No Light (27 page)

             
Lonan's eyes brightened. "Then, you have decided to take my offer."

             
"It is complicated." He glanced toward the nearby houses.

             
"It was never complicated before. Do you not remember the Leagins? When they set upon me, you and I returned with the army and-"

             
"I remember everything," Farran cut in.

             
"Then why, when it is you who have been betrayed by humanity, will you not allow me to-"

             
"The situation is not the same."

             
"It is! You will not allow me to aid you, because you think-"

             
"Please, do not finish that thought," Farran sighed.

             
"Then, is it that human who makes it complicated?"

             
Farran started to answer, and paused.

             
"The human is manipulating you! First to mark it, and now to spare its worthless species." Irritation began to bleed into Lonan's tone.

             
Farran cast him a sharp look. He started toward the city. "The Marking was unintentional," he admitted.

             
"You could reverse it," his brother insisted.

             
Farran froze. A wave of revulsion swept through him. He turned his head to glare at his brother. "I do not believe those words came from your mouth."

             
Lonan had the grace to look ashamed. "Is it not better than the alternative? Would you choose to mark such a creature? It will be your destruction. Surely, you must-"

             
"You do not know her." He strode past the first row of houses, to step onto the outer road. His brother hurried to catch up.

             
"I do not need to know the human. They are all the same, and none of them can be trusted. This Keane, the parents of your Marked. You are making the same mistake twice."

             
Farran ignored him.

             
"Your marked comes from a long line of treachery, you cannot believe it has not inherited-"

             
"She, and you are wrong, brother." He glanced at his brother's scowl, and shook his head. "She is what I saw when I first admired humanity. When I chose to save them."

             
"When you disobeyed father," Lonan spat.

             
Farran gave him a long look, but nodded. "Yes."

             
"You are wrong and you are foolish to believe you possess more wisdom than our father."

             
"He is blinded by his fear," Farran spat.

             
Lonan's eyes widened. "You would not say such things if it were not for that human."

             
"I would," he argued. "The years have left him jaded, and unable to see past the potential for evil." He paused on the sidewalk and spun to face his brother. "He saw only the negative, and you are well on the way to being the same."

             
His brother clamped his mouth shut. An expression of pain crossed his face, before he blinked at it was gone. "You could have been king," he growled. "You should have been king! Yet, you set aside your responsibilities, you birthright, for a race that hates us!" He shoved at him.

             
Farran stepped back to avoid his brother. "You make a fine king." His quiet words seem to enrage his brother.

             
Lonan's eyes blazed. "You fool! I never wanted to be king."

             
Farran started to reply, when one of his soldiers jogged around a corner.

             
"General!" The Dem came to a stop in front of them. His eyes went from Farran to the king and he quickly dropped into a bow. "General, we have discovered one of the intruders."

             
Farran ignored his brother's furious expression. "And?"

             
"There are two others, sir. One of city guards and Keane, himself."

             
Farran eyes narrowed, but he nodded. "Anything else?"

             
The Dem's gaze flicked to the king. "The humans were able to communicate with the others."

             
"In the city?" Farran demanded.

             
"Beyond."

...

              "Come with me." He glanced around the room at his men, and turned on his heel.               Tradis fell into step beside him.

             
"General," Tradis acknowledged, as they descended the steps of City Hall.

             
"I have a request." He caught his second's nod from the corner of his eye. "Far beyond anything I have asked of you previously."

             
"I understand."

             
"Keane is in the city."

             
Tradis paused, then lengthened his strides to catch up to him. "I see. You would like me to exterminate him?"

             
Farran almost smiled. "Yes, but that is not what I am asking." He paused on the sidewalk in front of the hospital and turned to face his second.

             
Tradis' eyes went to the door and then quickly to his face. "You want-" He broke off, and for the first time in six millennia he appeared mildly alarmed.

             
Farran nodded. He jerked open the door and silently crossed the lobby. Tradis followed at a much more sedate pace. His lips twitched in amusement.

             
"General, I am unsure..." Tradis' trailed off, as he stepped inside the hospital room behind him.

             
Farran raised an eyebrow. "Are you?"

             
His second visibly swallowed. "I understand the necessity, but I do not-" he broke off and his eyes moved to the human on the hospital bed. "You believe it will be as it is with your Marked?"

             
He gestured toward the still man. "We shall see."

             
"If it is so..." Tradis rounded the corner of the bed.

             
"Then, the weakness of my marked shall be no more."

             
Tradis leaned over the human, hands still at his sides. A mixture of curiosity and unease filled his eyes when he lifted them to his. "You are certain."

             
"I am." He watched Tradis nod, seemingly to himself, and grasp the humans arms. He stepped back quickly.

             
"Take a seat." Farran watched his second all but collapse into the chair beside the bed. He smirked.

             
As they waited, he allowed himself to study Sarah's brother. At the offset, they looked nothing alike. Where Sarah was petite and pale, her brother appeared tall and lightly tanned. He scanned the man's face for any familiar features. The same nose, he decided. He tipped his head to the side.

             
From the death certificates in City Hall, he knew Sarah shared a birth date with her brother. As twins, he expected more physical similarities.

             
"They differ greatly in appearance," Tradis said, jerking him out of his thoughts.

             
"Yes. I was just pondering the few similarities." He started to continue, when the man let out a quiet groan.

             
The human, John Mackenzie, shifted under the thin hospital blanket. A moment later, his eyelashes fluttered. Farran felt himself tense in preparation of the human's reaction. When the dark eyes finally opened, John simply stared up at the ceiling. Tradis shifted, and the human's gaze snapped to look at him.

             
Farran watched John's eyes widen. His mouth opened and closed several times without any words escaping. He finally let out a dry cough.

             
"Who are you?" His voice was surprisingly deep.

             
Tradis looked away from the human to meet his eyes. He nodded.

             
"Colonel Tradis."

             
"A Dem," the human rasped. His gaze turned to scan the room and settled on him. "And you?"

             
Farran could not help but be impressed by the human's composure. "General Farran."

             
John nodded. His eyes suddenly narrowed. "Sarah Mackenzie?" When he did not immediately answer, the human sat up. "Sarah Mackenzie?" he demanded louder.

             
Farran raised an eyebrow. "What of her?"

             
The human tensed. "If she has been harmed, so help me-"

             
"Calm yourself, human," Tradis interrupted.

             
John jerked his head to glare at him. "I don't care who you are, I will-"

             
"I would not finish that if I were you," Farran warned him. Something about the human, perhaps his obvious concern for Sarah, muted his irritation.

             
John's gaze swung back and forth between the two of them. "So, The Corridor failed. Uncle Bill always said it was only a matter of time," he muttered, seemingly to himself. He shook his head and threw back the covers.

             
"Where do you think to go, human?" Tradis demanded.

             
He watched Sarah's brother scowl at his second with obvious irritation.

             
"To find my sis-" he broke off and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "To find Sarah Mackenzie."

             
"Perhaps, you should take a moment to gather yourself," Farran tossed out.

             
The human hopped off the edge of the bed and stood. He smiled to himself and started for the door.

             
"You will not leave this room without my express permission," his second proclaimed.

             
John paused at the door. He slowly turned to face Tradis. For a moment, his expression was a perfect copy of Sarah's. He raised his chin and said, "Stop me." He stalked from the room, without looking back.

             
"I find it difficult to believe that obstinate human is a relation of your Marked," Tradis snarled, as he rose to follow him.

             
Farran watched him stomp from the room. "Then, you should see her defy me. The resemblance is uncanny," he muttered under his breath. The amusement faded, at the thought of his Marked.

             
His eyes landed on the empty hospital bed and he frowned. The strength of his bond with Sarah was obviously not a fluke. John Mackenzie's recovery confirmed his suspicions. His initial draw to Sarah was not something he could easily set aside, the Marking clearly more than an accident. Perhaps, as his lead engineer so eloquently stated, his ator knew something he did not.

...

              She looked up when the door opened, without a cursory knock. Her stomach tightened, as Farran met her eyes. She watched him silently push the door closed.

             
"Sarah," he acknowledged.

             
She licked her lips. "General."

             
His lips curved slightly. "Farran, will be acceptable in private."

             
Her eyes widened, but she nodded.

             
He continued to watch her with an unreadable expression.

             
"I spoke with Private Eitad, today," she said to fill the silence.

             
"Did you?" His voice was strange, soft somehow.

             
She chewed on her bottom lip. "About Marking and..." She glanced at him, then quickly away. "Why did you lie to me about our bond?" she asked in a rush. Her eyes widened and flew to him.

             
A thoughtful look crossed his face and she thought she saw his lips quirk. "Explain."

             
The beginning burn of irritation began in her stomach. "You told me our bond was weak. Private Eitad said my healing should have been impossible."

             
"You are alive. Is that not enough?" His soft tone rubbed her the wrong way.

             
Her eyes narrowed. "The relationship between a Dem and his marked is one of mutual respect. You lied to me."