Claimed (21 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

D
ec stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Trevor as they walked into the Psychopomps tower. He glanced at the time projected up on the wall behind Walter. He had less than twelve hours to clear Galena’s name before Aislin brought the hammer down. Assuming she would actually give him that much time.

Trevor looked utterly defeated, his eyes downcast. The sight made Dec’s throat tighten with sorrow and confusion. What the hell had happened? He put his hand on Trevor’s shoulder. “Can you call Erin? Maybe she could help us figure out what’s going on.” Because the more he thought about it, the more Trevor’s actions didn’t make sense. Angry or not, Ker or not, the Trevor he knew would never stab an innocent woman in the chest. He wouldn’t Mark people who weren’t fated to die.

Trevor’s eyes went wide. “No! I promised her I wouldn’t bring her into this. She was so scared, Dec. And if Moros finds out, he’ll probably kill her just for being with me. None of this is her fault. She tried to stop me.” He rubbed at the back of his neck. “She didn’t tell anyone because she didn’t want to get me in trouble, but because she didn’t tell, she looks guilty. I can’t do that to her.”

“Fine.”
But I’m going to track her down.
“Are you sure you want to do this?”

“After what I did?” His dark skin was ashy, like he was going to puke. “If I’m capable of that, I shouldn’t be allowed to exist.” He looked at Dec and gave him a sad smile. “Thanks for sticking by me.”

It was finally becoming real, the understanding that he was about to lose his best friend. “Maybe Moros will show mercy.”

“If you believe that, you know nothing about him.”

But Dec did know. Moros had a reputation for being pretty ruthless with the Kere who didn’t obey him. And the Lord of the Kere had made it very clear that he wanted Galena to be protected. If Trevor had done something to endanger her, he didn’t stand a chance. Dec’s grip tightened over the strap of the duffel bag into which h
e’d
stuffed the sack containing the bloody knife. He quickened his pace through the soaring lobby.

Four guards intercepted him before he had a chance to reach Walter. “Mr. Ferry, we’ve been instructed to bring you straight to Level Four,” said the one whose name tag read “Max.” He was fiddling with the electroshock baton at his belt.

“You’ll have my cooperation,” said Dec. “As long as you call my sister right now and tell her to meet us there. I need to talk to her.”

Max frowned. “Sir, her instructions didn’t—”

Dec stepped close to him. “Max, what would she do if she knew yo
u’d
prevented me from giving her important information about the Galena Margolis case?”

The guard’s nostrils flared with annoyance. “You can just tell us, and we’ll tell her.”

“I’m not talking to anyone but Aislin.” Dec gestured at Trevor. “My friend and I need to speak with her immediately.”

Trevor leaned forward slowly, not even trying to hide the crimson glow in his eyes. “We’re doing you a favor, son,” he said slowly, his deep voice rumbling. “If I wanted to leave and take Dec with me right now, I could do that. But we’re here. So call your boss and let her know.”

Max took a full step back and bumped into another guard. He pressed his earpiece and waited a moment, then spoke. “Ms. Ferry. Your brother is here. There’s a Ker with him. They say they have evidence—oh. All right.” His hand fell to his side. “She’s on her way down.”

The guards escorted Dec and Trevor to the elevator. Dec couldn’t control the pounding of his heart as they ascended to Level Four. Would they take his Scope? He hadn’t been without it for any length of time since he was sixteen years old. Yes, h
e’d
fantasized about dropping it in a canal and moving to Baffin for good, but when he really considered being truly mortal again, he wasn’t so sure.

When the elevator doors slid open, they were greeted by more guards, who surrounded the two of them as they were shunted all the way down the hall, past Rylan’s cell, and into a large, empty interrogation room with black videowalls on all sides.

Aislin was waiting in the center of the room, her pale cheeks flushed with anger. “Do you understand the position you’ve put me in?” she snapped as soon as she saw Dec.

“I did what I had to do, Aislin.”

Her mouth twisted with contempt. “What utter garbage. I warned you not to take matters into your own hands. You’ve put us under a microscope and turned Galena Margolis into a fugitive, even though the evidence against her appears ironclad. Meanwhile, apparently you were traipsing around Cambridge two nights ago, flaunting your Scope and disappearing from some convenience store bathroom?” Her voice had risen, becoming shrill with rage. “Do you have any idea how many of your messes I’ve been cleaning up today? I thought you were better than this, Declan. I thought you were on my side.”

“I thought you were on mine,” he shouted. “But ever since I Claimed Galena—”

“Wait,” Trevor said, his eyes going round. “You
Claimed
Galena?”

“I did,” Dec said, softening his tone as that protective pride surged in him again.
She’s mine.

Aislin’s mouth drew tight. “And I should never have supported that ridiculous idea. It’s drawn way too much attention on all sides, and—”

“Stop,” Dec said. “It’s done. I don’t regret it. And I will
not
abandon her. She’s innocent.”

“But I’m not,” mumbled Trevor.

Aislin’s ice-blue eyes shot to the muscular Ker. “What?”

Dec handed Aislin the duffel bag as Trevor explained what he had done. His own shame and bafflement about his actions made the Charon’s brow furrow in confusion, but she remained silent as he spoke. When he was finished, Aislin opened the bag and looked inside, then paled and closed it again.

“Guard,” she said, and immediately the door to the room opened. “Take this to the forensic lab and tell them to run rapid DNA. Send the results directly to me.”

“Yes, Ms. Ferry.” The guard accepted the duffel and left, closing the door behind him.

Trevor watched him go, looking hollowed out. Dec knew he was probably dreading the results, confirmation of something that seemed too horrible to accept without hard evidence.

Aislin was staring at Trevor with sharp curiosity in her eyes. “Are you sure you wish to request execution?” she asked, the authoritative edge gone from her voice.

“I’m sure.”

Aislin summoned the guards, who arrived to escort Trevor to a cell. Dec put his hand on Trevor’s arm as he headed for the door. “I’ll be with you,” he said in a strained voice. “I’ll be with you when Moros comes.”

“Thanks, man.” Trevor plodded out the door after the guards, defeat rolling off him in waves.

Dec turned to Aislin. “You said I had until midnight. I need you to stick to that.”

She folded her arms over her chest. “Where have you taken Galena?”

“I’ll bring her back when we’ve cleared her name.”

Aislin’s eyes glinted with cold calculation. “The Keepers have contacted me. Our summit is in one week. And you, Declan, are making me look like a fool.”

“You’re doing that to yourself, Aislin,” he snapped. “You’re willing to sacrifice Galena and everything she stands for just to stay in control of the empire. But I’m telling you, she’s innocent. It would be damn convenient for all of us if she weren’t, but she is. I’m going to prove it. And if you don’t let me, you’re going to have to live with that for the rest of your very long life. You’ll have condemned an innocent woman. And kept her from saving millions of others, even though that’s what she’s fated to do.”

Aislin looked away. “Trevor’s involvement doesn’t exonerate Galena. You haven’t proven her innocence yet.”

“I know.” But Galena had been on to something just before they were discovered at that data center, and maybe, with enough time, she could figure out who had set her up. “Just give me the time you promised. That’s all I’m asking.”

Aislin lifted her chin, still not meeting his eyes. “Very well. You have until midnight, but after that, you’ll leave me no choice. Too much is at stake for me to be lenient.”

Meaning she felt like she had to prove her ruthlessness to one and all, and she was willing to use him to do it. Dec smiled sadly. Aislin had built a wall of ice around her, one that kept everyone away. Even people who wanted to be close to her. “Message received.”

He took a step toward the door, but her slender fingers closed over his arm. “She’s very lucky,” Aislin said quietly. “Does she know that?”

“Considering everything that’s happened to her, ‘lucky’ wouldn’t be the way
I’d
describe her.”

“Few people have someone willing to sacrifice so much for them.”

Dec stared at Aislin, whose eyes were riveted on the black videowall in front of her. “It’s not luck,” he said, then strode out of the room.

He walked by Rylan’s cell just as his dinner was being wheeled in on a tray. Chinese. Rylan’s favorite. He peeked in to see Rylan sitting at his chess table. Rylan’s dark gaze skimmed right over the tray of food and met Dec’s. “Brother,” he said quietly. “Still free, or will you be joining me?”

His guard cleared his throat, and Dec suddenly realized that Ry had probably charmed or tricked his jailers out of a hell of a lot of information. “Still on the loose,” Dec replied.

“But your friend Trevor’s not. I saw the guards escorting him to a cell.”

Dec let out an exasperated breath. “Ry, shouldn’t you be worried more about your
own
ass?”

Dec’s older brother thanked his guard as the man set the tray on one side of the chessboard. Then Ry picked up a chess piece and tossed it at Dec, who caught it. “Ever feel like one of those, Dec?”

He looked down at the piece in his hand. A pawn, of course. “Why, is that how you think of me?”

Rylan’s eyebrows shot up. “Me? I’m not running the board. Not now, not ever. But if Trevor’s here, I’m guessing Moros isn’t running it, either. So that raises the question—who is?”

Dec rolled his eyes. “I’m not here to talk to you about Ais—”

“I’m not talking about Aislin,” Rylan said, picking up the white queen and staring at her. “No, she may be a powerful piece, but she’s merely a player.”

“The Keepers, you mean?”

Rylan shrugged. “Maybe. Someone powerful enough to wrest control of Moros’s Kere away from him. Who would that be?”

“Did Mandy ever seem like she was being controlled by someone else?”

He shook his head. “She said she felt free,” he said.

Different than Trevor, who said he felt “disconnected.” Mandy had enjoyed pain and chaos. She would have been thrilled to engage in unsanctioned killing. But Trevo
r . . .
Dec couldn’t shake the feeling that he hadn’t been in complete control of himself. The one thing Trevor and Mandy shared, though, was that both had wanted to bring Moros down, and the
y’d
hurt and killed others to do it.

Come to think of it, Luke had been pretty down on Moros, too.
I’ll talk about that bastard however I want,
h
e’d
said.

Dec cursed quietly. He needed to know more about how Moros controlled the Kere. If he knew that, then he might be able to help Trevor figure out whether someone had been controlling him. Dec clenched the pawn in his fist. “I hear you’re facing the Keepers next week. Ready?”

“Maybe. Right now
I’d
say a lot depends on how things turn out with Galena.” Rylan set the white queen on the board and scooped up the king, holding the piece between finger and thumb. “She’s certainly gotten herself in a lot of trouble, hasn’t she?”

Dec slowly walked forward. Never taking his gaze from his brother’s, Dec set the pawn in the middle of the board. “This isn’t a game to me.”

Rylan reached across the board and moved a knight, casually knocking the pawn away and setting the piece in its place. “Maybe not to you, Brother.” His voice had become tired, no longer edged with cunning. “But I think someone’s having a hell of a lot of fun. If we don’t figure out who it is and what they wan
t . . .
” He swept his arm across the board, and all the pieces clattered to the tile floor. He looked up at Dec. “Good luck out there.”

His heart beating faster than he wanted to admit, Dec turned on his heel and walked past the guard, wh
o’d
been standing at the door. As he entered the hallway, he pulled his Scope from his collar.

He had less than twelve hours and no plan. But right now, all he could think about was getting back to Galena.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

E
li cursed and looked down at his arm. “G, I have to go. But you won’t be alone here, okay? I’ll make sure you’re guarded.”

Galena stood up with him. “No one knows I’m here, Eli. And you’re the only one who knows I’m not immortal. Don’t you think it’s safe?”

He put his warm hands on her shoulders. “Can you forgive me if I don’t want to take that risk? Dec’s not back yet, and for all we know, he’s gotten collared by Aislin’s guards.”

“What would she do to him?”

“No idea. She seems pretty determined to control every variable, and Dec has been a loose cannon.”

Because of her. If anything happened to Dec, she wasn’t sure how she would handle it. Somehow, over these last few crazy days, h
e’d
become important—no,
necessary
. She had to figure out a way to clear her name, because maybe it would clear his, too.

Eli studied the worried look on her face. “Do you want me to take you somewhere? Or go get Cacy and bring her back here? Sh
e’d
be willing, G. She’s worried about you.”

Galena shook her head. “No. I’ll stay here.” If Dec was free, h
e’d
come here. And she wanted to be here when that happened.

“All right.” He rubbed his inner forearm like it was suddenly sore. “I’m going.” He kissed her forehead and vanished.

Galena stood in the middle of the cabin’s small living space, shivering. Sh
e’d
cracked open the cage where sh
e’d
imprisoned all those black memories, but now Eli was gone, and she was alone with them, feeling shaky and vulnerable. Eli believed she could reclaim her own mind. Her hand skimmed down her stomach to her lower belly, where the scars lay.
A slick crimson mess. Made of pain and terror and grief.
She let out a low sob. How could Eli possibly have thought she could do this?

A faint cold breeze tickled her cheek, and she turned to see Dec climbing out of his Scope. He looked like h
e’d
lived fifty years in the last few hours. His hair was messy, and dark stubble shadowed his jaw. He closed his Scope and fastened it to its setting, and then his eyes met hers. He didn’t say anything. He just came toward her, his arms rising from his sides. Reaching for her.

A frantic noise flew from her mouth as she rushed into his embrace, and he wrapped her up tight, lifting her off her feet. His rough cheek scraped against her throat as he bowed his head against her shoulder. Her fingers tangled in his hair. “I was so worried about you,” she mumbled.

He placed a tender kiss at the junction of her neck and shoulder, right next to the bandage. “I know exactly how that feels. Where’s Eli?”

“He was here until a few minutes ago.”

“Good.”

“Are you all right?” she asked. He was holding her so tightly, and h
e’d
looked so sad when h
e’d
come through the Scope.

“No,” he admitted, lifting his head. She laid her hand on his cheek, and he leaned into it. “Galena, my friend Trevor was the one who went to visit Jian. He’s the one responsible for killing some of your volunteers.”

“Why would he do that?” she asked in a broken whisper. “Why?”

“I honestly don’t know. All he said was that h
e’d
wanted to get back at Moros, and when I talked to him, he could barely remember how h
e’d
gotten so angry. But Erin was with him, and I’m going to find her and ask her. He doesn’t want her involved, because he’s trying to protect her, but if it means saving his life, then I’ll do it.”

“Saving his life?”

“He’s asked to be executed. Moros would be the one to do it.”

On the one hand, execution sounded just, considering this Trevor person had murdered innocent people. On the other, Dec looked so upset about it that she hoped it worked out. “I’m sorry,” she murmured, leaning to kiss his cheek. “These past few hours must have been so hard.”

He blinked. “Yeah, actually.”

She stood on her tiptoes and touched her forehead to his. “I’m really glad you’re back.”

His hands rose to her hair, his fingers sliding through her locks, holding her face to his as his eyes dropped closed. “Me too.”

She stood there like that for a minute, nose-to-nose with him, then her lips were on his, questing and hungry. He went still, maybe with surprise, but then his arms turned to steel around her and his lips parted, letting her in. Galena closed her eyes and inhaled his hot masculine scent as she ran her tongue along his, exploring his mouth. Her body was made of craving, of desperation. She wanted to destroy anything that stood between them. She wanted to see him, and for him to see her.

Dec’s thumbs caressed her cheeks before his fingers slid into her hair again. He tilted her head up and made the kiss deep, the slow thrusts of his tongue only growing the need inside her. And then he pulled back, nipping her bottom lip. “Galena, you’re not safe here. After seeing what’s happened with Trevor, how out of character this was for him, I think there may be something or someone controlling some of the Kere. And if any of them find out you’re here—”

“Make me safe, then,” she whispered.

His gaze was heavy on hers. “God, I wish I could.”

She laid her hand on his chest, then let it slide down to his stomach, moving lower inch by inch. His muscles were rigid beneath her palm. “You can.”

He stared at her, then shook his head. “Too soon.”

“There’s no time, Dec. And if you do this, you won’t have to worry about me anymore.”

His eyes narrowed. “Is that what you think I want?”

She tried to lower her head, but his hands were on either side of her face, holding her there. “Eli said that your father told you to protect me. That you’re honoring his final wish.”

“And you think that’s all this is.” He waited until she looked into his eyes. “You’re wrong.”

“I shouldn’t have done this to you,” she blurted out. “It’s not fair to you.”

“Stop. I made the decision for a lot of reasons, Galena, and one was that I wanted
you
.” He chuckled to himself. “At least I can admit that to myself now.”

“How could you have wanted this? You don’t even know me.”

“I probably know more than you think, but I definitely don’t know as much as I want to.”

Her hands smoothed over her belly, and a chill rode across her skin. “You’ve risked so much for me, even immortality.”

“I take risks all the time. I’ve never had a better reason than I do now.”

Galena wanted to scream in frustration. “Has it occurred to you that I want to protect you, too?”

The hard edge of his jaw softened. “You want to protect me?”

She tilted her head. “Dec, you’re the best man I’ve ever met. You make me feel safer than I have in years, maybe even before the attack. I don’t know how to feel worthy of you.”

“You realize that’s bullshit, right? Everything I do for you, it’s because you’re already worthy. Of protection and so much more.”

Tears burned her eyes. “But I don’t know how to be good for you! How’s that? I have no idea how to give you what you need, and it feels awful.”

“Would you like to know what I need?” he murmured.

She nodded, swiping a stubborn tear off her cheek. Dec’s hands skimmed down to her shoulders. “I need to know everything. I need to know, or I won’t ever be able to reach you.” He leaned his forehead against hers. “And
that
is something I want more than anything in this world right now.”

She closed her eyes. “I’m so afraid.”

He kissed each of her eyelids. “Me too. But we’re together. And I think we’re a good team.”

She reached up and touched his face, sliding her fingertips over the planes and angles sh
e’d
begun to memorize. Once she did this, once she showed him, once he knew, there was no going back. He wouldn’t be able to forget, and neither would she. And if he pulled back, if she lost him because of this, that would be it. She didn’t think sh
e’d
recover.

But if she denied him, sh
e’d
be pushing him away. Sh
e’d
be allowing her memories, those
monsters
, to win.

Her voice shook as she asked, “Are you sure you want to know?”

Dec brushed his nose against hers. “I think I need to.”

She inhaled a shuddery breath, and he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “What can I do?” he whispered.

Please don’t be disgusted by me.
“Jus
t . . .
stay with me, okay?” Her voice broke, and Dec pulled her into the shelter of his arms again.

She leaned her head on his shoulder and began to speak, halting and quiet. She got through telling Dec about the first part, the terrible moments she and Eli had discussed earlier. But with every second that passed, her heart beat faster, knowing what was coming. Her fingers curled tighter into Dec’s sleeves. He was completely still, solid as a rock, just taking it in, it seemed, just listening.

“I was screaming for Eli,” she mumbled. “They were hurting him, and I could hear him yelling. I could see him thrashing.” She pressed her face into Dec’s shoulder. “And then he went limp. And the ones who were holding m
e . . .
” She blew out a shaky breath as she opened the cage and set the memories free.

The blond one, narrow face, slash of a mouth, grinned as he yanked up her skirt. She kicked out hard and hit him in the thigh, and the black-haired one slammed his fist into the side of her head, sending starbursts of light across her vision. A third one, built like a police tank, walked away from Eli’s body and grabbed one of her legs, yanking it wide. And then the blond one pulled a knife. Its blade glinted dully in the yellow moonlight. She shrieked and struggled as the blade descended, as he cut her panties away, the knife’s edge stinging the skin on the crest of her hip. Her mind was a jumble of terror, her thoughts wordless, full of red.

“He pushed his fingers into me,” she whispered.

“Oh, fuck, that’s tight.” The knife was clutched in his fist, blade flat against her abdomen. His knuckles bearing down mercilessly. Her arms pinioned, rough hands around her ankles. She couldn’t protect herself.

Dec’s voice was strained as he said, “I’ve got you, Galena. I’m right here.”

“I remember the sound of him pulling down his zipper,” she squeaked. “I remember exactly how it sounded. And then he was crushing me, an
d . . .
God, it hur
t . . .
” She shook violently as the sensations crashed over her. Dark spots floated behind her closed eyelids.

“Breathe,” he reminded her. “You have to breathe.”

She focused on Dec’s voice, her anchor in the storm, and inhaled. “I don’t know how long it lasted,” she said. She only remembered the weight lifting and her body shuddering as she gulped for air. But before she knew it, the heavyset one crushed her to the ground again.

“The others were laughing,” she whispered. “Making fun of him as he forced himself into me, jeering about this being the only way he could get with a woman. And it made him angry. He put his hands around my throat.”

Dec let out a low, strangled growl and held her head against his shoulder, his fingers buried in her hair. Her hand landed on his chest. His heart was knocking against her palm, fast and fierce.

“I couldn’t breathe. I thought I was going to die. But then h
e . . .
finished and the other on
e . . .
” She let out a sob. “I can’t do this.”

“You’re doing it,” he murmured. “And I’m with you.”

“The black-haired one, he grabbed my hair. My head hit the cement.”
He pressed his forehead against the side of her face as he slammed into her, his grunts echoing in her head.
“The blond one, I think he was in charge. He grabbed the electroshock baton and shocked the guy who was on top of me, and the jolt went through him and into me. My hea
d . . .
” Had exploded into a shrieking, hissing mass of shattered thoughts. And when sh
e’d
come back to herself, the blond one was between her legs again, laughing.

“The fourth one was screaming that he heard sirens. He was dragging his unconscious friend away,” she choked out. “But the blond one, he wasn’t done with me.” Galena’s hands became fists. Now was the time, and if she stopped, if she avoided it, all of this would be for nothing. She pushed away from Dec, and at first he didn’t seem to want to let her go. But she persisted, pressing her palms against his broad chest and moving away from him.

She closed her eyes. With shaking hands, she pulled her shirt off, and then pushed her sweats down her legs. Her fingers traced across her lower belly, the hollow of her abdomen, traveling across the maze of scars, two thick and raised, others puckered, the leavings of all the surgery it had taken to repair her shattered body. “He stabbed me.” She swallowed hard, shuddering as she remembered the impact, the agony. “Twice. He was going to kill me.”

In the distance, a siren wailed again. “Shit,” said the heavyset one. “That sounded closer.”

The blond one looked over his shoulder, his knife raised for another blow. Then he disappeared, and she heard footsteps retreating down the block. Her trembling fingers traveled to her belly as she stared up at the sky. Nothing but pain.

“There was nothing left after that,” she breathed. Sh
e’d
summoned all her strength and crawled over to Eli. Sh
e’d
curled herself around him. And that was how the medics had found them.

Galena’s eyes fluttered open. Never in her life had she dwelled in a silence as complete as this one. A cold wave of dread rolled through her as she forced herself to focus on Dec, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed. A tear slid down his cheek as he stared at her body.

“I was Marked a long time before those Kere even knew I existed,” she said quietly. She felt out of breath, like sh
e’d
been running and running, though she wasn’t sure if she was fleeing or chasing. All she knew was that she felt emptied out. “Dec?”