Queen Heir (NYC Mecca #1)
Page 21
Nikoli flicked his hand and sent the body up over the king’s head and toward the vortex disc. I could feel the mecca pulsing as if it were alive, conscious, and somehow expecting this.
I crept closer to get a better vantage point.
“Here goes nothing,” Nikoli mumbled, and he released his hold on the body.
A loud bang echoed the moment the body dropped onto the disc. Kade flinched but remained steady in his position. A shockwave blasted out and the windowpanes behind me shook with the force.
Even though moving forward was more difficult, I managed to cross through the mecca energy and stand beside Kade. Both of us had our eyes locked on the disc.
The theories were correct. The dead “human” body was not human anymore. Sprawled across the vortex disc was a dead fae. His face was scrunched in a frozen sneer; his ears were jagged and pointy. With the release of the magic illusion, a scent appeared. Distinct. Floral. Similar to the one I had smelled on the Red Queen and in her library. But it was not exactly the same. Kade knelt down, grabbing the male fae by the ankle, and yanked him out. Good idea. Who knew what keeping him too long on the vortex would do. What we might have already done. Had we alerted the Otherworld to their death? To our knowledge of them?
Violet was grinning. “It worked!”
The king turned and met my eyes. “Seems our visitor in the park was correct. We have a new enemy and it is most definitely the fae.”
I nodded. The female fae’s message definitely held more strength now. The dark fae had tried to take us out. We didn’t know why, but we knew who. Which was a step in the right direction.
This was also a step toward my vengeance. I had no doubt these two fae were nothing more than help. Someone much more powerful was orchestrating this entire thing, and that was the fae I needed to find.
“My king!” a shout came from outside, distracting us all. Kade quickly made his way out and I was right behind him. One of his guards was holding a cell phone.
“The other body … it’s gone,” he said.
Kade frowned. “What do you mean gone?”
The guard shook his head, that slightly worried expression never leaving his face. “Brett said he was making his rounds around the greenhouse and one minute it was there and the next it was gone.”
Violet had followed us outside; her hair was doing the windblown thing that happened when she was drawing on mecca power. “If the two bodies were linked somehow, then when this illusion broke, the female’s may have also. But the body shouldn’t have disappeared.”
I started making my way toward the SUVs. “Come, let’s go check it out. I want to sniff out the area.”
Derek jumped into action from his place on the curb and stepped in front of me. “Your Grace, this could be a trap.” His voice was low, but not low enough for shifter hearing. Everyone around us would have heard him.
I met his eyes and gritted my teeth. “I just found out that the fae killed our late queen! That they killed Damien and Marco. The fae are alive and they have declared war on us already. And I intend to find out why. Now … move!”
I put the power of mecca into the command, and almost as if he couldn’t control it, he stepped off the curb, head bowed. I shouldn’t have been so hard on him, but part of me felt he wasn’t just protecting me because I was his queen. None of the other guards were acting like Derek. He was taking this personally and I couldn’t afford that in a guard.
Piling into the two cars, we sped off, making our way back to the king’s house. I was on edge, needing to get there so I could see the scene myself. A dead body doesn’t just get up and walk away.
Of course we knew next to nothing about the fae. Maybe their bodies disappeared after a certain amount of time, but then the other body would have disappeared too and it was still safely stowed in the trunk. No, this was something else. The tires spun briefly on the gravel as we came to an abrupt halt in front of the king’s house.
Kade stepped out and opened my door, letting Monica out as well. A thought came to me. “You think maybe this is a prank?”
One of his guards could be playing a joke. Mine had certainly pranked me many times over the years. The body might be hidden somewhere in the backyard.
The king shook his head. “My guards would never play a prank on me while the queen of the wolf shifters was visiting my home for the first time. They would have to find new jobs if they did.”
His tone was fierce and I knew then he was genuinely worried about the missing body.
“You don’t think … someone stole it, do you? That there are fae here right now?” I was hoping he’d tell me I was crazy, that there was no possible way.
I inhaled deeply but could only smell the king and the fresh water that backed onto his house. Nothing floral. Or even foreign. But we already knew they were masters at disguise. So that meant nothing.
Kade looked like he was starting to partially shift. His body expanded, features broadening out, and his voice was extra deep as he spoke. “I don’t know what we are going to find, but if you want to go back to Manhattan I will call you with a full report when I find out what’s going on.”
I gave him the look, the look every woman gives a man when they want to tell him to shut the hell up, and amusement crossed his bear-like features.
“After you, My Lady?” He waved me forward. He’d probably stay in this partial shift stage until we knew there was no danger to us, because in this form going full bear would be a lot quicker for him. Not to mention his heightened senses. Only the most powerful of shifters could do it, and I wasn’t at all surprised that he had the ability. Personally, I preferred to be in one or the other state, not between, but the king didn’t look like he was uncomfortable.
Kneeling down, I pulled my mother’s sharp dagger from my boot. Finn was in his largest of forms, teeth bared, his energy thrumming with unease. I would have loved to have had my sword or spear, but this would have to do. Surely the king’s guard and my own could handle any body snatchers. My guards sped up ahead of me and fanned out inside of the house.
As Kade and I entered, his lead guard met us.
“Your Highness, we’ve done a sweep of the area and there’s nothing. None of our securities have been broken, and no intruders are around. But a few of the boys shifted to bear form and smelled an odd scent.”
I stepped forward. “Was it floral?”
His guard looked at me directly. “Yes. It was.”
Okay. Two scenarios. One: the body we dropped on the mecca was linked to the other body here, and when we tore the illusion apart this body also lost its illusion and released its natural scent. Of course that still didn’t explain where the body went, which led to scenario two: there was a fae here – a body-snatching, probably dark fae, who was powerful enough to hold illusion over magic-born shifters, and might have killed my queen.
I turned to Calista, who was at my back. “Give me your sword.”
Without question she unsheathed her blade and handed it to me. “Wait for me in the car,” I said finally, and my advisor paused before giving me one last head bow.
“Be careful, Arianna. You are our queen, you are our power.”
I sucked in a ragged breath, watching as she walked out of the house and hopped back into the SUV. Focusing my thoughts, I stepped up to the main group. The king was already moving, his clothing starting to tear at the seams, and I knew he was going to fully shift.
“Call in reinforcements,” he said to his guard, his voice guttural. I waited for the final pull of shifter energy, but he continued to maintain this half beast thing he was working. How damned powerful was this shifter? No wolf could do what he was, hovering on the edge of a shift and not following through. It took massive control.
We made our way outside as a group, my senses immediately alert. I would have shifted to wolf myself, but I needed to have my human brain for a while. The wolf could be a little too instinctual. Plus, the ability to pull mecca was stronger in my human form.
We fanned out. The king had five of his men stationed around us; more were spanning out across his land. My five guards remained close. Plus we had two magic born and two high royals. Surely this was enough to kill a dark fae, should there be one here.
A loud shriek came from the sky and we all froze. I had forgotten about the king’s familiar. She must have been staking out the sky, reporting back to Kade.
The bear king furrowed his brow. “Nix tells me there’s suspicious activity at the water’s edge.”
Kade’s guards went first and we followed. As I neared, I could see a swirling in the water while the rest remained calm. As we stood there staring at it, a horrible feeling crept into my gut. At the same time a floral scent washed over me. It was a fae, not the one who had killed the queen, but one who had a strong scent and energy. Was this the leader, the one who spelled and controlled the fae who had killed my guards? I hoped so. Tonight I would take some of my vengeance.
Finn’s howl tore through the night and I spun around holding my sword in front of me like a shield.
Standing in the middle of the king’s garden, somehow behind us all, was a tall figure. Even in the dim light his face seemed to be lit up, almost as if he had miniscule lights dotted across his skin. I clenched my hand tighter around the hilt of my sword and stared for many long moments. He was not like the female fae we had seen in the park that day. She had been a beauty, her perfection obvious. He was … not that. He had black hair slicked back from his face and hanging halfway down his back; despite the dotted illumination on his face, much of it was still shadowed, almost distorted, making him resemble an animal more than a human, with a pointy chin, high cheekbones, and large eyes that looked to be a swirling multitude of colors. I knew he would stand well above my five feet ten in height, but not quite as tall as Kade. He wore no expression, but the glowing was eerie, and I found my heart rate increasing just by being in his presence.
He lifted his hands, and we all focused on the two discs within them. They glowed green, and even from this distance I could tell they were razor sharp. He moved then, so fast there was no time to cry out, no time to warn anyone. His weapons sailed through the air and beheaded two of the king’s guards, the ones who had stepped closest to him.
“Restrictum!” Violet shouted, thrusting her hands out, sending a shockwave of purple magic at the dark figure.
He slid back a few feet, his heels digging into the dirt, but otherwise remained unaffected. Then he smiled, which was about ten times scarier than his neutral expression from before. He made an O with his mouth and blew in Violet’s direction. A gust of wind, with the force of a mini tornado, slammed into my best friend, picking her up and tossing her out into the water.
“No! Stay back!” I shouted, my focus torn between Violet and my guards. Derek and Monica had just run at the fae with their swords raised but they slowed at my shout.
Beside me the king’s body was vibrating; he’d lost the final control he held over his half form and was going to shift. It would leave him vulnerable for a few minutes. Our remaining guard closed in around Kade and me. I pushed my way back, trying to see the lake, ready to rescue Violet if she needed it, but then I saw her climbing from the water.
“Run, Ari! I’ll handle this bastard,” she cried out. Her eyes were glowing, and even though she had fallen into the water, she wasn’t wet. She scared the crap out of me when she got like this.
“Vi, he threw a tornado at you,” I yelled as she dashed closer.
She shook her head, white hair flying around her in a breeze of magical energy. “Yeah, I was trying to capture him so we could question him, but now I’m just going to make his blood boil until his brain liquefies.”
She blasted past me and I actually felt heat coming off her body.
I turned around, prepared to follow her, but the guards stepped in front of me. Breathing deeply I fought against my instincts and let my logical side have a little free rein. I knew I couldn’t just run into this. I was the queen, I controlled the mecca. The wolves would be weakened to devastating levels if I died, and if I died here in the king’s territory, we would have more than one war to worry about.
Calmer, I took stock of the scene. The fae was calling back his discs; Derek and Monica hovered close, swords out. The king’s remaining guards and the rest of mine were positioned around me and Kade in a half-moon shaped protective shield. In bear form, Kade was massive, standing probably ten feet tall and weighing a least a thousand pounds. He was crouched over as the last of his body reformed, clothes gone and dark fur covering him all over. I wouldn’t be able to see his full bear until he stood up, but I could already tell he was going to be one scary, massive beast. Would it be enough against the fae though?
I heard my best friend shout, and I turned back in concern. The guards tightened even closer around me, and I couldn’t halt my annoyance at being protected when I should be out there. I caught sight of Violet. One second she was charging at the fae and the next she disappeared, reappearing in front of him, before thrusting her arms out. He slid backward under the assault of her magic. A burst of energy joined Violet’s attack then. Nikoli. The bear’s magic born had crept in from the side, and now the two of them were hitting the fae with everything they had.
Derek and Monica stepped in to attack now, probably hoping to either severely injure him or at least distract him long enough for the magic born to do their thing. The fae remained unconcerned. His glow was increasing, and I had the very scary realization that he had barely even started with his power.
I didn’t see the green spinning disc until it was too late.
“Derek!” I shouted, just as the disc cut through his neck.
I cried out again, almost falling to my knees as grief and pain slammed into me. I could see the movement of a bear in the corner of my eye, but I couldn’t focus on anything but my loss, the pain tearing at my insides, threatening to rip me in two. My breathing was so ragged I felt like I wasn’t getting any real oxygen, which had me lightheaded.
This couldn’t be happening. I couldn’t let this happen to any more of my people. Screw being queen if I couldn’t actually use my power. A true queen does not cower on the back line and let others die for them.
Straightening, I moved forward but my guard tightened, closing me in.
“Move!” I said, the force of the mecca behind the word. I had embraced the power and was letting it flow through my body and out of my hands. All five guards were thrown back with the force of it. I didn’t even have time to process that before I was running toward the fae.
He was stuck in a magical standoff with Violet and Nikoli. He would blast two spells at the magic born and they would block, throwing energy back at him. Monica was kneeling over Derek’s headless body, trying to contain her shock. As I strode across the lawn, trying to take everything in to figure out the best way to help, a streak of black caught my eye. It was a huge, menacing black bear. King Kade. He had taken a leaf from Nikoli’s book and was coming in for the sneak attack, somehow having made his way unseen around the back of the fae.
His eagle shrieked from the sky and I caught sight of Finn off to the left by the greenhouse. You okay? I checked in with him. It was odd that the familiars had not attacked the fae; they must have been doing something else important.
The fae is trying to open the portal in the lake again. We’re keeping it closed. I’m not sure what is attempting to come through, but it has the distinct energy of the ercho.
Thank you! At least we knew we only had this one to deal with today and that an entire army wasn’t about to march through.
Just then the fae slammed his hands together in a huge clap and every standing guard dropped to the ground. At first I couldn’t tell if they were unconscious or dead, until I saw them still breathing. Thank the gods.
His spell
had given me an instant splitting headache but nothing more. Nikoli, Violet, myself, and the bear king were the only ones left upright. This bastard needed to die. Now.
As if the fae sensed the bear king sneaking up on him, he twisted in a half turn.
In two quick motions, I pulled my wrist back and let loose the dagger I had been holding. I instilled mecca energy into that movement, hoping it would guide its course and land true.
The fae flashed forward, closer to me. He deflected the dagger easily, and then with a wave of his hand sent Violet sliding ten feet to the right, her feet digging six inches into the dirt as if she were resisting with such force that it had literally grounded her like a tree. Nikoli went to help free her, as she couldn’t seem to get out on her own. Then, the fae began stalking toward me.
“Your reign is done, child. It’s time for the Tuatha de Danann to return and claim all of the powers of Earth.” His lips never moved and yet the words played out in my head. “Your queen hid truth from us. She betrayed the dark ones. Now we shall extract our price from those who still walk on Earth.”
I had no time to worry. Something in Kade’s book had said that the fae couldn’t outright lie, but that didn’t mean that what this dark one said was the full truth either. Truth can be twisted. I knew that better than most.
Retrieving Calista’s sword from my belt, I held it before me and fell into a fighting stance. I called the mecca to me. I was the queen of mecca and had more power at my disposal than anyone standing in this garden, even Kade. I might be untrained in the use of its power, but it was still there, thrumming through me, waiting for me to command it.
Just as the bear king leaped up into the air, Violet and Nikoli both shot out their energy and I let out a war cry, thrusting my hands out as well. I imagined the mecca as a living thing, a physical force which had no match, a power I both respected and feared. As I called it through me, memories of my coronation were still strong in my psyche, but I would not let that fear control me. I would control it.