The village square was deserted, the tavern door was closed, and the other small stores had their wooden shutters down. My breath caught as multiple new scents reached my nose. Rosie bit her lip and mouthed,run.
“Fuck,” I whispered. Fear wasn’t an emotion I allowed myself in the field but damned if my heart didn’t slam against my ribs now. I was vulnerable in this Fae world; I knew that. Still, I wasn’t entirely helpless. My wolf’s warning snarl echoed in my head.“I know, sweetie,”I whispered, spinning on my heel.
Edvina tried to grab my wrist. I easily evaded her, but her face didn’t avoid my fist. “What the fuck did you do?” I hissed as she fell on her backside.
Her eyes were wide, blood seeping between her fingers where she covered her nose. “You’re not human.”
“What the fuck does that matter? Tell me what you did.” She shook her head. “Fine.” My boot connected with her jaw and she sagged against the ground, blood spraying from her mouth and nose. I twisted away. No way was I going into that square if that’s where the danger most likely was. And as all the locals were hiding, then I guessed it was. I spun and sprinted for the back of the school. If I could get into the woods maybe I could track Stone’s scent. I had no idea if this was about Stone or me, but I wasn’t about to wait around and find out.
My breath sawed in and out of my lungs. Damn, I was unfit. I should have trained, kept myself fit, especially when my life always went to shit…
I sucked in a huge lung full of air, almost at the tree line.
“Shannon! Stop!”
I gasped as a slimy sensation invaded my body. Those words burrowed into my skull, and there was nothing I could do. My body froze. It was like dozens of fingers slid over my skin, holding me in place. I shuddered, my heart racing as fear sank into my soul. My wolf whined. All of a sudden, I was transported back to being a teenager. That voice. The hideous feel of his touch, of his magic, of his voice, his hideous dark eyes…
No…
Tears pricked my eyes, the cold fingers of terror grasping my limbs and making them heavy. I knew that even if my body would obey me, I couldn’t run. Memories of that night slammed back into my head, stealing my ability to think as the past played out before my eyes like a horror film.
“Walk to the village square; to me.”
No matter how I tried to fight, I couldn’t deny that order. My brain was split in two. My compliance was everything. I had to obey; yet another part of me knew it was the worst thing I could ever do. My wolf echoed in my head, her whining and snarling almost drowning out the voice that ordered me to come to him.
My boots whispered over the grass, carrying me through the school's small gate and into the village square. On either side were Fae warriors clad in a black uniform embroidered with a silver coat of arms. Some watched me curiously, others smirked, and some were utterly devoid of emotion as I walked down the path they’d left. Screaming to myself to run made no difference. My legs kept moving, my feet taking me towards the face of my nightmares. Even my father hadn’t scared me as much as this perverted bastard did.
“So nice to see you again, Shannon.”
I glared at him, wishing for a blade so I could cut up his handsome face or maybe slice off his cock. He laughed, hissilver eyes glinting with amusement. Inside, I screamed, rage thundering through my blood so fast I thought I would explode. This creature had had different eyes back then, so dark it was as if death had stared back as he rutted me. Glamour. The fucker had used glamour to hide his true features.
Every cell in my body rebelled at being close to him again, and even through the hold of his magic, I managed a low growl.
He smirked, his eyebrows twitching up. “If looks could kill, my dear. Sadly, they can’t. How fortuitous that we have met before. And what a meeting it was. I’ve never forgotten my little human plaything.” His fingers brushed my cheek, and all I wanted was to turn my head and bite them off. “I often wanted to return, but keeping my son from infecting Faery with shifter offspring was more important. You were just part of another business venture I had with your father. The Goddess must favour me indeed to bring you back into my life and with the son that I now have use for. How amusing.”
I blinked, trying my best to process what he’d just said. Stone washisson? My skin crawled. Would Stone even want to touch me again if he knew his father was the one I’d let fuck me when I was younger? I blinked back tears. I’d thought my life was on the right track, that I stood a chance for happiness with Stone. Mother Wolf, he was my soul mate! I loved him. He’d be disgusted…
“Oh, Shannon, I can see the wheels turning in your mind. Do not fret over what my son may think of you. He has another future ahead, one that doesn’t include you. You are merely a bargaining chip, a means to control him. I have it on good authority that you are his chosen mate. That means if he wants to keep you alive in any capacity, he’ll do exactly as I say.”
Revulsion slithered along my bones as he opened his arms.
“Now come and kiss me. Let’s see if you are as good a pet as I remember.”
Tears tipped from my eyes, my wolf snarling and thrashing against the Fae magic that held me prisoner as his mouth descended on mine. His hand wove in my hair, holding me still, and my body betrayed me, my mouth moving under his. I wanted to vomit when his tongue stroked mine. Inside, I was screaming with rage and fear, my heart almost thrashing out of my chest, on the outside my lips moved against his, my hands hanging loosely by my sides. I’d thought his touch had been disgusting before, but this was on another scale altogether. I wanted to rip his throat out. To scream, and fight, and kick his balls into his stomach. I wasn’t a child any longer. Yes, I was scared, but I was also angry. I was a Shadow Sentinel, a warrior, a shifter, and I’d survived way worse than this. I’d find a way out of this fucker’s enchantment if it was the last thing I ever did.
It seemed like an eternity before he was done devouring my mouth. He pulled back, triumph written all over his face. My fingers twitched as I imagined curling them into fists and slamming them repeatedly into his mouth.
He just laughed and swiped at the tears that had rolled down my face. “Oh, I do like it when my human pets cry.” He leaned down and whispered in my ear. “And you’re going to be crying a lot, pet because I’m going to destroy you every time my son misbehaves. And we both know he will.”
I didn’t drop my gaze, but I kept my wolf hidden. Had he known I was a shifter back when I was a teenager, or had my father kept that from him? He seemed to hate Stone’s wolf, so maybe my father had. Hope unfurled in my chest. If he believed me weaker than I was, it would help me find a way to get free of his power, and then his eternal life was mine.Stonewasmine, and I wasn’t about to give him up to this insane Fae monster. Whatever he had planned for Stone would fail. I’d make sure of it.
“Now, while we wait, turn around and face the forest. My son is coming, and I wouldn’t want you to miss the show. Clear the square!” he bellowed before stepping up behind me and wrapping an arm around my neck. Not that he needed to hold me still. I was doing that all by myself. Losing my free will was one of the most frightening things I’d experienced in my life, but I’d overcome it. I had to. My heart continued to hammer, adrenaline banging around my system, and a bead of sweat rolled down the groove of my spine.
“Don’t worry, little pet, he won’t be long. I understand from a friend that he doesn’t want to be separated from you for long. In the meantime, there is another issue that needs dealing with. Bring me the girl!” His command echoed through the now empty square.
All I could do was watch as a woman with hair as dark as my captor’s and a painfully beautiful, yet ice cold face, led Edvina towards us. The woman’s silver cloak opened, revealing the weapons she wore over her tunic and trousers. My breath caught. Her eyes were the same mercury silver as Stone’s. I blinked. This was his sister—Airling. The way he’d spoken of her said he’d done everything in his power to keep her safe when they were younger. Still, if this cruel motherfucker was her role model, I guessed there was no hope. Even I knew that, for most Fae, life was about power. And it seemed Stone’s family were high born enough they wouldn’t want to lose it.
Edvina halted a few feet from the Fae lord, her eyes darting nervously between me and him.That’s right bitch, you fucked up. You think you’re going to be rewarded?I’d have shaken my head at her stupid innocence if I could. No one with power like his could be trusted. Airling slowly and silently pulled a dagger from her thigh, her face impassive.
