Central (35 page)

It was all they could do. The other express platforms arrived minutes later. While a couple of the Waresti who had come over on the platforms took flight and spread out in different directions to scout, the others started scouring the land mass on which they were presently settled. They held little hope that it would be that easy to find Olivia, but it wouldn’t do to leave the possibility unexplored.

Hitoshi and the Gloresti who had traveled with him set up a perimeter around the collection of tropical trees comprising the bulk of the land. Everyone else just settled down to wait until they either found Olivia or the other transport platforms arrived with reinforcements.

Amber and Skye were each seated on a couple of fallen trees. Gabriel, James and Caleb remained standing. They all prayed that Olivia regained consciousness soon and began broadcasting to them. The wait was awful.

Sebastian had insisted that they all arm themselves and don some armor before they left. James had only ever worn the enhanced black leather breastplate during his training. Although it had been designed to be more flexible and less weighty than metal armor, the feel of it seemed to impress more weight on him nonetheless. It made everything so much more real.

His gaze moved to Gabriel, who was wearing very similar armor. His arms were crossed over his chest, his gaze centered on Amber. There were daggers strapped to each of his thighs and both of his boots. He wore his sword on his left side. His eyes had not diminished from the Gloresti dark blue. The expression on his face was fierce.

Caleb, on the other hand, looked unaffected. James knew that was simply the way his brother dealt with an overabundance of emotion. He was watching Skye with the same intensity as Gabriel watched Amber. His sword was similar to Gabriel’s, but instead of the daggers, he wore a wide assortment of darts and throwing stars woven into small seams throughout his armor and the clothing he wore beneath it.

Amber and Skye were identically garbed in specially-crafted armor. He knew that the thin black material was incredibly difficult to create. It was completely impenetrable, but as fluid and supple as any other clothing fabric. Zayna had worked with Sebastian to create it specifically for the girls before they even transitioned to the Estilorian plane, uncertain how fragile their half-human forms would be.

Due to the rarity of the armor, it only covered the girls’ most vital areas. In essence, they were wearing high-necked tank tops with skirts that reached the middle of their thighs. They also wore armor-quality thigh-high boots and bracers on their forearms made of black reinforced leather. Amber wore her blessed sword and Skye was stocked with throwing weapons on a thin belt around her waist as well as in her bracers and boots.

James was similarly outfitted. They all certainly
looked
ready for battle, he thought. They now had to have the faith that their abilities were up to the task. They had to believe in each other.

As he looked around at what had essentially become his family, he knew that there was no one else he would have wanted with him.

They were lucky. Olivia’s connection opened for them within thirty minutes of making landfall.

Amber and Skye had been sitting utterly still on their individual logs the entire wait. Then they both suddenly paled and sat straighter.

“Oh, God,” Amber said in an odd voice.

James watched in confusion as both sisters turned swiftly in their seats so that they were leaning over the backs of the logs. The sounds they made were violent and miserable. Gabriel rushed to Amber’s side and Caleb did the same with Skye. Skye’s spirit guardian suddenly appeared, hovering a foot behind her.

What’s wrong with them?
James thought toward Gabriel, standing helplessly as the girls continued to gasp and issue low moans.

It’s called vomiting
, Gabriel explained with a concerned frown.
It’s a human physical ailment that empties the stomach. I’m thinking since it affected them both at exactly the same time that they have reconnected with Olivia. They’re funneling her pain.

James clenched his hands into fists at that thought. He noted how shaky and wrung-out both sisters looked as they gradually straightened and rinsed their mouths with water from the waterskins. If Olivia was in a similar condition, she would never be able to defend herself.

Amber evidently agreed. “She needs healing. She must have a concussion. The pain is—” she flicked a glance at James. “…bad,” she finished. She caught Skye’s gaze. “We had to close off our connection to keep it from affecting us. But we have to try and help her. She won’t be able to broadcast any clear thoughts to us otherwise, never mind protect herself.”

Skye nodded resolutely. “Join hands,” she directed, rising from her seat and stepping into the center of their small clearing. “All of us. Make sure you’re touching the mark on the wrist of whoever’s next to you. Everyone open your thoughts and push whatever power you can toward Olivia.”

It may have been an odd request, and Skye delivering orders was outside of her character. But if there was one among them who had an instinct about things typically beyond belief, it was the youngest sister. And when her spirit guardian nodded and disappeared, they all found confidence in the idea.

They quickly moved together and joined hands, palm to wrist. James stood between Caleb and Amber. Gabriel connected Amber to Skye, and Skye took Caleb’s other hand. When Titan nudged himself between Amber and James and plopped down to sit in the center of the circle they made, they all looked at each other and shrugged as if to say, “Why not?”

“Okay,” Amber said, taking a bracing breath. “Let’s do this. Try to make it a slow and steady progression so we don’t hurl again. I’ll try to push my healing power to her as we open the connection. Hopefully that will help with the nausea, too.”

James closed his eyes and concentrated. The first thing he noticed was the tingle of the mark on his wrist. Encouraged, he opened his thoughts further.

The second thing he noticed was the pulsing pain. It sat at the base of his skull like someone had driven a hot poker through it. Waves of some indefinable agony made him feel like his insides were trying to twist themselves into knots. A bitter taste entered his mouth. It was all he could do to not try and spit the offensive flavor away.

Olivia was experiencing this on an even greater scale? The thought horrified him. It also compelled him to push past it and focus every bit of his Gloresti energy toward helping her.

Beyond his eyelids, the world glowed gold. He had never felt or seen Amber’s healing energy at such a peak. He was sure that to open his eyes would have meant blindness from its brilliance. Bit by bit, the pain ebbed. The overwhelming vise around his gut eased. His head stopped throbbing.

Amber? Skye?

His eyes flew open. They all looked at each other. He had directly heard Olivia’s thought and felt the fear and hope behind it. His heart somehow managed to swell and ache at the same time.

We’re here, Liv
, Skye thought, her eyes glistening. He was astonished that he heard her, too.

Can we sit down?
Amber asked. She looked ready to fall over.

They sat.

We need you to tell us as much as you can about where you are, Liv
, Amber thought.
Tell us anything you see, hear, smell. Anything.

Better yet
, Skye thought,
try your best to open your thoughts and senses to us. We’re trying something a little different.

I can’t see anything
, Olivia thought immediately. Her fear pervaded all of them, but the thought had been communicated in a clear and level tone.
I’m blindfolded. Someone’s carrying me.

Don’t move
, Gabriel thought.
Try to stay limp, as though you’re still unconscious.

There was a moment where they could sense her processing this.

Gabriel?
If a thought could be stunned, this one was.

Yes. We’re all here, Liv.

Another pause.
James?
The thought was hesitant. But her fear had notably eased.

Yes, Olivia
, he thought. He didn’t have to project anything to know he was sending his love and emotion through to her with the thought.

Do NOT cry
, Amber demanded, obviously sensing Olivia’s emotions reaching a critical point.
We need you to focus.

I know. I’m sorry! But I have to get this in. I love you, James. I’m sorry for being so miserable.

I love you, too, Olivia.
It felt so good to simply convey the words to her that he was able to truly focus for the first time since learning she was missing. Everyone surely felt his intense relief.

I repeat—
Amber thought.

It smells dank, like a basement or something
, Olivia interrupted quickly, recognizing Amber’s tone.
Hang on…let me try what Skye suggested.

There was silence. But a few seconds later, they could sense what she was experiencing. Their combined effort to connect with her and her effort to push her senses toward them was actually working.

James felt painful pressure against his diaphragm. He realized she was being carried over someone’s shoulder. There was pain in his wrists and ankles, telling him she was bound, tightly. The only sounds were of an unknown number of Mercesti breathing as they walked with her.

It’s echoey
, Skye observed.

She was right. And the smell that Olivia had mentioned was very apparent.

They’re below-ground
, Caleb thought.
That narrows it down, as does the fact that they got there in less than hour.

How can you be sure of that?
Amber wondered.
We don’t know when Olivia got here.

The bodies were still warm and fairly solid.

Oh.

I’m not sure whether they returned the same way
, Olivia thought,
but they flew to that spot from the west.

Gabriel immediately relayed all of the thoughts to Hitoshi, trusting him to spread the word. Much to James’ surprise, Titan suddenly leaped from the center of their circle and ran off. He suspected the panther was following his hunter’s instincts.

Excitement shimmered among them. They had just greatly narrowed down the possibilities and were pursuing a lead.

The brief surge of hope that flashed through him rapidly subsided as he realized that the person holding Olivia had slowed.

“Open it,” someone barked.

Olivia’s fear spiked. They all did what they could to send her calming thoughts.

Courage, Liv
, Amber thought. Her grip on James’ wrist was vicious, telling him she wasn’t as calm and unaffected as she sounded.
We’re here.

“Put her over there,” someone else said in a bored voice from across the room.

There was an abrupt movement when the male holding Olivia leaned down and let her fall from his hold. She kept herself as loose-limbed as possible. The surface she landed on was hard. Cold.

Then James flinched when a searing pain exploded in his abdomen and rib cage. They all cried out in shock as the blow impacted them.

Someone had kicked her, he realized. Kicked her while she was lying bound and blindfolded and unable to protect herself. He thought his fury could know no greater bounds.

He was wrong.

Chapter Thirty-Two

“She is awake,” said the male who had been holding her.

Olivia hunched, curled into the fetal position in an attempt to protect her midsection in the event her assailant decided to take another shot. Even as she gasped for breath, she felt Amber send more healing energy through their connection. It helped tremendously.

Thanks
, she thought.

No problem.

“Was the kick really necessary to determine that?” came another male voice. It sounded more curious than anything else.

“She expelled some disgusting fluids all down my back,” snapped the first male. “I think some got in my boots.”

Inexplicably, she felt herself blushing.

Good
, Skye thought.

Her sister’s genuine satisfaction served to alleviate Olivia’s embarrassment. Then she heard footsteps nearing. Trying to ignore the thumping of her pulse in her ears, she forced herself to stay as attuned to her surroundings as possible to assist her family in finding her. It helped to have something to focus on besides her mind-numbing fear.

She felt hands beneath her armpits. Her heartbeat jack-hammered. She was lifted and set on her feet, an awkward stance because her ankles were tied so tightly together. Then she unexpectedly felt the bindings around her wrists sliced away.

She just as suddenly realized that she had lost nearly all feeling in her hands. Before she could even consider trying to fight her way free of his grasp, he had lifted her left arm and clamped something around her wrist. When he released that wrist and grabbed her right one, the left one remained secured above her head. This was not going to improve the circulation to her hands, she realized.

“This is an unusual marking,” said the male holding her. “I wonder why it glows.”

She fought the urge to yank her wrist out of his grasp, reasoning it would draw more attention to the mark. When he simply secured her right arm above her head as he had her left, she knew she had dodged a bullet. At least the shackle would cover the mark from view.

Good girl
, Amber thought approvingly.

A door opened. Olivia was once again struck by the odd idea of doors underground. Even the place where Amber had transitioned had contained only open caves, not doors.

A good point
, Gabriel said.
That means it isn’t a temporary place where they’ve got you. If they’ve built doors, they’re established there.

She wasn’t sure how that helped, but maybe once he shared that thought with the elders it would jog something loose.