She didn’t know how much farther she would have to go next, but she at least would make it out the door. After that, she would worry about getting off the grounds of the castle.
No sooner had the thought entered her mind than the three people she had just seen coming toward her were startled by a loud commotion behind them.
The pails the women had been holding flew out of their hands to land on the cement floor. The water sloshed out of the buckets and ran across the cement toward Shari and Jolan as a sound like alarm bells came up from the stone floor. The linen held by the man flew into the air and spread itself out in an arc of white as if a curtain had suddenly come down on a stage.
The screams of startlement sounded unusually loud to Shari, but she was beyond caring. Her body chose then to make its demands known. Even as she fell toward oblivion, she could have sworn she saw through the sheets her Warriors, looks of vengeful wraith, coming up from Hell itself to slay her demon.
* * * * *
Shan Lin and Vincent burst through the double doors of the entrance to the castle’s prison and vowed they’d tear the place down to find Shari if they had to. Swords in one hand, laser guns in the other, both had come loaded for a battle.
Hearing stifled yelps and the sounds of steel against the floor, both sprinted toward the sound. Rounding the corner, they saw a bed linen fly through the air obscuring their sight of the corridor they needed to go down. Swinging out with his blade, Vincent quickly sliced the sheet as if it was air. Then looked beyond it to the two figures, who seemed to be making their way towards them.
“Jolan!” The exclamation sounded from behind him. Shan Lin had spotted the pair too.
Running toward the two, Shan Lin and Vincent looked to the figure, who was at the moment, sliding down Jolan’s side. Immediately, both men let out a bellow of pain and rage the inhabitants of the castle would later swear had come from the ruling demons of
Burnhad
itself.
Both men dropped to their knees as soon as they reached Jolan and Shari. Vincent, having gotten there first, threw his weapons to the side and picked Shari up, cradling her to his chest.
Shan Lin, dropped down beside them, took them both in his arms and surrounded them, one side of his body in contact with each.
I know, I know. We must go.
Both brothers pathed to each other.
Getting to their feet, Vincent made a move to gather his weapons, but found them in the hands of Jolan instead.
“My Lord Princes’, we’ve got to go. She wasn’t far behind me when I left to find your wife. We’ve got to go, now!”
Both brothers knew he was right, and the Warrior in each demanded they get her to a secure place first. But the men, the husbands, in them both wanted to do nothing more then find the person or people responsible for this atrocity.
Yes. But first, our wife needs us.
The brothers looked to one another in agreement, then jumped into battle mode with Shari between them when they heard the horrified gasps from behind them.
Turning as one unit, Shari still cradled in Vincent’s arms and clutched tightly to his massive chest, the brothers faced the soldiers who had followed them. Body radiating barely suppressed anger, Shan Lin stepped aside to allow the other guards to see Shari’s appearance in Vincent’s arms.
Battered and bloody, face swollen, cuts and bruises visible on nearly every part of her body, clothing in tattered rags, Shari lay as if dead.
“Look! Take a good look!” The shout, from so close and filled with such venomous anger, nearly pushed the soldiers who stared back a step.
Shan Lin, pointing toward his badly abused wife, looked at the soldiers, then at the inhabitants who had dared to come investigate.
“
Look at what your Queen has done!
” Shan Lin’s shouts brought even more people at a run. Even those who normally stayed hidden, hoping not to incur the wrath of Her Highness, came out at the shout of the Queen’s most honored guards.
“She did this. The
freching
bitch did this to our
wife
! To those who were once the royal heirs! Do you believe now? Can you finally see what she is capable of? Can you not open those terrified eyes and realize she is no longer our sovereign who rules with a gentle, but iron hand. It is a fist of steel to whoever opposes her reign, even though her reign is over!
Look at our wife!
”
* * * * *
The inhabitants listened to the Warrior as he bellowed to all who would listen. They heard the grief in his shouting, as well as felt it. The two most loyal and victorious heroes of the Realm stood in front of the people of Aranak and did everything they could to convince those same people their Queen had finally gone too far.
Soon, Shan Lin stopped speaking as Vincent came up beside his brother and both men began to walk down the hallway toward the doors. Vincent carrying their wife in his arms, her body either unconscious or dead, her arms dragging down at Vincent’s side.
Before they gained the outside door they passed a myriad of closed doors. Jolan was the one, however, who discovered the door hadn’t been closed all the way, and something inside happened to catch at the corner of his eye, enough to stop him.
Even in their haste, Shan Lin knew the room had to be investigated.
Vincent. Hold one moment.
Shan Lin and Jolan cautiously approached the door. Grabbing the short
pryt
lance at his side, Shan Lin powered up the lethal weapon even as he handed a second one to Jolan, before the two advanced. Putting his outstretched hand against the not completely closed door, Shan Lin stood to the left as Jolan took up a position on the right. When Shan Lin caught Jolan’s eyes, he gave a hard nod once then gave a cautious shove to the door.
The sight, which greeted them inside the room, confirmed Shan Lin’s suspicions of what happened to Candice. She lay impaled onto the wall, her body nearly unrecognizable to what he saw in his memory. Her face however was nearly untouched.
He heard Jolan’s horrified gasp and turned to find a look of horror on the young man’s face.
“Did you know her?” Shan Lin asked quietly.
The young man shook his head then contradicted himself.
“She helped me out of here a few months ago. She was a trusted friend, if a brief one.”
Shan Lin silently closed the door blocking Jolan’s view of what remained of the man’s friend. They made their way back to his brother and wife quickly. It hadn’t taken very long to check the room, but since there was nothing to be done for the poor woman now, it was his duty to see to his wife’s welfare.
Quickly, and yet all too soon, they came upon the other soldiers who had followed them through the doors. Together the brothers, Vincent carrying their wife, their fellow soldiers, and Jolan, who had been accompanying Shari when they’d found her, left through the now useless front doors.
The inhabitants stared after them for a long time after the group had gone, then as if one conscious mind had spoken, all roused at once and began to form a plan.
* * * * *
Once outside, Vincent hurriedly walked toward his waiting steed. Praying he wouldn’t jostle Shari too badly all the while, he knew it was a matter of her life or death if he didn’t get her to a healer soon. Having come even with his horse, Vincent turned to find his brother right beside him. Carefully clutching Shari, Vincent gained his mount.
Follow at as slow a pace as you dare. I will ride ahead and drag the healer back this way. Whatever you do, don’t…
Vincent only nodded as he watched his brother mount his own horse and ride off.
Riad
give your mount wings, brother mine. She is our life.
Chapter Seventeen
Shari woke to darkness, wondering if she was in her grave awaiting Death to escort her to her next plane of existence. The moment she tried to move, shards of pain racked her body and she knew her existence was still based on earth.
A door opened spilling light into the room illuminating two figures coming through the doorway, and Shari tried to relax her stiff and aching body. For an instant, her body flinched then froze in an attempt to fool her captors into thinking she had disappeared. Shari knew somewhere in her mind that she wanted to prevent those who had escorted her to see Queen Sara from noticing her.
Shari?
Shan Lin’s anguished voice spoke into her mind.
Taking stock of her body quickly before answering, Shari found she could live through the pain as long as Shan Lin and Vincent were all right.
I’m fine. Where are you two?
There was a brief moment of silence before Vincent answered.
You found your trigger when Sara…
Vincent shook his head, closing his eyes in pain.
That’s not important right now. At the moment Shan Lin and I are attempting to locate another doctor. It seems neither of us wants any man to touch you. The first doctor was only able to stabilize you before Shan Lin went berserk.
There was a moment’s pause.
I confess; I might have helped him in his endeavor to oust the man from your side. But it’s all I’ll admit to.
Amusement sounded in Shan Lin’s voice.
Yes, brother mine, you only assisted.
Shari thought for a moment.
Then who’s standing in my doorway?
She finally asked puzzled.
A snarling growl sounded before the answer came.
Jolan, Dorian, or Winters. And if they don’t shut the door now I’m going to rip their
freching
heads off!
A bellow followed this comment and Shari smiled at the sound of Vincent’s voice shaking the home. The smile quickly turned into a grimace as she heard her door suddenly slam shut.
You’re not fine, are you? Dammit Vincent. Go drag the woman healer here. I don’t care if you have to force her from another’s side, get her here now!
Shari listened as the two brothers bickered between themselves until she finally wished they would both just shut up. Once again, her head was hurting, and all she wanted was for one of them to do the mind orgasm thingie and…
The mind-blowing orgasm. Just thinking about the orgasm and what happened next brought a lopsided smile to Shari’s face.
It was how the brothers found their wife. Beaten, bloodied and smiling.
“Why are you smiling? Tell me you’re fine. Tell me that vicious bitch didn’t harm you permanently.”
Startled as the men spoke in unison, Shari looked between the two.
“I…I’m a bit sore still, but better, thank you.”
She lies for our benefit brother. She is thrice more damaged now then when the vehicle hit her in the Earth Realm.
Vincent pathed angrily.
“Fix her.” Shan Lin snarled at the healer who was making her way slowly into the room. Fully robed, a hood covering the healer’s head and concealing her face, the healer approached Shari silently.
“May I ask why either of you cannot heal her yourself?” The woman’s soft voice asked.
“There is too much damage to be healed without the claiming.” Shan Lin and Vincent spoke calmly and in unison. “She has yet to claim us.” There was no censure in their voices, only fact.
Shari stared at her husbands in astonishment. Anger gave her voice strength even as her body protested the distressed movements Shari made.
“I have to claim you. I accepted, with barely any protest at all, that you…that I was your wife. How could you say…”
“If you are ready, My Lady Princess.” The healer reached out to Shari, but Shari eluded her touch.
“Hey, I’m peachy here. Matter of fact, you can leave. I need to straighten this out with my husbands.” But the woman was insistent. Before Shari could move again, the woman reached out and laid her hands on Shari’s shoulders.
“My Lady Princess. I am Annya. I have come to heal you. I’m sorry, this will hurt.”
The words had barely left the woman’s lips before Annya’s hands slipped down and grasped hold of Shari’s wrists. The next thing Shari knew, she lay on the floor, panting and shivering, her body-wracked with more pain then anything Queen Sara had inflicted on her during the torture.
It was over quickly, and Shari waited for the pain to return, laying as still and stiffly as she could manage. When the pain did not return, Shari gathered herself and tried to stand. Her legs refused to cooperate.
It took her a few moments to realize she was stark naked once again.
“It seems I am destined to live my life in Naralin naked,” Shari tried to joke as she gathered herself up. “What did you do to me?”
The healer looked down through her hooded robe a neutral expression on her face.
“I merely became a conduit between yourself and your husbands. I took the art of healing, which runs deeply through Vincent and applied it to your wounds. The healing properties strengthen when a
juniane’
has been established.”
A delicate hand reached down and lifted her by the arm, guiding her exhausted body to a chair near the bed. Shari sat, gathering herself before preparing to strip some skin off the woman who had brought such pain to her so recently abused body.