It made moving easier, he could lean his piddling amount of weight into it, and Rafferty was flush with success as he moved toward the lantern. Bending, he picked it up and ignored the ache in his spine. Putting his battered self into motion, all he could hope was that it wouldn’t be too complicated to get out of the mine. His heart thudding heavily in his chest and his lungs burning, Rafferty tried to find the correct path. Although he had retraced his steps twice, he eventually discovered light ahead of him.
If he had the energy, he would’ve shouted at his success, but instead he continued his painful journey, which was slow going given the pace he was capable of. Once he made it to the mouth of the cave, the first doubts crept in as he tossed the lantern aside. In front of him was a sea of trees, but he forced his foggy mind to think logically.
Charlton and Sullivan weren’t great wits, so it could not be too complicated. Putting one foot in front of the other, he simply struck out, hoping for success. Rafferty was forced to stop every few feet and rest against a tree. His ability to move was greatly hindered, and his mouth was dry as he struggled to breathe. But at least if he was going to die, it would be outside of the mine and on his own terms. That thought gave him the strength to stumble ahead.
A second later, he slammed heavily to the earth when his walking stick snapped in half. The only thing he could be grateful for was that he’d landed on his stomach instead of on his torn up back. Rafferty lay there long enough to push through his body’s demands to either throw up or pass out. Aleksander was waiting for him, he reminded himself as he braced his hands and lifted himself up—or at least he tried to. The damage to his limbs was simply too great to stand again, and a tide of hot tears swept over him. His life was going to end in the middle of nowhere because he’d waited too damn long.
No fucking way, a voice in his head demanded, and Rafferty took to crawling in order to find a road, a person, or something that resembled civilization. His knees ached, and his palms bled as the dragged himself across the ground. A rustle of fallen leaves to his side stopped him, and there was a giant black wolf staring at him. The perfect prey, Rafferty swallowed heavily. Almost sure he was hallucinating, the beast let out a woof and walked to him. Frozen in place, Rafferty didn’t even blink as the wolf sniffed him, then let out a second sound as he trotted off.
Several feet ahead, the wolf turned around and woofed for the third time, as if telling Rafferty to get a move on. He got himself back in motion, and the wolf continued to lead the way through the trees. His breath caught and he picked up his incrementally slow pace when a road showed up in the distance. The wolf ran ahead, and Rafferty let out a shout as a truck barreled out of nowhere, striking his new buddy. The beast let out a yip as he was thrown clear across the two-lane highway, and Rafferty knew the wolf that had likely just saved his life was dead. Dragging himself forward, he skittered over a patch of wet leaves, which caused him to roll down a small hill. It was simply too much to bear, and Rafferty was out cold before his body landed heavily on the asphalt.
Chapter 22
Fate wandered through the hallowed halls of her home, brushing her hands on her long gown, trying in vain to rid the ethereal fabric of the stains left behind by angry spirits. With a frown on her face, she turned the corner and nearly went back in the direction that she came from. Two of her sisters were standing there, but she’d just spent a year stuck beyond the veil and was desperate for some company, even if it was a duo she could barely stand on the best of days. When she reached them, she found the pair weeping.
“What’s wrong, Innocence? Someone losing their virginity again?” Fate asked with a snicker. The goddess did her best to keep everyone pure for their mates, which Fate thought was ridiculous. If someone wished to enjoy the call of Desire, then what was the harm?
“No,” Courage snarled. There was such pain in Courage’s silvery eyes that Fate’s humor dried up.
“What’s wrong?”
“He’s dying,” Innocence whispered. She pointed to one of the many circles in their palatial home that allowed them to peek in on any soul they wished.
“I do not recognize him,” Fate answered. Reaching out with her senses, as she tried hard to determine his identity. His face was battered, bloody, and filthy, and his essence muted. He was a shifter but what kind was undetermined, which was something she’d never come across before. “Something is not right. I cannot sense his beast. Who is this man? Are my abilities diminished after so much time beyond the veil?”
“No, sister…his beast has already crossed,” Innocence answered, her voice still so soft Fate could barely hear. “Five months ago.”
“Come now, this is a joke, right? That is not possible. When we created shifters, we didn’t grant them the ability to live apart. When a man loses his beast, he will die. Their souls are connected.”
“He survived the impossible, defying everything we know only to die now,” Courage lamented. “I helped him all I could, and his spirit is so strong, but the body is weak. His dragon cannot help him, and these doctors have harmed him further.”
“Oh, with dragon blood he would survive. His significant injuries make sense with his beast missing,” Fate said, surveying the broken man in front of her.
“What is that spirit around him?”
“A young wolf I sent to help him find rescue. He was killed and clings to his soul to help him cross.”
“You say you were looking out for this dragon, and you not only let him come to this, but an innocent wolf you sent died too?”
“I cannot do everything, Fate,” Courage growled, flinging back her blonde hair. “I won’t break the rules and find myself punished. I did bend them as much as I could. There are just some things a soul is not meant to survive. But this man endured and endured. My heart breaks for him.”
“And his mate,” Innocence added.
“He is not bonded,” Fate commented, pointing toward the man. “I sense no connection.”
“They had not the time to grow close enough to seal it. Dear Rafferty could not see the true colors of his family and left Aleksander to walk blindly into their clutches.”
A hot rage swept over Fate. “What do you mean, ‘Aleksander and Rafferty’? Surely you are not saying that man dying in that bed is Rafferty?”
Courage nodded, and her shoulders slumped. “It is the man meant to be with our High King.”
“No. No. I will not accept this. They were not supposed to meet yet. Rafferty wasn’t ready. He needed to realize the truth of his family. You fools! Damn Death. She did this on purpose. Aleksander and Rafferty are mine. From birth, Aleksander was to be special. All of you know this.”
“What would you have us do now, Fate?” Innocence asked. “We might be able to save him if you could nudge Aleksander to visit the hospital. If they bound their souls Rafferty would survive. Aleksander’s dragon blood is capable of—”
“I know very well what his blood is capable of. Did I not choose him to be the largest and give him the gold rings so everyone would realize he’s meant to be distinct?” Fate demanded. On another circular disk, she brought up the gorgeous man she’d blessed with an abundance of gifts. He was full of rejection and sadness. There was a longing for Rafferty, but his soul was too full of questions. “If I bring him to the hospital, it will mean a matebond tied without either of them being ready. I will not have Aleksander or Rafferty someday resent their connection.”
“It’s either bond them or lose Rafferty. Your choice, Fate,” Courage stated.
Before Fate could respond to her sister’s angry remark, a noise in the hall had them turning. A woman walked toward them, her black dress flowing behind her in layers of gauzy fabric and her red lips curved in a smile.
“Death, you had no right!” Fate screamed at her. “Didn’t I willingly face my punishment? Did I not wrestle those angry souls across the veil at your bidding? How dare you interfere with Aleksander and Rafferty!”
Death’s enigmatic eyes of black and smoke w
idened. “Aleksander and Rafferty?” Picking up her skirts, she raced to the viewing circles. “I didn’t interfere with them. I didn’t think they were together yet.”
“Let me catch you up. Somehow they met, even though they were not meant to, and now Rafferty is dying!”
“It’s not his time,” Death murmured, then gave a side-eyed glare to Fate. “Unlike a certain elf I know, he is not meant to cross now.”
“Oh, get over Kalthekor. I checked on him the moment I got out of your purgatory, and he’s happy. Didn’t his centaur give you enough elven souls to be happy?”
“Well, yes…until Justice barged in and snatched them all. Life was beside herself with joy rebirthing those souls,” Death groused.
“And how long ago was that? Move on. What are we going to do about this situation? Ugh, I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to your punishment.”
“Agreed? You had no choice. You broke the rules.”
“Stop fighting. It solves nothing. Go now. If I must watch Rafferty die, I will do it without your bickering in the background,” Innocence whispered.
With a dramatic roll of her eyes, Death pushed Innocence out of the way so she could stare at the circle. “I think I have a plan.”
“Fate won’t bring Aleksander here. I already thought of that,” Courage countered.
Death’s attention went to Aleksander, who was staring out at his wide swath of land. “Oh, that dragon is so gorgeous,” she commented, producing a fan made of bones and waving it. “But Fate is right. They are not ready.”
“The only damn way Rafferty can survive is with a soul tied to his. He’s too weak without his dragon to make it through the night,” Innocence contended, straightening her billowy cream-colored gown and squeezing her way between Fate and Death to watch Rafferty.
“The wolf will do,” Death said, her fan dissipating into the air.
Courage crossed her arms over her metal breastplate. “I sent him to help, but he’s already dead. You always have the stupidest ideas.”
“Don’t you have a sword to sharpen or something?” Death demanded. “Be gone.”
“If you have a plan, you need to act swiftly. He’s getting worse.”
Lifting her hands, Death splayed them in front of the circle. Black smoke flew from her fingertips, and the wolf’s spirit grew irritated. The medical professionals trying to keep Rafferty alive grew uneasy; then a woman screamed as the wolf’s spirit came into view. They ran from the bay where he was being treated, and Fate poked her sister in the side.
“Making those people leave him is only going to hasten his death, idiot.”
“Not at all,” Death remarked with a smile. “They will call in my chosen, and he’ll get the job done.”
“Look, we let you create necromancers because it amused you, but that does not make them yours. They’re on the side of the living.”
“Arch Lich Chander Daray is mine, dammit, just as the High Kings belong to you. Chander can come here and tie that wolf’s soul to Rafferty’s, saving his fucking life since you idiots messed this whole thing up.”
“Chander’s alive! He can’t be yours!”
“Mated to a dead man, Fate. Lives with even more dead men that he calls family. He certainly is mine. I made sure he was of half-demonic blood.”
“You have everyone believing he’s the wrong demonic race,” Courage pointed out. “Not your smartest move.”
“No, they don’t know, so they call him undetermined. When the Imperian gains his wings again, he will straighten out the confusion,” Death said, continuing to wind up the wolf, so he stalked around Rafferty’s bed.
“Let’s not even get into how you let the Imperian be created,” Fate muttered. Quickly turning to another circle, she ensured the man in question was still stranded. “He is capable of destroying everything we’ve built, and his abilities nearly match our own. Near the well, he is stronger than all other sorcerers put together.”
“I had no issue with the Imperian’s creation,” Courage argued. “But how she allowed the events that followed is what boggles my mind.”
“Dammit, focus on our problem,” Death demanded. “You know none of that was my fault.”
“No, I don’t know. Tell us, sister,” Fate ordered.
“Do shut up,” Death snarled.
“Let us not fight. How in the world is Chander going to know to resurrect the wolf to save Rafferty?” Innocence asked. “He has no time to gather Sorcery D’Vaire and come up with a plan—besides, there was a cost to the gifts we gave to the High Kings, and Rafferty has issues with magic. Those damn doctors brought in every druid available and have done horrific damage to him.”
“Ugh, I miss the other side of the veil already. Fewer stupid people. Didn’t I just point out Chander was mated to a dead man? Fate can nudge the living, and I can nudge the dead. Why do I have to explain this to you? Have I been away so long that you idiots forgot how powerful I am?”
“I don’t doubt your power. Didn’t I just spend over a year with you?” Fate groused.
“I have an idea to not only save Rafferty but to keep him protected in the future should he find himself in a bad situation again. Obviously, I can’t trust you fools to keep him safe. You know how I feel about D’Vaire. There is no excuse for allowing one of its High Kings to nearly die,” Death responded.
“Are you going to explain that?”
“No, Fate, I am not. You’ll see for yourself once these medical people call my Chander. You should be focusing your energy on finding out who allowed Rafferty to wind up beaten and tortured.”
Fate narrowed her eyes. “I have every intention of finding out, and when I do, the punishment will be swift and severe. There are rules we must all respect, and while bending them is quite common, there’s no excuse for what Rafferty has been through.”
“His poor soul,” Innocence said softly. “Even should he survive this day, it might not endure.”
“I know. We may wind up keeping him alive today, but his shell is so broken, I may still wind up with him on my side of the veil. The damage is grave even with this temporary fix. I will find Life and make sure she’s willing to rebirth him right away. Aleksander’s path was intended to be much different,” Death commented.
“We are likely only delaying the inevitable. A bond to a wolf is not nearly the same as the strong blood of Aleksander’s dragon,” Courage remarked sadly.
“I will need to see if I can find Rafferty’s dragon. He must have slipped over without fuss, but he must be distraught at the loss of his mate. If that damn family of his hadn’t wrecked his bond with his beast, this wouldn’t be so dire,” Death said, flexing her fingers and throwing more magic into the wolf still stalking around Rafferty’s bed.
“Rafferty and his dragon were not well-connected,” Fate responded. “That was one of the many reasons Rafferty was not yet ready to meet Aleksander. Man and beast must be fully united for a successful matebond.”
“I know that, little sister. Ah, there’s my Chander now with the lovely Alaric at his side.” Death threw a thick ball of magic at the wolf and lowered her arms to her side. “Come on Fate, I will help you find out who hurt the High King. And I must find Life. I have touched Rafferty’s soul and while his will is strong, it is very likely that even with the wolf tied to him, his body is too far gone. We need to rebirth him as soon as possible. I think considering the circumstances, we can grant him further gifts when we give him a new vessel. None of this is fair to either him or Aleksander. I am beyond furious that it might be some time before either one of them is happy again. Someone is going to pay.”
Chapter 23
“Find Alaric,” Chander demanded, hanging up the phone and grabbing his suit jacket. The two Daemon Lords who protected Chander shared a glance. A second later, Benton whipped his cloak on from wherever sentinels hid it and disappeared. “I’m glad you finally let your mate do something.”
“If I volunteered again, I might be sleeping on the sofa,” Baxter comp
lained.
“Do us a favor and don’t start whining about it,” the Arch Lich instructed. The Lich Sentinel and Benton shimmered into view a few feet from him. “I don’t have time to explain. We need to get to this hospital in Kentucky.”
The three sentinels glanced at the picture on Chander’s phone and Alaric stole a kiss, then stepped into the shadows. Chander teleported himself to the spot, and the Daemon Lords arrived a moment later. Without a word, Chander stalked down the hallway. When he turned the corner, a doctor raced toward him.
“Arch Lich, thank you so much. I didn’t know who else to call. Follow me,” the man instructed, and Chander jogged after him. Within a few feet, he understood the panic. Even though he was over six hundred years old, it was Chander’s first experience seeing an actual grayish spirit on the living side of the veil.
“What the actual fuck?” Baxter blurted out.
“I wish I knew, Daemon Lord. This man was transferred here from a human hospital after they did a blood test and discovered he was a shifter. Only we can’t discern what kind. His condition is extremely grave, and we were in the process of readying him for surgery when this wolf spirit grew enraged, forcing our staff to evacuate the room. Each second for this patient is critical.”
“I can call in sorcerers to help,” Chander said, digging into his pocket. Before he could dial, the doctor shook his head.
“We got druids from every hospital in the state in here and pumped him full of magic,” the doctor informed him, his mouth in a tight line. “He wasn’t wearing an alert bracelet, so we didn’t know he’s part of the one percent of the shifter population that is intolerant. The swelling he’s experiencing internally, thanks to our efforts, is killing him. Please, Arch Lich, is there anything you can do to calm that spirit? Our only hope is to get him in surgery and find out what can be salvaged. I’ve called in a human doctor to help us as we rarely see injuries this extensive. For whatever reason, his beast isn’t healing him, and what isn’t actively wounded is scarred. I have no idea what he’s been through, but it appears to be horrific and had to have gone on for some time.”
Heart of the High King (D'Vaire, Book 19) Page 16
