Valan's Bondmate (32 page)

Lia leaned toward Tamar. "Have you seen my mother? Is she well?"

"My woman, Deltha, saw her several cycles ago. She is well, but she worries about what happened to you and where you are."

"Did Selik punish her when he discovered I was missing?"

"No. So many females were missing at first it was thought they'd been taken by other Wrothian warriors from the dark side of the planet. It wasn’t long before the Tryad realized we'd been found by another race."

"That's what I don't like about this situation. I don't believe Selik ad-San won't be expecting a return visit and be on guard." Valan set a food tray in front of Lia then reached for his own. Garrick carried his and Tamar's to the table.

"Commander Eirikson, you're correct. I, too, believe Selik and Gorm are prepared for another attack, although I don't think they'll expect us to drug their ale. Neither one of them think in this way."

"Tamar's right, Valan. I’ve stayed away from them, but I’ve observed them enough to know they're expecting an all-out battle. Our plan will take them by surprise."

Lia chewed a bite of bread and listened to their plans for the raid. Something about it bothered her. She didn’t understand what was wrong, until Valan raised his tankard of ale.

"Gorm ad-Jai doesn’t drink ale. It makes him ill," she said.

"Are you sure, Lia? I’ve seen him drink it many times in the past," Tamar said.

"No. He pretends to drink it, but he never does. He uses it to trick his warriors into thinking he's drunk then he listens to what they say. That's how he discovered Tark ad-Tal was planning to kill Selik and take over Orm."

Valan grasped her hand and drew her attention to him. "How do you know this, Lia?"

"My mother told me. She serves at the table when Gorm eats with Selik."

"She’s right. Gorm always serves himself from a large pitcher on the table in front of him. We could try to drug whatever is in it."

"No, Garrick. That would be too risky. We’ll just have to be prepared to take him." He turned to Tamar. "What do you think he'll do when everyone around him starts passing out?"

"Gorm’s sly and dangerous. As soon as he understands what's happening he’ll leave the feast and try to rally his warriors. We have to capture him before he gets the chance."

"Valan, why don't you do to Gorm what you did to One-Eye on Lanteria?"

"We can't, Lia. We wouldn't know which warrior was Gorm. There will be so many warriors at the feast."

Garrick gave them a puzzled look and Valan quickly explained about the events on Lanteria.

"It could be done if we could somehow mark Gorm so Mikel Thornson could monitor his movements," Garrick said.

"My mother always sits next to Selik with Gorm to her left. If you mark her, you'd know which warrior was Gorm wouldn't you?"

"Tamar, can you speak to Nessa? Can we trust her?"

"Yes, Garrick. We can trust her, but I can't speak to her. It isn't allowed. One of my women could approach her at the feast."

"Good. Your woman can give her a gift. The marking devise will be hidden in it. Lia, I want you to send a message to your mother. Something only the two of you know so she'll know the message comes from you."

As they completed their plans, Lia decided on a message to send to her mother.

"Tamar? Tell your woman to remind Nessa the last cycle I saw her I told her I would find a way to escape from Gorm. Tell her the way found me."

"Very well, Lia." Tamar and Garrick rose from the table.

"Farewell, Lia."

"Farewell, Tamar."

"I hope to see you again when I return to Zarronia," Garrick said.

"You will be welcome in our home anytime, Garrick," Lia said with a smile.

Garrick and Tamar went into the corridor to wait for Valan while he spoke with Lia.

"I'm going to escort Garrick and Tamar to the transfer room, and then I have to tell my father and Cam about this new development with Gorm." He pulled her into his arms and held her close for a moment, breathing in her scent. It would be good when this was over and he and Lia could return to their home and await the babies' arrival. He kissed her, then forced himself to leave her. "I'll return when I can, little cat."

Chapter Thirteen

The three moons of Zhang formed a triangle in the dark sky when Valan, Cam and sixty warriors transferred to the surface disguised as Wrothians. Tamar and thirty of his warriors waited for them. They split up into thirty-one groups of three, a Wrothian and two Zarronians in each group, and patroled the streets of Orm.

When they encountered a Wrothian warrior they lured him away from the crowd, disarmed him, and transferred him to the dark side of Zhang. A group of Tamar’s followers and the Zarronians waited in several villages to take the Wrothians into custody and place them within the security shield the Zarronians installed there. Wrothians whose names appeared on the list the Zarronians compiled of honorable warriors would be placed in a separate area.

Messages concerning the raids in the three villages were relayed back and forth to Valan and the other commanders. Gorm ad-Jai's location was also tracked from the Invincible but as Tamar had predicted, Gorm became suspicious and left the feast. The science officer aboard the Invincible, Mikel Audelson managed to monitor him until he stepped into a group of warriors. When the group dispersed, Mikel notified Valan and tried to keep track of the Wrothians as they moved in different directions.

"Mikel, inform the others Gorm ad-Jai is missing. What about Lia's mother?" Valan asked.

"Commander, she seems to be at the feast still," Mikel Audelson reported.

"Keep track of her but relay the location of the group of warriors Gorm ad-Jai joined for as long as you can."

"Very well, Commander."

Valan turned to Tamar ad-Lin and quickly told him what was going on and repeated the locations of the warriors to Tamar as Mikel relayed them.

"Wait! What was the last location?" Tamar asked.

Valan repeated it.

"It's Gorm. He's heading for Selik ad-San's home. I always thought Selik had a secret way out of the stronghold. If he does, Gorm would know of it."

"Let's go then." Valan followed Tamar through a dark passage between two buildings. "Mikel, the warrior who was traveling to the east. Where is he now?"

"He just turned to the south, Commander." Valan repeated the information to Tamar.

"Yes. That's Gorm. We can take a shortcut through here." They traveled for several minutes until they came to a gate set in a stone wall. Valan pushed the gate open and crept into the garden, with Tamar behind him. He recognized the garden as the one outside of Lia's room in her mother's home. They heard a noise from inside the house as they quietly entered.

The light from the three moons lit up the room. Valan scanned the area, then swiftly moved and opened the door into the hallway. A door at the other end of the hallway was open and a faint light glowed from within. He heard a scraping sound then silence. Moving into the hallway and along the wall, he paused, listening intently to the darkness with Tamar across from him. They reached the door at the same time and looked into the room. It appeared empty. Faint light came from an opening in the wall across from them. Valan moved into the room and peeked into the opening. A steep stairway led down into the darkness. Slowly, he descended, pausing occasionally to listen for any movement around him. He stepped off the last stair and crept through the corridor, keeping his left hand on the rough stone wall for guidance.

The silence behind him was shattered by the sound of swords clashing. Before he could go back, the corridor was flooded with light, blinding him. A sword slashed his arm. Cursing, he jumped back, drew his stunner and fired. The shot went wild but it slowed his attacker. He moved back and felt the tip of another sword press into his back. A massive arm reached around and took the stunner from his hand. The sword prodded him, forcing him to move forward through the heavily-armed Wrothians who surrounded him.

"Welcome, Zarronian." Selik ad-San sat in a throne-like chair watching him. His boot rested on the hip of a small woman at his feet. Blood ran from her back and soaked into the dirt floor. A tall brown-haired woman leaned on Selik ad-San's chair, grinning maliciously.

Hearing a sound behind him, Valan glanced over his shoulder as Tamar ad-Lin stumbled into the chamber. Blood seeped from several sword wounds on his chest and arms. A grimace of pain flashed across his face as his eyes met Valan's.

"Never trust a woman! This one has betrayed us." Tamar glared at Selik ad-San's companion. "Greetings, Xanla."

She sauntered toward him and ran her fingers over one of his wounds. When she pulled her hand away, the tips glistened with his blood. "You always were too trusting, Tamar."

"Gorm, control your woman," Tamar said.

A huge, scarred warrior stepped forward and grabbed Xanla. He jerked her away and threw her to the floor. She cried out with pain and scooted away from him.

Valan crossed his arms over his chest. His fingers stroked over the bands on his arms, quietly activating the alarm signal and tracking devise.

On the bridge of the Invincible, Lia paced the bridge but drew to a sudden halt when her armbands began to softly chime and tingle. Confused, she looked at Eirik as he rushed over to her. "What's happening? Why are my bands doing this?"

"Daughter, are they only chiming?"

"No, they tingle too," Lia said.

Eirik turned to Mikel. "Valan activated the tracking devise and the alarm on his bands. Do you have a location for him?"

Mikel studied the monitor. "He and Tamar ad-Lin were last tracked going into Selik ad-San's home. I can no longer find them on the monitor."

"Contact his warriors. Order them to go to Selik ad-San's home and search the house and the area around it for their Commander and Tamar ad-Lin."

"If we transferred Madami Valan to the surface we could use her bands to locate the Commander."

"No. It isn't safe for her to go to the surface." Eirik couldn't allow anything to happen to Lia.

"Father, I must go. Valan is in trouble or he wouldn't have activated his bands. We have to find him now or it may be too late. Please!"

Eirik hesitated then nodded. "Mikel, choose twenty warriors and take Lia to the surface. I'm placing her safety in your hands."

"We'll guard her with our lives." Mikel turned to the communications officer and gave him instructions before he and Lia hurried to the transfer room. Twenty of Valan's warriors transferred to Zhang with them. Mikel conferred with them for a moment, then told Lia to lead them to her old home. As they neared it, the chimes on her bands began coming closer together. Mikel touched her arm and pulled her aside into the shadows of the stone wall.

"He's near. Tell me the layout of the house."

"Mikel, why couldn't you find him on the monitor?"

"I don't know. He must somehow have moved underground. Does the house have a room or chamber below ground?"

"Yes. There is one beneath the house. The door is hidden in my mother's bed chamber." Lia told him about the stairs and the long corridor which led to the hidden chamber.

"They'll have guards in your mother's chamber and along the corridor. They'll kill the Commander before we reach him."

Lia thought for a moment, then grabbed his arm. "Not if we enter the underground chamber from the other side."

"What?"

"Selik used the passage to sneak away from Orm without others knowing. I know where the corridor comes out beyond the walls of Orm. When I was a child I played there."

"Tell me where it comes out. We'll have the Invincible transfer us close to it."

Lia gave him directions, and he relayed them to the Invincible. Within seconds they were gathered in a moonlit valley outside of Orm. Lia led them to the cave where her sire's escape route came out. Two Wrothians stood guard in the shadows of the entrance. Mikel whispered a command to another warrior and they aimed their stunners at the guards and fired. Both warriors fell to the ground.

"Madami Valan, I want you to stay here. If anyone comes along I want you to hide from them."

"No. The entrance leads to a large room with a corridor that goes to another room beneath the house. If there are more guards they'll hesitate to attack me. It will give you and your warriors a chance to stun them."

"She's right, Mikel. If one of them raises an alarm the Commander is dead."

Mikel reluctantly handed her a stunner and showed her how to use it. "If you see anyone try to get them to turn their backs to us. We'll handle them but if you have to use the stunner don't hesitate."

Lia nodded. The weapon felt strange in her hand. She gripped it and dropped her hand to her side, hiding it against the skirt of her gown.

Mikel signaled the warriors and they crept towards the entrance. Once inside they discovered the large rock chamber was empty. Lia pointed to a boulder in the back, indicating the opening to the corridor was behind it. Mikel studied the dimly lit opening for a moment, then signaled Lia was to follow him with the others behind her.

Lia tugged on Mikel's vest and whispered the corridor turned to the right a few feet ahead of them. He moved forward and glanced around the corner. The corridor was empty.

Cautiously, he moved into it. After they walked for ten micro-units they heard voices. Mikel signaled to one of his warriors and the two of them crept forward and looked into the well-lit chamber. He returned to Lia and the others and told them what he'd seen then chose two warriors and ordered them to escort Lia out of the cave.

"No, Mikel. You'll need all of the warriors. I’ll stay here and watch the corridor. If I see anyone I'll send you a warning." When he would have refused her, she added, "I have the stunner and will use it. Now, go and get my bondmate, please!"

He nodded, and he and the others moved silently out of sight.

A few seconds later she heard the sound of their stunners being fired. The battle went on for a long time. She pressed her back against the stone wall of the corridor and tried to watch the corridor in both directions.