Kwin Read online

  Kwin smirked. “Nothing like that. I had to help out a friend. Luka offered her assistance.”

  Koal grunted. “If you used magic, I really don’t want to know. That sort of thing scares the crap out of me.”

  Kwin finished his coffee then went to join Luka.

  “Koal was right, you don’t look good,” he said as he walked into the dining room, where Luka was sipping on a green drink that looked anything other than appetising.

  “Nothing some good food won’t cure.”

  Kwin took a seat opposite her. “Thank you for your help last night. I’m not sure how Gareth would have survived without you.”

  “Not sure how Gareth would have survived? What about you? You gave him so much of your energy I didn’t think you would be able to keep breathing for much longer.”

  Kwin smiled. “So that’s the reason you helped. You want to make sure you get your money’s worth out of me.”

  Luka took his teasing well. “You haven’t earned your keep yet,” she said, with a twinkle in her eye.

  “Other than getting rid of an unwanted suitor.” Kwin then turned serious. “You don’t need to worry. I wouldn’t let myself die, especially not like that. I have a job to do and I intend to accomplish it.”

  The look Luka gave him suggested she didn’t believe him. He wasn’t lying to her. Would he give his life for Gareth? Of course he would, but not unless he knew that he was saving his friend. The previous night he had done all he could to save Gareth, but one of them had to survive in order to rescue Shona so he would have let him die, if that was the only option.

  Further conversation was interrupted by food arriving. They ate in silence for a while, savouring the taste.

  “I need to get Gareth away from Ofar as soon as possible,” Kwin said once the meal was complete. “It wasn’t a problem when she was just playing with his body, but now she’s playing with his life.”

  “I don’t believe it’s Ofar’s doing,” Luka said. “I’ve known her for a long time and, while she can be cruel at times and enjoys owning people, I have never known her risk the life of one of her slaves. I’m sure it was her brother’s idea. That man is evil.”

  “Either way, I need to find out where Shona is being held then help Gareth escape so we can both go and rescue her.”

  Kwin had no idea why he was telling Luka this, as he was effectively saying that he was going to escape from her, but after her help the previous night, he thought there was no harm in it.

  “I have put out enquires for you,” Luka said. “I have a talent for drawing and managed to reproduce the image of your beloved based on the memory I saw of her in your mind. I’ve given it to people I can trust. They will let me know if they find her and they will keep their enquiries discrete. Her owner will not be made aware that anyone is looking for her.”

  Kwin was stunned by what she had just said. While he had been sure that she would not do anything to stop him looking for Shona, and rescuing her if he could, he hadn’t been expecting her to help.

  “I don’t know how to thank you.”

  Luka looked at him thoughtfully for a while. “Teach me your language,” she said, taking Kwin by surprise, again. “The other servants have offered, but as they can’t speak my language, it would be too hard. Drake tried, but I’m a slow learner and he lost patience with me. He is, after all, a very busy man.”

  “It will be my pleasure,” Kwin said. “When do you want to start?”

  “What’s wrong with now?”

  “Absolutely nothing.”

  “There is one other thing you can do for me,” Luka said, a sly smile playing across her face. “You could walk around the house naked more often. I enjoyed the view last night.”

  Kwin burst out laughing.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  Gareth was enjoying dreaming about making love to a woman who looked a lot like Sofina, the barmaid, when he was rudely awoken by someone shaking him.

  He reluctantly opened his eyes and saw that it was Uko, Ofar’s personal maid, as she liked to call her. Uko was young, barely into her twenties, but looked much older. Gareth had never seen her smile and her eyes were always dull and lifeless. She looked malnourished, despite the fact that Ofar’s slaves were provided with plenty of food, and she kept her hair trimmed very short, making her look more like a boy than a girl.

  Gareth had asked her about it once and she had told him it was to keep Raina away from her. She was far from pretty, but that hadn’t stopped Raina taking an interest in her when she was first purchased. She abused her body in order to stop Raina doing so.

  “Ofar wants to see you in an hour,” she said when she realised he was awake. “If you get up now, you’ll be able to eat before you have to go to her.”

  Gareth thanked her, then pulled back the covers, revealing his nakedness. Uko blushed, but didn’t look away as he got dressed.

  Dressing wasn’t easy. Every muscle in his body ached and he dreaded to think how he would have been feeling if he hadn’t been put in a warm bath earlier that morning. He made a mental note to find those who had helped him and thank them.

  Gareth went to the kitchen, where the slaves usually ate, and was given a large bowl of stew. He ate it quickly, then it was refilled. The looks he received from the other slaves told him that they were all aware of what he had been through, though nobody mentioned it.

  When he was finished, he forced himself to go to Ofar’s suite. He found her sitting on a sofa, reading a book, which she put down the moment he entered the room.

  “I am so glad that you survived.” She sounded like she actually meant it. “I would have missed having your body in bed with me.” As usual, her translator was by her side.

  Gareth said nothing; there was nothing to say. Was she expecting him to thank her for the comment? If so, she was going to be disappointed.

  Ofar pouted when he remained silent. “Well I hope your night in the well made you rethink your attitude. Are you now ready to do what I asked you to do?”

  “Demanded, you mean.” Gareth was in no mood to be nice to her, even if it meant he would be punished. “And no, I’m not. There is nothing you can do to me that would make me attack an innocent young girl.”

  “Okay then.”

  Gareth tensed. Something was wrong here. Ofar would never let one of her slaves refuse an order. What she said next made him go cold inside.

  “If you won’t do it, I’ll hand her over to Raina instead.”

  For the first time in his life, Gareth had no idea what to do. He didn’t want to harm the child, but he couldn’t let Raina get his hands on her. The man would hurt her, badly, and he would enjoy inflicting pain.

  “I won’t let you do that,” he said. He had no idea how he would stop her, he just knew that he had to try.

  Ofar fluffed her hair. It was a habit that she had that annoyed him. She did it every time she knew she was going to get her own way.

  “So you will do as I ask?”

  This time Gareth didn’t contradict her. There had to be a way out of this, but he couldn’t think of one. He would have to choose the lesser of two evils. At least if he attacked the girl he could make sure she suffered as little as possible.

  He couldn’t bring himself to speak to Ofar, so he just turned and walked away. Ofar whispered something to her translator that he couldn’t hear, then the man called after him.

  “You will find her in your room, waiting for you.”

  “Bitch,” Gareth snarled, but not loud enough for Ofar to hear him. It would be hard enough to live with himself after he had done the deed as it was, without being reminded of it every time he went to bed. If he thought he could manage to finish the job before she could use his controller, he would have happily strangled Ofar.

  He knocked before opening his bedroom door. There was no reply and when he entered, he saw why. The girl looked like she was only just into double digits. She had been stripped and t
ied spread-eagled to his bed, with a gag in her mouth.

  She looked terrified. Her red eyes showed that she had been crying and one more tear trickled down her cheek as he looked at her.

  Spotting a blanket on the floor, where it had fallen when he got out of bed earlier, he picked it up and placed it over the girl, hiding her nakedness.

  There was no lock on the door, but a stone table stood in the corner of the room, so with great effort he moved it to block the door. He didn’t want anyone disturbing them.

  The girl’s eyes were wide when he sat on the bed next to her. He decided to take a risk and speak to her.

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” he said gently in her native language. “But if I don’t someone else will, and that person will make sure you suffer more than you could possibly imagine.”

  She went so pale that he could hardly see the trace of blue in her skin. He reached out his hand and wiped away a tear from her cheek. She was too terrified to even move away from him.

  “If you promise not to scream, I will remove the gag.” She nodded her head so he untied the material and threw it onto the floor.

  “I am Gareth. What is your name?” He didn’t expect her to answer, but there was no harm in trying. She just stared at him, saying nothing.

  “How old are you?”

  Again she didn’t answer. He wasn’t sure she was able to speak; she was frozen with terror.

  “Ten? She shook her head, the movement barely noticeable. “Eleven? Twelve?” This time she nodded.

  Gareth sighed deeply and ran his hands through his hair. Under normal circumstances he would not sleep with someone so young, even if she begged him. But these weren’t normal circumstances.

  He decided to ask for help and closed his eyes as he mentally called out.

  “Kwin, I need you.”

  Chapter 18

  Luka smiled to herself. So far, her first lesson with Kwin was going well. He was much more patient with her than Drake had been and explained things better. She was about to ask a question when Kwin suddenly tensed.

  She opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong, then closed it again when he shut his eyes. She recognised the look on his face. He was talking to Gareth.

  She remained silent, quietly observing as he held his mental conversation.

  “What’s happened?” she asked the moment his eyes opened.

  Kwin told her all that Gareth had said. Luka started swearing, loudly.

  “How can we help?” she asked once she had run out of words to say.

  “Your father was a powerful magic user. Did he ever speak to you of the different things he could do with magic, or did he leave behind any reference books?”

  “Why? What are you thinking?”

  “We need a way to make the girl look like she has been attacked. Gareth can’t use magic, as Ofar will know, but I think I might be able to do it remotely, through our link. But I don’t know how to do it. Do you know if your father did?”

  Luka’s father had taught her everything he knew before his death and, if she allowed Kwin to probe her mind, she was sure he would find what he was looking for. But could she take that risk? Could she hide from him the fact that she could do magic if she let him see her interactions with her father? Was there a way for him to only see part of the conversations and training?

  She risked everything by opening herself up to him, but she couldn’t let a young girl suffer; it was a risk she had to take.

  “My father had no son to teach his trade to, so he taught me everything he knew, even though I couldn’t understand much of it and couldn’t use the knowledge in any way.”

  She heard the dishonesty in her voice and prayed that Kwin was too concerned about Gareth to notice.

  “Will you let me look at your memories? I know how much I am asking.”

  ‘You have no idea how much you are asking,’ she thought to herself. She nodded her head.

  “Thank you,” Kwin said. “I have no idea if he taught you what I need to know, or if you still retain the memories, but I have to try.”

  He placed his hands on Luka’s head, then dropped them again. “Do you know how to drop the barrier he put on your mind?”

  She nodded. Of course she knew how to drop it, she was the one who put it there in the first place, with guidance from her father.

  Kwin replaced his hands and closed his eyes. Luka felt his mind tentatively touching hers and moved her shield. There were things she didn’t want him to know, so she drew back her mental barrier, revealing the things she would allow him to see, while keeping the protection in place on those she needed to keep private.

  Kwin must have been able to feel what she had done, but he made no comment as he rummaged through her mind, seeking out what he needed.

  Luka concentrated on her father, making her memories of him teaching her easy for Kwin to find. She had no idea which ones would aid him, so she let him see everything; well almost everything. Her practice sessions she kept hidden away, as well as any conversation that mentioned her abilities.

  She had no way, however, of ensuring that everything she wanted to remain secret had been put behind her mental barrier. There was still a chance that Kwin would accidentally see something she didn’t want him to.

  It took longer than she had been expecting, but not as long as she had feared. Eventually he removed his hands and opened his eyes.

  “Thank you,” he said. “For trusting me. I think I have what I need.”

  Luka watched as he closed his eyes once more and concentrated on Gareth.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  “Gareth, I think I can help.” Gareth smiled when he heard Kwin’s voice in his head. He had been trying, unsuccessfully, to get the girl to talk. She was still unresponsive, but as least she was no longer shaking now that he had untied her.

  “What do you need me to do?”

  “You need to open yourself up and let my magic flow through you and into the girl. I’m going to alter her body to make it look like she has been attacked. Nothing too drastic, but it will hurt her.”

  “Isn’t there an alternative? I don’t want her to suffer.”

  “Not one that you are going to be able to live with.”

  Knowing he had no choice and what Kwin was suggesting was the least horrendous outcome for the girl, he reluctantly agreed. “Let me explain to her first what I am going to do.”

  “You are going to have to touch her I’m afraid. There has to be physical contact between you and the parts of the body I need to manipulate.”

  Gareth grimaced. He had suspected that would be the case, but he didn’t like hearing the words. He tapped the girl on the shoulder to get her attention.

  “We are going to attempt to use magic to make it appear as though I attacked you. It’s going to hurt I’m afraid, but it will be better than me actually forcing myself on you.”

  The girl’s eyes went wide again, but she nodded her head.

  “I am also going to have to touch you. I will try to avoid your most private areas, but I may have to be more invasive than either of us wish.”

  Tears formed in her eyes once more and her bottom lip began to quiver, but she bravely nodded her head once more.

  “I’m ready,” Gareth told Kwin.

  “Good. Now the first thing we are going to do is bruise her wrists and ankles to make it look as though she was struggling against her restraints.”

  Gareth placed his hands on one of the girl’s wrists, close to where the rope had been tied around it and said, “Go.”

  Gareth felt Kwin’s magic flow into him, then out through his hand and into the girl. As he watched, bruises and friction burns appeared on her skin. She screamed out in pain. The sound travelled through the mental link.

  “Should I do something to keep her quiet?” Kwin’s voice sounded in Gareth’s head.

  “No. There may be someone outside the door, listening, so screaming is good.”<
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  The two men repeated the process on the girl’s other wrist and both of her ankles. Though Gareth was causing her pain, Kwin assured him that it was less than if the injuries had been made by non-magical means.

  “What’s next?” Gareth asked.

  “You are a big strong man and she is a frail girl. I need to put bruising on her in the shape on your hands. Put them where you normally would if you had been having sex with her in that position.”

  Gareth did as instructed, letting the girl know beforehand what he was about to do and why. He didn’t remove the blanket, choosing instead to move his hands under it. She tried to pull away when his hands touched her skin, but he held her in position.

  The girl cried out once more, but he didn’t remove his hands until Kwin said he could. He didn’t look under the covers to see what the outcome was; he really did not want to know.

  “Please tell me you are not going to put bite marks on her.”

  “No. Anyone who knows you will know that is not your style. I need you to now put your hands on her inner thighs, where your pelvis would touch her.”

  Gareth obeyed. This time the girl didn’t try to stop him. She looked like she had resigned herself to what had to happen.

  “Is that it?” Gareth asked hopefully. Over their mental connection, he could feel Kwin’s reluctance to answer.

  “You’re not going to like this,” he said.

  “I haven’t liked any of this.”

  “How old did you say she was? Twelve?”

  Gareth nodded, then realised that Kwin probably wouldn’t know he was doing so. “Yes,” he said telepathically.

  “Then her hymen may still be intact. I’m going to have to break it.”

  Gareth winced, but Kwin was right. He had no idea if the girl would be physically examined after her ordeal and leaving her hymen intact was a risk that he could not take.

  “You are going to have to put your hand between her legs.”

  Gareth told the girl what he was about to do.

  “No,” she screamed out. “No, no, you can’t do this.”