Athena's Jewel (Aya Harris Collection 2)

"Why would they do that?" I demanded. "Why blow your cover?"

"That question haunted me during my weeks of torture." She laid her hand on my shoulder as if to comfort me. "But it wasn't until the last week did the answer come to me. It must've gotten out that I was leaving, that I was done with the HQ. They sent me here to destroy me. No one leaves the HQ and lives to tell about it."

"But that can't be true." I pulled away from her. "The HQ sent me here. They want me to rescue you. They want you safe."

Her eyebrows shot up on her forehead. "You're being manipulated, Aya. They're using you to get to me."

I tried to respond, but she cut me off.

"Besides, my work is here. Once I figured out that working for Wesley Blake was the only way I'd survive the HQ's wrath, I found my niche. I'm the only one that can look after these girls. Without me, they'd suffer under Wesley's harsh judgment and iron fist. I'm a buffer. They wouldn't survive without me."

She lifted her chin in pride and pursed her lips. I wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her.

"The HQ will take Bobby Caro and Wesley Blake down. They'll stop the magical trafficking and save all the girls. You don't need to do this anymore."

"Men like Wesley Blake will never be stopped." She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and tapped her heel impatiently. "The sooner you accept that, the easier your time here will become. He's too powerful. That's why I offered to work for him and that's why I stay."

Turning on the point of her heel, she marched toward the door. I nearly tripped over my feet to catch up with her.

"Mother, please, listen to me. The HQ will save..."

"I don't need saving," she snapped. Without warning, she swung around to face me and we collided. "That's enough talk about the HQ, Aya. I never want to hear that word again for the rest of my life, and if you know what's best for you, you'll stay far away from them."

I snapped my mouth shut. Disappointment ate at the lining of my stomach. She thought she was a protector, but she was just as guilty as Bobby Caro and Wesley Blake. If there was one thing I was sure of, it was that people who stepped aside for evil acts were just as guilty as the ones who committed them. She couldn't see that.

"I don't need saving," mother whispered, running a finger down the side of my face. "So, forget about me. Get yourself out of here, while you still can. Leave this place and never come back."

The clicks of her heels exiting the ballroom punctuated the pounding of my dying heart. Even when the HQ came swooping in here tomorrow to save us, I wasn't so sure I could ever forgive my mother.

Chapter Eighteen

I avoided my mother for the rest of the day. It was easy to do. There was breakfast in the dining hall, followed by a personal training session with Patty on how to please a man - something that I thought I was well versed in, but thanks to Patty’s descriptive class, now realize how mistaken I was. Then, we started preparing for Wesley's big dinner that night with some of his clients.

The word around the Ranch was that a few Maeonian Drakons were attending tonight. They were harsh creatures with nasty friends that liked to fool around with the girls. They had a taste for the darker side of intimacy, and left the girls dreading their annual visit.

The stories about the Drakon and their hostility didn't bother me so much. I was too intent on watching the clock, waiting for the HQ's intervention. Today was the day Ruth said they would come. After tonight, none of these girls would have to worry about a thing. They could go on with their lives. If only they'd hurry up and get here.

"Livy wants you two manning the dessert table in the corner," Patty said in passing. She paused next to the giant dining table draped in a rich mauve table cloth, and gave me a wink. "Try not to throw any clients across the room tonight."

I shrugged. My powers have grown so fast. Who knew what I'd do to the next poor sod who tried to take advantage of me? If they knew what was good for them, they'd leave me alone.

"I hate these stupid dresses," Tala mumbled next to me.

We'd been forced into slinky little black numbers that barely covered our behinds.

"Give me a pair of jeans and a t-shirt any day," she added. "And better yet, let me outside for some sunshine. I've never gone so long without a glimpse of the sun."

"I'm used to it," I told her. "I spend all my days in my museum. It's my pride and joy. I'm going to buy it when I get out of here."

It had been days since I had thought about the museum and its new owner. With new clarity on the subject, I felt more determined than ever to assert my claim on it. I might not have as much money as Mr. Jones or his new investor, but no one knew that place better than me. No one deserved it more than me.

"I spent as many days as I could outside on the reservation." Tala had a faraway look in her yellow eyes. "My pack all lived there. We roamed the sacred lands that our ancestors had walked across since the beginning of time. I can't even remember now why I left..."

Sadness darkened her eyes. I wanted to tell her that it didn't matter and that soon, this would all be over, but I couldn't risk someone overhearing. The HQ needed all the surprise advantage they could get against a powerful mage like Wesley Blake.

"You'll get back to your pack," I told her. "I swear, Tala. You'll go home someday."

She nodded at me with a grateful smile. We took our places at a corner table as the guests arrived. Six men in beautiful silk shirts walked through the door, their eyes hungry. They looked human except for the red scales that lined their skin up to their neck. These were dragons. It was so obvious in the way they gazed at each girl placed in the room for their pleasure… like rabid dogs.