Through Time-Pursuit

by Conn, Claudy

  He would capture the evil prince, and he would make his demands before he put him out of his misery—for he would keep him there, begging for death until he said Lana’s name.

  And so it began.

  ~ One ~

  Princess Royce of the House of Nimrough

  “ROYCE!”

  “Trevor!” She turned and tried smiling in spite of what she knew she was about to face on the other side of the door she had her hand raised to. Trevor was one of her closest friends. “What are you doing?”

  “Long story—but I guess you know about … about Lana,” he said grimly.

  “My brother told me, and I am so sorry …” She watched as his jaw stiffened and his face suddenly looked older. He must have fallen hard for Lana LeBlanc.

  She reached out and petted his arm but said no more. She didn’t think he needed words. He gave her a crooked smile and sighed heavily. “I am off to meet with Chance, and then we will find the devil …”

  “Yes, Trev, but I heard that he is the oldest of the Dark Princes and very cunning—you watch your back,” she cautioned, recalling an incident where he had been braver than he had been wise. She touched his face. “Trev … he can move in and kill you with the same sword he used on—” She didn’t want to say the name and see the pain in his eyes and quickly changed her warning. “He is ruthless, and you are not.”

  “He may be cunning and ruthless, but I am a Seelie Prince of the House of Lugh. Danté taught me everything I need to know, and what he didn’t teach me, Breslyn did. You can rest assured that I am totally equipped as a Tracker and a warrior,” he said with a superior tone.

  This pronouncement made Princess Royce laugh. “You are pretty darn proud of yourself,” she said affectionately and was pleased to see him crack a genuine smile.

  “Sounded pompous, huh?”

  She made a show with her thumb and forefinger. “Just a little … but I know if anyone can do it, Trev, you can.”

  He patted her on the shoulder. “Thanks and good luck, yourself.” He indicated Queen Aaibhe’s chamber with his chin. “I heard you’ve been called on the carpet again, for your wayward ways.” he smiled and shook his head. “You know, she once sent Breslyn into the middle of the ocean floor and took away all his powers …” His eyes teased, and he flicked a long tress of bright red hair before her eyes.

  She pushed her hair out of her face and touched him, for she was genuinely worried this time. She knew he would not totally understand; Trevor did not care for humans. However, he would sympathize with her all the same. Instead, he released a bark of laughter.

  “Don’t worry—she probably goes easier on her princesses.”

  “Not this time …” Royce sighed. “I didn’t just bend the rules, Trev—I exploded them.”

  “I heard,” he said softly and then added as he twirled another strand of her long hair and flung it across her nose, “It’s okay, Red—you couldn’t help it. Don’t know why these humans draw you in so completely, but she knows your state of mind is compassionate and as wild as your fiery disposition, so don’t worry, she won’t banish you.”

  He smiled and shifted off, and Royce took a long drag of air and blew it out slowly. She entered the queen’s chambers, and there she was—Aaibhe, Queen of the Seelie Fae.

  The queen held her fingers pyramided, and she looked to Royce like she was … what? Royce couldn’t tell. She tried to see what those brilliant, iridescent eyes held—controlled fury? No—was it disappointment? No … ah, determination. The queen had most certainly made up her mind to handle the situation differently than she had in the past. Uh oh—trouble, Royce thought as she closed and then reopened her eyes. At least she’d remembered to change her jeans and tee for a pretty blue silk dress and had blinked her hair into a thin gold band that held up the long strands on the top of her head in the style she knew the queen preferred.

  The queen smiled softly, patted the chair next to her own, and said softly, “Sit, my Princess, and do not hesitate—explain yourself.”

  “My Queen,” Royce started to say as she sat. “First, allow me to point out that the child wasn’t dying. Hence, it wasn’t as though I was bringing him back to life …” The words she had just blurted sounded absurd even to her, but it was the truth, at least as she saw matters. She immediately observed the queen’s reaction and stopped any other words that wanted to tumble from her lips. Instead, she folded her hands together in her lap and tried again, more calmly. “What I am trying to say, Queen Aaibhe is this: I did not really infringe on the path of destiny … and even if I did a little, it was totally necessary because he would not have been in that awful and unacceptable situation—well, it was in essence, our fault, wasn’t it … I mean …”

  “Our fault?” The Queen of the Seelie Fae raised her lovely brow and interrupted. “How so?”

  “The Dark Fae escaped because we couldn’t stop them from doing so. One of those sinister monsters chased young David, reached for him, and the child stepped backwards into the street. He was hit by a car and would have been paralyzed for the rest of his life. Our fault.”

  “I see,” Aaibhe said so softly Royce almost couldn’t hear her, and then she asked, “So then, my Princess, do we make it our business to round up any humans that survived an attack by the Dark Fae but are in critical condition and heal them? Is that what you are suggesting?”

  “No, I know that is not possible, although I wish it were. I know we can’t reveal ourselves to the general population, but in this case I was right there! I saw it happen, and before I could do anything to stop it …” She shook her head. “David and his family are friends of mine, and I have a great affection for them … and … I … I couldn’t …”

  “You were there because you were involved with a human family—and overly involved and attached to this child. It put you in a precarious situation. You lent your aid without permission, you risked exposing yourself and us to humans, for what? So that you could heal the boy. I am not without compassion, my dear. I do understand. I do see it all very clearly. The question is do you?” Aaibhe said grimly.

  “I am their friend—they don’t know that I am a Fae … let alone a Fae princess. They didn’t know that David’s injuries were serious. I healed him before they knew anything. They simply did not realize anything untoward had occurred.”

  “Let me understand your point of view. Are you saying that when we happen to be on the spot … and a favored human is injured, we may heal them without taking precautions or worrying about the repercussions?”

  “No … that is not what I am saying.” Royce pleaded with her eyes and hoped her queen would understand. “These were extraordinary circumstances. The Dark Fae were our responsibility, and they escaped because we didn’t keep them contained. They were loose—killing and maiming—and David was there, right before my eyes, and he would have been crippled all his little life and …”

  “And as I have said, I quite understand—do not think I don’t—but what I want to know, because I am your queen and must discern your reasoning, is did you give some thought to what it would mean to the future if you healed him?”

  “I … no, there wasn’t time.” Royce hung her head and then raised it. “Besides, we can never be sure what is destined and what is not. Perhaps there was a reason I just happened to be there when this took place … perhaps I was meant to heal him?”

  “You have this all worked out then, have you?” the queen said with a cluck of her tongue. Then with pursed lips she took Royce’s chin in her hand and made her look into her eyes once more.

  “I … didn’t think about anything else. He is a child, and I care for him …” Royce pleaded.

  “Of course you did, and I do believe you know that when you broke our rules, rules that were put in place after great consideration and necessity, you walked the edge of danger with regards to the workings of our beliefs. We Fae understand that tampering with the fates is a serious act.” Aaibhe clucked briefly and then added, “Your pare
nts are concerned about your obsession with humans, and unlike Prince Breslyn, you don’t have the maturity and experience to deal with the intricacies of ‘breaking the rules’.”

  “My Queen …” she started. “His fate should not have been determined by the Dark Fae.”

  Aaibhe put up a hand and halted her from speaking. “I have asked you to sit in on Council meetings with Aida and Ete as your guides … do you not care for them?”

  “I adore them. They are like older, wiser sisters … well, Ete is. Aida is just so much fun …”

  “And still you do not attend the meetings,” the queen said, clearly reproving her. “What am I going to do with you? You need to mature, Royce. You need to take your place on the Council.”

  “The Council meetings are so boring, and I am not interested in politics.” She sighed and studied a work of art across the room.

  “Duty sometimes is boring but nevertheless necessary.” The queen waved off any answer her princess might give, and it was clear that she was becoming impatient with her. “So, because the Trackers and our Royal Houses are overtaxed rounding up the stray Dark Fae in Ireland and Scotland … and even England—”

  “Yes, my brother said some have escaped to England, and he went after them this morning,” she stuck in, hoping to show that she was in fact concerned about the situation.

  “Indeed, and we are even working with the Milesians, one in particular, Chancemont LeBlanc.” The queen inclined her lovely head. “I know that you have heard something of that tragic story.”

  “Yes, Trevor has just left me to join the Milesian in the effort of tracking and capturing Pestale.”

  “Precisely, my Princess.” The queen rose from her seat and took a turn in place. Royce watched her with dread. Here it comes, she thought.

  “As it happens, Princess Royce, I have decided to make you a part of their team. You have specific and extraordinary abilities that they might find useful.”

  “Me—my punishment is to team with Trevor?” Now this was beyond wonderful, Royce thought, almost clasping her hands together. Is this what she calls punishment?

  The queen’s iridescent eyes narrowed, and one delicate brow rose. “Do not think you have gotten away with your misbehavior. Indeed, little one, I am putting you in grave danger. It is time you stopped playing mother to these humans and began the business of being who you are—a Seelie Fae princess.” She waved off Royce’s objection and silenced her with a glare. “This is a mission that you must execute with purpose and determination. It is time you wake up and realize your duty to your own kind. I need you to open your lovely eyes and recognize what is important in the large scope of things.” The queen sighed and then added, “This will not be easy, child. Chancemont will not want you to accompany them, and he will not welcome you. If you wish to carry out your Queen’s orders, you will have to prove yourself to him, and I expect that you will find a way to do so.”

  Royce was so relieved that the queen was not relegating her to the middle of a mountain without power to get out—she had heard enough stories to worry about this—that she almost jumped up and hugged Queen Aaibhe. However, she checked herself and bowed her head. “Yes, my Queen … I will do as you ask.”

  ~ Two ~

  The Dark Prince Pestale

  “DAMN, HOT DAMN, I like this Earth, and these humans make excellent subjects,” the Dark Prince said out loud before glancing at the pretty human in his bed. He stood naked next to the window overlooking the busy street below.

  He smiled to himself and walked back to the bed, bent, and fondled the young woman’s full breasts. “I wish that my brothers were here with me to share you … lovely thing …”

  “Oh yes … oh call them … tell them to join us …” she said on a husky note.

  He laughed. “I only wish it were that easy.” A hard look took over his dark features. “Soon—it will be soon.”

  “Are they as handsome as you?” she said, crawling on her knees to touch his cock and lick its length.

  “Yes … each in his own way.” He held her head and pushed himself into her mouth, worked her hard and fast, and then even as she choked on his largeness he went off to the sound of his pleasure. He removed it from her mouth and allowed his seed to drip over her breasts. “Rub it on your nipples …”

  She was already his, ruined for all else but sex. She would never recover from the Lianhan sexual addition. She did exactly what he asked and smiled for him.

  He moved away from her and went back to the window. The Queen of the Seelie Fae had vowed to find him and return him to the Dark Realm. He sneered to himself. Let her try …

  He wasn’t about to allow the Seelie Trackers to capture him and return him there to a dead world, not now, not when all of the Human Realm lay before him, ready to devour.

  He was fairly certain he would rather wish to cease to exist!

  So, he kept a force of Dark Magic surrounding him as he evaded their efforts to find him. He didn’t think of it as running from them but rather simply staying free until he could find a way to accomplish his plans.

  He was pleased with his efforts thus far. He had given them a merry chase, almost doing circles around them as he used his black magic to disguise his scent. He was nearly impossible to track.

  He thought of Gaiscioch—Gais, who was nothing in the end but a mad fool. Gais had become obsessed, and that obsession had ruled his actions. Now Gais was dead. It was what Pestale had planned for the Seelie traitor all along. He had just been biding his time, but then the Seelie Fae put an end to him.

  Pestale felt so much above what Gaiscioch had been. His goals were clear-sighted and not driven by obsession. While it was of paramount importance that he free Morrigu and his two remaining brothers, he would not give up all for them.

  It was as simple as that. He would do what he could—he would leave no avenue untraveled, no corner unturned in his efforts to free them—but should a choice have to be made, he would always choose self-interests first.

  If he had to choose between his freedom and theirs, he could and would forsake them.

  He’d often thought about himself in this wild Human Realm where so much was put into two categories—good or evil—and had concluded that he was not evil. The Seelie Fae had labeled him as such, but he’d decided that his actions were reasonable. He was, after all, a superior being, a Royal, and just as humans destroyed insects that annoy, he had the right to do the same—and there were so many he considered them no more than insects.

  However, a complication had definitely arisen. That complication had begun the moment he had seen her and had grown into a yearning he had never known was possible for him to feel.

  She had stood there in the midst of a screaming horde of humans during the close of Gais’s war two days ago. Her flaming red curls blew around her stunningly beautiful face. Her magical aura and her delicious scent wafted to him on a wave of something emanating from her—was it emotion?—yes, he felt the vibes of her uncontrolled emotions, and he couldn’t look away from her.

  And then he saw the child—a boy on the ground—and the Dark Fae creature, one of his own in fact, retreating from her. She didn’t take the time to chase and kill it. Instead, she said the child’s name and bent to him.

  He watched as she enacted the Féth Fiada and rendered herself and the child invisible to the crush of people running in all directions. Although a Dark Fae, Pestale was a Fae, and the Féth Fiada had no effect on him.

  He frowned, wondering why she had not given chase to her enemy—the Dark Fae who ran for its life. As a Seelie Fae, she should have run the creature to earth, yet she stayed with the unconscious boy.

  The beauty intrigued him. In fact—he could not look away.

  He stood unblinking as he watched her, mesmerized by her loveliness and the force of her ‘emotion’, a thing he did not possess. He saw the grace in her lines and her movement. He saw her vitality. There was purpose about her, an aura that glowed with her essence—and he knew h
e had to have her.

  He drank in the vision of her alabaster skin, which was perfection, and her lips—damn, but he immediately wanted to kiss those lips right then and there. He wanted to scoop her up and make her his own on the spot.

  A short cry escaped her, and the sound of her voice thrilled him as she repeated the child’s name, “David,” while she stroked the boy’s face. He thought of her touching him like that, stroking his face, and even two days later he could recall how his hard-on had throbbed for her.

  People had been milling about, but no one saw the two on the ground. The driver of the car that had hit the child was looking around himself like a man crazed. He had seen the boy go down, but there was no sign of him. He repeated over and over, “He ran right in front of me …”

  Pestale watched a tear roll down the beautiful Seelie Fae’s cheek as she laid hands to the child’s many wounds and heard her say, “Forgive me, my Queen …” as she clearly broke the Seelie Fae rules and healed the child.

  He immediately wanted her for himself. Here was a Seelie Fae who did what she wanted regardless of her queen’s wishes. He liked that a great deal. He didn’t know her name, and he didn’t know how he would find her, but her image played with his mind. She was the one—the one he knew he had to have for all time … or until he wearied of her.

  However, he had to keep on the move for his scent to stay disguised. He had seen both Danté and Breslyn just the night before, and he was certain those two would be difficult to evade once they figured out how he was disguising his scent.

  She was a princess. He had seen the gold torque around her neck with the etchings of her Seelie House—Nimrough. And although at the time he’d had to make his retreat, he had decided beyond all doubt that he would find her and make her his own.

  He had shifted away, keeping the pleasure her scent gave him in his memory. He had shifted away, but her face was there …

  From that moment on, he had thought of her constantly. Even when he took his pleasure with the pretties he had taken to his bed, he thought of her …