by Amy Cissell
“I’m sorry, Princess,” Isaac said.
I nodded at him and then turned to Finn. “Finn, you should’ve known better. We’ve been friends for six years. I can’t believe you’d treat me like an idiot child.”
Finn sighed. “Your whole world was thrown upside down in the space of a few weeks. There is no going back to normal for you. I wanted to protect you and was afraid that anything more—especially something of this magnitude—would be too much. I hope you will forgive me.”
“Probably. Eventually.”
I huddled down in the sheets and resolutely closed my eyes. I heard Finn and Isaac make their bedtime preparations, but no one spoke again. The lights eventually switched off, and we lay in the dark and quiet until I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Ten
FINN AND ISAAC were still asleep when I woke the next morning. In the light of day, I thought their intentions were good, but I was surprised Finn didn’t know me well enough to know how much I’d hate finding this out this way.
I slipped out of bed, headed into the bathroom, closed the door, and drew a bath.
I got in the tub and let the scalding water close over my skin. It was probably going to be 100 degrees outside, but it was freezing in the air-conditioned room. Isaac was a baby when it came to the heat, and we had the AC on full blast.
The tub filled as much as any cheap motel tub is ever going to fill. I turned the water off with my toes and sank back into the shallow water. I was avoiding the problem: my conscience. I tended towards pragmatism more often than not and believed that if something happened I couldn’t fix, dwelling on it would do nothing but drive me crazy.
My problem was I’d released a magic wave that had crept over the world and disrupted a lot of technology. People had died. I hadn’t known it would happen, and realistically, even with hindsight being twenty-twenty, I wouldn’t have guessed. Finn’s and Isaac’s culpability was more in question. Going forward, I had to decide if I would continue to open the gates and risk the magic waves, try to mitigate them somehow, or if I would leave off my questionable quest and take the consequences. I needed to choose and soon.
I needed to decide how much I was going to continue to trust the people I had watching my back. I valued honesty above all. I wanted to forgive and forget. I liked them both, I trusted them, I had a long history with Finn, and a burning desire to get into Isaac’s pants. That makes for some deep-seated bias.
I decided that I could forgive, but only conditionally. There would be no more treating me like I was too delicate to know the risks. I was a big girl, and if I was some kind of big deal Fae royalty, I needed to step up and act like a leader. No more being led around by the hand. Real leaders did not shirk responsibility and knowledge. They asked for help when needed, but it was going to be my job to make sure I was making the best possible decisions based on all available facts. No more holding back.
The bigger question was what to do going forward. This was harder. I didn’t have enough information to make that decision. I wanted to believe Finn was telling me everything he knew, but I wasn’t sure if he had to tell the truth, and I knew he could hold back vital information if he chose.
I’d start with him, and if I didn’t learn anything new, I’d seek out Arduinna. She had to be lurking about somewhere.
In the meantime, Isaac could go find the local Alpha and try to find a witch who could help mitigate the disaster if I chose to go ahead. Witches had created the gates, and maybe they knew a way to take them down without causing any damage. The thought that Finn had considered this option before I opened the first gate crossed my mind, and I dismissed it. His actions were suspicious, but I didn’t want to believe he could be so callous.
We’d get this figured out. We had to. I would not kill a few hundred people every six weeks. I wasn’t sure how to alert the authorities to cease using technology on certain days without sounding like a crackpot—or worse—a mass murdering crackpot.
It would all work out. It had to.
Decision made, I sank back into the tub to enjoy the rest of my bath. The heat was fading from the water when I heard noises from the next room.
“Ellie?” Finn called. “Shit, did she leave?”
“The door’s still locked from the inside,” Isaac said. “Unless she’s hiding the full extent of her magical ability and managed to lay a false scent trail, she’s in the bathroom.”
The door burst open violently. I opened my eyes and looked at Finn with what I hoped was a mild expression. “Can I help you?”
“No,” he muttered before shutting the door.
After I dressed, I walked back out to address my companions. “Okay, plan for today: Isaac, make contact with the local Alpha. Don’t get into any fights, though. If he’s going to make you fight him for information, let me know. Will it make you look weak if he challenges you and you don’t fight him?”
Isaac said, “If he challenges and I back down without setting a time for the fight, then I am acknowledging his dominance. I don’t think it wise to do that, because then I’m sending a message to all the other packs whose lands we might pass through that I don’t consider myself dominant, and I’ll be challenged left and right. I don’t have to fight him immediately, though. I can request a delay of up to twenty-four hours to find a second.”
“Okay, let’s do that. I don’t what you to lose face, or fur, or whatever, but I need to be there if you have to fight him.”
Isaac bowed. “As you wish, Princess.”
I grinned at the not-so-subtle movie reference then had an internal freak-out, because I was hoping that he wasn’t declaring his love. I shook my head and moved on. There’d be time for feelings later.
“Finn, you’re with me. We’re going touristing again. We’ll go to Deadwood and check out any ghost towns on the way, maybe a museum or two. It might be worth it to figure out where the sacred sites are. This is a Native American holy land, isn’t it?”
“I’m not sure holy land is the right term, but there are a number of sacred places in the region,” Finn answered. “Bear Butte, certainly. Maybe the Badlands. I’m sure we’ll be able to find out if there are others.”
“Okay, that’s today’s to-do list. Now, let’s go have breakfast. I’m starving.”
“At the risk of bringing up a sore subject,” Finn said, “I was wondering what was going on in your head today. You’re not angry anymore.”
“Oh, I’m angry, Finnegan Byrne.” I let my impassive mask crack long enough for him to see the truth. “But what’s done is done. All I can do going forward is to make decisions knowing as much as I can about the consequences. I will find the site, and we will figure out if I can mitigate the damage. I am not a delicate flower, and I won’t be treated as such. I am a motherfucking Fae princess, and I will take on that responsibility. I can make sure that I am doing my best to be a good person, a good leader, and an informed decision maker.
“I’ll get over my anger at you both, but it might not be today. However, if I ever find out that you’ve hidden anything else from me, that will be it. We will be done. Guides or bodyguards or whatever, I can’t spend time with people who would protect me from the world. If there’s anything else that I should know, now is the time to come clean.”
I looked at them. They both looked a little shocked. It was almost embarrassing to realize my take-command attitude was so different than what they were used to. Had I been that hesitant over the last couple of months that a little decisiveness was surprising?
“I have nothing else to reveal pertinent to your quest,” Isaac said. “I like this new, take-charge Eleanor.”
“Finn? Anything?”
He hesitated briefly. “Nothing I want to tell you.”
“If that comes back to bite you in the ass, it’s your own fault. You’ve already used up your second chance, and there aren’t many people to whom I’d grant a third. Consider yourself lucky and warned.”
“I’ll do my best to feel lucky, then,” F
inn said. Then he grinned and everything was normal again. “I like bossy Ellie, too.”
I rolled my eyes. “Whatever, Finn. I’m not playing dress-up for you. Let’s go eat.”
Using the ghost town map we’d found in a book store, Finn and I drove to as many as we could. By seven, we were sweaty, sticky, dirty, and exhausted. I’d occasionally felt the pull of the gate but still couldn’t get a bead on it. When we got back to the motel after a stop for takeout, I saw a Harley Davidson Softail near our room with a scarlet helmet hanging off the back.
Isaac wasn’t in the main room, but the shower was on. A few minutes later, it shut off, and his voice drifted through the door. “There had better be enough for me.”
“Of course,” I answered. “I wouldn’t dream of starving you. I saw a Nature documentary on starving wolves once. Freaky shit.”
He laughed. “You’ve no idea, Princess.”
Isaac walked out into the main room wearing nothing but black boxer briefs. I quelled a surge of desire and dug into the Taco Bell bag.
We dug into the food. “Finn and I found nothing. We didn’t get to any museums or look up any info on sacred sites today. That’s on tomorrow’s agenda.”
Isaac took a swig of beer. “Greg challenged me. I have to meet him at ten tomorrow morning at their proving grounds for the fight.”
“Shit. Thanks for not doing it without me.”
“I know I’m on thin ice with you, or I would’ve. A werewolf fight isn’t a pretty sight. I’d prefer you not come. I don’t want you to see me like that.”
“I’ll think about it. I don’t want to be a distraction, but I would worry. Can we decide in the morning?”
“Sure,” Isaac said.
I slipped into the bathroom to change into pjs, and when I came out, Finn took my place. I heard the shower come on as I slipped into the bed. Isaac reclined next to me. “Are you still too mad to cuddle?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“I am sorry, Eleanor. I would do almost anything to keep you from hurting, but I’ll do my best to rein in the protective instinct so you know what’s going on.”
“Thank you, Isaac.”
“Do you know much about shifters and our instincts?”
“If this is going to be a lecture on how you can’t help lying to me for my own good, you can skip it.”
He laughed. “That was going to be the gist of it, but since I prefer that you think of me as a man and not an animal, then I guess trying to use my animal side to appeal to your understanding is going to be counterproductive.”
I smiled at him and scooted closer. I grabbed the remote, turned on the television to one of the endless crime dramas that littered the airwaves, leaned my head against Isaac’s shoulder, and fell asleep.
I woke the next morning in an empty bed. Finn was sitting in the lone chair reading the paper, and Isaac was nowhere in sight. I sat up, stretched, and glanced at the clock.
“Shit! Did Isaac leave without me? Why didn’t someone wake me up?” I jumped out of bed and started pulling clothes out of my pack. “I didn’t want him to go by himself.”
“Calm down, Ellie,” Finn said. He uncrossed his legs and stood up. “Isaac went out to see if he could find an open store on a Sunday morning to pick you up something appropriate to wear to the fight.”
“I hadn’t said for sure if I was going.”
“Right,” Finn said. “Everyone knows you well enough to know that you weren’t going to let this go.” He handed me a large cup of coffee. “Drink this and put on your Alpha bitch face.”
“My bitch face? Seriously, Finn?”
“Apparently if you show up with Isaac, that means he’s not taking a fighting second, he’s taking his female Alpha. You need to look and act the part. You can do it easily—channel the Eleanor of yesterday. You’re strong, you’re powerful, and you don’t take shit from anyone.”
I stood up a little straighter and took a sip of my coffee. Iced Americano with lots of cream. Perfect. “What kind of clothes does Isaac think he’s going to find for me this early on a Sunday morning?”
“Riding leathers for you so you both look badass on that Harley.”
I finished my coffee and headed into the bathroom to get ready. I heard Isaac return as I pulled my hair into a pony tail—no point in fancy hair if I was going to be wearing a helmet. I walked out to the main room. Isaac handed me a pair of leather pants, gray leather cowboy boots, and a leather jacket. I pulled the pants on and cursed him loudly as they slowly inched up my body. “You couldn’t find some with a little more room?”
“They’re supposed to be tight, Princess. And they look good.”
I put the boots on and pulled the jacket over my tank before checking myself out in the mirror. I did look good, and now that they were on, they were comfortable. I struck a pose. “Well?”
“Stop fishing for compliments, Ellie,” Finn said.
I grinned and took off the jacket. “Tell me what to expect and what you need me to do, please.”
“I am going to introduce you as my mate, because there is no other way a non-shifter could come to the Proving Grounds for a fight. I need to mark you with my scent before we get there.”
“Are you going to pee on me?”
Isaac laughed. “I was going to ask you to make out with me, but if that’s your kink, who am I to say no?”
I wrinkled my nose. “Kissing will be fine, thank you.”
“After I introduce you, please try to go with the flow. Don’t challenge anyone, don’t speak unless spoken to, and for the love of all things holy, don’t set anyone on fire. Unless you run in fur by moonlight, you don’t matter. As my mate, you will be safe, and you will have a seat of honor at the fight.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Isaac continued the lecture, “The fight is to submission, since I’m not challenging for his place in the pack.”
“If you were?”
“Then it would be to the death.”
I stared. I knew he was a shifter and that there were more things in heaven and earth than I’d ever dreamt, but fights to the death? Holy shit.
I swallowed and took another swig of coffee. “Okay.” Deep breath. “You will fight until he yields. Do you fight as men or wolves?”
“It’s my choice, since he challenged me. I am going to choose to fight as humans since that will give me a significant advantage. I’m older than he is and have a lot more hand-to-hand experience.”
“What happens once you’ve won?”
“Then he will have to give me the information I want and allow us safe passage back out of his lands.”
“Are you nervous?”
“A little,” Isaac admitted. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had a dominance fight. I’ve been out of the way for so many years, and he thinks that’s made me weak, as it does the old ones. But I am not weak. I hope I don’t accidentally kill him. I don’t want the Black Hills Pack.”
“What am I going to do while you two are having your big, violent adventure?” Finn asked.
“Wanna check out some local museums or historical centers to see if you can compile a list of sacred sites to visit?” I asked.
“Nothing like a good solo museum field trip on a Sunday,” Finn said.
“You could at least try to have fun,” I said.
“No, I really couldn’t. But I might as well head out now so Isaac can mark his territory without my interference. I’ll be back no later than six tonight and hope to see you both by then.”
Finn grabbed the car keys and left, not quite slamming the door behind him. Isaac put his hands on my shoulders. “I know you’re still angry with me, but you need to smell like me, and you need to hide your anger from the Pack. If they sense weakness, they will exploit it.”
I ran my hands up his chest and linked them behind his neck. “Go ahead, mark me.”
He bent and kissed me. It started sweet and almost chaste, but quickly evolved to passion and need. He slid his arms d
own my leather-clad ass and pulled me against him. I could feel his erection straining through his jeans. He cupped my ass and then lifted me up. I slid my legs around him. We were both breathing heavily when he suddenly stopped. I unhooked my legs, and he set me down.
“That’s enough for now,” he said. “Any more and I might not be able to stop.”
I smiled at him and then looked down. “Are you sure you want to stop? That looks uncomfortable.”
“Don’t tempt me, Princess. We need to get going. Being late would be a terrible idea.” He stepped forward and kissed me hard on the lips. He grabbed our jackets and tossed me mine. Once I was all leathered up, he handed me the red helmet I’d seen yesterday.
“Don’t you need one?” I asked as I fastened the helmet.
“Nope. There’s no law, and I look tougher without one. I am harder to kill than you—probably.”
We walked out to the Harley, and I climbed on behind him.
After leaving the city, we wound up a divided highway for a few miles before turning off that road and following a series of smaller and smaller roads. Finally, we encountered something that was more of a dirt path than anything deserving the moniker road. We followed that for another twenty minutes through the woods until it spilled us into a huge clearing. The grass was burnt dry and sweet by the late summer sun, and even though there were no flowers left blooming, it smelled like honeysuckle. On the far end of the clearing were two small sets of bleachers. One looked completely full. The other was empty. I guessed that was for the away team.
Isaac parked and helped me off the bike. “Remember,” he growled quietly, “don’t say anything if you don’t have to.” I nodded. He grabbed my hand and led me towards the makeshift arena.