Page 30 of Seduction
The Viking planned to use the element of surprise to offset that. A snapped neck, a dagger across the throat before the enemy even knew of their presence – he’d send his team through their ranks swiftly and silently.
He began their training with a sparring match, squaring off against David. He planned to test their mettle one by one, give them a taste of what they’d be facing. To his shock, the lighter, smaller man twisted out of his grasp in seconds. Haldor found himself tossed in the air, landing on his back with the wind knocked out of him. David stepped behind him and gripped his wrist, pulled it backward with one foot solidly planted in the middle of his arm.
“In this position, if I stomp right here, the bone will splinter as easily as that chair did. The neck snaps even easier.”
David shifted his hand, clasped Haldor’s, and helped him to his feet. The Viking groaned and rubbed his ass then grinned. “Well done, brother. Can your men do that as well?”
“Will and I are evenly matched. Rob is better than either of us.”
“Can you teach me how to do that move?”
It was David’s turn to grin. “If you give me twenty years. I’ve trained since I was a child. We all have.”
Haldor spent hours describing the Tabun in great detail. Their style of battle, their strengths, their weaknesses.
“The only thing the Tabun love more than ale is qaxa, a fermented drink they make from a slime-covered plant that grows in their swamps. I’m told one mug of it would leave the hardiest ale-swilling Viking in a stupor. If the gods are with us, we’ll arrive on a night when they’ve had one of their feasts, and everyone will be drunk on qaxa.”
When they weren’t training or laying out their plans, Haldor took it upon himself to keep up the spirits of his men, just as he had done in the hours before battle back home. He recited Norse legends, told amusing stories about the more colorful inhabitants of Gadolinium. He knew how easily fear seeped into the soul during the long dark hours of waiting, even in the most valiant warrior.
For a Viking male, fear of his own death paled when faced with the fear of what the enemy would do to his loved ones if he were conquered. To keep his sanity, Haldor tried not to think of Selena. Of what she might be going through. Of the filthy Tabun forcing her to kneel before them as they lined up to shove their stubby pricks down her throat. He knew his enemies. And he knew his woman. She’d fight them, never dreaming how much worse it would become when she did.
Haldor’s first glimpse of Daan33 made Earth look like Valhalla. Not much larger than one of Gadolinium’s moons, the planet was a grim gray ball. Even the inhabitants had a grayish tinge to their skins.
They stepped off the ship and came face to face with two men who introduced themselves as officials from the local government. David expressed the condolences of the entire ship over the deaths of their delegation. One of the officials, a sad-looking little man, thanked him, saying the whole planet was in mourning.
“Daan33 is ruled by the Consolis sortium. We have been forbidden to retaliate against the Tabun. We are ordered to wait until diplomats from all the planets in the sector have agreed upon what action to take. In fact, our people would be severely punished if it became known that we took it upon ourselves to aid you in any way in your mission.”
He glanced at the other official, who made a point of turning away. Then he leaned forward, held out something in his hand, and lowered his voice. “This is a map to the portal. The streets are deserted. Everyone in the city has been ordered to attend the memorial ceremony.”
He reached into a pocket. Pulled out a small cylinder. “I’m going to turn my back to you, just as my friend has, as though you came upon us by surprise. When I do, touch the tip of this to any exposed part of my body. Do the same to him. It renders the subject temporarily immobilized and unable to recall anything that occurred, thereby innocent of any wrongdoing. Use it on the two guards at the portal as well. They are expecting you.”
David stared at him, shocked.
“Fucking diplomats. All they’ll do is talk.” The little man straightened his spine, looked each of them in the eye. “My brother was one of the delegates. Go kill those bastards.”
Chapter Seventeen
How do I convince a vicious tyrant maddened with grief that his only son is beyond help?
“Lord Balam,” Selena began, keeping her voice calm and low, “I can see how much your son means to you. Believe me, if it were within my ability, I would bring him back. But my skills on Earth are with machines that do the work of damaged body parts while I grow new ones in other machines. I have no magic. And I cannot bring my equipment through the portal. It would be destroyed on the journey. Even with my machines, Lord Balam, I could not help your son. I’m sorry, but he is gone.”
“No. He sleeps.” Balam was shaking his head. “You will heal him and then you will wake him.”
Apparently, everyone around Balam was too afraid of him to be honest. Selena decided to see if she could get through to him with a dose of reality. “I cannot breathe life back into one who is long dead.”
Balam exploded. “You brought the Gadolinian back from the dead! I command you to heal my son!”
Selena had had enough of his madness. If she was going to die, she’d be damned if she’d do it meekly. “Command whatever you want,” she snapped. Then she turned her back on him and walked out of the room.
That had been hours ago.
After storming out of his mad delusion, she’d been dragged into a cell by the guards. Like the rest of the palace, the walls were chiseled blocks of stone piled atop each other. She’d tracked the passage of time all day by the weak rays of Skhul’s winter sun traveling along the walls through a narrow slit. At first, she simply leaned back against the cold stone, her mind spinning wildly. It was the first time she’d been alone since she awakened. She had no idea how many days had passed since she’d been kidnapped. Haldor must be mad with worry.
Thinking of him, Selena stifled a sob. If she gave in to tears, she’d never be able to stay strong enough to endure whatever was to come. Her heart felt like it had been torn in two. She’d never see him again. Never again hear his laugh. Feel his arms around her, his lips on hers.
Her biggest regret was that she’d let her fears rule her life. Now she’d never know how it would feel to have him thrusting inside her, taking possession of her. She’d denied herself, denied them both, so much pleasure.
Yet she’d had other moments, and, for those, she was thankful. Moments of sheer bliss. Forbidden moments she’d been taught to turn away from all her life.