Breaking Free

by Layla Nash

  Owen grumbled from behind the door, and Nick had to fight the wolf back from responding. Nothing like having a wolf in a cage and bear guarding the door. He nodded to Kara. “I have something I’ve got to do tonight, so if you could call your boyfriend off, I’d like to be on my way.”

  “He’s more than my boyfriend, and you know it.” Kara levered to her feet and poked him in the chest. “Got it?”

  “He hasn’t asked my permission to marry you, so until there’s a ring on your finger, he’s a boyfriend—and a shitty one at that. Tell the bear to get his act together.” Nick ignored the increased growling from the hall. He meant it, even if it pissed the bear off. He didn’t like the easy-peasy mate thing. His sister deserved a real commitment, and more than just a kid with a scarred psyche.

  Kara shook her head as she walked to the door. “That’s not the way to get on my good side, Nick. I love him, and that’s that.”

  The wolf growled but Nick left it alone. He just needed her to unlock the door.

  She still hesitated, peering at his eyes, but eventually Kara gathered up the tray and the few leftover scraps, and nodded at Owen. The bear didn’t look happy as he unlocked the door, but at least he did what Kara told him to do.

  Nick had to play along for another few hours, going back to the gym to exercise a bit in front of the alpha bear to make sure Kaiser knew the wolf had retreated, but he planned and plotted his next moves regardless of how the clock ticked down and the other bears watched him. He didn’t mind most people thinking him crazy. He only cared that Lacey knew he was sane.

  He slipped away from the bears after they all headed off to have dinner with their happy little families; Kara tried to guilt him into eating with Owen and the crazy polar bear, but Nick declined and returned to his little den in the back of the building. No one stopped him. He wanted to shift forms and run through the woods until he dropped from exhaustion, but instead, he put on clean jeans and a nondescript shirt and headed into the city.

  He found Hugo in the back corner of his favorite bar. Nick’s skin crawled from the moment he walked in, and he felt the eyes following him as he headed for the back. The place was full of magic, but not the shifter variety, and not the witch variety either. Must have been fae, like Nick. He made a mental note to avoid the bar in the future. The other occupants didn’t seem too pleased to have a shifter crash the party.

  Hugo poured something from a carafe into a small glass, inhaling from it before sipping, and waited for Nick to sit. “Glad you could find the courage to meet me here.”

  “Looks like every other bar in the city,” Nick said. He glanced at a menu, but knew better than to take food or drink from the fae. He didn’t want to wake up years from then in a fairy circle, or end up trapped in the Betwixt as someone’s love slave. He frowned at the ceiling. Well, the second didn’t sound half bad... He shook himself and turned his attention back to the irritated leprechaun. “I take it you found something? Or someone?”

  “He’s there.” Hugo poured more of the slightly cloudy liquid, the concoction giving off an intoxicating scent that almost drew Nick into ordering some. Or just stealing what remained of Hugo’s. “But he’s trapped.”

  “How? What trapped him?”

  “It is not entirely clear what magic keeps him there,” Hugo said, though he took his time formulating the sentence. Nick hated that about the fae—there were always traps in their words. You could never trust what they said, not with the hidden meanings and twisty turns of phrase. “There is a human as well. Both of them are trapped by the same magic.”

  Nick frowned. The mostly-human alpha of BadCreek, maybe. He hadn’t been born a shifter, but had been turned. “Do you know anything else about how they’re stuck? A charm or a spell or what?”

  “It was foreign magic,” Hugo said. “Something I haven’t seen before. I didn’t get any closer to figure out what it was, but you’ll need someone powerful to free him. If they can.”

  It sounded like perhaps the djinn helped out Ray, since that was the only magic that Nick knew was going on inside the BadCreek compound. But until someone got a lot closer, he wouldn’t know for sure. Nick rubbed his jaw and squinted at a few more of the bar’s customers. “How much would it take for you to get closer and maybe free him?”

  “You don’t have enough gold,” Hugo said. He finished his drink, head tilting back as he savored it, and the leprechaun dabbed at his mouth with a napkin before leaving a few dollars on the table. “No one in this city has enough gold for me to risk it.”

  “Is there anyone here who’s crazy enough to do it?” Nick had a few people he could ask, although he really didn’t want to. He’d been done with witches the last time he worked with them. They gave him the creeps in the worst way.

  Hugo shrugged. “No one I know.”

  And that was apparently as helpful as the leprechaun cared to be. A growl escaped before Nick could get the wolf under control again, and Hugo’s expression darkened. The leprechaun got to his feet and glanced around the bar before he spoke. “Just keep in mind that whoever you send after him had better be strong enough to deal with the monster capable of binding the ErlKing against his will. Anything less and you’ll end up in a worse position than he is.”

  With that, Hugo sauntered out of the bar, only distracted by a beautiful violet-haired nymph for a moment. She distracted Nick a hell of a lot longer, but not enough to turn his attention from Lacey. Nick liked to think he only appreciated the beauty of a feminine form, with no intention of actually doing anything about it. Besides, the nymph had sharp, pointed teeth and probably wanted to rip out his throat while he slept, so it was better not to get too distracted.

  A queasy feeling brewed in the pit of Nick’s stomach as he left the bar, and he double-checked to make sure he hadn’t touched any of the food or drink. Something wasn’t right. As much as he didn’t blame Hugo for not wanting to risk his skin against whatever trapped Smith, Nick dreaded reaching out to the witches for their help. Life would have been a lot simpler if the leprechaun was the cheerful, helpful kind instead of the surly asshole type.

  Nick walked away from the fae bar and headed for downtown, hoping that maybe Lacey wandered through the bar district two nights in a row, and checked his phone for messages from Kara. The hair on the back of his neck prickled, and the wolf quieted, growing wary. Something definitely wasn’t right. He hesitated, about to return to the bears’ den to wait it out, but a distinctive howl rose in the distance, followed by a hyena cackle.

  The hyenas.

  He ran for the den, foreboding crawling up his spine. Lacey. Lacey was in trouble, the wolf was sure of it. Nick almost crashed into some of the wolves from O’Shea’s, snarling as he tried to throw Rafe out of his way, but the alpha stood his ground. He and Ruby tackled Nick and threw him into an alley, fighting to pin Nick as the wolf raged to the surface and clawed for control. Nick roared and broke free, getting only a few steps before Rafe dove at his legs, and then at least half a dozen wolves helped pin Nick down.

  He bared his teeth at the alphas as Ruby knelt next to his head and smacked his cheek. “Release me. Immediately.”

  “Listen to me, wolf,” Ruby said. Her eyes glowed gold, and some of that alpha magic gave her more influence than he expected. The wolf quieted in his head just a touch, because at least Ruby had always been a straight shooter. More barks and cries echoed from the hyena den, and Nick tensed. Ruby grabbed a handful of his shirt to help pin him to the dirty concrete. “The bears are on their way, Nick. Keep your shit together. I have something to tell you, but you’ve got to keep yourself together.”

  He already knew. The wolf already knew. A howl bubbled up in his chest and nearly escaped, but he needed to hear it. Nick bared his teeth. “Say it. Just say it.”

  “The hyenas made a run at BadCreek,” Ruby said. “Lacey Szdoka is dead.”

  The wolf’s howl broke free, tearing him apart from the inside out, and Nick launched up, throwing off the restraining hands. La
cey couldn’t be dead. It wasn’t possible. Through the red haze of fury and grief, he saw the bears lumber up and knew they meant to stick him in a cage again.

  He couldn’t help Lacey from a cage. She had to be alive. She still lived. He would have died himself if she did; something had gone wrong, there was no doubt about that, but she lived. Nick snarled and dodged Rafe’s attempt to restrain him, and instead shed what remained of his humanity to assume his wolf form. He could find her. If she’d been near the compound, he could skulk in the woods until he found her. Any traces left behind would lead him to her.

  He bolted, dodging around the wolves and bears and even a lion that tried to stop him, and fled. He’d find her. Wherever she was, he’d find her.

  Chapter Eleven

  Lacey

  It didn’t feel like dying. I’d gotten close a few times, when my sister trapped me so she could take over for Mother, so I knew I wasn’t dead. There hadn’t been enough pain and fear.

  But it wasn’t living. It felt... suspended.

  I thought I could already see, though I forced my eyes open and really saw. It was a gray place, with the potential for so much more. I sat on something and looked around, searching for a hint of what the hell happened. The last thing I remembered was a star-filled night compressing around me until everything shrank down into a tiny dot of misery. Then nothingness. Before that, the hyenas raided BadCreek and broke through the fence, and...

  The pack. I bolted upright and tried to stand, searching for a way back to the real world. Whatever the hell this was, it couldn’t keep me from getting back to my people.

  “We have much to discuss before you leave, little pup.”

  The smooth voice sent chills down my spine, and I turned to face the man who appeared out of a cloud of smoke. I blinked; he hadn’t been there before. He definitely hadn’t been there before. Maybe I was in a coma and hallucinated all of this shit. This could have been a product of a hangover and grief. I’d had really messed-up dreams after Cal died.

  The man’s olive skin was faintly blue-tinged, more so with the casual, loose-fitting neutral clothes he wore. It looked like linen trousers and shirt, which was an absurd choice for the climate and because of wrinkling... I paused and tried not to stare. He didn’t have a single wrinkle anywhere on him. That in and of itself convinced me he was magic.

  I shook myself and got ready for a fight. “Where the hell am I?”

  “This is an... alternate place.” He gestured airily and a cascade of sparks ignited around his nails, drifting in a mesmerizing pattern as he waved his hand. “We are waiting until we are summoned from the other side.”

  Other side? I gripped my head and whirled, searching for any hint of how to get back to my pack. They needed me. What if the raid failed and they were all captured by BadCreek? What if I’d been captured by BadCreek and this was some weird new project of theirs? “Let me go. I’ll make it worth your while.”

  He snorted, carefully twisting long dark hair back from his face. Sharp green eyes studied me, made more predatory by a beak of a nose. “Believe me, girl, you’re not my type.”

  I frowned. “What the hell is this place? Who are you?”

  “Many questions for someone who has no way to pay for the answers,” he said. “This is an in-between place, as I said. And you may call me Iskander.”

  “Isk-what?”

  “Iskander,” he repeated, not a hint of amusement in his eyes. I re-thought my strategy; pissing him off probably wasn’t the best idea, particularly when the hyena retreated from anything to do with this in-between place. “My mother named me after the one you called Alexander. The Great.”

  “You’re shitting me,” I said. “What are you?”

  The striking green eyes narrowed. “You are rude, even for one of the animals.”

  And that was it. The silence stretched as he continued to watch me, and I finally pushed to my feet. Maybe there was a way out that he wasn’t going to tell me about. I needed to get free and start exploring, and eventually my nose would lead me home. I could always find home again. I only made it about ten feet before I ran into an invisible wall, smashing my knee and face into it at a near-run. I bounced back and fell on my ass, stars practically spinning around my head.

  “You cannot break out of here,” he said, and for the first time, some emotion colored his words. Resignation, maybe, or a hint of sadness. “Believe me.”

  “What the hell is going on? Am I trapped here?”

  Iskander shrugged and gestured again, and instead of the gray expanse stretching in every direction, a beautiful landscape of trees and hills and mountains spread around us. “Here can be anywhere I like. I just can’t leave.”

  I shook my head, staring at him, then turned in a slow circle as I surveyed the surroundings. It had to be some kind of magic. “Are you…are you the djinn?”

  “Yes,” he said. Those green eyes flashed, and I wondered if he had magic himself or only through his surroundings. Where the hell was the lamp? Didn’t genies end up trapped in lamps and things like that? His expression soured as he watched me. “This is not inside the lamp; do not fear.”

  “Sorry,” I said. As if he could read my mind. I pushed against the invisible wall, trying to breathe normally. I couldn’t panic, or I’d never get out of there. He clearly knew how to move from where we were to the real world, and I needed that knowledge. “What happened? Why am I here now?”

  “I brought you here,” he said. Iskander didn’t blink, flicking his fingers so a chair materialized next to me. “We have much to discuss.”

  The hyena started paying attention. We didn’t like the sound of that at all. I held onto the back of the chair, not quite ready to commit to sitting just yet. “I’m listening.”

  “Something happened, not long ago. Or perhaps it was quite long ago, I don’t know. Time moves differently here. The one I answer to, Ray, disappeared. He used his second wish for a charm that could disable even the strongest of magical creatures, and tried to use it.” Iskander frowned. “He has not summoned me since. I believe he is stuck somewhere.”

  I rubbed my jaw and took a deep breath. “Yeah. He disappeared with the ErlKing several months ago, and we haven’t heard from either of them. Stuck is probably the right word for it.”

  The djinn shook his head, eyes glinting. “Then I am stuck as well. He has one wish left, and until that is fulfilled, I cannot be freed of him.”

  “I’m surprised he hasn’t wished himself free from wherever he is,” I said under my breath. My head ached from running into the invisible wall. It would have been nice to wish myself free of that, although Iskander didn’t look like the kind of guy who appreciated that kind of glibness.

  “He has not, or at least has not said so where I can hear.” The djinn stared up at the void that should have been the sky, but was only that colorless nothingness that first surrounded us. He waved and it became the night sky, but the stars were randomly strewn across the dark velvet night. “Which presents a problem. I must be free of him.”

  “I wish you were free,” I said, and braced for some kind of reaction.

  “That’s not how it works.” Iskander frowned at me, as disapproving as my third-grade teacher. “Someone must deal with him—either kill him or free him—before I can serve another. And I am finished serving others. I wish to be free.”

  Didn’t we all. I folded my arms over my chest, sensing a hint of why he might have dragged me away from the forest and the pack. “Am I supposed to be your replacement? You trap me here and that frees you?”

  “That is also not how this works,” he said. He sounded bored, as if he’d had this conversation before, but I wasn’t about to let a single option pass by unexamined. There had to be a solution for both of us, or at least for me. “You are in control of the animals who attack the master’s compound and his people. You can find a way to free or kill the master, and I will be free. If I serve you, you can free me. It is very simple, really.”

  �
��Simple,” I repeated. “Except for the part where I have to find and kill Ray, without knowing where he is or if he still has that charm you made for him. What do I get out of the deal?”

  “Other than the obvious of being freed from this place?” Iskander leaned forward, elbows balanced on his knees, and his gaze hardened. “You desire to free some of the animals from the compound, yes? I have watched your people try the fences again and again. There is something inside those walls that you desire. I can provide that for you. One wish. Then you free me.”

  I started to pace, though I kept one hand on the invisible wall so I could follow the long curve and not smash my knee or face again. “What happens when you are freed?”

  He gave me a dark look. “I would hardly know that, would I? Seeing as how I am still trapped here.”

  He had a point. I held up my hands. “Fair enough. Just…you’re not going to blow up the city or go on some kind of a rampage, murdering innocent civilians or anything, right?”

  “I don’t believe I would do that.”

  I frowned. He didn’t sound particularly confident in that assessment. But neither of us had much to go on. “So what guarantees do you have that I won’t just take the wishes and do what I want, and not free you?”

  “Your word.” Iskander scowled, and a cloud of smoke billowed up from around him, dark and viscous with anger. “So you can understand my wariness.”

  “All you’ve got is my word, and all I’ve got is your word.” I took a deep breath. “Great. But how the hell am I supposed to find Ray when I’m trapped here with you?”

  Iskander played with the smoke, wrapping it around his fingers, and I started to wonder what he did with all the time spent waiting. He’d clearly been there a while. It was a small miracle he wasn’t a totally raving lunatic, although only time would tell. The djinn gestured and the smoke formed itself into a door in the space between us. “I have learned how to bring people to me, and send them away. I am stuck, but that does not mean you are.”