Demonbane (Book 4) (4 page)

Kara subconsciously tightened her hold on Maklavir’s arm.

“You’ll do fine,” Maklavir said with a supportive smile. “Just stick to the slow waltzes.”

“What about you?” Kara said as they approached the doors.

“I’ve been dancing ever since I was a lad,” Maklavir chuckled. “I’m sure I’ll do fine.”

“I didn’t mean
that
,” Kara said in a hushed tone as they approached the noise of the hall. “I mean Bronwyn, or Brionne, or whatever her name is.”

Maklavir hesitated for a moment. “I’ll manage,” he said at last. “I admit, though, there’s something about her—”

They stepped into the main hall. The dances had already begun. The women were a forest of white dresses, dancing and twirling amidst their partners.

Kara took a breath. She squeezed Maklavir’s arm tightly.

“Kara,” came Dutraad’s voice. The baron stepped up to them. “How lovely to see you again. I was afraid you had retired for the evening.”

The thief gave a girlish giggle. “Why, Dutraad, the night is still too young for that.”

“Tell that to my wife,” the baron mumbled under his breath. He extended an arm. “I would be honored if you would give me this dance.” He glanced up at Maklavir. “With your permission, of course, Maklavir.”

The diplomat gave a cool smile. “But of course.”

Kara took the baron’s hand with a smile. “Lead on, Dutraad. I hope that you are as good a dancer as you are a host.”

The man smiled, then led Kara out onto the cleared area in the middle of the massive hall.

Maklavir straightened his shirt. He cast his glance around the crowded room until he spotted the perfectly-formed figure of Bronwyn in her low-cut dress.

“Right,” he breathed, forcing a smile onto his face. “Here we go—”

Giggling, Dutraad and Kara crashed through the door into the darkened bedroom. The baron turned and shut the door behind them.

Kara melted back against one of the wooden columns of the huge four-poster bed that occupied the center of the room, her hand splayed across her bosom. “But Dutraad,” she protested feebly, “what about your guests?”

“Forget them,” he said, moving towards the beautiful woman. “They’ll be fine.” He took Kara in his arms and plastered her mouth with kiss after kiss.

“But your wife—” Kara managed between kisses. “Won’t she—?”

“She’s in the master bedroom, down the hall,” Dutraad proclaimed with a smile. “She won’t bother us, Kara dear, I promise.” He bent down and kissed the side of her neck with wild abandon.

Kara glanced around the darkened bedroom, noticing the bookshelves and large desk against the wall. “This isn’t your bedroom?”

“My private room. Now,
please
, Kara—”

“I don’t know, Dutraad,” Kara said shyly. She pushed the eager man back a step with both hands. “What about Maklavir? If he finds us—”

“He won’t,” the baron said with more than a hint of impatience in his voice. “He didn’t see us leave. I have men posted on the stairs. No one will interrupt us, Kara, I assure you.”

“Good,” she said with a smile. “That’s what I was hoping you would say.”

Dutraad pulled the girl to him and bent in for another kiss.

Kara put a finger over his lips. “Please, Dutraad,” she laughed. “Perhaps some wine first?”

The baron grinned lasciviously. “Wine it is, Kara dear.”

“What in the Third Fire is keeping Maklavir?” Kendril shifted uncomfortably behind the billiards table.

Joseph squatted beside him. He risked a glance over the top of the table. The doorway of the dark room was still silent and empty. “Don’t know. We have to give him a little time, Kendril.”

“We don’t have all night,” the Ghostwalker grumbled. He glanced back at his friend in the darkness. “You have that Xoma scent?”

Joseph lifted a small silver flask in his hand, and a thick cloth in the other.

The music from the dance in the main hall sounded dully through the walls of the room.

“Good.” Kendril peered at the door to the room again as if willing it to open. “We’ll have to move fast when she comes in. I’ll hold her, you knock her out with the scent. We can’t let her scream.”

“With all the drunken aristocrats around the place, I doubt anyone would even notice,” Joseph commented.

“All the same,” Kendril replied gruffly. He peeked out again at the closed door to the room. “I really hate this.”

“What?” asked Joseph in surprise.

“Relying on
Maklavir
,” Kendril said through clenched teeth.

“It appears that your wife has abandoned you, Mr. Maklavir.” Bronwyn ran a hand seductively along the diplomat’s arm and smiled. “I think I saw her leave with Baron Dutraad.”

Maklavir took a sip of the wine glass he held. His gaze stayed on the dancers that dominated the center of the hall. “I believe she did.”

“That doesn’t bother you?”

Maklavir looked over at Bronwyn. He tried to keep his face neutral. “If my benefactor finds my wife to be diverting company, that can only be beneficial to me. Wouldn’t you agree, Brionne?”

Bronwyn’s amber eyes twinkled mischievously. “Not all men are as…forward thinking as you are, Mr. Maklavir.”

“Please, just Maklavir. And I tend to find that a man in my position must quickly dispense with any…romantic notions he might have.”

Bronwyn took a step back. She gave the diplomat an admiring glance. “I may have underestimated you, Maklavir.”

The man gave a thin smile. “Yes, I get that a lot.”

She moved close again, and linked her arm through his. “Well, if your wife is going to be occupied by Baron Dutraad for some time, perhaps we—”

Maklavir felt the heat of her body pushed up against him, and tried to keep his eyes off the swell of her breasts. He felt strangely dizzy, intoxicated. He couldn’t think straight. His hand began to clutch the glass he held so tight he thought it might shatter.

For one blinding moment he thought of telling her everything, giving the game up and all this silly nonsense about the Soulbinder and everything related to it.

He was here. He had finally returned. This was Valmingaard, his home, and all these wealthy, arrogant nobles were his kin. He had finally come in from the cold.

Maklavir closed his eyes.
To the Void
with Kendril
, he thought viciously. Why should he give everything up, everything that he had wanted for so long and that was now at his very fingertips? What had Kendril ever done for him?

He  opened his eyes again and stood staring at the dancers.

His heart was torn inside of him.

Kara was undoubtedly upstairs with Dutraad right now. Joseph and Kendril were in the billiards room. Tomas was outside by the stables.

They were all depending on what Maklavir would say in the next thirty seconds.

Bronwyn snuggled a bit closer.

The rest of the room seemed to fade away into a blur of light and noise.

“Maklavir--?”

Oh, well
, he thought bitterly.
Easy come, easy go
.

He turned to her with a smile. “You know, I think some company might be nice after all. This hall is so crowded. Perhaps we could find someplace a little more…private?”

Bronwyn crossed in front of him, a sly smile on her face. “You move quickly, Maklavir.”

“Too fast for you, Brionne?”

She stroked a hand across his chest. “I didn’t say that.”

Maklavir took a nonchalant sip of his wine. He took one last look at the crowded room of chattering, happy nobles. “The billiards room, perhaps?”

“I know where it is.” Bronwyn leaned in close. “Shall we go?”

“I can’t be seen leaving with you,” Maklavir said briskly. He glanced around the room. “I’m afraid I have a bit of a…
reputation
that would be unwise to reinforce. You understand.”

Bronwyn gave a coquettish tilt of her head. “Of course.”

“Shall we meet there in, say, five minutes?”

“I’ll count each second,” Bronwyn said breathlessly.

Maklavir smiled. “As will I, Brionne.” He turned and gave his red cape a twirl.

He moved quickly through the crowd of party guests, swimming through the vast sea towards the main hall’s exit.

And stopped.

Maklavir turned to look over his shoulder. He caught one last sight of the life he was leaving behind.

Then he stepped up to the door.

“Let me, Dutraad.” Kara crossed over to the side table and plucked the bottle of wine out of the baron’s hands. “You just make yourself comfortable.”

“Whatever you say, my lady,” the baron said with a leering grin. He flopped onto the bed.

Kara deftly undid the cork, then turned to the two crystal glasses that rested on the silver tray. “I think I’m beginning to like Candle Ice.”

“Yes,” said Dutraad as his eyes roamed up and down her appealing figure. “It’s always been one of my favorite times of year.”

She poured the wine into the two glasses, then shoved the cork back into the bottle. “I think I’ve already had too much to drink tonight. I’m a little unsteady.”

Dutraad gave a wolfish smile. “I’m sure one more glass won’t hurt, my dear.”

Kara turned, a full wine glass in each hand. “No, I’m sure it won’t.” She extended one towards the baron. “To your health, my lord.”

He got up and took the glass, then clinked it gently against the one in her hand.

“To
both
our health.”

The door to the billiards room opened. The hinges groaned softly in the darkness.

Kendril tensed. He gave a curt wave to Joseph.

The scout nodded. He poured a healthy dose of the Xoma scent onto the thick cloth in his hand.

Kendril looked carefully around the edge of the billiards table leg.

Bronwyn was in the room.

The door shut softly, closing out the sounds of laughter and music from the main hall.

Kendril shifted noiselessly, his body ready to pounce forward at a moment’s notice. His stomach tightened the way it always did before action.

There was a soft scrape as a match was lit. A moment later a candle flickered to life. The room was filled with its soft glow.

Kendril tried to still his breathing. It sounded impossibly loud in his ears. Couldn’t Bronwyn hear it?

The beautiful woman stood by the door for a long moment. She set the candle down on a table by the door.

“Really, Kendril,” she said with a long-suffering sigh, “aren’t you at least going to come out and say hello?”

Chapter 3

Dutraad drained the glass, then set it down on the side table. “A fine body.”

Kara sipped contemplatively at her own wine. “It certainly has.”

He grinned, and stepped closer to the young woman. “I wasn’t talking about the wine.”

She took a step back. “Really, Dutraad, I don’t think—”

“Playing hard to get, eh? I certainly like a girl who—” Dutraad lurched to one side, suddenly dizzy. He frowned and put one hand to his head. “Uh. I don’t feel very—”

Kara backed against a nearby bookshelf, watching the man closely. “You look like
you’ve
had too much to drink, my lord. Perhaps you should lie down.”

“No,” he said with a wave of his hand. He wobbled, almost falling over. “I don’t…know why…I’m—”

Dutraad pitched forward and fell hard onto the floor.

Kara let out the breath she had been holding in, then set down her glass on the shelf behind her.

“Because I drugged your wine.”

Kendril stood up.

Bronwyn looked at him, her eyes sparkling. “It
is
you, Kendril. I almost didn’t recognize you without that gloomy cloak you’re always wearing. When Nadine told me about the Ghostwalker here in town, well, somehow I just
knew
.”

Kendril glared at her, silent.

Bronwyn cocked her head. “Surely you know Nadine? The two of you have met, I believe. She told me all about you. Have you been following me all the way from Llewyllan?” She clucked her tongue. “Really, Kendril, I love attention from a handsome man as much as the next girl, but that’s just sad.”

Joseph rose from cover as well, looking over at Kendril in confusion.

The Ghostwalker didn’t move.

Bronwyn gazed indifferently at Joseph. “Oh, how sweet, Kendril, you’ve brought a friend with you.” She looked at the cloth in Joseph’s hand. “What was your grand plan, then? Kidnap me? Force me to tell you where the Soulbinder is?” She leaned forward. “That
is
what you’re after, isn’t it?”

“That’s right,” said Kendril in a dangerously quiet voice. “We know what you and Dutraad have been up to.”

Bronwyn wagged one delicate finger in the air. “You’re
fishing
, Kendril.” She gave a heavy sigh. “Still no smarter than before, I see. You’ve walked into the middle of the spider’s web with no way out. I’m honestly not sure whether to admire your sheer courage or be astounded at your complete stupidity.”

Kendril took a step forward. His face was hard. “Where’s the Soulbinder, Bronwyn?”

The witch shook her head. “You still don’t
get
it, Kendril.” She paused, a fiendish smile on her face. “You and your friends won’t be leaving this house alive.”

Kara grunted as she pulled Dutraad up onto the bed. She pushed his legs up onto the mattress, then took a step back, panting from the effort.

The man was still unconscious, snoring softly through his nose. His arms and legs were tied with drape cords, his mouth gagged with his own belt.

Kara turned to the four-poster bed and pulled the curtains shut on all sides. She glanced warily at the door behind her.

It was closed. No sounds came from outside.

The Soulbinder wasn’t on Dutraad. Kara knew that for certain. He had mentioned that this was his private room. She suspected that she wasn’t the first young maiden he had escorted up here.

She also suspected that if Dutraad was going to keep the Soulbinder anywhere, it would be somewhere in here.