Broken Wings (Cruel and Beautiful World, Book One 1) (26 page)

She then woke up early every morning to make him these elaborate breakfasts. Bronson taught her most of it, since he was a sous chef at a popular restaurant on nights he wasn't cooking at the bar.

Deryn claimed she had never been much of a cook before, and Xander loved the way her face lit up every time she made something he was particularly fond of, like her spinach omelet. But his favorite part about her new morning routine was the robe she always cooked in, which was now accompanied by matching slippers he had sent Bronson back for.

By the end of the week, Deryn had already read through the entire volume of
Yesteryear
twice, so Xander asked her if there were any other books she might want, since she refused to read anything from a screen of any sort. Since she had no clue what sort of books they had in Utopia, she filled up an entire sheet of paper with different topics and - for fiction purposes - genres she enjoyed. Front and back.

It was definitely safe to say that Deryn Leon was getting back to normal.

"You still have to help me practice in the basement," she said as she sat on the floor of the living room, using the different tools and gadgets he had picked up for her to try and adjust her Element.

"So ... what? You want me to teach you Guardian tricks or something?" asked Xander.

"Well, it couldn't hurt. That way I can at least know what they might try on me."

"I'm not letting you run out of here unless there's a one-hundred percent chance no guard or Guardian will go after you, Leon."

"I know," she said. "I was referring more to the future. You know, like, a battle."

Xander froze. Of course he knew there would be more battles between the guards and the Resistance in the future. In fact, he was pretty certain they were overdue for one. But the thought of Deryn being caught up in the middle of it had never really crossed his mind before. When she left Utopia they would become enemies. Maybe they would even run into each other on the battlefield. Would she strike at him then? He already knew he would never strike at her. He did his best not to strike at any Outsiders. Though, sometimes, it was unavoidable.

"Fine, I'll teach you," he said. "There is one trick in particular I think you'd like. I'll need to make an adjustment to it for you, though."

"That's fine."

"We'll need Bronson for it, too. Test dummy, you know."

He winked and Deryn smiled. The two of them were just waiting for the day Bronson had enough of their shenanigans and retaliated. He, undoubtedly, had a few tricks up his own sleeve.

~

"Do I have to do this?" whined Bronson as Xander aimed Deryn's Element at him.

"You want her to learn, don't you?" said Xander. "Would you rather we sent our little fugitive out unprepared?"

"No," mumbled Bronson under his breath. "But it always fucking hurts."

"You won't feel a thing with this one."

Bronson let out a frustrated sigh before readying himself.

"Alright, Leon. Are you ready?"

Deryn nodded, her eyes focusing closely on her Element in Xander's hand.

She jumped as what looked like a streak of lightning shot out of the weapon and hit Bronson straight in the heart, making his eyes go wide and still as his entire body stiffened. He collapsed.

Deryn watched in awe. "He looks dead."

"Yes, that's the point," said Xander. "I designed it to look exactly like the shock of electricity that comes out and stops a person's heart. So any observers think that's exactly what happened."

She sucked in her lips and nervously asked, "What do you use it for?"

"When I first came up with it, the point was to catch members of the Resistance," he said. "I would use it on someone, and their comrades would leave the body behind, thinking they were dead. When they awoke, we would interrogate them."

Deryn shuddered. Xander didn't like it.

"But, lately, I only ever use it to stop other guards or Guardians from killing Resistance members first," he said defensively.

"How long does it last?" she asked, nudging Bronson's petrified body with her foot.

"Twenty minutes or so. But I can bring him back whenever." He walked up to Bronson, pointed the Element at him and pressed a button. Another streak of light came out and zapped him, making his body convulse.

Bronson popped up from the floor, gasping for air. He looked at Xander with the same wide eyes as before, struggling to breathe as he said, "What ... the ... fuck?"

"If you awake them too suddenly, it can be a bit unsettling," said Xander with a crooked grin. He handed Deryn her Element.

Deryn bit her bottom lip as she looked down at the button he had added. Even on this older model, there was always room for more. "I want to try."

Bronson moved his wide eyes to her as he continued to catch his breath. "Wha -"

"Alright but, this time, we should probably let him rest it out after. I'll show you how best to defend yourself against an attacker while he does."

Deryn nodded, and she and Xander moved back to the same spot as before. She readied her Element, but Bronson was still on the floor, clutching his heart. He held up a finger, letting them know it would just be one second, then he stood up and braced himself.

"Okay," he said with one last gasp for air.

Xander stood behind Deryn, running his hand down her arm until his fingertips were resting on top of hers. He positioned her hand correctly, adjusting it slightly so it was aimed directly at Bronson's heart.

"You need to make sure you hit him straight on. If not, even the real heart stopper will barely give him a shock," he said into her ear, feeling Deryn tremble beneath his touch. He smirked as he rubbed his other hand soothingly along her hip. "Ready?"

Bronson cocked his head, staring curiously at the way Xander was touching Deryn, and even more curiously at the way she was leaning into it. He was still stuck like that when Deryn pressed the button.

Bronson fell back, his head still in its tilted position. He would definitely be feeling that in twenty minutes.

Xander sat around the large, steel table with the other Guardians and President Saevus. They were in the president's home and a number of waves in chains were serving them a plethora of food. But Xander didn't want any of it. Not just because of the horrible conditions and torture their servers had to endure. Even now, Elvira was tugging on the chain around a young woman's neck, pulling her close and burning her with a candle from the table while she tried to pour wine without spilling a drop.

No, that was only a small part of why he didn't want to touch this food. The bigger part - and the more selfish one - was more focused on how Deryn was cooking her first dinner that night. She was excited and nervous, and he would be damned if he came home full.

"President, all I want to know is what exactly has this little shit done to recapture the toxic trash?" asked Veli.

Xander smirked. He hadn't even realized the conversation had become about him.

"Please do not use such tasteless language at my table, Veli."

"I apologize, President, but surely -"

"Xander, would you care to enlighten us with your reasoning behind your decision not to send guards out to search our citizens' homes?" asked President Saevus calmly.

"It's a waste of our fucking time," said Xander, smiling at Veli when it became clear that the president would not be criticizing his tasteless language.

"How so?" asked Veli.

"Because we gain nothing from recapturing Leon. You might want retribution but we have no use for her anymore. It's been years since they've tried to bargain for her, and months since they've sent anyone to retrieve her. Face it, Veli. They've given up. Or they will soon. We. Gain. Nothing."

"Speak for yourself," said Eamon Graham from across the table. He and Luka's father, Barath, exchanged grins.

It took everything Xander had to stop himself from lunging forward and beating them to a bloody pulp.

The president asked, "Soren, how do you feel about all of this?"

Everyone followed his eyes to the man at the far end of the table, alive and well, but his throat terribly scarred from the cut Deryn had given him and black veins that looked like tattoos climbing up his arms. His servant had fed him medicine to fight the poison only seconds before it would have killed him. And as for the stab wounds ... Unfortunately, they lived in an advanced society and he was saved pretty quickly.

Xander tried to hide the fire he felt as he stared at Soren. He had only just returned to Guardian duty a few days ago and Xander hated having to see his hideous face every day, even with that bit of satisfaction he felt every time he looked at Deryn's handiwork.

Soren's fists were clenched on the table, his knuckles turning white as his nails dug deep into the skin of his palm, obviously not over the humiliation of being mutilated by the Outsider he had fallen in sickening lust with. He looked up with weary eyes and shrugged without a word.

"Speak up, darling!" Elvira called to him. Even when he had been demoted to the other end of the table she still remained in the chair just beside her father. "Your president would like to know your opinion! Should we continue looking for your filthy pet, or are you fine with her slashing your throat open and, with that, obtaining her freedom?"

It was clear what
her
opinion was. Anything to overrule Xander.

"Do you think she's fucking that Trigger boy right now?" she asked with a cackle.

Soren leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, glaring down the table at his wife. The two of them remained in a staring contest for a long moment before Soren moved his eyes to Xander. He wore a thick, silver band around his neck, having to press a button on it every time he wished to speak since his vocal chords had been maimed. He did that now. "Find her and let me deal with her. I do not want her returning to Trigger.
Ever
."

"You do plan on killing her, darling, don't you?" asked Elvira with a wicked smile.

"In time," said Soren. "But first she must suffer."

He removed his hand from the band, which really looked more like a collar and not too different from the ones slaves wore. Xander felt great pleasure with that.

He then noticed several Guardians exchange grins. He knew what they were thinking. That they would all make Deryn suffer, but he would kill every last one of them before he ever let that happen. It repulsed him how many people in this room had had their way with her without her consent. He wished he could kill them all now. It would certainly be gratifying. But this was neither the time nor the place. Deryn would get her vengeance. Just not today.

"You heard the man, Xander," said Elvira. "Send out the search party."

Xander rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. "Waste of fucking time, but fine. You win, Veli." He scowled at the other man, determined to wipe that satisfied smirk off of his face. "But, when we don't find her, I want something in return."

The smirk vanished. Mission accomplished.

"What did you have in mind?" asked President Saevus.

"This is not the first time Veli has taken away my precious time. I'm sure we all recall that mission to Willow last year. We lost three guards and a Guardian when the Resistance bombarded us, and all because he wasn't smart enough to recognize a false fucking lead."

Everyone nodded in remembrance. Actually, the lead wasn't false, and Xander was the one who used his resources to get a message to the Resistance about the guards' arrival, but no one here knew that. No one anywhere did.

"If he's wrong again, I want him out. Not an execution. Just out." Really, he wanted an execution, but he was trying to be realistic.

Veli's eyes widened. "You little fucking shit. How dare you -"

"Done," said the president. "I suggest you work closely with Xander on this, Veli. Your future depends on it."

Veli looked at President Saevus, gulped and nodded. Then he moved his angry eyes back to Xander, keeping them focused on him for the remainder of the meeting.

"Now, onto our next order of business," said Elvira, looking at the hologram list in front of her. "Has no one heard from Dougal Fender yet?"

Keeping Veli's gaze, Xander grinned. It was all too fucking easy.

~

"So how does it look?" Deryn asked nervously as Bronson inspected the stew she had made.

"Looks good," he said, giving it a few stirs. He took out a spoonful and blew before stuffing it in his mouth. "Not bad. Of course, mine is better."

"I suspect it is," she said with a smile. "So it's really alright? I had this fear the meat would come out raw or something."

Bronson laughed. "You know it's not raw, Deryn. Stop being so insecure. It tastes great."

"I can't help it. I've never done anything like this before and I strive for perfection. Anything less and I'm dumping it down the drain."

"In that case, it's perfect," he said.