He reached his arms around me, and pulled me close, before he sifted us together, effortlessly, just like he did everything else. I still couldn’t believe I'd sifted to him. I moved away from him the moment we popped into the medical ward, and gasped. There were around thirty or more Fae in the room, and every one of them looked close to death.
“Oh…my God.” I uttered, alarmed and shocked by the sight that met my eyes. As fast as I could blink, most of Ryder’s men, healers, and several Fae I didn’t recognize, were sifting in to try and help.
“We're going to need God, Danu, and Hecate to fix this,” Ristan growled shaking his head as the woman he was helping quaked and cried out. “Ryder, they are dying. Eliran can't figure out what the hell is killing them.”
I kneeled down, even though I wanted to run from the stench of death in the room. I scanned the woman's skin and then focused on seeing past the normal human sight while tapping into my second sight. She was a sickly white color. “Where did you find her?”
“They were found dropped off in a field, like fucking trash. Asrian felt their pain and called me to him,” Ristan answered. “As best as I can tell, all the victims are from the compound that was attacked a few days ago. They used a mortar-like weapon full of powdered iron, so it became like an aerosol, and the Fae breathed it in. It made a lot of them sick, and quite a few were reported missing from the compound afterwards. Our healers cured the ones we found left behind, but these ones might be the missing Fae. It looks like they were caught and held for further torment by their attackers.”
“Here,” I said finding a discoloration on her skin. “Looks like silver was added maybe?”
“Silver my ass. That’s full iron. Someone is injecting fucking iron into Fae creatures,” Ryder said from beside me. I turned and met his gaze. “Someone is trying to figure out a natural way to kill us.”
“That's what Mister Fancy Pants was saying back at my house.”
“Who the fuck…the Shifter? His name is Gabe,” Ryder finished, standing up and running his hand through his hair in frustration.
“Ryder, I can't fix them. Maybe if we had reached them sooner, but now it has taken over too much of their blood stream and is attacking their internal organs,” Eliran said, coming in looking shocked and frustrated.
“That isn't what I need to hear right now.” Ryder growled running his hands through his hair in frustration once again.
“Flush it out,” I offered.
“Our bodies are not the same as humans,” Eliran explained.
“So, you can't flush it?”
“No, Syn, they can't just flush it, because our blood absorbs anything introduced to it. For most things, it is not a problem, as our metabolism can process it and move it along like waste. But iron will fuse to our cells and spread like a poison, understand?” Ryder snapped harshly, his face a mix of annoyance and helpless frustration as he watched them suffer.
I closed my eyes and nodded. I understood it. They were all dying and we couldn’t save them. I was so fucking tired of feeling useless. I groaned in frustration, anger, and not a small amount of despair. I felt my magic roar to life, pulsing inside, boiling in my veins. Anger that mixed with magic was one of the worst combinations when you only had dark magic at hand. I tried pushing it down, but it refused to go.
“Ryder…” Ristan warned.
I could hear the blood pulsing inside of me, but, worse. I could feel the blood of every victim in the room. I closed my eyes and pulled it to me. I could smell the iron, thick and putrid. The power was consuming, dangerous, and the smell of their tainted blood was overwhelming. I wanted it gone.
I felt as if I'd left my body, and maybe I had. I felt as I had when I'd lost it the first time and been unable to control it, until Adam had balanced it. Only this time, I had control. I pulled at the tainted cells, wanting them gone.
I just needed them to live. I was tired of watching people die, finding dead bodies and feeling useless when I couldn’t help them—always too late to save them. I opened my eyes and cried out as something poured through me, as if tiny molecules were tearing through me, but promptly propelled into the air where they vanished.
“Holy shit,” Ryder said barely above a whisper.
It was as if I was able to pinpoint the cells within each victim, and pull the iron to myself, and disposed of it through my body like a filter. I could hear them crying and whimpering. I sought those who were screaming and the closest to death, and tore the iron from them disposing of it effortlessly as if I was doing it methodically with my mind alone. When I'd cleaned the last Fae inside the room, I turned to find the three men staring at me with a mix of shock and confusion.
“Did she just clean their blood?” Ristan asked.
“No fucking clue,” Ryder whispered, never taking his eyes from me.
“Look at the patients. Either she just killed them all, or she cured them,” Eliran said softly, and stepped closer to Ryder as the world spun around me and became very dark.
Chapter Seven
“Syn, it's okay. Look at me.” Adam's voice penetrated the haze from which my mind had retreated to. I could see and hear, but everything was out of focus. The buzzing still humming inside my head was overwhelming, and the tanginess of blood filled my mouth, but it wasn’t mine.
I met his turbulent green eyes, and winced at what I found. He'd changed. His brands pulsed thick black Celtic designs up his arms, and his eyes were changing to the double colored irises most Fae had. His hair was longer as well. “Adam,” I whispered, afraid he would disappear if I spoke too loudly. I looked around to those still watching us inside the medical ward.
“I got you. I got you, Syn,” he replied, licking his lips and pulling me against his naked chest. He was warm and smelled of wild magic. He whispered against my ear as he naturalized the magic I'd used. I wasn’t even sure what I had done.
“The people?” I asked, wondering when I started considering the Fae as people.
“They are alive,” Ryder said from behind us. “How did you do that, Syn?”
“Do what?” I swallowed and hugged Adam tighter against me. He'd be lucky if I let him go anytime soon.
“Whatever the fuck you did, Syn, you cured them.”
I swallowed past the metallic tanginess on my tongue and shook my head. I hadn't done anything besides get angry. Had I?
“You cleaned their blood, Syn. I felt you doing it,” Adam replied. I pulled away and looked at him, really looked at him. His brands were pulsing, and they weren't just on his arms…they were crawling up his neck to a few inches below his face, which had matured since I'd seen him last. He looked one hundred percent Fae now.
“Do I look that bad?” he asked coldly.
“No. No, Adam, you don't look bad. You just look different,” I lied.
“Liar. I can feel your response. I can feel you, Syn. Don't fucking lie to me.”
“I'm sorry, Adam. It’s not bad. I'm just not used to you like this yet.” I saw Dristan sift in and approach Ryder carefully.
“He got away, sorry,” Dristan explained in a low voice, nodding toward Adam.
“How did he escape?” Ryder asked carefully, quietly, his eyes on me. “He should have been mindless with the effects of Transition still.”
“He is very lucid. Claire told me that he has been extremely agitated a couple times since he entered Transition, but this time, he managed to sift. He’s way past the time when most panic, so they didn’t think he would need the collar anymore. I’ve never seen a Transitioning male sift from his feeding. Adam though was mid-feed and just disappeared.”
“I can feel you, Synthia, inside of me. I need you to turn it off, just for a little while. I need to get you out of my head while I finish Transitioning,” he sighed hesitantly, and I didn't blame him.
“I wish I knew how, Adam,” I whispered and pulled away from him.
“I need you to figure it out, Syn. It’s driving me insane. I want things I shouldn’t, and I know yo
u wouldn’t want most of the things that are slipping into my mind right now,” Adam whispered and shook his head. His eyes pained as he turned on his heel and walked away from me. I watched his firm well-defined back as he walked away. The brands on his back had created a Celtic cross covering the middle, etched into his skin with beautiful details. My best friend had Transitioned, and while I’d been oblivious, he’d become full Fae.
“He's adjusting, Synthia,” Zahruk said softly from beside me.
“He’s going to make it through this. He’s strong,” I replied, and turned to look straight at Ryder. “So a group is after the Fae and likes to torture and kill. Any idea on who could be responsible?” I asked, trying to put my mind back to the matter at hand, and off of my best friend who was, even now, walking away from me.
“No, but whoever they are, they won’t live long. Attacks like this have been happening here and there, all week long and seem to be increasing in the level of violence used. These lunatics are growing bolder. Those that you healed are resting now. When they wake up, we will question them,” he replied, and nodded to Eliran who stepped up next to me.
“You cleaned their blood. Any idea how you did it? I'd like to be prepared if anymore come in showing the same symptoms.”
“No idea how I did it, sorry.”
He nodded his head and turned to Ryder. “Vlad might have more knowledge on this. If she cured the blood, it's possible she could be Blood Fae.”
“Blood Fae?” I asked, trying to recall everything I knew about them—it wasn’t much though. The Blood King was reported to be very reclusive. The reports I had read back at the Guild said that he and his people were pretty much isolationists that kept themselves away from the rest of the High Fae castes, and were rarely spotted in this world.
“Interesting idea, Ristan. Call Vlad and tell him to get his ass down here. Eliran, call me if any of the victims wake up and recall anything. Syn, you need to get some sleep.”
“I can rest at home.”
“You can rest here,” Ryder argued.
“No, I am not staying here. I can rest just as well at home,” I growled, feeling my body sway.
“Your two days are almost up. Need me to spell it out for you?” Ryder whispered as his hands rested on my shoulders, sending shivers to my toes.
“Fine, but I'm not sleeping in your bedroom.” Ryder's lips lifted into his cocky smile, and I wanted to wipe it off—with my lips. I shook my head. “I need sleep, remember?”
“I need to feed,” he challenged.
“I don't have to sleep in your bed for that. It’s a business arrangement. Not an invitation to use me whenever you want to.”
He smiled wider as he nodded to the others in the room and grabbed my hand, sifting us back to his room.
“I said I wasn’t sleeping in your room!”
“Who said anything about sleeping? You are going to feed me. Now, take off your clothes and get your ass in my bed.”
“Ryder,” I whispered, not sure how to respond to him since my body already was. Heat pooled between my legs as my hips spread with readiness for him already.
“Take off your shorts, now,” he challenged and stepped closer to me.
I exhaled and glared at him. “Fine, do it, feed from me. Just call me your fucking buffet.” I bent down and pulled off my shorts and panties and then ripped off the borrowed shirt. I turned and walked back to the bed, feeling faint and tired with everything that had gone down today. I lay on my back and spread my legs, eyeing him.
I watched him remove his shirt and slowly unbutton each silver button of his jeans until his cock jutted out, hard and beautifully proud. He moved closer to the bed, slowly, each step making my mind wild with what I wanted from him. The fact that I shouldn’t be doing this pressed against my mind. “Scoot up and get on your side.”
I did as he said and moaned as his flesh pressed against my own, his massive erection pushed against my ass as he wrapped his arm around me. His mouth kissed up the side of my waist until he reached my cheek. “Thank you for saving my people today, Syn,” he whispered and lay back down beside me. He pulled the covers over us and brought my body closer to his.
“I'm not even sure how I did it,” I whispered, and pressed myself against him. I turned and looked up at him. “Ryder—”
“Syn, I'm barely managing to keep myself still. Turn over and go to sleep, before I forget you’re tired and feed from that sweet, tight pussy.”
I smiled and turned back to face away from him. This wasn't what I had expected, not from Ryder. This was calming, and even with his skin pressed against mine, I could still feel myself drifting to sleep against his warmth and protection.
“Sleep is good,” I whispered through an overly dry mouth that wanted to taste his skin. I closed my eyes and settled against him until his arm came around me to rest over my chest, his fingers inches away from my already erect nipples. We were full of sexual tension. Being naked together wasn't going to end in sleeping.
“This isn't working,” He growled against my ear, and I felt an electrical sizzle as fabric spread over my naked skin. He'd used his magic to dress us both. I looked down with a small gasp to see the baby blue silk nightgown he'd conjured.
“If you complain because I used my magic to stop something you didn't want from happening, I'll have you undressed, and my cock buried balls-deep inside your warmth, so fast it will make your head spin, Synthia.”
I hid the smile that threatened to take a hold of my face and replied. “I wasn’t even thinking it.”
He laughed huskily. “Liar. Go to sleep, Syn. The only thing protecting you right now is the fact that you are exhausted, and I can feel it through the brand. Make no mistake—if you weren't tired right now, we'd be fucking. Hard.”
I swallowed and closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep. Eventually, it worked because I felt my body growing slack, even as Ryder's hand caressed my palm. For some reason when he touched my palm, I felt it to the very center of my being. It calmed and relaxed me until I drifted off to sleep, wrapped in the safety of his arms.
When I awoke, I was alone in the bed. It took a few minutes to remember where I was, and when it came back to me, I was up and out of the bed as if it was on fire. Husky laughter made me turn back around.
“Running from my bed won't save you, Syn. I put clothes in the bathroom that Ristan retrieved from the house. Get dressed, we have a meeting to attend.”
I rubbed my eyes and tried to focus. “Meeting?”
“We are meeting with the Guild about what happened last night. All week long we have been dealing with crime scenes where High Fae have been tortured to death. You remember what iron poisoning feels like—those Fae died in the most horrific way an immortal can die,” he amended angrily, slipping from the shadows where he'd been leaning against the wall, watching me sleep. “Everyone is convening to share information. You wanted to know what is going on, Syn. Here is your chance.”
“Mages?” I asked, but it came out silently, barely above a whisper. I flinched as he moved closer. It was reflex from years of hating the Fae.
“Could be, or a group of human zealots. There are a lot of possibilities—none of them are good.” He walked slowly to where I stood and pulled me against him. “You need to get over this fear you have, Syn. Transition is going to happen whether you want it to or not. I won't share you,” he growled, lowering his face inches away from mine.
“Until the contract is up. After that I'm a free agent, Ryder,” I replied, and backed up a step.
He smiled, and licked his teeth. “What makes you think you will want anyone else after I bring you over to my world, Pet?”
I smiled and shook my head sadly. “Because you want to own me and, believe it or not, some women just don’t want to be owned. I'm not sure when you were born, Ryder, but women these days like to be treated with respect. Wined and dined, not owned.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” he snapped.
“Cavema
n much?” I snorted, and ended up laughing at his confused expression.
“Are you laughing at me?” He was annoyed, but his lips were twitching as if he was barely managing to keep his own laughter in.
“You should try dating. Get out more often, Ryder,” I smirked and, before I knew what I had done, I'd stepped dangerously close to him.
“You should go shower, Syn, before I decide my hunger is more important right now,” he said quietly as his eyes roved down the silky ensemble he'd conjured. I tried to step back away from him, but he was faster, his hands pulled me close, and his mouth was on mine immediately.
He pulled away, smiling. “This caveman just made your panties wet with a kiss, and you’re the only item on the menu that I want to dine on.”
A delicious shiver crept down my spine. “I'm not food.”
“You’re right, Syn. You are so much more…and I wouldn’t want word getting out that I like to play with my food.”
I pulled away. “It's not funny, and I'm not a fucking Fairy happy meal, Ryder!”
“A fucking Fairy happy meal…Go shower, Syn. I'm losing my patience and my tolerance for your sassy mouth. Unless you want me to find something for it to do, you had better get away from me.”
“I thought you liked my sassy mouth,” I replied with a smirk.
His eyes landed on my lips. “I do, and I like it better when it's busy…sucking or doing other things…” He let the words hang on the end of his tongue like silk.
I turned and basically ran to the bathroom, because something had happened to make him grow harsh and angry. He’d turned cold again, and I’d seen it in his eyes before I’d left him standing in the bedroom. He hated that I still flinched from him, but it was habit. I knew I was safe with him, and yet I was afraid that I was getting too close to him. I’d let my guard down, and he was reminding me of why it was dangerous to do so.
I slipped into his shower, not bothering to remove the nightgown until I was behind the etched glass. I turned on the water and stepped beneath it, showering quickly to get down to the urgent problem. People were dying again, and if we could stop the killers, I was going to help.
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