Chapter 19.

The Mer rebels kept their weapons hidden belowground, deep inside a series of limestone caves that had once been part of a reef laid down by an inland sea millions of years ago. A rabbit warren of tunnels twisted off in various directions.

Men and women, human and Mer, worked together, preparing for the conflict ahead. Everyone was serious, concentrated in their efforts.

Kenneth examined the dagger he'd been given. "Is this all you've got?"

Cyntheris nodded. "Yes."

He grunted and turned the weapon in his hand, trying to get a feel for it. The short, etched-silver blade glittered in his grip, sharp and deadly. A series of strange runes were incised in the steel. "I guess it will have to do."

Cyntheris looked at him, a quizzical expression crossing her features. "Do you no longer have blades in the human world?"

Kenneth frowned. "Oh, we've got them. Definitely. It's just that our weapons have advanced to the point where a man can take down hundreds with a single weapon." No reason to mention the bombs and the hundreds of thousands those could demolish. The Mer didn't need any encouragement.

He braced himself, wondering if he could actually use the blade. Though he'd owned a gun before Jennifer's murder, he'd fired it only on a practice range. He'd gotten rid of it soon after her death. It would have been nice to have the 9 mm now. Self-defense was a concept he definitely grasped and approved of. He'd already made up his mind to fight. And he had to be prepared to follow through.

It was kill or be killed and Kenneth didn't intend to be the one doing the dying.

Cyntheris lifted her arm, showing the Ri'kah she wore. "We can do a bit of damage with these." Leveling her crystal-powered weapon, she aimed toward a nearby rock. A few quick laserlike blasts sped through the air. The rock disintegrated into dust.

Kenneth raised a brow, impressed. "Nice." He pointed at the Ri'kah. "Now if only we had a few dozen more of those."

Watching from behind them, Kallixeina smiled. "Unfortunately, those are reserved for the queen's guard. The rest of us must make do with the primitive weapons." She cut the sword she held through the air. "But it will still send a head rolling."

"If you can get close enough to wound them," Kleio snorted.

He c.o.c.ked his head. "I've seen a bit of Mercraft. Why do you even need weapons when you can move things with a simple thought?"

The Mer women around him laughed.

Kleio stepped up to him and lifted her hand. "I will show you," she volunteered. "Raise your hand."

Kenneth did. "Like this?"

Kleio pressed her palm against his. "See if you can move my arm."

Tongue going into his cheek, Kenneth nodded. Of course he could move her hand. He was bigger and naturally stronger than a woman. "Okay." He pushed.

Kleio's hand didn't move. "Harder."

He pushed harder, but the Mer didn't budge. "I can't." His hand dropped. "What did you do?"

Kleio laughed. "That is what I am trying to show you about Mer-magic. When a Mer goes against a Mer, if both are equally strong, neither really affects the other. I could throw out a bit of energy, but my enemy could easily shield herself or try to turn it back on me with a spell."

"I think I understand the concept now."

She arched a brow. "Do you really?" She suddenly karate chopped Kenneth's hand at the wrist, taking the dagger out of his hand. In a flash she retrieved it, coming up under his chin with the sharp edge. "Make an enemy of a Mer and she will give you no mercy."

Kenneth's heart hammered against his sternum. Tension raced through him. He'd not only been checked; he'd been mated. Kleio could have slit his throat before he had a chance to draw a breath.

It was a lesson he clearly needed to learn.

Fast.

Kenneth pulled in a breath to slow his pounding heart. d.a.m.n. She was fast. "I think you win."

Those four words eased the tension. Everyone laughed and relaxed again.

Kleio drew down the blade. "I am sorry to have to do that to you." She flipped the dagger in the air, caught it by the blade, and offered the hilt to him.

More than a little embarra.s.sed, Kenneth retrieved his weapon. "That's okay. It's something I needed to know." Better to nurse his wounded male pride in the company of friends. He had a feeling Queen Magaera's defense force wouldn't be so forgiving.

Cyntheris's gaze swung to his face. "You have to be a little faster and trickier than your enemy. Those serving Queen Magaera are trained to be utterly ruthless with their power. They know all the ways to bring death and will not hesitate to use them against us."

Kenneth looked at the tall, blond Cyntheris. She definitely stood out among the rest of the darker- haired, and in some cases, darker-skinned Mer. "Tessa told me you helped get us out of the cell. But aren't you one of the ones they consider part of the elite?"

Cyntheris paused a moment in thought, then replied, "I am, but that does not mean I do not see the folly of their ways." She indicated a dark man working to sharpen several spear points. "Brison is my husband, though few know that truth. We must conceal our union because he is not acceptable as a Breema for a Mer of my status and rank."

Kenneth sneaked a glance at the strong, barrel-chested man. He had curly black hair and skin the color of dark toffee. Brison was handsome, a real stunner. He was the kind of man that made women pant. "And he's not acceptable because of his looks? That's all that makes him inferior?"

"That is all." Cyntheris frowned. "In order for me to take a mate, I must apply to the queen's council and wait for a suitable male to be chosen from the breeding pool."

"One they consider genetically perfect?"

"Yes."

Sperm donor? That raised his brows. "And the Mer want one uniform look, which they consider to be perfect?"

The blond Mer regretfully nodded her head. "Somehow the old ways have become so terribly twisted."

"Yet you've defied them."

"Many do, but our numbers are still so small." Cyntheris sighed. "If my treachery were discovered, I and my husband would both be executed." She sent a fond glance his way. "But I think he is worth the trouble."

They didn't have any more time to talk further. Tessa ducked into the underground cavern, followed by several other rebels.

"Everything almost ready here?" she asked.

Cyntheris answered, "Yes, we are almost ready to go."

Kenneth's gaze strayed to her slender figure. Her long red hair shined like a beacon in the low illumination emanating from the stone walls. But it was her eyes that really got him, a deep jade green. Sometimes her gaze was hot, filled with heat and pa.s.sion. Other times her gaze went cold, distant and detached. He'd felt both the heat and the ice. No doubt about it, a raw energy radiated from her.

But the one thing he'd never gotten out of those eyes was love. He'd never seen Tessa look at him the way Cyntheris looked at her husband.

Emotion tightened his throat. She said she loved me, he reminded himself. He had to believe it, hold on to it. Right now it was the only thing getting him through this nightmare. He had to hold himself together. For both of them.

As if drawn by his thoughts, Tessa walked his way. "Wow, you look all medieval." She eyed the blade in his hand.

He rubbed a hand over his jaw. "Not exactly a Smith & Wesson, but I guess it's going to have to do." He gave Kleio a look. "It even came with a little lesson on how to use it, so I think I'm all set."

Tessa hugged her arms around herself. "You think you could actually use that on someone?" Her voice was strained, a little thin.

Looking at the deadly blade in his hand, Kenneth felt goose b.u.mps form. Aside from a few bar fights in his younger years, he'd never seriously scuffled with anyone, male or female. Without even stopping to think, he already knew what his answer had to be. "I don't want to, but I will if I have to." He lifted his gaze toward hers. "I'll do anything I can to defend you."

A weak smile tugged at one corner of her mouth. "You're braver than I am," she admitted in a rush. "I don't know if I can do this."

Kenneth watched her wrestle with her emotions. She was clearly having a hard time with the idea. She looked so alone, so afraid.

He took a step closer, wrapping his arms around her. That's all he'd really wanted to do through these last confusing hours. Hold her. Just hold her. "It's going to be all right," he murmured into her silky hair. "Somehow, we'll get home."

Releasing a tremulous breath, Tessa tipped her head back to look at him. "Do you really think we can?"

Kenneth's heart lurched. "We'll make it," he said to rea.s.sure her. "I swear to G.o.d I'm going to do everything I can to keep you safe." He meant what he said, one hundred percent.

Tessa snuggled deeper into his hold. "Promise me you'll always be there."

Lowering his head, Kenneth brushed a kiss across her lips. "I'll never leave you, Tessa."

And then he kissed her, long and deep.

The Mer rebels had decided to strike as quickly as possible. In an hour, the dungeon's guards would change. Cyntheris's treachery would soon be discovered.

Since they could not enter the city of Quanous, where the queen's palace was located aboveground, it was decided to make the attempt from belowground. Thanks to an elaborate system of plumbing, a grid of tunnels stretched beneath the metropolis. Reaching the Temple of Thiraisa would be a simple matter.

Taking care of what they might find there wouldn't be.

"Getting inside is going to be easy," Cyntheris said. As one of the few armed with a Ri'kah, she had taken the designated role of leader. "There is a grill for drainage and overflow in one of the purification chambers. Once inside, we can make our way toward the threshold. Hopefully we can get you through before Magaera's guards stop us."

Tessa nodded. "You think the sea-gate is guarded?"

Cyntheris nodded. "Most definitely. But at this hour, the number will be few because Magaera believes you are still imprisoned. We must act with haste before you are discovered missing."

Tessa shivered, remembering that cold, awful place. "You took a terrible risk helping to free us."

Cyntheris didn't glance back as she continued up the narrow pa.s.sage. It was cold and damp, and everyone was miserable from the dirty sludge water seeping into their shoes. "I would like to cross into your world myself. I want my husband to see the land of his ancestors, perhaps even raise our children there."

Tessa's throat tightened. "I hope you can."

The small band of rebels continued on.

Just as it seemed they would be doomed to wander the twisted pa.s.sages for all eternity, Cyntheris at last halted. "We are in the main bathing chambers." She peered through a narrow iron grate.

Kallixeina stepped up. "Do you see anyone?"

Cyntheris did a quick count. "Two guards."

Brison stepped up behind his wife. "They must die quietly. Quickly." He made a slicing motion across his neck.

"I agree," Cyntheris said. "We don't want to alert others who will be in the main temple. One scream will carry through the entire place."

Brison lifted his weapon, a small, elegant athame, or short-bladed dagger. "I will take care of them."

Kenneth moved in. "What's going on?"

Tessa hastily relayed the plan in a low whisper.

Kenneth nodded and eyed the grate. "Going to need some help lifting that," he said, and went to work. Trying to keep noise to a minimum, the two men carefully moved the grate. Kenneth supported its weight and Brison slid through the constricted opening.

Everyone watched, breathless, as he darted around a wide oval pool of shimmering, ethereally blue water. The pungent aroma of incense, a cloying mix of musk and cinnamon, scented the air.

In a split second, Brison and his deadly blade moved into action. Creeping up behind the unsuspecting guards, he killed both Mer guards before Tessa could think to blink. He moved with grace and speed, intent on carrying through his mission. The first woman had not yet begun to fall before the second drew her last breath.

Quickly securing the area, Brison did a little bit of scouting. He disappeared, a move that forced everyone to hold their breath.

The ongoing silence pumped up the tension another notch.

Tessa gritted her teeth and swallowed hard.

Seeing her waver, Kenneth reached for her hand. "You okay?"

Tears welled in her eyes and it was all she could do to hold them back. "I've never seen anyone die before," she admitted, blinking hard. "It's horrible."

"I know. Trust me, I know." His grip on her hand tightened. His skin felt warm. Solid. Real. "If you need to stay here, we can handle things."

Knowing he was trying to spare her further horror, Tessa looked into his face.

Kenneth truly was one of the good guys. She'd known that all along. Without considering his own safety, he would sacrifice himself for others. He'd done that since they'd arrived in this h.e.l.lish place, without complaint. He'd even offered his life to give her the chance to go free. Men like him didn't come along every day. He was a rare prize.

Good grief! she thought, swallowing hard. She'd almost pushed him away with her own petty selfishness.

That wasn't going to happen again. Somehow she'd figure a way out of this mess. And when they were home, and safe, she'd treat him like a king instead of a convenience.

"I'm going, too." She steeled her nerves. "There's no way you're leaving me behind. Wherever we go from now on, it's together."

Though she suspected their chances of getting back through the sea-gate were slim to none, there was no way she was going to let him walk into the battle alone.

Kenneth lifted his hand. His warm palm curved around her left cheek. "I'll try not to let them get close to you, Tess. Somehow I'll get you through."

Lifting her hand to cover his, Tessa smiled at him. "I know you will."