Born of Shadows (43 page)

Someone shoved her from behind, forcing her into the room. She turned to see Narcissa slamming the door in the face of the men before she locked it tight.

“What are you doing?” Desideria demanded angrily.

Narcissa tapped the communications band on her wrist. “There are intruders in the north crypt led by Desideria. I think they’re trying to kill Gwen and me. Rally all guards immediately. Help!”

Desideria scowled at her sister while Kara rose to her feet. Her aunt started to attack, but Narcissa leveled her blaster at her and fired. It struck Kara and knocked her back against the wall.

Gasping at the attack, Gwen rolled over and tried to crawl under the sarcophagus.

Dodging the blast Narcissa directed toward her, Desideria moved to shield Gwen with her own body. Even though there was no denying what was happening, a part of her still couldn’t believe it. Surely something else was going on here.

Please, don’t be the killer…

“Narcissa?”

Her sister sneered at her. “You didn’t really think Kara was bright enough to pull this off, did you? Stupid cow. Both of you. The throne is mine, you bitch, and I’m not going to share or fight for it. But I will kill you both to get it.” She fired again.

Using a move she’d learned from Caillen, Desideria dropped to the floor allowing the shot to narrowly miss her. She pulled her own blaster out and returned the blast.

Narcissa dove under a statue of their high goddess and continued to spray fire at them.

Desideria covered Gwen. She knelt by her side to check on her injuries. Her shoulder and side were bleeding and there was a big bruise forming on her right cheek. “Are you all right?”

Her sister was tucked up tight against the stone base as if she was trying to merge with the sarcophagus. “Wounded, but Kara tended most of it.”

Desideria glanced over to where her aunt lay unmoving. There was no help there. “Are you armed?”

“No. Narcissa disarmed me before she wounded me. I barely escaped her.”

Desideria clenched her teeth as she realized by trying to save her sister, she’d endangered her all the more. Fine. She could handle this alone.

“It’s over, Narcissa. Lay down your weapon.”

As expected, Narcissa fired more shots. “My Guard will be here any moment and your friends will be dead or captured. Once I kill the two of you,
I
will be queen.”

Desideria would ask why, but then, she knew. It was the Qillaq way.
Take what you want
. If someone was in your way, kill them. If they weren’t strong enough to fight you off, they deserved to die.

Even family.

Nauseated, she wanted to weep over her sister’s psychosis. Later, she definitely would. But right now, she had to keep Gwen safe.

A low moan sounded from Kara. It wasn’t much. Just enough to make Narcissa pause and glance in her direction.

Desideria seized the moment to leap out and throw herself against Narcissa. Entangled, they rolled across the cold stone floor, punching at each other. She managed to knock the blaster from Narcissa’s hand, but not before she lost her own grip on her weapon.

Krik!

She heard more blasts coming from the other side of the door, out in the hallway.

Narcissa laughed in triumph. “Told you my Guard wouldn’t let me down.”

Rage, dark and deadly, settled over her as a newfound strength welled up inside her at the thought of her friends being attacked. “They’re not your Guard, bitch. They’re mine.” With a bellow of rage, she kicked Narcissa into the wall with everything she had. It was enough to stun her sister who slid to the floor.

As she went for the blasters, Narcissa launched herself at her back.

Desideria rolled to the floor, away from her, grabbed the weapons and landed in a crouch, both blasters drawn and aimed right at the area of Narcissa’s body that should hold her heart. “Don’t.”

Narcissa froze.

Keeping her gaze on her traitorous sibling, she moved to the door and opened it.

The men stood on the other side like they’d been in the middle of trying to open it. She started to ask about the Guard, but they lay sprawled on the ground, scattered throughout the hallway.

“Are they dead?”

Caillen flashed her that familiar shit-eating grin. “Stunned. But don’t think we didn’t consider killing them. What about you?”

“Definitely not dead.” She indicated Narcissa with a jerk of her chin. “It was my sister behind this like I originally thought, not my aunt.”

Hauk tsked as he moved forward to cover Narcissa with his own weapon. For an instant, Narcissa looked like she was about to try and fight him, but since he literally towered over her, she thought better of it. He cuffed her hands behind her back while Caillen and Desideria went to check on Gwen and Kara.

To her complete amazement, Gwen pulled her into a tight hug. Until she went ramrod stiff. “You didn’t kill Mom, right?”

“You heard Narcissa. I had nothing to do with it.”

“Just checking.” She pulled her back into her arms and held her. “Thank you, Des. Thank you!”

Caillen helped Kara to her feet. “Are you sure we shouldn’t be taking this one into custody too?”

Desideria looked at Gwen. “Well?”

“Kara saved my life. Had she not pulled me out of Narcissa’s line of fire, I’d be dead now.”

Her aunt lifted her chin as if she was mortally insulted. “Unlike Narcissa, I take my oaths seriously. I am Qillaq and I would never kill someone in cold blood. Only in fair combat.”

Narcissa curled her lip. “Oh shut up, you sanctimonious whore. I’m sick of all your—”

Hauk stunned her with his blaster.

Narcissa cried out before she slumped to the floor.

Hauk made no moves to break her fall. Instead, he holstered his weapon and met Desideria’s gaze unabashedly. “My mother always said that if you can’t improve the silence, you shouldn’t be speaking.”

Fain let out a low whistle. “You stunned a girl, bro. Then let her hit the floor. Damn, and I thought I was callous.”

Ignoring Fain, Caillen left Kara’s side to stand by Desideria’s. She could tell by his expression that he’d been worried about her. Without a word, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her with a passion that ignited that part of her that craved him most. And it made her hungry for so much more. Closing her eyes, she inhaled the warm scent of his skin and just savored this one moment of peace.

It was over.

Her sister and aunt knew she had nothing to do with her mother’s murder.

I’m free…

Caillen tensed ever so slightly before he pulled back and turned her to face her sister and aunt who were kneeling reverently on the floor.

“My Queen,” Kara said. “I will serve you every bit as faithfully as I did your predecessor.”

Gwen looked up and actually smiled at her. “As will I. Long live Queen Desideria.”

Strange how those words weren’t as important to her now as they’d been before. Indeed, unlike Caillen, they left her completely cold.

Caillen draped his arm around her shoulders. Leaning down, he whispered in her ear. “You’re back where you belong.”

Why didn’t it feel that way?

She looked up at him. “But you’re still not off the hook. Karissa and her daughter are after your throat.”

“Karissa?” Kara scowled at them. “My sister, Karissa?”

Desideria nodded. “She’s the one who killed Caillen’s father and blamed him for it. It appears she and Leran have been behind all of this madness.”

Kara winced. “I should have known this would happen.”

“How so?” Desideria asked.

“I knew Karissa hated us for the fact that she was forced into a political marriage. To her, it was beneath her and she resented the fact that your mother had won the throne. She swore to me that she’d live to see her daughter as our queen.” Kara glanced to Narcissa and sighed. “Stupid child. They would have killed her too and Karissa would have been the one to rule here. Never would they have allowed Narcissa to keep this throne.”

Because Karissa’s offworlder husband was now dead…

That would clear the line of succession. She could easily return to Qilla and claim her former rank. The plan hadn’t been to divide and share rulership. Karissa had wanted it all for herself and her daughter. And since Kara couldn’t fight for the throne, with Desideria and her sisters out of the way, no one would have been able to stop her. Cold, but clever.

Caillen sighed. “It was a brilliant plan.”

Kara let out a long sigh. “When you spend years plotting and executing it, it usually is.”

Gwen shook her head in denial as she stared at Narcissa’s unconscious form. “I still don’t understand how they seduced Narcissa to help them. Why would she betray us?”

“Remember five years ago when I went to visit Karissa?” Kara asked her.

“You took Cissy with you.”

She nodded. “They must have started their plans with her then and kept in touch with her after that.”

And that explained why Narcissa’s attitude had turned so cold at that time. Why she’d been so vicious toward her and Gwen. Not that she’d ever been particularly kind. But after that visit she had returned very different.

How tragic for all of them.

Gwen passed a pleased smile toward Caillen before she looked back at Desideria. “You’ll be able to take a consort now, My Queen.”

Yes, but inside she knew Caillen would never submit himself to her as a pet. It wasn’t in him and she loved him too much to even ask it.

You could fight him.
He would win and be her equal.

But she knew better. She would never take the chance of hurting him and if she didn’t fight him with all her strength, the fight would be nullified by their laws.

All she wanted was to protect him. “If you stay here, Caillen, I can offer you political asylum.”

He stroked her cheek with his thumb before he dropped his hand away from he face. “Appreciate it, but the League and her assassins would always be after me to finish this. They’d be in your affairs and could hurt any one of you in the crossfire. I have to clear my name and make Karissa pay for killing both my fathers and uncle. I owe them that much.”

And once he did that, he’d be a ruler. Then they could never be together.

Her heart shattered with the cold reality.

“How are you going to do that?” Kara asked.

He shrugged with a nonchalance that made her want to beat him. “No idea whatsoever.”

Forever by the seat of his pants. Her smuggler would never change.

“When do we leave?” she asked him.

He looked over at Kara and Gwen. “You’re a queen, Desideria. Your place is here and your people need you. I finally understand that.”

She hated the fact that he was right. She had to stay.

He had to go.

Pain hit her so hard, it was crippling. But she was Qillaq and they didn’t show emotion. Especially not a broken heart. “I guess this is good-bye then.”

He nodded. “You can always call me when you need someone to yell at.”

“You’re not good at taking that abuse.”

“True, but I’ve learned to accept it from you.”

Her throat tightened at his teasing tone. She’d miss that most of all.

Don’t leave me, Caillen. Not here in this cold place with people who don’t know how to laugh.

How to love.

She couldn’t stand the thought of not seeing his smile every day. Of not listening to him banter with her and his friends.

I can’t make it without you.

Those words hung on her lips. She wanted so desperately to say them. To beg him to stay with her and not leave.

But she couldn’t. He belonged to a world she didn’t understand. One where he needed freedom and independence.

Him and that backpack…

“Take care of yourself, Caillen.” She was proud of herself for keeping the pain out of her voice.

“You too.” He took her hand in his and placed a tender kiss across her knuckles. But she wanted so much more from him than that…

Tears gathered to choke her as she savored the warmth of his hand on hers. The softness of those lips that had soothed and pleased her. She would never know that warmth again.

And when he let go of her, she felt her world shatter. The loss of his touch was more than she could bear.

Only the knowledge of Kara watching her… judging her, kept her from running after him and begging him to stay with her no matter the laws or the consequences.

She watched him leave with the others. He paused at the door to look back at her. She saw the agony in those dark eyes. The tangled emotions that said he wasn’t any happier about this than she was.

With one last gentle smile, he left her and the agony she felt inside was enough to drive her to her knees.

You could abdicate
. The words hung on her tongue as she met Kara’s stern expression.

But that wasn’t what a Qillaq did either. Her mother would be so disappointed in her.

So would her father. As queen, she’d be able to pardon her father at long last. Salvage his name for their records.

I want Caillen
.

But life wasn’t about wanting. It was about surviving and following your duty. When those things conflicted, obligation always won out.

Children followed their wants.

Duty commanded adults.

Funny, she’d spent her entire life wanting to be an adult and yet right now, in this moment, all she wanted was to be a kid again. To be able to follow her heart.

And the name of that heart was Caillen Dagan. Renegade. Smuggler. Pirate. Prince.

Hero.

Kara stepped forward. “So tell me, My Queen. What is your first command?”

With every step Caillen took that carried him farther away from Desideria, he felt a part of himself die.

Go back.

The call was so strong that it was almost impossible to resist. But he couldn’t. He had to avenge his fathers and make sure the bitch who’d killed them paid for her crimes. No matter what his heart wanted, he had other obligations that took precedence right now.

Besides, they didn’t belong together. Desideria was queen in a world that would never accept him and he was…