by Lexi Blake
I felt Chad moving behind me. “He doesn’t need blood, Zoey. He needs a coffin. I took all the blood. He tasted so good. He was like heaven.”
Louis pulled him roughly away from us and tossed him to the far side of the room. “I swear if you weren’t so fucking important to my plans I would kill you where you stand. You insane idiot. Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
“Louis,” I shouted because we were running out of time. I could barely see him through my tears. “Stop talking. He needs blood. Save him.”
“Zoey, he’s dead,” Marini said sharply. “I’m sorry, but there is nothing I can do. He has no blood left. There is nothing for the vampire blood to work on. If I gave him blood at this point he would come back as a revenant and I would be forced to kill him again.”
My hands started to shake as reality set in. Dev was beyond cold and he wasn’t moving at all. His face, so full of life, was passive now with nothing left to animate him.
It wasn’t true. It couldn’t happen. I’d made love with him a few hours before so he couldn’t be dead now. I sat there with my hands on that face I loved so much. He would wake up. Daniel’s blood would work and he would wake up and tell me he loved me. He would make me baby him for weeks after this, and I wouldn’t complain. I would give him everything he asked for. I would give him that sponge bath he’d wanted. I would wait on him hand and foot.
“Don’t go,” I heard myself saying. I saw a tear hit his face and slide down his cheek and off his strong jaw. It took a moment to realize I was the one crying. “Don’t go. Please. Please don’t leave me.” I hunched over because he was heavy and I couldn’t pull him up, so I leaned down to wrap myself around him. “I love you. I love you. Don’t go.”
I have no idea how long they let me sit there, pleading with whoever would listen to give him back to me. We’d gotten so close to what we’d dreamed of, a family and a home for the three of us. He couldn’t be dead when I had his babies inside me. He couldn’t be gone. I had led him to this. I’d walked into his club when I had no right to and begged him to love me when he shouldn’t have. He would be alive right now if I’d just stayed away from him. I would have given anything in that moment to take back that one decision.
I would have given up everything to know he was alive somewhere even without me. My green-eyed boy. How would I ever live without him?
“Cara, you have to let him go,” Marcus said.
“I can’t.” I held onto Dev. I sobbed against his chest because the look in Marcus’s eyes told me this was really happening. He was really gone and I had no idea where he was. I sobbed, my body heaving grief that felt like it would never end.
“Marcus, please help her.” I heard Marini say.
Marcus pulled me up, using his strength to drag me away from my husband’s body. “It’s over, cara. I’m so sorry but it’s over.”
Rage poured over me as I caught sight of that bastard Chad, who Daniel had trusted. He sat against the stone of the wall. He stared at Dev’s body, and I couldn’t tell if he was still with us. He didn’t move or say a thing, simply stared straight at my husband’s body. Obviously nothing mattered but whatever was going on in that fucked up brain of his and I couldn’t stop what came out of my mouth next.
“He’s a traitor,” I screamed, pointing at the man who had killed Dev. I couldn’t stand the thought that he would walk the night filled with Dev’s blood. I wanted him dead in that instant and I didn’t care who it hurt. Marcus’s hands tightened on my body, but I didn’t heed his warning. I charged on recklessly, thinking only of my husband’s body cold on the ground. “Daniel turned him himself. He’s been a spy the whole time. Kill him.”
Marini looked at me and I could see he didn’t believe me. “You are unwell, Zoey. I’m sorry about the prince. I truly am, but Mr. Thomas is far too crazy to be a spy. It’s the nature of his class. Even if Daniel planted him, he long ago passed any effectiveness.”
Chad’s laugh sent shivers down my spine. “Yes, Daniel Donovan killed me. He shoved a knife through my heart and there was blood but the faery’s blood took its place. He lives in me now, Zoey. I have him now. You can still talk to him. Daniel killed me in your backyard and there were wolves that night. I fell in love that night when I died and now I have two people inside my body.”
Marini shook his head sadly. “You see, he’s insane. I would kill him to make you happy but I need his talents. They’re still useful to me. Perhaps after the battle with Daniel I’ll execute him to please you, but Mr. Thomas has just managed to take away my secret weapon, and now I’m going to be reliant on him.”
I fought Marcus now and Chad was back to his weird concentration, every bit of his focus on the dead body in front of him. Marcus let up and I fell back down to Dev. They were going to take him away. They would take his body and toss it on the steps of the Order’s headquarters, and that would be how Daniel found him. That would be how Daniel found out Devinshea was dead.
I felt Marcus pulling me up again and I gazed one last time on my faery prince’s face. “You wait for me. You promised. You wait for me.”
A great tide of grief overwhelmed me and I cried out again. I couldn’t leave him there. I couldn’t leave him lying on the cold floor.
“Marcus, please,” Marini implored the man he would soon place in a coffin.
“Zoey,” I heard Marcus’s voice, but it seemed to come from deep inside my brain. It was soft and seductive and it took over. “Sleep.”
The world and all its horror winked from existence.
* * * *
I woke up in the grotto, surrounded by the sights and smells of home. There were always flowers blooming in the grotto. During the day, roses bloomed along the walls and at night, on the balcony, the flower beds came alive with evening primrose. I closed my eyes and could almost hear Albert walking through the kitchens, getting dinner ready. Dev would sit with me and his hand would brush mine as we ate dinner with Neil and oftentimes Lee. My wolf would wander up just in time for whatever Albert had prepared and look surprised to be asked to stay for dinner. He would always ask for seconds and thirds, and by the time dessert rolled around, I would be teasing him about being a walking-talking garbage disposal.
I was almost able to believe, but then I remembered and knew where I really was.
“Not here, Marcus.” I knew he could hear me. “I can’t be here yet.”
The scene changed abruptly around me. One minute I was at home and the next I was staring at a crowded square filled with tourists and more pigeons than I could ever remember seeing in one place. I was under an awning and I could smell dark, rich coffee. The day was bright, but I stood in the shadows and felt no desire to be in the light.
“Is this better, cara?” Marcus asked, walking to my side. He stared out over the courtyard.
“I’ve never been here before so I won’t be expecting Dev to show up at any minute,” I said, my voice sounding very flat. I felt flat and dry.
“I’m so sorry, cara,” Marcus said with genuine sadness in his eyes. “I know you loved him.”
“Well, at least he can’t upset Daniel’s plans now.” I couldn’t forget how Marcus had begged me not to let Dev perform his ritual. If Marini hadn’t felt the need to trick Marcus, Dev and I would be getting ready for that ritual. We would be nervous and worried and together.
Marcus turned me to him. “That’s not fair, Zoey. I didn’t kill Devinshea. I would never have done that. You also cannot blame Daniel. He’ll be devastated.”
“I don’t blame you,” I said hollowly. “I don’t blame Daniel.”
Marcus’s eyes softened. “Zoey, cara, you can’t blame yourself.”
But I could. I could blame myself and I would until the day I died and found out if my prince had managed to wait for me.
“Please, you have to stay strong,” Marcus said. “You’re not alone. Daniel needs you.”
I shook my head. “I don’t see what I’ll do for Daniel now.” It would be infinitely har
der to get the stone without Dev. I needed a lookout or I would get caught and the stone gone from me forever. If I gave Marini too much trouble, he might decide to send Daniel another present and I would be seeing Dev again soon.
“You can do this, Zoey,” Marcus said. “We’re all relying on you. Daniel is close to being ready to raid the catacombs. He needs you to take the Blood Stone out of play.”
I turned to look at Marcus for the first time. “You’ve seen Danny?”
“I have,” Marcus replied. “He is resolute, but he’s sick at heart, Zoey. It took all of us to convince him not to trade his life for yours. He wanted to walk into the catacombs by himself to face Marini.”
“He can’t do that,” I said, horrified at the thought.
“I made him realize that it would only get him killed and you would still be at Marini’s mercy. He must follow the plans, but it’s killing him.”
“How is Zack?” I asked, worried about the young wolf.
Marcus sighed heavily. “He wanted me to tell you something, Zoey. He made me promise if I got a chance that I would speak to you.”
I took a shaky breath and prayed I would survive the next couple of minutes. Zack had to be angry with me. I’d gotten his brother killed. I shouldn’t have left him when I ran to check on Dev. I should have shielded the wolf. I deserved whatever vitriol Zack wanted to throw my way. I nodded and indicated I was ready to listen.
“Zack told me to let you know that his brother died doing his job. He would have been proud to die in such a fashion, protecting someone he loved deeply,” Marcus related Zack’s words to me. “He wanted to thank you for making Lee’s last years his happiest. He was happier and more settled in the last several years than he’d been his whole life. Zack wants you to know that when the time comes, he will be at Daniel’s side and he will come for you. He will come for you because you’re his family now.”
I fell into Marcus’s chest and sobbed against him. I had lost so much in Lee and Dev and I had to go on. I had to stand up and do the job because I wasn’t alone. Daniel was depending on me. Zack needed me. I had to live and fight because I had to get out of this prison and find Neil. I wanted to lie down and fade like the Fae did. I wanted to be still and wait for death to take me, but I was full of life that wouldn’t get a chance if I didn’t find a way to fight. It seemed so unfair that I wasn’t allowed to wallow in my grief, to let it swallow me up until it was all that was left of me, but I couldn’t. I had to fight for Danny and Zack and Neil, but most of all for the babies inside me that were all I had left of Devinshea.
Marcus allowed me to cry for the longest time. He stroked my hair and said nothing at all, just let the tourists in the square walk past us. They ignored us since they only existed in Marcus’s mind. We were alone.
I sniffed and probably looked like hell but it didn’t matter. “Where are you, Marcus? I mean in the real world.”
“I’m in a silver coffin wrapped in silver chains deep in the dungeons, cara,” Marcus replied simply. “It’s nothing to concern yourself with. When Daniel makes his push, he will find me and release me.”
“How long have I been out? Where am I?”
“You are in your rooms. You were moved to your bed and now I believe they have a werewolf watching over you. It’s been roughly a day and a half, I believe. Time is odd when you’re in a coffin, but I believe you will find it’s day.”
“Is the werewolf’s name Trent?”
Marcus smiled slightly. “Is that one of McKenzie’s plants? I was told he had a few spies in the Council headquarters, but I don’t know their names.”
“I complained bitterly about him,” I said. “I think it made Louis believe he was the perfect guard for me.”
“I believe Trent is the name Louis used.” The Italian straightened up. His face was resolute. “It’s time, cara. You must wake up and do what you need to do. I will be here with you when you sleep. Know that I am thinking of you, cara.”
I woke up on the bed Rose and I had shared the night I entered the catacombs. I was still in the shift I’d worn the night Dev died.
I sat straight up in bed and the grief washed over me as fresh and sharp as the minute I realized he was gone. I slapped my hand over my mouth when I realized I was going to throw up. I tossed back the covers and ran to the bathroom, barely noticing that Trent had opened the door upon hearing me wake up.
I slammed the bathroom door behind me and barely made it to the toilet before what little I had in my stomach came heaving up. I sat there on the cold floor completely miserable, my body shaking with grief and sickness. When I finished, I laid my head down on the cool marble.
“Zoey,” I heard Trent’s Boston accent through the door. “Are you all right? Should I get a doctor?”
“I’m fine,” I lied, pushing myself up. I felt something move against my chest and I reached down.
I pulled out the fake Blood Stone and was grateful no one thought to undress me. I held it up to the light. It would pass inspection, but not if Louis studied it closely. It didn’t have the same shine as the original but I just needed it to hold the Blood Stone’s place for long enough to let me get away. I needed a place to hide the fake Marcus had given up his freedom to get to me.
I forced myself up and opened one of the cabinets, looking for a place to hide it. There was a big box of tampons. I doubted any man—human, werewolf, or vampire—would think to look for something there. I put the fake in and covered it up. I rose and caught sight of myself in the mirror.
The face that stared back was a shock. I was older, weary. This was the face of a widow.
I shoved my grief as far down into my soul as I could. I had a job to do. I had living people who needed me. This was what Myrddin meant. I had to push aside my pain and do the job. I had to live because if I didn’t then Dev had died in vain and Lee’s sacrifice meant nothing.
I memorized the face in the mirror and I was ready to go to work.
Chapter Thirty-Three
I ate every bit of the eggs and bacon Trent brought me thirty minutes later. I ignored the coffee but downed the orange juice and forced myself to finish off two buttery croissants and a bowl of fruit. While my soul might not be interested in food, the two boys growing in my belly were insistent on it. I was famished and my fingers just kept on putting food in my mouth.
Trent watched closely. I was sure I was an odd sight. My face was puffy and my eyes red. I’d gotten back into the jeans and T-shirt I’d worn the night I was kidnapped because I saw no evidence Rose had been successful in her mission of buying me clothes. In fact, I saw no evidence of Rose or Robert at all. Had she been sold while I was sleeping?
“Where is Rose?”
The Boston wolf leaned forward and kept his voice low. “Are you feeling up for this, Your Highness? A lot has happened since…”
“Since my husband was murdered,” I finished for him. I steeled myself because I was going to have to be tough. I couldn’t give in to the urge to wail every time I thought of Devinshea. I had to hold it together until I was in Daniel’s arms again. When that happened, I could grieve and cry all I wanted and Daniel would grieve with me.
“Yes, ma’am,” Trent replied carefully. “A lot has happened since then, and I don’t think you’re going to like some of it.”
“I don’t like anything that happened in the last several days, Trent,” I said bitterly. “Is Daniel alive?”
“Yes. Yes, ma’am,” Trent replied quickly. “Your husband is alive. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you like that. The king is alive and well and giving the Council hell.”
Something inside me released and I realized I was just waiting for someone to tell me Danny was dead. I had to keep faith. I nodded and poured another glass of orange juice. Despite sleeping for a day and a half, I found myself exhausted. I hoped it was the aftereffects of Marcus’s magic and not another symptom of my pregnancy. “Tell me everything.”
“Almost all of Marini’s strong supporters are now
in the catacombs,” the wolf told me. “Donovan started picking them off one by one, neat, clean executions. Now they’re all hiding here, plotting what to do next. There are plenty of vampires who are staying neutral and the king has stated as long as they offer no aid to the Council, he won’t touch them. The rest of them are with Daniel in London. As far as I can tell, every living academic has either gone into hiding or they’re in the Order’s headquarters. Marini is pissed. He’s sworn to kill them all.”
“And Rose?”
“Rose is missing,” Trent replied, holding his hands up to let me know it was a mystery. “She and her manservant left to go shopping in the city. Marini couldn’t afford to give her a full escort. The vampire sent with her lost track of her. He searched all night but couldn’t find her. Marini thinks Donovan snagged her in retaliation for him taking you.”
So Rose had gotten her chance and she’d taken it. I smiled, thinking of Rose running. She would run straight for her mother and she wouldn’t look back and she’d managed to save Robert in the process. She would feel the sun on her face again and know her mother’s arms around her. She would get her life back, and I was so grateful for that.
“That’s marvelous,” I murmured. “How’s Marini taking all of this?”
“He’s this close to losing control,” Trent said, holding his thumb and forefinger very close together. “He’s been violent and cruel. I worry he’s going to take it out on you.”
“I think you’ll find a companion has many talents,” I said enigmatically. I would have to sooth the vampire and I hated the prospect, but I couldn’t have his beast loose. I swallowed twice before I got the next question out. “Has Daniel…does he know about…Dev?”
Trent frowned. “I think so. I haven’t heard, but I can’t communicate every day. This is the part I don’t think you’ll like. Marini sent the magician and two other vampires to deliver the prince’s body to the Order’s headquarters last night. Only Thomas came back. He said they were ambushed and only he got away. I don’t know why, but I think he was lying about something.”