Passion Ignites (3 page)

Darius ran a hand through his shoulder-length blond hair. “He's keeping enough of us at Dreagan to hold the magic there.”

Thorn pulled out his knife and spun it on his open palm. He caught it before it stopped spinning. Dreagan wasn't just their home. It was sixty thousand acres where they distilled whisky and remained hidden from the world. “The Dark have the numbers, but we have the strength.”

“Aye,” Darius said, his gaze on the ground.

Thorn knew Darius's thoughts were on Ulrik. All of the Dragon Kings' thoughts were on him. A Dragon King who had been banished.

For centuries, Thorn had been against Ulrik. All that changed a few weeks ago when Thorn was with Warrick in Edinburgh watching over the Druid who had unbound Ulrik's magic.

The last thing Thorn had expected was to come face-to-face with Ulrik after so many eons. It alarmed Thorn how much Ulrik had changed.

“I doona blame you,” Darius said.

Thorn blinked as he was pulled out of his thoughts. “What?”

“What happened with Ulrik here. Warrick was in love with Darcy. You did what any of us would've done for another King.”

“No' any of us,” Thorn said tightly. “Con would never have joined forces with Ulrik.”

Constantine was King of Kings, the one Dragon King who had more magic and power than any of them. He led them, kept them together all these millennia. But things were beginning to unravel.

“Con sees one goal—our survival.” Darius shrugged. “Everything else comes in second. He's sacrificed a lot for us.”

“We've all sacrificed.” Thorn paused and shook his head ruefully. “I wouldna trade places with him for anything.”

Darius crossed his arms over his chest. “Neither would I. Ulrik will challenge Con soon.”

“Eventually. Right now, our focus is the Dark. The bastards are getting bolder. They're freely showing themselves to humans, and it willna be long before they show them magic as well.”

“With more and more bodies piling up, the city is trying to crack down on who's to blame.”

Thorn grunted. “It willna take them long to focus on the Dark. And that willna end well.”

“It never does.” Darius dropped his arms and began to remove his clothes.

Thorn spun on his heel and walked out. They took turns burning the bodies of the Dark. While Darius shifted, Thorn would take watch to make sure no humans took interest in them.

As he stood atop the roof walking the perimeter, Thorn found himself thinking of the female he'd encountered earlier. He had a sinking feeling that he would happen upon her body very soon.

He frowned as that thought angered him. The mortal had spirit and gumption. She recognized the Dark as dangerous and sought to go after them. Despite the silliness of a human against a Dark Fae, the mettle that took kept her in his thoughts.

Thorn touched his side where she had plunged the dagger. She was quick with the blade, and obviously ready to take action against anyone she felt was a threat.

He might not have always agreed with the way humans went about their lives, but they were oblivious to the magic around them. They had no idea that dragons had been around since the beginning of time, and were on the realm long before the humans ever were.

They didn't know of the Fae—Dark and Light—and how they fought to take the realm from the Dragon Kings. So many wars had been waged on the fringes of the humans' awareness that it was laughable.

The mortals were weak against the Fae, and had nothing with which to fight off any magical creature. Yet, time and again the Dragon Kings had saved them.

Perhaps it was their innocence in comprehending that vastness of the universe despite their trips into space. It might be because there had been some truly great mortals who had been friends with the Dragon Kings. Or it might be as simple as the vows the Kings took to always watch over the humans.

Whatever the case, Thorn didn't want the female to die.

The city was disrupted by bells tolling from a church in the distance. Another death, another funeral.

“That's the third time tonight,” Darius said as he came to stand beside him.

Thorn squeezed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. “Same as last night.”

“I asked Con to send another King to help us.”

Thorn jerked his head to Darius and raised a brow. “And? What did our fearless leader say?”

“He will as soon as he can.”

Thorn knew all he had to do was call Warrick. War would be there in an instant, but Con was already pissed at Thorn.

“I saw you today,” Darius said. “With the human female.”

Thorn didn't respond, because there was nothing to say.

“I saw her tracking the Dark yesterday,” Darius continued.

“I warned her away from them.”

Darius grunted, giving his opinion without words.

“Why do they never listen?” Thorn asked.

“Because they think they're invincible. You know she'll end up dead.”

Thorn knew that all too well. “She stabbed me.”

That had one side of Darius's mouth lifting in a grin. “Did she now? I think I like her. How did she manage that? You're normally much quicker. Or did a pretty face leave you slack jawed?”

“She doesna know she stuck me. She thinks she missed.”

Darius's smile vanished. “Why is she following the Dark?”

Thorn took in a deep breath and slowly released it. “I believe the Dark killed someone close to her. She's out for revenge.”

“You can no' save them all, Thorn.”

He looked at Darius. “I'm no' trying to.”

“And I'm no' pretending that the past isna haunting me. Shall we both stop lying now?”

Thorn dropped his chin to his chest. “I'm no' prying.”

“Neither am I. I'm pointing out facts. The Dark came after her today. Had you no' been there, she'd be dead.”

An image flashed in Thorn's mind of vacant slate gray eyes. It angered him to such a degree that he heard a growl rumble from his throat.

“I thought so,” Darius said.

Thorn clenched his teeth. He'd learned his lesson before. He wouldn't get involved. He couldn't. It never ended well for him, and he was tired of it all.

Darius put a hand on his shoulder. “Deny it all you want. When you come to terms with things, come find me. I know where she lives.”

It was the worst thing Darius could've said. Thorn squeezed his eyes closed. He had done so well today by letting the female go. He hadn't followed her or asked her name.

He'd then set about trying to forget her.

Which was easier said than done. For those few moments with the mortal had burned into his mind more than any other.

Thorn listened to Darius's steps fade away. There was hunting to do and more Dark to kill. Thorn palmed his dagger and jumped over the side of the roof to land between buildings.

He walked only a block before he encountered a Dark. With ease, he killed the Fae before hiding his body until he could collect it later.

Thorn kept to the shadows, but even then the mortals sensed something angry and vengeful was near. They gave him a wide berth. The Dark, however, had no clue he was close.

He came upon a group of six and merely smiled as they turned to face him. The woman they had been having sex with lay upon the ground naked, moaning for more even as her life drained away.

She was a lost cause, but killing the Dark around her would save others. Thorn stood, eyeing the group as he waited for one to attack.

As soon as they did, he released his fury.

*   *   *

Darius stood on the roof above Thorn and watched him fight. There wasn't a move wasted. Everywhere Thorn placed his feet or hands went against the Dark.

The battle was concluded quickly enough. Thorn stood over the fallen Dark, but Darius knew it wouldn't be enough for Thorn. Because he was trying to be something he wasn't. He wanted to ignore his gut and forget the female.

It was a valiant attempt on Thorn's part, but it wouldn't last. Thorn was strong, but the part of him that took his vows seriously was the same part that made Thorn noble and honest.

Darius wished he could be more like Thorn, but it would never be. Darius accepted who he was—or who he was trying to be.

He followed Thorn from one skirmish to the next. A few times, Darius fought Dark who tried to come up behind Thorn. Both left a trail of dead Fae across the city.

By the time the first rays of the sun broke through the night sky, Darius had carried over twenty dead Fae himself with Thorn bringing in another thirty.

Darius waited outside as lookout as Thorn shifted and burned the remains. Darius liked killing the Dark Fae scum, but he loved shifting. Neither he nor Thorn could take to the skies since the Dark were looking for a Dragon King, but those few minutes in dragon form restored balance within Darius.

Thorn came to stand beside him, buckling a new pair of jeans. For some reason, Thorn didn't like to remove his clothes before he shifted, which meant he went through clothes quickly.

“You didna need to follow me last night,” Thorn said.

Darius lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I knew you would find the Dark, and I felt the need to kill more.”

“I doona want to go to her.”

Darius didn't bother to pretend he didn't know who Thorn referred to. “I know.”

“I can no' stop thinking about her.”

He looked at Thorn and merely waited. Con might question Thorn's loyalty after he worked with Ulrik to help Warrick, but Darius didn't. Neither did Warrick.

“She willna welcome our help.”

Darius grinned. “Oh, I doona doubt you can change her mind.”

Thorn sighed deeply. “I know I'm going to regret this, but take me to her.”

Darius led the way without another word. He wondered if the female would realize how lucky she was to have Thorn looking out for her. If she didn't, Darius would set her straight quick enough.

For better or worse, Darius was making Thorn face his past. But even Darius knew he could never do the same.

 

CHAPTER

FOUR

Lexi stared at the ceiling, her thoughts as rambling as a rabbit's path. She felt drained, weary, and yet there was a fervent need within her she couldn't deny.

She closed her tired eyes and squeezed them. Nothing stopped the burning. With a sigh, she threw off her covers and rose. A quick shower later, she changed into jeans, boots, and a sweater.

Only then did she pore over a map of the city dotted with the places she had encountered Red Eyes. She ate a piece of buttered toast and had a second cup of coffee before she readied herself to leave the flat.

It wasn't until she picked up her knife to tuck it into the arm strap she wore that she thought of the stranger. Though she comprehended the fact he knew of the Red Eyes, it wasn't until that moment that it fully hit her.

“Stupid, Lexi. Very stupid,” she chided herself.

If she hadn't let her anger overcome her, she might have found out more about the Red Eyes. Now, she was no closer than she had been yesterday or the week before. Her money was running out. Even with Jessica and Crystal renting the flat for another week, it didn't help with food or the exorbitant fee imposed on her by the airline to change her flight.

She had just a few days left to find Christina's killer or she would be returning home without her revenge and ass-deep in debt.

For just a second, she contemplated taking the pills the hospital had given her to help her sleep after Christina's death. For that brief moment, she actually considered not following the Red Eyes around looking for her culprit.

But the second passed. She took a deep breath and put on her coat before she walked out of the flat. The blast of cold hit her immediately. As did the spray of rain. Was she so out of it that she hadn't seen it was raining when she glanced out the window?

She got enough sleep to function, but the situation confirmed that she needed to pull her head out of her ass and pay more attention to things. It wasn't just her life on the line and Christina's murder to avenge, there were others at stake.

Lexi pulled her black coat tighter and dug her hands into her pockets. She had figured out the route she would take while looking over the map. Everywhere she went there were Red Eyes, but more were concentrated near where she had been the past three days. There was no reason not to return there. It was, after all, the perfect place to find the murderer.

She had to put her head down against the rain, it was driving so fiercely into her. In moments, her head was soaked. Luckily, her jacket was water repellant, but her jeans weren't.

A shiver took her. After another two blocks, Lexi gave in and hurried into a co-op. She shook off the rain and soaked in the warmth.

It was several minutes after walking the narrow aisles that she found herself in front of the newspaper section. She frowned and picked up a paper to read the headline.

F
IVE
M
ORE
M
URDERS

It was like being punched in the stomach. Lexi couldn't catch her breath as she scanned the article looking for a description of how the people died. When she found it, the room began to swim. She tilted, bumping into a man.

“Horrible, is it no'?” he asked and nodded to the paper. “Every day it's the same headline, just a different number. How many more of us have to die before the authorities do something?”

She set the paper down, her hands shaking from much more than the cold. There was no doubt in her mind who had done this—Red Eyes. Why didn't anyone else see them? Why did no one else take notice of their look?

Lexi didn't consider herself intuitive by any means, but even she couldn't ignore that feeling of wrongness she had whenever one of the Red Eyes was near.

It was almost as if she were the only person in the world who knew how bad the Red Eyes were. The fact D.I. MacDonald or any of the other police didn't believe her only made her feel more adrift.