Chapter Twenty-Five
We’d been dancing for hours, and I still hadn’t had enough. That might have been because Ciara had talked me into taking one teeny shot of ambrosia when I wouldn’t stop pacing in her bedroom. I’d blamed it on my failed attempt to reach Channing. I had tried to call him. I wasn’t sure he would call back. But while that bothered me, it wasn’t why I was anxious. I hadn’t told Ciara what else had happened—or, rather, what hadn’t happened—with Lachlan this afternoon. I wouldn’t until I decided if Roark had ruined my day or saved me from making a huge mistake. So, I’d taken one shot to get out of my own head, and then another.
The song morphed into a deeper, hypnotic beat, and I swayed between Sirius and Shaw, my perpetual companions for the evening. Mostly because they were the only ones who could keep up with me. But before I could really get the hang of the new rhythm—not that I was a good dancer, just an enthusiastic one—a petite hand closed around my wrist and wrenched me with inhuman strength away from the dance floor.
“I need to sit down,” Ciara called over the chaos of Alouette. “Let’s go upstairs.”
Next to her, Titania continued to ignore me. The Hallow Court princess had sneered when I tried to introduce myself before we’d left the Avalon. She hadn’t spoken a word to me during the five-minute car ride to the club or after we’d been shown straight past the velvet rope. Apparently, looks were all she shared with her twin. I almost wished Oberon was here instead.
“We’ll never get through,” I shouted as a stranger accidentally hip-checked me. Ciara shoved them away and tugged me to follow.
Alouette was busy for a weekday, bodies packed into the converted warehouse in a writhing mass of sweat and skin and alcohol. We struggled to move through the crowd until our dancing partners got involved. The speed with which Alouette’s patrons parted for the incoming fae males, even with their human glamours completely intact, was downright biblical. A few apologized and pressed themselves against the velvet draping the walls. Most simply scattered like the neon-pink light tubes pulsing to the beat overhead.
But they weren’t clearing it fast enough for Ciara, especially when a guy wearing a blue suit jacket unbuttoned to reveal a smooth, bare chest danced toward us. He grinned as he slurped down his drink. “Hey, there.”
Shaw started to push forward to take care of him, but before he could, his sister grabbed the man’s jacket, lifted him off his feet, and deposited him behind us. He stumbled back in surprise, spilling his drink down his front. He cursed at her as he swiped at the liquid dribbling down his abs.
Shaw bared his teeth in response, the neon light making him look like the devil himself. The guy backed away, and we kept walking to the far side of the club.
I lifted my hair off my neck, trying to cool off, as we reached the stairwell. The guard stationed in front of it nodded hello to Ciara and moved to the side. I doubted there was a bouncer in New Orleans who didn’t know her. Shaw bumped the guy’s fist as we started up the steps. It was at least five degrees cooler on the upper floor and quiet enough to hear the hum of neon illuminating a brick corridor. Shaw and Ciara bickered as she opened a canary-yellow door. I tried to ignore them as I filed in, still fanning myself.
Muffled music seeped inside, the floor vibrating a little beneath us.
“I had it under control,” Ciara snapped, collapsing onto a tufted settee.
Her brother crossed his arms, leaning against the closed door. He glanced at me. “Cate, will you please tell her that tiny human females cannot lift two-hundred-pound men without raising some suspicions?” But I shook my head. I was not getting in the middle of this. He sighed. “Lach will flip if someone got a picture of it.”
“Who cares? Lach can cover it up. It’s his city,” Titania butted in. The statuesque brunette seemed to vacillate between being the life of the party and stirring up drama. Or, given what she’d just said, maybe she just spilled whatever bullshit popped into her head without thinking.
Shaw threw his hands up. “Because that guy was an NFL linebacker. It’s a lot harder to get a—”
“Blah. Blah. Blah,” Ciara cut him off as she slipped out of the pearl-studded Louboutins that she’d purchased earlier at Saks. “More importantly, my feet hurt. Rub them?” She shot Shaw a dazzling smile, but he grimaced.
I refrained from reminding her of my warning that six-inch stiletto heels were ambitious, even for a fae. Instead, I dutifully sat next to her and patted my lap. She grinned as she plopped her feet onto it.
Titania pretended to gag. “I can’t believe you would do that.”
“This?” I couldn’t help laughing. “I’m a nurse. This is nothing.”
“A nurse? You have a job?”
“Human, remember?” I held a hand to a round ear. Titania’s gaze narrowed on it and lingered, like she might just be realizing this.
Ciara yawned, mumbling a complaint that I’d stopped. “I’m exhausted.”
Titania glowered. “It’s not even midnight. You can’t be tapping out yet.”
“I’m probably just tired because I had way too much sex last night.” Ciara giggled.
Still safely across the room, Shaw groaned. “I did not need to hear that.”
“What were you doing last night?” Ciara called back cheerily, not the least bit embarrassed. Meanwhile, Shaw’s cheeks matched his hair. She swung her feet off my lap. “And don’t worry, I’m not that tired. Where should we go next?”
“Home,” Shaw offered.
Relieved of my duties, I decided to let them debate what happened next and beelined for the private bar. I fished a few bottles of water out of its reach-in and held one against my cheek, still trying to cool down from spending the last hour packed with hundreds of others into the club like tiny, happy sardines.
“Can I have one, or are they all spoken for?” Sirius leaned against the marble bar and pointed to the water bottle in my hand.
“Sure.” I tossed him one. Not that he really needed it.
There wasn’t a drop of sweat on his forehead, while I was busy peeling plastered strands of hair from mine. Despite Ciara’s complaints about her feet and exhaustion, she looked absolutely flawless as well. They all did. It was hardly fair to be blessed with immortality and such impressive stamina.
“You look a little tired yourself,” he said softly. “Not having fun?”
My eyes strayed to Titania, who had joined in the debate about our plans. “I’m just waiting to get stabbed in the back.”
He followed my gaze and nodded. “Fae can be a little weird around humans,” he said as I took a swig from the water bottle, “and I don’t think anyone expected to see Lach with one.”
I choked, spraying the bar with water. Everyone looked over at me, but I waved them off with a weak smile. “Wrong pipe.” The others went back to their bickering as I wiped the counter with a napkin. “Lachlan and I are…” I stopped. I wasn’t really sure what we were. Finally, I settled on, “Complicated.”
Sirius chuckled. “Something complicated between a man and a woman? That would be a first.”
“But we aren’t together,” I said, keeping my voice low enough that I wouldn’t attract anyone else to this conversation. “Is that why she hates me? Because I’m human?”
“After the war, things changed between our species.”
“War?” This was the first I was hearing about any war.
“World War Two,” he said to my surprise. He must have noticed my eyebrows flick up, because he continued, “Officially the last time fae participated in a war effort to help humanity.”
“That sounds like a story.”
“A long one,” he said grimly. “Or I hear it is. I was a baby.”
Shaw had told me he was young, and I supposed eighty was relatively so by fae standards.
“Aurora raised me after our parents died in the war.” An orphan like me. I wouldn’t have guessed, but then I realized that all of the fae royals were orphans. Sisters and brothers but never fathers and mothers. I knew so little about how the crowns passed from parent to child in the fae courts. Maybe I’d been too distracted by their long lives to consider it, or maybe so much time had passed that they hardly remembered, either. But there was something wistful on his face that called to my own grief, to the sorrow of never knowing the most important people in your world.
“She had to grow up very fast,” Sirius continued. “Lach, too. I think that’s why they get along so well despite everything.”
“Do they?” I tried to sound like I didn’t care, like I was merely interested. But earlier, when he said he wouldn’t lose anyone else, I hadn’t considered who he had lost. Maybe not just his parents. Maybe someone he loved. “Were they involved?”
His barked laughter told me enough. “Aurora is too busy with the court to date anyone, but I think friendship is the safest option for those two.”
My pulse returned to a steady rhythm. “The Astral court is in Prague, right?”
“Yes.” His wide smile was full of pride.
I thought of the picture of Charles Bridge taped to my fridge and understood why. “You love it there.”
He nodded. “The history, the city, but especially the alchemy.”
“Alchemy?” I raised a brow. “That’s not a real thing. You can’t really turn things into gold.”
“Alchemy is about a lot more than that.” He chuckled like the very thought was ridiculous. “It’s simply studying the science of magic. We have labs and everything.”
“You really study alchemy?” I was strangely impressed.
He scrubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, I’m a bit of a nerd. But take ambrosia, for instance. If you isolate—”
The wail of a siren cut him off. Red-and-blue light flashed through the window. Beneath us, the music stopped. I surged toward the glass on instinct, looking out as a police car screeched up to Alouette’s entrance. I was nearly to the door, spurred by a surge of adrenaline, when Shaw blocked me. “Where are you going?”
“They might need help.”
“We should stay clear of the cops—”
“Oh, please. Not all of us are avoiding arrest warrants.” I started around him.
He moved to stop me, but I elbowed him and shot out the door. Lights flooded the main level as I reached the bottom of the stairs, breaking the sensual spell to reveal floors littered with trash and the dust and tears marring the velvet wall coverings. People pushed toward the side exits as if fleeing the mundane reality before it could infect them, too. Something was definitely going on, but when I began to make my way toward the dance floor, a cop held up a hand.
If Shaw couldn’t stop me, neither could this guy. “I’m a nurse. What’s happening?”
“Clover overdose. Ambulance is on the way. They’re a few minutes out.”
Shit. “They’ll be too late. I can help.”
He hesitated for a minute before jerking his chin for me to follow. He was nearly as effective at clearing a path as my fae companions. People were clustered around the dance floor, some crying, others filming. I froze for a second when I spotted the man collapsed on the floor, recognizing the blue suit.
“Do you have Narcan?” I shouted at the officer.
His mouth twisted. “We used it last night.”
“Check the first aid kit at the bar.” I prayed that the staff at Alouette were smart enough to be prepared for this scenario. I dropped to the floor, my knees smarting on the polished concrete. The linebacker’s arms were drawn to his chest, his lips already turning blue as a breath rattled from him. He had seconds, minutes if I was lucky. I planted my palms on his chest, his skin sticky under mine as I began compressions before leaning over to blow air into his lungs. “Just a little fucking longer.” All I could do was keep him alive long enough for the ambulance to come.
Twin shadows fell over me as I leaned to give him oxygen again, but no life-saving medicine appeared.
“Where’s that goddamn Narcan?” I barked as I started another round of compressions.
To my surprise, Lachlan dropped to the floor next to me. I had no idea how he’d known what was happening, and this was no time to worry about it.
“What do we do?” he asked as our eyes met. I looked up to find Roark chewing on his lip ring, looking more ruffled than I’d ever seen him.
I tipped my head to where my hands were pumping the man’s chest. “Do this as hard as you fucking can without killing him.” I glanced up. “And you might want to get everybody out of the VIP room upstairs before the police start asking questions.”
Lachlan nodded for Roark to do as I said before taking over. I waited just long enough to make sure he had it, then shoved to my feet, running for the bar where the cop was digging through the first aid kit. Sweat coated his forehead, and he scrambled out of my way. My practiced fingers rummaged through the spilled contents until I found the pouch. I ripped it open as I ran back.
“He’s barely breathing,” Lachlan said grimly as I knelt next to him. He sat back on his heels to give me room.
Reaching over, I tilted the man’s head back and carefully administered the emergency medication. I hovered over the linebacker and said a prayer to whoever was listening.
“What now?” Lachlan asked.
“We wait.”
A comforting, warm weight settled on my thigh, his hand an anchor as I counted the seconds until I needed to give a second dose. The linebacker’s eyes fluttered, and I sagged a little as he drew a shallow breath. A few of the people around us began to clap, but I closed my eyes. No one was a hero tonight.
Shouts at the door announced the arrival of the EMTs. Lachlan shot to his feet, helping me to mine. He didn’t release my hand as the emergency crew rushed to join us. Nor did he speak as one of them began asking questions, the other starting oxygen. I ran them through what I knew, which wasn’t much other than that it had the hallmarks of a trinity overdose. We stepped out of the way as they raised the gurney.
One of the techs paused just long enough to look from me to Lachlan. “You probably saved his life.”
Lachlan stiffened.
I pulled away and faced him, questions forming as I realized he was dressed for business but his jacket was off, the collar of his dress shirt undone, no holsters in sight. What was he doing here? I didn’t have time to ask questions, so I focused on right now. I didn’t know when I’d begun to shake, but now anger unfurled through me. “That is what your drug does.”
I waited for him to say it wasn’t his drug or to give me some excuse that he was finding a better alternative. He didn’t. He only nodded. Maybe that accountability didn’t fix this mess, but it was a start. I was about to tell him that when I looked up to find the police officer studying Lachlan with an intensity that turned my blood to ice. He looked positively rabid, as if he was already imagining the commendations he would receive for nailing Lachlan Gage at the scene of an overdose. Apparently, Lachlan didn’t own every officer on the force. I doubted he would go peacefully, and there were plenty of innocent people who might get caught in the cross fire.
“Get out of here,” I muttered, stepping in front of Lachlan to block the officer’s line of sight.
“I should—”
I cut him off, my teeth clenched. “I’d get out of here if you don’t want to walk out in cuffs.”
Darkness curled like smoke in his eyes, his mouth pressing into a hard line.
“Before you lose your glamour,” I added, worried that more than shadows might slip past it soon.
“I can handle them—”
That was exactly what I was worried about.
“I can handle them,” I stopped him. “You saved a life tonight. Get out of here before you take one.”
Tendons strained in his neck as we glared at each other. Finally, he inclined his head ever so slightly, eyes drifting to my necklace. “You know how to get back.”
I waited until he turned on his heels and started toward the back of the club before I spun to the bar. The officer was speaking into his walkie-talkie, and my heart lurched. Taking a deep breath, I strode toward him, mustering a smile.
“Thank you for letting me help him.” I fluttered my eyelashes like I’d seen Ciara do countless times.
But he looked past me to the corridor Lachlan had disappeared into. “Where’s your friend?”
“Him?” Fluttering wasn’t working, so I widened my eyes, glancing behind me like I was surprised. “I have no idea who that was. He just showed up.”
His brows knitted together, and he pulled out a pad of paper. “And what is your name?”
“Cate,” I said, adrenaline sinking into dread as his pen scratched my name onto the paper. “I work at Gage Memorial.”
The pen stopped. He lifted it to his forehead and used the end to scratch under the brim of his hat. “You really don’t know who that was?”
I swallowed and shook my head. “Just some guy who helped me save a life.”
“He’s probably the one responsible for the overdose.” The cop tucked the pen into his chest pocket. “I should go after—”
“What?” I gasped loudly, trying to buy a little more time for Lachlan to reach the others, to make sure they had all nipped back to the Nether Court.
The officer frowned, tipping his hat back. “Gage Memorial, huh?” He shook his head a little. “That was Lachlan Gage.”
I blinked rapidly as my pulse quickened, realizing it had been a mistake to give him the name of the hospital Lachlan owned. “I had no idea.” I wrapped my arms around me and faked a shudder. “I can’t believe that monster helped me.”
The officer drew a deep breath. “He must be tired of his clientele dropping dead. Nothing ever sticks on him, but maybe if I can catch him on the scene…”
I stumbled out of his way, letting my mouth fall open. “I’m so sorry. Hurry!”
He tipped his hat to me before he dashed off. I was pretty sure I had distracted him long enough for everyone to get away, especially if Roark had given the evacuation notice before the EMTs had even arrived. I headed for the entrance before the cop came back. Pushing out the door, I relaxed as the midnight air coasted over my sweaty skin. I didn’t reach for the pendant. I needed to clear my head before I saw him again.
Tonight hadn’t just been a reminder of who he was. It was a reckoning I needed to face.
The Avalon wasn’t far, and the streets were still crowded with people, some of them staggering out of bars but a fair number lingering by Alouette’s entrance. Half looked completely shell-shocked, but I caught snatches of people laughing and figuring out where to go next. As if a man hadn’t almost died in front of their eyes. No lessons learned. The shocked ones would find a way to forget. The others would chase down a way. Some would even turn to clover to do it. They might even get a few more good doses and mistake their luck for safety. A tear slipped down my face as I realized Lachlan was right about what people would risk to steal a little happiness, how far they would go to avoid feeling anything at all. And if it wasn’t clover, it would be something else.
Hopelessness opened a pit in my stomach. At the hospital, I’d had someone to blame. Then, condemning Lachlan had fueled my anger over the situation. I couldn’t look at the people scrolling on their phones or taking selfies for another second, so I darted down a dim side street. I hadn’t paid attention on the ride to Alouette, but it didn’t matter. I wasn’t ready to return to the Avalon. Not with the adrenaline coursing through me, rousing my anger and confusion into a compound that might prove volatile if I had to face him. Not just because of what had happened at the club. But what had nearly happened this afternoon.
He had nearly kissed me again, and I would have let him this time. If only to see what happened next. If he would have had me right there in broad daylight, or if he would have carried me inside like the night before, only this time to his bed. And maybe knowing that was what slowed my steps and kept me from returning to the Avalon. Because I’d just witnessed the dangers of chasing forbidden highs. If I had a taste of him, would I ever want to be free, or would I surrender the rest of my nights for that fleeting, addictive pleasure and let his dark court devour me?
A bulb crackled in the only streetlamp and died. The world plunged into darkness save for scattered puddles of moonlight from the afternoon rain. I followed them forward, somehow more comforted by the shadows than the idea of turning back to the lights of the street that lay behind me. Until I reached a twelve-foot-tall security fence lined with barbed wire and realized this wasn’t a street at all, but a dead end. Naturally.
Water splashed behind me, and I whipped around to find a figure moving toward me. It was too dark to make out a face, to make out anything except his sheer size.
Keep it together, I ordered myself and started past him.
He stepped in front of me.
Shit.
He cracked his knuckles against his opposite palm, drawing my attention to a series of red stripes circling his fingers. A flare of panic hit me, but I pushed it aside and changed course again, only to find him standing directly in front of me. He leered at me, his beady eyes wincing as moonlight hit them.
“Are you lost?” As he spoke, I glimpsed two rows of pointed, stained teeth.
Not human. But not like any fae I’d ever seen. Lachlan’s words rang in my mind. Few of us are little…or cute. Whatever kind of fae the stranger was, I had little hope he was about to escort me home. Footsteps approached behind me, and my panic sharpened to a single thought: survive.
I should have taken the gun, but it was too late now.
Every instinct inside me screamed to run. Probably due to a lifetime of consuming fairy tales. Definitely because I knew that whoever was behind me was with him.
“Don’t worry. We’ll take care of you.” A forked tongue slid along those yellow teeth.
Adrenaline spiked, and the sudden surge in my blood propelled me. I didn’t think. Instinct took over, and I ran.
They let me get a couple of feet before a red-striped hand caught me by the throat.