by Lexi Blake
“Can I help?” I asked, glancing to where Danny stood near a massive tree. Kelsey had found an overturned log she was using as a couch as she proved she didn’t have my husband’s issues with digestion. She was tearing through her second sandwich. I would have considered the thick ham and butter concoction a full meal, but it was merely a snack for our wolf, and that would be a problem if we didn’t find more food soon.
“I think he’ll be fine,” Dev assured me. “There’s some wild ginger around here. I’ll have him chew some and we’ll get him back on track. It won’t take long. Rest while you can, my goddess.”
I watched as he walked back to join his partner.
Worry ate through me. I could feel it in every part of my body. It was all threatening to fall apart. I was on a plane I didn’t understand, and my daughter was in trouble. We were all in trouble because Myrddin obviously had plans for us. Even when I somehow managed to find a way home, we would have to deal with the most powerful wizard to have walked the planes.
I had gotten used to safety, to normalcy. This whole event had been a brutal reminder that the world could change on a dime, and no matter how safe I feel, it is an illusion.
The fight, it seems, never ends.
I started to move toward where Kelsey sat, but I noticed Dean leaning against a tree, facing away. He’d been quiet while guiding us through the forest, only speaking to point out a danger here or there. I wanted to be thrilled with the adventure, but too many lives were on the line. I’d focused on putting one foot in front of the other rather than the miraculous forest around me.
I hadn’t paid much attention to our young friend, either. Now I sought to remedy that problem because Dean had lost a lot today.
Danny and Dev were angry about what had been done to them, but they could handle it. It certainly wasn’t the first time they’d been betrayed, and they had each other to lean on.
Dean was so young, and there was an optimism about him, a light the world hadn’t had the chance to put out yet. If he was left alone, then the dimming would likely begin, and I didn’t like that idea.
My sons were safe at home. If there was one thing I was sure of it was that the minute they understood Danny and I were missing, my friends would circle around my children. My dad would likely have taken them back to his place, Albert in tow, or he would have stayed in the penthouse to give them a sense of normalcy.
Someone was watching over my babies. No one was watching over Dean. He was out all alone in the brutal world when he’d thought he was part of a group.
“Hey,” I said, cautiously approaching him.
His hand came up, wiping over his face, and his eyes were tinged with red as he turned to me. “Yes, Zoey? Or should I call you Your Highness?”
I shook my head. “Just Zoey is fine. I don’t have a crown out here. Honestly, I don’t much like the whole highness thing. I prefer my name. Anyway, I wanted to check in and see how you’re doing. You haven’t eaten much today.”
“Not that hungry,” he replied. “Must be the aftereffects of having a stone pulled out of my brain. Kelsey showed me. It was weird. It’s been in there all this time. I guess Erna lied about having to be aware.”
“I think she’s proven to be pretty sneaky. Or used a similar method to how my husbands were placed in thrall.” I needed to ask him some questions, but there was something even more important than answers right now. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“I know. It was her fault. I am well aware of that fact.” His jaw tightened. “I’ll be honest. If I hadn’t seen the proof myself, I wouldn’t have believed it. I thought I was important to Erna. I thought we were this weird little family.”
And I was sure that having grown up a human in a world filled with vampires had made him feel like an outcast no matter how loved he’d been. I knew all about finding an odd family. I knew how much it could hurt when one of them betrayed you.
“I don’t think it was the fact that Kelsey could show you the stone that made you believe. You felt different, and that’s what’s going to get you. That’s what’s going to make you angry with yourself. You’re going to tell yourself you should have known but you couldn’t.”
He stared at the tree behind me. “It was so easy to understand once that thing was out of my head.”
“Yes, but it was in your head and it was subtle,” I pointed out. “It’s one of those things that if she didn’t push you too hard, no one would have ever caught. Especially if she got to you early. Summer might not have had enough time to truly get to know you. Did Erna ever go home with you?”
“Only once. She seemed to prefer staying here. But my mom and dad wouldn’t let me leave if they didn’t meet her.” He seemed to realize what he’d said, and I got a glimpse of the boy he’d been before he settled into a stubborn expression. “Not that they could have stopped me. I’m a man now. I can do as I please. At least as long as I’m not under the influence of the thrall stone.”
Ah, there was a bit of rebellion in the kid. It had probably been exactly what Erna was trying to avoid. I didn’t mind a handful. I was used to it. The being who could kill Myrddin would have to be strong, and that didn’t usually go hand in hand with total obedience.
“Of course you are, but it’s nice to have people who love you.” I had to treat Dean carefully or we could lose him. We were about to go back to the plane where he’d grown up. It would be so easy for him to let it all go and tell fate to fuck off. Being fooled could play hell on anyone’s confidence. “What I’m trying to explain is that stone is subtle. Your parents didn’t realize anything was wrong because the stone only affected you in one part of your life—your relationship with Erna. It was the same with my husbands. They weren’t affected at all unless the wizard who put the stone there was involved. You can’t let guilt eat you up.”
His eyes finally met mine and I saw his confusion. “Why do I feel guilty? I know on an academic level that none of this was my fault. It was done to me, but I can’t help but think I should have known something was wrong.”
“Because you’re human and it’s kind of what we do,” I replied with utter sympathy. This was a hard lesson to learn, and I knew centuries-old beings who hadn’t mastered the skill yet. “Believe me. I know how this is going to go with my husbands. Dev will be rational and forgive himself because he’ll know there was nothing he could do, and my Danny will internalize it for a very long time until it threatens to drag him under. Be Dev, not Danny.”
That actually got a little smile from the kid. “I’ll try.” He sobered again. “This wizard…one of the things I remembered about the prophecy was the wizard. Do you think it’s the same one? Kelsey called him Satanspawn. The witch who prophesized my future mentioned the spawn.”
“Yes, I do believe that. How much has Kelsey told you about Myrddin?” I knew she hadn’t spent much time with the kid, but she’d managed to figure out how important he was.
“Not much, though I know the legends. Kelsey told me Nimue is with him. Some of the witches who trained me worship her.”
I would bet Kelsey didn’t want to scare the kid off, but I thought we’d moved past that now. “Yes, Nimue is with him, but I think he did the same thing to her. I’ve known Nim for a long time, but she’s changed radically. I think she’s in his thrall the same way Dev and Danny were. It’s imperative if we’re going to deal with Myrddin that we get Nimue back on our side.”
“So we’re not merely dealing with one badass wizard,” Dean said with a huff. “We’ve got to handle the most powerful witch on all the planes, too.”
I had to be honest with him about how bad this could get. And how important he was. “Dean, on the Earth plane there’s a prophecy that only two beings can kill Merlin Satanspawn. He arranged the death of one of those two beings. The other was a child not yet born. He had a Planeswalker take his mother off world.”
“Me.” He nodded. “I’m the reason my mother was kidnapped. It wasn’t because she’s a consort.”
&n
bsp; I knew all about that. “Trust me. Her chances of disappearing and never being heard from again were high because she has that glow. But the reason she came on the demon’s radar was Myrddin. I think the reason we ended up coming through that portal was to find you, Dean. To find you and Summer and bring both of you home with us.”
“Because I’m the only one left who can do it. Myrddin killed the other one.”
This ethical quandary was what Kelsey had been trying to avoid. Yes, Myrddin had killed Lee Owens, but his soul now abided in another body—my son’s. I wanted to throw this whole thing on Dean so my son never once had to think about getting involved. But Dean had a mom, too. One who loved him. He had a dad who, like Daniel, hadn’t had a real part in his conception, but who was still his loving father. He was a young man who wanted to do good, and I couldn’t lie to him. I couldn’t become the second strike in his day. “Fate is a funny thing. The man he killed was reincarnated, and he’s growing up in the same household Myrddin resides in now.”
Dean’s eyes went wide. “Are you saying there’s a child who can kill him?”
“One day.” Even saying the words made my heart pound. “He’s my son. His name is Lee Donovan-Quinn and he’s human. He’s only eleven years old and he’s so special. I’ll be honest. I don’t know if he can still hurt Myrddin. I’m not completely sure that the prophecy is still in play or if it was only about the Lee he used to be, but I do know if Myrddin ever found out where that soul is…”
Dean’s shoulders straightened and the guilt in his eyes was gone, replaced with a steely confidence. “He won’t. Your son doesn’t have to test it. I was born to save the Earth plane. I’ve known it since that day at the fair. Your Highness, I won’t let you down.”
“Just like that?” His bravery, the goodness coming off this young man, moved me to tears.
“You forget I can read intentions,” he said softly. “At least I can read the intentions of those who don’t have me under a thrall stone. Would you let me read yours again? I would need you to think specifically about me and the prophecy.”
“Of course.” I would do anything to let this young man know he could trust me. “Please, do what you need to.”
He merely smiled. “And that’s all I need to know.”
“Dean, it’s okay.”
He shook his head. “Nah, I’ve been told I’m a little on the rough side. I won’t put you through it again. I just needed to know you would let me. I know it sounds dumb, but hearing I really do have a cause makes me feel better. Two whole prophecies can’t be wrong. When I realized Erna lied to me, I wondered if the witch at the fair lied, too.”
“You have to wonder if everyone is lying. That’s smart, Dean, but I promise I won’t. Kelsey won’t.”
“I won’t what?” Kelsey seemed to have finished her…I wouldn’t call it lunch because we’d already had that. Her second lunch, which would be followed by pre-dinner. I wish I had her metabolism.
“You won’t lie to Dean,” I said. “If he comes with us, you’ll take care of his physical training and Sarah will take over his magical training.”
A brow rose over her brown eyes. When she gave me that look, I could see her father plainly. “Have we thought about the fact that Myrddin might not like hanging with the dude who can kill him?”
“Well, I wasn’t going to introduce them,” I replied, though it was a problem. “I also hadn’t thought about the fact that I don’t know what Myrddin will do when he inevitably realizes Danny and Dev are no longer in thrall.”
“I’ll take care of Myrddin,” Dean said with the confidence of youth. “I know you think I need training, but I’ve been working on some battle magic…”
“You’re not ready,” Kelsey and I managed to say at exactly the same time.
Dean stepped back, his hands held up. “Whoa. Way to mom me, ladies.”
I rolled my eyes, but not before I noticed Kelsey’s flush. She wasn’t used to the whole mom thing yet, but she would get there. And this conversation had done two things—it made me comfortable with Dean, and it made me understand that protecting him was going to be hard.
We had to get him back to the Earth plane without rousing Myrddin’s suspicions. We had to figure out how to handle him. Somehow I didn’t think Myrddin was going to accept Daniel banishing him with good grace. Then there was the fact that he’d spent the last decade making friends with the same demons we were going to have to negotiate with.
And we had to handle all of it until Dean was ready to do whatever he was going to do.
My children were on another plane of existence and they had no idea where we were.
I forced myself to take a deep breath. All I could do was put one foot in front of the other and keep moving. I could hear Dean and Kelsey talking about training plans, but they seemed distant to me.
It felt like something was pressing on my chest. My brain went foggy and I had to breathe. My children were on another plane. They were vulnerable to our greatest enemy.
“Your Highness?” Kelsey’s eyes had gone wide. “You’re pale. Are you all right?”
I wasn’t all right. How could I possibly be all right? It all seemed to slam into me, and I wondered if this was Erna’s doing. Was she somewhere in this forest working a spell that made it so I couldn’t breathe?
We were trapped on a foreign plane and we didn’t have Daniel’s blood. If one of us was injured, we couldn’t take a sip of the king and heal.
If Daniel was injured…
“Hey, baby.” Daniel was suddenly standing in front of me, his hands on my shoulders. “I need you to take a long breath with me.”
I shook my head. He didn’t understand. “I can’t breathe, Danny.”
His face tightened with emotion and he stared me straight in the eyes. “Yes, you can. You can breathe. Breathe with me.”
“It’s a spell. Someone’s attacking me.” I could feel it in my chest.
“No, baby. It’s definitely an attack, but it’s not one from the outside,” Danny insisted. His hands stroked down my hair before he pulled me into his arms. “It’s an anxiety attack. Breathe with me.”
I didn’t have anxiety attacks. I had stared down some of the worst moments a person could survive and not flinched.
Except for that one moment. That moment when they’d told me Danny was dead the first time. When the police officer had knocked on my door and I’d thought it was Danny coming home late with our takeout and…
“Breathe with me,” Danny whispered. “I can really feel my breath for the first time in almost twenty years. Breathe with me, Z. We can get through this.”
“Breathe with us.” Dev was at my back, surrounding me and completing our circle. “The kids are going to be okay and we will get back to them. We’re going to be all right, my goddess.”
“Whatever happens, we’ll get through it together,” Danny promised.
I hadn’t realized I was shaking until they’d put their arms around me. I held on to them as I took that first long breath, tears clouding my eyes.
I had so much to lose. So fucking much. But I also had so much love and loyalty around me. I wasn’t alone.
“It’s all right.” Danny’s lips caressed my forehead. “It’s going to be all right.”
I clung to them for a moment, needing to feel them all around me. “I’m sorry. We don’t need me to break down right now.”
“Don’t you dare apologize,” Dev replied, nestling his head next to mine. “We’re all worried, and none of us has wanted to talk about it. None of us wants to deal with the fact that we’re facing an unknown future. We have no idea the plans Myrddin has made, and Daniel and I will be walking a tightrope when we return. But we will return. We will fight.”
“And we will win,” Danny vowed.
I felt my heart rate tick down slightly. I wanted to apologize again. I hated that I’d lost my cool, but I had the feeling Dev would take exception, and Dean didn’t need to see how spanky my Fae hubby could get.
“Uhm, Your Highness, Kelsey hears something coming,” Dean said quietly.
“It’s high pitched.” Kelsey was standing closer to the path we’d been on before we’d stopped for this break. Dean had walked us down a narrow path that he’d promised led to the door to the Vampire plane. “It’s definitely not natural.”
I looked to Danny out of pure habit.
“Sorry, baby.” He stepped back, my hand in his. “My ears, unfortunately, are perfectly human, and all I hear is insects humming.”
“I can hear it.” Dev went to join Kelsey. “She’s right about the high pitch. It sounds mechanical. I would say it’s man made.”
Dean started to jog toward the path. “It’s vampire made. I think you’re hearing hoverbikes coming this way. They can’t use cars off plane because they work with gravity and for some reason it’s slightly different on each plane, but the bikes work. I’m going to see if I get anything off them.”
“You can do that from a distance?” Kelsey asked. “Though they are getting closer every second. Those suckers are fast.”
“I don’t want Dean to put himself in danger.” My hands were still shaking a bit, but Daniel and Dev had done their job. They’d brought me back to them. I was calmer, though apparently we were in danger again.
“I’ll be with him.” Dev crossed the ground between them and followed as Dean got closer to the path. “I can hide us all very quickly if we need to.”
Dean went still. “Oww. Someone’s wearing shields.” Dean turned toward us. “But someone doesn’t have to. I know that brain. It’s the earthbound vampire guy who tried to get me to gut myself. Can we not do that again?”
Marcus? Marcus was coming? But Marcus…the last time anyone had seen Marcus, he’d been with Summer. He’d gotten hauled off with my baby.
Danny’s hand squeezed in mine, and I could see he was thinking the same thing.
Summer might be here. She might be on one of those bikes. She was on one of those bikes. I suddenly knew it. I don’t know why. Maybe it was desperate hope. Maybe it was a prayer to the universe that one thing went right that day, but I knew I had to catch her. I couldn’t let those hoverbikes get by me.
