Nine Tails 5: Void Shift

by J. L. Weil

  “Were you watching me sleep?” I asked, grogginess coating my throat.

  Her eyes were bright but calm. “Yes, it was like watching paint dry—a very slow and painful process. I even poked you a few times.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “That’s kind of creepy.”

  “Is it?” She shrugged. “Trust me. It wasn’t my intent to sit around all day and wait for you to join the living. Do you know you snore?”

  “I do not,” I insisted. Then it hit me. Holy shit. Belle was here. As in, the Second Moon. For a spell, I’d forgotten where I was, even what had happened last night, but now, it all rushed back like an unbridled storm. Devyn. Was he okay? I bolted upright in bed, shoving the knotted and frizzy hair out of my face. “Oh, my god. You’re here.”

  “I am. You’re a difficult Kitsune to keep track of, disappearing on me like that.”

  “I didn’t mean to, I swear.”

  She snorted. “Of course, you didn’t. It doesn’t matter. Your path was always going to lead you here.”

  My brows rose a bit. “Is that how you found me? A vision of the future?”

  She rubbed at her shoulders as if she was working out a knot from sitting in one place for too long. “One of many. I had to weed my way through the possibilities, but luckily, most of them pointed to this house.”

  Not surprising at all, considering my connection to this family. “I was afraid I might never see you again.”

  Her eyes did a dramatic roll. “I see you’ve had an eventful few days in the fae realm, but I came to warn you.”

  The blood drained from my face. “Warn me about what?” What had the pixie seen that had spurred her to seek me out through endless futures? I already knew my life was in danger here, that I was being hunted night and day, that the land was dying, that I had a destiny, whether I wanted it or not.

  So now what?

  “You can’t stay here,” she stated, her lips tightening into a grim line.

  The seriousness in her eyes nabbed my undivided attention. “By here, do you mean this house or this world?” I needed specifics if I was going to stop or change whatever it was she had come to warn me of.

  “Let me show you.” Belle fluttered up from her spot on the pillow to by my ear, where her small hand touched my temple so softly that it could have been a fly’s wing buzzing past my face.

  Her touch, however light, had instantaneous effects. The room blurred, muting the colors into a swath of gray. There was nothing I could do but wait until the vision solidified, but I made a mental note to tell Belle she needed to work on her delivery of these visions and give me a fair warning before sucking me into the future.

  A bright light burst in front of my eyes, like lightning striking against a black sky, blinding me momentarily. When my eyes adjusted, I was no longer in Devyn’s bedroom, but outside. The murky midnight sky stretched far and wide above my head. I shuffled my foot to pivot in a circle, and it was then I realized what the smog floating in the air had come from: the remnants of war.

  The rubble of bone, ash, and debris cut the soles of my bare feet as I walked in a circle, unable to process what my eyes were seeing. Dust swirled with the wind like it was spreading death, tickling my nose. For as far as my demi-fae eyes could see, there was nothing but dull gray ash coating every piece of the land. Even the buildings had been demolished to their studs.

  What in the hell happened?

  Had a bomb gone off in this place, destroying everything in its path?

  It was no bomb, a small voice in my head said—my Kitsune to be precise, which was making this whole experience seem impossible. Holding a conversation with my animal self was a lot to take in, so I didn’t question it and turned my focus to the horror in front of me.

  I didn’t envy Belle and the gift she was cursed with, because seeing this didn’t make her powers feel like a blessing. Belle had a reason for showing me this particular possible future. Why? What did she want to warn me of?

  My ears picked up what my fae eyes couldn’t see: the screaming, the cries, the pleas. The sounds carried in the wind, scorching my heart just as the earth had been set ablaze. A world had been brought to its knees by a dark force greater than my mind could conjure.

  Was this the doing of my uncles? Or was this what awaited the fae world if I failed to restore the land, to banish the blight that was killing it day by day?

  I dragged my feet over the mounds of ash, searching for someone, for any signs of life when I tripped. I went down, my knees and hands catching the brunt of my fall and preventing me from smashing my face into the ground.

  My fingers submerged into the soot, dirt, and God knew what else. Any other day, I would have been disgusted at what stuck under my nails, but on this day, there was no space for vanity. Only sorrow and dread.

  I went to push myself to my feet when my fingers felt something under the grime. I brushed aside a layer of ash. Horror, agony, and disbelief tore through me from what I had revealed beneath the ruins. My mouth opened in a silent sob as I stared into a pair of wide green eyes without their usual glimmer. Here there was no life . . . only death.

  “Holly.” Her name was a sob on my trembling lips. Buried below the destruction, her mouth parted as blood dribbled from the corner. Her skin was bleached of color and cool to the touch.

  I ran my fingers through the dark strands of her hair now matted with dirt and dried blood. Then I turned around to study the bones of the structure around me. This had been their house. Devyn’s house.

  Beside Holly lay another body, and my heart twisted in my chest, aching so viciously. Please. No. Please don’t let it be . . . I crawled to the other body, begging and praying to whatever gods would listen that it wasn’t Devyn. If he—

  No.

  I could not allow myself to think of it. Not even in the midst of this slaughter nightmare.

  My chest cracked open as I stared into the face beside Holly’s. It was like looking into a foggy mirror. The necklace, the one my mother had given me, my soul star, was clutched in my body’s stiff fingers, covered in dirt and blood. Not even in the face of death had I been willing to part with it. The stone, once vibrant and breathing with life, was now colorless and dull. Not a kernel of my magic remained.

  My head fell back, and I roared a cry of such sadness and rage that it reached to the far ends of this earth, sending a clear warning to my enemies. I was coming for them, and I would show them the same mercy they had shown me, had shown the family in this house.

  “I tried to stop you,” someone said behind me, his voice as flat and as lifeless as the bodies littering the ground. Devyn braced a hand against a collapsed portion of the house, his eyes fixed on me—not the apparition version of me, but the one lying bent and broken under a heap of cinders and fallen hopes. “You left me. How could you leave?” It was clear Devyn was distraught, but how could I blame him? I was having trouble accepting what I was seeing as well.

  I reached up to feel for my soul star, but there was no necklace around my neck. The world had shifted into one of utter chaos, death, and devastation all because of me.

  I sucked in a gulp of air, the vision leaving me breathless and quaking with such gut-wrenching sadness that I was thankful to still be in bed, for there was no way I would have been able to stand. The air I forced myself to take in and release ached in my lungs with a sharpness.

  It wasn’t just my heart that hurt. My whole body, even my soul, was in agony—the kind that left scars. My fingers dug into the blanket.

  No. No. No. My head shook back and forth. I refused to believe that was my future. It couldn’t be. The vision was a future I’d never recover from seeing. It would be burned into my memory—a reminder of all that was at stake if I failed.

  Belle landed on my knee. “You’re not the only one who dreams of deaths that haunt them. I too have seen the earth painted with the blood of those I love—of my queen.” Her glittering eyes pierced mine, transfixing me. She was talking about me: I would be her queen.
Someday.

  “When?” was all I said, wiping at the tears that threatened to pour out of me. I stiffened my lip, keeping the pool of emotions in check. Now was not the time to fall apart.

  There was an unspoken apology on her features. “It could be five minutes or five months. I don’t know. But you can’t stay here.”

  “I need to find Devyn.” My dark braid swung over my shoulder as I whirled out of bed and raced for the door. I was still wearing the same clothes as last night, having been too tired to change.

  I didn’t wait to see if Belle followed me into the hall, but there was something waiting for me in the dark corridor. From the shadows, it lashed out toward my mind, an invisible cold thread. I was still torn up about what I’d seen and didn’t sense the darkness until it was too late, until it surrounded me. I rushed around the corner, fear burning in my lungs, and smacked into a wall of shadows.

  Not shadows.

  Kai.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “What the fuck, Kai?” I spat, smacking my hands on his chest. “You scared the shit out of me.”

  “I get that a lot,” he replied with an impish grin.

  I didn’t have time to play games with him. My emotions were too scattered. Not to mention, I lacked the concentration to shield myself against Kai’s magic. “Where’s Devyn?” I demanded. My tone was harsher than I’d intended, but he had just caused my heart to stop. Again. Twice in ten minutes was more than I could handle.

  Kai’s lips curled into a lazy grin of wickedness. A fleck of starlight twinkled in the center of his midnight eyes. “Who cares.”

  Prick. “It’s important. I need to find him.”

  He moved in closer, forcing my back to hit the wall. “Tell me what’s troubling you, Kitten.”

  “Don’t call me that,” I snapped, taking a deep breath to try again. “Please, Kai.”

  “I could get used to you begging my name.”

  I was going to bite him and not in a sexy way. My teeth were bared when a knock sounded on the front door. My eyes swung down the hallway toward that part of the house. A chill tiptoed up my spine, and the headache that I’d forgotten about suddenly began to thrum in my head like a goddamn mariachi band.

  Kai’s eyes flicked down the hall with annoyance before returning back to my face. The flare of irritation was gone, replaced by mild amusement. He was a chameleon—able to change his moods like lizards shed their skin. “You’re quite cute when your fur is ruffled. I’d love to see you in your other form.”

  “Some other day,” I replied flatly, stepping to the side. The knock sounded again, and I halted, lifting my eyes to Kai’s.

  I didn’t know what he saw when he looked at me, but his irises swirled with shadows, and I felt him draw upon his magic. Had he sensed what I had? “Well, someone is damn persistent, and apparently, no one else is going to find out who is knocking on our door at this time of day.”

  My hand shot out, gripping tight onto Kai’s forearm. “Don’t answer that.” The words were split between a plea and an order.

  His brows sprung up. “What has you spooked, little queen?”

  I glared at him. “Trust me. Whatever is behind that door, it is not good. We need to find Devyn. Now.”

  “You don’t think I could protect you?” he challenged.

  It wasn’t a question of whether he was skilled or not, but whether he would choose to protect me. But even as the thought went through my head, I followed behind Kai to the door, compelled by a force I couldn’t explain. I had to know who was there, even knowing I would regret finding out. My blood swam with a familiarity that had my instincts screaming at me to run.

  And yet I pushed on.

  Kai didn’t so much as blink at the stranger darkening the doorway, not even when he took in the guards behind the man. A sly smile remained on Kai’s lips. “Ryker. We weren’t expecting you. To what do we owe the pleasure of this impromptu visit?”

  The color drained from my face, and I swayed, my hand reaching for the wall to steady the sudden dizziness swirling in my head.

  Holy shit.

  This was my uncle? No. It couldn’t be. How had he found me? What did he want?

  Well, the army behind him was a pretty clear message.

  My uncle didn’t carry a single trait of my mother, and it made me doubt that this man could be related to me. His hair was dark, golden, and wavy, framing a wide jaw that was set firmly with displeasure. Freckles dusted the bridge of his tan nose, hinting that he spent plenty of time under the sun. He was built like what I was beginning to associate with all fae males: broad shoulders, taller than the average mortal man, but not as tall as Kai. Being close to the pair made me feel so small and insignificant in their towering company.

  Not a bad thing in this circumstance. I much rather remain hidden than catch Ryker’s eyes. Those too were different—a cunning amber that glowed like a jungle cat’s eyes at night. He appeared close to my mother in age but possessed none of her gentleness or kindness.

  He looked every inch the bastard I’d imagined, only with blond hair.

  “You have something I came to retrieve.” Ryker’s voice was crisp and edged with the impatience of a man who was used to snapping orders and having the world around him jump to action.

  Kai was not the jumping sort. He leaned a shoulder on the doorframe, crossing his arms in a bored gesture. “Oh,” he replied, every inch of his body relaxed despite our precarious situation.

  Where was Devyn?

  Ryker’s gaze brushed past Kai to me. The expression on his face was devoid of emotion as was his voice when he said, “Hello, niece. I’ve waited a long time for this moment.”

  A rainbow of f-bombs went off in my head, followed by a heaviness that clamped down on my chest, making it impossible to breathe. I fought to keep the swift rise of panic clawing its way through me at bay. Allowing my uncle to see the effect his presence had on me would give him power and confidence.

  I wanted him stripped of both for every fae he sent to hunt me.

  And for the army he brought to Devyn’s doorstep.

  However, words failed me, so I stood there staring at the fae who was my blood relative.

  Ryker was a leopard in human form. “I understand my unannounced arrival is probably a shock.”

  I squared my shoulders. Regardless of the road flares going off inside me, I tried to show that he couldn’t rile me. This man had made my life hell for months. “What do you want?” I demanded.

  His head bowed ever so slightly in my direction. “To bring you home, of course.”

  Kai stepped forward. The sudden icy rage in his eyes was such a contrast to the lazy sneer on his lips. I didn’t know at that moment whom I feared more: Ryker or Kai. They both seemed equally as fearsome. “And the militia you brought with you is to escort her safely to Katsura, I presume?”

  Such. Utter. Bullshit.

  “I’ll return when I’m ready,” I said, my voice a blend of forced friendliness and unwavering sternness. “There is no need to go to such lengths, especially when I’m sure your men have more important things to attend to.”

  “I was afraid you would say that. I had hoped you would be compliant, but I can see that won’t be the case.” Ryker lifted his hand and gave a signal to the men who stood behind him, all dressed in identical black uniforms with the head of a golden cat embroidered on the sleeve. Two men stepped out of rank, their eyes sizing me up with each step they took.

  Kai cut Ryker a sharp glare. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. She is under our protection. You know the rules.” Shadows clung to his form, looping and twining around his legs and arms.

  “It’s time we make a few changes to the rules,” Ryker declared, baring his leopard canines. This was about to turn ugly, and all I could see was Belle’s vision.

  “Run!” Kai growled at me, slamming a shield of darkness around the doorway.

  Ryker’s face was pure, feline rage, and I knew I should be running, as Kai had ordered,
seeking out Devyn, but my feet were rooted in place, ensnared by those amber eyes of my uncle.

  The low roar that trembled from his lips seemed to suck the air right out of the house. Kai spun. A fierce scowl darkened his features at finding me frozen in place. “Why the hell aren’t you running?” He grabbed my arm and took off, dragging me down the hall after him. “We need to find Devyn. Those shadows won’t hold them out for long.”

  My body had gone numb, but my mind was in turmoil, desperate to sort through all the mayhem. And from within the chaos, one thought stuck out. I could fix this. I could protect this house and everyone in it. I had to try.

  Halting, I pulled my hand free from Kai’s grasp. He whirled to scold me, the darkness surrounding him flickering, but he sensed something. My power—the power I’d been gathering since the knock sounded on the door—surged from my core. I pulled the shadows to me, letting their cool darkness cloak me, and in seconds, I was drowning in night. Then I turned back the hands of time.

  Like jumping off a moving train, I stumbled into Devyn’s bedroom, the shadows returning to the corner of the room. Belle was nowhere in sight, so I bolted for the hallway, not wasting a precious second, but when I whipped open the door, someone was already waiting for me.

  “What did you do?” Kai snarled.

  “You remember?” I squeaked, my body still reeling from the flare of magic.

  “That you just screwed with the time line? Yes. Do you know what you are playing with, little queen? Time doesn’t work the same here.” He was rushing down the hallway, and I was right on his heels.

  Shit. Devyn had mentioned that, but what did that even mean? “There’s going to be a consequence, isn’t there?”

  “Always. Magic always demands a price, and the bigger the request, the steeper the price. You’re lucky it was only a few minutes.” Venom coated Kai’s smile that he gave me, his strides unwavering. “But your little stunt will give us an advantage. Pray it is enough.”

  Together, Kai and I burst into a room in the back of the house—the study. Devyn was leaning on the edge of a massive desk, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. His head snapped up at the disruption. He took one look at me and was on his feet. “What’s going on?”