“No, it’s not.”

“Let her help,” said Logan. “This may be Grace’s only chance.”

Joseph’s mouth twisted with frustration, but in the end, he nodded. “I’m coming with you.”

“Good. You may be of use,” said Brenya.

“Logan, you and Hope come with us. The rest of you stay here. Make sure nothing else comes through behind her.”

“I’ll see to it,” said Nicholas.

The four of them hurried to the room where Grace lay, barely alive. Torr was on the far side of the bed, but as they came in, he rose to his feet, his hand going to his sword. “Who’s this?”

“My mother,” said Hope. “She’s here to see Grace.”

“Not your mother, child. Serrien alone holds that honor. I merely took what she willingly sacrificed.”

“I don’t understand. Serrien is my last name.”

“Your mother’s name. She gave you to me so she could return to her world before the Solarc learned of her disobedience. But that is a story for when there is more time.”

The Solarc ruled Athanasia with absolute authority. He was a megalomaniacal bastard by all accounts, and solely responsible for the starvation Logan’s kind suffered. The Solarc was the one who ordered the gate shut, cutting off the source of blood the Sanguinar needed to survive—a curse handed down as punishment on the children of those who dared to defy him. If this woman worked against the Solarc, then she was likely more friend than enemy.

Brenya stepped up to the bed, watching Torr as she would a venomous snake. “Do you claim this dying woman?”

“I do. Hurt her and I’ll make sure you regret it.”

Brenya gave him a satisfied nod and rested her long-fingered hand on Grace’s pale brow. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them, there was more than a hint of surprise in her gaze. “She did this for you?”

Torr swallowed and nodded, shame burning bright in his cheeks.

“Can you help her?” asked Hope.

“Perhaps. If she lives long enough. The time left to her can be measured in heartbeats.”

Torr’s voice was filled with demand. “Then do something. Now. Before it’s too late.”

“I can’t. At least not here. It will take longer than one night to do what must be done, and the Solarc will know I’m here once the sun rises.”

“Who cares what that fucking asshole knows?” Torr nearly shouted.

“You will when he sends his Wardens here to cut me down.”

“Yeah,” said Hope. “You definitely don’t want to mess with those guys.”

“She’s right,” said Logan. “One of them almost killed us.”

“So what do we do?” asked Torr. “You can’t walk away.”

“I can and I will,” said Brenya. “Whether I walk away with Grace is up to you.”

“Me?” asked Torr.

“What you ask of me is dangerous. It could kill me.”

“So could I,” warned Torr.

Joseph took hold of Torr’s arm and in a low voice said, “Threats are not exactly helpful here. How about you try a little respect for a woman who is likely more powerful than all of us put together.”

Torr’s jaw bulged, and he bit out, “What do you want me to do?”

“What are you willing to do?”

“Anything,” said Torr too quickly. There was something about the way he said it that bothered Logan, making him wonder if his lifemark was still healthy as it had been a few weeks ago.

Brenya smiled, but there was no warmth there, only satisfaction. “Good. Remove your shirt and kneel.”

Torr did as she asked, dropping to his knees in front of the woman.

“I’m going to mark you, and when I do, I will be able to summon you at any time from any place. You will pledge to me your sword arm and your fealty, vowing to defend me and my people in battle even at the cost of your own life. Do you so swear?”

“I do,” said Torr with no hesitation.

Brenya laid her hand on his shoulder. Torr hissed in pain. She didn’t let him flinch away, but held on tight, forcing the contact to go on for several seconds. When she pulled her hand away, there was an angry red mark in the shape of a crescent moon.

“You are mine now.”

“Whatever,” said Torr. “Just save Grace. Please.”

“I will try. Bring her.”

Logan said, “We can’t disconnect her from the machines. She can’t breathe on her own.”

Brenya looked at Torr. “He will breathe for her.”

“Before you go,” said Logan, “there’s something I need to know. Are there more women like Hope?”

Brenya’s leaden eyes darkened with sorrow. “There are. Precious, hidden souls lost in a strange world.”

“How do I find them?”

She shook her head, making her long, silver hair sway about her hips. “I do not know. I stripped them of their past and tucked them in among the humans to protect them. You will find them or not on your own.”

“Did you give them each an amulet like mine?” asked Hope.

“The daughters of Celentia and Lahrien came through before you,” said Brenya, a heavy sadness tugging at her mouth. “I gave them nothing, not even their names. That haunted me, so when I sent you away, I did so with your name, hoping it would give you some comfort to know that you were loved enough to be given the most basic of possessions.”

Hope clutched Logan’s arm, and he could hear her pulse speed. “I remember them. I played with them when I was little.”

“Perhaps you can find them and see that they are safe? I would very much like to know that they are well.”

“We’ll find them,” said Logan.

Joseph said, “And if you send any more people through the Sentinel Stone, they will come to us, safely behind our walls. We will protect them as we would our own.”

Brenya regally nodded her head once in gratitude.

Andra busted into the room, her face red and her chest puffing with exertion. She looked at Brenya and froze. “Is it true? Are you a healer?”

“I am.”

“You have to come see my sister. She needs you.”

“I must leave. There’s no more time.”

“Please. Will you just look at my sister? The Sanguinar have tried to help her, but…”

Brenya eyed Andra, from the bottom of her combat boots to the top of her head, which was several inches above Brenya’s. “Are you a warrior?”

“I blow shit up when I get the chance. Does that make a difference?”

“Do you claim your sister?”

Andra frowned, looking around the room for guidance. “Claim her?”

“Is she yours? In your keeping?”

“Yes. I take care of her.”

Brenya looked to Joseph. “What is wrong with this woman?”

Logan spoke before Joseph could. “Tori was taken when she was eight. She was fed Synestryn blood for ten years. It’s made her violent. None of us have been able to filter the taint from her blood.”

“You’ve tried?” asked Brenya.

“Many of us have. She was with them too long. It…changed her.”

Andra closed her eyes in agony. “I should have listened to Nika. I should have found her before it was too late.”

Brenya looked at Joseph. “I will take this child.”

Joseph seemed to count silently before responding, as if trying to rein in his temper. “Are you asking or are you telling?”

“I am doing this thing. Bring her to the gate.”

“Do you have to take her?” asked Andra. “She’s so fragile.”

“Then she will not survive what I must do to cleanse her. Perhaps I should not bother.”

“No,” Andra hurried to say. “I don’t mean that. She’s strong. But her mind is troubled. I worry about her going anywhere without me.”

“I have no time for this. I go now, with or without your sister.”

“With. Please. Whatever it takes.”

Brenya studied Andra for a long moment. “Remove your shirt and kneel.”

Chapter 16

Jackie had hoped for something to distract her from missing Samson, but facing a cave was not exactly her first choice.

Iain drove the SUV over a rutted, barely discernible path and parked it. Even from inside the car, this place felt familiar. There had been leaves on the trees when she’d been here last, not only the first buds of spring. It hadn’t been nearly as windy, and it had been much, much warmer.

“I’ve been here before,” said Jackie. “It was the second cave they held me in.”

“Are you sure?”

The things she’d seen were not those easily forgotten. Even from a few yards away, she could see the gaping hole in the ground, hidden only partially with brush. The slope of the land obscured it from anyone more than fifty feet away, making it an excellent place to hide.

They’d passed a collapsing farmhouse on the path here, and the skeletal remains of a barn. No one had lived here for a long time. Whoever owned this land probably had no idea it was infested with demons.

It made her want to research county records and make a few phone calls to warn people to stay away. Of course that was only going to make her sound crazy, and possibly even bring people here to check out her insane claims.

“This is a scouting mission only,” said Iain.

“What does that mean?”

“It means we’re not here to fight unless we have to. I’m going to go in and see if I can find that Synestryn breeding demon you were talking about, and then I’m going to come right back out.”

“And what am I going to be doing?”

“Sitting in the car, all safe and warm. You’ve done your part already, identifying the cave. If you run into trouble, throw up a shield—which you know how to do—and I’ll be here as fast as I can.”

“How will you even know I’m in trouble?”

“I’ll know. I’ll feel your fear.”

“You’re in my head? I told you that I didn’t want—”

“It’s not something I’m doing. Your emotions flow into me. I can’t help but feel them.”

“I don’t like it,” she grumbled.

“I’m not exactly a fan, myself, but we’re stuck with it for the time being. We’re both going to have to learn to deal.”

Iain got out of the SUV and went to inspect the cave entrance. As he was walking back, the headlights hit him, shining off his black leather jacket. He showed no fear, even though he was about to descend into a pit of monsters. His walk was steady and determined, his powerful thighs bunching beneath his jeans with every step.

He opened the rear hatch and started to rummage through the gear. Cold wind whipped through the SUV, sucking away all the heat that had built up inside. Jackie shivered, closing the front of her new coat to ward off the chill.

She didn’t like this at all. She wasn’t the kind of person who sat around and let others do the work. What if he ran into trouble? That cave could be filled with dozens of demons, even hundreds. There was no way he could face those odds alone and survive.