Kiss of Vengeance: A True Immortality Novel

by S. Young

  Holy double shit.

  Rose groaned. “I know”—she panted—“I know who you are. God, what are you doing here?”

  “My mate and I have been trying to track down a girl I met in Prague seven months ago. We lost her in Munich, but we got word the Blackwoods were hunting her too. They were easier to follow. When we followed them to the west coast of Galway, we had no clue what they were doing here.” She rested her head against the concrete wall and squeezed her eyes closed. “We were trying to stay low key, which is hard to do in tiny coastal villages and even harder when your mate looks like mine. He’s going to be so pissed.”

  “He’s a pack alpha, right?”

  Thea nodded. “Conall. Alpha of Pack MacLennan.”

  “He turned you. Saved your life when you got a dagger in the heart?”

  Thea’s nostrils flared. “How do you know this about me when I don’t know a thing about you?”

  “Niamh, the girl you were looking for, she knows you’re searching. She’s not happy about it. Wants you to live your life in peace now that you can.” Talking was distracting her from the fire in her arms. “You should, Thea. As soon as you’re out of here, go back to Scotland. This shit is over for you. It’s not your fight anymore.”

  “Well, I don’t see it that way. I’m trying to protect Niamh. And now you. If you want, once we’re out of here, I can bite you. It’s a risk, but it means you don’t have to worry about causing an apocalypse or … have to live forever.”

  Rose chuckled unhappily. “I hate to break it to you, gorgeous, but I like the idea of forever. Even if I didn’t, that’s not how it works. You survived the werewolf bite because your mate bit you. Only a mate can turn a fae into a vamp or a werewolf.”

  “What? How do you know that?”

  “Because my mate was once trapped on Faerie before Aine turned him into a fae right before he escaped.”

  “Your mate …” Thea huffed. “You’re not talking about Fionn Mór?”

  “You know him?” Fionn hadn’t mentioned that.

  “No, I have a journal. By Jerrik Mortensen, a vamp who spent time on Faerie. He mentions Fionn. I just assumed he was dead because no one’s heard of him since.”

  The thought of him made her whimper. “No,” she choked out. “He’s very much alive.”

  “Shit,” Thea whispered. “I can’t believe this. The whole time I thought … I thought I could help her.”

  “Niamh?”

  “Yeah.”

  “No, you can’t. The best thing you could do to help her is get out of here, take your mate, and go back to Scotland.” Rose gritted her teeth as renewed flames ate at her arms. “Just … keep your pack safe, yeah. That’s your job now.”

  “I hate to break it to you, Rose, but I’m not going anywhere until I know you’re safe from these wackos.”

  “I am. I’ll never give them what they want.”

  “And what is that exactly?”

  “An iron dagger. They th—” Rose cut off as it occurred to her the Blackwoods might be listening in. She didn’t want them to know they might not need An Breitheamh to open the gate. “They need it to open the gate.”

  Silence fell between them. Rose did her best to ignore the excruciating agony of the iron.

  “I went out to the store to get tea for our room,” Thea said. “I left Conall sleeping in the little B&B we were staying in. We thought the Blackwoods were in the village two miles north. I had no idea they’d clocked us. Or that they’d take me.” Her voice lowered, pain evident in her tone. “Conall will be going crazy right now.”

  Yeah, Rose groaned. She was sure her mate would be more than a little unhappy when he woke to discover Rose missing.

  “Hey … hey, Rose.”

  Rose’s eyes flew open. Unconsciousness was blissfully coming for her. “What?” she snapped.

  “I know that iron doesn’t feel good. Believe me, do I know that, but I need you to stay with me. You’re going to get us out of here.”

  Rose snorted. “By hanging tight?”

  Thea ignored the bad joke. “Rose, have you ever been so scared or so angry, you emitted pure sunlight?”

  “What?” Jesus Christ, she just wanted to pass out, not talk nonsense with a wounded werewolf. But somewhere in the recesses of her memories, the words started to connect with information buried in there.

  Fourteen piles of ash.

  “You killed Eirik.” Rose forced herself to focus. “And his vampires.”

  “I did. I turned them all but one to ash. Conall had already killed one before I took out the rest. When the Blackwoods come back in here, you’re going to kill one of them by doing the same thing I did, to force the other two to let us go.”

  “But how?”

  “You’ll picture everyone you love being put to the death by one of the Blackwoods. You have to make it feel real. Find that anger and grief and use it to obliterate them.”

  “What if it needs to be real?”

  “I don’t know … but you have to at least try.”

  “Okay,” Rose murmured, eyes falling closed. “Wake me up when they get here.”

  “Rose. Rose, I know it hurts, but you have to stay awake.”

  “Sleep is good.” Darkness crept along the edges of Rose’s mind, numbing the pain. “I choose Layton.”

  “Good choice.” Thea sighed heavily. “It’ll save Conall from ripping out his heart for putting a silver bullet in me.”

  “Aw, that’s nice,” Rose mumbled before she passed out.

  32

  Fionn had known from the moment he’d awakened to find Rose missing from his bed that she was gone.

  It took him seconds to feel out the castle, discern its emptiness, and remember the Blackwoods were on the land beyond his borders.

  Using magic to dress, Fionn bolted out of An Caomhnóir, shrugging on his overcoat as he hurried out the door. In his pocket was a hair tie belonging to Rose. He’d be able to use it to trace her once he was past the boundary spell.

  Fionn was a blur, speeding through the forest as fast as his fae strength would allow. The almost-bare trees unwillingly saluted him with their branches as he sped out of the woods toward the stone wall that acted as the boundary marker for the spell.

  Fionn halted at the sight of the extremely tall, extremely built werewolf sniffing the air around the wall. He took slow steps toward the wolf and although Fionn knew the wolf couldn’t see him, he cocked his head as if he could hear him.

  As he grew closer, the identity of the wolf hit him. He knew that face with the scar that scored down the left cheek. There was a scar on his neck too.

  Scars from silver.

  Scars Fionn had seen on surveillance shots Bran sent him.

  The werewolf was no ordinary wolf. He was Conall MacLennan of Pack MacLennan—as in the mate of once-fae-borne Thea Quinn.

  What the hell.

  Fionn flew at the wall, bounding over it easily, the spell trickling off his skin as he did.

  Conall tensed, not even flinching at Fionn’s appearance. Instead, he scowled. “I knew there was magic here.”

  Exasperated, impatient, and fueled with worry, Fionn strode toward the wolf who stood his ground defiantly. “What the fuck are you doing here? Where’s Rose?”

  “Where’s Thea?” he snapped back. “I followed my nose here for her and found this instead.”

  Fionn stilled, his worry escalating. “Did you encounter any Blackwoods?”

  Conall grew visibly alert. “No.”

  “What are you doing here, Conall?”

  His icy, pale gray eyes narrowed. “How do you know me?” He stiffened with realization. “You’re fae.”

  “I’m Fionn.”

  “Mór?”

  Fionn cursed inwardly. Did every fucker on the planet know who he was now? “Let’s skip the part where I ask how you know me and vice versa. Why are you here and where is Thea?”

  “We were following the Blackwoods. We were staying in the village ten mile
s north of here. When I woke this morning, Thea was gone. She should be here. Her scent is here.”

  “But does it end here?”

  Conall took a breath, closing his eyes for a second as the breeze picked up around them. His eyes then flashed open, fury blazing within. “They’ve used magic to throw me off.”

  “Successfully?”

  “A wee bit o’ magic willnae stop me from tracking my mate. Or killing the fuckers who took her.”

  “Good. Because I’m coming with you. I have a feeling wherever we find Thea, we’ll find Rose.”

  The wolf’s nose caught in the air again, his expression hardening. “I scent another werewolf here. The Blackwoods didnae come alone.”

  Fionn considered this. “I imagine not. There’s isn’t much they’d be able to do to catch Rose unaware.”

  “And who is this Rose?”

  Even knowing what he did of Conall MacLennan and his mate, Fionn still surprised himself by offering, “She’s what Thea was. She’s what the Blackwoods are after.”

  Conall processed this and then growled, “Fuck.”

  “You should know Layton Blackwood doesn’t believe Thea was always wolf. That’s probably why they’ve taken her.”

  Deep worry etched between the wolf’s brows. “She’s wounded. I found her blood where they took her.”

  Having learned a while ago that Conall was famous for his ability to track anyone, Fionn asked, “How does it work? The tracking thing?”

  “Usually, once I have someone’s scent, I just instinctively know where to go. But the spell they’ve cast over Thea is … it’s like my compass is haywire. I can sense her but something keeps leading me off track.”

  “Now that you know that, focus.”

  Conall snarled at him. Hands on hips, he gave his back to Fionn while he grappled against the spell.

  “Anything?”

  “Something’s wrong.” Conall glared at him over his shoulder. “I dinnae feel right.”

  Suspicions building, Fionn asked, “Do you have my scent now?”

  “Aye.”

  “I’m going to hide, and you’re going to try to find me.”

  “I dinnae have time for your games, fae.”

  “It’s a test, wolf. Thea might not be the one they’ve spelled.”

  Conall turned fully toward him, understanding dawning.

  Fionn nodded toward the wall. “Cross it.”

  The wolf eyed it. “The wall that drops right off a cliff and into the sea?”

  “Does it?” Fionn sprung over it. Conall took a step back with surprise. Surprise that lasted but a second for he then threw himself over it. He studied the forest before him with a mere quirk of his lips.

  Fionn traveled into the woods, hearing the wolf’s startled curse at his disappearance.

  He waited.

  He waited as long as his patience would allow considering Rose was most likely in the hands of the Blackwoods. Conall traipsed through the woods, bristling with obvious fury, when Fionn traveled to his location. He spun on Fionn, canines bared. “What the hell have those bastards done to me?”

  They’d put the spell on Conall. Not Thea.

  Without giving the wolf a heads-up, Fionn gripped him by the collar and sped him through the woods, bursting out of the trees at the faerie pools. He threw the two-hundred-and-seventy pound wolf like he was nothing more than a small sack of flour.

  He hoped MacLennan could swim.

  The splash of his body landing in the larger pool was impressive. Under he went before popping back up, dark hair slicked back and icy glare threatening payback.

  He moved unnaturally speedily through the water to the edge.

  “Before you try to kill me, let me explain.” Fionn gestured to the pools. “These are faerie pools.”

  Conall pulled himself out with ease, water falling off his now-soaked body as he faced Fionn with death in his eyes.

  “They wash off spells. Try concentrating on Thea now.”

  Although the muscle in his jaw ticked, Conall took a breath and gave him a tight nod. Not even two seconds later, triumph lightened his countenance and relief moved through Fionn.

  “I know where she is.”

  Fionn pulled the hair tie out. “This is Rose’s. If you’re wrong, we can trace her with this.”

  The wolf scowled. “Why the hell would you not just use this in the first place?”

  “Because if Rose and Thea aren’t together, you’ll need your tracking ability to find your mate.”

  “And I’m to believe you helped me out of the goodness of your heart, fae?”

  Irritation bubbled under Fionn’s skin. “Rose is my mate. So, one, I understand what it would mean to you to lose Thea. And two, she and Thea need to be protected. The Blackwoods can’t open that gate. If taking a few minutes out of my hunt for Rose so that my backup is working at his full capacity, so fucking be it. Now let’s move.”

  Conall studied him a second and then gave him a nod. He gestured toward the woods. “This way.”

  Before he began to run at his wolf speed, he threw over his shoulder, “And I’m nobody’s bloody backup, fae.”

  Fionn decided if he hadn’t been worried out of his mind, he might like the Scot.

  Rose, Fionn thought as he struggled to keep from speeding past Conall, I’m coming for you, mo chroí.

  “Rose. Rose!”

  The voice wouldn’t stop. It tugged at Rose from a dark place of fiery hell.

  “Rose, wake up!”

  She groaned. It hurt in the darkness, but it was agony up where that voice was trying to haul her to.

  “ROSE!”

  Her eyes flew open, her blurred vision slowly coming into focus as the pain burst furiously across her nerve endings. “Argh!” She groaned, swinging against the chains and crying out with the movement.

  “Rose, I’m so sorry, but I can hear them. They’re coming.”

  It took Herculean effort to move her head toward the voice.

  Thea.

  The fae turned wolf was on her knees, begging Rose with her dark gaze. She looked paler than before.

  Rose remembered the silver bullet.

  Fuck.

  “Remember what I told you,” Thea said, her voice hoarse.

  She’s in pain.

  “Imagine Layton hurting Fionn. Taking an iron blade to him.”

  Rose nodded weakly just as the door blew open and the warlock in question strode into the room.

  He wasn’t alone.

  His sisters were with him, along with five warlocks and … Rose eyed the mammoth male and remembered he was the one who’d snapped her neck. They had a werewolf as a bodyguard.

  Oh, if Rose got out of this, the werewolf would be the first to get it. She did not enjoy having her neck snapped.

  At all.

  She glared at him and the wolf had the audacity to sneer. Then he signed his death warrant by turning to Layton. “You said I could play with the wolf bitch. When’s that happening?” His greedy gaze sought Thea.

  Thea snarled at him in warning and he grinned lasciviously at her.

  Oh yeah, you’re going to die, pal.

  Layton cut the wolf a dark look. “I said the wolf was yours once we’ve opened the gate. You know you’re not so much with the listening skills, are you?”

  “Rose,” Thea urged.

  So, she tried. She really tried. She imagined Layton killing Fionn, emitting pure sunlight like the badass faerie she was.

  Rose sagged, exhausted.

  “Rose.”

  She cut a look at her pseudosibling. “I’m sorry.”

  “What’s going on?” Layton asked, glancing between the two. He zeroed in on Thea, striding toward her. “What are you trying to get her to do?”

  When neither of them answered, Layton grabbed Thea’s hair and dug his thumb into her wound. Thea’s gurgled scream tore through Rose. Watching the wolf grit her teeth, pain reddening her skin as she fought not to give Layton what he wanted, was unbea
rable.

  “Stop it!” Rose yelled, forgetting her own pain as she yanked against the chains. Her right arm lowered and her breath caught.

  Did the chain just pull from the ceiling a little?

  “Oh, ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner.” Layton straightened from his torture of Thea to smile at Rose. “I’m going to put another bullet in your little wolfy friend if you don’t tell me where An Breitheamh is, Rose.”

  Thea launched herself at him, her jaw wide, canines out as she clamped onto his thigh and yanked her head back with such force, she took a huge chunk of Layton’s leg with her.

  The warlock’s scream filled the basement as he fell to his knees. Rose watched in horror as Thea’s body jerked seconds after a gunshot rang out.

  Liza stood, her hands wrapped around the gun.

  Thea slumped against the wall, unconscious, as Lori hovered over Layton.

  “The fucking fae, you moron!” he yelled, spittle flying everywhere. “Her blood will heal me. I’m not turning into a fucking dog every full moon!”

  No.

  No, no, no!

  Between the thought of Thea dying and Layton living, Rose was done.

  Done being the victim.

  What would Fionn do?

  He’d use the pain, Rose thought. He’d use the pain.

  With a scream of fury, Rose did just that, using the agony to fuel her strength. She forced her body to move, pushing herself onto her feet. She wrapped her hands around the chains above her manacles and with every bit of her fae strength, she yanked those fuckers from the ceiling like she was pulling a birthday candle out of a cake.

  They were too shocked to react in time.

  And Rose’s rage was too great.

  Using Fionn’s training, Rose vanished, traveling to the spot behind Liza. She was a streak of movement as she used her full speed and strength, snapping the wrist holding the gun. Then she twisted Liza’s neck, hearing the death crack. Traveling to the werewolf, Rose punched her fist through his back and tore out his heart.

  One by one, fast as lightning, she broke the necks of all the warlocks.

  Finally, she traveled to Lori.

  Snuffed her out too.

  Layton stared up at Rose in terror. “You’re a monster,” he whispered.