The Changeling Soldier

by Shona Husk

  “I knew you were a fairy.” Melody’s eyes were bright as though she’d just discovered a forbidden secret. She pushed Ella to the ground, keeping the iron in place. “This is too easy.”

  “Please, you don’t want this.” She tried to drop the glamor that made her visible, but with the iron on her skin it was impossible to work any magic. Fear took hold. Melody knew too much and had no fear of fairies.

  “I know what I want, and you will give it to me.” Melody leaned over and picked up something that had been tucked out of sight by the sofa, then she pressed the point into Ella’s hand. An iron poker.

  “Let me go.” The pain of the burn was unbearable. She began to shiver as her already weakened body struggled. She was going to die here because she didn’t grant a spoiled girl’s wish. Even if she did, Melody probably wouldn’t let her live. She should’ve listened to Isaac, handed him the dress and run. Isaac…could she trust him or not?

  She hesitated for a moment, but how much worse could this get? “Isaac!”

  Melody swung the poker. It connected with Ella’s head in flash of blinding white pain.

  Chapter Five

  He’d heard the raised voices, but had been unable to make out the words. For a few heartbeats he’d tried to ignore it, then a warning had swept over his skin in an icy rush he’d learned not to put aside. As he moved toward the room, Ella called his name, and then there was the unmistakable sound of something hitting flesh, hard.

  Isaac ran, throwing open the door, not sure what he’d find, yet already dreading it. Cold writhed in his gut. He was too late. What had Melody done?

  She leaned over the prone body of Ella. “My God, fairies really do have blue blood.” His half-sister glanced up at him and lifted her hand. Her fingers were coated in bright blue something… He blinked and saw the snow of his dreams stained the same shade, bright but deep, full of magic even as life departed.

  “What have you done?” He crossed the floor at almost a run.

  “Caught me a fairy who will grant my every wish.” Melody grinned. “Be happy for us. Soon we’ll have everything.”

  “What the fuck, Mel?” He dropped to his knees, relieved to find Ella still breathing, but not sure about what first aid to apply. How different from humans were fairies? Then he realized he was half-fairy, so they couldn’t be that different.

  “I had no choice. She was going to leave.” Mel edged closer. “Is she alive?”

  He tore his gaze from Ella and glared at his sister. Anger burned like acid stripping his common sense away. Melody stepped back, fear etched on her face. “Isaac?”

  “You attacked a woman,” he snarled.

  Melody took another step back, the poker still held in her hand. “I did it for us.”

  “You did it for yourself.” This time he heard the fury in his voice. He needed to calm down and think clearly. He forced himself to take a couple of deep breaths until he could see through the red haze that clouded his vision. He needed a plan. He needed to get Ella out of here and away from Melody. “You shouldn’t have hurt her.”

  Ella was a fairy, not just a woman. He couldn’t imagine she was going to feel very forgiving, and nothing he’d read about fairies implied they took kindly to humans who tried to catch them. Melody had read his journal. She had to realize what she’d done.

  Isaac returned his attention to Ella. He gently touched the wound on Ella’s head. Her skull didn’t seem depressed. It might be fractured though. The next few hours would be critical. Despite the color, the blood on his fingers was sticky and warm like his blood. The burns on her hand were like the ones he got when from touching iron. What would Melody do to him if she knew what he was? Adrenaline coursed through him, but this time he was under control. Although he was sure that if he looked at Melody again, he would lose it.

  Attacking Ella had crossed a line that Isaac was unwilling to forgive.

  “She needs a doctor. The head injury could kill her.” Not that he knew anything about fairy physiology, but Ella looked more delicate than she had when she’d walked in the door and flirted with him. He should’ve taken the dress and sent her on her way.

  Melody shook her head and raised the iron poker. She pressed the tip to his chest. “She’s mine now.”

  “You can’t own a person,” he said with a clenched jaw. And he’d thought he was losing his grip on reality. No, out of the three people in the room, he wasn’t the one missing a few screws. Mel’s ambition had brought her to…would it be murder if Ella died? He knew the answer before the question had even fully formed. Of course it would be.

  “She’s not a person. She’s a fairy. No one will miss her because most people don’t think she is real.” Melody pushed the poker and tip dug into his flesh. His skin was burning through the thin cloth of his shirt, but he didn’t flinch. He needed to unarm her.

  He eased back a fraction and twisted, Mel stumbled off balance and he snatched the poker off her and flung it across the room. That short contact had been enough to burn his hand. If Mel saw it…

  He scooped Ella up. She seemed to weigh almost nothing. Melody needed help, but she was also dangerous and as she wasn’t thinking clearly, getting out had to be his priority. “Ella is a popular designer. She is well known in L.A. You can’t do this to her, but I’ll help you make it right.”

  “What are you doing?” Melody glared at him, her gaze slid to the iron poker and her handbag as if she were looking for another weapon.

  “Taking care of Ella.” And getting her away from you. He’d never seen his sister behave so irrationally.

  “Put her down. I caught her. She’s mine.” Mel stood her ground and refused to let him pass.

  He looked at Mel, but no longer saw her as the little sister he needed to help and protect. She was the enemy. “Mel, you knocked out a woman. This isn’t right. You know that.” Was it too late to reason with her? In his heart he knew it was.

  “She’ll grant my wish.”

  “Ella’s unconscious. She won’t be granting any wishes. She needs medical attention.” He remembered the imp offering him whatever he wanted in exchange for his soul as a child. Playing with fairies wasn’t a good idea. Yet somehow he ended up in Annwyn fighting in their battle. And Ella was with him. That gave him hope. Ella wasn’t going to die in his arms.

  “You can’t take her to a hospital.” Melody grinned, all cold and malice. “They’ll wonder what she is, then take her away. Put her down.”

  Damn it. She was right. “No. I’ll look after her.” He went to walk around his sister.

  Melody sidestepped to block his way again. Anger kept his heart beating hard, but he was aware that the situation was tilting. There was a gleam in his sister’s eyes that he’d seen before, right before someone started attacking in what could only be called a suicide run.

  “Don’t test me, Mel.”

  “Or what? You won’t hurt me.” Melody walked over and picked up her phone.

  Isaac took the opportunity and strode toward the door. It had never looked so far away.

  “If you don’t do what I say, I’ll call 911 and tell them you attacked her—and me. And that you are holding her hostage”

  He turned slowly.

  She waved the cell phone at him, taunting him. “One more step Isaac.”

  She wouldn’t…yet the tightening of his gut suggested he shouldn’t push her. She’d already attacked one person today. “They won’t believe you.”

  “Really? After everything you saw and did, it wouldn’t take much to convince them your mind broke and you snapped.”

  It wasn’t him who was having the break. “I’ll deny it.”

  “Your word against mine. I’m the celebrity who’s been taking care of her brother. Everyone knows that and everyone knows all your war stories.” She placed one hand over her heart, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “You’ve been violent with me before, but this is too much.”

  His mouth dropped open as if she’d slapped him. “I never—”<
br />
  “Who do you think they’ll believe?” Her eyes narrowed and her lips pressed into a thin victorious smile.

  No one would believe him. Not when he had medals for killing and had spent several months struggling to fit into civilian life and expecting violence at every turn. His job had only amplified that but at least it had put his paranoia to good use. Then there were the incidents when he’d just known something was going to happen. It hadn’t been a secret at the base, but was it on his records somewhere? What would people think of that?

  Melody had planned this operation and set him up. He’d played his part perfectly, the good brother and soldier all the way through. He ignored the stab of betrayal and tried to stay in the moment. Ella needed help, which he couldn’t do if he was arrested.

  He decided to shift tactics. Melody expected him to assist her. Perhaps if he played that role she would calm down. “Look at her. You don’t want her to die. Let me help her.” And buy some time to think his way out of this. “I’ll take her up to my room.” He stepped back, toward the door, keeping an eye on Mel.

  She reached into her handbag and pulled out his gun and released the safety. The click echoed around the room.

  Fuck.

  From the smug look on her face she knew she had him. “We’re in this together. Just like we always were. Before you try to run, I know how to shoot and I’m pretty accurate and I know you don’t want to get shot again. So, you do as I say and you both get to live. You do anything, and I mean anything, to take the fairy away from me, and I will shoot you and her. Non-fatally—well, not at first.”

  He drew in a breath. He hated getting shot, and getting shot with his own weapon would be a bitch. “Come on, Mel. We’re family. Why are you threatening me with my gun?” He forced a smile that felt wrong on his lips.

  Where was his phone? How far could he run while carrying Ella, and what were the odds of him getting shot in the process? If he was wounded, it would make escape harder. “She made you a beautiful gown. You said yourself that women who wear her dresses are lucky. Isn’t that enough?”

  “Luck? No, I want guaranteed fame.” She kept the gun pointed at his chest where Ella was cradled. Would she risk killing Ella…probably not. But she was willing to risk killing him.

  “At what price?”

  Mel cocked the gun. Apparently at any price.

  “You don’t want to shoot me.” Getting shot was never fun. It hurt and damaged things. And he had no doubt that Mel would claim it was self-defense. “It will be messy and hard to explain when the neighbors report gun shots.”

  “You attacked me and I had no choice.” She moved a little closer, but not close enough that he could drop Ella and make a grab for the gun. The door was too far behind him to be used for cover, and too flimsy to be effective. He was caught in the open.

  “You left me behind in that godforsaken house. Do you know what he did to me after you left? Mom wasn’t good enough anymore. You think I started drinking because I was bored? I was trying to forget.”

  “Why didn’t you say something?” He took half a step back hoping she wouldn’t notice. He needed to put a wall between him and Melody. Whatever his stepfather had done to her wasn’t his problem right now.

  “Because you’d already left. But now you have the chance to make it up to me. Prove that you still love me and want what’s best for me.” She took a step closer, the gun still pointed at him and remarkably steady. “You owe me.”

  If he obeyed Mel, he’d be failing Ella and if he tried to leave with Ella, they’d both be in more trouble. Why hadn’t he received a vision of this? What was the point of seeing the future when he missed the important parts like this? How did he get out of here alive?

  Maybe he didn’t. Maybe he died and that was why he was in Annwyn and handing over his soul. He needed to choose between obeying his sister and trying to flee with Ella…and getting shot in the process. He could, of course, drop Ella and flee. It was Ella that Melody wanted, but that felt wrong on every level.

  He took another step back.

  “One more step and I will shoot.” Her gaze was hard and cold. He’d never seen this side of her and he didn’t like it.

  Once he could’ve said with certainty that she’d never shoot him. But this Melody would. How long had she planned this? Had every function where he’d gone as her date been part of the set up? What had she said about him when he wasn’t with her? Cold, solid dread formed in his gut. He tried to hold on to the glimpses of the future that he’d seen.

  Kissing Ella.

  Fighting in Annwyn.

  Ella was the key. He had to stay and protect her…which meant for the moment he had to do what Mel said. “What do you want me to do?” He hated those words coming out of his mouth.

  “Take her downstairs.”

  He wanted to resist, but if he played the compliant brother for a little while he might be able to find a solution. He left the lounge room and walked down to the basement. It was actually more of a large wine cellar than a true basement, but it was now decked out with a mattress and a bucket, and iron nails were scattered all over the floor.

  He balked at the sight and swore softly. How had he missed what Mel was planning? More importantly, how was he going to get Ella out of this without revealing to Mel what he was? His palm and chest burned and the scent of iron filled his nose, but his shoes protected his feet.

  His guts writhed. He hadn’t felt like this since he’d shot and killed his first person; after that, he’d kind of switched off the reality. It was him and his men or them. And it became an easy choice to make.

  What if Ella hadn’t been a fairy? How would Mel have justified it, or would she have let him take the fall for the assault? He knew the answer already. Mel was quite happy to sell him out to further her ambition.

  Carefully he lay Ella down on the bed. The bleeding had slowed, but she hadn’t woken. He checked her pulse—weak but steady. Her skin was cool. He covered her with the blanket and sat on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.

  He knew if he held his hands out they’d be shaking. This was bad.

  He closed his eyes. He couldn’t deal with fairies and his sister’s…madness. That was what it was. He drew in a breath and listened as Mel came down the stairs. He had to get it together and start making a survival plan, or people would die or end up in jail. Neither was an acceptable outcome.

  First step, get the first aid kit and treat Ella—as well as make sure Mel didn’t harm her any further.

  Next, try and talk Mel down.

  And if that failed, which he was expecting it would, what then?

  He’d have to take his sister down, thus fulfilling her claim that he was violent with her. That wasn’t who he was. And it wasn’t who she was going to make him.

  He stood and fixed his face so it looked as though he didn’t care. “Anything else?”

  “No.” She pulled a box from under the bed and opened it up. Inside was something that looked medieval. Melody was literally going to put Ella in irons.

  “What the hell are you doing?” He put his hand on Mel’s arm. He could end this now—and what? Mel would say he’d kidnapped Ella and the police would be out in force searching for him. Looking at this room, he’d believe Mel in a heartbeat.

  Melody stared at him, her gaze unflinching. “Making sure she doesn’t use magic to escape.”

  “She’s unconscious. She’s not going anywhere.” Where had Mel gotten the iron shackles from?

  “I’m not taking that risk.” She pulled her arm free. “I could shoot her in the leg if you prefer?”

  No, that would be worse. “Pissing off the fairy you want to grant your wish is not a good idea.”

  Melody ignored him and placed an iron ring around Ella’s ankle, then clicked it closed. The other one she attached to the bed, preventing Isaac from just picking Ella up to escape. At least the iron wasn’t touching her skin, but he knew it could burn through clothes. There’d be a mark on his che
st from the poker, every time he moved his shirt rubbed the burn.

  There was no key in the box, yet he could see a hole for one. He needed to find the key to release her, or figure out a way to pick the lock. It couldn’t be that hard…could it?

  “She seems pretty weak to me. Maybe the myths got it wrong.” Melody shrugged. She didn’t care that she was hurting Ella. To her, Ella wasn’t a person.

  Isaac saw an opening he could take. “Maybe she can’t grant wishes either. She’s not a genie.” He couldn’t remember what he’d written about fairies and wishes in his journal. It was too long ago. He wished he’d burned the damn thing.

  That made Melody pause. “No. She can. She just didn’t want to. Now she’ll have to. Besides, if she doesn’t give me what I want, I’ll kill her.”

  The chill in his sister’s voice scared him more than anything he’d ever experienced. Who was this cold woman hell bent on success? “Listen to yourself. You’re talking about murder.”

  “How can it be murder when she’s not a person? Don’t tell me you have sympathy for it? I’m you’re sister. You owe me.”

  She kept saying that, but did he? If he added up all the people he’d failed, the ones who’d had their legs blown off because he hadn’t had a premonition of danger, the ones who’d died because he couldn’t save them, his younger brothers, did he owe them too? At what point was his life his own to live? According to his dream, never. It had been planned since he was born.

  Everything happened for a reason—wasn’t that what they said?

  God didn’t give you more than you could handle—another thing he’d heard over the years.

  How about a break from all this crap and a chance to start over?

  Annwyn. He felt the snowflakes on his face and the weight of the sword. The battle was over. He was alive.

  Was that his new start? He glanced at Ella. One wish and this would all be over. He glanced at his sister remembering the words of the imp he’d held in his hands. If Melody really wanted this wish and was prepared to pay the price, who was he to stand in her way?