Everywhere and Nowhere

  He gathered his family in a circle. Dragon pulled a small silver object out of his pocket. Hadrian smiled—he hadn’t seen one of the Mystical amulets since he was a child and his parents had taken Dragon to Astor to leave him with the practitioners there. Merchants had tried to sell his father a few when they’d passed a Mystical shop. They were supposed to bring good luck.

  “Worried about our odds?”

  Dragon scoffed. “Only the simplest of Mystics use them for luck charms. Mine is a bit more complicated.”

  Closing his eyes, Dragon muttered some words Hadrian couldn’t understand. When he opened his lids again, his brother’s eyes had turned an even darker shade of black.

  “Open.” He waved one hand and a visible slice formed in the air around them. Gradually the slice got wider until it was a giant hole large enough to step through. A smile crept onto his brother’s face. “After you.”

  Without hesitation, Hadrian stepped into the opening, confident that his men would follow and if, for some unknown reason, they didn’t, then he knew he would still get there and find a way to rescue Hadley.

  Pitch blackness filled his vision, surrounding him like a warm cloak. Hadrian continued to move forward—he didn’t need to see, only to move. He pulled his sword from its sheath. He didn’t know what would present itself on the other side of the portal.

  A blinding white light assaulted him and Hadrian felt himself falling. He landed with a thud and rolled to his feet, jumping up, sword still in hand. His attention focused on the sight in front of him, so he heard rather than saw the others arrive. Each made a similar thumping sound with one exception, which he assumed was Dragon. His brother’s landing sounded even less graceful.

  They had come down in some kind of open field. Half-dead trees with branches dragging toward the ground were scattered in front of his vision. One lone vulture prowled the cloudless black sky. He knew it had to be daytime or there would be no way he could see as well as he could.

  He resheathed his sword. At the end of the field, an opening to a cave stood ominous and unsecured. A partially collapsed boulder obscured half of the rock entrance. Loud mechanical screeches and men’s shouts were audible from inside. These must be the mines he’d heard his mother mention. Did they have Hadley inside?

  An alarm bell rang out into the field and Dragon grabbed Hadrian’s arm. “It looks as if our entrance was not unnoticed. We should run.”

  “Retreat will get us nowhere. You are too important to lose—no one will be able to return without you. Hide yourself.”

  “I am not a coward.” Dragon’s fists clenched at his sides.

  Hadrian reached out and grabbed his brother’s arm. “I know that. Please, we cannot afford to risk you. Anyone else can be replaced, but not you.”

  Dragon’s eyes flared for a moment before he half nodded. Spinning in a circle, Dragon transformed into a small version of his namesake and took to the sky. He breathed a stream of fire in Hadrian’s direction before flying higher and landing on a branch of one of the dead trees.

  Was there no limit to what his brother could do? Hadrian shook his head.

  Seconds later, the yells of charging men filled his ears. He smiled. There was no fighting force equal to that of the Haven Warriors. Even if they were hugely outnumbered, they would still win. That much he was sure of. Before this hour was over, one of those poor doomed souls with the misfortune to match swords with him would be the one to tell him where they held his woman.

  Hadrian counted thirty men. Nodding, he pointed left and right. His men spread out into their standard fight formation. This wouldn’t take very much effort.

  “Swords up.” He waited a beat for his men to comply. “Eliminate.”

  Three men reached Hadrian first and Hadrian swung around, gashing two in their middles as he engaged the third. The man had some skill in a fight but not much, and with two right thrusts, Hadrian had disarmed him. He lay crumpled on the ground with his compatriots.

  Hadrian turned, scanning the grounds. His men had their opponents easily in hand.

  Stone hadn’t quite disposed of his. Hadrian stormed forward and picked the man up from where he cowered.

  “My name is Hadrian. I am from a place called Haven.”

  “I know of such a place.” The other man’s voice shook and Hadrian suspected he spoke at least two tones higher than he normally did.

  “You have my woman.”

  “Oh sir, you are wrong, I have no woman. I have not earned one yet. I cannot pay the grabbers to go and get one for me.”

  Hadrian sighed. “What is your name?”

  “Bistronus, sir.”

  Hadrian found he was having a hard time telling one Shadow man from another. They were all extremely tall, with long, dark hair. Similar to his own description, he supposed.

  “Okay, Bistronus, I did not mean that you specifically had my woman. Although if you did, it would be very convenient. What I meant was that the shadow people have my woman and I want her back.”

  Fury started in his stomach and threatened to explode. Acidic bile churned and made him angry. He hadn’t been this upset since he’d first found out on Earth that he and his men could not get to Zamara. If there was one thing Hadrian could not tolerate it was being ineffectual, and he’d been feeling that way for far too long.

  “So where do you suppose I would find her?”

  “Well,” Bistronus cleared his throat, “if she just got here, then I suppose they wouldn’t have time to judge her unworthy and send her to the mines. She did just arrive?”

  Hadrian nodded. “That’s correct.” This conversation was taking way longer than he would have liked.

  “Then she’s with the other females in the women’s area about five kilometers from here.”

  “An easy distance, my prince.” Stone’s voice behind was filled with happiness.

  “It is indeed.” He turned his attention to Bistronus. “Did you say there are women trapped down in those mines?” Women who, like the Pettigrew girls, had been taken from their homes and brought to this dimension that could not support its own female life.

  “If they won’t be amenable to mating, we have to give them some purpose. They might as well work for us and make themselves useful.”

  Without turning around, Hadrian made a quick decision. “Storm, take Donovan and Panther and go get the women out of those mines.”

  Three grunts asserted their compliance as they ran toward the nearly destroyed cave entrance.

  Dragon’s dramatic snort told Hadrian that he had returned to his human form since the fighting had ceased. “Might I remind you, my prince, that we have nothing to do with those women? They have no bodies to be returned to.”

  “Surely a man with your superior Mystical powers will not be daunted by the mere problem of creating them bodies, Dragon. Now, Bistronus, you are going to take me to the women’s area, and if you’re very obedient and very helpful I will let you live.”

  “I’ll be as good as you want me to be. I’m just a miner.”

  Hadrian pushed him forward. “Don’t suspect for one second that I care who or what you are. This entire dimension can burn to the ground for all I care. I am here for Hadley and everyone else can go to hell.”

  “So you expect me to find a way to give these lost women bodies?” Dragon’s voice hissed in his ear.

  “Frankly it never occurred to me that you couldn’t do it.”

  “Why don’t you just ask me to raise the dead?”

  Hadrian shrugged. “Why don’t you?”

  “Because there are some things that are just not done.” Dragon kicked a rock in front of them.

  “Like studying under a man who should have died two millennia ago and who was banned from our homeland? Or am I thinking too linearly again?”

  Dragon stopped walking. “I didn’t mean to imply that you were stupid.”

  “That’s exactly what you meant.” Hadrian pulled him up by his shirt. “I’m only going to say this once b
ecause we don’t have time. You weren’t the only one destroyed by what happened to you in our childhood. You were my big brother. I worshiped you and I’ve lived guilt-ridden my whole damn life because I was born with abilities you don’t have. Seems to me you have plenty of your own. But right now everything has to be about Hadley. You chose to come on this journey. Stop bitching.”

  “Sir,” Bistronus caught his attention, “we have arrived.”

  The countryside had altered slightly during their walk, flatter with slightly more living vegetation. Hadrian saw what looked like a makeshift military operation filled with large green tents that looked as if they had seen better days.

  “Spread out, open every tent until you find her. Collect the other women. If they want to leave, bring them with us. My extraordinarily talented brother is going to find a way to save all of them.”

  Hadrian crossed to the first tent he reached. Sword drawn in case of danger, he stepped into the tent and came face-to-face with someone he’d never thought to see again. He sucked in his breath. Hadley was nowhere to be found, but standing in front of him, alive and well, was Annabelle.

  “Hello, Hadrian. I’ve been expecting you.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Had she slept at all? She must have, because when she’d woken up, she’d not been where she fell asleep. It had taken her ten minutes to figure that out and now, after another five, she was still not prepared for what she next learned. The Shadow King had stolen her. He paced the room of what she assumed was his palace.

  He finally stopped his endless pacing and turned to face her. His skin, as pale as the whitest snow, held a slight flush in his cheeks that she imagined was from the exertion it must have taken to teleport himself into her tent, grab her and transport out. Other than informing her he was the Shadow King and he’d teleported her here to his palace, he hadn’t said anything else.

  Tired of being stared at, she finally spoke. “Why am I here? Have you ‘claimed’ me?”

  Her sisters hadn’t told her exactly how that worked, so she supposed this could be the protocol. He pulled his long blond hair from its ponytail holder, tugging nervously on the long strands. He was the only man she’d seen here who wasn’t as dark as midnight.

  “I am not claiming you. Although if I thought it would solve my problem, I would do so in a minute.”

  “You have a problem?” She had a whole bunch of them herself. If she didn’t believe in self-preservation and the hope that she’d once again get to see Hadrian, she’d have let him know just how she felt about his adding to the ever-growing long list of issues.

  “My people are being attacked, my mines are being raided, and my women are being taken from me. All of this is because of you.” He shouted the last two words, which might have previously made her cringe. But since she’d gotten so good lately at handling Hadrian’s bad moods, she didn’t find it that difficult to endure. Men screamed, they ranted and raved, but she didn’t have to respond to it.

  “Excuse me, Your Shadow Majesty, but I don’t see how any of this could possibly be my fault. I didn’t ask to be brought here against my will, dragged around or threatened. Not to mention that I couldn’t even begin to figure out how the fact that people are being attacked could have anything to do with me.”

  “Does the name Hadrian mean anything to you?”

  Hadley’s heart skipped a beat. “Should it?” She wasn’t going to give this man any information about Hadrian. Nothing that might compromise him.

  The Shadow King bent over until his face practically touched hers. “Oh, I think it should. I just finished communicating with your father and he tells me you are quite familiar with Hadrian. So I can only assume he is here with thirteen Haven Warriors because of you.”

  “There are some words I’d like to have with my father too.”

  “You still have not answered my question.”

  Hadley raised an eyebrow. “Do I know Hadrian?”

  “Yes, woman, that question.”

  “Well, I suppose if my father says I know him, then I must know him.”

  “You aren’t going to help me at all, are you?”

  “Ooh! You’re a bright one!”

  The king picked her up and shoved her against the wall. His hands pressed hard into her arms and she cried out. “Is that supposed to be sarcasm?”

  “I suppose so. Is this supposed to be frightening?” Her words were strained as the pain in her arms worsened.

  “If I wanted to, I could keep you here until your body on Haven dies. It won’t take much longer. Soon you’ll be nothing but a rotten corpse like your sisters.” His pupils were huge and Hadley had to admit she was scared. But she’d be damned if she let him know. She squirmed and tried to pull out of his clutches but he was too strong. “Stop struggling.”

  “No.” If Hadrian was somewhere in this dimension, he’d find her. She’d never seen herself as needing someone to get her out of tough situations but right at that moment, she would gladly take rescue.

  “I can see it in your eyes that you still have hope. That is a dangerous thing. Very few people in your position would dare to still hold on to such a ridiculous notion.”

  Hadley shook her head. “Is it? It seems to me you must want something from me. You’ve gone to a great deal of trouble to bring me here to your castle. Why don’t you tell me what you really need from me and I’ll decide if I feel like negotiating with you.” She was taking a big chance—if she was wrong, she was in more trouble than she cared to admit.

  With a plop, she collided with the floor as he dropped her. “You’re right. I do want something from you.” His eyes traced her body and she shivered with dread. That wasn’t what she’d expected him to desire. He smiled, a glint of satisfaction in his eyes.

  “Tempting, but I’m afraid I have more pressing matters.” He crossed the room to a tall, black desk and opened the top left drawer. Pulling out a small vial, he closed the drawer and shut the top of the desk so that it now resembled a giant safe. Obviously, whatever he kept in there he didn’t want people getting to.

  Stomping his feet, he walked over to where she sat on the floor. He towered over her but she wouldn’t blink or flinch from his hard gaze. “In this small vial I have something called Breathless.” “I don’t want endless life,” Hadley spat.

  “Not like father, like daughter, eh?” The King laughed, a hard, cold, sound. “I actually didn’t think so. Breathless, if consumed daily, will keep you alive as long as you drink it every day. But the second you stop taking it, normal aging begins again. On Haven, your body is in rapid decline. Even now I can see Leopard working constantly to keep down a fever from an infection she cannot find. Eventually she will lose her battle. Everyone does.”

  “You have the gift of sight.” It wasn’t a question. The man could obviously see things beyond what happened around him.

  “Only of those who are members of my kingdom.”

  Hadley shot to her feet. “I am not a member of your kingdom.”

  “You were given to us when you were born in return for thirty years’ worth of Breathless.”

  “I wasn’t available to be given, nor were my sisters.” Hadley blinked rapidly. She couldn’t remember ever being so angry but she needed to keep her control.

  The king raised an eyebrow. “I rather agree.” He did? “But that doesn’t mean I didn’t take them—and you—anyway, because desperation has caused me to do things I would not do otherwise.”

  Hadley swallowed. Her mouth felt dry. “And what makes you desperate?”

  “My people are dying. We haven’t produced a female of our own in two centuries. A terrible virus, nothing more than a flu, overwhelmed us. Everyone got sick. When the fever had cleared, all the women were dead. Since then, even mating with off-worlders we have not been able to have female children of our own. The men grow more withdrawn, less civilized as time goes on. They spend increasing amounts of time in the mines, going deeper into the ground where we have never explored, an
d I fear what they will find there.”

  Hadley couldn’t help but be moved by what he said. Whatever else he was, in this he was sincere. A lump formed in her throat. “Your Majesty…”

  He laughed, the same humorless sound. “Leon. My name is Leon. As you have pointed out, you are not actually my subject.”

  “Leon, tell me what it is that I can do for you? I feel pain for your plight but I’m just a woman, raised on Earth, who recently found out I am actually something quite different than I imagined. I’m ill-equipped for any of this.”

  “You’re a Healer, as your mother is a Healer. I cannot get to her—some sort of unbreakable wall blocks her, and your sisters are pale comparisons. Each one of them might have metaphysical talent if trained but I have neither the time nor the resources to devote to that. But you…when I look toward you with my third eye, I see what you can do and already have done on Haven.” He pounded on the wall with his fist. “Do it here. Heal us.”

  Hadley paced to the window where Leon stood so she could have eye contact with him. “It’s not that I don’t care for your problems—I do.”

  “But?”

  “I cannot travel from dimension to dimension fixing the problems of the world, and I will not be used as a pawn.” She sighed. “I’d rather be dead.”

  “Which is what you will be if I don’t let you have one sip of this.” He held up the vial. “A day. Just one sip.”

  Hadley’s arms tingled. This close to Leon, and not being physically threatened, her newfound abilities surged through her with a desire to heal his wounds, especially the emotional ones. Who might he have been if he’d been dealt different cards?

  Hadrian’s words traveled back to her. She wasn’t to try to heal the emotional baggage of everyone she came into contact with. It was too risky a problem.

  “If I’m supposed to die, then I will die.” Wow, she had never in her life felt so fatalistic.