CHAPTER 25 #2
“I don’t know about that,” Samantha said. “Gauge isn’t acting right. I think something besides getting shocked happened.”
Lena rested back against the couch, grateful when someone used a cold washcloth to clean her face. She wanted so badly to go to Gauge but couldn’t find the strength to move.
“I need to go check on Gauge,” Jax said. “Lena can wash her mouth out if she wants, but don’t drink or eat anything. If she truly is going through a conversion, it will only make her feel sicker.”
“Seraphym, why don’t you go with Jax to check on Gauge. Tell Liyah to come out here if you don’t need her. She can help me take care of Lena.”
Lena closed her eyes then, allowing herself to drift in a sort of dream-state halfway between sleep and awake. She barely flinched when a deep, feminine voice entered her mind, part of her having expected it.
“You did well, young one. Now we will see where our experiment leads us.”
“Is Gauge going to be all right? What did you do to him?”
Fading laughter was her only answer.
*
Gauge glared at the people standing around him. “Teo, why am I bound? Release me!”
“You are not well, Gauge. We were afraid you might hurt someone. We had to call Jax down to help us.”
Gauge snarled, then shifted his gaze to Haven. “Why are you here, tracker? I thought you took a mate on Earth. Did you make a mistake?”
Haven flinched, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, her expression pained. “I have a mate. An issue with the elders cropped up. Raif had to go deal with them. He’ll come by when he’s done. Do you remember what happened, Gauge?”
Gauge looked at the Raiden warrior standing a short distance back, fighting to remember his name. Standing beside him was a dark-skinned female with long braids. She looked human. He should know her too but couldn’t come up with a name. She smiled when she caught him studying her.
“It looks like you’re starting to feel better, Gauge,” the female said. “At least your eyes aren’t glowing red anymore. I have to say, I was getting a little worried for a while there.”
The warrior with the black and burnt-orange armored skin put his arm around the female’s shoulder. “Don’t get too close, Liyah. Jax said the silver band around his forehead and neck would stop him from hurting anyone, but he’s still not acting himself.”
Only then did Gauge feel the burn of silver on his forehead and neck, and the same burn around his wrists, which were bound behind his back.
He closed his eyes, struggling to push past the blank spot in his mind.
He knew his name. He knew his own tracker, and Haven, the female tracker sitting on the edge of the bed.
He could not put a name to the Raiden warrior, though the female with him was apparently named Liyah.
Why did that sound familiar? He wasn’t on a ship, the furnishings weren’t right, and he wasn’t on Laizahlia.
So who had been strong enough here to bind him in silver? Certainly none of these four.
The door opened again and Jax entered, his expression unreadable as he looked around the room.
“Did you do this?” Gauge growled. “What were you thinking? I’m not a rogue, Jax. I demand that you release me. Now!”
“Not yet, my friend, though it is good to see you somewhat lucid again. Can you tell me the last thing you remember?”
Gauge tried to calm his fractured mind enough to think back. He remembered being in great pain, followed by laughter inside his mind, and a female voice, but he couldn’t remember what she said. “Someone stunned me.”
“Yes. Do you remember what happened right before that?”
“I was feeding. Did I . . . did I accidentally kill someone?”
“No, your mate is fine, but she is going through conversion.”
“My mate? I don’t have a mate.” His eillelé had died thousands of years ago. Jax should already know this.
“Lena. Do you remember her?”
An image came with the name. A tall female with long black hair and pale yellow scales. A Leviathan female. Gauge frowned, glancing toward the Raiden warrior. “Lena, yes, I tried to help her, but the memory block failed.”
“Good, your memory is starting to come back. Do you remember what happened when you stripped the insane prince of her abaci?”
“Take the silver off, Jax. It’s interfering with my ability to think straight.”
“Not yet, my friend. Just answer my question.”
“I couldn’t return the abaci to Lena without risk of Ngozi establishing another bond with her.”
“Yes, so you kept her abaci inside yourself, but her abaci had already been manipulated by Raiden genes.”
Gauge closed his eyes and tried to relax against the headboard. He’d formed a faint yellow abaci pattern on his skin. And something else. What was it? His eyes snapped open. “A shaprata formed.”
“Yes. The altered abaci caused you to form a strong bond with the serpent female. A bond strong enough to equal that of an eillelé. Are you beginning to remember what brought you to this spot?”
Gauge sighed, feeling all the anger drain out of him. “Lena. Is she all right? Did I hurt her?”
“No, but she is going through conversion. Luckily it is not as violent as it usually is with humans.”
“Bring her to me.” He would never forgive himself if he’d hurt her.
He remembered the desperation he experienced once the stinger engaged, the need to be inside her.
After what she’d gone through with Ngozi, Lena would probably never forgive him.
Gauge hadn’t thought there was anything that could make him lose control.
When he’d felt her climax, he’d bitten her, wanting to keep the pleasure going, but he’d obviously taken too much blood if the worried expressions of her friends were anything to go by.
Gauge frowned, focusing back on Jax. “How could she be going through conversion? I don’t remember feeding her my blood.”
Jax shrugged. “You gave a part of yourself to her through the shaprata. It must have been enough to initiate the change.”
“Yes.” He remembered now. He’d suspected this might happen. “Can you bring her to me?”
“I will. She is going to need more blood soon. She took too much too fast from me and lost most of it.”
“Can you remove the silver first?”
Jax studied him a moment before nodding. “I’m going to leave the wrist cuffs and collar on for now. I’ll remove the head band.”
Gauge didn’t say anything as Jax moved up, tapping the lock with a key. His thoughts quickly cleared as the silver was removed. “Thank you.”
“I’ll go get your mate now,” Jax said, offering Gauge a shallow bow as he crossed a fist over his chest. “And congratulations. Not many of us get a second chance.”
Gauge frowned as he watched the Hunter leave the room. Had Jax ever found his eillelé? He didn’t think so, but his memory still wasn’t working quite right. “Why am I covered with blankets?” he asked no one in particular.
Teo glanced away, refusing to meet Gauge’s eyes when he answered. “Um, I’m afraid your pants were ruined during the claiming. We took them off and cleaned you up. Jax brought new clothes with him. As soon as the restraints are removed, you can get dressed.”
Gauge sighed, closing his eyes, more surprised than embarrassed when he realized it hadn’t just been Lena who climaxed.