Men of Anderas II: Dak the Protector (29 page)

The thought of going with him made her
lightheaded but if she could keep Dak alive they might have a
chance. They had no chance if he died.

“You will keep Dak alive?” She asked. He was
conniving, deceitful and deadly and she didn’t believe a word he
spoke. There was a trap in his offer; she just couldn’t see it.

“As long as you follow my every
command.”

She really had no choice. Dak was going to
be furious with her but she’d gladly suffer through his temper if
it meant he lived. “Very well. I’ll follow you
IF
he still
lives and continues to live. We both know how easy it is for a
crystal witch to end his … or her … own life.”

Draagon’s eyes narrowed and the muscle in
his jaw clenched repeatedly. “Threats, Kierin?” His raspy whisper
carried the promise of death.

“Promises.” She held his gaze, locking her
muscles to hide her tremors.

After several tense, silent minutes, Draagon
reached for the comm unit hanging from his saddle. “Jud.”

“My Lord.”

“Does the bodyguard still live?”

“Yes, Lord Draagon. He has five minutes
before the second group of villagers die. If he is the man I think
he is, he will appear before then. Your orders will be carried out
immediately upon his arrival.”

“I no longer wish his death. When he comes
to you, capture him and bring him to the designated rendezvous
point.” Draagon never broke eye contact with Kierin.

“He will not surrender, Lord Draagon.”

“Of course he will, Jud. You must have faith
in my orders. All you have to do is inform him that I have Lady
Kierin and if he wants her to remain in a …
healthy
… state,
he will do as you ask.”

Draagon dropped the unit without waiting for
a response. “Shall we proceed?” He gestured for Kierin to precede
him.

Kierin straightened in the saddle and shook
her head. “Based on
your
word that he still lives?” She
scoffed. “We don’t move one inch until I hear his voice.”

“You play a very dangerous game, Lady
Kierin. Few men would dare challenge me as you have tonight. I
trust you will not make a habit of this in the future.”

The coldness in his eyes matched the deadly
promise implied in his words. Kierin swallowed hard but held her
horse still.

“Surely you can
speak
to him
telepathically. Why wait for Jud to capture him?”

“Only mated couples are able to communicate
like that. You know that as well as I do.” She prayed her face
didn’t betray her lie.

“Are you saying he’s not your mate?” Draagon
sounded hopeful.

“I wanted an Anderan lover to father a male
child. That didn’t work out according to my plan; however, I’m fond
of him and he’s an accomplished lover. I knew he would protect and
provide for me and our daughter.” Kierin prayed her lies and
half-truths would convince Draagon. Her link to Dak was the only
advantage they had against so many Phantom Riders.

“Very well. We wait for Jud’s call. Any
further delays will be dealt with in a most unpleasant manner. Do
we understand each other?”

“Yes.” She whispered, pulling her cloak
closer against the cold wind and blowing snow.

* * * *

Dak walked through the streets with a calm
he didn’t feel. All of the stalling and searching and planning
brought him no closer to a solution. If he didn’t appear, innocent
men, women and children would die. He couldn’t live with that on
his soul.

I must do this, my love. I’m so
sorry.
She didn’t respond and Dak sent a silent prayer to every
deity in the galaxy that she heeded his warning and took shelter in
the chamber. With no weapon but his bare hands, Dak drew himself
straight and tall and stepped into the central courtyard. He waited
for the mounted guard to notice him.

“I am Lord Beldon Dak, third in line for the
throne of Falcon Tor on the planet of Anderas. Your fight is with
me alone. I trade my life for theirs.” His strong voice echoed
through the cold night air and silence settled among the Phantom
Riders.

The mounted guard waved his hand and the
villagers were released. They scurried away in silence.

“Your life is no longer forfeit, Anderan.
Lord Draagon sends his request for you to join him. Surrender
without a fight and you will be allowed to ride. If you refuse, you
will be bound and gagged and thrown over the rump of a pack horse
for the two day ride. The choice is yours.”

“No thanks. I think I’ll stay here with
these kind folks.” Dak didn’t trust Draagon. He wouldn’t be allowed
to just leave after all the trouble Draagon went to just to find
him. Something was wrong.

“I told Lord Draagon you would refuse. His
response was to tell you he has Lady Kierin and her continued good
health depends entirely on you.”

Dak stumbled at the news and the mounted
guard laughed.
I will take great pleasure in killing you before
this is over.
When he could force his jaw to relax enough to
speak, he faced the guard. “How do I know you speak the truth?
Phantom Riders aren’t known for their truthful natures.”

“Here’s my comm unit. She’s waiting for your
call.”

Dak caught the hand-held unit in mid-air.
Damn. I have a really bad feeling about this. Is this why she
didn’t answer me earlier?
Drawing a deep breath, he keyed the
unit.

“Kierin?” He waited, with sweat beading his
lip despite the frigid wind.

“Dak! Are you okay?” Kierin’s voice came
through clear despite the static.

“What happened?” Dak could barely force the
words from his throat.

“I walked into his trap. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t cry, Little Witch. We’ll get through
this.”

“
Don’t cry, little witch.
” Draagon
mocked. “How pathetic. You will do exactly as I say, Anderan, if
you want to see your
little witch
again. Return the comm
unit to Jud and follow his instructions to the letter. Do we
understand each other?”

“If you harm her in any way ….”

Jud snatched the comm unit from his hand.
“Do you ride sitting in the saddle or across it?”

“I’ll sit; but just so we’re clear--I’m
giving you notice that I
will
kill you.” Dak grabbed the
reins from the guard who brought the horse, and mounted.

“You will
try
, Anderan.” Jud laughed
again. “If you speak again I’ll gag you. And don’t try anything …
desperate. Draagon said you have to stay alive. He didn’t say you
had to keep all of your body parts.”

Wheeling his mount, he galloped into the
darkness outside the gate. Dak followed surrounded by dozens of
Phantom Riders. It was several hours later, as dawn was breaking on
the horizon when the patrol finally stopped and unsaddled the
horses.

“We’ll be here four hours.” The guard
explained as he tied Dak’s hands and handed him a water skin and
chunk of dried meat. “You should eat, piss and sleep. We only stop
every twelve hours.”

“What happens if I have to … relieve myself
… before we stop again?” Dak gulped the cold water. He’d had
nothing to drink since his lunch with Digger yesterday.

“You whip it out and piss on the road. Just
don’t piss on your own feet.”

When the guard walked away to seek his own
comforts, Dak settled against his saddle. Chewing on the tough meat
and washing it down with the icy water, he surveyed the patrol. Few
spoke as they settled. Obviously accustomed to the routine, they
wasted no time or effort before trying to sleep. He needed to do
the same if they planned on riding a straight twelve hours. Closing
his eyes brought images of Kierin and he smiled. He didn’t think
he’d live to see the outside of the village, but he did. Fate or
destiny wasn’t through with him, after all. It was a pleasant way
to fall asleep.

“
Dak, don’t let anyone know you can hear
me. Are you well?”

Dak blinked, unsure if he was still asleep
and dreaming.
“I’m here, Little Witch. Are you safe?
”

“
So far. Draagon doesn’t know we can
communicate. I lied when he asked about our bonding.”

“
Good girl. Don’t give him any
information if you can prevent it. He’ll use it against you. Do you
know where we’re headed?”

“
I think he’s headed across the desert.
I’ve never been that far but he said we should be there in three
days.”

“
Jud said we would arrive in two days so
we must be closer than you, unless we’re going to a different
location.”

“
I don’t think so. Draagon seems anxious
to combine both groups. Dak, you can’t let him know you have a key
to the fortress. He wants my father’s crystal and he’s too
confident. That worries me.”

“
We’ll deal with whatever comes, baby. I
know what to do with the key. How are you feeling? Is the baby
safe?”

“
She’s warm and secure. I want to go
home, Dak. I want to sit in your lap by the fire and count the days
until the baby comes. Do you think we’ll live through
this?”

“
I won’t lie to you, baby. It doesn’t
look good but as long as either of us draws a breath there’s hope.
We’re stronger together than we ever were apart.”

“
We’re stronger than you know, my love.
Draagon is watching me too closely. Stay safe. I love you.”

“
I love you, too, Little Witch.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Dak welcomed the sight of the buildings
appearing on the horizon. Two days of hard riding and little sleep
had taken a hard toll on the men and animals, alike. They left the
desert behind late yesterday. The ground here was lush with late
winter grasses. Heavy cloud cover promised snow but the horses took
advantage of the edible bounty while they could.

He was positive his ass carried the imprint
of the saddle. Every wisp of breeze carried the stench of his
unwashed body and it was strong enough to burn his nose and bring
tears to his eyes. He desperately wanted a bath but didn’t hold out
any hope that Draagon’s
hospitality
included personal
hygiene.

There was no contact with Kierin since that
first day and he missed her presence. She should arrive by tomorrow
and he could judge for himself how Draagon treated her. His gut
churned with worry but he hid it from the guards watching him. He
wouldn’t give them any edge or show any weakness.

Three structures comprised this new
location. An open stable, large enough to house at least a hundred
horses, sat behind the other two. The small building in the center
looked to be about the size of a country inn with two stories and a
covered porch. The third stood four stories tall with three
exterior staircases on each long side and one on either end. If he
had to guess, it was the sleeping quarters for the Phantom Riders.
So this was Draagon’s base of operations.

He followed the guards to the stable. His
stiff legs didn’t want to hold him steady when he dismounted, but
he managed to swallow his groan of pain.
You’re getting soft.
Suck it up. This isn’t the first forced march you’ve made on
horseback.

“Anderan!” Yelled Jud. “Your mount will be
cared for by one of the guards. Come with me.”

Dak shrugged at the nearest guard and handed
over the reins. Jud grabbed the rope around his wrists and led him
to the smaller building. A small foyer opened to a hallway leading
to the back of the building, a staircase to the second floor and
one large room with no windows and very little furniture. Other
than a few straight-back chairs and a small table the room was
practically empty. In the center of the room something very large
was covered with black cloth. Whatever was under there made the
hair on Dak’s neck stand on end. A monstrous fireplace filled one
short end and the blazing fire warmed the entire room.

Without slowing his progress, Jud marched
him to the far corner, close to the fire. Before Dak realized what
was happening, Jud slipped a hook through the rope around his
wrists and yanked hard on the chain attached to the hook. When
Dak’s arms stretched above his head and his feet barely touched the
floor, Jud anchored the chain.

“Have a good night, Anderan.” He left the
room laughing.

“Son of a BITCH!” Dak struggled against his
bonds but all he managed to accomplish was ripping more flesh from
his wrists
. Just when you think it couldn’t get any worse
.
How in the hell was he supposed to protect Kierin and get them out
of here when he was trussed up like an animal waiting for
slaughter?

“You’ve come full circle.” He muttered under
his breath. “You were chained at Murdock’s and you’re chained
again. This just keeps getting better and better.”

“
Bad news, baby. I’m hanging from the
ceiling. I don’t know what that deranged bastard has planned but it
just got a lot more difficult from my perspective.”
He didn’t
know if she could answer him but he needed to keep her
informed.

“
Draagon is becoming over-confident. I
think he’s losing his grip on reality. The entire trip he’s done
nothing but play with that small misshapen crystal around his neck
and mutter under his breath. Even his men have noticed and they
avoid him whenever possible. I think that ugly crystal is the
source of his power. Dak, I don’t understand. If he wants my
father’s crystal, why did we cross the desert? We’re days away from
home and getting farther away every second. He just sent more than
half of his men back the way we came. Does any of this make sense
to you?”

“
Sounds like we need to get that little
rock of his away from him. Kierin, there’s something hidden here in
the room. It’s big and giving off a strange vibration. It feels
wrong.”

“
Focus on the vibration. Concentrate as
hard as you can. Maybe I can pick up what it’s made of.”