Well of Tears (Empath Book 3) (26 page)

What had happened here?

“Get off her,
Sammah!”

Shiver acted first, sprinting forward and
laying a kick into Sammah’s midriff that shunted him off the girl,
though only just. The baron’s bulk acted as a shield, and though he
was winded, he recoiled at Shiver. “You don’t know what you’re
doing! She has to die. She’s a danger to everyone.”

“You’re all going to die, Sammah. Don’t worry
about anything on that score.”

“You think you can stop me? You and your son?
Kill them!”

Shiver didn’t have time to see if the little
girl was dead. Eden was crouched by the girl Quinn, but at Sammah’s
words, his son got to his feet, ready to defend himself. There
weren’t many of the mercenaries—four, that Shiver could see—and
they all seemed on edge, as if something was going terribly wrong
down here. Eden went to his father. They stood back-to-back, so no
one could attack either of them from behind.

“Stay calm Eden. We can beat these men
together.”

“I know, father. Stay wary.”

They both took a fighting stance, and Shiver
had to trust that his son’s training was good, and his sword arm
strong. Eden had proven himself on the training ground, and Shiver
knew that his son was blooded, but this was the first time they had
fought together. Shiver had seen many battlefields, but facing off
against Shiver’s silent bodyguards was an entirely different
prospect. The men had always given Shiver the creeps, so at a point
when he would expect a war cry—a shout—anything to show an
offensive, their silence created a space which usually filled men
with terror. Shiver bit down on his panic. They were only
men—mutilated, trained beyond usual limits or means. They followed
Sammah blindly, and Sammah had been getting his own hands dirty
trying to kill that child, then that faith might be in
question.

They would survive this and Baron Sammah,
murderer of lords and children, would be next. Shiver would do it
with his bare hands, if he had to.

Shiver heard the first clash of steel on
steel, feeling Eden forced back into him. It wasn’t a hard push,
and Shiver shifted his stance to support his son. If Eden needed to
move out of the way he could roll. Shiver would drop if that
happened, but he couldn’t linger on Eden for too long. He brought
up his own sword as the mercenaries attacked, years of training
bringing reflexes into work. Almost by rote, Shiver blocked and
parried their simple attacks. These men might have been hired
killers, but they were by no stretch of the imagination, talented
swordsmen. Shiver broke away from Eden as he gained ground on the
two men attacking him. He took one down, a clean thrust biting
through the leather joint of the man’s jerkin. He went down, red
blood spilling to the stones. The final mercenary faced off, and
Shiver admired the man’s courage though his intelligence was
perhaps lacking. He didn’t have the skill to win this fight.
Apparently, the mercenary had realised this, and rather than try to
fight Shiver cleanly, he dove for the king. Shiver grunted as the
air was knocked out of him, the mercenary pushing him backwards
into a stone wall. Shiver dropped his sword, and started trying to
hammer down on the man’s back with his gloved fist. The mercenary
didn’t budge, bringing his own fists round into Shiver’s midriff,
hitting the king repeatedly. Shiver’s chainmail was too thick for
this attack to have any impact, and he brought his elbow down on
the back of the man’s head. This had the desired effect; the
mercenary dropped to the floor, clutching at his skull where bone
had hit bone. Shiver dove for his sword, and as the mercenary rose
again for another attack, Shiver stabbed him through the neck. The
man clutched at the sword, gurgling noises spilling from his throat
as blood bubbled out through the wound. Shiver yanked his sword
free, and the man fell to the ground, limp, dead.

Shiver was out of breath. He wasn’t used to
exerting himself like this, not anymore. His eyes scanned the
darkness of the caverns for Eden and Sammah. The other mercenaries
were gone, dead. His son had dispatched them quickly and
efficiently, like any son of Sevenspells should. That just left
Sammah. Shiver got to his feet. It was time to end this.

* * *

Neyv rolled back into the water as the men
fought around her. Her vision was blurry. Her father had tried to
kill her! Why didn’t he understand what she was doing? Why couldn’t
she make him understand? Why was Quinn important? Why did he need
Quinn, more than he needed Neyv? Neyv was the strong one. Neyv was
the girl that could make anything the truth, and bend anyone’s mind
to her will. Even Quinn couldn’t resist, when the story was right.
How could Sammah not see this?

The water was warm, and cushioned her little
body. Neyv caught her breath. She had nearly passed out, but those
men had arrived just in time. The big man—Neyv recognised him as
the ruler of Sevenspells—had kicked Shiver off Neyv just as her
vision was going blurry. This man with the big kick was the one
that Sammah feared. This was the ruler that was going to take her
father off the throne, and had been causing him the sleepless
nights.

Neyv needed to kill him. Then her father
would see. He’d realise that Neyv had been right all along and that
she was the special one, the one child he needed to love and keep
alive. He’d knock Quinn out and throw her back in the springs to
drown, right where she deserved to be. Neyv opened her mouth to
talk. Only a croak came out. Her father had hurt her, badly, when
he’d tried to strangle her. Neyv needed to talk for this to work.
Would she be able to talk again? She dipped her head under the
water, taking a mouthful of the warm liquid and gargling it. She
spat the water out and tried her voice again. It was still reedy,
barely audible, but it should be enough. Words were all Neyv ever
needed, and, as long as she could make herself heard by one of
those men, she could twist them all her way.

* * *

Eden saw the girl climb back into the water.
Confused, he unbuckled his sword and took off his heavy riding
boots, diving in after her. She wasn’t in any state to be back in
the springs, and Eden didn’t want her to die by Sammah’s hand. She
was too young. None of them deserved to suffer any longer under the
baron.

He scooped her up easily. Even out of the
water, he guessed that the girl probably didn’t weigh more than a
large sack of potatoes. He lifted her over his shoulder, swimming
easily back to the edge of the spring and placing her on her side,
on the safety of the rocks. She was right by Quinn. Eden climbed
out, checking the both of them. Placing a finger on Quinn’s
delicate neck first, he heaved a sigh of relief when he felt a
feather of her heartbeat. Neyv was next, but the little girl’s wide
eyes were already open, locked on his.

“Help me.”

Eden moved his head closer. He could barely
hear her. “What did you say?”

“Help me. Quinn is evil. You have to kill
her.”

A buzzing noise filled Eden’s ears. Thinking
the unexpected battle and dips in and out of the water had given
him vertigo, he shook his head, trying to rid himself of the
irritating noise. The girl smiled up at him. Eden squinted,
dropping onto his palms as a wave of nausea flowed over him. “Quinn
isn’t evil.”

The girl nodded. Eden nodded in sync with
her. “She is a horrible person. She is going to ruin everything.
You have to help me. I won’t be safe if she’
s
still alive.
”

What had Quinn done to this girl? Eden wasn’t
sure, though, as he fought against the rising pain in his temples,
he couldn’t remember either whether or not the girl was right.
Quinn had done some horrible things to other people recently. She
had killed a mercenary in the Sighs, and had tried to kill his
brother with her power. Was she trying to kill this girl, too? Did
Eden really need to help?

“I can’t do that. Quinn is a good
person.”

Eden looked over to Quinn. She was
unconscious still, prone, so vulnerable if he was going to attack
her now. Of course, this would be the
only
time he’d manage
to win—if Quinn woke up, spoke to him, or even got a glimmer of a
chance to use her ability, then Eden would be defeated. He knew
that. But…why did he want to hurt her again? He
loved
Quinn.
He reminded himself of that, repeating it to himself under his
breath. Bile rose in his throat. He was going to be sick.

The girl frowned at him. She was unhappy.
“You have to kill her!”

Her voice was croaky, broken, but insistent
and incredibly angry. Her insistence forced another bilious wave to
crest over Eden’s body, and this time he did retch. Liquid splashed
over the stones. The girl scooted out of the way before she was
splashed. Eden wiped at his mouth with his sleeve. What was
happening to him? What was
she
doing to him?

“You’re the one that helps Sammah.”

Even admitting the words causing a throbbing
pain to surge through his temples. He was fighting, trying to climb
up a waterfall against the force of the falling water. Neyv
screamed at him. Blood burst from his nose, dripping down his chin.
She was forcing him to believe her. She was trying to force him to
kill Quinn. This had happened to Vance. This was how Sammah had
taken the throne. He couldn’t let her take his mind—he couldn’t
submit. If he did, Quinn would be dead.

* * *

Quinn stirred to the sound of vomiting. She
looked across, her blurred vision clearing, to see Eden heaving his
guts out near the body of Neyv. The girl was squinting at him, a
spiteful line to her lips. Quinn felt out, and recoiled at the
horrible spoil of emotions she felt tumbling from the little girl.
How had she gotten so bitter? Why had Quinn thought she could be
helped? Sammah had twisted her into an isolated, bitter and
resentful child. Her selfish motives were naked now. Like Sammah,
Quinn could feel there was no stopping her.

Or was there?

She leaned against the hatred. The only
counter-emotion Quinn could feel for Neyv, was pity. She tried to
remember the little girl that she’d ignored growing up. Quinn
should have been there for her more. Maertn, too, but their
relationship had already been established, their group closed, when
Neyv came along. The situation was perfect for Sammah’s
manipulation—they would not remember and not care about Neyv, and
it would enable Sammah to keep the girl all for himself.

Quinn had thought that she’d been lonely
growing up, and she’d still had a brother. Her reliance on Sammah
had been almost irrevocable. If they’d opened up to Neyv,
acknowledged her as part of their world, would she be just like
this still?

The more she dwelled on how they’d
effectively abandoned Neyv to take the brunt of Sammah’s abuse, the
stronger Quinn’s empathy grew. She had to help Neyv. Without her,
if she wasn’t stopped, then she’d just grow to become completely
obsessed with using her power to control others. Quinn had stopped
herself from doing it—had hated being the Satori. Neyv knew nothing
else.

“Please Neyv, let me help you.”

Neyv screamed again, this time unleashing her
fury on Quinn. Quinn felt it hit her, a hot wave of anger that she
didn’t need an empathic ability to feel. She hardened herself
against it, but even with Quinn’s age and strength, it rocked her.
Eden screamed again. Quinn had to stop Neyv, soon, otherwise Eden
and the others around her would be killed. What had happened to
Shiver and Sammah? Quinn tried again.

“It doesn’t have to be like this Neyv. You
don’t have to let Sammah rule your life.”

“He isn’
t! You
are!
”

“I’m not doing this to you, Neyv.”

“
You are!
” Tears
blistered Neyv’s cheeks. Quinn crawled over to her, trying to close
the distance between them. Quinn was hoping that the more Neyv
concentrated on Quinn, the less inclined she would be to influence
the men left around her. The girl didn’t even know how strong she
could be. Everything she was saying, would be affecting the people
around her. Quinn had to turn this conversation around.

“It’s Sammah. It’s the way he’s brought you
up, Neyv. I know—he tried to do it to me, too. Let me help
you!”

“I tried! You were going to die, Quinn. That
would have helped me.”

Quinn yelped as a hand closed around her
calf. She twisted and saw Eden, blood seeping from his eyes like
tears of death, beseeching her.

“She’s wrong, Quinn. I know she’s wrong.
She’
s hurting me. Please, stop her.
”

Neyv was killing Eden. Eden knew that her
words were a lie, but Neyv’s ability was twisting his brain, making
him believe everything Neyv was saying. He was fighting it, but the
battle was killing him. Eden wasn’t gifted; if Neyv carried on,
Eden would die.

Quinn pushed back, using her own gift as a
buffer against Neyv’s. She was starting to get angry at what Neyv
was doing, but in this situation she couldn’t fight anger with
anger. The emotions would bloom, and Quinn feared that their
combined efforts to defeat each other would have devastating
consequences on everyone around them. Empathy was the best weapon
Quinn had. Scraping together every ounce of pity, scouring her mind
for every memory she had of Neyv, their scant childhood together
and, more importantly, the years they both definitely spent under
Sammah’s yoke, Quinn pushed back.

Neyv faltered. Quinn felt the pressure of the
girl’s power drop. She pushed harder, and this time it was Neyv’s
turn to squeal in panic. She wasn’t in pain. Quinn could tell it
was more shock at the rebellion, at feeling someone else’s mind
grate against hers. Quinn crawled closer, feeling out for Neyv’s
hand and taking it in hers.