Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Rynn
I froze along with everyone in the room. Except Lucian. That asshole just got up and started fixing himself a drink. “Sloppy security around here.” He poured a dark amber liquid into a glass. “Thought I was paying for top-notch protection.”
“You’re not paying for anything,” Alexis snarled next to my ear. “The only thing you’re doing is buying yourself time until my uncle gives me the okay to rip your spine out.”
“Oh good.” Lucian sipped his drink. “I was worried you’d mess up my face. I’d prefer to be as stunning in death as I was in life.”
“Let her go,” Bastian said flatly. “Rynn is a member of the Alpha pack. If you harm her, it means war.”
“Point of fact,” Lucian drawled, “when the Furie did her scary mind thing, the two Alphas moved to protect each other—not Rynn. I’m fairly certain the blond one is fucking her—or at least he wants to—but I’ve seen how pack ties work, and what they have going on isn’t that.”
“Is that true? Are you not a real member of their pack?” Alexis’ warm breath brushed against my face and I tried to recoil, only for him to dig the blade in deeper.
Shadows pulsed in the room.
“Ah-ah,” Alexis warned. “You’re fast, Furie, but I promise you’re not faster than my dagger. And I’ll take her head clean fucking off before you can do anything about it.”
Cali’s eyes looked like molten gold, but she held her shadows back. Both Warrick and Bastian were too far away to do anything either, although they’d both managed to draw their weapons.
“Someone care to explain what the Alphas and a Furie are doing snooping around in Fervis territory?” Alexis asked lightly.
I held in the relieved breath that wanted to escape. Wherever Nyx was, they hadn’t been discovered.
“Sure,” Bastian drawled. “Right after you explain that.” He pointed his dagger at Lucian.
“You’ll have to take that up with my uncle.” Alexis chuckled. “Politics are his thing.”
“Well, this is exciting.” Lucian clapped. “Here I was, all set for a boring night.”
A whip made of pure shadow flew through the bars and slammed into the Moroi, sending him crashing into the wall. Head first.
He dropped to the floor like a broken doll. Still alive, unfortunately. It would take more than a broken neck and fractured skull to kill a Moroi.
Warrick and Bastian glanced at Cali.
“I was getting tired of hearing his voice,” she said smoothly before giving me a pointed look.
Fuck. This was going to hurt. I’d need to wait for an opportunity to grab Alexis’ hand to keep him from cutting me too deep.
“Never thought I’d thank a Furie, but that was probably the highlight of my evening,” Alexis admitted. The hand not holding the dagger drifted down my arm to the crest. “What’s this? Stealing from us too?”
He tugged at the crest, and I reluctantly let it go. “It’s nothing,” I said. “Just picked it up while I was browsing and then we got distracted by the Moroi literally everyone is searching for, who you just happen to have in your possession.”
“No.” Alexis let out a raspy laugh. “See, I know you think I’m just a dumb brute, Rynn.
But that’s because you don’t understand me.
I, however, know what makes you tick quite well.
It’s why I knew you were up to something when you left the party.
Because there is no way you would travel all this way and barely visit Remy and Marie just to sneak off for a quick fuck.
You came here for a reason. And if you’d known about the Moroi, you would have brought more people.
No.” He held up the crest. “You came here for this.”
Moonsdamn it all.
I met Cali’s stare again, and her shadows writhed behind her.
Just as I was about to make a grab for Alexis’ wrist, he grunted and his grip on me loosened.
I spun forward just in time to see him fall, his head slamming into the ground and the knife lodged through his throat jostling, spilling more blood onto the floor.
“Don’t kill him yet,” Bastian said mildly. “I’d prefer to avoid an outright war with the Fervis Order. If that’s even possible at this point,” he muttered.
I stared at Ryker. “You came.”
“You needed me,” he said simply.
The bond between us sparked to life, and I was so happy to see his stubborn face that I didn’t even point out that Cali and I had it handled.
Probably. Mostly handled.
Instead, I returned my attention to where Alexis was sprawled on the floor and kicked him in the ribs hard enough to break several of them. The impact sent the crest he’d been holding skidding across the floor, directly to where Ryker stood.
He knelt to pick it up, flipping it over in his hands before glancing at me. “Is this what he took from you?”
“Yes.” I stepped towards him. “Can I have it back?”
“Sure.” His fingers closed around the crest. “As soon as you tell me what it is and why you came here for it.”
“I need it.” I grasped for an explanation. “It’ll help me fix things. For everyone.”
“How?” Ryker demanded.
I took another step closer. “We don’t have ti—”
“You left while I was still unconscious, which I know you wouldn’t have done unless you absolutely needed to—or felt guilty.” Hurt and anger roared down our bond. “Tell me what the fuck this is, Rynn.”
“It’ll help me find something to negotiate my way out of the Alpha pack!” I closed the distance between us until I was right in front of him. “Are you happy now? It’ll help me leave in a way that works for all of us. No more traitor in your midst.”
Silence fell across the room as agony flared in my chest. Two strands of pain. One I knew belonged to Ryker . . . Slowly, I turned to look at Bastian. “It’s what we all want, right?”
He didn’t respond, but that second thread burned hotter.
“For once, I’m in agreement with Rynn,” Warrick said evenly. “This clearly isn’t working.” He looked at Ryker. “She’s playing you. Don’t you see that? I mean, it took Bastian less than two months to win the bet.”
My brows furrowed. Bet? What could Bastian possibly—
I let out a harsh exhale. “It was all pretend,” I whispered. “Fuck. I’m such a fool.”
“Rynn,” Bastian started towards me but stopped when I summoned my axe and pointed it at him. Cali was at my side in an instant, her own sword brandished and shadows trailing off her wings. He stopped and held his hands up. “I can explain.”
“And say what?” Warrick barreled on. “That you made a bet that you could get Rynn into your bed? The only surprising thing about it is that it took you so long.”
“It wasn’t like that,” Bastian argued, but I caught the way he winced. Maybe there was more to it, but that had been his intention.
“Cade. He knew?” I rasped.
“Who do you think Bastian made the bet with?” Warrick shrugged.
My eyes drifted to Ryker, who hadn’t said anything yet. “Did you know?”
He hesitated before nodding.
The fire burning in my soul guttered.
“For how long?” I asked numbly.
“Shortly after it happened,” he admitted before quickly adding, “but I wasn’t there when they made it. I would have stopped them.”
“But you didn’t tell me.” My eyes burned. “You’ll always choose them over me. I know this, but I keep letting myself forget.” I glanced at Bastian. “I keep letting myself dream.”
“We can talk about this,” Bastian pleaded. “Let’s just get out of here and we can figure it out.”
I turned back to Ryker and extended my hand. “Give me the crest.”
“Okay.” Slowly, he reached out and dropped it in my awaiting palm. “Please let me explain, Princess.”
“No.” I stepped back until Cali was slightly in front of me, taking comfort in her shadows. “I don’t trust myself around you.” My gaze flicked to Bastian. “Any of you. Distance is what we all need while we figure this out.”
“Bullshit,” Ryker growled and moved towards me, only for Cali’s sword to prick at his throat.
“I think I’ve heard enough,” she said in a tone that promised violence to anyone who argued. “Rynn and I will be leaving now.”
The cold pain that filled my chest was unbearable. Like all the fires were being snuffed out. I met Warrick’s hard stare. “You’ll make sure they get out okay, right?”
“They’re my pack,” he said coldly. “I’ll always take care of them.”
It was strange, but I took a little comfort in that. Warrick might despise me but he never lied to my face.
My gaze slid to Bastian. “I trust you’ll hold up your end of the deal and support me when I go to Cade with my offer.”
“You can’t just leave,” Bastian argued. “We need to deal with this.” He pointed to where Alexis was still unconscious on the floor.
“You’re good at spinning things to your advantage,” I said calmly. “I’m sure you’ll think of something.”
I started towards the door, assuming we’d get outside and Cali would fly the two of us away before returning for Nyx, but she grabbed my arm and pulled me back. Shadows danced around us, moving faster and faster.
“Cali . . .” I gasped as I started to feel a little light-headed.
“Just don’t let go.” She grinned wildly. “Told you I leveled up.”
The world seemed to tilt on its axis, and I heard Warrick yell before clawed fingertips dug into my arm. Then everything went black.
“What the fuck was that?” I choked out, staggering back from Cali as my stomach tried to turn itself inside out.
I didn’t make it far on account of the person still holding my arm.
“Fuck,” Ryker rasped. “Your magic is fucked up, Furie.”
“Why are you here?” I stared at him.
“Because you are.” He straightened and released my arm as he took in our surroundings. “Where are we?”
“Badlands temple.” Cali leaned against the wall. “That was a lot harder with two people.”
I squeezed my eyes shut and counted to ten, trying to convince my body that we weren’t in fact dead.
It seemed to help a little by the time I opened my eyes.
The room was dark, and it took my sight a second to adjust, but we were definitely in the Fae temple beneath the badlands.
In one of the extra bedrooms, if I had to guess.