Dark Warrior Unbroken Page 21

  And who could blame her? She’d lost Coop to a murderous Kyth. How could Sandor hope that she’d lose her heart to another one?

  Going into battle was a helluva time to realize that he loved her, but delaying any longer wouldn’t change a thing. He pounded on the door again, then listened to the heavy silence inside the apartment. The only noise was the pounding of three heartbeats.

  At the sound of the door opening, Sandor braced himself for an attack. Though Sean was young, he’d proven himself to be willing to fight. Good. That would make executing the little bastard easier to live with.

  “What do you want?”

  The scent of fear rolled off the boy in waves, but he met Sandor’s gaze head-on. He also made no move to let Sandor in. Too bad. They needed to keep this confrontation out of the sight of humans.

  “Let me in.”

  “Why would I do that?” Sean’s eyes flickered to the side, no doubt looking at the other people in the apartment.

  Sandor kept his voice calm. “Because if I blow this door off its hinges, one of your friends might get hurt.”

  Sean didn’t budge. “How’s your woman?”

  “She’s fine, no thanks to you. Now let me in, and let’s get this over with.”

  “I want your word that you won’t hurt them.”

  The last thing Sandor wanted to feel right now was admiration for Sean’s determination to protect his friends. It was obvious the kid wasn’t beyond redemption—but the law was clear. There was no plea-bargaining among their kind.

  “I can’t promise that, Sean. They are responsible for their actions, just like you are. Our laws—”

  “Aren’t the only laws that apply here, Sandor.”

  Keeping an eye on Sean, Sandor prayed for patience as he slowly turned to face Lena. “What are you doing here?”

  “We started this hunt together. We finish it together.”

  “You won’t like how it ends, Lena.” Neither would he, but his wishes were beside the point.

  “Before you go in there, you need to hear why I left Seattle. Why I lost the best friend I ever had.”

  “This isn’t story time, Lena. I have a renegade to take care of.”

  She stood her ground. “Just hear me out. It won’t take long.”

  “Fine. Start talking.” He’d listen, but only because he couldn’t stand the pain in her eyes or the way her hands shook before she backed away and finally shoved them in the pockets of her jeans.

  “Not here.”

  Sandor turned back to Sean. “I’ll be right out front. Don’t think you can escape.”

  Right now he’d do anything to get Lena away from what he was about to do. Outside, they sat down on a low concrete wall near the door.

  Lena stared at her hands, then said quietly, “This is harder than I thought it would be.”

  He took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. Remember, you already know the worst about me.”

  She gave him a faint smile. “You mean the fact that you snore and hog the covers?”

  It felt good to laugh, even just a little. “Exactly. Whatever you have to tell me, I’ve got no right to judge you.”

  “All right. You already know about my so-called gift, but Coop didn’t. No one I worked with did. All they knew was that I had a better-than-average arrest rate on the arson cases I investigated. Even the Feds who handled the big cases sometimes called me in for a consult. That was a huge ego boost—from poor white trash to hero.

  “Anyway, we were called to a fire where people died. Those were always the hardest cases. We all wanted the perp, and we wanted him bad. I returned to the scene several times, trying to get a clear read of the fire, but only got bits and pieces. This talent of mine is never predictable about how much I’ll get at any particular scene. All we really had to go on was the method used to start the fire, which fit the pattern of a known arsonist.”

  The words were pouring out almost faster than she could breathe now. He softly touched her shoulder.

  “Take your time, Lena. I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Once I knew that much, I convinced myself that he’d done it. But Coop had put that guy away on a previous crime and knew him. He kept arguing that this arsonist had never killed anyone. He said even lifelong criminals could have some principles, but I didn’t believe him. I wanted justice, not to mention the glory, no matter the price. When I couldn’t bring the guy in on the real evidence, I…”

  She choked as tears streamed down her face. “I made the evidence stronger. He was convicted, denying his guilt the whole time. But who’s going to believe a three-time loser?”

  “Coop?”

  She wiped her face with her sleeve. “Yeah, Coop. He kept working the case until he figured out who the real culprit was. Unfortunately, by then the perp had gone on a burning spree and more people were hurt. All because I wanted a conviction more than I wanted the truth. I put my own feelings and needs above the law. I left town, unable to face Coop, because he knew what I’d done. He never pointed a finger or said a word, but he knew.”

  “From what I know of the man, he would have forgiven you.”

  “He did. He tried to tell me that we all make mistakes, that what we learn from them was what was important. I did what I thought was the right thing for all the wrong reasons, and I couldn’t forgive myself.”

  She drew herself up and turned to face him. “I understand that you need to protect your people, Sandor. Humans aren’t always tolerant of those they see as different or threatening.

  “From everything I’ve heard, you did the right thing when you took Bradan Owen out of the world. He was a stone-cold killer, through and through, yet you still haven’t made peace with executing him. And I’m telling you: the memory of Bradan’s death will seem like nothing compared to what taking out that kid will do to you.”

  Sandor sat in grim silence, knowing full well she was right. But it didn’t change anything. Finally, he stood up and took that first step back toward Sean’s apartment.

  “What are you going to do, Sandor?”

  “My duty.”

  “But—”

  “I don’t want to talk about it anymore. You asked me to listen and I did. Now I’m going to do my job.”

  “Fine—but find out this kid’s truth before you do something you’ll always regret. If justice is willfully blind, then it’s not justice.”

  Sandor returned to the apartment with Lena right on his heels. The woman was nothing if not stubborn, especially when it came to what she thought was best for him. They were quite the pair—both ready to forgive the other almost anything, but unable to cut themselves any slack. If their relationship survived this evening, they’d have to work on that.

  Sean had closed and locked the door again, and Sandor sensed the kid standing right on the other side, his pulse rapid, his breathing shallow. Sandor used a small jolt of energy to unlock the door, then hit it with enough force to pop it open.

  Shoving Sean backwards, he dragged Lena into the apartment with him, kicking the door closed behind them.

  Sean immediately positioned himself between the other two people in the room, but they didn’t stay behind him. A slender young woman, probably no older than Sean, moved up beside him on the right while a younger boy took the left. Sandor liked that about them.

  Damn it all, could this get any worse? Here he was, a highly trained Talion, facing off against three half-starved Kyth kids. From the readings he was getting, they were strong ones, too.

  “Sean, where’s your family?”

  “Why? You want to kill them, too?” he asked defiantly.

  “Just answer the damn question.”

  “You’re looking at the only family I have.” He took a half step forward, trying again to put himself between them and Sandor.

  “How long have you been on your own?”

  Sean glanced at the girl. “Five years, give or take.”

  Sandor tried the girl next
. “How did you hook up with him?”

  Sean answered, “Tara and I were in the same foster home. We left when the father started giving her problems.”

  Sandor could imagine exactly what kind of problems they’d been. Once this was settled, he’d track the bastard down. “When did you realize that both of you had abilities that other kids don’t?”

  “What abilities are you talking about?” Sean asked, but his eyes locked onto Sandor’s hands.

  “Like this one.” Sandor made it easy and held them out, letting the three look their fill at the dark energy surging under his skin.

  The younger boy’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Hot damn, that’s so cool. I can’t do that.”

  “I can.” Sean held up his own hands. “But not until recently.”

  “All three of you need energy hits to get by, but you don’t know why. Am I right?” Sandor asked.

  They looked at each other before nodding.

  “I know what’s going on with you because, as you can see, I’m like you. And there are more of us out there than you know. We call ourselves the Kyth, and we’re a separate species of human beings.”

  “Are you shittin’ me?” Sean’s face went from hopeful to incredulous.

  “No, I’m not.” Sandor pointed to the couch. “So why don’t the three of you sit down, while I explain some things to you and answer any questions you might have. Then I’ll need to make a phone call.”

  The girl remained standing and asked, “Would either of you like something to drink? We’ve only got water and maybe some pop.”

  “Water would be great.”

  Lena nodded. “Make it two.”

  Sandor liked the girl’s instincts. By acting as if he and Lena were invited guests, instead of invad ers, it gave them all a chance to ratchet down the tension. He waited until she returned before beginning his explanation, which he’d used for years to introduce newly found Kyth to their heritage and culture.

  By the time he was done, all three of the kids were staring at him with wonder and disbelief in their eyes. It felt good to be playing ambassador again, instead of judge and jury—although they weren’t out of the woods yet.

  “Okay, here comes the hard part.” He looked directly at Sean. “What I am is a Talion warrior. Talion loosely translates as ‘an eye for an eye’ or ‘justice meted out in kind,’ which means we’re the police force for our people. I serve our ruler, the Grand Dame, and enforce our laws. You should know right up front that we do not allow renegade Kyth to live, because when they harm humans, they endanger all of us.”

  “What’s that got to do with me?” Sean asked, but there was resignation in his eyes.

  “Don’t play games with me, Sean. You’ve been hurting the humans you’ve been feeding from. Not only that, your attacks are getting more frequent and more violent.”

  “Yes.” The boy’s voice cracked with fear and shame. “I’ve tried to control myself, but I can’t anymore. But I’m the problem—not Kenny or Tara.”

  “But they’ve been feeding, too, haven’t they?”

  Kenny gulped and nodded, but Tara spoke up. “I know it’s no excuse, but we didn’t know what else to do.”

  Sandor smiled at her. “And that’s precisely what I’m going to tell our Grand Dame when you meet her.”

  He pulled out his cell phone and went around the corner into the kitchen, glad for a moment’s respite from those desperate young eyes. “Kerry, I know I’m causing you a major problem, and I’m sorry about that. But I’m coming in and bringing company with me.” He yanked open the refrigerator, confirming his suspicions. “Do me a favor and order in several pizzas, enough for us plus three extra people.” He snapped the phone closed before his ruler could say more than a stunned “Okay.”

  Lena was waiting right behind him, clearly having eavesdropped.

  She gave him an impish smile. “I bet Kerry just loves getting phone calls from you. That’s the second one tonight where you’ve issued orders and then hung up on her.”

  “I figure Ranulf will come after me if I keep doing that, but right now I’ve got bigger fish to fry.”

  As soon as he walked back into the living room, Sean stood between Sandor and his friends. “I heard that. We’re not going anywhere to meet anybody.”

  “Sean, right now I’m not too happy with you and your friends. You’ve been hurting people all over this city, and that’s going to stop, because you’re drawing too much attention to yourself. I know you have no reason to trust anyone, much less me, but I’m asking you to try.”

  “Why should I?”

  “Because I just stuck my neck out a long, long way for you. If you’d rather I carry out that death sentence, it would simplify my life. It’s your choice, of course, but I’d bet Tara and Kenny here would like some say in how this plays out.”

  He wasn’t supposed to give second chances. But if Kerry wanted him to run the Talions, some changes needed to be made. He couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t at least try to drag his people into the twenty-first century.

  Once again, Tara stood beside Sean. “What do you want us to do?”

  “Come with me. No harm will come to any of you tonight.” He placed his hand on the brand on his arm. “This I swear.”

  Sean clearly wasn’t convinced. “Tara, we don’t really know anything about this guy.”

  “No, but we do know that you need help, Sean. I don’t want you to die.”

  Finally, Sean nodded. “Come on, Kenny. Looks like we’re going for a ride.”

  When Lena slipped her hand in Sandor’s, the band of tension around his chest eased up considerably. He might be out of a job after this, but he wouldn’t be alone.

  When Kerry passed her husband for the fifth time, she couldn’t help it. She lost it and started laughing. Maybe it was just hysteria, but it felt good. Ranulf did an about-face.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “Us. This.” She waved her hand in the air. “We might as well have a track installed in the living room if we’re both going to be walking laps like this.”

  He glowered at her briefly, then dragged her up for a quick kiss. She showed her approval by deepening it.

  The sound of someone clearing his throat derailed that, but she didn’t immediately step out of her husband’s warm embrace.

  “Yes, Mr. Danby?”

  “Please call me Grey, and I apologize for intruding. However, I believe your guests have arrived.”

  Grey’s expression was a carefully schooled blank, probably part of that whole stiff-upper-lip stuff. And as much as she loved his British accent, she was finding him impossible to read.

  She would have preferred to keep him in the dark about Sandor’s visit, but Danby had been standing beside her when the call had come in. She and Ranulf had planned on taking Grey out to dinner. Instead they were having pizza, evidently with a trio of renegade Kyth.

  Sandor had certainly put her in a difficult situation. The imminent executions should make for lovely dinner conversation.

  Hughes joined the party, giving Grey a sharp look for stealing his thunder. “I thought you’d like to know that Mr. Kearn has arrived. He has Miss Wilson with him, as well as three other individuals.”

  He then backed out of the room to usher their unexpected guests in.

  Kerry kept her fingers crossed that her Chief Talion had a good reason for his unexpected action. Ever since she signed that execution order, there’d been a lump of regret and pain in her stomach that no amount of rationalization could alleviate.

  She retreated to her chair and sat down. Ranulf positioned himself next to her, reassuring her with his presence. Grey crossed to stand next to the fireplace, no doubt wanting an unobstructed view of the proceedings so he could report back to his friends in great detail.

  Sandor hesitated in the doorway when he spotted Greyhill Danby in the room. Kerry grimaced slightly but inclined her head, signaling that he should approach her. Sandor stopped directly in front o
f her and bowed slightly from the waist.

  “Kerry Thorsen, Grand Dame of all the Kyth, and Ranulf Thorsen, her Consort, thank you for granting me this audience on such short notice. I have come to inform you that I have failed to carry out my duties as Chief Talion.”

  She followed his lead, falling back on the formal rituals he’d been teaching her. “Explain yourself, Talion Sandor Kearn. Were your orders somehow unclear?”

  He jerked, as if she’d struck him. “No, Grand Dame, I understood them, but I thought I might be allowed to bring extenuating circumstances to your attention. If you find that I have acted in error, I will tender my resignation immediately as Chief Talion and accept the consequences.”

  “I repeat, Talion Kearn. Explain your actions and the decision that led you to postpone carrying out your orders.”

  “As ordered, I located the three renegades responsible for the attacks on humans in recent weeks, and confronted them. Kyth justice is clear on the matter of Kyth who choose to go renegade and cause harm. However, I would like to point out that this case is different than any other I’m familiar with.”

  “How so?”

  “The Kyth in this instance didn’t consciously make the choice to go renegade. They couldn’t.” A fleeting hint of a smile softened his solemn expression.

  “Are you saying they harmed no humans?”

  “No, that much was true. What I am saying is that these three individuals were not aware of being Kyth until I told them this evening. I haven’t had time to investigate their pasts, but they were out on the streets at a very young age with no instruction on how to handle their Kyth abilities. They couldn’t choose to do the right thing when no one ever gave them the chance to learn what that was.”

  Kerry reminded him, “I was not aware I was Kyth, but I didn’t knowingly harm anyone to maintain my energy needs.”

  “True, but may I point out that you had a stable family, Dame Kerry. These kids didn’t have that. That they not only found each other but also a way to cope at all, is a miracle.” His voice had thickened, revealing the powerful emotions he was fighting.