Soul Scorched

by Donna Grant

  Thorn lifted it over his head as the Dark’s eyes went wide as he recognized it. Thorn plunged it into one of the Fae’s eyes and twisted.

  He yanked it out and wiped it on the Dark’s shirt before he stood and sheathed the dagger once more. Soon, the blade would feel more Dark Fae blood upon it.

  * * *

  Warrick was disappointed in Darcy’s answer. He felt for sure that she finally saw Ulrik for who he really was, and yet she still wanted his help.

  She was right. The world needed the Dragon Kings. The humans had no idea the monsters the Kings kept from them.

  If only she said she regretted helping Ulrik, or even that she wouldn’t do it now with all that she knew. Which meant she knew more about Ulrik than she let on.

  That bothered Warrick more than he wanted to admit. He wished he knew what she saw in Ulrik. That might help him handle the situation better. As it was, Warrick was seriously considering pummeling Ulrik.

  “Verra diplomatic, Darcy,” Ulrik said as he turned to Warrick. “Wouldn’t you say, War?”

  Warrick shifted his gaze to Darcy. “It’s almost time. Are you ready?”

  “No.” She gave a short laugh. “I’ve always fallen back on my magic in situations like this. I’ve never encountered anyone who my magic didn’t affect. I’m not sure what to do.”

  He walked to her and stopped just short of touching one of the auburn curls that escaped her bun. Warrick could feel Ulrik’s gaze on them, and he wouldn’t let Ulrik know there was more going on between him and Darcy. “Your magic is strong. You’re the first Druid to touch dragon magic. Remember that. The Dark have weaknesses. They often underestimate their opponents. Doona let them do that to you.”

  “Right,” she said, nodding.

  “Keep your magic at the ready.”

  She kept nodding, but Warrick saw the fear in her fern green eyes.

  Ulrik gave him an impatient look when Warrick glanced at him. Warrick wished he was the one taking her up the building, but he had to be the decoy.

  “I’ll see you at the manhole,” Warrick said.

  As he began to turn around, Darcy grabbed his arm to stop him. Then she rose up and placed her lips on his. Warrick forgot about Ulrik as he wrapped his arms around Darcy and held her tight as he savaged her mouth in a rough, desire-driven kiss.

  When he was able to pull back, her lips were swollen and a small smile was visible.

  Warrick tugged on a curl that brushed her cheek. “Be safe.”

  “You too,” she whispered.

  It was harder than Warrick expected walking away from her. Thorn knew to keep an eye on them. Warrick didn’t trust Ulrik to do as he promised, and Thorn would be there to stop him from whatever Ulrik tried.

  Thorn wasn’t exactly happy with his request, but Warrick didn’t care about being left behind. He cared about Darcy and getting her to safety.

  Once Darcy was at Dreagan, Warrick was going to find out why Rhi was helping Ulrik, and why she didn’t protect the shop as she did Darcy’s flat. There was too much not adding up properly for Warrick. Someone wasn’t who they said they were, and someone was playing both sides.

  Warrick paused at the front door and used his power to put a bubble of protection around Darcy. Then he walked out of the shop. He waited for a taxi to drive past before he walked across the street to the two Dark Fae who had been eyeing him all day.

  He slammed a fist into the one on the left as the other Dark pummeled him with short bursts of magic that stung viciously. Soon Warrick was being hit from behind with both fists and magic. Warrick let them think they got the better of him and stumbled into an alley.

  The Dark were shouting, their eyes going bright red as the craze of battle filled them. Warrick avoided as much of the magic as he could while still getting in enough hits to kill a few Dark.

  Several times he had to pull his punches to ensure their attention remained on him. Warrick ducked when he saw a hefty bubble of magic come at him. He glanced behind him to see it barrel into two Dark, knocking them flat so that neither moved again.

  Warrick straightened and glanced at the building to see Ulrik scaling the stone with Darcy hanging from his back.

  Warrick only got that glance as he was struck again and again by Dark magic. It didn’t just burn, it drained him. Warrick stopped pulling his punches and landed whatever he could, whenever he could.

  A growl rumbled through his chest when his hand closed around a throat of a Dark Fae. He squeezed and felt the bone snap.

  There was a ruckus behind him. Warrick elbowed a Dark Fae in the face, snapping his head as he turned around and saw Thorn standing there with a smile upon his face as he looked at all the Dark.

  Warrick spotted the two Dark Thorn was standing on and knew he must have landed on them as he jumped from the roof.

  “I couldna let you have all the fun,” Thorn said as he faced the Dark.

  Warrick renewed his fighting. If Thorn was there, that meant Darcy was beneath the city. Yet the amount of Dark dead at their feet kept piling up, but the number they were fighting kept growing just as fast.

  He tripped on a body and fell backward, rolling so that he popped up on his feet. Warrick felt his legs begin to go numb. It wouldn’t be much longer before he could no longer stand.

  Suddenly a Dark grabbed him. There were so many hands holding him he couldn’t dodge any of the magic coming at him. He saw Thorn and a Dark circling each other. Thorn parted his lips and let out a hiss just before the flash of a dagger appeared and was buried in the Dark’s throat.

  Warrick heard Thorn shout his name. Warrick lifted his head and was able to raise his hand as Thorn’s dagger sailed through the air. Warrick snatched it and began to slash at the Dark trying to cart him off.

  As they released him, Warrick twisted in midair and landed on one knee. One arm was completely numb. His fingers gripping the dagger were shaking as he tried to hold on.

  There wasn’t time to heal from the Darks’ magic. He had to get to Darcy. Warrick used the side of the building to get to his feet as the Dark ran away.

  A moment later the Dark began shouting again. Warrick lifted his head and saw the Druids. They stood like a wall, blocking the Dark, their magic pulsing.

  “I’ll be damned,” Thorn said as he killed another Dark.

  Warrick looked over his shoulder to see the Warriors from MacLeod Castle at the opposite end of the alley. They used their powers to combat the Dark until, one by one the Dark teleported away.

  Phelan was the first to walk to Warrick. “Darcy is at Dreagan. Fallon teleported her there.”

  Warrick leaned back against the brick and sighed. “And Ulrik?”

  “Walked away.”

  Warrick knew that wasn’t going to be the last they saw of the King of Silvers.

  “Let’s get back to Dreagan,” Thorn said.

  Warrick didn’t have time to grasp what was happening as Fallon MacLeod suddenly appeared in front of him, his dark green eyes smiling as he laid a hand on Warrick.

  The next thing Warrick knew, he was in the kitchen of Dreagan Manor right as his legs gave out.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-TWO

  Darcy tried to get to Warrick. She was so happy when he appeared in the kitchen she could barely contain herself. He hadn’t even seen her before he collapsed.

  She gasped and started to go to him. The other Dragon Kings immediately surrounded Warrick and got him upstairs while Thorn was talking to them. Leaving Darcy behind.

  “A shower or food?” asked a female voice behind her.

  Darcy turned and focused on the three women standing there. They had been trying to talk to her after some man touched her. One moment she was in Edinburgh atop the roof, and the next, she was standing in a large kitchen.

  “She looks shell-shocked,” said the petite woman with long inky hair and dark eyes.

  Darcy blinked. “I am. Am I at Dreagan?”

  “Yes, you are,” said another woman with wavy blond
hair and kind brown eyes.

  Darcy didn’t quite understand. “How?”

  “Fallon teleported you.”

  Darcy moved her gaze to the third woman who was stunningly beautiful with her black hair and the silver stripe running along the side of her face.

  Dark Fae.

  Darcy knew it instantly. She backed up, gathering her magic as she did. She ran into something and looked over her shoulder to see a tall man with wheat-colored hair and shamrock green eyes.

  “Is something amiss?” he asked smoothly.

  Darcy looked back at the woman. “She’s Dark.”

  “Was,” the man said from behind her. “Shara is my mate, Darcy. She was born to a Dark family, but she’s now Light.”

  Darcy recalled Warrick saying something about that, but after all she’d endured at the Darks’ hands as well as witnessed, she was slow to let it all go.

  “You’re safe here,” the petite woman spoke again.

  The Dragon King walked around her and went to stand by Shara. “I’m Kiril,” he said. “I came to let you know that Warrick is fine. He took too much Dark magic.”

  “I knew it would happen again,” Darcy said more to herself than those around her.

  Kiril’s brow rose in surprise. “Again?”

  “It happened yesterday as well. The Dark surrounded him on the street.”

  “In the middle of Edinburgh?” Shara asked, her shock evident.

  Darcy nodded, suddenly very weary.

  The tall blonde hurried to Darcy and gently pushed her down into a chair. “I’m Iona. Shorty over there is Lily. It looks like you need food first.”

  Food and sleep, but Darcy wasn’t sure she could do either. Now that she was free of the threat of the Dark, the realization of how close she had come to death descended. She clenched her hands to stop them from shaking, but it didn’t help.

  Shara took the chair next to her at the round table, her gaze sympathetic. “I know what you witnessed must have been horrific.”

  “I have no words,” Darcy said.

  Lily set a cup of tea in front of her. “The best thing you can do is relax and let your mind grasp that you’re safe.”

  Safe. It was a word Darcy had always thought pertained to her. She had magic enough to protect herself against too-frisky dates and anyone attempting to rob her. Yet, she discovered how little her magic helped when facing the Dark.

  Iona closed the fridge and looked at her. “I’m not the best cook, but I make great sandwiches.”

  Darcy smiled, but with the way her stomach felt, she wasn’t going to chance eating anything right now. “Thanks, but I think I’m going to have to pass.”

  “Why don’t I show you to a room?” Lily asked. “I’m sure you’d like some time alone and a shower.”

  Darcy got to her feet with a nod. “I’d like that very much.”

  She briefly looked at Kiril, Shara, and Iona before she followed Lily out of the kitchen and to the stairs. Darcy looked around, noting all the dragons. Most were made of iron. She loved the dragons that seemed to come right out of the wall, one claw holding a lantern with a light inside.

  There were dragon pictures of various sizes. Some of the dragons were prominent. Others you had to search to find.

  Then she reached the staircase and marveled at the beauty. There was a dragon newel post that was carved out of a huge piece of wood and looked as realistic as the dragons in her dreams.

  “It’s a beautiful place, isn’t it?” Lily asked.

  For the first time Darcy realized her accent was British. “It is. I could spend hours looking around.”

  Lily smiled over her shoulder. “I’ve only been a mate for a short time. I worked for Dreagan, but I didn’t see the manor until after Rhys and I had our ceremony. I know I walked around with my mouth hanging open for days.”

  Darcy couldn’t help but smile at Lily’s exuberance. “How is it being mated to a Dragon King?”

  “Thrilling,” she replied as they reached the top of the first flight of stairs. Lily slowed as she turned to the next flight so that Darcy came even with her as her smile faded. “I was in a bad situation before, and I … well, I died.”

  Darcy stopped in her tracks. Surely she’d heard that wrong. “I’m sorry?”

  “I died. My brother shot me. It’s a really long story that involved the Kings’ enemy who used me to get on Dreagan. My brother was part of it.”

  “I know I’ve not gotten a lot of sleep these past few days, but if you died, how are you here?”

  Lily started up the second flight of stairs. “I didn’t know it at the time, but Ulrik brought me back.”

  Well, if Darcy thought her week had been strange, it now exceeded that.

  Lily shrugged. “I don’t know why he did it, especially since he was responsible for sending my brother here.”

  “Wow.” What else was there to say?

  Lily chuckled. “That pretty much sums it up. I was a little freaked out when I came to and found myself alive once more.”

  “So you remember what it was like to be dead?”

  “It faded pretty quickly,” Lily said when she reached the third floor and started down the corridor. “I told Rhys everything, which is why I know what I do. I don’t have any memories of it, but based on my description of the man, it was Ulrik.”

  Darcy thought she knew Ulrik’s secrets, but it looked like she knew next to nothing. Why did she think seeing his memories made her an expert? All that did was give her a glimpse into his past. She had seen nothing of his future, and he shared even less.

  “I hear you helped Ulrik.”

  There was no heat in her words, but Darcy heard the censure nonetheless. “I did.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it was a challenge. Because he had been wronged.”

  “The Kings bound his magic for a reason.” Lily’s forehead was creased in a frown. “You do know why, don’t you?”

  Darcy nodded. “Warrick told me the Kings’ side of the story.”

  “And Ulrik told you his?”

  “No. I saw his memories.”

  It was Lily’s turn to halt. Her eyes widened in astonishment. “What did you see?”

  Darcy didn’t want to share Ulrik’s memories. They were private. She had no right to them, and even less of a right to tell others of them. “I saw a lot, but I felt even more. He went through hell. There was betrayal, grief, and then anger. They all mixed in such a way that he couldn’t tell one from the other.”

  “You feel for him.”

  “In a way. I know he has ulterior motives. I helped him because I wanted to see if I could, and then I continued because I couldn’t not help him. I didn’t comprehend my role until he told me the other Druids had died.”

  Lily continued on to a door on the left and opened it. She leaned against the corridor wall. “Now that you know both sides of the story, will you continue to unbind his magic?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “He’s evil,” Lily insisted.

  Darcy glanced at more of the hanging dragon lights adorning the hallway. “I was raised on the Isle of Skye, and we Druids have edicts we live by. It’s so ingrained in us that at twelve, we each spell ourselves to ensure we stick by those rules or lose our magic. We can’t use our magic to harm an innocent, and we can never use it to help evil. If Ulrik was truly evil, my magic would have stopped the moment I tried to help him.”

  “You’re the only one who knows both sides of the story, and it does make me think. However, I know that Ulrik cursed Rhys so that he couldn’t shift and put him in a tremendous amount of pain. I also know that Ulrik sent my brother after me.”

  “But Ulrik didn’t pull the trigger. Let’s not forget that he brought you back from the dead as well. As for Rhys, I don’t know anything about that. I know the hate between Ulrik and the Kings runs thick and deep. I wouldn’t put it past him.”

  Lily cocked her head to the side, the length of her long black hair falling over h
er shoulder. “You don’t think cursing Rhys makes him evil?”

  “He didn’t kill Rhys.”

  “But he cursed him.”

  “Is Rhys still cursed?”

  Lily paused, taken aback. “No.”

  “That’s good to hear.”

  Lily pushed away from the wall. “I like you, Darcy, and I know you’ve been through a lot these past few days. I also know you have your own thoughts about Ulrik, but you might want to think twice before telling others what Ulrik did was nothing. I saw Rhys dying a little every time he couldn’t shift and take to the skies. That curse changed him.”

  “I didn’t mean to make light of what happened to Rhys,” Darcy hastened to say. “I’m just saying that an evil person would have killed Rhys.”

  “Mixing dragon magic with Dark magic was enough that it almost happened.” Lily held up her hand when Darcy tried to speak again. “I’m not angry. I’m trying to explain. You won’t find any sympathy for Ulrik at Dreagan.”

  Darcy nodded woodenly. “I understand.”

  “By the way, please don’t mention Ulrik in front of Iona. He was responsible for her father’s death.”

  If Darcy didn’t feel like the biggest heel before, she certainly did now.

  “Make yourself comfortable,” Lily said with a tight smile as she motioned into the room. “There’s an en suite. One of us will be up later to see if you want any food.”

  “Thanks.”

  Darcy watched her walk away before she entered the room and closed the door behind her. She leaned back against it and let out a deep breath.

  “Way to go, Darcy. That was a catastrophe. Why didn’t I just keep my mouth shut?” she asked herself.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-THREE

  Con stood at the door of Warrick’s room as he lay upon his bed. It was all he could do to hold back his temper as rage burned through him.

  The Kings couldn’t die by Dark magic, but that didn’t mean they felt nothing from it. The fact was, it debilitated them. Depending on how much of the Dark magic they took in, it could be anywhere from a few minutes to hours for the Kings to recover.