Scorched_Earth_B_N Read online

  She blinked. “Debt? Do I know you?”

  “Informally. I was in the cave with Tremor.”

  She gasped, then winced, regretting it. He’d been the withered black man in the water bubble. “Ow! You look better now.”

  He smiled sardonically. “I should hope so. Your assistance was appreciated.”

  “Likewise.” It hurt to talk, so she fell silent.

  Raze glanced critically at Tremor. “You’ll be on your feet by tomorrow, no doubt. I saved you the trouble of tracking the rock trolls; they are all dead.”

  “I knew that,” Tremor said with a frown.

  “All of them,” Raze emphasized. “Even the one you didn’t see who escaped. We had a chat; he was a mercenary. He didn’t know the name of the earth elemental that hired him, didn’t see his face.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Raze’s smile was dark. “I held him over a pit of rock weevils. I’m very sure.”

  Cara winced. She didn’t want any other details about the torture. Obviously, Raze wasn’t someone to anger. “Why would someone want to kill us?”

  Tremor sighed. “Me, they might kill for a number of reasons, but you? I can think of only one that fits.” He exchanged a loaded look with Raze. Raze scowled ominously and stalked out of the room.

  Cara waited, but when he didn’t explain, she prompted impatiently, “Well?”

  Tremor glanced at her, then at the cave wall. Raised symbols formed, spelling words she couldn’t read. “The Fates carved this over the entrance to the cave. We had centuries to memorize it.”

  “What does it say?”

  He flicked a finger and the words reformed into English. She read aloud,

  “One will find rebirth in the flames that take her life.

  One will meld with the sea that seeks to claim her.

  One will find a love that shakes the earth itself.”

  She sent him a puzzled look. “What does it mean?”

  “What do you think?” he challenged.

  She thought about it until a cold chill curled her toes. “That bit about the earth…”

  “Yes.” He watched her expectantly.

  She didn’t feel like elaborating. Apparently, he’d had a long, long time to think about it. Was it a prophecy, or the Fate’s idea of brainwashing?

  Suddenly she understood why Raze had looked so angry.

  Cara flipped the covers back and got painfully to her feet, using the sheet as a toga, since hers had been torn off when they put her back together.

  “What are you doing? Your gut is barely healed,” Tremor pointed out. He made no move to follow, however. Maybe he assumed his pursuit would only make her more desperate to leave. That, or he thought she wouldn’t get far.

  “I need space,” she growled. It hurt like blazes, but she used the wall to help her make her way to the outer room. Other than a lava pool that filled the chamber with flickering red light, there was little there. It must be night, for the rock was impenetrable to her elemental eyes. Raze stood in front of an onyx throne, and he looked distinctly unamused to see her.

  Too bad. She wanted to go and she needed his help. “Can you take me back to Lord Sarsen’s house?”

  “Does Tremor support this plan?” Raze asked, unimpressed. He looked intimidating, a king in his throne room.

  She scowled. “I don’t need his permission.”

  He snorted. “I won’t help you to play childish games, girl. You will leave when your man is ready to take you.” His tone made it clear he wouldn’t be swayed by protests or pleading.

  Pain made her querulous. “Thanks a lot, hotshot.” She turned away and stumbled, underestimating her weakness. Instantly he was there, his hand cupping her elbow as he steadied her to the bed. He waited impatiently until she climbed in, nodded to Tremor, and left without a word.

  “Jerk,” she muttered, unwilling to look at Tremor in case he was gloating.

  “He saved your life,” Tremor said mildly. “He doesn’t have to keep a supply of copper and rare earth on hand.”

  She fidgeted with the blanket. “About that. It was horrible.”

  “Yes. I’m sorry you went through that. It was my fault for not taking bodyguards with us, but I’d wanted to be alone. I suppose I’ll have to plan our outings with more care. I apologize.”

  She made a sound of protest. “It’s not that! Do you know how horrible it was to see you bleed copper? To see it come out of me? There was a hole in my stomach, and you shoved dirt in there!”

  “You’re an elemental,” he said cautiously. “Human medicine would do you no good.”

  She made an unhappy sound and looked at the words on the wall. “Not my choice, and according to this, there will be two more.” Two more women, one burned to death, the other drowned. “We have to stop it.”

  He took her hand, refusing to let her pull away. “There’s no way of knowing who they are or when it will take place. It could be fifty years from now. Only the Fates know.”

  “But that’s not right! They can’t just run around destroying people’s lives! Making monsters and…” Her throat closed, choking off the words. “I mean, you’re not a monster, but I…this isn’t normal. I want to go back and redo that day.” She felt horrible, desperate to escape her body, his pre-ordained attraction. She wanted real love, her warm, human family.

  “If you did, I would still be trapped. Fire and Water would not be free, either.” He released her hand.

  “I don’t want that,” she protested. “It’s just hard. Everything I’ve known has changed. I feel like my bedrock has shifted. Nothing makes sense.”

  “You’re not alone,” Tremor said firmly. “I won’t let you wander without a champion. You can find happiness and satisfaction in this life, but you will need a sense of adventure.”

  “I thought I had one until I had a real adventure,” she grumbled. “Finding a new ethnic restaurant doesn’t compare.”

  He laughed and brushed her cheek with his hand. “Very good for me,” he murmured, then sat back with a sigh. “It was fun, wasn’t it? Before the trolls.” His voice grew sleepy. He was using a great deal of energy to accelerate their healing.

  Cara wasn’t sure if he was causing it, but she was sleepy, too. “Yeah, it was.” So instead of copper blood and pain, Cara dreamed of centaurs and sun.

  “So the Oracle thinks we’re a threat to her because of the Fate’s prophecy?” Cara wanted to make sure she understood.

  “I believe so,” Tremor said thoughtfully. Raze had brought them “tropical fruit” the juicy new crystals that had formed under the local volcano, and a molten mineral drink that reminded her of spicy chai tea. She was feeling much better, the sun was shining through the rock, and she was eager to leave. Raze even brought her a new dress.

  “She may have seen us becoming a threat or is suspicious of the Fate’s motives in changing humans to elementals. She hates us anyway, so she doesn’t need much of an excuse to try to kill us.”

  “She’d have a difficult time assaulting my home,” Raze said. He leaned against the wall, arms crossed. He didn’t seem to sit often, but maybe he was sick of sitting after years of being too weak to do much else. “You would be wise to fortify your own.”

  “It is time to go house hunting,” Tremor agreed. “I also need to buy an estate and build a house for Cara’s parents.”

  “What?” Cara shook her head. “They have a house!”

  “They need a fortified manor,” Tremor said calmly. “It will be full of security measures that will deter elemental threats.”

  “I’ll trade security measures with you,” Raze offered before Cara could reply. “I could use some clay golems.”

  “Good. I’d like some fire swarm; there’s nothing like flaming hornets to drive away an unwanted guest.”

  “Whoa! You’ll never get my parents to accept this,” Cara insisted. “My mom will refuse to move.” Not to mention, if she got wind of flaming hornets, she was likely to call a priest. She might be
an educated modern woman, but her mother was deeply suspicious of anything supernatural.

  Tremor grinned slyly. “I have my ways.”

  “Don’t even! I won’t let you stress my parents.” She knew he was capable of opening a sinkhole on the property or causing the formerly sturdy foundation to crumble. It wasn’t fair that he could force her mom and dad to leave.

  “We’ll try talking to them first. It’s past time I met them, anyway.” He clasped forearms with Raze. “I appreciate your hospitality. Feel free to visit any time.”

  Cara wasn’t going to let this go so easily. “Yes, thanks,” she said distractedly, then remembered her manners. “That troll was nasty.”

  “My pleasure,” he said, amused. “I’m certain you’d do the same for me.”

  She blinked. She hadn’t realized he had a sense of humor, and it made her wonder about him. As they walked through the portal to emerge outside Lord Sarsen’s house, she asked, “What did Raze do?”

  “Do?” Tremor asked as Rosestone opened the door.

  “Yeah. He was in prison?”

  “Oh. Pompeii,” Tremor said, ushering her inside when she stiffened.

  “Pompeii?” she asked in a strangled voice.

  “Mm. He was having a bad day,” Tremor said, distracted. “I need to speak to my uncle. Meanwhile, a bath would do you good.” He quickly summarized their adventures to a horrified Rosestone.

  “You poor thing!” she clucked at Cara. “Come, let me run you a bath. We’ll summon the doctor to make certain you’re healing.”

  “Oh, I don’t think…” Cara began.

  “That’s an excellent idea,” Tremor said firmly, kissing Cara’s brow. “Let her fuss, love. You deserve it for being such a trooper.”

  Cara scowled. She hadn’t done anything but stand around in shock during the attack. “You should get looked at, too.”

  “After you, darling. Excuse me.” He headed for his uncle’s office, leaving her with a cosseting Rosestone.

  Cara let Rosestone pamper her, sighing with pleasure as she sank into the hot slurry. She had time for a long soak before the doctor arrived and had a look at her tender stomach. The green jade woman used an instrument to scan her center, then took samples of her saliva and made Cara breath into a tube. She murmured at the results. “The good news is, you received excellent field care, but I recommend a high copper diet in the next few weeks.” She conferred with Rosestone, who’d asked to stay for the exam. “No strenuous physical activity for the next week at least, and that includes physical intimacy,” she said firmly. “I’ll refer you to an internal alignment specialist to make certain everything grows back in good order; we want to make certain your internal supports align properly. Meanwhile, this will help with the pain.” She handed Cara a small wafer.

  Cara smiled at how much it reminded her of her former doctor. Some things translated very well.

  As ordered, Cara took it easy. She was laying on the sectional couch, watching an elemental drama when Tremor checked in on her.

  “What did the doctor say?” He asked, sitting next to her.

  “Good patch job, no sex, go see a chiropractor,” she summed up, eyes glued to the screen.

  Tremor glanced at the TV. “A mud bogger and a marble prince, eh? A good story, but those things never work out.” He ignored her glare to play with her hair. “In real life, the bogger is usually a gold digger.”

  She eyed his marble skin. “Met some, have you?”

  “A few.” He sniffed her hair. “I like your perfume.”

  “You know, my skin color is close to a mud bogger’s,” she said testily.

  He laughed. “You have the rarest, most beautiful toffee-stone skin, and you compare it to swamp dwellers? Do you want a spanking?”

  She snorted and used the commercial break to channel surf. She stopped on a cosmetic commercial and nodded at the marble skinned beauty and her onyx friend. “These seem to be the women in fashion.”

  He grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. “Real men make up their own minds. Besides, the toffee-stone people aren’t numerous. They are a rare minority, renowned for their beauty and bravery.”

  She closed her eyes. “I wasn’t very brave when the rock troll showed up. I should have helped.”

  He frowned, perplexed. “Helped how? You were badly hurt, love. My fault, of course. I ask your forgiveness for that.”

  She stared at him. “Are you kidding? You were bleeding, and you still kicked their butts! You saved us. All I did was sit there and try not pass out.”

  “It’s my job to protect you; that’s what I’m trained for,” he insisted. “I would have been very unhappy if you’d put yourself in danger. Besides, you don’t want to be a warrior.” He stroked her cheek. “You’re a tender soul, a caretaker. It’s not right that you should sully your hands with war.”

  She fiddled with her bracelet. “You don’t think I’m a coward?”

  “I think you’re perfect. Don’t change a thing,” he assured her softly. He hesitated and seemed to struggle with something. “I didn’t enjoy seeing you helpless, however. If you wanted, I could share some self-defense techniques.”

  She grinned. “I was never very good at that kind of thing, just so you know. I took karate once and accidentally kicked the instructor in the chin. I might have been showing off,” she confessed sheepishly.

  He chuckled. “We don’t need to step foot in a gym for this. You won’t even break a sweat.”

  “Now I’m curious,” she said, sitting up with grimace because her stomach was sore. Such a pity Tremor could only speed the healing of minor injuries. At least the doctor had assured her it would be days, not months, before she recovered. There were definite advantages to her new form. “What have you got in mind?”

  “Exactly,” he said with a smile, pulling her to her feet. He looked into her eyes. “Are you sure about this? I will censor my memories, but they might be overwhelming.”

  She studied his concerned expression. “If it will help me, I think it would be a good idea. Only, what are you planning? A Vulcan mind meld?” she joked.

  Instead of answering, he looked into her eyes. His pupils grew larger, large enough to swallow her as she fell into his mind.

  She found herself on a warm desert at night, a galaxy wheeling slowly above her. It was vast; a warm, living plane that that stretched forever. Tremor joined her, anchoring her shoulders as his gaze drew her in again…

  Cara opened her eyes to the real world, her body twitching uncontrollably as her mind struggled to align several centuries of combat experience with the muscle memory he’d somehow implanted. There was too much; she could only grasp flickers of the things he’d shown her.

  “Cara? Are you all right?” Tremor helped her sit, holding her as she twitched, cursing himself. “I should have realized. You’ve never done this, and you’re so young.” He looked worriedly at her belly and winced. “You’re bleeding.”

  “Hurts,” she managed. The muscle fibers were firing, processing too much information.

  “The doctor is going to kill me,” he growled as he lifted her.

  Cara couldn’t recall what the doctor said, but she recalled snatches of Sarsen’s chilly lecture to Tremor as Tremor paced her bedroom. Her brain was busy processing memory and her body ached with phantom exercise. She was in good condition, but Tremor knew some brutal moves, moves her body was intent on absorbing.

  Finally, the doctor finished examining her and informed Tremor sternly, “Next time I suggest you wait for a more auspicious moment to share muscle memories, my lord. She will recover, but this won’t be a pleasant or restful night for her. I’ve done all I can, but we will need to watch her.” She shot something into the IV of liquid copper dripping into Cara’s vein, and Cara drifted off again.

  Tremor didn’t enjoy his uncle’s hovering. Sarsen seemed unwilling to leave his nephew’s wife in her husband’s uncertain care. “Why don’t you get some rest? There’s nothing more you can do ton
ight.”

  Sarsen turned from the window to regard him steadily. He didn’t say it, but Tremor felt he was weighing Tremor’s present maturity against the way he’d been before he’d been imprisoned. The thought put his teeth on edge. They needed a house of their own. As it was, he was on the verge of kicking his uncle out of the room.

  Sarsen might have guessed as much, for he took a seat in the armchair he’d moved to face the bed. “You’ve changed, my boy. You haven’t left her side.” He nodded to Cara’s restless form. Even with the drugs, she rested badly. “You never cared enough for a woman to bother before.”

  Tremor warily took a seat. “I was bound to grow up sometime.”

  Sarsen nodded. “Of course. Have you considered the guardian position? You could do a great deal of good.”

  Tremor pinched the bridge of his nose. Not this again. “Can we discuss this later? Now isn’t a good time.”

  “Of course. A guardian’s commission should never be taken lightly.”

  “Didn’t you just say that?” Cara asked groggily, interrupting Sarsen’s well-bred nagging. “I heard that bit about the Guardian when I woke up before.”

  Tremor hurried to her side and brushed the hair off her face. Earth elementals didn’t sweat, they dusted, and Cara’s hair was gray with it. “How are you?”

  She groaned. “Tired. Head hurts, body hurts. No more shortcuts, okay? Not worth it.”

  He felt the sting of shame. “I’m sorry, darling. I never meant to hurt you.”

  She smacked his arm lightly. “I’ll live, okay? Did I tell you I broke Mom’s nose once? We were rafting, and I accidently hit her with the paddle. Her face was black for my cousin’s wedding.” She gestured vaguely to her face. “At least we won’t take pictures.”

  “Something to celebrate,” he said dryly.

  She squinted. “You’re cute when you’re worried. The sober look suits you.”

  If he could blush, he would have. “You’re tired, love.”

  “But not blind,” she mumbled. “Any chance of hot bath? Maybe it will help me get some real sleep.”