Max shifted back first. “Vai Zh’alek, you’re under arrest. On behalf of the Fae High Court and the paranormal police, I’m taking you into custody.” He advanced on him, and Zh’alek backed away, gaze darting all around, looking for a way out.
He was close to the getaway.
Getting closer as he backed away from Max.
The wolves couldn’t see it like I could, like Zh’alek could.
His quick glance towards it told me what he was thinking.
“He’s going for the gateway!” I yelled at the same time as Zh’alek raised his arms. A faint rumble rocked the ground, then roots burst forth, wrapping around the legs of the wolves and Max, pinning them all in place.
Furious roars filled the air.
Zh’alek made a run for it, bolting towards the gateway faster than I expected. I went to chase after him—
“Don’t you fucking dare.” Dathal rounded the corner,klarythdaggers in hand, expression filled with so much rage I hardly recognised him. He pulled his arm back, launching a dagger at Zh’alek. It found its mark, burying itself to the hilt in the middle of his back as he tumbled through the gate and out of sight.
No one moved.
I stood there staring after him for a second before rounding on Max.
“You’re letting him go! What the fu—”
“He’s not going anywhere.” Max kicked the roots off his legs, no longer trapped now Zh’alek had gone. He gestured towards the gateway. “Lady Sarhin has half the fae guard waiting on the other side.”
“You wanted him to go through?”
“Not exactly. But we figured there was a good chance he’d panic and try for the gateway.”
Dathal rushed over to me, pulling me tight against him. “I’m sorry it took me so long to get here.”
“It’s okay,” I whispered, clinging to him for a second longer. “You can’t help being a slow runner.” I tried for levity because the alternative was bursting into tears.
Shock was a fucker.
Dathal snorted into my hair. “I don’t think anyone was catching up with Talis.”
When he finally let me go, I sank onto one of the chairs, deflated.
It was over.
Months of waiting for Zh’alek to come for me and now he had, and it hadn’t been anything like I’d expected or feared. Was he telling the truth? I honestly didn’t know, and in the end it didn’t matter. If what Max said was true, then Zh’alek was heading back to a fae prison.
Rys shifted back next, then Syl, then Sasha.
Only Talis remained as his wolf. He padded over to my side and bumped against my hip, and I sank my fingers into his thick fur. “Stay here after the others leave,” I whispered. The others would’ve heard anyway, but it gave me the illusion of speaking to Talis only.
“Are you all right?” Rys asked, striding over to me.
He was naked, they all were, something I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to no matter how many times it happened in front of me. My brush with Zh’alek made it a little easier to keep my head up and my eyes on Rys’s face.
I gave his question some thought. Was I all right? I stroked the thick fur along Talis’s back, the repetitive motion grounding. “I’m not sure.” I gestured to the gateway, where Zh’alek had fled through. It had been minutes since it happened, but it seemed so much longer. “I’ve been focused on him for so long, and now it’s just… done. It doesn’t seem real.”
What I needed was to see it with my own eyes, to see him locked away, no longer able to torment me. The magic surrounding the gateway surged, like it did the moment before someone stepped through. My breath caught, grip tightening in Talis’s fur, making him snarl.
“The gateway,” I hissed, and all five of them turned to face it, teeth bared. Dathal had both daggers in hand again.
Lady Sarhin appeared, pausing mid-stride as she took in the five shifters and Dathal all ready to attack. “Lady Sarhin,” Max said, relaxing his stance, the others immediately following suit.
