to her, on full guard now, the other straggly plant hanging in his grip. “Aiden told you this, didn’t he?”

“Is that how you’re going to answer me, by making this about Aiden?”

“This is the last time he interferes in my life. First, running to you about the child. Now this. Either he’s got no fucking backbone, or he’s intentionally trying to cause problems between us.”

“Listen to you. It’s not so fun when people make decisions about your life behind your back, is it? He was just looking out for you—same as what you’ll say you were doing for me. The only thing that comes between us, Gavin, is your lying.”

He lowered his head to her level to stare defiantly into her eyes. “Do you expect me to apologize? Hell no. I won’t apologize for doing what I have to do to keep the members of this clan safe.”

“Who died and made you king?”

“Your father—and I prefer
lord
, my rightful position in this place.”

She should have seen that one coming a mile away. “Well, Mazeki can help Julian,” she argued, “and that means Julian can help you. I don’t think Mazeki is a danger to me or your clan.”

Gavin laughed low. “And how would you know that?”

“Because he could have taken advantage of me with the whole ‘belonging to him’ thing, but he didn’t. One kiss, and that was it—you got your help.”

Gavin went completely still. “I…I’m not sure I understand. Are you saying that Aiden actually took you to the Shadowland to see the black-wing?”

Kara rubbed a hand over the back of her neck to smooth the hairs that had risen there. “Well, yeah. Obviously.”

“And you…you
kissed
him? Mazeki?”

The vibes Kara was picking up from Gavin were as black as the Abyss. She shifted, unsure why she suddenly felt like she was standing in the path of an eighteen-wheeler that had lost its brakes. “On the cheek.”

“Because…”

“Because he said that my father gave me to him—and a kiss was the best I could do. I’m not ready for ‘breeding’ quite yet,” she added sarcastically.

Gavin’s fist tightened around the remaining weed and green fluid leaked past his dusty knuckles. “Let me see if I have this right… Aiden took you to the Shadowland, without my consent, where you were promptly claimed by the first black-wing you stumbled across. Yes?”

Kara nodded. “I thought you knew about the last part, but Teras never told you what he’d promised to Mazeki? If that’s true, then why are you so hell-bent on keeping me out of the Shadowland?”

“For exactly this reason, Kara!” He wiped his green palm across his pants and stepped toward her, poking his index finger so close to her face that she could smell the chlorophyll and spackling on his skin. “Pout all you want, princess. You will not take matters into your own hands again. Am I understood? I will not lose you because you are too stubborn to take the advice of people forty times your age!”

If she moved her head a fraction of an inch, his thick finger would probably poke her in the eye. She waited one breath, considering if her denim capris were too tight for her to effectively knee him in the balls, when from somewhere behind her, she heard, “Leave her be, Gavin. I took her. I’m responsible.”

When Gavin dropped his hand, Kara turned to see Aiden standing beside the house in tan suede pants with the lacing at his crotch tied in a hasty knot. Gavin growled, deep in his chest, and lunged toward the other lord.

“Gavin!” Kara hollered, experiencing a true
oh-shit
moment. But it was too late.

He crashed into Aiden, toppling him to the ground at the same instant his huge fist slammed into Aiden’s head. A second later, the pale lord’s face was a bloody mess.

Aiden raised his knees and thrust Gavin off with all his strength, but as though Gavin were glued to him, the infuriated lord bounced right back, delivering another crushing blow to Aiden’s temple.

“What right do you have to meddle in my affairs and risk everything I hold dear?” Gavin snarled. “This isn’t a game, you arrogant bastard!” He punctuated the words with another blow.

Aiden’s head rocked back, then he thrust his palm up into Gavin’s face and the next thing Kara knew, Gavin rolled to his side, his nose looking like it had been relocated an inch up his face. Blood gushed from his nostrils like someone had opened the tap.

Aiden brought a hand to his temple. “Gavin, listen to me. I took her there to talk to him. Nothing more. How could I have known he had a prior claim on her?”

Gavin’s growl was little more than a gurgle in his throat as he lurched to his feet. He spat blood and walked to the nearest tree, promptly tearing off a branch as thick as his arm. “You son of a human whore. What have you done?”

He came at Aiden again, this time swinging the tree limb so hard at Aiden’s gut that when the other lord flashed, the impact of Gavin’s swing went clear through a support beam holding up the balcony off the back of the house.

A second later, Aiden appeared behind Gavin’s back and locked his arms around the other lord’s neck. “Stop! I didn’t know.”

“If you wouldn’t have taken her…” Gavin choked out, “it wouldn’t have happened.”