“Tell her. Don’t tell her. I don’t give a damn either way.”
It didn’t escape Kern’s notice that Flick didn’t seem surprised Kern would fall for a vampire, just that Haig had.
What else is new
, Kern thought. The pack had always tried to blame Kern for Haig’s fall from grace.
He shifted uncomfortably in the seat and turned his attention to the scenery out the window. It had been a long time since he’d been this close to pack land. A hand landed on his shoulder. Kern automatically reached up to cover Haig’s hand with his own. It was Haig’s way of settling Kern, and it seemed to work.
Kern was still bothered by the news Flick had given them in the hotel lobby.
Seemed
word
was already out that Kern and Haig were back in town and had brought an outsider with them. Despite Haig’s heartfelt speech to
Audric
, Kern was glad his mate wasn’t with them. The mere idea of
Audric
being surrounded by a pack of wolves scared the shit out of Kern.
“How big is the pack now?” Kern asked.
“I don’t know. When we left there were only twelve, including Galena, who chose to stay behind, but that was years ago.” Flick drove off the dirt road and turned the truck around, parking it on the shoulder.
All three of them climbed out of the truck and began to undress. It was cold and Kern watched as his breath merged with the early morning fog. He tossed his clothes in the back and shifted into his wolf form, thankful for the thick fur.
Kern’s wolf crept over to Haig and sniffed his mate’s balls, smelling a combination of Kern and
Audric
.
Haig swatted at the wolf’s nose. “It’s too cold out here for that kind of greeting.” In the next second, Haig shifted. His wolf turned to Kern’s and offered a few licks on the muzzle before walking off towards Flick.
Kern followed his mate. Although the plan was to grab Galena and run, Kern had a suspicion Flick was after something more. Not that Kern could blame him. If Flick was right and Juniper had been responsible for the death of Flick’s mate, Kern might just help Flick seek his revenge.
In the lead, Haig suddenly yelped and fell to his side, shifting to his human form. “Stop,” Haig cried in a voice barely above a whisper.
Kern shifted and started to take a step towards his mate.
“Stop!”
Haig growled, holding his palm out to Kern. Haig’s eyes rolled to the back of his head as he lost consciousness.
Kern looked towards Flick, who had also shifted. “Stay here.” He slowly picked his way towards Haig, unsure of what had happened. Grabbing Haig’s outstretched arm from where it had fallen, Kern pulled Haig towards him, wincing as Haig’s bare skin scraped across the ground.
As soon as Kern thought they were far enough away from whatever had hurt his mate, he dropped to his knees and turned Haig over. “Haig.” He rubbed Haig’s chest and neck before leaning over to kiss him. “Come on. Open your eyes.”
It took several seconds, but Haig eventually opened his eyes a mere slit. “It’s warded,” he rasped before falling unconscious once more.
Kern’s eyes rounded. He looked up at Flick. “How long have the
fae
been a friend to the pack?”
Flick shook his head. “I don’t know. It must’ve happened after we left.” He picked up a stone and tossed it towards pack land. The stone splintered in mid-air.
If the ward was strong enough to obliterate a stone, what had it done to Haig? “We need to get Haig to The Realm.” Kern didn’t waste any time. He picked his mate up off the ground and carried him towards the truck. He settled Haig’s head on his lap in the backseat without worrying about clothes.
Flick, however, took enough time to throw on a pair of jeans. When he jumped into the truck he handed Haig and Kern’s jeans back. “Haig’s phone was ringing a second ago.”
Kern fumbled in Haig’s pocket and removed the cell phone. A quick press of buttons and he was in to Haig’s messages.
Audric’s
frantic voice sounded in Kern’s ear. “What’s happened? I felt a shooting pain and then nothing from Haig.”
Kern nearly dropped the phone.
How was that possible?
He hit redial as Flick tore out down the dirt road.
Audric
answered on the first ring. “Haig?”
“No, it’s Kern. On the way to the pack lands Haig ran into a ward like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”
After a brief pause,
Audric’s
soft voice asked, “Is he dead?”
“No, but he’s unconscious. I need to get him to The Realm. If anyone can help him it’s Spiro. Unfortunately, I don’t know how to get him there.” Although The Realm was a real place, most Blessed Creatures never ventured onto what they considered the holy ground. “Can you take him?”
“No, but Neo can.
Bring him to the hotel. I should have Neo here by the time you get here.”
Hearing the emotion in
Audric’s
voice threatened to break what little control Kern had left. He wanted to ask
Audric
how he knew about Haig. The two weren’t mates, and even then, it didn’t normally work that way. If it had, Haig would’ve found Kern in
LaMont’s
dungeon immediately. The only possibility was inconceivable to Kern.
Haig groaned before falling silent. Kern swallowed around the lump in his throat.
“Hurry,
Audric
.
I’ve never seen Haig like this and it’s scaring the shit out of me.”
“I won’t let you down,”
Audric
said before hanging up.
Kern stared down at his mate. A single tear slipped from his eye.
“Don’t you die on
me.
We have a lot more leaves to add to these tattoos. You can’t expect me to walk around with a half-finished work of art on my back.”
Chapter Seven
Covered from head to toe in the comforter from the hotel bed,
Audric
knocked on
Neo’s
front door. When it didn’t immediately open, he tried the handle only to find the house locked tight. “Neo!” he screamed, pounding on the door again.
You’re going to fry yourself before you ever get help for Haig.
“
Dammit
, stay out of my head,” he scolded his inner voice.
The door opened with a whoosh, and Evelyn,
Neo’s
housekeeper, pulled him inside. “Neo is at rest. You of all people should know the importance of that,” she scolded.
“I don’t have time for the lecture, Evelyn. I need
Neo’s
help.
Now.”
“What’s happened?” Michael asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
“Haig. Something’s happened to him in Ireland. Kern said he hit a ward, evidently a powerful one. He thinks Spiro is the only one who can help him.”
Michael wasted no time springing into action.
“Neo!
Wake up!” he yelled as he ran up the staircase.
Evelyn came back into the foyer with a bottle of blood. “How long has it been since you’ve eaten?” she asked.
The thought of stopping long enough to drink the bottle of old blood didn’t appeal to
Audric
in the slightest. His stomach may be empty, but his heart was full of worry for the man he loved. “No, thank you.”
Within minutes, Neo raced down the stairs fully dressed. “Ramiro’s on his way. Michael’s summoning Spiro. Tell me exactly what happened.”
Audric
shook his head. “I don’t really know. I wasn’t with them. All I know is I was asleep when a searing pain moved through my body. I opened my eyes and called Haig’s name. He told me he loved me and then nothing. I tried to reconnect with him but it felt like he was no longer there. When I called his phone and didn’t get an answer, I knew something had happened to him. Kern called me back and told me Haig was down. That he’d run into a strong ward surrounding their old pack lands just outside Galway.”
Neo’s
eyes narrowed momentarily before he began to pace between the foyer and the sitting room. “This is about Haig’s sister, right?”
“Yes. Haig, Kern and a cousin of Haig’s, Flick, went to rescue her from her mate and Alpha, Juniper Cavanaugh.”
“Cavanaugh?”
Spiro asked, stepping into the room with Michael and
Sema
at his side.
Sema
began butting his head against Spiro’s thigh. Spiro absently reached down and settled the black jaguar.
“You know him?” Why would the ruler of The Realm know an Alpha werewolf in Galway?
Spiro nodded. “We’ll discuss it later. Right now I have to get Haig to The Realm if I hope to save him.”
“They should be at the hotel in a few minutes.” Although Neo and Spiro shared duties as leaders of The Realm,
Audric
didn’t feel the same sense of awe around Neo. There was just something about Spiro that made
Audric
feel like he should be bowing or something. Maybe it was the man’s unearthly colouring? With pale skin and long hair that actually looked more silver than blond, Spiro truly was one of those men who looked like they had been sculpted from the finest marble.
With a bit of reluctance,
Audric
stepped towards Spiro and averted his eyes. “May I please accompany Haig to The Realm?”
Before Spiro could answer, Neo cut into the conversation. “
Audric
felt Haig’s pain, and before you ask, no, they aren’t mated.”
“But that’s…” Spiro started but stopped before he could finish his sentence.
“What?”
Audric
prompted. “Do you know why I was able to feel it?”
Audric
had never heard of a vampire that could feel the pain of another. He knew Neo could, but Neo was the son of Zeus.
Audric
wouldn’t begin to compare himself to someone of that lineage.
“There will be time to discuss it later. Right now we’ve got to get to Ireland.”
Sema
stood on his hind legs and placed his paws on Spiro’s shoulders, a soft growl coming from his throat.
“Not now.” Spiro tried to push the big black cat off of him, but
Sema
wouldn’t budge. He turned his face away from
Sema’s
licks and snapped his fingers. “Down!” he ordered in a commanding voice.
Sema
did as instructed but continued to head butt Spiro. Shaking his head, Spiro returned his attention to
Audric
.
Ramiro walked into the foyer flanked by two more vampire guards. “I got here as soon as I could.”
“You’ve been at court?” Neo asked.
“Yes. King Kildare summoned me. An entire coven in Scotland has been decapitated while they slept.”
“Fuck!” Neo spat, running his fingers through his hair. “What the hell is going on?”
Spiro ignored his brother and turned to
Audric
. “Get me to Haig.”
Audric
closed his eyes and concentrated on giving Spiro the exact location of the hotel room. After a brief feeling of pressure, he opened his eyes to find himself in the room with Spiro but no Haig. Pulling the phone from his pocket,
Audric
called Kern.
“We’re almost there,” Kern answered.
“I have Spiro here.”
“Tell him to pull over, and I’ll go to him,” Spiro interjected.
“I heard him. Flick, pull over,” Kern ordered. “Okay. We’re stopped along
Audric
delivered the location to Spiro. “We’ll be right there.” He hung up and pulled the comforter over his head once more. “Let’s go.”
* * * *
Spiro stepped out of his private lab and beckoned for Kern and
Audric
. “I think he’ll be okay. Right now he’s still in and out of consciousness, but I managed to rid his body of the poison the ward infused.”
Neo stepped up to stand beside Kern. “How was a ward able to do so much damage? Usually they’re used to block entrance, but not harm.”
Kern was caught between a need to be with his mate and the desire to figure out what was going on with his old pack. He felt Spiro’s hand on his shoulder. A simple touch and Kern’s anxiety level dropped immediately.
“
Audric
should go in and sit with Haig. I need to speak with you.”
The touch of worry evident in Spiro’s pale eyes told Kern more than words could. Kern looked down at
Audric
who was pressed against his side. “Will you go sit with Haig?”
Audric
pulled Kern’s head down for a kiss. “Find out who did this,” he instructed before walking away.
Their small group had already determined
fae
were helping
the were
pack, but who and why remained mysteries. Kern watched
Audric
until he disappeared into the lab before turning to Spiro. “What’s really going on here?”
Spiro’s gaze roamed the group. “As you all know by now, this was no ordinary ward. I’ve only heard tales of two beings with that kind of power, and only one of them was ever found after the decimation of the dragons.”
“
Morwyn
,” Neo ground out, his hands fisted at his sides. “But how is that possible? With the collapse of the dragon species,
Morwyn
was banished to
Tartarus
.”
“I don’t know.”
“Who’s
Morwyn
?” Kern asked, confused by talk of a species he didn’t even know had existed.
“
Morwyn
and his brother,
Nialo
, were conjoined twins born to Gaia.
Cronus
, their father, who is also the father of Zeus, took one look at them and cast them from The Realm. They managed to survive with help from the
fae
and were infused with magic through the love the
fae
had for
Nialo
. According to legend,
Morwyn
grew jealous of the way people responded to his brother. One night while
Nialo
lay sleeping,
Morwyn
took his sword and severed their bodily connection. The results of the separation weren’t what
Morwyn
had expected. He was left with no heart. Gaia stepped in to help protect
Nialo
from the wrath of
Morwyn
who had become obsessed with reclaiming the heart he believed belonged to him. Gaia gave
Nialo
the ability to breathe fire and thick scales to protect himself. The gift of flight came from the
fae
who were determined to do everything they could to see that good triumphed over evil.
Nialo
became an entirely new species…dragons.”