Alora: The Wander-Jewel (Alora Series Book 1) (24 page)

Somehow, despite her fears, Alora believed her uncle would make it happen.
Maybe his hugs can still fix everything.

Kaevin tried t
o
stay on guard through a haze of pain. The sharp stones poked into his side as he lay on the ground in the middle of a clearing, his hands still bound behind his back.
How long have I been here?
Time blurred in his mind. It seemed as if Vindrake had been questioning him forever. So far, he’d avoided giving Vindrake any new information about Alora. He hadn’t revealed her true name or where she lived or the fact they were soulmates. He had to be truthful with every answer, because Vindrake could detect any lie. Although Kaevin hadn’t repeated his error after his first failed attempt at lying, Vindrake had broken two more fingers.
How much can I bear before I break and tell him what he wishes to know?

“Let me ask a few questions, Sire.” The man Vindrake had called Abaddon, approached as Vindrake strode back and forth before Kaevin’s crumpled figure, spitting out loud curses. “Perhaps a different tactic would help.”

“Yes, ask your questions. I will observe to be certain he tells the truth.”

Abaddon loomed over Kaevin, smiling with satisfaction. Kaevin didn’t have the strength to flinch away from a swift kick in the shin. A cry escaped his lips before he could stop it.

“You don’t know where she’s been hiding all these years?”

“No,” Kaevin panted. “I don’t know where it is.”

“But have you been there?”

“Yes, but I don’t know how to find it. It’s a long way from here, and I really don’t know where it is. She simply transported me.”

“What is the name of the place where she lives?”

“She lives at a ranch.”

“
Aranch
? I’ve never heard of this place.” Abaddon glanced at Vindrake.

“Yes, his words are true,” Vindrake confirmed. “But we need to find this place.”

“Why does it matter?” asked Kaevin. “She’s going to come to you, right? And you’re going to let me go in exchange?” In his heart, he knew the exchange would never take place. They would kill him as soon as they could secure Alora. At least if that happened, Alora would die with him, and Vindrake wouldn’t be able to use her.

“Of course, you’re right. But if she should decide you’re not worth her effort, we wish to have knowledge of her location.” Abaddon stroked his beard. “Tell me about her gift. How much has she mastered? What is she able to do? And who’s been training her?”

Kaevin was slow to answer. It would be best if they underestimated her abilities. “I’m not certain what she can do. She only came into her gift a few weeks ago,” he replied truthfully. “She had one or two short lessons with Raelene.”

“What have you seen her do?”

“Well, I saw her make some mistakes. She accidentally took me somewhere. And then she managed to bring us back.”

Abaddon nodded. “Yes, that is to be expected. A new bearer will make many errors.”

“Has she done anything extraordinary?” Vindrake’s voice quivered with excitement. “I think she must be quite powerful, being my daughter.”

He pondered the question while the pain throbbed in his hand. What could he say without revealing anything of import? “She transported some kittens. Well... one of them transported, but the other one she gave up on and ran after it. But I’m sure she’ll get better soon.”

“Let me be specific,” Abaddon said, evenly. “Can she transport someone away from herself?”

“The first two times she transported me to her, I went directly back. But Raelene said it was some kind of automatic reversal.”

“That is to be expected,” said Abaddon. “But why were you spending time with Vindrake’s daughter?”

He prayed his face would not betray him as he skirted around the truth. “She... she transported me by accident, and she didn’t know how to send me back.”

“Is he telling the truth?” Abaddon asked Vindrake.

He nodded in response. “I detect no lie. Why do you ask? Is there a problem?”

Abaddon’s eyebrows knit close together as he glared at Kaevin. “Graely was obviously looking for the girl, and we had reports she rode her horse to meet him. Yet Kaevin has been to her hiding place, and says he doesn’t know where it is. Someone isn’t telling the truth. He must know where her home is located.”

Vindrake rose up, glaring at Kaevin menacingly. “Are you lying to me somehow?” Kaevin screamed as he felt someone squeezing the already broken bones in his throbbing hand. “Ahhh! I’m not lying! I swear. I have no idea where she lives. I even tried looking on a map. Glare it! I’ve only transported to and from there. Please! I swear!”

He felt the pressure release and screamed relief, panting from the pain, his head swimming.

“Why did the girl transport you? When did you meet for the first time?” Abaddon asked.

He tried to catch his breath, moaning as he waited for the pain to subside. He knew he had to be careful now, and not reveal the soulmate bond. Since no one had believed them at first, it was easy to tell the truth. He didn’t try to sit up, but spoke slowly, gritting his teeth against his agony, “We only just met. Perhaps seven or eight days ago. Raelene said her mother must have imprinted Laegenshire on her as a baby. She said most likely, I was simply the first person she saw in Laegenshire.”

“So Graely didn’t know of her existence until then.”

Kaevin couldn’t think of a reason not to admit the truth. “No. None of us knew about her.”

“Excellent!” Vindrake beamed. “They have not had a great deal of time to influence her against me. I may still be able to sway the girl. Perhaps she will prefer living in luxury with me to living in poverty with Stone Clan.”

Kaevin decided to keep his opinion on that matter to himself. Vindrake wouldn’t hesitate to kill her if he thought he had no chance to control her. He wondered how Alora was faring. Was she frightened? Had her head started hurting from drain on their soulmate bond? The pain in his hand made it impossible for him to determine whether his head was aching. And what about his father and Jireo? He’d seen both of them badly wounded. Were they still alive? He felt his mind drifting toward sleep, but he knew he needed to stay alert, in case there was a rescue attempt.

“Lena!” Vindrake’s exclamation jarred him awake. Vindrake’s gaze focused somewhere over Kaevin’s prone body. “Lena,” he said, smiling sweetly. “I’m so pleased you contacted me.”

Kaevin twisted to look behind him but saw no one.

Alora tried to look calm, but her hands were shaking. Raelene had assured her he could only see her head. She hoped it was true, or he would know how frightened she was. As Nordamen had predicted, Vindrake must have been warded with iron, and thus an attempt to transport him would only allow a face-to-face conversation. Morvaen had been ready with his sword in case he had transported to Alora.

“Hello, Father. I was told you wanted to speak to me.” Alora’s job was to buy time for the rest of the group to travel to the camp with Nordamen. She would then transport to them with Raelene and Morvaen. Her Uncle Charles was currently wearing an iron belt taken from one of the fallen enemies, so she could have a conversation with him without moving him.

“Yes. I would like to see you, daughter. When we last spoke, I invited you to come to me. To see all the advantages I have to offer you. But you have avoided me. Why are you shunning your own father?”

“Father,” she spoke slowly, remembering Nordamen’s warning that Vindrake could detect lies, even though the conversation was not in person. “You seem like a very powerful man. I assume you didn’t become such a man by acting impulsively. I may be young, but I hope I’ve inherited enough of your wisdom to carefully consider my options before making decisions.”

“Yet you have been consorting with Graely and his son.” Despite his accusing words, he seemed to puff up at her indirect praise.

“I’ve spent very little time with Graely, and my time with his son was largely out of my control. I met him by accident in much the same way I met you, Father. But to be honest, my uncle would prefer I stay with him until I am much older. And, I have no doubt my uncle has my best interest at heart.”

“But your uncle cannot train you in using your gift,” Vindrake argued. “Can he?”

“Are you offering to come to my home and train me?”

His eyes narrowed for a moment, but he made his expression pleasant again. “I cannot come to you. I have a kingdom to rule. You must come to me and take your place as my heir. I long to spend time with my only daughter.”

“What is this I’ve heard about you holding someone prisoner? You told me I could come and see your kingdom for myself and then decide if I want to stay. How can I trust you not to hold me prisoner when you are currently holding another person prisoner?”

“I think you’re aware the person I’m holding prisoner is Graely’s son. You may not realize Graely and his son have committed many grievous acts against me. It is well within my right to execute him. But I’ve offered to let him go free in return for Graely’s cooperation in returning my daughter to me.”

“In my home, it’s illegal to execute someone without a fair trial and a jury of peers.” She fought to keep her voice from quavering at the thought of Kaevin’s execution.

“Your home? At
Aranch?
Yes, perhaps I should come to visit you at your home sometime. Would you care to advise me about the most direct route?”

She was quiet, attempting to decipher the meaning of his words. He must be fishing for information. Why was he asking about their ranch? Had Kaevin revealed where they lived? “I actually can’t invite you to my house without my uncle’s permission. But I’ll ask him, and let you know what he says.” She frowned. “But you’re trying to distract me. I was telling you I don’t think you should execute anyone without a fair trial. You once told me I’d been fed lies about you. This is your chance to prove you’re not a monster who murders young boys.”

His smile transformed into a sneer before her eyes. “I will not be lectured by my daughter of fifteen years. I am a judge and the king of this realm, and I have deemed him guilty and worthy of execution. You have the ability to prevent that from happening, simply by coming to me. If you feel so strongly he should not die, then come. If you choose not to come, his blood will be on your hands.”

Alora swallowed hard at a sudden urge to vomit, and her hands trembled in her lap. She blinked rapidly, fighting against the threatening tears. “I think I’ll come. But I need to ask my uncle first.” She closed the communication as Raelene had instructed, and was relieved to find it worked easily. Immediately, she fell sobbing into her grandmother’s arms. Raelene patted her back and spoke soothingly.

“You did well. It will be fine—everything will be fine. Catch your breath and tell us what he said to you.”

*****

Kaevin tried to stay focused, but he felt himself slipping in and out of consciousness. He knew Vindrake had been talking to Alora, but he couldn’t hear her voice. He tried to deduce her words from Vindrake’s responses. When Vindrake spoke about Kaevin’s execution, he found himself longing for it. Only the thought Alora would die with him made him want to fight for his life. He knew they must be planning a rescue attempt, but he also knew any attempt would be futile.

“What did she say?” Abaddon asked Vindrake. “Will she come to you willingly?”

“I believe she will come, but only to save the life of the boy.”

Kaevin prayed she wouldn’t be foolish enough to come.
Does she still believe he’s not too evil to change?

“I have the binding ready, Sire. It’s imbibed in this stone.” He removed a palm-sized smooth white stone from his cape. “You need only touch the stone to her skin and speak her name, and her gift will be bound.”

“There is no danger to me in handling the stone?”

“As long as you touch the stone to her skin, and speak only her name, there is no risk. And your iron belt protects you from unwanted transport.”

“But the iron reduces the range of my gifts. I would much prefer to remove the belt.”

“You only need to wear the belt until you have used the stone on Lena, rendering her giftless. And I believe your own gifts are so strong that even circled in iron you have significant range.”

As Vindrake’s venomous gaze fixed on Kaevin, he felt his skin crawl.

“Hmmm, perhaps your theory is correct.” He stretched his arm toward Kaevin, scrunching his hand into a fist. Kaevin screamed as yet another finger snapped in his hand. And his world went black.

*****

“How’s your head?” Uncles Charles asked when Alora connected with him.

“It’s fine,” she answered wearily. “Did you reach the camp yet?”

“Not yet. We have two scouts riding a league ahead to locate it. Then Nordamen is going to place some kind of silence cloud around us, so we can approach without being heard.”

“Should we come now or wait?”

“Let me ask Nordamen.” Alora saw him turn his head and speak to the side. “Alora is asking whether they should come now. Yes. You want her to do what? No, stop. Don’t bother explaining it to me. I’ll just tell her what you said.” He turned back to Alora. “Nordamen says he wants you to come and use your dispersement—” He stopped abruptly, turning to the side, agitatedly. “What? Oh, whatever...” He spoke to Alora again. “Discernment—he wants you to use your discernment, whatever that is. So somehow you’re supposed to tell us how far away the camp is.”