Pawn (Fae Games Book 1)

by Karen Lynch

  I looked at Lukas and frowned when I realized he was wearing the tux I’d seen him in earlier tonight. Had he come here from the gala?

  “How did you know I was in trouble? And how did you guys get past our ward?”

  “That was my doing,” Conlan said from the doorway.

  I glanced over my shoulder at him and saw that he, too, was still wearing his tux. His lips flattened when he took in my appearance, telling me I must look even worse than I thought.

  “What do you mean?” I asked him.

  Conlan stepped into the room, which was starting to feel cramped with the two large faeries in it. “The ward I created alerted us to the break-in. It also overrode your existing ward, which allowed us to enter the apartment.”

  I fixed him with an accusing stare. “You removed the old ward?”

  “I didn’t remove it,” he assured me. “There was no way to put my ward on the apartment without attaching it to the one already there.”

  “You might have told me that,” I griped as my anger fizzled. I wasn’t happy about what he’d done, but it felt ungracious to be upset with them after they’d come running to help me.

  “What will we do about those men?” I asked Lukas. “Should we call the police?”

  His eyes turned cold, and I shivered even though I knew it wasn’t directed at me. “Faolin will take care of them.”

  “What will he do to them?”

  Conlan snickered. “Nothing worse than what you’ve already done to them.”

  Lukas didn’t smile. “He’ll question them and find out why they came after you. Then we’ll decide what to do with them.”

  “Okay.” My gaze swept the room and fell on my guitar laying in two pieces on the floor. A lump formed in my throat. That guitar had belonged to my grandfather, who had taught me to play, and it had come to me after he’d died.

  Lukas’s voice cut into my thoughts. “Pack a bag. You’re staying with us for a few days until we can secure this apartment and find out why these men came after you.”

  “What?” I looked from him to Conlan. “That’s not necessary.”

  “The two masked men in your apartment would suggest otherwise,” Lukas said harshly. When I didn’t respond, he said, “Do you want to pack a bag, or shall I do it for you?”

  “What about Finch? I’m not leaving him.”

  Lukas’s expression didn’t change. “He’ll come with you.”

  I wanted to argue with him, but he and I both knew I was in no shape to stay here alone. For the first time in my life, I didn’t feel safe in my home, and that hurt more than all my bruises.

  I set Finch on the bed and packed enough clothes and toiletries for two days, along with my laptop. Lukas carried my bag to the living room, while I changed and packed a smaller bag for Finch, containing his favorite blanket, stuffed bear, and a Tupperware container of fresh fruit.

  When I was done, I went to the office where Faolin had the two men sitting with their backs to the wall, their hands and feet bound with the same duct tape they’d planned to use on me. He had removed their ski masks, and I was satisfied to see I wasn’t the only one sporting some bruises.

  I studied their faces, but I couldn’t remember seeing either of them before. They’d lost their cockiness now that our situations were reversed, and I didn’t feel an ounce of pity for them. I had a feeling Faolin would have them wetting their pants and telling him whatever he wanted to know in no time.

  “How will we get to your place?” I asked Lukas when I walked into the living room with Finch tucked inside my coat. They’d gotten here too fast to have driven, which meant they’d used a portal.

  He opened the door. “Kerr and Iian followed us in the SUV.”

  I started to walk out and yelped when he picked me up. “I can walk,” I protested.

  “You are in no condition to walk down three flights of stairs.” He waited for Conlan to come out carrying our bags, and then he set off down the stairs.

  I glared up at him. “This is the last time you’re carrying me. I’m not some invalid.”

  A light rain was falling when we exited the building. Lukas ran to the waiting SUV where Iian stood with the back door open for us. Lukas set me down on the seat and buckled me in before he went around to the other side. I expected Conlan to join us, but he placed my bags into the cargo area and went back inside the building.

  I looked at Lukas. “I didn’t give him my keys. How will he lock the door?”

  “They’ll stay here tonight. In the morning, they’ll have new locks installed for you.”

  “Okay.” I made a mental note to have a new key made for Violet. She and Maurice were the only two people outside of our family who had keys to our apartment. I felt better knowing someone had a key in case anything happened to me.

  “Conlan will handle things at your apartment. You worry about yourself tonight.” Lukas studied my face until I turned away.

  I’d caught a glimpse of my swollen face and wild hair in the bathroom mirror, so I knew how bad I looked. Tomorrow, it would be even worse when the bruises around my eye turned black. I hadn’t seen my neck, but I knew I’d have bruising there, too. I wasn’t a vain person, but no one wanted to see a reminder of being attacked when they looked in a mirror.

  The rest of the drive was quiet, allowing me to replay the last hour over and over in my head. Who were those men, and why had they come after me? Did it have something to do with my parents or those faeries who had tried to break in? I didn’t want to think about what would have happened to Finch and me if I hadn’t been able to fight them off.

  Kerr parked in the private lot behind their building, a luxury in this city. I unbuckled my seat belt, but Lukas reached over and picked me up before I could get out.

  I wriggled to get free. “Put me down. I told you I’m not an invalid.”

  As usual, he ignored me. He followed Kerr to the door and waited for the other faerie to unlock it. Behind us, I heard Iian getting my bags from the trunk, and I sighed in resignation.

  Inside, Lukas set me down on the same couch I’d sat on the last time I’d been here. He left me to go to the kitchen, and I unzipped the top of my coat to check on Finch, who was fast asleep. Poor little guy. He’d been through so much lately, and now he’d been forced to leave his home. It was temporary, but change was hard on him, and I wasn’t sure how he’d handle being in a strange place.

  Lukas returned with a hand towel full of ice. I reached for the towel, but he surprised me by crouching and holding the ice gently against my swollen eye.

  “Are you hurting anywhere else?” he asked with a tenderness I’d never seen from him, not even when he had rescued me from the island.

  “My throat hurts,” I admitted. “I have a feeling I’ll find some more bruises tomorrow, but nothing’s broken.”

  He brushed my hair aside with his free hand and examined my neck. Fury flashed in his eyes, and I couldn’t stop the tremble that went through me.

  He moved the ice away from my face. “Are you cold?”

  “No. The ice feels good.” I took the towel from him, and he gave it up without an argument.

  His hands dropped to rest on my knees. I didn’t know if he was even aware of the contact, but my body practically buzzed from the heat of his hands on my legs and the warmth in his normally cool gaze.

  “You fought well tonight. Few women can fend off two male attackers, let alone incapacitate them.”

  “My parents made me take self-defense lessons, and my father was a tough teacher.” I smiled sadly, wondering if I’d ever get to tell him his training had saved my life. “I think I might need to up my game, though. Maybe take up martial arts.”

  His eyes gleamed with amusement. “People rarely surprise me, but you’ve managed to do it several times in the few weeks I’ve known you.”

  “Just keeping you on your toes,” I retorted lightly, earning a chuckle from him.

  His phone rang, and he stood to answer it. I felt the loss of his
touch more than I wanted to acknowledge. My thoughts and emotions were all jumbled after the last few days, and I couldn’t trust these new feelings I was having for him.

  “Any news?” Lukas asked, walking toward the kitchen.

  Exhaustion hit me, reminding me it was the middle of the night and I was still recovering from my night on the island. I rested my eyes while I waited for someone to show me where I was to sleep. But Iian and Kerr were nowhere to be seen, and Lukas was talking to Conlan by the sound of it.

  Maybe I was supposed to sleep here since they had no guest rooms. At this point, I didn’t care as long as I could sleep. Kicking off my boots, I checked on Finch again and stretched out my sore body with my head on the arm rest. The couch was comfortable, and sleep pulled at me as soon as I closed my eyes.

  I awoke as Lukas laid me in his bed. I moved to sit up, but fell back on the bed with a small groan. My body felt like it had been trampled by a herd of kelpies.

  Lukas’s brow creased. “Are you in pain?”

  “Nothing I wasn’t expecting.”

  “I can use a glamour to help you stop feeling the pain,” he offered.

  “No,” I blurted fearfully, looking down to make sure I was still wearing my bracelet. “I don’t want to be glamoured. Promise me you won’t ever do that to me.”

  Lukas didn’t strike me as someone who gave his word lightly, but he nodded. “I promise. Now go back to sleep. I have work to do, and you need to rest.”

  I realized then that my coat was gone. “Where’s Finch?”

  “He’s hiding under the bed.” Lukas pulled the covers up to my chin before going to the door and flipping off the light. All I could see of him was his silhouette from the dim light of the hallway. “Sleep well.”

  The moment the door shut behind Lukas, Finch jumped on the bed and curled up in the crook of my arm.

  “You okay, buddy?” I asked him and got a soft whistle in reply.

  I smiled in the dark. “I’m so proud of you. You were so brave, making that noise to trick the men. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

  He whistled again and snuggled closer.

  “Goodnight, Finch,” I whispered, closing my eyes.

  My last thought before succumbing to sleep was that Lukas had left a beautiful pop star to come to me. That should not have made me as happy as it did.

  Chapter 14

  Male laughter greeted me when I slowly descended the stairs the next morning. I found Kerr and Iian in the living room, and they quieted when I made an appearance. I stood awkwardly at the foot of the stairs, feeling out of place and unsure of what to do around these two who rarely spoke to me.

  Kerr’s gaze swept over me. “You look much improved.”

  “Thanks. I feel a lot better.” I’d looked a fright last night, but a few hours of sleep and a hot shower had done wonders. I’d even managed to braid my unruly hair without much difficulty. My body still ached and I had quite the shiner, but I no longer looked like the lone survivor of a horror movie.

  Iian got up and went to the kitchen. He set a plate of pastries and a large coffee on the island and waved me over. “Lukas said you would be hungry and you like these.”

  I sat on one of the stools and went straight for the coffee that bore the same bakery logo as from my first time here. “This is great. Thanks.”

  I had taken two bites from a cheese Danish when I noticed I was the only one eating. “Aren’t you going to have some?”

  “No, these are for you,” he said.

  I looked down at the plate piled high with an assortment of pastries and burst out laughing. “I can’t eat all of these.”

  Kerr came to stand beside Iian. “Eat what you can. Humans need sustenance to heal.”

  I looked at the two big faeries, whom I’d seen tossing ogres and trolls around at Teg’s like they were toys. It was hard to reconcile those fierce males with the earnest faces in front of me.

  I didn’t have the heart to tell them that pastries weren’t exactly good fuel for the body. Faeries ate for pleasure and never had to worry about their health. I wasn’t sure they would understand the concept of healthy eating if I tried to explain it to them.

  “Is Lukas here?” I asked between sips of the delicious coffee. I wouldn’t have minded if they’d brought a few cups of this instead of all the pastries.

  “No,” Kerr said.

  I assumed Lukas was with Conlan and Faolin, and I wondered if they were at my apartment. I looked from Iian to Kerr. “Let me guess. You two got stuck with babysitting duty. I guess it could be worse. I could have had Faolin scowling at me all day.”

  The two faeries laughed like they shared a private joke.

  “What’s so funny?” I asked them.

  “You.” Kerr grinned. “Faolin will think twice about provoking you after last night.”

  I gave an exaggerated eye roll. “Right. I’m sure he’s really impressed I could fight off a couple of human men. He can probably take down half a dozen at once.”

  “More like a dozen,” Iian said jovially. “Which is why none of us will let him forget this anytime soon.”

  I frowned at them. “What am I missing here? Let me in on the joke.”

  Kerr could barely hold back his laughter. “It’s no joke when someone lands a blow on Faolin. There is a reason he is head of security.”

  Iian cut in. “But when a little human girl gets in two strikes with a wooden bat, we think that is hilarious.”

  “What are you talking about?” I thought back to the moment when Lukas had shown up as I was fighting off the man in my parents’ room. I ran through that scene in my head and realized the second man hadn’t been in the bedroom. He’d still been unconscious in the office. But I’d hit him with the bat. Hadn’t I?

  Everything had happened so fast that the memories were a little muddled, but I clearly remembered hitting him right before Lukas had taken the bat from me. Faolin had been there, and he’d called me deranged and…

  I slapped a hand over my mouth as I remembered Faolin glaring at me and rubbing his jaw like he had a toothache. Oh, no.

  I wrung my head in my hands. “He’s going to kill me.”

  Kerr and Iian threw back their heads and laughed again, and I stared at them in disbelief. “How is this funny? He already hated me. After this, I’ll be lucky if he doesn’t murder me in my sleep.”

  Kerr smirked. “If Faolin wants you dead, he won’t wait until you are asleep.”

  “Not helping,” I griped.

  Iian thumped Kerr on the arm. “Stop scaring her.” To me, he said, “Faolin won’t hurt you.”

  I scoffed. “Have you met the guy? He could be the poster boy for roid rage.”

  “What is roid rage?” Iian asked.

  “Have you ever heard of steroids?”

  They nodded, and their lips curled in distaste. Faeries didn’t drink alcohol, smoke, or take drugs of any kind.

  “Roid rage is when a man takes steroids to bulk up, and the drug sends him into a psychotic rage,” I explained.

  Iian considered what I’d said. “You’re right. That does sound like Faolin.”

  “Lovely.” I threw up my hands.

  “Now who is scaring her?” Kerr shoved Iian and smiled at me. “Do not fear Faolin’s wrath. He might not like you, but he respects fighting prowess. Gaining his respect is not easily done.”

  Iian nodded. “And none of us, including Faolin, would harm someone under our protection.”

  I was under their protection now? Talk about a one eighty from the last time I was their guest.

  Kerr’s eyes sparkled with laughter. “I wish I had been there to see you get the drop on Faolin. Lukas said his first thought on seeing you was that he was gazing upon one of the Asrai.”

  “What are the Asrai?”

  “They were an ancient race of wild female warriors who protected the home of the Goddess many millennia ago. Some even had hair the color of fire like yours, but they were much taller tha
n you.”

  I rested my arms on the counter and leaned forward, my coffee forgotten. “What happened to them?”

  He shrugged. “They renounced males and refused to take mates. Eventually, they died out, and they were no more.”

  “That’s kind of sad.”

  Iian smiled. “It is, but they decided their own fate, which is the sign of a true warrior.”

  Kerr pointed to the plate of pastries. “You need to eat more to build up your strength.”

  “Maybe later. I should go call my friend Violet. She’s supposed to come see me today, and she’ll be upset if she can’t find me.”

  I thanked them for breakfast and returned to Lukas’s bedroom, surprised to see the bed had been made and the room straightened. I’d been with Iian and Kerr the whole time I was downstairs, so who had cleaned the room?

  Crossing the room, I peeked inside the crude tent I’d made in an arm chair with Finch’s blanket. He looked up from the slice of apple he was eating and smiled contentedly at me. I’d worried about how all of this would affect him, but he was doing a lot better than I could have hoped for.

  He put down the apple and signed to me. Are we going home now?

  “Not yet. Lukas is going to put new locks on the door to make it safer, and we’ll go home then.”

  Okay.

  “Who tidied the room while I was gone?” I asked him.

  Ven, he said as if I should know who that was.

  “Who’s Ven?”

  He’s the brownie who lives here.

  “Ah.” Brownies were domestic faeries that loved to do nothing but clean. All you had to do was give them food and a cubbyhole to sleep in, and you’d never have to clean your home again. They were rarely seen and intensely loyal to the residents of their home.

  Can you play a song? Finch asked hopefully.

  I thought sadly about my smashed guitar. “I don’t have my guitar with me. But I can sing for you if you want.”

  Okay.