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“No,” Rycon said as he spun me around and bound my arms behind my back. “Not sorry enough.”
46
If Rycon had just stabbed me in the heart with the knife I knew that he had hidden in his boot, it wouldn’t have cut as deep as his betrayal. He’d slung me in front of him on a motorcycle of some sort, with my hands still tied behind my back.
The link between us was completely blocked, so it was through my human ears that I heard him take a deep inhale through his nose before he revved the engine and kicked off.
“Are you smelling where Kieran is?” I asked, disgusted. Rycon didn’t answer. He easily balanced the weight of both of our bodies on his motorcycle as he navigated through narrow back alleys throughout most of the city.
It took us nearly an hour to get to our destination, the docks. Once we turned onto the docks, we were surrounded by a small city of shipping containers within minutes.
There was not a soul in sight, and I was sure if I screamed, Rycon would simply kill anyone who would come to my rescue. I was back in that weird loop where normal safety precautions didn’t apply. He hadn’t even tried to gag me. Rycon slowed as we approached the lake. The distant city lights were cast in star-like reflections across the mirrored black surface of the water.
“Rycon, what a pleasant surprise.” Kieran’s voice whispered. I was shocked. I had assumed this meeting had been prearranged.
“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Kieran continued. Marcus and Maria stepped up out of the dark into the dim light. I felt the blood drain from my face. How were they alive? I had thought for sure they had been killed.
What had happened to Clair? Where were Conrad and Meredith? Please don’t be dead. Please don’t be dead.
Rycon stepped off of the motorcycle and dragged me off with him. He smiled his usual salty grin, but I had seen the inside of him. I knew him. The smile did not reach his eyes.
“You blocked our bond earlier. If you break it now, I’ll give her to you in exchange for my freedom.” His voice hummed with anticipation, and his grip tightened on my arm. Kieran’s face lit up with glee. He raised his arm and casually cocked his hand signaling Marcus to move forward.
“Stay away from me!” I hissed as Marcus approached. However, I was beginning to learn very quickly that I no longer had any say in what happened to me. An invisible force tore me from Rycon’s grasp, and I was suddenly in Marcus’ arms. I looked across the considerable distance that I had just flown to meet Rycon’s gaze. I made sure he could see all of the hurt and pain in my eyes. If I didn’t know any better, I could have sworn I saw the same feelings reciprocated in the shifter’s gaze.
“You have her. Unbind us.” Rycon demanded. His voice was low, and his fists were clenched.
“All in good time,” Kieran said casually from behind me. “Bring her mother to me, and I will unbind you.” My heart rate accelerated, and I began to sweat. Clair was alive then. Rycon’s dilated pupils narrowed and his nostrils flared. Then suddenly he relaxed and fell back into his easy mercenary stance.
“Consider it done,” he sneered from across the lot as he straddled his bike and kicked it into gear. I reached for my aura but the triquetra burned so brightly against me that I cringed in Marcus’s grip. All I could do was beg.
“Rycon, no! Leave her out of this! Please, Rycon, Please!” I struggled against the fire mage, but his power just crushed me farther into him. The shifter paused and looked me in the eye. I felt like he was trying to tell me something, but our bond was blocked, I couldn’t understand. I couldn’t even find the strength to try reaching out to Amon again. These Nightshades were suffocating me.
“I’ll see you soon, Kitten.” Was all he said, before he squealed away, his back tire burning rubber on his way out of the pier.
Kieran appeared in front of me once Rycon’s engine was nothing but a distant dream in the night.
“Alone at last.” Kieran said, his tone filled with mirth. I struggled against Marcus again, but the more I resisted, the harder his magick beat down on me. I sunk to my knees on the cold pavement.
“Take her away,” Kieran ordered, and Marcus dragged me off my feet, Maria a silent presence behind us. “It’s time to find out what lies under that pretty skin.”
Despite myself, I screamed as they dragged me across the asphalt. I hoped, for their sake, nobody would try to save me.
47
The Nightshades dragged me into one of the shipping containers that littered the lakeshore. I gave up struggling by the time the steel doors slammed shut behind us, blacking out the starlight. In the crippling darkness, my limp heels slammed against concrete steps that must have been dug out specifically for restraining someone like me.
The further down we went, the damper it got. I cursed myself again and again for not heeding Conrad’s warning to get dressed when he had woken me up mere hours ago. Somehow, I doubted my captors would dignify me with a warm change of clothes.
Without Rycon’s night vision, I existed in pure darkness for the agonizing trip to what I could only assume was meant to be my cell. I heard the drag of a heavy door against concrete and the faint light of a single bulb crept out as the opening widened. Marcus threw me into the bare, concrete room, and the heavy door shut behind me, with the click and tumble of what seemed like a thousand locks.
I was definitely past shock. I was freezing cold and shaking, my hands and feet were ice. Panic welled in my chest as I took in my surroundings. The damp cement walls were grey and coated with mold. There were no windows or mattress, but there was a metal bucket in the corner that I assumed was so I could relieve myself. The humiliation of it all was overwhelming. Just as the anxiety began to peak into a panic attack, Kieran materialized in the center of my cell.
“Welcome, Raven to your new home,” he said. He spread his arms and turned for effect, a hateful smile plastered on his face. I stood shaking before him, not from fear, but from the cold. I somehow managed a scowl.
“I understand that you are upset, however, I would advise you to think before you respond to my next query. You will not be able to retract your choice at a later date.” I imagined that the snake wore the same smile when he asked Eve to bite the apple.
“Agree to surrender your power to us here and now, and we will promise you a quick death. Refuse, and we will be forced to take it from you,” he gestured to my current surroundings. “Choose the wrong path, Raven, and I promise you, shitting in a bucket will be the least of your concerns.”
