Chapter 20

Gypsy was taken to a cavernous cell, which for prison standards, was fairly clean. There was a steel bench attached to the wall and a wool blanket folded neatly on top of it. The cell even had two large barred windows that let in a fair amount of sunlight, which was the only light available. When the suns set she’d be in total darkness. It was definitely a downgrade from her last room. Gypsy wondered with mounting dread how long this kidnap honeymoon would last before Kharon got really angry and just killed her.

Hearing the steel doors clank behind her, Gypsy hobbled over to the bench and sat down. Her broken ankle was killing her and to make matters worse was twisted at an unnatural angle. She hadn’t been offered a doctor yet and worried about the very real prospect of ending up crippled for life. A wave of desperate sorrow filled her heart and it took everything she had not to cry. Oh, Gavin, I should have listened to you. You knew this could happen and tried to warn me. What I wouldn’t do to take back those last few days before my capture and do them over again.

The guards let Kharon in and he advanced on her holding a canvas sack and a canteen of water. “I’m sorry these accommodations are so crude but you obviously can’t be trusted.”

Gypsy rubbed her ankle. The torment from her injury was definitely cooling any feelings of passion. “Neither can you,” she snarled, trying to keep the pain out of her voice.

“I suppose I deserve that.” He placed the sack and the canteen on the bench next to her. The sack smelled like dried meat. “You know, Gypsy, it doesn’t have to be like this. All I want is an apology and your word you won’t attempt another escape. We can try again.”

“Okay, I’m sorry and you have my word. I won’t try to escape again. Now let me out of here,” she said a bit too quickly.

Kharon grinned and shook his head. “You are a witty delight, my love, but I’m afraid that I’m not convinced. I told you before; I’m not stupid.”

Even though her stomach was twisting in hunger, she picked up the sack and tossed it at him. He fumbled but caught it. “No, but you are a liar. Fuck you and get out.”

“You’re hunger strike is just foolishness,” he said, annoyed.

“That doesn’t even compare to how foolish I was for trusting you.”

Kharon scowled as if he’d swallowed something bitter. “How long are you planning not to eat?”

“I already told you, until either you let me go or I starve to death. Take your pick.”

“You’re bluffing.”

Gypsy gave him a cold stare and lay down on the bed. “Okay,” she replied in a deadpan voice. “I’m bluffing.” She winced as sparks of pain shot up from her ruined ankle. Looking deep inside herself she realized she didn’t feel anything but an icy shock. Then the realization that Kharon had broken her ankle on purpose resurfaced and a wrenching pain filled her. How could I have been so wrong about him? Is this damn fever making him more aggressive too?

A long awkward silence followed. Finally Kharon said, “I’m going to leave you here until the fever comes. Then we’ll try this again. I am betting we will have much better results. I’ll send a doctor by to see about your injury. I’m sorry I lost my temper.”

Gypsy rolled over with her back to him. “Just get out.”

Several minutes later, she heard Kharon leave and the heavy metal of her cell door slam shut. Then she closed her eyes and tried to forget the throbbing agony in her ankle and the lonely pain of betrayal that seared her heart. As the minutes passed like hours she tried to think of an escape plan but the darkness of her depression kept engulfing her, pushing all hope of salvation away. The longing for Kharon intensified and she prayed that he would come back. The fever was almost here and soon she would be lost for good.

* * * *

Night came after an endless day of suffering. A doctor had come as promised, stinking of gin with the bedside manner of a street thug. He had taken one look at her ankle, grunted something to himself, and left without doing anything. Gypsy guessed the lure of more drink had trumped her treatment. The doctor hadn’t even had the decency to give her anything for the pain.

As if matters weren’t bad enough, her ankle had swollen to twice its normal size and the hurt was relentless. More worrisome still was the horrible red and purple bruising surrounding the bone and the nonstop mind-bending ache. No matter what position she moved into it still throbbed so bad she couldn’t even try to sleep anymore. All she could do was regret she’d ever met Kharon and hope one day to have her revenge.

Then, just as the night reached its darkest and the three moons shone their silver light through the window, a fog seeped into her cell. The first thing that drew Gypsy’s attention was the smell: like liquid ice, cold and sharp at the same time.

Darkness filled the space moving across the ground like tar until it stopped and elongated into the form of a male. A male she knew all too well as her grandfather, the notorious wizard Titan. Although she had only encountered him once, his image was forever burned into her mind.

“Titan,” Gypsy said, letting the name slip from her lips like a deadly sin.

Titan’s image became clearer, an imposing dark magician dressed all in black: black cloak; black pants; black boots. His handsome face was sculptured perfection; a diabolical mixture of evil cunning and hidden cruelty. He was a tall AEssyrian male, over six foot five, and carried his power like a loaded blaster coiled within his menacing soul. Normally Gypsy would have steered clear of him, having been warned by her father in the past about Titan’s trickery but right now he was a welcome sight.

Her grandfather glanced at the bars on her window. “What manner of treachery is this?”

Gypsy struggled to sit up. A bolt of suffering ran up her leg and she yelped and froze. When she could finally speak, she said, “General Kharon has taken me prisoner and broken my ankle.” There was so much more she wanted to say but short sentences were all she could manage.

Titan’s yellow eyes glowed with power. “Choose your men better.”

Gypsy bit her tongue against a sarcastic remark. “I didn’t exactly choose him. Please help me, Titan.”

The wizard was motionless for several minutes. Then he held his arms out in welcome. The room seemed to become a little darker. “First, come to me.”

Resting all her weight on her good foot, Gypsy hobbled over to where Titan stood. When she was close, he held his hand up for her to stop. She did as he directed her.

“If I take this Primal Fever away it will only be temporary. The chemicals that cause these changes will regenerate and your desire for Kharon will return,” he said. “Someday you may need him and this affliction. Do you understand what that means?”

“Yes,” Gypsy said. “If I ever want to have children, I have to keep the fever.”

“Second, by accepting my help, changes might occur in you. Changes you may not like.”

“From the way things stand right now, I don’t see that I have much of a choice,” she replied.

“Then come and kiss me,” Titan said.

Gypsy limped up to her grandfather feeling like she was climbing the steps of a gallows. “What kinds of changes?”

Titan’s yellow eyes pulled her in closer. “I don’t know,” he said. “It’s different for everyone. But you are special to me, Gypsy. So I’ll tell you this, you don’t owe me for this little rescue. Your debt’s been paid. But next time, it won’t be.”

“Who paid it?”

“I can’t tell you. Just be grateful someone loves you enough to pay it for you.”

Gypsy nodded grimly. “Okay, I understand,” she said. Then she tilted her face up to kiss Titan and closed her eyes.

The kiss was biting like a winter wind: all numbing cold and arctic chill. Its magic forced itself into her body, breaching all her defenses and latched onto each individual cell in her being. The pain was horrible and overwhelmed even the throbbing ache in her ruined ankle. Gypsy slammed her hands into Titan’s chest, trying to break the devouring kiss but it was too late. Titan had her at his mercy. He was a vampire feeding, a leech under the skin, and there was no escape. An avalanche of sorrows filled her heart, threatening to break it, and all the while Titan drew the passion from her cringing soul with a savage ruthlessness undaunted by her struggling.

Then from the darkest recesses of her mind and body, he drew the Primal Fever out. Gypsy could actually feel him siphoning the hormones off, drawing it out into himself to be destroyed by the darkness that resided there. The process felt like surgery without anesthesia. When it felt as if there was nothing left to strip from her, Gypsy pushed on Titan’s chest again. This time her efforts broke the kiss. She stumbled backward trying to catch her breath.

That was when she realized he’d also healed her ankle. She was grateful but cautious. Gypsy tested it by taking a few cautious steps forward and back. No pain at all.

Titan’s eyes seemed to shine with furious glee. It wasn’t sexual desire she saw in him, but rather the essence of raw, naked power. “I’m sorry if I hurt you, Gypsy. But complicated spells can sometimes be brutal on the recipient.”

Gypsy tried to slow her racing heart and mind. His apology had taken her completely off-guard. She swallowed and noticed her hands were shaking. “Am I cured?”

“You are temporarily,” he said. “You will skip this season and lose your desire to remain here despite Kharon’s efforts.”

“Why can’t you take the damn thing away forever?”

“Changing the course of what is natural can be quite difficult, sometimes even impossible. Nature is used to getting its way,” he explained. “Are you so sure that your love for Kharon is solely the result of Primal Fever? Perhaps your feelings for him are genuine and the fever is merely an enhancement. Have you ever considered that?”

She shook her head quickly. “I don’t really love him. I know it’s just the hormones. Don’t you understand? I’m in love with Caraculla.”

She didn’t like where this conversation was going. Kharon was her enemy now. And even if she did love him, which she didn’t, he had betrayed her. As far as she was concerned they were finished.

“I never said you weren’t in love with Caraculla. Why does it shame you so to be in love with two men?”

Gypsy growled in frustration. “I am not in love with Kharon!”

Titan held up his hands in surrender, not bothering to hide his amusement. “Maybe you’re not. But you should at least entertain the possibility.”

Gypsy was about to embark on another protest but Titan placed his black gloved index finger on her lips and continued to speak. “Before I leave I will indulge you in some unsolicited advice; don’t become estranged from your own emotions. At some point in your life they will be torn from you by someone. If you are unfamiliar with them you will be incapable of controlling them and they will control you. Your father and brother are perfect examples of this folly. If you are honest about your feelings for Kharon, you will be better equipped to resist him. Then you will be in control of the relationship.”

Gypsy stared at the ground for a moment to hide her irritation. “You still haven’t told me why you won’t remove this curse. Then I wouldn’t have to bother learning about it.”

Gently grabbing her chin, Titan tilted her face up to him and gave her a smile that was purely demonic. “Were you anyone else,” he whispered, leaning close to her ear, “I would joyfully remove it. I’d love to watch the disastrous effect it would have on your life. You were meant to have this gift, my granddaughter. Stop fighting it and start learning how to control it. Use it to your advantage. There are more levels to Primal Fever than just sex. It is part of who and what you are and what you will become. It has always been a part of your life. Your maturity is what brought on its sexual aspect. It is no accident that you are different from other women and desired a career based on violence and aggression. Removing it could be as devastating as removing a portion of your brain.”

“But it incapacitates me. All I can think about is being with Kharon. How am I supposed to pursue a military career? I can’t ride into battle worrying about whether or not I’m going to go into heat. How about giving me some advice about what the hell I’m supposed to do about that?” She pulled her chin from his hand and folded her arms.

“Control is a part of all relationships, even the one you have with yourself. In order to control the fever you have to understand it. When it returns, you must embrace the potential power hidden within. That is all I can tell you. The rest you need to figure out for yourself.”

“How long will the fever be dormant?”

“That I cannot foresee. But it will be long enough for you to escape Kharon and return to the empire.”

The mere mention of General Kharon’s name ignited a fireball in her belly. Fucking double-crossing bastard! She pushed her feelings aside for the moment. “Have you done anything to me? I mean…I feel different.”

“I haven’t done anything deliberately, but you may notice some changes.”

A fresh panic exploded in her brain. “Like what?”

Titan shrugged. It was a calm, casual action that infuriated her all the more. “It’s impossible to tell if our contact has had any effect on you. We’ll just have to wait and see.”

“I don’t want to wait and see!” Gypsy exploded. “I want to know what to expect now!”

Titan gave her a chilling stare and she wondered if she hadn’t just made the worst mistake of her life accepting his help. But then she reminded herself that she’d just been faced with being imprisoned for life. She guessed being Titan’s plaything was the lesser of the two evils.

“I can always put you back the way you were when I found you,” Titan offered. The tone was cool and even but there was a dark threat encased within.

“No,” she said quickly. “I truly am grateful for your help.” Then after pausing for a moment of thought, she said, “How did you know to find me here?”

Titan’s face lightened into a mischievous smile. “That’s not your concern. You have more pressing matters to contend with.” From his long black cloak he pulled out a dark gray saber. It had a handle in the form of a raptor’s claw and a bright red ruby at the base. The blade was a also a dark gray. Titan held it out to her. “I was saving this for your first real battle. Who knew it would come so soon?”

Gypsy took the saber from him and its weight felt good in her hand. “Thank you.”

Titan smiled, his body already turning to smoke. “You’re welcome, Gypsy, and good luck against General Kharon.”

And just as the wizard faded completely from view, the cell door slammed open and Kharon came in, staring in amazement at Gypsy’s healed ankle. Next his gaze moved to the saber she was holding. Then he reached down and pulled his own saber and held it at the ready.