by Debra Dunbar
“I don’t see your lie to the elves as a crime, Gwylla. Who was hurt by your deception? Didn’t those hosting you for dinners and other functions enjoy your presence? Your conversation? You cost them little, and gave as much as you got, I’ll bet. Forgive yourself.”
“You don’t understand, Dustin.” She fixed an earnest gaze on him. “I lied. Talligie would have wed an exiled traitor, not an envoy important to the queens. I thought I loved him, but in all honesty I used him just as he used me. I loved the idea that I would be his consort, that I would be secure in a high position in elven society. He used me for my power and what I could give him, and I did the same. I used him for what he could give me. The words of love we spoke to each other were lies on both of our parts. And I may have continued with this horrible arrangement, even after I realized this truth, had the elves remained in Hel. If the elves had not decided to cross the gates, I would be consort to a dictator, to a high lord who would have worked to bring all of Hel under his control.”
“You’re not being fair to yourself, Gwylla.” Dustin reached out and grabbed one of her hands, holding it tight. “You were scared, an exile among people that would have practically enslaved you had you not lied. And I know if the elves had stayed in Hel and you and Jerk Face had wed, you would have worked your butt off to make sure he didn’t turn into a dictator. You risked death to do so in Aerie, defying the queens for what you thought was right. And you did the same here, leaving Talligie when you realized what he planned. Don’t ever think that you’d just sit back and watch him trample others just so you’d get to wear a crown. I don’t believe that, and you shouldn’t either.”
The sun had set and the moon broke free of the clouds, illuminating the landscape in shades of gray, sending streaks of white across the surface of the lake. Gwylla felt the same light, same clearing of clouds in her heart. He was right.
“You could have sent me out to get the satellite phone on my own and continued to hide in your sanctuary,” Dustin continued. “You could have left me after the fight at the plane and teleported thousands of miles away to create another sanctuary, safe from your evil ex. Instead you helped me. You continued to help me. You’re sitting here beside me tonight, ready to battle this jerk. And don’t tell me it’s because of this weird bond, because I know better. Those aren’t the actions of someone forced into them by a magical tie. Those aren’t the actions of a traitor. Those are the actions of a hero.”
She lifted his hand and placed the back of it against her cheek. “I love that I’m a hero in your eyes, Dustin.”
He turned his hand to cup her chin, rubbing a thumb across her lower lip. “You’re more than a hero in my eyes, Gwylla. Now let’s get ready to kick some evil ex-boyfriend butt.”
Chapter 17
There wasn’t much sense in trying to get any sleep, so Gwylla and Dustin sat on the porch in companionable silence, watching the stars and listening to the insect song as they rocked. It would have been romantic if they hadn’t been waiting for the inevitable confrontation.
Close to midnight, an elf walked out of the woods by the lake. Gwylla felt every muscle tighten as she watched him make his way toward the cabin. He practically glided across the ground, every step smooth and unhurried. A wind blew the long golden hair that hung loose, showing the tips of his pointed ears.
“I take it that’s the ex-boyfriend? I mean Jerk Face?” Dustin’s slumped posture in the chair looked relaxed and casual, but Gwylla knew better. She could tell he was struggling to keep from going on the attack.
“Yes.”
What else was there to say? She watched the elf slowly approach, and something twisted inside her. Regret? He was beautiful, and brilliant. They’d been a powerful couple. And in the beginning when he’d promised her the sun and the moon, everything seemed as if it would be perfect by his side. She thought she’d found that perfect match for her, a partner that brought status and power, safety and security to her life as well as affection. But he’d been lying about his intentions, not that she’d been much better. She glanced over at Dustin. He looked so much like a human. He didn’t have a presence that commanded attention. He didn’t have the ability to perform magic. But he was honest and true, and was here, ready to fight by her side. And she was fairly certain that if he ever professed a love for her, it wouldn’t be flowery but it wouldn’t be a lie.
“Should we kill him?” Dustin’s voice was just as casual as his posture, but again she heard the tension as well as the hopefulness in his words. It made her smile.
“Eventually. I think it would be beneficial to parley with him first. He will want to assess my strength and size you up as a potential threat, and we can gain information on his plans so your pack can better strategize their plan of action.”
He made a sharp, brief nod. “The villain soliloquy. They can’t help it. It’s like it’s in their DNA or something. That and the overly complicated method of murder, like dangling us over a shark tank with a candle slowly burning the rope.”
She had no idea what he was talking about. “Yes. That.”
Neither of them budged as the elf neared, then came up against the line of wards that Gwylla had placed around the cabin.
Dustin snickered. “Is he going to huff and puff?”
Most likely. Talligie stood for a few moments, his gaze locked with hers. “Trying to keep insects away, Gwylla? Or possibly humans? I’m hurt if you think this ward could possibly stop me.”
She stood, deciding now was a good a time as any to have this conversation. “It is merely to give me warning of those too rude not to announce their arrival in a proper fashion. The owners of this cabin weren’t afforded that courtesy, and I doubted I would be either.”
“Must we shout across the lawn? Come here, or dismiss your wards.”
He could break them, but that would be a blatant declaration of war, and clearly Talligie had something else in mind. At least for now. Brute force would most likely follow her rejection of whatever proposal he was about to make.
She walked down the steps, noting that Dustin followed about five feet behind, carrying the toaster under his arm. “Why are you here, Talligie? I thought I had made myself clear the last time we spoke that I wasn’t about to be a part of your plans.”
He spread his hands wide. “Why not? You sidhe have no love for angels.”
“No, but we do not seek to eradicate them.”
His jaw clenched. “Because the sidhe will not budge themselves for anything. All the queens do is feast and frolic, plot and intrigue and have orgies. Your talents were wasted in Aerie. They won’t be wasted here. Once the angels are gone, this world will be ours. You and I will rule. You’ll be the queen you should have been in Aerie.”
She caught her breath. Did he know? Had the stories of her treason somehow made it to Hel and his ears? Or was that a random observation, more of the false flattery that she used to believe was sincere admiration?
“But I won’t be your queen, will I Talligie? You’ll use me, use my power, and when I’m no longer useful, I’ll meet an unfortunate end. You’ll never share power with anyone, not even me.”
His eyes widened with hurt, and there was a sincerity in them that was so real she almost believed it. “I loved you, Gwylla. I still love you. You are the only being fit to be my queen, the only one I’ve met that has ever been my equal. Come back to me and I’ll listen to your counsel. These shifters are not my true target. If you care about them so, then we will spare them. Now that I know the effect of this magic, I can tailor it to create a weapon that kills angels, and leave the shifters in peace.”
Would he? She thought back on all their times together. Talligie was a high lord, used to getting his way. He might compromise in the short-term to achieve a long-term goal, but in the end, he wouldn’t compromise on that goal. He’d end up killing the shifters because they couldn’t be controlled or enslaved, and anyone that couldn’t be controlled or enslaved, including her, would end up dead. Besides, this world
didn’t belong to the elves or the angels, and trading one overbearing master for another would do the humans no good.
She curled her lip and lifted her head, channeling every haughty queen she’d ever been in the presence of. “You don’t have the power to create a weapon that would kill the angels. I’ve seen your bullets, and they are a child’s trick. All they do is force a shifter to change into animal form and prohibit them from healing their wounds. How could you possibly alter that in any way to create a weapon that would destroy a being of spirit?”
His eyes sparked. “You doubt me? You, of anyone, should know the skill and power I hold. At first I thought to use a blade, but getting close enough to an angel to strike brings with it too great a risk. These weapons of the humans are perfect for enchantment. They could kill from a safe distance. Even a human could kill an angel with these.”
And that’s what he intended, no doubt. Make the humans do the killing, so if the tides turn and the angels win, the elves would look innocent in all of this.
“With bullets that hardly are strong enough to affect a shifter? That take days to kill even them with their miniscule amount of angel essence?” she scoffed. “You are a fool.”
“I am no fool!” he declared hotly. “The bullets were my test, to make sure that was the correct path the magic should take. The stupid humans who believe they are my partners pay enormous amounts of money for them. They pay for the privilege of killing shifters. And they will pay for the privilege of killing angels. It’s possible. I’ve created a blade—several of them that have enough power to kill an angel. It is a simple thing to transfer that enchantment to a bullet. All I need is to be able to produce enough enchanted bullets to supply all of the humans, then I will stand back and watch and wait.”
Her heart sank. He’d produced a weapon, the issue was scale and mass reproduction of it.
“These weapons of the humans can also be turned against us,” she cautioned. “Who is to say that once they drive the angels from their home, they won’t do the same to the fae?”
He shrugged. “The difference is the angels don’t want to hurt the humans. They think of them as some special little project to pamper and coddle. Elves have held humans in slavery for thousands of years. We know them. We know how to make them obey.”
Dustin growled. Even in his human form, it was an intimidating sound. And it got Talligie’s attention. The elf eyed the shifter in surprise.
“Gwylla, your pet has teeth? Of course you took him in and healed him, a dying wolf at your door. You always did have a soft heart for injured animals. Come back to me and I will let them all live. You can have as many pets as you wish—a whole harem of them.”
“No.” She pulled back her shoulders and called forth a bit of ice, just enough to hang like talons at the ends of her fingertips. “The elves have no right to this world. You are welcome to go to Aerie and kneel at the feet of the queens, or you may stay in Hel with the demons, but you cannot seize this world and enslave the residents.”
Talligie didn’t appear at all daunted by her statement. “But I will. And if you won’t join me, then you have a choice. You can return to Aerie, or you can stay here and die by my hand.” He took a step forward. “Which leaves you one choice, does it not? Because if you return to Aerie, you’ll be imprisoned and this autumn you will face your death at the teeth of the hounds.”
She felt cold. He knew. He’d probably known all along. He’d take her and use her as a battery. She’d be nothing more to him than a source of energy to fuel his power. He never wanted her as a queen, as an equal. He only wanted her as a tool.
Before she could reply a toaster shot through the air. Talligie lifted a hand, arrogantly catching it midair, then shrieking and dropping the appliance, his hand blistered red.
“Next time it’s the microwave, dickhead,” Dustin told him.
Was it too soon in their friendship for her to tell this wolf-man she loved him? That would probably have to wait until after pizza, tequila, and sex.
“I will stay here,” she told the elf. “And we will make sure that you don’t take this world.”
Talligie snarled, shaking his injured hand. Then he extended a finger to touch her wards. They rippled, distorting him and the landscape behind him. Pain shot through her head, and she gritted her teeth, fighting to keep the barrier in place.
It fell, the sound of shattered glass filled her ears, pounding into her head. Everything went white. She wasn’t sure how she remained standing, but when her vision cleared, she was still upright, her hands clenched by her side.
Talligie smiled. “I will return tomorrow at dawn, Gwylla. And if you run, I will find you. Best say your prayers, because tomorrow, I will kill both you and your pet.”
Chapter 18
“Nice job with the toaster,” she told Dustin as they walked back to the house.
“Thanks,” he climbed the stairs and turned around, staring out at the spot where the elf had been. “Think he’ll keep his word and wait until morning? I wouldn’t mind getting some sleep, setting an alarm, and being fresh and alert for the Great Appliance Throwing Battle.”
“It’s unlikely. Talligie is the type to make a big show of honor and keeping his word, then pay someone to poison the rival high lord the night before the battle. He likes to win. And he can justify all sorts of actions to get whatever it is he desires.”
“Then we might want to get ready for a long night on the porch. Can you keep watch while I go gather supplies?”
She nodded and sat back down in her rocking chair, sipping the now-cold tea as Dustin came and went from the house, stacking up appliances, eating utensils, knives, tools, and the two guns, as well as a slingshot with a small pile of what appeared to be the tops of hammers. All the metal in such close proximity to her was making Gwylla nervous, but Dustin was careful to keep it on the side of the porch away from her.
“Are you able to set any alarm wards, or even a barrier like you did before?” he asked, finally returning to his seat.
“I’m better off saving all my energy for the battle,” she replied. “It’s not like a barrier is going to stop him. You saw what he did to the last one.”
“Yeah, but it might stop human hunters. I was thinking about what you said—that he’d send someone to poison the high lord the night before the battle? Made me wonder if he wouldn’t prevail upon his human buddies to be his cannon fodder and attack us in the night. If they kill us, well then there’s no need for a big battle at dawn. If we kill them, we’ll be exhausted and probably injured and at a disadvantage going into that battle at dawn.”
Gwylla sighed, rubbing a hand over her face. This wasn’t the life she wanted to live. She wasn’t a warrior. She wasn’t a hero. All she wanted to do was live at peace in her sanctuary.
No, That was a lie. She wanted friends, a community to care about, who cared about her. She wanted to rock on porches in silence with Dustin by her side, drinking tea. She wanted to have picnics by the stream in her sanctuary with Dustin. She wanted to stay at his house and eat pizza, drink tequila, and have sex. And to do all those things, she needed to be a hero first. Sometimes running away and hiding does nothing but get everyone you love killed. Dustin would never run away. And she couldn’t either.
“I’d better set wards then, and possibly a trap for the back door and other entrances of the house. If a group of hunters attack, they will most likely distract us with fighting here in the front while others sneak through the house to shoot us in the back.”
Dustin nodded. “My thoughts as well.”
She set a simple alarm fifty yards out surrounding the house, Dustin walking by her side with the rifle in his hands, just in case. Then she put a freeze spell on the door and the downstairs windows all the way around.
“Now sleep,” Dustin told her when they had returned to the porch. “Either the alarms or I will waken you if anything happens. I want to make sure you’re well rested.”
He was right, once again. She grab
bed some blankets and pillows from the bedroom and came out to find Dustin had set up a little space for them in front of the door. He sat beside her, and she closed her eyes, her head in his lap, dozing off to the feel of him stroking her hair.
The attack came a few hours before dawn. Dustin was grateful that Gwylla had been able to get some sleep before the alarm woke her, but a fight this close to when they expected Talligie to arrive would mean they’d be pretty battered facing him.
Even before the wards had chimed their warning, Dustin had sensed the humans. Six. They had been in the woods for the last hour, observing, strategizing, taking position around the house. The hunters had been sold their trips as a tourist shoot-a-shifter expedition, but he could tell from the way these guys moved and set up that this group was on what they thought was a paramilitary exercise.
Thank you, “Call of Duty.”
Which brought the question to Dustin’s mind of whether these were actual trained mercenaries or, like him, a bunch of guys whose only military experience was with a game controller in hand? Dustin hoped the latter, because he’d always been good at team warfare games, and the ace in his pocket was that Team Werewolf/Sidhe had abilities these guys had probably never encountered outside of an Xbox.
He shook Gwylla gently. “Hey. We’ve got company. Six humans. I haven’t been able to catch sight of them yet, but from the way they’re setting up, I’m expecting they’ll set the wards off in front of the house, and try to draw us out front while they approach from the sides and rear.”
She stirred, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Would we be better inside the house, not out in the open like this?”
