Warrior Rising - By Pamela Palmer Page 0,15

his gaze out the window to the sea of sunlit clouds. Anywhere but on her.

He wasn't sure how long he'd sat there, trying to catch his breath and still the racing beat of his heart, when the onboard phone rang.

Harrison shoved himself from his seat and grabbed it.

"We've got trouble," Jack said a moment later.

"Hold on, Jack. Charlie!"

As he returned to his seat beside Ilaria, she met his gaze, her eyes sharp and serious. "Take off my headphones. I would hear this."

After a moment's indecision, he did as she asked, then sat beside her as Charlie and Tarrys joined them, both flushed with that insufferable glow. He jammed a button and held the phone on his knee.

"You're on speaker, Jack. Charlie and Tarrys are here, too."

"Glad to have you back, Charlie. Have you acquired a death mark?"

"I have."

"Then you're with us. Larsen and I were attacked by half a dozen Esri thugs a couple of hours ago. They had a singer." A singer was the term they used for an Esri who could enchant surrounding humans with a song, turning them into his own personal weapons. "We nearly didn't make it out of there. Kade's joined us and we're on the run. We're trying to come up with a way to turn the tables on them."

"So they're not going for the stones?"

"Best we can tell, they're neither organized nor heading in any particular direction. Except ours. But we don't know where King Rith is. Kade hasn't seen him since midnight, and the rest of us don't know what he looks like."

Beside him, Ilaria tensed. "King Rith is here?"

Harrison nodded. "He came through last night with a large number of guards and Marceils."

"Where are my stones?" she demanded.

"Forgive me, Princess," Jack said. "But that's not information we can share at this point. I assume Charlie told you why he rescued you?"

"You wish me to seal the gates again."

"Yes, we do. When the time comes, we'll allow you access to the stones."

She scoffed. "Sealing the gates will do neither of us any good as long as Rith and his men remain on this side. You must give me the stones so that I can protect them."

"Can you seal the gates other than at the full moon?" Jack asked.

"Unfortunately, no. The draggon stone, the source of my power, hasn't the ability to open the gates early. But if Rith gets his hands on the other six, the stones of Orisis, he'll be able to use their dark power to do so."

"If he gets the stones, won't he just tear down the walls between the worlds?" Charlie asked.

She shook her head. "Such powerful magic can only be called upon at the Temple of the Ancients deep in the Dark Mountains of Esria. He'll open the gates and flee, which is why you must give me the stones, and quickly. I'll not only protect them until the full moon, but I'll forgive your death marks."

"You can do that?" Jack asked, clearly surprised. "Hold on."

Harrison could hear Jack talking to someone in the background. A moment later, he was back.

"Kade confirms she should have that ability once she has the draggon stone in her possession."

"Who is Kade to know such things?" Ilaria asked, once more the imperious royal.

If only her demands made her less attractive. They didn't.

"You know him as Kaderil the Dark," Jack said.

Harrison saw her eyes flare and watched her mouth open with disbelief. "He's Esri."

"He's half Esri and he's one of us now."

Her shocked gaze met Harrison's.

Charlie leaned forward. "If King Rith has the ability to sense the stones, then the moment we bring the draggon stone out of hiding, he'll be on it. We need to leave it hidden. Besides, I'm not sure what good removing the death marks will do when we're still hunting Esri. We'll just get them back again."

"I agree," Jack said. "Our plan is to capture King Rith and the rest of his guards before the full moon."

Ilaria's graceful hands fisted in her lap. "You must kill him, not capture him. He's far too dangerous. No Caller can be allowed to live."

Jack's voice was wry. "I was trying to spare your sensibilities, Princess, but we'd come to that conclusion, as well. King Rith has to die. We'll capture whatever Esri we can, but before those gates are sealed, they'll all be back in Esria. Or dead. Leaving any on this side with the stones will defeat the purpose of sealing the gates."

"Killing is not our way, human. But