Stone Guardian(9)

Chapter Four





They had been flying – what… thirty minutes? Three hours? – when they came to an expansive keep nestled within a jagged mountain range. From this angle she noticed several multi-story towers rising from the stone, but the design was so clever the keep had to be near invisible most of the time.

They set down on the top of the highest tower, the landing so skilled only the slightest bounce let her know they were on solid ground.

She was in shock, she had to be. It was the only explanation for why she was not crying or cursing her luck, the creature, her father, card games, and anything else that led her to leave her apartment. The calmness infusing her now felt unnatural, ready to shatter with the first application of force.

Still, she’d take whatever advantage she could get right now. Maybe the calm would hold, at least long enough to discover why she had been taken.

Be reasonable. Friendly. The first rule of negotiation Dad taught her was to find out what the other person wanted and figure out the way you could convince them you’d be able to supply it. That, and always be realistic about what was going on.

Well, here were the ugly facts. She had no mad-ninja-skillz to rely on and her family didn’t know where she was. She didn’t know where she was. The only way she was leaving was if this creature allowed it.

The creature was looking down at her and made no move to put her down. Should she look at him? Would he take that as aggression? During the flight she hadn’t looked at him and instead kept her gaze fixed on the hollow at the base of his throat. His neck was thick and led into heavily muscled shoulders, and his body gave off enough heat he might be able to be substitute for the furnace of a small home. She hadn’t gotten cold as they flew.

There was no other option. She needed to try to communicate, and communication couldn’t happen if she didn’t look at him.

She muttered a quick prayer in case any gods were wandering around. None appeared, so what choice but to get on with this? Steady on girl. One deep breath, two, and then her gaze met his.

Midnight black eyes under a prominent brow bone. The planes of his face were nothing but hard angles, his chin a square slab. It was as if he had been chiseled out of stone, his face displaying none of the roundness of flesh.

He was studying her as much as she was studying him. He didn’t have any eyebrows, but his brow bone came together to form a little furrow between his eyes.

He seemed approachable, no negative emotion on his face she could detect. No time like the present to find out her fate. “Why have you brought me here?”

Those eyebrows drew even closer together at her question. Did her words confuse him? Unless she had been hallucinating he had spoken English to her.

Before he made any sign that he would answer she heard movement behind her, the same thwup that had marked his landing. She turned her head to see a good dozen creatures like him, every single gaze locked on her like she was wearing a homing beacon.

Calm, I need you to hang on. Don’t leave me now.

A female pushed away from the others and walked until inches from Larissa, one clawed hand coming to rest on her hip. Her features were a fraction softer than the male’s, her body the stuff of comic books – outrageous curves framed with sleek muscle. About her she had an aura Larissa recognized from every cop she had ever met. It was confidence and authority mixed with a good dose of don’t fuck with me.

This female would never be pathetic enough to lie in an alleyway screaming or freeze in terror. Larissa’s eyes flicked away.

“Terak, what is this?” asked the female, in the offhand way that meant to signify you really weren’t interested in the answer.

Terak, huh? Always good to know your kidnapper’s name.

Larissa’s attention went back to the female, but as she met those eyes her throat tightened. Her earlier tone was a lie, because the female creature in front of her looked as though she were debating on how many strips of flesh she could she cut from Larissa with those claws.

What had she done to earn this ire? None of the others displayed hostility.

Earlier she hadn’t wanted to be taken for an impromptu flying trip but her kidnapper wouldn’t let her out of his grasp. Now when she had a psycho female in front of her and really didn’t want leave the relative safety of his arms, of course Terak chose to put her down. His wings folded in, settling over his shoulders like the fall of a cape.

“What should we do with her?” the female creature continued. “Shall I take her to the dungeon?”

A dungeon? Whips and chains and iron maidens dungeon? That was what was planned for her? Bile rose in her throat when Terak answered from behind her, “No Valry, she is not a prisoner.”