He realized he was holding his breath. He deliberately let it out.
And so the dance continued. She told them the story of her training. Of learning to fly.
She told them of Olivia’s capture from her perspective, imbuing it with such emotion that she made her sister look like a hero. She brought him back to her dream, returning to the ground as though sleeping and then dancing over to him. Extending graceful arms toward him and then Layla, she moved as though to run away, but jerked back, conveying her imprisonment. She clutched her head with a pained expression and fell to one knee. She rolled away, briefly touching her sisters.
Then she danced on as though she was free.
She told them of her fight with Eloy to save Quincy. The pain she conveyed following that scene had Grolkinei lifting slightly out of his chair when she collapsed motionlessly on the ground, imitating death. By the time she once again rose and moved into the story of her avowing, he understood exactly what she was doing.
She was telling them all that she and her sisters had each fallen, but they were still there.
And they would all dance on.
Chapter Forty-Eight
The moonless night was dotted with brilliant stars. The air was crisp, burning the lungs with its purity as well as its frigid temperature. Caleb sat in absolute silence, focusing on breathing in a way that wouldn’t result in plumes that could reveal his position to any Mercesti scouts. His gaze was centered on the cave he intended to enter very stealthily in the very near future.
Did you think you would slip away without me knowing?
He glanced briefly to his left as James emerged silently from the forest. Aurora and Titan were right behind him, moving just as quietly.
If I was trying to get away without you, do you really think I would still be sitting here? he returned as he looked again toward the cave.
There was silence as his brother considered this.
Took you long enough, Caleb added then.
James shook his head ruefully. I had to get the cats into their armor. Besides, we’re surrounded by elders and mind-readers. Getting away without revealing intent is not exactly easy.
Tell me about it.
How long do you think it will take for—?
I’m here, Gabriel conveyed. He was standing right behind them.
Caleb nodded, not moving his gaze from the cave. He had been waiting for this moment for the past hour.
He had stared at the side of the mountain from their campsite as the darkness settled around them, doing his best to empty his mind enough that he could push past his fear and anger and develop a plan of action. Sitting and waiting for Grolkinei to provoke them—especially if the provoking act would likely be the deaths of the sisters—simply wasn’t acceptable. Although his class was trained to defend rather than attack, he knew the best plan now would be to take the offensive. They needed to surprise Grolkinei.
Unfortunately, he had thought as he considered and dismissed various plans, every single one of the Estilorians beside the mountain was conveying thoughts that could potentially be intercepted by Mercesti who were skilled in doing so, defeating the element of surprise.
Everyone except him and his brothers.
He remembered that Kanika had been unable to read Amber’s thoughts after she had avowed with Gabriel. And his instincts told him that the same mental barriers had been put in place for him and the rest of his family after their pairings. For one reason or another, their thoughts were imperceptible to anyone trying a mental intrusion unless they allowed it.
Which meant the only way they could surprise Grolkinei was to keep any plans of action to themselves.
Thus, he hadn’t even conveyed his intent to his brothers. He had simply moved into the forest as though he needed some time to himself and made a march straight for the mountain. He knew they would eventually follow.
Now, he shifted his gaze from the cave and looked at James and Gabriel. They were all dressed identically: black clothing and armor and armed to the teeth. He thought, The guards will be able to see us if we’re not careful.
They nodded in understanding and agreement.
We can’t raise a light, either, Gabriel thought.
Check this out, James said.
His eyes flashed briefly. Suddenly, Caleb had a whole new perspective of the world around him. He realized he was seeing—at least in part—through Titan’s vision. He could see just fine in the dark.
Perfect, he thought toward James.
Okay, Gabriel thought with a firm nod as he looked around through his altered vision and then caught his brothers’ gazes. Here’s the deal. We go in, and we’re aiming to kill—not incapacitate. We don’t know what warning system Grolkinei has with his soldiers. It could be as simple as them sending him a thought. If we want any chance of getting to our wives undetected, we have to do it silently and completely without detection. There will be males as well as females, and you might even recognize a few of them. We have to be okay with that or this will never work.
Caleb and James nodded resolutely.
And James, you have to make sure the cats understand the importance of stealth.
They’ll be quieter than we are, James assured them.
Gabriel turned his gaze to Caleb. Skye will be able to transport us all out of there. That’s our goal. Get everyone together as quickly as possible and get out. We’re not there to do anything else, no matter what opportunities present themselves.
In other words, Caleb couldn’t try to twist Grolkinei’s head from his shoulders, stick it on a spit and roast it over an open fire. At least not yet.
He nodded again.
Gabriel held out his fist. James and Caleb both touched their fists to his. No other words were necessary. They turned and headed silently toward the cave.
Skye actually enjoyed every minute of her dance for the Mercesti. She hadn’t known what kind of dance to do once Grolkinei gave her the opportunity, but as soon as he told the crowd that they would be voting on her performance once she was done, she made an instant decision. She would do whatever she felt like doing.
After all, she fully believed the crowd would vote for her to be whipped regardless of her performance.
Once she heard the opening strains of the music Grolkinei cued up for her, she knew what she wanted to do. She put her heart into the performance, thinking that there was certainly a possibility it could be her last. And she felt the focus of the crowd on her from the moment she started moving.
By the time she got to the part of her story where Grolkinei cut her with his knife as they traveled to the mountain, she actually heard a few gasps when she illustrated the brutality by slashing her finger violently across her arms and legs as she danced. When she fell to the ground as a result of her “injuries,” she could all but feel the crowd holding its breath, even though they obviously knew she had lived. Those gasps were like music to her performer’s heart.
She rolled back to her feet as she “recovered,” registering the light surge of reactive noise from the audience as she did so. Then, her head bowed, she walked very slowly, very somberly back to her chair beside her sisters. She sat down with her wrists held together as though they were bound.
And she didn’t move again.
The music faded. She watched through the soft fall of her hair as Grolkinei got to his feet and walked around his table toward their chairs. He squatted beside her. His face was mere inches from hers. She fought the urge to jerk back. Instead, she caught his gaze as she worked to recover her breath after her exertion.
“I said I wanted provocative,” he murmured.
“I know,” she said in an equally soft tone, her brow wrinkling in puzzlement. “And it was…wasn’t it?”
He stared at her for a beat, searching her face. “You know that was not what I meant.”
“No, she didn’t,” Amber drawled from beside her. Olivia shook her head.
Skye looked in confusion from Grolkinei to her sisters and
then back. “You didn’t find my dancing provocative?” she asked.
He continued to stare at her. The crowd was shifting restlessly, obviously not knowing what was going on. Finally, he shook his head with an unreadable expression and stood up. He reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back to her feet.
“There you have it,” he said in his amplified voice as he pulled her back into the center of the cavern. “The dance of Saraqael’s daughter. Was it good enough to avoid a public whipping?”
The resulting cheer sent a wave of shock and pleasure through Skye. If ever a more hostile crowd had been won over by a performance, she’d like to know about it. Her smile spread across her face as she issued a little curtsey.
Grolkinei didn’t comment. He pulled her back over toward her sisters, reaching for the cord he had discarded beside her chair. He tied her hands behind her back, pulling the bindings tighter than he had before. She flinched.
“You will notice I did not say anything about avoiding a private whipping,” he said against her ear. “Which you certainly deserve after that performance.”
Her heart sank over the ice in his tone. She watched as he waved toward a couple of nearby tables containing Mercesti soldiers. They all moved to surround her and her sisters. He released Amber and Olivia from their chairs and pulled them to their feet, securing their hands behind them. He issued some unheard instructions to the apparent leader of the soldiers and then walked over to the table housing the commanders to speak with them.
The soldiers near Skye nudged her forward. She and her sisters were soon escorted from the cavern. When she glanced over her shoulder, she saw Grolkinei waving at Tristan and Jean-Marc to urge them to their feet. They ultimately started after them, leaving the commanders to manage the crowd.
She struggled to control her rising fear over the coming whipping. She didn’t doubt the sincerity of Grolkinei’s threat at all. And although she had expected to get whipped regardless of how well she danced, knowing the crowd had been pleased had given her hope that she might avoid injury.
Foolish optimist, she thought.
They ended up in a circular chamber with several entrances. There were no doors, just cave openings. She glanced with mounting horror along the walls, noting the many pairs of manacles there. Two sides of the chamber contained tables lined with tools that she imagined were devices of torture.
Swallowing hard, she exchanged looks with her sisters. It was going to be a long night.
Aurora and Titan led the brothers quickly and quietly through the tunnels. Entering them had been easy enough. Caleb had deliberately selected the cave after scouting the options. It was exceptionally well-hidden, so he figured the Mercesti would have it less guarded because the likelihood of anyone finding it was greatly reduced.
He had been right.
They had encountered only about twenty Mercesti thus far and were pretty deep within the tunnels. He knew that without the cats they would never have found their way through. He found himself frequently closing his eyes and focusing on his hearing in the echoing tunnels, using the basic skills he had learned earlier that day playing Marco Polo to try and orient various noises to their position.
As they neared a branch in the tunnels, the cats both stopped. Now familiar with the reaction, Caleb followed his brothers toward the cavern wall, hiding in the shadows. Soon, they heard the murmur of voices.
“…dance to try and get out of the whipping,” said the first voice. A male.
“Did she do it?” asked a second voice, also male.
“Tana said she did. Said the crowd actually liked it.”
A third male voice added, “They must have, as they voted to bypass the whipping.”
Caleb tensed as the footsteps of the Mercesti drew closer. Gabriel sent thoughts to indicate he would take the Mercesti on the right, James would take the one in the middle and Caleb would take the one on the left.
“Why would our lord offer one of Saraqael’s daughters such a bargain?” wondered the second voice.
“It is surely for show,” said the first. “He has since had all three of the half-humans brought to the torture chamber. I am sure he is making up for that missed whipping by now.”
The ensuing snorts of dark humor were the last any of those Mercesti ever experienced.
Caleb dragged the body of the Mercesti he killed off to the side and hid it in a narrow crevice as his brothers did the same. Without a second thought, he removed his dagger from the eye socket of the body and wiped it off on his pants leg as they continued into the tunnels.
He would probably need it again.
Chapter Forty-Nine
“I am certain you three are intelligent enough to reason out the purpose of this chamber,” Grolkinei said in cool tones as he strode into the room with Skye and her sisters. He paused and focused on Olivia. “Bring back any memories?”
Olivia lifted her chin and remained silent.
“That is fine. Enjoy holding your tongue now while you still can. All of you will be quite vocal soon enough.”
“Why?” Skye blurted. “I did what you—”
He reached out and grabbed her around the throat with his right hand, choking her. He moved with her so she stumbled backwards and then slammed her into the closest wall. Her vision blurred as pain rocketed through her.
“You cannot possibly be that naïve,” he growled, tightening his hold so that she couldn’t breathe at all. “Stop the pretense. Just stop it!” He shook her, making her head bounce against the wall.
Her heart pounded agonizingly against her ribs as she fought for breath. She heard her sisters cry out and some kind of scuffle ensue as the Mercesti held them back. She felt the rocky surface behind her cutting her skin like razors. Grolkinei was pressed too closely to her for her to use her legs against him, and he had her head so firmly pressed back she couldn’t try to butt him with her forehead. So she made quick work of sawing through her wrist bindings against the sharp rock, praying she wouldn’t lose consciousness or sever an artery in the process.
The second her hands were free, she lifted her right arm up and shifted her weight to the left, bending her arm as she turned. She effectively trapped Grolkinei’s hands under her arm, the element of surprise giving her a clear advantage. Even as she did that, she brought her left elbow up and drove it right into his face.
He released her. She collapsed into a fit of gagging, gasping and sobbing, struggling to catch her breath. She sensed more than saw movement around her and instinctively curled into a ball to protect her midsection.
“Do not kill her!” Grolkinei shouted. “Back up, all of you.”
“But, my lord—”
There was the sound of flesh striking flesh.
“Do not dare argue with me,” Grolkinei said. “She serves some purpose yet.”
Her heart couldn’t stop racing as she forced her breathing to even out. She moved slowly away from the wall where she had landed, turning her head so she could see the whole chamber. Grolkinei stood in front of her. A wall of soldiers faced him, weapons drawn. Their red eyes flashed dangerously.
He turned and grabbed her by the hair, yanking her to her feet. “Well done,” he told her expressionlessly.
He waved his hand. Three of the pairs of manacles around the chamber suddenly shot several feet out from the walls, attached by black poles. She looked around in dazed amazement even as he pulled her to the closest pair and lifted her right arm to catch her wrist in one of the manacles.
“Secure the other two,” he ordered as he lifted her left hand.
The balls of her feet barely touched the floor once he had both of her wrists locked. Her sisters were, of course, in the same positions. They faced each other across fifteen feet of space like points on a triangle.
She didn’t see Grolkinei rear back to strike, but she certainly felt the crack of his fist across her face. She was too stunned to even cry out as the pain exploded through her.
“An eye for an eye around
here,” he said, rubbing his jaw when she looked at him with wide eyes. “And I will take great pleasure in administering even more pain to each of you very shortly. But right now I have to go and engage in some damage control after your performance. We cannot have everyone sympathizing with the half-breeds when we have a battle to win.”
Her face flushed with color. She finally realized why he was so angry with her. He thought that she had won more than just a reprieve from a whipping from the Mercesti crowd.
Shifting her gaze from his, she wondered if he was right.
“Keep them under control,” he said after staring at her silently for another moment.
“Yes, my lord.”
He turned and stormed from the chamber without another word.
There were several long minutes of silence as the soldiers in the room circled and stared. Skye exchanged looks with her sisters, ignoring their audience. She could tell Amber and Olivia were assessing her condition. She gave them each looks to convey that she was hanging in there. Her face throbbed, but it was tolerable. The bleeding from her scratches against the rock had stopped. Her throat was bruised, but at least she could breathe.
“He did not say we had to wait for him to return to use these tools on them,” one of the soldiers said after a while.
Skye’s gaze shifted to him. He stood beside one of the two tables. He lifted what appeared to be a pair of tongs with wide scissor blades on the end. Her heart rate once again sped up. A line of perspiration trailed down her spine.
“It was implied,” Jean-Marc unexpectedly said from where he stood on the other side of the chamber. “You could always kill them by accident if you do not know what you are doing.”
“Let them have their fun,” Tristan argued. His gaze shifted from one sister to the next. “Maybe we should even get in a few strikes ourselves.”
Jean-Marc frowned. “Do not be foolish. If Grolkinei had wanted us to—”
“Oh, now you think you can correctly interpret our lord’s thoughts?” Tristan sneered. “I would have thought you had learned better after you came down here and avowed yourself to Layla all those weeks ago. He told you then exactly what he thought, did he not? After he threatened to kill you?”