Chapter Twenty-Four
We emerged from the portal and walked through the courtyard, uncaring of those who looked upon us with fear. I felt the crowd’s uncertainty as the warriors passed through the crowd. These Fae must have also seen Alden and the children that were brought through, as well as the dead from the Guild, which had started trickling in just before we had.
The Spokane Guild had been burned to the ground, much to Olivia’s dismay, judging by her hysterical screams and the horror on her face. We’d burnt every trace of the Guild and its people from the cityscape of Spokane.
She’d sworn at us and cussed me out as Ristan had watched her with a look of hostility and anger that ran so deep even I feared it. It was so out of character for him to look at someone as he was looking at her now.
I could see Elijah as he watched me closely. I was covered from head to toe in blood from the Mages, and soot from the fire that had quickly started to burn out of control as I’d watched, waiting for proof that it was gone.
Vlad and Adrian had come back with us, and together, as if we were all one, we walked through the masses of lesser Fae to make a brutal point. If they could do this to a proud warrior such as Ristan, then what chance did they hold?
“Who did this?” the Winter Queen asked, and her eyes never left Ristan’s face. I could tell she was assessing the situation; he was a Demon in her eyes and I wasn’t sure if she knew that he was one of Ryder’s brothers. All that would matter to her is that Demons were a powerful part of the lesser Fae.
“Mages,” I said when he didn’t answer her. “Just imagine if it had been one of yours they’d captured.”
“Is he, is he going to make it?” she continued.
“He’d better, or someone will pay for it,” I said, and turned my eyes to Olivia who watched me silently. “We take harm upon our own very harshly, and those who fuck with my family will get no mercy.”
“You’re a traitor!” she cried.
She had drunk the same Kool-Aid I had, and sounded just as I had when I’d first met Ryder. I couldn’t blame her for that, but Ristan hadn’t deserved this, and as far as I was concerned she didn’t just betray Alden. She’d betrayed the true Guild.
“I’m no traitor; not to my people. Not to my family, either,” I seethed as Ristan shifted painfully, and opened his eyes. “The Guild left me, and so we cut ties. I was born Fae, not a Witch. The Guild was your family, Olivia, and I hope Hecate has mercy on your soul—for I know that Demon won’t. If you did what I think you did, you may want to make peace with Hecate, and quickly,” I smiled coldly. “Take her to the dungeons, and see that she is chained and unable to use her hands or legs. Gag her mouth, for she can spell her way out with it. And, Olivia, if you do somehow get out of this place, know that I will ride with the hounds that hunt you down and drag you back here for his revenge. He is my family, and this world is mine. I would claim no part of the sick bastards who slaughtered those innocent people,” I seethed, and then allowed my eyes to glow to the electric blue and purple of the Fae. I pushed power into the brands, projecting their image and beauty so that everyone gathered could see.
“I did what I had to!” she cried as Sevrin made haste to remove her from Ristan’s presence. We started in the direction of the castle, but Silas stopped us by stepping into our path.
“I’ll fight beside my King, and gladly die with him to protect this world from the Mages,” he said proudly. The shifter had often given me the chills, but I could see his aura now, and it was pure. He was honest in his words, and his oath was welcomed by Ryder who placed a hand on his shoulder and accepted it.
“You have mine as well, but I need an oath of my own,” Elijah stated as he approached us.
“And that would be?” Zahruk asked as he stepped up and placed himself between Elijah and Ryder.
“That should I fall in battle, my people will be welcomed here, that they would have a safe place to live in peace. Most of the unclaimed don’t live forever, but they live long enough to need protection.”
“And you, how long have you lived?” I asked.
“Well over five hundred years,” he said as he watched me carefully.
“Your people would be welcome here,” Ryder said. “But if you think to cross me, know that I will have no mercy for you.”
Ryder’s eyes slid to me and I smiled. I could sense that he was eager to get into the castle, to have Ristan tended, as well as to check on our children.
“The rest of you who plan to claim an oath to the King can do so at a more appropriate time. His brother needs tending to, and our children must be fed. We shall hold court tomorrow, and hear any concerns or demands you may have. Until then, we bid you safe passage into the main hall for the celebration of the return of the Demon,” I said, and then turned to Danu who had just shown up, anxiously watching Ristan as he labored to take air into his lungs.
“Decorate the hall, and create a distraction…please? Like food, or whatever, just keep these people busy until we can secure an oath.”
“How is he?” she asked, ignoring my request.
“Alive, barely,” I whispered.
I could feel Elijah’s eyes as they bore into my back as we walked inside the stronghold; tomorrow we would deal with the world, but tonight we needed to tend to those who had died, and those who needed medical help. The lesser Fae could wait. Later, we could pull an oath from those who seemed more ready to run home and hide.
“Fine, but after I create the distraction, I’m coming to check on him,” she said and disappeared.
“A distraction?” Ryder asked softly.
“We need to buy time. I’m sure some of those Fae were planning to leave, but I know how they can feed, and be merry while we deal with this problem. Danu is going to create food, and other things to give us the time we need.”
“…That’s genius,” Zahruk said as he turned to look at me. “Fuck, she’s ruthless,” he grinned and winked at me roguishly. “Maybe there’s hope for her yet.”
“Oh admit it, Zahruk, you like me. I just have that effect on creatures.”
He laughed and shook his head as he turned and moved forward to help them carry Ristan to the infirmary. I wasn’t sure why we were still walking, only that I was glad, since sifting wasn’t my strong suit right now.
I’d no sooner thought it, then the entire Elite Guard sifted, and I was no exception. Ryder had gripped my arm as we sifted to Eliran, who immediately took in Ristan and then looked up at me.
“What did you do this time, hide in a closet? Normally if someone’s hurt, you follow their lead and then almost die on me,” he snapped with frustration and ran his fingers through his hair before he started shouting off orders.
I stood still and watched as Ristan was carried into one of the small rooms and a curtain was closed around him. Eliran slipped behind the curtain and called for a bunch of other things he was going to need. Ristan didn’t have iron in him; that much I was sure of. Not that it would have done too much to the Demon, but the Mages may have experimented with it when they tortured him.
I was pulled up against Ryder’s chest as we waited, numb and cold inside as Eliran and his team worked on Ristan. It wasn’t until I turned and found Alden smiling at me from a bed in another small room in the healer’s ward, that I left Ryder’s warmth.
“How are you feeling?” I asked him as I moved to his room and took a seat in the chair.
“Never saw this one coming, kid,” he admitted. “Glad you found him,” he said as he nodded towards Ristan’s room.
“Me too, but we have a problem. Olivia is here; Ristan made us bring her with us. I need to know what she did that made him hate her.”
“She gave me up,” he admitted. “She surprised me, and found me with the Demon. I didn’t think she suspected him to be anything other than Human si
nce he was wearing glamour of a Guild Warlock and was inside the wards. She came to my office with a bottle of wine and wanted me to help her celebrate the completion of another section of catalogued archives. She’d been completing a lot more of them lately, and I should have wondered why one was more important than any of the others. I was going to send her away, but Ristan said he would love to help her celebrate, and I had no reason to mistrust her. I should have known something was off; we both should have. She had never talked to me that much, not in all the time I’ve known her. I wanted to trust her, and I think Ristan did too; he’d been obsessed about that girl, and watching her like a hawk since he met her a few months ago, and I’d noticed it. I just thought what harm, ya know?” He sighed deeply, and then continued. “I think Ristan had more wine than I did. Anyhow, my head started to swim right away and I noticed Olivia trying to come on to Ristan, funniest damn thing I ever saw. Right up until she climbed into his lap and I think she touched his cheek or neck, next thing I know, he dropped like a millstone. And then I woke up, tied to a table, and the Mages were there with a few Warlocks I used to call friends. I heard one of the say they got wine and whatever the hell they used to take the Demon down, from that scary-ass thing.”
“Olivia said she did what she had to,” I admitted, hoping he could shed some light on it.
“She had to have been watching me, or watching us. Ristan said he didn’t trust her, but that you’d told him she was just a mouse. I helped raise that girl, but if she gave us up, kid, she’s beyond our help. That wine had one hell of a punch though. Hell, when they started to torture me, I didn’t even feel it. I laughed, which had to be from the drugs. I watched them break my legs, and it didn’t start hurting until the drugs from the wine started to wear off.”
I hated that time moved differently here. Days had passed, and I hadn’t seen Ristan in that time, but then he’d been gone a lot trying to protect Alden from the Mages, and discovered trying to find more clues that would lead to relics. They’d been tortured for days, and we hadn’t even known.
“The Guild is going to want answers,” I continued.
“I bet, but I’m not sure which ones are under Mage influence anymore. I’ve been running ours under the assumption that they all are.”
“Then that’s how we will play it as well,” I said as I lifted my head as the Demon growled, and then screamed as Eliran reset bones that were healing incorrectly.
“They got him good, kid. They worked him over hoping he’d reach out to his King and brothers. That monster they work for knew things about him, and how he worked. They used it, and I watched as he did things I can never un-see again. He’s a better man than I, because not once did he cave. Not even when they used me against him. That’s why you found me on the upper level. They wanted the Demon to think I was dead and that it was his fault so they moved me figuring it wouldn’t take much more time before I died anyway.”
I swallowed the bile as I considered just how much had been done to poor Ristan. He hadn’t deserved it, and he’d done it to protect us. He’d been tortured brutally, and over a period of time which we’d been spending with our children, unaware that anything was amiss. We’d let him down, and that was my fault. He’d never let me down, and even when the others had suspected my Guild for bombing Ryder’s club, Ristan had believed in me.
“He’s immortal,” I whispered breathlessly. I was thankful for that more than anything else right now
“It’s a good thing too, kid. They took his body apart. That monster, he enjoyed it. Kept saying things about Danu, and Ristan refused to give an inch, which only made it worse,” he whispered and I turned to find Ryder watching me.
“Ristan’s been given a sedative,” he said quietly when I continued to watch him.
“Alden needs rest, and we will take him to the Seattle Guild when he’s better, and not before,” I warned as I leveled a don’t-argue-with-me look at Alden. “You can’t just run in and explain that a God who wanders between our worlds is assisting evil Mages who are using the Guild as cover, because chances are you’ll be telling evil Mages that you know they exist and what their own evil plan is. For now you stay here. Last time you refused to listen to reason and at that time I understood those reasons. That reason is now gone, and you’re my family, Alden. I protect my family, even when they are stubborn as you. Ryder, make it known that if anyone is approached and asked for a ride out of Faery, that the gates are closed and whoever tries to assist him will suffer for it.”
“Now see here, Synthia—” Alden hissed.
“No! I won’t see anything, Alden. That Demon almost died because you were too fucking stubborn. I understand you wanted to protect our Guild, but it’s gone. There’s nothing left of it because I burned it to the ground. All of our secrets are protected, all of our agents have fled, or died. You’re safe here, and it’s now you who needs to be protected. Don’t argue with me; you won’t win this one, Uncle, that much I can promise you. Right now I need to focus on unfreezing the Tree of Life, so that my children live. That needs to be my priority.”
“Synthia, I understand that, but you forget. I don’t belong in this world.”
“You do. You belong with me, Alden. You’ve done your job, now let us do ours. Let us save those who need it from the Mages, and maybe, when enough time has passed and this war over, we can start a new Guild, one that’s run by us and the Fae. One that will protect the Humans. Time moves slower here, but I promise we will help you,” I said softly.
“You’d do that?” he asked and looked at Ryder.
“As long as my soon-to-be bride isn’t running it,” Ryder whispered against my ear.
“We’ll see about that one, Fairy. For now, Alden, sleep,” I said as I leaned over and kissed his forehead, then pulled his blankets up as his eyes grew even heavier.
“I love you, kid,” he whispered, a thickness I wasn’t used to from him stuck in his tone.
“I love you, too, Uncle,” I whispered back and we left the room.
Chapter Twenty-Five
I sat on the bed and watched Ryder as he rocked Zander in his arms. The other two had been asleep in the nursery when we’d returned to the rooms, but Zander seemed to have been waiting for our return, so Ryder moved one of the chairs to our sleeping chamber and settled in with him.
My mind wasn’t on Olivia or the Fae who had seemed pacified by the party going on in the great hall right now. I was in another dimension, my mind on the Guild and those who’d been killed there. It was a safe haven, or should have been. The Mages had violated it, and that was something they’d pay for.
Danu was with Ristan, and only I knew it. She’d been beside herself with emotion, which was so unlike her; I had made a mental note to ask her why that was.
“Zander’s sleeping,” I commented as I raised my eyes to my beast, who continued to rock our son in his arms as if he was the most precious thing in the entire universe.
“I know, but I want him to know I love him. My father never showed me affection, but my sons will know I love them. They will know we love and cherish them.”
He was shaping up to be a gentle giant with our babies. He was also making up for the lack of presence he’d felt from his own father, and ensuring that his own sons never experienced that. That alone made me want to smother them, but it wouldn’t help us or them.
“Put him in bed, and come hold me,” I whispered as a chill ran down my spine.
“As you wish,” he grinned indulgently.
I waited until he had stepped into the nursery, knowing he’d be gone for more than a few minutes, then moved to change out of the sleek white nightgown I’d been wearing, into something a little more revealing. I walked to a chest of drawers and opened one, then smiled. Inside were the slinky panties and hose I’d been meaning to wear, but had been too pregnant to feel anything other than huge and uncomforta
ble.
I wasn’t big and pregnant anymore, and I wanted him tonight. Ristan and Alden were recovering. The Fae were protected inside our walls, and tonight, the beast was mine. There wasn’t anything to do about the Tree; not yet anyway. We had to wait until we could figure out how to thaw it out before we could take the next step. My children were asleep, protected by Zahruk’s watchful eye.
I removed the gown, stepped out of the silk panties, and changed into a black thong. Next I pulled on the stockings, and then slipped the garter belt up to my hips, arranging it until it looked seductive over my creamy flesh, then attached the clips to the stockings. I left my breasts exposed, as Ryder liked them and moved to grab out a few items from his secret stash.
I moved to the bed and crawled into the middle, and had just laid back when he sifted back into the room. His eyes instantaneously changed to onyx as they took in the dusky, pink tips of my nipples that were already hard and begging to be tasted.
“I thought you wanted me to hold you?” he asked as he watched me with ravenous eyes.
“I do, right after you own my body and soul,” I answered him, and then spread my legs, wide.
“Naughty little thing; you have no idea what you’re asking for,” he replied.
“I’ve been owned by you since day one, since the first moment you made me come. You’ll have to do better this time,” I grinned. I was baiting the beast, and we both knew it.
He swallowed and then smiled, but it was predatory and feral. “That sounds like a challenge.”
“It is,” I whispered huskily.
One second I was spread out on the bed, and the next he was there, his hands hard as they secured mine in a vicelike grip. “I’m going to enjoy this,” he growled huskily. His timbre vibrated through me and started a wave of heat that unfurled from my stomach and soaked my panties.
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