Piles of books, some had the appearance of being ancient and others like they’d just been bought, littered every surface. In one corner, an area devoid of furniture had what looked like salt sprinkled on the floor and candles sitting in pools of hardened wax.
“Come now, we have no time to lose. Even though they haven’t been able to determine your exact location, those who seek to return you to your prison know in which direction you travel. Maggie has informed me that they search blindly, and they are closer than we anticipated.”
“She mind-speaks with you like Zenon and I do?” Nickie asked.
The witch gave her a funny look. “No dearie. She shot me an email. I wish we had that ability. It would come in handy.”
Nickie bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing.
“What other information can you share, witch? And what is the price you seek for helping us?” Zenon asked.
If there has ever been an altruistic witch, I have never met him or her, he’d told her the night they’d shared their memories a couple of days before. Had it only been that long? It felt like a lifetime ago.
“I seek no fee or payment in form of favors at this time. We repay a debt in the hopes that when the time comes, the phoenixes will rise and aid us all.”
His denial seeped into Nickie, but he kept the words to himself.
“What debt do you repay?”
“You once saved a girl from a fate much worse than death. She was my ancestor. My sisters and I would not exist had it not been for your bravery and the goodness in your soul. Now, pay attention. This is important,” Hazel said in a school teacher’s tone that brooked no argument. “Dusk settles upon us, and the enemy will come. You must be gone before they arrive. I can trick them into following the wrong path for a time, but they will not give up.”
The girl from the village. It had been so long ago, yet the memory was as fresh as the day it happened. He nodded. “We will leave at once,” Zenon said, startling Nickie.
Hazel snapped her gaze at him, impatience evident in the stare. “You cannot fly. Even if they didn’t have spells to show your phoenix form, an industrial heat sensor will be enough to alert them of your presence.”
Nickie gasped. “We can’t very well walk, it’s too far. What are we going to do?”
“I’ve arranged for transportation. It will not be easy, especially for you, phoenix, but it will be safe. Remember that.”
Nickie’s heart thudded hard. Whatever she was alluding to wasn’t going to be good. Hazel straightened her spine, and even though it did nothing to make her any taller, her power grew with the movement.
“What do you propose?” Zenon asked. Already, he had shouldered himself in front of her as though he would protect her from whatever Hazel demanded.
“I will send you to a different location—a portal, so to speak. But the magic I must use will be strong. In order for either of you to come out on the other side intact, I must connect you.”
Nickie breathed a sigh of relief. “We’re already mated, so no need to worry about that.”
“Yes, you have the soul bond. That is crucial, and without it, we would have been left with very few options, but we must bind your physical forms, as well. Tether you to one another. With magic.”
A noise that was almost a growl rumbled from Zenon.
“I will not force it upon you, phoenix. I’ve seen what you’ve suffered. But I will tell you that if you do not leave here in the next few minutes, neither of you will be safe. Your captors don’t care that your mate has done nothing to merit what they plan on doing to you both. They will use your bond—your love—to hurt one another, as well as physical pain to damage the body.”
Burgundy flames burst onto his skin, licking up his arms and over his neck. Zenon clenched his fists. “Show me,” he demanded.
Hazel flicked her wrist and held out her hand. Where it had been empty a moment before, fancy manacles dangled from her fingers. All around the wristband, a pinkish scroll glowed and pulsed like a living thing.
“No,” Nickie shouted, backing away. She didn’t care that the witch was trying to help. After thousands of years in captivity, those would be worse than death for him. “That’s not necessary.”
Hazel huffed and swung the shackles from one finger. “Don’t you think I would do it differently if I could? If you separate during the transition, it will mean disaster, not only for you, but for the entire planet. We cannot risk it. In order for any of this to work, you must remain together—strong. Not just in transition, but afterward,” she said, casting each of them a pointed stare.
Nickie tugged at Zenon’s hand, but he didn’t budge. Opening her mind to him, she witnessed the warring inside him—his need to keep her safe no matter what. He would even give up his freedom if it came down to that. Fuck that shit. “We’ll figure it out. There’s got to be a better way.”
When he looked down at her, she glimpsed his fear in the depths of his eyes, but more than that, his resolve.
“Do it,” he told the witch through gritted teeth even though his gaze didn’t leave hers.
“No, don’t. Don’t do this. It’s not worth it,” she pleaded, tugging against him when he lifted his hand—and hers—so Hazel could apply the restraint, but she was no match for his strength.
Hazel latched one manacle onto Nickie’s wrist, then the other onto Zenon’s. “It will release on its own on the other side. The magic will hold while you’re in transition. We have not had enough time to adequately prepare for this, so other casters will sense the magic even if they can’t follow. They will try to stop it, but they don’t know of your mating. They will not succeed.”
“Where are you sending us?” Nickie asked, even as she tried to tug the fancy restraint off her wrist.
“All will be well, mate,” Zenon assured her, pulling her closer.
She blinked fast, drying the moisture pooling in her eyes. “It better be, because if you do this to save me and something goes wrong, I’ll never forgive myself—or you.”
Hazel made a chortling sound. “Right. Come now,” she said, waving them toward the corner where white powder now formed a half circle.
As soon as she and Zenon were within it, the floor vibrated beneath her feet, and the salt closed around them. Smoke rose from the blackened wicks before tiny flames lit each candle.
Hazel took a deep breath and gave Zenon a solemn nod. “It is time. If we slip past their spell casters, the transition will be quick. If not, it will feel like an eternity, but in reality, it will be but a few minutes. Together, you will conquer. Be well, friends.”
She opened her mouth to say something else, but the sound of a heavy vehicle outside had her snapping it shut again.
When Nickie looked at Hazel again, a tall, slender woman stood in her place. Long red hair cascaded from her head in gorgeous waves. She winked at Nickie, then lifted her hands in the air. Her voice, fresh and silky, curled around them, but Nickie didn’t understand the words.
Inside the circle, the candles grew brighter until she could hardly see the other woman at all. The manacle at her wrist tightened until it was snug. She heard Zenon’s gasp and ensuing grunt as his did the same. His whole body was rigid next to her. Wishing things could be different wouldn’t change what was happening, but at least she could send her love to him. Hopefully, that would be enough to see him through whatever was happening. Because no matter what, being restrained again after such a short time of freedom had to be hell.
Chapter 20
Zenon’s skin pulled tight as though it no longer fit his body. Every bone and muscle ached. Scorching heat lit his insides on fire, but all he could focus on was the magic infused alloy at his wrist. When he’d been restrained before, he’d had no choice. This time, he’d allowed it. And more than that, he’d taken Nickie’s choice away from her by presenting her wrist, as well.
If he ended up in that godforsaken field again with his mate at his side, suffering as he had, he would never forgive hi
mself. And she shouldn’t, either.
“Stop. It’s not going to happen. Hazel’s helping us, not delivering us to the enemy,” Nickie said into his mind, her voice like a cool breeze to soothe his torment.
“What if we’re wrong?” he asked. Her reassurance might not be founded, but he needed it all the same.
“We’re not. But if we were, we’d deal with it. Together.” Her fingers squeezed his as the room they’d been standing in faded, then disappeared altogether.
One moment, they were standing in Hazel’s living room, the next, they were hurtling through time and space at speeds even he had never traveled. Nickie cried out, and more than anything, he wished to hold her and offer comfort, but as though frozen in stasis, his body refused to move.
Flashes of light zoomed past them. Stars? Energy? He couldn’t tell, but the brightness hurt his sensitive eyes.
“No, don’t let go,” he heard her screaming as though from a great distance. He hadn’t let go, never would. Her hand was still snug in his, their fingers entwined.
“I’m here, my Nickie.” His voice sounded weak in his mind. He sought the link to her, found it, and latched on. Whatever was happening, he would fight with every ounce of energy he had. He would not lose her. “Tell me what you see. What is happening?” he demanded.
The utter silence that followed had his heart stuttering. “Nickie,” he yelled into her mind.
“I’m here. It’s dark and cold, but I’m okay.”
Dark and cold? That was not right. “Come closer to me. I will keep you warm,” he said, unable to keep the panic from his voice.
“Where are you?”
He heard her fear, and worse, her emotional pain sizzled along their link. The spell casters were doing something to her.
“I’m right here. Your hand is still in mine. Fight it, my Nickie. Feel my fingers around yours. I didn’t let go. I won’t.” As sluggish as his body was, he squeezed it so she would know the truth.
“I felt that. Why can’t I see you?” she asked, her voice steadier than it had been.
“They’re trying to trick us, but they cannot. Remember? We are mated. Our bond is unbreakable. Even if our fingers slipped, the shackles would keep us together.” Whether him talking to her helped or not, he couldn’t tell, but it made him feel better.
The air around him shifted, and some of the lethargy plaguing him evaporated. When he was able to move his head, he turned it toward where Nickie was, seeing her, yet not. It was as though she was made of mist. Anger burned inside him once more. It was one thing for the spell casters to attack him, but quite another to go after his mate. With more energy than it should have taken, he pulled her roughly to him. Surprised by the solidity of her body, he wrapped his free arm around her shoulder, anchoring her to his chest.
She gasped and looked up at him, her eyes wide. “Oh, there you are,” she said, her voice stronger than it had been.
“Here I am. I would never let you go,” he vowed again.
“They said you would. In my head. That you’d decided you didn’t want me,” she said, a slight wobble in her voice tore his heart to shreds.
He shook his head, never taking his gaze from hers. “They lied. That would never happen. You are the other half of my soul, my Nickie. I cannot exist without you. I would not wish to do so, even if I could.”
Her smile started small, but it grew with each passing second. Bit by bit, her body became less transparent. “How can they make it sound so real?”
“They play upon our fears, bolstering them, using our own minds against us. We must resist.” Before she could respond, stabbing pain seared through his mind like a hot poker.
The magical band around his wrist sizzled, blistering the skin beneath. The scent of charred flesh burned his nostrils, but Nickie’s smile remained. If anything, it took on a sinister look that had him recoiling.
“They want us to give up, but we won’t, will we?” she asked.
When he didn’t respond, her eyes widened, wicked glee shining from their depths. “I won’t let you go. I’ve got you,” she threatened. The arm she’d wrapped around his back tightened.
The fiery heat at his wrist shot up his arms and circled his neck like a noose—or a collar. They had tricked him again. Not with a child in distress, but with a false mate. He was going back to the field to suffer after having tasted a moment of freedom and the softness of a woman.
Nickie looked up at him, and for a second, he could almost hear her maniacal laughter bouncing around in his head, but then she repeated her words. “I won’t let you go. You’re mine to love and to cherish. Forever.”
Her gentle caress in his mind cooled the raging fire. It filled him with everything Nickie, shoving the rest out until nothing but her love and devotion remained.
She didn’t stop until he sagged against her, eyes closed as relief poured into him, and even then, she maintained the connection.
He sucked one ragged breath in after the other, taking cool air into his lungs as he released the fear that had overtaken him. Just the thought of captivity had driven him to the brink of insanity. He would not survive it again. Not intact.
“We made it,” Nickie said as the restrains around both of their wrists popped open, then disappeared as though they had never existed. She brought her hands up, driving her fingers through his hair and bringing his face down to his. Her kiss was hard and fast. “I don’t ever want to see that horror on your face when you look at me again.”
It wasn’t until she released him that he peered around them. Night had fallen. Up above, millions of stars twinkled in the inky sky. He’d seen them every night for millennia, but from a different angle. He could immediately tell they weren’t in his graveyard of a field.
“Are you okay?” she asked, worry straining her voice.
He took another lungful of air. “I am well, my Nickie. I am sorry for worrying you.”
She smiled up at him, as sweet as ever. “They don’t mess around, do they?” she asked, not needing to expand on who they were.
“That they do not.” He pulled her close.
A throat cleared not twenty feet from them. Too lost in his fears and worries, he hadn’t noticed the man standing there. He turned, keeping Nickie in his arms so that he was between her and the new threat. If they thought for a second that they could harm her… They would have to kill him first. He would almost relish it if they tried.
“It’s okay, friend. My name is Clive. We met at Pine Valley. Hazel sent me ahead to secure your transportation and some things you will need for your journey.”
Nickie gasped. “Clive? As in, the eagle?”
“At your service,” he said in an amused tone. “Well, not really. I’m at Hazel’s service, and she’s sent me on this mission.”
Zenon loosened his grip on Nickie but didn’t release her. “Where are we?”
Clive stuck his hands in his jeans pockets and kicked the toe of one sneakered foot on the frozen dirt. “We’re on the north-east side of the mountain where the phoenix is kept.”
Clive’s head snapped up, his features scrunched as if pain lashed through him. “I must go. They have her.”
“Who?”
“Hazel. We knew it would come to pass, but she refused to listen to reason. She is beyond stubborn. She needs me now.” Brilliant sparks glittered around him, then in a flash, he was gone.
Nickie didn’t utter a word, but her small sob said it all.
“She will be fine. We have to believe it,” he said, pulling her close once more.
Nickie nodded against his chest and sniffled before straightening her spine and squaring her shoulders. “We should get going.”
Zenon looked around, finding a vehicle parked a short distance away. Had it not been for his phoenix’s sight, he might not have seen it. “This way.”
Chapter 21
Nickie forced her worry for the witch from her mind. It wasn’t that she didn’t care. She did—probably more than she should—but fre
aking out would only do the woman who had saved them a disservice. She’d known what would happen, yet she’d gone through with it anyway.
She could tell as soon as she opened the door that the truck was warded. She didn’t believe for one second that she’d figured that out on her own, but through Zenon, she knew it to be true. The witch had added protection to the vehicle.
“Where to?” Zenon asked from the passenger seat.
Nickie threw the truck into drive. “I have no idea. Clive said we were north-east of the mountain we sought. Check the glove compartment to see if there’s anything we can use. Maybe they left a map?”
Zenon rooted around for a second but came back empty-handed. He then reached up, where she would have asked him to look next, and flipped the sun visor down. A neatly folded piece of paper fluttered onto his lap.
He opened it. “It’s a letter from Hazel.”
You’ve made it. I knew you would. Time is short, so I’ll be brief. Follow this road until you reach the highway, then make your way south to Red Deer. Once you get there, head west. You will find the phoenix where the Athabasca River flows. Watch out for the bears.
Zenon scraped his palm against his chin. “I suspect we have greater worries than the animal population,” he added after a second.
Nickie snorted as she took the truck over a rough, narrow road. Hopefully, she went in the right direction when they left the clearing. The compass on the dash said she was heading south, so she’d keep going in that direction until she figured out exactly where they were. “I’m guessing that was a joke.”
He looked at her, his brows furrowed. “Perhaps you’re right. She did not direct us to meet your friends.”
Nickie nibbled on her bottom lip, worrying it between her teeth. “No, she didn’t, did she.” That didn’t mean anything, though, right? Maybe the others had been delayed again. Maybe they had gotten the same instructions she and Zenon now had and would meet up with them. Whatever it was, Nickie wasn’t going to panic until she had a reason to do so.
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