Chapter Three #2
Leif didn’t hesitate. He waved a hand over Stone, covering his body in symbols that sank into Stone’s skin and disappeared. “That should block all pathways. We should probably keep him knocked out for a bit. What do you think?”
Lysander eyed Stone inside and out. “Agreed. There’s damage left behind. Wisps of darkness. We should keep him asleep until Frost gives us the all clear.”
Their gazes met. A silent message passed between them. There was something big going on in this town, and they were the only two under this roof who didn’t know what.
Voices chatted from all around him. Stone felt like he was in a wind tunnel.
Once, when he had been much younger, he had been trapped in a snowstorm.
The wind and snow had made it nearly impossible to push forward.
Screams of his warrior brethren had echoed all around him, but he couldn’t see anything but an eerie white.
He couldn’t help them. That was how he felt now.
He knew people were near, but he couldn’t find them. Stone had been rendered useless.
“So help me understand this. Bodhi was your great aunt, but now he’s some twenty-something dude. He’s out there cursing people, and it’s because you’re Lucifer’s son.” Lysander sounded confused.
“He used me to curse Frost.” The words sounded like a car driving over gravel.
They hurt too, but Stone knew this one. He had to warn them before the darkness returned.
“Bodhi wanted you to doubt yourself so much, you left this place before Lucifer learned the truth. He used me to get close to you.”
“You’re awake. I thought Leif and I had done enough to keep you out for a while. You need to rest.” Stone recognized Lysander’s voice, but he couldn’t get to him. He couldn’t see a thing.
“Can’t. There’s too much danger. He’ll be back. The darkness is always back.” Stone heard himself fading. He fought the magic being used against him. “No. I need…”
For a moment, there was nothing. The snow turned into an inky field. A bright light cut through the darkness, nearly blinding Stone. Then Lysander was there. His heart rate slowed. Lysander was here. He wasn’t alone. The gaping hole in his chest sealed a little as Lysander reached for him.
“Come with me.” A bed came into view. It was the only thing other than them in the darkness. “I know you’re scared.” Lysander crawled into bed, urging Stone to join him. “But your body needs rest. I’ll stay with you. You’re warded now. No one can harm you.”
Stone automatically obeyed Lysander’s every command. The moment he was settled under the blankets, Lysander used his chest as a pillow and draped his leg over Stone’s. “How are you here?” Lysander felt so real.
“I claimed you. No spell could keep me from your mind. You’re my other half.”
“But you’re really here?” Stone couldn’t stop questioning things. Too much had happened lately. He couldn’t tell the difference between what was reality and what wasn’t.
“I’m a fairy, baby. Maybe that makes me soft in some ways, but my spine is steel and my magic is strong. There are different layers to reality, but for all intents and purposes, I’m here every bit as much as you are. Together in our minds.”
Stone held Lysander tighter. “I’m so sorry about everything. You should probably hate me by now. Even though I don’t know what happened when that thing had me in its grasp, I’m sure it was terrible. Sometimes I’d wake up, and he was gone and—”
“Shhh.” Lysander petted and soothed him, cutting him off. “Set it aside for now. Focus on healing.”
“You should hate me,” Stone repeated, sounding every bit as heartbroken as he was.
Lysander had claimed him. He had to be disappointed as hell to have ended up with Stone.
They both knew he was nothing more than an empty-headed flirt.
For months now, he had felt nothing except rage…
unless he was with Lysander. Still, all he had shown Lysander was nothing at all.
How sad. He deserved so much better than Stone.
Lysander kissed his neck.
Stone closed his eyes and savored the sensation. The night they met stood out so vividly in his mind compared to recent months. He had been untainted by darkness. Lysander had been such a sexy glow cutting through the night. Life had looked so different.
The grass rustled beneath his feet. He had left his boots next to a tree at the edge of the forest. His kilt moved slightly in the wind, reminding him of bygone days. Stone closed his eyes and dragged the night air into his lungs. It smelled like freedom and something else.
Stone’s eyes shot open. His entire body went on alert.
Stone couldn’t place the smell. It was almost tropical, which made no sense for the area.
His feet carried him toward the scent. A soft light cast a glow on the nearby trees.
Stone’s gaze moved in every direction, searching for the source.
He was in hunter mode. His chin shot up as a sound rustled above.
A man sat on a tree branch. It was an odd sight.
He seemed tall and looked solid, yet the narrow branch didn’t even droop from his weight.
His eyes were arresting. They glowed and were almost two colors, with a vivid green slowly turning to light blue around his pupils.
“Who are you?”
Stone blinked at the guy’s tone. He sounded like Stone trespassed. Maybe he had. “Stone.” A wicked smile stretched across Stone’s lips. “I bet you have a sexy name. One that sounds amazing when moaned.”
The sexiest smile Stone had ever seen in his life exploded across the man’s face. “You should find out.”
The way Stone felt in that moment should have given an inkling about their bond.
While Stone had zero reservations about hopping from every bed he could, something about Lysander had been different.
Stone had actually felt happy that night, making him realize exactly what made him jump from partner to partner.
He hadn’t been satisfied because no one else was Lysander.
“Sleep.” The quietly spoken order enchanted Stone’s mind, hypnotizing him. He could truly rest now. His mate had him.