Centaur Redemption (Touched Series) (20 page)

Her words were gentle as she nodded.  “I believe so.  Yes.  Any who may come to my defense will meet the same end.  I want no more blood on my hands.” 

Drake’s voice sounded as though he didn’t believe her, “Are you prepared to give up what you value most?”

Zandra crouched down to Drake, “I am prepared to give up my life.  It is up to you to protect what I value the most.”  Her hand lay gently on his arm.  “I’ve made many mistakes.  I did everything in my power to keep her from you.  I was a fool.  Fate was wiser than I.  Help Camille protect my herds.” 

Drake struggled, trying unsuccessfully to get up from the ground.  Blood still trickled down his hindquarter.  His voice was barely more than a whisper, “I was wrong about you.”

Zandra gave him a half smile, “No, you were right all along.  Seeing Camille with the Centaur Council removed my blinders.  I couldn’t see her for what she was until that moment.  Go to her.  Quinton is your witness.  I’ve made my selection.”

Drake’s voice was persuasive, “I’ll make sure she knows of your sacrifice for all Centaurs.  No one will forget your legacy.”

Zandra’s hand reached high into the air as she touched his cheek, “Camille is my legacy.  She saw the truth when all the rest of us refused to question our history.  I regret that I’ll not tell her myself.  If you can get to your feet – go.”

Drake struggled to his feet and limped over to the metal bars that held them prisoner.  He grabbed hold of a bar and shoved – nothing happened.  The bars were tall and thick and were buried deep in the rock below.  There was no ceiling, nor any bracing bar holding it from the top.  The bars were positioned closely enough that even Zandra’s tiny frame could not squeeze between them. 

I watched as every muscle on Drake’s upper body bulged and struggled to bend the bar.  He threw his weight into the bar, shoving with everything he had as his hooves slid on the rocky soil.

He didn’t relent.  His arms were fully extended.  I watched the tendons in his neck stretch in complaint.  The bar bent marginally.  He took a step back, looked up and down the row of poles, and then went back to the bar he had been pushing.  Zandra had been off to his side, but she, too, stood concentrating on the bar.  After several more seconds an ear-splitting “crack” sounded as the pole refused to bend, but the metal broke under their combined force.

Zandra collapsed to the ground but shouted, “Change back to your human form and go.  Tell Camille the drawer. . ."

Lightning rained in a second time, cutting her off in mid sentence.  Hailstones the size of softballs fell from the cloudless sky above them.  Drake threw himself over her as I watched Quinton seek cover under the only tree that remained standing in their cage.  Judging time through Quinton’s memory was difficult, but the hailstones and lightning strikes seemed to last for hours.  Darkness fell over the mountain top before the assault stopped.

Quinton made his way over to Drake.  He looked dead as he lay motionless on the ground.  Large hailstones lay all around him.  I couldn’t tell where all the blood had come from, but it pooled in the dirt beneath him as gaping wounds leaked from all over his body.  Quinton found Zandra tucked under Drake without a scratch on her. 

She looked at the hole they had made in the fence, then back at Drake’s lifeless body.  “Quinton, go.  He won’t be able to heal in time to travel with you.  I don’t know when Zeus’s wrath will return.”

“Come with me,” Quinton was tugging on her arm.

She shook her head, “No.  Warn the Council.  Tell them everything you saw.  Tell them Camille is my choice.  Go now.”

As Quinton gave her one final look, he turned toward the opening in the fence.  I saw him focus on Drake’s eyes.  They were watching him.  He was still alive.  Drake was mouthing something Quinton couldn’t hear.  Quinton leaned his ear down to Drake’s mouth as his words gave me the shivers.  “Tell Cami I’ll be waiting in the pasture.”  Drake coughed as blood splattered from his mouth onto his hand.  “Tell her I want her to have a long life.  She’s the Chiron.  She owes. . . “  Drake coughed again as his eyes rolled back in his head.

Everything went black.  I was in a sea of nothingness without a compass.  My arms flailed out to my sides as the room came back into focus.  I had been gripping Quinton’s shoulders, but as I looked at his body in the hotel room, I didn’t need to feel for a pulse to see he was dead.  He had stayed alive long enough to deliver Drake’s message. 

I fell to my knees as strong hands tried to pick me up from the floor.  I resisted.  Jessica waved off whoever had tried to lift me from the floor as she placed her hands over my shoulder.  “I saw everything, Cami.”

(Camille Nash – Lost City Resort, South Africa)

My first inclination was to fold in on myself, just as I had done for the last week.  A voice inside my head wouldn’t let me. 
Drake could still be alive
.  There was still a chance that I could save him. I could levitate him out of the enclosure if need be.  I could snap the bars the way that Zandra had.  I overrode my desire to shut down again and bounded to my feet. 

Daniel, Brent and Katherine had no idea what I’d just seen, but Jessica had seen everything.  She grabbed both my shoulders, “You need to notify the Centaur Council.  Zandra has chosen you as the next Chairman.  The families need to be assembled.”

Brent’s eyes flexed.  “Seriously?  That’s great!”

I shook my head, “No.  Not now.  They could both still be alive.”  Jessica looked at the other three sets of eyes in the room who had no idea what we were talking about.  She told Brent, “Get your father.  Zandra wants Camille to take over now.  Camille needs to talk to the heads of all the families.  Tell him he’d better figure who the Head of the Tak line is, because Zandra just told Zeus you were all being welcomed home.”

Katherine shook her head, not understanding what Quinton had shared.  Jessica was the only one in the room who had been able to listen in on Quinton’s thoughts.  Katherine asked, “What happened, Cami?”

I couldn’t waste the time, and I wasn’t sure I could repeat what I’d just seen.  I grabbed Jessica’s arm, “Tell Will.  I’ve got to go.”  I bolted through the door, jammed my keycard into my own door and ran into my room.  Someone followed, but I paid them no attention.  My backpack lay beside the bed.  I grabbed a couple shirts and a sweatshirt to stuff into the backpack.  I threw on a pair of jeans and my favorite Converse sneakers.  I grabbed a few essentials out of the bathroom, stuffing them into the backpack and was headed for the door again when Daniel’s voice stopped me.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m not sure.  I’ll know when I get there.”

He stood directly in front of me and put a hand on my forearm.  “Cami, did you hear Jessica?  She says you’re the new Grand Poo-bah.  Your family’s going to be fine.  Why are you running around here like a crazy woman?”

“I have to go.”

Daniel’s hand caught my arm as he anchored me before I could reach my door.  “Stop!  Where are you going?”

“Drake’s hurt.  I need to get to him.  He needs me.”

A surprised look stared back at me.  “That’s what the enforcer told you?”

“That’s what he showed me.”

“Drake told the enforcer he needs your help?”

I couldn’t lie to Daniel.  Even if I could, Jessica would tell him the truth.  “Drake’s hurt.  Somewhere.  I’m not sure where, but I have to find him.”

“How?  You said you hadn’t heard from him in a week.”

How did I know I could find him?  Our connection wouldn’t work unless I was close enough to feel him.  He wasn’t dead.  If he were, it would be like when Mom died.  He would have already come to me.  He was alive.  I just had to get close enough to feel the connection.  “Will’s plane.  I’ll have the pilot fly over every country in the world until I can feel him.”

Daniel shook his head, “Do you know how long that’ll take?”

“I don’t care!  Drake needs me.”  I pulled my arm out of his grasp and shoved Daniel out of the way as I ran for the door. 

“Hey!  Stop!”  Daniel caught up to me a second time.  “I get it.  I’m not trying to talk you out of going to him.  You may not believe it, but in a weird way I sorta like the guy.  I’m just asking is there a quicker way to find him?  That enforcer was beat to hell.  If Drake’s in the same boat, we’re going to need to find him quick.”

My eyes were burning.  I threw my arms around Daniel.  This was why he’d been my best friend my whole life.  He wouldn’t let me do this alone.  He was right.  I stopped for a minute trying to focus, then it hit me, “Gretchen.  She’ll know what to do.”

“Not your Dad?”

I shook my head and felt my own smile.  “Haven’t you learned anything yet?  Will will do whatever Gretchen tells him.  The Centaurides call the shots around here.”

Daniel’s worried expression morphed into a smile, “Oh yeah, you were born for this job.”

I flung open the door with Daniel on my heels.  Brent, Katherine and Jessica were standing in the hall looking lost, not knowing what to do next.  I didn’t tell them to stay or to follow, but they fell in step behind Daniel and me. 

Gretchen was waiting for me with her door propped open.  “Jessica has already shared with me what has happened.  I know what you’re about to ask me, and I have a counter proposal for you.”

My heart sunk.  Would I ever get used to everyone being telepaths?  If I lived to be a hundred, I doubted it!  Her voice resonated in my head, “
Hannah, Lacey, and I will find them.  We will bring them back to Centurion.  You will stay with Will and summon the other families.  Share with them what has transpired and set a plan in motion to protect the herds from any gods who may be sent to seek vengeance.
”

I shook my head.  I would be the one who could find Drake at the greatest distance.  “
No.  It’ll take days to assemble all the families.  Drake doesn’t have days.  I can take care of that when I get back
.”

“
No.  You cannot.  Zandra named you as her successor.  The ceremony must be carried out immediately
.”

I gave Gretchen my best glare.  “
You think I care about being the Chairman?  Drake is somewhere bleeding to death, being attacked by hail and lightning and who knows what else?  Not a chance.  I take care of Drake.  When I get back, I’ll do whatever needs to be done with the Council.
”

I needed to know the fastest way to pinpoint his location
. 
Brent, Daniel, Jessica and Katherine kept looking between Gretchen and me.  They must have assumed we were communicating, because not one of them uttered a word.  I looked back at Gretchen, pleased that when we spoke telepathically, the panic I was feeling didn’t come through the way it might have in my voice.
  “I haven’t had any contact with him since the night they left.  You once told me that we would only be able to communicate about a hundred miles.  How can I use my connection to find him?
”

Gretchen tapped her finger to her chin as if contemplating my question.  “
Your idea of flying over the world to locate him will work; if we concentrated on the most likely countries – that could narrow the search down substantially
.”

Finally, something I could work with.  “
What are the most likely countries
?”

Gretchen spoke aloud for the first time, “For that, we need to go to the airport and check the flight plan on file for Zandra’s plane.”

I patted my backpack, “Let’s go.”

Gretchen shook her head, “We will take care of that.  You need to stay here and make preparations for the Council.”

My eyes darted to the floor, “I don’t care about any of that right now.”

In a gentle voice, she answered, “I know you don’t, but you have to.  Earthquakes have left California in rubble.  A tsunami hit South America.  There are three hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean.  Whales are beaching themselves all over the world.  Every religious fanatic who can get on a television screen is screaming it’s the end of days.  Your priority has to be the herds – they are your responsibility now.”  She placed a reassuring hand on my forearm, “Let us worry about Drake.”

“What?”  I hadn’t watched any news or talked to anyone until just today.  I hadn’t heard about any of the natural disasters or whales, or anything.

Gretchen clarified, “Zeus is convinced he was betrayed by another god, so he’s searching high and low for anyone who protected the Lost Herd, who helped King Sisyphus, who has even looked at him sideways in the last millennia.  Zandra kicked a hornet’s nest.”

I didn’t want to concern myself with the rest of the world.  The world wasn’t my responsibility.  The man who had pledged his life to me was.  I asked Gretchen, “You know what Zeus has done to Zandra and Drake?”

“I didn’t know the extent until Jessica shared Quinton’s memory with me.”  Her look was soft as she brought a gentle hand to my cheek.  “That’s the thing.  When Zeus finishes his investigation,” Gretchen did air quotes around the word
investigation
, “and comes up empty, he will turn his anger on all the Centaurs in the world.”