“You need to sleep.” Kade’s voice startled me, and I realized I’d drifted off.
I nodded. “Yes, sleep.” I stumbled toward the bed, coming to a grinding halt. “Shoes! I need my shoes.”
Kade didn’t ask why. He found a pair of tennis shoes for me, which would be the easiest to sleep in. I also kept my jeans on, and strapped a blade to my thigh.
I wasn’t going to let the Dark Fae Lord get the drop on me again.
Kade’s voice washed over me: “Sleep. You’ll heal faster. I’ll keep watch.” He stroked my injured arm, which felt amazing as I sank into a deep sleep.
It was dreamless at first, but all too soon the cold seeped in. Awareness returned in gradual increments until my eyelids snapped open. My feet slammed down onto the frozen lake at the same time I heard Kade yell my name.
I sensed the fae before he spoke. I was halfway through turning around when his voice washed over me. “I’d be careful with that book if I were you.”
The dark fae stood tall, his antlers dripping black oil, a sneer on his face.
“Don’t worry about me. Watch your own back,” I spat, readying to break the spell and send myself back.
He held up a finger. “This is your last chance. Join me and I will spare your people.”
I unhooked the dagger from my thigh sheath and he grinned as if it excited him.
“For the last time, no. I will never join you. And if you bring me here again I will cut those horns off with a blunt knife.” I gathered up my fae magic and the Dark Fae Lord bared all of his teeth.
He had time to say, “You better pray you find that second stone before I do,” before I threw my magic at him and the spell shattered, sending me shivering and gasping into Kade’s arms, back in Manhattan.
“Did he hurt you?” Kade was inspecting me. I shook my head, too cold to talk. Finn crawled in on my other side and I threaded my fingers through his fur. I sensed my familiar was too furious for words, but just having him close was comforting.
Eventually, I rolled away and said to Kade, “He knows about the other stone. He’s looking for it, too. It might be what they are waiting on to attack. We need to do that spell. Now.” I sprang into action, climbing off the bed.
Kade remained where he was, no doubt trying to calm his rage. My poor mate; nothing worse than feeling helpless. Especially for someone used to taking charge.
Finally he said, “He already has one crystal. Why does he need another?”
Good question. “More power?”
Kade shook his head. “I think this is about the winter queen.”
Isalinda.Of course. It actually made perfect sense. She was never satisfied with her lot in life, always wanting more. More power. More control. The dark fae wanted the Fall Court and the Earth side of the mecca. That I already knew, but I had never asked what the queen wanted. I assumed it was just his help in the war. Help to take me down. I also thought she was going to kill him after she got that help. But maybe what she wanted all along was some of the dark power.
“We can’t forget that he sees us through the crystal, knows what we do.” That unnerved me the most.
Kade stood and I could see the heaviness in his body from lack of sleep.
“Get rest. I’ll come to you with news once I have some,” I urged him.
He shook his head. “I’m fine. Just need some coffee.”
I could have pushed further, but I knew it was futile.
“Alright, then. Let’s wake the magic born.” There was no way I was letting this creepy bastard get to the dark crystal before me.
Chapter Seven
Dark can taint the strongest light.
We found the four magic born sprawled out across the floor of the main library, looking like they’d fallen asleep mid-research. I’d had all of the spell books transferred there, since it was a larger space to house everything. I felt a weird sense of relief having all of our resources in one place, like I could occasionally make a decent decision as an adult and queen.
We’d shut this room off to the rest of the staff at the estate as soon as all the books were inside, which no one seemed to mind. Seems the Red Queen had rarely let anyone in here anyway.
