Chapter 19
Chapter
Nineteen
CAELAN
Ben stopped abruptly, his lips pulling back into a feral snarl.
“Do not,” I snapped. “You know how I feel about her.”
The new Lord stepped forward, his eyes on what might be Evie’s living casket. “She’s under there?”
“Yes.”
His jaw clenched. “I’d rather you found someone else for this.”
“Does our friendship mean nothing?” I asked quietly. “Does she mean nothing?”
“She’s a liar.”
I snorted. “And you aren’t?”
Ben came to me scarred and haunted, and, against the advice of all the other Lords, I’d allowed him a place in my pack. We’d become the best of friends and stayed that way for years until his fascination with this Floromancer got in the way.
And she’d returned his fascination in the hesitant, sometimes ornery way she had.
I was not a stupid man. If Ben had gotten his head out of his ass and questioned why she was so hesitant and allowed her to come to him, he very well might have earned her love.
Even though I’d all but forced him out of my territory, she may have still gone to him.
And seeing him now, with glowing eyes and tight jaw, I think Ben knew it too.
“Dumbass,” I said with a snort.
Ben sighed and crouched, placing his hand on top of the wooden construct her body had formed. I could see inside, Evie’s form curled into a fetal position and dotted with crimson flowers. Blue magic flowed from Ben’s fingertips, and the big man closed his eyes for a long moment.
When he rose, his expression was grim. “She’s alive but in some kind of stasis.”
“A coma?”
Ben shook his head. “Not quite.” He jerked his head toward the small copse of trees.
I followed him over so we could speak in private.
“Tell me what happened.”
I relayed as much as I could, telling him how all the flowers in my yard had bloomed at once and Seymour had jumped onto the table and bit me, fortunately not sending venom through his teeth. “All the signs were there, so I headed straight to Evie’s to find her on the ground.”
Only a select few knew what she’d done with the seed, and I left that part out. Yes, it was important, and if I had to speculate, the seed was probably behind what was happening to her now, but if Ben knew what she’d done, the info might not be safe from the other Lords.
Ben’s moral compass was rigid and unyielding.
Thus why he’d fucked up so spectacularly with the woman currently trapped in a cage of her own making.
Evie and I both had strong morals, but whereas Ben was an oak, she and I were willows, pliable and able to bend when circumstances demanded so.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Ben demanded.
“Nothing you need to know at this time. Will she be okay?”
Ben shook his head. “There’s no way for me to determine. She’s alive. All her vitals are stable, but she is out of it. I suspect she’s put herself into a form of hibernation while her body repairs the damage.” He eyed me. “The damage you won’t tell me about so I can help her.”
“Did you sense any damage?” I asked.
His eyes narrowed. “I didn’t look closely enough. Mostly I wanted to make sure she was still alive. I’ll look at her again in a minute.” He crossed his arms over his massive chest.
Ben wasn’t a wolf. Nor, like everyone guessed, was he a bear, though he had the barrel chest and tree trunk arms reminiscent of our bear brethren a few states over. He was something far worse—so deadly even my wolf hesitated to tangle with him.
“You aren’t going to tell me.” Flat words, annoyance flashing in his eyes.
“I will if she takes a turn for the worse.”
Ben blew out an annoyed breath and turned toward Evie, going to his knees once more. His magic swept through the air, blowing through the trees and down into the ground, eyes turning the color of ice.
I knew the moment Ben found it. An explosive curse and the magic disappeared. He rose and stalked toward me. “What,” he bit out, “is inside her?”
“Is she stable?”
“For now.” Ben’s nostrils flared. “What the hell have you brought onto your property?” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “And even worse, into your life?”
“Don’t,” I cautioned him, my voice a low growl in the quiet. A few trusted wolves kept watch on the area, ensuring curious eyes didn’t get too close. I hadn’t been subtle when I’d shattered the window to get to her, and carrying out a woman covered in blood was bound to get people talking.
One, Garrett, on break from his frustrating watch of Thalia, turned, his eyes glowing. I shook my head, and Garrett turned away.
“Thinking of siccing your wolves on me?” Ben said with a dangerous smile. “I’d hate for you to lose them.”
“Can we at least try not to be dicks to each other?” I said in frustration. “I get it. You hate Evie. She feels the same way about you.”
Ben flinched. “She does?”
I closed my eyes for a second. “Yes, you fucking prick. You haven’t been exactly kind to her. She asked me not to call you.”
Ben’s eyes glowed with fury. “I’ll cut the shit if you will. What did she do?”
I studied him for a long moment. “This can go no further than here. If you can’t keep my confidence, tell me now. You’re a Lord, Ben and no longer tied to my pack.”
To his credit, he didn’t answer right away. “How bad is it?”
I snorted. “She’s unconscious in a cocoon of wood and flowers. I’d say pretty bad.”
Ben rubbed the back of his neck. “Does it affect us all?”
“Only time will determine that answer, but if I had to guess, yes.”
“Fuck,” Ben snarled. “I hate you for making me a Lord, you ass.”
My answering smile was not friendly. “I know.”
The large shifter sighed. “I’ll keep your confidence. Tell me what she did.”
When I told the story, Ben’s eyebrows rose in shock. “She did what?”
“Yep. She’s in and out of consciousness, but I’d venture to guess the seed is what’s causing this now.”
Ben put his hands on his hips and bowed his head. “Why can’t she ever do anything normal?”
The frustrated question made me laugh out loud. “Because it’s Evie. Swallowing it was the only way to take the seed out of play. She took a wild gamble that her mother wouldn’t kill her over the decision.”
“The World Seed,” Ben murmured. “Fucking wild.” He blew out a breath and went back over. “Let me look at one more thing.”
I came over and crouched beside him this time, watching his power arrow straight into Evie’s abdomen, a gentle probe. When he withdrew, his face was grim.
I stilled. “What is it?”
“I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but the seed is…sprouting.”
I blinked. “What? It’s growing? Inside her?”
“Yep. Like the old wives’ tale about not swallowing watermelon seeds, but way worse.” Ben looked a little green.
“Is she in pain?”
“Not anymore. The stasis keeps her pain free, though she is oblivious to what’s going on around her.”
I thought about it. “Can you get it out?”
Ben shot me an incredulous look. “You want me to perform surgery on someone who’s enclosed herself in a magical construct to extract a deadly, potentially world-ending seed?”
I shrugged. “Can it be done?”
“Christ, Caelan.” Ben inhaled. “I might be a healer, but I’m not a mage. We need someone more versed in this type of power than we are.”
“Like me?” A deep voice interrupted. Power punched through the air, ancient and wild.
Annoyance spun through me at his casual foray onto my property which was warded to the teeth against intrusion.
Ben swore, spinning to face the Fae King. His mouth fell open.
“Caelan,” Cernunnos greeted.
I inclined my head. “This is Ben. We’re debating surgery.”
Ben punched me in the arm so hard I stumbled.
“No need,” Cernunnos said as he walked over to Evie’s construct. “She will be fine when the seed expels itself.”
“Expels,” Ben repeated faintly. “Define fine for me, please.”
A flash of amusement in those ancient eyes. “The seed is doing what it’s always meant to—grow.”
“And what about Evie? She’s hosting the thing in an odd, symbiotic way. Will she become the tree?”
Cernunnos reached out to touch the wood, a faint emerald and golden glow touching Evie’s cage.
“I’ll ensure she does not, though she will always be linked.
” His gaze rose and locked with mine. “You will be responsible for a dangerous legacy, Lord. You’ve chosen this spot, and Evie was too weak to argue.
If the World Tree grows here, you will have to allow divinity onto your property. ”
I swore, dark and heated. “Can we move her?”
Cernunnos chuckled under his breath. “Come over here and try, Lord.”
I figured it wouldn’t be easy. The good thing was I’d taken Evie to the very edge of the Keep’s property, just in case whatever this was turned volatile. Giving access to even an inch of my property galled me, but Evie couldn’t help what happened.
I was the one who’d brought her here.
“Fine. We’ll figure it out.” Evie was more important than the damned tree.
“She’s stable, but the seed is…restless.” He lifted his fathomless gaze. “I suggest you and your wolves move farther back in case any magic escapes.”
He didn’t mention Ben.
“Thunderbird, you’re with me.”
Ben snarled, his eyes flashing ice blue. I put a hand on his arm and gave a sharp shake of his head.
“Did your wolves hear?” he asked quietly.
“Your secret is safe,” Cernunnos said. “Come kneel beside me. I need you to keep Evie still while I extract the seed.”
“You’re the Fae King,” Ben said in a grouchy tone. “You can’t do that yourself?”
Cernunnos went as still as the grave. When he spoke, the trees shook. “Tread carefully, Healer. The seed is like handling one of the human nuclear weapons. I need to focus everything I have on it rather than Evangeline.”
Ben’s brow furrowed at Cernunnos’s familiar tone about Evie, and I knew he’d eventually put the pieces together. Shaking it off, Ben bent. “Tell me what to do.”
I turned and jogged toward Garrett, planning to send them away but not going any farther than I had to.
Within seconds, my men were far away from any potential fallout, though Garrett appeared beside me.
“No need for you to be here,” I said to the stalwart, sometimes homicidal shifter beside me.
Garrett grunted. “Simone will happily step up if your girlfriend turns us into crispy critters.”
I slid him a look. Knowing how much it would piss him off, I asked, “How are things going with Thalia?”
Garrett swore under his breath. “She’s a harridan. I thought Evie was bad, but Thalia makes me want to strangle the life out of her.”
I grinned. “Do you like her?”
The look he shot me was pure menace. “I’d wash my hands of her in a split second.”
We’d see about that. “Unfortunately, Thalia will be with us for a while, and you’re the best I have. This isn’t a normal deal. We can’t afford to screw the Fae King over.”
Especially knowing he was Evie’s father and I one day hoped to be the bastard’s son-in-law.
He and Ben were bent over Evie’s shelter, their magic mingling. We were far enough away to get away in the event of a blast, maybe, but Ben wouldn’t escape unless Cernunnos intervened.
I wasn’t sure he would.
“Why is he so invested in her?” my Second asked.
I’d kept Evie’s secrets, so far, but after tonight, we’d have a big issue with the gods, so I owed it to him and Simone to be truthful.
“He’s her father.”
Garrett sucked in a breath just as the world exploded.