by Cree Storm
"I can promise you that your brother and Rune will get a fair hearing," Destrain stated with conviction.
Jewel nodded as he looked at Kerrick, saying, "All Kerrick ever did was try and do what was best for our people. He was avenging our brother's death."
"Dain, it's time," Rune said, lighting the candles.
Dain took his candle, saying, "No one can interrupt. Jewel, I'm going to need you to back away."
"What about us?" Ollie asked.
"You can stay close, try to only touch him when we end the chant. You can let go when you need to, but only touch at the end, do you understand?" Dain asked.
Both men nodded. Dain let out a deep breath. "In the name of the Gods and all ye spirits. In the name of Kernunnos and the light and the dark―"
The monitor started to buzz, indicating that Kerrick's heart beat was lowering to dangerous levels. Dain knew he had to continue, but he also knew if he didn't hurry this along, his mate's heart was going to stop.
CHAPTER 4
They had performed the candle ritual for five days and still Kerrick lay unconscious. Dain was perplexed by this outcome. The spell should have worked. Although his mate’s heart beat steadily now, and Ollie and Pas were no longer needed, Kerrick still lay motionless.
Ollie and Pas had stayed vigilant right along with him and Rune, and did everything they could to keep Kerrick alive. His two new assistants had gone above and beyond, and Dain would never forget it. He vowed to find a way to try to repay them for their loyalty and friendship. Once Kerrick’s heart kept a strong, steady rhythm for more than twelve hours, Dain and Logan had sent the two cuties off to get some well-deserved rest.
Dain felt a little guilty not telling his two new friends about the condition their brother Toby had been found in a few days ago. Destrain had pulled him aside and informed him that Toby had been found beaten and was in bad shape. The others in Crystal were doing everything they could to nurse him back to health and find out what had happened to him, but Toby still lay unconscious. Dain wanted to go to the brothers right away and tell them about their older brother, but he knew they needed some rest first. Once Ollie and Pas awoke later, he would have Baldwin take them straight to Toby.
Admittedly, he didn’t know much about these Santorini Foxes, but after witnessing their selflessness and their immediate willingness to help others, Dain vowed to learn everything he could about these unique creatures. But that would have to wait. Right now, he needed to concentrate on Kerrick and getting some answers. Answers that it appeared only Kerrick had.
“I don’t understand why he hasn’t woken yet. The spell should have worked,” Rune muttered from the other side of the bed.
Dain looked to his other mate. Rune was sitting in a chair that had been pulled up close to the bed on the other side, as he sat in a chair on this side. Dain had done everything he was supposed to do to save Kerrick, but he had also done everything he could to avoid spending any time alone with Rune. It’s funny how he had just spent so much time and energy chasing the man across from him, but now that he was here, Dain ran from him.
It’s not like he didn’t want to shake the man and get all the answers he sought out of him, but Dain was afraid. Rune was telling him that they, along with Kerrick, were mates and he was having a hard time wrapping his head around that. He knew from Rune’s kiss that they were indeed mates, but he didn’t know how. Fairies and pixie were mortal enemies. How the hell did fate think this mating was a good idea? And for fate to now throw in an elf as their third was just ludicrous.
Dain had never had a problem with the elves before, but since they joined up with the fairies and had tried to harm his people, the pixies found themselves with a new enemy. But if what Rune and Jewel were saying about Kerrick and the elves were true, then Dain needed to reevaluate his beliefs.
But even if the elves turned out to be pawns in this war, how was it possible for Kerrick to be his mate? Dain had already found one mate. A mate who had betrayed him and tried to kill him and his brother.
“You’re thinking so hard over there I can practically see the smoke coming out of your ears,” Rune said, breaking the silence.
Dain blinked, coming out of his thoughts. He hadn’t realized he had been staring at Rune the whole time. He cleared his throat. “I was just wondering why he was still unconscious,” Dain mumbled.
“Exactly what I have been sitting here trying to figure out. We did everything correctly with the spell and the ritual. It should have worked.”
“Maybe his injuries are more serious than we realized?” Destrain said as he walked into the room.
Dain turned to look at his brother. “Is Logan back yet?”
Destrain shook his head. “Not yet. Illan called and said he was on his way though.”
“How is the young one?” Rune asked.
“Toby’s still unconscious,” Destrain answered tightly.
Dain could see the stiffness of Destrain’s back and the stress in his eyes. As much as he wanted to question his brother on what was going on, he didn’t want to do it in front of Rune. The fairy may be his mate, but that didn’t mean Dain trusted him.
Dain stood and stretched his arms over his head. His gaze landed on Rune and he noticed the man’s eyes were on his body, devouring his every move, and those eyes were filled with desire. Heat flooded Dain and his cock twitched knowing that his mate was affected by him. An overwhelming feeling to tease and taunt his mate came over him, shocking Dain. He quickly dropped his arms and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” Destrain asked.
“To do more research on that spell. Maybe we missed something. Let me know if he wakes up, or when Logan returns.” And with that, Dain left the room.
* * * *
He knew all of this was hard on his pixie mate, but it wasn’t any easier on him. Having to hide all these years and not acknowledge your mates for their safety had been a living hell on him. But he would do it all again to keep them and his son safe.
He could understand Dain being cautious because of who he and Kerrick were, but he had proved to Dain that they were mates with the kiss. So why was the man still so defensive? Yes, the pixie and fairy have been enemies for a very long time, but they were mates. Mates should want each other and trust one another. If you couldn’t trust a mate, then who could you trust? But Dain was still behaving like he didn’t trust him.
Maybe he was expecting too much, too soon? Dain had only learned that they were mates and with their history it was understandable that he was still guarded. But the untrusting and suspicious looks in Dain’s eyes were killing him.
He didn’t have some romantic notion that he would confess who he was to Dain and the man would just accept him and fall into his arms, but he never expected Dain to look so repulsed, either.
“It’s not you,” Destrain said, breaking into Rune’s thoughts.
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, it is you, but not entirely what you think. Dain has already met one of his mates, Garlin, and the man betrayed him. So, my brother is having a hard time accepting that Kerrick is his mate. He knows you are because of the kiss, but he still doesn’t trust you because you insist that Kerrick is as well, and he knows that is impossible,” Destrain explained.
“But Kerrick is our other mate, so I don’t understand. How was this Garlin his mate? And how can a mate betray their mate? I thought that was impossible,” Rune questioned.
“I thought so too, but I was there. Garlin was always a little standoffish, but when Dain became pregnant with Rhys, he only got worse. My mate, Clove, tried many times to get Garlin to spend time with us so that we could get to know him, but Garlin only pushed him away. Then, suddenly, right after Rhys was born, Garlin wanted to spend more time with us, claiming that we were family. My Clove was always very suspicious of him after that. We both found it odd that he never seemed to want to have anything to do with the babe.”
“So, what happened? Where is he now?” Rune a
sked.
“Dead. He tried to kill us. Me, Clove, our son Desdrain, Rhys, and Dain. Dain insisted he be banished from the shimmer instead of putting him to death. It broke Dain’s heart, and he has never been the same since. When Dain killed Garlin, he actually faked his child’s death, trying to protect him.”
“Shit. Dain killed the man he believed to be his mate? But how did he even convince Dain that they were mates to begin with?”
Destrain looked at him like he had four heads. “They were mates.”
“I’m sorry, King Destrain, but I know that is not true. I know, without a doubt, that me and Kerrick are Dain’s true mates. So, this Garlin couldn’t have been,” Rune insisted.
Destrain’s eyes narrowed as he looked at him intently and he ran a hand over his mouth. “I actually believe you, Rune. Which means we have even more questions that need to be answered.”
“A spell,” Kerrick whispered.
The sound of his voice surprising them both. Rune stood from his seat and sat on the edge of the bed. “Kerrick?”
“A spell,” he repeated.
“What spell? What do you mean?” Destrain asked.
Kerrick turned his head to look at Destrain. “The one who claimed to be Dain’s mate. He used a spell. Fallon gave it to him.”
“What do you mean Fallon gave him a spell?” Dain asked. His voice causing everyone to turn their attention to the door.
“A spell of bewilderment. To make you believe anything he said to you,” Kerrick replied.
CHAPTER 5
“Why should I believe you? You could be lying to save your own ass,” Dain spat.
“Because I am your true mate,” Kerrick answered as he struggled to sit up.
Rune slid an arm under Kerrick’s shoulders and helped him to a sitting position, leaning against the headboard.
“That’s yet to be determined. Again, why should I believe you?”
Destrain stood and walked to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Dain, I know all of this is hard to believe, but I think we need to listen to them. I’m sorry I never told you about Rune helping us. I know now that it was the wrong thing to do and I should have shared that with you. But we need answers and I believe they have them. I also believe that they are here to help us, again.”
“Not telling Dain wasn’t the wrong thing, Destrain, because it kept him safe,” Rune said.
“You keep saying that. Why? What was he keeping me safe from?” Dain asked as he moved closer to the bed.
“When the pixie were enslaved by the fairies, I argued with Fallon,” Rune replied. “I and many of my kind fought against him. We knew that what he was doing was wrong and went against everything that we were. The fairies are a peaceful race. Although we will defend ourselves if threatened, we would never be the aggressors. And we would certainly never try to capture and torture other beings. But Fallon convinced our elders that the pixies were working to take over the magics and control us all. Then he convinced about half the fairies that the pixies thought because they could create other beings, they thought themselves gods, therefore, they believed they were above all the other magics.”
“That still doesn’t explain why you helped us and why you insisted Destrain keep it from me,” Dain spat.
Rune sighed heavily as he closed his eyes. Pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, Rune shook his head. Rune dropped his hand and looked up, his gaze meeting Dain’s. “Once Fallon convinced half of the fairies that the pixies were out to destroy us, the elders were suddenly found dead. But not just dead. Their bodies were found in a half shift. Their human form mingled with animal. Fallon had no problem after that convincing even more of the fairies of the pixies evil intent. He claimed that the pixies were trying to change us into beasts so that they could control us. By turning us into their creations it would take our magic away so that we would be helpless to fight against them. With the condition of the elders it was very easy to believe. I myself fell for his lies,” Rune said regretfully.
“So, using all our magic together we were able to capture and enslave the pixie, as you know,” Rune continued. “Fallon made it his personal mission to torture and humiliate your father, Soral. I understood Fallon wanting to keep the enemy’s king under guard, but Fallon took it to a whole new level. He made your father his personal slave and tortured that poor man. The first time I witnessed his evil, I started to doubt the things that Fallon had told us.”
“Why? What happened?” Dain asked through clenched teeth.
Rune looked at him with pain-filled eyes, and Dain could see the honesty behind his torment. “I don’t think that is a good idea for me to tell you the things I witnessed Fallon do to Soral. Nothing good can come from that. Just know that it was the catalyst that started me thinking for myself and keeping a closer eye on Fallon.”
Dain moved closer and sat on the foot of the bed. “When did you know you needed to help us escape? And why keep it from me?”
“The pixie had been our prisoners for many years before that first time I witnessed Fallon’s real cruelty. As the years went by, I had noticed that more and more of the fairies seemed to follow in Fallon’s ways and that disturbed me. Other like-minded fairy had come to me with the same concerns, but we didn’t know what to do. I was volunteered to go to Fallon and see how open he would be to talk about what we were witnessing. I found out very quickly that there was no way Fallon would be willing to discuss what was going on, and even less open to discussing it with me.”
Rune stood and began pacing. “A few more months passed and then one day I overheard Fallon talking about pulling Soral’s sons into his private chambers as well to make sure you and Destrain didn’t get the idea that you could fight against us. I knew then I needed to do something. So, I went to go find you both. I asked around as to where you were both being kept and I went to talk to you.”
Rune turned and faced Dain, their gazes locking. “That’s when I saw you for the first time and I knew instantly who you were. I knew you were my mate even without the kiss, and it sickened me to see the condition you were in. I ran to Fallon to plead with him to allow you to come to me and to appoint me as your master. If I could get you into my home then I could protect you. But when I got to Fallon’s he started talking about creating a new race of creatures. He wanted me to take you into my lab and use you as a guinea pig, but I couldn’t do that. Even if I didn’t know that you were my mate by then, there was no way I was going to put you, or any creature, through the things he wanted me to put you through.”
“What did he want you to do, Rune?” Destrain asked.
“He wanted me to use Dain as a blood bag and start experimenting on him to create this new breed of creatures. I explained to him, and was able to convince him, that using Dain in that manner would not work. But seeing as he was the pixie creator it would benefit us more to get Dain on our side and use his knowledge instead.”
“Is that why I was removed from the ones I was placed with and put in the cells?” Dain asked.
“Yes. But I left you alone. I only instructed my people to feed you and make sure you were well taken care of. I needed to start the experiments to appease Fallon and make him believe I was working with you and we were making strides. But then Fallon changed the plan again.”
“What happened?” Destrain asked.
“He set up a meeting with Vartan, the elven leader.”
“My brother,” Kerrick added through clenched teeth.
Dain looked to him and could see the tightness of his jaw and the veins bulging in his neck, as Kerrick’s eyes filled with fury.
“Fallon tried to get the elves to join the fairies. He told Vartan that they were close to gaining control over the whole paranormal race and was extending his hand in friendship to the elves to be on the side of those who would come out on top. Var refused. Not only did he refuse, but he told Fallon that what he was doing to the pixie was deplorable and he wouldn’t stand by and be a part of it. He threatene
d Fallon with going to the gods and asking for help to defeat Fallon if he didn’t stop this madness on his own,” Kerrick explained.
“So then how did the elves join Fallon?” Destrain asked.
“I was not only Var’s brother and his second, but I was also his closest advisor and best friend. Var told me everything. Fallon had called on him again for another meeting and told Var that the fairies were having a party and he wanted Var to be there so that he could see that the fairies were treating the pixies fairly. Var didn’t want to go. He didn’t trust Fallon, but he wanted to see with his own eyes how the pixies were fairing. He swore that if he saw one atrocity against a pixie, that he would go to the gods immediately and ask for their help. I wanted to go with him, but Var wouldn’t let me. He said that he was a little afraid that it may be a setup and that while we were at the party, Fallon would have the fairies attack our people. So, he insisted that I stay home to ensure our people were safe. He also insisted that the guards stay with our clan and he only took one guard with him,” Kerrick explained.
Rune moved to sit on the edge of the bed again and took Kerrick’s hand in his. “The morning of the party, I was called to Fallon’s quarters. He wanted me to create a potion and put it in a certain bottle of wine. And before you ask, the potion was a bewilderment potion so that whoever drank the wine would believe everything he was told. He told me he was having a meeting with the elven leader and we needed them as allies. I didn’t make the potion. An hour before the party was to begin, I went to Fallon with the bottle of wine and told him that I had done as he asked. What he didn’t know was that after our meeting that morning, I had stuck around and listened at his door as he spoke with his second, Uriel.”
“Twisted fuck,” Kerrick hissed.
“Uriel? I don’t remember him,” Destrain said.
“Uriel is Fallon’s second, his top advisor, and the sickest fuck you could ever meet. He takes great joy out of torturing. He will do anything Fallon asks, and I mean anything,” Rune replied.
