by Honor James
“I hope that you are right,” she whispered quietly. “I really do.” Taking a deep breath she shuddered. “I’ve always hated doing it, but I’ve tried so hard to always give the good people a heads-up on what is happening and who’s doing what. I really and truly just wish that more of them could have been saved.”
Shooting his teammate a look, Slade sighed softly. “We saved more than the rumors led most to believe,” he told her honestly. “Except for a couple right at the beginning before we got the idea of what was happening, we’ve saved nearly all of them. Nathaniel just thinks some of them are dead because we set the scenes with a few who were willing to play along.”
She let out a breath. “Thank God. I’m very glad that you were able to save more of them than you weren’t,” she told him honestly. “It makes me all kinds of happy to know that you did that. I appreciate that you all had to work so hard to save them. I tried, I really did try to give as much warning as I could.”
“We know,” Slade said as he drove along. “We appreciate the warning, too, Ms. Michaels. Without it we’d have lost more than we could bear.” Shooting her a look in the mirror, he focused on the road once more.
“Parker. Please call me Parker, not Ms. Michaels.” She should keep the distance between them, knew that she should because it would make it easier when whoever was their leader ordered her death, but still it came out. She closed her mouth then. She found herself wanting to talk to these men, wanting to tell them everything about herself and everything about, well, everything.
She regretted it, Rayne realized, regretted offering the first name. Inhaling deep he frowned and tipped his head, inhaling again slowly. Blinking he had himself a “holy shit!” moment. Poking Slade’s arm he waited until the Mage looked his way and then told him the issue with sign language.
Slade’s eyes went wide at that and he barely kept them from swerving off into a ditch. If she was Rayne’s mate that meant…Holy mother of the Gods, Parker Michaels was his mate, too. The prophecy had said he and Rayne would have the same mate, but this, this, this. He just couldn’t seem to stop that stuttering thought in his head.
“Do you want some water, Parker?” Rayne asked her. “Or we have some juice, too, plus we have a few granola bars kicking around if you want a snack.”
“Water would be lovely please if you wouldn’t mind.” Her head was throbbing, her heart ached, and she just wanted to curl up and cry. She was stronger than that. She knew she was stronger than this. “And if you have some aspirin that would be wonderful as well.” She doubted that they carried something like that in their vehicle but she had to ask all the same because her head felt like it was about to explode. The further from the compound they got, the more her head hurt. “Oh shit.” She grumbled. “Son of a bitch that bastard.” She fisted her hands. “He’s never been able to put anything electronic on or in me but that bastard laid a curse on me.” She touched her nose, felt the wetness, and whispered, “I can’t go.” She swallowed hard. “God I can’t leave or it’s going to kill me.” She whimpered and felt the pain moving down her head and into her spine. “Fuck.” She should have kept her mouth closed. She should have not said anything so that she could save them both pain and suffering from knowing that they had a bond-mate that had caused so many harm.
Slade slammed on the brakes and threw the truck into park before spinning. “What’s wrong?” he demanded, grabbing a couple of napkins to press into her hand. Taking the bottle Rayne handed him he opened it and pressed it into her other hand. “Talk to us, Parker, what’s going on and why is your nose bleeding like that?”
“He could never put a tracker on me because I can explode electronics or make them read what I want them to so instead that bastard put a fucking spell on me.” She held her head and bent slightly. “The further I get from the home base the more that I hurt.”
“Shit, shit, shit,” Slade said and got out of the truck to climb in the back with her. “Rayne, I need you to drive us back toward the compound a bit. Slowly, I’m going to try and get a read on this spell and I need the sat phone, too, the old one I can’t fry.” Taking the phone when Rayne passed it over he dialed the base. “Q, it’s me, we have Parker with us and Nathaniel, who has been an even badder boy than we realized, has put a spell on her to ensure that if she leaves his radius she bleeds out. Thoughts?”
“Call it justice served?” Quincy asked and leaned back in his chair. “She’s one of them. She’s just as bad as they are in my book. She led them to our bond-mates. I say either put a bullet through her brain or let her bleed out.” At the growls Quincy sat forward. “Did you just fucking growl at me? What the Goddamn hell is your malfunction?”
“She’s our mate, asshat, and that was Rayne growling at you,” Slade told Quincy as he smacked Rayne. “Dragons have big ears, Quincy, remember that. Now, let’s try this again and let’s be a little more helpful because if our mate bleeds out or dies you do know the Dragon is coming for you, right?”
“Fuck.” Quincy ran his hands over his face. “Fuck. She’s your…Get back to that later. Right.” He thought for a minute, eating several handfuls of Skittles before he said, “Bond to her. I know it fucking sucks but until I’ve seen the spell on her soul I can’t tell you how to save her. You will have to either bond her to you or wait there until I can get there, you choose.”
Looking around Slade groaned. “We’re in the middle of nowhere, Quincy, in a standard truck, not exactly how I imagined this moment.” Fuck, fuck, fuck. “Can you get to us without Talon blowing a conniption with you leaving the base?” he asked.
A flash of light to the side of them and Quincy knocked on their window. “Of course I can. King of the Mage and all that,” he said with a grin and looked at Parker. What he saw nearly had him going to his knees. “Fuck me.” He breathed out and gulped, literally. “How old are you, Parker?” He breathed very, very quietly.
“Twenty-seven,” came the reply from the woman that turned toward him. “You have a bond-mate,” she whispered. “But…” She cocked her head to the side. “I’ve never seen that one.” It was a very, very, very thin line that raced from Quincy to Parker. “What is that?”
“Fuck. What are your parents’ names?”
“Lydia and Michael Michaels. Yeah, I know silly. At one time I had found a birth certificate but it held the name Wallace.”
Quincy’s knees buckled slightly. “Fuck,” he breathed again.
“Lydia and Michael were my adopted parents though. Evidently they adopted me from people who were more into themselves than anyone else. I remember them, the people that had been my birth parents. I also remember a brother. A young man who seemed to take the brunt of the abuse that the couple doled out.”
Quincy looked to Slade and then Rayne. “Fuck.” He seemed to be stuck on that word. “Goddammit.” He growled and walked from the truck, his hands fisting and tugging at his hair and cussing the whole time.
“Why is he so angry?” she asked as she listened to the swearing that had her wincing more than once. “It’s because you haven’t killed me yet, isn’t it?”
“No one is fucking killing you!” Quincy shouted back toward the truck and approached it quickly. “Parker was my uncle’s name,” he told her softly. “My last name is Wallace. It seems as if your parents, Mage as well by the way, saved your ass so that you didn’t suffer the same abuse that I had.”
She didn’t understand. Shaking her head she whispered, “Okay…and?”
“And you are my fucking sister,” Quincy shouted at her which made her wince and tug back from him in fear.
“Quit yelling at our mate, Mage,” Rayne snarled from the front seat. “I can easily make your son the next one in line for the Throne right fast if you keep it up.”
“All right, everyone chill,” Slade said, putting a hand on Rayne’s shoulder while he used the other to rub Parker’s back. “You’re her brother, she’s our mate, Nathaniel did something to her that is killing her, Quincy. I’m a Sorcerer a
nd, if I had my books and time I might be able to figure this out but you’ve got the whole ball of wax built in. Just do something please.”
Quincy nodded and looked at her. “No wonder I just knew that I knew you.” Shaking himself out of it he looked to her and nodded. “What I’m going to do might hurt you but don’t fight me. I won’t let you die,” he assured her and looked to the men. “She’s my blood. You know what that means to me. She’s as important to me as Maya. Are you going to let me do what I need to do?” He knew to ask when there was a Dragon about to shift and a Sorcerer who at times scared the shit out of Quincy with how powerful he was.
“Do what needs doing,” Slade said and looked to Rayne, who gave a jerky nod. “Ease down, big guy, she’s safe, Quincy’s not going to harm her,” he murmured quietly. Slade waited until Rayne relaxed and the Dragon was less prominent before looking to Quincy. “Do it, Q,” he said to the Mage and rubbed Parker’s back. “Trust him, Parker, he’s going to undo whatever Nathaniel did.”
Parker nodded and closed her eyes. “I will trust you,” she whispered to let her walls down. When she did she could hear the jumble of thoughts from all of them and had to fight herself from tossing her walls back up, especially when she felt Quincy there in her mind.
“Shield your thoughts. She’s able to read every single thing in your mind and it’s hurting her,” Quincy barked out as he shifted through Parker’s mind and then smiled. “There it is. Fuck.” He pulled back suddenly and looked at her with wide eyes. “Oh Goddamn. I can’t pull that one out,” he whispered in shock. “It wasn’t just any Mage who did it. Fucking Chaos marked her. You are going to have to call Talon because only Cin can save her. Fuck.” He growled. “And it’s not pretty.” He had seen what it did to the Vampires. Fuck, what was it going to do to his baby sister?
Shielding Rayne while Quincy worked, Slade kept his thoughts benign and calm. Blinking at Quincy’s words he shook his head. “How?” Slade asked, hearing the same question from Rayne from the connection. “When would Chaos have had the chance?” he said, handing the sat phone to Rayne when the thought formed in the Dragon’s mind to call Talon.
“Likely when he saved her life,” Quincy said and kept hold of Parker’s hand. “You saw the footage. She was covered in Dragon’s Fire. Dragon’s Fire can’t be put out with a stop, drop, and roll kind of thing.” He rubbed his forehead and paced. “Fuck. How the Goddamn hell could he have fucking done this?”
“Another Dragon could have put the fire out, Quincy,” Rayne said, dropping the phone on the passenger seat. “Talon is going to collect Cin but he can’t until they finish at the compound. He has the Guards taking her to the base and he wants you to do your slippy thing to get her here and back out. He doesn’t want to chance her being driven here.”
“He needs to be sure to send her Guards as well. We need to protect her even more now.” Quincy didn’t say anything else. Touching Parker’s cheek, he smiled. “A sister. Who the fuck would have ever known?” he asked in shock. “Are you boys going to be fine here? I will come back with a contingent of Dragons and Guards that I’m going to assign to her as well.”
“Guards? Am I going from being prisoner in one place to being one in another?” Parker whispered softly.
“No, Park, you aren’t going to be anyone’s prisoner but you are my sister. I need to have you safe. Your men are excellent and some of the best, but I’m totally good and down with having far more than necessary,” he told her. “Boys, are you good while I slide back?” he asked without moving his eyes from Parker’s face, amazement clear in his gaze.
“Yeah we’re good,” Slade said and looked around. “Though we are going to move off the road I think into that copse of trees.” He pointed back a little more toward the base. “Good cover and far enough in no one will spot us from the road.”
Parker felt more than saw Quincy leaving and closed her eyes again. “Oh God why do I feel that this is going to be a very, very bad thing? That whatever is about to happen is going to be really, really bad?” she asked softly. “What is happening?”
“Technically we can’t say until everyone arrives,” Slade told her. “But it’s not bad, freaky as hell but not bad. Cin will be able to help you,” he said, shutting the door. “Rayne, why don’t you move us to a bit of cover. I’m feeling seriously exposed out here.” And he knew the Dragon would be, too.
Parker kept her mouth closed. She was a pro at hiding everything inside of her. It was the one and only way that she had survived as long as she had. Leaning her head back against the headrest she simply closed her eyes. “I will trust you guys,” she whispered. She trusted them because when she was honest with herself, she knew that they were her bond-mates and she theirs and they would take care of her.
Throwing a look in the mirror as he repositioned them, Rayne stayed quiet. He was still fighting the Dragon.
“Just relax and rest, Parker,” Slade murmured softly to her. Sitting back he rubbed at his forehead. How the hell had all this gotten so complicated? He’d always been anxious to meet his mate. Yes, he was sharing her but didn’t mind and he liked Rayne. He was a great guy. Lousy poker player but great guy and there when needed.
Chapter Four
Cinnamon giggled as she stepped from the Slipstream tunnel that Quincy had opened. “You know that Talon will be all grumbly when we get back right? He’s great with his son but he gets really, really cranky when I’m not around to play mediator between father and the toddler.” Mostly because their little boy had Talon wrapped so tightly around his little finger that Talon did what the child wanted without Talon even realizing it.
“T-Rex will survive. He loves time with the little fire-breather,” Quincy told her and pointed toward the truck tucked neatly into the grouping of trees.
She then looked at the vehicle and she paused. “Oh my,” she whispered and the angel flowed free. “Take me and introduce me to your sister, Quincy,” she murmured. “So that I can hopefully save her before Nathaniel gets to Chaos and he destroys the girl.”
Guiding her to the SUV he pulled the door open. “Parker, this is Cinnamon, she’s…special. She’s going to pull the Darkness from within. Hopefully in time,” he added under his breath. Looking to the Guards that continued to step out of the Slipstream he waved them into a protection net.
Parker nodded and saw the pure glow of goodness. Smiling, she whispered, “You have a bond-mate as well. I see the tie between the two of you, but you”—she reached out and let her hand move lightly through the shimmer that only she could see—“are stunningly beautiful.”
Cin smiled. “Thank you. You truly see the being that I am. You, more than anyone else in the world, can see the truth of just who I am,” she murmured. “Now then, I need you to step out of the vehicle please.” She looked to the men and smiled. “Rayne, Slade.” She bowed her head to them. “I see you have found your mate, gentlemen. That’s very good, my friends.”
Parker moved and fumbled for the door handle. It took her several moments but finally was able to open the door. Moving from the men she heard a growl again and smiled. “Do you want me to wait, Rayne?”
“No,” Rayne grumbled but he got out of the truck and moved around. “I just don’t like what’s coming.” He’d seen it too often when Cin had been helping those Vampires she could, the pain she put them through, and they were immortal beings. Shutting his thoughts down tight he leaned against the corner panel of the truck to keep watch.
Parker slid out and placed her hand in the woman’s hand. She smiled trustingly up at the “face” of the woman and nodded. “Thank you for this. I just…” She sighed. “I just want to be free,” she whispered. Even if it meant death she just was desperate for freedom.
“I’m so sorry, Parker,” Cinnamon said and then nodded to Quincy. “Catch her when she falls but do not touch her until then.” When the man nodded she didn’t even hesitate but reached in. It was as if she were stabbing her hands into the woman’s head and the screams th
at came from Parker were expected.
Pain. Blinding and true pain filled her. Never before had she had such pain. Even when she had been beaten almost to death it hadn’t hurt this much. She was screaming so much that her voice cracked. Her mouth only let out croaking sounds after a time and then suddenly it was gone and she dropped. Blinding pain and then nothing.
Cinnamon tossed the writhing mass of Darkness that she pulled from Parker to the ground and then sent electricity into it, burning it as it writhed. “That was harder than I had ever believed it would have been. She’s so much more than she appears though,” she whispered to them. “All right, Q, take me home. Talon is having a fit because he felt me taking as much of the pain from her as I could.” And she hadn’t been able to take a great deal of it either.
Easing Parker back into the SUV Quincy looked to her two mates. “You can drive her to the plane and get her home,” Quincy said softly. “She’ll recover in time, but she’ll need a little time to sleep off the effects.” Stepping back he moved to Cin and the Dragon Guards that waited. Looking to them all he opened a Slipstream and guided them all through.
Looking to Rayne, Slade shrugged. “Might as well get driving, we’ve been dismissed.”
* * * *
She didn’t understand the movements she was feeling when she began to wake. She was, in a bed? Sitting up she weaved and lay back down. “Oh God,” she whispered and put her hands to her head as she did so. “Where are we?” She felt someone close to her. She couldn’t tell who it was though. When the bed dipped again she realized that she had been surrounded by both men in the bed.
“Airplane,” Rayne told her while Slade collected water and a couple pills for her head. “Lay still. Slade is getting you something for the headache.”
Sitting back down on the other side of her Slade touched her hand. “Two tablets,” he told her before setting them in her palm. “And I have water, too. Rayne will lift you a bit so you can take a swallow or two.”