by Ella M. Lee
“Evie, let him look at Mark,” I said as Ryan dropped to his knees near Mark’s still form.
Ryan had already begun tearing away Mark’s shirt to see the wound. “Tell me what happened,” he said to Evie. She swallowed and haltingly told him how Mark had been impaled.
Teng had come to stand over Daniel, his lips quirking into a small frown. “It’s been a while since he’s done this. Is his pulse stable?”
“Stable, but very fast,” I said.
“He can take it,” Teng said. He cast his eyes over the crumpled heap that was the metal lion. “Huh. Now that’s something.”
He wandered interestedly toward it, and I sighed. I suppose Teng’s reaction told me something about Daniel’s condition. Even Ryan hadn’t spared him more than a glance once it was clear that he wasn’t wounded.
Sylvio immediately went to Nicolas’s side and stood near him, speaking in low tones. They had moved away from Katherine, although they were both still watching her. She hadn’t moved, still on her hands and knees, breathing fast.
Eventually, Nicolas walked toward Katherine. He stood in front of her and snapped his fingers.
“Get up,” he said and pointed to the door. “Walk out. Do not look back, or I will kill you. Do not trap me in a circle again, or I will kill you. Tell Stephan that our thin ice is now thinner.”
I watched as she followed his instructions exactly. Her walk was stiff and defensive, her magic poised but not active as she left the warehouse and walked down the dirt road and out of sight.
“Teng,” Nicolas called. “Wash the circle out of here and sweep the rest of the magic. Ryan, what’s the status on Mark?”
“I can stabilize him,” Ryan said. “I need a few minutes.”
“Syl,” Nicolas said, “take care of the lion.”
Sylvio didn’t use his Meteor magic frequently, but he’d be able to manipulate the metal better than any of us. Carefully, he began breaking apart the creature and scattering any leftover magic that had bound it, using elegant swipes of his fingers.
I went back to Daniel. He was still out cold. Alive, alive, alive, I told myself. He would experience the same miserable time as I had shortly after coming to Water and overextending myself with transmutation, but he would be fine.
Nicolas joined me at Dan’s side, dropping to his knees heavily. I realized in alarm that it was because he couldn’t keep standing. He was trembling badly, his eyes still blank and dazed.
I had so many questions for him, but I was mostly just thankful that we were all alive.
“I would love to answer all of your questions later, if that’s all right, lamb,” he said absently, checking Dan over with stiff movements.
I covered his hand with mine. I love you.
He turned his head to look at me and smiled weakly. I love you, he said, his tone soft in the corners of my mind.
With a shaky sigh, he went to where Ryan and Evie were clustered around Mark.
“I am breaking every rule by doing this, but it hardly matters anymore,” Nicolas said. “Evie, you and Mark may accompany us to our clan house under the condition that you submit to wearing magic-limiting shackles and agree to be under guard at all times. We will heal Mark and house you until such time that it is safe for you to be on your own. If you give us any trouble at all, your lives are forfeit. Do you accept those terms?”
She nodded, wide-eyed. “Yes. I accept on behalf of both of us.” She paused, pressing her bloody hands to her face. “Thank you, Nicolas.”
He didn’t respond. He was watching Sylvio deconstruct the lion. I desperately wanted to get him home. I was worried about the distant look in his eyes, his trembling, the slight twitching of his fingers.
My eyes wandered to Teng, who had dug up water from god knew where and was using it to erase the Smoke circle on the ground, as well as washing it over the area where Nicolas and the lion had fought to get rid of the blood and Water magic.
Sylvio and Teng were both done before Ryan, but eventually Ryan pronounced Mark safe to move. Evie helped Ryan lift Mark and carry him back toward the portal.
“Bring him,” Nicolas said, pointing to Derek’s body. Sylvio retrieved him and made his way back toward the portal.
Nicolas lifted Daniel in his arms.
“I can take him,” I said.
“It’s fine,” Nicolas said, and I had no desire to fight him in this state.
Teng followed us through the portal, where Keisha assessed us all with an alarmed look. I shook my head and mouthed, Later.
“Teng,” Nicolas said, “take Mark and Evie to your apartment. Shackle them and keep them under your guard. Keisha, get Irina and bring her to Teng’s place to finish healing Mark. We’ll work on the virus aspect later; we merely need him alive for now. Sylvio, put Derek’s body in our stasis locker. Ryan, Fiona, with me. Group meeting in thirty minutes. There are some things that require explanation.”
Chapter 17
“You have to stop giving yourself brain damage,” Ryan said to Nicolas.
“Brain damage?” I asked.
Nicolas was flat on his back on the floor of his apartment. He was still covered in blood and trembling. Ryan knelt by his side, his hand on Nicolas’s head.
“It’s minor,” Nicolas murmured.
“Someday, it’s going to be brain damage I can’t heal,” Ryan admonished.
“No lectures. Fix me,” Nicolas said, and Ryan sighed.
I watched as Nicolas breathed in deeply, froze while Ryan healed him, and then breathed out carefully. They repeated this ritual three times before Nicolas opened his eyes.
Ryan helped him sit up, and I liked that Nicolas looked more focused and alert now. When his eyes fell on me, he smiled, and I smiled in return.
I was seated on Nicolas’s large leather couch with Daniel’s head in my lap. He was cold and clammy, and I stroked his hair worriedly.
“He’ll wake up, right?” I asked.
Ryan and Nicolas exchanged a look.
“You were out cold for nearly twelve hours after your first transmutation,” Nicolas said. “Dan will be okay. He used to knock himself out like this frequently. He’s free of the virus, and that’s what matters. He’s a strong commander who will heal quickly.”
I plucked the trigger out of my pocket and held it out to Ryan. “Why didn’t this work?”
He took it and examined it, passing it between his hands and then sending his magic into it. “Huh. This has a small web of conductive metal inside of it. That web has been destroyed, melted.”
“Yeah, Derek used Meteor magic to destroy our phones,” I said.
“This was caught in the crossfire,” Ryan said. “I’ll have to redesign it.”
“Another thing to add to the list,” Nicolas said, sounding muted and depressed. “Ryan, check on the others and work with Teng to clear out the warehouse. See you shortly.”
Ryan understood the dismissal and left the apartment with not much more than a sympathetic grimace.
I tucked a blanket around Daniel. He looked very young all of a sudden, and my nervousness spiked even higher, sending pinpricks of coldness through my veins.
“Fiona, bring me my laptop?” Nicolas asked.
I jumped, startled. My phone was a useless brick of melted plastic and metal, and I imagined his was too.
I retrieved his MacBook and kneeled by his side, putting my arms around him gently. He was warm and solid, and I loved that he leaned into me as though he needed my touch.
He was typing into our group’s chat channel, arranging for everyone to come to the meeting room at one p.m. It was 12:40 p.m. now.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“I’m fine,” he said.
“Earlier you said you were fine, and you had brain damage!”
He let out a breathy laugh. “I was fine. I know my limits, and I trust Ryan to heal me.”
I rolled my eyes.
He fixed me with an affectionate look. “I love that you care about me.”
>
I pressed my forehead into his. “I love that you can get us through emergency situations.” I stroked his cheek. He was still trembling. “You killed Derek.”
“I did,” he agreed. “Dieu merci.”
“Are you okay with that?” I asked.
“Absolutely. He’s had it coming for years.”
Nicolas hauled himself off the floor. Slowly and stiffly, he made his way into the bathroom and turned on the shower. I drank some water and cleaned up the small amounts of blood before following him. I stopped in front of the glass wall of the shower, startled.
Sitting under the cascade of hot water, head bowed, was a huge white wolf.
Nicolas’s shape-shifting form.
Powerful Water magicians had the ability to hold an animal form of their choosing. I hadn’t explored that possibility in my magic yet, but most commanders and lieutenants had perfected forms that gave them advantages in fights.
Nicolas’s form was on theme with the rest of his life. It was an Arctic wolf and fit perfectly within his icy, snowy sanctum.
It was also terrifying. I had grown up on a farm, and seeing this wolf’s glowing golden eyes, huge fangs, and powerful muscles gave me automatic anxiety.
“Nicolas?” I whispered, afraid to move.
Slowly, he laid himself down with his head between his paws. He looked incredibly sad.
I had never really asked Nicolas about his shape-shifting form. I didn’t know how human his mind was, whether he could understand me, or how much control he had over himself as a wolf.
I took a brave step forward. Without bothering to strip my clothes off, I stepped into the shower and sat down beside him.
He put his heavy head on my thigh and whined softly, pressing himself into me. I sighed, relieved. Definitely still my boyfriend. I put a hand on him, stroking his rough fur.
“I like dogs,” I said. “You’re nothing more than a large German Shepherd.”
He pulled back, curling his lips over his large canines and letting out an impressive growl.
“Ohhh, scary,” I said, wiggling my fingers at him and smiling.
He offered an amused huff and head-butted me gently. I wrapped my arms around him, sinking my fingers into his coarse coat, then closed my eyes and sighed as water cascaded over us.
“Love you,” I whispered. “I need to know you’re okay.”
He whined again and licked my face with his long, wet tongue.
“Gross,” I said. “I hate you.”
He tilted his head at me and gave me sweet puppy-dog eyes. I was shocked that a wolf could look so adorable. I laughed.
Nicolas had always been able to make me laugh, even at my most stressed and upset. I wasn’t surprised that he could do it now too.
Before my eyes, he shifted back to his human form. He was still fully clothed, the water soaking his shirt and hair, plastering it to his skin.
“Hey, you,” I said.
He sighed, a shudder running through him. “I’m sorry, Fiona. I always have to check over that form after Ryan heals me. It feels strange and unsettling if I don’t.”
“Because it’s so tied to your sanctum?” I guessed.
“Yes. I am very much the wolf. I don’t use that form frequently, but I will miss it when my Water magic is gone. You aren’t the only one who hates losing things.”
His tone was far more broken and vulnerable than I usually heard from him. He looked completely smashed, even more so than when he’d died a week ago.
Gently, I leaned forward and brushed his hair out of his eyes. I ran my hands over his face and then undid the buttons of his shirt, stripping it off him, placing a light kiss on his lips. I didn’t mind holding myself together and being strong for him. He did it so often for me, after all.
I stood and offered him a hand. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
He held me in his arms as I stripped off the rest of our wet clothing. He was shaky and pale and had to be completely exhausted. He stilled, allowing me to wash his hair and scrub the blood off of him.
I quickly rinsed myself off, keeping my eyes on him warily. He was taking deep, even breaths with his eyes closed.
He seemed to snap back to reality when I turned off the water. The silence in the room was deafening, and all I could hear was my own rapid heartbeat. I kissed Nicolas again.
He caught my wrists gently as I placed my hands on his chest and said, leaning in, “I love you.”
“And I love you.”
He tugged me to him and held me close, his eyes adoring as they met mine. He could have died today. I could have died today. Any of us could have died today. That was becoming somewhat common, but I was still grateful that we hadn’t.
“I want nothing more than to stay like this forever,” he said quietly, “but we have work to do.”
“I know,” I said, sighing. “I fully intend on holding you later, though. You can’t escape my affection.”
He laughed weakly. “I’ll gladly be your captive, lamb.”
When Nicolas emerged from his bedroom dressed and with his hair styled, he looked normal again—calm, collected, serene. I had a feeling that was still largely a facade, but it was less alarming than his open shakiness.
He sat on the couch at Daniel’s side. He pressed a gentle hand to Dan’s head and sent the slightest trickle of magic into him.
“Ah-Ming,” he said, using Dan’s Chinese nickname.
“Uhngh?” Dan murmured, offering the strange Cantonese syllable that meant acquiescence or agreement.
My heart leapt into my throat. I was glad he was responsive. But this was Daniel we were talking about, who had torn down and rebuilt his own sanctum practically on a whim and survived. He was amazingly talented, and I loved him for it.
“Can you open your eyes for me?” Nicolas asked.
Dan’s eyes flicked open for just a second.
“You’re all right,” Nicolas said. “Your magic defended you when Mark attacked you. It transmuted to lightning and burned the virus out of you, but now you’re overextended. You’re in my apartment. Go back to sleep, and we’ll catch you up on everything later. Everything is all right for now. Nei ming m ming baak a?”
I knew these words; he was asking if Daniel understood.
“Uhngh,” Dan said again.
I knelt by Daniel for a moment and touched his cheek. “My turn to take care of you, Commander Darling.”
Dan smiled faintly. “Yeah… Fi…” he whispered.
Nicolas was studying Daniel fondly, stroking his hair comfortingly. I loved how close the two of them were; whatever annoyance Nicolas had felt toward him earlier was gone. Now more than ever, we needed to be united.
Nicolas took my hand and pulled me toward the door. Despite nearly dying, I was glad to have at least some answers to my group’s open questions, some semblance of closure when often there was none to be found.
Five minutes later, we were all assembled in the training room, seated around the large meeting table. Only Daniel and Teng were missing, the latter guarding Mark and Evie.
The mood in the room was grim and concerned. I was seated near the head of the table, across from Nicolas. Without Daniel, I was the de facto leader of his group, and if there were decisions to be made here, I would be the one to make them.
Cameron sat next to me, his long arms crossed over his broad torso. He had been reluctant to leave Teng alone with Mark and Evie, but Mark had been unconscious, and Evie had been in tears when I arrived to drag him to this meeting. I didn’t think they’d be causing trouble anytime soon.
Sylvio sat across from Cameron, his usual stern and frightening self. Ryan and Irina sat together. She was drinking coffee out of his mug, holding it tightly in her tense hands.
On Irina’s other side was Chandra, dressed in a sweatshirt and sweatpants. We had woken her up; these past few days, she’d been doing overnight work and sleeping in the daytime.
Farhad sat at the far end of the table, quiet and calm. Athena was nex
t to him, watching Nicolas carefully.
Keisha arrived last, murmuring an apology and settling in quickly next to Ryan.
Nicolas took a drink from his water bottle and launched into a succinct summary of what had happened in the warehouse. If I had been telling the story, I would have put more amazement into my words, but Nicolas did no such thing. Events like these were practically mundane to him. He recited them professionally, and everyone received them equally professionally.
“We have several problems,” Nicolas said finally. “Some harder to handle than others. Mark is our first one. Irina, please report on his state.”
She laid her palms on the table. “He’s stable. We were able to repair all organ and tissue damage. Unfortunately, the loss of blood accelerated the virus’s effect on him. We need to treat him as quickly as possible in order to save his life.”
“Excuse me,” Chandra cut in, “but are we even sure we want to save his life? He tried to kill Daniel. Nicolas had already agreed to fix him, and he attacked them for what, leverage? Let’s throw them back out. He’ll die, or Smoke will kill him, or whatever. Sorry, Fiona, no offense, but Mark is a dick.”
I shrugged, completely unsure what to feel right now. Mark was doing a stunning job of pissing me off, but despite the things I’d said to him, I was too soft-hearted to let anyone die for no reason. I hated death, and I hated killing, and I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of being responsible for his death even if he had attacked my family twice. Now that we were safe, I was reluctant to throw him out on the street so that he could die in a gutter somewhere.
“Stephan wants Mark and Evie dead,” Nicolas said. “Whatever Stephan wants, we do the opposite. For the time being, we keep them alive and well.”
“What information did Kate have for you?” Ryan asked.
Information? I looked at Nicolas, confused. He sighed.
“There is some context needed for Fiona and Keisha,” he said. “They haven’t gone through this before.”
Nicolas folded his hands in front of himself and said, “Stephan Wong-Lau is one of the three pinnacle members of Smoke Clan. He was my commander when I was with Smoke, and I worked as one of his three lieutenants. He’s been in Smoke for nearly sixty years and has been a pinnacle member for half that time. He comes from two very old, very wealthy Hong Kong families—the Wongs and the Laus—and has social and political connections all over the globe. When I told him about my mind-reading and vision abilities, he locked me in a cell for nearly a year and experimented on me.
