Men of Anderas II: Dak the Protector (16 page)

"We’re home.” Tears she refused to allow
threatened to choke her. She’d made it back one more time. Without
Dak and Talon the outcome of this trip would have been far
different. Draagon would never give up and she knew her life became
more precarious by the day. She had to have a son. Why did Dak have
to be so … so … stubbornly honorable? A part of her admired his
strong character. It was a large part of what made Dak the man she
was afraid had stolen his way into her heart. Another part of her,
the part that was driven to keep her father’s crime hidden,
regretted Dak’s integrity. This confusion and conflict within her
threatened to destroy her sanity, but it didn’t change what she
planned to do. What she
had
to do.
Forgive me, Dak, but
you give me no choice.

"That must be some security system you
have."

Kierin looked at Dak and smiled. He still
didn’t believe her. That was evident in his voice. "It is. My
father designed it. Come on, I’ll show you."

Dismounting, Kierin handed her reins to Dak
and reached into the pouch she carried at her waist. Pulling out
the piece of smoky black crystal, she turned and offered it to him.
"Here. I’ll show you how to open the gate."

When Dak hesitated, giving the stone a wary
glance, she giggled. "It’s harmless, Dak. The stone is nothing more
than a key. Come on, take it."

He gingerly picked up the cool rock between
his thumb and forefinger.

"You have to hold it in your palm. Can you
feel the slight indentation? Place the pad of your thumb there and
aim it at the portal."

"Kierin, there’s not a damn thing in front
of us but more of this wasteland."

"The key will show you the portal, Dak.” She
grinned at the skeptical expression on his face. The Anderan was
slow to believe.

"You can easily test the truth of what I’m
saying. Face any direction and point the key."

Dak continued to look doubtful, but he
slowly turned until he faced the opposite direction.

Stubborn man
. "Now, point the
crystal."

"What the …." Dak’s arm pulled him back to
face Kierin. Twice more, her companion tested the crystal and both
times he ended up facing her.

"Think of it as a compass needle. It will
always point to the portal. Just point it where the pull is
strongest, imagine an open doorway and project the image along the
energy flow of the crystal."

"That simple?"

"That simple. Try it."

He looked more like a man going to battle.
Feet spread for balance, right arm extended toward the portal, left
hand fisted on his hip; he was in perfect
en guard
position.
His intense mental focus was strong enough that Kierin easily
picked up the images he was projecting and erupted in laughter.

"What’s so funny?” He growled, lowering the
crystal and glaring at her.

"A drawbridge? … and a battering ram?”
Kierin struggled to control her giggles.

"I thought you said you couldn’t read my
mind."

Dak’s accusation brought another round of
giggles. "I can’t. You were projecting with such fierce
concentration a dead crystal witch could read your mind. It’s just
a little doorway."

He shot her a ferocious glare before turning
back to the portal, mumbling under his breath.

An image of a tiny rodent hole brought a
fresh round of giggles from Kierin and a rare smile from Dak before
he turned his full attention to the portal. Within seconds, an
opening appeared in the force field.

"By all the Ancient Prophets, I don’t
believe what I’m seeing."

A cobbled trail twisted between dark fir
trees where moments before he saw nothing but an endless wasteland.
The rustle of a gentle breeze brought the rich smell of pine
through the strange opening.

"Welcome to my fortress, Dak.” Kierin
stepped through the opening and off the path to allow room for Dak
and the horses to follow.

The horses eagerly pushed ahead following
the enticing aroma of fresh grasses. Knowing they wouldn’t wander
far, he released the reins and turned back to the open portal. From
this side he could see the intricate maze of energy waves that
formed her force field. He could see the wasteland through the
undulating bands but it was fuzzy and distorted.

"I’ve never seen anything to compare to
this, Kierin. Your father built this?” He indicated the dome of
gently pulsing bands of pastel-colored rays with a sweep of his
arm.

Kierin removed the crystal key from his hand
and closed the portal. "My father was a renowned scientist on our
home planet but it was his determination to keep his secret hidden
that gave birth to the security system."

"You were going to tell me about those
secrets of his when we got here. Let’s hear it."

"Dak, I’m tired, sore, dirty and hungry.
I’ll answer all you questions, but not before I change clothes and
prepare dinner."

With a toss of her head, she grabbed the
trailing reins for her horse and stomped off along the cobbled
path. Dak followed at a slower pace. He needed the extra time to
get his bearings. For the past two days, he saw nothing but mile
after mile of desert wasteland. To suddenly be surrounded by thick
stands of fir and other trees he couldn’t identify; skeletal bushes
waiting for the return of warm weather to blossom again; and a
towering mountain of pale, gray rock generously sprinkled with the
first snows of winter was disconcerting.

The trail twisted through the forest
following the natural land formations. Clusters of crystals grew
among the vegetation, their colors as varied as the plants around
them. He gave the stones a wide berth. He wanted nothing more to do
with the insidious rocks. He rounded a bend in the path and
stopped. The sheer beauty that surrounded him left him stunned. A
mammoth cave opened beneath the canopy of evergreen trees. Steps
carved into the rock swept up and around a small waterfall that had
its origins somewhere inside the cave. Thick steam swirling around
the pool at the bottom meant the water was considerably warmer than
the air around it. Thick rope provided a handrail and prevented the
unwary from stepping off into the tumbling waterfall.

Spotting Kierin’s saddled horse wandering
through the trees, Dak shelved his fascination with her mountain
and went in search of a barn or stable. He’d pushed the horses hard
the past few days and they needed care.

It didn’t take long for him to spot what he
assumed was a corral. Built of fallen trees and piles of rock, it
looked more like an accidental landslide than a planned enclosure.
The fact that the
fence
began and ended on either side of a
cave opening convinced Dak that he’d found the right spot. The
small cave was L-shaped with four stalls built along one long side
and feed sacks and hay bales stacked opposite. Judging by the odor
emanating from the moldy straw, cleaning wasn't high on anyone's
list of things to do. Leaving the horses in the corral, Dak grabbed
the shovel he found in the rear of the cave. By the time he’d
cleaned the stalls, groomed, fed and watered the horses it was
almost dark. He would have to ask Kierin where to dump the muck,
but that could wait until tomorrow. Grabbing up his saddle pack and
weapons, he headed back to the main cave. The little witch wasn’t
the only one who wanted a bath and something hot to eat.

Kierin’s fortress must be built inside the
cave. Smart thinking on her father’s part. Even if the security
system failed and someone actually found this remote spot, he
wouldn’t immediately know that Kierin lived inside the cave. It
would give her time to escape.
If she has a back door
.

He slowly climbed the curved staircase.
Memories of his last two trips into the bowels of a cave washed
over him. He tried to isolate the myriad emotions battling inside
his head. Rage and humiliation from Murdock’s slave market. Joy so
intense that it hurt when they found JarDan’s mother alive in a
sleep chamber after fifteen years. Sadness when he discovered
Tiana’s body. Relief, that Morandoni would never again threaten the
House of Tor. One-by-one, Dak sorted and labeled what he was
feeling until there was only one sensation left.
Home.

The word exploded through Dak’s mind,
buckling his knees. If not for his grip on the rope railing, he
would have fallen into the cascading water.
Not bloody likely.
Home is Anderas. Home is the south tower of Castle Tor. Home is
anywhere
but here. Kierin has something to do with this! I’m
picking up her thoughts. That’s got to be it. She’s glad to be home
and I’m getting the same signals. Must be all these damn
crystals
.

Taking several deep breaths and forcing his
shoulders back, he continued into the cave. The wide opening of the
cave narrowed to a single tunnel about twenty feet long before
opening into a central chamber with other tunnels branching out
like the spokes of a wheel. Glowing crystals illuminated the walls
of the chamber creating a warm, cozy living area. There was no sign
of Kierin but he could see evidence of her recent handiwork. A fire
crackled beneath a natural flue and an assortment of pots hung from
long hooks around the edge of the fireplace, each giving off an
enticing aroma. Three wooden chairs sat facing the fire, each with
a padded cushion for comfort. A small, square table was set with
wooden dishes and snowy white linens.

"Kierin?” Dak didn’t want to wander around
uninvited.

"I was beginning to think you were going to
bed down with the horses."

He turned to see Kierin standing at the
entrance to one of the tunnels. She looked … different. Her gown
was dark blue with a dark gold belt. High necked and long-sleeved,
there was nothing provocative about her attire but every cell in
Dak’s body went on instant alert. By the Beard of the Prophet, she
was glorious. That magnificent mane of snow white hair fell in
gentle waves around her shoulders and--
God, give me
strength
--the ends nearly touched her ankles. He had a weakness
for long hair. He loved the silky texture as it brushed across his
naked skin. The way individual strands took on a life of their own
to twist and curl, binding him closer. Never in his life--on any
planet or Pleasure Station in the galaxy--had he seen such
magnificence.

"Is something wrong?"

Dak swallowed hard and prayed she wouldn’t
glance down at his throbbing groin.
Get a grip on your
sanity
. It took three tries before he could force a single
sound past the constriction in his throat.

"N-n-o. I’m … I just had to … uh … taken
extra care of the horses. You know … they were … uh … you know,
really worn out and …." Dak closed his mouth with a snap. He was
rambling like a love-starved teenager. Taking a firm grip on his
hormone induced fantasies he scowled at Kierin.

"Where can I clean up?” The crystal witch
had the sense to control the grin twitching her lips. If she
laughed, he wouldn’t be responsible for his actions.

"I’ve prepared my father’s room for you.
It’s through the tunnel at the far side of the chamber. It’s the
only room with its own bathing facilities. Be careful with the
water. It can be extremely hot this time of year."

Dak nodded once and headed away from
Kierin’s disturbing presence.

"Dak?" Kierin’s soft voice stopped him cold
but he refused to turn around.

"Dinner will be ready in about an hour. Will
that give you enough time?"

Again, Dak acknowledged her statement with a
nod. The tunnel she indicated was spacious enough that he didn’t
have to stoop but several times he felt small protrusions snag the
hair on the top of his head. It was shorter than the halls of
Falcon Tor, probably not more than fifteen or twenty feet from the
main chamber to the sagging wooden door that once must have been
set into the rock. Pushing the door open, he found a moderate size
room, sparsely furnished with mattresses stacked in one corner; a
wardrobe and another straight-back chair just like the ones in the
main chamber. There were several thick quilts folded and stacked on
top of the wardrobe. He felt the delicate brush of fresh air
against his skin but could find no sign of a ventilation system.
There were no tapestries to soften the starkness of solid rock
walls, no carpets to cushion his feet. Nothing to tell him about
the man who last slept here. The only decorative touch was a large
folding screen in one corner of the room.

The empty wardrobe offered no clue as to
what kind of man Kierin’s father was before he died. It took Dak
less than ten minutes to unpack his purloined clothing. There
wasn’t much variety but the fit was good and the rugged material
would hold up to the roughest treatment. If he wished for some of
the finer garments from his closet at Castle Tor, it was to satisfy
a desire for something soft and comfortable. It absolutely was
not
because he wanted to impress the crystal witch.

With a snort of disgust at his wandering
thoughts, he looked around for a door that would lead him to the
bath. The trick to surviving the rest of his month with Kierin was
to stay so busy that he’d have no time or energy for the temptation
of the promise of mind-blowing sex.

The solid rock walls gave no hint of a
passage. The only corner possible was behind the folding screen. A
large bowl-shaped tub, carved from the mountain and worn smooth by
untold eons of flowing water, shared space with an inci-n-can. His
ship, and most every space travel craft he’d ever been on,
contained the same devices. Designed to reduce human waste to a
fine powder that could be expelled without harm to the environment,
their invention put an end to the bulky holding tanks and messy
disposal of earlier forms of sanitation. Somehow, he never expected
to see something so … modern in the bowels of a mountain.