by Alice Wade
He hung his head and sighed, “Listen. Let Cuilwen, First Maiden of the People talk. Let her explain so you can make up your own minds.”
She approached at the mention of her name and jumped gracefully to the table next to Dace. They made a striking pair, leaders in their own right. Holding each other’s eyes in a silent communion, she tried to send him reassurance. She then turned to face his people.
“Dace speaks rightly. The vampires can be stopped; we know how to fight them. My people have magic that will protect you, if you choose to fight at our side. We will bring them down and to justice if you but try.”
A woman spoke up in the back, “What if we don’t want to fight?”
“If you don’t, Kaen will win and you will be slaughtered.” Her answer was cold and honest. As the truth of her words sunk in, the hearts of many sunk low. Damned if they did and damned if they don’t. “Who is with us?” she called out, holding her arms high in invitation.
One by one, voices rose to yell out, “Me!”, “I am!” and “Yes!”
Dace felt such overwhelming pride for his band.
Lainey smiled at him through the chaos while she watched him, her face wet with tears. She knew what this sacrifice meant and accepted their fate. If they lived to see tomorrow, they would only be stronger because of this. They were family after all and would stand together.
Talon placed his hand on her shoulder following her line of sight to Dace. When his and Dace’s eyes met, Talon touched his forehead in honor and then his heart. He repeated in Cuilwen’s direction and the sentiment was the ultimate sign of respect.
Cuilwen’s eyes widened in acknowledgement of this royal salute. It was only ever given by those of the royal family in honor, and she was touched to be on the receiving end. It gave her the encouragement she needed.
Her emotions got the better of her while she recovered from Talon’s honorable display. Clearing her throat, she turned to those gathered and began giving orders, “Come, we must plan. First, my people and I must find Athradien. For now, Faelwen will discuss with you what we need you to do.” She indicated the elf in the back and all eyes turned to her. “I leave you in good hands.” Seeing the rooms focus no longer on her, she whispered to Dace. “Take Lainey upstairs and put her with Kailani.”
“Won’t she fight too?” That surprised Dace. He thought for sure Kailani would be right in the middle of it.
“If she is strong enough. I would be honored to fight at her side, but I’m not sure she is recovered yet.”
Talon had approached through the crowd and caught that last statement, “She will be strong enough. She is a vampire, Cuilwen. We heal quickly.”
“If you say so. I have no intelligence on the matter.” The First Maiden replied just before she jumped down. “Nethlhidornrien and I are going to search now, do you want to participate?”
At the mention of his name, Nethlhidornien approached and smiled at Talon in greeting.
“No, I’ll leave you to it. I want to check on Kailani anyway,” he smirked as he turned, “To ensure she is healthy enough to fight.”
Cuilwen cursed in her language, eliciting a loud laugh from Talon as he departed through the crowded room. “That man is an ass.”
“First Maiden, he is your prince.” Nethlhidornien said in elvish. “Even if banished, it is dishonorable to speak such words.”
She waved her hand in annoyance. “Please. It’s Talon. He knows what he is—an ass.”
Dace watched this interaction with amusement. Even if he couldn’t understand a word spoken, he could tell Cuilwen was being sarcastic, and Nethlhidornien wasn’t taking kindly to it. It was funny to see such a fierce looking elf brushed aside by this gorgeous blonde, but he held his tongue.
Cuilwen sobered slowly, giving Nethlhidornien a half-smile, “Come, let’s go find your leader. I’m sure he’s homesick by now.” She touched his shoulder kindly, and then left.
Nethlhidornien watched her go with a saddened look on his feline looking face. As Dace continued to watch, that sadness melted into a burning rage which pulled his mouth into a tight frown. It dawned on him just now sorry he felt for any vampire that this elven warrior encountered, for nothing would hold back the loathing he saw reflected in the man’s eyes.
After the warrior left in the same direction as Cuilwen, Dace decided he’d go find Lainey. She’d gone with Talon to check on Kailani, so his feet carried him straight to his old room and pushed the door partially open.
As the door widened to show the interior, he found Talon cuddled on the small couch with Kailani resting against his chest. He looked ridiculous crammed into the small space, but Dace saw the contentment radiating from him as he held his precious mate gently in his arms. Lainey paced nervously in the background and turned quickly when she smelled his scent, “Dace.” Her relief was evident.
“Hey Lainey.” His feet continued to move until he held her tightly in his arms with his lips pressed against her temple. He sighed, “You well?”
“Yes, I am now that you’re here,” she replied quietly from his chest because her face was still pressed against his firm muscles. “You will be careful, won’t you?”
“Of course.”
Lainey heard the sarcasm in his voice. Instead of arguing with him or calling him a liar, she just closed her eyes and pressed further into his embrace. Losing him after getting him back would be too painful of a lesson and she just didn’t want to learn it.
Dace was about to release her when he felt her suddenly go slack in his arms nearly falling to the ground. Her dead weight forced him to hold tight around her waist otherwise she would have dropped. When he looked down at her, she stared up at the ceiling as if in a trance and was completely limp in his arms.
“Lainey!” The panic in his call alerted Talon and Kailani that something was terribly wrong. Both were at his side quickly.
Kailani motioned with her hand, “Dace, carry her to the couch.” He did and gently laid her down, sitting on the floor near her head, stroking her hair back from her pixy face. She was unresponsive and her eyes were glazed over as if she were drugged.
“Talon, what is wrong with her?” Fear clutched at him and his mind was racing. He couldn’t lose her, not again.
He didn’t answer. He suspected what this was, but wasn’t sure. Talon caught Kailani at the window, moving in her direction to confirm his worst fear. His arrival didn’t interrupt, because she stared intently at the front of the building. When her eyes met her mate’s, they radiated a fear he had never seen before. “Kaen is here.”
Dace’s blood froze and he found he couldn’t breathe. “Kaen…here…shite.”
“You are not going to like this, but I think you should let her go to him.” Talon held up his hand to stall the argument, “I want to see what he is going to try and do. I promise you, I won’t let her cross those wards. Will you allow this? I want to see what power he still has over her.”
Dace shot up to his full height and challenged Talon. “Absolutely not! It is painfully obvious the power he has over her! No! She is not going down there.” Dace shook with fury at the suggestion and would not even contemplate the idea of letting her go. Not one step. He didn’t even recognize that Talon had deferred to him for permission. It went unnoticed because of the terror he felt rolling through his mind. He wasn’t about to send Lainey down there and have them falter. Kaen could get her and that was not a chance he was willing to take.
“Think about it. Kaen will think he has the upper hand. We know he doesn’t. Don’t forget, he doesn’t know the elves are here, so let’s give him a little false hope before we play our cards. Let her walk into the yard with me at her side. Trust me. I won’t let him get her.”
“Why is this so important? Why chance this?” His testosterone was driving him to hit something and Talon was the nearest target so he moved
away.
“Kaen believes he is my equal. He thinks he can outsmart me. I want him to think that. It’s a bluff. Let’s play with his mind a little.” Talon moved over to the couch and looked down at his ward, “I don’t want to lose her either.” When he looked up again, he met Dace’s cold eyes boring into his soul. “I love her too.”
Dace looked away in frustration, angry that Talon would put her into this position. Angry that he couldn’t protect her she needed it. He would have to place all his trust in Talon and it ate at him. “Would you do that same with Kailani?”
Talon didn’t even pause, “If it meant I could get the upper hand? Yes.” Dace saw Kailani nodding out of the corner of his eye. “But I would only do it if I knew she were safe. I would never put her willingly into harm’s way, and I won’t with Lainey either. Trust me.”
Growling, Dace stalked to the window and stood at Kailani’s side. Looking down he saw a line of vampires that were evenly spread out along the perimeter of the wards outside their protection. There was one large bald man in the middle. He saw the tattoo and knew immediately who this was. Kaen.
Kailani snaked her arm through his, giving him a hug. “Trust him, Dace. He won’t let Kaen hurt her. “She’s our family now and we fight for what belongs to us. Kaen will not win.”
“I can’t lose her, Kailani. ” The fear gripped him and there was a pressure in his chest at the mere mention of the possible outcome.
“You won’t,” the tiny woman replied.
Dace closed his eyes to block out the invading vampires trying frantically to work through a decision. If he did this, he gambled with her life and if he lost, he’d never forgive himself. If he won, then they could have the upper hand in the upcoming fight. They could be free of his threat. That won him over. The hope that one day, they would no longer need to hide. “Do it.”
Talon touched his forehead and bowed, “Thank you for you trust. We won’t let you down.”
* * * *
Kaen faced the inn, sensing the strength of the wards. Something didn’t feel quite right in their magic, but he didn’t have time to think about it. Igor was at his side, squirming. When Kaen learned that Igor had not scurried off immediately to do as he’d asked, he was furious. He’d discovered not long after Ondre was disposed of that Igor had defied him. With wry look at the nervous vampire, he decided now was the time to punish him for his disobedience.
Kaen looked back to the inn they said very calmly, “Show me how loyal you are Igor. Cross the wards.”
Igor shuddered, “Something feels different.”
Kaen shrugged his shoulders. “Do you think I care? Go.”
Igor looked up and down the line of vampires in a show of support, before scanning the wards one last weary time. When he saw the anger burning in his leader’s eyes, he gulped and knew he had no choice. In his hand he gripped the second disc and gave it one last squeeze before he took his first step over the wards into the yard.
He made it about ten steps before he halted as the power of the wards sizzled around him. It started as a buzzing sound before the magic washed over his entire body, sealing him in a cocoon of electricity. He froze because the sensation became painful and the sound of the sizzling increased in intensity.
He looked back at Kaen with a panicked expression just as the magic exploded. A searing fire consumed him, and his body exploded into a large fireball. The blast of power tore into his body, charring the flesh right off his bones as if he were made of paper. Igor didn’t even have time to scream, because he was dead in a matter of seconds, his body becoming a large pile of ashes. A few of his remains drifted upward on a breeze, adding to the eeriness of the situation. When Igor’s hand incinerated, the disc dropped to the dirt sending more ash skyward in a puff.
Kaen frowned. “It is confirmed. The wards have been changed,” he announced loudly. After watching the last of the ash drift away, he looked to the windows searching for his sired woman and felt her on the second floor a few windows in. His heart suddenly sped up as his mind found her, Lainey. Kaen sent out a call to her soul and felt instant contact. He pulled on that connection and sucked her into his mind, lulling her into submission without a fight. He still had control, which was good. When she fully submitted, it was like cold water on a hot day, and he sighed in utter contentment and relief—she would come to him, and he wouldn’t have to cross the wards.
Hopefully Talon wasn’t inside. He searched wide for Talon’s signature that he knew so well, but found no sign. Oh, he knew that meant nothing because he knew that Talon probably concealed himself. He tugged on his connection to urge her along faster. If Talon were inside, he needed to get her across the wards before the elf was alerted. If he did, he stood a better chance of retaining her for the tiny vampire would be out matched against the force of his coven.
“Now what?” Faelwen asked from his side, eyeing the pile of ash in dirt. Watching that spectacle unnerved him and he was still bothered.
Kaen hissed in annoyance. He didn’t want to be involved at this point, yet here he was. He really had no plan beyond sending Igor to his death after hearing of Igor’s incompetence. He just knew he was obsessed to get Lainey back and now was his chance.
“I’ll lure her out and get her to cross the wards.” He looked sideways at his friend. “Grab her immediately. If there is trouble, bring in our guest and see what he can do.”
Faelwen dipped his head. “Aye.”
Kaen watched him depart in his peripheral vision. Faelwen could always be trusted—always. Which was why he allowed him the leeway with Deandra since it was really his only way to reward the bastard for his service after all these years. A sudden movement in the windows caught his eye when Kailani and Dace stood in the window looking down.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” Kaen tilted his head to the side, watching the window closely. His eyes finally focused through the glass, and Dace Veridan stood staring down at the line of vampires. Kaen rumbled a deep laugh when he realized the man’s nervousness, giving Kaen a feeling of joy. He’d steal his sired woman back from this weak human, and there wasn’t anything Dace could do about it.
“Come to me, Lainey. Come, love. I’m waiting.” Kaen called through her mind. He felt the acceptance of those words and smiled. She was his, no doubt about it. “Come to me, love. Hurry.”
Kaen waited, standing absolutely still. He felt her moving through the building and anticipated she’d exit through the front. He watched the door with hungry eyes. He’d not seen her in days and was finding his craving for her all consuming.
“Come, baby. Come to me Lainey.”
She was on the ground floor now and he held his breath. He felt a drop of sweat snake down his neck in anticipation, causing him to exercise every ounce of control not to fidget. Lainey was so close to his grasp. A lethal calm exuded from every pore. Kaen exhaled, watching for when the door opened because he felt her approaching with a determined pace. In just a few more moments Kaen would get everything he’d desired. Everything; and that churned his insides raw.
When the door opened, Kaen narrowed his eyes. Lainey stopped on the threshold and looked blankly out. Her stare unerringly found him and she half-smiled in her trance.
Kaen’s heart swelled, and he pulled hard. “Lainey, I see you there. Don’t wait; come now. Love, run. Come to me and I’ll protect you. Come.” He held out his hand and applied more coercion to move. She didn’t.
“Lainey, now!” He lost patience until he saw that a hand gripped her arm, preventing her from taking that step that he so wanted her to take. That shattered his control and a feline hiss sounded loudly from his mouth as he exploded in anger. “Let her go!” he shouted. “Let her go!”
Kaen now prowled along the line of wards in absolute frustration. He saw her, sense her and smell her. She was his and he wanted her back. Lainey’s brilliant green ey
es followed him up and down the line, her perfect pixy face watching in utter devotion. She was lost to his coercions and felt the pull strongly as he tugged and tugged on her soul. She remained immobile, though.
“Fight them!” Kaen screamed, reinforcing the order through her mind, “Fight! Fight them and come to me!”
Lainey looked behind her in confusion and down at her arm being held tight. She knew that the person behind her was preventing her from completing what her master ordered but felt an equally strong connection to her restrainer as well. She couldn’t bring either man harm and this caused her a moment of utter conflict.
“What is happening to me?” Her question was a tortured whisper when she returned her watchful gaze to Kaen as he paced like a caged animal.
“We love you Lainey. He does not. You are being controlled but you can fight him. You can beat this,” Talon said quietly and squeezed her arm. “He is trying to take control of your mind, so you need to fight back. Resist.”
Tears that fell from her eyes in long streaks down her face. “I don’t know if I can.”
“Yes, you can. Remind yourself of Dace. Remind yourself of the love he has to offer. He needs you Lainey. Kailani and I do too. You can’t give into this. Fight him. Resist.” His words were filled with such passion that she turned to look at him again and was met with his intense blue eyes. He normally looked frightening when he was this severe, but all she saw was his love, his compassion. She melted further under his stare and sobbed out her frustration when Kaen pulled again and she was compelled come to him.
Another heart wrenching sob ripped from her lips as she looked to her guardian, “Talon, I don’t know if I can. He’s so strong. I…I’m scared I’ll fail.”
“I’m right here, you have nothing fear. He won’t reclaim you. You are part of my coven now and I protect what is mine.”
The conviction in his voice broke through Kaen’s coercions and Lainey felt a moment of hope. She didn’t get to experience the feeling for long because Cuilwen approached in a state of calm rage. When Cuilwen spoke, Lainey felt her hope dashed. Kaen would win.