“What are you doing?!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, hoping my voice would carry through the door out to the dance floor.
Before I could let out another shriek, my hands were yanked behind me, tied, and a gag shoved in my mouth.
Another tall, dark man appeared, but this one wasn’t wearing formal dress. He dragged me down the stairs, my dress tripping me up, and causing me to lose my footing.
“I thought you were smarter.”
There were figures on either side of the doors, dressed in black from head to toe, holding them open for us to pass through. A carriage waited for us, its door also open and unwelcoming.
Pulling madly against the hard grip of the man who dragged me down the stairs, I tried screaming through the gag.
His hand lodged in my hair and jerked me to stand still.
“Shut up, Kimber Raven. Shut up, or I will turn the magic on you and make you deaf and mute.”
With a heave, he spun me into the car and stuffed me into the back. Leaning in, he gave me a cruel grin. “We’re kidnapping you, Lady Raven. The temple does not deserve to have you as the world begins the Breaking. You will serve us, and you will lead us to power. Fight, and we will kill you. Escape, and we will kill the masters. Oh, and that tasty morsel you were dancing with, too. He should die, too, shouldn’t he?”
My throat worked of its own accord, and I held in my screams.
My magic wasn’t clean enough, honed enough, to escape his grasp or the ropes.
Slamming the door hard, he climbed into the front seat of the carriage as a passenger, and with a whip to the horse, we shot into motion across the grass.
I desperately tried to stay calm. It wasn’t easy as I was tossed around in the carriage. I’d been ripped out of the arms of the man who had just declared his courtship and was being shuttled away from everything that meant anything.
The cruel man turned in his seat and stared at me, now frazzled and confused.
“You don’t even know what you are, do you, girlie? Let me explain, then. You’re a pawn. You’re nothing more than something that gets moved across the chessboard to protect or save power. The temple will use you and destroy you, and eventually, toss you to the side as a sacrifice. You won’t have a golden crown to stand next to the Lost God. You won’t have gems and wealth as the prophecy says. You will be used. Wrung dry. Discarded and forgotten.
“We will use your power as well as anyone else would. The Found Goddess, in our grasp, to deny entry to the Lost God. He will never be allowed back, and we shall rule S’Kir as we were always meant to do.”
Who were these people? I didn’t have the power to open the gate or bring down the mountain. I was just the herald of the Breaking Times.
My mind froze on that face.
I was the herald of the Breaking Times. Just as Elex had needed to show everyone his intentions with the dance, I was needed to show who had control…who was going to protect the people of S’Kir during the Breaking Time.
If this group of…dingbats…had me, they could claim that they were the protectors.
But I was of the temple. And the temple should have control. They had the armies, the knowledge, the history, the power that would lead us safely through.
Even if this maniac turned the magic against me, I had to get away. I had to.
The temple needs to be in power.
The maniac laughed. “I see you get it. Good.”
Sliding back to the driver, he started to talk to the man whipping the horses. I couldn’t hear their conversation over the rattle of wheels on paving stones. I only caught one word.
One name.
Dorian.
There was no time to react.
A tremendous whompf sounded on the topside of the carriage, and the driver whipped the horse harder.
I realized I wanted his head for brutalizing that poor animal.
Another whompf came from the roof, and I ducked without thinking.
The maniac in the front seat was screaming at the horses to go faster, but a moment later, the door was ripped open on his side, and he was pulled out bodily.
The whip went up again and never came back down. The driver looked up and screamed just as a hand came down to snatch his collar and yank him away.
The horses slowed, and I could hear yelling. The carriage was buffeted by a blast of magic, exploding against the side and trickling in.
I couldn’t see what was going on, but I did know that I was calm enough now to try to use some of my own magic.
Slipping a few threads under the gag, I wiggled it a bit and felt the knot go loose. A moment more of wiggling, and it fell off. I gulped the air, rarely remembering it tasting so sweet.
Since it worked with the gag, I tried wiggling the ropes with the magic.
No luck this time.
Could I create a saw? There was no harm in trying, so I wrapped the threads around the rope. Before I could try, though, the door was yanked open, and I was ready to start kicking and screaming.
The face, though, was that of Elex, and I calmed immediately. He climbed into the carriage.
“Did they hurt you?”
“No. Well, not on purpose. My arms are sore, and I’m sure I’ve torn my dress.”
The flash of a knife blade disappeared behind my back, and the ropes were cut free a moment later. I rubbed my wrists. I would be sore for a few days.
“You’re sure you’re all right?”
“Yes. Please help me out of this contraption.”
Backing out, Elex held a hand out to steady me. I stepped out and found my center as both my feet hit the ground.
“Are you all right, Lady Raven?”
Snapping my head to the right, I found Dorian standing there. I swept my gaze back and forth a few times, taking in both him and Elex. They looked winded and worried, and their clothes were in shambles.
I finally settled on Elex. “What went on out here?”
Tossing a glance at Dorian, Elex narrated the story. “We both saw you getting tossed closer and closer to the other exit and tried to stop them from taking you. It became clear we weren’t going to be able to do that, and Master Dorian and I made a beeline for the horses outside.
“When we rounded the corner, we saw the horses take off across the lawns, pulling the carriage. The guards were picking off the others who were with them as they left the building, so Dorian and I were free to go after you. We gave chase and pulled alongside.”
I stared at him, hard, shocked. “You jumped on to the moving carriage?”
“Your suitor is quite the athlete,” Dorian offered.
“Are you kidding me? You jumped from your horse to the roof of my carriage?”
“I’m not. How else was I was supposed to save you?”
“Gods and stars! Are you insane?”
“Dorian helped.”
My eyebrows arched up, shocked. “Master Dorian? You jumped on to the carriage?”
A nonchalant shrug betrayed nothing of what he was thinking. “Lord Everettson needed assistance.”
“So you leapt from your horse.”
I was utterly astonished. This man was almost as old as the mountains, and he was leaping from a horse—
—to save me.
I stared at Elex. “He really jumped?”
“He yanked the driver out. I got the kidnapper from the passenger side.” Elex cocked his head, and I could see him with an astonished smile playing on his lips.
“Master Dorian, thank you. Thank you and thank you, Elex.”
“Does the hero get a kiss?” Elex flashed his cheekiest grin at me.
Well, two could play.
I leaned in to give him a kiss on the lips and swerved at the last moment to land it on his cheek. “Brave hero.”
I turned to walk to Dorian, and he held his hand out. “I don’t need a kiss.”
But something flashed in his eyes as he folded his arms. A touch of jealousy? A hint of anger? There was no mistaking the gold of the flash.
“Are you all right?” Elex asked again.
“I am. I am just a little sore and shocked. I think I need to learn more about my own magic and more about physical self-defense.” My eyes landed on Dorian. “A lot is going on here you haven’t shared yet, isn’t there?”
He unfolded his arms. “You were the one who wanted to rush blindly into the Breaking Time. I tried to stop you. You’ll pay the price now.”
“You had best not threaten me, Dorian. You already have the other masters angry with you, and threatening me will cause a schism.”
“You are a child, Lady Raven.” Scorn and derision dripped from his words. “You have no idea what the masters are like, not from your few weeks of interaction with us. Thousands of years separate us from the infant you are in our eyes. You pushed the Breaking Times. You are not ready for any of this.”
His eyes flashed gold again, and his anger landed on Elex. “You’d best bond her soon if you plan on it. She’ll need what protection she can get from another infant such as you.”
He spun on his heel and marched away from us, back toward his horse.
I couldn’t stop the question. “Why is he such an asshole?”
“Probably needs to get laid.”
I punched Elex. “That’s inappropriate.”
He looked at me, and I saw his eyes light gold—there was no mistaking the lust that sat within them.
“I’m still on an adrenaline rush. You want me to show you what’s inappropriate?”
He moved just a step closer, and his finger traced the collar of my dress. My blood heated at the suggestions of that simple touch.
“Show me behind closed doors, and you can get my dress on the floor.”
Just a split second passed, and I found myself being dragged away by him.
Once again, I was laughing.