The Gladiator Prince (37 page)

Thane took a step forward and lifted his sword. “Promised what?” he demanded.

Hasani turned his back on the gladiator and ran a hand through his hair. “Does it matter? She would not go to the ship, and I had to think of something, so when she insisted on rescuing you, I thought I could deter her…”

“What did she promise?”

Swallowing, the Egyptian rested his hands on his hips. “To become my wife in exchange for my help in saving you.”

Red flashed before Thane’s eyes. A tunneled vision of Hasani’s throat starkly white filled his vision. The blade in his hand seemed to rise on its own. A searing roar sounded in his ear, scratched his throat as it rose to his mouth. All he wanted at that moment was to see Hasani’s blood.

The Egyptian moved quickly to the right as Thane charged. His blade skidded off a wagon parked there. He whirled around and brought his sword with him plunging for Hasani’s chest. Hasani jumped back, and the blade barely missed him.

“Listen to me!” he shouted, but it only added fuel to the flame, and Thane charged him again. This time the pirate caught the blade under his arm and fell back, pulling the gladiator on top of him. The sword caught on the cobbled road and twisted out of Thane’s grip.

Without losing a moment, he brought a fist across Hasani’s jaw, smashing the Egyptian’s face to the left. Hasani’s middle suddenly arched upwards, and Thane lost his balance. He fell on his shoulder with a thud, but recovered quickly. Shaking the daze from his head, he saw his
gladius
inches from his hand. Rolling to the right as Hasani reached down for him, he grabbed his sword and brought it up quickly, sending Hasani backwards. He tripped and fell onto his back. Thane was on him instantly, jumping on Hasani’s chest and pinning his arms expertly to the road.

He brought the blade to the man’s throat and had to fight to keep from driving it home in his skull.

In that position, the roar of flames dancing around them, and Rome burning to the ground, Hasani managed a painful smile. “I was not going to marry the girl, you horse’s ass. She is in love with you. I have enough problems with women, thank you very much. Believe me, she is not worth losing my head over.”

The fury left Thane as quickly as it had started. He shook the confusion out of his head. Scowling down at Hasani, a wave of fatigue washed over him, and he threw the
gladius
as if it had caught fire. All he remembered was the thought of Phaedra in this man’s arms then a hot rage that occluded everything else.

“You are very heavy,” Hasani said from beneath him.

Thane fell instantly back and rolled off the man. Hasani jumped to his feet, brushed off his clothes then grabbing his chin, tested his jaw with a grimace. “You have quite a punch.” He pulled air into his lungs and offered Thane his hand. “I think we’ve had enough excitement for one night.”

Thane got to his feet, but the wind had been knocked out of his sails. She had promised to marry Hasani. That thought brought him to his knees as surely as a blow by another gladiator. How could she…

“She did it to save you, Prince,” Hasani said. “I doubt very much she would have kept her word. She would have pined for you for the rest of her life and made mine miserable. Just like a woman to tear out your heart and smile while she eats it in front of you.”

Thane bent down to pick up his sword and returned it to his
balteus
. “You did not even pull your blade.”

The pirate shook his head and stretched his neck. “I am no fool. I knew that would only add fuel to the fire. You were mad enough already.”

For the first time in Hasani’s presence Thane planted his fists on his hips and threw back his head to laugh. “You are probably right.”

“I think I know where she would go. We have to hurry,” Hasani said eyeing the advancing fire and smoke. “This may be there before we are.” Without looking back, he took off at a trot down the street.

Thane had to admit in all reality, he could actually learn to like the cocky Egyptian. He adjusted his
gladius
and took off after him.

Chapter XLV

Phaedra slammed the door behind her and fumbled to get the bolt into place. Just as she slid it into the loop, the door jumped at her, and she fell back. It danced again as someone crashed into it.

“I know you are in there, witch! I will bring the whole of Rome down on you for this!”

Phaedra covered her ears, terrified by her father’s voice. She tried to see in the darkened warehouse, but it was as black as pitch. Falling more than once, she stumbled to the middle of the room, looking for the table, her only salvation.

At her back, she heard the door finally crack then cave in. Light flooded the floor as fire raged behind Abella. He stood in the doorway as a giant shadowed monster. The light spotlighted her as if the sun had risen before her. Abella rushed forward.

Her back to the table she reached behind her and grabbed a handful of sulfur. When he was almost on her, she covered her eyes and threw it at him.

A screaming wail filled her ears, and she moved around the writhing figure in front of her. She made it past him and stumbled to the floor, tripping over his foot. Hitting the floor on her hands, she felt her wrist snap, and excruciating pain collapsed her arms. She managed to get to her knees then to her feet. When she tried to run, something grabbed her hem and brought her down again. In the next instant, he was on top of her.

Flailing her hands and arms frantically to escape, Phaedra made contact with Abella’s face at least four times before he slammed down on her belly and got his hands around her throat. The long fingers tightened almost slowly around her windpipe.

All she could hear was the rush of her own blood, Abella’s exerted wheeze, and the drumming of her ears as pressure built up in her skull. Pins of light flashed in her eyes, and sparks ignited her face in pain. She pounded her fists against him, but it was useless; his strength had bested her.

Then, just as the darkness swooned around her head filling her eyes with stars, a face appeared behind Abella’s lighted only by the flames in front of them.

Bahar smiled down on her, and for a moment she thought that her little sister had died and been sent back by the gods to say goodbye. There was a flash of steel then something warm and liquid spilled onto her face. The hands loosened sending her into a fit of coughing. When the weight of him fell off, Phaedra rolled over to her side and threw up.

A hand appeared on her shoulder, and she whirled around in terror, scooting away from it quickly. When she looked, Bahar stood in front of her, half-naked, one arm and shoulder covered with a thick cloth, a loincloth wrapped around her middle, and a dripping blade in her hand. Behind her, now completely engulfed in flames, the door and the wall burned, sending black clouds of smoke toward them. She screamed, and Bahar whirled around.

When Bahar backed up, Phaedra pulled her into her arms, and they both cried. Phaedra struggled out of her arms and ran from wall to wall, trying to find an opening, a window, a way to escape. The walls were as firm and solid as marble.

Coughing they moved to the center of the room where the fire and smoke were less thick and sank to their knees. When Phaedra looked down, all she could see other than the roiling smoke were the gazing black eyes of Abella staring back at her. She screamed again.

Holding Bahar close, the heat intensified around them. Fumbling in frantic fear, she tried to speak, but the noise of the flames swept the words away.

“What?” Bahar screamed back at her.

Phaedra put her mouth to her sister’s ear. “Forgive me, Bahar.”

Bahar pulled back, and a sad smile lightened the smoke blackened face. “There is nothing to forgive. I owe you my life, my soul, my happiness.” She grabbed Phaedra’s face and touched her forehead with her own. “I love you more than anything, big sister. I always will.”

Phaedra threw her arms around her sister and looked up. The flames had just reached the peak of the ceiling. The strange blazes were almost beautiful as they danced in bright orange sheets, a seductive shimmer that moved impossibly slow, and the smoke seemed to disappear like magic. She knew that once a spark hit the table, they would both die in the explosion. Better that than burning to death. Sparks began to rain from the ceiling around them.

Suddenly, the whole front of the building caved in and a giant wagon careened toward them. She yanked Bahar to her feet and dived to the side as the flaming wagon passed. Behind it, two figures emerged, one grabbing her around the waist and the other snatching Bahar.

At breakneck speed, the two figures sped for the fallen wall and jumped over the flames with their burdens. Running into the night and getting behind yet another wagon. Phaedra hit the ground and found herself in a pair of strong arms. Then the world exploded.

The deafening blast lifted the wagon they were behind up on one set of wheels, and it nearly tottered over on them. Then it was over.

When Phaedra opened her eyes, Thane’s smiling face filled her vision.

Chapter XLVI

As they rushed through the streets, no matter how fast they ran the fire flared around them, often getting into the roof of a tenement just in front of them, forcing them to change their course.

Thane knew the inferno was stirring them away from the docks and would eventually overwhelm them. They were not alone; thousands of people moved around them ebbing and flowing, a moving human tide rolling this way and that as the conflagration guided them.

Finally, Thane motioned them to follow him and they climbed a steep hill until they came to one of the massive legs of an aqueduct.

“We will never make it if we keep going this way,” he said.

“What would you suggest?” Hasani asked. He took off his cloak and wrapped it around Bahar’s bare shoulders. “The fire is nearly on us.”

“We need horses,” he snapped.

“Aye. And where do you propose to get them?”

“You are the expert; where indeed?”

Hasani rubbed his chin and squinted up at the giant cement arch above their heads. He sauntered over to one of the pillars holding up the aqueduct and hauled himself up the ladder. “Let me figure out where we are.”

Thane put his arms around Phaedra. Her face was the color of linen when he wiped away a patch of blackened soot from her pale cheeks. “Are you all right?”

She nodded and threw her arms around his chest, laying her head over his heart. “I am now,” she whispered. “I was so frightened… I thought I had lost you.”

He tucked his fingers under her chin and kissed her gently. “I will always be there for you. I do not know how, but I promise you, I will never leave your side again.” He kissed her again, but she broke from him and hugged her shoulders. When she turned away, Thane thought he saw tears in her eyes.

“I do not deserve your love,” she said slowly. “I have caused all this,” she said sweeping her arm toward the city. “And more than this… I have betrayed you.”

For a moment, the sting of those words fired his heart, but then he realized what she meant and laughed. Phaedra turned and scowled at him. Taking her back into his arms, he kissed her soundly.

“Your promise to Hasani?” he asked, and she took a quick breath.

“You know?”

He nodded and smiled down at her. “I know. The pirate told me himself. He was trying to get you to the ship to keep you safe. He never imaged you would actually take him up on his offer. I think your promise took him by surprise; he does not understand about love, what it makes people do. He has sworn to me that promise is nullified.”

“He said that? By the gods,” she exclaimed, “if I had known I would have ripped out his heart! The agony he caused me…”

“To save you. I am forever in his debt… and yours.” He looked up at the flames turning the city into Hades’ playground. “Even if you did torch the city.”

She turned in his arms and pulled them to rest on her middle. “I did not mean… What have I done?” Thane heard the tremor in her voice and tightened his grip on her.

“You did what you had to,” he whispered, knowing the petite woman he held to his chest held more power than even she realized.

“There is a stable less than a block from here,” Hasani shouted as he slid down the ladder. “The fire has not reached it yet, but we have to hurry.”

They took off at a sprint back down the hill.

When they arrived at the stable, the streets around it were deserted. No one had even bothered to open the stable door to save the horses. Once inside, Hasani lit a torch and Thane picked out two stout beasts who whinnied and fussed as he threw the riding pads in place.

Hasani and the girls managed to get the other stall doors opened and chased the rest of the horses out of the stables.

Once outside, the horses tried to bolt, but Thane and Hasani soothed them before mounting and pulling the girls up behind them.

“Where to now?” Thane asked.