Hunted by a Jaguar

by Felicity Heaton

  CHAPTER 21

  Kyter gasped beside Iolanthe as they appeared in the enormous verdant courtyard of the castle of the elf kingdom. She glanced past her brother to him and found him staring at the beautiful pale and dark stone castle that loomed before them, made up of tall towers topped with conical tiled roofs set on a series of large square buildings with balconies. The main building had five storeys, and the thick towers that rose above it to spear the darkening sky added another six levels.

  Bleu had chased her up one of the towers when she had been nothing but a child, laughing the whole time. She had wanted to see the nest of eagles at the top. She had never seen the rare birds before and had only heard of them, the stories people told of them something like legends in her land.

  When they had reached the very top level of the tower, where huge arched windows without glass allowed the breeze to cut straight through the circular room, she had gasped like Kyter had done a moment ago, shocked by what she had seen.

  The great tawny birds had been gigantic, the single chick large enough to carry her off. Bleu had caught her shoulder and pulled her close to him, and she had ended up wrapping her arms around his leg, clutching him as excitement had given way to fear.

  He had told her that he wouldn’t let them hurt her.

  He would protect her.

  He would always protect her.

  She sighed and touched her brother’s hand. He looked down at it and the black scales drew back, funnelling into his wristband and leaving his hand exposed. She brushed the back of his hand with hers, an action she had done often over the centuries, a silent signal that she was glad he was with her.

  He knocked his knuckles against hers and shot her a smile as he led the way into the imposing castle.

  The two males guarding the massive arched entrance lowered their long black spears to block his path, crossing them in front of the door.

  “I am taking my sister and her… fated male… to my apartment. Prince Loren has given his blessing.”

  The males exchanged a glance and withdrew their spears, granting her brother entrance. Her brother was a liar, but she appreciated it. She didn’t want to wait in the courtyard while he spoke to their prince, because the guards and high-ranking elves were already looking at her.

  Or more specifically her armour.

  She squirmed under their scrutiny and wished Bleu had given her a chance to change into something else before teleporting them to the castle.

  Kyter took hold of her hand and squeezed lightly, and she lifted her eyes to his face. He smiled at her and started towards the door, leading her into the castle. She could sense the change in him, the wariness that had started the moment they had appeared in the courtyard. He was on edge and on the defensive. It was there in the way he prowled along the pale stone corridor, a dangerous yet sensual edge to his gait.

  The unadorned walls glittered in the light coming in from the door. Bleu led them through the corridors towards the back of the castle, and Kyter’s pace slowed as they reached the hallway where statues of their former kings and queens lined the walls. His gaze leaped over them and he pointed towards the statue at the far end, beyond the stone staircase.

  “I know him,” he said, a charming edge to his smile, one that told her that being familiar with one single thing in the castle, and the prince at that, had made him feel more comfortable in this place.

  “Yes, apparently you got him drunk,” she countered and Bleu chuckled.

  It had been a long time since she had heard her brother laugh. So long that it caught her off guard and she could only stare at him, absorbing the rich sound of it as it wrapped around her, echoing off the high ceilings of the castle and transporting her back to better times, when she had been a child and her brother had laughed freely as he had played with her. When it faded, she looked between Kyter and Bleu.

  “Was it funny?” She found that difficult to believe.

  “He trashed my club… but it was kind of funny when it happened. One minute he’s cool as a cucumber and the next he was out of control. Fought a demon too. All because the demon touched Olivia.” Kyter grinned but she still didn’t think it sounded like a particularly fun time, especially for their prince.

  Bleu stopped at the bottom of the staircase and looked back at her. “It was quite funny. Gods, I hope I never find my fated female if I am destined to act like a prick like every male I have met who found theirs.”

  Iolanthe scowled at him.

  Kyter’s grin only widened. “True… but it is worth it. Having the one female made for you in your arms is a pretty priceless thing.”

  Iolanthe blushed and Bleu glared daggers at Kyter, huffed and stomped up the stairs. Kyter went to follow him but Iolanthe remained where she was and he stopped on the bottom step, his hand still holding hers.

  “What?” he said.

  Her gaze followed her brother and her heart throbbed, aching for him. Kyter couldn’t see it, but Bleu was hurting, and she had a terrible feeling she knew the source of his pain.

  A female.

  She shook her head. “Nothing.”

  Kyter frowned and she smiled, brushed her thumb over his and then sighed when she realised he wasn’t going to let it go at that. She looked beyond him to her brother where he waited at the top of the elegant staircase and then back at him.

  “Just… try to keep mention of females and fated ones to a minimum,” she whispered, not wanting her brother to hear, because he would be angry if he did.

  He had too much pride sometimes, and not enough at others.

  “He has to get used to us being fated.” Kyter stepped down beside her.

  Iolanthe shook her head. “I am not speaking about us. I cannot explain… but… please?”

  He searched her eyes and then nodded. “Whatever you want.”

  She had a feeling he was talking about more than just not speaking about women or fated mates in front of her brother. She had caught the look in his golden eyes when they had been back at the ledge, the one that had clearly told her that he was giving power over their relationship to her. He was letting her be in control—of their future, and of him.

  She led Kyter up the stairs towards her brother, ignoring Bleu’s curious gaze. When she reached him, he walked on, turning the corner towards the next set of stairs off to her left. The stone on this floor was dark and Bleu had warned her before that the prince had his apartment on this level and that she had to be quiet when moving around on it.

  She had only met Prince Loren once, around five centuries ago, and the male had been formidable, issuing orders to several legions of the army that had gathered in the courtyard. Bleu had been seeing her off at the time and had explained that they were going after Prince Vail.

  At her last meeting with Bleu, he had told her that Prince Vail was no longer a threat to their species. He hadn’t seemed pleased by the news, but she knew without asking that was because he was close to Prince Loren and saw the prince in private, and knew his innermost feelings about his brother and their war. Bleu feared Prince Vail would still be the death of Prince Loren one day.

  They followed Bleu up to the next level and he stopped in front of a wooden door, hesitated, and then sighed and pushed it open.

  Iolanthe gaped at the mess.

  Kyter chuckled. “Bachelor life looks the same no matter the species.”

  Bleu grumbled something and began teleporting the clothes strewn across the floor of the expansive room, and then all the weaponry, using his powers to send the clothes somewhere, she didn’t want to know where, and stack the weapons in the corner to her left near a set of low cupboards.

  The pale blue covers on the double bed directly in front of her, opposite the door, were rumpled.

  She sighed. Her brother never had been very neat.

  The three arched windows above the bed allowed light to flood into the dark stone room. Bleu crossed the room to the tall arched door to their right and opened it, letting air into the room. It smell
ed like home. The scent of the blue flowers blooming on the carved wooden structure of beams and braces over the balcony carried through the room, teasing her and relaxing her at the same time.

  Kyter drifted towards the open door and she smiled. She wanted to see the view too and breathe it all in, but she suspected the need was more pressing for him. Her homeland held countless new scents and sights for him to experience.

  She waited until he was out of the room and her brother was walking back to her before moving deeper into it. She eyed the dark wooden wardrobes that lined the deep grey stone wall to her right, next to an arched opening to another room, and then looked back towards the balcony. Her gaze snagged on the low wooden side table beside the bed.

  She smiled at the picture in the silver frame. “You kept it?”

  Bleu nodded and smiled. “It is a good picture. You look stupid in it.”

  She mock-frowned at him. “You are supposed to say I look beautiful in it.”

  “Beautiful… stupid… both.” His smile became a smirk and her frown became real. His expression lost all emotion again. “I must go.”

  He went to pass her and she caught his right wrist, stopping him in his tracks. He looked down at her hand on him and then up into her eyes, and then behind him towards the balcony.

  Towards Kyter.

  “Was he telling the truth?” Bleu said in the elf tongue.

  Iolanthe nodded. “He is my fated male.”

  Bleu scrubbed his left hand down his face and muttered, “Everyone is getting sucked into this mate thing.”

  “I am not sure what I will do yet.” Iolanthe turned her focus back to Kyter and watched him through the windows as he walked along the balcony, taking everything in.

  Bleu looked there too and was silent for long seconds before heaving a sigh. “I have only known Kyter a short time, but he is a good male.”

  Iolanthe couldn’t hide her shock on hearing those words leaving his lips and couldn’t stop herself from looking back at him to see whether he was only teasing her with what she had wanted to hear. Her brother smiled at her, this one reaching his violet eyes, and stroked his free hand over her hair.

  “You almost sound as if you are giving your blessing to the match,” she whispered, studying his face to see whether she had imagined it or whether he really did approve of Kyter.

  He leaned towards her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Not even close, but I will give you time to speak with him and decide what you want to do. I will return in the morning.”

  He tried to pull away but she refused to release him. She held him firm, her hand shaking against his wrist and nerves setting her heart off at a pace. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she had to ask. She had to know.

  “Iolanthe?”

  She closed her eyes, steeled herself for his reaction, and then opened her eyes and raised them to meet his. “What happened with the mortal female?”

  A brief shadow of hurt danced across his handsome features before it disappeared, replaced by a cold and distant look. “Sometimes things do not work out.”

  Iolanthe slipped her hand down to his and held it. “She was not your ki’ara though.”

  “No.” The flat, emotionless way he spoke that word told Iolanthe just how much the female had hurt him.

  Her brother had never been very good at expressing his emotions, at least not around people other than her, or handling them well. He was passionate though, a male capable of great devotion and tenderness, one who held a wealth of love inside him. He hid that side of himself behind a wall of ice at times, affecting the air of a male who could have dalliances with a female and not feel anything for them, or who could never have his heart broken.

  It was all a lie.

  Her brother’s heart was broken.

  “You will meet her one day,” she offered, pressing her fingers to his palm and refusing to let him look away from her.

  He smiled and touched her cheek, but the sorrow in his eyes lingered. “You are the only female who could love me forever, Io… the rest only love me for now or not at all.”

  Tears lined her lashes and she clutched his hand tighter, shaking her head as the belief behind those words tore at her heart.

  When she had been a child, Bleu had often visited her, taking her on long walks and teaching her things. He had talked to her of finding his mate one day and she had hoped his female would be able to match his passion and devotion to those he loved. He had never stopped talking about finding his ki’ara, not until everything that had been happening between the two princes had grown more intense and dangerous. He had dedicated his life to Prince Loren then, becoming his right hand man, relinquishing his desire to find his mate.

  He had devoted himself to his prince and now that prince had found his mate.

  And that mate’s friend had broken Bleu’s heart.

  Iolanthe blamed Prince Loren for her brother’s pain too. He had taken Bleu with him to the Third Realm, where a demon king reigned. A demon king who was the mortal female’s fated male. Bleu had told Iolanthe that he would fight for the female, and part of her had hoped that he would win, even when she had known it wouldn’t end well for her brother.

  Now Bleu had to see his prince happily mated and see his prince’s mate at the castle, and most likely the woman he had been falling for too.

  It was cruel.

  Too cruel.

  Her beautiful brother deserved better than that.

  She pulled on his hand, tugging him towards her, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He was still for a moment and then slipped his arms around her back and held her, his head on her shoulder. He didn’t have to be strong around her. He didn’t have to cover his hurt and pretend it didn’t exist. She was his sister. She was always in his corner and on his side and she would never hurt him.

  She held him to her and brought her lips to his ear.

  “One day you will discover that I am not the only female who could love you forever, Bleu.” She kissed his cheek and he sighed. “But I am a female who will mourn on the day your love for me is shared with another.”

  He held her closer, pressing his hands into her lower back. “I will love you forever, Io, whether I find my mate or not… no one can take my love from you.”

  She closed her eyes and savoured the feel of him in her arms, her beloved brother. She felt blessed to have him.

  “None can take my love from you, either,” she whispered.

  He pulled back and smiled. “Not even an annoying jaguar shifter?”

  Her lips curved. “Not even Kyter.”

  Bleu lowered his gaze and then lifted it back to hers and nodded before stepping away from her, his hands falling from her waist. “I will go and speak with Prince Loren to inform him of the situation and request permission to use the library, and will return tomorrow. Stay in my apartments until then.”

  She nodded, tiptoed and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you for lending your apartments to us.”

  Bleu grimaced against her lips. “Be silent now… because I do not want to think about my little sister with a male, let alone with a male in my bedroom.”

  She wanted to laugh at how uncomfortable he looked when she settled back on her feet and released him but held it inside. He grumbled to himself, pale green-purple light traced over the contours of his body, and he disappeared.

  Iolanthe was still smiling as she walked towards the balcony, heading towards her male where he waited for her.

  Feeling as if she was heading towards her future.

  CHAPTER 22

  “Is Bleu okay?” Kyter looked back at her as Iolanthe stepped out onto the balcony and lifted her arm, brushing her fingers through the beautiful leafy green canopy and the pale blue flowers. Their fragrance hung in the air, a sweet smell that made her feel she had come home.

  “About us?” Iolanthe asked and he ran his golden eyes over her from head to toe and back again. They gained a dark edge that sent a thrill through her, awakening a desire to
slide into his arms and steal a kiss.

  Kyter leaned his back against the dark stone balustrade of the balcony.

  The lush green rolling countryside beyond the castle’s high stone walls was a fitting backdrop for him, a beautiful display of nature at her finest, made possible by an ingenious portal thought up by Prince Loren and Prince Vail. It brought light from the mortal world into theirs. They harnessed the power of her species to form portals that allowed water to flow into their lands too. Their two princes had made this verdant and thriving land possible in the darkest reaches of Hell, making her kind the envy of the other realms. She could see those realms in the distance all around her, where the light from the portal above her gave way to darkness.

  “No.” Kyter raked another appreciative look over her. “Not us. I’m not sure what has upset him. Back in Pompeii, he said that he wanted to take his mind off something. He seems off… I’ve never seen him like this.”

  Iolanthe warmed inside, touched that Kyter was concerned about her brother and that he knew Bleu well enough already to detect when something was wrong with him. She hoped that they could become even closer friends. She liked the idea of having Kyter and her brother in her life, all of them together.

  “Is it something to do with that huntress from Archangel?”

  That question caught her off guard and she couldn’t conceal her surprise as she looked into Kyter’s eyes. He knew about the mortal female? She recalled that he had mentioned her brother being at his bar with their prince, and the prince’s mate. It stood to reason that the female hunter would have been there too. Kyter had witnessed her brother’s behaviour around the female, and that female’s behaviour towards him. He must have seen what Bleu had feared—that the female didn’t share his feelings.

  She considered shaking her head, wanting to protect her brother, but then nodded, because Bleu would need support now. Friends. If Kyter knew, he could tread carefully around Bleu and might be able to help him through this troubled time.

  Kyter sighed. “I had a bad feeling it might be. Think he’ll be okay?”

  It was her turn to sigh as she stared out at the beautiful vista, over the orchard below them within the pale stone walls of the courtyard, to the rolling hills and the villages beyond that. Her village was there. The village where she had grown up learning how to fight from Bleu and eagerly awaiting his visits, and listening to him speak of his fated female.