* * * * *
At the opposite end of the barn, a doorway opened into a large room, much bigger than Kira had expected. Unlike the rest of the barn, which had dirt and straw for a floor, this section had a solid slab of concrete. Panels of stainless steel sheeting lined the walls where three small, barred windows provided ample light.
On the right side was a long metal table with a lamp hanging above it that reminded her of an operating room. Behind that, a long section of counter stood with two deep sinks dividing it down the middle.
The ceiling was much like the rest of the barn, with open rafters, but they’d been painted white. An elaborate pulley system hung from one of the beams in the middle of the room and held a thick chain and leather straps with buckles. Everything in the room looked old and worn, but clean.
Shandira sat near a small table on the left side of the room. In the corner, a mattress lay on the floor, covered with several of the fine tapestries she’d seen in Octavion’s and Lydia’s possessions. Next to the bed, a series of built-in shelves held several of Octavion’s small glass and metal containers and wooden boxes.
Shandira stood as they entered the room. “Bring her here,” she instructed. She stepped to the shelf closest to her bed and pulled down a small box. As Zerek shoved Kira into a chair, Shandira dropped the box onto the table.
Zerek ran his fingers through Kira’s hair and bent to kiss her. She swung her arms around and hit him in the thigh, then jumped to her feet to run. Zerek grabbed her, sat in the chair with Kira on his lap and held both her arms by wrapping her tight in his embrace.
“Try to run now.” He threw his head back and laughed, his hot, putrid breath washing over her.
His right arm held her just above her chest. She tucked in her chin, leaned forward and sank her teeth into his skin, taking in a mouth full of his blood. She pushed off with her feet and arched her back, sending both her and Zerek backward onto the floor. Zerek hit the ground first, the back of his head striking with a sickening thud. With the wind knocked out of him, his grip around her loosened. Kira rolled away and ran for the door.
Shandira appeared in front of her, arms folded across her chest. “Going somewhere?” She grinned. “Tie her to the chair if you have to.”
Kira tried to push Shandira aside, but Cael grabbed her from behind and threw her over his shoulder. Zerek stood near the table with the righted chair. He held onto the back of it while Cael forced Kira to sit.
“Let go of me,” Kira yelled, the metallic taste of Zerek’s blood still fresh on her lips.
Zerek cut the rope around her wrists and pulled her hands around behind the back of the chair while Cael bound them together, cinching them tight.
“It’s too tight,” she complained.
“That’s what you get for running,” Zerek said.
Shandira opened the box and took out a small tapestry bag with a black cord. “I don’t suppose you’d like to have this?” She dangled the bag in front of Kira’s face.
Opening the end, Shandira slipped her hand inside and pulled out the journey stone. “My brother was so busy worrying about your scent he didn’t see me hiding in his lair. Too bad he didn’t care enough to save you.” She placed the stone on the table in front of Kira. “Now . . . tell me how it works.”
“I don’t know,” Kira lied.
“If you know what this is, you know how to use it. He must have shown you.” She flicked it with her finger, making it spin on the table.
“It’s from your world,” Kira said. “Why can’t you figure it out?”
“It will not work for me. It is . . . temperamental. But for you, it may.”
“They only showed it to me and said it opened the way to their world. They said it was too dangerous to use. They never told me how.”
“You’re lying.” Shandira paced the floor. “I know him. He would have shown you.” She paused for a moment and stepped closer, placing both hands on the table. Slowly leaning across, she glared into Kira’s eyes. At first Kira saw only anger, but then confusion and surprise took over. “How are your eyes that color?” Shandira looked away, as if staring at them caused her pain.
“I was born with them. Maybe you should ask my mother—if you can find her.” Kira knew the minute she said the words, she shouldn’t have. She’d spat them out with a little too much attitude.
Zerek stepped closer. “She’s lying. Luka told us her eyes got that way when Octavion bound himself to her. It is his blood that caused the change.”
“Is this true?” she asked Kira.
“No, his blood did more harm than good. I can’t even heal anymore without my heart hurting.”
Shandira grinned. “You are lying. What other gifts did his blood give you?”
Kira pulled against the ropes, trying to loosen the ones around her wrists. “Untie me and let me show you—in a fair fight, not with your cowardly disappearing act.”
Shandira came around the table and backhanded Kira across the face. It was the same cheek Cael hit the night before and the force behind the punch knocked Kira senseless for moment. Shandira picked up the journey stone, slid it into the pouch and tossed it onto her bed.
“Maybe what you need is a little persuasion.” An evil smirk crossed her face. “Zerek. Perhaps a few lashings will loosen her memory.”
“No!” Kira screamed, pulling against the ropes and causing the knots to tighten.
Zerek grabbed the rope that held her and untied it enough to free her from the chair, but her hands remained bound behind her back. Cael took hold of one of the leather straps that was suspended from the center of the room, meeting with Shandira’s rebuke.
“Not in here, you idiots. I don’t want her blood soiling my floor.”
Cael picked Kira up, threw her over his shoulder, and carried her back to the stall. When they entered, Toran let out a ferocious roar and pulled against the chain. Then he cowered away and whimpered—only to do it again and again.
Once they retied Kira’s hands in front and suspended her from one of the rafters with a length of rope, Cael grabbed the back of her shirt and ripped it open. Kira looked up at her bound hands and the rope suspending her from the rafters and panic set in—this was the scene she’d envisioned when climbing the rope at school. Fear seized every muscle in her body as she struggled to pull her hands free while kicking her feet wildly toward Zerek and Cael.
When the first thrash of the whip struck her back, Kira screamed and Toran leapt at Zerek, catching the back of Zerek’s thigh with his sharp claws. He stumbled against the far wall, dropping the whip. Cael picked it up and continued the gruesome assault.
Kira’s cries sent Toran into a wild frenzy. He pulled harder and harder against the chain, driving the blades of the collar even deeper into his neck. On his last attempt to save Kira, he leapt into the air, hit the end of the chain and collapsed onto the ground, the horrible sound of air and blood gurgling through his throat.
“Toran!” Kira cried, but the big cat lay still.
Cael continued to whip her, one strike after another, until Kira had spent all her energy screaming. She’d never felt so much pain, not even when she’d healed her own wounds. When Cael finally cut her down, she landed square on her back—the sudden surge of pain as the open wounds hit the dirt, knocked her breathless.
Cael’s roar told her he’d transformed from the scent of her blood—but somehow he’d managed to suppress his desires long enough to get out of the room. She heard the scuff of their steps, the door slammed shut and the bolt latch. She didn’t dare move until she heard their voices on the other side.
Kira’s trembling body went limp and for several moments she lay motionless. She wasn’t sure how many times she blacked out, or even if she had, only that the pain brought her alert with each labored breath. Slowly, she rolled to her side and tried to heal bleeding welts on her back—but the Crystor remained dormant, useless.
“Al, are you still here? I’m cold.” Kira knew sh
e’d barely whispered her plea, but hoped Altaria could understand, could help her in some way. But no warmth came to comfort her. Every last ounce of energy, every last hope, had been beaten out of her and she had nothing left to give. She thought she’d spent all her tears until she reached for Toran and felt the warmth of his fur between her fingers. He’d died trying to save her life. But he wasn’t the only one she’d let down.
Lydia? I’m so sorry. As Kira continued to share her thoughts, getting none in return, she gave into sleep. The kind of sleep that brought nightmares and visions she couldn’t escape from. The kind of sleep that broke her heart, destroyed her dreams and captured her will to live.