©CRGangell aka Whitesabretooth
Chapter 2
Sage awoke slowly, her mind fuzzy as she didn't remember much after the lashings started. She took in her surroundings slowly, realizing that she was cradled carefully in Alanna’s arms. Alanna had propped her shoulders against the far wall of the cell as her back bore the brunt of the lashings she had received and this position kept pressure off those same lashings. Sage was belly down on top of her but the added weight didn‘t bother her. In fact, it was kind of comforting. Pain slowly made its presence known to Sage as her mind started to focus, tears forced their way out of her eyes as it ate at her.
“Calm down, slow your breathing and the pain will pass.” Alanna said softly, her breaths were shallow to keep her wounds from being torn open.
Sage calmed her body and breathing. “How are you?” She asked, concerned with Alanna who should also be in as much pain as her... or worst.
“Fine.” Alanna responded musingly, not understanding how she could be so calm. This was her worst nightmare come to life yet she was… calm... even resigned to the situation. It might be due to the fact that she was still keeping her mind detached from her body, allowing her rational mind to work. It also helped that she was focusing on counting Sage’s breathing more than anything else.
“What happened?” Sage asked warily, not wanting to know if she had disgraced herself.
“You blacked out after your eighth lashing. Perhaps you should have yelled out ‘cos the more we didn’t cry out, the harder the lashings became. They expected us to cry out.” Alanna told her, trying not to dwell too much on the beating.
“I didn’t want to give them the satisfaction. They can hit me as hard as they want. I watched my mother die and it didn’t break me, you think a few lashings will?” She spat through her gritted teeth then took several slow breaths as pain ate at her. When she had it under control again she asked, “How long was I out?”
“I was hoping you could tell me. Where is your father?” Alanna asked quietly, as talking meant moving and moving meant pain.
Sage closed her eyes and sent her mind out. Her back immediately twitched in a spasm of pain drawing her back. She whimpered softly and buried her head into Alanna’s chest. She shook her head. “Can’t.”
“You can.” Alanna said firmly, she wasn‘t trying to be cold with Sage although it may have sounded that way. She was just trying to encourage her sister. “Ride the pain, make it give you strength.”
Sage took a shallow breath and closed her eyes, her sister’s words giving her confidence to help deal with the pain. She sent her mind back out and connected to her father. Da.
What’s wrong Sage? Dominic asked, picking up on the slight twinge of pain that laced her voice.
Nothing we can’t handle. How much longer? Sage replied. She strengthened her mental shields to keep her father out of her mind. The last thing he needed to know was that she had been lashed, not if he was about to go into battle. Learning from her da, she knew that anger and rage had no place on a battlefield, turning rationality into carelessness and impulsivity. It would do no good and would only get more of her father’s men killed.
We are just about to begin our assault. He answered her.
Sage pulled back into her own mind. They are beginning the assault. She sent to Alanna, too tired to talk anymore.
What will they do? Alanna wondered, knowing her sister knew and understood more about tactics that might be used in this situation.
If they are smart they would try to move us from here. Sage answered.
I will try to hold them off with a shield as long as I can. Alanna supplied, she knew if they were moved they were as good as lost, but she was more concerned about the pain they were both feeling and how their bodies would react to being moved or even forced to.
I can give you some extra power; you might need it to keep a shield going long enough for da to get to us. Sage told her.
Rest Sage, I’ll wake you if anything happens or if I need you. Alanna told her. Sage? She suddenly remembered she had wanted to ask her something.
Uh-huh. She responded her mind slipping into sleep.
What’s a Santaur? She asked, feeling a little silly.
They live here too, in the forests… Sage was asleep before she could finish her explanation, her body wasn’t used to prolonged periods of intense pain and sleeping was her body‘s natural defence against it. Alanna kept vigil at her side, guarding her sister's rest. She didn‘t want to black out and wake only to find herself in the hands of someone she didn‘t know. She could hear the faint stomp of feet moving pass the cell but no one entered.
Finally she heard the stone door move, wondering for a moment that was on the other side of the door, her captor or her saviour? Then immediately she cast a shield around them. She studied her shield with her eyes, looking for points of weakness. It had shocked everyone when Alanna told them she could see her invisible shields once they were cast. Her shield looked, to her eyes, like a screen of white silk that she could see through but no one could penetrate.
She had learnt that her shields, although generally infallible, had points of weakness where a lucky hit could get through if a decent amount of force was used. If she hadn't been so muddled and taken by surprise she may have been able to stop all this. One shield and they would still be on earth with their parents. She had been working with her mother on how to spot the weaknesses and reinforce them. This shield, however, was the first flawless shield she had ever cast and she looked admiringly at it for a moment.
Markus interrupted the moment as he walked in with a drawn sword. “Get them up.” He ordered, slightly panicky. He hadn’t thought Dominic would learn of his daughter’s disappearance so fast and who had her so quickly, thinking that he would have had time. But now he knew he had very little time to move them before Dominic got here.
Four of his men approached only to be held back by an invisible wall that surrounded the two women. “My lord we cannot approach.” One told him nervously.
Markus roared and slammed his sword down. He jerked, surprised when his sword shattered in mid-air against Alanna’s shield. He glanced disbelievingly at the handle of his sword, before turning disbelieving eyes at Alanna. “What kind of trickery is this? This cell cancels out magic!”
“But not Were abilities because they aren‘t controlled by magic. It is something outside of the realm of magical law.” Dominic said from behind as he pressed his sword to Markus’s throat. Dominic glanced into the cell. “Alanna, I am Dominic, Sage’s father. Can you keep the shield going for about ten more minutes?” He asked.
Alanna nodded as he led Markus from the cell. Sage wake up.
Sage opened her eyes blearily, shadows of pain still obvious in everything she did.
Your da, he’s here. Alanna told her.
Wake me when he comes back. Sage asked quietly before falling asleep again, conceding to her body’s demand for rest.
Alanna nodded and waited.
Dominic came back twenty minutes later after rounding up what remained of Markus’s men and containing them. Alanna let the shield go as she recognised the crest on his breast plate, elated with her accomplishment of keeping a perfect shield going for as long as she had.
Dominic knelt next to his daughter and gently rested a hand on Sage’s back before either could warn him. She whimpered the moment his hand touched her back, causing him to jerk his hand away. He now understood the pain that had laced her voice on his approach. “TORCH.” He yelled to his men, wanting to see the damage with his eyes, whilst waking Sage in the process.
A torch was brought in and as light filled the cell the carnage became visible. The bearer went pale as his eyes focused on the criss-crossed pattern carved into Sage’s back as her wings were still trapped in the wing brace.
Sage glanced to her father’s face and saw shock painted across it. “Is it that bad?” She asked huskily, trying to get him to look away from the mess that was her back and wings.
Dominic turned to his daughter. “Worst…” he told her unsteadily. She could hear him trying to control his breathing, trying to control his rage. “I’m so sorry.”
Sage frowned, “Why? You weren’t the one holding the whip.”
He sighed. “No, but it is still my fault that Markus came after you. I should have warned Amy…”
“Enough, da,” Sage went to move but he held her still to keep her from tearing her wounds. She accepted what had happened; she lived in two very volatile worlds where anything could happen. She allowed him to press her down to keep her still. “It happened and you aren’t to blame. You didn’t make Markus come and kidnap us.”
“I still could have warned Amy.” He berated himself before turning to the door and the man peering in, “Organise flight stretchers and people to carry them out.” He glanced to the torch bearer. He was a seasoned warrior but the sight before him had turned him pale under his dark complexion. Dominic grabbed the torch and set it into the bracket in the wall, turned back and jerked his head, giving his man the signal to leave. He bowed and hurried from the room.
“Was it a normal whip or a nerve whip?” He asked as he needed to know so they could start a treatment plan. There was no way to tell the difference between the two devices. He had his theory as Markus thought normal non-magical whips were for wimps but he needed to hear it confirmed.
“Nerve.” Alanna answered.
Dominic felt his rage as it rose up to an unprecedented high. He wanted to storm from the room and snatch one of those cursed weapons and use it on Markus. He took a deep breath and forced his rage down. Markus would pay for this, he promised himself, he would just pay for it later. His first concern was his daughter and her sister, and the rest WILL wait.
Four men squeezed into the small room which was thankfully higher than their previous room meaning that they only had to duck to keep from braining themselves. Two removed their silk sashes which were tied at their waists and walked further into the room.
Dominic approached Alanna. “You need to release her so we can get her out with as little pain as possible.” He said gently, not wanting to frighten her. He could see that Alanna was almost clinging to Sage, almost as much as Sage was clinging to her.
Alanna nodded and they slowly released their bound hands. The silk sashes were looped under Sage’s body to run across her chest, another length went under and across her hips. Each end was taken as were her feet. As one, they lifted her up and carried her out.
Dominic smiled gently at Alanna, “Can you stand or do we need to carry you out?”
Alanna gritted her teeth; she would stand and walk out even if it killed her.
Dominic saw her determined look and motioned his men to back off as another four had walked in to help carry her out.
“I will need a hand up.” Alanna requested, her body was stiff after being held in such an unnatural position for as long as it had been.
Dominic stood and offered his hand. He knew that he owed this woman a lot. He believed that Sage would have been in far worse shape if not for her presence and her help, not to mention he felt responsible for everything that had happened.
Alanna put her hand in his and he pulled her to her feet. She hissed as she felt the burn of pain build and a wound tear open, spilling more of her blood. Dominic’s eyes focused on the pool of blood that Alanna had been sitting in, wondering painfully if it was Sage‘s or hers. Alanna released him when she had her feet firmly beneath her and slowly left the cell. Dominic’s eyes focused on her back for a moment and he barely kept the gasp from passing his lips. He had thought his daughter’s back looked bad but it was nothing compared to seeing the disfigured flesh of Alanna’s back. Pieces of skin and flesh hung from her body, attached only by scraps of skin or tendon. He could clearly see where the strikes had been so deep that it exposed her bones. There wasn’t an inch of her back that wasn’t a bloody and torn mess.
He took in all that with fury like he had ever known; mentally adding this to what he would plan to do to Markus. In a blink of an eye he was behind her, ready to catch her if she collapsed and he knew she would. But he also felt great respect for what she was doing, even if she was doing it out of pure stubbornness. It took courage and an incredible amount of stamina to withstand what he knew to be excruciating pain to move after such a beating.
Alanna gritted her teeth as she moved, to keep the cries of pain from rising in her throat, pausing after each movement to collect and brace herself for the next step. Each step, each movement jarred her back, building the pain to a point where even the smallest of movements like breathing was pure agony. But she would not give up until she had walked, under her own steam, from this cell. She took no more than a dozen steps, only enough to get her from the cell but not from the dank, dark dungeons of Markus’s keep. She went to collapse but she was suddenly surrounded by men who gently lowered her to her stomach, they were all doing their best not to stare at the carnage of her back but they couldn’t help glancing.
Two men quickly undid their sashes and carefully moved the pieces into position. Four men grabbed an end of the silk and a fifth grabbed her feet. They very carefully lifted her and moved forward as not to jar her. The men kept glancing to her back, each wondering how she had walked from the room; the lashes had cut down to the bone in some places. There wasn‘t an inch of skin that was unmarked. When they were out of the castle, Alanna was gently lowered into a flight stretcher next to Sage.
She felt something large and wet being gently lowered onto her back. The pain vanished almost instantly, she sighed in relief as the pain became only bad a memory. Her bearers had been as gentle as they could but she still felt every step, every movement.
“It’s called numb weed. It is the only remedy for nerve whip lashings.” The man who had applied the pad told her.
“Can I get something to drink?” Alanna croaked, her throat felt like it had been rubbed raw with sandpaper.
“Of course. Stay still though; let the numb weed do its job.” He stood and went to get something she could drink from.
Dominic knelt near Alanna’s head in her field of view, he couldn‘t question Sage because she had blacked out almost as soon as they had her out of the cell. He was again amazed at the staying power of this young woman. “How many times were you two lashed?”
“Sage… twelve… me… I lost count after twenty.” Alanna croaked bluntly, she was in too much pain to be diplomatic and although the numb weed was taking the edge off, she could still feel it. She honestly didn’t remember how many times the whip had bitten into her flesh. It was only after the man who had brought her, who had also won the bidding, yelled at them to stop that they did. It seemed like they took perverse pleasure out of beating her, of seeing her bleed and not scream. Her very silence and the fact she remained awake was what drove them to disobey their lord’s order of twelve lashings. They had wanted to see how much she could take before she broke her silence and screamed. What they didn‘t know was that she had locked her jaw so that no sound, not even a whimper would pass her lips. She didn‘t want to give them the satisfaction of knowing what they were doing was excruciatingly painful.
“Who ordered the lashing?” Dominic demanded. Six lashings was the maximum amount of lashings anyone could take before blacking out. He knew seasoned warriors who begged for any other punishment than a lashing, it was why Dominic refused to use the cursed weapon.
“Markus did.” She answered.
The man who had went to get her a drink returned. He offered her a glass tube. “Suck… if you need anything, yell. I am Travis.”
Alanna took several deep mouthfuls then spat the tube out. Dominic went to leave. “Dominic…” she called out.
He paused. “Yes.”
“You need to know… it was eight… she blacked out after her eighth lashing.” She informed him.
He felt a surge of pride raced through him; his daughter had endured eight lashings before blacking out. That was a great feat for anyone. He turned his back to get ready to leave.
“And she never made a sound.” She told his back gently, her mind finally started to give out on her, succumbing to the needs of her body for sleep and rest. She would never know that her statement had startled all those who heard it.
*
Alanna trembled as she approached Gus with a pitcher of iced tea to fill his glass as he ate. Her trembling made her spill a little of the drink. Gus grabbed the pitcher and back handed her, sending her flying and her small body slammed into the wall, a dreadful crack rang out to her ears. She landed on the ground and coughed, spitting out blood.
“Stupid little cunt.” He spat as he stood, his chair scraping against the wooden floor. He had been drinking for most of the day and that made him volatile, even the smallest of mistakes would mean punishment: a back hand for spilling a drink, a beating for getting blood on his spotless floor, the floor she laboriously scrubbed.
He stormed over and fisted his hand in her hair. He stomped on her hand, breaking the bones. She bit her bottom lip to keep the cry of pain from passing her lips. “Get up.” he growled as he tugged on her hair. She scrambled to her feet as he dragged her down the hallway, heading towards a cupboard. He pulled a cane from the cupboard and turned her so that she was in the perfect position to be beaten.
“Your shirt.” He reminded her. She quickly tugged her shirt up, sliding her arms free until her shirt was gathered around her neck. He raised the cane and held it there, waiting, enjoying the fact that she would cry out, giving him more reason to beat her. The cane came down across her back with all the force he could muster. He smiled as he watched her skin spilt under the force. A small, barely audible cry escaped from her. The cane came down again and again, in a blur of movement as he reined blows down on her back. When he was done, he released her hair, letting her slump to the ground. “Now go clean it up.”
Alanna woke and tried to push herself up as her mind was still caught in the cobwebs of her dream. She felt the burn of her lashing and knew worst would be waiting for her if she didn’t do as she was told.
“Whoa…” A female voice exclaimed; one moment her patient was out, the next she was trying to get up and moving. “Travis, she’s awake.” She called out as she tried to force Alanna to lie back down before she hurt herself.
Travis joined them, his hands were firm on her shoulders and his strength was greater than Jewel’s. “Alanna, it’s me, Travis. Remember? I got you water after you were taken from Markus’s dungeon.” He told her as she fought his hold.
Jewel quickly poked a wound, hoping the sudden pain would help snap Alanna out of whatever her mind was going through. Alanna’s mind snapped back into the present as pain raced up her spine. Alanna instantly stopped fighting the hands that were trying to push her down. She took several deep calming breaths and pressed her face against the cold stone beneath her.
Jewel and Travis had placed her belly down on a marble tablet that was built like a shallow basin and was used as a treatment table/cleaning basin for injured who could not use a bath. Alanna tried to remember what had happened, of how she had come to be here, she drew a blank and realised that she must have blacked out after her talk with Dominic.
“My name is Jewel and I will be tending to you.” She said gently as she stroked some hair from Alanna‘s face. Alanna’s eyes focused on Jewel who was no bigger than her mother but she appeared a lot more fragile than her mother. Her blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail, a faint scar cutting through her right eyebrow.
“I’m Alanna.” She said not realising that Jewel more than likely already knew her name. She was never at her best first thing after waking from one of those dreams, let alone including everything else that had happened.
Jewel smiled, “Hello, Alanna… I would shake your hand but if I move you even a little bit, you’ll feel pain and at the moment, I bet that is the last thing you want.”
Alanna nodded slightly, pain was the last thing she wanted at the moment. “How long was I out?” She asked, needing to know for her own piece of mind.
“About three hours. It took a while for us to clean up after the battle and get all the matters of dissolving the assets of the keep.” Travis answered.
Jewel watched Alanna as she tried to weigh up the rumours against what she had already guessed about the woman before her. “Travis here is going to help me get you out of your clothes and clean. If you aren’t comfortable with him helping me, tell me.” Jewel gently pulled the drying pad from Alanna’s back gently picking free bits of skin and flesh that had stuck to the cloth.
Alanna closed her eyes and bit her lip, trying to hold back the pain which threatened to overwhelm her. Jewel was being as gentle as she could but even so, the burning sensation built quickly. When Jewel finally finished removing the pad, Alanna sighed, “Why?” she asked curious.
Jewel gently pressed a large sponge to her back, letting more numb-weed come in contact with the wounds. “Because if I need to call in other women to help me, I can guarantee you’ll feel pain. Travis is strong enough to move you but gentle enough to not hurt you.” Jewel answered.
“It’s fine.” Alanna answered, seeing the logic behind Travis helping out. Besides, the mere mention of avoiding pain put everything else in the back burner.
“I was hoping you would remain out cold for this part.” Jewel stated as she put the sponge away and cut what remained of Alanna‘s shirt free. Travis gently hooked his arms under her arm pits and slightly lifted her so Jewel could tug the shirt and what remained of her bra free. She was then gently lowered onto the cold stone again. Jewel had already removed Alanna’s shoes and socks before she woke up.
Jewel used shears to cut the belt and form-hugging jeans from Alanna’s body. Travis helped pull the cloth back and blinked in embarrassment, surprised at the scrap of material that was Alanna’s G-string. Jewel cut the cloth at each hip and eased it off as Travis removed her jeans.
Jewel glanced to Travis as she turned a flexible showerhead on gently spraying ice cold water laced with numb weed onto Alanna’s back. Travis nodded; he had not missed the faint scars that marred Alanna’s body on the parts that hadn't been damaged by the nerve whip. She had survived some brutal beatings in her lifetime; it wasn‘t surprising that her body reacted differently if people took in that fact.
The ice cold water and the numb weed mix did as it was intended for in moments; Alanna was completely numb to her body. Together Jewel and Travis cleaned her wounds and body of dirt, carefully rearranging the pieces that hung almost free from her body. They couldn‘t use stitches to keep the flesh together as it would prevent the numb weed from doing its job.
“Now while you’re numb, we’ll dry you off and get you into some clothes.” Jewel informed Alanna, knowing that warning her of what they were doing was keeping her calm.
“I would really like to use the bathroom.” She replied, she had been busting to go for a while now.
Travis turned his back to give her the privacy she deserved.
Jewel turned the water back on and leant in to whisper, “Just go. Travis isn’t looking and I’ll just spray you down again.”
It took a moment to relax because it was quite uncomfortable knowing that people were there and could see and hear her take care of her needs but she was busting. Jewel did as she promised and sprayed Alanna down again completely. She quickly turned off the water.
“Quickly.” She reminded Travis as he turned back to face them.
They quickly dried her off and Jewel rapidly tied on a modesty cloth which was two pieces of cloth, front and back tied with a thong at the hips. They then slid a back fastening smock on and together they got her into the nearby bed.
A mat soaked in numb weed was gently lowered onto her back. A metal frame was placed over her back to keep pressure off it and a blanket tossed over it to keep her warm.
They left Alanna alone and left the room. Dominic walked up to them as they shut the door.
“How is she?” He asked, concerned.
“Fine, she woke just as we were about to clean her. Stayed awake the entire time.” Jewel answered, reluctantly awed and bemused by that.
“I thought as much. I just questioned some of the men who gave the lashings; two survived the attack. They confirmed Alanna’s story. Sage took twelve, eight of which she was awake for, she never cried out or flinched. Alanna however took thirty before someone told them to stop, she didn’t black out or cry out at any point.” Dominic explained, a bit in awe at the last fact.
Jewel's and Travis's heads jerked towards the door of Alanna’s room. Thirty, she had been lashed thirty times and had managed to walk after that, both of them thought incredulously.
“She has been beaten before, many times if the scars on her body are any indication to go on.” Jewel turned her head back towards Dominic.
“Assure her that I am sending a message to her mother to tell her they are both safe.” He told them as he walked off. He was not only thinking about the message he had to send to Amy, but also about a befitting punishment for Markus and the two men who had lashed his daughter and her sister for no better reason than the fact they had showed up his men's training. He hadn't considered that it might also have been a little bit of a backlash for Markus's own bruised ego. He wanted to make them pay for what they had done to his daughter.
After checking on Alanna's progress, he paused at Sage’s door as a servant was taking food in. Sage was awake and hungry, he mused to himself. He walked in and watched the servant as she went to feed Sage.
“Can I talk to my daughter first?” He asked. She nodded and stood leaving the room. Dominic approached the bed and kissed her temple. He sat on the stool next to her bed and grabbed her hand, bringing it to his lips to kiss. “How do you feel?”
“Numb.” She grinned and he smiled in response.
“I didn’t mean that, Sage. Are you okay?”
“I’m okay, da, seriously. I just need time to heal.” She paused. “Da… I need to tell you something.”
He nodded and waited.
“It’s about Alanna; you need to know her past.” She took a deep breath.
“Why?”
“Because if we… you don’t plan ahead, she’ll become unstable.”
He frowned, “Does it have to do with the scars?”
She sighed in relief that someone had noticed the faint scars and told her father, “Yes… da, as a nine year old child she was abducted, and forced to be the mate of a man almost twenty years older than her.”
He frowned, “But Were law… ”
“Da… She wasn’t born in Haven pack. She was born into an Italian pack which refused to obey the laws of Were, it was why they were dissolved. She was beaten, raped, starved and goddess knows what else, and he wasn’t the only person who got to use her like that. She lived that life for almost seven years.” She didn’t know what else to say. “She doesn’t talk about it but she taught me how to deal with the lashings, to use the pain and make it into my strength.”
“Okay… What do we need to do to keep her calm?” He asked and wished that Bianca was here to help him. He missed his wife dearly but he was slowly accepting her death and parting from his life. He had come to view the ache in his heart differently lately, it was more centred on the fact that his daughter wasn’t home. He found himself wanting to turn to her whenever something exciting happened. He respected his late wife’s request and even understood why Sage needed to learn about both sides of her mixed heritage or she would never be whole. It, however, didn’t stop him from missing her.
“You’ll need to knock her out. She doesn’t sleep an entire night without some kind of nightmare. If she has a nightmare, it takes her a while to snap out of it.”
He nodded, “Sleeping drought it is.” He waited for anything else he needed to know.
“Try to keep men away from her; she’s vulnerable at the moment. It will make her tense and even more importantly, men shouldn’t go into her room without a woman present.”
He nodded. He was going to do that anyway but having his daughter confirmed it helped.
“When she eats… she doesn’t like people trying to take her food, even in jest. So don’t take her food from her until she says she’s had enough.”
He rested a hand on her head. “We’ll take care of it and I’ll inform Jewel. If you think of anything else, tell me. I don’t want Alanna becoming unstable while she is recovering.”
“No, that’s about it.” She told him, her face scrunched up trying to remember more.
He smiled and stood and leant down, “I’m sorry that you were dragged here and hurt, but I’m not sorry that you’re home.” He kissed her temple, “I missed you.” He pressed the side of his face against hers and gently rubbed his cheek against hers, a traditional greeting among close friends and family.
“Missed you too, da… you don’t know how much.” Tears filled her eyes, she loved Amy, Wolfgang and her siblings, they were her family as much as he was but he was her father, the man who had given her life and love from the moment she was conceived. Her love for him was deeper somehow but she could never explain why that was so. Perhaps blood is thicker than water... but that thought was quickly cast away for it felt like she was betraying her family.
She wondered about what the fates would have done if both she and her mother hadn't needed to go through the portal a little over five years ago. She understood why the gods had put the restrictions on the portals, it forced those who used them to return to their world or remain trapped and possibly killed. Her mother had to constantly travel back to earth only to return or be forced to remain in one realm for the rest of her life, as the portals wouldn't let her through. Her father had always come with her, to learn more about Were, organise the peace treaty and later to establish trade. Sage was born on earth during one of these necessary trips, forcing her to travel with her mother back to earth once every year.
It had been a bad set of circumstances five years ago. Her father had a war to fight but they had to go through the portal. They then had five months to wait for the next portal to open. Bianca decided to get a job and had enrolled Sage in school to help pass the time. Then August the 3rd happened and her mother was killed. Amy had been true to her oath because as soon as the dust settled and she had recovered, she opened a portal, as ancients could open their own portals to Sogol that left no markers, and went to inform Dominic of Bianca's death and of her dying request. From that moment on, Sage no longer had to worry about markers as Amy would open her own portal for Sage to travel through negating the need for natural portals.
He pulled away and gently used his thumbs to brush away her tears. “Don’t cry… you’re home now.” He kissed her temple again. “I’ll send Gemma in with the food.”
Sage blushed, she was positive the whole keep could hear her stomach rumble. He chuckled and went to leave. “Oh da…” She suddenly remembered something very important. Dominic turned back to her. “Give her Bounce and tell her it’s from me.”
He frowned in shock. Bounce was the stuffed animal he had given to her as a toddler, the toy which had pride of place on her bed, he could even remember a time when Bounce had to have his own dinner plate and seat at the high table. “Why?” He asked as he walked over to the rocking chair where Bounce had been placed when Sage was moved to her bed.
“Because it will help her remain calm. She always sleeps with some kind of toy.” She explained.
He nodded and picked Bounce up and cradled the stuffed animal in his arms like he used to when she was much younger. “I’ll go give this to her then inform your mother you’re here and what happened…” He grinned, “That is if she doesn‘t already know.”
She nodded, “Night da.” She knew the moment she had eaten they were going to make her drink sleeping drought, a strong drought as well which would make her sleep until sometime tomorrow.
“Sleep deep.” He told her and left the room quietly. Gemma was waiting for him outside of the room; the bowl of thick stew had been reheated so that it was hot. “She’s starving. I hope you have enough.”
Gemma smiled, “I always have enough food for Sage.” He held the door open for her and she walked in.
“Yay… food!”
He snorted at his daughter’s obvious delight. He walked down the hall to the room that had been prepared for Alanna and spotted Jewel approaching with a heavy platter of food and two sealed jugs; one was beaded with condensation so he guessed that one was water and the other sleeping drought. She paused before her lord.
“We need to talk before you go in. Do you want me to take that…” He offered. Jewel set the tray down on a chair outside of the room and dusted her hands on her thighs. She was always a little in awe of her Lord, hero worship, Bianca had called it but she couldn’t help it. He had saved her life from much the same situation he had saved his daughter from.
“There are a few things you need to know about Alanna. She…” he hesitated, not knowing how to broach this with her, unused to having to break things softly. “She had a hard childhood…” he sighed; that hadn‘t come out right. Hard was an inadequate word to describe her childhood. “Jewel… what happened to you… happened to her, only… it started when she was still a child… and didn’t stop for almost seven years.”
Jewel gasped in horror. She had guessed parts of Alanna’s story, she was thinking along the lines of an abusive parent, one that beaten her but not this, not that kind of abuse. She had been so absorbed in what he was telling her that she hadn’t noticed that Travis had joined them until he wrapped a comforting arm around her. He kissed her temple to comfort her.
“Be strong.” He whispered into her ear.
She nodded, she could do this, “Okay, what do I need to know?” She knew she had some peculiar habits after what had happened to her.
“Don’t take her food away from her unless she tells you she’s had enough. Men are not to be alone with her in her room and you might have to give her sleeping drought every night. She has bad nightmares and you know as well as I do that she’ll be experiencing aftereffects of the lashings, one day for every lash. She doesn‘t need that.”
Jewel nodded, picked up the tray of food and together they walked into the room.
“Alanna,” he said as he walked into her field of view. “I’m going to send a message to your ma, I will explain what happened. Do you want to add anything?” He asked.
She nodded slightly, “Tell her I’m fine and that I don’t want her to freak out or anything. Oh and…”
He interrupted guessing what she was about to say. “Don’t worry. I will be telling her about the men who aided Markus. I even managed to get their names when I questioned some of the prisoners.” He paused for a moment. “Sage asked me to give this to you. His name is Bounce.” He offered the prized stuffed animal to her. She smiled weakly as she took the animal and held it close.
“Can you thank her for me?” Alanna asked, her voice dripped with emotion for her sister's thoughtfulness.
He nodded and smiled, he had always wanted a big family, with lots of children. However Bianca had been old for a Were, towards the end of her child-bearing years although she looked no older than 30. They had tried but it had been a miracle that Sage had even been conceived. He was glad that Sage got to experience siblings, something they couldn’t give her.
“Um… after I eat, is there any chance of getting me something so I’ll sleep deeply without dreams?” She asked, she didn‘t want to dream, she knew they would quickly turn to nightmares and her body just couldn't withstand the added stress.
“We have a flower that when pressed makes a drink we've called the sleeping drought, deep sleep without dreams. I’ll get you some once you’ve eaten. I was going to suggest it as I know Gemma will be pouring the stuff down Sage’s throat after she’s eaten.” Jewel told her in a matter-of-fact tone.
He left the room knowing Jewel would be able to help her far better than he could. As he walked down the hallway, he thought about ways to really punish Markus before he eventually killed him. Normally he would have just gotten it over with but after seeing his daughter’s back, after seeing the damage his orders had done to Alanna, he wanted to teach Markus a lesson before he sent him off to the after-life. The more pain the better, he thought to himself. He wished Markus could feel what he had done… he grinned… he had the punishment now. He refused to use a nerve whip on principal and his men worked harder because of that trust. But he was more than willing to make an exception on Markus. He doubted that Markus had ever had the device used on himself; it was time that was rectified.
He considered quietly as he walked, how many lashes that would be dealt to Markus before his death, how many steps would he force Markus to make, how many days of pain would he be forced to endure. The number of lashes was simple… he had ordered twelve lashings, twelve lashings he would receive. Twelve steps he would take after the lashings, the same amount of steps as Alanna had bravely walked to get out of the cell he had forced her into and he would endure all twelve days of pain without numb weed before his life would finally end.
He walked into the great hall, noticing that his men were still on alert, most simply wanting to hear how their princess and her sister was before they went to take their armour off. Several stood with Markus, both to protect him and to contain him. Several more of his men guarded the other two men who had beaten Sage and Alanna and had been unlucky enough to survive the assault. The others who had survived were already in cells to await Dominic‘s judgement. These men, however, were going to be treated differently as they had personally injured Sage and Alanna.
“Throw them in the pits. Bread and water are all they are to be given. When Alanna is well will the punishment and death sentence be dealt.” He decreed. His orders were carried out instantly, each man eager to get them out of their halls as not to sully them further with their presence and for their punishment to begin. He walked up to his chair and sat, a server quickly poured him a large horn of mead as other‘s put down food and bread. He pushed his meal aside for a moment and grabbed a scroll and quill. He shook the ink well to make sure the ink was mixed and would not fade too quickly. He carefully pulled the stopper from the well and dipped the quill into the ink. He spread the scroll and used gold weights to keep the heavy hand-made paper flat. He picked the quill up, gently tapping off the excess as he composed the letter in his mind. He sighed and put the quill to paper, writing in his long flowing script as he poured out the events of the day as he knew them and added everything he had learnt.
He picked up a small clay pot when he was finished and shook it over the page, covering it with a fine layer of very fine sand to collect the excess ink to prevent the letters from smudging. He removed the weights and carefully lifted the page and let the fine sand run off the page and onto the ground. He rolled the letter up and put it in a travel tube, sealing the cap with wax. He picked up a hollowed reed whistle and blew a series of notes.
A blue, gold and red phoenix appeared in a blinding flash of light and landed before him on the stand that was there just for him. He ducked his head down and drank from the cup set onto his perch.
He smiled at his long time pet; although he never actually treated Remus like a true pet, “Remus, old friend, I need you to give this message to Amy. You remember her right?” He asked the intelligent bird.
The majestic bird dipped his head in a nod. He knew and liked Amy; she would always give him a glass of brandy when he went to deliver messages to Sage. He particularly liked the brand she kept hidden behind some books in her study.
He offered the message to Remus with a bow. Remus took the message in one of his talon feet and took flight; he whirled around the room for a moment as he focused his mind on Amy. When the moment was right he vanished in a blinding ball of light.
****
Amy paced as she glanced at the police standing in her office taking her statement. She was beginning to get annoyed with them and their insistence that it wasn’t a missing person case until forty eight hours had elapsed but that they would start a file. Electra walked in, followed by her partner. She had dropped everything when she got Joe‘s confusing phone call.
“Ma.” Electra said, startling her partner.
He straightened his tie as Electra hugged Amy. He didn’t know Electra was related to Senator Luis. Wolfgang was offering a recent family photo to two officers and pointing out Alanna and Sage in the madness of the picture.
Dave approached carefully, wondering what was going on. Senator Luis was a heavy weight in the Senate and a stupid fool was one who pissed her off and she looked beyond pissed.
“What’s wrong? I got a weird call from your P.A.” Electra asked after she quickly flashed her badge at the officer taking her mother’s statement.
“Alanna and Sage haven’t come here after school and college. Alanna said she was going to pick up her sister after her college class, but even then they should have been here four hours ago. I had a strong feeling that they were in danger so I tried to call but neither answered.” Amy told her. “I sent Drifter and Sammy to see if they were held up somewhere. They followed their scents to a large pool of blood.” At Electra’s look, Amy quickly reassured her. “Not theirs. Both Drifter and Sammy know the scent of their blood. They’ve cornered off the area and backed away. They called me, I called the police and they don‘t believe me.”
Electra glared at her mother in frustration, what was the point of her being in the FBI if no one used her? “Ma, you should have just called the FBI. They would have acted on this straight away. And why didn’t they have body guards? You’ve had threats before.”
Amy glared back at her daughter, she didn‘t need to be lectured. She wanted to go out and hunt down whoever had her children. “Because none of the ones who have threatened me are stupid enough to take on a Nephalim. Child or not, Sage is a force to be reckoned with, Alanna is no lightweight either. The cubs are protected but I thought Sage and Alanna together would be left alone.” Amy defended herself and her actions. When she had been elected as the first Were Senator, she had tried to keep her children‘s lives as normal as possible and that meant no secret service detail or bodyguards.
Electra sighed; she knew her mother was right. Sage was sixteen and under fencing and kickboxing champion in the Were martial arts league. Alanna was the under twenty five's martial arts champion two years running in the same league, and together they were the leagues team champions. They sparred together all the time so knew each other’s moves, which allowed them the knowledge to move as one, making them a force to be reckoned with.
“I know, ma.” Electra said before she cursed, ashamed at herself for taking her worries and fear for her sisters out on her mother. She suddenly turned her head from the appearance of a blinding flash of light.
From the blinding light, Remus appeared and landed on Amy’s desk after wheeling around the room once. Amy turned and blinked quickly to remove light spots.
“Remus.” Amy approached the phoenix and took the message. She quickly broke the seal on the canister, tipping the scroll onto her table and started to read.
Wolfgang read over her shoulder and went pale as he read what had happened to his daughters. He was however relieved that both had kept their wits and had been brave, more so Alanna. Amy finished reading and offered the letter to Electra. She then went to a shelf and moved several books to get at the bottle of brandy she kept especially for Remus. She grabbed a tumbler and placed it down before him, pulled the cork from the bottle and poured him a glass. He rubbed his head against her fingers in gratitude. She returned the bottle to where it came from and sat to wait for Electra’s reaction.
Remus sung gently as he drank his brandy. The soft musical notes helped to lower the stress levels as who could remain stressed with a delighted phoenix singing in the room?
Electra finished reading just as Amy summoned Vivian. She needed answers and since Vivian had spent a considerable amount of time on Sogol, she was the one Amy had to question. Vivian appeared out of thin air, startling the humans in the room who were unaccustomed to the rapid comings and goings of Ancients. Wolfgang and Electra didn‘t even react and Amy only did it because she was impatient for answers.
Vivian smiled in greeting then frowned as she sensed the remaining tension in the air. She walked over to Amy. “What’s wrong?”
“Alanna and Sage were kidnapped by some Gephalim.” Amy told her as she jumped to her feet to pace.
Vivian went pale. “Shit… let’s go…” Vivian summoned several swords into her arms.
“No… they’re safe, Dominic rescued them. I just want some questions answered.” Amy stated.
Vivian nodded, made the swords vanish and sat, ready to be interrogated.
“Firstly… what do you know of a weapon called a nerve whip?” Amy asked as she paced before her grandmother.
Vivian winced involuntary the moment Amy said nerve whip, a little of her colour left her face. She took a deep breath. “It’s a three-fold weapon. It is a whip so it cuts into flesh but it has magical properties. It sets every nerve in the general area of the lash on fire, each lash…” she hesitated wondering who had been lashed but quickly forced the thought from her mind. “Each lash makes the pain more intense. Tarval told me that the most any Da’Vaila can withstand is six lashings before blacking out.” She hesitated again, she didn’t really want to know but she had to know. “Who was lashed?” Vivian asked quietly.
“What is the third part of the weapon?” Amy asked, not wanting to tell her until she knew everything about this weapon.
“The pain doesn’t abate after the lashings; it sticks around, one day for every lashing. Even the smallest movements will cause intense pain. The wounds won‘t heal until the side effects wear off, it’s why it is used for punishment. To make the lesson stick.” Vivian told them. “Who was lashed?” she asked again, a little more firmly this time.
“Both of them were.”
The rest of the colour left her face, her stomach started to churn, ready to rebel. “How many lashes?” She waited as Amy hesitated to answer, as if mentioning the number out loud would make it sound even worse than it already was.
“Sage had twelve, eight of which she was awake for, Alanna had thirty all of which she was awake for.” Amy said calmly although she was far from calm. Her fists were clinched, lengthened claws dug into the palms of her hands; blood dripped from her fists but she didn’t feel any pain or if she did she was simply ignoring it.
Wolfgang grabbed Amy as he watched her shake violently, trying to rein in the beast that wanted nothing more than to tear the head off the man who was responsible for hurting their children. He wrapped his arms around her firmly and put his body between her and the humans, Electra moved as well; another line of defence if she snapped. It took several moments but she eventually pushed the beast back, unclenched her jaw and opened her mouth to ease the sore muscles in her jaw, her teeth slowly shifted back to normal but normal they became.
He released her knowing that she was back in control. He had never seen her loose it like that but their children had never been in any true danger or hurt before. He was of the same mind, his wolf was foaming at the mouth wanting to shake and tear the monster apart. Seeing that violent reaction in his mate made him force his reactions back, to be there for her the way she was normally there for him. Amy was quite gentle to Were standards so seeing her like this was a revelation to him and allowed him a glimpse into her world and what she went through.
Vivian felt her stomach heave as the numbers kept running through her head; she lurched to her feet and grabbed the nearest bin just in time as her stomach rejected her last meal. She had seen the weapon in use on more than one occasion during her stay. The most memorable was the man who had disobeyed a direct order. He was racked up and he suffered through five lashings. His screams had haunted her sleep for a very long time. The thought of the whip being used brought back horrible memories but the fact that it was her great grandchildren on the receiving end of those lashes made it a hundred times worst.
Electra stroked Vivian’s back as she waited for her stomach to settle. One of Amy‘s aids took the bin and gave her a fresh one just in case. “You’ve seen one used, haven’t you?” Electra asked, quietly.
Vivian nodded. “The screams haunted my dreams for months. After I witnessed it, I left the Gephalim I was staying with and met Tarval."
Amy closed her eyes as Wolfgang nuzzled her neck to comfort her. “They are safe. Dominic will not let any more harm come to them.” He kissed her jaw. She nodded and sat at her desk to write a reply to Dominic.
Electra took copies of the letter with her as she walked over to the officers. “It’s a federal matter, I want copies of any notes you have. If the press get a hold of this and I track it to you… I will have your badges. Dave, let’s go to the site and get a feel of it.” She pulled out her phone and dialled Sammy’s number to get a location. He nodded and followed her out.