Shadow Revealed (The Enlightened Species Book Two) (34 page)

Someone laid a blanket over Brae’s nearly naked form, and Enlil lifted her gently into his arms. Holding her chilled body tightly against him, he kissed her forehead. The faint scent of peppermint filled his lungs, while hope and love filled his heart. Eros held Brae’s head steady as they followed Hermes and his protégés toward the chortal, a procession consisting of Brae’s brothers, Ninlil and Sargon, Hans, Irsu, Ediku, and Patrick trailing behind them.

Jess caught up with him, her cheeks slightly shallow from the volume of blood she’d contributed to Brae. “I’ll join you as soon as everyone is safely off the island. I love you, Enlil. Everything is going to be all right, I know it.”

“I love you too, Jess. Will you please tell Greyton and Greycia thank you for me?” Eros seconded that request. Jess nodded, blew him a kiss, and rejoined Shane.

A gurney waited for Brae when Enlil entered the Hospes. Reluctantly he laid her gently upon it. Eros by his side, they each kissed Brae’s forehead, followed by a kiss from each of her brothers. The nurses raced her away from them toward surgery, where Herme was waiting her. Ninlil wrapped her arms around him, and Enlil felt himself crack wide open inside. He dropped his head to her shoulder, and the tears he’d been holding back broke free. Ninlil’s soothing voice of reassurance was a balm to the jagged edges of his fear.

The hours of waiting felt like days.

****

Ten glanced around at the small clusters of people talking quietly. The fireworks were over, the music had gone silent a while ago, and most of the guests had gone. The commandant named Gilgamesh had taken charge after the incident with Umbrae. Ten couldn’t help but be impressed by the male’s organization and leadership skills. Every plane had been fully searched before boarding the heredity and humans who had been here. A security detail consisting of members of all three species had been sent on each flight.

He knew the immediate area had been fully searched during the fireworks, which was how his brothers had been caught. After Gil had the entire island gutted, they even found the cave where his brothers had been holed up between orders from their father. Ten had made a point to keep his head down while clearing out the pyrotechnic gear. Losing three brothers in a matter of days seemed too high a price to pay for a shiny piece of metal, no matter that it conducted the shadow ability. Six was dead, Fifteen was dead, and Five was a prisoner of the SOSC. Were they disposable to Osiris? Was he disposable too?

“Mick. Grab the trigger ground stake by the banquet table,” the engineer called over to him

“Yes, sir, Mr. Gavin.” He jogged over to grab the piece of equipment; a glint in the blood-soaked ground where Umbrae had bled out caught his eye. It was a chain pushed into the lush grass, right next to the stake. Not just any chain, he thought as he peered closer at it;
the chain.
If he risked grabbing it would his father be pleased? Yes, he would. Would it make Ten more valuable to Osiris? No. The last few days had demonstrated that no one was valuable to his father. Ten pulled the stake, clutching it with white knuckles. Osiris wanted the metal so he could duplicate the composition, and because he felt entitled to it. The idea of his narcissistic, slightly insane father having those kinds of metallic weapons filled him with an overwhelming feeling of dread.

No doubt his father would rummage through his memories. If he didn’t grab it, he probably wouldn’t live long. Osiris would already be mad to learn the female he’d sacrificed Fifteen to had lived. The whole thing had been horrifically tragic to watch. Fifteen was just a kid, barely a hundred; Ten had always tried to keep an eye on Fifteen, to answer the kid’s questions before he posed them to Osiris in hopes of keeping the kid from having to face the same hard lessons he and the rest of his brothers had. Osiris demanded blind obedience. Usually his paranoid father would answer a question by painful mental probe to determine the reason it was asked, and then refuse to answer it anyway.

Ten looked around him. Fates, how long had he been standing here staring at the grass? If he didn’t grab it, his father would kill him; if he did and got caught, the SOSC would take him prisoner. The event planner Jess was walking over to talk to Mr. Gavin, her hard-faced mate Shane beside her. That was the male who had helped take down Five. Could they protect him? An inkling of an idea began to form, one with hope, where his dreams could maybe be realized, well … eventually.

“Ma’am,” Ten called out to Jess. She glanced around for the direction of his call. He grabbed the chain out of the grass, feeling the conductivity of the metal merge with his shadow ability. He released a bracing breath. “Mrs. Einar.” He trotted over to where she waited for him, a curious expression on her face. Her mate’s eyes, full of suspicion, took note of the chain swinging from Ten’s hand before his gaze returned to Ten’s face.

The short female smiled at him when he approached. “Mick Tenor, right.” She was so nice. Would she turn mean when he told her the truth? He held out the chain to her as sadness flashed briefly across her face with the memory of Umbrae’s attack, and then her smile returned. She took the offering, thanking him.

“Err … ma’am … I … um.” Now that he faced her he didn’t know how to start. He shifted to address her mate. There was no way he could watch the kindness in the females eyes turn to disgust. “My name isn’t Mick, it’s Ten, and I am a bad person, but I don’t want to be. Is there someplace secure we can talk?”

The male’s eyebrow quirked, and his mate looked curiously between them. Mr. Gavin joined them.
Oh, please don’t tell him what I just said,
Ten silently pleaded. The male turned to Mr. Gavin. “Would it be all right with you if I borrow Mr. Tenor from you for awhile? Seems we have a mutual passion for demolition work I’d like to discuss with him further, that is, if he is through.” Ten released a silent sigh of relief, handed the stake he’d retrieve to Mr. Gavin.

Mr. Gavin smiled genuinely. “We are just wrapping up anyways. Mick, if I don’t see you later, give me a call next week and I’ll have the details for the next job ready. You did good, son.” He really liked Mr. Gavin; he hoped the male would be able to find a better employee once the truth was known. Mr. Gavin thanked Mrs. Einar for the job, telling her he was sorry that Umbrae had been hurt and he hoped for her quick recovery, and then went off to finish up.

“Thank you for that,” Ten whispered, the three of them making their way toward the commandants office.

The male nodded. “I’m Shane, by the way. We weren’t introduced earlier. I’ve seen the fear you have in your eyes before, though the cause of it …” Shane shrugged.

Ten’s hope lifted. These were not the stupid cattle his father had led him to believe his whole life. The male’s compassion confirmed he was making the right choice. For the first time he was going to do something good, honorable, redeeming. It was a start.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The pounding in her head in perfect rhythm with her heartbeat was agony. Her throat hurt. She tried to swallow to moisten it, but instead of helping, it felt like a hot poker went down it. There wasn’t a single inch of her body that didn’t ache. She could deal with the aches. It was the headache and throat that was the kicker. At least there was only a dim light on.

Umbrae struggled to open her eyes. They were so heavy, everything blurred, and the strain of trying to focus caused her head to pound harder. Warm fingers wrapped around hers, the heat seeping into her aching digits, soothing her. She tried to open her eyes again, and the softly lit room blurred again before clearing to merely fuzzy. The sleeping form of her father became clearer; the room was full of cots and chairs, and every one of them held a sleeping body. Her brothers, Irsu, Hans, Enlil’s family members—her eyes traveled over their faces, and then she looked up into the loving green eyes of Enlil sitting next to her.

“Enny.” Her mouth worked but no sound came out, plus the screaming burn of the effort left her panting through the pain.

Don’t try to speak, my love; the healer doesn’t want you to use your vocal cords.”
Enlil’s deep-timbered voice, spoken intimately through their bloodmate bond, warmed her blood and made her nipples harden. His breath caught and the gold starburst pattern around his pupil expanded. “
Aw, Brae, don’t tease me. You scared the hell out of me.”

The memories of the event flowed into her mind:
“There’s one, he’s headed toward the banquet table. I think he knows he’s being hunted,”
Enlil had told her through the bloodmate bond. Umbrae had turned to where he said the shadow was. Suddenly, a Tellus female had given startled cry. The fear in the young female’s face had spurred Umbrae to behave rashly. She had raced over, dragging Enlil behind her by the chain leashed around him to keep him shadowed.
“Wait, Brae, let us get into position,”
Enlil had pleaded with her, but all she could focus on was the terror in the female’s expression. She grasped at the indented place along the females neck, making contact with the shadow’s wrist. Pulling his arm away she jerked the female out of the shadow’s hold, trying to get her to safety. A hand caught in her hair, towing her backward, and then a sharp edge touched her throat. She dropped her shadow, but she held onto her chain, letting her ability flow into Enlil.

The male communicated with someone; Umbrae felt the pulse of telepathic energy. She felt Enlil trying to release the chain from his neck.
“No. Stay shadowed, see if you can get the knife away from my throat.”
She told him, using their bond. The next instant the knife shifted. The knowledge of the male’s intent descended on her, followed by the burning, tearing sensation of having her throat slit all the way to her spinal cord. Enlil’s panicked eyes staring into hers had been the last thing she remembered. She died, without question, she died on that lawn.

Shame filled her. If she had listened to him … “
Enny, I’m so sorry.”
His image blurred again, this time from her tears.

His fingers gave her hand a slight squeeze as a chuckle resonated through her mind. “
For what? Making my jeans uncomfortable, or scaring the hell out of me?”
How did she get so lucky as to have Enlil for her mate?

“I love you, Enny.”
She sent the depth of her emotion through the bloodmate bond.

Enlil returned his to her, so powerful she was speechless. “I love you, Brae.” Umbrae basked in his love. It filled her up, completed her.

The shuffled sound of movement drew her attention. Her gaze locked with the silver of her father. He joined them, taking her other hand, smiling down at her. The girls were right. He was the most handsome Sicarius. “Hey, baby girl, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” he whispered, though the sound of his voice rousted the others quickly.

She bent her elbow to bring his knuckles to her cheek; she rubbed her face against them, returning his smile.
“Better. I’m thirsty though.”

He continued the caress at her cheek. So nice to have a dad. “The healer says you can’t drink yet. He doesn’t want you to use any muscles in your throat, not even to swallow.” The door of the room swung open, as if saying the word “healer” out loud were a cue, and bright light from the hallway blinded her with headache pain.

“Out.” The male was completely average in height and build with average looks; nothing about him would call attention to him. Then his eyes met hers, conveying kindness with a mix of sharp knowledge and power. She remembered seeing him on the High Ones panel the day she met Enlil. He looked different wearing jeans and a Dr. Jekyll T-shirt with cowboy boots.

Grasping Enlil and her father’s hands tighter, she watched everyone get ushered out of the room with one word from the healer. Irsu turned, her mouth opened to ask the healer a question; the healer stared blankly at her friend, who snapped her lips closed without uttering a thing and joined the others in the hall. The healer turned to take in Eros and Enlil by her sides. “Gentlemen … get out.” He held the door slightly wider.

Eros kissed her forehead. “I’ll be right outside.” He headed toward the door.

Enlil placed a feather-light kiss to her lips, a sensual growl of longing rumbling from him. “Do whatever he says. I need you better.” The sexual overtone sent a wave of anticipation through her. Enlil grinned and kissed her again. The healer cleared his throat and Enlil winked at her, giving the healer a nod on his way out the door.

Thankfully, the door closed and the bright light of the hallway dimmed. “Hello, Umbrae. I’m not sure if you remember me. My name is Herme. Let’s get the awful part out of the way, shall we?” He flashed a pen light into her eyes, screaming waves of agony following in its wake. If she could have, she would have groaned. “I know that hurts. the headache should start to abate over the next forty-eight hours.”

Clipping the pen light torture devise onto the waistband of his jeans, he prodded her neck gently. Pain had her pulling his hands away, shaking her head. He smiled kindly at her. “Until you can tolerate an examination of the soft tissues, no talking, no drinking, no eating.” He tugged the blanket down to her waist and lifted her gown to expose her stomach. She saw a fresh line across her abdomen, red but fully healed. It stood out against the faded scars that had already been there. Her stomach didn’t hurt, and she didn’t remember getting an injury there. Where he touched it was slightly tender, and he glanced to her face, checking her expression for pain.

Replacing the blanket that covered her Herme, pulled up the chair Enlil had sat on. “I’m sure you’re wondering why you had surgery on your abdomen. It’s something I haven’t discussed with any of your family; I’ll leave that to your discretion.” There was a bleak look on his face, and he handed her a note pad and pen. Umbrae had a pretty good idea of what he was going to tell her. She’d long ago realized she was barren after she’d released a fetus’s energy into the universe. That was something she knew the Fates would punish her for. Her hands shook holding the pen and paper.