“I had never cared for children until I came here. I worked in the kitchen in Faerie. I wasn’t sure what to do for the wee ones.” Two infants slept in baskets near her skirts. “I borrowed people to teach me what I didn’t know. I always meant to give them back.”
“Why use glamour to conceal Mr. O’Malley’s car?” In hindsight, it seemed like overkill. “His wife remembered seeing it in the lot between the times he was taken and when it vanished.”
“We panicked,” she admitted, head down. “We thought that perhaps by concealing his transportation, we might buy ourselves time. We had already brought him home with us, so I had to go back and cast the glamour. I must have just missed his wife.” She glanced at the bike leaned against the house. “That device was much easier for us to move, and so we did. To avoid leaving more magical remnants behind us.”
“And the notes?” I couldn’t wait to hear this. “What’s the deal with those?”
Tiberius pointed out a young girl with six multi-jointed insectoid legs who smiled at us through a mouthful of jagged fangs. “You can thank that one for the notes.” He chuckled fondly when she shuttled behind a boy that might have been a centaur. “Leandra has been teaching the older children your language so they can read the signs in town and know what to avoid.”
“Clematis has developed a taste for beef.” Leandra appeared likewise amused. “I taught her the word by showing her cattle in a neighboring field. She was confused when I promised to bring home beef, but she saw no cows in the stores. The notes were a complaint.”
That the girl had developed a taste for beef while snubbing perfectly good packs of ground round made me wonder if any of the farmers in the area were down a few head of cattle.
“You took her with you?” Apparently reading wasn’t the only life skill Leandra and Tiberius had been teaching the children. Theft for survival also appeared to be part of the curriculum.
“She saw her parents murdered.” Her tone held no recrimination. “She has panic attacks after dark, and it scares the other children. It’s easiest for all concerned to bring her along. She wanted to help, so I put her to work. The message on the paper didn’t matter. The magic was in the ink, and it told any humans or lesser fae whatever they expected to see. Only the higher fae, and apparently your kind, can read the messages for what they are.”
That brought up interesting questions about Mr. Simmons, the grocer. Perhaps he was a quarter-blood fae or a recessive warg. So long as he kept his grubby paws to himself, I didn’t much care either way.
“Kids raising kids.” I rubbed my hands over my face. “This is not what I expected.”
“What will you do with us?” Leandra only had eyes for Tiberius. “What about them?”
“You will be under house arrest until we figure out how to safely transfer you to another location. You and the kids. Until we can get them placed in foster homes with the conclave.” I studied the sullen prince. “He has to go back.”
Tiberius lost his slouch and straightened as he faced me. “You’ll let them live?” He reached for Leandra, their hands catching and holding. “You’ll let her stay?”
“Cooperate with me, and I’ll do one better.” I pushed every ounce of sincerity I possessed into my voice. “I will vouch for Leandra and protect her. The children are innocents. They won’t be punished for circumstances beyond their control. I promise you that.”
Relief bowed his shoulders, and he wiped the back of his hand under his eyes. “Thank you.”
A sting of magic pricked me as his vow sank in. A prince of Faerie was in my debt. How do you like that?
“The weather—” I began again, unwilling to get brushed off this time.
“I give you my vow,” he cut me off as a stronger thread of energy prickled my skin, sealing his promise, “that when I leave this place, the storms will bother you no more.”
Much as I hated unsolved mysteries, the talent must tie in to his heritage. I could respect him not wanting to share secrets that might harm his family with the enemies he had created for himself. As long as the skies cleared, I could leave him that much dignity.
“Give me your word you will behave honorably, and you can say your goodbyes in private.” I studied the pink-and-orange hues saturating the skies. “You have until sundown.”
“My word is given.”
He rushed to his feet, eased the sleeping child into the arms of an older kid then grabbed Leandra by the wrist and whirled her onto her feet. He scooped her up and carried her bride-style through the door, kicking it closed behind them.
“I wish my ears weren’t so sensitive,” Aisha whined.
“This is true love. It has to be. Nothing else hurts so damn much.” I rubbed the center of my chest, a kernel of fear burning there for Isaac. “If that means we have to listen to them goodbye boinking, then so be it.”
Job snickered behind me. Aisha wrinkled her muzzle. Nathalie mostly looked sad.
“His family allowed them to run away. Heck, they practically blessed his wild-oat sowing. They were fine with the kids playing house and all it entails, right up to the point where the prince lost his heart to a peasant girl.” Too bad I didn’t have a set of those wax earplugs in my pockets. But I didn’t have pockets period. “If that’s not parental consent for what’s happening in there, I don’t know what is.”
The wolves, minus Aisha, played with the kids and helped me keep them corralled so they didn’t walk in on an anatomy lesson in progress. I led a game of hide-and-seek that put me in range of Abram and touched base with that camp.
“How are Zed and Isaac?” I held my breath waiting for his answer.
“Zed’s sitting up on his own. His bones are mending nicely. Isaac is around here somewhere…”
My heart stuttered. “What do you mean he’s around? Where is somewhere?”
“His physiology is different than Cam’s. I’ve seen her take Cord’s blood to heal minor injuries, but Isaac’s recovery is miraculous.” He sounded thoughtful. “I wonder if his magic is stronger because he has a living twin or if there’s something about your blood…”
“Find him,” I snapped. “He was a smear on the grass a few hours ago. You can’t just let him wander around unsupervised.”
Abram’s mental sigh accused me of overreacting. I let my silence call him all sorts of inventive names, most of which I’m sure he never would have heard of before if I spoke them out loud.
“Hey.”
I whirled around and almost swallowed my tongue when I found Isaac standing in front of me.
“Are you insane?” I stalked him. “Why are you walking around?” I jabbed him in the shoulder. “You should be lying down.” Jab, jab. “You almost died.”
“Abram kept checking his phone to stalk his eBay auctions. Asking me about prices, then arguing with me about values. The guy was basically begging me to enable him, so I sneaked off while his back was turned.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Where was Moore during all this?”
“He was investigating a noise in the woods.” Isaac toed the dirt. “That might have been a rock I threw.”
And people thought I had a death wish. “What on Earth compelled you to do that?”
He kept digging his hole. “I was worried about you.”
“You could have asked Abram for an update.” Or Zed now that I thought about it.
“I tried.” Isaac huffed. “He kept saying, ‘Five minutes. I can’t look away or those auto-bid bastards will win.’”
“What about Zed?” A frisson of panic burbled up in my gut. Abram had told me Zed was better, but had he been telling the truth or trying to get rid of me? “He’s okay, right?”
“He was too busy pretending to be asleep to cooperate. I’m pretty sure he said have fun storming the castle when I left.”
“And he didn’t think to warn me you were wandering around?” I was going to need a new best friend. At this rate, I might smother mine in his faux sleep.
Isaac shrugg
ed.
“I found your missing patient,” I told Abram. “Call off the search.”
“Oh good.” His presence faded before returning, as if something had distracted him. I hoped not his phone. “Enzo’s here. We’ll load up Zed and head your way.”
Thank heaven for small mercies.
“Stay put.” I spoke to Isaac slowly in a clear voice. “I’ll be right back.”
I made quick work of finding the kids thanks to my sensitive nose then herded them back toward the yard. I looped my arm through Isaac’s and guided him, letting him lean on me when the incline got steep.
“What happens next?” He asked a question I was hearing all too often these days.
“We have things settled with Tiberius and Leandra. The girl is staying, the kids are too until I get in touch with the conclave, and the boy is turning himself in to protect them.”
“Who do you trust at the conclave with a baker’s dozen deserter kids?”
“Mai Hayashi.” The name must have rung a bell, because his eyes lit with recognition. “I met her once. She’s solid. I trust her to tap dance around the paperwork and get the kids settled someplace safe.”
We reached the house and found Tiberius and Leandra embracing in the doorway, watching the sunset. Her head rested on his chest, and his chin topped her head. As the light died, so did the sparks in their eyes. They glanced up at the sound of a rumbling truck engine, and I exhaled with relief that we didn’t have to drag this out longer than necessary.
“Leandra, call the kids inside. I’ll leave two of my wolves with you tonight for protection. It’s all I can spare.” Plus, I wanted eyes on her in case she tried to leave. A startled thought hit me. Isaac had touched her. That meant he could confirm her species for me. I lowered my voice to avoid keen ears. “She claims she’s a bean-tighe. Is she?”
“She’s telling the truth,” he acknowledged.
“Tiberius, you can ride in the back with me.” As an avian shifter-type-thing, the wind in his hair shouldn’t bother him. “Nathalie and Aisha, babysitting detail continues for you guys. Job, you’re with us.”
Once I stashed Isaac in the cab with Abram and Enzo, I joined Zed, Job and Moore in the bed of the truck.
Tiberius pressed his forehead to Leandra’s, and the pair murmured too softly for my ears to catch the words. He kissed her hard one last time then joined us without protest. He really did love her to sacrifice his freedom in exchange for hers.
The sliding window at the rear of the cab opened, and Moore leaned forward. “We’re going the long way around to avoid the fences. It’s rough out here, so everybody hang on. Holler if we need to stop.”
The truck bumped forward as Enzo circled back the way he had come. Give the witch a Ferrari and a stretch of flat highway, and the drive would be as smooth as glass. Behind the wheel of a pickup, driving through a pasture, the experience was more like one of those simulator cars at an amusement park. The kind that bumped you along, jerking and wheeling to dodge animatronic aliens or dinosaurs or whatever.
I don’t get carsick. Most wargs don’t. But I was clutching the edge of the bed and wishing for a peppermint to settle my stomach when a peculiar screeching sound raised the hairs along the back of my neck.
Impact knocked me forward, and my forehead slammed into Zed’s gut. He started coughing as I shoved up onto all fours and swung my gaze toward Job, waiting on him to fill me in on what the heck had just happened. He bared his teeth in a snarl, eyes rolled skyward. I looked up as a midnight blur swooped down and clocked me in the head a second time.
Moore jumped, snapping his teeth shut over air and almost landing on top of Zed, who shoved the bulky wolf into the corner near the tailgate and ordered him to sit.
Growling as I pushed upright, I caught my balance as the familiar scent of pennies filled my nose. I noticed a flattened area in the grass stained crimson and recognized the area. This was where the standoff had ended, where Abram had picked up on a weird vibe. Guess he was right about the woods being unfriendly.
“What the hell is that thing?” It moved too fast for my eyes to track.
The sky, which had been rosy fading to bruised purple with the oncoming night, turned black as pitch and growled with the ferocity I associated with tornadoes. Lightning forked across the sky, and winds kicked up, flinging stinging rain at us.
“It’s Beatrix.” Tiberius searched the sky with a tight frown. “She’s a thunderbird.”
“Those are real?” The books I had borrowed from Cam mentioned them, but not as children of Faerie. I had assumed if any more existed, they were native supernaturals like wargs and vampires. “Is she one of your kids?”
“They’re very real, and very rare.” He scooted toward the cab and stood, gripping one of the bars mounted to the top of the truck to keep his balance. “Bea was taken from this world when she was an egg and hatched in a nursery in Faerie. She was given to me as a hunting companion.” A scowl slanted his mouth. “I ordered her to keep out of this. She’s too precious to be lost.”
I followed his example in the hopes I wouldn’t get creamed for a third time. “Can you call off your attack bird?”
“No.” His slight smile hinted at pride. “She’s fiercely protective of me.”
A blue-black missile launched itself straight toward me, and I dove aside at the last moment. The massive hawklike bird slammed into the rear window, shattering the glass. The men inside shouted with surprise. Before I could apologize, the bird whirled on me. Thick talons raked down my arms and scratched my chest. The feathery brat was going for my eyes, but I punched her in the beak before she got that far. The thunderbird hit the bed of the truck with a thump, and Tiberius sank beside her, scooping the bird against his chest.
The creature’s hold on the weather broke, and the skies cleared as if the storm had never been brewing overhead.
Well, the mystery was unsolved no more. I should have put it together sooner. Of course an alkonost would have a pet who shared his affinity for weather.
“Sorry,” I called to the guys in the cab. “Are y’all okay?”
“Fine,” Enzo and Isaac said in unison before turning an unfriendly stare on one another.
“Glass and scratches.” Abram cupped the back of his neck, which was bleeding. “I’ll heal.”
I reached through the broken window and patted his shoulder. “Physician, heal thyself.”
He snorted. “I’ll see what I can do.”
I sat as far away as I could from Bea, but she didn’t rouse before we reached Watauga Lake. The prince appeared to take comfort from her presence, so I didn’t suggest out loud that we could deep-fry her and feast like kings tonight. Though I was thinking it. Hard.
With five hours to spare, I hopped to the ground and waited on Tiberius to join me. Moore and Job took cover in the trees while Abram, Enzo and Isaac lowered the tailgate and sat down to wait. Enzo picked glass from Abram’s nape to pass the time while Isaac fiddled with a tablet of some kind and appeared to be snapping reference photos.
Minutes stretched into an hour, and cool suspicion had me wondering if this had been a setup all along, if the fae had left us with no means of contacting them on purpose so that they could claim we had broken faith with them while still getting free labor out of us.
One hour morphed into two and then three. That’s when I got fed up and started walking the edge of the lake screaming, “We upheld our end of the deal. Come and get your prince. We don’t have all night.”
As we spoke, Haden was leading the Stoners into their first battle. His adrenaline-laced tension radiated through the pack bond, as clear as a gunshot fired at the start of a race. I should have been there for that, and I was missing out because the fae were poking the wound between our worlds and wasting our time when theirs was eternal. Or near enough compared to a human lifespan.
“Ah.” Rilla appeared on a gust of lilac-scented wind. “I thought I heard howling.”
The woman at her elbow tittered but c
hoked off the noise when she noticed my expression.
“Prince Tiberius.” Tanet bowed as low as physics allowed, considering he had wings and hung in midair. “I am pleased to see you’re unharmed. I regret the necessity of retrieving you from your holiday, but Faerie needs you. Your House needs you.”
Tiberius stood at my elbow, but he hadn’t taken his eyes off his aunt. “Rilla.” He cocked his head in a very birdlike manner. “You were not who I expected to come fetch me.”
“I vowed to return for you one day, did I not?” A predatory smile stretched her lips. “That day has come.”
The prince glanced at me, and all the promises I had made him stood between us. “Protect her.”
As was the warg way, I gripped his shoulder, hoping he took some comfort from my touch. “We’ll take good care of her, of all of them.”
“Do you come to us of your own free will?” Rilla hovered, and I imagined her as more of a vulture than an eagle. How had I ever mistaken her for an angel?
Glamour. That was the only way of hiding her multitude of sins.
“I do.” His glamour wavered, and his golden feathers revealed themselves. “I will cause you no trouble, so long as you swear you will never harm Torquatus lands by intent, action or inaction.”
One by one the others gave him their vows, charging the air with the magic of unbreakable promises.
“I hope no harm comes to you for your kindness.” He stretched his wings. “I will do my best to keep those of my House from your door.”
“What are the Torquatus lands?” I didn’t expect an answer, but I did wonder why he had placed importance on that location above the one where Leandra resided. “Why not ask them to keep their grubby mitts off your woman instead?”
“I am Tiberius Torquatus. Those lands, that fortress, are my home. My greatest treasure lies within those walls.”
I read his meaning between the lines, and my breath hitched. His greatest treasure was Leandra. His presence here proved that. As a bean-tighe, she had deep roots. But where? Her anchor, the construct her life was bound to, must be his childhood home. How else had a prince fallen in love with a kitchen maid? The pair no doubt grew up together, sharing a roof that shielded a private world, their innocent friendship blossoming into a deeper connection.
Promise the Moon (Lorimar Pack Book 1) Page 25