by Karlik, Mary
Theo nodded. “We’re a team. We’ll fight him together.”
“Aye.” Layla turned back to the globe holding her sister. “And how’s Jack?”
“Awake. Hopefully, resting,” Theo answered.
Layla leaned against the globe wishing she could reach right through it to take Esme out of that awful pose. “How much time do we have left?”
Buzzard checked his mobile. “Twenty minutes, maybe.”
Twenty minutes left of her life. Of all their lives. “I don’t know what to do. If we break the globes, we’ll kill the fey. If we don’t, Fauth will take them and kill us just for fun.”
Shona stood nearby with her hands pressed against the glass that held her man. She heaved a sob as she cut her eyes to Layla. “Please help him.”
Layla met Shona’s grieving gaze and the cràdh laughed. “I can’t do it. I can’t save any of them.”
Shona cried, “Then end his suffering. Remove the glass.”
Layla moved next to Shona and peered at the fairy in the globe. “I can’t.”
Shona twisted her hands. “He’s my man—I can’t do it myself or I would. I know he’d rather die than suffer like this. You’re the only one left with magic enough and if you don’t, he’ll suffer worse than death.”
She was right. It was better to die now than have his soul gradually siphoned from him. Layla nodded. “Okay. I’ll do it.” And her heart shattered because she knew she’d end Esme’s suffering next.
Shona kissed the glass and backed away.
Before Layla began, she turned to the lads who had accepted her as part of the team. “I’m sorry. Lives have been risked and lost, and all for what? So we could kill the fairies ourselves? I wish it could’ve been different. But know it’s been honor working with you.”
Buzzard rubbed his scalp. “It’s not over yet, fairy.”
Biting her lip to contain her emotions, she gazed at the rest of the fairies gathered in silence. “I’m sorry. I failed you.”
Longing to somehow ease the pain she saw in the hopeless faces, she turned back to the globe. She didn’t want to break the glass as she’d done with Isla. And making it disappear wouldn’t be much different from breaking it. “Where’s the pendant holding his essence?”
Shona lifted the necklaces over her head and laid them on the ground. She searched through them until she found the one she needed.
Layla held her hands over the globe. “When I open the globe, put it around him. I don’t want him to die without his brìgh.”
Shona flew above the globe with the icicle pendant in position to drop around his neck. “I’m ready.”
Layla stretched the slot in the top of the globe until it formed an opening wide enough to place the icicle around the man’s neck. She nodded, and Shona dropped the necklace around him.
When the glass fell against his chest, a spark flared like a just-lit candle. The skin beneath fairy glowed and the glow blossomed until it filled every part of him from the tips of his fingers to the ends of his toes. The light changed his skin from dull, inanimate porcelain to pink, imperfect, living tissue. His eyes opened and he gasped and gulped deep breaths.
A second blinding blue light flashed and the glass exploded. Layla held her breath and prayed that he hadn’t been brought back to life only to die in the explosion. But in the next instant, the fairy fluttered his wings and looked around with the confusion of someone waking from a deep sleep.
He blinked at Shona. “What happ—”
His words were cut short as Shona wrapped him in a tight hug. She spun him around and looked at Layla. “Thank you for figuring it out.”
“Figuring it out? It was a beautiful accident.”
A little flicker of hope settled in Layla’s heart as she human-sized and turned to the globe that held Esme. She knelt over her sister and pulled the icicle pendant from the slot in the top of the globe. Then she stretched the slot until it was wide enough to place the necklace around Esme.
And just as with Shona’s man, there was a spark as the icicle settled against her sister’s chest. Layla held her breath as she watched Esme’s skin transform from porcelain to living tissue. Unlike Shona’s man, Esme didn’t gasp for breath when she awoke. Instead, she closed her wings and collapsed to her knees. And Layla’s heart squeezed.
As soon as the blue flash shattered the glass, Layla fey-sized and flung herself at Esme. “I found you!”
Esme’s whole body shook as she clung to Layla and cried. “You saved me. I was horrible to you. And you saved me. Can you ever forgive me?”
Tears streamed down Layla’s face as she held her sister tight. “There’s nothing to forgive.”
Happiness filled every part of Layla. She’d found her sister. Sorrow and despair might be five minutes away, but for this moment, in the human world, she had her sister and she was going to rejoice. She held Esme at arms’ length. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
Esme grinned as with a shaky hand she wiped tears from her cheeks. “How did you manage it? How did you free me?”
“With magic. I have magic.”
Esme’s eyes grew wide and her mouth gaped open. “You…have magic.”
Layla hugged Esme tight again. “Aye.”
Buzzard knelt next to them. “Good job, wee lass. Now we need to free the rest of the fairies.”
Theo added, “We have maybe fifteen minutes.”
Layla helped Esme up and away from the shattered glass. “There are a lot of fairies trapped in globes.”
Esme stretched her wings. “Tell me what to do.”
“Aye.” Backing away from Esme, she human-sized and spoke to the room. “Anyone who has enough power to open the top, choose a partner and get started. Work quickly—we don’t have much time.”
The fey worked as fast as they could. It didn’t take long for the freed fairies to pair up and continue the process. Flashes of blue popped as bits of glass tinkled to the floor. A cacophony of fey voices began to fill the room and Layla’s heart wrenched. She had freed them, but could she save them?
Theo took a few crunching steps toward her and tapped his wrist. “Times up.”
A hair-raising shriek blasted from beyond the church.
Fauth had arrived.
Layla’s pulse pounded wildly as she surveyed the room of living, breathing, wonderfully alive fairies. “Fauth has come to fetch you. Remember, you are safe as long as you stay on holy ground.”
She rushed from the cellar, grabbing her weapons on her way up to the church. Theo and Buzzard followed her through the nave, past St. George, and out the doors to the fenced yard in front. The church door swung open again.
They turned to see Jack in the doorway. Theo said, “You should—”
“—be with my team.” He was pale and looked like a wee breeze might knock him flat, but the determination in his voice was enough to keep anybody from arguing.
Fauth stood in the center of the lane with Ian at his side like a faithful pet. Smoke billowed from Ian’s snout and his eyes glowed like rubies.
Layla couldn’t accept that he’d been lost to them completely. Their hearts had beat as one. She’d given him a piece of her soul. Surely that counted for something. But if there was a spell to awaken him, she had no idea what it might be. Besides, if she shot a spell at the dragon and failed, she’d likely enrage it and shut Ian further away. To awaken Ian, she needed a more subtle approach, one the dragon wouldn’t see coming.
So she willed her brìgh, her soul, to reach out to him, to work its way to his heart. It filtered through the dragon, chilling her with the loneliness of a soulless beast. The emptiness in her soul was almost too much, but then she felt the faintest sense of the man trapped inside the beast. The dragon’s eyes flickered from crimson to a very Ian-like blue.
She pushed harder until her brìgh found the little piece of her soul she’d left behind. As the two connected, her heart leapt. The joining of their souls opened a pathway of sorts between the two beings.
She allowed kindness, compassion, and love to flow from her to him until slowly the dragon gave way and Ian began to transform back to himself.
It started with his eyes and then his whole body began to take on a human form.
Before it was completed, though, Fauth held up his walking stick like a scepter. “Oh no, you don’t. He belongs to me.” A light flashed from the orb to Ian.
The dragon inside raged as it took back its form and shut the human away.
Fauth might control the dragon, but Layla had connected her brìgh with the man. That connection was more powerful than magic. Her magic might fail her, but her brìgh never would and every chance she got, she’d pour the good things of her soul into his until the human had power over the dragon once again.
Fauth turned back to Layla. “As for the rest of my belongings…”
She only had one working wing, but she snapped it open in defiance. “They are not yours. We freed them.”
He smiled. “You may have removed their chains, but they are still mine.”
“You’ll have to go through us first.” Theo stood shoulder to shoulder with Jack, Buzzard, and Layla.
“That is the plan.” Fauth tipped the globe end of the stick toward them.
As soon as Layla saw his arm move, she shot a stream of magic at him. He didn’t try to resist as she pushed it deep inside him and searched for the source of his magic.
Nothing. Just cold, empty hatred.
When she released him, the only indication that he’d been hit with magic was a slight step back to keep his balance. “Looking for something?”
The globe. He’d transferred his magic to the globe on top of the walking stick. She pointed at the orb.
He aimed it at Ian with a satisfied smirk. “Before your magic hits it, he’ll be dead.”
She wasn’t sure his stream of power would hit the dragon first, but neither was she willing to risk Ian’s life.
Fauth’s eyes tracked her hand until she’d lowered it to her side. He centered the walking stick in front of him and leaned on the globe. “You’ve taken a considerable amount of my inventory. I want it back. You can fight me now and die, or you can return what belongs to me and then die. The choice is yours. Either way, you die and I win.”
The odds of their winning against Fauth were slim, but Layla wasn’t giving in yet. And she sure wasn’t going to let the beast see the nerves quaking inside her. She set her jaw and took a bold step closer. “I’ll never turn them over to you.”
Fauth raised his stick again. “Have it your way.”
The church door swung open.
Esme screamed her name.
Layla didn’t dare turn her back on Fauth. “Go back inside, Esme.”
Fauth huffed his shoulders. “What now?” He pointed at Esme. “I know you. You were just a baby when I ate your mother.” He licked his lips as if he tasted remnants of the fey.
Esme flew next to her sister and grew to the size of a small human child. “You’re Fauth? You attacked the fête.”
“Not my finest work. I should never have let them catch me.”
“Why do you hate us so much?” Esme took a defiant stand in front of Fauth.
Layla’s gut wrenched. What was her sister doing? This was not the time to be bold. “Esme, go back to the kirk. You’ll be safe there.”
Esme ignored Layla and moved closer to Fauth. “Why take the most peaceful of all creatures and torture us?”
“Peaceful? The fey turned me to human form and banished me to this world.”
Layla eased toward her sister. If Fauth attacked Esme, she’d do her best to protect her—even if it meant breaking her link with Ian. “You ravished our world. You hunted the fey like prey. We could have killed you, but it’s not our way. We gave you a life.”
His eyes turned dark and his tongue darted in and out of his mouth like that of a lizard. “This stinking, rotting place. It took years for me to figure out the human form. But I studied their ways and discovered they aren’t so different from a dragon.”
He stepped back and held his arms wide. “They have the same desire for pretty things. Their trophies may not be full of gold and jewels, but they’re pretties just the same.” He tapped his stick, sending red streaks crackling across the ground.
Esme shook out her hands and Layla saw blue sparks of magic dance on her sister’s fingertips. Then it became clear why Esme was baiting Fauth. She was going to try to use her magic against him. Esme’s skills were excellent, but she was no match for that beast.
When the time came, Layla would fight him. She didn’t expect to defeat him, but if she kept him occupied, maybe the humans and fairies could make their escape. But if Esme shot first, the results would be disastrous. She had to prepare now.
Layla focused her magic in her center. If she could build it and hold it there, it would be at its strongest when she needed it. But as soon as she tried to increase it, a tug of war began between her brìgh and her magic.
She pulled back on her magic and concentrated on her brìgh. Little jolts of warmth pulsed through her core right to her heart. Was Ian awakening inside the beastie? If she could keep Fauth talking and her sister from being rash, maybe she could avoid using magic until Ian was back in control.
Fauth twirled the walking stick. “Now bring me those dirty little fey.”
Layla straightened her back and expanded her good wing. “Never.”
Fauth looked beyond her. “It seems never has arrived.” His laugh cracked through the air like lightning.
Leo and Riley led the fairies who’d been a part of the rescue down the steps to the kirkyard fence. They’d grown their size and would have looked like a group of school children had it not been for their wings and mature faces.
Layla held up a hand. “Stay inside the fence. He can’t harm you there.”
Fauth aimed the globe at Layla. “I’m losing my patience. They can’t stay in sanctuary forever. So let’s hurry this up, shall we? Come to me now or watch as I torture and kill your savior.”
Leo opened the gate and led the fairies through to the other side of the kirkyard. They held hands and formed a line between the dragons and Layla.
Fauth towered over them. “Isn’t that sweet? One last stand against your master.” He flicked his gaze to the church. “But this isn’t all. Come out, dirty little fairies,” he called. “Or one by one I’ll torture your kinsmen until you meet my demands.” He tipped the globe toward Leo. “Any final words?”
Esme shot a stream at the staff of the walking stick, knocking it from Fauth’s hand. It spun across the ground. Theo, Buzzard, and Layla all scrambled after it.
Layla seized the stick with her hand.
Fauth slammed his foot on her injured wing shooting pain through her causing her to release the walking stick. Fauth commanded the stick to his palm as Jack helped Layla stand.
And then, as though a flame had been ignited, warmth filled every part of her brìgh. She glanced at Ian. Deep blue eyes replaced the ruby colored ones long enough for him to connect his gaze with Layla’s. It lasted less than a blink, but she knew Ian was finally in control.
He reared back on his hind legs and spewed fire into the sky.
It was just enough distraction to allow Layla to shoot a stream of magic at the globe of the walking stick.
It didn’t blast open as she’d hoped. But she felt its power and it was daunting. No wonder Fauth had discharged the magic he’d stolen into the walking stick. That much power inside any creature would surely kill it.
But she did what she could—she commanded the stick to herself.
Jack sidled closer to Layla and pulled her sword from the scabbard. Before anybody could react, he let out a warrior’s cry and attacked Fauth, knocking him to his back. But the charge seemed to have taken all of Jack’s energy. The color drained from his face as he wrapped his hands around the hilt of the sword and tried to strike the creature in the heart.
Fauth grabbed Jack’s wrist and stopped th
e sword from touching his skin.
The agent’s face reddened as he pushed against the dragon-man. But the struggle didn’t last long. In his weakened state, Jack was no match for Fauth. His elbows gave as Fauth forced the blade up and wrenched the sword out of his hands.
As soon as Fauth had control of the sword, he flung Jack onto his back and pressed the blade against his throat. “You decide. My walking stick—or I kill him and eat his heart in front of you.”
Layla lowered the stick. “Let him go first?”
“You misunderstand. This isn’t about letting him go. This is about letting him live. For now.”
She tossed the walking stick to Fauth. He caught it with his free hand and tipped the globe toward Ian. Magic streamed from the globe into the dragon. “You are mine.”
Layla’s brìgh turned cold as the dragon regained control of Ian. She struggled not to panic. Their souls were still connected. If he’d awakened once, he could do it again. Slowly she began to pour good things into him.
Fauth aimed the globe at Theo and shot a red charge from it.
His body jerked violently as he dropped to the ground. Energy surged in Layla’s brìgh. Was Ian conscious of what had happened to Theo or was he just mirroring the anguish she felt?
Theo’s arms drew up to his chest and his feet pointed down as his body convulsed. The muscles contracted and jerked, stopping the passage of air into his lungs. Foam formed at the corners of his mouth and his face turned blue.
Next Fauth shot a stream into Buzzard, dropping him to the ground in convulsions. “Two humans down. One to go.”
“Stop it! You’re killing them!”
Fauth looked at Layla and blinked. “That is the point.” He smelled the air and then leaned close to Jack’s ear. “Smell that. It is the sweet smell of impending death.”
Jack struggled against him.
Fauth pressed the blade into Jack’s skin until a trickle of blood lined it. “Yes, put up a fight.” His lizard tongue shot out of his mouth and licked blood from the agent’s neck.
He smacked his lips and shook his head. “Vile. Not to my liking at all.” He stepped back and shot Jack with same jolt with which he’d hit Buzzard and Theo.