Wind Shift: A Young Adult Kitsune Paranormal Romance (Nine Tails Book 8)

by J. L. Weil

  Devyn’s nostrils flared, but I sent him a look that asked him to keep silent.

  This was not going as I hoped. Through our bond, I felt Devyn’s heart race. “And rules are something you hold in high regard, am I right?” I posed.

  She angled her head to the side. “Without rules you invite chaos. As a queen, it is your job to keep order.”

  My chin lifted. “I agree, but with all due respect, I didn’t come here to discuss my tactics or choices as a ruler. I was only passing through your kingdom on my way to Katsura.”

  “I see. I imagine you’ve had a difficult time getting here, with your uncles determined to take what is rightfully yours. Male fae can be so… vainglorious. They only see you as a human girl. But since you’re here, I’m guessing they underestimated you. Good.” She was pleased I’d been able to slip away from my uncles.

  “If you know that, then you know why it is vital I get to Katsura.”

  “Perhaps. If I may be so bold to ask, how many tails have you acquired? It’s merely for my own personal curiosity,” she added, noticing the flinch in my expression. “I have no desire to take your magic. Unlike Ryker and Talin, I seek something greater than power.”

  Guarded, I straightened. Was it wise to reveal my abilities? Awyn might seem like a straight shooter, but I couldn’t trust her. Not yet. “I am close to being able to banish the blight once and for all,” I admitted, and that was all I was comfortable telling her.

  Her eyes twinkled. “That must have your uncles in a tizzy. It means you’ll be harder to kill.” A faint pulse throbbed in the air, and my power circulated restlessly in my blood. I felt a dull poke at my mind, as if Awyn’s magic was testing my own.

  Kai stepped forward and I sensed a ribbon of his dark magic extend in front of me, slapping at Awyn’s power. “Now, Awyn. Play nice.”

  Her eyes flickered to Kai, a glimmer of a smile on her lips. “Can’t blame me for being intrigued.” Awyn’s gaze volleyed between Kai and me. “I see. Interesting.”

  Resuming his bored stance, Kai leaned against a statue.

  I didn’t like Awyn’s expression. It was too smug, like she saw right through me. “It’s not what you think,” I defended, knowing that she had jumped to a conclusion about Kai and me, which wasn’t true.

  Nothing was going on between the Unseelie and me. Nothing ever would.

  And yet, I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince more. Awyn? Kai? Devyn? Or Me?

  Her lips pressed into a twisted line. “It’s not my business what you do in your personal life… or with whom.”

  Our conversation was getting derailed, and it was time I circled back to the reason I was there. “I’ve come to ask you to let us through the wards and into Katsura. After we're through, you can put them back. I only need a moment to cross over.”

  Awyn uncrossed her legs, the sparkly fabric of her gown swishing with her movements. “What you ask might seem like a simple request, but I assure you it isn’t. Unfortunately, I am unable to open the borders.”

  A growl erupted from Devyn.

  “And why is that?” I questioned, putting authority behind my voice.

  “It is not personal, I assure you. I respect your intentions, and I wish you nothing but a long and successful reign as Queen of Katsura. However, you have to understand my position. I have a kingdom to oversee, people to protect. They live here freely without fear or disorder like some of the other lands. They trust me to keep them safe, which is exactly what I am doing. If I lift the gates, that darkness spills into my land. I can’t have that. My sentinels have been carefully monitoring the growth of the blight and its destruction. Nothing any fae has done has been able to stop its progression. Other kingdoms have already begun to fall to its corruptness. Willowland will not be one of them. Not for as long as I am alive.”

  How could I argue or fault her for doing what I would have done if the roles were reversed? In truth, my entire quest to the Second Moon was to save someone I loved, and I’d been willing to do whatever it took. How was Awyn any different? Clearly, she loved her kingdom and all of those who lived within its borders.

  We seemed to find ourselves at an impasse, with no idea what to do about it.

  “She wouldn’t ask for such a risk if it wasn’t vital,” Kai argued quietly, drawing Awyn’s attention.

  Awyn stood with ancient grace. “Even if I was willing to lift the veil of Willowland, I can’t. There is a price to pay for using such drastic magic. The barrier can’t be removed for a month.”

  My last shred of hope exhaled out of me, like a balloon deflating. What could I do now? I was stuck here for thirty days. “Lady Awyn, I—”

  “You of course, are welcome to stay in my home for the duration,” she interrupted, making it clear the subject matter was closed. “Your companions as well.”

  Devyn lifted a brow.

  “Your mate, however…”

  “Stays,” I insisted sternly. A crackle of energy trembled in the air between Awyn and me, giving her the taste of my magic that she’d been craving. Just enough to let her know I shouldn’t be trifled with.

  Awyn angled her head to the side, a spider’s grin on her lips. “I would never separate you. I was only going to explain that I’ll have to provide the necessary precautions for my safety.”

  Devyn snorted at her suggestion, like it was the most absurd thing he’d ever heard.

  My stomach tightened. “What kind of precautions?”

  “Just a few guards. Nothing outlandish.” Awyn waved a hand in the air. “You won’t even know they are there. They are for your protection as well.”

  A flicker of foreboding went through me. “Protection from what?”

  The queen gestured to the two guards hovering by the courtyard’s doorway. “You are safe within my walls, and you fully have my support as heir to Katsura. But… not all feel the same. Outside the castle, you might find those who aren’t as progressive as I am. Many look down upon humans—believe they taint our magic.”

  That was nothing new to me. “Thank you for the warning. I accept your offer… for the time being.” She needed to know that I wasn’t giving up on my plan to get to Katsura.

  Her response was a bare nod, but I caught it.

  Tink had fallen asleep curled up on a mushroom in the courtyard. She looked too comfortable to disturb, so I left her there to sleep and followed our escorts, aka watchdogs, through the castle to our rooms. Awyn might have suggested they were for my protection as well, but the shadows keeping a close eye on us felt more like prison wards.

  Kai paused outside his door, looking hesitant to go into his room.

  Was this a good idea? Us staying here?

  I considered it for another moment while I stared at him, but I figured it couldn’t be any more dangerous than staying out in the forest with my uncles still hunting me. Perhaps with the borders closed, I was safer here than I had been in weeks.

  That didn’t mean we could stay.

  “I won’t leave without you,” I assured, reading the question in Kai’s smoky eyes.

  Leaning a shoulder against the wall, he watched me. “But you are planning to leave, aren’t you?”

  I cast a wary glance at the two sentinels, offering a slight nod that was more with my eyes than my head. Devyn’s hand rested on the small of my back, silently lending his support over the matter.

  The perpetual smirk on Kai’s face faltered. “I assumed that would be your decision.”

  “And you approve?” I couldn’t tell. His expression was suddenly unreadable.

  Placing a hand on the doorknob, Kai sighed. “That’s why I’m here. I support you, and that includes the choices you make.”

  Humbled by his belief in me, I closed the distance between us and hugged the Unseelie before he went inside his room. “Don’t get into any trouble. You’ll know when it is time.”

  “Keep your hands where they are,” Devyn rumbled behind me to his stepbrother.

  With a chuckle, Kai released
me in the next breath. “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather stay in my room, little queen?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Keep dreaming.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  KARINA

  Thirty days.

  The words haunted me all night, the severity of them weighing down on me. I had a soft bed, clean sheets, and a long hot bath, but none of those things helped me fall asleep, regardless that my body was in desperate need of uninterrupted rest.

  Planning a way to put a hole in a magical ward with a throbbing headache was not productive.

  It was just downright painful.

  Too tired to join Kai and Devyn for breakfast the following morning with Lady Awyn, I stayed in my room. Tink joined me shortly after the Shaman left, flying under the door sill. Outside in the hallway, one of the guards remained like a living, breathing statue. Even behind the locked door, he was hard to forget. I did my best.

  Pacing from one wall to the other like the caged fox inside me, I tried to shove aside the dull ache in my head and think about my options. I only came up with one that made the most sense and was readily available.

  I spun toward Tink. “I need your help.”

  “Do you want to see?” she asked from the window as if she’d known.

  Devyn warned me about the pixie’s abilities and the visions she saw. It was dangerous to flirt with fate. Our paths were ever-changing based on the choices we made. It could be something as simple as wearing a purple shirt instead of a blue one, or eating waffles instead of scrambled eggs. Every choice we made created a ripple effect in our future. Tink’s visions gave her endless possibilities, always shifting.

  Would her vision show me how I could get out of this mess? If it was even possible? Would it reveal how I earned my next tail or another vision of Katsura’s fate? Half-afraid of it all, I chewed on my lip.

  Or worse…

  Would it show me the consequences that my actions and Devyn’s generated? Our claiming was bound to have repercussions, and I was deathly afraid that one, or all of those destinies, ended with his death. I didn’t think I could handle it. If death was his only future, I wasn’t sure I had the strength to continue.

  The idea of Devyn’s life ending caused a tide of panic to swell up within me. My palms grew cold and clammy. My bones weakened to the point that I had to sit down, and I was forced to tell myself to breathe—the ability to draw in air forgotten, lost in the overwhelming heartache that crippled me.

  All of it from a thought.

  I couldn’t imagine what his actual death would do to me.

  And still, knowing all of that, understanding the risk, I nodded. “I want to see.”

  I had to know—had to prepare myself. If I must, I would find a way to alter our future until the only option was Devyn by my side, and the success of protecting those I loved. I didn’t care how many times I had to stop the clock or turn back the hands of time. Next to saving my mother, Devyn’s life was equally as important to me.

  His safety had become a priority. There was no saving the Second Moon if that didn’t include Devyn.

  Going over to the window, my eyes bore into hers. “Yes,” I replied with certainty. “I want to see.”

  “Then, we’ll make this quick before the Shaman returns and threatens to de-wing me yet again.” The iridescent wings in question folded behind her back when she landed on my shoulder. Tiny hands, as light as a butterfly kiss, touched the side of my cheek. “Your future,” she whispered.

  Her voice followed me into the whorl of past, present, and future, a spinning tornado of images that blurred together in lines of color until they stopped to focus on one specific event.

  I was in a throne room. My knees pressed against the cold, hard floor. It gleamed underneath me, a shining pool of blackness that stretched across the space. Although a sense of familiarity washed over me, I knew I’d never been there.

  Terror resided within me. Curious to find out what or who had me trembling, I lifted my head.

  Talin sauntered across a dais, a handful of steps descending in front of him. Black tears etched down his cheeks while he stared at me with a malicious gleam. Upon his head, a familiar glittering crown sat, and a velvet cloak trailed behind him, like an ocean of darkness swallowing the ground. His smile was victorious as he dropped down into the throne.

  My throne, I realized.

  Once, I had a dream similar to this, but I had seen myself on that throne, wearing the Crown of Katsura. Not my uncle. The family jewel on top of his head—my fucking crown—seemed to mock me. The world around me had been very different in that dream. Instead of bowing at my feet, swearing fealty to me, the chants from my kingdom were for Talin.

  Their fealty was given with stark fear, without a choice in the matter. “Do it or die!” That had been the command Talin issued. Kneel to him or face the penalty of death.

  A shudder rushed down my spine.

  That couldn’t be Katsura’s future.

  It couldn’t.

  Beneath my growing fear, a kernel of hope remained. I clung to that bead of light inside me. It was all I had.

  Remember, this is only one of many possibilities.

  And so, I stood to face my uncle... once and for all.

  When I blinked the vision was gone, leaving me staring at a blank wall. Yet, the fear I’d felt still pumped hard through my veins, following me from the future to the present. That hadn’t been the vision I prayed for, but through the chaos, I saw a glimmer of hope. I’d find a way to get to Katsura, to that throne room. I only had to believe in myself.

  If one good thing came out of what I’d seen, it was that my resolve to get to Katsura had been recemented. “I can do this,” I murmured more to myself, having forgotten that Tink was perched upon my shoulder.

  “How can you be so sure?” her small voice asked, alerting me of her presence.

  Small feet pressed into me, light as a feather. “I’m not. But the Kitsune in me has never disappointed me when I needed her most. This time won’t be any different. I need her to get us to Katsura, so I’m trusting that she will know what to do when the time comes.”

  I was kicking myself for not trying to put a tear in the barrier. If I had known then what I knew now.

  Hopping off my shoulder, Tink flew over to the bed. “That’s a lot of faith in something so unpredictable.”

  My head angled to the side. “Did you just call me unpredictable?”

  The pixie grinned, rows of flesh-tearing teeth gleaming. “Maybe.”

  I laughed softly.

  Two more days passed. Every free moment of it spent plotting and planning, which meant Devyn and Kai were at each other nonstop. Kai had intel about the castle and the best ways to get in and out of the city, thanks to the amount of time he’d spent with Awyn. In and out of her bed, something on which I didn’t want details. Yet, relying on Kai for anything burned Devyn’s ass.

  It was like an endless merry-go-round the three of us could never get off.

  Then there were the lies and charades. Awyn might have suspected we were up to something, but she didn’t confront us. Kai, of course, was a natural at deception. Devyn and Awyn had little interaction, but I got the short end of the stick. It just didn’t sit well with me to take advantage of someone’s hospitality. Though I kept telling myself it was for a good cause.

  With a guard tailing him, Devyn scoured the fortress as discreetly as possible, taking note of every exit, the number of guards, and the layout, until he had it all mapped out in his head.

  On the third evening, we set our plan in motion.

  We snuck out in the dead of the night. It was the simplest way to lose the detail. We couldn’t take the chance that we would be seen and stopped. Inside the castle or in town. Yet, when I said simple, I used the word loosely, because it wasn’t an easy task to ditch Awyn’s sentinels. They were well trained.

  “I’m sorry. I hope you forgive me,” I whispered, looking back at the ancient castle. The last thing I wanted was
to make another enemy of a neighboring kingdom. An ally like Awyn could be crucial. She was exactly someone I wanted in my corner. I could learn a lot from her, and I hoped I got the chance someday.

  Moonlight danced over the fields bordering the sleeping city, and I soaked in the silence. Tink kept high in the skies as our lookout. She would signal at the first sign that something was wrong, but as long as Daevion dozed, blissfully unaware of what I was about to do, then no one had to get hurt. Only six guards had been rendered unconscious to get us out of the city.

  One of my conditions. We killed no one if it could be helped. I didn’t want anyone’s death on my conscience. Not tonight. There was enough death beyond this kingdom…

  And it was waiting for me.

  The nearest entry point into Katsura was hours away. We were lucky the capital of Willowland was close to the border. Devyn held out his hand to me as he sat on top of a prancing horse. The mount was uneasy with a stranger on his back but I couldn’t blame him. There was nothing like being woken up from a sound sleep to be stolen and enlisted into a scheme. I felt sorry for the horses, but they would cut our travel time down considerably.

  I placed my hand in Devyn’s, and he hauled me up behind him. My arms wrapped securely around him a second before he gave the horse a command, and we flew over the ground—once again on the run.

  Yet, this time, I vowed it to be my last.

  Hours rolled by while I clung to Devyn, hoping that enough time and distance had been put between us and Daevion, because some new sensation prickled over my skin—a vibe I’d collided with before.

  Ancient magic.

  “I can feel it,” I murmured. “We’re close.” What started as a tingle in the air, shifted into something that made me want to turn around—made my fox want to run far away. I rubbed my hands over my arms, trying to chase the prickles that started to feel like slashes of a dagger on my skin.

  “What the hell kind of wards are these?” Kai complained, casting a shield of darkness in front of us to soften the vibrations thrown off by the wall, even at this distance. They were so much stronger than before, as if the magic had been reinforced since we went to see Awyn.