Chapter Four
Farren
It pounces, and I slash at it, making it yelp and temporarily retreat, which gives me a chance to study it.
I have no idea what the fuck it is. I have never seen anything like it before, but I do know that it was the thing that was stalking us.
It’s vaguely dog-shaped, but it’s bigger than even the Fae horses.
It’s got six legs, one head with two snapping jaws, and when they open, there’s another set of teeth inside.
It looks creepy as fuck. I can’t really make anything more than that out because it’s shrouded in shadows, which are inky black and writhing all over it.
I pull a face.
Yeah, I’m not fond of these. Whatever the fuck they are.
It charges and opens its mouth, and I instinctively know that it’s calling for backup. He’s the scouting party.
Absolutely not.
Rushing forward, I jump, flipping in the air and landing on the huge beast's back. Scissoring my swords, I imbue them with my magic and some pretty nasty spells, and they slide through its neck with ease, making me grin. That was easier than I thought it was going to be.
Then the whole beast explodes.
Explode might be the wrong word. It sort of explodes in the sense that I get covered in ichor, but it’s not as violent as an explosion usually is. It’s more like it falls into tiny pieces with a mini explosion.
I am aware that my description makes absolutely no sense, even to me, but I have no idea how else to describe it.
I manage to land in a crouch, completely unhurt, and groan, oh that is so fucking gross.
“Farren!” Storm yells, fear and anger in his voice.
“I’m coming, hang on,” I shout back. “Damn.”
“Did you seriously just say damn like we’re being unreasonable?” Aldrastos calls out.
“I didn’t realise you could hear me,” I call back.
I’m well aware that wasn’t what he meant.
The ground has gone back to buzzing gently, and I’m going to assume that means that there is nothing that is about to attack me.
I quickly jog over to the fallen pack member. “Oh, good, you’re healing. Do you need help getting up?”
He nods, his eyes wide as they switch between me and the grossness that covers me, “Yes, please.”
“Alright, I’m going to use my air magic because that is far gentler than I am, and I don’t want to hurt you any more than you already are,” I explain. “I also don’t want to get you covered in this mess.”
The creature smiles and then nods, and I gently coax my magic forward and use it to help as the creature attempts to stand. I keep my magic in place as we slowly make our way back toward where the others are.
When they come into view, my eyebrows rise. Laikynn and the rest of the pack are blocking the guys from coming toward me, and as I study the anger in their features, I realise that Laikynn must have done something to ensure that they couldn’t come after me.
Ah shit.
I reach out with my magic and quickly recognise the spell as one that is made to restrain them and stop them from moving or using their magic.
It’s a powerful spell, but I can see it wearing thin in places on all of the guys.
Laikynn will not be able to keep it in place for much longer, but I need to figure out what’s going on and quickly before it breaks and Laikynn ends up dead.
“Laikynn, I assume that there is a reason that you have them held in place?” I ask.
The rest of the pack moves to surround the hurt pack member, and I gently release my magic so that he can stand on his own. I have to say I’m surprised at how quickly he has healed.
Not all supernaturals would have survived that.
“What the fuck?” Aldrastos asks, his eyes wide as he studies me from head to toe.
“Farren?” Hades asks, his voice laced with violence.
I smile, “I’m good, this isn’t mine.” Looking back at Laikynn, I add, “I suggest you start explaining quickly because your spell isn’t going to last much longer, and then, depending on who gets to you first, you’re going to be eaten or decapitated. Either way, you’re going to end up dead.”
“If they had come after you, they would have died. You are the only one who is capable of taking that beast down and returning it to where it belongs,” he explains quickly.
Interesting choice of words.
“So you did it to keep them safe for me?” I ask.
Laikynn nods, “Yes.”
I smile, “Thank you.” Turning to look at the still pissed-off men, I point at them and say, “Do not attack him, or I will hug you covered in all of this. Trust me, it smells as bad as it looks.”
Loki snorts.
The spell breaks, and I snap my hand out as several of them lunge forward. The spell reinstates.
“Oh no, you don’t. If you had come after me, you would have ended up dead. I don’t have the time to figure out how to make you live again. Like it or not, Laikynn did the right thing,” I say firmly.
Khaos bares his teeth at Laikynn, “Whether it was the right thing to do or not, if you ever take that choice away from us again, I will gut you. Understood.”
Realisation flashes through Laikynn’s eyes, and he nods, “Understood.”
I cautiously let go of the magic, and they all stay where they are.
“We need to move,” I start when everyone stays exactly where they are. I know that they’re trying to rein in their tempers, and honestly, I think it's hot but now is not the time to be hanging around.
“One second,” Mayhem says, his voice rough as he steps forward.
His hand touches my cheek despite the grossness that covers it, and he tilts my head up so he can look in my eyes.
“Farren, for my own fucking sanity, stop running headfirst into danger without us. I’m not asking you to stop doing it, I’m asking you to allow us to follow.
” His voice lowers as his darkened eyes search mine, “If anything happens to you, no one will survive.”
My breath leaves me in a rush.
Fuck.
Why do they always say these sorts of things to me when we’re somewhere that it wouldn’t be appropriate to fuck them?
Seriously?
His eyes heat, “Understood, Farren?”
My clit pulses, oh, I like this side of him. More than I thought I would actually.
I nod, “Understood.” I smirk, “When I run toward danger, I’ll make sure to tell you as I’m running.”
His hand snaps out and wraps around my neck as he pulls me closer, his lips millimetres away from mine. “Before, Farren. You warn us before you go.”
Fuck.
I nod, “Yes, sir.”
“Good girl,” he smirks. His lips crash against mine in a heated kiss that has me forgetting my own damn name. His smile turns wicked, and a huge wave of water crashes over both of us.
I gasp, spluttering as his smile widens, “What was that for?”
“That was because I can’t make you beg right now,” he mutters.
He smiles again and surprises me as a warm wind wraps around us both and has us dry in seconds.
I lean forward and kiss him, biting down on his lip as his arms tighten around me, and he growls.
“Thank you,” I mutter.
“That was hot,” Hades grins.
“How sure are we that we can’t make Farren beg for running off on us, now?” Khaos asks, his eyes glued to me.
My thighs clench.
Laikynn clears his throat, “At the risk of nearly losing my life for the second time this evening, I would like to interrupt with the answer that you don’t have the time, the blood of the creature will attract the rest of them, and they will not be happy.
They have been at the top of the food chain here for thousands of years, and now Farren has changed that. She will be hunted.”
I think that might have been the only thing that could have stopped the guys.
My safety.
It’s sweet, and I love it.
But.
I’m really fucking turned on, and the way that they were speaking made it sound like they would all be getting involved, and that’s more than a little bit intriguing.
They circle around me.
“Lead the way,” Storm orders Aldrastos.
Aldrastos studies me closely and then nods, “I could do with a fight now.”
Reaper smiles and claps him on the shoulder, “I’d say you’ll get used to that, but you won’t.”
Aldrastos grunts and then takes off, and the rest of us follow. Laikynn and his pack are running behind us this time, not surrounding us. It seems that he has taken the guy's threat seriously, and rightly so.
We run through the darkness. I could swear that it’s not as dark as it was when we first arrived, but then again, I might just be getting used to it. I already know that I can see more of it than the others can, so I’m going to wait to see if any of them bring it up first.
Thankfully, our speed means that it doesn’t take much longer until I see a dark shape appear. It’s distinctively house-shaped, so I’m assuming that it's what we’re aiming for.
Aldrastos slows and then stops in front of what I can just about tell is a gate.
“We need to check the perimeter before we head through the gate, and then we can make sure that there’s no one in the house either.
My magic is telling me that it’s empty, but sometimes the creatures and supernaturals here manage to hide from my magic, so I would rather that we physically check as well,” Aldrastos explains.
“Sounds good to me,” Kill replies. “Everyone follow the fence line around the house and take some of Laikynn’s pack with you.”
As everyone moves to check the perimeter of the house, Laikynn steps up beside me.
“Farren, Mayhem is more than he appears. The only reason why my spell was able to hold him was that he allowed me to. I’m assuming because he knew that I meant something to you,” Laikynn says quietly.
I nod. It isn’t news to me that Mayhem is stronger than he should be. However, it is something that I’m only just beginning to understand, and if I’m being extremely honest, I find it ridiculously attractive.
The fact that, out of all of them, including Khaos and Hades, who is a god, Mayhem was the only one that was being held because he was allowing it is absolutely insane.
Damn.
“Thank you, I am aware,” I reply.
Laikynn hums, “I’m not sure he is even aware of how powerful he is.”
My eyebrows rise. In the whole time that I’ve known Laikynn, he hasn’t been wrong, which makes his words even more surprising. Before I can question him, he fades into the darkness, joining his pack in keeping watch over the little cabin.
My eyes find Mayhem, only to see that he’s already watching me. He heard what Laikynn said. He doesn’t say anything as something strong passes through our gazes.
I couldn’t look away if I tried.
I don’t want to.
Something tells me that he knows how strong he is.
“Alright, let's check this place out then,” Rival says, breaking the moment.
He looks between the two of us curiously.
I don’t know how to explain what’s happening between Mayhem and me, but there’s something about being here that has strengthened something between us. It’s no more than what I feel for the others. I'm not sure how to explain it, and I don’t know what it means.
“Have you guys checked the perimeter?” I ask with a slight frown.
Rival nods, “Yeah, it’s not a very big plot. Laikynn and the rest of the pack have stayed outside the fence line. He said that he will stop anything from coming in and that they’ll deal with anyone who comes out.”
“Huh.”
It may not be a very big plot, but I didn’t think that I had been locked in Mayhem’s gaze for that long. I could have sworn that it was only a couple of seconds.
I look away from Rival’s searching gaze as I pull myself together. It’s been a long day. A lot has happened, and it’s left me feeling discombobulated.
That’s a good word.
“This is a mage’s home, right?” Reaper asks as we all meet outside the gate.