by Sadie Moss
Now.
Jae started to drop his hand, but I reached up to grab it, lacing our fingers together and holding them to my chest, just under my collarbone. I wasn’t ready to let our contact go yet.
My gaze flickered around the group of men huddling in the cramped tunnel with me as my brain slowly came to grips with the fact that this wasn’t a dream. “What… what are you all doing here?”
“We came to rescue you,” Fen answered. “I didn’t think we’d find you so quick though. What were you doing?”
“I rescued myself.”
He grinned wolfishly, looking more like his usual self, though his voice was still strained with worry. “Fuck yeah, you did.”
“I couldn’t find a door that wasn’t warded though. The open one at the end of the corridor, was that you guys?”
“Yes. We brought a powerful spell stripper. We weren’t sure what we’d find here.” Jae nodded solemnly, his eyes still scanning me. I had a feeling he was cataloguing every one of my injuries, his concern growing with each new cut or bruise he noted.
If he wanted to heal me, I would gladly accept his ministrations, but it’d have to wait until we were out of here. The five of us had already wasted way too much time on our reunion, though I couldn’t regret it.
“Good. Then let’s get the fuck out of here before Rain comes back.”
“Rain?” Corin’s head reared back in surprise, his eyes going wide.
“Yup,” I said grimly. “He’s the asshole Christine was reporting to.”
“Oh shit!” Fen’s voice rose. “Does that mean he knows where the Resistance headquarters is? Did she tell him?”
I shook my head. “I’m almost positive he doesn’t. She told me she never gave up that information, and I think she was telling the truth. She was fucked up and did a shitty thing, but she never wanted to hurt the Resistance members. And I don’t think Rain was very concerned with the Resistance, to be honest. We were the perfect scapegoat for him.”
Jae’s brows drew together. “Where is Christine now?”
A shudder passed through me. “Dead. He killed her after she brought me to him. And he’s done worse… much worse. But there’s no time to explain it all now. We need to get out of here.”
“Hell yes to that.” Fenris wrapped an arm around my waist, supporting some of my weight. “Come on, killer. Let’s get you home.”
I would’ve insisted I could walk on my own, but I really couldn’t—not as fast as we needed to go anyway. And besides, I liked the feel of Fen’s strong arm holding me, his solid body next to mine. So I just wrapped my hands around his middle and headed toward the door that stood slightly ajar, flanked by the rest of my men.
The inky blackness beyond the door gave way before Jae’s light, revealing a narrow corridor much like the one we were in now. But when we stepped into it, I realized the walls were made of earth, not stone. The musty smell made me sneeze, which made me hiss in pain as my cheek throbbed.
We walked through the dark tunnel in silence, Jae’s glowing ball of light floating ahead of us, casting all the men’s faces in harsh shadows. After a few minutes, we reached another door, and Akio pushed it open.
Fresh air flooded my lungs. I sucked it in gratefully, squinting in the afternoon sunlight. It was almost hard to believe it was daytime. I’d lost track of the hours inside the windowless room where I was kept.
“Where are we?” I asked, looking up at the tall pines surrounding us.
“In the Rocky Mountains.” Fen gave me a squeeze. “About ten miles south of where you and I went running that day.”
I shot a glance back as we began our trek down the steep terrain. Behind us, a slab of red, lichen-covered rock rose high, and tucked into the place where it met the earthen side of the mountain was the door we’d just come through. Even now, if I didn’t know exactly what I was looking for, I would’ve missed it. It was well camouflaged, and I wondered how many entrances to Rain’s underground compound were hidden in this area.
“Was that door warded, or the inner one?” I asked Jae.
“The inner.”
I grunted. “Makes sense. Wards out here could draw attention. As it is, the entrance is almost invisible, but still protected where it counts. Rain is smart; I’ll give him that.”
“I can’t believe it was Rain.” Fen shook is head, his brown hair flopping over his forehead. “He was the only one of the Representatives who seemed at all concerned that you’d gone missing.”
My eyes snapped up. “What?”
“Yeah. Jae went to the palace to find out if they were doing anything about your disappearance, and it was just business as usual there. I think most of them were glad they didn’t have to deal with you anymore.”
“Except Rain.” Jae’s face was grim. “He pulled me aside before I left. Told me he was worried about you after what happened to your grandmother and offered to help us find you. He asked if we had any clues as to your whereabouts.”
“That slimy fucking asshole!” My voice rose higher than I’d meant it to, and a startled chipmunk darted out from under a bush ahead of us. I wrestled the lid back on my temper and spoke in a quieter voice. “That must be one of his signature moves. Pretend to befriend your enemy and ask for information under the guise of trying to help.” I hesitated, almost missing my next step, and Fen’s arm tightened around me. “Wait. How the hell did you guys find me? If you had no idea it was Rain who’d taken me, what led you up here?”
Akio shot a glance over his shoulder. He’d taken the lead in our little expedition, and he somehow looked as effortlessly graceful and sophisticated tromping down a mountain as he did wearing a suit and sipping champagne.
“You did, kitten.”
His words startled me so much I actually did miss a step this time. Only Fen’s grip on me and a steadying hand from Corin stopped me from tumbling down the steep incline.
“What?”
Fen grinned down at me. “Yeah. A few days after Christine snatched you, I started having the strongest pull toward the mountains. I thought it was just my wolf reacting to the stress, needing to blow off steam, you know? So I ignored it for a while. There wasn’t time for that—we were too busy searching for you. Then Corin mentioned he noticed a pull toward the mountains, and Jae said the same. When Akio walked in and told us he felt like going for a hike, we knew something was up.”
Akio looked back again, rolling his eyes, and I chuckled.
I held onto Fen tighter, and his firm stomach flexed under my hand. “But how could you all have felt a pull toward me? My magic was suppressed inside that cell. I couldn’t even feel it.”
“The magic within you was repressed,” Jae confirmed, stepping up to my other side as the trees around us cleared. “But the part of your magic that exists outside of you, in each of us, wasn’t. The bond has grown even stronger since it first formed, and it led us to you.”
“So you just… wandered up into the mountains with a spell stripper and who knows what else, not even sure if you’d find me?”
“We knew we’d find you.” Corin’s firm voice came from behind me. “We had to.”
My heart clenched, more glad than I could ever say that fate brought these four men into my life.
I hadn’t thought I wanted magic. I hadn’t thought I wanted emotional attachments—had seen them as a weakness, even. But I was finally starting to realize they could be my greatest strengths.
“Thank you,” I murmured, my voice soft with emotion. “For coming for me.”
Akio stopped and turned suddenly, bringing our entire troupe to a halt. His eyes glittered like dark jewels as he regarded me.
“Kitten, we will always come for you.”
With that pronouncement, he resumed walking down the mountain, his gait smooth and controlled. I stared after him for a moment, a riot of emotions ricocheting through my chest, before Fenris tugged me gently into motion again.
We lapsed into silence for a while. My injuries and exhaustion were
catching up to me, but I tried not to let them show. Jae kept shooting me worried sidelong glances, and I knew if he saw even the slightest hint that my strength was flagging, he’d insist on stopping to heal me now.
As much as I appreciated his concern, I wanted to get off this fucking mountain and back to the safety of Beatrice’s house. I could’ve tried to heal myself as we walked, but I was pretty sure I’d definitely fall down the mountain if I did that.
By the time we reached the low foothills, where the downward slope eased into a more manageable angle and the clusters of pine and rocks were replaced by swaths of tall grass, it was impossible for me to hide my weakness any longer. Both my calves were cramping, my mouth felt like sandpaper, and the bruise on my face throbbed in time to the beat of my footsteps.
Fenris had offered to carry me, but I shook my head stubbornly. He’d only ever given me one piggyback, and I didn’t want to spoil that memory with this one. But I did accept gratefully when Corin came around to my other side so the two men could support me between them.
We trekked about a quarter of a mile down a winding mountain road, and I was about to ask the guys if they’d walked all the way here from Denver, when Jae’s car suddenly popped into view ahead of us. He must’ve put an illusion spell on it to hide it.
The mage’s shiny silver vehicle was one of the most beautiful sights I’d ever seen. Mostly because it meant I wouldn’t have to keep holding my body upright.
He removed the wards and unlocked it, and I clambered gratefully into the back seat. Akio and Fen climbed in on either side of me, and seconds after Jae started the car, my eyes fell shut, my head lolling on the incubus’s shoulder.
I heard snippets of the men talking as we drove, discussing the new information I’d shared and what to do about it. There was more they needed to know, so much more, but no matter how badly I wanted to join in the conversation, I couldn’t force my eyes open.
When the gentle movement of the car stopped and the rumbling engine cut off, my body jerked upright. I looked around quickly, trying to orient myself.
“It’s okay, killer.” Fen smoothed my hair back from my face. “We’re here.”
Behind him, through the car’s window, I saw the enchanted fountain that fronted Beatrice’s estate. The large drops of water-fish leapt lazily from the pool, unaware of all the turmoil the house had seen over the last few weeks.
I turned to peer out the opposite window, and gasped.
“What the hell happened to this place?”
Chapter 5
Fenris chuckled. “Jae happened. Do you like it?”
I shot a glance at Jae as we all piled out of the car, Fen holding my elbow to help me walk. “Were you guys under attack?”
“No.” He shook his head, casting his gaze down. “But I didn’t want to risk it. With you gone, your grandmother no longer here to run the estate, and almost a dozen Blighted people living in the house, I didn’t want to take the chance that Peacekeepers would show up and try to forcibly remove us.”
“Holy shit,” I breathed, gazing up at the enormous mansion. The cherry wood front door was framed by several tall, ornate white columns, and the pale facade of the mansion looked as pristine as ever.
What drew my attention, though, were the wards. Plural. As in, more than one.
Beatrice had kept a pretty strong ward over her house. The spell hadn’t faded after her death, which meant she wasn’t the caster—it was probably purchased from a security company. That had seemed like plenty of protection, even for a house as lavish as this one. But now, at least two new wards glittered over the one that had already been in place, making the whole building shimmer with a multicolored glow.
I ripped my gaze away from the glowing house and looked at Jae again. “You did all this?”
“Yes. If the Representatives decided to come after us, they could force whoever put her ward up to remove it, leaving us exposed. I simply made sure that can’t happen… and added a few other protections while I was at it.”
“No kidding,” I murmured as we approached the front door. “This place is like a bunker.”
The word immediately conjured visions of Rain’s lair in the mountains, and I wished I’d chosen a different term. This wasn’t a bunker, where a power-hungry madman spent his days plotting the downfall of civilization.
This was a haven.
“It was necessary, Lana.” Jae’s voice was soft. He held his palms out toward the door, and the wards parted to grant us entry. “The Representatives know you’re harboring Blighted families here. They haven’t let word of it get out yet, probably because it creates bad optics for them—one of their own being a Blighted sympathizer. But they could send Peacekeepers any time.”
We entered the high-ceilinged foyer. Though this floor of the house was quiet, noises filtered down from upstairs.
Without asking this time, Fen swooped me up, one arm under my knees and the other under my shoulders. I wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my head on his chest, too worn out to protest. He carried me up to my room, and Akio opened the door for us before I was deposited on the king-sized bed.
Jae sat on the soft mattress beside me. Corin helped lift me up, and the two of them gently peeled off the single-sleeved shirt I’d taken from Kate. The remaining sleeve chafed against the bite wound on my shoulder, and I sucked in a sharp breath, pushing down the wave of nausea that passed through me.
At the sight of my injury, Jae’s green eyes flashed, his normally calm expression hardening with anger. “You should’ve told me, Lana. I could’ve healed you on the mountain.”
“There was no time.” I shook my head, falling back against the pillows tiredly. “We made it back, didn’t we?”
“We would have made it anyway! Godsdamn it, I knew you were hurt, but—”
He cut off and stood abruptly, pacing to the other side of the room, his back to me. I gazed after him in shock. I’d known he would be upset I didn’t tell him about all my injuries, but I hadn’t expected this strong of a reaction.
After a moment, Jae turned around. His face was composed again, but the green of his eyes still churned with agitation. He walked slowly to the bed and sat down, closer to me this time. He rested his strong, long-fingered hands on my bare stomach, and I clenched the muscles involuntarily as a shiver raced through me.
When he’d taught me to heal Corin, he told me to hover my hands over the injury, reaching out with my magic instead of with physical touch. Having Jae’s hands on me, skin-to-skin as the bright glow of magic flowed from him into me, felt strangely intimate. His gaze traveled over me as he worked, roaming my body with a possessiveness and entitlement that made my heart beat faster.
The rest of my four stood sentry as he worked on me, but I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Jae. The expression on his face was fierce, a mixture of anger and pain and… something else. Something that made heat flare low in my belly, made my nipples harden and my skin ache for more of his touch.
His hand on my stomach moved up slightly, grazing the bottoms of my breasts, and my back nearly bowed off the bed. The combination of the healing magic pouring through my body and the feelings his touch elicited made me giddy. This was more than the absence of pain. This was ecstasy.
I closed my eyes and bit my lip, drawing in deep breaths through my nose as I got lost in the sensations coursing through me.
Sooner than I would’ve liked, Jae pulled his magic back and removed his hands, leaving my body free of pain but somehow still bereft. I blinked my eyes open to see him leaning over me, his face hovering above mine.
Time seemed to pause as I took in his elegant features. His long nose, high cheekbones, and slightly pointed chin, those clear green eyes that had always captivated me. He was gazing back at me with an equal intensity, and when he dipped his head toward mine, my heart fluttered.
But at the last moment, he changed course, pressing a kiss to my cheek instead of my lips. He lingered there for a second before drawing back
, leaving only his ragged breaths echoing in my ears.
The other three men were gathered at the foot of the bed, watching us intently. Worry reflected in Corin’s and Fen’s eyes, but Akio looked at Jae with something like jealousy.
My brow furrowed. I didn’t know what he had to be jealous about. Jae hadn’t even kissed me on the lips. And if anyone had a right to get possessive, it was Corin or Fen. They’d made their feelings for me clear, while the incubus seemed to make a point of keeping me constantly guessing whether he actually liked me or not.
It took several heartbeats for me to shake off the almost trance-like state Jae had put me in, and I sat up slowly, letting my long red hair fall down over my shoulders. The ugly purple wound where the wolf had bit me was now little more than a light pink scar, although the blood and dirt smeared on my skin still remained. I touched my face tentatively but could feel nothing. No pain, no lump. It was completely healed.
I grinned at Jae, brushing past what had just transpired between us. “You’re good.”
His lips lifted in the calm smile I loved so much. “I’ve had a lot of practice.”
My body was still a little weak—nothing but rest, food, and water would fix that—but I felt a million times better as I scooted toward the foot of the bed and stood up.
“I’m going to shower. I need to get the smell of that psychopath’s dungeon off me. Then we need to talk.”
“Yes.” Jae’s voice was grim, making me wonder what I’d missed in the days I’d been locked up. “We do.”
The first time I’d stepped into the large stone-walled shower in my en suite bathroom at Beatrice’s house, I’d thought it was the most luxurious feeling in the world.
I was wrong.
The most luxurious feeling in the world was stepping under the gentle spray of hot water after spending ten days locked in a dingy, cold, magic-suppressing cell.
Not that I ever planned on doing that again.
But the water cascading down my body, rinsing away all the dirt, grime, and blood, made me feel clean and new, possibly even up to all the challenges facing us. I let it pour over my face for a while longer once I was clean, emptying my mind for a few moments and just feeling.