Breaking Out

by Gayle Parness

  “The future is unclear for Brina and me.”

  ‘I am not speaking of what is private between you. But if you harm her with your magic, if you treat her without respect, I will come for you.” All I could do was nod in acceptance. What happened with Brina and Tellek made it perfectly clear that I wasn’t in control of my magic or my emotions. I needed help.

  Kaera and I subdued three more wolves in wolf form, adding them to the group of prisoners gathered on the beach. Brina had questioned every one, weeding out those who were responsible for the Alpha’s death or the death of the two San Gabriel wolves and leaving the rest to go back to their families.

  The four people being herded onto the boat had turned out to be illegal immigrants. Aaron spoke to them and found out they were being sold as slaves to another pack. The crates were full of liquor and guns. All of this made more work for the WPC, but was not Triad’s problem. We’d only signed on to find out who’d murdered the two wolves and to try and get the kelpie territory back from the Catalina Pack.

  The coast guard arrived to pick up the contraband and take charge of the immigrants. I watched the cruiser pull away, hoping the four men could somehow get back to their families. Aaron had a working relationship with the coast guard’s supernatural division. They trusted Aaron to deal with the remaining prisoners in a way that would keep the human population safe and still ignorant. Supernatural law was harsh for very specific reasons, the main one being our continued ability to live close to humans without being “outed.”

  At the Catalina Pack house, Aaron and Ginamarie presided over an impromptu trial. Ms. Turner was found guilty of three counts of murder, including the murder of her own husband, the alpha. Aaron found out the names of the hit men she’d hired and called the information into the WPC offices. They’d also be dealt with.

  Ms. Turner was given the choice to die in an honorable—for a werewolf—duel or a sudden and dishonorable death, which would involve Franklin breaking her neck. I wasn’t surprised she chose to have her neck snapped. It was over quickly and her body was burned in a bonfire on the beach. Everyone in the pack, except the smallest children had been required to watch the execution and the burning. It was a powerful lesson.

  Aaron’s next announcement was a shocker. “The Catalina pack land is being deeded to the kelpies whose land it had been for many centuries. All of you will receive an equal share of its value, compliments of the WPC.”

  “What about us? Where do we go?” Tension was high.

  “You’ll form into family groups and then be placed in various packs around the state.”

  “But we’ll have to start at the bottom again.”

  “You can blame your alpha and his mate. Any one of you could have contacted the WPC to report what was going on.”

  “She would have killed us.”

  “Or our families.”

  “Now you and your families will be safe. Wolves live a long time. Rising through the pack hierarchy doesn’t take long if you prove yourselves to be loyal and skilled. I’m placing you in packs that will welcome you, not shun you.”

  There was some grumbling, but packing had already begun when Jay, Brina and I took the lines back to our home base in LA. Making decisions as a leader was tough, but Aaron always seemed to know what to say to get people to do what he wanted. Yeah, he had that Alpha Aura thing, but still… I wondered if I’d ever have that kind of easy influence without resorting to magic.

  Garrett and his grandsire, Francois, had that kind of charisma, but I wasn’t related to them by blood. Fin definitely had that magical pull and he’d passed it along to Caelen and Aedus and some of his other kids and grandkids, but not Kennet or Fionna. Maybe that was one of the reasons they were so uptight. Nobody wanted to listen to them unless they forced them to. Isaiah had his own brand of charisma, so maybe there was some hope yet. It sure seemed to make giving orders easier.

  I took off my very lived-in and smelly clothes and stepped into the shower. Jay and Brina had already showered and had gone to look at an apartment in the building next door. She’d need her own space now that she was an official part of the team. Brina and I hadn’t really spoken since we’d left the island, except for me to agree to her joining Triad. I owed her that much, and Jay was right. In the real world, a fae warrior in your crew was the shit. But when had my life ever been normal?

  A pleasant idea came to mind. If the apartment next door had two bedrooms I’d send Ivy over there, too. That way Jay could take over Ivy’s room and the girls could be roomies. Then we wouldn’t have to hear complaints about the mess I made.

  As long as the two stubborn females didn’t kill each other.

  Man this being a leader thing was so not what I’d envisioned. At first all I’d wanted was to explore the state, practicing my magic once in a while, staying low-key. Then a week before my birthday, Aaron had invited me over for a chat. I’d broached the idea of taking off on my own with Jay and he’d been supportive, offering to sponsor me if I’d consider helping out a friend who was having some trouble. I’d called him from our first stop after the Sierras and he’d arranged the appointment with Ms. Turner.

  Someone should have slapped me around to wake me up from this idiotic fantasy. Only, I did want to help people, and I knew I’d be good at it, if I could only be certain that I was in control of my magic.

  I dried off and dressed, grabbing an apple from the fridge and sitting down in my office to make some plans. Might as well get started.

  Advertising would be tricky. We could only work for supernatural clients, unless we were willing to work using only mundane tools and methods or being super careful if we absolutely needed to use magic. I felt like we could handle it, but maybe it would just be safer to stick with supernatural cases. They’d probably pay more.

  The doorbell rang. Samson didn’t bark so I figured it was Ivy coming back after her recovery. It was only after I’d opened the door, that I saw Samson out cold on the carpet by the window. There was a dart in his neck.

  I felt a pricking sensation and fell, my knees giving out before my brain.

  IVY

  CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

  I was going to ring the bell, but the door was partly open. Jay or Charlie must be in the back yard or something.

  When I saw Samson on the rug with the dart in his neck, I pulled it out and shook him. He didn’t move. After looking in every room, I called Jay on my phone.

  “Hey. You back at the house? I’m next door looking at another apartment with Brina.”

  Why does he need to get an apartment with Brina? I shook my head to clear it. I’ll deal with that later. “Charlie isn’t here and Samson was drugged.”

  They arrived a minute later. They would have gotten to me sooner, but they couldn’t exactly take the lines with the real estate lady in the same room with them. She would have fainted and we’d have two problems instead of one very serious one. Charlie’s location was definitely problem uno.

  Jay took charge. “I’ll call Aaron.”

  Brina put her hand out, stopping him. “This is our job.”

  “His life could be in danger.”

  “When is it not in danger? Everyone wants him. And Aaron will be of little help against the demons who took him.”

  “You think it was demons?”

  All Fae thought demons were the scourge of the three realms. “You’re both being ridiculous.” They turned in my direction. ‘Bout time. “Jay, use your nose. Brina, use you aura sensing magic. Trace where they went. I’ll keep trying to wake up Samson.”

  The monster was already on his feet, and growling at the street. “Can you carry all of us through the lines?” If Brina’s cold expression could turn kelpies into sushi, I’d be part of a roll right now. Well someone had to take things in hand. “Samson will point us in the right direction and you’ll take us block by block.”

  “Charlie did that when we were searching for you.” Jay looked excited by the idea. “Maybe Isaiah can zone in on his scar
. We could contact him.”

  “How? He is a demon. He would need to be summoned. We go now.” Brina was about as patient as a two year old.

  Jay grabbed my hand while Brina took Samson by the scruff. We reappeared alongside a restaurant. Thank goodness it was nighttime and no one saw us. Samson ran around the corner, barking, but we caught up to him and went another two blocks. We were near a dock now. Samson took off faster than I’d ever seen him run, his claws clattering on the metal of the bouncing structure. He came to a screeching halt beside an empty slip.

  They’d taken him out to sea.

  “My magic does not work as well on top of the ocean.” Brina looked worried.

  I laughed. “I got this part covered.” I kicked off my shoes and dove in, heading to court. It only took me a couple of minutes, but each second felt like hours. I ran to chieftain’s office, ignoring the guards.

  “Rylen.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Someone’s kidnapped Charlie. He’s on a boat.

  “Tell me.”

  I explained, giving him all the information I could. He and a team of six kelpies headed out to search. He told me to wait at the dock with my friends, because he would return Charlie to me there. I dragged myself out of the water and Jay threw his leather jacket over my shoulders.

  “I called Aaron anyway,” He confessed.

  “Fine with me. It was Blondie who said no.” I started to pace on the dock, my nerves on edge.

  “Blondie?” Brina had a quizzical expression. “Is this an insult?”

  “No. It’s just a fact. I’m a brunette. You’re a blonde.” I walked back the other way, passing the fae female and moving on toward the end of the dock.

  “You will refer to me as Brina.” She called out.

  “I’ll do my best.” I hardly knew this snooty fae and I already hated her.

  “You realize she’s a fae warrior.” Jay said, his expression wary, his eyes following my progress.

  “Yeah, and I’m a kelpie of the royal line.” In fact I’d give a king’s ransom to go for a run in my steed form right about now. It was a great way to ease tension.

  “She’s Fin’s granddaughter.” Jay explained, as if I didn’t already know that.

  I stopped in my tracks, my hands fisted on my hips. “One of how many?”

  “A lot,” he said, confused.

  “Then she’s more diluted.” I walked closer to Jay and poked his chest with a stiff finger. “And what were you doing getting an apartment with her?”

  “No. Oh no, I’m not living there…with her. I’m staying in the house with Char.”

  I smiled. “And me.” He didn’t smile back.

  “The apartment has two bedrooms. Char and I thought you girls could share.”

  “Over my dead body.” I shouted, beginning to pace again.

  “I can accommodate you on that score, minnow.” Brina had the nerve to laugh at me. “Although there is a small closet in the back bedroom where you might sleep. You are certainly puny enough.”

  “If she calls me minnow again I’m gonna drown her.”

  Jay backed away. “You girls are nuts. Totally wacko.”

  “Let’s drown him instead.” I was so pissed off I couldn’t think. “Why aren’t you two upset? Charlie’s been kidnapped!”

  Jay and Brina looked at each other. “We’ve done what we could. “ Jay held up his hands. “You got your people working on this.”

  “Yeah, but…”

  Samson started barking. There was an enormous wave in the distance. It wasn’t that wide, but it was pretty tall. On top it of rode a boat, another cruiser, as if it were surfing the wave in a suicidal mission to crash onto the shore. There were people on the beach and swimmers in the water. Males on the boat were screaming, holding on for dear life.

  “Holy shit!” I jumped back into the water, shifting form and catching up to the others. They were having a good ole time pushing the boat toward shore without even a thought to how dangerous this was to the passengers or the innocent people on the beach.

  Luckily all of these bozos were lower in status than I was. “Stop playing with them. You’re gonna hurt somebody.”

  “Yes, Lady Ivonne.”

  They were good boys. The wave shrunk and the boat was brought to the dock without any further incident.

  Kaera, Farrell, Aaron and Ginamarie were there when I got back. Turns out the boat was piloted by the three werewolf hit men who’d killed the two wolves and had also kidnapped me. Imagine that. The one problem was—and it was a big one—Charlie wasn’t on the boat.

  Brina was livid. She picked one of the wolves up by the throat. “Where is Charles?”

  “He’s gone. Delivered.”

  “Delivered to who?”

  “We don’t know. We were told to head to this particular longitude and latitude and that he would be taken from us. When we got there he disappeared. We were heading back when the wave picked us up.”

  “Who contacted you?” Brina asked.

  “A letter. Written in French. But it wasn’t modern French. We had to take it to a language expert. He said it was archaic, but he was able to translate it.”

  “What did it say?” I asked.

  “Bring the fae and demon prince to this longitude and latitude and I will pay you one hundred pounds of gold bullion.”

  “You believed the writer?”

  “Hey we had nothing to lose. It was a simple steal.” The one with the beard replied.

  “Yeah, he dropped like a rock as soon as the dart hit him.”

  “Where is the gold to be delivered?”

  “A warehouse in Huntington Beach.”

  “Show me this note.” They handed it to Brina. She took in the paper’s scent, read the fancy calligraphy and bowed her head. “I must call my king.” Brina knelt on the dock, whispering words in the fae language. I suddenly felt guilty that she and I had been fighting over such stupid stuff. Getting Charlie back was everything.

  “But where is he?” Jay asked, sounding a little desperate.

  “He’s been taken to Aine, the former queen. He is in Tir na NOg, the place of no returning.”

  “But he’s not dead, is he?”

  “Perhaps not. I do not know.” She was slumped on the dock, her face a mask of pain.

  “Fin returned and he’s not dead.” I pointed out.

  “That is why he is our only hope.”

  “What’s she like? Queen Aine?” I asked, holding onto Jay’s hand for support.

  “I am too young to have met her, but I have been told she is a jealous creature who holds grudges and seeks vengeance. Queen Aine murdered my father’s mother because Finvarra honored her with his attentions. Our king is unusually fertile and he sired seven children, one of them my father. Caelen and Fionna were the children of the queen; the younger five were birthed by four other females. Even though she encouraged Finvarra toward this end for the sake of our people, the queen killed these females in an envious rage. When she turned her jealous gaze on the children of those unions, our king took her to Tir Na NOg. He saved our lives and gave up his own. At least for a time.”

  The world shimmered and an instant later a tall male fae stood before us. Raven haired, his beautiful face looked worried and angry. He spoke to Brina first in Fae. Good thing I could understand what he said.

  “You lost him?”

  “I believe he is with Queen Aine, sire.”

  “Explain.”

  Brina did in crisp tones, not leaving out any facts. Talk about dropping the ball. She and Jay had been in another building. Charlie had been left in the apartment alone with Samson. None of that sounded too bad. I mean he had more magic than the rest of us and Samson was an amazing watchdog. It’s just that nobody thought about tranquilizer darts.

  Finvarra turned to Kaera and Farrell. “You were assisting the wolves?”

  “Yes, Lord.”

  “Yes, Lord.”

  “I gave Brina permission to assist Aaro
n on one occasion. Did I give either of you permission to assist the others?”

  “No. Lord.”

  “No, Lord.”

  “Aaron is not an ally.”

  “Kaera and I were at Jackie’s when Aaron asked for help. I thought since he was Garrett’s cousin…”

  “You are familiar with the laws I’ve imposed since the upheaval at court.”

  “Yes, Lord.”

  “Yes, Lord.”

  “You have disobeyed me and broken a law. Return to Faerie.”

  “But Charlie…” Farrell looked panicked.

  “Will you disobey me even in this? Go.”

  They bowed and left.

  Brina stood straight and silent, maybe expecting the worst. But the king spoke to everyone else on the dock. “Brina and I will go to Tir na NOg. We will do all we can to retrieve him, but it may not be possible.”

  “Does Queen Aine wish to kill him?” Brina asked.

  His response was icy. “She is no longer the queen. Do not refer to her as such.”

  “Yes, Lord.” Brina looked down at her feet. I’d never seen her look so ashamed. She’d seemed a proud female, strong. Now she looked like a puppy that had just peed on the rug. I felt sorry for her.

  Finvarra looked at Aaron and Ginamarie. “I apologize, but I must do what I can to rescue my grandson. Because of recent events in Faerie, you will no longer have access to my people and will need to find other modes of transportation.”

  Aaron smiled, not at all thrown by the snarky king’s remark. “I apologize if we overstepped a diplomatic boundary. There was an emergency in this area that involved the lives of a large group of people, and I took what was offered without asking about permissions or protocol. It was my mistake as much as your fae warriors’. Their help was invaluable and I thank you as I did them.”

  “Mr. Green, at a later date we may sit and discuss diplomacy and protocol but on this day I must do what none of the rest of you has been able to do.”

  “What is that?”

  “Ensure Charles’ safety.”

  He spoke to Brina in Fae, “Come, child, we will get him back together.”