My gaze returned to the base of Axel’s throat and my heart stuttered, that warmth behind my ribs flaring brightly at the same moment Axel glanced over at me. His smile was immediate, eyes dancing with amusement and something else that hit me lower than my ribs.
Something Rys didn’t miss, judging by his smirk. “Get used to it,” he murmured, “because as long as you wear each other’s marks, it’s not going away.” He squeezed my shoulder. “And you never want it to.”
I didn’t.
Not ever.
I looked down at the fae ink, Axel’s own mark, covering my inner wrist. I hadn’t been conscious when it’d been put there, but I loved it all the same. Lady Sarhin had been gracious enough to go through the ceremony again, with Rys, Gabriel, Dathal, and Nick present. The ink itself was already there, of course, but I’d still felt a tingle of magic when she’d repeated the ancient words.
I rubbed a thumb over the skin, my focus so intense I didn’t notice Axel appear in front of me until his hand joined mine.
“Everything all right?” he asked, fingers wrapping round my arm and tugging me closer.
“Perfect,” I answered, because it was.
We split our time between Axel’s house and here, getting privacy when we needed it while still allowing me to fulfil my duties as Rys’s beta.
Axel kissed me, arms wrapping around my neck, and I closed my eyes, sinking into it.
Yes,perfectwas the best way to describe my life right now.
“I’m really starting to hate coming here,” Max grumbled from the back door.
I’d heard his car approach, but we’d been expecting him anyway, so I hadn’t felt it warranted letting Axel go.
Clearly Rys had much the same idea because he had Gabriel backed up against the worktop.
Max’s tone had been teasing, but when I glanced at him, I caught the flash ofsomethingin his eyes that didn’t match up.
I looked to Rys, knowing he’d seen it too by his frown. I’d shared my concerns about Max already, unable to keep silent when it was obvious something troubled him.
“Hey.” Gabriel greeted him with a wide grin, sliding out from Rys’s grip. “What’s so important that it couldn’t wait until Monday?”
Max’s gaze swung to me and Axel. “We’ve finally wrapped our side of the Zh’alek–Melhak case. Thought I’d share what I could, assuming Lady Sarhin hasn’t already done so?”
Axel shook his head. “No. From what I understand, she’s busy sorting out the mess with the fae guard. Having that many disloyal members is both an embarrassment to the high court and a cause for concern. Dathal says it came as a huge shock to them.”
Max grimaced. “I can imagine.”
Gabriel gestured to the table. “Take a seat and I’ll get you a drink.”
When we were all seated around Rys’s kitchen table, Max sat back in his chair, focus on me and Axel again. “From what we can piece together, Vai Zh’alek came through the gateway disguised as someone else, that’s how he avoided initial detection, then holed up at Blake Tehlin’s cottage. He knew it was empty, probably from Melhak, and used magic to mask his scent whenever Falon’s pack round to clean it. Considering that was only once a week, it was easy enough for him to hide out.”
He paused and took a drink of his coffee.
It made sense. He had to have been hiding somewhere, but the thought that he’d been so close all this time… I couldn’t suppress the growl from escaping.
Axel’s hand landed on my knee, squeezing enough to ground me. “Easy,” he murmured.
I nodded at Max to continue.
“With everyone involved dead, we can only guess that Zh’alek was supposed to somehow kidnap you to help them get access to the high court vaults. We don’t know exactly how they planned to get in undetected, and I suppose we never will, but at least it’s over now.”
Axel relaxed against me. We’d known it was done, but hearing Max say it added a finality to it that he’d obviously needed. “Thank fuck,” he whispered, running a hand through silver hair that I loved so much.
I wrapped an arm around him, pulling him close enough that his scent filled my lungs.
“That’s not all,” Max added, gaze drifting to Rys, then to me. And I knew what was coming next. “In light of Zane’s assistance with bringing Yates’s hunter group down, and considering he was helping Yates and Tombs under duress, both the witches’ council and the paranormal justice system have come to an agreement regarding his punishment.”
