by Vella Day
Bevon picked up his near empty bottle and saluted. “Good luck.”
“I’ll need it.”
Chapter Seventeen
“I still can’t believe you kept Kenton’s secret from me all this time,” Tory said the next morning at work.
Greer held up her hands. “Trust me. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. If I’d known you two were mates, I would have marched my butt to the eternal flame and demand he come clean. Relationships need honesty.”
Tory laughed. “I can so see you doing that, but he was partially right in withholding the information for as long as he did. I wasn’t ready to learn that I’d almost died. I might have had a setback or something if I woke up in another realm.”
“True. If we had told you the moment you woke up that Griffin allowed some stranger to take you to Feyrion—a place we had no idea how to reach—how would you have treated my brother?”
She blew out a breath. “I don’t know. I probably would have told him that he had been too reckless with my life.” Tory sighed. “Fine. I guess you all were right. In the end, it worked out well.”
Greer smiled. “Speaking of turning out well, lookie who is walking across the street right as we speak.”
Tory turned and spotted Kenton. Her heart pulsed hot as excitement slid up her body. Somehow her anger toward him must have melted away after he’d saved her dad last night. It hadn’t hurt that her mom helped clear up a few of her pressing concerns.
Greer buzzed Kenton in. “Hi, ladies.”
“Kenton. You’re looking spiffy today,” Greer said. “I like the shirt.”
“Thank you. I went shopping. Bevon, as well as my sisters, kept telling me that harem pants—if that is what they are called—are not in style here, nor was my peasant shirt.”
“Jeans are a better look,” Tory shamelessly chimed in as she checked him out.
“Can I talk with you for a moment?” Kenton asked her.
“Sure. How about we step into the back room?”
Greer chuckled. “Take your time.”
I’m sensing a make-out session, her dragon said with a lot of glee.
Cool your jets. I imagine he is here about information on the demon.
Tory and Kenton had just reached the backroom when another customer rang the doorbell. The door clicked, and Kenton stiffened. Tory spun around to see what had caused his reaction. Uh-oh. “That’s Kai. Can you sense if he is a demon?”
“I can, and he is. Stay here,” he commanded.
Tory wanted to follow him out but considering Kai might have been the one to make her dad sick, it would be better if she remained hidden. The problem was that Greer was out there. If this demon touched her cousin, he could infect her too.
“Sir, I’m the new manager here. Can I help you? Greer, you’re needed in the back room.”
“Sure.” A second later the door to the back room opened. “What the hell is Kenton doing?” her cousin asked.
Tory didn’t know whether to be mad, scared, or upset. “Kenton has reason to believe that man is the demon who infected my Dad.”
She said nothing for a moment. “How could he tell?”
“You didn’t sense something was different about him?” Greer was very intuitive.
“I thought I did, but then I dismissed it. It wasn’t like anything I’ve felt before though.”
“Did you feel evil?”
Greer bit down on her bottom lip. “It was more anger than anything.”
The door clicked shut, and Kenton returned. “All clear, ladies.”
“What did you tell Kai?” Tory asked.
“When he told me he wanted to speak with you, I told him that I was your fiancé and that I didn’t like you speaking with other men.” He held up a hand. “It was a story I had to tell. He didn’t seem to be interested in Greer.”
Tory blew out a breath. “Did he say he wasn’t interested in Greer?”
“No, but he might not have known Greer was related to you.”
As much as Tory wanted to pretend this would all go away, she couldn’t. “Do you know how we can kill him?”
Kenton dragged a hand down her hair and then cupped her cheek. “My brave warrior. You can’t do anything—at least not right now. We have something on Feyrion that might be able to stop him. Would you be willing to take a day or two and help me find this magic ball?”
Tory did want to go, partly to see what was on Feyrion, and partly because she wanted to give their relationship a second chance. She looked over at Greer. “The next two days are your days off.”
“It’s okay,” Greer said. “This is important, so go. You covered for me when that dark entity had captured me.”
“Thank you. I probably won’t be able to contact you during that time.”
Greer smiled. “You’ll be safe with Kenton.” Greer hugged her.
“Ready?” he asked.
“I’ll need to pick up a few things from home.”
“Understood.” Kenton placed a hand on her back, and before she could blink, they were standing in her living room. “Pack light.”
“I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to this teleporting stuff.”
He smiled. “When you do, you’ll never want to fly again.”
She loved soaring through the air. The cool wind against her skin invigorated her. “Give me a sec. You’ll be here when I return, right?”
He grinned. “I’ll never leave you again like that. I promise.”
“Okay. I’ll be right back.”
Tory threw some essentials into a backpack purse, so that she wouldn’t have to carry it far when they arrived. Knowing Kenton though, he’d teleport them to their hotel room—or wherever he used to live. Dang. She knew almost nothing about him. If they were to be mates, she needed to find out more.
Knowing her family would worry if they tried to contact her and she didn’t answer, Tory called her mom.
“Hi, dear. Is everything okay?”
Her mother was quite intuitive also. “Kenton and I are going to Feyrion for a couple of days. We want to see if we can figure out how to kill a demon.”
“Oh, Tory. Are you sure it will be safe?”
“I’ll be safer on Feyrion than on Tarradon.”
Her mother said nothing for a moment. “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll tell the others we might have a solution to our problem.”
“Thanks, Mom. I love you.”
“Love you too.”
Tory went back to the living room where Kenton was thankfully waiting for her. “We’ll need to teleport to my cabin in the woods. From there, we’ll go through the portal,” he said. “I could create a portal from here, but it wouldn’t be as secure as the one in the woods. With the demons at large, I don’t want to risk it. It will only take us a few seconds.”
“Works for me.”
True to his word, they arrived in his house in seconds. She looked around. While the space wasn’t overly large, neither was her house. It actually had a similar layout to her place. “It’s very rustic.”
“Not your taste, I see, but I can change it quite easily. However, we can decorate later. We should get to Feyrion.”
“Of course.” Tory wasn’t sure where the portal was, but she really didn’t need to know.
He led her down a long hallway toward a door and then opened it. Once second, she was standing on the hardwood floors of his cabin, and the next, she was in front of a palace or maybe she’d call it a castle. It was built from beautiful white stone and had two towers that bordered the front entrance. It was huge. Colorful flowers abounded everywhere—in front of the castle as well as in the surrounding fields. She inhaled. “This place smells amazing.”
Kenton smiled. “The colors are brighter, the sounds clearer, the smells more intense. Everything is heightened here. With your ability to see and hear better than regular humans, this might be overwhelming at first, but you’ll get used to it.”
“The warmth, sunlight, and beauty is
really calming.”
He grinned. “Come on. It’s time to meet the rest of the family.”
When he placed a hand on her back and led her forward, Tory stopped. “You live here?” This was a far cry from his cabin.
“Actually, my parents live here. Did I forget to tell you they are the king and queen of Feyrion?”
Okay, Kenton probably could have handled that better, but if he had told Tory he was royalty from the start, she might have balked. The royalty on Tarradon were enemies to the Guardians. It didn’t matter she’d told him that her mother was the queen’s sister. In that respect, Tory was practically royalty too. Possibly, he didn’t tell her because Kenton didn’t want her to want him just because of the riches and power that were at his command—or would be once the king and queen decided they’d had enough.
“Yes, you forgot to mention that little fact,” Tory said. “You really should do something about your poor memory, you know.”
Thankfully, she smiled after that comment. “I will take that under advisement. Before we go in, I’ll give you a little background. My parents are nice, or rather my mother who is a Fairy, is very gentle and caring. My dad is Fey. As the king, he has to be a bit more aggressive. He might not show his emotions very often, but he is a good man.”
She touched his arm. “As are you.”
“Thank you. I try to be.”
Kenton could have teleported directly into the living room, but he wanted her to experience everything, so he walked her up the driveway to the entrance, and then escorted her inside. While the outside was large and grand, the inside was rather understated. There might be many masterpieces on the walls, but the surface was coated in regular paint like everyone else’s home. The furniture was more upscale than that of a typical family’s home, but all of the statues were made by locals.
“This is amazing,” she said with awe.
Marnia, one of their maids, came down the hallway carrying a broom. Kenton stopped her. “Mr. Kenton. Welcome home.” She glanced over at Tory and then shifted her gaze downward.
“Marnia, this is my friend, Tory.” He wasn’t sure if he should announce that Tory was his mate just yet.
“Ma’am.”
“Do you know where Mother is?”
“She is in the kitchen.”
“Thank you, Marnia.”
Kenton led Tory toward the back of the castle. “Your mother cooks?” she asked.
He laughed. “I would say she snacks on what others are making more than she actually cooks, though she is a rather competent chef.”
Inside the too warm kitchen, his mom was conversing with their master chef. She was wearing a rather tattered apron, her hair was pulled back into a ponytail with wisps all over the place, and she had flour on her hands.
“Mother?”
She looked over and grinned. “Kenton! This is a surprise.”
She wiped her hands on a nearby towel and then rushed over to him. He caught her quick glance at Tory.
“Mom, you remember Tory.”
“Of course. I’m glad to see you looking so healthy. That terrible dark Fey did quite a number on you.”
“Tory, this is my mother, Queen Arianna.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Queen Arianna. I suppose Malpan did harm me, but I honestly remember nothing.”
“Yes, that was my idea. Before I was sure you and Kenton were mates, I had no choice but to make certain you didn’t return to Tarradon telling tales. We try to keep our perfect little realm all to ourselves.”
He didn’t need his mother to say anything else that would embarrass him. “Can we talk for a moment?” he telepathed.
“Of course, dear.”
“How about the drawing room?”
“Let me wash my hands, and I’ll meet you there.” His mom clasped his hand. “How are things going between you two?”
Tory would become uncomfortable if he and his mom stood there in silence for long. “Good, but the lies have put a strain on things.”
She smiled, clearly pretending the two of them hadn’t been discussing Tory.
Kenton turned his attention back to his mate. “We’ll meet mom in the drawing room once she cleans up. Come this way.”
Once they were seated, he asked what Tory wanted to drink.
“Do you have the same drinks as on Tarradon?”
“Not exactly, though we do have coffee and tea. No soda though.” He leaned forward. “We borrowed a few sprigs of your coffee plants so we could grow it here.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Is that so? Don’t worry. I won’t tell. I think we did the same when we visited Earth.”
Kenton smiled, thrilled that Tory could be relaxed when everything around her was so new.
Queen Arianna breezed into the room. She’d changed and cleaned up. Her hair was now in a twisted updo, and she wore a beautiful purple flowing gown with gold inter-woven around the edges. Tory’s mouth opened, probably because it had only been a minute or two since his mother had left to change.
His mom sat in one of the high-backed chairs across from them. “Tea or coffee?” she asked.
“How about iced tea?” Tory asked.
His mom swept a hand across the table and the tea appeared. “And for you, Kenton?”
“The same. Thank you, Mother.” Though he’d rather have a beer. As kind and wonderful as his mother was, it often was stressful being home, especially when she brought up the topic of whether he was ready to take over running the realm.
“Please don’t mention anything about the politics of the realm, Mom,” he telepathed. “Tory isn’t ready yet.”
“I’m not insensitive.” She turned to Tory. “Tell me about yourself, dear.”
That might be just as bad. His mate didn’t need to be grilled by his mother, but he supposed that kind of thing happened on Tarradon too. For the next half hour, Tory discussed her job at the store. To his delight, she told his mom that everyone in her family was a Guardian.”
“That’s wonderful. We’re kind of Guardians too. We protect what we have here. Kenton is in charge of our military—if that is what they are called.”
“Mother.” He needed to get to the point of their visit. “I’m sure Bevon explained about the current issue on Tarradon.”
“You mean the demons?”
“Yes. Do you think you could give us a hand in creating a magic ball of light to destroy them?”
“I can, but your three sisters can perform the spell just as well, assuming I give them a bit of my special magic.”
“Then we need to speak with Tally. She’ll have to return with us, if only for a little while.”
His mom pressed her lips together. “I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, why don’t you show Tory what Feyrion has to offer. I’ll let you know if I’m successful.”
He stood. “Thank you.” He faced Tory. “Ready?”
Her mouth opened and then closed. “Sure.”
Kenton took her hand and teleported them to one of his favorite spots.
“Whoa.” Tory looked around. “This is incredible.”
“I never get tired of looking at the tall mountains, the thick green frenlen trees, and the crystalline water of the lake below.”
She inhaled. “It smells sweet. It’s like the air is totally pure.”
“It is.”
Tory faced him. “Why would you leave here? It seems idyllic.”
“The operative word is seems. How about we go for a swim, and I’ll tell you all about it?”
“I didn’t bring a bathing suit.”
He hadn’t expected her to have that objection. “I can put a cloaking spell around us so no one can see us. I swim in the nude in case you’re wondering.” Her eyes widened. “Don’t look so shocked. It’s not like you haven’t seen my junk before.”
She cracked up. “You call it junk here, too?”
Kenton never wanted to lie to her again. “No. I picked up that slang expression while working at Angelique’s Coffee
Shop.”
“Seriously?”
He nodded. “You’d be surprised what people talk about when they don’t think anyone is listening. Let’s go.”
One second, they were standing on top of the mountain, and the next they were at the bottom of the mountain range, feet half sunken on the white sand beach.
“Teleporting is still a thrill. I’m not sure I’ll get used to it.”
“You will. Come on. The water is warm. I can turn my back while you undress if you’d feel more comfortable.”
“Funny man. Why don’t you do that hand swiping thing and remove both of our clothes at the same time?”
“It would be my pleasure, just as soon as I cloak this area.”
Chapter Eighteen
Tory instantly covered herself—not from Kenton but from anyone who might be watching.
He laughed. “No one can see you.”
She looked around. “Are you sure your shield is up?”
“Yes, I’ll show you.” He swept his hand, wiggling his fingers in some odd pattern. As quickly as her clothes disappeared, they reappeared. “Walk up the beach a bit and then turn around. If you want, you can use your bracelet to communicate telepathically with me.”
This was beyond cool. Dragons had powers but nothing like this. To test out the bracelet, she swiveled the band around so that the stone was over her inner wrist, and then she placed it over her heart. Tory then walked down the beach. “Tell me when I can turn around,” she telepathed.
“Now is good.”
She spun around and stilled. The beach, water, and hills were still there but not Kenton. “Where are you?”
He chuckled. “Right where you left me.”
“Can you see me?” she asked.
“Yes. You are outside this small sphere I have created.”
“That is incredible.”
Tory headed back to where she believed him to be. As if she’d stepped through a portal, there he was! “That was almost scary but cool at the same time.”
Kenton stepped up to her. “Is that so?” He cocked a brow. “I have a few other tricks I can show you.”
Tory grinned. “I can’t wait.”