Destiny Redeemed (31 page)

“I
don’t think so. I wasn’t paying attention. What’s wrong?”

“I
don’t know. He wouldn’t try to reenter his world without me. Something’s
wrong.”

At
the edge of the woods, he stopped and listened to hear any thoughts, but all he
heard were Thea’s.

“Amon,
if something’s wrong, maybe we shouldn’t continue. Maybe we should wait for him
here.”

As
his mind raced and he became truly worried about Gethen, Amon watched in horror
as Ryu lifted the spell to show Gethen being held with a knife to his throat.
As the odor of Anjer hit his nostrils, Amon saw the bounty hunter’s real
intentions.

“Let
him go. You don’t want him. I’m the prize you’ve come for.”

“No,
that’s where you’re wrong, Kalins. You’re no longer my assignment. When you and
your friend here exposed Adams, it seems you made a friend in the new head of
the Council and now I’m out of a job.”

Amon
saw as the man’s eyes flashed wildly that he was a man out of control. Unsure
if talking would help, he had to try. Pushing Thea behind him, he hoped to lull
the bounty hunter into dropping the knife from Gethen’s throat. Then he’d have
a chance to overtake him.

“I
think you’re underestimating how much Adams’ friends on the Council would love
to see me back in Nil. I’ve got three lifetimes left after this one.”

Ryu
laughed a hollow laugh. “You underestimate yourself, Kalins. Nobody on the
Council wants to admit any association with Adams. So everything he promised me
means shit now.”

“Have
you ever been to Nil?”

Ryu
laughed again. “Yeah, Kalins. I did some time there.”

“Then
you know what kind of hell it is. Don’t tell me they wouldn’t want me to pay
for my crimes in that hole. Let him go and take me.”

Amon
felt Thea squeeze his wrist and he quickly touched her mind to reassure her.

If
he could only get Ryu to drop his guard.

“You
don’t want to do this. Think about it.”

“Think
about it? That’s all I’ve fucking done since that new council head called me in
to tell me everything I’d looked forward to had gone to shit! And for what? A
fucking murdering tempuster and his murderer Sidhe slave!”

“It
doesn’t have to be like this. Let him go. Take your anger out on me. He’s got
nothing to do with this. I’m the one you’re supposed to capture.”

Amon
sensed he was losing this battle. Ryu had nothing to lose, and Amon knew from
experience that feeling.

Gethen,
this guy wants somebody.  I can’t let it be you.

Before
Amon could continue, Ryu released Gethen’s arm and spun him around to face him.
In a second, he was gone running into the forest.

“Gethen!”

Amon
grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him around, seeing he had nothing but a
scratch on his hand. “Thea, wait here with him.”

Amon
raced to catch Ryu, leaving Gethen staring at the thin red line that crossed
his palm.

Amon
could see the bounty hunter ahead and knew with almost half a foot on him he’d
be on top of him in no time. His heart pounded wildly as he pushed his legs to
run faster than ever before. Any remnant of his recent injury was overwhelmed
by the pure desire to kill the man who’d first taken his destined one and now
threatened the one other person he felt closest to in the world. Soon he was
within yards of Ryu, and with the intent to send him on to his next life, Amon
teleported in front of him, slamming his full weight into him. Rage controlled
him, and he lunged at Ryu as he saw him scramble madly to reach the talisman
that hung around his neck.

“I’m
not fucking chasing you through time,” he yelled before grabbing the charm and
yanking it from his neck.

Stunned,
Ryu seemed unable to react and Amon began to take out his rage on the bounty
hunter. Rage at Harold Adams. Rage at the pain of knowing he’d caused the
councilman to endanger the lives of those closest to him. With every pound his
fists made to Ryu’s face, with every bone he broke and every injury he
inflicted, he lashed out at the bounty hunter’s part in almost taking away the
two people he’d die for.

As
Ryu lay beaten almost to unconsciousness, Amon heard Thea’s voice scream to him
at the edge of the woods. His rage not nearly sated enough to save Ryu’s life,
he grabbed the knife he’d threatened Gethen with from its holder on his belt
and with emotion that almost overwhelmed him, he plunged it into the bounty
hunter’s chest.

He
watched as the life and pain in the wide eyes that stared up at him slowly
ebbed away as Ryu Jansen’s lifetime ended. Exhausted, Amon sat slumped on the
ground next to the man’s body and felt his emotions begin to return to normal.
He tossed the talisman he still held in his hand to the ground next to him and
breathed deeply, neither happy nor unhappy about what he’d just done.

Beside
him, the bounty hunter’s body began to fade as he left that life for his next
one. “Godspeed. May your next life be happier than this one,” he said quietly
as the last of Ryu Jansen disappeared.

Amon
felt a sense of relief knowing Thea and Gethen were safe. What the Council
would do to him for Ryu’s death didn’t matter. He’d protected the two of them
the way a man protects those he loves.

Thea’s
voice came across the forest again, its tone full of fear. Still acting on
adrenaline, he jumped to his feet and teleported to her side in time to see
Gethen fall to the ground.

“Amon,
something’s wrong.”

Dropping
to the ground, he knelt next to Gethen, whose pale face turned toward him, his
deep green eyes wide with pain. He held his right hand up in front of him to
show where he’d been cut by Ryu’s knife.

“Amon,
I don’t have much time. Please make sure I return home.”

Confused,
Amon shook his head. “Gethen, you’re going to be fine. It’s just a scratch.”

Struggling
to speak, Gethen said hoarsely, “Anjer.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Amon
stared dumbfounded at the red line on Gethen’s palm. Ryu had never intended to
try to take Thea again or even take him back to Nil. His target had been
Gethen.

How
could he have been so mistaken?

He
grabbed Thea’s hand resting on his shoulder and silently pleaded with her to
heal Gethen, his heart full of fear at losing his dearest friend.

Crouching
next to Gethen, she softly ran her finger over his injured palm, unable to do
anything. The shallow gash remained as she pulled her hand away to caress his
face. Looking into his eyes, she whispered, “I’m so sorry, Gethen.”

“Thea?”

Turning
to Amon, she slowly shook her head. “I’m sorry. I can’t help him.”

“Gethen,
no. We’ll get you back to your people and they’ll know what to do,” Amon said,
his voice panicked.

Reaching
under his body, he began to lift him from the ground, but Gethen stopped him
with his hand on Amon’s chest. “No, this is where I die.”

“No.
No. Not if I can do anything about it,” he said, refusing to accept the truth
before him.

“Amon,
I don’t have much time. The poison works fast. I need you to listen to me. I’m
so proud of you. You’ve been like a son to me.”

“Stop.
Don’t do this.”

“I’ve
loved you like no other in your world or mine. Don’t make the same mistakes of
your past. You’ve been given another chance.”

His
life fading quickly, Gethen turned to look at Thea. “Take care of him.”

With
one last look at Amon, Gethen said goodbye. “Amon, it has been the joy of my
life to know you.”

Amon
saw his friend’s time had run out. He cried out his name, his voice strangled
as the Sidhe exhaled one last time. Dropping his head to rest on his chest,
Amon silently said goodbye to his servant of lifetimes and friend like no other
in his time on Earth.

Thea
wrapped her arms around Amon’s shoulders and held him as his body shuddered in
sorrow. “I’m so sorry, Amon.”

Thankful
that at least he’d be able to fulfill Gethen’s wish to return home, Amon
carefully lifted him in his arms and cradled his friend as he had done when
he’d rescued him from Nil. Without a word, he turned and began the sad journey
to return Gethen to his people.

With
Thea at his side, step by step, Amon made his way to the entrance of the Sidhe
kingdom, the darkness growing as they walked deeper and deeper into the forest.
The sounds of the world around them changed to frightening, ominous noises, and
Thea clutched Amon’s arm.

“What’s
happening?”

“The
world of the Sidhe is nearby. What you hear are the sounds of those who guard
the gateway between our world and the Sidhe’s. Don’t be afraid. They mean no
harm to us. Only to those who would attack the Sidhe.”

Amon
led her to the darkest part of the woods, where no light shone on their path.
Surrounded by eerie sounds that seemed to come from creatures straight from
Hell, Thea held onto him tightly as around them changed to as dark as midnight.

Even
the trees seemed menacing, their limbs catching on their clothes, as if to
prevent them from finally reaching the entrance to Gethen’s world. But Amon
continued, undeterred by the whip of branches against his face and arms as he
held Gethen close to his body to shield him from the trees’ attacks. With her
face buried in Amon’s side, Thea followed his lead, only lifting her head when
he stopped walking.

“We’re
here.”

Ahead
of them lay an entrance hidden in the hedge. Behind the leafy camouflage
appeared stone steps illuminated by a soft light that bathed everything in its
pale white rays.

“Watch
your step and stay next to me,” Amon said turning to her.

*

Thea
couldn’t imagine where the stairway led. Were they walking down into the earth?
Was the Sidhe realm entered through a cave?

As
they walked, she began to see faces peer out from the brush that lined the
stairs. As she met their gazes, each possessing the same deep green eyes as
Gethen, they quickly disappeared.

“Don’t
be frightened. They mean no harm. We’re strangers here, so they’re naturally
curious.”

“Amon,”
she whispered as they reached the last stair. “Their eyes... they’re all like
Gethen’s.”

“The
sign of the Sidhe.”

Thea
studied with wonder the world they’d entered. Ahead of them was a dazzling
castle that seemed to shimmer in the light. To the left and right of them were
fields and forests full of lush grass and flowers and dotted with much smaller
homes than the castle that dominated the stunning landscape. A stream ran from
right to left immediately in front of them, requiring them to cross a small bridge
if they intended to make the trip to the castle.

As
she watched, the colors of the Sidhe kingdom seemed to become more vivid right
before her eyes. The greens of the plants and trees seemed more alive than any
she’d ever seen in the world outside. Everything in front of her appeared as if
an artist had painted it.

Gasping,
she turned to Amon. “It’s so beautiful! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more
beautiful place in all my lifetimes.”

Sadly,
he answered, “I wish you could have seen it through Gethen’s eyes. He would’ve
been so happy to finally return home.”

Thea
saw the sorrow in his eyes when he looked down at the man he held in his arms.
And the guilt.

Men,
women, and children slowly began to appear from the homes nearby and stood
silently looking at them. Their eyes traveled from Amon, to Thea, and finally
came to rest on Gethen’s peaceful face. Each person’s expression registered the
same sadness Amon’s possessed, as if each one had lost a dear friend.

“Amon,
what should we do?” she asked as they watched each Sidhe react to the death of
one of their own.

“Nothing,”
he said as he walked toward the bridge. “We can’t understand their sadness.”

Thea
knew he was mistaken. He wore the same sad face as each of the Sidhe, felt the
loss of Gethen as deeply as any of his kind. Each robotic step he took spoke
volumes about the grief he was suffering.

They
made their way up toward the castle as the Sidhe followed them in an informal
funeral procession. Their sadness permeated the air, and Thea noted the
contradiction between the almost joyful beauty that surrounded them and the
heavy sorrow they expressed in their slow walk behind them. As they got closer
to the castle, Amon explained where they were going and why, never taking his
eyes from the sight in front of him.

“Gethen
was part of the royal court of the Sidhe. For generations, his family has
served the kings and queens that rule over his people. Before he was exiled, he
was matched with the king’s youngest daughter. Years older than her, he never
had the chance at the life he was destined for because he was lured by love
into our world.”

“What
do you mean ‘lured by love’?”

“I
told you the Sidhe were very seductive creatures, but there is one type of
female that can seduce them—Aeveren women. Gethen met an Aeveren woman and fell
in love with her. But she was someone’s destined one and couldn’t give herself
to him.”

Amon
abruptly stopped talking and adjusted his friend in his arms. Thea sensed what
he needed to say next troubled him.

“What
happened, Amon?”

“He
couldn’t deal with losing her.” After a pause, he continued. “He killed her.”

Amon’s
guilt for his part in Victoria Adams’ death filled every word he spoke.

“When
it was found that he’d done this twice before, he was banished from his world.
The Sidhe king didn’t want to bring the wrath of the Aeveren Council to his
people, so instead he chose to send Gethen away.”

Thea
thought about the man who she’d known as Gethen—the man who’d threatened her
when she’d first arrived at Amon’s house—the loyal friend. But she also thought
of the man who’d willingly chosen to leave the only life he’d known for
centuries to give Amon a chance at happiness and the man who’d helped him
rescue her from the Soren headquarters. The idea that the same man was someone
who’d murdered three women seemed almost impossible.