Living Nightmare Part 7

Andra led the charge.

Her short, dark hair was dusty, and her blue eyes were bloodshot, like they got when she'd been funneling too much of Paul's power. Apparently, they'd just gotten back from a Synestryn killing spree and hadn't even bothered to clean up yet.

If Andra found out that Nika had taken the bone, she'd flip out and take it back to that stranger's grave. Nika couldn't let that happen. "Where have you been?" Andra asked, her voice clipped with thinly controlled anger.

Nika gripped the bone tighter. She still had Madoc's jacket on, which hid her treasure. "I just wanted to get out for a while. Go for a drive."

"A drive?" asked Andra. She stepped forward. She was more than half a foot taller than Nika was, at least in those boots, and she seemed to loom over Nika. "You don't have a license. How do you even know how to drive?"

"TV," said Nika, rather than give Andra the truth. Madoc had seemed freaked-out by her method of learning things, so it was best if she kept that little tidbit to herself.

Andra let out a short, frustrated sigh. "I get that you're feeling better now, and I can't tell you how glad I am that you are, but you cannot go running off like that without telling someone. You scared us."

Nika looked down the line of people. Paul was there, of coursea"all tall and handsome. He never left Andra's side if he could help it. And Joseph was there, too. He looked more tired than normal, which was saying something. His shoulders sagged under the burden of leaders.h.i.+p, and his hazel eyes were rimmed with fatigue.

As the leader of the Theronai, it must have been his job to add to the scolding.

There were also two men there she didn't recognize. One had dark skin and eyes and a quiet stillness about him. He seemed to fade into the shadow of the other paler, thinner man. They both wore the luminescent bands around their throats and matching rings on their fingers that told her they were also Theronaia"probably here to paw at her and see if she made their rings turn colors.

Just the thought was enough to make her skin crawl. The blisters from the last group of men who wanted to see if she was "the one" had just finished healing. She wasn't looking forward to another round of torture.

All she wanted to do was get her bone to Tynan and make him tell her what she already knew: It didn't belong to Tori. The fastest way to make that happen was to play along. Nika stared at her dirty shoes, hoping she looked contrite. "I'm sorry, Andra. I didn't mean to worry you."

Andra sighed, releasing all her bl.u.s.ter. "I know you didn't, baby. Let's go get you cleaned up."

Nika cringed at her sister's infantile endearment, but refused to make an issue out of it here in front of all these people. Andra had taken care of her for years. Getting out of the habit wasn't something Nika could expect her to do overnight. Still, she had to make a stand so her sister wouldn't trample all over her wishes with those hard-core boots of hers. "I don't need any help showering or changing clothes."

"You look like you're about to fall over."

"I'm fine. Please just let me be. I am an adult, you know."

Paul stepped up and put his thick arm around Andra's waist. "She looks fine to mea"just a bit dirty. We can check on her later, okay?"

"Are you sure?" Andra asked Nika. "I don't mind helping."

"I'm sure. I'll get cleaned up, then meet you wherever you like for blister duty."

Joseph stiffened at that. Behind him, the strange men shared some kind of secret, silent macho-speak.

Joseph scrubbed a hand through his hair. "Look, Nika, if you're not up to meeting the men, I'll make them wait until another day."

Nika shook her head. "I'd rather get it over with. Just give me an hour, okay?" She was sure that would be enough time to wash off the mud, get her bone to one of the Sanguinar, and be back before anyone knew what she was up to.

"Fine," said Andra, "but if you need me, call, okay? We're going to finish up here with Joseph; then I'll be back to the suite to help if you need it before we have to head back out."

Nika nodded. She really needed her own place, but now didn't seem like the best time to bring it up. She'd won one battle, and that was as much as she could hope for in a day. Besides, if Andra was leaving again today, her meddling wouldn't last long.

Joseph, Paul, and Andra turned to go the opposite way, but one of the strangers held back, watching her. He had light hair that had been shaved down to his skin, with only a fraction of an inch of stubble showing. He was taller than his companion and less heavily muscled. There was a hungry look on his facea"one she'd seen too many times over the past few months not to recognize it. He was in pain and he thought she could make it stop.

Nika stilled as a familiar fear slid through her. She willed herself to run, but her muscles had clamped down, holding her still like a frozen little bunny. Time slowed.

She tried to breathe through the fear, but it did no good. His hand was stretching out, reaching for her.

A high, pitiful noise spilled out from Nika's mouth.

The man beside hima"the second strangera"saw what was happening and grabbed the other man's arm in a tight grip. "Not yet. You heard Joseph."

At the sound of his name, Joseph stopped and turned around, along with Paul and Andra. "Don't!" shouted her sister. "You're scaring her."

Joseph's big body shot through the air and slammed into the pair of men, knocking them both into the wall. They landed in a pile of thick arms and legs.

Nika shoved at her fear hard and fought it down enough to flee. She turned to run, but had forgotten all about the bone. It fell from her coat, clattering onto the hard tile. The small, child-sized leg bone lay there, dull and bleak against the glossy floor.

Andra's eyes zeroed in on the bone, widening in shock and revulsion. "How could you?" she whispered. "How could you desecrate Tori's grave?"

Nika knew that nothing she could say would make her sister forgive her. They'd argued over this too many times to count. Andra knew she'd buried their baby sister. Nika knew she was still alive. There was no room for compromise here. None.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," said Nika. She bent, picked up the bone, hid it from sight, and ran away. No words would fix the pain and grief and guilt lingering in Andra's eyes.

Nothing would except proving Tori was alive.

Andra bit her lip to stave off the tears that burned her eyes. She would not cry in front of strangers.

She'd thought Nika was getting better. She'd started eating again. She'd gained weight. The bouts of dizziness and weakness had grown farther and farther apart. She was even pus.h.i.+ng at the boundaries Andra had seta"a sure sign she was getting healthier, stronger.

At least, that was what Andra had thought.

The fact that Nika would resort to digging up their dead sister's bones proved just how wrong Andra had been.

"She really is crazy," said Andra.

Paul's strong arm came around her, and she leaned into him, soaking up the comfort he offered. He pulled her away from the others and s.h.i.+elded her with his body to afford her a bit of privacy. "It's only been a few months. You need to give her some time. Let her pursue this course if she needs to."

A wave of revulsion made Andra s.h.i.+ver. "She's carrying around our dead sister's bones. It's disgusting."

"I know, but if it's the only way she'll give up her delusion, then it's worth it, isn't it? Do you really think Tori would begrudge Nika the proof she needs to heal?"

"No. Tori would have given Nika anything. She was generous and loving to a fault. But that doesn't excuse this. I told her she couldn't do this. I told her it wasn't fair to Tori that after almost nine years of lying in that cave, our sister's remains are no longer safe in the cemetery, next to Mom's."

"We already know Nika's going to take Tori's remains to one of the Sanguinar to see if they can identify them. I'll talk to Tynan and make sure he understands the situation. I'm sure he'll treat this with as much care and reverence as possible."

Andra was sickened by the thought, but what could she do? She knew that if she took the bone back and buried it, Nika would only slip away again later to steal it. And next time, she might not come back in one piece.

She had to let this happen, no matter how much it bothered her. As disgusting as it was, it beat the heck out of burying another sister. "Fine. Talk to Tynan. Tell him to hurry up. I want Tori to rest in peace. She deserves at least that much."

Nika's hair was still wet from her shower when she knocked on Tynan's door. She heard him shuffling around inside his apartment, but it took him a long time to open the door.

Tynan cracked the door open. He was s.h.i.+rtless, wearing only a loose pair of cotton pants. A curl of glossy black hair fell over his forehead, nearly hiding one icy blue eye.

"Can I come in?" she asked him.

Tynan opened the door and let her inside. He looked out into the hall, checking both ways before he shut the door. "You came here alone?"

"Is that a problem?"

Light from the hall spilled into the darkness of his suite. It fell over his chest, shadowing the ridges of muscles and bones in his torso. He was model thina"not at all like Madoc, with his heavy slabs of muscle. Nika had seen the way women looked at Tynana"like he was a long-lost favorite toya"and she'd always wondered what it was about him that drew them in. He was pretty. In-humanly so, as if he didn't belong here on this planet. He moved with an almost hypnotic grace, and his eyes made her want to stare at him, but he did nothing for her inside. He didn't make her feel whole or safe or warm.

He wasn't Madoc.

Tynan shut the door and flipped on the lights. He had to look around for the switch, as if he rarely used it. "Paul called me and said you'd be coming, but your sister would kill me if she knew you were here with me alone."

"Why? You're not going to hurt me." Nika scanned his suite, taking in the numerous stacks of books and dusty trinkets. The place was done in reds and browns, with little to brighten it up. Heavy curtains hung over the windows, blocking out the sunlight. At least it was warm in here. It had to be eighty degrees, which suited Nika just fine.

"I wish the rest of your kind saw things the same way." He moved a stack of books so she could sit on the couch. "Paul told me why you're here, but I want to hear your side of things."

Nika pulled a thick, white towel out of the gym bag on her shoulder and unwrapped it. "I need to know if this bone could have been my sister's or not. I need proof to show Andra so she'll finally believe me."

"It sounds to me like you already know the answer to your question."

"I do. Andra doesn't. Can you do it? Can you tell me the truth?"

Tynan looked at the bone, then back to Nika. "I can. But not without something in return."

"I'll give you my blood," offered Nika. She hated the thought of letting him bite her, but if that was what she had to do to show Andra the truth, she would.

Tynan shook his head. "That's not going to work. I had a bit of your blood once. It didn't agree with me."

"Then what? What do you want?"

A silvery light flared inside Tynan's eyes for a brief second before it was gone. "Madoc. His blood is powerful. Get him to consent and I'll do as you ask."

Disappointment pushed the air from her lungs. "He won't do it for me. He doesn't like me very much."

"I think you'd be surprised at just how wrong about that you are."

Nika reached for Tynan, wanting to know what he knew. If she touched him, she might get a glimpse into his head, but before her fingers could make contact, he stepped away and was out of reach. "No, you don't," he chided. "I've had enough of you inside me to last a lifetime. I don't know how you live with the chaos in your mind, but after that single drop of blood I took from you, I know without a doubt that I cannot."

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize."

Tynan gave her a weary smile. "Go, now. Talk to Madoc. If he agrees to feed me, you'll have your answer. Until then, I need to rest. The daylight drains me."

Nika wrapped the bone back up and left it sitting on Tynan's couch. It would be safer here than in Nika's room, since Andra was less likely to take it away from Tynan.

She left and walked unerringly through the twisting halls toward Madoc's suite, hoping he'd followed her home, even if it was simply to check up on her. She could have found him blindfolded, surrounded by a thousand other men. There was a dark energy about hima"a writhing desperation he fought with every beat of his heart. It was strong, and she had no idea how he fought it day after day, but he did.

His struggle had become harder since she'd last seen him months ago. The pain pulsing inside him was worse. If she concentrated, she could hear the silent screams coming from his soul as it withered away day by day.

She wanted to save him, but she hadn't yet figured out how. If only he'd let her get close enough, spend enough time touching him, she was sure she could solve the puzzle, but, of course, that hadn't happened. He'd been running away from her for months, avoiding her.

No longer. Even if he tried, she wasn't going to let him get away with it this time. Tori needed her to make him give Tynan his blood, and Nika would not fail.

She was nearly to his doorway when she saw Joseph and the two strangers she'd seen earlier round the corner.

"I thought I'd find you here. You said you were going to meet us," said Joseph.

"I had something I had to do first."

"Are you ready now?"

No. She wasn't. She hated letting these men touch her. She hated seeing the looks of pain and horror and disappointment on their faces. Some of them had run away as if scared by what they felt inside her. Some had merely gone pale and walked away calmly, preserving their pride. One of them had actually thrown up at her feet.

Nika didn't know what it was about her that disgusted thema"maybe it was the same thing that made a starving Sanguinar refuse an offer of her blood. What she did know was that when these men laid their hopeful hands on her, she was often left with bruises or blisters that took days to heal, and Andra would baby her the whole time.

She didn't have time for that. As soon as Tynan told Andra the truth about Tori, Nika needed to be whole and healthy enough to go find her. She was not going to be left behind this timea"seen as too frail and delicate to rescue her baby sister.

Nika looked each man standing in front of her in the eye. "I don't want to do this."

One of the Theronaia"the one with skin and eyes the color of dark chocolatea"gave her a rea.s.suring smile. He had a thick accent she couldn't place. "We won't force you, but Joseph has told us of your broken mind. Perhaps we can help."

Nika hated it that they'd talked about her. It made her feel like a child to have her mental health discussed with perfect strangers. "You can't. If you could, I'd know."

"Please let us try."

How many times had she heard that? Too many over the past few months to count. They were always wrong and never learned from the mistakes of those who had gone before.

Nika let out a frustrated sigh and held out her left arm. "Fine. Just hurry. I have things to do."

Joseph moved, putting himself between her and the strangers. "Are you sure, Nika? You look tired. It can wait until after you've slept."

Part of her wanted to put it off, but she knew she wouldn't rest well if she did. She'd be worried about it, thinking about the pain she knew was to come. As much as she didn't want this, getting it over with was better than delaying the inevitable and losing a day's sleep over it.

"I am tired, but it's fine. Let's just do it so I can start to heal."

"We won't hurt you," said the second man in the same thick, broken accent as his companion.

The way he looked at hera"so full of hope and yearninga"made Nika's stomach tighten. She couldn't be what this man wanted her to be, and as soon as he touched her, all that hope would be crushed. He'd have to go back to his old life of pain and suffering and there wasn't a thing she could do to stop it.

"Just be quick," said Nika. She closed her eyes. She didn't want to see that look cross their faces. This was hard enough without the guilt that came along with her failure.

She felt the heat from one of the men's hands near her arm, close but not touching. He hesitated, as many of them did, as if the wait would somehow change the outcome.

"Do it," she said between clenched teeth, bracing herself for the pain.

Warm, calloused skin met hers. His fingers closed around her in a tight grip. Pain streaked along her skin, setting her arm on fire. She held her breath, waiting for him to let go, but he held on.

The pain grew, multiplying as the seconds pa.s.sed. Nika tried to pull her arm away, but he didn't relent.

She opened her eyes to see the face of the taller man twisted in a grimace of pain.