Fire Rising (Dark Kings) (32 page)

“I’m here now.”

“So you are.”

“Show me Sammi.”

Balladyn chuckled and straightened. “In time. I have to admit, I’m surprised that you’re willing to give yourself to us in exchange for a human.”

“That is if Sammi is really here.”

He held his hand over his heart mockingly. “You wound me, Dragon King.”

“And you’re trying my patience, Dark One.”

“I think you and I both know it will be pointless to release the pretty Samantha back into your world. She’s tasted us. She’ll never be the same.”

Tristan knew it was going to be hard to keep his feelings for Sammi locked away, but he didn’t expect to be tested so soon. The raging frenzy to attack Balladyn was heavy in his chest, and it took every ounce of control to remain calm. “You couldna keep your hands off her, could you?”

“She does have the most tasty lips,” Balladyn said with a knowing smile. “Tell me, Dragon, why are you really here?”

“She’s my responsibility. I failed to keep her out of your grasp.”

Balladyn tsked. “She’s just a mortal. You’re willing to be locked away with us because of one human? Did Kellan not adequately explain what we’re after?”

Tristan knew, all right. Kellan had information that the Dark wanted. Only the Dark thought all Kings knew whatever secret it was that Kellan held. They would soon learn the truth.

“I see he did,” Balladyn said and tossed aside the grass. “Are you prepared to give up that information?”

“Are you prepared to die?”

“Such confidence. Bandying words with you will be better than with Sammi.”

“And Rhi.”

Balladyn’s smile was sly and secretive. He turned away without answering. “Come, Dragon. It’s time for you to see Sammi.”

Tristan didn’t have to look behind him to know that Ian was there. In fact, he could pinpoint Ian’s exact location—hanging by his hands and feet flat against the ceiling of the tunnel.

No one ever looked up.

Tristan sent a quick message to Con letting him know he was with Balladyn and being led to Sammi. There was no reply back from Con, but he didn’t take that to mean anything. There was no telling what Con was involved with at that moment.

He followed Balladyn through a door and then a maze of corridors and a dozen more doors. Finally Balladyn stopped in front of what looked like a wall, but as Tristan drew closer he could see it was actually a mirror.

“She doesn’t know it’s a mirror,” the Dark Fae explained. “To her, it’s simply a wall.”

Tristan knew he was about to be put to the ultimate test. The Dark wanted to know if he truly cared for Sammi, and if he let one shred of reaction show, one slip of indignation, he and Sammi were both doomed.

He kept his gaze on Balladyn as the Fae watched him with a shrewd grin. “Have a look,” he bade.

With a tight control on his emotions, Tristan slowly turned to the mirror. At first he saw nothing but a handful of Dark Fae standing around.

Then he saw a bare foot. That’s when he realized there was a woman lying on the floor with the Dark Ones around her. Two of the Fae shifted, giving Tristan a glimpse of a Fae atop her, pleasuring her.

Sammi.

It was Sammi. He’d know those sandy waves of her hair anywhere. Tristan couldn’t see her face, but then he didn’t need to. Balladyn wouldn’t bring him to anyone but Sammi.

She moaned, her legs lifting to wrap around the Dark Fae as he filled her. The others began to quickly undress as they waited their turn.

“Unlike Denae, Sammi wanted us. She begged. Repeatedly. We hunger for the pleasures of the flesh as well as the hope within mortals. Odd. Sammi had very little hope, which Taraeth fed off of, but her body was willing.”

Tristan couldn’t stand to watch another minute, but he couldn’t pull his eyes away either. The anguish and desolation ran deep within him.

He had been too late. He had taken too much time. He had failed her as he had promised not to do.

Sammi had held out for as long as she could. Tristan didn’t blame her. He blamed himself.

“Does it pain you to see her this way after you’ve had her in your bed?”

Tristan inhaled deeply. The icy calm that took him centered all his hatred and despondency on one person—Balladyn. Tristan began to plan how he was going to kill the Dark One.

“It pains me to see any human in your clutches. You bleed their souls dry so they can never return to their families.”

Balladyn shrugged. “None of them complain.”

Tristan was about to turn away when he spotted a small heart tattoo on the outer ankle of the woman. He had seen every inch of Sammi’s body. She didn’t have any such markings.

He swiveled his head to Balladyn. “That isna Sammi. Where is she?”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Balladyn’s answering grin made Tristan want to smash his fist into the Dark Fae’s face. It had all been a trick. But why?

“Are you sure that isn’t your Sammi?”

“She isna mine,” Tristan said in an even tone. He couldn’t show his anger, no matter how much he wanted to. “Sammi doesna have any tattoos. Take me to her. Now.”

“As you wish,” Balladyn said and turned on his heel.

Tristan stayed just one step behind him. No other Dark followed, which put him more on edge than ever. The Dark obviously had a plan. They didn’t try to force him into a room or shackle him. Yet.

It would come. He wasn’t about to lower his guard just because he was being treated as a guest. The Dark wanted something from him. They wouldn’t get it, but they could certainly try.

As they walked down the corridor, Tristan let his gaze wander around. The lighting was dimmed, the furnishings opulent to the point of gaudy.

The place was immaculately clean, but nothing could dispel the cloud of evil the Dark brought. They lived off humans, draining them of love, hope, and happiness—and leaving behind a shell of nothing but an insatiable hunger for sex with the Dark.

“You don’t approve,” Balladyn said, his Irish accent thickening, a small tell that he was annoyed.

Tristan shrugged when Balladyn glanced at him over his shoulder as they turned a corner. “It’s no’ exactly my decorating taste.”

“I’m not referring to the furnishings, Dragon.”

“And I’m no’ talking about this place, Dark.”

Balladyn stopped walking and shifted to the side to look at Tristan. “How does it feel to be the newest King? Have your brethren told you all of their conquests? How about their failures?”

“I know enough. I’ve got a lot of years to catch up on.”

“Thousands upon thousands. You’re a fool if you think they’ve done nothing but good.”

Tristan kept his voice mild as he said, “The humans are still here, are they no’? The same willna be said if your kind take over as you want.”

“The humans are nothing more than cattle. They destroy this realm with the carelessness of a child. And yet you defend them. They ran your dragons out, hunted them one by one.”

“That they did. And what will you do the mortals?”

Balladyn’s smile was pure evil. “We’ll hunt them down one by one.”

“You just want the Kings to step aside?”

“You should be thanking us for doing what none of you could. What kind of race of beings would send their own kind away to save ungrateful, ungracious, vain, self-absorbed, vicious, destructive creatures? Only the Dragon Kings. You’ve alienated yourselves.”

“You went to all that trouble to capture Kellan and now me just to ask us to step aside? I think no’.”

Balladyn began walking again, this time more slowly. He waited until Tristan was even with him before he said, “Of course not. There is something we’re looking for.”

“With all your magic, you can no’ find it?”

“No,” he said flatly. He motioned for Tristan to turn right. “It was hidden by the Kings.”

Tristan stared blankly as Balladyn searched his face. He had no idea what the Dark was going on about, but he would play along for the time being. “There’s a reason for that.”

“It was hidden before Constantine became the King of Kings. It was hidden by the first King of Kings and protected by his successors.”

Tristan wracked his brain for what it could possibly be, but he came up empty. “Why do you want it?”

“Do you ever wonder how Con became the King of Kings?”

“He was the strongest of the dragons.”

Balladyn shook his head. “Ulrik was stronger, but Ulrik didn’t want to rule everyone else. He wanted the Kings to rule themselves, but I’m getting ahead of myself. I’m talking about Con. Do you know how a King of Kings is chosen?”

“Of course.”

“Do you?” he asked thoughtfully. “There were four before Con, and each of them had very short reigns.”

“They were challenged by another Dragon King.”

Balladyn halted before a door. “Precisely. Ask Con what he did to be the next in line.”

Tristan hated that another person was putting doubt in his mind about Con. As far as he knew, Con was doing good in leading the Dragon Kings and running Dreagan.

But how much of the past didn’t he know? The others took it for granted or didn’t care. While Tristan was naïve because he was so new.

Ulrik had put the first seeds of doubt into his mind, and Balladyn was spreading them.

Damn but he hated the suspicion that now rose like a giant within him. Con and the others had welcomed him at Dreagan, they had shown him what it was to be a Dragon King.

But no one was perfect. Everyone made mistakes.

That included Con.

“Show me Sammi,” Tristan demanded again.

Balladyn gave a bow of his head and opened the door. It swung open and Tristan expected Sammi to come running up or hear her voice.

Instead, he saw her floating in midair on her back, her glorious mane of hair softly drifting as if the wind were stirring it.

Rage exploded inside him at the same time a healthy dose of trepidation churned in his gut.

“What did you do to her?” How he kept the fury from leaching into his voice he’d never know.

Balladyn stepped into the room and went to her, leisurely walking around her until she was between them. “We had no choice.”

“Explain that.” Tristan followed him in, but stopped when he reached Sammi. She looked peaceful, as if she were simply asleep.

But he knew better.

“Her mind snapped. She was hurting herself. She broke every bone in both hands. When we went in to calm her, she grew more uncontrollable. It was either this, or…”

Tristan met his red eyes over her body. The Dark didn’t need to finish. Tristan knew exactly the other option they could’ve used. He wasn’t sure why they hadn’t.

“It was a gesture of goodwill,” Balladyn said.

He had known it was coming, just not so soon. “What do you want? I’m already turning myself over to your custody in exchange for you releasing the mortal.”

“I want the location of what we seek.”

“And if I doona have it?”

“Then I’ll wake Sammi and allow the Dark to have her. You saw what they did to the other mortal. Can you imagine what they’ll do to her? A woman who has been with a Dragon King?”

Tristan reassessed his thoughts on Balladyn. The Dark One was clever, and he was banking on Tristan’s feelings for Sammi to get him what he wanted.

All Tristan wanted to do was gather Sammi in his arms and run like the wind. With her in her current state, she couldn’t hear or see him. Which could be to his benefit.

He could test his theory and turn and walk away, but he wasn’t likely to get very far. Besides, he had come in exchange for her. He couldn’t change his mind now.

“What will it be, Dragon King? Will you give me the location?” Balladyn pressed.

“You ask too much.”

“Is it so difficult to agree to wipe out the humans?”

Tristan sent a shout to Con through their link as he said to Balladyn, “It is. We were charged with protecting them.”

“Have you found Sammi?”
Con asked.

“Aye. They have her deep within the palace. Lock onto my location and you’ll find us.”

“How is she?”

“They’ve used their magic to make her sleep. Balladyn said she lost her mind and they had no choice. He’s threatening to wake her and give her to the Dark if I don’t give him something in return.”

There was a loud snort from Con.
“What does he want now?”

“The location to something he seeks, something he says was hidden by the King of Kings long before you.”

There was silence after his statement. That worried Tristan even as he pretended to listen to Balladyn lament about the humans.

“You know what he seeks.”
Tristan stated the obvious, hating that Con didn’t trust him enough to tell him what it was.

“Aye.”

“But you willna tell me.”

“Tristan, you must understand that few of the Kings know of it. Kellan does because he records our history. I do because I’m the King of Kings.”

It made sense, and it also made Tristan feel better that he hadn’t been intentionally left out.
“What is it?”

“Something you better hope never falls into their hands. It was hidden for a reason, Tristan.”

“I need to give him something so that he might let Sammi go.”

There was a long pause before Con said,
“I’ll take care of that.”

“Well?” Balladyn urged. “Are you going to give me what I want, or shall I call in my fellow Dark?”

Tristan started to make up a lie about a location the object could be when shouting rang out through the palace. Balladyn’s eyes narrowed as he ran around Sammi’s body to the door.

“It’s Constantine!” a Dark shouted as he ran by.

Balladyn whirled around to glare at him. “Is this some trick?”

“Do you want me or do you want Con?”

“I’ll have both,” Balladyn snarled before he stalked out of the room, the lock clicking loudly into place.

Tristan spun about and reached out to touch Sammi. He hesitated, unsure of what kind of Dark Fae magic had been used to put her in such a state.

With a growl of frustration, Tristan tucked his arms beneath her and pulled her against him. Instantly, the magic holding her evaporated and her body slumped.