by Katie Reus
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Ian landed quietly about thirty yards from where he knew Fiona and the others were blending into the shadows of the forest. Finn had asked him to do an aerial recon of the top of the mountain. It was a hell of a lot easier for him to fly and check things out than for everyone to trek up the mountain into a potential trap.
Once he was certain that there weren’t any threats nearby, he shifted to his half-demon form and hurried to the thick cluster of trees. Finn stepped out of the shadows first with Ian’s bundle of clothes in his hand.
“Well?” the Alpha asked.
Ian shook his head as he tugged his pants on. “It’s too hard to see anything. The fog is too thick, even with my acute eyesight. But I could smell at least fifty separate individuals. There’s a small army up there.”
Not completely impossible odds, but fifty half-demons with an unknown level of skill against the seven of them. He was certain that they would prevail in the end, but there might be casualties. He wouldn’t risk going into a battle like that with Fiona. No way in hell. Not to mention that one of Fiona’s brothers was a dragon and could be up there as well, so half-demons plus a dragon. While her brother might not be up there, they had to work on the assumption that he was—to expect the worst.
Finn was quiet for long moments as Ian finished getting dressed. Finally he said, “We’ll head back to the castle. Look for survivors and raid the lab. I’ve been talking to Javier since you’ve been gone and he says the lab is one of the most fortified areas. But if they’ve sent out hunting parties, and I have no doubt they have, the castle will be weakened. Now is the time to strike them even though we’re smaller in numbers.”
Ian had promised to follow the Alpha’s orders unless he thought those orders would put Fiona in direct risk. Since he thought that trying to escape the Hell realm right now with all those guards would put her at more risk, he had no problem following the Alpha’s lead. “I can do an aerial recon and then we can all head in on foot. Unless you think we should split up?”
Finn shook his head. “No. We need to stick together this time. They know we’re here. I don’t want to push our luck with the aerial recon. Those dragons saw you before, even when you were camouflaged.”
True enough. Ian fell in line with Finn as they moved deeper into the woods. Immediately he scanned for Fiona, and found her standing next to Chloe. It soothed his primitive nature to know that she was safe with others—and that she was with another female. He knew it was archaic but his animal and human side didn’t give a shit. They embraced who he was. As he scanned her in one sweep, concern filled him. Maybe he was being paranoid, but she looked paler.
Getting to those labs was of utmost importance. He wanted a few moments alone with his half-brother to see if the male knew anything about the poison Fiona had been hit with but that wasn’t possible right now. Instead he moved to her side and brushed his lips over hers, just for a brief touch. It was amazing how her simple touch or taste grounded him in a way he’d never thought possible. In a way he hadn’t experienced in fifty years. “You okay?” he murmured.
She simply nodded, her face slightly drawn.
“When we go in, you and I are a team.” And he’d have her back no matter what.
A smile ghosted her luscious mouth. “I’ve got your back.”
As they moved through the woods this time, everyone was silent and on high alert. It was disturbing how quiet the strange forest was. No sounds from any animals was wrong on every level. And there was something in the air. Something that made him feel as if they were being watched. But he couldn’t scent anyone, and going on what Gray had told them he assumed it was the trees. Which was creepy as fuck.
When they neared the bottom of the mountain, Finn held up a hand but Ian had already scented the threat.
Twenty individuals, give or take, if he smelled correctly.
Fiona already had one blade in her free hand, but she dropped his hand and pulled out another dagger as they all moved into a circle, spanning out in preparation for an imminent attack. Ian remained within ten feet of her as the pale green half-demons moved out of the trees like cockroaches.
Yep, twenty in all. Silently they started to move in a circle, trying to trap the seven of them inside.
Since Ian didn’t fully trust his half-brother, he made sure that he could see the male out of the corner of his eye. To his surprise, Javier was the first to move into action, racing straight at a group of half-demons, a blade clutched tightly in hand. Ian wasn’t sure where he got it from and he didn’t care.
Someone from the other group let out a loud battle cry and the silence was shattered in an instant as the half-demons screamed and the wolves howled. It didn’t matter that they were in human form. Their howls filled the air, a clear call to action.
“Stay close to me.” It was a subtle demand and Ian didn’t care if it pissed Fiona off. He would keep her safe at all costs.
Adrenaline punched through him but unlike the others he didn’t shout or cry out, he simply raced at the nearest group of half-demons and unleashed a stream of blistering fire. Two males screamed, but the sound was cut short as their skin and bones burned away at an accelerated speed. Two neat ash piles replaced what had once been their bodies, with little bits floating away.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Fiona slice off the head of one of the warriors. Then another, and another. She could take care of herself, something he needed to remind himself of. Even if she was weaker than normal, she was still clearly skilled. And she was a dragon, whether she could feel her animal or not. He had to respect it. Still, he hated that she was draining herself, now of all times.
“Traitor to your own kind!” one of the half-demons screamed at him as he raced toward Ian.
Traitor? All right. Instead of using his fire, he let his claws unleash and sprinted forward in a burst of energy. The warrior raised a blade and slashed down, aiming for Ian’s heart. He dodged to the side and kicked out as he did. His foot slammed into the male’s stomach.
With a grunt, the warrior flew through the air but landed nimbly on his feet. The male danced to the side and drew back his blade before hurtling it at Ian.
His instinct was to duck away from it, but Fiona wasn’t in his line of vision and he wasn’t sure of her exact location. As it flew at him he shifted slightly to the side and raised his arm as a shield. The blade pierced through his forearm, followed by ripping agony. Better than slicing through his palm.
He ignored the pain and tore it out. Then he hauled it behind his head and, putting all of his force behind the throw, hurled it back at the male. Swish, swish. It flew end over end through the air. The male’s eyes widened as he tried to dodge the deadly blade, but the point slammed into the warrior’s head, right between his eyes.
Swiveling before the body had hit the ground, Ian saw that Fiona had taken out two more males. Javier had his back to her and was fighting like a trained warrior.
The clash of blades sang out in the forest, a familiar song to him. He released a stream of fire, mowing down two males who were attempting to gang up on his half-brother.
Screams filled the air but quickly died as the threats turned to more piles of ash. His fire was that same blue as the day before. He felt jacked up on adrenaline and emotions, as if nothing could contain him. Though his dragon rippled beneath the surface, he shoved the beast back down and sliced off the head of another attacker with his claws.
A dozen more warriors spilled out of the forest and Ian let his dragon free. In a burst of light and magic, his other nature took over. It was time to end this. They needed to get the hell away from here and he needed Fiona safe.
Blue fire tore through the air as he obliterated the new threat. He let out all the rage he was feeling, built up for decades upon decades. Rage that they were in this realm at all. That he’d lost so many years with Fiona. That she’d been poisoned and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it right now. That she was in danger, and not saf
e at home, mated to him.
Fuck every single one of these monsters.
“Ian. Stop.” Fiona’s soft voice stilled everything inside him immediately, made him calm his fire.
Silence descended for a long moment as he stared at pile upon pile of ash, some scattering in the wind.
Unfortunately he’d set a few trees on fire in his attack as well. And that was when he heard the rumbling.
The earth shook violently as nearby trees began to uproot themselves.
What. The. Fuck.
Without thought he plucked Fiona up in his paw and dropped her onto his back. Then he did the same with Javier. Before he had a chance to grab the others, the four wolves had already started climbing on him. They were heavy but he would be able to lift off.
Using all of his strength he soared upward, his wings slicing through the icy air with precision.
Starbursts of pain erupted throughout one of his wings as he cleared the top of the trees. One of the trees had attacked him, scraping along his wing with… Branches, claws? Could trees even have claws? He shook the thought off.
They were getting out of here. Ice burned his lungs as he soared higher and higher. Though he wanted to head straight to the castle, he decided to fly far away in the opposite direction. They needed to put some distance between the half-demons they’d just killed and come in from another angle completely. That meant lot of flying for him.
His injured wing burned as he flew but it hadn’t done any actual damage so at least he could still fly.
He wasn’t sure how much time passed as he continued his flight, and if he had to guess he covered at least sixty miles in a huge circle before he rounded back to the south side of the castle grounds. He flew as long as his body could take it before landing in what he thought was a safe position.
He wondered if the trees somehow communicated with each other and whether the nearby trees would know that he’d killed some of their own but it was a risk he had to take. If he didn’t land soon he risked falling from the sky and injuring the woman he loved more than anything. His landing was harder than he’d intended, his entire body jolting as he made contact with the ground.
After the others had disembarked from his body and he’d shifted forms, he didn’t have to concentrate very hard for his half-demon side to take over. A rush of much needed energy shot through him as he underwent the change. He was weak but not as weak as he would have been if he hadn’t been in this form. Something about being a half-demon in a Hell realm gave him more strength. He wasn’t quite sure how it worked and didn’t much care.
“Are you okay?” Fiona’s hands cupped his cheek before he’d fully stood.
Breathing hard, he nodded and gathered her into his arms, not caring that he was completely naked.
Finn strode up next to him and held out a change of clothes. “This is all I have. I don’t know if it will fit but it’s better than you walking around with your junk hanging out.”
A smile twitched at his lips but all he did was nod his thanks and take the bundle of cargo pants and pullover sweater.
“How weak are you?” Finn continued. “Don’t bullshit me.”
Ian understood why Finn was asking. He was part of this team and the Alpha would need to know Ian’s capabilities for any upcoming battle. “I’m okay to fight but I need food.” And he couldn’t draw on enough energy to transport food from the human realm. Screwing with that chef right now would be perfect, but after a quick try, he couldn’t muster the concentration or energy to do it.
Finn nodded again. “We’ll get you some. Thank you for what you did.”
Fiona murmured her thanks as well, her expression concerned as she watched him. She never had to thank him for taking care of her.
“Is anyone else going to talk about how creepy those freaking trees were?” Chloe asked, staring at all of them with wide eyes. “Those trees uprooted themselves. Uprooted.”
Javier let out a short laugh. “Those things are terrifying. But from what I understand they only attack if they are attacked.”
The female wolf just shook her head, muttering something under her breath about getting back to her own realm.
“Okay,” Finn said, his voice all Alpha. “We’re going to head in through the south side and make our way to one of the lower levels. Everyone is an enemy. Kill on sight. If there are humans captive we’ll save them.”
“Priority should be getting to the lab,” Ian said quietly. Because while he wanted to save humans, he wanted to find out more about the poison because it didn’t appear as if Fiona’s body was counteracting it—and she was a dragon. She should have already staved off any weakness. As of right now even her scent was weaker. It was strange and he wasn’t sure what to make of it. He hadn’t noticed it until a few minutes ago but now that he had, it was as if her scent was fading.
Finn paused to look at Fiona, then back at Ian. An emotion Ian couldn’t define crossed the Alpha’s face before he nodded. “Agreed. We get to the lab first. You,” he said to Javier. “You’re going to take point with me.”
Javier nodded and hurried to fall in line with Finn. But Ian noticed that his half-brother shot Fiona a worried look.
Which told Ian that he wasn’t being paranoid—she was definitely paler and they had to notice the difference in her scent as well. He moved to her side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him with no compunction—which spoke volumes. “We’re going to figure out what they poisoned you with and we’ll fix this. I promise.” Because there was no other option. He wouldn’t allow it.
Her mouth pulled down. “If there’s no cure—”
“There will be.” He cut her off with a savage snarl and hugged her close. He refused to let anything else happen to her. He refused to let her… He couldn’t even think the word.
Chapter 18
52 years ago
“Why are you acting so awkward?” Fiona whispered to Ian even though they were the only supernaturals in this establishment. It was a little hole-in-the-wall jazz club that had only been open for a few years according to the man who’d let them in. She’d overheard some humans talking about it and wanted to see it for herself.
Ian stood stiffly, with his back to a wall as the quartet of men began to set up their instruments. About fifty other men and women were crammed into the small, bare room, drinking from flasks and smoking while waiting to hear the music. The women had on sparkly cocktail dresses and the men all wore suits. Fiona loved this era and loved the change in clothing, adored being able to dress with more freedom. Everything around her was changing and soon she was going to make the biggest change of all in her life.
“Relax. You’re with humans who have no idea what you are.” A tall black man moved into their line of vision with a smoothness that bordered on supernatural. But he was human. He held out a hand to a wary Ian, a big smile on his face.
Ian took his hand, shook once. “Who are you?”
“Name’s Thurman. Senior.” His Cajun accent seemed to get thicker as he spoke.
“What do you mean by humans?” Confusion tinged his voice.
The man’s smile remained in place. “I know what you are. What both of you are. Never thought I’d get to meet one of your kind, and now you’re all over the city. Surprised to see you folks in a place like this though.”
Fiona stilled momentarily, but shook his outstretched hand as a waft of smoke washed over her from a nearby patron. “What are you?”
“A seer. Some call me the Magic Man of New Orleans. I’m training my boy to take over for me soon enough, but he’s out of town for a protest right now. He’ll be sad he didn’t get to see you.” He shook his head, his expression disappointed for his son.
Fiona glanced at Ian once, lifted a shoulder. It was a little strange that the human was just telling them what he was, but this was New Orleans after all. The humans who lived here seemed to be different than humans she’d met elsewhere.
“You’ve seen others like us?�
� Ian asked, seeming slightly more guarded.
The man gave another genuine smile. “I ain’t never seen anyone like you. But,” he nodded once at Fiona, “I’ve seen plenty of your people along St. Peter’s and Chartres tonight, chère.”
Fiona stilled at his words. She’d left her family’s compound discreetly a few hours ago. She hadn’t snuck out exactly, but she also hadn’t told anyone where she was going. Lately she’d started to exert her independence, and so far there hadn’t been much pushback. It had been little things—going on shopping trips by herself without telling anyone. Running errands alone. Which shouldn’t be a big deal in the first place, but her clan could act insane about such things where females were concerned. When she’d gone to that party with her brother weeks ago it had been a win as far as she was concerned.
Her family had only allowed her to go because they wanted her on display to other supernaturals, basically. To show others how beautiful members of the O’Riley clan were. Ugh. So stupid and gross. But she didn’t care about the reasoning, because she’d gotten to meet Ian—and her entire world had changed. Soon she’d be leaving with him and never looking back.
Fiona wasn’t sure if the man sensed her distress, but his next words soothed her. “The owner just put out the ‘at capacity’ sign. No one else is getting in the joint for the show, chère.”
Next to her she felt Ian relax just as she did. They could enjoy the show without the worry of running into her family. Tonight had been a risk, she knew that. And Ian hadn’t even wanted to come. So they’d arrived independently and at different times. They shouldn’t have to hide their relationship, and okay, she’d liked pushing the envelope a little tonight. Because she was proud of Ian, proud that they were together. She hated that they had to hide what they meant to each other. She couldn’t wait until the day they could walk down the street holding each other’s hands without having to hide.
