Chapter Fourteen
Mary stood at the foot of the bed, watching Rykaur in awe.
The feel of him being inside her head had been the single most incredible sensation she’d ever felt, apart from being in his arms.
She wanted to be back there again, she thought with more than a little guilt. How could she entertain such ideas when the children were still in Jefferies’s clutches?
Rykaur stilled. “Mary…”
“Stay out of my head,” she demanded, heat rushing to her face. “What are we going to do about Jefferies?”
Running a hand down his face, Rykaur stepped around her and headed toward the exit. “Come with me.”
“Where are we going?” She hurried to catch up to him.
Rykaur stopped in the hall and waited for her to catch up before taking her hand and continuing on. “To see Zaureth.”
“But isn’t he the healer?”
The corner of Rykaur’s mouth lifted. “Zaureth is many things, Mary. A healer is but a part of who he is.”
Mary suddenly dug in her heels at the sight of a furious Gryke storming toward them.
“Why is she not in the dungeon?” Gryke snapped, forcing them to a stop.
Rykaur nudged her behind him, spreading his booted feet in a protective stance. “There is much you do not know, Gryke. We are going to see Zaureth. Follow me and I will explain on the way.”
Mary could fairly feel the aggression coming from the other male.
The two giant Bracadytes faced off for several heartbeats before Gryke finally spouted, “You have but minutes to convince me of that your intentions are worth her being free.”
“Do not threaten me,” Rykaur bit out, his body taut with tension. “Either come with me or get out of my way. We are wasting time.”
Gryke stepped aside, albeit reluctantly.
Mary gasped as Rykaur abruptly spun around, gripped her around the waste, and scooped her up into his arms. “Do not speak.”
The gentle yet firm command entered her mind with a jolt. Mary wondered if all Bracadytes had the ability to convey thoughts with others, or if Rykaur was an anomaly.
“We all are born with the capability,” came his mental reply. “Even you.”
Somehow, Mary doubted that, but she decided to keep the thought to herself.
“Do not doubt me.”
Or, maybe not, she inwardly sighed.
Mary stared straight ahead to avoid meeting Gryke’s aggressive gaze. She somehow knew he was watching her. She could feel his penetrating stare burning a hole through the side of her head.
“Zaureth?” Rykaur called out, stopping at the steps to the catacombs.
The massive healer stepped into view. “You may enter.”
Rykaur took the few steps that would take him into Zaureth’s home and then set Mary on her feet. Gryke stopped directly on her left.
“How are you feeling?” Zaureth directed his question to Mary.
He has the kindest eyes, Mary thought, peering up into their pale green depths. “Much better, thanks to you.”
“I am glad to hear it.” The healer then shifted his attention back to Rykaur. “What can I do for you?”
Mary stood quietly next to Rykaur as he filled Zaureth and Gryke in on everything that had taken place since Mary’s arrival in Aukrabah. He’d left out the part about her drugging him and taking his jewels. And Mary couldn’t be more relieved. She would hate like hell for the healer to see her as a thief.
Not that Zaureth’s opinion should matter one way or the other. But it did. He was a healer, which in Mary’s eyes was reminiscent of a holy man.
“Is Jefferies responsible for the scars?” Zaureth asked, returning his gaze to Mary.
Mary’s stomach clenched in mortification. She didn’t want to confess her sordid past to this holy man. He would surely think her broken and pitiful.
She lifted her chin, ignoring his question. “He has the children. And if I’m not back in two days’ time, he has promised to kill them. I can’t let that happen.”
“I will not allow that to happen,” Rykaur assured her, pulling her close to his side before once more addressing Zaureth. “I have a plan.”
Zaureth nodded for him to continue.
With his fingertips stroking Mary’s arm, Rykaur explained to the room, his plan of taking down Jefferies. “Jefferies gave Mary three days to execute his plan of eliminating us. He will not remain in the same place while she is in Aukrabah, for fear that she will have enlisted our help.”
Pausing, he took a deep breath. “There will be spies surrounding the entrance to Aukrabah. Spies that will carry the information back to him the second we surface.
“On the third day, we send out a decoy. Once it has been reported that Mary has exited Aukrabah, alone, Jefferies will dispatch someone to retrieve her.”
“No!” Mary cried, pulling free of Rykaur’s hold. “If I wait three days to return, he might grow impatient and hurt the children. And how can you be so sure that he won’t be there?” But she knew Rykaur spoke the truth. She only hated that she hadn’t anticipated that Jefferies would move the children. She would have done something. Anything.
“You could not have guessed what he would do,” Rykaur pointed out, reading her thoughts. “You were under far too much pressure—”
“You mated with her,” Gryke interrupted, cutting off the rest of Rykaur’s words. “When did this happen?”
Confused, Mary glanced from one to the other. “Mated?”
The glare Rykaur sent Gryke couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than anger. “It is not your business who I bond with.”
“Mate,” Mary asked a second time. “Bonded? What the hell are you talking about?”
Zaureth held up a hand. Though he spoke to the room at large, his gaze remained on Gryke. “I believe that it is Rykaur’s responsibility to discuss the details of a bonding or mating with Mary, not ours. Now, once a plan has been decided upon, the two of them can return to his apartment to talk it over. Until then, let us decide what we are to do about the land walker Jefferies.”