Page 33 of On A Rift’s Edge (Riftworld #2)

T he wide-open saguaro forest beckoned, and Lyall loped through it in his Riftworld form.

He didn’t know where to go and didn’t care much either way. He had fucked things up royally with Kat—terrifying his family, blurting out the truth about the Matchmaker in front of everyone, and worst of all, not telling Kat he loved him.

He had found Kat attractive the first time they met, of course.

The young human was gorgeous. And the Matchmaker bond would have made Lyall protect anyone he was matched with.

But there was so much more to Kat than his stunning good looks and the fact that the Matchmaker had chosen him.

He was brilliant, sweet, and saw the best in everyone.

It was a mark of how badly Lyall had handled the situation that he had made even Katsuo Nakamura spitting mad.

He came to a panting stop close to the monstertown.

Slinking away without a plan wasn’t going to do anyone any good.

He had to focus on Kat’s safety, even if the human wanted nothing to do with him.

By now Kaveh should be with Kat—Lyall had portaled to the ranch’s main building and left a message for him.

He needed to get Arimanius to follow him somewhere far away from Tucson, and Remi would have the best ideas about how to tempt his father into doing that.

Besides, Remi wasn’t safe with his father around either, unless he stayed in the monstertown. Lyall should have shared this information with his friend earlier, but the arrival of Kat’s sisters had thrown him off.

His worst mistake had been not trusting Kat to make his own decisions.

Remi had told him that, but he hadn’t listened.

Now Kat wanted nothing to do with him, and Lyall had only himself to blame.

It felt like there was a sucking void where his heart should be.

Matchmaker or not, he had fallen in love with Kat.

He tried to push away the flood of self-recrimination that threatened to drown him. There would be plenty of time to ruminate over his many failures with Kat while he was on the run.

Altering into his less threatening human form seemed wise, and he transformed before approaching the entrance. The guardians weren’t at the gate, which was odd. Instead, a colorful air portal opened in front of him and Flutterberry the mothcat popped out.

There had been too many damn cats today.

However, rudeness hadn’t gotten him anywhere recently. “Good evening.”

“There’s nothing good about it.” Flutterberry’s wing colors flashed red and black. “That awful half-kraken has sent me to deliver a message. He was too rude to include a gift with his request.”

“What did Zale want?” Lyall wouldn’t mind the distraction of pounding the Colony enforcer into the dirt right now.

“His message to you is that the ratkind king has your Matchmaker human.”

He felt a chill of panic run through him at her words. No, this couldn’t be happening. He had left Kat at his parents’ home less than a half hour before.

Flutterberry’s wings darkened further, and although Lyall couldn’t understand the chromatophoric part of the mothcat language, he could tell the colors meant she was furious. “I’m quite fond of Katsuo, and I insist you go and retrieve him right away.”

“Do you know where Arimanius is holding him?” Lyall felt shaky.

Facing danger had never done this to him in the past, but the thought of Kat in peril was frightening in a new and awful way.

He tried to focus on practicalities, not fear.

Arimanius knew Kat’s value and had little to gain by hurting the young human.

“In Katsuo’s home.” Flutterberry’s fur stood straight up on her neck. “If they harm my human friend, I’ll scratch their eyes out. Would you care for my assistance? I have sharp claws, and I’m most annoyed.”

“Yes, but keep those claws sheathed.” Lyall didn’t want to put the mothcat in danger, but he already knew that violence wasn’t going to work in this situation.

There was only one option, and he knew what it was.

Arimanius wanted him, not Kat. “After you get back, tell Remi what happened and make sure he stays close to Kaveh.”

He drew a sigil in the air, and waved Flutterberry through before walking through the roaring flames.

Lyall stepped out of the portal onto a sidewalk across the street from Kat’s apartment.

He made sure he was clearly visible from the sightline to the apartment’s balcony, and Flutterberry wasn’t.

He took his time jaywalking across the road, then strolled into the building at a measured pace and took the stairs.

Kat’s apartment door was open, so Lyall walked inside. In the confined space, Arimanius loomed even larger than Lyall had remembered.

The head of the ratkind mafia stood over two meters tall in his humanoid alterform. His eyes, a watery blue, fixed on Lyall.

“Good to see you again.” Arimanius’s smile showed a set of pointed teeth. “It’s been too long.”

“Where’s Kat?” Lyall took a step towards the mafia boss, but he kept his temper in check. The human’s safety was his top concern, and Arimanius’s lack of obvious weaponry meant nothing.

“Watching music videos with Teo.” Arimanius indicated Kat’s bedroom with one clawed hand. A thumping bass beat rumbled through the closed door. “I must say, the Matchmaker shackling you to a human is a revenge twist that even I couldn’t have thought up.”

“This is between you and me.” Lyall didn’t have much of a plan other than doing anything it took to set Kat free. “Leave the human out of it.”

“You know I don’t give up leverage that easily.

” Arimanius kept his posture relaxed, even though he knew how dangerous Lyall was.

He held all the cards in this game, and he knew it.

“You can’t stop yourself from protecting the spouse the Matchmaker chose for you, even if you don’t like being saddled with him.

So, I’m going to tell you what I want. First, you agree to another indenture contract.

Fifteen years this time. Second, you take a message back to Kaveh Salehi that I want my son to deliver the control object to me.

In return, I’ll release Kat and leave him and his family alone. ”

“Kaveh’s not going let you take Remi,” Lyall said. “And I want to see Kat before I agree to anything.”

“Let me worry about the drakone.” Arimanius stepped back to knock on the bedroom door, not taking his eyes off Lyall. The music blared louder, and Arimanius knocked harder.

Teo opened the door and popped his head out. “Yes, capitán? Kat has introduced me to Latin/Riftworld fusion music. It’s fabulous.”

“We have a visitor.” Arimanius motioned for Teo to come out, and a moment later Kat followed.

The human’s eyes widened as he spotted Lyall.

He had bondage worms wrapped around each wrist, but they weren’t connected.

The rift tech could be used merely to immobilize someone, like handcuffs, but they could also be instructed to stretch around Kat’s neck.

Lyall could try to fight both Arimanius and Teo, but they could easily kill Kat with the devices.

“Take those off him.” Lyall pointed to the bondage worms. “You know he’s not a threat to you.”

“Sign the contract first.” Arimanius held out a clawed palm, and the collar Teo had tried to place around Lyall’s neck appeared.

In his other hand he held a twisted ball of sticks.

The indenture contract was traditionally enforced with a seymour.

Lyall’s stomach clenched at the sight, but he kept his gaze focused on the mafia boss.

“No.” Kat tried to stumble forward, but Teo grabbed his shoulder. “This is all my fault. Please, Lyall doesn’t want to work for you. You can keep me instead.”

Arimanius chuckled. “My dear Kat, you have an inflated sense of your own worth, even for a human.”

“The worms come off first.” Lyall didn’t make eye contact with Kat. He couldn’t. The guilt of putting him into this awful situation was unbearable.

Arimanius nodded at Teo, and the worms activated and slid off Kat’s wrists. The hopper put an arm around Kat’s chest, holding him tight.

Lyall moved as well, shifting his position to stand in the fading light of early evening streaming in through the balcony doors. A flicker of annoyance passed over the mafia’s boss’s features, but he walked over to face Lyall. Teo moved closer as well, dragging Kat with him.

Arimanius held out the shriveled ball of sticks.

A thorned vine wound its way around the mafia boss’s index finger, and blood dripped into the plant as it contracted.

“No portals, now that I’ve learned you have that ability, no transformation into your Riftworld form, and no killing my other servants.

” Arimanius gave Teo a cool look before turning his attention back to Lyall.

“Unless I order you to do any of those things.”

Lyall had hoped Arimanius might have missed the detail about his mini-hellmouths, but the mafia boss’s intelligence gathering was legendary, and Lyall had scarcely been discreet. “Only if you agree not to keep Kat to use as leverage against me or threaten any member of his family.”

Arimanius nodded, his eyes holding a gleam of triumph Lyall knew too well. “Fifteen years.” He held out the plant, and Lyall felt the sting of the thorns bite into the flesh of his palm.

The mafia boss cinched the collar around Lyall’s neck and stepped back to admire the results. “You’ll find this is an upgrade from your old one. Oh, and Teo, what was it you wanted to ask me earlier?”

“I want to keep the human.” Teo had all the enthusiasm of a human child asking for extra candy and two ice cream cones. “I know you don’t think he’s all that special, but he knows so much about Earth culture and customs.” He arched an eyebrow at Lyall. “And he’s nice to look at.”

Lyall threw his arms up and lunged at Arimanius, but his muscles froze him into place a second later. Arimanius didn’t even blink. He knew that the contract, above all, protected his safety. Not only could Lyall not hurt or kill the mafia boss, he’d have to fight to the death anyone who tried it.

“Very well, Teo, that’s allowed in the details of the contract.” Arimanius continued to watch, eyes intent, as Lyall struggled to keep his arms raised.

There was a loud pop, and Teo cried out in pain. Arimanius whirled around to see Teo on the floor, his face scored with bloody scratches. Kat stood, stunned, with Flutterberry wrapped around his chest. With another pop, she and Kat disappeared from the room.

Lyall lowered his arms, walked over to Teo, and kicked him as hard as he could in the ribs. “Since you’re looking for education, hopper, let’s start out with knowing your place in this organization.”

Arimanius let out a low laugh. “Nice to have you back, Lyall.”