I patted Clive’s chest. “Okay. We can go now. The queen’s on it.”
“Just so I’m clear,” Vlad said. “You spoke into a ring and the queen of Faerie and her guard just appeared?”
“It’d be best if you kept that to yourself,” Clive warned.
Vlad rolled his eyes at Clive and looked back at me. “If you have a direct line to the queen of the fae, why didn’t you call her in a long time ago?”
They swam out of the cave, over the wall into the basement.
“She rules another realm,” I said. “She’s not at my beck and call.” I tried to figure out how to condense the story down. “A little while ago, I had to visit Faerie to deliver a message. The queen liked the engagement ring Clive had given me. As the queen was deciding whether or not she was going to let me live at the time, I offered her the ring.”
“Bribery,” Vlad said approvingly.
“I guess,” I responded. “It didn’t feel that way at the time. It was more like I had something she admired and so the polite thing to do was offer it to her. Anyway, when I gave her my ring, she traded it for her own. I really miss my engagement ring. It was gorgeous, but this one has proven to be invaluable.”
“It seems so,” he said.
“Anyway, I’ve spoken to her through the ring a couple of times and only when it was an emergency that involved the safety and well-being of her people.”
Clive stood at the base of the stairs, the water to his neck. Vlad, shorter, was still treading.
“And that is why the queen listens when you contact her,” Clive said. “You fight your own battles, but when one of her people is in grave danger, you let her know.” He pulled me off his back and placed me on the second step, so my head remained above the surface.
I started up and then turned to Vlad. “Do you need to grab anything from your room?”
He shook his head. “When you said they were blowing up the building, I went to collect my weapons. They’re all I care about here.”
“Wait! My axe!” I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten it.
“I have it,” Vlad said, lifting his gloved hand and my axe above the surface. “Go.”
I went through the door first, then held it for Clive and Vlad. As I closed the door to the flooded basement, Clive and Vlad dropped to the floor, writhing in agony.
Shocked, I went to Clive, holding his head so it didn’t bang on the floor. Only then did I notice the dark shoes coming to rest beside me. Cadmael. Shit!
“You again,” he growled, grabbing my braid and yanking me up.
“Ow! What the fuck, you asshole?” I slashed at his hand with my claws, slicing four of his fingers off.
Cadmael stared at his hand a moment, uncomprehending. The prince was back in charge. When he made another grab for me, I cut off his other hand entirely. Vampires could repair injuries like that, but not immediately.
“Release them or your head will end up on the ground beside your hand.” I squeezed his blip in my head, causing him to wince. “I’m sick of your shit, old man. You’re supposed to be all-powerful, and you let some shitty fae punk who gets off on hurting women possess you? Again? Grow a pair and shove him out,” I sneered, figuring one or the other would blow a gasket. It’s easier to get the upper hand when your opponent isn’t thinking clearly.
Cadmael lunged, but I saw his muscles bunch and so dove forward, rolling by him, my claws out, tearing through his Achilles tendon with a pop. Because there were two people fighting for control of Cadmael’s body, he was slower than normal, his movements awkward.
When he spun to go after me again, his balance was off. I had my claws out and slashed at his other ankle, hearing the pop once again. Cadmael grunted in pain but still moved toward me.
Diving at him, my shoulder in his gut, I knocked him over. He tried to punch me in the head, which would have killed me, but he no longer had a fist and so the motion was off. Did it hurt? Hell yeah. Was I dead with a caved-in skull? Nope.
I had vampire blood smeared on my head, though, which was pretty gross. That sort-of punch got my head pounding again. Landing on his chest, I had my claws at his neck. I didn’t want to kill him, but I also had no desire to die. It all depended on whether or not the prince could be trusted to properly assess a threat.
Cadmael hissed, his fangs glistening. Springing up from the ground, he dislodged me. My claws pierced his neck. I didn’t swipe them through, though. I wasn’t sure why in the moment, but his eyes were their normal brown and his scent had changed. The prince was gone. The queen must have found him hidden upstairs and finally killed the bastard.
Cadmael never broke eye contact with me. He wasn’t trying to mesmerize me, though. He was pleading with me. “Do it,” he whispered.
Clive pulled me away and I was again standing behind him and Vlad.
I tapped Clive’s shoulder. “Can you guys wait for us in reception? Cadmael and I need to have a chat.”
