He had a point. At least the iron didn’t burn as bad as it had in the past. It wasn’t very comfortable, and it dampened her magic, but something about her connection to Hayden lessened her reaction to iron. There were things Hayden gained from their bond, like a limited control over water, but thankfully her weakness didn’t affect him.
Her head tilted to the side as a smirk graced her lips. “Can’t heal you either.”
Jarvis’ eyes narrowed. “And what guarantees you’ll do that? Heal me, and not run?”
“I told you this was a ridiculous idea,” the other man growled.
“Shut up, James,” Jarvis said sweetly but the irritation rang through. “She will do it, or I will do much worse to her than I intended to during her stay with the Silver Council.” His gaze was cruel and heated. “Out here, there are no wards to protect you, and you can’t run if I tether you to the shack with a spell.”
“No, I suppose not,” but thanks to Fallon she had protection from that kind of magic. “I guess I have to heal you then.”
His grin widened as he leaned closer, placing his damaged hand on her knee. He slid his hand up her thigh. Now she wished she had worn pants, because she didn’t own a scrap of undergarments.
“If you play nice, I’ll reward you,” he promised darkly.
She barely managed to keep the repulsion from her face. “Release me, or I can’t work any magic,” she purred.
“I have no desire to see this,” James muttered before stalking off into the woods.
That was a relief. Jarvis wasn’t scaring her yet. She could hardly feel his magic. James was freaking her out. He was twisted, there was no love, no light in his soul. The darkness seeping off of him was nearly suffocating.
She squeezed her thighs together, blocking his hand as she looked up into his eyes. He squealed in pain, jerking away from her.
Her brow arched. “That’s not going to help your hands.”
“You don’t want your reward?” He murmured as he dropped to his knees to release her ankles. “You may fight in the beginning, but your kind always enjoys it in the end.”
Her stomach rolled over at the thought of Jarvis touching her any more than he already had. She closed her eyes as his hands caressed first one arm as he released that wrist, and then the other. As soon as the last cuff fell, she shot to her feet as he stood. Amethyst jammed her knee into his junk, grabbed his ears, and slammed his face down on her knee before she shoved him back. He fell on his butt and she darted for the river.
Roots reached for her, trying to trip her but as she looked back down, they moved out of her way. She sent a silent thank you to Hayden and Fallon for their magic lesson.
She heard the spell as she reached the river and willed the water up around her in a shield as she dove into the current. She was thankful that the river was flowing strong as it carried her away.
Chapter 31
Hayden gripped the wheel tighter as Amethyst’s senses flooded his own. He felt like he was falling and then heard the splash as relief washed over him. For whatever reason he could feel his tie to Amethyst and knew she was out of danger for the moment.
“Turn,” Preston barked, pointing to where a vehicle had barreled into the woods not long before. “Through there.”
The sounds of the vehicles were silenced as a heavy fog rolled in around them. Hayden only had ten or so feet of visibility before the thick mist took over.
Gritting his teeth, he slowed his speed to watch for the tracks of the mages vehicle. It wasn’t long before he pulled to a stop beside the beat up gray van. He jumped out of his cruiser, as everyone else did.
Preston motioned to the right and they all followed. Liz took the lead, Tremaine shook his head but followed. Robert was right beside her with a look of concern.
Hayden knew all about worrying about his woman. Amethyst seemed prone to trouble, though she hadn’t been in any since that damned Shadow Fae.
On the drive over, Preston filled Hayden in on Amethyst’s stay at the Silver Council and what he assumed were Jarvis’ plans for Amethyst.
The mage was not going to survive this encounter. The first offense was enough for Hayden to want to cleave Jarvis’ head from his body, but now he wanted to make Jarvis suffer.
“Just warning you, Hayden. I’m going to hurt Jarvis. You can’t flat out kill him. He’s a sick fuck who abuses women. I know you want him out of the picture, but I’m going to make him suffer first.”
“That, my friend, is something we agree on. Amethyst is safe.”
Preston glanced over, a flicker of hope in his eyes. “How do you know?”
“My connection snapped back into place as we turned off the road. Felt like she was falling. I’m guessing she’s at the falls.”
“Falls?” Preston asked.
Liz answered. “Yeah, the Jagged Cliff Falls. They aren’t far from here, but that’s an awfully high drop.”
“Yeah, probably why my stomach made its way into my throat,” Hayden muttered.
Fallon and Brody caught up, moving silently through the woods
* * * *
Preston stopped in his tracks and held his hands up. He could hear Jarvis and James arguing, but they weren’t close enough to make anything out. He focused, gathering the traces of Amethyst’s energy. It formed a pale purple light that he blew, sending the glittering particles out in a funnel that stretched into the woods, trailing the same path James and Jarvis went. It highlighted the shadowy traces of James’ essence, and the sickly green energy of Jarvis.
Hayden looked over at him with a scowl. “What the hell is that?”
“Amethyst is easy to trace, but it helped show us the path James and Jarvis took. Listen, you can hear them thanks to the spell.”
Jarvis hissed in pain. “She kicked me.”
James sneered, “I told you not to trust her. All her kind are full of lies. How do you think her mother cursed you in the first damned place?”
That was all Preston needed. He started in their direction, using magic to hide any sound of the group. Granted, he was the least graceful of them all, but he was a city boy and had always been.
James snickered. “You were always a fool, but now someone’s coming. You’re on your own.”
Liz slipped past Preston and Hayden. Robert and Tremaine appeared behind her as she raced off.
“Damn it,” Fallon whispered harshly. “She needs a cool head if she’s going to deal with this.”
Preston wasn’t sure anyone could have a cool head after everything James had done to Liz, but he knew Robert and Tremaine had her back.
* * * *
Liz was done waiting for others to show her where to go. She raced through the woods, following the trail of essence. She heard Tremaine and Robert right behind her, and every time they fell behind, Robert translocated them to her again. She wasn’t sure where the extra burst of speed came from, but she wasn’t stopping for anything.
Then she was picked up and slammed back into a tree, Robert’s body pinning her there. “Liz, love, listen to me.”
She glared back at him. “I need to finish this. We need to finish this.”
“You need to slow down and think this through.” Robert stared into her eyes. “You need to take a deep breath and stay with us. We can’t lose you.”
“You won’t,” she insisted, her chest heaving. She was seconds from shoving him off of her and hurtling down that path again, especially when Preston, Hayden, Fallon and Brody charged past.
Tremaine caught her face, pulling her gaze to his. “We go together. No one is stopping you from taking your revenge, doll. We want to be there to pick you up if you fall. Let us be there with you.”
Her chest eased up and she took a deep breath, realizing that he made one hell of a point. She had been stupid, charging off without them. “Okay, you’re right.” Her eyes shifted to Robert. “I’m sorry.”
He nodded once and stepped back. She slipped past him but kept her pace reasonable. They were close
, she could feel it. Hell, she could hear Jarvis still whining in pain.
“Let’s end this,” Robert told her.
* * * *
James felt magic creeping up on them. He wasn’t sure where the nymph had gotten off to, but he could sense a variety of magic, including Robert and Elizandra’s. He’d waited a long time for Elizandra’s magic. The little he had gleaned from her all those years ago still pumped through his veins. She had been something much different than a mage, unlike anything he had tasted.
He could sense too many people. Fae, mage, druid and werewolf. Even with all the extra magic he gleaned on the way, he couldn’t battle everyone. He needed to pull Liz away, even if he knew Robert and Tremaine would stick with her. Three he could handle.
James slid between the trees, easing away as he pulled his magical essence back into him, taking any trace he could. He could see Preston coming into the clearing, his eyes locking on Jarvis still huddled on the ground. The Earth Fae rushed past Preston, the ground swirling up around him as he rushed toward Jarvis.
James cast a silencing spell as he made his way through the thickest of the brush. Before he made it out of earshot, he heard Jarvis wail in fear and pain.
* * * *
“You take him, I’ll find Amethyst,” Fallon said before she shifted into a hawk and flew off.
Brody let out a frustrated growl. “Be careful, sugar.” He called as he tore off after her, running through the forest.
Preston might have laughed, but he was too focused on Jarvis who tried to scoot away. The slimy bastard didn’t bother getting to his feet. “You’ll be taking me in, right?”
“To the council?” Preston scoffed. “Oh no. You’ve gone too far, and I’m sure my friend here has no desire to see you put through due process. You tried to take his mate.”
Jarvis squawked, “And what will you tell Draecyn?”
“Draecyn? Oh, Draecyn is dead thanks to you two. I don’t mind reporting that you admitted guilt right before Amethyst’s mate tore you to shreds. I may just forget to mention that I helped.”
“You’d let that beast attack a fellow mage?” Jarvis pleaded.
Preston glanced over to see Hayden’s features twisted in a mask of rage. When he looked back down, Jarvis had pissed himself. Yup, always the coward, and Preston wasn’t going to miss the asshole.
“I already told you, I have every intention of helping.” Preston drew one of his short mana-blades and plunged it into his groin.
Jarvis started screaming.
Chapter 32
Robert followed Liz, who ran straight past Hayden and Preston. Jarvis was screaming bloody murder, but Robert didn’t bother to look.
“Where is he?” he asked. Robert wanted James dead. His demented brother had hurt Liz too much, too many times. He wanted her safe.
His future was up in the air at that point. The only thing he was sure of was that it included Liz and Tremaine. After this nightmare, he would figure out what he was doing with his career. He couldn’t imagine going back to the Council with the way things were.
Liz came to a stop, and closed her eyes as she breathed in deep. Robert and Tremaine pulled to a stop beside her and shared a confused look.
She raised her hands and started chanting something Robert couldn’t decipher. He felt the wind pick up as the branches and leaves danced in a funnel that stretched outward.
“Nooooo,” James screamed, the sound coming closer, and then Robert heard the struggle. James was being dragged by an unseen force to them. He was kicking and screaming.
“Fuck you,” James yelled, trying to grab hold of a tree as he slid past, but his hands slipped away, blood left on the tree. “How are you doing this?”
Liz opened her eyes. They glowed an eerie gold green as her hair whipped up around her.
Tremaine rushed forward, but Robert didn’t have the patience for that. He translocated to James, and sent a shock through his body as James kept being dragged away.
Robert’s eyes flashed to Liz, but she was still drawing him closer as electricity danced up her arms and flowed down her body, covering her in flickering light.
As soon as James was between her and Tremaine, she erected a dazzling shield Robert could hardly see past.
“Liz, not like this. Not on your own,” Tremaine screamed. Robert was beside him a second later.
“My fight,” she yelled back. “I don’t need protection, I need to show this asshole he can’t win in a fair fight.
Robert took another look at the shield. A slow smile played on his lips as he recognized it for what it was.
He grabbed Tremaine’s face, pulling his gaze. “Let her do this.” His eyes slid to the shield as he tossed a rock to the other side. “She can do this.” And they could still step in if something went wrong. The shield was for show.
Tremaine stood there, his chest heaving, but he nodded as understanding flashed through his dark gaze.
* * * *
Liz sighed in relief. Robert had conveyed the message to Tremaine. This battle was hers, at least for now. She needed some pay back, especially after seeing the hell James had put Emily through for years and years.
She released James, who fell in a heap on his knees. “Tell me you aren’t giving up. I’m looking forward to a real fight, one where you can’t cheat.”
“Cheat? Cheat? How is what I ever did to you cheating?” He sneered.
“The only way you ever had an advantage over me is when you knocked me out and tied me up. You knew you couldn’t take me any other way.”
“Are you so sure of that?” He climbed to his feet, stepping forward. She felt the magic as he closed the distance. She heard Robert’s gasp and knew he was trying to cast an illusion.
Tremaine whispered urgently to Robert, but she shut them out. She had no clue whose face he chose, but she didn’t care.
Liz felt Tremaine’s spell wrap around her, but she didn’t recognize it. It wasn’t protection, defense or offensive, but something felt different.
James charged at her, fire filling his palms. Liz called the wind to take the flame from his reach and sling it into the water.
“Fire,” she taunted. “Fire won’t harm me. Look at what my flame did to you, and not me.”
He cackled, his golden eyes cruel in his disfigured face. “How is that, Liz? How can you not burn when the fire burns so hot? I still think you’re spawned of demons.”
“I know who my parents are now, and they are not demons,” she hissed, circling him, waiting for him to make a move before she struck a blow.
“Oh, that’s right. Draecyn, and the slut druid he was rumored to fall for. You’re like her, you know. Unfaithful, selfish, only looking out for yourself.”
The demon insult hurt her at one time, back when she didn’t know the truth of her strange magic. That was long ago, and she knew the truth now. Liz wasn’t concerned with herself, she was more interested in keeping her friends and those she claimed safe. Countless times, she put herself in the middle of danger to keep everyone else safe.
This was the one exception. Her shield was a wall of glittering light. Robert and Tremaine could step through at any time because she knew Tremaine would never forgive her for being reckless.
James whipped his hands up, bringing the roots and brush twisting toward her. Liz danced out of the way with a frown. She knew James had gone dark, which meant he had at least traces of whomever he fed from, but that was not a mage talent.
That gave her an idea. Her eyes swept to his feet, and behind him was a tangle of blackberry bushes. She whipped her hands up and the vines from the bush twisted around his ankles, wound their way up his legs, and captured his arms.
Her own eyes widened at the way the wildlife responded to her call.
“Oh, what is this? You think a few scratches can do much to me? You stole my sense of touch, I can’t feel it. You really did a number on me.” He laughed cruelly, trying to pull away from the brambles.
She tested her newfoun
d magic, pushing more energy into the living bush. It grew, the vines thickening, the thorns lengthening. Spots of blood seeped through where the thorns cut into James, but he was rooted to his spot.
He flung his hands out, and the wave of force knocked her to the ground. His roar of laughter filled her ears.
She sprang to her feet and threw up her hands, her own spell deflecting his second with a thud and a burst of light.
“Come on, James. Where’s your fight?” she challenged.
“Damn it, Liz. He’s not worth drawing this out,” Robert yelled. “End him.”
“Making him suffer won’t help in the end,” Tremaine added.
Liz nodded slowly, they were right. In the end, the only thing that mattered was that he was dead and gone.
James’ brows shot up and he flung a spell at Tremaine and Robert. Liz threw a real shield, just a wall at her dummy spell and charged James as he turned back to her, throwing his hands out.
There was a pop, and Liz was tackled to the ground as a stream of flame rushed overhead. Steam hissed and then water drenched her and Robert. She looked back at Tremaine to see cold determination as he stalked forward, water streaming from his palms.
“Sorry, love,” Robert whispered.
“So you need help after all,” James sneered.
“No, but they’re right. No sense delaying your death. I see you’re still tangled.” Blood had soaked through in places on his pants, and she wondered if he even knew the damage he was doing to himself.
She might have felt guilty if he hadn’t stolen her child from her, if he hadn’t tried to rape her, if he hadn’t raped his sister and then cursed her. James was a monster.
James tried to jerk free again, and finally looked down to see the vines wrapped around his legs. He growled in frustration, sweeping his hands down as the vines disintegrated. He stumbled forward, slinging the same spell in their direction.
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