Page 146 of The Satyr's Guilt
“Nothing. I probed so deep his brain isoatmeal. Between my trip inside and the bugs, he’s a dead manwalking,” said Rein. “Sorry, Denim. He’s dust by now.”
Denim shivered, but instead of seeing Stevenas he’d been when they married, she saw the man punching andkicking her, killing their unborn child. She didn’t spare her exanother thought. She wanted Ram home. “Atchafalaya Basin. We shouldlook there.”
“We need more intel.” Rein’s normally blueeyes were killer dark.
“Straight up,” shouted Brak. “Once we getit, we’re good to go. Hey, Denim. Ram’s too damn dumb to go outlike this.”
Her lips curled up weakly as she scooted herchair closer to the table. “Okay. The basin’s big. How do we findout where this base is?”
“Scath’s best scryers have been looking forits whereabouts. Mages have used spells. We’ve done fly-overs.Still haven’t found it.” Kole patted Skyler’s arm, a frown tuggingat his lips. “My mate, despite being pregnant and aware of thedanger to her, insists she can find him.”
She nodded, taking a sip of water. “Ibelieve with my scrying and astral projection combination, I’m thebest chance to find the base.”
“Keep drinking your water, Frisca. Accordingto your trainer and the healer, you have to hydrate. You broughtsomething which belongs to the satyr, Denim?”
She picked up the duffel beside her chair.“Right here. I got a shirt from his locker. Is this good? If not,I’ll get whatever you need.”
“Perfect,” said Skyler, setting a half-emptybottle onto the table. “Having something personal helps mefocus.”
Kole tented his fingers, controlling thesparks. “If my mate finds the base, Rein and Tyr will do recon.They’ll locate the place from her descriptions and scope itout.”
Kole nodded at his computer guru. Loganstraightened. “I’ll be pulling up aerial views of the swamp,looking for heat signatures, the ushe.”
“That’s the plan for now. Once we havebetter intel, we’ll figure out how to move in. Denim’s ex says hewas told the new base could hold upward of a hundred men. Remember,those injections they take have jacked them up into super-soldiers.And in case they’ve recruited, I’ve called in Firebrands from otherstrongholds to assist.”
“The swamps aren’t easy to move around in.”Denim struggled to speak, her throat tight. “I’ve been there.”
Kole scrubbed a fist over his buzz-cut hair.“We’ll involve you in our plans. You’ll look over a map afterFrisca does her thing. For now, we go with my mate, Logan, Tyr, andRein.”
Fire jumped across Kole’s hands, but he didnothing to contain it. “I don’t have to tell you how important thismission is. Not only does this whacked group have one of our own,but they want us as specimens for some reason. They now have three.Wait for my call and be prepared to arm up at a moment’s notice.It’ll mean we know where Ram is.”
The Scion Firebrands filed out of Kole’soffice, each one palming Denim’s shoulder, offering assurances. Thedark male in leathers who leaned against the wall was the last toapproach her. He paused in front of her, his lips curled into asnarl. With his fangs exposed, Denim realized he was a vampire.
“The name is Dax. We haven’t met formally.We got this. We never leave one of ours behind.”
For some reason, hearing this frighteningmale with dead obsidian eyes speak these words comforted her morethan any of the others’ talk.
****
Jarek, Kara, Darius, and afew males whose names Lizette couldn’t remember lounged on thickcushions around a fire with stars overhead and a light breezefanning the flames.
Commander Kole had called on Jarek to leadhis own Firebrands on a mission to rescue one of their own. Tonightwas for relaxation before the fight.
A high wall surrounded the SouthernStronghold, enclosing hundreds of yurts. Some were homes. Otherstraining centers, an armory, barracks, gathering rooms, kitchens,dining huts.
At first, Lizette thought the exteriors werewooden frames covered with animal hides, but they were too solid.Darius had explained how Jarek wanted the structures to look likehis home of old. But impregnable. So, between the exterior hidesand the inside walls were layers of steel.
“The weather is perfect.” Lizette proppedher bare feet close to the fire. She shifted on the cushion,tugging on the loose-fitting dress Kara had given her, an ancientPersian style. She loved the soft blue linen against her skin.Bracelets, also on loan, jangled on her arms. “It reminds me of myvacation in San Diego once. In the daytime, grains of sandglittered like jewels in a hot sun. At night, cool breezes driftedacross the water. Have you traveled there?”
Jarek snorted. “Sea World,” he said, as ifit explained everything.
“Okay. That’s not what I expected to hear.”Lizette widened her eyes, interested to hear the story.
The commander pointed at Kara.
“It was my idea. I confess. I had read aboutSea World and Disneyland in a travel magazine. Since I was dying tosee the places, I invited Darius and Jarek along. Despite theirconstant griping, they had fun.”
“You didn’t invite us. You made us accompanyyou.” Darius stroked the snake tat hiding his scar.
