by Meg Xuemei X
I dashed toward him as the lion crashed to the ground. The safest place now was beside Rowan. He looped his arm around my back and cradled me against his hard chest.
“Rowan,” I panted. “That man turned into a wolf in front of me! And there—” I pointed a shaking finger at the golden lion that didn’t get the wolf before the Winter Fae’s ice spears. “—there’s a laughing lion!” Then I swept my finger in the direction of the heartless iced man. “And that man tried to kill me! I think he was a mage since he had dark magic.”
Fawn’s words suddenly rang in my ears. “A mage, a wolf, and a bear walk into a bar.”
I didn’t recall seeing them in the club. Maybe the trio had spotted me with Rydstrom on his balcony and decided to follow me and take a stab at me. But how could my little sister catch a glimpse of the future?
“Don’t mind the stupid, pompous lion, Lady Evelina. I won’t let him touch you,” Rowan said, stroking my cheek gently. “You’re still in shock, but you’re safe now. I’ve secured the perimeter.”
The lion snarled in response, and I ducked behind Rowan, peeking out. Golden light shimmered, then the lion morphed into Baron.
Baron glowered at Rowan before he turned to grin at me. A strand of his wine-red hair dropped over his deep amber eyes. He looked like a lion god—hot, sexy, and emitting incredible power.
“You—you—” I stuttered. Though I had met a few shifters, mostly werewolves, in the Claws, Fangs, and Fiends, none of them had shifted to their animals in front of me like that. So, I wasn’t exactly used to this kind of scene, given my shaky state now after being attacked multiple times. “Lion or not, stay away. I warn you. Shoo.”
“My mate asked you to stay away, Baron,” Rowan said, icy warning in his tone. “And you’ll oblige, or I’ll make you.”
“I’m not going to stay away from my mate. She’ll get used to my lion form as well.” Baron strode toward me. “And you’ll only waste time fighting me, Winter King. You know our powers are equally matched and cancel each other out. We can battle for centuries and everything would just be the same.”
Rowan gritted his teeth, but he didn’t dispute his half-brother’s words.
Now both Fae stood with me, sandwiching me. I needed some space, but I also felt protected with them shielding me like this. Their body heat radiated around me, expelling the chill in my bones caused by being hunted like a wild animal.
Then another kind of fire swirled in my belly that had everything to do with their proximity. My body purred at the two desirable, powerful males’ undivided attention.
I tried to hold onto my self-control and gather my incoherent thoughts as their scents mingled, filling my lungs with the smell of fresh snow, summer rain, and wood spice. No human male could ever affect me like this.
“Are you hurt?” Rowan asked, and then both Fae started to inspect me. Rowan checked my upper half, gently patting my chest, stomach, and back. Baron dropped to one knee to check my legs and feet, his gaze zeroing in on the rip in my pants.
Now that I was no longer running adrenaline, the gash in my ankle started throbbing.
“I want to kill that fucking bear all over again,” Baron cursed and curved his fingers around my ankle.
I felt a slight burn and looked down. A golden sunbeam streamed out of Baron’s palm and traced over the three-inch slash along my ankle. A tingling of warmth, and the gash sealed in front of my eyes.
“Uh, thanks.” I blinked. “That was handy.”
Baron straightened and looked into my eyes. “I don’t just kill. And you were being modest when you said you don’t taste good.” His amber eyes smoldered, full of mirth and heat. “You’ll taste delicious, Evie.”
My face flushed, and Rowan growled at him.
“I’m so glad you guys got here in time,” I said before the two started bickering again. “But how? How did you know?”
“We tracked the assassins before the attack,” Rowan said.
“What?” My softened expression turned to a scowl. “And you didn’t come to aide me earlier?”
“After some debate, Baron and I agreed that we had to let it play out, so you could prove yourself first,” Rowan said, brushing a stray hair behind my ear. I swatted his hand away, focusing on the anger coiling through me instead of the shiver of pleasure at his touch.
These Fae were contradictory. They’d posted the knights outside my house to guard me. They also guarded me themselves last night and vowed that nothing could get to me during their watch. And now when I was battling for my life against three hunters, they’d stood by before finally stepping in.
I could have died.
“No fainthearted woman can be my queen,” Baron said. “My court won’t bow to a weak queen.”
“I didn’t completely agree with Baron’s method, Lady Evie,” Rowan said over my furious look. He was excellent at throwing his half-brother under the bus. He smiled at me, icy fire in his gray-blue eyes. “You proved to be courageous and cunning. Those are great qualities for a Fae queen. Your fighting skills need some improvement, but as a queen, you won’t need to fight. Your only lack is your ignorance of our customs and court politics.”
“How dare you blame her for that?” Baron glared at Rowan. “Lady Evie was raised in the mortal world. Nothing she lacks is her fault.”
Wow. They flattered me up, then insulted me more.
“Must you always rudely interrupt me while I am talking to my mate?” Rowan grated. “I’d never blame Lady Evie for anything. I was merely trying to gently explain to her that I’d send the best court scholars to coach her, so she’ll have nothing to worry about.”
“Don’t bother, Winter King,” Baron said. “I’ve arranged to have an excellent court counsel from the Summer Court…”
I was speechless as they got into the long dispute. Their arrogance indeed had no bounds.
“When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east, then I’ll be the queen to either of you.” I cut in.
Baron winked at me. “Talk like the future Summer queen, my lady. In Elfame, the sun rises in the west, opposite to the mortal world.”
I opened my mouth and shut it. Then I opened it again. “How’s this then—you can both stick your invitations to make me your queen where the sun doesn’t shine.”
Rowan frowned at me. “I don’t get the expression, but it sounded rude.”
“I’m done with you two,” I said as my mood turned fouler. “Just get out of my face. I’ve had enough today.”
They wouldn’t move, so I shoved them back and strode back toward the main road. My van and my siblings consumed my thoughts. I doubted that I could drive a car in that condition to pick up my charges. And I wouldn’t get a paycheck to fix it until the end of the week.
When it rained, it poured.
I took a deep breath and fought back tears. I’d survived today, hadn’t I?
What about tomorrow? The wolf-dude said someone had placed a bounty of ten-fucking-million dollars’ worth of gold on my head. What had I done to deserve that? People would kill for less than ten grand.
Anxiety and fear twisted my stomach, and my knees went wobbly with each step.
“Lady Evie.” Baron caught my elbow when I stumbled over some twigs. “I got you. You can lean on me. I won’t let you perish.”
I could lean only on myself. If I trusted the wrong people, I’d doom my family.
Both Fae strode beside me with their long strides and undefeated confidence, which I utterly lacked now.
“I understand that you’re upset, Evie,” Rowan said, lacing his fingers through mine. “But I have everything under control.”
I yanked my hand out from his, even though his touch made me crave more. I was still mad as hell and shaken with dread.
“You don’t have a damn thing under control,” I said mercilessly. “You should have incapacitated the wolf shifter instead of killing him, so I could at least question him on who sent him after me. But now I got nothing. Nothing. As a self-
anointed king, that was a pretty shortsighted move.”
Baron chuckled at me scolding his rival.
“You’re no better.” I paused on my path and spat cold fury. “Rowan already iced the dark mage, and you couldn’t wait until I got answers before tearing his heart out like it was a sport to you? Do you know someone placed a bounty worth ten million in gold on my head? I’m marked for death. And do you know how traumatizing it is for me to kill a sentient being for the first time today, even though it was either kill or be killed, even though he was in his animal form when I stabbed him to death? I’ll wake up from nightmares every night for a very long time!”
They were utterly silent and still, and both Fae looked at me as if it was the first time they’d ever seen me.
Shaking my head, I kept going. Why did I even bother explaining to them or throwing a fit? They were monsters. They’d never think like humans. They even took pride in being my stalkers.
They strode on either side of me like shadows I couldn’t get rid of. Rowan laced his icy fingers with mine again. I tried to shake him off, but he wouldn’t let me go, and then I just let him, too tired to care or to fight.
“The wolf aimed for your throat,” he said. “I killed him because I was overcome with rage and self-loathing. I’d risked you when they first attacked you. I couldn’t risk you again. I’ve learned what I needed by hiding my presence from their sight, and now we know there’s a bounty on you.” His voice turned to the hardest ice. “I and my elite knights will always be around you from now on. We wouldn’t have found out who placed the bounty from those assassins, since in such matters the source is magically protected and the information sealed by blood. The hunters would have died in agony if even a spark of intention to reveal the truth crossed their minds. Whoever wants you dead is very powerful, resourceful, and vicious.”
“No shit,” I said. My lips thinned. My entire face crumbled with anxiety and icy dread.
I might need to send my siblings away, but where could they go? Who else could take care of them? And if any bounty hunter tracked them down and used them to get to me, I’d only have put them in harm’s way.
“You have me and my knights, Evie,” Baron said, grasping my other hand in his. “They’ll have to go through me to get to you. And I’ll find out which coward wants to murder my mate, and I’ll tear his heart out with my bare hands and eat his black heart.”
I swallowed. The best bet was to accept the powerful Fae’s protection, no matter how much I didn’t like to owe them a debt.
“I don’t need your protection,” I said softly. “But I need your men to guard my siblings, all six of them.”
“It’s a package deal, Evie,” Rowan said. The two of them were still competing and comparing the size of their dicks, even on my security details. And I hoped their rivalry only worked to my benefit. “I’ll help search for your parents as well.”
I stopped cold and whipped toward him. “What?” I stared at the Winter Fae, my heart drumming. “What did you say?”
“You think all I do is gaze upon you at midnight after I realized that you’re my true mate?” He sighed. “I’m the Winter King. Wouldn’t I collect all the intel I could about my future queen? You don’t need to guard your secrets from me anymore, Evie.”
“My Summer knights had started the search since the day I learned about the disappearance of your parents,” Baron cut in, ignoring Rowan’s glare. “The Summer Court is determined to take the lead on this matter. The human cops won’t help you, but I’ve got this, Evie.”
Warmth for them welled up in my chest for the first time. I swallowed hard to hold back my tears. “Have you made any progress on finding my parents?”
“Let’s talk further in a more private setting,” Baron said.
I let them lead me through the woods, my fingers in their large, strong hands—one colder than new fallen snow, one hotter than summer sunlight—until the three of us stopped in front of the wreckage of my van.
Chapter 19
Both Rowan and Baron had an armored van parked on the street next to my house. Their knights monitored the neighborhood yet blended into the surroundings. With their glamours in place, they could easily hide from human eyes.
Rowan and Baron started giving me a crash course on the supernatural world on the way to their vans. We ended up taking Rowan’s five-row black SUV to pick up my siblings while Baron’s SUV trailed behind us as a backup.
I perched between Rowan and Baron in the backseat. Only now did I start to register that they were serious about this courting business. They weren’t just regular stalkers as I’d deemed them.
Yet I didn’t know where we would go from here with all these entangled relationships. I might be headed toward a cliff on a fast train. But I’d take any risk to find my parents and bring them back to my siblings.
“It’s possible that your parents aren’t in the human world anymore,” Rowan said, putting my hand on his strong thigh, and lust burst in me.
I immediately scolded myself. I should focus on getting the information on my parents’ case instead of letting stupid hormones decide the next train of my thoughts.
Baron got my other hand, his thumb caressing my inner wrist, sending pleasant shivers all over my body, then he brought my hand to his lips and brushed a hot kiss on my palm. My core instantly tightened at the sensation.
Rowan scowled at Baron and brought my hand to his lips, too.
A sexy ice Fae on one side and a hot sun Fae on the other turned my brain to mush. I desperately tried to concentrate and hear their theories about my parents’ disappearance. But I couldn’t fight my weakness for them today. Not after three bounty hunters had almost gotten me.
“Where can they be if they aren’t in the human world?” I asked.
“They might be on the other side of the Veil,” Baron said.
“The Veil?” I asked.
“The barrier that separates the mortal realm from the immortal realm,” Rowan said.
“I’ve never heard of it.” I blinked. “Why would my parents go to the immortal realm?”
Yet part of me had started to pick up all the odd pieces and clues over the years—how Dad had trained me to use my hyper senses that no regular humans seemed to possess, the mysterious shop they’d taken me to for spells, the arcane glyphs that had beamed on my body, and the shadow fire that had blasted out of me and driven away a Nightling.
“Your parents might not be what they appeared to you,” Rowan said. “We suspect they’re mages.”
“You don’t have evidence for that!” I shouted. “I have known them my entire life. My parents wouldn’t lie to me.”
But they hadn’t told me the truth, either.
“Maybe they were trying to protect you,” Baron said with sympathy.
“Take me to this Veil after we pick up my siblings,” I demanded.
“One must have enough magic to cross the Veil,” Rowan said. “You aren’t human, Evie. You’re being glamoured. The spells that hide your essence are so powerful even I can’t unwind them. I think they also sealed your power. You’ll have to wait until you reach your twenty-second birthday and go through the Turning to peel off every glamour, spell, or curse placed on you. The Turning will also unlock your potential. I’ll then take you to the Veil when you’re safe to pass through it.”
Baron squeezed my hand gently. “I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
They all knew about my age. Rydstrom had also asked me how old I was—in fact, he’d insisted on knowing my age. It was as if they were all waiting for me to reach my next birthday and see what would become of me.
What was this Turning that they talked about?
I’d passed the point of denial. Like it or not, I’d stumbled into the magical world, and every supernatural I’d met was a predator. Now I wanted to learn everything about their world and learn it fast, so in the end, I’d survive. And my family’s survival depended on me.
And it might just open the right
door to recover my parents. That alone was worth the risk.
“Tell me about a Nightling,” I said.
Both Fae’s expressions twisted with loathing and hatred.
“Nightlings are the Night King’s creatures,” Rowan said icily.
Baron clenched his jaw. “My court is still investigating Rydstrom’s involvement with the Nightling that appeared at your home.”
I widened my eyes. “Rydstrom, the nightclub boss?”
Rydstrom had wanted me dead? But the way he looked at me spelled the opposite. And he’d gone to a great length to protect the girl whom the hunters had condemned as a darkfae.
“He’s also the Unseelie King of the Nightmare Court,” Rowan said. “He’s extremely dangerous.”
That was the pot calling the kettle black. I didn’t want to keep talking about Rydstrom, at least not with Rowan and Baron, so I changed the subject. “What is a dark one?”
“Darkfae,” Baron said with distaste. “They’re illegally bred between demons and light Fae. The archdemons—the former fallen angels—conspired with rogue high Fae to procreate an army of hybrids that possess both light and dark magic. It’s forbidden, and the majority of darkfae don’t come out right. They’re more monster than anything else. The darkfae are the poison race that pollutes Elfame. They are a threat to the orders and magics of all four courts.”
“Any Fae has the license to kill a darkfae,” Rowan said, ice flame burning in his hard, gray-blue eyes.
Chapter 20
Soon all my siblings crammed into Rowan’s SUV. My shoulders relaxed once I could see them all. They were safe, and that was all that mattered.
The four boys squished in the back seat while Safiya called shotgun. Fawn sat on my lap, clinging to me like a shield. She’d predicted the assassins would come for me this afternoon, and now she wouldn’t let me go. She’d foreseen the Nightling, too.
How did my little sister know about impending violence? What was she?
As the driver took us home, Safiya turned around to face the Fae at my sides, her eyes sparkling above what she probably thought was an alluring smile. She kept throwing questions at them, and the Fae answered absent-mindedly now and then. Eventually they stopped responding completely, more focused on security outside the SUV. Safiya dropped her smile and faced the windshield again.