Midnight Sky (Dark Sky Book 2) (18 page)

The Stray Dog leader noticed this. “She must be yours,” he wagered with Nash. “You always had a fondness for untamable things.”

He dropped Gemma’s hair and slowly raked his eyes over her body. Nash seethed.

“Relax, boy,” Ryland taunted. “I’ll save her for last.”

Ryland moved onto Riley, scrutinizing his rigid posture. “You look disciplined. Like a Sky Guard’s brat.” He grinned. “That’s good. I could use someone to shine my shoes.”

The other thugs laughed again, but Riley remained still, his eyes sharpened with anger. Ryland continued, stopping at Sawyer. His careless demeanor abruptly vanished.

“I remember you,” he growled dangerously. “You’re the one who took one of my best from me. The Kendric bastard.”

“Good to know I lived up to my reputation,” Sawyer remarked.

Ryland’s fist slammed into Sawyer’s head so hard I thought it knocked him out. He slumped in the arms of the thug holding him. The young captain grimaced when Ryland grabbed his throat and pulled him upright.

“Your father had a reputation.” The Dog’s fist crashed into the other side of Sawyer’s head. “Your older brother had a reputation.” Another punch to his right cheek. “You have nothing. Think that riding your family’s sails makes you strong? Doing that shows how weak you are. Not a pirate, not even a thief. You’re a damn disgrace from a line of disgraces. I was there, you smug little son of a bitch. I was in the sky when your Daddy and brother brought the Hellions over. They started the gunfire in the Breach, and the Hellions followed them through to our home.”

This time, Sawyer didn’t argue. His jaw was set firmly and his eyebrows pinched together, but there was confusion in his eyes. He hadn’t known this. Anyone who knew what really happened beyond the Breach ten years ago was dead. Or hidden and furious.
 

“But they’re dead, and you’re here, so you can take their punishments.”

The blows began again. No one stopped Ryland. Nash and Gemma were trapped, unable to do anything but watch in silent horror. Maybe resisting wasn’t the smart thing to do right now, but I refused to watch Sawyer be beaten to a pulp.

“Stop it!” I screamed. “Leave him alone!”

Ryland’s fist stopped in midair, his head snapping to me. Sawyer lolled his head in my direction and blinked rapidly, like he was trying to see through a fog of pain. As Ryland stomped toward me, his eyes became clearer. Beside him, Riley started twisting in his captor’s hands, beginning to lose his calm.

“You’re new,” he crooned, leaning in too close. “And you’re no pirate. Too soft.” He cocked his head to the side, regarding me. “Who are you, girl?”

I fumbled for words that wouldn’t incriminate myself or my friends. His gaze stabbed me like a knife, and I had to look away. It was like being confronted by Davin all over again. I knew he would hurt me, no matter what I said or what I did. Still, I couldn’t remain silent.

“I can close the Breach,” I blurted.

“Claire,” snapped Sawyer.
 

Ryland wasn’t listening to him. His attention was solely on me.

“I heard a rumor that there was a ship out here with a machine on it that could close the Breach,” I went on. “I can repair it.”

The leader of the Dogs considered me for a long, uncomfortable time. I could feel his rancid breath against my face, and did my best not to shiver.
 

“You an engineer?”

I hesitated, then nodded. Sawyer cursed and Nash sighed, but what was I supposed to do? We were literally facing our deaths. Pirates loved to negotiate. Sawyer had already been beaten. If I had to reveal what I was and make a deal to keep them safe, then that’s what I would do.

What do you know about pirates, though? Up until now, the only ones you ever talked to were the Wanderers. These Dogs aren’t going to roll over so easily.

But Ryland was waiting. He would at least hear my terms.

“Let me see the ship. You must have found it by now. I don’t want any harm to come to me or the crew from you or your men or the slaves. In return, I can make things for you. Improve your weapons, your electricity…”

My voice faded as he began to laugh. The smile on his face replaced my blood with ice, and suddenly I wanted to run away as fast as I could.
 

“Definitely not a pirate,” he reminded. “Soft,
and
naïve.”

Ryland held out his hand. One of the Dogs placed my tool belt in it. The leader dangled it in front of me, so close, but so far away.
 

“This is mine now, girl. I have engineers and Electricians ready to work at the snap of my fingers. I don’t need you for your skills.”
 

His gaze slithered up and down my body, just as it had Gemma’s. Unlike her, I couldn’t repress my shiver.
 

“There is something you could do for us, though, being so pretty and innocent. I’m sure we’ll have fun with you.”

“Touch her and I’ll kill you.”

All of us looked at Sawyer, bruised and pinned and more enraged than I’d ever seen him before.
 

“She means something to you, huh?” taunted Ryland. “Kinda like the other one means something to my boy Nash?”

Sawyer’s entire body tightened, but he refused to blink. “She’s part of my crew. I need her.”

“That’s sweet, but boring for me and mine. We can come up with games for the girls easy enough, but the three of you,” he turned to the men of my crew, “well, you just aren’t our types. But it’s been a while since we had any good entertainment, so for you boys, I’m thinking… The Crater.”

The Dogs laughed and cheered. Nash started tugging at the hands of his captor. Gemma visibly paled. When he couldn’t break free, he tried to martyr himself.
 

“Ryland, don’t do this. If you want someone in the Crater, pick me. I was your best, remember?”

“Oh, I do,” the pirate replied, turning to the man who betrayed him. “I surely do. But you’re not going to be fighting my own men this time, Nash. I’ve got something special planned for you and your so-called crew. And don’t worry about the girls,” he stroked Gemma’s hair again, “I’ll make sure they get good seats to watch, and you can see what will happen to them if you don’t follow the rules.”

Nash twisted and thrashed violently, desperate to break free and fight for us. The Dog that took our weapons stalked forward and struck him across the head with the hilt of Sawyer’s flintlock. Two more hits, and Nash slumped into unconsciousness.

The Dogs dragged Riley and Sawyer away. I couldn’t see Riley, but Sawyer glanced back frantically. Despair engulfed his eyes when he looked at me.
 

Gemma twisted wildly, trying to slip away and get to her lover. I was frozen with terror as I watched my friends taken out of sight.
 

Ryland slipped in front of me, grinning like a wolf approaching a wounded deer.
 

“Now, why don’t we get you ladies somewhere comfortable?”

Chapter 10

Another man batted the cage, making a grab for me. I scrambled back, only getting a foot before my spine hit the pocked metal bars. The man laughed, showing black and yellow teeth, sneering and wiggling his fingers through the bar as I cringed.
 

“I like yellow haired girls,” he said. “Been a while since I had one.”

I shuffled back, trying to hide my body from him. It only made him laugh more. His eyes shifted across the room, to the cage Gemma was trapped in.

“They say you got fight,” he commented, “I like that too. They say you’re a bitch with bite.”

“Why don’t you come over here and find out how sharp my teeth are?” she snarled. Ever since we’d been dragged down a separate tunnel away from Sawyer, Nash, and Riley, she’d been on the edge of a knife.
 

We had been taken to a cavern with cages in it and shoved inside separate ones. Though she refused to be treated like one, Gemma fought like an animal. As a result, she had been slapped and groped with force, until finally she relented and had the cage doors shut around her.
 

“Benson,” an unwelcome voice called from beyond the cave, “back off.”

The ugly man, Benson, turned and straightened up when he saw his captain. “Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.”

“Relax,” Ryland offered with a cruel grin. His steely eyes shifted to us. “We’ll make use of them soon enough.”

That cheered Benson up immensely. He leered at us, then walked out of the cave and left us with Ryland. Gemma said nothing, but I shrank back further into the cage. I didn’t have a plan, and hadn’t been able to figure one out since Benson strolled in right after our lockup.
 

“What have you done with Nash?” growled Gemma.

Ryland smirked and took slow steps toward her.
 

“Nothing yet. But I haven’t forgotten about him or the other two, don’t worry.”

He knelt in front of her cage, looking at her like she was something exotic.
 

“Did he ever tell you about the Crater?”

Her lips formed a tight line, but didn’t reply. She didn’t have to. Ryland looked at me with unnerving patience, like I was a student who was about to learn why she was to be punished.
 

“We have a special game here in the Barren,” he informed. “Simple, really. Men go in the Crater, then fight their way out.”

I swallowed, somehow knowing the only way out involved death.
 

“I turned over ideas for them,” he continued. “Whether I should have it two on one, a bunch of my heavy-hitters come in, or have them kill each other.” I feared the way his smile grew. “But then I came up with something better. See, I have a few special treasures here. Something I intended to use for the worst of the worst. It’s risky to be sure, but for the traitor, the soldier, and the Kendric bastard, I think an exception can be made.”

He dipped his chin, a motion that drew shadows over his face and darkened his eyes.
 

“Have you ever seen a wild Hellion? One that was starved and out of its mind?”

I thought about every Hellion I had ever encountered or seen. None of them had been anything but ravenous, though I didn’t think they were starved. They knew how to drain our blood drop by drop and preserve it.

“It’s fun to watch them lose control. They never stop moving, and don’t seem to lose their speed or strength.”

The intrigue in his voice worried me. He leaned in close, far too close. Even behind the bars, I didn’t feel safe.

“I heard how your friends killed their Hellions. Took them by surprise, one at a time. Kind of impressive, but they built their reputation on luck. Exactly what I would expect Robertson Kendric’s brat to do. So it will be interesting to see how lucky he and his pals are when Hellions face them on open ground, with no weapons, and nowhere to run.”

“No!”

I screamed without realizing it. He couldn’t do what he was suggesting. He
couldn’t
.

But he was. I read it in his eyes.

“Nash was good in the Crater, but he’s gone soft over the years,” he threw a glare in Gemma’s direction, “so we’ll see how long he lasts. I don’t expect much from the soldier. He’s pitifully green. But Kendric?” That cruel smile returned. “I hope he lasts. I hope he’s crippled, unable to even stand. I want to watch the Hellions rip the skin from his bones, for him to feel all the pain of what his family brought on us.”

“He didn’t have anything to do with it,” I pleaded, my voice shaking.

Ryland shrugged, like he wasn’t talking about sending three men to horrible deaths out of spite. “I’ll take what I can get.”

Ryland got to his feet and peered down at us. “Don’t worry. We won’t let you miss out on a good time. Right now, you belong to me and the Dogs,” explained Ryland. “But after we’re through with you, we’ll let the Runts have a go. Hate to admit it, but they work hard, and they deserve some new treats.”

He winked at us and walked away, commanding two heavy thugs to stand guard and to keep us in the cages until he said otherwise.

“This is not going to happen,” Gemma snarled. I turned and looked at her, seeing the rage on her face as she gripped the bars tightly. “I am not going to watch them die. I am not going to be treated like a plaything.”

I looked at her. “Can you get out of the cage?” I asked.

“Yes,” she replied, so quiet I barely heard her. “They didn’t search me well enough.” Gemma’s eyes turned to me, dark and intense. “What are you thinking?”

I glanced around the cavern, taking in the surroundings. There was little in the hollowed out room, a few battered bowls on a table and an electric cable snaking along the bottom of the floor. I followed it, seeing that the cable was powering the string lights over our heads. I wondered where their main source of power was, and how I could sabotage it.

“I need to find my tool belt, and their power source,” I half mumbled, after checking to make sure the guards couldn’t hear me. “If I can get to that, I might be able to leech some from them.”

“I get how the tools help, but what are you going to use the power for?”

I hesitated. “Remember the Volt?”

“Yes–Oh.”

She became incredibly nervous, and I didn’t blame her.

“I made another small one just in case we needed it, but it has to be charged to take out the power or stun the Dogs.”

“Is that a good idea?” she cautioned. “Didn’t go so well last time.”

No, it hadn’t. Last time, I used the Volt to short-circuit the lock on the helm of the
Behemoth,
which we had been crashing in. The jolt of raw, electric power nearly cost me my life. If I had pushed the Volt to its maximum power, the electromagnetic charge would likely have vaporized me and everyone else on that hideous ship.

Since then, I’d been experimenting with the Volt and its capabilities, albeit with excessive care and under Sawyer and Riley’s obsessive scrutiny. Aside from theories and the nearly disastrous trial run, I didn’t know how strong my newest Volt was. I’d tinkered with it to change the length of the charge, but I hadn’t tested it yet. It could still disrupt any mechanism it was magnetized to within a hundred feet, but attached to a person in a crowd, and opened to its full strength?