Divine Savior (21 page)

“
Do you see where you are, my dear?” Sherman said to her incredulously. “Do you not feel your life’s blood draining from your body, making you weak and at our mercy? You’re my bait, child, nothing more. Brenda will kill you if Lynne doesn’t beat her to it. I fear neither woman is not very happy about her current situation and feels that you are to blame for at least part of it. Lynne tends to be a little, how should I say...high strung.”

Shade snorted. High strung was a bit of an understatement.

When Lynne started toward her again, Sherman simply raised his hand to stop her. “You’d do well to behave. Yes,” Sherman said after a slight pause. “I think you would be better off if you hoped for Lynne, I think, to dispose of you. She will more than likely make your death quicker. But I did promise Brenda she could have her fun as well. That’s her reward for letting you ‘kidnap’ her child from the hospital, you see. Slowly, and without skill, so it will be painful and drawn out. What’s a man to do, I ask you? Yes, yes, if I were you, I’d hope for a quick death from our Lynne here. Now, I am waiting for that bitch Mel and her sidekick Sara.”

“
If you think they will waste their time to come for me then you’re stupider than you look. I’m not exactly on their list of people to invite for tea. No, you’ve barked up…no pun there, barked up the wrong tree with that one, buck-o.”

“
She will come for you, they both will, and they will pay for what they’ve done to me.” Shade flinched when he pulled his shirt from his neck and revealed the large scar there. “Sara did this to me. Pushed her magical blade deep into my throat and tried to murder me. Me! Mel denounced me that day or this wouldn’t have happened. I sacrificed so much for Mel, running her kingdom while she hid away from me. I’m very disappointed in her. They need to pay for this, and you’ll be my ticket to making that happen.”

Sherman ran his finger down Shade’s cheek, watching her as he did it. When she pulled away from his touch, he slapped her twice. He backhanded her first on the left, and then slapped her on the right. He walked away from her then, nodding to the women as he left the cave.

“
Oh, and Shade,” he said as he turned back at the last minute, “I’m going to kill that brat of Brenda’s too. Slowly, while you watch me. It’s the least I can do to rid the world of useless humans. And one like him, so small and puny, it will be a treat for me.”

Shade jerked hard on the chains and screamed at him. All she managed to do was open the wounds on her wrists and cause more blood to flow. She was going to kill that man if it was the last thing she ever did. Those were her last thoughts as she passed out from the pain and blood loss.

Sometime later, Shade woke to an insistent tugging at her left ear. It wasn’t painful, just annoying. She slowly raised her head up and looked around. There wasn’t anyone in the cave but her.

“
It’s about damned time you woke up. I have much more important things to do than to wait for you while you nap all day.”

The tiny winged being walked around Shade’s shoulder and down to her chest to sit on her breast. Shade still couldn’t see her well, so the thing flew down and rested on the rocks at Shade’s feet.

“
What are you, a bug or something? No, don’t answer that. If you do, then that means my mind has snapped or I’m dead. I’m not really ready to be either just yet, thanks.”

Shade’s head hurt and her body felt as if it was drained. A small giggle escaped her mouth when she thought about Colin and him being disappointed that she was dry as a rock now.

“
Well, I can say for a certainty that you aren’t dead. As for the other...not really sure about that? You
are
in a cave chained to a wall, aren’t you? Who’d you tick off, some evil-doer? My name is Genese, by the way, and I’m a pixie, a flower pixie, actually. I take care of the purple dahlias in the forest glen. Your mother sent me.”

“
Ah ha, a flower pixie named Genese. Of course you are. And you say my mother sent you? Well, now I know I’m off the deep end. I don’t have a mother. Well, I’m sure I did at one point, but I don’t know how she would know me well enough to send you to help me.”

Shade eyed the little thing on the rocks. A pixie, she’d said. Nope, couldn’t be real. A flower pixie of all things to dream about. Shade closed her eyes and counted to ten then opened them again. It was still there.

“
I have a pixie sitting in front of me that’s dressed like some sort of...well, I was going to say street walker, but that seems harsh. But it is my dream.” Shade felt mirth begin to build inside of her again. It wasn’t the laughter of
“you’re funny,”
but the
“oh my, Shade, you’ve lost your mind”
kind of laughter. “So...are you a tiny hooker? Do you buy your clothes at Tiny Hookers R’ Us?”

“
No, I’m not a hooker, but thanks.” Shade grinned as best she could at the sarcasm in the bug’s voice. “I’m very eclectic with my tastes, very unique in my clothing. You should try it sometime. Having taste, I mean.”

“
Sure. When I’m done hanging around here, you and I can go to the mall. I think there might be an
Itty Bitty Tiny Shop
for you to go to and I will go to
I’m Out of My Fucking Mind Shop
. You think they’ll have something with less blood on it?

Genese obviously found no humor in Shade’s comment and ignored her. Either that, Shade thought with a giggle again, or she wasn’t talking in the right language. She would have to learn Pixienese.

“
Your mother sent out a bunch of us to look into every cave in the area. We have been looking for you for hours.”

“
Well, it looks like you’re the winner. Do you win something good? I hope so. I don’t suppose you have a key or a sharp saw hidden on you, do you?”

“
No, we can’t carry something that weighs more than we do. Are you always this dense?”

“
I don’t know. I just don’t know anymore. This is…I’m having a really shitty day, I think.” Shade felt the tears stream down her face as she spoke. She had never felt so lost and sad in all her life. She wanted Colin.

Shade looked at the...girl. She didn’t doubt that she was female, a very beautiful one, in fact. It was how she was dressed that threw her.

Her hair was a bright purple and hung in a cropped cut to just below her ears on one side and to her shoulder on the other. She had on a leather top hat with some sort of metal eyepiece wrapped around the brim. Her eyes were as bright of purple as her hair and just as beautiful. Her wings, nearly the same length as she was tall, were sheer lavender with tiny sparks of light blazing from them. Her jacket and top skirt, also purple, shimmered with what at first appeared to be glitter, but was actually dew. The gauzy underskirt was made of crinoline and was silver with small flowers all around the hem. Boots, knee high with sharp-looking heels, completed her
ensemble
. They were perhaps a quarter inch in height, giving her what Shade thought was a tiny, six-inch frame that extra boost.

“
Then just how did she expect you to help me? You’re barely tall enough to kiss your flowers. These beings aren’t human. One of them is, but she isn’t right in the head anymore.” Shade rubbed her sore cheek on her shoulder and wiped away her tears. She hurt, she was hungry and, damn it, she had to pee.

“
My mistress said that you need to pull from the earth. You are a part of it; the earth is you and you are the earth. Your power will know no boundaries when used with a pure heart. Borrow what you need to make yourself stronger.” Genese stood and looked to the open mouth of the cave.

“
Well, aren’t you just a wealth of useless information.” Shade could hear the others returning and lowered her voice. “How? How do I gather it into me? I’m weak and injured. I’ve lost a lot of blood. I’m going to need a great deal of energy to fight and survive. I need to survive. My mate...I...I have a mate, I...please tell me, tell me how to finish this.”

Shade didn’t know why, but she knew that this woman was more than connected to her and that she could trust her. But at the moment, she didn’t much care for her.

“
Stop whining. The beings return, as you know. Just do what I tell you. You must dig as deep as you can into the soil. I’ll return when they have gone.”

With wings fluttering faster than the human eye could detect, Genese darted out just as Lynne and Brenda walked in.
Shade slumped down. She wanted to appear weaker than she really was, which was saying a lot. Borrowing from the earth…where had she heard the before? But as she was beginning to think about that, Lynne moved closer to her.

“
So, you decided to come back to us, did you?” Lynne taunted. “Good. I believe torture is so much more enjoyable if the victim is awake to scream for me. It just sends shivers down my spine.”

“
Well, I’ve always heard that you should humor the insane. As for the torture, mind telling me why me? That loony boyfriend of yours seems to have a motive, unless you’re just his flunky. Is that it, Lynney dear? Are you just his serving bitch?” It might earn her another slap, but Shade enjoyed seeing Lynne’s face turn that molten shade of red.

“
You are here because I say so, not Sherman. I make the decisions here. You’ll die because you will not take my place as the alpha-bitch. It was you who caused Bradley to denounce me. He actually thinks he can run the pack without me. Without my help! I made him! You and all the others will die and he’ll see reason when I dump all your carcasses on his doorstep. Then he’ll beg me to come back to him.”

“
What happened? Did he find out you be-spelled him into thinking you were his mate? That’s what has your panties in a twist, isn’t it? Good old Bradley isn’t quite the sap you thought he was, is he? Did your boy Sherman help you with that? Oh yeah, I know all about that. I can smell the black magic all over you. Your whole being is tainted with it.”

Shade braced herself for the blow when Lynne growled. Anger and the smell of wolf permeated the air.

“
Shut up! He
is
a sap. I made him. He will take me back once I kill Sara and that mate of hers. Shut your fucking mouth.”

“
It’s not going to work, you know? You
are
going to fail. As soon as they find me, and they will, you’re both going to pay. And you.” Shade turned on Brenda. “What are you supposed to be getting out of this? Lynney has no home, no money, and if Sherman has his way, you won’t even have little Brent to sell for your drugs ever again.”

“
Lynne, what’s going on? What’s she saying? You said you’d make sure I never had to be without my medicine again.” Shade noticed that Brenda was looking a little wild-eyed and sliding toward the door.

“
You’ll never get away with this. They’ll be here soon and you’ll pay like you made all the others pay. The women you decided were getting too close to your alpha, your other victims, the women you tortured.”

Shade knew that she was pushing Lynne, but she was stalling too, building up her strength until Colin came to her.

Shade had done as Genese instructed. First with the dirt beneath her feet, then with the water in the small alcove she could see the fish within; even the algae answered her call for help. Reaching still further out with her magic, Shade could feel help coming from the grasses and the trees surrounding the area beyond. It seemed that anything with energy and connected to the earth willingly gave energy to her. The farther she reached, the easier it became, the stronger her connection. Her body hummed with power; her heart beat to the answering pulse of the things around her. She felt alive.

Shade felt the touch, gentle and soft at first, then stronger as it began to talk to her. Soon, the whisper came through her body. Like a hand checking and testing her injuries, it settled in her mind like a soft breeze against her cheek.

“
Speak to the magic as I am speaking to you. Use your telepathic connection to reach out. You will be able to touch the earth, trees, and plants deeper and stronger than you have already. Speak to them this way, the way we are speaking now, thank them for their bounty. The creatures of the Glen are yours, as well, and they will speak to you. Reach to them, Shade. Tell them you need their help. They will know you for what you are, and what you need,”
the voice spoke in her mind.

Shade reached out to try and find the source and found a being like the magic that was now pouring into her. She felt the immediate connection. A bond was formed between them, a bond that was strong and magical. Her mother; it was her mother, Fiona.

Shade could stand up now, her strength increasing by leaps and bounds. She dug her toes into the soft dirt of the cave to get a better stance and was surprised by the magic still coming into her. It felt clean and pure, strong and earthy at the same time. She felt as if it almost spoke to her; the magic was singing through her muscles, and cells, rejuvenating her quicker now, building her into someone stronger, stronger than ever.

~
CHAPTER TWENTY~

The Hummer pulled in front of the Pack house just after sunset. Everyone spilled out of the vehicle quickly. Aaron had driven with Sara in the front seat with him. In the next seat back were Colin, Demetrius and Dominic; in the last seat sat James, Phillip and Fiona. The latter three were not vampires but the two men were the mates to Sara’s mother and aunt. Aaron thought it could not hurt to have a little extra help in the event of Sara getting into trouble. He would die for her, and on the off chance he did, he wanted to make sure she would be well protected with her family.