Chapter 14
14
Rafael pulled Morgan behind him and tried not to breathe as he glanced around the ample storage and kennel area. It was nearly impossible to see behind the mess, and anyone could be waiting for them to move farther into the room. First and foremost, Morgan’s safety.
His grip on her arm tightened, and he could no longer deny what his heart and inner demons had been trying to tell him. Without her, he would be lost. She was his lifeline.
Before she and her sister had come into the Immortals’ lives, he barely held on to his sanity. Makari was in the same position as he was, while Torin’s guilt at retaining his ability to shift between his wolf and human forms had ridden him hard.
While Rafael could shift, he had opted to keep that ability a secret to ease his guilt and that of his brethren. Now, though, as Samhain drew near and Fer-Diorich’s curse against the twin sisters became more of a reality, the thought of losing Morgan had replaced that guilt.
“I know you feel something, Rafael,” Morgan whispered. “What is it?”
He sniffed the air, letting his wolf’s senses to the forefront. Ignoring the odor of decaying flesh, he caught an elusive scent, almost familiar… He sniffed again and took a step farther into the room. “It almost smells like Lucan was here.”
“What do you mean by almost ? It’s either Lucan’s scent or it isn’t. I’m breathing through my mouth so I don’t throw up from the stench. There shouldn’t have been any animals. Do you think something could have broken in and died?”
“From the looks of things, I don’t think it was a break-in, per se. I think this was planned. I’m just not certain why. You and your sister haven’t been back here in months, so why would the store have been a target?” He shoved a pair of large crates from their path, tossing the mangled metal off to one side, and then repeated the motion with one of the four heavy wooden storage shelves where the store products, medical supplies, and equipment were kept.
“Until we figure out where the body is, stay close by me.”
“Rafael, I’m not feeling very well. Like Gwyn, I’m an empath, but not nearly as efficient as she is at reading someone’s emotions. Here, though, it’s like they are bombarding me. I don’t think whoever or whatever is in here with us is completely dead. Almost, but—it’s like they’re hanging on… Waiting for someone, maybe?”
“That’s not good,” he muttered. Grabbing the large box in front of them, he tossed it on the growing pile of debris as Morgan moved closer, laying a hand on his arm.
“What I’m feeling is coming from over there,” she pointed to their right, near the back exit. “We need to hurry….” She let go and waded through smaller boxes of gauze and bandages.
“Morgan…” He pulled off his shirt and threw it over an overturned barrel. When she leaned over a pile of boxes and inhaled, he transformed back into his wolf.
“Oh, dear gods…” Her hand flew to her mouth as she whirled around to face him, her skin deathly pale.
He took hold of her shoulders and moved her away before looking over the rubble. He had seen many kinds of death and horrific tortures, but this was beyond even that. The man’s lower body was flat, as if every bone had been pulverized and lay in a massive pool of blood. His upper body had been chopped into smaller pieces, but his head was still attached to his neck, so that was something. There was no way in hell this was a simple man.
Whatever the being was, he opened his eyes and stared first at Morgan, then turned his red gaze on him. “It’s about time you got here,” he hissed, the words sounding more like a gurgling than a known language. “I’m here to warn you, Rafael. Your life and those around you are in danger.”
Rafael frowned. “You seem to know me, but I do not know you.” When he didn’t answer, Rafael continued. “That’s not news and not worth killing yourself to tell us. We’ve known Fer-Diorich will be escaping the Unseelie Court on Samhain. He plans on killing Morgan and her sister, Gwyn, to make it permanent.”
The man tried to clear his throat, struggling to say something. Beside him, Morgan let out a low moan, filled with pain and frustration. Turning to him, she shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let him die like this. I have to…” She stepped away from him, leaped over the short wall of boxes, and landed beside him.
“Morgan!” Rafael jumped over the debris, landing behind her with his paws on her shoulders, ready to pull her away. Glancing at the floor around them, he noticed the creature’s blood had moved away from where they stood. The floor looked as clean as if it had just been mopped.
Morgan knelt beside the man and laid her hand on his head. Her eyes closed, and her Fae powers surged to the surface, surrounding them and masking his pain. She opened her eyes and stared at the man’s ravaged face. “I’ve blocked the pain and siphoned some of the blood from your lungs. I’m sorry I can’t do more for you, but your body…” She bit back a sob, her thumb gently moving back and forth over his black hair.
“Thank you, my lady. You are every bit as kind and as brave as your grandmother. Morrigan found me in a dungeon and recruited me to infiltrate the Dark Fae’s circle in the Unseelie Court. I reported to her everything I could uncover, which wasn’t easy. Over the centuries, he has become very paranoid and trusts no one. When I discovered he has been slowly draining Demons from their home, along with the worst criminals in the entire Multiverse to serve in his army, I had to come and warn you.”
His red gaze rose to Rafael’s. “They plan on arriving just before midnight on Samhain Eve. He has amassed enough power to pass through the veil into this world and will go after Morrigan’s descendants.”
Rafael squatted beside Morgan, his gaze never leaving the man’s face. “You are Dago—Zhivko’s brother.”
The man tried to nod but couldn’t. “I am. Please tell my brother that I love him and will see him back in Dark World—our home. The damned Ironclaws may have ruined this body, but my soul is still intact. I only remained to warn you.”
He coughed, blood once more gurgling in his throat. “Also, watch over Lucan. He went through hell in the druid’s prison—saved my life too. I’ve never met a better vampire…or friend. We will go through hell for our beliefs and for those we love, don’t we?”
His eyes slowly closed, and the ravaged body seemed to deflate as if his departing soul collapsed the remaining cells.
Morgan turned to him, her face tear-stained and her eyes pools of blue as more tears fell down her cheeks. She dropped her head onto his shoulder. “I’m so tired of death,” she sobbed.
He pulled her upright with him and held her while she cried, knowing her tears were for her parents and all those lost to the Dark Fae’s malevolent curse. Slowly, her tears died away and she rested against him.
“I love your fur. It’s so soft.”
He chuckled. “Never thought I’d hear a woman say that to me. Run away screaming, yes.” He exhaled some of the worry he had been storing inside his heart, fearing she would reject him. She tilted back her head and smiled, her face red and blotchy, but he didn’t care. To him, she was beautiful.
Smiling, she ran the back of her hand over his cheek. Holding his lower jaw with her thumb and curled finger, she pulled down his head and rubbed her nose against his.
His heart stopped and then raced away as a long-forgotten emotion filled the frantically beating organ. He pressed his fisted paw against his collarbone to ease the painful sensation filling his chest. He changed back into his human form, almost forgetting to create pants, and leaned his forehead against hers, willing the building agitation to go away. It didn’t.
“I, too, am tired of it,” he whispered. “We have just a few more weeks to go until this is over, pequeno. You are one of the strongest people I know. My faith in you is unwavering.”
“I’m glad because if it were up to me, I’d be throwing doubt around right and left, which is very uncharacteristic. I feel so out of my element right now.”
He heard the laughter in her voice, and something profound inside of him settled. “Well, you did survive a traumatic experience not too long ago.”
She pulled away, a tiny smile playing on her lips, and threaded her fingers through his. “Don’t remind me.”
“The amazing magical abilities you have now aren’t a good enough perk?” He led her back to the medical supplies, remembering they were on a mission to save Kahlúa, who would awaken soon. “Are you ready to return home? The sleep spell won’t last forever, and I know you want to be there before Kahlúa wakes up.”
“Let me grab what I’ll need.” She glanced around and grabbed several bandage boxes, a few bottles of sterile water, and gauze. Packing them in a larger box, she glanced around the room, rummaging through a few more boxes.
“What are you searching for? We need to leave.” He watched as she shoved aside an unopened but smashed box and let out a quick yelp of surprise.
“Rafael!” she cried and leaned toward something near her feet. A second later, she straightened and turned toward him with the curled body of a kitten in her palms. “She’s alive, but barely,” her voice wavered as she struggled to control her emotions.
She exhaled and held the kitten against her chest. “I need to find the bag of syringes and antibiotics. It’s a dark purple bag with a handle on one end. We keep it on the medical shelf, so it should be somewhere in this area with the other supplies.”
With a glance at the furry bundle in her hands, he quickly picked through the debris scattered over the floor and found the shoebox-sized bag under the last container in the corner of the room. Slipping a claw through the hole in the zipper, he unzipped it and breathed a sigh of relief. None of the small syringes were broken. “Got it.”
He leaped over the debris pile and landed beside her. He placed the purple bag into the box and held it in one arm, wrapping her in his other. With a quick kiss on her forehead, he apparated them back to his home and raced inside.
If it was possible, Lucan’s pale face was almost transparent as he stroked the struggling wolf, trying to keep him calm and still. Rafael could have told him it was an impossible feat even when the wolf was healthy and content. He was always in constant motion.
Rafael dropped the box between him and Lucan and knelt beside the wolf’s head. Placing his hands on both sides, his thumbs stroked the soft cheeks. “We’re back, Kahlúa. I know you hurt, but Morgan will give you some medicine, and then we will join and try to heal your wounds faster with our magic. Can you continue to be brave for just a while longer?”
He waited for Kahlua’s answer, a soft whimper that gutted him. The wolf’s pain-filled blue gaze met his, and Rafael didn’t hesitate but commanded him to sleep again. Slowly, his muscular body relaxed in Lucan’s arms.
Lucan scrubbed his face, not realizing his hands were covered in blood. “That was horrid. I never want to do that again. Vampires have varying degrees of empathy, which is why we are closed off and keep to ourselves. He was in so much pain.”
Morgan placed one hand on his shoulder. “I felt it, too. Now, please hold this for me while I tend to Kahlúa.”
Lucan glanced at the object in his hand, surprise registering on his face. “What in the hell? You went for supplies and came back with a half-dead kitten?”
“She was half-dead. I gave the poor thing a boost of Fae magic. She’s healing and, thankfully, asleep. From the damage to her back, legs, and spine, I believe someone stepped on her, so the healing is going to be painful. She is only a few weeks old and wouldn’t have survived much longer.”
He smoothed back the fluffy black fur between the kitten’s ears. “Will she be able to walk?”
Morgan nodded as she prepared a syringe filled with a clear liquid. Flicking the needle with her finger, she made a rolling motion with her hand, and Rafael gently turned the sleeping wolf over so she could reach the back of his neck. She inserted the needle into the scruff of skin and slowly pushed the plunger before recapping it and dropping it beside her.
She closed her eyes, and with her splayed hands a few inches above the wolf’s body, she slowly moved them around, covering every inch of the injured wolf.
Finally, she leaned back onto her heels and propped her fists on each thigh. “Whatever you did in the beginning seems to be working. The inside lacerations, which are many, are healing. One lung lobe was sliced and his stomach had a shallow cut, thankfully not deep enough to open it, but his abdominal muscles looked like confetti. It’s the small laceration in his heart that worries me. I created what my mother called a magical Band-Aid over it.”
She met Rafael’s gaze. “Let’s hope we can keep him down until it’s healed. I’ll recheck him in about an hour to ensure he isn’t rejecting it.”
She pulled out a clear plastic bag from the box. Next, she held out her hand toward Rafael. “Give me your paw.”
He stared at it a moment. “Please?”
“ Please, ” she grumbled. He laid his paw in hers and jerked when she sliced the end of one toe and let the blood pour into the bag, just enough to coat the bottom. Pressing the cut closed with her thumb, she whispered, “ suela .”
“What did you just say?” Lucan asked.
“Seal. It’s a simple children’s spell my mother taught Gwyn and me when we were about three. Gwyn used it more than I did—she was clutzier as a child and always got scrapes and cuts. Once, she lifted her foot to take a step and fell flat on her face. Busted her lip pretty good—she was always doing things like that.”
“Can anyone use it?”
She turned to the vampire and smiled. “If you have magic in you, then yes, you can use it, too. I’m sure vampires could be very good with spells, much like witches are if they practiced them.” Her blue gaze dropped to the kitten, still curled in his hand. “How is she doing?”
“Hasn’t moved at all. Is that normal?”
“I gave her a pretty good boost, so for her small size, yes. I’d say it was very normal.” She lifted the plastic bag once more. “ Ath-riochdachadh agus a lìonadh .” The bag was now filled with bright red blood. “Before you ask, I told it to replicate and fill. It’s another convenient spell when you’re hurt and need a transfusion. I’m with my sister most of the time, but sometimes we get separated. If one of us is hurt, we have a way to heal ourselves.”
Rafael smiled. “You’re amazing.”
Her grin widened. She pulled out a small metal contraption and unfolded it with obvious practice, hanging the blood bag from the top. Using an alcohol prep pad, she swiped one end to clean the end of a narrow tube and placed it into the bag, twisting to ensure it wouldn’t leak.
Next, she took a second alcohol pad and turned over Kahlua’s leg, rubbing the pad over his vein, and then carefully inserted the needle. She wrapped a brown stretchy bandage around his foreleg to secure it. Opening the stopper, she watched the blood move down the tube and into the wolf.
Turning her gaze to Rafael, she smiled. “Now, all we can do is wait. Canines are amazing when regenerating blood. Their spleen has a reservoir of red blood cells and immediately replaces one-third of the donated blood. It will only take a couple of days for them to regenerate the rest of what they lost.”
“Too bad vampires aren’t like that,” Lucan grumbled.
Rafael watched her every movement, increasingly amazed at her abilities and knowledge. She was awe-inspiring and didn’t even realize it. His paws continued to smooth the wolf’s furred cheek. In a single thought, what was left of the remaining blood matting Kahlua’s fur was gone. She leaned forward and stilled one paw. Her gaze jerked to Lucan and then back to his.
We must tell him about Dago.
Rafael watched the methodical motion of Lucan’s finger as he caressed the sleeping kitten. He closed his eyes and nodded but didn’t know where to begin.
Do you want me to tell him? Morgan asked.
He shook his head. No, this is something I need to do. He has had so much loss throughout his life. Listening to him tell me his story and how their friendship and trust grew while imprisoned… I’m afraid he won’t handle it well.
I can help with that. I’m good at easing someone’s pain.
He stared into her blue gaze, feeling the lapping of water on his body as if he were relaxing in the ocean. It wasn’t just the Fae blood coursing through her veins but Morgan herself. Fiery one moment and calming the raging storm around her the next. She was a miracle. She was his miracle.
Thank you, pequeno.
He scooted from underneath the heavy wolf and gently laid his head on the ground. Rising to a squat, he faced his long-time friend.
“Just tell me, Rafael . I sensed your reluctance and knew you and Morgan were talking to each other. What’s happened?” Lucan asked but kept his gaze on the kitten.
“When we arrived at Morgan’s store, the back room was in shambles. We don’t know why, but someone tore the place up. It looked like a hurricane had gone through it. We cleaned a path through the middle of the back room, where Morgan found what was left of a body. Somehow, he had stayed alive long enough to give us a message.”
“He needed to tell us that we are all in more danger than we first believed,” Morgan interjected. “Gwyn and I, especially.”
“Lucan, the person who gave us this message was Dago.”
Lucan’s head jerked up, and his blue-gray eyes shone in the dim light, darkening to molten mercury as fury flooded him. “You left him there to die? Why didn’t you heal him like the animals?”
Morgan placed her hand over his heart, holding him back. “I’m so sorry, Lucan, but it was too late. He was so ravaged. I won’t tell you the details but believe me when I say there was nothing we could do. Not even the most powerful god could have saved him. His body was all but gone.”
Lucan’s jaws clenched, and Rafael could see the tips of his incisors as he fought back his rage. “ Brother, ” he whispered, drawing Lucan’s molten gaze. “His last thoughts were of you.”
Lucan’s eyes closed, visibly struggling to calm his inner rage. Finally, after several deep breaths, he opened his eyes again. “What happened to him? I searched for him for decades but couldn’t even find a hint to his whereabouts.”
“He was recruited by Morrigan, who rescued him from some dungeon, to infiltrate the Unseelie Court and send back any information he uncovered regarding Fer-Diorich’s plans,” Rafael answered. “He was the one who discovered that the Dark Fae had been slowly draining demons from their realm, along with the worst of all creatures throughout the Multiverse to create an army. The damned Fae has amassed enough power to escape his prison before Samhain.”
“Dios Mío,” Lucan muttered. “That kind of power will end all worlds.”