by Karen Lynch
I sat on the floor and softly sang a verse from his favorite song, watching as he went into his weird trance. When I was done, he went back to eating his fruit, looking a little happier.
I picked up my phone to text Violet, who was probably still at her audition. I had to think for a minute about what to say that wouldn’t make her freak out. Had to go out. Call me when you get out of the audition. Good luck.
Sliding off the bed, I walked to one of the tall windows that gave me a great view of the mysterious garden behind the fence. There were more trees and shrubs than flowers, but it looked peaceful and inviting. Maybe Finch and I could spend some time out there instead of staying cooped up in here all day.
A squirrel darted across the grass with something in its mouth. It stopped and froze, its nose twitching as it sniffed the air.
The shadows beneath a tree moved, and a large shape shot forward. I watched in fascinated horror as Kaia pounced on the unfortunate squirrel and ate it in one bite. As if sensing her audience, the lamal looked up at my window and licked her chops.
A shudder went through me. “So much for that idea.”
I spent the next two hours alternately reading and surfing on my iPad, trying to stave off boredom. I wasn’t used to being cooped up like this, without so much as a television to distract me.
When Violet called, I gave her a watered-down version of the break-in, making it sound less serious than it had been. Telling her the whole truth would only make her worry more, and there was nothing she could do about it.
“He rushed to your rescue and swept you away to his place?” she asked with a little squeal.
I made a face. “Technically, I rescued myself.”
“Work with me here, Jess.” She exhaled dramatically, and I grinned when I pictured her throwing her hands up in the air. “He came running when he thought you were in trouble. That’s so romantic.”
“I told you it’s not like that. They’re all being nice because I helped out their prince.”
“Who cares why they’re doing it? You have an opportunity here that most women only dream about.”
I stared at the ceiling. “And what’s that?”
She let out a suffering sigh. “You’ve been invited into the inner sanctum of not one but five male Court faeries. If there ever was a time for you to let loose and have a little fun, it’s now. Pick one, and get to know your wild side.”
“Violet!”
“What? Would you rather cash in that V-card with some fumbling boy or with a faerie who knows exactly how to take care of a woman?”
“Gah. I can’t even with you. I am not having sex with one of these guys,” I whisper-yelled into the phone.
Someone knocked on the bedroom door, and I nearly jumped a foot off the bed. “Yes?” I called shakily.
“Lunch is here,” Iian said.
Was that laughter in his voice? Oh, God. Had he overheard me?
“Thanks,” I managed to say. “I’ll be down in a minute.”
Tittering came from the phone. “I wish I could see your face right now.”
“No, you don’t. Because the next time you see me, I’m going to hold you down and sing the entire Les Misérables soundtrack to you.”
Violet gasped. “You wouldn’t.”
“Oh, I would. See you soon.” I smirked to myself as I hung up.
It took me a few minutes to get up the courage to face Iian. But if he had overheard what I’d said to Violet, he was too polite to let on.
Lunch was a club sandwich with a side of fruit salad from a restaurant I’d never heard of. Kerr told me it was a place they ordered from often and the food was great. I was relieved to see they’d gotten sandwiches for all of us and I wouldn’t have to eat alone while they watched.
They were surprisingly good company. I learned they were cousins, not brothers, but they didn’t say much more than that about themselves. We mostly talked about the break-in, and they wanted a blow-by-blow description of my fight with the two men. They were especially interested in the part where I’d hit Faolin with the bat.
We had just finished eating when the door opened, and Lukas came in. My stomach fluttered at the sight of him, and I took a drink from my water bottle to hide the flush I felt creeping up my neck. Why was he the only one who affected me this way?
Lukas joined us, laying the phone he’d been carrying on the island. His eyes moved over my bruised face. “How are you feeling today?”
“Much better,” I said a little too cheerfully. “So much that I think Finch and I can go home today.”
The slow smile that curved his lips did nothing to dispel the butterflies in my belly. “Nice try, li’fachan. But plan to be our guest for another night.”
“What does that word mean?” I asked, recognizing it from last night.
“Li’fachan means ‘little hunter,’” Kerr said.
“Little?” I looked down at my body. I was five seven, a few inches taller than the average height for women. I wasn’t overweight, but I wasn’t skinny either, and no one had called me little since I was ten.
Iian laughed. “You are small compared to our females. It is one of the reasons I like human women so much.”
“Small and soft,” Kerr added lustily. “And amorous.”
Heat flooded my cheeks as I thought about the conversation I’d had with Violet an hour ago. It wasn’t like I was a prude or anything. I’d dated a few guys, and I’d even gone to second base. But those teenage boys hadn’t been anywhere near the same league as Court faeries.
Lukas said something in their language that I didn’t understand, but his gruff tone made me think he wasn’t happy with the direction of the conversation.
Kerr immediately changed the subject. “How goes the interrogation of the men?”
Lukas glanced briefly at me. “They say they were hired by an elf, and they were supposed to bring Jesse to a specific location where they would be paid the rest of their money.”
“You think it was the goren dealer we’re looking for?” Iian asked.
“That makes the most sense. He must think Jesse knows something about him.”
Someone had paid men to break into my home and kidnap me. The sandwich I’d eaten soured in my stomach and threatened to come back up.
Lukas’s warm hand touched the middle of my back. “No one is more adept than Faolin at getting to the truth. We will find out who is behind this.”
I swallowed convulsively and hoped my face wasn’t as green as it felt when I looked up at him. “What did Faolin do with the men?”
“He glamoured them to make them believe they had escaped, and he and Conlan are tailing them now. If we’re lucky, they’ll make contact with the person who hired them and lead us to him.”
“That’s good,” I said weakly.
Lukas took the stool next to me. “No matter what happens, we’ll keep you safe, Jesse.”
“Why are you suddenly being so nice to me?” It was a valid question considering our rocky start. Offering to help find my parents didn’t make him responsible for my safety. I’d told Violet it was because I’d helped their prince, but they’d more than repaid that debt.
He leaned toward me until his warm breath tickled my cheek. “Because someone needs to keep me on my toes.”
A delicious tingle ran down the length of my body. If I turned my head only a few inches, our lips would meet, and I was suddenly, intensely curious about how his would taste. It took more self-control than I’d known I possessed to not give in to the impulse.
Lukas’s phone rang, and I’d never been happier for an interruption. I watched out of the corner of my eye as his lips thinned, and he gave the phone a look of pure annoyance. He swiped the screen to ignore the call and looked at me.
“I have business to see to, so I’ll be out most of the afternoon. One of us will be here at all times, so you won’t be alone.”
“Okay,” I said because what else could I say.
He glanced behind him at the large window in the liv
ing room. “It’s a nice day. Feel free to use the garden if you want some fresh air.”
“I don’t think Kaia will take kindly to a human in her domain.” Remembering the way the lamal had watched me earlier, I suppressed a shudder.
Lukas smiled. “Kaia won’t harm you. But if it will make you more comfortable, I’ll confine her to the library for the afternoon.”
I turned halfway on the stool to look at the garden that was greener and lusher than it should be for this time of year. I’d feel bad about making the lamal leave her little sanctuary, but I would go crazy cooped up in here all day with little to do.
I tugged on my lower lip. “Are you sure it’s safe for me to be around her?”
He stood. “Come. I’ll take you out there myself before I leave.”
I picked up some of the trash from our lunch. “Let me clean this up first.”
“That’s not necessary.”
The words were barely out of his mouth when a short faerie with greenish-brown skin, yellow eyes, and short brown hair appeared on the other side of the island. The brownie kept his gaze averted as he began cleaning up our mess.
“Thank you, Ven.” I handed him the containers I held.
His startled eyes met mine briefly as he took the trash from me. Brownies liked to keep to themselves, and they didn’t normally interact with the people they were serving. Because of that and their ability to move about mostly unseen, people tended to ignore their presence, as Lukas, Iian, and Kerr seemed to be doing now.
I turned back to Lukas to find him watching me with raised eyebrows.
“You know the brownie that cleans my home?”
“Finch told me his name. Brownies do such a great job, and they are rarely thanked for it.”
Iian chuckled. “Cleaning is what they do. They don’t care about being thanked for it.”
I slid off my stool. “Have you ever asked him that?” It was a stupid question because Court faeries rarely conversed with lower faeries, particularly the ones cleaning their toilets.
I followed Lukas to a door that had been concealed by a large tropical fern. He opened the door and motioned for me to go first.
I wasn’t wearing a coat, so I braced myself for the cold. I was shocked when I took a step outside and warm air washed over my skin. It had to be over eighty degrees out here.
I gaped at Lukas. “It’s so warm!”
“There’s a ward shielding the entire building and garden. It keeps people out and allows us to regulate the temperature. Kaia doesn’t mind the cold, but she prefers a warm climate.”
He’d created a little paradise in his backyard just to keep his pet happy. Lukas Rand might be hard and overbearing at times, but he’d just revealed a side of himself that earned him a lot of points in my book.
The covered patio was furnished with a small table and a few cushioned chairs that didn’t look like they were used often. I guessed when you were in the service of the Unseelie Crown, you didn’t have much time to sit around and admire the flowers.
We stepped off the patio onto the grass, and it felt like we’d walked into another world. Everything was green and vibrant, and when I took a deep breath, I inhaled the perfume of gardenias, jasmine, and other flowers I couldn’t identify. Birds sang in the trees, and a few colorful butterflies fluttered past. It was an oasis in a city that would soon feel the first snow of winter.
“This is amazing.” I turned in a slow circle to take it all in. When I stopped, I stifled a gasp, finding myself face-to-face with the lamal I hadn’t heard approach.
“Kaia, this is Jesse,” Lukas said in a quiet but commanding voice. He clasped my hand in his, and before I could recover from the jolt of pleasure that shot through me, he placed our joined hands on Kaia’s head. I instinctively tried to pull mine back, but Lukas held it in place.
“Let her feel you are not afraid of her,” Lukas murmured.
“But I am afraid of her,” I hissed out of the side of my mouth, earning a chuckle from him.
He moved my hand slowly through the thick, warm fur on the back of her head. I startled when I felt a vibration under my fingertips, and it took me a minute to realize she was purring.
Without warning, Lukas released my hand, leaving me touching the lamal. I tensed, but Kaia continued to purr and push against my hand.
“What do I do now?” I asked him.
“Nothing. She knows you’re welcome here and you’re no threat to me.”
I looked up at what I thought was my bedroom window. I couldn’t leave Finch up there alone while I was out here enjoying this little paradise. “What about Finch?”
He smiled like I’d said something funny. “Lamals don’t harm sprites.”
“That’s a relief because I think he’ll like it out here.”
“I’m sure Kaia will enjoy the company.” He reached out to stroke her head. “She’s been alone too much lately.”
I removed my hand from her. “Why didn’t you leave her in Faerie with others of her kind?”
“Lamals imprint on their masters when they are kittens, and they don’t do well with long separations. Kaia is happier here with me than she would be at home without me.”
There was so much I didn’t know about his realm, and I was dying to ask him more questions. But a knock at the window had us turning to see Iian waving Lukas’s phone at him. We went back inside, and Lukas got the same displeased expression on his face when he looked at his phone and saw who had called him. Whoever it was, he did not want to talk to them.
“I should be back by dinner. Kerr will stay with you until we return,” Lukas said to me. “If you need anything, he’ll get it for you.”
“Thanks.”
He and Iian left, and I went upstairs to convince Finch to check out the garden. Sprites loved trees, but he hadn’t seen a real tree since he’d come to live with us. We had tried many times over the years to get him to go outdoors, but he’d refused. He seemed to be doing well here, and I hoped that meant he was ready to take the next step.
It took an hour to coax Finch out of the bedroom. I carried him out to the patio where I was ready for another round of persuading to get him to go into the garden. But I was not prepared for what happened next.
A bird trilled. Finch lifted his head from where he’d been hiding his face against my neck and looked around, trying to locate the bird. The next thing I knew, my little brother leaped from my arms to the thick grass and took off running for the nearest tree. He scaled the trunk of the tree like he’d been doing it his whole life and began imitating the bird’s call.
I knew every whistle Finch made, and I’d never heard these sounds of pure joy from him before. It made my heart fill near to bursting. The last few weeks had been confusing and difficult for him, and he deserved some happiness.
Finch climbed down from the tree and lay sprawled on his back in the grass. I laughed when he fanned his arms and legs like someone making a snow angel. He did that until a butterfly captured his attention and sent him scampering across the garden.
I let out a small scream of horror when Kaia leaped from her hiding place and landed in front of Finch. “Kaia, no!” I cried as the lamal crouched low like a cat stalking a mouse, her hind quarters wriggling in excitement.
Finch moved, but it wasn’t to flee. I watched in shock as the sprite walked up to Kaia and touched her nose. Purple magic flowed from his tiny hand and wafted around the lamal’s head like a fine mist before it dissipated. The next thing I knew, Kaia was rolling around playfully in the grass.
I didn’t realize Kerr was beside me until he spoke. “Sprites are one of the weakest species in Faerie, but their magic can tame the wildest forest beast.”
“I had no idea,” I said as I willed my heart rate back to its normal pace.
“The forests in Faerie hold many dangers, yet the gentle sprites thrive there because Aedhna gave them the power to protect themselves from the strongest predators.”
I turned my head to look at him. �
��The more I hear about your goddess, the more I like her.”
Kerr smiled. “I believe she would like you too, Jesse James.”
I thought about what he’d said later while I sat on one of the patio chairs trying to read. My fingers sought out the small stone hidden in my hair, and I wondered again what it meant. I wished I could ask Kerr, but I wasn’t ready to share my secret. What if it upset the faeries to know a human was in possession of a goddess stone – if indeed this was one? Would they turn against me, or worse, stop helping me search for my parents? Until I knew more about the stone, it was better to keep its existence to myself.
I was in for another pleasant surprise when I went to the kitchen for something to drink and spotted a shiny chrome espresso machine in a corner of the counter. I squeaked in delight and went to check out the expensive machine. How on earth had this beauty escaped my notice? A quick search of the cabinets and fridge revealed several brands of espresso beans and everything needed to make an assortment of espresso drinks.
“Kerr?” I called to the faerie who was nowhere in sight.
He appeared from the hallway that led to the library. “Do you need something?”
“Is it okay if I use the espresso machine?”
“Help yourself to anything in the kitchen,” he said.
I grinned so wide I was sure I showed all my teeth. “Want me to make you something?”
“No, thanks. I never touch the stuff.” He made a face and turned back to the library.
“Okay, but it’s your loss because I make a killer cappuccino.”
I whipped up a drink and took it out to the patio, where I spend the rest of the afternoon, reading, napping, and watching Finch having the time of his life. It was the best day we’d had since before our parents went missing.
It wasn’t until after I’d been out there for hours that I realized I’d left my phone in the bedroom. What if Violet was trying to reach me? Or what if I got another call from Mom’s phone?
Leaving Finch to his fun, I went inside and climbed the stairs to the second floor. There was another flight of stairs to the third floor, but I hadn’t gone up there to see what it was like. It was probably more bedrooms since I doubted any of the males living here would want to share a room. I had wondered briefly where Lukas was sleeping while I was here, and I’d decided that was a detail I didn’t need to know.