by Renee George
“Your gram sounds sweet,” he told her.
Maddie chuckled, then “ow’d” again. “Don’t make me laugh. It hurts my head. My gram was not sweet. The woman knew how to dole out insults like they were part of a balanced diet. She once told me that I was getting to fat, and said, you know how to fix that, right? Just stop putting food in your mouth. I was fifteen, and I thought I’d die of embarrassment.”
Cage growled. “You have a beautiful body. I’d give you a bottomless plate of food to keep those curves exactly where they are.”
“Really?” He heard a hint of challenge in her voice.
“You want proof of my devotion to your primo, sexy bod?”
“As long as you’re not going anywhere...”
Now that he could admit his feeling for Maddie, he knew he’d been gone over her since the moment he’d seen her, and worshipping her body would give him nothing but pleasure. However, he had to remember she was injured. “You probably have a concussion.”
He felt Maddie’s palm touch his chest and trail down his stomach. His cock jerked to attention.
“It seems there’s good cause to keep me awake then.”
Cage lowered his mouth to Maddie, sipping a kiss from her lips. The panic at being stuck in the dark with no escape had lessened a little, but his worry for Maddie hadn’t.
“Don’t fret so much,” she said. “Adam will find us. Until then, we’ll just have to keep ourselves busy.”
Cage kissed her again, taking full advantage when she parted her lips and opened for him. He slid into her mouth, relishing the sweet taste of as her tongue mingling with his. His hips moved against her involuntarily when she nibbled his lower lip.
She moaned against his mouth as he trailed a hand over her breast, down her waist, and up under her shirt. Cage gently cupped her breast, relishing the heft of it before gently rolling her nipple between his index finger and thumb. He deepened his kiss as the small nub tightened at his touch and heat rushed to his groin.
“Cage,” she said breathlessly, her fingers lacing into his hair. “I love you. Love you so damned much.”
“I love you,” he said back, meaning it with all his heart.
He could feel her smile against his lips. Then her hand fell away and she stopped kissing him. “Maddie?” She didn’t respond. Fear spiked his blood. “Maddie?” He shook her by the shoulder, but her body was as loose as the corn they were on.
“No, no, no,” he said. This couldn’t be happening. Adam hadn’t found them yet. She was breathing still, which was the only thing that kept him from shifting. He couldn’t help her in his lion form. He bellowed his frustration. He couldn’t help her in any form.
ADAM hadn’t waited for long when the designated time for all of them to meet up had passed. Cage, Maddie, and Adelaide had not returned, and now that Zaria was safely with Darren and Marlena, Adam set off on a quest to find them.
Once he’d rounded the motel, it didn’t take long to latch on to Cage’s scent. He was barely down the road when he heard loud vocalizations, and knew the sounds came from his brother. Adam immediately took off in a sprint, stretching his long legs out to quickly cover a lot of distance in a short amount of time. There was so much grief and anger and desperation in Cage’s bellows.
Adam’s chest squeezed when he made his way to the backside of a rural business and saw the large metal tower. He could hear Cage inside shouting his frustration, crying out for help... but not for himself. No. Adam swallowed the hard knot in his throat.
No. Not this. Not Madeline. “Cage,” he shouted.
“Adam!” Cage answered. “You have to get us out. Maddie’s dying. Oh God, Adam. I can’t get her to wake up.”
“Hold on,” Adam yelled, using his fear to act. He’d always been good a compartmentalizing his emotions in times of stress, but with Madeline in danger, it was a harder than usual task. He climbed the ladder, skipping rungs until he was at the hatch. He flung it open and could see Cage clutching Madeline to his chest, holding her in his arms.
“He’s here. Adam’s here, Sweetheart,” Cage said to her, but Madeline didn’t move.
“I’ll get a rope or something. There has to be something I can use from the store.”
“She’s hurt,” Cage said. “I’m not sure if we can safely get her up and out, and then back down the ladder.”
Adam felt lost. He couldn’t think, couldn’t act, now that he’d seen Madeline almost lifeless, he felt paralyzed. He wanted to jump in with them—be with Cage and Madeline one more time. “I don’t know what to do.”
Cage nodded his head and stared up at Adam. “She knew you’d find us. Maddie has faith in you, Adam. So do I. There’s a door on the side of the bin. If you can pry it open, we may be able to slide out with the corn. It’s not a great solution, but it’s better than trying to take Maddie up top.”
The door. Of course. Adam had barely looked at it because of the slide bolt and the lock. “That’s brilliant, Cage.” He was proud of his brother. He knew what Cage had gone through with the Armandos. Cage’s fear of the dark and fear of confined spaces would have made him crazy in the past, but he hadn’t shifted in the face of disaster or made the situation worse with blind panic. Madeline brought out the best in Cage. They couldn’t lose her.
Adam ran into the back door of the store and searched until he found a crowbar and a sledgehammer. That door was coming open one way or the other. Back out at the silo, he levered the crowbar through the lock and yanked down hard. Surprisingly, the latch gave way.
“I’m coming,” he yelled. He yanked the bar aside and opened the five-foot door. Corn rained out onto the ground. When it had piled up and the flow slowed, Adam began to dig, pulling more of the maize out of the bin until he saw Cage’s tennis shoes. “I’m here!”
Cage slid forward toward him with Madeline cradled in his arms. “Help me, Adam. Help me get her out.”
Adam reached in and joined arms with Cage, steadying him as together they extracted Madeline from the narrow opening. Dust from the corn whitened her already pale skin. Had she inhaled too much? “Let’s move her over to the grass.”
Cage nodded, anxiety substantial in his expression. Adam wanted to touch him, stroke his hair, his back, some minor gesture that would bring them both comfort, but there was no time. They needed to see to Madeline’s needs.
He crouched next to her as Cage cradled her head in his lap. “We just found you, Madeline. Don’t leave us.” He brushed the dust from her face, willing her to live.
“We should take her to a doctor,” Cage said. “She’s badly hurt.” He touched the back of her head and showed Adam his palm stained with her blood.
“This town’s too small for a hospital. We need to get her back to the carnival. Alana can help her. She has to help her.” He could hear his voice breaking, his beast rising to the surface. How had this happened? How had they ended up in the damned silo? “Where’s Adelaide?”
Cage shook his head, astonished disbelief in his eyes. “She’s gone, brother. I don’t know why, but she did this. She hit Maddie in the head then threw her inside.”
Cage’s words punched through Adam like a bullet. It couldn’t be true. Adelaide? But why? There was no reason. Cage took his hand, twining their fingers over Madeline’s chest.
“It’s true.”
Adam nodded. “She seems to be breathing easier. I’ll go get her car. We’ll drive her back to camp. It’ll be safer than carrying her. Less jostling. We’ll deal with Adelaide once Madeline’s safe.” He sounded more confident than he felt. Clary had died from a head injury. One that hadn’t been much worse than Madeline’s. She was human. Frail. They hadn’t mated yet for her to gain some of their strength. He cursed fate for giving him a glimpse of happiness and snatching it out from under him all in the same day.
He leaned forward and kissed Madeline with a barest touch of his lips. The coolness of her mouth startled him. “Don’t leave us, Madeline Granger. We need you more than we need air.” He
glanced at Cage and tightly gripped his brother’s hand. “I’ll be right back.”
MADDIE had brief moments of consciousness, but she felt as if she were floating on the edge of reality, never really in it. She ached for her men, her lion kings, as they worried over her. They’d lost so much already. I’m here, she’d tried to say, when Adam begged her not to leave them. I’m right here.
Why had Adelaide turned on her? On Cage? It made no sense. Maddie wasn’t a threat to Adelaide. She’d freaked out when she’d found out Maddie had a similar gift to Clary. Could that be the problem? Did all this have something to do with Clary Sage?
The space around Madeline faded, the waning daylight growing darker as the warmth of vision took her once again.
I have seen a future that disturbs me. I have to talk to Adelaide. I don’t know what it means, but it concerns Zaria. She is older, almost a woman. She stares in the mirror and runs a brush through her pale golden hair. She is lovely. Adelaide moves behind her, placing her hands affectionately on either side of her daughter’s shoulders.
“You are spectacular, Zar.”
“I have to be, Mamma.”
“Yes, darling.”
“I will be queen.”
“Yes. And there will be none more equal to the task.” She takes the brush from Zaria and pulls it through the back of her hair. “Don’t ever forget, my love. You are high-born. The daughter of a king.”
The vision splintered as Maddie felt herself lifted from the ground. The running car was noisy, but she had to tell Adam and Cage. She didn’t know what the vision meant or why she’d seen it, but it had been one of Clary’s memories. She couldn’t make her eyes open, but she managed to mutter,” Daughter of a king,” before once again blacking out.
15
UNWILLING to leave Madeline’s side, Adam and Cage had sent Gus, their best tracker, to search for Adelaide. It had been almost twenty-four hours since she’d tried to kill Madeline, and Gus had reported back earlier that he’d lost her scent at the far end of the town. Adam tried his best to keep what was going on away from Zaria, but his niece was smart enough to know that her mother was missing.
“I don’t get it,” Cage said, and not for the first time. “Why would Adelaide turn on us like this? It makes zero sense.” He paced the area in front of their trailer.
What could Adam say? His sister’s behavior had been irrational. Crazy, even. Why had she attacked Madeline? A sharp pang stabbed his chest. He loved Adelaide. He’d rescued her and tried to protect her, and now he wanted to kill her, to rip her heart out and make her eat it. His own sister. His rage made him feel barbaric, but Madeline was their true mate—their chance for real happiness. And they’d nearly lost her.
In the morning, they would have to pack up the carnival and vacate the sight. They’d paid the landowner for week, and the week was up. Also, they’d lose the spot they’d booked for Holcomb County if they didn’t get on the road by evening, and regardless, he and Cage had a pride to feed. He couldn’t wait to get away from this town. Away from Adelaide’s crime. He couldn’t forgive her, and he would have to execute her for what she’d done if they found her—even if it broke his heart. Run, Adelaide. Keep running.
Alana had asked Cage and Adam to step out when she’d arrived in the evening to examine Madeline. She said she couldn’t work with them hovering, but Adam and Cage itched to get back inside. Carl, as Alana’s mate, stood with them outside the door and waited with his leaders. The long night before had been sleepless for both kings. They’d awoken Madeline every hour, as Alana had instructed, and watched her for vomiting and any other sign of trouble. At times she was incoherent, unaware of where she was until they reminded her. Every confused moment made Adam worry his sister had damaged Madeline’s brain.
“I can’t take this,” Cage said. He dropped into a squat, resting his elbows on his knees. He lowered his head enough to cover his short, golden-blond hair with both hands. “We could’ve lost her, Adam. Clary... Clary’s death was hard. The hardest thing I’ve ever had to endure, but losing Maddie will end me.” Thick emotion choked his voice. “I can’t...”
Adam knelt next to Cage and put his arm around his brother. The younger lion king tensed then leaned against him. Adam couldn’t bring himself to murmur comforting words he didn’t and couldn’t believe. If Madeline had died, he wouldn’t have been able to survive it either. Since he couldn’t reassure Cage, holding his brother would have to be enough—for both of them.
Their strong reactions to the idea of losing Maddie just reconfirmed her status as their true mate. Adelaide killing Maddie was the same as killing all three of them.
The door clicked open and both lion shifters jumped to their feet. Alana, her black hair tied back in a severe ponytail and her expression somber, stared at them.
Adam’s heart sunk. He could feel Cage bristling next to him, using all his willpower to stop from shifting. “Calm,” he said, as much for himself as Cage. “How is she?”
Alana’s eyes alit on Adam. “She’s awake. I’m certain she is mildly concussed, but not as badly as I first suspected. You will still need to watch her closely, but I believe she’ll make a full recovery.”
Tacit relief washed through Adam, making him feel light-headed.
Cage, who’d held his breath, released a noisy exhalation. “Can we get back in now?” he asked before Adam could, and he moved toward the stairs. Carl blocked his path before he could jump up the steps. It was a testament to Cage’s self-control—he towered over Carl and easily doubled the dwarf in height—that he didn’t fling him aside.
“Carl,” he said the name as a warning.
“It’s all right,” Alana said, her voice tempered with compassion. “I’ve helped her wash up. Being clean can lift one’s spirit, but I can do no more. Fortunately, I don’t think I need to.” She beckoned both men, a slight smile playing on her lips. “She is asking for her kings.”
Adam stumbled sideways as Cage pushed past him the moment Alana exited the trailer. He growled his surprise, but didn’t waste time following his brother inside. Madeline’s pale, wan face staggered him. From what Alana had said, he’d foolishly expected her to be fixed. Not still frail...human. He sat on the side of the bed. Cage had already crawled to the other side and tucked himself in next her. She smiled at Adam when he brushed her hair back from her face. Even now, her beauty shone through. And it wasn’t just her clear blue eyes like open skies, or her small but plump lips and her rich caramel colored hair that made Madeline a beauty. She had a light inside her that shined with a brilliance unmatched, and until she’d arrived in his life, Adam hadn’t realized he’d been living in the dark.
She rolled slowly onto her side, pressing her back into Cage. She lifted the covers in invitation for Adam. He instantly grew hard at the sight of her naked curves. He lay down, face to face, with Madeline and stared into her eyes. He’d been so afraid she wouldn’t make it, so afraid her death would be his burden. Adelaide was his sister after all. He’d brought her in to their pride. He’d trusted her.
He closed his eyes against the pain of her betrayal.
Cage wrapped his arms around Madeline and placed a tender kiss on her neck. She reached up and patted his cheek, but kept her gaze on Adam.
“It’s not your fault,” she said.
He pressed his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. Madeline was the victim of his incompetence as a leader, and she was trying to make him feel better. “Don’t,” he said. “I am to blame for the actions of the people I rule. I’m so sorry, Madeline. I promise...” He felt Cage’s hand on his head, and he amended his vow. “We promise to protect you better, to keep you safe. I don’t know why Adelaide attacked you, but she will be punished.”
Madeline’s finger crooked his chin, and she tilted his face up. He opened his eyes, startled to see how much determination she had in her expression. The raw emotion had brought color back to her cheeks. “I don’t need you to keep me safe. I’m not a China cup that will brea
k into a thousand pieces if knocked off a shelf.” She turned her head to look at Cage. “Adelaide chose to act the way she did, and you can’t stop people from making bad choices. Neither one of you.”
She looped her arm around Adam’s waist, and his skin caught fire everywhere she touched him.
“We are alive,” she said softly. Her eyes brightened with the shimmer of tears. “We are together.”
“Are you really okay?” Cage asked. Adam wanted the same reassurance.
“I have a headache, and I think I’ll have a lump on the back of my head for a good week, but yes, I’m really okay.”
Madeline wiggled closer to Adam, and his mating instinct drove his thoughts and his body. Not just because he wanted to make love to Madeline, though that was definitely part of it. He believed his lion was desperate to complete the mating ritual in order to make her less...mortal. Less easy to kill. Less prey.
He pushed his beast back. The last thing Madeline needed in her weakened condition was sex. Besides, the mating ritual would not be easy or gentle. It would be better for them to wait until she’d had a chance to recover. Just for a couple of days. They could wait, right?
Cage slid the cover down her body, his fingers dancing along her shoulder, the dip at her waist, and up over her hip. Adam swallowed hard as his desire rose. He knew he should tell Cage to stop, to wait, but he couldn’t find his voice.
He felt Madeline’s hand on his chest, and he diverted his gaze to meet hers.
She smiled. “You’re purring again.”
“You’re hurt,” Adam said, hating himself for tapping the brakes.
Maddie rolled to her back. She took Cage’s hand, now resting on her stomach, and slid it between her thighs. A throaty growl emanated from his co-ruler. Madeline’s smile widened. She lifted Cage’s hand, glistening with her juices, and presented it to Adam.
“See how wet I am for you. How much I want you...want you both.”
Adam tasted her from Cage’s fingers, savoring her sensuously delicate flavor on his tongue. She was so bold, their Madeline. Clary had been shy—a slow seduction, but Madeline was strong and confident. Everything a queen should be.
