by Brenda Trim
“Doona let him fool you, lass. Fire demons have temper issues, but my experience is that they are very loyal allies. Are you familiar with these tunnels?” Kyran asked, switching topics.
“I know them like the back of my hand. I’ve been coming here for a thousand years, give or take a few,” he replied, putting his hands in his pockets.
“How you all live so long and don’t get bored is beyond me,” Mack muttered.
“There is always an adventure to be found. You just need to be looking.”
“Yes there is,” Kyran agreed dryly. “So, Rhett can you lead us to the Fae portal?”
“No, I can’t.”
Kyran tensed beside her and reached back for his knives. “Why no’?”
“Couple reasons. First of all, it was destroyed by the volcano during the last eruption and the dark Fae haven’t built a new one. Not that Legette would let them onto his land to get here. He doesn’t want to give Akilam anymore allies in their war. The dark Fae are helping destroy this planet too damn fast. Second reason is that no one has been able to establish a new portal on this island since the Cuelebre King disappeared over a thousand years ago. That doesn’t stop the dark Fae from congregating around the mountain, searching for remnants of their portal so they can rebuild.”
“What is the deal with this war?” Mack asked, unable to curb her curiosity. None of what she had seen made any sense. The redcaps had attacked them, without question, but the dragons had offered food and shelter and then brought in reinforcements. Kyran was convinced they meant them harm, but she wasn’t entirely certain.
“The Buggane made an alliance with the Dark Fae centuries ago to take over the land. The dragons have always served as protectors of Khoth and have been fighting to prevent its destruction.”
“Bottom line, who can we trust?” Kyran shot her an incredulous look. She shrugged. No point in wasting time beating around the bush. Nothing risked, nothing gained was her motto.
“Well now, that depends on who you ask. I have sided with the dragons because they are connected to the elements of this realm and would never cause it harm. If you haven’t seen it yet, the area the Buggane inhabit is nearly desolate and barren. Would you trust someone who desecrates their own land in such a way? Besides, the dragons are the only ones on this realm that haven’t tried to kill me.”
“How can we get a portal back to our realm?” Kyran asked as he twined their fingers together. The slightest touch of him sent sparks racing through her blood stream, and just like that, her lust was roaring back to the surface.
“You can’t access a portal anywhere on this island because there are none left. The King holds the key to the portals.”
“Och, that presents a major fucking problem. We must return to our realm right away. There are females being held hostage and tortured by demons. Is there any way to communicate with other realms? If we can at least get word to my brathair aboot the location of these females that would help.”
“I wish I could tell you yes, but as much technology as these dragons have, they haven’t mastered inter-realm communication. They have tried and have had engineers on it for centuries. They have been desperate to locate their King given that bringing him back is the only hope their race has of survival.”
“Bluidy hell, this is a fine mess. I believe I know their king. If there is no way out then there is no way back, either.” Kyran began pacing a nervous circuit around the area.
“You know King Angus? No fucking way!” Rhett exclaimed. “Where is he? Has he been trying to get home?”
“He is in Seattle and lives with us in our compound. As far as I know, Angus has no’ been trying to return here. At least for the past two hundred years, anyway. Then again, I never knew he was the Cuelebre King, either. Can you at least help us oot of these tunnels?” Mack looked at Kyran wondering why he didn’t ask about the prophecy. As if he’d heard her question, he looked at her and shook his head. She wondered again if they should trust this fire demon. For now, she’d follow his lead. After all, Kyran had saved her life more times than she could count. He wasn’t about to put her in danger.
Question was…what the hell were they going to do now?
CHAPTER TWENTY
Gerrick sat in Bhric’s car, looking at the burnt remains of Mackendra Callaghan’s house. The entire left side of the structure was a blackened mess. What hadn’t burned was water-logged from the firehoses and constant rain of Seattle. Gerrick didn’t know Mackendra, but he couldn’t imagine she would be happy when she returned to find everything she owned gone.
Bhric exited his vehicle and stood on the sidewalk, waiting for him and Angus. “What did Orlando say was the cause of the fire?”
“The fire department told him they weren’t able to locate a reason for the fire. He said the flames originated outside on the left side of the house,” Gerrick responded.
“Och, how can there be no cause? Maybe there is accelerant they missed,” Bhric mused.
“Orlando and Santiago already scented the property and found no trace. They found nothing further they could add to what was already known. They are completely perplexed.” Instinct told Gerrick that there was a supernatural force behind the fire. He just didn’t know what it was and how it involved Mackendra. If the demons were after her, they would have eliminated her, not burned down her house. They wouldn’t go to those lengths when a direct approach would be far more effective.
“Shite,” Bhric cursed, pulling out a flask of scotch. “You ready, Angus?” he asked, turning to their majordomo who happened to be the king of his people. Yeah, that one was still mind-blowing.
“Aye. ‘Tis best if we search the property in concentric circles. Much time has passed and I doona want to miss any remnant that may remain. I canna guarantee this was where the magic of my home originated, but I have a feeling it is connected to the fire,” Angus replied, ever the calm and competent task master.
They began walking around the side of the property, heading to the backyard. One thing Gerrick had never considered, but appreciated at the moment, was how Mackendra didn’t have a fence surrounding her yard. He had no patience to deal with something as mundane as climbing a fence at the moment.
His moods had been unstable lately and it was only getting worse. It began several months ago, shortly after Zander and Elsie’s mating and recently he had swung from incessant anger to fear in the span of a heartbeat. He attributed his agitation to the return of Fated Mate blessings. He was happy for those who have found their other half and had accepted his loss, but he was fucking tired of the pendulum of his emotions.
Centuries ago, he became intimately familiar with his Fated Mate’s soul when he met and lost his mate, Evanna. After her death, he had expected her soul to die with her, and believed that it had, until about two hundred years ago. Since that time, he’d felt her soul stir from time to time, but the past months it had been gnawing at his insides. None of it made sense to him.
He stepped around a large hydrangea bush and wondered why the Goddess hated him. He didn’t understand why he was plagued with his Fated Mate’s soul when she was lost to him forever. Of course, he couldn’t forget the mysterious parting words of Marie Laveau when he had gone to New Orleans in search of a cure for Jace’s mate, Cailyn.
Marie’s eyes took on a glow as she met Gerrick’s gaze. “Fate, Gerrick Haele, is not done wit’ you.” Marie waved him off when he opened his mouth to respond. “I won’t answer dos questions simmerin’ in dat brain.”
Yeah, Fate was a bitch that could kiss his ass, for all he cared. He was tired of the shit she was putting him through. He had thought of little else since seeing Marie in her bayou, but he hadn’t found any answers. He prayed that it didn’t mean he was going to suffer with these emotions for the rest of his life.
He was wound so tight and ready to snap that he wasn’t focused on their search. He needed to get his head out of his ass and pay attention. He had come so he could help locate magic while Bhric was thei
r muscle. Bhric was doing more than Gerrick at the moment and that galled him given the Vampire Prince’s inebriated state.
Shaking off the questions that had no answers, Gerrick focused on the colors around him. Any being who wielded magic saw power in color. Different colors indicated the type and intent of the magic. There was no sign that an enchantment had been cast on the right side of her house, which was, for the most part intact, minus the windows. This close, the scent of burnt wood and plastic were still thick and cloying to his supernatural sense of smell.
“I’m not seeing anything. Are you?” he asked the silent dragon shifter beside him.
Angus met his gaze, his face drawn in a tight line. Gerrick worried for a second that Angus may shift right there. Angus had fought by their side several times, yet Gerrick had never seen him so tense. The male looked like he was ready to battle an army single-handed.
“Nay. There is nothing on this side of the house, but whatever portal Kyran went through did indeed go to Khoth. There is no mistaking that signature.”
“I don’t sense anything,” Gerrick replied, turning a circle and looking over the house and yard. He saw a small table with a colorful, tiled top along with two matching chairs. A hammock swung between two evergreen trees and there were various sculptures of frogs. Damn, the female liked frogs, he surmised, seeing the numerous figures. She had everything from wood to metal to ceramic frogs all over her yard. There was even a sculpture of one frog mounting another. Gerrick smiled, he liked her sense of humor.
“’Tis no’ what I see, but what I feel. I need to see the charred side of the house. I have a suspicion that the portal is what started the fire.” Angus hurried across the lawn, Bhric hot on his heels, grumbling about the dragon not paying attention to his surroundings.
As they crossed the damp lawn, Gerrick could see purple swirling in the atmosphere around the remains. He stopped in his tracks when he saw the tormented look on Angus’ face.
“I never thought I’d feel home again,” Angus murmured. “I lost everything when I came to your realm. I didna care aboot the gold or gems in my hoard or the castle. I was so consumed with the loss of Keira and convinced she was in this realm. I was so desperate to find her that I didna consider my people. I couldna see that at the time I left. Now, my only thoughts are for my Máahes, especially Legette.”
“Can you open the portal again?” Bhric demanded. “We need to get to Kyran.”
“I’m no’ certain.”
“I’ll help you,” Gerrick offered. He focused on the feel of the magic and tried to find the thread to follow. “Open the portal like you would if you were in Khoth. Once you access that store of power, I should have a signature to lock on and then I’ll amplify your signal so to speak.” Gerrick prayed this worked. The Vampire King and his siblings weren’t the only ones desperate to rescue Kyran. The Dark Warriors needed him, as well. Patrols had suffered and skirm activity had increased.
“I’ll try, it’s been a long time since I tried to use that magic,” Angus responded, closing his eyes in concentration.
“Put your drink away and pay attention,” Gerrick warned Bhric. “I need all my energy focused on Angus right now. I don’t want to have to worry about you.” Gerrick could imagine them being attacked while he was occupied.
“Fuck off, Gerrick. I got this,” Bhric snarled with his lip curled, fangs gleaming in the moonlight and took another swig.
“You’d better,” Gerrick snapped, letting his attention narrow to Angus and the power swirling through him. There was a deep, earthy feel to it. Angus had said his dragons were the protectors of his realm and connected to the elements. There was no doubting that fact as Gerrick sensed water, air, earth and fire, but it had a wild, pure feel to it. Humans had polluted the earth and that was carried over, to some extent, to magic.
Gerrick called his staff to him and used it to focus his energy. The seven foot staff was made of rowan wood and was as gnarled as his face. He grasped the leather that wrapped a quarter of the way down the pole and rubbed his thumb along a silver chain tied to it. A small pendant hung from the chain. He’d had the Celtic tree of life forged for his Evanna, but she had died before he was able to give it to her. He attached the necklace to his staff as a reminder of their love.
He let those thoughts pass and latched onto Angus’ signature and chanted an enhancement spell, but nothing happened. He wracked his brain for any other creative way to force the portal open. He could feel the energy blocking their efforts, but wasn’t familiar with the signature. It drew its force by robbing the land it was connected to, and since it originated on the other side of the portal, there was no way to disrupt the power.
Angus had said that the absence of both he and his mate had caused the portal to close, but Gerrick felt the malevolence of the spell at work. There was more here than they realized and he prayed for Kyran and the female’s safety. As a last ditch effort, Gerrick threw a blast of power into his efforts, knowing he would tire quickly.
“Bluidy hell. ‘Tis no use. The portal willna open,” Angus declared. Gerrick saw the defeat in the slump of the dragon’s shoulders. He wanted to tell him to try again, but he knew it would be met with failure. Every spell had an equation and with the proper key, they could undo this one, but they were flying blind and throwing energy all over the place, to no avail.
“We can go back to the compound and ask Evzen to bring the Mystik Grimoire and any other resources on portals. Perhaps there will be an answer somewhere.” Gerrick thought of the magical tome that had recently returned to Jace’s hands. It held forgotten knowledge and was their best bet at this point. He sighed, returning his staff to the mystical pocket of space where it was stored.
“I doubt there will be information on my kind in the tome. I have been here a verra long time and I havena ever shared information aboot my history before.” Angus wiped his hands on his pants and stood straight, clearly ready to put this matter behind him. It was obvious to Gerrick that the male had worked hard to forget his origins and didn’t care to linger on the memories any longer. Gerrick understood trying to escape the pain of your past.
“Don’t discount it completely, Angus. The Mystik Grimoire has been around a long time and I recall Jace talking about his father using it to cross to other realms. There is a possibility, albeit small, that it contains something that may help. Either way, we have to try.”
“Och, can you two save that for later? We have company.” Bhric asked, grabbing their attention. Gerrick and Angus turned at the same time to see at least a dozen skirm standing in the yard about twenty-five feet from them. “I’m sorry, if I’d known you were coming I’d have cleaned the house and had snacks ready,” Bhric said sarcastically to the group.
The group of skirm bared their fangs and hissed at Bhric’s attempt at humor. Gerrick wasn’t fond of Bhric’s inability to take anything seriously. Gerrick preferred keeping his mouth shut while he fought his battles. In his opinion, nothing needed to be said that he couldn’t say with his sgian dubhs. He bent over and pulled his titanium blades out of the holsters in his boots.
“I’m too weak and canna shift or I’d make some barbeque and be done with this mess,” Angus remarked with a smirk. Gerrick was surprised by Angus’ humor because normally he was so serious. He hadn’t spent a lot of one on one time with Angus and realized there was more to the male than he’d ever fathomed.
“How do you think they found us?” Gerrick wondered out loud. “Do you think they came looking for Mackendra?”
“You weren’t hard for our Master to find. Your magic was as clear as the moon in the sky. Usually you guys hide it better,” responded one of the skirm.
Gerrick cursed himself for not thinking to disguise their attempts to open the portal. He never considered the demons would be looking for magical signals, but then it made sense because the Triskele Amulet they were searching for would be a bright beacon when used anywhere away from Zeum.
“Och, you idiots really are s
tupid to think you could take us on. So, who wants to tango with the Iceman first?” Bhric taunted, tossing his weapon from hand to hand.
“Better yet, how about someone tell me about the females your demon holds hostage. If you do, you may survive what’s to come,” Gerrick countered. They needed to gather some information and he figured chances were good that these minions could be duped by an obvious question.
“You can both go fuck yourselves,” one spat out.
“Yeah, forget about those bitches. Kadir will never let them go. His prized possessions are way too much fun. When they go at it, the blood and hair fly.” Gerrick wondered what they were doing to these females to make them fight one another.
“Yeah, my favorite is the insane redhead,” another chuckled. Gerrick snapped at the casual disregard of the females. He screamed a war cry and threw one of his blades into the chest of the skirm who had spoken. The male flashed on fire and turned to ash as Gerrick raced forward to engage the rest.
Bhric joined the fight by tossing ice bombs at the skirm screaming, “You assed out. Feel the freeze.” Bhric had the ability to freeze anything or take the water from the atmosphere and create weapons made of ice. It was the latter that he lobbed at the skirm. Ice missiles hit the grass and dirt, sending chunks of earth flying. The occasional scream sounded, indicating some had found their mark. It wouldn’t kill the skirm, but it would slow them down. Titanium was the only substance that could turn a skirm to ash.
Angus chuckled and picked up the knife Gerrick had tossed just in time to turn and plunge it into the heart of an enemy sneaking up behind him. Gerrick had three surrounding him. Make that four, as one jumped on his back and sunk his fangs into Gerrick’s shoulder. It would have taken a hunk of his skin when he punched it in the face, but Gerrick’s jacket saved him. Not that Gerrick was unfamiliar with scars, but he didn’t care to deal with the pain and trouble of healing an injury that big. He kept hoping the realm scientists would find a treatment for skirm venom, the shit burned like the fires of hell.