I stepped around Brace and faced the Walker. “Leave her alone. I am Walker; I transported us here.”
He moved at super speed again to stop in front of me.
“What witchery is this? How are your marks on display?” He reached out a hand, his grip gentle as he cupped my face. “You are of my clan.” His tone held a sliver of respect.
A storm of energy was brewing behind me. Brace stepped forward, his skin glowing, a light emanating from within. He was taller than this man, and I watched with shock as the blond Walker took a step back.
“Abernath’s ...” he said in shock. “You are of Abernath’s house. Why have I sensed no energy from any of you?” His arms shook, but he stood his ground. “How are you masking your energy?”
When we didn’t answer I felt his anger building. Brace had moved to stand in front of me, and the glow he emitted made my eyes ache. What the hell were his powers again? Glow-worm.
“Just leave now, and no one needs to get hurt.” Brace’s words were soft and deadly, though serious enough that the threat behind them wasn’t even close to being veiled.
“You don’t scare me, son. You’re just a baby compared to all I have seen and done. Despite your family,” a calculated look crossed his face, “I will have my answers, and since you appear to be hovering protectively around the redhaired beauty, then I think she is my ticket.”
I had no idea what was going on. How could he know Brace’s family?
“If you touch her, I’ll kill you. Don’t think because you’re Walker that you’re safe.” Brace sounded so sincere that I actually believed him for a second.
The man grinned, and then he laughed out loud, head thrown back, in the same manner as Josian.
“Lesson one of the day: don’t underestimate your superiors. We are superior for a reason.”
Brace nodded once. “If I meet anyone superior, I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”
“Excellent,” the man said, and then, in a slow-motion movement, he brought his hands together.
“Boom,” he said.
And the world fell apart.
Chapter 7
Strong arms enveloped me as the walls of Silver City dissolved. Water crashed in around us. As the pressure encased me, I inhaled one big breath before I, and whoever held me, were sucked out in a huge tidal wave and I blacked out.
The sound of steady dripping was the first thing I noticed as I roused from my semi-comatose state. My head was forward, resting against my chest. As I lifted it up, the faint throbbing that’d been plaguing me turned into a pounding headache. I tried to lift my arms to rub my temples, but they didn’t respond.
It took far longer than it should have for me to realize I was tied down, arms and legs secured to the chair I was sitting on. I yanked hard on my tethers, twisting my wrists, trying to break the bonds.
What the eff? What was I tied down with?
I peered in a disorientated manner around my prison. I was in a large room. The walls looked like they were made of bulky stone blocks, each one varying in color and texture, like you’d expect in an old castle.
And the air was warm, not damp like it was on Spurn, but rather warm like it was on a sunny spring day in New York: crisp, clean and beautiful. I swear I could hear birds chirping from somewhere to my left and that incessant dripping.
There were no windows in this room. A wooden door was the only break in the expanse of gray and brown stone.
I noticed that my energy was back swirling inside me. This told me that at least I wasn’t on Earth.
Open a doorway and try to escape? Or wait and see?
I could open one, but being tied down made it kind of hard to walk through it. I’d be smarter to save my energy. At some point a better opportunity would present itself.
“I see you’re awake, and still tied up. Are you sure you’re a Walker?”
Tall, blond, and deadly appeared before me. And, no, he hadn’t used the door. Nope, he just popped in somehow. So of course I shrieked loudly.
“Give a girl some notice ... cough or wear a bell or something,” I managed to splutter out, my heart beating so hard it was about to exit my body.
He cocked his head to the side, the slightest smile gracing his lips. He was examining me.
I began to wiggle my tightly bound hands. They felt like they’d been tied together and then attached to the back of the chair. I could lift them up a little, but I couldn’t move them apart from each other.
“What creature are you, baby Walker?” He stepped closer. “Who is your father?”
Should I tell him? Would it make a difference to whether he allowed me to live?
“Why are you holding me captive? Is this normal behavior between Walkers? And aren’t you worried that my family is going to uber-pissed by this little ‘hostage situation’?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “Your ape-like speech is actually endearing. Usually I find it ear-piercing, and want to kill whoever is speaking.”