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The woman hissed and clenched her fists at her side. “Why, that meskim xul! I’ll teach her to show her betters some respect.”
“You’re more of an evil fiend than she is.” Zamush dropped his hands to his side and entered the room. “Are you Damkina?”
The woman stiffened and thrust her bountiful chest out. “I refuse to answer to someone like you.” With a dismissive wave of her hand, she strode toward the door.
“In the words of my brother Pete, sucks to be you.” Zamush grabbed her upper arm and jerked her to face him. With minimal effort, he caught her widened, startled eyes and enthralled her. Tilting her head to the side, he exposed the throbbing vein at her neck and bit. Having just taken some Akurn blood, he only took enough to sort through her recent memories.
Releasing his hold on her neck, he held both of her upper arms and stared into her dilated eyes. Yep, she was Damkina. A noblewoman with an overblown sense of entitlement. She believed if she worked closely with Murduk, she’d prove she was invaluable, and the male would make her his lead consort and reward her with titles and property.
Zamush dropped his hold and stepped back. That was two delusional idiots in one day. He grimaced at the bitter taste in his mouth. This woman believing that anything she did would soften the sub-Prince toward her was one of the most pathetic things he’d ever come across.
A good thing about sorting through her memories was learning she hadn’t sent any messages to Murduk. Here was his chance to fix things. “Damkina, you will go to Warad-Mushtal and confess how you used Asu to spy on the WOTA. Then you will offer to lead Murduk somewhere else in his search for Sychar. You’ll stress to that asshole that the house of Esharra had nothing to do with the rebels or the prison break. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
He had no trouble hearing her whispered answer.
“If you don’t do what I tell you, I promise you’ll suffer excruciating pain until you do.” His lips were a mere hairbreadth away from hers.
She gave a slow blink and a nod of agreement.
“If you betray Sychar and those who work with him, I’ll visit you when you least expect it.” He wrapped his hand around her neck with a slight squeeze then purred into her ear. “And if I have to do that, I assure you, you’ll regret it.” He made sure she kept the memory of his bite and the pain as a warning.
She whimpered.
He pulled back. “Go.” He gave her a slight shove before releasing her.
Stumbling, Damkina fearfully glanced over her shoulder before disappearing through the doorway.
Zamush took a deep breath and crossed his arms. All he wanted to do was teleport back to his room so he could wash off the cloying stench of Damkina’s floral perfume. An elusive scent grabbed his attention. It seemed to come from the hallway. He went to the doorway and looked up and down the corridor. No one was there. Inhaling, he caught a zesty hint of citrus with the underlying spice of cinnamon. Only one person had that alluring fragrance.
“Jelena?” He stepped into the hallway and took in a deeper breath. The scented faded too much for him to follow. With a frown, he teleported back to his room.
Chapter Ten
~Jelena~
As soon as Sychar left with Warad-Mushtal, Jelena followed.
Abiditan’s brother helped the WOTA leader onto a hover chair before he and a small group of guards headed to the medi-clinic.
“I should be the one taking Asu’s blood.” She bit her bottom lip. If she made herself invaluable to Sychar, he’d look at her differently, wouldn’t he? Zamush probably took the man somewhere private to bite him. She tapped her chin and thought. Now, where would she go to do something like that? Ah! She lifted her finger in triumph. She’d go somewhere private, like the room the Akurns gave her when she came to Esharra.
Refusing to admit how she knew where Zamush’s private quarters were, she followed her instincts and sprinted that way. After getting lost twice, she latched onto his beguiling scent. He had an intoxicating blend of velvety musk, smooth in its animalistic simplicity. She’d recognize it anywhere. The only reason she did was to, um, track him. Yeah, that was all.
When she’d reached his quarters, his scent was faint. She put her ear to the door. Was he in there with Asu? She strained to listen in.
Do you sense anyone in the room?
Just because she couldn’t didn’t mean BoD had the same problem. She backed up and glanced down the corridor. Good, no one was around to see her hanging outside Zamush’s door.
No, it’s all clear.
Can you sense where Zamush is?
Hmm, while there are other hybrids around, I think I’ve honed in on his unique signature. Try going back to the main drawing room. I believe he’s there.
Why wouldn’t he take Ansu somewhere private? The main area wasn’t far away, and it didn’t take long to reach it. As she crept to the open arched doorway, Zamush’s signature aroma teased and made her nose twitch. She couldn’t help taking a deep breath. A shiver slithered down her spine. Oh yeah, there he was.
