Once we were down the stairs leading into the mines, I readied my gun. Security had probably tripled since the great Fae escape. But as we inched toward the Green Room, we found nothing. Absolutely nothing. Chills prickled my flesh.
Something wasn’t right.
I was about to break our code of silence—convince Rebel Leader we were walking into a trap—but Reagan was already entering the large cavern, slipping from my sight. Panic tightened my chest and I pushed past a stunned Akeno, mouth opening to call her back. My fumbling caused a domino effect, the twins pitching forward onto Rebel Leader. In a tangled rush, we spilled into the soaring green cavern, clutching at our clanking weapons.
Several yards ahead, Reagan whirled, hands on hips. She eyed us, arching an eyebrow. I shrugged sheepishly, moving to join her. As a unit, we made for the far wall, pulling out thick burlap sacks to hold the crystals. If there weren’t any loose pieces left out like last time, we’d have to search the place for a hidden cache. That or it was pickaxe-wielding time. Adrenaline hummed in my veins and I had the strongest urge to bolt across the large space. Too open. Too exposed.
Too quiet.
Trap. Trap. Trap, my mind screamed.
From behind came a resounding thud!
Weapons clicked as the team swiveled toward the noise. At the sight that greeted me, my face blanched. In that moment, as the gangly creature rose to its full height, I would have rather faced a rock slide. Or a horde of angry guards. Or a dozen Bushies. But this?
I raised a trembling finger, pointing at the . . . at the . . . “S-spider,” I stuttered.
“No kidding, genius,” Caspar blurted, unslinging two guns, one in each hand. “Stand back. I’ll pump the sucker full of lead.” Sporadic gunfire popped from his waving weapons, ricocheting off the floor, the walls, the . . .
“Caspar!” My limbs unfroze and I lunged for the crazed lunatic, jerking the guns from his hands. “The crystals. The bullets are rebounding. You’re going to hit us, you blundering idiot. You don’t even know how to shoot!”
“I do too!”
“Video games don’t count,” I snarled, and he looked at me like I’d mortally wounded him.
The spider skittered closer, hissing out a laugh. I cringed as the long, black legs made a clicking noise similar to that of high-heeled shoes . . .
No way.
“Jocelyn?” I swallowed the bile climbing my throat. The spider, taller than any of us, raised two legs and brought them together as though clapping. A shiver that felt way too much like crawling baby spiders shook my entire body. “Crap. I was hoping you’d be a seal.”
Hissing again as though I’d insulted her, she leapt into the air and landed a few yards in front of us. The group scattered, Micah yelling as he pulled free a sword he must have snatched off Mordecai’s study wall, “A jumping spider? Really? Come on!”
Jocelyn ignored them all, her multiple black eyes focused on me. I dropped Caspar’s weapons and unslung my taser gun. I had no idea if the electricity would work on this hideous creature, but I’d give it my best shot. One glance at Reagan beside me and I knew she wasn’t going to take that risk.
“Let me try something before you go all lion on me,” I said to her. “Jocelyn and I have a score to settle.”
She nodded, as if she personally understood how I felt, but didn’t back away. My jaw clenched. I would have to be right about this. And quick. The giant spider that resembled a house-sized black widow scampered toward me. As I dove out of the way, a tiny whimper left my mouth.
“Heard that!” Malachi shouted.
“Tarik’s afraid of spiders!” Micah chortled.
“Shove off, guys, or I’m sending her your way!” I grunted, leaning back as a sharp leg swung over my head. She hissed, snapping her pincers together. Pincers? Venomous ones? My eyes flicked upward, and I almost dry-heaved at the sight of her bulbous red and black underbelly.
I aimed at the disgusting creature, volts of blue electricity sizzling against her shiny body. Jocelyn shrieked and reeled back, ramming a leg into my stomach. I wheezed, forcing myself to a stand, and sent another bolt arcing through the air. One of her eight limbs buckled.
“Aim for the legs!” I yelled, ducking as another one darted toward me. The men surged forward, most with blades in their hands, slashing at a furious, hissing Jocelyn. Two more of her legs gave out and relief crashed through me. She could be defeated. I wouldn’t become her next meal. Wait, what did she eat? I threw up a little in my mouth.
I was about ready to send a bolt into her face—which would hopefully blind her temporarily—when she jumped straight up, latching onto the cavern’s ceiling. Several of the men groaned. I heard Caspar mutter, “Anyone have a very long broomstick?”
Out of the corner of my eye, Reagan crouched, her expression focused. “Don’t,” I warned, which earned me a scowl. “She’ll knock you out of the air.”
And then Jocelyn moved. Everyone shuffled aside when she hovered over their heads. Prey. She was looking for easy prey. A quick pounce, bite, and retreat.
“Micah,” I whispered, never taking my eyes off the creeping spider. “Throw me your weapon. On my count.”
“Are you sure, man? I might accidentally slice off your—”
“Just do it,” I hissed, as the black, leggy creature positioned herself right above my head. This was going to bite. Hopefully not literally.
In the next second, she dropped, rotating her body midair so all I could see was red and black and thin, grasping legs. So many legs. Gaia, help me.
“Sword!” I bellowed and wrenched my gaze from the spider as the weapon sailed toward me. Catching it, I slammed my back to the ground, raising the sword high.
I squeezed the hilt tightly, arms jerking as she impaled her underbelly on the blade’s sharp tip. A loud, wailing shriek echoed throughout the cavern as she shifted. I blinked up at a naked Jocelyn, quickly rolling out from beneath her. Blood leaked past her red lips as she laughed, the sound cut off as she choked on her own blood.
“You may have—” a wheeze and more leaking blood “—defeated me, but Mordecai is at this very moment destroying what you sought to hide from him.” She laughed again, red-painted fingers resting on the blade still protruding from her stomach.
“Where is he? Where?” I growled, a thread of panic lacing my words. Something wasn’t right. The mine was still too empty. Too quiet.
As her eyes glassed over, one last word slipped from her lips.
Shock, then fear lanced through me, through all of us.
We bolted for the exit.
Safehouse.
The word echoed in my mind, over and over. My heart pounded against my ribs. Pressure spread across my back, my wings anxiously trying to rip free. Go, go, go. I could beat them all there. Maybe. I could save the Fae. Probably not.
Would Tarik forgive me if I left him behind? The Fae could fly—and judging from the desperation on their faces, the wing ban wasn’t even a thought in their minds. They would catch up. And fast, more than likely.
He would have to forgive me.
I would beg him if I had to. If we survived.
The moment chill air hit my face I shifted, slamming my wings open and taking to the sky. I didn’t wait for an updraft, pumping my wings in a panicked frenzy. How did Mordecai find the Safehouse? Had I inadvertently led Alec there? Yesterday flashed through my mind, Alec’s circling as Tarik and I argued. And then again, when Flynn, Benji, and I had rescued Haven.
Did I lead the dragons there?
I was guilty in either case. They wouldn’t be bothering the Fae if not for me. Not like this, in any case. No, they’d be torturing them. Experimenting. I growled in frustration, at my frantic, warring mind. I should have gone to Mordecai, should have turned myself in for treason. Shouldn’t have endangered them.
I should have stayed.
All of this was my fault.
For a shining moment I had thought I could escape. A selfish thought, I realized, when Ta
rik and the Fae were the ones playing shield. An already broken, scattered shield that I asked too much of.
The world, my mind, my heart—all three stopped when I spotted the building. Bathed in blood. Shifters were tearing Fae from the doors and windows, brutally ripping them apart before their wings could unfurl. Crimson sprayed up the walls, pooled in the street. Agonized screams crowded my senses. I shoved away the accusatory words that bubbled up. Not now. I had to stop this.
Alec was terrorizing a pair of Fae up the street and I dove for him first, slamming myself against his thick scales. He roared in anger, eyes flashing when he realized who had attacked him. I tried to lure him away; flew around him, batted at him.
He knew. In the smallest of glances he knew exactly what I wanted, what I was trying to do.
Those Fae didn’t stand a chance. Alec swiped them from the sky, tore their wings to ribbons.
No hope for escape.
Fury vibrated through my bones. I didn’t have time to stop Alec, couldn’t spare the minutes to lure him into human form. My claws and teeth were useless against his natural armor, and he had been trained well to guard his weak spots. As if sensing my turmoil he spun on another innocent, a wicked twinkle in his eyes. My breaths came in shallow, rapid bursts. I was utterly helpless to stop him.
I can’t save them. Not from this. I can’t help.
My stomach heaved when he snapped the Fae between his jaws, spraying my nose with the same blood that dribbled from between his teeth. Bile raced up my throat and I shoved the acid back down. I looked away, eyes falling to the Fae fighting for their lives behind me.
They’re alive. I can still save them. Go.
I spun and flew to the Safehouse, ignoring the shock of pain that splintered through my bones at my hard landing. The first shifter I saw had the legs of a bird—caught mid-transformation. I pinned him to the ground, tearing his still-human throat out in one swift motion. Shaking my mane, I grimaced at the metallic taste that lingered on my tongue.
I tucked my wings and burst into the building, lunging at shifters as they passed. A familiar-looking coyote nipped at my ankles. I snapped open a wing, pinning him to the wall before I pounced, slicing my claws down his middle. He didn’t even twitch.
Nevaeh.
Sebastian. Flynn. Elias.
Where are they?
I searched the room quickly. Nothing. No sign of them. Every inch of me trembled with rage and fear . . . and guilt. So much guilt. Dead Fae littered the common rooms. Innocents. Children.
I shook my head, blinking away hot tears. Focus. I needed to find the others and get rid of Alec.
A flash of movement caught my eye. What I thought was red hair vanished up the stairs, and my lion’s determination reignited at the sight. Every shifter that moved met the fury of my claws and teeth—tearing, shredding, ripping, destroying. Not enough. They still came, crawled out of the woodwork. Still killed. Murdered.
There was no sign of the four that had stayed behind. Not in the kitchen, or the main common area. I growled in frustration. My ear caught the softest whimper. Behind one of the recliners, a Fae child crouched, trembling. Damnit. I couldn’t get her out as a lion. Damnit. She was only a child.
My mind latched onto that word. Child. Children. Fae children had grown scarce in more recent years. My heart slammed to a halt when I realized Mordecai had targeted them, knowing exactly what they meant to the Fae. What they meant to me.
Wait. I scanned the room.
Where’s Benji?
Damnit.
My anger renewed. I held myself together and gently nudged the child toward another fleeing Fae. I watched them from a window, made sure they were outside and safely past Alec, before I continued my search. I shoved my way into the gardens, scanning the area.
Nothing, more nothing, and then—
A familiar form lay crumpled on the ground.
Elias.
Covered in blood, gripping his chest in pain. His glasses lay shattered on the ground beside him. The air vanished from my lungs, and my eyes burned.
My fault, my fault.
I started to shift, to help him, when something plowed into my side. A snarl slid from between my teeth as another lion shifter—smaller and brown—prowled toward me. Sought another blow. I pushed him away from Elias, back into the main house, then slammed him to the ground, slashing at his face. He turned, slid free. His long claws dug into my side. Crimson sprayed across my white fur, blood pouring from the wound.
Before I could swallow the sound, a small yowl escaped. A second later, Caspar slammed the butt of his gun into the lion’s snout. The animal slumped to the ground, unmoving, before he slid back into human form.
“You’re welcome, tiny shifter!” the large Fae called, before disappearing into the kitchen.
I huffed a thanks. Then remembered Elias. I turned for the gardens, but Nevaeh shifted in front of me.
“Reagan . . . upstairs. You have to go upstairs,” she panted. “Mordecai . . . You need to stop him. He might listen to you.”
Before she could finish, I was charging up the stairs. Right into a harried-looking Sebastian who flinched instinctively as I approached. I shifted, dropping into step beside him.
“What happened?”
“I-I don’t know,” he stammered. “All was quiet and then . . . and then Alec. Now Mordecai’s . . .”
“Where’s Benji? Flynn?”
“I don’t know . . .”
I put a hand on his arm and squeezed gently. “Get to safety. Help Elias—he’s in the gardens. I’ll take care of Mordecai.”
Sebastian nodded as I bolted past him. Mordecai wasn’t hard to find—he was terrorizing one of the larger family rooms, a small child locked in his grip. The second I strode through the door, his eyes widened and he grinned.
“I thought this might motivate you out of hiding, sweet daughter,” he crooned.
I stared. Didn’t dare move. “Release them or I’ll leave again.”
Mordecai paused, considered. “You’d leave them to die?”
“If I have to.” I wouldn’t. He knew I wouldn’t. Apparently he didn’t want to take the chance, though, roughly shoving the child to the floor. The boy scrambled to his family. I made sure they reached the stairs before I prowled a bit closer to Mordecai. Our eyes locked.
“Reagan. Enough of this game. Come home.”
“Anywhere you are isn’t home. You think I’d want to come with you? That this display of wanton violence would what, pacify me?”
He laughed, but his attention slid to the door. I spared the half-second glance. Tarik. Damnit. I growled at Mordecai.
“So the Fae managed to brainwash my beautiful daughter, hm?” His cold gaze lingered on Tarik and I stepped more firmly between them. “You really did a number on her, if she thinks whatever this is could possibly be superior to the comfort she’s used to.”
Tarik scoffed. “The Fae might not have fancy apartments, but we don’t lie. Unlike you, who’s been lying to the entire city, all while sitting on the truth. Yes, I know what the Genesis Crystal does. What you’ve been hoarding, dragon.”
Oh no. No, no, no. I shouldn’t have let Tarik talk, should have known better. The glint in Mordecai’s eyes made my stomach curl, reinforced my fear. He lifted his foot to step forward and I rapid-shifted, throwing my wings out between them.
“Reagan. We do not help the Fae. How many times do I have to drill this into your thick skull?” Mordecai seethed, then inched closer. I bared my teeth, another angry snarl slipping free. I balked at the honeyed tone in his voice when he added, “Sweetheart. I’ll stand right here. Let’s talk.”
I hesitated. I didn’t trust him, but I had the energy for another rapid-shift, if needed. Possibly the last I could manage for the day. I could hear him out, right? When I shifted, Tarik swore softly.
Mordecai’s face lit with glee.
“There, see? Now we can discuss this like civilized people. But first . . .” He crossed his arms and s
tared at me, pointedly.
“Not a chance in hell,” I spat, teeth grinding together. “I’m never going to kneel to you again. Why are you hoarding the Genesis Crystal? What do you want with caverns of green rock?”
“I don’t want the Fae to have it,” Mordecai said simply.
The admission caught me off guard but I didn’t miss a beat. “Why? And if that were true, you wouldn’t have been using Genesis Crystal to experiment on them.”
Mordecai took a step closer, his expression flipping like a switch. Manipulation mode. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Reagan sweetie. You’re confused, but you’ve had a long week. We were trying to help them, my daughter.”
Confusion blurred my thoughts, my mind responding to that softened tone, wanting to believe him. Because believing him, believing that I was crazy, was an easier net to fall into than the one I was currently scaling. His voice was in my head, had been for so long, and reflexively I wanted to fall into the routine he had conditioned me for.
That’s abuse, my mind screamed loudly, in a voice that sounded oddly like Tarik’s. But it was enough to force my doubts to stumble and falter. If you can’t trust yourself, trust Tarik. You don’t have to accept abuse as remittance for living.
My body shook, fists clenched at my sides. Pain shot through me and I winced, blood dribbling from the claw marks spanning my ribs. A steady warmth pressed against my arm. I glanced up at the angry, impulsive Fae beside me. He really does have a death wish.
No. It was more than that now.
He was my angry, impulsive Fae, and with the smallest of glances he confirmed what I already knew. He wasn’t going to let me do this alone. Wouldn’t let me face him alone.
Because we’re a team.
My chest warmed, even as renewed waves of fury flooded my veins. “Liar,” I growled, snapping my full attention back to Mordecai. “You can’t even be honest with me?”
Dawn till Dusk: An Urban Fantasy Romance (Genesis Crystal Saga Book 1) Page 26
