Vaya stared about himself without comprehension. This was no tent. There were walls around him, reminding him of some of the permanent structures the Ajhani had built in Akajhan. The light here was much brighter though, and the air smelled flat and dry.
His head was pounding, and he could barely lift it to look around. Where in all the Dragon Mother’s realms was he?
Memory returned in a slow trickle of images and impressions. The journey through the mountains… struggling to get Nick to safety before the kiva destroyed him…
Nick.
Vaya turned his head to either side, but there was no sign of Nick. Only more white surfaces and blinking lights. There were things stuck to his chest and arm. He lifted a hand to explore them and found it was rock steady. No tremor. No shaking.
A woman with short, dark hair walked in and smiled at him. “Oh, good, you’re awake.” She spoke slowly and carefully. “My name is Annie. I’ve been taking care of you. Nick said you’d be able to understand me. Do you?”
Vaya tried to speak but his throat felt dry and parched.
“Wait a second. Let me get you some water.” Annie left the room for a few moments and returned with a water bottle.
Vaya knew how these water bottles worked, as Tarrin had brought one back from the base once. He sucked down half of the cool water before it soothed his parched throat enough for him to speak.
“Where am I?” He spoke just as slowly as Annie had. Though Nick had come to understand him well enough, Annie might not be able to get past his accent.
“You’re in the infirmary at the Lyra Research Center. You were in pretty bad shape when Nick led us to you. I’m not sure how much of this you’ll understand, but the medicine you were taking has made you very sick. I’ve flushed the toxins from your body, but you’re still recovering.”
Some of the words she used weren’t familiar to him, but Vaya understood enough to gather that the kiva was no longer affecting him, and she had no intention of giving him more.
He tried not to panic, but his limbs tensed, and his heart pounded in his chest.
Annie frowned. “You need to calm down. It’s okay. You’re going to be fine.”
“How… how long… here?”
“About a day,” she said. “Nick led our rescuers to you yesterday morning.”
Only a day? Could the kiva have been removed from his body that quickly? If Annie spoke the truth, he was just as dangerous now as he had been the day his power had awakened.
“Where is Nick?” he asked.
“He’s been here all afternoon, but he went to get some dinner. He asked me to page him when you woke up.” She pulled a flat, rectangular object from her pocket and began fiddling with it. “Hmm… okay, he says he’ll be right here. I’ll be back a little later with more medicine.”
She left the room, and shortly after, Nick appeared in the doorway. “Vaya!” He moved quickly to Vaya’s side and took hold of his hand, squeezing it tightly. “Thank God you’re all right. I was afraid you might not wake up.”
Vaya met his gaze, torn between joy and fear. “Nick… sheya, what have you done?”
“You… you were dying. You agreed to let Annie take a look at you, remember? But she says that medicine you were taking was killing you. What the hell is that about?”
Vaya stared down at his hands. “I told you that when the mythe awakened within me, it was too strong, did I not?”
“Yeah, but—”
“You asked me about the connection between the storms and my… my fits. My pain.” Vaya’s face burned. He hated putting his failure into words, but it was vital that Nick understood. “I was not entirely truthful with you. I told you that I have power over the storms, but I have never been able to control it. The kiva — the medicine — keeps it under control.”
“Vaya, that stuff was killing you.”
“I know that. It was my choice. When I found you… I had gone up into the mountains to learn to control the power, or die trying.”
“You told me you were sick!”
“Not sick. Just not strong enough to leash the power that stirs within me. The truth is that there is no easy solution for me. When the storm-power first awakened within me, I killed three of my clansmen before they could contain me. A collar that prevented me from touching the mythe was locked around my neck, and I was told I would have to wear it always. Last summer, the Cleansing — the… the incident that destroyed the stones your people came here to mine — destroyed the collar, too. I have been using kiva to keep my power bound ever since, knowing that it would eventually kill me. There is no choice, Nick. Without it, I am too dangerous. I could kill everyone here.”
“I don’t… Vaya, that’s…” Nick trailed off, shaking his head.
“You need to get the kiva back for me,” Vaya said firmly. “I will not argue with you about it. Otherwise, I must leave immediately, and get as far away from here as I can before I call down a storm.”
“How long?” Nick asked quietly. “How long do we have?”
“I don’t… I don’t know. My power has always been bound before… You must do this for me, Nick. There is far more at stake here than my comfort.”
“All right. I’ll see what I can do. I wanted to wait until you were stronger, but… I have an idea about how to get your clansmen released. I need to talk to some people, but I’ll see if I can get the kiva back from Annie first.”
A knocking sound came from the doorway. “Sorry to interrupt,” Annie said, stepping into the room with a fresh bag for the IV. “I need to change this out, and I think that’s long enough for now. Vaya’s looking pretty tired. You can come back and see him in the morning, Nick.”
“I will. I’ll check in with you before work,” Nick promised. He leaned forward to press a gentle kiss to Vaya’s lips, then turned and left the room.
Vaya lifted his hand and stared at it for a moment before pressing his fingers to his lips. He wished with all his heart that there was some way for them to be together.
* * *
Outside Vaya’s room, Nick leaned against the wall while he waited. How much to tell Annie? He’d overheard her arguing with Chereni about the treatment of the natives the day before he’d taken off for the mountains, and it had sounded like she wasn’t happy about it.
She came out of Vaya’s room with a thoughtful expression on her face. “He seems pretty articulate for a savage,” she said drily.
“Yeah. Chereni’s wrong about them,” Nick said in a low voice. “Annie, can I have a quiet word with you?”
“Sure. Cafeteria over coffee?”
“Got someplace quieter? I’d ask you to my quarters, but… it’s pretty much a closet, and they haven’t given me an office or anything. Don’t need an office if I’m cleaning up messes in the labs, right?”
“I heard about that,” Annie said with a smile. “Some of the lab techs were a little taken aback to find the Dominick Romani washing out their test tubes and beakers.”
Nick gave her a wry grin. “My father’s idea of character building, sending me to the ass end of nowhere to keep me out of trouble.”
Annie led him down the hall to her office. It was smaller than Nick’s quarters, but at least it had a desk and an extra chair. “Welcome to my palace,” she said. “What can I do for you, Mr. Romani?”
Nick winced. “Mr. Romani is my father. I’m just Nick, and I’m asking you for a favor, not issuing orders. That medicine Vaya was taking… do you still have it?”
She shook her head. “No. Once I realized how deadly the stuff was, I dumped it. Why?”
“Shit,” Nick said. “I didn’t understand what it was for. It wasn’t medicine, not in the sense that he’s sick. It’s… kind of like Anarin. He needs it to control his psi.”
“It was killing him,” Annie said flatly. “Even if I still had it, I wouldn’t give it to him.”
“Right, okay, I got that, but he says if he doesn’t have it, he’s a danger to everyone here. He says… he says he has power over storms. And that when his power first awakened, three of his clansmen died trying to contain him.”
“I can’t give him Anarin. He could have a fatal reaction to it.”
“What about helping me get him the hell out of here? Him and the other natives? I guess you have access to the holding cells, since you’re the one giving them medical treatment after Chereni’s guards beat them.”
Her dark eyes went wide and her face paled.
“I overheard you yelling at her about it a few days after I got here, and for what it’s worth, I happen to agree with you. My father might think I’m a waste of breath, but I hate what’s happening to these people. I don’t care if Chereni says the Charter doesn’t apply to them. It’s not right, and if I can put a stop to it, I’m going to.”
Annie studied his face for a long moment, gaze turned inward. Finally, she sighed and said quietly, “I could get into a lot of trouble for this, Nick, but you’re right. It needs to stop. I have access to the holding cells, and I guess if we could create some kind of diversion, we might get them out of the building. But what then? How would you get them off the base? There are guards stationed at the gate.”
“I’ve got an idea about that, but I need to talk to someone else to find out what’s possible. I’ll let you know when I’ve got it figured out.”
“All right,” Annie said with a nod. “Be careful, Nick.”
“I will. I promise.”
* * *
The next morning when Vaya woke, he felt stronger, and his mind was completely clear. It wasn’t long before Annie came in carrying a meal-pak and a pile of clean clothing. Worry lines marred her otherwise smooth skin, and her smile looked forced.
“Good morning, Vaya. I’m sorry, but Security wants to move you to the holding area with the rest of your people right after breakfast. I tried to tell them that I want you here under observation for another few days, but the orders came from someone up at the top, and I’m afraid I don’t have a lot of influence. Since your life is no longer in danger, there isn’t a good argument I can make to keep you here.”
Although he was eager to see his clansmen, Vaya had no idea how long it would be before he became a danger to them. “I suppose I do not have a choice in the matter?”
“No. I’m sorry. I’ve already tried to talk to Dr. Chereni. She wants you in the holding area.”
“It is not your fault, Annie,” Vaya said gravely. “You will let Nick know? He will worry if he comes here and finds me gone.”
“I’ll let him know, all right.” She flashed him a small, grim smile, then leaned close and lowered her voice. “Nick is trying to come up with a way to get you and the rest of your people out of here, and I’m going to help him. Go with Security and don’t make any trouble. We’ll do what we can for you.”
After he’d eaten, Vaya dressed in the grey trousers and shirt Annie had brought for him. He was escorted by two large men, both armed with the same kind of weapon Nick had used to bring down the rhyx. Vaya went with them quietly, and hoped his words of warning had made enough of an impression on Nick that he would move quickly.
He was taken down a set of stairs and into a hallway lined with open rooms occupied by his clansmen. Piri was in one of the rooms, and Vaya started toward him. He was jerked back by one of the guards.
In the room next to Piri’s, he caught sight of Erasha. “Vaya!” she called. “Thank Aio you’re all right! I feared I’d never see you again.”
He stopped, wanting to talk to her, but was shoved farther down the hall. They passed Danior, Bena and Keza, and several other hunters and warriors. The guard stopped at the last room on the right, where Khuri had come to stand near the opening. One guard waved his stunner threateningly, and Khuri backed away and sat on one of the bunks. The other guard stood beside the wall and pressed some blinking lights, then shoved Vaya forward.
Vaya stumbled into the cell. “Khuri!”
“Vaya, how did you come here?”
After so long with only Nick for company, it was a relief to hear the sweet sounds of Ajhani spoken by familiar voices. “I found one of the Sky People lost in the mountains and brought him here.” He moved toward the opening and raised his voice. “Erasha, how did you get here?”
“Do not move any farther forward,” Khuri said from behind him. “There is a wall there that you cannot see. It will hurt you if you touch it.”
Vaya stopped, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of his sister, but she was too far down the hallway. “Did you follow the rescue party?”
“Not until you left the camp,” Erasha called back. “We waited and waited, and when the rescuers did not return, I set out on my own.”
“It will be all right. I have a friend among the Sky People who is going to try to release us.”
“Are Miko and Tarrin here, then?” Danior’s voice came from farther down the hall.
“No. The man I brought here is going to help me. I pulled him out of the river before he drowned and guided him back here. He does not have much influence here, but he has promised to do what he can. We must be ready to assist him if he is able to free us.”
“We will be ready,” Danior said, his voice taut with suppressed rage. “We have been ready since the cowards took us captive.”
There was a murmur of agreement from the others.
“What of you, Vaya?” Erasha asked. “What has happened to you? I saw no sign of the kiva staining the colors of your mythe-shadow as you went past. Have you learned control of the mythe at last?”
Vaya hated to dash the hope he heard in her voice, but he would not lie to her. “No,” he said softly. “I have not.”
Erasha said nothing more, and Vaya turned to Khuri and said in a low voice, “I must speak with you.”
“Speak, then,” Khuri said.
“The kiva was killing me, as we knew it would.”
“Ai. And it is no longer binding your power.” The worry in Khuri’s eyes said he knew what that meant as well as Vaya and Erasha did.
Vaya kept his voice low, leaning closer to Khuri to whisper the rest of the story. “By the time I brought Nick — the man of the Sky People — down out of the mountains, I was so sick I could barely walk. I showed him which direction to go in. I… I did not think he would come back for me. When I woke, I was here, and their healer had used her skills to cleanse the kiva from my body. She… she said it was killing me and refused to give me more.” He stared down at the floor. “This is my fault. I… was too proud to be honest with Nick about what was wrong with me. I told him only that I was ill, and that the kiva was medicine. He believed that his people’s healers might save me where our own could not.”
Khuri looked grave. “Then I hope for all our sakes that your friend is able to release us soon. The mythe gathers around you, Vaya, and the lightning dances in your mythe-shadow.”
Vaya’s heart stuttered in his chest, and he reached out to clasp Khuri’s arm. “I will try to hang on until Nick comes to release us. You’ll need me to translate. But… this is not something I have any control over. Keep watch over me, Khuri. If necessary, you must take my life before I can hurt anyone. You are a healer. You can do it quickly, and I would not ask this of Erasha.”
“Nor would I,” Khuri said, pale violet eyes full of pain. “I will do as you ask, clan-brother, though it will be like killing a part of myself.”
“I would rather go quickly at the hand of a friend than endure the slow death kiva will give me. I have already seen what the kiva does, and it is no way for a warrior to die.”
“I will see to it. I will not allow you to suffer.”
Vaya’s voice failed him, but he gave Khuri’s arm a squeeze and turned away before the other Guardian saw the tears in his eyes.
* * *
It was a little less than half an hour before his morning session with Draven when Nick arrived at the hangar. He was hoping to catch Jo before she got involved in a messy repair. There hadn’t been time to stop by the infirmary, but Annie hadn’t cleared him for work yet, so as soon as he and Draven were done, he’d have the rest of the day to spend with Vaya.
Jo was in the office working on the computer. She glanced up as he walked in, then lowered her eyes. “Good morning, Mr. Romani.”
Nick winced. “Is that where we stand now?”
“I don’t know.” Her slim shoulders lifted in a shrug. “Is it?”
“I’m sorry I got you into trouble.”
Jo’s stiff expression relaxed into a rueful grin. “Least they didn’t fire me. Draven’s a decent sort. Said you were his problem, not mine. I didn’t rat you out, by the way. Not until you were overdue for pickup, anyway.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that. I… I’m glad they didn’t fire you.”
“Yeah, me, too.”
“I… um, have another favor to ask.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Another one? Jesus, Nick.”
“Yeah, I know. I don’t think this one will get you into trouble, but I understand if you don’t want to help me. Would you at least hear me out, though?”
There was a long pause before she gave him the briefest of nods. “Okay, Romani, what do you need?”
“I want to try to set Chereni’s native test subjects free.”
“They attacked the base, you know.”
“I know, but that wasn’t an unprovoked attack. They were trying to rescue their clansmen.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I just need a flyer. Big enough to hold a dozen people.”
Jo thought for a few moments. “There’s a transport flyer over in the vehicle pool. Nobody’s used it since the miners pulled out, but it’s up to date on its maintenance. When do you need it?”
“I’m not exactly sure. It might be the sort of thing where I don’t have a lot of notice. I’ve got someone with me who can get into the holding cells, but… I haven’t quite pulled together a plan yet.”
“Okay, here’s what we’ll do. You come into the back office with me and take the key card so it’s your fingerprints they find. I’ll make sure she’s juiced up and ready to go, but if anybody asks me about it? I don’t know nothing. I don’t need this kind of trouble, Romani, and rumor has it you’re not exactly in any position with your old man to be making guarantees about protection.”
“You’re right about that,” Nick admitted. “I’ll do my best to work it so I’m the only one who takes any heat for it. You have my word I won’t implicate you.”
“Pretty sure I’m gonna regret this,” she said with an impish grin. “But I always was a sucker for pretty eyes. Come on.”
Nick followed her into another office. “Thank you, Jo. You may have just saved a dozen lives.”
“Yeah, well, just make sure mine isn’t on the line for this, okay?” She pointed to the middle of the three desks in the room. “Top drawer, it’s the red and yellow card.”
He pulled the drawer open and found the card.
“It’s the big, green flyer with the yellow stripe, near the back of the lot,” Jo said. “She seats fifteen plus the pilot. You know they’ll be able to track you, right?”
“Um…” Nick hadn’t thought of that.
Jo rolled her eyes. “You need to watch more spy vids, Romani. I’ll disable the locator for you. Give me a couple of hours to get it sorted. I’ll try and get it done by lunch time.”
“Thank you, Jo. I owe you.”
“Just don’t get me fired, and we’ll call it even.”
On his way back from the maintenance hangar, Nick stopped by the infirmary to wish Vaya a good morning, only to be told that Vaya had been moved to the holding area with the other natives. There wasn’t time to protest, and after a few moments of careful thought, Nick decided escape would be easier if Vaya was with the rest of his clansmen; he’d only have one group to set free, and he knew exactly where they were.
When he walked into Draven’s office, Draven eyed the blue jeans and casual shirt he was wearing and shook his head.
“No, Dominick. That won’t do. Your father will be arriving shortly. You’d better go and change. He may be summoning you before we’re finished, and under the circumstances, I think you might want to make the best impression possible.”
Nick’s stomach did flip-flops. His reprieve was over, and he wasn’t nearly ready. What if Sergei ordered him up to the station immediately? What if he had no chance to free Vaya and the others before he had to leave Lyra?
With a sinking heart, he realized that he might not even get a chance to put his plan into action. After the promises he’d made to Vaya, it felt like a betrayal of the worst kind.
Nick made his way back to his room and changed into a pair of tailored black slacks and a dress shirt of fine, grey linen. He took a deep breath and tried to prepare himself to play the contrite, apologetic son who had seen the error of his ways.
When he returned to Draven’s office, he set to work, doing everything he was told without complaint. He wasn’t any closer to finding the light Draven still insisted he should be able to see, but at least Draven would be able to report that he was trying.
Draven, whose own reputation was likely hanging on his ability to teach Nick, was even more curt than usual. When Draven’s phone buzzed with a summons from Sergei, Nick couldn’t decide if he was relieved or disappointed.
* * *
“Vaya… you must try to calm down.” Khuri’s voice was low and soothing, but the underlying note of tension was impossible to miss. “The lightning in your mythe-shadow grows brighter with every passing moment.”
Vaya stopped pacing and squeezed his eyes shut. He could not lose control now, not here, with Erasha and Piri and the others so near. If he called a storm now, he could kill every one of them. There was nowhere for them to run. Nowhere to hide.
“I am trying,” he ground out.
“Try harder,” Khuri urged.
Vaya drew in a deep breath and reminded himself that Nick had a plan. Nick had promised to help, and Vaya believed he would. He’d proved himself to Vaya during their long journey together. Whatever Nick might think of himself, Vaya believed that deep down, he was a man of honor, and would find the courage to do what he must, even if it did mean defying a formidable father.
Noise at the end of the hallway had him exchanging a worried look with Khuri. Two of the guards appeared in front of the cell. One waved his stunner, motioning for them to move back, and the other pointed to Vaya.
Not knowing whether this was part of Nick’s plan or not, Vaya kept his hands in sight and moved slowly forward. His hands were bound behind him and he was escorted from the cell. As they passed Erasha, she called out to him, “Vaya, the lightning…”
“I know, Erasha,” he said from between clenched teeth. “I know.”
He was taken up a flight of stairs and through several hallways to a room that was empty but for a table and two chairs. The guards pushed him down on one of the chairs and flanked him.
Like the infirmary, this room smelled flat and sterile. The air moved, as if carried by a faint breeze, but it was a dry whisper across his skin, and held none of the scents of the Vashi Wastes or the Iceshards.
How could these Sky People know anything about the world around them if they made every effort to shut out their awareness of it?
It wasn’t long before a young man came into the room. He stood a few paces in front of Vaya, regarding him in puzzled silence. “I’m not getting anything from him,” he muttered, then turned to address the guards. “Keep him here. I want to bring someone else in to have a look at him.”
* * *
When the boss’s summons came, Draven found two of Romani’s personal security detail waiting outside his office door. For one heart-stopping moment, he thought they might have come for him. When they flanked Dominick, he let out an inaudible sigh of relief and headed straight for the conference room that had been prepared for Romani’s use.
He didn’t dare linger, though a quick stop in the restroom to check his hair and adjust his tie was an absolute necessity. Romani expected punctuality, neatness in appearance, and above all else, results. Two out of three wasn’t going to cut it, but it was the best he could offer. Rather than the glowing triumph he’d hoped for, this meeting would be a delicate exercise in damage control.
Romani was sitting at the head of the conference table in the only chair in the room. Well aware of his place, Draven stood at the foot of the table, hands clasped behind his back, eyes cast downward, as he waited for the boss to address him.
“Draven. Judging from what Rafe has told me, you cannot have made much progress.”
“No, sir,” Draven said. “Up until the day of his disappearance, Dominick was uncooperative, at best. Since his return, I’ve not had the time to get him up to speed.”
Romani waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “Even I did not anticipate that he would ignore all warnings and go off on his own.”
Draven kept his expression neutral. Technically, it was his fault Dominick had left. He was the one who’d forced the shield on the boy, made him decide he might be better off out in the wilderness.
Should he admit it?
If Dominick said something and Draven didn’t, Romani would catch the omission. But if Dominick was planning to keep quiet…
“I have some surveillance feeds that may be of interest to you,” Romani said, gesturing to the conference room’s vid-screen behind him as he started the playback.
Draven watched the two vid clips with growing alarm. In the first, Dominick talked Annie into joining a wild scheme to free the native test subjects, and in the second, he spoke with Jo Song about getting access to a flyer.
It took every shred of will he possessed to retain his veneer of calm indifference. This, too, was his fault. He’d failed to put enough fear into the boy. Perhaps he should have had Dominick beaten upon his return, rather than allowing Annie to coddle him with medical leave.
“As you can see, Dominick has no intention of following the rules,” Romani said after halting the playback. “Not mine, not yours. That is why I sent Richard and Mason to escort him to his quarters until I’m ready to speak to him. Needless to say, he will not be allowed to complete whatever plans he has made.
“I’m sending you both back to Earth, to Callira. There you will stay until he is trained and compliant. Security will be increased so that Dominick will be unable to leave the island, and you may use whatever methods you deem necessary, as long as you do no permanent damage.
“When you are finished with him, I expect him to be ready to be an asset to the Romani name. I am tired of his games, and it’s time he understood that I am no longer willing to indulge him. Do you understand me, Draven?”
“Yes, sir.”
Romani regarded Draven with a contemplative smile. “This could be a great opportunity for you. I suggest you make the most of it.” He didn’t add that it might also be the last opportunity Draven was given. He didn’t need to; Draven knew the score.
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“Excellent. We’ll be leaving Lyra tonight. For now, report to Dr. Chereni. She has a test subject in need of a psionic evaluation.”
“I thought she had her own people for that?”
“She does. I believe she wants a second opinion. Aside from her evaluation specialist, you are the only psion on site who is not currently taking Drexavin.”
Draven wasn’t sure how much help he would be, but he nodded anyway. “Consider it done, sir.”
* * *
When Nick stepped into the hall outside Draven’s office, he was immediately flanked by two depressingly familiar figures, Richard and Mason.
He’d thought he’d been well rid of them when he’d left Earth. Was it a sign of his value or his untrustworthiness that they were here now?
Mason wore his trademark dark glasses, even here indoors, and Richard wore his usual hint of smirk, which looked a bit more smug than usual this morning.
“Is he pissed?” he asked Richard.
Richard’s smirk widened a bit. “What do you think?”
“I think I’m in trouble,” Nick said, heart sinking down into his shoes.
“Understatement,” Mason muttered darkly.
Nick wanted to drag his feet, but he dared not. Instead of following after Draven, Richard and Mason escorted him to the dining area where they made him sit, and then stood one on either side of him.
Great. That meant Draven would be giving his report before Nick got to tell his side of the story. With a heavy heart, he pulled out his phone to send a message to Annie. Before he could even start, Mason plucked it out of his hand and passed it to Richard, who slipped it into his pocket.
“Hey, I need that.”
“You’ll have to take that up with your father, Mr. Romani,” Richard said in a neutral tone. “He’ll be deciding what you need from here on out.”
Without his phone, Nick had no way to mark the passing of time. He thought about getting some coffee, but the coffee here was awful, and it didn’t look like his bodyguards had any intention of letting him up out of his seat. They stood close, both of them tense, as if they expected him to bolt any second.
Maybe bolting would be his best option.
Except both men wore stunners, and he’d seen them use those weapons before. All of Sergei’s security staff had lightning reflexes, and Richard and Mason were no exception. If he made one wrong move, Nick would be down on the floor before he could reach the door. Then he’d probably be put in binders or thrown into that holding cell Draven had threatened him with.
He’d have no chance to help the natives if he allowed that to happen.
No chance to help Vaya.
Whatever else he did, it was imperative that he retained his freedom of movement.
It seemed like forever before Mason’s phone buzzed. He checked the screen, then gave Richard a nod.
“Let’s go, Mr. Romani,” Richard said. “Your father’s ready for you.”
When they arrived in the conference room, there was no sign of Draven. Sergei sat in the only chair, at the head of the large conference table. Nick didn’t get a choice about where he stood; Richard and Mason hustled him to the foot of the table and stationed themselves on either side of him.
No escape, then.
Sergei didn’t even glance up from his slate. Nick had come to him in disgrace often enough that he knew the drill upside down and sideways. He clasped his hands behind his back to stop himself from fidgeting, and prepared himself for a long wait.
His father was wearing a suit that was more appropriate for a board room or a speaking engagement than a barely-functioning research center on a primitive world. Nick silently thanked Draven for sending him back to his room to change earlier, though he doubted the gesture had stemmed from altruism. Draven was looking out for his own ass, and Nick could hardly blame him.
He focused on the window behind Sergei, staring out at the distant mountains and wishing he were out there in the wilderness with Vaya. He shifted his weight before remembering how much Sergei abhorred fidgeting. A subtle arch of his father’s eyebrow told him his lapse had been noted, so he locked his knees and focused on standing up tall and straight.
How long would he be kept waiting? Sergei had been known to keep him standing in front of his desk for hours if his offense had been particularly grave.
Sergei left Nick sweating for a few more minutes before finally glancing up. His cool grey eyes flicked over his youngest son in a quick appraisal, then narrowed as his lips pursed in disapproval.
“I’m very much looking forward to your explanation of this.” Sergei gestured to the vid-screen on the conference room wall.
It only took a moment for Nick to realize he was watching a surveillance feed of himself talking to Annie about freeing the natives. He closed his eyes against the wave of helpless despair that crashed over him, opening them just as the vid-feed cut to another scene, this of him talking to Jo about getting a flyer. Nick kept his gaze fixed on the screen until the vid had finished playing.
“I believe I told you this assignment might be an opportunity for you to prove your worth, Dominick. I suppose I should not be surprised that you’ve chosen to turn it into an exercise in rebellion.”
“Yes, sir. I… I mean, no, sir. I mean—”
“What have you to say for yourself?”
“I… um. Nothing, sir. I… screwed up.”
Sergei said nothing. He steepled his fingers as he continued to regard Nick with cool, appraising eyes that always seemed to find him wanting.
“It was… um… emotional thinking. I was angry. I… I was furious about being sent here, sir, so I went for a hike to cool off. I… I got into some trouble out there, and one of the natives saved my life. He helped me get back here, and I… thought maybe I could repay him by setting his family free. Sir. I… um.”
“I see.” Sergei’s gaze never wavered. “Well, if nothing else, you’ve shown me just how utterly unsuitable you are for any sort of management position. To be quite frank, I’m not sure what I’m going to do with you, Dominick. For the present, you’ll be returning to Callira with Draven, where I suggest you apply yourself to learning what he has to teach you. After that, we shall see. I may send you to Alan. He could use an administrative assistant.”
Nick couldn’t quite conceal his horror at the thought of being turned over to his oldest brother. Alan had far more terrifying people than Draven working for him, and the last thing Nick wanted was to end up under Alan’s thumb.
“Yes, sir,” Nick said, unable to stop his voice from shaking. “I… I’ll do what you want. I’ll learn whatever Draven wants to teach me, and I’ll be the best… the best management trainee you’ve ever seen. Just… do one thing for me. Stop this research project. Let the natives go. They’re not the savages Chereni says they are. They’ve got families and friends who are worried about them. What we’re doing here… it’s not right, sir. Please. Let them go, and I’ll be whatever you want me to be.”
“The time for appeals to my better nature is long past, Dominick. I’ve invested a lot in this project over the years, and one way or another, it is going to pay off.” Sergei nodded to Richard. “Put him in one of the holding cells until we’re ready to board the shuttle.”
The anxiety that had been coiled tight inside him all morning exploded into full-blown panic. Without thinking, Nick struggled to pull away. Mason’s hand closed around his upper arm, and between them, he and Richard forced Nick down to the floor.
Something jabbed hard into his back. The jolt of white hot pain that followed was worse than anything he’d ever experienced before. Liquid fire poured through his body, and Nick screamed into the white haze of agony.
By the time it was over, his throat was raw, and his face was wet with sweat and tears. He was hauled roughly to his feet and half-dragged, half-carried to the storm shelter that was being used as a prison.
Richard and Mason said nothing as they dragged him down to the end of the cell block and shoved him into an empty holding cell. Nick was shaking so hard, his legs wouldn’t support him, and he collapsed to the floor. The hum of the force-wall being activated was followed by the slam of the heavy door as Richard and Mason left the room.
Even if he’d had the strength, there would have been no point in yelling about the injustice of it all, or protesting the rough treatment. There was no higher power to appeal to. Sergei had watched them hurt him and ordered him locked up. There would be no mercy and no escape.
“Vaya?” a woman’s voice called.
“No,” Nick called back. “I’m not Vaya, I’m Nick. Is Vaya here?”
Several voices answered, but they all spoke the same lyrical language Vaya spoke, and Nick didn’t understand any of it.
“Sorry. I don’t… I don’t understand that. I guess that means he’s not here.” So where was he? Annie said Security had come for him, and they’d put him with the other natives.
If he wasn’t here, that meant…
Chereni had him.
Shit.
Nick shivered. The taste of this failure was far more bitter than any other in his memory, perhaps because he’d allowed himself to care, and in doing so, had let down someone he cared about.
* * *
Tiny flickers of lightning shivered through Vaya’s body. Balanced on the sheer edge of panic, he struggled to maintain a calm appearance while he fought for control. Oblivious to his inner turmoil, the men on either side of him stood in watchful silence.
After far too long, the door opened.
Vaya’s mouth went dry as he recognized the man who walked in.
Draven.
The man who had kidnapped Khuri, Tarrin, and Miko. The man who was responsible for the death of Vaya’s fellow Guardian, Erit. The man Vaya would have taken prisoner last summer, to answer for the Sky People’s crimes. Only Miko’s plea for mercy had stopped him.
Vaya struggled to his feet, but heavy hands came down on his shoulders and pushed him back down on the chair.
“You,” Vaya growled. “I should not have listened to Miko. I should have killed you when I had the chance.”
Draven’s amber eyes widened in recognition. “Vaya. Of course. That’s where I know you from.”
“Had it been up to me, you would never have been set free,” Vaya said. Lightning danced on the edge of his awareness, called by the heat of his anger. Thinking of his sister and the others, he struggled to push it away. He could not lose control here. Must not.
“That must have been terribly irritating for you,” Draven said mildly.
Vaya started to respond, but froze when something pushed at his mind. He drew back instinctively, anger flaring. The push came again, harder this time, breaking through something inside him.
A slithering coldness wormed its way into him, and an aching pressure began to build in his head. Lightning flared in the mythe. Vaya struggled to hold onto it, to stop it from escaping, but it was hot and slippery, impossible to grasp. Sparks danced in front of his eyes, and the pressure in his head increased to a splintering pain. Screams filled his ears as the air seethed and crackled around him.
Then the storm was everywhere, boiling within him and tearing up everything around him. Blinding white light blazed, and the air sparked with the power of the mythe. Vaya smelled rain and ash. The air was filled with an endless roll of thunder, punctuated by human screams.
His own voice was lost in the roar of the wind. Lightning flared through him, racing through his blood as the raw power of the mythe burned places inside him he had no name for. Pure white agony slammed into him. His body convulsed, and everything faded into a cold, merciful blackness.