by Lauren Dawes
The lack of sleep wasn’t just taking a toll on her, but dragging her down into a black place where even revenge was becoming a blurry goal further and further out of her reach.
Aubrey had trained her hard into the early hours of the morning, bone-deep weariness bringing her home just before dawn. Aubrey hadn’t told her whether he’d found out anything more about Darrion yet, and even though she wanted to interrogate him, she held her tongue.
Sitting up, she glanced over at the twin bed on the opposite side of the room, finding it still empty. Pushing away the sheets and dragging herself upright, Taer pulled on a pair of sweats and changed her shirt. Every muscle in her body was begging her to get some more sleep, but training was more important.
Staggering out of her room, she came face to face with a seven-foot wall of muscle and menace. Korvain regarded her, his dark eyes concerned as he studied her face. Fuck, she must have looked as bad as she felt. She looked down at her feet, hoping he would suddenly forget what he’d just seen.
But that was wishful thinking.
Korvain tilted her head up with a strong finger under her chin. “Did you get any sleep?”
Lie, damn it. Lie. “I got a few hours.”
“You can’t lie to me, Taer. I can practically smell your dishonesty.”
Fuck. Taer heaved a heavy sigh. “You don’t have to worry. I’m fine.”
“Is it the dreams? Are they getting worse?”
Taer recoiled. How did he know? The only person who knew about them was Eir, and Taer was sure the Valkyrie could keep her mouth shut.
“They’re only dreams. Just forget about them, all right?” She tried to walk away, but Korvain’s vice-like grip was around her upper arm within a nanosecond.
“No, Taer, it’s not all right.” She stared angrily at him from under her lashes. He sighed and released his fingers. “I just want to help you, Tay, but you’re making it really difficult for me.”
“You want to help me?” she asked acidly. “Train me to kill Darrion and you will be helping me.” This time he let her walk away from him. Entering the kitchen, she snatched a mug from the drying rack and filling it with freshly brewed coffee from the machine.
She felt the heat of Korvain’s body before he spoke at her back. “I made a promise—”
She whirled around before he could say anything further, the violent shake of her hand sloshing coffee all over the kitchen counter. “Don’t say it. Don’t say his name to me.” She didn’t think she could stand to hear her brother’s name. The wound was still too raw, too painful to even consider speaking his name out loud.
Korvain’s eyes softened as he stared down at her—almost as if he could feel her pain. Taer felt tears welling, the tears she’d never let herself shed for her brother, but she shook her head, refusing to let herself cry now. She’d made it this long. She could damn well make it a little longer.
“Tay, bottling up your feelings won’t bring him back, and it certainly won’t help you become a better fighter.” Korvain pushed on, ignoring her protests. “You might not be ready to talk about him now, but when you are, I’ll be here. Bryn will be here. Eir will be here. For you. Do you hear me?” he asked.
She wanted to slap him for being so understanding, for saying the right things to her at the right time. Logically, she knew what she was doing was counterproductive, but somehow she couldn’t stop the hate burning inside of her.
“I know you don’t want to talk about … him right now, but can you at least tell me about the dreams?”
Taer rubbed her temples, attempting to stave off a headache and sighed. She could give him this one concession. “Dream,” she conceded. “It’s just the one dream.”
“Okay,” he replied. “Want to tell me about it?”
Picking up her mug, Taer shuffled over to the couch and sat down, folding her legs beneath her. She couldn’t believe how tired she was. Korvain didn’t sit beside her. Rather he perched his muscular body on the edge of the armchair in the corner.
She could feel his steady gaze on her face as he waited patiently for her to be ready to speak.
Taer took in a deep breath and let it out, focusing her attention on her hands wrapped around the coffee mug. “I’m surrounded by blood. It’s still warm. It covers my face and neck, but it’s tacky like it’s been there for a while.” A wave of goose bumps traveled over her body at the visceral memory. She gave a small shudder.
“I can hear someone breathing …” She frowned. “No, they’re gasping, and the longer I listen, the more certain I am that I’m hearing somebody taking their last breaths. I try to move, but my limbs are heavy.” Taer’s throat worked over a hard lump. “I want to move, to get away, but no matter how hard I try, I just can’t. I try to look around to see where the sound is coming from … even though … even though I know who is making those sounds.”
“Adrian?” Korvain asked. Taer nodded mechanically. She was too far into her memories to care right now if he said her brother’s name aloud.
“The gasping becomes a gurgle, but it starts sounding more desperate.” Taer’s eyes slid shut. “The sound becomes sharper and louder and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I can’t even scream out to … him. He’s dying and I’m responsible.”
“Tay—” Korvain’s dark voice cut through her. “You are not to blame. Do you hear me?”
“I hear you.” And she did, but she didn’t believe him.
“We’re going to skip training today.”
“What? No! We need to train. I need to train.”
Korvain shook his head. “No. What you need is to sleep.”
“There’s no point. I can’t sleep with this recurring dream.”
“That’s where I come in. I’m going to do something to help you, but you have to trust me. You do trust me, don’t you?”
With my life. “Yeah, I guess.”
He tilted his head towards her bedroom. “Go and lie down. Get comfortable and I’ll watch over you while you rest.”
“Watch over me? How?”
“Don’t worry about the how. Just go get some rest.”
Taer was too exhausted to fight with him any further. Hauling herself up from the couch, she abandoned her coffee and stumbled to her bedroom, closing the door firmly behind her and stretching out on top of the quilt. She doubted she could sleep for very long before the dream came, but she was too damn exhausted to even care.
Curling up on her side, Taer closed her eyes, listening to the sound of her breathing, listening to the steady beat of her heart in her ears. There was no way she could sleep for long.
There was just no way.
*
Taer woke up, blinking in the darkened room. On the table beside her bed, the neon green light showed her the time. It was four-thirty in the afternoon. She had slept for nearly ten and a half hours. She sat up, shaking her head.
“Impossible,” she muttered, absently fiddling with a lock of her long hair. She hadn’t dreamed, hadn’t woken up once. Sliding to the edge of the bed, Taer stood up and stretched. With her arms over her head and standing on her tiptoes, she wondered just what the turnaround was. Had Korvain had something to do with it?
She couldn’t see how.
Padding towards the door, she opened it a crack and looked outside. There was no one in sight. She made her way towards the bathroom down the hall, but stopped at the sound of his voice.
“How did you sleep?” She turned around and saw Korvain standing at the kitchen counter. He had dark circles under his eyes, his face drained of color, like he was exhausted.
“What have you been doing all day?”
He shrugged his huge shoulders, rolling the muscles in his neck as he did. “Nothing. How’d you sleep?” he asked again, fixing her with a dark stare.
“Great,” she said softly.
Korvain’s shoulders relaxed. “That’s good to hear.”
She shrugged, although she was suspicious about what role Korvain had played in her dreamles
s sleep. “Well, I’m going to take a shower. Mist asked me to work again tonight.”
*
Taer was a few hours into her shift down on the first level of the Eye. The place was maybe two-thirds full with no sign of slowing. She kept up a steady pace serving customers, keeping in sync with Mist.
Taer had her head bent over a drink order when the fine hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood on end. Scanning the crowd, she spotted the tall form of Aubrey, his height putting him head and shoulders above every other patron in the bar.
“What the fuck is he doing here?” she asked under her breath as he moved her way. And why was her heart pounding out a staccato beat in her chest at the mere sight of him?
She couldn’t help but notice the appreciative looks the females in the bar—both humans and goddesses—threw in his direction, and a sharp stab of jealousy rolled through her, just as it had when she saw him pinning that other female to the side of the car with his hips.
She slid the drink she was preparing over to a human, holding her hand out to give him his change.
“Keep it,” he told her with a boy-next-door wink. Taer flashed him a brief smile that didn’t reach her eyes, jamming the notes into the jar beside the till before turning to serve whoever was next.
“Winter Fox,” Aubrey purred, rolling his nickname for Taer around on his tongue like some illicit secret. His pale gray eyes had an almost predatory gleam.
She suddenly felt out of step, like his arrival had pulled the rug out from under her feet. This building was her inner sanctum, and having him there made her uneasy.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, going on the defensive straightaway.
He cocked his head to the side like a bird, his shrewd eyes narrowing ever so slightly. His lips eventually twitched, flexing up in the corners.
“What?” she barked, irritated by the smug look on his face. “If you’ve just come here to stare at me, I’ve got better things I could be doing.”
He surveyed the bar, his pale eyes taking in everything. “You know, I didn’t believe you when you said I could find you here. Living among the—”
“Keep your voice down!” she hissed, cutting off his words. “This isn’t the fucking War Hammer. If you need to talk, I’ll take my break and we can talk out the back.”
Without waiting for his reply, Taer caught Mist’s attention and told her she was taking her break. Mist’s eyes widened when she caught sight of the light elf standing at the bar. “Are you all right?” she asked, stepping closer to her and lowering her voice.
“I’m fine. He just wants to talk.”
“How in the hell do you know him?” Mist pressed.
Taer looked over at Aubrey. He smiled innocuously at her before she turned back to the Valkyrie. “I met him a few years ago,” she lied.
Mist stared at her skeptically, but said, “I’m coming to check on you in ten minutes.” Her tone left no room for argument. Turning back around to face Aubrey, she waved her hand in the direction of the end of the bar.
She pushed open the “Staff Only” door, waiting for Aubrey to pass through, and noticed Mason staring at her. Mouthing the words “I’m fine” at him, she followed Aubrey into the hallway, hoping Mason didn’t get suspicious and come back and check on her—or worse, send Korvain to check on her.
“Through here,” she said to the light elf, leading him into the locker room. Putting her back against one of the rows of metal cabinets, she watched as Aubrey walked around the room, his eyes roving, looking at everything.
“I assume the only reason you’re here is that you finally have information about Darrion.”
“Your assumption is right.” He sat down on the benches that ran down the middle of the room. “I’ve heard that Darrion has been seen around Boston.”
Taer’s heart leaped into her throat. “When?”
“As recently as two days ago.”
“Do you know where he is?” She worked to keep her voice even. If he had found out where the bastard was, she was going there straight after work. “Tell me what you know.”
“I have had unconfirmed reports he’s been seen visiting some properties around Boston.”
“His safe houses,” Taer said under her breath. “Can you give me any addresses? I’d like to go and check things out,” she added when he hesitated. “And don’t you dare tell me to stay away.”
Seconds dripped by before Aubrey slid two long fingers into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out a heavy piece of card. He stood up, and in two strides he was standing in front of her. Hesitantly, Taer reached for the card, being careful not to touch his fingers, and looked down at the embossed print. It was his name along with a phone number. Flipping the card over in her hands, she saw two addresses handwritten in the old language.
“Be careful,” Aubrey murmured, his voice a lot closer than it had been before. Taer peered up, feeling her stomach bottom out as she stared directly into his icily pale eyes. This close she could see just how long and thick his eyelashes were. He studied her steadily, then retreated a few steps, giving Taer much needed room to breathe.
“Thanks,” she said, the words barely audible over the roaring of her pulse. She didn’t know whether her heart was pounding because she was one step closer to finding Darrion, or because of the light elf sharing the same air as her.
Aubrey bowed his head, one hand placed over his heart. “It was a pleasure, believe me.” He looked down at his watch and frowned. “My ten minutes is up, I’m afraid,” he said with a shrug. He met her eyes, a twinkle in his own. “I wouldn’t want your Valkyrie to have to come in here and rescue you from me.”
“Mist means well,” she said absently.
Laughing, he said, “There’s no doubt about that.”
She frowned at him. “You’re right though. You really should go now,” Taer told him. “My break is over and I have to get back to work.” She pushed on the door, holding it open for him.
Aubrey left the room, Taer hanging back to give him a head start. She needed the time to settle the butterflies that were going berserk in her stomach. What was it about him that made her feel this way? After a few minutes, she returned to the Eye and stepped back behind the bar. Mist raised an eyebrow at her, which she ignored. A moment later, Taer saw the crowd part for Aubrey as he made his way towards the door. Their eyes met for a moment, then his lips tilted up in a brief smile and he was gone.
Chapter 26
Leaning up against the hood of his car, Mason cupped his hands over his mouth and blew, trying to warm himself up. It was damn cold outside, too cold to be standing around waiting for someone, but he couldn’t help himself. He was there to see Eir, and nothing—a blizzard, a torrential downpour or a tsunami—would stop him from seeing his Valkyrie tonight.
He smiled to himself.
Although he had only known her a matter of days, he knew she was his, or at least she very soon would be. That almost-kiss they’d had was a lingering memory, always at the forefront of his mind. All he’d had to do was close that quarter of an inch between them, and he would have tasted the sweetness of her lips.
She would have tasted like honey. He just knew it. But they’d been interrupted. Mason checked the time on his phone. It was quarter past six, and just as he was slipping the device back into his jacket pocket, the glass sliding doors of the hospital opened.
Mason lifted his head up, seeing Eir waving at a young woman behind the reception desk as she walked out the door. When she got outside, the Valkyrie’s shoulders hitched up near her ears, a shiver running down her spine. Her hands made their way into the pockets of her coat, her fur-trimmed hood like a halo around her head, making her appear even more ethereal.
Mason’s phone rang, the noise cutting through the car park. Eir’s gaze swung in his direction, her face lighting up. She was happy to see him, and it made him feel ten fucking feet tall. He took out his phone and pressed it to his ear as he watched Eir make her way over to him, a small smil
e in place.
“Yeah?” he said into the phone, keeping his eyes on Eir’s beautiful face.
“Where the fuck are you?” Korvain asked. “You were due to start fifteen minutes ago.”
Fuck me. “I’m here picking up Eir. I thought I’d bring her back to the club then I’d start.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me about this?” Korvain asked in a soft, dangerous voice. The sound of a chair being dragged across a hardwood floor cut through the line like nails down a chalkboard. “I was just about to leave to pick her up.”
“Well, now you don’t have to. I’m here. I’ll bring her home safe and sound.”
“You’re goddamn right about that. Bring her home. Now.”
Mason wanted to yell right back at the Mare, but Eir’s warm hand on his forearm stopped him. She shook her head at him slightly, mouthing the words “Let me talk to him.”
Reluctantly, he told Korvain to hang on for a second and gave the phone to Eir. Their fingers touched briefly and a surge of longing shot through his body. Fuck, he was in over his head with this woman.
He watched the way her mouth moved as she spoke to the Mare. He could hear how gentle Korvain’s voice was on the other end, so gentle and so completely at odds with the menace that rippled off his body ninety-nine point nine percent of the time.
Eir’s eyes remained locked on Mason’s face the entire time she spoke, smiling and agreeing with whatever the Mare was telling her.
“He wants to speak to you again,” she whispered, handing over the phone. Mason put the device back to his ear and listened to the harsh breathing on the other end.
“Bring her home. Now.” The cruel coldness of Korvain’s tone rolled through Mason’s body, the line dying abruptly a second later.
“What did he tell you?” Eir asked, gently touching his hand.
