To Stir a Fae's Passion_A Novel of Love and Magic

by Nadine Mutas

  Hazel’s lips trembled. “That has to be Rose.” She inhaled sharply, her eyes hardening. “Think you’ve seen enough to lead us to her?”

  Basil gave her a grim nod.

  “Then let’s go.”

  Chapter 27

  Merle wiped the latest tears off her cheeks and checked her reflection in the mirror of the passenger side sun visor.

  “Is the crying going to continue?” Rhun asked from the driver’s seat. “Because I have to tell you, it’ll make me uncomfortable. I thought after He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named pulled that surprise act, there’d be fewer tears. If this is going to be the new normal, we’ll have to stock up on tissues, little witch.”

  She punched him in the shoulder, laughing at the way he undermined his flippant comments with a surge of love along their mating bond. Sniffling, she said, “I’ll be fine. I’m just…I can’t wait to tell Maeve. I hadn’t realized how much it hurt me that I had to keep this from her. She’s going to be an aunt! Oh, gods, she’ll be so thrilled.”

  He took her hand, squeezed, and shot her a smile that was an echo of the relief flowing through their shared connection. She felt his burst of happiness when she told him Arawn had paused the deal, and Rhun’s entire soul had brightened as if a crushing pressure had been lifted. Rhun hadn’t wanted to surrender Maeve, she knew that, and he was just as relieved as she to know they wouldn’t have to make the decision now.

  Taking a deep breath, she nodded at him, opened the car door, and got out. Rhun joined her, and they walked to the imposing gate of the Murray property. She unlocked it with the spare key she always carried, and they stepped through the wards onto the grounds. The magical protection was calibrated to allow Rhun to pass even though he was a demon, just like Alek and Lily.

  Lily’s car was parked in the wide, circular driveway, right next to Alek’s truck.

  When they entered the lofty foyer, silence greeted them. Lily and Alek might still be sleeping; as pranagraha demons, they were nocturnal, spent the day indoors due to their species’ sensitivity to sunlight. Maeve was probably up in her room with her nose buried in a book.

  “Lil?” Merle called out. “Maeve?”

  “Merle!” Lily’s head appeared over the banister of the landing platform above. “Merle—oh, gods. I was just about to call you.”

  “What’s going on?” Merle was already racing upstairs, Rhun hot on her heels.

  When she reached Lily, the expression on her best friend’s face made her blood ice over with foreboding.

  “What is it?” She grabbed Lily’s hand. “Are you okay?”

  “It’s not me,” Lily croaked.

  With a trembling hand, she held out a piece of paper. Merle’s pulse thundered in her ears as she took it.

  “I got up just a bit ago,” Lily went on. “Maeve didn’t mention she planned to go out, so I thought she’d be in her room as usual, but when I went to say hi to her, I found her room empty, and this note on her bed.”

  Merle was barely able to make out the words written on the paper, her hand shook so hard.

  I know about the baby, the letter read. I know you didn’t want me to find out, but I’m glad I did. Merle, maybe you don’t want to put me in this position, but it is where I need to be. This is my choice, my responsibility. I never wanted you in that position, never wanted you to have to make these tough decisions because of me. You’ve already done so much for me, risked so much, and I am so, so thankful. Which is why I can’t allow you to risk anything else—anyone else—on my behalf.

  I’m surrendering myself to Arawn, so he will stop using your magic. Your baby will be safe.

  Please, don’t come after me. By the time you read this, I’ll be well on my way to his lair. It’s long overdue, and it’s what I should have done weeks ago.

  Merle, I love you. You deserve to be a mom, and I’m so happy for you.

  Rhun, I would have enjoyed getting to know you.

  Lil, I love you, too. Please hug Baz and Hazel for me when they get back. I haven’t known Alek long, but I’m so glad you found each other.

  I’ll keep you all in my heart. Maybe one day I’ll get to see my niece.

  — Maeve

  Rhun caught Merle as the world around her collapsed into darkness.

  Chapter 28

  “How much farther?” Hazel asked.

  “Five minutes at most,” Isa replied. “It should be just around this bend.”

  Basil had given her as much information as possible based on what he gleaned from the faeries’ minds about Rose’s location, and Isa had pieced together that it had to be a cave dwelling on the outskirts of Angûn, a town just a couple of hours from the oracle.

  They made the trek in record time, the urgency of what Basil saw happening to Rose driving them on. He wouldn’t tell them details of what he’d glimpsed, just that they needed to get her out ASAP. Every time either Hazel or Isa asked him to explain, he shook his head with a pained look on his face and said, “Don’t ask me to describe it.”

  Tallak would glance his way, darkness shadowing his face, and then walk on ahead.

  A hawk’s cry pierced the silence of the woods. Isa shielded her eyes from the sun while she looked up, smiled at the beautiful sight of Kîna in full flight. To think she’d almost lost her… Her breath hitched.

  After they left the oracle, Basil insisted they check on something. He wouldn’t say what, and ordered Isa to stay back while he led Hazel off the path into the brush. Of course Isa had gone after them, only to sink to her knees next to the twisted shape of her beloved hawk, her heart in pieces.

  But Hazel simply pushed Isa aside, laid her hands on the bird, and muttered, “She’s alive. I’ve got her.”

  And when Kîna flapped her wings not a minute later, then shook herself and looked around, as if she’d never been harmed, Isa hugged Hazel so tight the witch gasped for air. If she hadn’t already appreciated Hazel for having given Basil a childhood full of love and shelter, this alone would have earned her Isa’s undying love.

  She grasped Basil’s hand, squeezed it, and whispered, “Thank you for thinking of her.”

  Basil followed her gaze to the idly circling hawk above, then gave her his dazzling smile. “Of course.”

  The path curved around the cliff set in the forest, trees growing up above and below, on whatever ground the plants could cling to on this rocky terrain. To the right, the wooded floor sloped steeply down into a fern-covered ravine, and to the left rose the cliff, covered in parts by moss and yet more ferns.

  And up ahead, a mere yard away, gaped the opening to the cave dwelling Basil saw in the minds of the fae who held Rose.

  Basil stopped and nodded, his face grim. “That’s it.”

  Hazel took a deep breath. “Okay. We need to know how many fae are in there, and where exactly they keep Rose. Can you check for that?”

  “I’ll try.” He closed his eyes, muscles in his jaw rippling, mouth pressed into a thin line. A harsh inhale, all color leaving his face.

  “Have you found her?” Isa laid a hand on his arm.

  He gave a jerky nod. “She’s…” He swallowed, his voice rough. “They’re…”

  “Taking her blood,” Tallak said, his expression impassive.

  Isa tilted her head in surprise before she remembered. Basil explained that his father took over Calâr’s mind mirror when he absorbed the fae’s powers. Tallak saw what Basil saw.

  Magic thickened the air, like pressing summer heat. “How many fae?” Hazel hissed.

  Basil’s forehead furrowed as he concentrated. “Fifteen…I think. Including guards.”

  “Kill them.” Tallak tilted his head, his intense amber eyes on Basil.

  He blew out a breath. “I’m not sure I can pinpoint my powers to kill only these few. I don’t have a handle on it yet. I could end up slaughtering every other fae in Faerie, too.”

  Tallak’s raised brow clearly said he didn’t see any problem with that.

  “No,” Basil said emphatical
ly.

  “Okay.” Hazel cut through the air with her hand. “We need to go in carefully, kill them one by one, without making a fuss, until we get to Rose and—”

  “Uh, guys?” Isa interrupted.

  Hazel and Basil both looked at her.

  She pointed at the entrance to the cave dwelling, where Tallak disappeared inside, his sword drawn.

  “Shit!” Basil took off after him.

  Hazel followed him at a run, leaving Isa to catch up.

  Inside, they both stumbled into Basil, who stood staring at the trail of blood and guts leading deeper into the caves. No sound but the swishing of a lethal blade and the thunk of bodies hitting the floor.

  They followed the evidence of Tallak’s slaughter, their weapons drawn, and found him in a dungeon-like room lit by few flickering torches. Standing over a pile of dead fae, bathed in their blood, he looked up at them with glowing amber eyes, his breath scarcely a touch faster in spite of all the killing.

  He raised a brow at their shocked silence, gestured to the bodies at his feet. “What? I wasn’t supposed to let one of them live, was I?”

  Hazel inhaled sharply, shook her head. She studied the room, her attention snagging on a crumpled form in the corner. With a choked sound that broke Isa’s heart, Hazel rushed forward, sank to her knees next to the young woman dressed in rags. Chains clinked as she gathered her in her arms.

  Basil walked closer, haltingly, his face a picture of silent horror. Isa grabbed his hand.

  “You can heal her?” he asked his mother, his voice but a rasp.

  Hazel’s breath hitched. “She’s not injured, she’s anemic. I need to get her home, brew a potion to replenish her blood.”

  Her hand trembled as she brushed the greasy hair off Rose’s face—a face which so closely resembled the older witch’s that there could be no doubt about their relationship.

  Rose woke with a start, twitched, opened her eyes and hissed. Sluggishly, she struggled in Hazel’s arms, clearly panicked. Magic whispered through the air, although it was barely more than a breeze.

  Hazel uttered a pained sound and let go of Rose. The young witch scrambled away from her, into a corner, dark hair hanging into her face, muscles in her bare arms and legs tensed.

  “It’s okay,” Hazel said, her voice soothing. “You’re safe, Rose. We’re going to get you out of here…”

  Rose spoke, and it took Isa a moment to realize she’d done so in Fae.

  “She doesn’t understand English,” Isa whispered.

  “What?” Hazel stared at Isa.

  “It makes sense.” Isa swallowed. “She’s been raised here. They never taught her English. Why would they?”

  Power crackled around Hazel, and Rose flinched, cowered lower in the corner. With a gasp, Hazel gentled her energy.

  “I’m sorry.” She took a tentative step toward her daughter, who stared at her with an expression Isa hoped she’d never have to see again. “Rose,” Hazel said. “I’ve come to take you home.”

  Isa translated, then listened to the young woman’s reply. “She’s asking who Rose is,” she whispered.

  Hazel exchanged a glance with Isa, and nodded. So Isa told Rose. Told her all about how she’d been born to a witch, taken from her mother, swapped for Basil, how they’d come searching for her, ready to take her to freedom.

  The young witch listened, her eyes darting back and forth among them, and when Isa finished, Rose peered at Tallak.

  “Did he kill them all?” she asked in Fae.

  “Yes,” Isa said.

  “The mistress, too?”

  Isa frowned, glanced at Tallak.

  He tilted his head. “Tall, green hair, gray skin, and blue eyes?” he asked in Fae.

  Rose gave a shaky nod.

  “Dead.”

  A shudder went through the young woman, and she closed her eyes, sagging against the wall.

  Isa translated the exchange for Hazel and Basil. At the mention of Rose’s “mistress,” Hazel’s expression hardened, clearly indicating she’d get to the bottom of the story behind that. Later.

  She nodded at her daughter. “Isa, please tell her I’m going to use magic to take off her chains.”

  Isa relayed that to Rose, and the young witch nodded her consent, holding out her arms with the heavy cuffs around her wrists when Hazel approached her. Metal clinked, the chains clanked on the stone floor, and Rose was free.

  She eyed Hazel’s outstretched hand for a moment, as if unsure whether to take it. As if she was looking at a dog, trying to decide whether it would lick her hand—or bite it.

  With an unsteady breath, she grasped Hazel’s fingers, let the older witch pull her to her feet. She swayed, and Hazel steadied her with her hands on her shoulders. Rose cringed, pulled back just a little.

  Enough to make hurt flash across Hazel’s face, visible even though she tried to hide it the next second. “It’s all right, Rose,” Hazel said, nodding at Isa to translate. “I understand. I don’t expect you to trust me yet. You don’t know me, and it will take time. But please know I’m here for you. I’ve been waiting to take you back into my arms for twenty-six years.” Her voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. “I can wait a bit longer.”

  Rose listened to Isa’s translation, studying Hazel with wide eyes, mapping her face—undoubtedly rattled by the resemblance.

  “Rose,” the young witch said, as if trying the word. She looked at Isa, spoke in Fae. “That is what she named me?”

  Isa nodded.

  “What does it mean?”

  “Karûn,” Isa said, naming the flower in Fae.

  Rose considered that, tilted her head. “That is better.”

  “Than what?”

  “Nem.”

  Isa exhaled roughly, her heart cringing.

  “What?” Hazel asked.

  She translated, finished with, “They called her morsel.”

  Isa had to hand it to Hazel. The witch kept her temper under tight control, despite the murderous glint in her eyes.

  “Here,” Tallak said in Fae, and threw a bundle of clothes at Rose, including boots.

  She caught them, clutched them to her.

  Isa raised her brows at him. She hadn’t even noticed when he left the room, but apparently he’d searched the other parts of the house.

  At the curious looks directed his way from everybody, he huffed. “Unless you want her to walk out of here like that?” He gestured at her shabby garments. “She won’t make it half a mile without shoes.”

  “Good thinking,” Hazel muttered, then ushered them all out of the room so Rose could change.

  Isa followed Basil to the entrance of the cave dwelling, found him staring down the ravine, his hands on his hips.

  “Hey.” She slung her arms around him from behind, pressed her cheek against his back next to his quiver.

  “We found her.” His voice was a low rumble she felt as a vibration on her skin.

  “She’ll be all right.” It might take time—lots of time—but Rose’s future looked infinitely better than even a few hours ago.

  He let out a rough breath. “I hope so. I’ve seen Maeve come back from worse. I’m just glad we got her out.”

  She squeezed him. “Well, I’d say your mission into Faerie was a success. You found Rose. You unlocked your powers. You even found a father you believed dead.”

  He turned, grasped her face with both hands, laid his forehead against hers. “I found you.”

  She wound her arms around his neck and pressed her body closer to his. “That you did.”

  “Finders keepers,” he murmured against her mouth. “Marry me.”

  She laughed into his kiss. “The human way?”

  “Human, witch, demon, fae…I don’t care which one. As long as I can claim you as mine.”

  Her fingers tangled in his hair. “Then we’ll do them all.”

  “So that’s a yes?”

  She looked up into those mesmerizing eyes of multihued brown, let the love and warmth of
his gaze wash over her. “A thousand times yes.”

  Epilogue

  “This is so unreal,” Lily muttered, staring out the kitchen window into the backyard of the Murray mansion.

  Basil followed her look to where Rose lay on the lawn, face turned up toward the starlit night sky, her fingers twined in the grass. She’d been like this for an hour already, Isa keeping her company and talking to her in Fae, while Rose soaked up sounds and sights and sensations like someone criminally underfed. Which she was, in a lot of ways, not just in terms of nutrition. From the bits and pieces about her captivity that Isa had gotten out of Rose so far, she’d mostly been kept indoors and underground, had only been allowed out on rare occasions…when she’d been “good.”

  She was so starved for nature and fresh air that, even after the journey here from Faerie, which had taken several days, she still couldn’t seem to get enough of the outdoors.

  “So. Unreal,” Lily said again, gaping at a twin she’d never known existed.

  Their first meeting had been…interesting, to say the least. Lily, who always seemed to have a comeback for everything, who had a witty or sarcastic remark for every situation, and who tended to indulge in running commentaries about what was happening—even when it was in her best interest to shut up—just stood there in shocked silence for a full five minutes when they presented her with Rose.

  Basil had to pinch her to snap her out of it. And Rose…indigo eyes wide, slack-jawed, marveling at the sight before her, raised a hand to Lily’s face, as if to trace the features that so resembled her own, only to draw back with a flinch. She started to apologize in Fae—translated by Isa—when Lily grabbed her hand, raised it to her face, and let Rose touch her.

  That moment still gave Basil goosebumps.

  “Seeing her next to you,” Basil said from his seat at the table in the breakfast nook, “drives home just how frail she truly is.”