Who is he?
The wind sighed the answer, carrying it to her in a soft tone, light and sad—
Cerdewellyn.
He stopped next to her, and she looked up into his dark gaze, his eyes the color of wet earth. His lips were full, his jaw square. He had a Roman-look to him, which seemed a bit odd.
“
I thought the Fey were Irish?”
“
We started elsewhere. The Fey. We’ve had many forms over the centuries. Many locations where we dwelled.” When he spoke, he sounded like he was from Europe, somewhere between the East and the West, but not Irish after all.
She nodded like she understood.
“
Where did these come from?” Val asked him, looking down at her hand and the flowers that she was holding onto tightly. She’d been picking them absently. She’d run and run, until a flower would catch her eye and she’d feel compelled to take it.
He smiled at her, a closed-lip smile, like he was indulgent and secretive at once. “You gathered them. You have five. There are seven left.” He held out his hand.
She gave them to him without hesitation.
“
You are making good progress, and I thank you. Now come here.”
“
Why?” Val asked, even as she moved closer.
“
This is a secret. It’s our secret. Do you understand?”
“
Yes.”
No.
“
And so I must make sure it stays a secret.”
He touched her, stroked a hand down her cheek. “Forget all about this, Valerie. Forget, until we meet again.”
Val opened her eyes, examined her bleeding hand that was covered in dirt, and couldn’t believe she’d fainted. What the hell was she doing hanging around with vampires when she fainted at the sight of blood?
She stood and went back to the clearing.
Chapter
22
Lucas stalked through the forest. This had been a mistake. He had wanted to see her with Jack. See how she interacted with him—now that she and Lucas had been intimate. He had told Rachel to bring Jack here so he could see the reality of their feud.
What on earth had possessed him?
Jealousy.
One drop of her glorious, Empathic blood, and he had given in to human emotion.
He had waited too long. Saving her at sixteen, rescuing her and then leaving her to live a life while he waited, patiently, like a spider hoping she’d wander into his web. That had been a foolish decision. Apparently, he had waited just long enough to make sure she loved another.
Irrevocably.
A young love that would mark her soul for all eternity. He had stayed away out of self-preservation, and then had failed, drawn to her like a moth to a flame.
She was a weakness.
His
weakness. If he were a smarter man, as ruthless as he had been centuries ago, she’d be dead right now.
What she represented—excitement, feeling, passion, joy and despair—were things he craved. He was honest enough with himself to admit it was his weakness.
She had told him that she would fall in love with him.
So honest
. And all he had thought was ‘
good. ’
In the darkest corner of his black heart, that had been the moment he had exulted. Known without a doubt that he had won. She would love him if she came to his bed.
His Valkyrie was not a casual lover. Just like the Valkyries of legend, she chose her warriors, and would take his soul if she could. She could not simply ‘scratch an itch, ’ let a man into her body, without engaging her heart.
There had been a plan: make love to her, seduce her, fuck her, take her in every way until she breathed, ate, and came only for him. Physically, he had been there, ready to be just as seduced by her flesh as he intended her to be with his. Had wanted to taste her, and claim her in every possible way a man could.
It had been so easy.
Until she had given him the ultimatum. Drink her blood, or she would not love him. As if that was possible. As if she would be able to hold herself back from love. But a tiny part of him had feared that she could do it—leave him just like she had left Jack.
He was always careful. And yet, he had given in. Her passion, kisses, and heat had all infected him, altered him just enough so that he chose poorly. It was his age. Someone younger, like Rachel, wouldn’t have been affected by making love to an Empath.
But he had been. Valerie had disconnected him from his cold shell, made him feel panicky, desperate, overwhelmed and hungry. She had not offered anything he did not want. Her blood was something he would kill for. One momentary lapse, his slight confusion, and she had won.
Pure, blinding panic had made him believe her. Otherwise, he would not have given in.
I did not want to say no.
Because she and her blood were the only things in all the world that were left for him to want.
How would he keep saying ‘no’ to her when all he wanted, with every dead fiber of his being, was to say ‘yes? ’ When he was deep inside her body, her breasts flush to his, her tongue in his mouth, how would he say no?
What if you harm her? Kill the Golden Goose in your lust?
He imagined drinking her dry, feeling her blood pound through him until he felt like every pore would explode from the pressure. For years, he had only to think of it, and it had made him hard as stone.
And now. Now that he knew her, now that he had tasted one measly drop of her rare blood, he felt—
He heard a shout in the forest. Jack. Calling for Valerie. Lucas swore and, using his preternatural speed, raced to find her.
Chapter
23
One moment Jack was scanning the trees looking for Val and the next Lucas was in front of him. That cold fucker looked like he’d just come from the pub, he was so smooth and unruffled.
“
Where is she?” Lucas asked in that bored tone.
Jack looked the other man up and down. Had an almost impossible urge to shoot him, but he couldn’t. He’d see Lucas dead but he’d only get one chance to do it and by god he wasn’t going to fuck it up. But that didn’t mean he’d pretend to like him. “If I knew where the fuck she was, why would I call her?” Jack snarled.
Lucas didn’t change expression, his gaze scanning the area briefly before returning to Jack, so much time having passed that Jack was about ready to move away and go searching deeper into the woods when Lucas finally spoke in that same dispassionate way, “Well then, where the
fuck
did you lose her?” he said, mimicking Jack ’s words. The peculiar delivery of the words, as though he’d never said fuck before, took Jack aback.
How could Valerie feel anything for this monster? Let alone want to sleep with him? Jack felt like he was as hetero as they came, but he could understand that certain men had an appeal, but this guy was so…
wrong
.
Lucas cut into his thoughts, “We are in a Fey forest. She could be in grave danger. Tell me what happened. Now.”
Jack felt a chill down his spine at Lucas’ killing look. “I thought she was on a bathroom break. So you’ve decided the Fey are alive? What changed?”
“
Answer the question or I will force it from you. I want her unharmed.” Lucas called for Rachel and she instantly appeared beside him, slightly out of breath.
“
Where is Valerie?”
Rachel grimaced and bit her lip worriedly. “She donated blood for the spell. I cut myself and it made her squeamish so she backed out of the circle. I had a vision, and when I came to, she was just gone.”
Lucas frowned and stared hard at Rachel, “Are the Fey alive then?”
“
They were. But the spell didn’t work, the portal didn’t open. Cerdewellyn was there and he took everyone, all the colonists and the Fey, some wolves, even a witch into the Fey dimension.”
Jack watched as Lucas turned around in a circle, scanning all directions for her. “If we do not find her in five minutes we must assume she has been taken. You will do a spell and open a portal. Go get what you will need and return—”
Rachel and Lucas suddenly turned, looking in the same direction like a hound spotting its prey. A moment later Jack heard a branch snap. Then Valerie came through the trees and Jack felt his heart squeeze in relief.
He went forward, wrapping her in his arms for a brief moment, felt her body go rigid as she tried to pull away from him.
“
Where did you go?” Lucas asked, the words a hard slap.
“
Nowhere. I just wandered around a little. I don’t like the sight of blood.
“
You will not do that again. You cannot leave the group. No, I amend that, you
cannot
leave my side.”
A look of disgust crossed Val’s face. “You’re the one who chickened out at the sight of blood first. Mr. One-drop-will-turn-me-into-a-crazed-killer.”
“
They called for you. Why did you not respond?” Lucas asked, suddenly next to her. He put a hand on her face, cupping it gently and then pulled her to her, hugging her. He was warm and strong and she felt lust spiral through her again.
I
just
walked away! I didn’t
go
anywhere. I’ve been right over there the whole time,” she said, talking into his sweater. He moved back a ways and kissed her gently on the lips—a promise of what was to come. She could almost forget that Jack and Rachel were there, she wanted him so much.
He frowned and said to Rachel. “What did you see?”
“
The Fey were here. They tried to open up their realm and it didn’t work. Their witch believed it was because the Fey had changed Queens. So they went into the portal and—for whatever reason, they’ve never come out.
“
Who was the witch?”
“
Nantanya? Heard of her. But she wasn’t my blood line so I’m not sure what exactly she would have done. I’d have to research it.”
“
So they are trapped?” Lucas asked.
Rachel shrugged. “I don’t know. What do you want to do? Try to open the portal, see if anyone is still around over there? Maybe they want to be hidden. Truthfully, I’d give up. What’s the point?”
Lucas stared at Valerie in a serious way. Looking from her head, travelling down her body to her feet. His face was grim. “I do not know. I want time to think about it. I had not expected this sort of problem. Honestly, I had assumed they were gone.”
“
Then why are we looking for them?” Val asked. “Why bring us here and not follow through in finding them? You never wanted to find them, did you?” Val guessed.
Then what did he want?
Not a person. What’s left? He had commented about their stuff being underwater. She’d thought he was just being a little macabre. Maybe not.
There was that Fey ring he had planned on wearing to the ball. The I-want-to-shred-you-and-make-hot-monkey-love-with-you ring. “Is that it? It’s an object you want?”
Rachel piped in, “The Fey use glamour and illusion. Their magic is from the earth and based in life. It’s not compatible with vampires. Plus most of their magic is gone, right? Marion had a few Fey trinkets and would talk about the things they’d once made. But that was centuries ago, I thought the power of their stuff had diminished—what with the extinction and all.” She looked at Lucas like from a certain angle he had two heads.
Lucas ignored them both. Stared hard at Valerie like she had the answer. Was the answer. He looked the same, she knew there was no visible sign of his feelings, but he was coming for her now, she could feel it.
“
We will meet you later and discuss it,” Lucas said over his shoulder and then he wrapped his arm around her, standing stiff and proud, like he didn’t want to touch her at all and took her away from the forest, transporting them back to his room.
The moment they were in his bedroom she took a step back. “What’s the deal? What do you want with the Fey?”
He ignored her, seemed calm but she could feel the intensity in him. And right along with it, like the two emotions fuelled each other, was lust.
His hands were on her instantly as he unbuttoned her coat and threw it to the corner of the room. And then he pulled her shirt up, making her lift her arms so she didn’t get tangled in her clothing. Val squeaked in protest.
“
What are you doing?” she asked.
“
Have you forgotten so soon? That is an unacceptable oversight on my part.” And then his shirt was gone. He slipped off his shoes and his hands came back to her skirt, lingered at the buttons along the waistband.
He was breathing faster, his brow furrowed in a frown, lips slightly parted. And then he shook his head, mumbling to her or him she didn’t know which. “No, I like this. Keep the skirt on. The skirt and the boots.”
Val waited in a moment of overwhelming lust and suspense as she stood before him. She looked at his scarred hands, his beautiful fingers, and everything fell away. Even the impending doom and her distrust of him as she was consumed with lust. She always wanted him.