Read All For One [Nuworld 3] Online
Authors: Lorie O'Claire
“Is there somewhere specific that you’re sending us?” he asked Syra.
She watched Torgo talk to the guards, and turned to look at Roth. “None of this was
my idea. Obviously, Lord Darius has taken over. He usually manages to control
everything.”
“You don’t like him much do you?” Roth asked, and Syra appeared to hesitate
before answering.
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“Why don’t you like him?” Beel looked up wanting to know as much as he could
about the man who was his papa.
“Let’s just say we’ve locked horns a time or two.” She waved a hand, dismissing the
topic.
They watched as the two Gothman left on one of the gliders. Torgo knelt before the
remaining glider and Beel watched what he was doing as well as studied the man.
“What are you doing?” Syra asked.
“Dismantling the bomb that’s programmed to go off when this thing goes airborne,
I am,” Torgo said, without looking up.
“He was going to kill us?” Roth couldn’t hide his surprise.
“Welcome to Gothman,” Syra muttered under her breath.
“Yes, he was going to kill you.” Torgo said matter-of-factly.
“I don’t understand. I showed my loyalty when I talked to my brother.” Roth was
completely at a loss.
“You’re still a threat, you are.” Torgo released several wires then pulled a small box
from the side of the bike. He handed it to Syra then reattached the wires.
“But, you’re going against your brother’s wishes,” Roth said, once Torgo stood up.
“And do you agree with every decision that your brother makes?”
“You have seen that I don’t.”
Torgo smiled. “You and I are not so different, I’m thinking, my friend.” He stuck
out his hand and after a moment Roth accepted it and shook hands with the Gothman.
“I ask that you learn as much as you can about Gothman ways and teach them to Beel.
He’ll serve you best if he is a fully trained Gothman warrior, he will.”
Roth nodded.
“Oh.” Torgo pulled a small bag out of his inner pocket. “This should be enough
money to make living easy. If you need more, contact me and I’ll see that you get it,
yes.”
Roth accepted the bag and stared at it for a moment. “Torgo, why are you doing
this?”
“Why don’t you just pull my thoughts?” Torgo asked, somewhat sardonically.
“It’s not that easy.” Roth shrugged. “I don’t have any control over what thoughts
come to me. And, in the dark, I can’t see you that well anyway.”
Torgo laughed and ran his hand up Syra’s back to her neck. “I tell you, my friend,
that is exactly why I prevented your death, because I don’t see you as a threat. My
brother is a dangerous man, he is. If someone is in his way, or he thinks they are, he
eliminates them. He’s always been that way, he has. Let’s just say, for the time being,
you’ve been given a second chance. Be careful, though. Head south and you’ll run into
Taratown. There is a boardinghouse where you can stay with little questions asked. Just
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let the lady know I sent you. I suggest finding some rural property and the lady can
help you find a tutor for Beel, she can.”
“Very good.” Roth walked over to the glider and Beel hurried to climb on behind
him.
Beel smiled at Syra. She had always helped him with the Tree People as well.
“Good luck to the two of you.” He watched Roth and Torgo shake hands.
Torgo looked at Beel and extended his hand. “I’ve enjoyed meeting you, Beel. You
weren’t what I expected, no.”
“Could I ask a question?” Beel tried to sound as confident as the men around him.
“Of course.” Torgo frowned. “But you must remember what you’ve learned here.”
Beel looked hesitantly at Roth. “Yes, I’ll remember. But, why did you tell Andru
you were my papa?”
“You don’t think I could be your papa?”
“No. I heard you and Lord Darius talking before you left to get Ma— Um, Roth.”
Torgo seemed to search his memory and then sighed heavily.
“Torgo, who was my mama?”
“She was a Runner, she was. She’s dead.”
“Lady Tara killed her, right?”
Torgo didn’t answer him, but instead looked directly into Roth’s eyes. Beel looked
from one man to the other. Torgo was offering Roth thoughts that he didn’t want Beel
to know. Someday he would learn the truth.
“No, she didn’t. But it was a long time ago, it was. As you know, you’ve been with
the Tree People since you were an infant. I don’t remember all the details, no.”
“But Lord Darius denied being my papa.”
Syra reached out to touch Beel’s arm. “Go live with Roth. Learn the Gothman way,
and…quit acting like a servant.” She shot Torgo a quick glance. “You’re related to the
leaders of two nations and you need to learn to act like it. Lord Darius is a difficult man
to please, but I think you’ll make him proud one day.”
Beel smiled and felt a purpose for the first time in his life. He nodded then wrapped
his arms around Roth.
Within minutes, the man and teenager were on their way.
Syra stood next to Torgo and watched the glider until it faded into the blackness of
the sky. Torgo slipped his arm around her waist and she moved with him when he
began walking. He led them to a dark spot of ground and picked up a bedroll that
obviously had been left by the guards.
“Why did you tell him he was related to two leaders?” Torgo asked as he carried
the bedroll to an area where several large rocks provided a small form of shelter.
“I don’t know, maybe it’s the rebel in me.” She shrugged, growing distracted as she
realized what he was doing. “He seemed so hurt at being sent away.”
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“What a soft heart for such a tough warrior,” he muttered, and then pulled off her
headscarf.
“We have a long walk home,” she mumbled as he began kissing her neck.
Torgo wrapped one arm strongly around her waist, tossed his jacket on the ground,
and pulled her down on top of it.
“Are you in a hurry, my lady?”
“I’m not your lady.” His hands quickly found her bare skin and she arched into him
with a groan.
“As far as I’m concerned you are, yes.” He crushed his mouth on hers and their
tongues bonded in an unspoken bliss.
Their love had spawned as children and distance hadn’t quenched it. As they
explored each other’s bodies and reacquainted themselves with once familiar territory,
they realized to what extent that love had grown.
Slowly, Torgo removed one piece of her clothing after another until she lay naked
under him. He pulled back to get a better look at her under what little moonlight was
offered. She raised her hands above her head and taunted him with her nakedness.
Syra pulled his shirt over his head as he hovered over her. Her mouth fell open in
appreciation as his broad muscular chest appeared in front of her. He crushed himself
on top of her and then pulled her over so she lay on top of him. The coarse hair on his
chest tickled and her heightened senses shivered as a result. He tasted so good when
she traced lines on his skin with her tongue and he smelled like a mixture of leather and
soap.
She pushed herself off of him and gently pulled off his pants. Then, straddling him,
she rubbed herself against him, teasing him into madness. The remainder of the night
simply wasn’t enough time to show this man how much she needed him in her life.
When his large hands gripped her waist so tightly it hurt and she could see his blood
boiling in his eyes, she thrust herself down on him with such an impact that white
sparks danced in front of her vision with the depth he impaled her.
Torgo rolled her over and began slowly making love to her until she knew they
would explode into eternity together.
“I love you.” The two of them whispered the words at the same time.
He hovered over her, and continued to make them one, a unity that never should
have been divided. Neither one of them could view this as an illicit act.
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Chapter Twenty-Two
“Ana, may I come in?” Tara asked through her daughter’s bedroom door, and
listened as her daughter quickly stifled her tears. Almost a cycle had passed and still
her daughter cried from heartache.
“Of course, Mama.”
“I thought the first snowfall would brighten your spirits.” Tara walked over to
Ana’s window and opened the curtains so the brightness of the freshly fallen snow
flooded the room.
Ana sat on the side of her bed, fully clothed, and blinked at the window. “I guess I
hadn’t noticed.”
“You’ve got to pull yourself out of this. You’ve been moping around for weeks. It’s
not healthy.”
“He’s dead, isn’t he, Mama? I can’t come up with any other reason why he
wouldn’t try to contact me.”
Tara sighed. She’d thought Darius’ orders to kill both Roth and Beel a little harsh. It
was an incredible chance if the Tree People found out, but it wasn’t the first time the
two of them had taken such a chance. There was no reason to confirm her daughter’s
fears, though.
“Maybe he went back to his people. He’s not the only man out there, but I
remember how hard it was to get over my first love.”
Ana looked at her mama blankly. “I bet you were at least given the opportunity to
love him.”
“You can’t just stay in your room and mope about it. It isn’t healthy. You love the
snow, you should get out and enjoy it.”
“I don’t feel like it right now.”
“Well then, why don’t you come with me to the clan site? I was just getting ready to
leave.”
Ana attempted a weak smile. “Maybe I’ll come down later.”