by Terri Pray
Her stomach knotted. Were they just being used?
No, it’s not that, not really. We’ve opened a crack in the door. Emry has forced it wide open. It’s up to the council to take the chance offered to them or condemn us. They’re frightened. Just as Karol was, and for the same reason. They’ve been bullied, tormented, forced to back down into a corner, and haven’t found the rope or helping hand to come back up. We can be that rope, if we have the courage.
How was that not being used?
All right, maybe it is. But would you rather become a figurehead for a cause you believe in, or end up with your power stripped and see your aunt eventually forced to live in some safe zone? And all because a few mundanes got into power by using the fear that exists within the hearts of many.
Low blow.
Of course, but it’s an honest one.
She didn’t know if she should kiss him or punch him.
A soft chuckle rang out in the back of her mind. Well, I know which option I’d take.
“You’re talking about using these two magic users, younglings who can’t even follow our rules, and turning them into a flag, a leading light, just in case a fight breaks out?” Camryn finally spoke up. “To be the first of many who will be willing to side with us and draw the line in the sand?”
“Correct.” Emry nodded towards Hailey and Darrel. “I can’t think of any else who would better serve our people during this time. They’re young enough that they will speak to those still learning their craft and remind the older members of our communities about their own children. Yet they are old enough to be responsible, to act for the good of us all when the time calls for it.”
“I see, and has anyone asked them if they are willing to take that risk, to stand up and be targets? Because that’s what they will become. Targets. The first in line to be picked up by the mundanes if they start trying to force these new laws on us. They will be unable to live normal lives, they’ll become celebrities unlike our people have seen since the days of the first Merlin. So don’t you think you should ask them if they are willing to be the first under the sword?”
Emry took a step back, then had the good graces to blush even as he turned to look at Hailey and Darrel.
“You’ve heard the situation we face, that we all face. Are you willing, if we agree not to strip your magic from you, to stand at the forefront of our fight against the mundanes?”
How was she supposed to answer that?
Her gut said yes, her fears said no, and her heart, Goddess her heart, was being torn in two. No one wanted to just stand back and let the nightmare engulf their family, their friends, their very way of life.
But finding out that they were the potential sacrificial lambs to stand in the way of the oncoming horde was another matter entirely. And right now all she wanted to do was curl up in Darrel’s arms.
“I think Hailey and I need to discuss this, privately first.”
Hailey felt her throat tighten even as she nodded her agreement.
Chapter Fifteen
One by one the members of the council had agreed and then arranged for Camryn to escort them back into the waiting room. The same room they had been left in for over an hour before being called before the council itself.
“I don’t envy either of you.” Camryn walked back toward the wall. “But when you are ready to talk to the council just call out my name. I’ll hear you and return to escort you back into the chamber.”
“Thank you.” Hailey tried to smile, but the older man was correct. They didn’t face an easy decision. “Will we have privacy until then?”
“Yes, until you call for me no one will be able to listen in on you. And I won’t permit someone to enter the room unless there is an emergency. I know this isn’t easy on you. I don’t know if I’d be able to accept the offer the council is making. Or if I’d prefer to have my magic locked away, stripped, denied to me for the rest of my life. But I know one thing. I’d not want to leave my family in the hands of a bunch of politicians who are all too willing to leave them to die out, as the last of our kind.”
That, at least, was something she could be thankful for. She’d watched the council members during Emry’s impassioned speeches, searching for some sign of doubt or flicker of fear.
Any sane human being would be afraid. They just didn’t want to show it. They’re on the verge of panic, uncertain what to do, and I don’t blame them.
Camryn waited for a moment longer, in case either of them had something else to say, then nodded and phased back through the wall.
Darrel slumped into the chair with a groan. “Okay, so neither of us was expecting that to be dropped into our laps. What a choice, step into the potential fray or be power stripped for our crimes.”
“Indeed.” Her head pounded. “Goddess, what are we going to do? Accept their offer, or let them power strip us? I don’t know about you, but I’m in no mood to be pushed around by the council, not even for a good cause like this.”
“At least we aren’t going to be standing alone. The council will be with us and you heard them, there are others like us, men and women who don’t take the rules at face value and won’t be willing to just sit there and make a bit of noise when they put these new laws into place.”
“Then why haven’t they approached the Mages Rights Movement? Surely they’d be better off finding their core group from there?”
“Except those men and women are, no doubt, already under watch. Going to the MRM will tip off the government and that’s the last thing the council wants to do.”
She couldn’t argue with that.
Darrel rubbed his temples.
A shared headache?
One of the joys of the bond we now have. When you hurt, I hurt, and vice versa. There are negative points to such a link, love.
“So what do we do?” She settled down into the other chair, curling her feet up beneath her ass. “I don’t want to be power stripped, but if this turns nasty we could end up being killed. The government is not going to just sit back and let the council, and our people, defy them.”
Darrel fell silent for a moment, his brow creasing. “I’m not so sure. We’ve been silent and compliant for so long that maybe they do think we’ll go along with it.”
Was it that simple? Doubt niggled at the back of her mind.
“They have to be expecting some of us to protest, especially after the way the Mages Rights Movement has been raising merry hell ever since the proposal’s went public. No, they’ll strike back. We don’t know how prepared they now are. And I’m not sure I want to be at the forefront when they do try to take us to task over this.”
Her throat tightened. She didn’t want to be bound by the new laws, but violence, fear, the thought of being hunted down… She didn’t know how to deal with that.
It wasn’t a matter of bravery. Or the lack of it. It just wasn’t a concept she knew how to deal with.
Violence. The potential of being rounded up and maybe killed. Used as an example if things got out of hand.
Darrel sat back, watching her closely.
“I know what you’re thinking, but I’m not being a coward. I’m just a little confused here. If the changes in laws are so potentially problematic, which I agree with, then why isn’t the council looking for a leader, a stronger figurehead, from within its own ranks?”
“Perhaps because they need a core group that people outside of the council can unite behind and the councilman or woman who is chosen to lead might then be seen as using it for their personal agenda by others in the council.”
Hailey groaned, and closed her eyes. “Dammit, so it’s politics even on this side?”
“Yes, of course. Though at least we know the council and our own people are looking at ways to prevent us from being abused by a few mundanes who just happened to grab power at the wrong time.”
“I just ‑‑ this wasn’t what I had in mind for our life together.”
“Do you want to live a life always tracked? Even
if we’re power stripped they’ll keep an eye on us. We have the magic in our souls; we can pass it on to another. We’d still be bound by the laws requiring us to request permission to have children. And then what? Do you want some politician deciding if we are worthy enough to have a child? Do you want your family line dying with you because some tie-wearing official has taken a bribe, or they decide they don’t want your family to continue, or mine?”
“No, of course not.” She opened her eyes, jaw tight. “Why would I ever let someone else dictate what or how my family could grow? Or who I can marry, because that will be next, then where we can live. I don’t like the new laws, the motions being tabled, I don’t like the thought of being reduced to a second-class citizen or spending the rest of my life in hiding, hoping the knock at the door won’t come, that they won’t turn up with police or the army, ready to collect me, to drag me and mine out of the door and put us in some form of concentration camp. Goddess, the very thought leaves me sick to my stomach.”
“Would standing up and fighting for what we believe in, against these changes, be so different than what we have already done for Karol? It’s still protecting the helpless. I’m not talking about the adults in our community, but the children. The unborn, those who have no voice. If we accept this chance then maybe we can give them an opportunity to live instead of cower in fear.”
That just wasn’t even fair.
I know, but it’s true.
“Darrel, please. Don’t whisper like that in the back of my mind. Not over something like this.” She wanted to be angry with him, to find something else to focus on other than the decision that had been laid at their feet.
“I’m sorry, it’s just easier somehow.” He gave a sheepish grin.
“No, I’m sorry. I’m snapping just for the sake of it.”
Darrel pushed slowly to his feet and cleared the distance between them, his gaze liquid as he opened the link between them fully. Hailey gasped. If she had been standing the rush of warmth, love and desire that now enfolded her completely would have been enough to knock her onto her knees.
“Have I told you just how much I love you?” His voice, little more than a thick whisper.
She shook her head, unable to tear her gaze away from him.
“Then let me show you, fully.” He reached down, taking both of her hands in his and pulled her slowly to her feet. “I want this moment with you before we face the council again.”
Hailey shivered and slid her hands free from his grasp, tracing her fingertips lightly over his arms. He growled softly, eyes closing under her gentle caress, his lips parting just enough that she could see the tip of his tongue. His head tipped back; the long raven locks she had come to love now tumbled down over his back, offering temptation to her fingers. “Beautiful.”
Lines creased across his forehead, his eyes open once more as the corners of his lips twitched. “Men aren’t beautiful.”
“Some men are. You are to me, at least.”
Heat claimed his cheeks in twin points, his gaze intense and locked on her face. “I love you, Hailey.”
Her nipples crinkled into hardened points, pressing against her clothing. Her core tightened, liquid desire coating her sex. Her clit throbbed, demanding attention from his fingers, his mouth or his breath. A soft shudder worked through her body; every inch of her skin ached for his touch. “Why don’t you show me just how you feel?”
He growled, sliding his hand into her hair, his fingers tangling in the soft strands. For a moment he didn’t move any further, but held her gaze. Her breath caught in the back of her throat. Emotions tumbled through their shared link, surrounding her, claiming her, until she barely knew where her feelings ended and his began. An unfamiliar tightening surged through her clit, pressure building behind it until she finally realized she was feeling his arousal, how it felt, for a brief moment, to have a cock. Then it was gone.
“That ‑‑ that was odd.” She squirmed.
“Sorry, I should have realized that would be a little much for you,” he murmured, leaning forward to nuzzle at her neck.
“No, not too much. Just strange. I wasn’t expecting that.” Her thighs trembled as she pressed them together, a deep ache claiming the walls of her sex. What would it be like to feel his cock pressed into her body, yet experience the sensations from his side at the same time? They’d shared some of that before, through the link, but it had all blended together in a haze of sensual delight. Questions sprang to life, one after the other, threatening to steal their moment together until they vanished under his kiss.
His lips claimed hers, tongue parting them, tracing the insides of her cheeks as she groaned against him. His fingers tightened in her hair, holding her in the kiss, his body pressed tightly against hers. His cock throbbed against his jeans, burning a brand through clothing until she could almost feel it, skin on skin, against her thigh. His free hand moved down over her breast, cupping it, his thumb rubbing over her nipple until she whimpered and pressed fully into his touch. Goddess, she needed him, his touch, the way he felt against her skin, within her body, their hearts and minds melding as one.
He slid his hand down from her breast, edging over her stomach until he found the edge of her shirt and tugged it upward. Her skin burned under his caress, muscles tightening, her cunt rippling as it clenched on air, desperate for the feel of his hard cock buried between her slick walls. And still his tongue danced with hers, teasing her lips, stroking, claiming, suckling. Her breasts felt swollen, her lower lips pushed against her panties, wet and hungry for his touch.
“I want you,” he whispered against her lips, pulling back from the kiss. “Now.”
She glanced towards the door even as his hand edged down into her panties. What if someone came in? A cold hand clasped about her heart, her gut tightening into knots.
His teeth grazed over her neck. “You want this, don’t deny it.”
“Yes.”
“But you’re afraid.”
“That someone will come in and catch us.” A shiver ran through her body. What if the entire council walked in and found them naked, skin riding against skin? Her body trapped beneath his, filled, claimed, owned?
“A part of you likes that idea, though.” He licked softly along her pulse.
“Yes.” Her throat tightened, lips drying out. Goddess, would he think less of her for that?
“It won’t happen. Not today. They made it clear. No one will enter the room until we are ready to speak to them again.” One finger slipped between her swollen folds, pressing up into her body even as his thumb strummed across her throbbing clit. Desire flashed through their shared link, only to be clamped down fully. “Stop thinking and just feel. Just your feelings this time. Not mine. I promise.”
Hailey bit into her bottom lip as a second finger slid into her core. No more thinking, just feel and enjoy being with him.
His thumb tapped against her clit twice, then circled the hard nub, teasing it even as his fingers curled deeper into her body, seeking that small, hidden spot in her core. Her eyes opened wide as she pushed onto her toes, a cry torn into life, her inner walls clamped tight on his probing fingers. She grabbed his shoulders, her nails digging in as she held on for dear life.
Each touch of his fingers urged her a little further into the maelstrom of sensation. Heat flushed through her body, cold sweats coated her back, her nipples throbbed, pushing against the cloth. He shifted a little, but only enough so he could move them both back against the nearby wall, giving them a little more support. With a growl he nuzzled his way down from her neck, licking, biting at the cloth until he found one ripe nipple and closed his lips around it.
Even through the cloth she could still feel his tongue teasing her flesh. The wet cloth rubbed at her nipple, his tongue lashed at the hard nubbin, his teeth pressed into her tight breast, trapping it for his attention.
A third finger slid its way into her wet sex, stretching her that little more until she cried out, her nails digging int
o his shoulders. Her core tightened, rippled only to tighten again. Pressure forced its way through her body, into her thighs and centered on her cunt. She rocked, pressing down onto his fingers, only to shudder and try to pull back as the full force of her pleasure threatened to tip her over the edge.
Without warning his fingers slipped free of her clenching sex, his other hand leaving her hair.
“No, please. I need you.”
Darrel pulled down her pants, tearing her panties free with a sharp yank. Material ripped, leaving little more than ribbons of white that he tossed aside. Her pants and shoes were quickly abandoned on the floor, her shirt pushed upward, the cups of her bra lifted up to bare her breasts fully. He shifted fully between her thighs, pressing her against the wall until he trapped her between his body and the cool wall.
One hand clasped her hip, the other vanished for a moment. A zipper hissed, pants slid down his legs and before she fully realized what was happening she felt the head of his cock slide between her swollen folds.
“Tight!” he hissed, rocking into her body. Her walls stretched, then clamped, welcoming him into her body. “Goddess! I love you.”
She moaned, rolling her hips down onto his body, her hands tangling in his long, black hair. So full. He pressed her walls apart, forcing her to take him deeper than she had done before. Each thrust rocked her back against the rough stone behind her, but she didn’t care; instead, she locked her ankles behind his back, tipping her hips to meet each thrust.
“Mine.” He gasped out the single word.
“Always.” Sweat beaded across her brow, threatening to fall into her eyes. Pressure built in the pit of her being. Her sex clamped onto his cock, holding it tight, claiming it, demanding it fill her completely. “Fuck me. Goddess. Fuck me!”
