“I uh…” I couldn’t think. My mind was incapable of working just then.
Gearden turned around to holler over the sea of faces, “Bri!”
A few moments later, his beta appeared at his side, her face steely.
“Party’s over. Shut it down. Find Ro, send him up. Put Senior in charge of settling the Seelie in for the night,” he told her, signing as best as he could as he spoke, which wasn’t much. In all our time below, I’d been so busy and neglected teaching him.
Bri nodded. “What about the Westboros?” she asked, looking to me.
“What?” I echoed, still trying to collect all my brain cells.
“Do you want them here?” Gearden clarified. “Or do you want them to go home?”
I thought about it, probably a little too long than what sat well for Bri and Gearden but, damn it, I wasn’t thinking at one hundred percent just then. Finally, after weighing in on things, I answered. “Let them stay. Enlist their help with clean-up if you need it. They can wait here by the fire when they’re done. Don’t let them in the house. I don’t want to step on Liam’s toes.”
They both nodded and Bri dashed off to execute her orders. “Let’s take this inside. You can explain things,” Gearden told Dad. Just then, Liam stepped up, meeting us, followed by Ro.
As we walked closer to the house, Rowen came running up to us from out of nowhere. The second she did, the jumpy Unseelie Tweedle Dum jumped to stand in front of me. Clearly, he was spooked but Luna didn’t appreciate his actions one bit. The next thing I knew, my claws were out and they dug into his shoulder as I gripped it to pull him back, sending him flying to the ground. I put myself between him and Rowen as he leaped to his feet, an obvious battle within himself of whether to attack or protect me written all over his face.
“Don’t ever touch her,” I snarled. I could feel the gravel in my voice. It wasn’t just my hands that had shifted, I guess. Quickly, as I turned, I morphed back to my human form, plucking Rowen up and placing her on my hip as I led the way up the steps to the house, Gearden ahead of me and Lugh at my back. The feel of the little girl’s arms wrapped around my neck soothed Luna. Something about this little girl made Luna dangerously overprotective and the human side of me didn’t have any problem with it.
Chapter Six
Three Months Ago
Ben
“Thank you for coming, Benjamin,” Zerena said, setting her energy drink down on the coffee table in the manager’s office of the bar she had purchased just days ago.
“You and I both know I didn’t exactly have a choice,” I replied, giving her a bored look. She’d sent her cronies after me, knowing that even if her orders were to leave an invitation, they implied not to take ‘no’ for an answer.
She didn’t say anything to that, except to look over to the vampire bastards standing in the doorway.
“What’s this about, Zerena?” I pressed, getting bored. The damn couch I was sitting on was not for the good company, rather the kind you don’t want to hang around and stay a while.
She didn’t pretend any longer, thank goodness. Her slightly upturned eyes looked worried, which told me in the last five minutes since I arrived, the nonchalant attitude was just a guise.
I also took notice that one of her vamps shifted slightly on his feet.
“You see, it’s come to my attention that the doorway to Seelie has opened,” she told me. I continued to watch her, waiting for the shoe to drop. When she didn’t go on, I sat back, feeling like the day had been wasted for nothing.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” I said. “You know Maeleigh and Gearden went back with them.” I ignored the pang of worry in my chest at the thought of Maeleigh going down with the Seelie.
“I mean again, Benjamin,” she informed me, sighing. Being a father myself, I could honestly tell you, without a doubt, that it was uncomfortably creepy the way she spoke for such a young looking individual. To a human’s eyes, she’d look like any other teenager. But when she opened her mouth or flashed those teeth, the game was over.
“Again?” I repeated.
Her eyes flashed with irritation. “This is the great druid I’ve heard about?” she scoffed, looking almost disgusted.
“Hey, you aren’t exactly the queen of forthcomingness,” I told her. Then, “Who came through?”
She looked at her vampire guards, then, “We’re not sure. My source hasn’t been able to get a lock on whoever did it. They lost the magic trail.”
I could tell the words hurt to say them. I bet it pissed her off royally that she wasn’t able to figure out who had crossed over to the surface. Information was just as precious as blood to this woman.
“I thought you should be on the lookout.” Her words suddenly sounded ominous. “Your daughter is what this world has waited for, even those who didn’t know it. We need to make sure that nothing hinders what she’s destined to do.”
I stared at her for a moment, again, waiting for more. Instead, she simply picked up the can and began sipping again, as if the conversation was over and now on to small talk.
“Why not just call me?” I asked, truly curious. That information hardly warranted her goons dragging me here while I was in the middle of a lecture at the university.
“If I did that, I would worry that the information was leaked somehow. This way, I know that if anyone else learns of it, I’ll know who the traitor is,” she said causally. Sip.
I frowned at her, not for the hypothetical threat on my life, but the fact that she genuinely believed there might have been others involved with whomever had broached the portal to cross over.
“Do you have any suspects I can keep an ear out for?” I inquired, my eyes flicking to the vamp who was answering a call on his phone, his voice too low for me to pick up his words.
“Not at the moment, but I have lived for so long, who could keep track of all the people I’ve pissed off,” she said. I could see the sorrow then in her eyes. She even allowed a moment of vulnerability to show when she neglected to push back the long brown hair that fell forward as a shield of some sort to her mistakes in leaguing with Amergin to create the contract with the humans in the beginning. She’d regretted it after a while, but the Seelie didn’t know that yet.
“And you’re sure they traveled here and not the other way?” I asked her.
She nodded. “Source says only in, not out.”
“Alright, then. I will do some inquiries, let Liam know, go from—”
“No. This stays between you and I,” she insisted, her gaze hard, not allowing any naysay.
I clamped my mouth shut, pursed my lips for a moment, debating arguing with her, but thought better of it. Afraid I would, still, I gave a firm nod instead.
Satisfied, she took another sip of her drink, her eyes looking to her goon.
On cue, he stepped towards me, moving to take me by the arm like he’d done when he’d shown up in my classroom. I yanked it away, glaring at him. “I can walk,” I growled.
He sniffed indifferently and waited as I stood and walked out, not bothering to say farewell to the vampire since she obviously wasn’t going to do so.
Present
Looking around the conference room at the faces of those who listened to my retelling, I waited for someone to break the silence.
Dom and Tomos towered behind Maeleigh’s chair. Liam had entered mid-story but had gotten the bullet points from Gearden.
When no one spoke, I went on. “She was afraid that whoever had entered was there looking for information on you. Maybe even to hurt you,” I told them. “I thought she was just being paranoid.” I silently cursed myself. I craned my neck, checking to see if Liam had finally added a liquor cart yet, finding no such luck.
“I need a drink,” I murmured. I felt for my daughter, she was all kinds of confused, thrown into this mess, and it looked like she was having a hard time catching up. It was good to have her back though. Having her out of sight for so long was near torture with what was goi
ng on during my investigation. I had come up empty every time I went looking for the illusive intruder.
Maeleigh pointed over her shoulder to indicate the two Unseelie guards standing motionless a few feet behind her. “And these two?”
“Against my wishes,” I eyed them drolly, “They’ve been following me around since you went to Seelie. Visits with Zerena were sometimes a welcomed relief as they refused to be in her presence.” An evil grin crept over my face at the memory.
“Why were you there tonight?” the Seelie Cearer, Thorn, asked, obvious anger etched deeply into his face. I’d come across him a few times during my visits here, hoping for news on Maeleigh. Up until tonight, we had someone staked out at Amergin’s abandoned office building in the city, in case her and Gearden returned there. Of course, even I knew that magic didn’t work that way. Portals opened where you wanted them to, they weren’t location based.
“She’d messaged me. She wanted to give me something but wouldn’t tell me what it was over the phone,” I scoffed. The lady wasn’t crazy after all, I thought, trying to ignore the pang of regret in my chest. Vamps were never easy to get along with, but I had respected her for the position she’d held within our community for so long.
“When I arrived, her guys had just found her dead in her bedroom upstairs,” I dug into my pocket, pulling out a small envelope, “… and this was in her pocket.” I smoothed it out a little before sliding it toward Maeleigh. I knew she’d find the wax seal broken. Ignoring that, she pulled open the flap, before pulling out a small piece of paper.
A long pregnant pause settled over the room as Maeleigh read it. After a while, Thorn asked, “What’s it say?” He looked to Gearden, as Maeleigh’s eyes were downcast.
Gearden didn’t say anything, except lifted a hand to encourage Maeleigh to put the letter down. She slowly looked at him, still a little shocked. “It’s a decree, from Queen Selena,” she said. Before she said any more, she lifted her gaze to meet Thorn’s. “She really had made me her successor.”
“What?” he burst out. Frantically, he looked around the room, searching for anyone else who would be just as outraged. He didn’t find any.
“But she’s not even faerie. She’s just a mutt,” he spat out, standing to walk towards the guards still looming behind my daughter. Gearden and Lugh both jumped to their feet to block him.
Face-to-face with Lugh, Thorn growled, “Out of my way.” When the other man didn’t budge an inch, Thorn looked past him to meet Dom’s gaze. “And you’re okay with this? That letter could be a forgery.”
Tomos spoke, surprising everyone in the room with his deep gravelly voice, “It bears the royal seal.”
Maeleigh moved. Turning, everyone else around the table watched as she stood up behind Lugh, placing a hand on his shoulder, indicating for him to step aside. Right then, there wasn’t any fear, nervousness or unsureness in her demeanor that was there just a minute ago. Now, there was determination and confidence, with a big dash of challenge. “I accept Queen Selena’s request,” she announced. Still staring down Thorn, she waited for him to deny it, daring him.
He didn’t disappoint, the idiot.
“No. The Cearer will—”
“What, Thorn?”
All heads turned to see James standing in the open doorway, who knows how long he’d been standing there. He rested against the jamb, legs and arms crossed, in a perfectly relaxed pose. “What will the Cearer, a law and judiciary order, do about the dying wish of a queen?”
It looked like Thorn wanted to argue with every fiber of his being, but had ran out of ammunition, and hated his colleague for it.
“Step away from Her Majesty,” Tomos directed Thorn, taking a step forward, passing Lugh and Dom.
Chapter Seven
Maeleigh
Tweedle Dum actually spoke. I was dumbfounded. Well, for just a second. Thorn didn’t let me get stuck in my shock before he turned his angry eyes from the guard onto me, promising not to drop his disagreement with who took up the Unseelie reign anytime soon.
Ugh. Gearden’s wolf was chomping at the bit to leap around me and the other three males in front of me to get to the douchebag. Tensely, I waited for whatever would happen next. Luckily, Thorn turned on his heel and stormed out, shoving into James’ shoulder as he did.
James turned his head to watch him go, then slowly turned to meet my gaze. He nodded in a “go ahead” motion, as if to say he approved, even if his associate didn’t. I nodded back to him, a silent thank you.
Still wide eyed, I turned to Dad. “Why would Zerena have this? I didn’t think they were all that friendly with one another.”
“They may not have been friends, but trust was there,” he replied, shrugging his shoulders. “They
Dad caught my attention again, signing as he spoke, “Tomos.” Tweedle Dum looked over at him. Holy crap, he had a name, too. With wide eyes, I watched as Dad said, “I suspect you and Dom will want to stay close?”
Both the Unseelie guards nodded and Dad looked over to Gearden, a brow raised.
Gearden nodded. “I’ll see if we can get the guest room set up,” he told Tomos, then looked to Dom, “It’s a single bed, though, you’ll have to bunk up.”
The ridiculously large guard lifted his lip in disgust.
“I’m sure we can find a blow-up mattress somewhere,” Dad added, cutting Gearden off before he could piss the guy off any further.
Conversation over, I moved to step out from behind Lugh, only to have Dom and Tomos move with me, almost in tandem. I stopped in my tracks to sign, “Guys, I’m still a person here. You’ll have to give me some room to breathe.”
They eyed one another until, finally, Dom nodded to Tomos, and they both took a step back. It wasn’t much, but it was a start. Stepping around Lugh, I made my way out, glancing up at James as I passed him, my entourage following me. As I walked back down to the compound outside, I saw that in the thirty minutes we were up there listening to Dad’s retelling of meeting with Zerena, Bri and her small army of volunteers had finished cleaning up. The only evidence of the gathering lay within the collection of black trash bags piled in a corner beside someone’s old truck.
Lugh touched my arm to get my attention before signing, “I’m going to check on my own people.”
I nodded to say I understood and he looked up to Gearden, a silent message shared between them.
Lugh
I smiled and tilted my head to a few people still mingling outside their tents, overhearing whispers and murmurs about what was happening as I headed straight for the tent Weis was staying in.
I found him inside, conversing with a few of the men. “Weis,” I said in greeting.
He stood at attention, placing his fist to his chest. “Sire,” he said, bowing his head.
I looked to the other three soldiers standing about, all presenting me with their own salutes. “Leave us,” I directed them after returning one of my own.
They bowed again before ducked out of the tent. I turned back to Weis as the last man disappeared. “I suspect you heard about the elder, Zerena?”
“I have,” he answered, wearing a grim expression.
“Did you also learn that Queen Selena named Maeleigh the guardian of her people before she died?” I asked, waiting for his reaction. He only shrugged, which didn’t surprise me. He never did seem to care about the politics of things, just protecting those he’d sworn fealty to, in this case, myself. I was thankful that I’d ordered him to protect Maeleigh as well, what with all that was going on.
“I’d like for you to switch tents to one closer to the main house, an around the clock guard posted for the perimeter,” I told him. “There may be other guards from the McIntire pack and her new Unseelie guards you’ll have to play nice with, but I expect that shouldn’t be a problem.” I lifted a brow in question. I could almost hear his internal growl but he nodded his head obediently.
We Seelie felt a betrayal like no other when those who were now Unseelie stayed ab
ove, disavowing the way of the Tuatha De by separating. It was deeply rooted, but I trusted Weis to see beyond hurt feelings and see the bigger picture, which was protecting Maeleigh. She was more than just the new queen of the Unseelie. More than fae, I thought.
“You can switch tents in the morning. For tonight, set the guard up at the house. No one gets in or out without notifying myself, Gearden or Liam until we’re able to go over it all tomorrow,” I went on. A lot more needed to be said, but it was late. My people were tired, as was I.
“Get some rest,” I said in way of goodbye and walked out of the tent, already hearing him gathering his things to relocate in the morning. The men he’d been speaking with upon my arrival had congregated twenty or so feet away and watched as I left.
Finding Maeleigh with men from her other pack, sitting at a picnic table that had been cleared of any red solo cups, I felt a pang in my chest at the thought of the danger she was in now. By making her queen, Selena had painted a target on Maeleigh. And whoever had killed Zerena would be the most likely to take aim.
Before I could convince myself that it was all going to work out, that no harm would come to Maeleigh because neither myself nor Gearden would allow it, the male sitting closest to her touched her shoulder. The monster inside me reared its ugly head and I found myself clearing the distance that still remained between myself and her, in the next heartbeat.
I shoved him back with a fist to his chest, not hard enough to knock him off, but still enough to piss him off. Right away he stood up to tower over me in challenge, growling.
“Stop!” Maeleigh shouted. The next thing I knew, I was on the ground, Gearden looming over me, gray flashing in his eyes.
“Learn pack ways before you attack, asshole,” he said. Sitting up, I looked over to see Maeleigh talking to the other man, assuring him that he had skin privileges, whatever the fuck that meant.
She didn’t look back at me, instead turning to say something to the one of the younger looking males, who gave a tentative smile.
Truce: Book 1 in the Aftermath Series Page 6
