AGThanksgiving_JCSmith

by Jessica Coulter Smith

  “That would be wonderful.”

  The waitress came over and dropped off the check, which Marin paid before Autumn could swipe it from her. She’d asked Autumn out to lunch so she was paying. Stubborn woman didn’t take well to people paying for things for her though.

  “Just let me use the restroom and I’ll be ready to go,” Autumn said, excusing herself from the table.

  Marin sipped on her sweet tea while she waited but, when ten minutes had passed and Autumn hadn’t returned, she began to worry. Gathering her purse, she slipped out of the booth and went to the restroom to check on her. The first thing she noticed when she pushed open the door was the open window. The second was the purse lying on the floor just underneath it. Autumn’s purse. A blade stuck out of it, as if Autumn had tried to draw it unsuccessfully.

  Marin’s hands shook as she pulled out her phone and dialed Gabriel’s number. She wasn’t sure what the news would do to him and only hoped they could find Autumn in time.

  “Gabriel,” she said as the alpha answered. “We have a problem.”

  “What is it?”

  “It’s Autumn. I think they’ve taken her.”

  She heard the sound of a chair hitting the wood floor of Gabriel’s kitchen and then pounding footsteps and a door slam.

  “Gabriel?”

  “Where are you? I’m on my way.”

  “I’m at the diner around the corner. In the women’s restroom. They took her out the window. Why would they do that? Couldn’t they just create a portal and take her to their realm?”

  “I don’t know. I’m calling Eric to see if he can meet me there. How long?”

  “Maybe ten minutes.”

  Gabriel cursed. She heard the sound of a motorcycle revving to life and then the line went dead.

  ***

  Autumn cursed the outcast fae from her position on the ground, but her words were muffled by the gag he’d stuffed into her mouth. She’d expected them to look a little more threatening, not so damn beautiful that her eyes nearly hurt. His ebony hair hung long and straight down his back to his waist, his eyes such a bright green they put emeralds to shame. Eyes that were ice cold as they perused her from head to toe.

  He hunkered down in front of her, pulling the gag free. “Scream all you want. No one will hear you. I’ve spelled the area.”

  She cast a glance around. “A cemetery? Really?”

  He gave her a chilly grin. “Not just any cemetery. Look behind you.”

  She craned her neck and looked at the headstone behind her. Kiera Andrews. Autumn sucked in a breath. She was sitting on her cousin’s grave?

  “Fitting, isn’t it?” the fae said. “The wolf’s two mates can rest alongside one another. You’ll bleed out over her grave before he’ll ever realize where I’ve taken you.”

  “Why? I don’t want the throne!”

  “Maybe not, but your children will.” The fae tipped his head to the side. “Of course, I could always guarantee there won’t be any children.”

  Fear crept along her skin, its spindly fingers crawling down her spine. She didn’t like the way he said that. The fae reached out and caressed her cheek; he felt cold and clammy, like the dead, sending a shiver of revulsion through her.

  “You’re rather pretty for a Halfling.” He cocked his head to the side. “Being mated to you might not be such a hardship. I’d thought to capture you and kill you, perhaps mate you then kill you, but maybe…”

  She stared at him in horror. No way was she mating him! She’d rather die. And something told her that she might. If Gabriel couldn’t find her in time, her time was very limited. Maybe if she kept him talking? It was worth a shot.

  “Couldn’t you just battle for the throne?” Autumn asked. “Why do you have to kill my entire family?”

  “And spend the rest of my life waiting for one of you to strike out at me?” He snorted. “How stupid do you think I am?”

  Did he really want her to answer that? Because kidnapping her wasn’t his brightest moment. Gabriel would come looking for her. She didn’t know if he would find her in time, but she could hope. Maybe she’d be really lucky and he’d think to call the sorcerer for help. If anyone could locate her, it would be Eric.

  “What makes you think I would willingly mate with you? I have a mate.”

  He gave her a chilly grin. “One so enamored of you that he hasn’t officially claimed you? Until he goes through with the mating ceremony, you’re free to be with anyone. And fae laws don’t say anything about you being a willing participant. While you would technically inherit the throne if you were mated, I would be ruling by your side. And if you think I’d let you rule the fae, you are sadly mistaken. It would be my laws they followed.”

  “You can’t force me to be with you.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Then why are we still sitting here? Shouldn’t we have already gone to the land of the fae so you could implement your devious plan?”

  “We will, but I want to see the look on your wolf’s face when he realizes he’s lost you forever. Once I claim you as my bride, there’s no going back.”

  “My powers will never activate if I’m with you.”

  He waved a hand. “A minor thing. Besides, you could come to love me in time. We’ll have hundreds of years together, after all.”

  Hundreds of years by his side? Having to welcome him into her bed? She fought the urge to gag. No way in hell would she let that happen! She’d gladly die before sleeping with this monster. Just the thought of it made her sick to her stomach. She’d been forced to accept Perry, but she wouldn’t go through another forced mating. Why hadn’t she given in to Gabriel? At least then she’d have known the kind touch of a man. If she lived through this, she swore to give in to him, go through with the ceremony if that’s what he wished. Anything.

  The fae tilted his head again, as if listening for something. A terrifying smile spread across his face and her heart accelerated. Whatever he was planning couldn’t be good. The fae drew a sword bathed in a blue light and she feared what was to come. Was this it? The end for her? Autumn took a breath to steady her nerves, bracing herself for whatever happened next.

  Chapter Seven

  Gabriel growled as he paced his living room. Marin had followed him back to the Victorian so they could call on Eric. Having the sorcerer pop up in the middle of the sidewalk wouldn’t have been the best decision, even if Gabriel was anxious to have his mate returned. Just knowing the outcasts had Autumn made him want to tear something apart. One of the spelled blades was tucked under his belt and he held another in his hand.

  Marin placed a hand on his arm, drawing him to a halt.

  “I called in reinforcements,” she said.

  “What reinforcements?” Gabriel asked.

  “Your brothers and cousins. Connor mentioned calling in Ramsey and Hunter. Do you have enough blades to go around?”

  “I have about fifteen of them, but I’m using two.”

  Marin nodded. “Chloe, Aislinn, and Kendall are coming over with Mason and Alisdair. Cole is dropping our daughter off at Cassie’s. He didn’t want to take a chance on the outcasts coming to the house.”

  “I’ll leave two blades here with you,” Gabriel said. “I don’t want y’all to be defenseless in case something happens.”

  “I’ve got them,” Eric said, opening his eyes. “They’re at the cemetery.”

  “Can you pop us over there?” Gabriel asked.

  Eric arched a brow. “We’re waiting on your reinforcements. I know you want to rush to her side, but you won’t do her any good if you’re dead. The good news is that it’s just one outcast who has her. The bad news is that it’s their leader.”

  Dread filled Gabriel’s heart. “Has he…has he harmed Autumn?”

  Eric shook his head. “From what I could see, he has her bound but she’s fine otherwise. I think he’s cocky enough that he won’t use her as a shield when we attack, but maybe you should ask
Ramsey and Hunter to extract her while your brothers, cousins, and you attack the fae. I can’t promise he won’t call for his own reinforcements but, maybe by taking him by surprise, he won’t have a chance. Or, he may be so full of himself that he’ll think he can take you. He doesn’t know the blades we have are spelled, making his powers useless against us.”

  The doorbell rang and Marin hurried to answer it. Gabriel watched as his grim-faced brothers and cousins filed into the room, with Ramsey, Hunter and Deacon on their heels.

  “Thank you for coming,” Gabriel said. “The blades you’ll need are in the crate in the front entry. Just make sure at least two are left behind for the women. I don’t want to take any chances.”

  Cole nodded and the men went to gather the weapons.

  The front door opened again and Kendall, Aislinn, and Chloe came in, two kids in tow. Marin led them into the kitchen, stopping by the crate on the way and pulling out two daggers. Gabriel was happy to see they would be armed, and hoped like hell they didn’t need to be. If the outcast had Autumn, Gabriel hoped the fae would leave the rest of the pack alone. He had what he wanted, after all.

  Eric placed his hand on Gabriel’s shoulder. “If everyone will grab a shoulder or hand or something, I can transport all of us to the cemetery at the same time. I feel that time is of the essence. I couldn’t hear what the fae was saying to Autumn, but she looked both disgusted and terrified at the same time, so whatever it was, it wasn’t good.”

  Gabriel took a deep breath to calm himself. It wouldn’t do to go in half-cocked. He paused and looked at Eric.

  “Would a wolf be able to take down the fae?” he asked.

  Both of Eric’s eyebrows rose. “Yes, I believe so. Do you wish to go in as a wolf?”

  “Gabriel should stay in human form,” Deacon said. “I volunteer to go as a wolf.”

  “Makes two of us,” Colin said. “He may not be expecting an attack on four legs. Maybe we can confuse him with the four of you coming straight at him and Deacon and me sneaking in from behind. That will free up Hunter and Ramsey to snatch Autumn.”

  Gabriel looked at Ramsey and Hunter. “When you get her, you run like hell. Get out of the cemetery. Do you have a cell phone with you? You may need to call for a ride.”

  Ramsey pulled his phone from his belt. “Let me call now.”

  Gabriel waited patiently as Ramsey spoke to Lucas about a pick-up at the cemetery in five minutes. It would probably take the wolf a little longer than that to arrive there, unless he was nearby already, but at least the plan was in motion. He felt better knowing that Autumn would be removed from the fae’s clutches.

  Gabriel nodded to Eric once Ramsey had rejoined their circle. “We’re ready.”

  They shimmered out of existence and materialized just inside the gate of the cemetery. Gabriel knew they were taking a chance on being discovered but, in that moment, he didn’t care. All he could think about was getting to Autumn. Deacon and Colin stepped into a grove of trees and stripped before shifting. The two wolves bounded out of the wooded area and ran toward the back of the cemetery.

  “You won’t be able to see me,” Eric said, “but I’ll be here. I have to leave the fight up to the six of you, but if it looks like you’re losing, I’ll step in. I may get my ass handed to me for it, but I’m not about to let Autumn be taken from you, Gabriel.”

  “Thank you, Eric. For everything,” Gabriel said.

  The sorcerer nodded his head before vanishing from sight. Connor, Cole, Michael, and Gabriel made their way through the cemetery. There was a disturbance in the air a ways ahead. With a heavy heart, Gabriel realized where they were going. The damn fae had Autumn at Kiera’s grave. No way would he bury her next to his deceased wife. One way or another, Autumn was going to make it out of this alive. The jury was still out on whether or not Gabriel would still be breathing at the end of the fight, but he would willingly give his life to save his mate.

  The air around Kiera’s headstone shimmered. Gabriel could see the fae standing near Autumn, but he couldn’t hear what was being said. As he stepped through the veil, everything came into sharp focus and his ears were filled with the fae’s chanting and Autumn’s cussing. It seemed his mate didn’t want to go down without a fight, even if she was bound hand and foot. He cast her a glance, one he hoped was reassuring, before facing the fae again. He’d drawn a sword lit with a blue light. Gabriel assumed it was spelled with fae magick and fisted both daggers in his hands.

  The fae glanced at the blades and smirked. “Do you honestly think those will do you any good against me? Not only do you have to get close enough to use them,” he said, slashing his sword through the air, “but you’d have to break through my magick.”

  “I think we can take you,” Gabriel said as his brothers and Connor flanked him.

  If anything, the fae smiled wider. Gabriel wasn’t sure he liked that smile. Either the fae was completely crazy, or he knew something they didn’t. Were more fae on their way? Were they about to be outnumbered?

  The fae lunged, his blade swinging. Gabriel and his brothers and cousin went into action, blocking the arc of the blade and slashing with their daggers. When their blades sliced through the fae’s clothing and drew blood, he looked astonished.

  “That can’t be,” he said. “No weapon forged by man can touch a fae.”

  Connor grinned. “Spelled blades, asshole. You’re going down.”

  Gabriel engaged the fae again with his brothers and Connor circling and attacking. It didn’t take long before they had disarmed the fae, who was starting to look decidedly nervous. A quick glance showed the two wolves waiting at the edge of the spelled area, as well as Ramsey and Hunter removing Autumn from the area. Ramsey lifted her into his arms and took off at a run.

  Gabriel attacked the fae again, wanting to keep his attention focused on them and not Autumn. It worked and the fae began launching spells at them. Michael found out the hard way that the spells hurt if they successfully found their target. Armed with the new knowledge, they began blocking the spells with their blades and dodging the larger blasts.

  Deacon and Colin attacked, launching themselves at the fae and knocking him to the ground. Michael wrenched the fae’s hands behind his back and held tight while Gabriel lifted his head.

  “What do you think now, asshole?” Gabriel asked. “You aren’t half as cocky as you were before, are you?”

  “You can’t kill me,” the fae boasted.

  “Watch me.” Gabriel’s eyes narrowed and he dragged the blade across the fae’s throat, spilling his blood.

  Eric materialized. “You have to remove his head; otherwise he’ll heal and come after you again.”

  Gabriel focused on his prey again and did as Eric said, removing the fae’s head. As he held the severed head, he looked at Eric, not sure what to do with it. Eric held out his hand and Gabriel was only too happy to hand it over. He watched as Eric engulfed the head in a bright light and then it blinked out of existence.

  “Where did it go?” Michael asked.

  “I returned it to the land of the fae, as a warning to the outcasts. If you took out their leader, their most powerful warrior, then they have no hope of defeating you and claiming the throne.”

  “And the body?” Cole asked.

  “An unmarked grave in an old cemetery. If I bury him on holy ground, he won’t be coming back anytime soon.” Eric smiled. “Not that I’ve ever heard of a fae coming back after having their head removed, but we can’t be too careful this time. I’d hate for them to come after Autumn again.”

  “Can you return us to the Victorian?” Gabriel asked, wiping his bloody hands on his jeans.

  “Just as soon as Colin and Deacon change back and put some clothes on.”

  Gabriel glanced at the two and they took off. By the time Gabriel, Eric and the others arrived at the front gate, Colin and Deacon were dressed and waiting for them. Grabbing Eric’s shoulder, as well as his brother, Cole’s, Gabriel braced himself for the trip home
.

  When they materialized in the living room of the Victorian, Autumn was sitting on the sofa with a cup of what smelled like herbal tea. She rose and launched herself into Gabriel’s arms, but he was hesitant to hold her.

  “I’m all bloody,” he said.

  She burrowed her face against his chest. “I don’t care.”

  Gabriel wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. “You’ll never have a problem from the fae again.”

  She lifted her head. “But what about Grandfather?”

  “We’ll have Eric investigate for you. Last I heard, he was still alive. Maybe the outcasts can be convinced to release him now that their leader is dead. With no one to put on the throne, I’m sure they’ll be happy to free him.”

  Autumn didn’t look convinced and Gabriel hoped he was speaking the truth. Honestly, he had no idea how the outcast fae were going to react. For all he knew, another leader would rise up and come after them. And just because her grandfather had been alive when he spoke with Kiera, didn’t mean the old man hadn’t been killed since then. If that was the case, Gabriel had no idea who would rule the fae. Autumn was the last heir. Would she be taken from him and sent to another realm?

  “I should go shower,” Gabriel said, releasing her.

  “We all should,” Connor said, pulling his bloodstained tee away from his body. “We’ll gather the women and let the two of you have some alone time.”

  “I appreciate it.” Gabriel smiled.

  Cole slapped him on the back. “Thanksgiving. Our house. Two days.”

  Gabriel nodded. “We’ll be there.”

  After everyone had left, Gabriel nodded to the stairs. “I’m going to get cleaned up. To celebrate your freedom from the fae outcasts, I thought we might go out for steaks tonight. Or Italian, if you’d prefer. There’s a great place over on Fifth Street.”

  “Pasta sounds good,” Autumn said.

  He nodded. “I’ll be back down in a few minutes.”

  Autumn looked down at her rumpled clothes. “I should probably freshen up too.”

  They headed upstairs and Autumn stopped in her bedroom. As she laid out her clothes, she wondered what the hell she was doing. Her mate was upstairs, all sexy and wet, and she was in here contemplating clothes. What better way to move their relationship forward than to join him? She doubted he would throw her out if she showed up in his bathroom naked.