The Fae Ring

by C. A. Szarek

  Mother?

  “Leave us,” she commanded. The words shook.

  “I’ve orders to remain with the traitor until the change of guard, Lady Aileana,” a deep voice responded.

  “I need to concentrate. Lock me inside. I shall call you when I’m through. He will not hurt me.”

  There was some grumbling, but booted feet soon retreated.

  “Oh my lad, my Xander.” Her voice was anguished and soft hands cupped his face.

  He groaned; if his mouth could’ve opened, Xander would have cried out, as the touch shoved pain all the way to his ears.

  She sniffled as she muttered nothings, but he heard spellwords, too. Moisture hit his cheeks. His mother was crying as she healed him.

  Agony started to recede from his face. Heat spread down his neck, covering his shoulders and torso. Soothing, brushing him like a dozen warm caresses, lifting the hurts and aches and sharp pains. Xander grunted as his ribs knitted and his arm straightened of its own accord when the bone was once again whole. Pain melted from his torn wing, too. He blinked until his vision cleared, but had to squint against his mother’s glowing form.

  Healing magic was bright white light. Her aura was bathed in it as she worked. She was powerful, so not even a bead of sweat was born on her brow. Her hands traveled his form as she chanted the words to empower and strengthen his body.

  He watched in silence, emotion catching in his throat.

  The last time he’d seen her she’d been in bed, surrounded by the fog of Acana root, and it hadn’t been long before he’d fled the realm with Alana and the MacLeods.

  Who was this ethereal creature, with her loose white-blonde locks falling to her waist and body clad in the finest lavender gown? The hue spoke of her former royalty, and the gown was elegant, with jewels sown into the bodice.

  The final pressure of his wounds lifted and her radiance started to fade. When their eyes met—hers were violet, a match for his own—his mother smiled, and Xander’s heart skipped. Gone were the red-rimmed eyes and unnaturally pink stained cheeks of Acana root addiction.

  “Mother,” he whispered.

  “My lad.” Her smile was brilliant now and she cupped his face, her eyes raking up and down. “Do you hurt anywhere?”

  Xander shook his head. “Mother?”

  “Aye?”

  “Mother?” His repetition caused a low laugh, and she helped him sit up.

  As soon as Xander was upright, she threw her arms around him.

  So many words whirled though his head, but nothing would come out of his mouth. He hugged the slight, delicate Fae woman who’d given him life. It was only the third or fourth time he’d ever been embraced by her, if memory served.

  “There is so much I want to tell you,” she said, as if she’d read his thoughts. “And no time to do so. We need to get your lass and go.”

  “Go?”

  “Aye, my lad. I’m here to get you out.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  “I shall call the guard. Can you knock him out?” His mother’s voice was low and urgent.

  Xander backed out of her embrace and stood, stretching his wings and his spine. He shook out his arms and legs. “Aye. My magic has returned.”

  “Good. Stay in the shadows, against the wall. I shall tell him I put you to sleep. He knows I’m your mother, of course. He’ll think I did you a kindness.”

  “Before I’m put to death.”

  She fell silent. “Aye.” The word was shaky.

  “Mother, they’ll kill you for this.”

  “Nay. Your father will protect me. We’ve a plan, my lad. I am here because he could not risk it. Do not worry for either of us.”

  Shock rolled over Xander and his throat went dry. “Father?”

  “Aye.”

  He had no time for a retort. His mother called for the guard. The shuffling of boots and magic keys greeted his ears, but it did nothing to prevent the emotion that constricted his chest.

  His father was behind the unexpected rescue?

  Hadn’t the man been ready to deliver his death blow?

  “All is well, Lady Aileana?”

  “Aye, he is resting. Healed, as ordered. I must see to the human lass. Where is she?” Her voice was steady. Sure.

  Xander need to trust his parents’ plan.

  Janet.

  Xander’s stomach fluttered and he fought a tremor. He couldn’t face his wife. He’d been the cause of her rape.

  I don’t deserve her.

  At least his mother was going to ensure what he’d failed to do—get Janet home.

  Magic bound them for life, but perhaps if she kept the bond distanced—and neither of them invited it back, Xander could retreat.

  She needed someone who matched her.

  Could protect her.

  Not a failure like him.

  He made himself focus on what the man-at-arms was telling his mother. The oversized guard opened the cell, the crystal bars catching in the magic globes—like the ones he’d stolen—that lined the dungeon corridor.

  Xander called to his magic, forming a blue ball of fire and flinging it at the guard. He hit him square in the chest; the guard crumpled with a thud.

  “Quickly, drag him inside,” his mother urged. “Get his keys.”

  He did her bidding, and they locked the unconscious Fae in Xander’s prison.

  “We need to get the lass and get to the Stones under the light of the moon. We haven’t much time; morning is not so far off. Your father told me you’re mated to her. I felt the magic when I healed you. I am happy for you, my lad. You love her. I just hope to see you to the Human Realm in safety.”

  “I failed her.” Misery coated his voice even to his own ears, but Xander didn’t fight his mother’s delicate hand on his forearm.

  She gave him a squeeze. “Worry about nothing but getting out of here alive. You can never return. What possessed you?”

  “The ring pulled Janet into the realm. I only sought to get her and return.”

  “Ah. It matched you. Its job was done, so it tried to come home. A spell of your father’s mother, no doubt.”

  Xander nodded. “As Alana suspected.”

  “How is my niece?”

  “Blissfully happy. Expecting again.”

  His mother smiled, and her beauty stunned him. She looked years younger.

  “Mother…”

  “I’ll explain on our journey, my lad. We must retrieve your mate.” She wretched a supply closet open at the end of the corridor. “Put this on, cover your head.”

  “A monk’s robe?”

  “Tis large enough to cover your wings. We’ll tell the guards you’re performing the human’s death rites.”

  The word death in conjunction with his wife shook Xander all over, but he obeyed, pinning his wings to his back and slipping into the thick black wool. He yanked up the hood, tilting his head down and holding his hands clasped in front of his middle, as a Fae holy man would.

  They arrived at her cell in silence. His mother cajoled the guard, and Xander stunned him.

  He couldn’t look at Janet as his mother introduced herself to her.

  When she saw him, she gasped and threw herself into his arms, but his own only lifted to return her embrace automatically. He didn’t deserve to hold her, though his heart leapt when she squeezed him closer.

  She quivered against his chest and his gut clenched. The first sob greeted his ears and Xander struggled to hold himself together. He burned to comfort her, whisper sweet nothings and stop the trembling. Rub her back. Tell her it would be all right. Tell her he loved her. But he didn’t deserve her. He was the cause of all her pain.

  “Xander,” Janet whispered.

  “Lass.”

  Her gaze scanned his face in the dimness, but he averted his eyes. He could feel nothing from the bond, of course, but in his peripheral vision, Xander saw her frown.

  Janet swiped at the tears on her cheeks, her dark brow knitted. Hurt dominated her expression.<
br />
  “Come, we must flee,” his mother whispered.

  Janet whimpered when he gently dislodged from her arms.

  Xander wanted to cup her cheeks and kiss her, but why would she want to touch her lips to his, the man that’d failed her so badly?

  After what had happened, how could she bear his touch at all?

  The word rape reverberated in his mind, and his throat started to close. His wings shook, then his shoulders, his arms, and tremors racked his torso. He fought the urge to sob or double over, and bit down until his gums ached. He cleared his throat and made himself meet his mother’s eyes. “You needn’t risk it. Thank you for freeing us, but I can take us the rest of the way.”

  “Nay. I need to guide you through the tunnels. We will spill into the woods, and I shall open the Faery Stones.”

  His mother could open the portal in minutes, unlike the time it would take him. Xander’s heart sped up. He couldn’t refuse. A sense of inadequacy washed over him and he could feel Janet’s stare. She was silently begging him for eye contact. He knew it, though he couldn’t sense it through magic.

  “Come, this way.” Xander’s mother urged.

  Janet slipped in front of him, he behind her as his mother took a turn down a winding corridor of the dungeons.

  As bodyguard to the princess, he was familiar with the many escape tunnels beneath the vast palace, but his mother was taking them in a direction he’d never been.

  They moved in silence and darkness. The faster they went, the more the black robe constricted. Xander shoved the hood back, but didn’t take the time to whip it off.

  Sooner than he’d expected, the tunnel narrowed. Air whistled, rustling his hair.

  “Almost there,” his mother whispered, her voice bouncing off the rounded stone walls.

  Janet tripped over a root as soon as they entered the one of the many forests surrounding the palace.

  Xander darted forward, shooting his arm around her waist to keep her on her feet.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  He nodded. Touching her was a bad idea. It only made him want to do it again. Hold her. Kiss her.

  “My lad, you must fly us. Your father arranged a gap that will be seen as a misunderstanding in the schedule. The Stones will only be unguarded until the sun is up; we’ve not much time.”

  “Aye.” Xander whipped the robe up and off, stretching his cramped wings even before the wool hit the bright yellow grass at their feet.

  “Come close,” his mother urged when Janet hesitated.

  He ventured a look at tree canopy. It was still dark, but fading fast. Dawn would be greeting them soon—too soon.

  The two women pressed close and Xander tucked them into his chest. His mother was petite and slight, like his cousin, and barely came to his chest. His wife was taller, her head almost to his shoulder. She was curvy and perfect.

  Both were dear to him, though he regretted not knowing more of his mother as she was now, with clear violet eyes and a sharp mind.

  “I am better because of you, my lad,” she whispered as if she’d read his mind. Perhaps she had; he hadn’t taken time to block his thoughts, and they had that magic in common.

  Janet said nothing, but watched with somber wide eyes as Xander pumped his wings.

  When they were airborne, his mother cast a bubble spell, enclosing them from the wind, as well as making them invisible. She’d be able to speak without the wind taking away her words.

  “I grieved when you left, but after learning the reasons Alana fled, I understood why you had to go. So did your father, despite his public renouncement. He had to say those things for the benefit of my brother. But your father grieved you, too.”

  Xander tried not to scoff, and took them higher.

  “No, lad. Your father truly loves you.”

  “He has an odd way of showing it.”

  “As did I when you were wee. Neither of us raised you as we should’ve.” His mother’s voice was bathed in regret. “I cannot go back and fix my mistakes, but this I can do for you. We can do this for you.”

  “Father will protect you?” Xander’s voice cracked. Despite everything, he loved his parents as they loved him.

  “Aye. He’s a plan to wipe memories. It shall be as if you were never here.”

  Xander clenched his jaw. It was not unheard of, but very difficult, given how many Fae they’d interacted with. He prayed to the gods his father could do it, and he wasn’t leaving his parents only to have them slaughtered. He would never know, either.

  “All will be well, my lad.”

  Janet whimpered and hid her face against his neck as the Field of Light came into view.

  He tightened his arm around her, but his mother was the one to offer comfort. “All will be well for you both. You shall be back in your realm within moments.”

  His wife nodded.

  They landed on the dais and his mother muttered a cleansing spell. “We must hurry; the wards have been renewed, as well as the alarms.”

  Xander wanted to gather Janet back to him when she slipped from his arms, but he contented himself with standing beside her.

  His mother darted to the Faery Stones, saying another spell to nullify the tamper alarm. It wouldn’t last long.

  The Stones hummed as she touched them in order, and the wind was soon born, along with the first pop.

  Janet trembled as her skirt shifted and she inched closer to him. Xander reached for her, chiding himself because he couldn’t help it, but she entwined their fingers and squeezed as if she needed his touch.

  The portal was born, the round window-like magic opening painfully slowly. His heart thundered when the haziness took too long to clear.

  “You must go,” his mother said. Her eyes were misty as she joined them.

  Xander’s stomach jumped. “I will miss you, Mother.”

  Janet released him so he could hug his mother.

  He held her close, kissing her forehead.

  She reached up, cupping his face. “Be happy, my lad.”

  “You as well, Mother.”

  “I am once again, with your father. We still love each other, after all these years.”

  Xander couldn’t imagine the hard Fae Captain loving anyone—let alone showing it—but he prayed her words were true. That his parents had come to peace with each other. Found happiness he’d never been witness to as a lad. They weren’t fated mates, but had bound themselves in magic, an irreversible spell that must’ve been torture for them both while all was not well in their marriage—for years. He nodded, mixed emotions churning in his gut.

  His mother hugged his wife and whispered something that made Janet nod.

  She came to his side quickly, and he allowed her to take his hand again.

  Xander was the one to entwine their fingers this time. He pulled her closer to his side. His eyes grazed their freedom. Because dawn had not yet crested, darkness dominated the doorway into the Realm of the Humans, but Skye was only two steps away. They’d come out on the beach; Alana’s spells would prevent them from entering in the cave.

  “Home,” Janet whispered.

  Hand in hand, they walked through the portal.

  Chapter Twenty

  Something was wrong. He wouldn’t look at her; he winced every time she reached for him. Even now, with their fingers entwined, Xander was holding back from her.

  When they’d stepped through the portal, they were on the beach of Skye. Janet recognized the large boulder she’d tried to cling to before being sucked into the Fae Realm.

  Her husband’s wings were gone again. He’d made a face of pain, but when she’d asked if he was physically hurting, Xander had told her he was fine.

  Dawn arrived, the sun shy as it greeted the day, hiding behind fat white clouds. It was chilly, too. But Xander’s retreat was the reason for her tremors, not the wind that shifted her hair.

  Janet stumbled, like she had in the forest, and he steadied her again. Her heart sank when he released her. “T
hank you.”

  “You’re welcome, lass.”

  Lass. Not angel.

  For the second time.

  Hurt washed over her as he looked down the beach, away from her.

  It was jarring seeing him without wings.

  Maybe that’s what’s bothering him, despite what he’d said?

  “Are you well?” she whispered.

  He didn’t pause his stride, nor did he meet her eyes, even when she tugged on his hand. “Aye.”

  “Your…magic? Do you mourn your wings?”

  “I’m fine.” Xander smiled, but it was forced.

  Janet’s mouth went dry and she sniffled. Loss hit her chest. Making it ache. “Xander…”

  A shout went up, ripping her attention from the man she loved.

  Her brothers ran toward them, Duncan’s kilt whipping in the wind as he jogged. Alex was on his heels, and her nephew behind his father, running on much shorter legs. Her father stood on the ridge, waving vigorously. Even in the distance, she could see his grin.

  Duncan reached them first, sweeping her to him in a hard hug. Alex was next, embracing her with more care and kissing her cheek.

  Janet laughed when Angus threw his arms around waist and squeezed.

  “Aunt Janet! Aunt Janet!” the lad chanted.

  She ruffled his dark hair and held him tight.

  “Lass, are ye all right?” Alex asked.

  Duncan cupped her face, his gaze searching. “Yer home.”

  “Aye. Home.” Janet plastered on a smile for her brothers, but she felt Xander retreat even further, and bit her lip so she wouldn’t give in to the urge to cry.

  “Welcome home, brother.” Alex, ever the diplomatic one, threw his hand out to Xander and gave him a hard shake.

  “Thank ye fer bringing our sister home,” Duncan echoed, patting him on the shoulder. “Now I can call ye brother.”

  She sucked in her cheek and blinked.

  Xander smiled, but it was strained. If her brothers noticed, they didn’t react.

  Angus left her side to embrace Xander, and at least her husband accepted the lad’s affection and returned it.

  Something is still wrong.