"I know. I'm going to ask Kay and Zoey to help me. I figure since teenagers fidget, if I can fool them, then I can fool my friend."
Back in the day, Jem did "magic" tricks and sleight of hand stuff as a side gig. She was incredibly talented. So much so that she drew attention from some not-so-nice criminals who wanted to use her services. She never really told us about how she'd gotten them off of her back, but there was a year that she'd been pretty distant, and both Ann and I had worried about her until suddenly she was back to her old self and goons in suits weren't banging down our door.
"Have we found the sales record for the bracelet yet?" I ask, changing the subject for now.
"Not yet. I'm going to stay up all night if I need to to find it. It's here, I just need to sort through the masses of paperwork." Jem pauses, casting an annoyed look at Ann. "You really should go digital, Mom."
"I don't trust computers." Ann frowns. I roll my eyes, but I guess everyone has to have their quirks.
"Whatever. Let's just get the ring back, work on finding the bracelet, and get Beck's family freed once and for all." I rub at my forehead, a headache forming between my eyes. "Instead of you looking for the bracelet, Jem, you should work with Kay and Zoey. Leave the searching up to us. Divide and conquer."
"I can do that. I just don't know if you guys will understand my system…"
"I'm sure we can figure it out. Just show us what you haven't gone through and we'll handle it." Time is of the essence here with Dayphis on his way, after all.
"We need to speak to Desmond again." Beck growls the mage's name and I eye him for any signs of flying off the handle again. His eyes remain a crystal blue, but his body is tense, his hands clenched into fists.
"I think that Ann and I should speak to him. I know you're frustrated and I know you want answers, but if you get upset again and turn him into a human icicle, it's just that much longer we have to wait for him to thaw out." I intertwine our fingers and squeeze. "You can trust me, Beck. We'll do everything we can."
"I know I can trust you." He shakes his head. "You don't understand the feeling of helplessness I have right now. I'm so close to saving my family. So close to freeing my brothers and now I must get my sister back and protect her as well."
"I can't imagine it, but we'll figure this out. You and I, and Ann and Jem. We've got your back. You're not alone in this."
"I know. I just can't understand how they would get her to go against us in this way." He shakes his head. "She was the stubbornest of all of us. And that's saying something."
I twist my lips and blow out a breath. "I know. So why don't you go with Jem and start searching through the paperwork. Ann and I will go speak with Desmond if he's thawed out by now."
"He should be. It was only a light frost." Beck shrugs.
Only a light frost. The guy looked like he'd been chipped out of the middle of a glacier. I clap my hands together. "All right then. Let's do this thing."
Ann and I discuss what we want to get out of Desmond and how we want to approach him. He already knows me as the good cop. So now it's up to Ann to play bad cop. Or witch willing to turn him into a toad as it were.
Desmond is shivering in the middle of the cell when we approach him but sympathy is the furthest thing from my mind when I see him.
"I see you've thawed out. You ready to keep talking?"
He opens his mouth to talk and his teeth clack together. "Give me dry clothes and a blanket and I'll talk."
I move like I'm going to fulfill his request but Ann steps in. "Since it seems you're going to be a baby…" She waves her hand and a warm breeze blows through the cell, drying Desmond's clothes and hair. Almost instantly he stops shaking. His eyes widen at the show of Ann's power. Yeah, she might be middle-aged but the woman's got power like you read about. "How are you using Isobel to find dragons?" Ann asks, her tone impatient.
"We found her hiding in the mountains with her mate. We captured and tortured him until she agreed to help us." Desmond's gaze moves between the two of us, but we keep our faces blank.
"And you had no issues using a young dragon to do your bidding, did you?" The question is thrown at Desmond like a knife and he flinches.
"It was all Dayphis's idea. Her brothers are the last of a powerful line. He wants their powers for his own. Blood calls to blood and once we lost the stones, Dayphis went mad trying to find them." Desmond shakes his head.
"And you went along with his plans like a spineless worm." Ann clicks her tongue against her teeth. "Typical of a mage. Where is she now?"
"She is never out of Dayphis's sight. She'll be arriving here with him." He stands, stepping closer to the bars, and despite the instinct to step back and distance myself from him, I hold strong. "He'll kill you before he lets her go."
"That's for me to worry about, not you," Ann retorts. "Where is he going to stay when he gets here?"
"They've rented a warehouse in the city. It will be heavily warded and guarded."
"Will her mate be with them?" I ask.
"I am not sure. Usually he only allows them to see each other once or twice a year so they don't get any ideas of trying to escape."
I bite the inside of my cheek at the cruelty. I've only known Beck a matter of a few days, but already the thought of not being able to see or touch him for an extended period of time sends anxiety through my entire body. It would cripple me if I wasn't able to be around him.
Ann looks to me and I meet her gaze. "Well, I think that's all we need for right now." She turns and starts to walk away, pausing when Desmond shouts at her.
"Hey! They said you'd let me go! I answered your questions."
"We said we'd let you go. We didn't say when we'd let you go." Ann shrugs. "We might have a use for you as of yet." With that, we both leave the basement and I rub my hands on my jeans, trying to get the icky feeling off of my skin.
"What did he say of Isobel? Where is my sister?" Beck practically jumps on us as soon as we shut the door behind us.
"They've got her mate. That's why she's been helping them." Ann raises a placating hand. "She should be arriving with Dayphis in the next day or two."
Beck curses. "I must get her back. And her mate."
"We're not sure if her mate is with her…"
Beck's eyes change to that lighter grey color and I know he's upset. "She will not survive without her mate. We must get him back. If we get her and they still have him and they kill him, she will die if they've bonded."
I rock back on my heels in shock. "I didn't know about that."
"I know. I have a lot of things I need to tell you." He reaches for me, his hand cupping the back of my neck. "I must also find my family, mate. I am sorry that I must put anything before us learning everything we can about each other…"
"No. I get it. And I wouldn't have it any other way. We've got a long time to get to know each other in and out. But your family has a limited time before they're in danger from Dayphis." I hook my arm around his waist and lean against him, letting him know without words that I'm not going anywhere.
"Now that we know where Dayphis is going to be, we can call in reinforcements to help us get your sister back. It isn't going to be easy to pull it all together on such short notice." Ann's expression is pinched as she thinks it through.
"But we can do it. We can call in favors with the lycans, and the coven will help, right?"
"Of course they will help. But we'll have to speak with the lycans. It might be best to send Jem over there. She knows them best."
I snort. Yeah, she knows them well. She'd been in a long-term relationship with the alpha. To this day he has feelings for her but Jem says he's not her mate, and she didn't want to lead him on. "This could get messy."
"I know, but what's a little more mess added to what we've already got?"
"Hey, Jem!" I call, hoping she can hear me and doesn't have earbuds in or something while she works on her sleight of hand.
Footsteps sound and she rounds the corner, a c
urious expression on her face. "You rang?"
"We found out where Isobel will be. With Dayphis when he arrives. They've got her mate; that's how they're controlling her. We need to get them out from under Dayphis's control and to safety."
"Holy shit. Okay, so what's the plan? I'm getting the ring back tomorrow, and we'll figure out how to free Beck's brother. We'll have two dragons on our side. It should be no problem, right?" Jem looks to Beck for confirmation.
"If they've got her mate and she's bonded with him, if they kill him, she'll die too. I know that if Ivy were in danger, I'd sacrifice everything to save her. I'm not sure what years of servitude have done to my sister." Beck's broad shoulders rise and fall and he pauses to draw in a deep breath. "I'm not sure what will happen. Dragons are best not messed with when it comes to their mates." Beck's hand tightens on the back of my neck and I rub my hand up and down his side, reassuring him.
"Okay… so we need more manpower. Do we know who will be with Dayphis?" Jem asks.
"Desmond says the whole coven will be there and that the warehouse will be heavily warded and guarded. For all we know, they have other dragons besides Isobel," Ann points out.
"Why do I get the feeling that I'm not going to like what you're going to ask me to do?" Jem frowns, looking between Ann and me.
"We need you to get the lycans to help us."
Jem pushes her hands in front of her. "I don't know if I can do that, guys. Things didn't end well last time we broke it off."
"I know, but we don't have another choice. We need you to take one for the team here, Jem. He'll do whatever you ask. You know he adores you." I plead with her, giving her my best puppy dog expression.
"Yeah, that's the problem. He's going to want something in return."
"Offer him a favor from the coven. He won't say no to that. Especially with his fight with the other Alphas in the area."
Jem blows out a breath, her bangs blowing upward on her forehead. "Fine. I'll call him and see if I can go meet him after I get the ring."
I look to Beck. I know it's not a perfect solution and it could end badly but at least we might be able to get two of his siblings back tomorrow. So long as everything goes as planned.
"What if things don't go as planned?" Beck asks.
"Then we'll come up with another plan until we get the results we want." I look up at my mate, meeting his gaze and letting him see the determination in my gaze. "We've got each other. That alone is enough to make magic happen."
"This is true, little witch." Beck drops a kiss to my lips. "You know I would spend another thousand years in that cursed stone if it meant that I got to spend the rest of my life with you by my side as my mate."
I melt against him, happiness thrumming through me. I'm not sure what's going to happen tomorrow. Or the next day. But I know that with Beck by my side, we'll handle it. Together.
The End…For Now
Continue the Dragon Stone Saga in book two, Up In Smoke.
Keep Reading for the first two chapters of Mark of Truth, book one in the Wicked Kingdoms series!
Prologue
Four Hundred Years Prior
Excerpt from the Declaration of Light Elven Breeding
As of this moment, inter-breeding of any Goblin and Elven species is considered treason against the Light Elven Kingdom. Any interaction of intimate nature between Goblin and Elf will be punishable by death for both participating parties. The abomination of the crossing of both species has produced a new branch of horribly unpredictable creatures that are too unbearable to look upon, let alone live within our society. Any fraternization or suspected fraternization will also be punishable by death. Any children previously born of one Goblin and one Elven parent will be allowed life outside of the Elven Kingdom, but not inside its walls or inside the walls of Kingdoms allied with the Light Elven Kingdom. Those of sullied blood will be exiled forevermore as will any found to be hiding or aiding them. Children born of any union between Goblin and Elf will be sentenced to death upon birth if death before birth is not achievable without harm to the Elven mother. We must strengthen our own kind, and sullying bloodlines with impure Goblin blood will only lead to the destruction of the Elven Kingdom rule and the end of our race.
King Bale McEver
Three hundred and seventy-seven years later, reading the declaration again, Callista knew only one option remained. She must keep her precious child hidden from discovery. Think, Callista, think. She couldn’t leave the child at the Goblin Kingdom, for surely those brutes would destroy the babe for being weak. The horror stories of babies not surviving long there unless they were born to cruel and harsh parents were numerous and she couldn’t damn her child to an existence of fighting for her life. Her child was forbidden. Her sullied bloodline considered treason. No one could ever know what she was. Callista, would bear this secret for the rest of her life, and the father would never know of their child. Now she must ensure that her little girl kept the appearance of a normal full-blooded Elven baby.
She stroked the points of her daughter’s little ears, humming to her softly as she rocked her. She must act as though her child were of inferior birth and leave her to grow in the human realm. It was the only way to keep her hidden from those who would harm her. Luckily, she had the creamy silver skin of a higher elf, and her emerald green shimmer was starting to become apparent. No disfigurements or added limbs as could happen with certain Goblin species, thank the Goddess. She was perfect, and she had to stay that way. Shielding her was the only way to ensure her survival. Callista would ensure her daughter was protected from discovery.
Her heart breaking, she sifted out of her chambers in the Elven Kingdom to the crowded and iron-filled streets of Indianapolis. Before she stepped foot in the city, she grimaced. The overpowering taste of metal filled her mouth. Plastic and rotten food perfumed the air with a pungent odor. The cramped spaces between buildings almost overwhelmed her determination to leave her baby here. Prolonged exposure to iron was harmful to full-blooded Fae, especially Elves. Due to Callista’s heritage, her precious daughter might have a better tolerance in this city than she did. Either way it would help dampen her abilities once she reached maturity.
Walking the short distance to the compound founded by similarly displaced elves, goblins, and other magical beings from centuries ago, Callista called forth a basket to lay her baby girl in. She wrapped the child in a hunter green silk baby blanket. Before she turned away, she placed a feather soft kiss on her babe’s forehead.
“You will be safe here, my little darling, and always remember, Mother loves you.”
She placed her into the basket and allowed herself one last tearful look before sifting back to her rooms within the Light Elven Castle. The soft sounds of her sleeping baby no longer with her left her chambers hauntingly silent. Sitting on the large chair she kept next to the baby’s crib, she wept silently. Callista’s chin trembled as she pressed her hand to her quivering lips. Pain washed over her as she clutched her stomach in one hand, her baby’s blanket in the other.
As she fell asleep, she vowed to do everything in her power to ensure her daughter would survive no matter what the foolish declaration stated.
The previous Light Elven King was delusional anyway.
Chapter one
Present Day- 23 Years Later
“Shit! God. Effing. Damnit!”
I pick my ass up off the pavement and run after the ancient higher elf gone mad. Brushing the hair that escaped from my ponytail out of my face, I take off after him. Figures, the night I, Ever Leath, actually have plans, I’m chasing after this asshole who’s hell bent on wreaking havoc all over downtown Indianapolis. I grumble under my breath. Doyle’s deep rumbling laugh echoes in my ear. I’m not paid enough to deal with this shit. But it keeps people safe and keeps the peace between species, so I do it.
I pant as I chase after the rogue elf. “Laugh it up, asshole. First round is on you.” I run full speed ahead after the spry older elf. He stops dead at
the end of the trash-filled alley. The rogue spins around and locks eyes with me. His body is visibly shaking.
His hysterical laughter bubbles up from his thin and cracking lips. My ears are pierced with pain every time I hear the incoherent babbling that emerges when he opens his mouth. His once dual-colored eyes flash between flat slate grey and green and blue. He looks left to right looking for an escape.
He won’t find one. My team has me covered, but I get the fun task of getting up close and personal with the poster child for unstable and psychotic elves. I’m lucky enough to have the job of hauling his ass back to the Light Elven Kingdom, where they will deal with him in whatever way they deem fit. My job at the Magic Enforcement and Containment Agency, or MECA for short, is to guard the fragile humans from the darker side of being goblin, elf, Fae, or magical being in general. Sounds awesome, right? Tell that to my now bruised ass. Being a Guard isn’t easy, and even though I complain about it I love every second of it. Well, most of the time I do.
Humans know we exist, but they only know about those who look similar enough to pass as human.
Half-human, half-elven, or half-goblin children are common. Fae love to take advantage of their effect on the human race, and they leave a string of children behind that their human parents have no idea what to do with. Thus MECA was created to teach and employ those considered leath cine—literally translated as half breed—to work as members of a little piece of society that understands who we really are. MECA raises us as warriors, scholars, and political ambassadors to the full blooded Fae who employ us to do their dirty work.
I’m damn good at corralling these little fuckers. So here I am, my ass sore from being knocked on it and my elbow scraped. I look down. My new pair of jet black combat boots are scuffed. Oh, hell no.
I point at my boots and then the demented elf in front of me, snarling. “You’re going to regret that, asshole.” If there is one thing I am girl about, it’s my shoes. I hate the anxiety that comes with the first scuff appearing on them. Something so beautiful shouldn’t be scratched.
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