Zoltan winced. He would have to go. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.” He hung up.
Neona eyed the phone curiously. “You were able to talk to someone far away?”
Had she never seen a phone? “Yes.” He dropped the phone into his pocket. “I’m afraid I have to go.”
She nodded and stepped back. “It’s for the best. I shouldn’t see—”
“Don’t say that.” He touched her shoulder. “I will return tomorrow night. Meet me at the cabin at midnight.”
She regarded him sadly. “Good-bye, Zoltan.” She turned and walked along the stream.
So long, loser. The cat trotted after her.
I will win her, cat. You can count on it. Zoltan watched her for a minute, then stepped behind some trees to teleport home.
Neona returned to the rock wall where the stream from Beyul-La jetted out in a waterfall. The rope ladder was there, but she realized she couldn’t go home, not when she was still dressed in her finest clothes. With a sigh, she started back to Frederic’s cabin, where she’d left her hunting clothes.
As she walked, she scanned the forest. Where had Zoltan gone to? The village? It was about fifteen miles away, with nothing but a footpath to show the way. Did he have a horse tethered in the next valley?
She shook her head. There was no point in thinking about him so much. Even if she did enjoy being in his arms. When he kissed her, she forgot all reason. Her heart swelled with such yearning that she could not hold him long enough. With an ache in her heart, she realized it had happened. She was falling for him. She wanted him.
But how could she ever have him?
She entered the cabin and let her gaze wander about the room. There was the embroidered banner he’d admired, the books he’d looked over, the gold box of chocolates he’d brought.
The tea had steeped too long, but she needed a strong drink. She drank as she tidied up the cabin, putting out the fire and hiding the gold box under some blankets in the wooden chest. She rinsed out the teapot and cup in the stream outside, then back in the cabin, she changed into her brown and green linen tunic and pants. She stashed her good clothes in her bag and swung it onto her back along with her quiver of arrows.
She grabbed her bow and headed back to the rock wall. Zhan joined her on the way.
She patted his head. “Zoltan had to leave. It’s for the best, I suppose. I should be grateful it didn’t go any further.” She could have loved him and lost him. She could have lost a son. Breaking off the relationship now was the only way to save herself from heartache. Then why did she feel so miserably sad and lonely?
While Zhan scampered up the rock wall, jumping from one ledge to another, she climbed the rope ladder. At the top of the wall, she pulled the ladder up. And the tears began. With each tug, she was sentencing herself to a long life of loneliness. There was no place for a man in her life. Zoltan might come tomorrow night, but she would not be there. Better to live lonely than risk shattering her heart.
She dropped the end of the ladder on the ground. It was done.
“How was the hunting?” a voice asked behind her.
The queen. Neona quickly wiped her face. “No luck tonight. I’ll try again at dawn.” She took a deep breath and faced her mother. “You’re welcome to join us if you like.”
“I’ll be busy in the cave tomorrow.” Queen Nima tilted her head, studying Neona. “Did you see anyone in our territory?”
Her stomach clenched. “No.”
Nima gazed out into the neighboring valley. “The owl landed on my windowsill and told me there was an intruder.”
Neona swallowed hard. Had her mother seen her walking about in her finest clothes?
“We must be extra vigilant,” Nima continued, “especially now that we’re in the beginning of a new cycle.”
“I understand,” Neona murmured.
“I fear Lord Liao will continue to search for our valley. He may have sent spies.” Nima turned to look at her daughter. “If any man discovers our valley or our secrets, he must be executed.”
Neona nodded. “Yes.”
Her mother arched a brow. “The correct response is ‘yes, your majesty.’ Did you think I wouldn’t notice that you have neglected to use my title for the past two weeks?”
Neona tamped down on a sudden surge of anger. “I have had other things on my mind.”
“The death of your sister.” Nima nodded. “I understand that you’re hurting. That is why I have not reprimanded you for the lack of respect.”
Neona scoffed. “And you are not hurting? Minerva was stabbed to death right in front of us!”
“We all risk death when we engage in battle. You know that. Now let us return to our homes.” Nima started down the path to the base of the valley.
Neona’s hands fisted. How dare her mother dismiss Minerva’s death that easily. “We shouldn’t have given away her baby!”
Nima halted and looked back, her eyes narrowing into slits. “That was seven years ago. What is done is done.”
“It was never done for Minerva.” Neona walked toward her mother. “She never recovered. If we had kept her baby, she would have fought harder. She would still be alive!”
Nima’s eyes flashed with anger. “Do not make such ridiculous claims. Besides, there was no way her son could remain. Men are not allowed here.”
“He was a baby! What harm could he have done?”
“He would still grow to be a man.”
Neona motioned toward the neighboring valley. “You let Frederic live close by.”
“And he was never allowed into this valley.” Nima made a sound of disgust. “He had two daughters with Calliope and still abandoned her. I should have killed him when I had the chance.”
“That would have gone over well with his wife and daughters.”
“Drop the sarcasm,” Nima hissed. “We all know the rules and why we have them. Your insolence is appalling, but I will tolerate it this one time since you are in mourning.”
How good of you, Neona bit back the words. Her anger grew as she watched her mother turn her back and walk away. “What happened to my father?”
Nima halted, her spine stiffening. “You go too far. I told you never to speak of him.”
Neona approached her. “Did you kill him?”
Her mother turned to face her. “Hypocrisy does not suit you. We are warriors.” She stepped closer. “How many men have you killed, Neona?”
“In the heat of battle, it is self-defense. We must kill in order to survive.”
Nima’s mouth twisted with a wry smile. “And what makes you think your father didn’t fight back?”
Neona’s gut churned. Killing men in battle was one thing, but killing a man after mating with him?
The queen patted Neona on the cheek. “Pull yourself together. Nothing matters except fulfilling our sacred duty.”
“Minerva mattered.”
Nima closed her eyes briefly with a pained look. “In the end, she was weak. Don’t let that happen to you.” She turned and walked down the path into the valley.
Neona remained behind with tears stinging her eyes. Zhan butted his head against her leg, and she crouched down beside him.
“Sacred duty,” she muttered. All her life, she’d heard that nothing mattered except keeping the valley and its secrets safe. “Minerva mattered. Her son mattered.”
And Zoltan mattered. Even though it hurt like hell, she could not see him again. He was venturing far too close to Beyul-La. Not only was her heart at risk. His life would be over if he was caught.
She hugged Zhan. “Love matters.”
Chapter Eight
When Zoltan teleported into the kitchen, he found Russell seated at the table with Howard. There was a tense silence between the ex-Marine and were-bear. A large box of donuts rested on the table, and Howard was working his way through them. In front of Russell, there was an open bottle of Blissky, a mixture of synthetic blood and whisky.
“Oh, there you are. I hope you don’t mind, but I helped myself.” Russell filled his glass and poured another one for Zoltan.
“What’s going on?” Zoltan sat across from Russell.
“Do you want him to hear this?” Russell tilted his head toward Howard.
“I’m not leaving.” Howard reached for a donut.
“Hear what?” Zoltan asked. “I was in the middle of something, so this had better—”
“It’s important,” Russell said. “Howard told me you were meeting an Amazon warrior tonight. So you found the women who made the arrow you took from me?”
“Yes.” Zoltan leaned forward, his elbows on the table. “What can you tell me about them?”
“Not much. They’re a secretive bunch.” Russell downed his glass of Blissky. “They’re in danger from Master Han.”
“Why?” Zoltan and Howard asked at the same time.
“I don’t know.” Russell poured himself another glass. “I’ve been spying on Lord Liao for a while now. I can learn more from his camp because he and his soldiers complain to each other. At Master Han’s camp, I can’t get near him. He’s too heavily guarded, and no one says anything there for fear that Han will kill them.”
“Great guy,” Howard muttered.
Russell nodded. “I overheard Lord Liao talking to his minions, and he’s getting frantic. Apparently, Master Han said he doesn’t miss the two vampire lords who were killed. And he bragged that he doesn’t need the demon Darafer in order to take over the world. He says he can do it all by himself. So Liao is worried that his days are numbered if he can’t prove his worth to Master Han.”
“And he can prove his worth by attacking the women of Beyul-La?” Zoltan asked.
Russell’s eyes widened. “Is that who they are? They wouldn’t even tell me that much.”
“Beyul-La?” Howard asked as he retrieved a cell phone from his pocket. “How do you spell it?”
“You won’t find it online,” Zoltan told him. “I already looked. It’s a hidden valley in the Himalayas. I don’t know why, but no men are allowed there. When I first approached the place, one of the women tried to kill me.”
“Sheesh,” Howard breathed. “What are they hiding there?”
Zoltan shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Whatever it is,” Russell said, “Master Han wants it. And Liao is determined to get it for him.”
Zoltan winced. “There are only six of them now. They can’t fight off an army of supersoldiers.”
Russell nodded. “That’s why I’m here. To see what we can do.” He gave Howard an annoyed look. “I guess you’d better let Angus know about it.”
“We could send a group to make first contact with them,” Howard suggested. “Angus would go with—”
“They’ll try to kill any man who approaches,” Zoltan interrupted. “They don’t believe men can be trusted.”
Howard sat back, frowning. “But you’ve been meeting one of them?”
Zoltan nodded. “Neona.”
“The healer?” Russell asked.
A spurt of anger jabbed at Zoltan, surprising him with its intensity. Damn. He was jealous that Russell had met her first. “How do you know her?”
“I hardly know her at all, so you can relax.” Russell gave him a wry look.
Was he that obvious? Zoltan sat back, affecting a nonchalant look. “How did you meet her?”
“I spent a few months following Lord Liao around Tibet. He was asking villagers where he could find the hidden valley of warrior women. I guess the news got back to the women, because they attacked. They were outnumbered but were fighting so fiercely that I joined in to help.” Russell downed his glass of Blissky and slammed it on the table. “I was so close to killing Liao, but the bastard teleported away. Then the rest of his army fled. I was wounded and lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was in a cabin. Frederic’s cabin, they called it.”
Zoltan nodded. “I know the place.”
“I found out later that I had saved their queen’s life, so they felt honor-bound to nurse me back to health,” Russell continued. “They had borrowed some horses from a nearby village, and they used them to carry me and their dead back. I was unconscious in the cabin when the sun rose, so I started sizzling. They realized I was a vampire and shuttered all the windows.”
Zoltan winced. “How did they feel about you being a Vamp?”
“When I woke up, they were staring at me like I was some kind of monster. Then they gave me a bowl of blood to drink.” Russell grimaced. “It tasted awful. They’d gotten it from a donkey.”
Howard chuckled.
Zoltan smiled to himself. The damned donkey was good for something.
Russell poured himself another glass. “They were amazed that my body had healed itself. The wounds from the battle and the burns from the sunlight had all disappeared, and their healer hadn’t needed to do anything.”
Zoltan nodded, relieved that Neona hadn’t been forced to feel Russell’s pain.
“They were shocked that I had taken their side in the battle.” Russell swallowed some Blissky. “They know about vampires, but they thought we were all evil. I tried to explain that there’s a group of good Vamps in the world who make it their goal to protect mortals. And I told them I was determined to kill Master Han myself. They liked that idea and thought I would be better suited for the task than them, since I’m also undead. So after I promised not to tell anyone about them, they let me go. I would have kept my word, but I’m worried about them being in danger.”