Born of Fury

  They both laughed at him while Shahara kissed his cheek. "This is our little Devyn Devil."

  Sumi shook his tiny hand. "Pleased to meet you, Devyn."

  He screwed his face up thoughtfully. "So are you my new Aunt Hauk?"

  Unsure how to answer, she exchanged an uncomfortable stare with Shahara before her gaze went to Darice. For once, he didn't seem to mind that she was with his uncle.

  She suspected part of it was that he was too thrilled to have Mari braiding his hair to match Dancer's and Fain's to be agitated over her relationship.

  "There we go." Mari patted Darice on the shoulder and stepped back to admire his handiwork. "Like a true Andarion warrior."

  Fain pulled out his sword so that Darice could use the blade as a mirror.

  Slack-jawed, Sumi met Shahara's unamused gaze.

  Shahara sighed. "They're like feral animals. You really can't home-train them. I've been trying to for years." She glanced back at Fain, who had a what'd-I-do expression as he noticed Shahara's censure. "I give up."

  Thia let out a "heh" sound. "At least he didn't hand him a loaded blaster and tell him to check the perimeter at night."

  "And was that so bad, daughter?"

  Sumi turned to see Nykyrian standing directly behind them. Dang, he moved as silently as Dancer.

  Thia patted her father on his cheek. "It's fine, Dad. Scarred for life. But fine."

  Nykyrian wrapped his arms around her shoulders and held her back against his chest. There was no missing how much he loved and adored his daughter. How fiercely protective he was of her.

  Nor did she miss the way Thia savored her father's loving embrace.

  Syn stepped around Nykyrian and handed a small jar to Sumi before he took his son from his wife and squeezed him until Devyn protested.

  Sumi lifted it to see a small electronic chip. "What's this?"

  "Hauk's TD. I killed the signal, but can't peg where it came from. I can't even ID the chip's DOM or origin. Thought you might have better luck."

  Nykyrian gaped at Syn's disclosure. "You? You couldn't trace it?"

  "Yeah, I know. Right? It's really pissing me off that I got nothing. I'm sure Hauk can do something with it when he wakes up though."

  Sumi studied it carefully. "It's not a League tag. Any ideas?"

  Syn shook his head. "I hit a wall."

  Mari took it next to study it. "Never seen one like this before."

  "Looks Andarion."

  They stared at Fain, who was peering over Mari's shoulder.

  Fain took it from Mari's hand. "It's an older model, but I swear it's similar to what we used when I was in the infantry corps."

  His jaw ticcing, Nykyrian narrowed his gaze. "You think it's Jullien who tagged him?"

  Shrugging, Fain handed the chip back to Sumi. "I don't know. He's had a hard-on for Dancer since he saved you at school. And the last few years definitely haven't endeared my brother to him... It's possible."

  "And speaking of..." Syn handed Devyn back to Shahara. "I need to borrow our lovely new friend and remove her tracker before it's turned back on."

  Darice stepped forward like a respectful guard. "Do you need me to go with you, Sumi?"

  She hugged him. "I'll be fine, sweetie. Thank you for offering, though. It means a lot to me to have such a fierce and noble protector."

  When she started to release him, he held on to her. "Kimi asyado."

  She glanced to Thia for the translation, but it was Fain who explained it. "He says that he loves you tremendously."

  Sumi tightened her arms around him. "I love you, too, baby." She placed a kiss on his cheek. When she pulled back, she saw the tears in his eyes.

  "I'm an adult male now, Sumi. Not a baby."

  "Yes, you are, Darice. And you're a strong, beautiful male. You honor your ancestors and all of Andaria."

  Darice smiled happily.

  "Damn," Darling breathed as he joined them. "Whatever she has, we need to bottle it in droves."

  Nykyrian scowled at him. "What are you talking about?"

  "First Hauk, now Darice. I've never seen anyone tame so many rowdy Andarions with nothing more than a smile. Just think, if we had that, we could rule them all."

  Nykyrian pinned him with a wry stare. "I already rule them all."

  "Oh yeah, there is that."

  Syn gave his son one last squeeze before he turned to Sumi. "Come on, let's get you deactivated." He led her toward the infirmary.

  Sumi hesitated. "Can I see Dancer before we do this?"

  "Sure." He took her to a small room where Dancer was hooked up to several monitors.

  Her heart wrenched at the sight of him like that. He was so strong and vibrant that, like his friends, it was easy for her to forget that he was a mortal being who could be brought down by something as simple as a well-placed small shot or infection. "Is he all right?"

  "The compound they used to stun him isn't playing well with his system. He had something similar to an allergic reaction to it - which is more serious for an Andarion than a human. But he'll pull through. I'm only keeping him unconscious because I know he won't stay down if he's awake. The bastard thinks he's invincible."

  He was right about that. "Andarion TAM."

  Syn laughed. "He told you, huh?"

  "Yes, he did."

  "Well maybe now that he has you, he'll be less suicidal."

  "Meaning?"

  Syn pinned her with a grim expression. "Instead of having something to live for, he now has someone to live for."

  Sumi wasn't sure of the difference. From what she'd seen, Dancer had lots of people he lived for already. "I still don't follow."

  Syn moved to check one of the monitors. "Since the day I met him, Hauk's fought the world with one foot already on the other side of eternity. Like he's fighting a ghost. He's had no real sense of self-worth. No regard for whether or not he returned from a mission. I know, 'cause I was like that, too. We all were. We fought because it's all we knew. But it's different when you have something to fight for. Someone to come back to. Someone you know will be destroyed if you don't make it."

  That she understood. She'd been there as far back as she could remember - not really caring whether or not she made it through the day or the mission. And he was right. Now that she had Dancer, it made things much more complicated. Made her want to hold on when she'd already relegated herself to letting go.

  Suddenly, the door behind them opened. Sumi turned to find a full unit of Andarion soldiers there.

  Syn put himself between her and Dancer and them. "What's going on?"

  "Stand down, Doctor. We're here for the woman."

  "She's a patient of mine."

  He disregarded Syn entirely. "She's under arrest."

  Sumi's stomach shrank as she took a step back. "For what?"

  They didn't answer as they pushed past Syn and seized her, then hauled her from the room.

  CHAPTER 24

  H

  is blood begging for vengeance, Hauk forced himself to kneel before his queen in the center of her small, makeshift office that had been set up for her onboard the ship, even though what he really wanted to do was take the sword from across his back and use it to cut her head from her body...

  Mother of Nykyrian or not.

  But he knew the eight guards standing between him and her would kill him before he could take more than a single angry step in her direction. He was good, but they were loaded for Andarion and would be as motivated to murder him as he was to execute his queen for arresting Sumi.

  Cairistiona sat on the opposite side of a large desk, staring at him with an expression he couldn't even begin to read. Her long black hair was coiled in intricate braids around her impeccably beautiful face as she watched him with suspicious white-and-red eyes. In her youth, before her affair with Nykyrian's father, she had risen to the rank of prime commander for the Andarion armada.

  Her lineage had always been one of the fairest skinned of all Andarions and her blood con
tained the only warriors who could give the War Hauks a run for their ferocity in battle. It was why his grandmother had sought to unite their blood after all these centuries. She firmly believed that they would birth legendary warriors who would guard Andaria for eternity.

  And like his family, Cairistiona's wasn't known for its forgiveness or tolerance. Some of the worst blood feuds marring Andarion history had come from her lineage.

  She ran her tongue over her right fang speculatively before she finally spoke. "Interesting... the last time I had a War Hauk kneeling before me, it was your father confessing how he'd dishonored me and broke his pledge to my lineage. Have you any idea how embarrassing that was for me?"

  He glanced down to the burn scar on his arm as he remembered all the times he'd knelt before Dariana and had his pledge coldly and painfully refused in front of their families. "Yes, Majesty. I do, and I apologize deeply for any slight my parents have ever caused you."

  Tilting her head, she drummed her claws against the desk as she continued to watch him. He had no way of knowing what thoughts were going through her mind... if she intended to punish him for his parents' transgression against her. As queen, she had full rank and privilege to do with him whatever she wanted. All Andarions were viewed as property and servants to their royal house, which was another thing that made his father's actions against Cairistiona so egregious.

  And it might have a lot to do with why she'd refused to have Nykyrian present at this meeting.

  She stopped drumming her claws. "Rise, Dancer of the Warring Blood Clan of Hauk, son of Endine and Ferral, and tell me why you've so brashly requested this audience."

  Hauk stood slowly and made sure to keep his gaze averted from his queen. He might be best friends with her son, but it wasn't his place to look their queen in the eye. "I've come to beg our most sovereign crown to allow me to take the place of the human woman you hold, Sumi Antaxas. Whatever her crimes, I offer my life for hers and will gladly accept her punishment in her stead." His request was normally something a husband did for his wife, a father for his son, or a brother for a sister.

  She narrowed her gaze on him. "And why would you beg me for the life of a human?"

  He had to bite back his sarcasm that she'd disdain the human race so, especially given the fact that her sons were half human. Swallowing hard, he knew only one answer might sway the queen into granting his request for leniency. "She is my life, Majesty. I would not see her harmed."

  Cairistiona rose and moved to stand before him. She took his chin in her hand. "Look at me."

  He glanced at her eyes and then away.

  "You're stralen?" she asked in a shocked tone.

  He nodded.

  She dropped her hand from his face. "For this human?"

  "Yes, Majesty."

  Sighing heavily, she paced around him. "We have a bit of a problem, War Hauk. It is your own family that called for her arrest."

  That stunned him. While he'd figured they would be a problem once he landed, he hadn't anticipated them acting this fast. "Excuse me, Majesty?"

  Cairistiona inclined her head to him. "I am well aware that the human female endangered the well-being of my granddaughter. I also know that she saved Princess Thia's life and guarded her with her own. At the behest of my granddaughter, I forgave the human for those actions against the crown. But it was the insistence of your mother and your pledged that I had to arrest her for endangering the lives of you and your nephew... the last of your most sacred blood clan."

  He went cold with those words. "As the last of my blood clan, Majesty, I forgive her. She saved our lives, too. She doesn't deserve to be punished for risking her life to save ours. But if it is to be, then please allow me to take Sumi's place. I will gladly accept whatever punishment they demand of her."

  "I'm afraid it's too late for that."

  His heart stopped beating as fear invaded every part of his being. Andarion justice was swift and extremely brutal. Rarely did an Andarion survive it.

  A human, even one as strong and resourceful as Sumi, would never make it through.

  Cairistiona shook her head sadly. "Had it been any family save yours, I could have delayed my actions."

  But because they were second only to the royal house, she was required to act and give them the justice they demanded.

  Immediately.

  "Your mother was insistent that the human give up her life for her crimes against your family. I had no choice."

  Absolute horror filled him and in that moment, he hated Syn for keeping him unconscious. Had he been awake at the time Sumi was arrested, he could have stopped this.

  Six hours later...

  "I will gladly die for her, Majesty."

  "It's too late for that, War Hauk," she said sadly. "The human Sumi Antaxas no longer exists."

  Tears filled his eyes as he felt like someone had just kicked his teeth in. How could Sumi be gone so fast?

  Damn you to hell, Syn!

  He would kill that Ritadarion bastard first. And then he'd kill the rest of them for not protecting the one thing he'd asked them to. For decades, he'd put his life and limb on the line for all of them. Had never once hesitated to protect them, no matter the personal cost to himself. He'd never before asked them for anything. Ever.

  And they'd paid him back by allowing his woman to be killed while he lay helpless to stop it.

  Never had anything hurt like this betrayal...

  Against the law and tradition, he met Cairistiona's gaze as a single tear fled down his cheek. He couldn't breathe or think. All he wanted was to die, too.

  How could he have allowed Sumi to be harmed? Gods, it was so unfair that she should die like this.

  Because of him.

  Cairistiona stopped by his side to brush his tear away with a kind touch that made him hate her even more. "Since you were a child, Dancer of the Warring Blood Clan of Hauk, you have been a great friend to my son. When no one else could spare a kind word to him, you, alone, befriended him and stood at his back to protect him at great personal risk and cost to yourself. You've been a blessed protector of my grandchildren and daughter-in-law, and have bled countless times for them all. For that alone, there is nothing I wouldn't do for you. And I mean that with every ounce of honor that flows through my eton Anatole blood." She smiled and patted his cheek. "Now, if you don't mind, I shall leave you with my daughter to discuss your futures."

  Hauk frowned as she gathered her guards and exited the room. Nykyrian didn't have a sister.

  Was the queen insane?

  A slight, hooded woman entered the room as the last guard left. The door slid shut behind her. Her royal scarlet robes shimmered in the dim light as she approached him.

  His scowl deepened as he watched her move. She had a slow, seductive gait he knew intimately.

  No... it couldn't be.

  "Sumi?"

  She lowered the hood to show him the smiling face he craved most. One that had been painted with the scrolling marks of the royal Andarion blood clan. "Hi."

  Still on his knees, he pulled her into his arms and held her close as relief flooded him. He absolutely shook with the weight of it.

  "Can't. Breathe. Dancer!"

  He loosened his hold as he kept his face pressed against her stomach and inhaled the sweetest scent he'd ever known. "Please tell me this isn't a dream."

  "It's not a dream, sweetie." She brushed the braids back from his face before she cradled his head to her. "When your mother demanded my life, Nykyrian and Cairistiona said that the only way to save me would be if I were a member of the royal house. No one can demand the life of an eton Anatole. They said she could challenge me to the ring, but she couldn't require an actual death sentence."

  He still couldn't believe what he was hearing. What Nykyrian and his mother had done for him... it went far beyond friendship.

  Hauk took her bandaged hand into his. It was Andarion custom that whenever a child was adopted by a mother, the hand of both was cut and their blood
combined to seal the union. Now that he thought about it, Cairistiona's left hand had been bandaged, too. "The queen adopted you?"

  She nodded. "Is that okay?"

  Rising to his feet, he kissed her with everything he had.

  Until someone cleared his throat.

  Hauk pulled back to find Nykyrian staring at him with an arched brow.

  "That's my unmarried little sister you're mauling, Hauk. Want to put some distance between the two of you?"

  Still furious, he narrowed his gaze on Nykyrian. "Don't push me. I'm barely refraining from planting my foot up your ass for not telling me about this."

  "Didn't have time. We had to move fast and pretend we didn't get your mother's last transmission - she's a tenacious one. You have Chayden to thank for that subversion, by the way. Never heard anyone fake static so well in my life. He's quite impressive."