Perfect Pride

by Kaye Draper

He huffed. "Sadly, no. That cold fishy didn't let males near her unless they were completely human. Or unless they had their magic castrated."

  I stumbled as I whipped my head around to look at him. "That's a thing?"

  He nodded. "Unfortunately. The mage guild and others like them have all kinds of ways to 'subdue the supernatural threat.'"

  I made a face. "I’m fucking glad you’re going to destroy their little monopoly on mages. They are so going down."

  He smiled grimly and pulled his energy down from the shield. "Easy as pie, once they've got me grabbing up all their outcast students." He nodded toward Hisashi. "I think you can drop the shield now."

  Oisin grinned as we reached the steps of the white Greco-Roman mansion. "Ladies," he said sweetly, emerald eyes glinting at the sirens. "Thank you for your escort. Please go tell the queen we are here. And make sure to attack her in the most brutal fashion you can think up."

  My pride didn't fuck around when you messed with one of their lovers.

  I put a hand on Oisin's shoulder. "Should you really be using that much magic while you're still recovering it?"

  He glared daggers up at me at the reminder that he still wasn't quite up to snuff. "Should you really be walking around in a hail of bullets in your condition?"

  I growled.

  Halstad shoved past me to get to the steps, clearly impatient with the delay. "What condition? She looks fine to me."

  One corner of Oisin's wicked mouth curled upward in what I could only describe as that smile the Grinch gets before he destroys Christmas in that weird human holiday movie.

  "Don't you fucking dare, fae," I warned, my hands itching to wrap around his slender white throat.

  Halstad turned back to us, his attention clearly only half on the pride as he thought out how to murder the sirens. "What the hell are you two babbling on about?"

  Oisin gave him a sweet smile. "Oh, nothing general. Do lead on. The charge awaits."

  Halstad stared at the fae for a beat, as if trying to decide when Oisin got brain damage. He shrugged it off and turned back toward the mansion. "Whatever."

  We were greeted by guards, half-clothed men armed with spears and glazed expressions, all controlled by a siren who stood out of the way of the bloodshed.

  "Just take us to the queen bitch," I said tiredly. "You know damned well a bunch of pointy sticks are not going to keep out a mage, a nine-tail, a fae, and a gryphon. Let's just speed this the fuck up."

  The siren smirked. "Kill them," she told the men.

  The poor, enslaved, mind-fucked men. I could see it in the siren’s eyes—her order was as cold and calculated as everything these jackasses did. She knew it would upset me to kill people who weren't acting under their own free will.

  Oisin glanced at me, let out a colossal sigh, and pulled out his fae blades. "So soft-hearted. Honestly, gryphon."

  For a minute there, I thought he was about to kill the men anyway. But, gripe and snark as he might, Oisin wasn't the monster he pretended to think he was. He took a running leap and flipped over the head of the nearest guard, narrowly missing the pointy end of a spear. Landing gracefully on his toes, he stood, slashing his twin blades upward in an X pattern, nearly too fast for my eyes to follow.

  Blood sprayed everywhere. The siren fell to the floor in several pieces.

  I turned away to gag. That was brutal.

  Oisin straightened, and his magic danced around us again as he took over possession of the poor male guards. "Off you go," he said, making a shooing motion with one dripping blue blade. "Go wait at the dock. Leave if you can find a boat. No women. Hop to!"

  The men shuffled off, looking dazed. Oisin wobbled a little bit, planting the tip of one of his blades into the hardwood floor and leaning on it like a cane as a wave of weakness swept over him.

  "I knew it," I said, stepping over siren pieces to get to the fae. I ignored the red that painted nearly every inch of him as I dropped a kiss on his forehead. "Stop overdoing it. Back of the line, fae." I hitched a thumb over my shoulder. He rolled his eyes, but he fell in behind the rest of us as we made our way further into the siren's lair.

  The queen bitch and her groupies were sitting on fluffy white cloud chairs just like the last time we'd visited. They all acted like nothing was out of place, sipping their wine while male servants fanned them with big leaves like something out of a movie. Except the sirens Oisin had sent ahead of us lay crumpled on the floor. Looked like they failed in that attack Oisin had ordered.

  I planted my hands on my hips and glared at queen Amaka. "Okay, fuckface, you know why we’re here. Give me back my kraken."

  She smiled at me, her bright red lipstick making a perfect bow of her mouth. Then she started singing. The magic rose and swelled, bolstered by the queen's little circle of followers. It hit Halstad's magic and washed away, just like before. But then it came back, wriggling in, poking at the edges. These sirens were stronger than the underlings they'd sent out to greet us.

  I suddenly realized I'd been standing there for too long.

  I had no idea how much time had passed. Halstad was holding a glowing blue ball of lightning, cocked back and ready to throw it at Hisashi. Oisin held a blade to Halstad's throat. And Hisashi had just grasped Oisin's head and shoulder, ready to break his slender neck.

  The fuck?

  I stared in horror at the frozen scene around me. The siren smiled at me, showing shark-like teeth. Such a waste of pretty manflesh, her voice whispered in my mind. Too bad their pathetic alpha wasn't worthy of them. The magic beat at my senses, sank into my brain like questing fingers, prying and pulling. Maybe you should just give up. Maybe your arrogance is the reason they all die. How could you live with that? The clawing sensation in my brain got worse. I felt my hand move, my own talons coming up to press into my throat, right over the artery. A wash of despair and emotional pain swamped me. I had failed my pride. I wasn't worthy of my status as Alpha. I didn't deserve to live. Maybe you should just end it all.

  My talons pressed into my skin, denting it, preparing to carve deep, to spill my life blood faster than I could heal the wound.

  My pride.

  I had killed my whole pride with my own stupidity.

  A pressure built in my solar plexus. A tingling sensation that turned to a burn. The place where I was connected to Hisashi…it hurt. I suddenly felt like something was being sucked right out of me.

  Oisin remained frozen mid-strike. But I saw his hand tremble.

  No!

  This voice didn't belong to the siren bitch. It belonged to one royally pissed off fae. In my mind, Oisin's fae compulsion fought with the siren's hold. Only…the siren was holding onto four powerful supes and a kraken.

  Kill her.

  Oisin had never used the full brunt of his compulsion magic on me. It was a strange sensation. I saw my hand move away from my own throat, but I watched from the outside, like an observer.

  The magic holding us trembled.

  I took a step forward, toward the queen, and a smile lit up my face. That was me, not the compulsion.

  The queen's powers to control were stretched to the limit.

  I stepped forward, faster now, as she struggled to keep the rest of my pride in her grip. One of her companions fainted, her head hitting the floor with a dull thump as the queen over-stressed her fellow magic-workers. I kept walking, my steps turning into a run.

  The sound of my fist connecting with that bitch's nose was the most satisfying thing I'd ever heard. Almost as satisfying as her shock when she realized someone had dared.

  So I hit her again.

  She spilled out of her fluffy chair in a billow of gauzy fabric and perfectly coiled curls. Chaos erupted behind me. Oisin hit his knees, blood seeping from his eyes and nose.

  Halstad spun at the last minute, redirecting his lightning ball at the sirens. Hisashi wobbled and fell over, clutching his gut.

  I grabbed the remaining sirens and made quick work of knocking them unconscious. Then I hauled
the queen up by her fancy-ass rags and shook her. "Where. The fuck. Is my kraken?"

  She bared her bloodstained teeth at me, but I was underwhelmed. It seemed all the sirens had going for them were their mind tricks. Without that, the cold fish was as weak as a minnow.

  "I just released her," Amaka spat, spraying blood and spit onto my t-shirt. Fucking gross.

  I tossed the siren back onto her stupid chair. "If I find out you're lying, I will burn this fucking island down. I swear to the Gods."

  She had the balls to smirk at me, as if she had just won our little battle, rather than us kicking her ass. "It's funny," she said, voice mocking, "how easy it was to manipulate a creature as ancient and powerful as the kraken. Dangle a bit of imaginary family as bait. Draw her out here, lay down layers of hurt and betrayal. So easy. Emotions only weaken a person. Disgraceful in a creature so ancient."

  I didn't reply, just punched her in the face again, satisfied when her chair tipped over and the unconscious siren hit the floor so hard she probably had a concussion.

  "Let's go find ourselves a stupid kraken," I growled, heading for the beach.

  Chapter 10

  My cell phone buzzed in my back pocket as I stormed off toward the water. I yanked it out, surprised. I forgot I even had it with me. I shouldn't have service out here. Glancing at the screen, I saw that I didn't have service. And yet, it was ringing anyway. Creepy fucking demons.

  "What?" I demanded into the phone. I didn't have time for White's stupid fucking games right now.

  "I can't find it," the demon said in greeting, his voice almost…whiny.

  I scanned the water, hoping for some sign of a newly freed kraken. Kai was going to be pissed when she realized what had happened. "You can't find what?" I muttered into the phone.

  "The vampire, idiot woman. It's leading me on a wild goose chase."

  I growled at him. "Like I give a fuck. Kinda busy right now. You know. In the Indian Ocean. Clear across the fucking world. Why don't you use those resources you're always going on about?"

  He huffed impatiently. "Hurry up and come back. I have a job for you."

  I rolled my eyes so hard I saw starbursts for a while. "Are you fucking kidding me right now, White? You told me to stay away from the vampire. Now you want me to come back and find the damned thing for you?"

  He was silent for so long I started to get worried. It didn't bode well when he was thinking. "I need bait," he said, voice once again calm and measured. Businesslike.

  I groaned. "I am not going to come home and play vampire bait for you, asshole. Goodbye."

  I hung up on him, ignoring it when the damned phone immediately started ringing again. I swiped the answer button. Then I hauled back and threw the fucking phone as hard as I could, watching happily as it shrank to nothing, glinting in the distance before it splashed into the water.

  Halstad came to stand beside me. "That's not good for the environment."

  I snorted. "How are we going to find Kai?"

  He shrugged. "Not sure. Maybe she'll come find us. But you need to look after your boys first."

  I arched a brow at him, and he shrugged again, turning to gesture at Hisashi and Oisin. "I'm sure as shit not handing out hugs and putting Band-Aids on their boo-boos," the mage said helpfully.

  They sat on the sand side by side. The fae was dabbing blood from his face, since he'd pushed himself to the point of fucking brain damage.

  The fox didn't look much better. He was an albino. So when he went all paler like that, it was worrisome.

  "You okay?" I asked, plopping down on the sand between them.

  Oisin stared at me with an unfathomable look in his green eyes. "Lovely."

  Hisashi laughed, but his deep voice shook. "Are you okay, Gesa?" He pulled me close, using the maneuver to unobtrusively place a big hand over my stomach.

  I huffed. "I'm fine. I'm a gryphon, for fuck's sake, not a delicate fucking flower." Even though his concern did make me want to emote all over the place.

  I pulled away and gave them both a hand up. "What happened back there?"

  Oisin lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug, still princely and composed, even though he was literally drenched in blood—his and the siren's. "I pulled power from Hisashi through you and Halstad to boost my compulsion magic."

  "Like, a fuckton of power," Hisashi muttered, rubbing his solar plexus, where we all seemed to be connected.

  I blinked at them. "Never do that again." Idiots.

  Oisin tossed his long hair over his shoulder, ignoring the tangles where the blood was starting to…clot. "Never make me."

  I stared into those emerald eyes, seeing the anger there. The terror that he must have felt when he realized what was about to happen back there. It was the same thing I’d felt, seeing my entire pride about to wipe each other out. "Done."

  He nodded. "Now, let's find your kraken, love. I'm thinking that swim she's always going on about sounds quite nice right now." He plucked at his damp shirt and it made a sucking sound as it pulled away from his chest.

  I shook my head. I should be absolutely disgusted right now. But it was actually kind of hot. Seeing Oisin get stabby had a weird effect on my lady bits. Something that lethal shouldn't be so pretty.

  He smirked at me as if he knew exactly what I was thinking. I spun back to glare at the water. "Where is she?"

  We waited until the sun started to set. There was still no fucking sign of our kraken. Maybe she didn't realize we were the reason she was suddenly free. Maybe she was headed back home. I had no clue.

  "We need a boat," Halstad ground out, his gravelly voice making me jump. I had been glaring into the setting sun, willing a giant sea monster to appear while I burned my retinas.

  I sighed. "So, we have to go back and talk to the fuckface fish chicks?" I could feel them there, even now. The sirens hadn't shown themselves since I beat the hell out of them. But they were watching. Probably plotting.

  "Come on," Halstad said, heaving to his feet and holding out a hand to pull me and Hisashi up from the driftwood log where we were all sitting. "I can start a boat without a key."

  We walked the short distance to the docks, where I left Halstad and Hisashi to figure out which boat to steal. I had no clue about that shit. And Oisin was a princess. Princesses didn't drive their own boats.

  The redhead leaned against me and I wrapped an arm around him. "Are you really alright?" I asked softly, smoothing a hand over the red silk of his hair, pausing to trace the edge of one perfect, pointed ear.

  He sighed. "I will be. I just hate that I still feel…inferior."

  I squeezed him, pulling him into a real hug. His slender arms wrapped around my waist and he rested his cheek on my chest. "Stop it with the inferior crap," I muttered. "You're fine just the way you are, fae."

  He chuckled. "Oh, I know. I'm so fabulous that even on my worst day, I make other men cry in shame." Then his voice lost its teasing tone. "I still don't like it. Feeling weak."

  I rubbed a hand over his back, which was less gory than the front of him. "I know." And I did know. That's why I put up with his irrational anger, his mood swings, his snarking at Halstad constantly…. It was just Oisin's way of coping. It was actually kind of cute, when you saw it for what it was.

  Barf.

  Oisin tilted his head back and his lush lips curved upward invitingly. His words were mocking, but his eyes were full of emotion. "You do know, don't you? You know all of me, even the things I try to keep hidden away." He lifted onto his tiptoes, lips barely brushing mine. "Which is why I know we'll have those pointy-eared babies one day, no matter what I might have said."

  I might have made a sobbing sound before he pressed his lips to mine, silencing me.

  The terrible, wonderful, jackass. I crushed his lean body to mine, at a loss for words.

  Heavy footsteps on the dock made me pull back. "Aw for fuck's sake," Halstad muttered. "You lot just can't go five damned minutes without playing hide the sausage, can you?"

>   I snorted. It was a really bad time to be canoodling with my bloody fae. But hey, live while you can, right?

  Oisin straightened and preened like a peacock. "Oh do shut up, mage. You're ruining the moment." He grinned, and I knew I was going to hate what came next. "I was just asking Gesa to have my babies."

  I bit my lip to keep from shrieking. I still hadn't decided how I was going to share my little secret with Halstad. And now was definitely not the time for that. I yanked on Oisin's hair, making him wince. "Shut up!"

  Halstad just shook his head at our stupidity, his voice full of dry sarcasm. "Right. Babies. Just what this bunch of fucktards needs."

  He turned and gestured at the boat as the bottom dropped out of my stomach. Right. Well, now we knew just what he thought of that idea. Jesus, Buddha, and Odin, why couldn't I just lead a normal life?

  We piled into our stolen boat and Halstad did something with wires and magic that brought it rumbling to life. It was too small to travel far. But we didn't need to sail all the way to mainland. We only needed to find Kai. Then Hisashi could pull us all back home through the otherworld.

  Piece of cake.

  Chapter 11

  I sat in the back of our borrowed boat and tried not to puke as we cut through the waves that seemed to be trying to sink us. Gods, I hated open water.

  We were moving slowly, still hoping Kai would come to us on her own. She couldn't be too far from the Sirens' island, if she had been doing their dirty work when the spell broke. I rubbed my solar plexus, easing the odd twinge there. I didn't usually feel it there when Hisashi was using his powers, but then, he usually hadn't just been tapped out by someone else draining him.

  I glanced toward the bench seat on the other side of the boat, where Hisashi sat with his eyes closed, trying to touch Kai's link to his power, hoping she would feel him through the bond and come looking for us. I noticed Oisin was sticking close to our fox. Maybe the redheaded terror did feel some guilt about how much he'd drained the poor nine-tail after all.

  The fae caught me watching them and narrowed his eyes at me. I grinned, knowing he hated that I'd caught him being all clingy and concerned. He rolled his eyes at me and turned back to Hisashi, slipping his arm around the fox's waist and murmuring something that made Hisashi laugh softly without opening his eyes.