by Quinn Loftis
“It’s the mode in which Liam focuses his complete attention on obtaining what it is he wants,” Aston answered.
“Apparently, what he wants is Gabby,” Elias finished.
“I don’t think he could handle her,” Tara said. “She’s a force to be reckoned with.”
Liam suddenly turned around and started walking backward as he looked at them. “That’s exactly why I want her. She’s a woman worth having, for good,” he said.
“She’s also crazy as hell,” Tara told him.
Liam just shrugged. “That’s even better.”
She sighed. “Why do I have a feeling this isn’t going to end well?”
“Chin up,” Aston said. “At least it will be entertaining for us.”
“There is that,” Elias agreed.
Tara sighed again, and Elias chuckled as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I missed you,” he told her.
She looked up at him, her eyes wide and her lips turned up just a bit. “Me, too.”
“Good.” He grinned unrepentantly as she pinched him.
Tara couldn’t help but look between Liam and Gabby. Once they’d gotten a table for lunch, the two sat across from each other, and Tara felt like she was at a tennis match.
One of the pair would volley a verbal jab, only to have it hit back at them with a retort from their opponent. It was kind of fascinating how they didn’t even seem to think about what they were going to say.
“How come Ra has never mentioned you?” Liam asked.
“Why would Ra mention me?” Gabby returned. “Ra and I don’t sit around and shoot the breeze. We’ve got other things to shoot. For instance, over-conceited, butt-munches like you.”
Tara winced, wondering if Liam was going to finally lose his cool.
“Sweetheart, you could try, but you’d never hit your mark,” Liam challenged.
“I’m pretty sure I’d have no problem,” Gabby said. “All I’d have to do is line up some pretty girls. You’d stop in your tracks and be easy pickings.”
Liam’s lips turned up a bit. “It takes more than a pretty girl to catch my eye.”
“Oh yeah? Like what?” Gabby asked.
“Like a woman who knows her mind and isn’t afraid to speak it. A woman who’s as fiery as her beautiful hair. A woman who can hold her own against me.”
Tara waited to see what Gabby would say, but the girl finally seemed speechless.
After a few seconds, she said, “Well, all right then. Have fun with that. I’m out.” She turned to Tara. “I’ll see you out there, yeah?”
Tara nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Gabby grabbed her tray of unfinished food and marched over to the trash receptacle. Liam’s eyes followed. He didn’t turn his attention back to the rest of them until Gabby was out of the dining hall’s doors.
“That was interesting,” Tara said.
Liam’s lips turned up into a wicked grin. “That woman was made for me.”
“And on that note”—Tara said as she stood up—“I think it’s time for all of us to get back for the rest of our training.”
Once out on the field, Elias gave Tara a toe-curling kiss and then jogged off to his group. Tara walked over to Gabby, who was pacing back and forth and talking to … well … no one. At least no one Tara could see.
“Hey, Gabby. You okay?” Tara asked cautiously. In her experience, it was always wise to take great care when approaching a person talking to themselves.
“Yep, totally awesome,” Gabby said a little too cheerfully.
“Is Liam getting to you?”
“Is Liam the ridiculously fine blond god who needs his balls kicked up into his throat?”
Tara snorted. “That’s the one.”
Gabby shook her head. “He’s not bothering me a bit.”
“Uh-huh,” Tara said slowly. “You’re just pacing and talking to yourself because you aren’t at all agitated.”
“Spot on, newbie. I am fan-freaking-tastic. Let’s do this.”
“What exactly are we doing?” Tara asked.
“We’re going to fight like badass chicks and, if we feel the need, possibly imagine our opponent is a certain someone we want to kick the crap out of.”
Tara’s brow rose. “Yeaaaah, I don’t think I’m on board with that.”
“Tough titty. Put on your big-girl magic panties and get ready.” Gabby stopped pacing and started bouncing on her feet and punching the air as if she were Rocky.
Great. I’m about to become imaginary Liam fodder.
“All right,” Zuri hollered as she approached. “Let’s see what you guys got. Then we will begin instructing you on your fight technique and giving you pointers. Get to it!”
Gabby ran at Tara full force. All Tara could think was she was about to know what it meant to have her ass handed to her. It was an experience to which she was not accustomed. For the first time since her protection spell dissipated, Tara wished she was invincible once again.
“Jax,” Zuri hollered as she headed back out to the training grounds. She loved him, and that was the main reason she was about to ream his ass.
He stopped, his shoulders visibly tense, and turned to look at her.
“Don’t glare at me,” she snapped as she stepped right up to his chin, because that’s where her face reached. “You know you’re wrong. You can’t stand on the sidelines. You were the one who gave the speech about students not letting their prejudices get in the way. Well, way to be an example there, champ.”
“I’ve been alive a lot longer than those students and have had a very long time to become set in my ways, Zuri. It’s going to take a while,” he said, his voice a deep rumble. He spoke softly, which clued her into the fact that he was indeed ashamed of how he’d acted earlier.
“You don’t have time, Jax. You have now. That is all you have. It is all any of us have. We aren’t promised five minutes from now or an hour from now or tomorrow. We literally only have the seconds we are breathing, so get out of sloth mode and decide now to be what these kids need you to be. If you can’t, then get the hell out so someone else can take your place.”
His eyes widened, and he looked as if she’d kicked him in the gut.
Zuri stepped closer and placed a hand on his cheek. They were in the “off-again” stage of their on-again, off-again relationship, and she’d been missing him. She hated to cause him pain or make him think she didn’t want him, because she did, but Jax wasn’t an easy person to love. “I don’t want you to leave,” she whispered. “But our first priority is these kids. We can’t keep them safe if we don’t train them to stay alive. Help me do that. Please. You’re one of the best warriors, Jax, and you’re also one of the best men. Don’t let me or them down.”
He stared at her for several minutes and then leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. “You really know how to rip a man's balls off and hand them to him, babe,” he said quietly.
“Hmm.” She nodded. “It’s my thing. Now, are you with me?”
“I’ve always been with you, Zuri,” he said.
She didn’t miss the meaning in his words. “And you’ll start working with the other profs?”
His jaw clenched, but then he gave a single nod. “I will.”
She started to back up, but Jax wrapped his large hand around the back of her head and held her still as he kissed her again, deeper this time. When he pulled back, his eyes were full of familiar heat. “I’m done being without you. You’re mine, Zuri. Always have been.”
“I don’t belong…” She started to say what she always said when he got possessive, but he shook her, causing her mouth to snap shut.
“You can say whatever you need to say to feel like the strong independent woman we both know you are. Fine, whatever. But I am yours. I belong to you. And I’m done being without you. I’ve decided. Now it’s your turn to decide. Are you with me?” He threw her question back at her.
After several heartbeats, she said, “You know we’re p
robably going to kill each other one day, right?”
His lips kicked up in a crooked smirk. “If I die by your hand, I’ll die a happy man. Now, answer the damn question.”
“Yes,” she finally said as her forehead fell to his chest. “I’m with you. I’ve never not been with you, Jax.”
She felt his lips on the top of her head and heard his whispered, “I love you, Z.”
Zuri stepped back and began walking backward, toward where her students were waiting. “The rule still stands. Touch another, and I’ll strangle you both with your own intestines,” she said, without missing a step.
Jax rolled his eyes. “As if I’d ever be unfaithful. In all these years, Z, even when we weren’t technically together, there’s never been another female. Not once.”
She knew that. It was one of the reasons she loved him. Once Jax gave his heart, he gave it for good.
13
Dhara’s eyes flew open. Despite the fact she was weak, her magic still moved throughout her realm, and she was fully aware of every nuance flowing through it. From one breath to the next, there appeared a malevolent presence somewhere in the earth elemental realm.
She tried to sit up, but she was just too weak. Dhara closed her eyes and attempted to focus on the location of the evil, tried to see how far it was from her location, but she couldn’t pinpoint it. She could only sense that the evil was somewhere west of her.
Dhara sent out a call to the beasts roaming her realm and told them to be on guard and to let her know the minute they saw anything that didn’t belong. There were many beasts in the earth elemental realm that would be able to hold their own against the powerful forces of evil, but they often drew on her power to augment their strength. Currently, there wasn’t enough of her to go around.
“Leelin,” Dhara said, her voice sounding weak even to her ears.
“My queen,” Leelin’s sweet voice answered, as the woodland faerie appeared by her side.
“We are in danger,” Dhara told her.
“Queen Dhara.” A deep voice came from her left, and Dhara turned her head, much more slowly than she should have. “I am Bayde, King Aviur sent me and three warriors to guard you.”
“Normally, I would have said it was unnecessary. But I am glad you all are here.”
“What is wrong?” Bayde asked as his hand dropped to the sword at his waist.
“I feel evil in my realm. I don’t know what it is, but it’s quickly moving this way.”
“I’ll let the woodland fae know,” Leelin said. “Kessa, deliver the message to our elders.”
Kessa darted off into the forest without another word. Dhara wanted to call her back, wishing the woodland fae wouldn’t put herself in danger, but she was already gone.
“I will send Tekren and Lenox out to scout the area and stop whatever it is before it can get to you,” Bayde said.
Dhara nodded. She returned her focus to her realm’s magic while Bayde talked with his warriors. She wished she were strong enough to send out a message to the other elemental royals, but she couldn’t. She knew exactly how vulnerable she was. If Beaumont, her powerful mate, was with her, she’d be protected, and their combined strength would have prevented her from being so weak, even recovering from the effects of the spell. But wishing he was with her wasn’t going to make it so. She needed to focus on the resources she had.
“Is there anything I can get you?” asked Resha, the other woodland fairy attendant.
Dhara considered all of the plants that grew in the earth elemental realm and then said, “Find some haven lilies. Crush them in water and make an elixir for me to drink. I don’t know if they will have any effect, but they have healing properties. It’s worth a try.”
“Yes, your majesty,” Resha said and then hurried off.
Dhara could feel the dark magic inside of her trying to bind itself to her own light magic. It was as if the magic was a living entity rather than just a spell. She’d never felt anything like it, but then, she didn’t regularly come in contact with demons. Those types of beings generally avoided light elementals. Darkness could not stand to be in the presence of light.
Her breathing was becoming labored. Dhara tried to calm herself, knowing that growing anxious would only make her situation worse. As the darkness invading her realm got closer, she could feel the magic inside of her reaching outward, trying to connect with the evil.
Dhara gasped and fought hard to wrap her own magic around it, trying to block it from what she knew must be its master. If the darkness within could connect with the oncoming evil, then it would no doubt lead the malevolent presence right to her. And she was no match for anything determined to kill her right now. Dhara had no idea if Aviur’s men would be able to defend her.
She detected feet pounding on the ground as it began to shake. Her beasts were coming to her defense. She also heard the flutter of wings and knew the fairies were joining the beasts. The trilling music of the pixies was next. They would try to enthrall the evil with their pure voices. The inhabitants of the earth realm surrounded Dhara in a circle, guarding her from all sides. Her heart warmed over their loyalty. The fact that they would offer their lives for hers was something she could never repay. Nor could she allow it. They were too precious to her.
A few moments later, Resha was back and held a cup. “I have the elixir, my queen.”
Bayde came over and lifted Dhara’s back so she could sip the drink. When the flask was empty, the warrior laid her back down, and she closed her eyes, waiting, hoping the elixir would help. Seconds passed in silence, stretching into minutes. Even with her eyes closed, the earth queen could feel everyone in the room watching her intently. She felt them holding their collective breath, waiting to see if the potion would provide any boon.
After several minutes, something happened. The magic of the elixir, the goodness that comes from deep within the earth realm, fought back the darkness churning within the earth queen. It was probably visible to the onlookers in Dhara’s relaxed face and the presumed return of color to her cheeks. She opened her eyes, gritted her teeth, then pushed herself up until she was sitting. The fairies and warriors all took a half-step toward her. After several deep breaths, Dhara slowly placed her legs over the side of the bed and rose to her feet.
Bayde moved to steady her, and once she was balanced, the queen took several steps. Hopefully, she would be able to stay on her feet long enough to face the approaching evil before any of her people were injured or killed.
“Your majesty,” Bayde said, “please, let us protect you.”
Dhara shook her head. “A queen does not hide behind those who rely on her for their protection and provision.” She walked on shaky legs toward the evil snaking through the trees toward her. She’d rather face the threat head-on than run and allow it to stay in her and Beaumont’s realm where it could taint and hurt those who called the earth elemental realm home. She could tell her subjects to flee to the human realm and they might be safe, but she hated the idea of them having to leave their homes.
Dhara stopped at a clearing. The pixies that had come and the woodland fae that Kessa must have managed to get word to grouped themselves behind Dhara, facing the same direction. She felt the beasts of her land join those behind her as she waited. Minutes that felt like hours passed. No one spoke. All of a sudden, the wind changed, and the strong stench of sulfur filled the group’s nostrils.
“You are not welcome here, demon,” Dhara said, putting as much power into her voice as she could.
“And yet here I stand.” A demon over six feet tall emerged from the trees. His face had sharp angles, his eyes were black as night, and his teeth were pointed and sharp. He had horns growing out of the top of his head that curled back like a great ram’s. He was huge and muscular with thick arms leading down to hands with sharp claws at the ends of his fingers. His legs were not that of a man but a great beast, angled back at the knee joints. Instead of feet, he had huge hooves. Smoke poured from his mouth as he spoke, and
sulfurous fumes filled the air.
Dhara realized that, with her mate gone, the protection spell over their realm was weakening. Her power was so feeble she wasn’t able to maintain the cloaking spell hiding the entrance. That’s what had allowed the demon to gain entry. “Why have you come?”
“Come now, earth queen. You can’t possibly be that dense.” The demon laughed, showing off his dangerous canines. “Then again, none of the royals realized I had cast a spell over your entire race. You didn’t even realize how weak you all had grown as you lived and worked separately from your own kind. So, I guess you are that dense.”
“Give me your name,” Dhara demanded. She knew having the demon's name might give her power over him. If not now, then perhaps when she regained more of her power.
“I do not fear you. I am Dolion, demi-lord of the underworld and leader of Osiris’s army. And you have my magic running through you.”
Dhara flinched as pain sliced through her. He was calling to the magic in her. She took a step toward him. When she realized what she’d done, she clenched her teeth and forced herself to stand still.
“You know it’s futile to fight me. You are wasting my time. If you don’t come of your—”
Dolion’s words were interrupted by a mighty battle cry as Aviur’s four warriors came charging out of the forest from four different directions. Their swords were ablaze with their fire, and their eyes swirled with orange flames.
Bayde reached the demon first, whipped his sword in a circle around his head, and brought it down in a brutal slash. The blade ran across the demon’s chest. Even as the sword cut, the light elemental fire burned down Dolion’s body.
The demon bellowed and flung out his hand, hitting Bayde with a blast of hellfire. Bayde fell back to the ground but rolled with the force of the blow and sprang back to his feet.
Tekren and Lenox attacked as one, both shooting fire at the demon while also using their swords to block Dolion’s countermeasures.
For an instant, Dhara thought that perhaps the four could best the demon. But then the tables turned as Dolion grew in size. His form doubled and, at nearly twelve feet, he towered over his opponents. He leaned down and swung his head. The demon’s horns caught Tekren and Lenox and sent them flying in opposite directions.
