Destiny Forgiven (Shadows of Destiny) (4 page)

_{Someone had paper-clipped a photo on the inside of the folder. Blue, soulful eyes half-hidden under shaggy brown bangs and lips pouted into a sullen frown.}

_{“Who are you, girl?” he asked the photo. “And how do you know me?”}

_{“Know who?”}

_{Startled at the sudden presence, Maddox closed the folder and jumped up from the chair. The older man walked in, slowly. The frown lines on his face were his most prominent feature.}

_{“Father,” Maddox said with a nod.}

_{“I missed you at dinner last night.” He gestured to Maddox’s chair. “Please, sit.”}

_{He obeyed, as he always did, even though his father remained standing. Saith was always putting himself in a position of dominance and authority. Maddox admired that and strived to imitate it with soldiers and foes.}

_{“I wasn’t hungry so I stayed late to work.”}

_{Saith was not one to accept excuses easily. Maddox ignored the suspicious look.}

_{“And how is that going? Has the new girl spoken yet?”}

_{“Not yet, but I have her on food restriction. She’ll cooperate soon.”}

_{“I can’t stress how important this is for our cause.”}

_{“I know. I’ll make her talk.” Did his father think he was an idiot? Every case was important to their mission. He dropped his gaze to the folder still in his hands. “Why is it we have no information on the girl?”}

_{Saith took the folder from him and opened it. “She’s an elusive one. Fast, smart.” He studied the photo briefly then, with a bored look, handed it back. “Who she is doesn’t matter, son. Only what she can do. Who her contacts are. Where they’re getting their weapons. That’s what we need to know.” Leaning forward, he stared down at Maddox. “Don’t concern yourself with who she
is. Think ahead, Maddox. Many people are counting on you. Lives of our soldiers and friends depend on you extracting this information.”}

_{As if he didn’t know that. But still, the urge to learn her history gnawed at him. Why was she so sure she knew him? And why did he believe her?}

_{His father straightened. “Understand, soldier?”}

_{He nodded. A year ago, he’d have been all sirs and salutes, but now that Maddox had moved up in rank, they were almost on equal footing. Almost.}

_{A fleeting smile crossed his face. His father rarely showed emotion, but the more Maddox abided by his will, the more his father showed his pride.}

_{Saith turned on his heel and started toward the door.}

_“Sir?”

_{He stopped.}

_{“Do we have her friends in captivity? Her accomplices?”}

_{“No,” he answered, regretfully. “But she doesn’t need to know that.”}

_{Maddox nodded. It was a tactic he used often with stubborn prisoners. He found out who the prisoner loved most and used it against them. But with no information on the girl, he’d have to be especially creative to make her believe they had someone she cared about.}

_{Again, he felt sick. In his mind, tears pooled in her eyes. He forced that vision away. His father was right. Too many people depended on him. This was no time for a crisis of conscience.}

_{When he looked up, he caught his father giving him a suspicious look. Was his struggle that apparent?}

_{He cleared his throat. “Not to worry. In two years of interrogation, I’ve never failed. This little girl won’t get the best of me.”}

_{His father gave him a last glance then nodded curtly. “Keep up the good work.”}

_{He left the room and Maddox was alone with his thoughts. Through the confusion whirling in his mind, two visions appeared, seeming to fight for his attention – the girl with the soulful eyes and his father’s proud smile. Conflicting, pulling him in two directions. His mind spun to a halt.}

_{A solution. Despite his father’s advice, finding out who she was would break the spell she had over him. He would learn why she thought she knew him – maybe he would even play along. Once he knew her history, he would school her on who Maddox Blackwell, Inkman, really was. When she realized he wasn’t who she thought, he would break her.}

_{FELICITY: You know who’s to blame for this war. You’re on the wrong side of the fight, Maddox. Come back to me.}

_{MADDOX: I wish it were that easy, love. For now, I’m stuck here. Missing you.}

_{Email exchange,
July 2003}
 

_{A chunk of fresh bread, a bowl of what looked like soup, and a cup of milk sat on the table of the interrogation room and made her mouth water for the first time in days. She stumbled toward it.}

_{A hand wrapped around her arm and yanked her back. She stared at the food longingly just a few feet away. Maddox sat her in a chair then leaned in front of her against the table. Tearing her gaze away from the steaming plate of food was impossible.}

_{Now she knew why they’d tied her wrists behind her back. It had only been four days of hunger, but added to that the constant cold, the poor sleep, and accumulating pain and four days felt like forever.}

_{“Felicity,” he said gently.}

_{Her name on his lips caught her off guard. She looked up at him.}

_{He smiled, but it didn’t seem genuine. She wasn’t sure if the fake smile made her more nervous or not. Anger or pretend kindness? At least anger she could predict.}

_{“That’s your name, right?” he asked.}

_{Speaking wasted energy so she nodded.}

_{“We’ll skip the interrogation today.” He eyed the food then looked back at her. “You say you know me. I want to know how.”}

_{Was he starting to remember her? Or was this a trick? She couldn’t concentrate with the smell of food so close. She tried to force her mind to focus. Was this the good cop routine? Did it matter?}

_{He lifted the spoon from the table and used it to stir the yellow broth.}

_{Surely there wasn’t any harm in telling him about their childhood. What could that do? Maybe it would trigger his memory. Eating went with step one – staying alive.}

_{“For every answer you give me, you’ll get a bite of food,” he explained and scooped up a chunk of meat in the soup. “Deal?”}

_{“Okay.” It came out a throaty whisper.}

_{His brow creased and he frowned. When he put the spoon down, she panicked.}

_{“No! Please.” She wanted to shout but couldn’t manage more than a rasp.}

_{Maddox picked up the glass of milk and put it to her lips. She looked at him in question. He hadn’t asked anything yet. A free pass? Should she trust him?}

_{“Drink,” he ordered.}

_{She did. Milk spilled down her chin as she gulped mouthfuls.}

_{“Whoa. Slow down or you’ll get sick.” He pulled the glass away then wiped the liquid from her chin and where it’d dripped down her neck and chest. Then he picked up the spoon again. “How do you know me, Felicity?”}

_{She liked hearing him say her name way more than she should. It felt personal. Much better than
shifter
or just
girl.
“We were best friends.”}

_{A patronizing smile this time. “Very good.” He brought the spoon to her lips and she slurped the contents down.}

_{It went down so fast, she barely tasted it. Eyeing the bowl, she yearned for more.}

_{“We have to go slow or your body will reject it,” he told her.}

_{Fuck that. She wanted it now. But a part of her knew she needed her strength. Throwing up food because she ate too fast was a waste of an opportunity.}

_{“Next question,” Maddox said. This time he tore off a bite of bread. “When were we best friends?”}

_{“As children.” She opened her mouth.}

_{He hesitated then popped it in. “How old?”}

_{Still chewing, she answered, “We were six. I lived with my family in the village and you lived nearby in Caerwyn. I found you wandering by Green Willow Stream. I was hunting frogs and I saw a little boy crying over by a tree.”}

_{“Crying?”}

_{She tried not to laugh at his offended expression. “Just a little. You’d never been on your own before. You must’ve gotten lost. It’s understandable.”}

_{“Hmm.” He kept the scowl as he fed her more from the spoon. “Keep going.”}

_{After swallowing, she went on. “I didn’t know what to do with a crying boy so I handed you the bullfrog I was holding.” At that, she chuckled. “I don’t even know how I managed to carry it. It was as big as my head.”}

_{A hint of a smile flickered on his face then disappeared. He gave her another small bite of bread. “And what did I do when you handed me the frog?” His tone suggested he was humoring her.}

_{The rest of the memory was blurry but she’d never forget this part. “I said you could have him if you stopped crying. You grinned up at me and said, ‘It’s the best present I ever got!’ At the time, I thought your life must be pretty sad if your best gift was a frog.” She laughed, looked at Maddox, and sighed. It was him but someone else at the same time. The little boy who adored frog hunting and swimming and laughing was in there somewhere, right?}

_{“I hate frogs,” he murmured.}

_{His harsh tone snapped her from the memory. “You didn’t used to. In fact, you named that frog Mud.”}

_{“Mud?” His scowl returned. “What a terrible name.”}

_{She rolled her eyes. “It was a frog and you were six.” Her stomach rumbled. “Can I have more?”}

_{He stared down at her, arms crossed and, for a moment, she thought Inkman had returned, cruel and angry. “Yes.” With an evil glint in his eye, he picked up the bowl. “It’s gotten cold. I’ll warm it for you.” A ball of green light burst into his palm, making her flinch. He held her gaze as he moved his hand close to her face.}

_{Scorching heat radiated from the bright light. She leaned back as far as she could. He moved closer, letting the blue flame lick toward her skin. Prickles of pain spread across her nose and cheeks. She remembered watching him learn to control his power when he was young, and being so amazed at how quickly he’d mastered it.}

_{But now his cruel smirk told
her that her Maddox was nowhere near the surface. Not yet.}

_{“Please,” she whispered. “Please, stop.” Would begging please him or annoy him? A harsh burn made her squeak in pain. “You’re hurting me!”}

_{The light disappeared. She exhaled a breath of relief. Chest heaving, she stared at the floor. She pushed back the tears that threatened to show her fear, her weakness. He’d used his magic – a Bolt – to hurt her. And he was capable of worse.}

_{A chunk of chicken sat on the spoon held out in front of her. It took a moment to pull herself together. Maddox waited. Slowly, watching him carefully, she opened her mouth and let him feed her another bite.}

_{“How long were we friends?” he asked.}

_{“Our entire childhood. Until you turned twenty and…” Sadness crept in. “And you went away.”}

_{The table creaked as he shifted his weight. “Went away where?”}

_{She pursed her lips and kept her head down. It was too hard to say. She felt like she was choking on tar. He waited. Silence dragged on.}

_{“Went away where?” he said more firmly.}

_{When she still refused to answer, he tilted her head up with his fingers. She looked straight into his eyes. “Until you came here and lost your soul.”}