“Erebus will fight better and harder with his mate at his side. He will be more focused.”
I saw the bait a mile away, but I had to give him props that he’d chosen a good one. Whatever he may think, I felt the full depth of my bond to Erebus, and it tore me up inside not to be near him. Especially knowing I was in his lands without him.
“Well, let’s motor.” I waved my hand in the direction I thought he’d appeared from.
“These lands are far from the palace. I took a shortcut that I can no longer take with you. Are Key’s operations nearby?”
“Um, define nearby?”
Z gave me the same blank look that meant he was contemplating how mad Erebus would be at him if he pinched off my head. How he managed to have the patience of a saint with Sixx but snapped at me at every turn was a little frustrating. Then again, I wasn’t sleeping with him.
“I’m sorry; that wasn’t supposed to be a smartass response. What I meant to say is that he has a glamoured portal over there that provides easy access to the tear.” I gestured to the door then to the open portal that sat off to the right.
“We will use the portal, and I will kill the dark mage on the other side,” Z said, striding forward, naked as the day he was born.
“No, you will not,” I said, rushing up to him and grabbing his arm.
He glared down at me then at my hand until I removed it. “And why not?”
“Because that dark mage and I made a deal. He provides me with information, and I promised him a way out of this life.”
Ish. I mean, we never gave specifics, but Z didn’t need to know that. He thought I was leaps and bounds out of my league as it was. I just hoped Axel wouldn’t mess this up for both our sakes.
“I will not kill him… yet. But if I think he is a threat to Sixx or to my King, I will not hesitate.”
“I hear you loud and clear, big boy.”
Z growled at me and moved forward. I tried not to recoil at the fact he was still buck-ass naked. It felt cringey checking out my best friend’s mate.
When he approached the gate, he looked back at me. “Move.”
When he barked commands at Sixx like that, it was softer with a hint of desire in his voice. Not this time. His voice was ragey and ready to roll. I stepped up to the portal and stepped through, Olezka following closely on my heels.
Axel was leaning against the brick wall of the building across from us. He lifted a brow when I stepped through. I moved out of the way when I felt Z’s uncomfortable heat behind me.
“Strange company you keep, Ana.”
“Trust me, I know. You don’t happen to have extra clothing that would fit this hulking behemoth, do you?”
“Actually, I do,” Axel said, stepping away but keeping his eyes trained on Z, who watched him just as intently with his arms crossed over his chest, alert and muscles tensed, ready to move in an instant.
Axel handed the clothes to me, which I handed to Z. I wasn’t sure the jeans or shirt would fit him well, but they’d cover the important parts.
“Axel, I think it would be best if you joined us for the next part,” I suggested.
“I think I’ll stay right here, thanks.”
Z growled, and even though I was pissed, the sound scared me. In stark contrast, Axel appeared utterly unfazed. Instead, he reclaimed his position against the wall and watched us carefully.
“Look – the way I see it, if you kill me, then no one is here watching the gate. If you take me with you, no one is here watching the gate. Key is planning something. He’s been moving more humans through the gates of late, so you’re on a timeline. Do what you please, but I decide what goes through the gate.”
I looked between the two males, uncertain what was about to go down, until Z’s jaw twitched.
“I’ll let you live for now,” Z said. He lowered his brows and dipped his chin in a very predatory move. “Do not allow anyone else through the gate.”
After their epic stare-off, we didn’t linger for long. Axel held up his hands in mock surrender and stayed against the wall. It surprised the hell out of me that Z didn’t kill him where he stood, but I was glad he thought it through. Having Axel on this side of the gate meant more enemies wouldn’t get through.
Well, assuming Axel was on our side, that is.
I didn’t have time to linger on those thoughts because the instant we stepped through the portal, Olezka took off. We arrived back at the sanctioned gate and returned to the Veil within a couple of hours. Once we crossed over, things got… hectic. As if they weren’t before.
There was a group of Light fae guards standing just on the other side even though we were on Dark fae lands. We had to move quickly to escape them. Z shifted while one of the Dark fae guards stationed at the gate abandoned his giant mount and saddled me up before slapping its flank and running in the opposite direction.
We rode as quickly as the beast would allow us to go, not permitting it to slow or stop. I was certain Z could run faster than my mount could, but he kept pace with us. I was exhausted by our long flight to freedom and practically asleep in the saddle by the time we saw the towers of the palace peek through the trees.
Right outside the palace grounds, Z’s ears perked up and flickered. He looked to me and then back to the palace before bursting into a new level of speed that left me behind with a gaping mouth. My back tensed, and I tried to urge the beast onward. Whatever made Z leave me behind couldn’t be good. My hunch was confirmed when I arrived at the palace gates and realized there were no guards.
“Fuck,” I whispered, swinging off the mount, feeling a sudden rush of adrenaline in my veins. I rushed into the palace, my magic flaring to life, and produced two chains as my weapons. Since I didn’t know what I was rushing into, I wanted something that would allow me a little distance. Magic chains just happened to be the best weapon with which I’d practiced. Electricity sparked in the links with an electric blue light.
I crept through the halls, straining to hear. It was too quiet. I headed to where Sixx and I had stayed during our first trip there, hoping she’d managed to take the same room. I had to make sure she was safe because every instinct flared that something was wrong. As I turned down the next hallway, I stumbled across a slew of bodies, human and Lower Fae alike.
Some looked unconscious while others had rivers of blood pooling around them. Cursing under my breath, I kept moving until I reached my old room. Sixx wasn’t inside, but Z’s room wasn’t far away. I went there next, but there was still no sign of her.
I rushed down the hall and lifted my nose. My sense of smell wasn’t as good as Z’s, but hopefully, I could catch a whiff of something that would give me a hint where to go. Unfortunately, the clamoring scents were too overwhelming and foreign. Refusing to give up, I trusted my instincts to lead the way.
I was stopped once by a staggering human who used unnaturally strong powers on me. He had to have been one of Key’s. Did that mean he was already making his big move? There was no way! He was just with me, taking more blood samples. Surely he wasn’t simultaneously staging a coup. What the hell was he up to?
I ran forward blindly, following the inexplicable tether that compelled me forward. Rounding a corner, I ran into the ballroom and saw Erebus. My heart stuttered, and I watched, transfixed, as he fought in the middle of the room, swinging a huge sword around like it weighed nothing. Dreamscape-laced humans and Lower Fae fought against him rabidly. There were other Dark fae fighting alongside Erebus, but I didn’t see any signs of Sixx or Z. Hopefully, he’d managed to find her.
Suddenly, I realized one of the juiced-up humans was about to take advantage of an opening against my mate. Without thinking, I reacted.
Using magic I’d been warned was illegal in the Veil, I teleported myself behind Erebus. The human didn’t have any physical manifestation of his powers, so I assumed he was stronger than a human male. I morphed my chains into a short sword, my gaze dropping to his other hand, which grasped a small iron dagger. Somethi
ng in me snapped at the thought of my mate being hurt, especially with something that could kill him. Screaming, I plunged my weapon into the human.
The human gasped, looking down at the weapon now lodged beneath his rib cage, just like my Aunt Lola taught me. He stumbled backward and fell to the ground. The chaos of the room evaporated in a blink when I turned to look into the crystalline eyes of my mate.
“Anastasia?”
I was practically panting when I turned around to look at my dark knight, who was wearing leathers covered in blood. His hair was in disarray. He looked exhausted, but even so, his pale skin practically glowed. He was alive and brutally handsome.
“Hey,” I said, quirking one side of my mouth into a small smile.
He growled before grabbing me around the waist, pulling me flush against his body. His lips devoured mine in a kiss that transcended the borders of passionate, merging closer to owning, demanding. Every emotion I’d felt in my lifetime – fear, hurt, desire, and love – was wrapped up in that kiss.
Chapter 24
Sixx
“Illarion…”
He peeled back his teeth, revealing insanely large canines. His one eye burned with the same fire that lit Olezka’s, but there was nothing calming or reassuring about the wildness in his gaze. He looked over my shoulder and rushed forward, slapping a hand over my mouth and roughly pulling me closer to him. My eyes widened. In the brief moments I’d had with him, he hadn’t been quite so… manhandlely.
“Don’t speak. Just listen.” Illarion’s voice was gravelly like he barely used it.
His heat burned uncomfortably against my skin, and I tried to pull back to get some space. His claws bit into my skin, so I stopped squirming. He wrapped his other hand at the back of my skull. I winced in pain.
“Toohard,” I muttered through his grip. His eyes flashed with a hint of lucidness, and he eased his hold, releasing the back of my skull.
“You smell like home,” he whispered. “Kak sem'ya.”
Like family.
Tears welled in my eyes. His words wrapped around me with the same comfort as when I thought of the way his other brothers treated me and how his parents embraced me. I knew how much family meant to them. Olezka told me how hellhounds lived in packs and rarogs often remained together for life. Olezka had never opened up about how Illarion disappeared, but this really wasn’t the time to examine those skeletons.
I reached up and feathered my fingers over his wrist. He slowly blinked at me before letting go. I took a deep breath, feeling my shoulders drop a little as I took a step back.
“What are you doing here? How did you get free from Key?” I couldn’t help it; he was acting so jumpy. Even so, I couldn’t forget the fact that Timur was bleeding in a hallway, waiting for me to come back with help. Was Illarion here as part of the attack?
“Nyet. Need to tell you…” Illarion paused as if searching for the words, scraping his elongated claws across his scalp. His gaze darted feverishly as he groaned deep in his throat, his frustration evident.
My heart squeezed for him. I thought about reaching out and touching his arm, but I worried it would only upset him more. He started to pace the small area. My anxiety ratcheted up as I thought about Timur.
“Illarion, maybe you could come with me? Timur needs help. Whatever you’re afraid of, Erebus can protect you.”
“Nyet!” he yelled before breathing in and twisting back to me. “Nyet,” he said quieter, though no less insistent. “Key must be stopped. His reach is too far. We need to stop him.”
I already knew the surface of Key’s plans, but Illarion’s words made it seem like there was more going on of which we weren’t yet aware.
He continued, the words leaving his throat in a pained whisper. “Key will try to do a three-pronged attack. He will hit here, the Light Court, and the human realm simultaneously. I cannot leave. I must stop him. You must stop him, Sixx.”
“Do you know when he’s planning this attack? Any specifics?” I asked, desperate for more information but trying to keep him here with me. Hopefully, if he stayed long enough, one of his brothers would show up and convince him to stay.
“He’ll use the gates and the humans after he’s drugged them. You need to stop them. I must go back now,” Illarion said, raking a claw down his face in aggravation. The glazed-over look in his eye started to return, and his muscles stiffened.
“Sixx!” a familiar voice roared my name.
I looked over my shoulder just as Olezka burst through the greenery. I looked back to Illarion, whose eye widened incredulously as he took in his twin brother. Illarion made a strangled noise in the back of his throat, and I thought for a second he would stay, but then a determined look crossed his scarred features, and I knew he would leave.
“Wait, Illarion!” I tried to grab him, but he backed up out of my reach. I glanced over my shoulder to see Olezka’s widened eyes, his mouth opening as if to speak to the twin he hadn’t seen in ages. But he didn’t speak.
“Remember what I said,” Illarion warned, disappearing into the thicket.
I watched him go, hating that I wasn’t able to convince him to stay. Olezka rushed forward, watching the trail his brother took. I didn’t want to stop him. I wanted him to go after his twin. But then I thought of his brother Timur, who had been hurt protecting me.
“Olezka…”
With his jaw clenched tightly, he reached out to grab me, tucking his nose against my neck. I ran my hand through his hair, my heart breaking for him. My poor mate. As much as I wanted to give him time, we had to go help his other brother.
“Timur…”
“Nyet; I have no other brothers visiting you right now,” Olezka said, sounding annoyed. He tightened his hold.
I ran my hands through his hair again, giving him a little scratch. “No, you doof! This is not the time to have a little jealousy flare-up. Timur is hurt. He needs help. Key sent a mixture of fae and dosed-up humans to attack the palace, but Illarion said this wasn’t even his big attack.” He started to speak, no doubt to brush off my concerns, but I stopped him with a glare. “There’s too much going on right now to dig into the specifics, but first things first. We need to find Timur.”
“He is fine.”
“No, he’s not! He was stabbed, and the human who stabbed him used an iron blade.”
With a growl, Olezka darted his eyes around the garden and released me. I grabbed his hand and led him back through the palace to where I’d left Timur. In my absence, Timur had reverted to his human form. When we rushed down the hallway, he sat up weakly and gave us a pained grin. I breathed a little easier. He had moved as far away from the bodies lying on the floor as he could, and he looked pale. Olezka and I rushed to his side. Though he tried to put on a brave face, Timur was sweating; a fine sheen coated his forehead.
“Maybe let someone with a cool touch help me,” Timur joked. His hands were pressed against the wound on his leg, which I noticed was still gushing blood.
I tried to avoid looking at it because the sight of that much blood made me sick. Instead, I focused on his face. “Hey, you’re not allowed to die, okay?”
“Da.”
“No, I’m serious. I’ve decided I very much like having an older brother.”
Timur snorted a quiet laugh. “Do not fear. I will not die. I’m just in a lot of pain,” Timur promised. I smiled at him.
Olezka gave him a pointed look then looked at me. “I don’t smell any danger nearby. Can you see if you can find someone to help me carry him?” Olezka asked.
I narrowed my gaze at him. He didn’t like sending me away from his side unless he was absolutely certain I’d be safe. “Olezka, I don’t think…”
“Trust me, kroshka, you don’t want to be here for what he’s going to do,” Timur chided.
Olezka’s eyes hardened; his features were stony. I didn’t like that look on him. It often preceded a curt order.
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
My
mate gave a heavy sigh. “I need to stop the bleeding because wounds made by iron won’t stop without the help of magic. Since I don’t have any magic, I need to cauterize the wound.”
“Oh. I’ll go find someone to, um… I’ll just be over there,” I said, paling.
I hated that my stomach wasn’t strong enough to stand by my mate’s side as he helped his brother, but it was something I couldn’t control. I could tell that my poor mate didn’t love the idea of hurting his brother. I stepped away, and moments later, the scent of burning flesh permeated the air. Timur grunted in pain. The room went eerily quiet, and then I felt Olezka’s soft touch on my shoulder. I turned around and reached up to cup his cheek.
“Did I say hi yet?” I whispered.
“Nyet.”
I urged him to lean down and pressed my lips against his. “Hi. I’m sorry you walked into a hot mess.”
Olezka laughed quietly. “I expect nothing less. But there is something I need to tell you.”
“Maybe before you two do that, could you help me up?” Timur called our attention back to him.
We walked over to him, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from traveling to his wound. The skin was puckered and blistered, but at least, the bleeding had finally stopped. The book I had been carrying was lying next to his side. I picked it up, clutching it close to my chest.
Olezka dipped down and wrapped his brother’s arm around his shoulders, taking the majority of his weight. Timur was slow to stand but eventually stood upright, leaning heavily on his brother. They spoke quietly in Russian. I caught a few words here and there, but the only words I could pick out were, “family”, “brat”, and “Illarion”.
I ducked next to Timur’s other side, offering my support even if there wasn’t a whole lot I could do for him, keeping the book tightly clenched to my chest. They quieted when we reached the main entranceway. Craning our necks each way, we were surprised to see it was completely deserted. There weren’t even any bodies. I mean, I was grateful for skipping that unpleasant visual, but where were the guards?
Sixx Saves the World: The Sidekick Chronicles Page 15
