Illarion’s words were still bouncing around in my mind. Now that we’d helped Timur, the next thing we needed to do was alert Erebus. Then, we needed a plan to save Ana and stop Key for good. I was confident I had the answer for how to close the gates, which appeared to be the crux of Key’s plan to take over both fae and human realms. He needed manpower and was stealing humans and drugging them senseless to get it. If we could close the gates, we would cut off his supply and get him when he least expected it. Even though there was bad blood between Erebus and the Light King, maybe Ana could convince them to work together to defeat the true threat.
We needed her back, though.
The brothers continued to walk, and I followed blindly at their side.
“Sixx?” Olezka called my name impatiently, which meant he must have said it a few times now. He didn’t like it when I became lost in my thoughts during “danger times.”
I blinked up at him, suddenly irritated about why he took so long to save me. “Wait – where were you? It took you forever to get here!” I snapped, reaching around Timur to slap him.
“Don’t hit him while he’s holding me up!” Timur joked.
“He won’t drop you.”
“To feel your touch, he would.”
“Stop, you two. Sixx, there is something I need to tell you,” Olezka said. The muscle in his jaw twitched, which usually meant he was annoyed by something.
I opened my mouth to ask what it was when we passed the double doors that led to the dining room. The doors were open wide, and we slowed down to gape at the sight before us.
“Is that…?” I trailed off, too shocked to believe my eyes.
A tall, lithe blonde, practically glowing from her inner light, was wrapped in the arms of her opposite, the Dark King. They were enfolded in a passionate embrace while a few Dark guards finished off the last of the Dreamscape-dosed humans.
“Ana?”
Chapter 25
After Ana freed herself from the intense lip-lock with Erebus, she ran to me and practically knocked me down in her exuberance. My mind swirled with a seemingly never-ending list of questions, but when her familiar scent hit my nose and her arms locked around me in a tight hug, I cleared my mind and held on just as tightly, wincing from the feel of the book’s corners poking into my stomach. It had been forever since I saw her and knew we were both safe. At least, it felt like forever.
When Ana ran to me, Erebus took my place by Timur’s side, and he and Olezka walked him to the same medical area where I’d been brought not too long ago to get rid of the poison in my body. Ana and I walked behind them. She kept biting her lip and sneaking furtive glances at Erebus’s behind. He looked over his shoulder at her a couple of times, having just as difficult a time as she was in being separated. One time, I caught him smiling at her, and she actually blushed in return.
I gently nudged her with my shoulder. She looked over at me, quickly schooling the giddy look on her face. I raised my brows and jerked my chin to Erebus then back to her.
“Don’t act surprised; you knew,” she hissed.
“Knowing is one thing, but watching you two being so cutesy with each other is quite another,” I retorted.
“We aren’t cutesy,” Ana mumbled. “You and Olezka are the cutesy ones.”
Unable to suppress my smile, I looked over at Olezka. He and Timur were both naked, but I had too much on my mind to be too embarrassed about it. No one else seemed bothered by it, so I let it roll off my shoulders, trying not to fixate on his nakedness.
Once we arrived at the medical room, the lilac-haired fae stepped forward and directed the males to bring Timur to one of the beds located around the edge of the room. Ana and I took a step back and gave them space to get Timur situated.
I had so many questions, so many things I wanted to say to her. Yet…
“I think I might have to go back to the human realm,” I muttered, hating that after finally being reunited with my people, I’d have to abandon them again. My mind snapped back to what happened in the library, and my gaze traveled down to the book I still held in my arms, written in a language only Telmis could read. The elderly fae was gone, but my glasses were still enchanted to allow them to discern the squiggly text and form them into words. This book held the key that would dictate how our future would play out… on both sides of the Veil.
Illarion made it seem like Key would be on the move soon, which meant we needed to be prepared. Not to mention we didn’t know what was happening in the human realm, and I had yet to divulge the riddle behind closing the gate.
“Oh, boy, we have a lot to talk about,” I muttered.
“You’re telling me. Olezka has a twin brother?”
“Don’t you remember? I told you about him. Though we were pretty drunk that night.”
Ana flashed me her “thinking” look before her lips rounded into an “oh” and I knew it dawned on her. But she still narrowed her eyes at me. “That doesn’t explain why you didn’t say he was working with Key.”
“Honestly, I don’t think I knew that the last time I saw you. What happened when you were in the Light kingdom? What were you doing with Key? How did you escape? Are you okay?”
“There are at least two questions in there that I would like to have answered as well,” Erebus said in his dark, velvety tone. Olezka joined him a moment later, wearing loose pants that looked so strange on him.
“Which two?” I asked.
“I know how she escaped. Your mate saved her,” Erebus said, unable to keep his eyes off Ana.
I looked up at Olezka, who still looked peeved. That’s the mission Erebus sent him on –to save Ana? Why didn’t he tell me? But part of me realized that if he couldn’t find her, he wouldn’t want me disappointed or upset. He wanted to save me from that hurt.
My sweet mate. I wanted to get up and thank him properly, but that should be done in private. Away from my best friend and her soon-to-be mate. The way they kept looking at each other, if looks could burn away clothes…
“Olezka?” I asked, reaching for his hand. He gave me a terse nod, and then everyone’s attention switched to Ana.
“To be honest, I have quite a bit of intel from my time with Key, but the more pressing question is: What happened here?” Ana asked.
Luckily, the medical area had been untouched, but the rest of the palace, including the priceless library and its stalwart librarian, Telmis, lay in various stages of destruction. My head spun, and I tried to determine what we needed to talk about first.
Erebus sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair. “We have much to discuss, it would seem. We will meet in my council room. Timur needs rest, and others will be filing in soon. Do you mind getting food for us?” Erebus asked Olezka pointedly.
He nodded then grabbed my hand and tugged me along with him. I wanted to stay with Ana, but Olezka looked stressed enough as it was. I let him lead me away while Ana took advantage of a couple more stolen moments with her male.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were going after Ana?”
“I left right after I took care of the unicorn, but it would have been too dangerous to bring you along. Key knows what you mean to both of us.”
I bit my lip because I was fairly certain he wouldn’t love the news I had to share once we all got together. “I wouldn’t have asked to come with you, but…”
“Nyet, Sixx. I know you well enough to know you would have worried nonstop.”
“I worry nonstop anyway,” I mumbled.
“Da, and I worry about you. Keeping my mission a secret is how I watch out for you. But first, I need a moment with you before we go back.”
Olezka pulled me into a part of the palace where I’d never been before. The trip was fairly uneventful and free of bodies lying in hallways. It seemed Olezka was sniffing out the path, taking routes to the kitchen that he knew wouldn’t lead to any bodies. We located a large basket on one of the kitchen shelves and loaded it with food we could share with the others. The walk back
was quiet, and the unnatural silence of the palace unnerved me.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” I started. I didn’t want to surprise him with my plan in front of the others and force him into a corner. “Well, a couple of things, actually. Illarion told me that Key is planning a three-pronged attack where he’ll attack the Light Kingdom, Dark Kingdom, and human realms all at once. He seems to think I need to return to the human realm to stop him, which connects to the other thing I have to tell you.” I tapped the ancient book still clamped in my hand. “While you were gone, I was researching information about the gates in the library with Telmis.”
“Telmis worked with you?”
“Yeah…” I hedged, “but more importantly, I found this book that has information about how to close the tears.”
Olezka looked down at me, his lips pressed tightly together. I knew that look well enough to know we would have words once we were alone again. I’d hoped my information about the tears would convince him I needed to return to the human realm, but we arrived at the council room before I had the chance to plead my case.
I opened the door and almost closed it shut again when it opened to reveal Ana sitting on top of Erebus’s circular table with him standing between her knees. The sight was borderline indecent, and flames of embarrassment burst across my face. I squeaked, but Olezka just grunted and lumbered into the room without a care in the world.
That was my mate, though. He didn’t care. He was all about getting down to business. Ana laughed quietly and tucked her face in the crook of Erebus’s neck. His hands were clenched on the table Ana was sitting on. The veins in his forearm were popping from his skin as he glared at Olezka.
“You could have waited five more minutes,” Erebus snarled.
My cheeks flared again because I just realized that with his supersonic hearing, my mate heard them in there. Together. Potentially getting a little more intimate. Oh, goodness.
Ana peeled herself away from Erebus and pressed her hands against his chest. “Don’t worry, big guy. We’ll have more time later.” With a wink, she jumped down from the table and wandered over to my side.
“Couldn’t wait another second to get your hands on him?” I whispered.
She shrugged. “I figured that was payback for all of the times I interrupted you two.”
“I wouldn’t put it past him, but have you seen my cheeks?” I gestured to my heated cheeks.
She laughed and wrapped her arm around my shoulders. “God, I’ve missed you, Sixx.”
I gave her a shaky smile, knowing there was a very real possibility that we would be separated again. “I’ve missed you too. I’m glad you’re safe. I can’t believe you did that for me, by the way,” I scolded.
“Like you wouldn’t have done the same for me,” Ana scoffed. We moved toward the basket of food, and Ana picked at a loaf of bread. My stomach was in knots.
“And both of you will cease it,” Erebus snapped. “Your overprotectiveness places each of you in danger. Key made his point very clear with this small attack. If he wants war, so be it. I will destroy him.”
This office was used to plan wars and devise strategies. The large shelves crammed with maps and globes, along with the bright lighting, made it feel serious and formal. Olezka moved to a chair and looked over at me, his eyelids lowered.
“Sixx has information from Illarion.”
Erebus’s full gaze snapped to me. I had to force myself not to squirm under the weight of his stare, followed by Ana’s and then Olezka’s... whom I was pretty sure purposefully put me on the spot. I glared at him before straightening my shoulders and lifting my chin. I didn’t like the satisfied smirk on his face.
“Yes, thank you, Olezka. Illarion told me that Key is planning to attack the Dark Court, Light Court, and the human realm at the same time, using humans dosed up with Dreamscape.”
“That is in line with what I learned from Axel as well,” Ana spoke up. “Axel is a dark mage and one of Key’s gatekeepers. He watched over a gate that Key opened to the human realm to smuggle humans in for his army. He’s having Lower Fae train them then dosing them with Dreamscape. I think he’s using the blood of different fae to make it more powerful. Lately, he’s been drawing my blood. Now I think he’s using it as part of his weird-ass Dreamscape cocktail. We need to stop him.”
I raised my brows at Olezka as if saying, Told you so.
“What is an ‘Axel’?” Erebus asked angrily. His eyes darkened, and he took a step closer to Ana.
“Calm down; he was no one special. He was an ally, one of many I made along the way. Speaking of which, we need to get a message to someone in the Light Court. I have someone in there that I need to pull out, and I think it would be a good idea to warn the King what Key is planning.”
“Olezka, what do you think of this?” Erebus asked. Ana moved away from my side to sit at the table. I stood by my mate’s side.
“It rings true, especially with what I learned from the human realm through my contacts with the Sentinel. Humans are disappearing, and Sixx and I encountered at least three unauthorized gates. Tess and a warlock are working on finding a way to close one that opened from the Light Court. King Malcolm placed guards on their side, so at least none of the Light fae will pass through without his permission.”
I hadn’t forgotten about Tess’s plight, stuck on the other side of the Veil. I needed to find a way for her to return. Maybe I could find something in the library, but without Telmis to help me pinpoint the right area, it would take some time. Time we wouldn’t have until after we stopped Key, unfortunately.
“Sixx, you were working with Telmis. Did he find anything?”
I sat down next to Olezka and blindly took the thin strip of meat he passed to me. I took a deep breath as the images of what happened to Telmis flashed through my head. I dropped my hands into my lap, the food forgotten.
“Telmis… didn’t make it through the attack.”
“Fuck!” Erebus fumed. “That means that bastard Key knew what we were up to. What you learned is more important now than ever. Did he find a way to close the gates?” Erebus snapped, and I sensed the air dropping a couple of degrees. Olezka stiffened next to me.
“Telmis enchanted my glasses so I could read the texts and help him search. I found a book with information on how to close the gate right before the others arrived,” I said, drawing his attention to the book in my hands.
Erebus glanced at the book then seemed to collect himself. “We’ve taken in a lot of information tonight. What we need right now is rest. First, I need to check in with my guards and get to the bottom of how Key’s men so easily slipped through my defenses.”
“I will get Sixx settled and join you in a bit,” Olezka offered.
Olezka allowed us to eat in peace a little bit longer, each of us seemingly lost in our own thoughts. I was plotting next steps and cataloging what we needed to do, but my eyelids were heavy, and the weight of the day suddenly crashed down on me. Noticing my drooping eyelids, Olezka led me back to his room, leaving Ana to branch off halfway to go to the room Erebus had recently assigned to her. I was worried this would be my last night with him for a while, and I wanted him to stay with me. In the doorway, he caressed my cheeks.
“Please keep the door locked while I’m gone. Do not worry; I will get in. I will think about what you said, Sixx, but give me time. I just got you back.” He leaned down to kiss me gently, and I nodded. I knew how hard it was for him to let me go again. We finally parted, and I closed the door behind me, engaging the lock.
Chapter 26
After Olezka dropped me off at our room, I was beyond exhausted and collapsed almost immediately. When I woke up, Olezka was passed out on his stomach beside me, his arm dangling off the bed, but at least, he had undressed before coming to bed. His strong, muscled back beckoned me to touch it. A weaker woman might have taken advantage.
Eh, who was I kidding? I was a weaker woman.
I reached over and ran my fingers o
ver his smooth skin. He grumbled under my touch, which ignited my desire. I leaned over and pressed a kiss to his neck then straddled his back and pressed my hands into his thick muscles, trying to work on the knots that were still tight even in sleep. I leaned down, pressing my breasts against his back, and whispered to him.
That didn’t take long. After spending some much-needed alone time together, we bathed and got dressed. By the time we joined Erebus and Ana in the council room, two of his most trusted fae were sitting around the table. Timur stood along the wall, looking much better after a solid night’s sleep.
“Glad you two could join us,” Erebus greeted dryly. “From the information we’ve gathered from Sixx, Ana, and my own spies, we know Key will make his move very soon. The specifics are unclear, but we do know he will have someone working for him from the human realm. We need those unauthorized and unmanned gates closed. That is our top priority.” Turning his attention to me, Erebus asked, “Sixx, can you explain what the book said about closing the gate?”
Olezka directed me to a chair, but before I could sit down, he sat and pulled me onto his lap. His hold was protective, if not possessive. I wasn’t sure if he was feeling more possessive because of our morning together or because he knew what this conversation might mean.
“The book said that both dark and light powers need to come together to close the gate. But it almost sounded like it needed the magic sucked from it.”
Erebus leaned his elbows on the table with pinched brows. “Tess is in the human realm now, correct?” he asked.
“Da, an unfortunate occurrence,” Timur said, stepping up to the table. I was glad to see he wasn’t limping.
Feeling a pang of guilt about Tess getting stuck in the human realm because of me, I tried not to fidget.
“Or maybe she knew what she was doing. Tess often did things her way, based on instinct or something more. With her there, at least we know she will protect it from further harm. I don’t know what we’ll do for our side of the tear, but the more immediate concern is the sheer volume of humans who are being dosed. For all we know, Key is reformulating the drug to use it against fae as well. We know that Ana’s Lure is strong enough to affect most of even the High Fae,” Erebus explained.
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