Guarding the Goddess Read online

  “Sorry, sir—the little Sacred Blue chewchie is not here,” one of the searchers said at last.

  “Damn!” Fundreg growled and shook his head. “Well, it shouldn’t matter—we have what we need. Come on—let’s go.”

  And though Ellina kicked and screamed and even tried to bite his hand, he simply picked her up and took her down the corridor towards the dungeons.

  Forty-Four

  “Ty? Ty, can you hear me?”

  The little voce was like a bee buzzing around his head. No, it was buzzing inside his head, Ty realized.

  He looked around, trying to make out who it was in the darkness. He had finally overcome the last of the paralytic in the drug they’d given him and had been spending the last five minutes trying unsuccessfully to either break the lock or bend the bars. But his first assessment had been correct—the cage he was in was rusted and tough—there would be no breaking out if it.

  “You don’t need to break out of it—I’m here, silly!” the voice exclaimed. “I’m here to help you.”

  Suddenly Ty recognized the little voice.

  “Tisa, what are you doing down here?” he demanded. “It’s not safe, little girl—you shouldn’t be here!”

  “Nonsense.” Tisa’s mental voice was brisk. “Even though I’m not regarding you right now, I felt that you were in trouble through our link. So I left Ellina and Lor and came to find you. How did you end up down here?”

  “That bastard, Kikbax had me drugged and dragged down to the dungeons,” Ty growled. “But listen, Tisa—it’s not safe for you down here. He wants to…” He had to swallow hard before he could continue. “Kikbax wants to kill you.”

  “Kill me? The nerve of that man!” Tisa sounded more outraged than frightened at the idea. “I am a Sacred Blue chewchie! I was sent by Thufar himself to be the companion of the Lan’Graven. How dare he even think such a thing? Why, it’s sacrilege! Blasphemy!”

  “That’s exactly what Captain Fundreg said,” Ty told her. “But Kikbax pointed out he was the High Priest and said he’d give him some kind of spiritual pass for killing you. Which is why you need to leave now, before they come back down here.”

  “Leave my person all alone to be hurt or killed by those monsters? I don’t think so!” Tisa exclaimed and Ty got a mental image of her fluffing up her fur and straightening her tail in anger.

  Clearly she wanted to stay and fight—but since Kikbax and his henchman were both about a hundred times bigger than the little chewchie, it was a fight she would inevitably lose.

  Ty began to feel really afraid for her.

  “Listen, little girl,” he said coaxingly. “I know you want to stay by my side but the best way you can help me now is by getting out of here before they come back. Please…” He reached up to pet her soft fur. “I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you,” he told her in a low voice.

  “But I can’t leave you, Ty!” she protested. “Not if there’s any way I can help.”

  Ty shook his head.

  “I don’t see how, little girl. I’m sorry.”

  Suddenly he felt a burst of inspiration coming from the little creature.

  “I’ve got it, Ty—I know exactly what to do!” she exclaimed.

  And before Ty could ask what she was talking about, she had scampered away, into the darkness.

  He had a moment of doubt. Was she going to try to steal the keys to his cell? He certainly hoped not since Fundreg held the keys and had standing orders to kill her.

  Protect her, Goddess, he prayed. Keep my little girl safe—watch over her and Ellina and Lor too, Please!

  He got no answer and there was nothing he could do but pace in the cage and wait.

  Forty-Five

  Ellina was dragged down the dungeons steps, the scent of damp and rot rising in her nostrils. The last time she’d been down here it had been to witness the masterful little play the High Priest had put on with the prisoner who was supposedly from the Southern Continent.

  She wondered now, how he had pulled that off. Had the prisoner been an actor, paid to portray a part? Or maybe he really was from the Southern Continent and he was crazy enough to say anything. The radiation the people absorbed down there changed them—made them strange and insane. So really, either scenario was possible, though she doubted that the man had known Kikbax was going to blow his head off.

  The thought of that casual violence brought bile to her throat now. What would she do if the High Priest tried to kill her? Would he dare such a thing? She supposed he would. After all, he had dared to send men after her to capture her and drag her down to the dungeon. What fresh horror awaited her when she reached the bottom of the stairs?

  Her question was answered all too soon when she caught sight of a torch flaring in the darkness and saw that it was being held by none other than Kikbax himself. The flickering torch flames were glinting off his golden breastplate and he had a very unpleasant smile on his face—as if he was about to commit an act of cruelty which he expected to enjoy very much.

  Despite her fear, Ellina stiffened her spine and lifted her chin.

  “What is the meaning of this, Lord Kikbax?” she demanded in her loudest, most imperious voice. “How dare you have these men lay hands on me and drag me down here? I am the Goddess in the Flesh!”

  “Yes, and soon you’ll be the Goddess of the flesh,” he remarked, lifting his clenched fist.

  Ellina shied back at first, thinking he was going to hit her. But instead, the High Priest opened his fingers, revealing a small mound of pinkish dust in the center of his palm. Taking a deep breath, he blew the dust directly into Ellina’s face.

  “Wha…what are you doing?” Ellina demanded, coughing and choking as she tried to get the dust out of her lungs and mouth. It had a strange, sickly-sweetish taste that she disliked at once.

  “Making certain this time that your Heat Cycle will start, my dear Potentate,” Kikbax said, giving her that same cruel smile again. “I don’t know why the lust dust didn’t work on you when I put it in your wine—which is the general application—but this should be foolproof. Inhalation is the fastest way to get it into your bloodstream.”

  “Lust dust?” Then the rest of his words registered and Ellina had a sudden realization. “It was you who drugged my wine those two times! You’re the one who did it!”

  “Indeed—I don’t deny it.” He bowed and gave her a mocking smile. “And before you ask the obvious question—why—let me explain. I was trying to start your Heat Cycle so you would have no choice but to accept what—and who—was good for you. Which in my best judgment was Hennessy Tolland.”

  “You were manipulating me! Or trying to, anyway!” Ellina exclaimed. “How dare you? I told you I wanted nothing to do with Hennessy.”

  “So you made abundantly clear, my dear,” Kikbax said dryly. “But that’s a moot point now, since the late Barron Tolland is dead. Which is why I have taken it upon myself to choose another consort for you.”

  “I told you, I will choose my own consort!” Ellina snapped. “I want nothing to do with any of the nobles you picked for me. I loathe each and every one of them!”

  “Rejoice then, my dear, for I didn’t choose any of the nobles you so despise,” Kikbax said. “I chose someone quite different. Someone who can satisfy you completely when your Heat Cycle finally kicks in—which shouldn’t be long now.”

  “As if I’d take anyone you would choose,” Ellina spat. “Who did you pick?”

  “Why, me, of course.” Kikbax made another sweeping bow. “Lord Kikbax, High Priest of Thufar at your service, my Lady.”

  Ellina felt her stomach roll over and she had to fight not to gag. Let herself be bred by this disgusting bastard—this horrible excuse for a person? For a moment she couldn’t even talk, she was so disgusted.

  “Of course, the High Priest becoming the Potentate’s consort isn’t a usual practice,” Kikbax went on, clearly taking her silence for ascent. “But it’s not unheard of, either. And once I get an