Found by Frost: Wings, Wands and Soul Bonds Book 1

by Bolryder, Terry

  I have no idea what he’s talking about. Is he insane? I unsheathe a dagger and hide it in my palm because I’ve never faced anything like this before.

  When the man in front of me raises his head, I realize every part of him is covered except for his eyes. His collar comes up to hide the rest of his face. He’s wearing black gloves and black pants that stick out from under the coat and tuck into black boots.

  He’s tall. Weirdly tall, I think, but I’m not going to get close enough to figure that out.

  He lets out a breath, and the black cloud around him, a swarm of tiny particles, seems to pulse like it’s breathing. “Come closer,” he says, in a voice that’s oddly honeyed and deep.

  It calls to me, and I’m surprised as one foot moves closer.

  “I sense chaos in your heart,” he says, reaching out a hand toward me as something extends from his palm lightning quick, wrapping around my waist as surely as if it were rope.

  But it feels oddly liquid, like water.

  Was this what Brett was talking about? Someone stronger?

  No. No way. I’m hallucinating or something. Maybe there are fumes here from chemical runoff.

  I reach down to grab at the black tendrils circling my waist, but my hand goes through them.

  Nonetheless, they pull me toward him as if they’re grabbing my entire being, holding something other than my physical form.

  I look into his black hole eyes and know he’s grinning, even if I can’t see his face.

  “You’re weak. You’ve hidden your magic. And the chaos in your heart makes you easy to draw out.” He jerks his hand, and the magic, as he calls it, pulls me closer.

  I raise my dagger, ready to throw it, but another tendril lashes out and plucks it from the air, knocking it to the side.

  He drags me closer. I can see an odd tilt to his eyes, as though they’re not exactly human.

  I grab another knife. It’s knocked away. I struggle, but there’s nothing to struggle against. It’s like whatever he has locked onto is under my skin, moving through my blood, and he’s moving that instead.

  I have no idea how this is happening.

  I open my mouth to scream, and a tendril wraps around, shutting off my voice. My eyes widen as he curls his hand into a fist, wrapping his smoky tendrils around it, drawing me even closer as my feet dig desperately into the ground.

  I can’t think. It’s like there is static in my mind. Like a thousand screams, obliterating all thought.

  “You’ll be mine,” he says softly, pulling me closer. I’m only ten feet away now. I can see the way his eyes are beginning to glow at the center. Just a faint, dim light. “You and all your magic.”

  I close my eyes and use everything I am to resist him, and for just a second, I feel a pulse in the bonds, loosening just a bit. But I can’t hold it long, and they snap around me again.

  That’s it. He’s going to have me, and there’s nothing I can do about it.

  I knew I’d die someday, but I didn’t think it would be in such a messed-up way.

  Because I know when I reach him, everything is going to be over. I dread him with every part of my soul.

  I don’t even know why.

  He lets out a cackle, but no one is around to hear us. I can sense that with the dark cloud all around us, even if someone were near, they might not know we were close.

  He finishes laughing and cocks his head, waiting to pull me closer as if he wants to savor my fear. “I can’t believe they left you out here alone.”

  A flash of light fills the clearing, and I hear a screech from my attacker as everything goes so white for a moment that even behind my eyelids, it’s almost painful.

  “Boreas, Brett, wait,” a vaguely familiar voice says, cutting through the chaos in my mind.

  For a split second, the screaming stops.

  “Tynan has his veil up. No humans will be able to see,” another voice says.

  “Still, try to stop him.”

  “It’s too late. He’s in true form.”

  I have no idea what anyone is saying or what is happening, but suddenly, my bonds are loosened. When I open my eyes, they’re gone completely.

  I can think again, as if poison has been withdrawn from my mind.

  And I can see.

  I blink as my eyes adjust, wondering if I’m hallucinating from pure stress right now.

  The night is unsullied darkness, except for this stretch of road where I’m standing across from my attacker.

  There’s a tall figure standing directly in front of me, facing off with my attacker.

  “Stand back. I’ll deal with this,” a voice says. This time, it’s strong and clear and unmistakable.

  Brett.

  But that can’t be Brett, I think, as I sink back onto my butt on the pavement, my knees too weak to support me now.

  The figure in front of me is at least several inches taller, maybe more, than Brett.

  And he has long gray hair down to his waist, which whips in the wind, revealing flashes of his face.

  He’s wearing odd metal and fabric armor that emphasizes his tall, muscular form.

  And he’s holding a long, frosted white and light-blue staff in his hand with crystals all over the top of it.

  He aims it at my attacker. “I’m fighting for my soul bond. Prepare yourself for death.”

  I gape at the serious tone in his voice, watching to see what will happen.

  But my attacker just grins slightly before disappearing in a cloud of sickening-smelling dark smoke.

  The figure in front of me looks disappointed as his staff lowers at his side.

  “It’s fine! We’ll get him later,” a cheerful voice calls out.

  “Boreas, put your wand away! Do you know where we are?”

  “Tynan has his veil of darkness,” the figure, who must be Boreas, calls back, almost sounding like he’s pouting.

  Then he slowly turns to face me, irritation plain on his face that his fight didn’t go as planned.

  My jaw drops when I look into his eyes. And since I recognized his voice, I’m not sure why I’m so shocked.

  The frosty eyes are the same blue as Brett’s. Moving down his face, I note the same striking beauty but even more enhanced. Sharper. Almost too pretty to look at.

  But he’s fierce, warrior-like, as he stares me down.

  My heart is pounding. So many things have happened today.

  Boreas—Brett… whoever or whatever he is—puts his staff behind his back, where it disappears to who knows where.

  Even in the dark, his frosted blue armor twinkles as he walks toward me. He reaches out a hand as if to placate me. “Don’t be afraid of me, Avery. I’m the last thing you should ever be afraid of.”

  In my mind, I can see Brett and Boreas overlapping.

  But could Brett really just turn into this long-haired, armored, super-tall pretty boy?

  And how could he save me when I couldn’t save myself?

  He takes another tentative step closer, as if he can sense my shock and doesn’t want to disturb me. I have to admit I’m sort of hanging on to my last thread of sanity right now.

  Did I just nearly die?

  I zone out for a second, having difficulty breathing as I remember what those tendrils felt like. I only snap back when I feel strong arms coming around me, gently pulling me in close.

  “I’m not a radiant fae, but due to the strength of our resonance, I can still help push away some of the chaos.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I murmur faintly even as I do start to feel somewhat soothed.

  I also feel like I’m about to pass out.

  “You’ll know everything soon,” he says, brushing my hair back. Despite his cold fingertips, his touch is incredibly warm, and my skin comes to life under his hands.

  He has to be Brett, to have this sensual effect on me, even in this situation.

  I study his face, trying to stay focused, but then my eyes are drawn to the side of his head
where long, pointed ears reach out of his hair.

  And that’s what makes me finally pass out.

  8

  Avery

  When I first hear male voices in the darkness, I think I’m dreaming. Or maybe I was kidnapped and knocked out.

  They’re floating toward me, some jovial, some irritated, and my mind tries to wander toward consciousness as I begin to understand some of what they’re saying.

  “You pulled out your wand,” one voice says. “I can’t believe you showed her your true form.”

  “She didn’t see my wings,” someone retorts grumpily.

  “You’re lucky Tanner could put down a veil so easily. What if we had been seen?”

  “It’s his soul bond. Do you think he cares?”

  “I didn’t do it on purpose. I just saw her in danger, and my body acted on its own.”

  “Interesting. I’ve never seen such a strong, immediate bond,” a voice says calmly.

  “Or maybe he just doesn’t have much self-control, despite constantly lording his high blood over us,” another voice retorts.

  “Leave it alone. If any of us saw anyone we were bonded to in that situation, we would have transformed immediately as well.”

  “But what are we going to tell her when she gets up?”

  On cue, I push myself up groggily, blinking as my eyes adjust to the light.

  I’m in the apartment of my downstairs neighbors. On their couch, tucked under a blanket.

  Damn, it’s been a really odd night.

  I sit forward, stretching my neck side to side, checking my body for injury or pain, as the entire room goes silent.

  Four pairs of beautiful eyes are watching me.

  I take a deep breath as I look from face to face, wondering if this is some kind of trap.

  “How are you feeling?” Flynn asks. His golden-brown eyes are long-lashed and warm with concern, but they don’t affect me like Brett’s do.

  Speaking of, my eyes snap to Brett’s frosty ones, which are watching me warily.

  Almost like he’s pouting.

  “Why’s he mad?” I ask, jerking a thumb at him as I push the blanket onto my lap. “Did I do something?”

  “You saw his true form and fainted,” Ian says, gray eyes sparkling. “It’s a huge insult to a fae. Like seeing him naked.”

  Brett looks away from me, his jaw tight.

  I catch my breath as I remember how he looked then. Beautiful but almost too much to take in.

  I can hardly believe this is the same person.

  “Forget it,” he says, turning away. “If it horrifies you so much, I won’t let you see it again.”

  “You saved me,” I say flatly, still shocked by the idea. “Thank you.” I feel light-headed as I sink back down on the couch. “What was that guy?”

  “The one who attacked you?” Tanner asks.

  I nod, and fear runs through me at just remembering him, even for a second. I felt so utterly helpless.

  Ian lets out a sigh. “What should we tell her?”

  “It wasn’t supposed to be like this,” Flynn says hesitantly. “Though, I don’t know that there was ever a good time to do it.”

  I push myself up again, irritated now, my patience about to snap. “Will you stop chattering and just tell me why that guy suddenly grew hair and long pointy ears and why the other guy could paralyze me with magic tendrils?” I glare at all of them. “And also what your actual names are, since I know I heard you calling each other different things in the dark.”

  Flynn lets out a sigh, slowly unfolding his arms, and Brett slightly turns back in my direction, looking over his shoulder. “I suppose we should tell her.”

  “Good,” I say, putting a hand to my forehead. “Because I have a splitting headache, and I’m beginning to think all of this is just a hallucination.”

  “You aren’t recovered,” Ian says, standing up to tuck my blanket around me, oddly gentle for such a big man. Brett lets out a low growl, and Ian glares at him. “Calm down. I’m only helping.”

  Brett turns away from us again, pouting.

  I really don’t understand him. But now, looking at that wide back, I can’t help but feel a bit… fond.

  Like each time I see him, I’m a little more drawn to him, a little more willing to trust him.

  I can’t explain it.

  “All right,” Tanner says, pulling up a chair in front of the couch so he can face me. He turns it around and straddles it, resting his chin on the back.

  His eyes are black like his thick, silky hair, but they sparkle like a night sky, inviting rather than scary, unlike the man last night. “We have a lot to tell you. But I’ll start with what we are.”

  I nod.

  “We’re fae.”

  I blink, glancing at the men around me who are all facing me with serious faces. “Fairies? You expect me to think you’re a big, hulking group of magically transforming fairies?”

  Brett lets out a huff, and Flynn laughs.

  Ian shrugs.

  Tanner closes his eyes, taking a deep breath before he begins talking again.

  “I know it’s hard to believe. That’s because we are wearing suppressors. If we take them off—”

  “Don’t you dare,” Brett says, whipping around and standing up to walk over to stand beside Tanner. “I’ll be the one to show her.”

  “Only take one of them off,” Tanner says. “We don’t need the upstairs occupants seeing the tips of your wings.”

  Brett nods, then reaches down to slide off one of his bracelets. He’s wearing a tee shirt and jeans and looks totally normal, but as soon as the bracelet is off and his eyes meet mine, his hair begins to grow longer.

  His ears pointier.

  His handsome face is the same, and the frost in his eyes is so cold it burns. Something inside me, despite my tiredness, is on fire. My whole body is drawn to him.

  The longer I look at him like this, without his bracelet on, the more my body desires him. It’s a need verging on desperation. Heat that could burn me to ashes if I don’t have him, if he doesn’t touch me—

  “Put it back. We don’t need to see this,” Tanner says, and Brett slides the bracelet back on, snapping me out of my trance.

  “Did you drug me?” I ask, catching my breath as I sink back into the couch, my body returning to normal again. “Is this some kind of ruse?”

  Brett shakes his head, looking normal again. Well, as normal as a man that beautiful can look. “This form is the ruse. You are attracted to my other form because we are a perfect soul match, and you can feel it when I’m not holding back.”

  I shake my head, then rub my temples, trying to massage out the tension. “The what?” I blink, remembering Tanner’s words. “And what did you mean, wings?”

  “We have wings,” Flynn says, smiling. “They display the power of our magic.”

  “Mine are biggest,” Brett mutters.

  “Debatable,” Tanner says.

  I continue rubbing my temples, trying not to look at Brett. Every time I look at him now, I can feel a slight echo of the sheer wall of lust I felt before. It’s harder to ignore, a current underneath my blood that I wasn’t aware of.

  Something I was trying to push back.

  I’m starting to crave him. Like an itch I’m dying to scratch.

  “What is a soul match? What is a fae? None of you are making any sense,” I say, feeling frustrated.

  “Brett, would you put some coffee on?” Tanner asks. “It’s going to be a long night.”

  * * *

  Brett (Boreas)

  I have no idea what to tell my soul match now that I’ve revealed myself to her.

  I thought that when she saw me, she would finally feel our connection. She would know we were meant to be together.

  Instead, she fainted in my arms.

  Though I relished holding her for a moment, a part of me is too shocked to understand it.

  Perhaps it’s just my upbringing. I’ve yet to meet a female who did
n’t beg to make a bond. Fae princes have to be particular, and I have had to turn down many powerful princesses in my search for my soul bond.

  But this woman begs for nothing.

  Not even help as she was about to be pulled into chaos’s maw.

  At least I can tell she’s affected by me. It’s in the way her brown eyes glance over, the way she bites her lip and looks away, trying to listen to Tanner’s droning.

  The way she keeps trying not to pay attention to me even if her body keeps turning my way.

  I grin, thinking that perhaps this isn’t going too badly.

  “So how could that guy paralyze me?” she asks Tanner, sipping her coffee, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. “And why did Brett transform?” She glances at me again, as if she’s trying to steal looks so fast no one could notice. I smirk as I catch her, and she quickly turns away. “And why did you call him Boreas?”

  “We are still getting used to our human names, and Brett went into action so fast that we panicked. Boreas is his fae name.”

  “I didn’t think the chaos prince would have the audacity to try and take her out in the open so quickly,” I mutter, folding my arms and noticing Avery’s eyes drawn to the motion and my muscles.

  I decide to ignore it this time. Perhaps if I let her look without embarrassment, we can start exploring our bond sooner than I thought.

  “That chaos prince was aggressive.” Flynn agrees. “I’m glad we were there.”

  “I’m glad we followed Brett, and that he was following Avery.”

  “It’s our job to protect her, after all,” Ian says.

  “So if Boreas is your real name, should I use that?” Avery looks over at me, and it’s the first time I’ve seen her look a little uncertain. A little shy.

  I want to say, Yes, say my name in bed, when you’re lost to the greatest pleasure of your life.

  Instead, I say, “We are supposed to get used to our human names.”

  I’ve always found it hard to betray rules.

  “Brett, then,” she says, and for a moment, her eyes soften on me.

  She’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and when she’s not angry or distant, her pretty face, soft curves, and inner strength make her almost too much to withstand.