Closing my eyes, I mentally searched for the draw, the bond that existed between Dulcie and me, established by drinking her blood. The bond was weakened after most of her blood was drained from me; and to further complicate things, I also had to resist the pull of Vander’s blood. Weakened though it was, my link to Dulcie was still very much there, as witnessed by the fact that I was able to feel her deep within me.
“North,” I answered before taking the next step down, and Vander moved out of my way. He did not continue down the stairs but watched me as I made painstakingly slow progress from one step to the next.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” he exclaimed as he took the three steps that separated us. He wrapped his arm around my upper back, allowing me to settle my left arm above his shoulders. At his touch, my skin began to crawl. I could only imagine that it was probably the same for him. Neither of us spoke a word for at least a few seconds.
“We will never speak of this,” I warned him finally with a solemn expression. Turning to face him, I was beyond uncomfortable with our close proximity. Now our noses were merely inches apart.
“Agreed,” Vander said, tightlipped, and we both faced forward as he assisted me down the remainder of the stairs in silence.
###
Vander was in the driver’s seat of my Porsche, but before he turned the ignition on, I reached over and gripped the wheel. I speared him with a stern expression; and owing to my current physical weakened state, my temper was on the ragged edge.
“I am riddled with angst at the very prospect of you driving this vehicle,” I started. “Were I not in such poor condition, I would never allow it. And if time were not of the essence, I would certainly have chosen a more modest vehicle in which to travel.” Then I sighed. “But the fact remains that this vehicle will outperform any other by leaps and bounds.”
“Warning noted and taken, Bram,” Vander responded as he shook his head and frowned at me. “I promise not to total your midlife crisis vehicle.”
“You jest, but this is not just any vehicle! This is a 2015 Porsche Mission E Concept Car and worth nearly four million dollars.”
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to get into my pants,” he answered before flashing a mocking grin at me. I chose not to respond to his antics. Instead, I briefly instructed him on how to turn the motor on, along with the lights, etcetera. As soon as we were mobile, and he managed to drive without crashing into anything on the severely narrow driveway, I sighed with relief.
“Where are we going?” Vander asked as he turned to face me.
“Do not look at me, Vander; keep your eyes on the road,” I insisted.
“Okay, Miss Daisy, but where are we going?”
With no inkling as to why he would refer to me such as he was, I also had to admit that I did not much care. “All I can tell you is the direction from which I feel her pulling me,” I responded. Glancing out the window, I desperately hoped that when we eventually reached Dulcie, we would not be too late. Jax Rochefort was unreliable; and, as such, he was dangerous. “As far as ANC backup is concerned, I suppose we will have to locate Dulcie first and then wait for your reinforcements to arrive.”
“Reinforcements?” he repeated as he turned to face me with a doubtful expression. “There are no reinforcements.”
“You mean to say you came alone?” I asked as I shook my head and remembered he had been alone when he broke into my chateau. That was not to say that I assumed he had no reinforcements awaiting him, though.
“I couldn’t afford to spare anymore of my men,” he explained with a straight face, his expression solemn and grave. “This mission to find Dulcie was personal, which is why I came alone.”
“Then, sadly, we are doomed,” I replied as I bemoaned my bad fortune.
“Why are we doomed?” Vander demanded, turning to glance at me as I shook my head.
“Keep your eyes fastened on the road,” I snapped at him. I was growing ill at ease with the prospect that we were on this mission when it was only just the two of us. If the Darkness, or whatever person was calling the shots, were anything like Drajow characterized him, we would need a militia.
“Why are we doomed?” he repeated, ostensibly because he believed I had not heard him the first time.
“Would you like the abridged or the unabridged version?” I asked.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Dulcie
“Where the hell are you taking me?” I demanded. I glared at Jax as I sat in the back of the black sedan he hijacked from Bram’s house. Still wearing the same oversized, dark grey shirt Bram had given me earlier, I thanked Hades for it now. I couldn’t imagine how much more uncomfortable this trip could have been if I were naked! Of course, I definitely had no false expectations that Jax would have been so kind as to take it upon himself to soothe my sense of modesty by providing me with something more appropriate to wear.
“You just sit back and relax, sweet cheeks. Leave all the navigating to me,” Jax said. He patted my upper thigh where the hemline of Bram’s shirt ended and leered down at me. If my hands hadn’t been manacled behind my back, I would have smacked his away.
I found myself inextricably wedged between Jax and the werewolf. One of Jax’s other thugs was driving, this one a troll. Immense in his height and girth, his bald, misshapened head hit the top of the car, forcing him to tilt it to one side. The angle he was required to assume didn’t seem to ensure that our drive would be safe. Not to mention how broad he was, swallowing up the entire allowance of his seat along with half of the middle console beside him. The third henchman employed by Jax, the goblin, had been deliberately left behind to watch over Bram.
Bram … just the thought of the vamp’s name sent a shiver down my spine. The unrelenting, overwhelming sense of loss I felt bubbled up from inside me. I had to assume I’d never see Bram again; and the thought of that reality overpowered me. There was never a single time during my lengthy association with Bram that I could imagine him being caught unawares. Not once could I recall a dire situation in which he didn’t have something up his sleeve or his next move previously planned and accounted for. Preparedness in every kind of predicament or situation had practically become his call name. I should have nicknamed him something like “Ever-ready Bram” because that was what he was known for. And, yet, fate, unfortunately, is an uncompromising thing—those who once appeared to be on top also end up on the bottom. Sadly, for Bram and for me, it seemed that this fatal mistake might have resulted in him having to pay the ultimate price …
I couldn’t swallow easily because a large lump was forming in my throat; it immediately caused a familiar sting behind my eyes. Clenching my eyelids tightly shut, I ordered my disobedient mind to think of other subjects. I absolutely refused to allow Jax to see me cry.
As soon as I closed my eyes, the headache returned. It started softly, like a thief sneaking into my tired brain. The dull throbbing at the base of my neck and my head was slowly working its way up to my temples. If the headache were any kind of indicator, I was still in very poor shape. Even though Bram’s blood had done wonders to help heal my body, and my fingers were no longer broken, the swelling substantially reduced, I knew I wasn’t fully restored to my former self. How did I know? Because I was weak. The truth was, it felt like I’d been hit by a semitruck.
“I gotta take a shit,” the werewolf interjected somewhat hesitantly as he faced Jax. “How much longer we gotta go, boss?”
“Really, Greebow?” Jax answered sarcastically as he glared over the top of my head and shot daggers of warning at the were. Of course, it didn’t escape my notice that Jax kept his filthy hand resting on my thigh. The bastard! I quickly concluded he was just trying to piss me off. Well, one point for him then, because it was working.
“Sorry, boss, but nature’s callin’!”
“You really intend to bother me with that right now?” Jax replied, looking well beyond ticked off and irritated.
“Is it just me, or is some
one in our little group becoming overly agitated?” I asked cheerfully as I faced Jax before I smiled like the Cheshire Cat. Two can play this smug, self-serving game of yours, asshole, I said to myself as I beamed my wide grin innocently. Jax glanced over at me without a smile, but a frown.
“I’m not agitated,” he answered.
“Shit! Well, I am! I gotta go! As in now!” Greebow exclaimed with a frustrated shrug. “An’ when a shifter’s gotta go, you gotta let ’em!”
“We can’t take the time to stop yet,” Jax explained as he faced forward, his jaw tightening. “We got one more pass-through before we arrive, so you better get a grip on it an’ hold it until we do!”
“What’s a pass-through?” I inquired out of curiosity. I watched Greebow turn his face toward the window as he grumbled something about shitting himself. I could only hope to Hades that didn’t happen while we were in the car since I was stuck on the seat right next to him. And I would so not be okay with that … At the very thought, I had to force myself to go to my happy place.
“It’s when you cross through a portal,” the troll driving up front answered. As soon as the words left his mouth, Jax leaned forward and smacked him right on the back of his bald head. The troll reacted by snapping his head violently up, which loudly rammed it into the top of the car. “Ouch! Jesus, boss!” he grumbled while he rubbed the first sore spot where Jax so rudely smacked him.
“You need to learn how to keep your big mouth shut!” Jax railed at him before he sat back down into his seat. Still shaking his head, Jax was furiously crossing his arms over his chest.
“You really think I would have failed to notice when we passed through a portal?” I asked as I turned to face him with a skeptical frown. “And what difference does it make? So what if I know we’re headed back to the Netherworld or not? Why should that even matter to you? It’s not like I’m going to use that information and secretly signal my posse at our pre-appointed location in the woods, telling them to meet us there so they can overpower you and rescue me!” I sighed; if only such were the case …
“Because the less you know, the better,” Jax replied, narrowing his eyes as he glared at me defiantly. I wasn’t sure why his previous false charm had faded so swiftly. Maybe he was just in a bad mood; or possibly getting nervous at the prospect of reuniting with his boss. As it was, nothing seemed to please him, and he acted ticked off at the whole world in general. “Prisoners are not allowed the benefit of any information regarding what lies in store for them.”
“That’s stupid!” Facing forward again, I silently lamented my unhappy misfortune. The last place I wanted to go was the Netherworld. Why? Because Knight was there. And I literally bristled at the idea that my current situation could easily endanger Knight like I was sure it was going to. Now, it was finally making some sense: the reason Jax’s boss was suddenly ordering us back to the Netherworld was primarily because, from what I could gather, the Rebellion was still based in the Netherworld. If Jax’s boss planned to trade me in exchange for control of the portals, he would have to deal directly with Caressa and Knight, both of whom resided in the Netherworld as well.
The other reason I wasn’t too keen on traveling there again was because of my unfamiliarity with the place; I didn’t know the Netherworld like I knew Earth. Having only visited it a few times, I was permanently traumatized by the winged monsters that regularly roamed the skies and plucked off unsuspecting passersby. It simply hadn’t struck me as a very nice place in general. Then there was also the other reason I hated going there. Because of my wings … Whenever I entered the Netherworld, I instantly developed my fae wings. Unluckily for me, they weren’t useful, ethereal, little, pixie wings either. Not at all! Mine were completely psychotic; they would randomly start flapping for no reason at all. If I weren’t holding onto something stationary, I’d end up floating away like a leaf on the wind. And if that weren’t enough to discourage me, there was also the subject of my species: also known in the Netherworld as sexual crack. When I encountered any and all creatures of the male persuasion, they acted like they were starving refugees and I was Grade A, prime beef tenderloin.
Naturally, the Netherworld wasn’t my first vacation choice. And adding insult to injury, now I was going back there as a prisoner, so I was even less thrilled. But it was what it was, which meant I had to banish those thoughts in the blurry landscape of my weary mind. I glanced outside the window and watched the endless line of pine trees whizzing by, like blurry flashes of green. The morning sun was just beginning its ascent into the sky, reflecting its pale yellow light across the horizon. I checked the clock on the dash of the sedan and noticed it was barely six a.m.
Wherever we were heading, it was up high, somewhere in the mountains. The highway was comprised of two lanes, but both were exceedingly narrow. Fortunately, we hadn’t needed to pass anyone. It was very remote and desolate out here in the wilderness, and I felt more alone than I had in a long time. Especially since I still had no idea where “here” was.
“This is good. Stop right here,” Jax said, interrupting my thoughts. He tapped the headrest behind the troll’s massive noggin pretty sharply and the troll immediately winced, as if he were afraid that Jax was ready to backhand him again.
“Here?” the troll hollered back, obviously doubting Jax’s choice. His bellowing voice instantly caused my headache to return with a vengeance. I again longed for the use of my magic, so I could have magicked the pain away. Not to mention a few other things I would have also magicked away …
“Yes,” Jax answered as he shook his head and looked even more annoyed.
“Got it,” the troll answered before depressing the gas pedal and we began to slow down. Then, he reached forward and seemed to be searching for something on the dash. Apparently finding it, he clicked on a button that looked like it might have been the hazard lights. But no hazard lights came on.
The car slowly came to a stop, and seconds later, it emitted a red beam from each headlight. The red beam, which was maybe three feet long, intrigued me as I had no clue what it could be. I watched it, and as I did, it seemed to be melting away all the scenery just in front of us. The road, the trees and the mountains in the distance began to bleed together, as if they were nothing more than wet, running paint. As soon as the objects ahead of us ran together, the red laser beams turned white. Seconds later, the white beams appeared to be burning a hole into the dripping blobs of color. Inside the hole, however, I could glimpse another landscape that was taking shape.
“Is this the portal?” I asked, but no one responded. Not that they needed to; I was already well aware of what it was. I was just surprised when the car turned out to be equipped with the astonishing means of cutting a portal from nothing. As far as I knew, the only device capable of doing that was a little, can opener-like gadget that Bram once gave me. Apparently, Bram was holding out when it came to the coolest techno-toys.
“So if you already possess the means to just cut a portal into the Netherworld, what the hell do you need me for?” I asked Jax, thinking the question was well beyond obvious. If their entire operation depended on their imports and exports through the portals, why would they bother to take them all over from the ANC? Why go to so much trouble when they could just cut their own?
“I can’t just cut a portal into the Netherworld,” Jax answered. An expression of “duh” was pasted on his face. He acted as if I’d just told him to earn all the money he needed by planting a money tree.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t that what this car just did?” I inquired with a shake of my head, now clearly at a loss. I didn’t mean to ask a stupid question, but …
“Yes and no,” Jax said with a sigh, signifying his boredom and frustration. “The car merely cut a portal to another location here on Earth. It didn’t cut one through to the Netherworld.” Then he paused and took a deep breath. “As we all know, there’s no way to travel to and from the Netherworld, other than doing so through the ANC’s portals. It’s
not like we could randomly engineer a car that could ignore the laws of physics.” Then he laughed. However, little did he know the joke was on him; because I knew there was one such object that could do just that. I found it interesting that Bram hadn’t entrusted Jax with that tidbit of information. Well, unless Jax was simply testing me to see if I’d blab that I knew he was dead wrong. Of course, I wasn’t going to … I was smarter than that.
I just smiled to myself before I organized that little note into the filing system inside my head. Meanwhile, the troll stepped on the gas and the car started through the portal. As we drove into it, there was a sound of popping and then a sucking sound that hinted at the huge level of suction we were experiencing as the entire car was pulled through to the other side. It happened in maybe two blinks of an eye. That’s all it took. Once we arrived on the other side, I realized we were no longer surrounded by trees and mountains but black pavement and tall buildings.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“No one answer,” Jax interrupted before spearing each of his men with a cross expression. Not one of them made so much as a peep. I glanced over at Greebow just to see how he was doing and to make sure he wasn’t about to burst. If he did, I was directly within firing distance.
“You good?” I asked.
Greebow just nodded, and I faced forward again, feeling much relieved. When I looked at the scenery outside the windows, I deduced we were in the city somewhere. I didn’t recognize any of it. But it seemed to be an average, ordinary enough place. I observed the various people busily going from storefront to storefront, walking their babies in strollers or racing to the bus stops, late for work. While it didn’t appear to be a very large town, it was bustling.
The troll took a left at the end of the street where we instantly encountered a large, white building that identified itself with a large sign as the ANC office in BrokenView. A clue! If the ANC office was in BrokenView, that meant we were in Delaware. Hmm, interesting …