Page 35 of Fae Devoted (Fae Touched #3)

J ohnnie stared at the expanse of parkland in front of her, drinking in the beauty of the rising sun and its slow reveal of fall’s patches of oranges, reds, and yellows amid summer’s lingering green, unveiling like an unfinished quilt.

The awakening forest sang a sweet melody if you listened closely enough.

Yet today, the peaceful setting failed to calm her mind—calm her heart.

She was angry with Jacob. The bitterness in her chest felt foreign, and she rubbed at the stinging ache beneath her breastbone.

“How could you leave without talking to me first?” she whispered into the cool breeze lifting her hair. “How?”

How not why.

Johnnie knew Jacob. She knew Ferwyn males.

Had been raised with big brothers and a protective sire.

Grew up a cherished minority amid a pack of alpha males.

It wasn’t a surprise Jacob wanted to keep her safe, though the reason for his deciding to go it alone after everything they’d been through remained a mystery.

“Was it the Fae sending those vamps after us that spooked you?” Johnnie bit her lip. He’d been scared for her during the fight, but she’d been petrified for him. And they’d handled it. Together.

He couldn’t believe the Sídhe Lord would come to look for Jeremiah himself, could he?

Surely a powerful ancient would send his lackeys to do the grunt work.

And it couldn’t be the addition of the second Mating Mark.

If anything, confirming Johnnie was his Ca’anam should have glued Jacob to her side, not torn him away from it.

Was he afraid of Jeremiah…or King Alexander?

“What do you want, Dylan?” she asked, sensing his presence.

“I have to head out for a while,” he said behind her.

“Then go.” Johnnie didn’t turn to answer. Dylan was still on her shit list for his part in her forced staycation.

“The bobcat they called me about the other night is at it again.” He paused as if waiting for her to respond.

She didn’t.

Sighing, he added, “There’s a female in his territory going into an autumn heat.

The park ranger asked if my wolf could chase him off.

He’s too close to the campgrounds, and it’s making the tourists nervous.

” Most humans found a bobcat’s piercing mating scream disturbing, often mistaking it for a child or woman crying in distress. “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.”

“No.”

“I haven’t asked a question yet.”

“But you will.”

Dylan sidled to her side; his eyes fixed on the same serene scene as Johnnie. “Will you promise to stay in the cabin until I return?”

“My answer’s still no.”

“Johnnie, please.” Dylan moved in front of her, obstructing her view. “Beta Tucker told me the KoH have Fae Touched after his brother.”

“What else did Jacob say?”

How much do you know?

“Shortly after arriving in Detroit, you were attacked by rogues who wanted his twin.”

“Yes, we were.” Jacob somehow managed to stick to the truth without revealing the full gravity of the situation. If she weren’t so mad at him, she’d be impressed.

“If you understand the danger, then why are you fighting me on this?” He scrubbed at his forehead, expression pinched.

“I won’t stay locked inside the cabin.”

“Johnnie—”

“I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself in the middle of ten thousand acres of forest and deserted dunes for a few hours.

And contrary to what you and Jacob seem to believe, I’m not stupid.

” She caught herself kneading again at the ugly emotion hanging heavy in her chest and dropped her hand to her side. “I’m going for a run.”

If she pushed herself hard enough, maybe she could rid her body of the corrosion of anger and hurt eating at her insides; Dylan’s kitchen didn’t have the equipment or supplies for baking.

“I’ll go with you then. The humans can deal with the cat on their own.”

“I can’t be around you right now, Dylan.

” The defeated look on his face made Johnnie feel worse.

Even though she’d done nothing wrong, she added, “But I won’t leave the park.

I have my gun and will avoid the designated hiking trails.

” He knew as well as Jacob did that she was a better shot than either of them.

“I’d feel better if you’d stay inside with the security system activated.”

“And I’d feel better if you agreed to take me to Jac…to Samuel, but it seems neither one of us is going to get their wish anytime soon.” She yanked the hairband from her wrist and gathered her hair in a high ponytail.

“I just want to keep you safe.” He dipped his knees to look into her face.

“I know.” Johnnie’s heart softened despite the ire she still felt for his willful deception. “I’ll be careful.”

A horn honked in the distance. “That’s my ride. One of the park rangers is picking me up.”

“Good luck with the randy tom,” she threw over her shoulder, turning away to unzip her stretchy jacket.

Tying the sleeves around her waist exposed the long-waisted sports bra she’d worn with her tight leggings but covered the illegal gun holstered at the small of her back.

Shifters didn’t feel the cold as sharply as other races, and she planned on running hard.

“Princess?” he called, then went silent.

She sighed and faced him again.

Dylan held his arm at shoulder-height straight in front of him, fist closed.

“Yes?”

He started walking backward once he had her attention, then opened his hand. His car keys dangled from his fingers. “Just in case you get any ideas while I’m gone.”

“Jackass,” she swore, but her spirit lightened—just a little.

He grinned and tucked them in his jeans. “Be good.”

“Be late.”

A shake of his head, and Dylan was gone.

Johnnie didn’t waste a second, entering the dense woodlands at a ground-eating run. She wouldn’t put it past the protective male to change his mind and decide to follow her.

Although their claws only came out in self-defense or to protect someone they loved, she-wolves were far from helpless.

The females of their race were blessed with athletic bodies, preternatural endurance, enhanced senses, and increased strength.

They possessed a keen sense of direction and the agility to traverse any terrain—any distance—with a quickness that would stun those who’d never seen them in action.

As promised, Johnnie stayed clear of the park’s well-marked paths, staying west of the popular Nebo trail.

The wetter sections of the route and resulting insect population were kept to a minimum by fall’s cooler weather and the area’s recent dry spell.

She moved at a pace no human could match, heading steadily north toward Big Stone Bay and Lake Michigan.

According to the map, she’d have to cross a few public trails to reach her destination.

She couldn’t avoid them all, but she wasn’t worried about tourists, human or nonhuman.

Bypassing the first trail without incident, Johnnie heard male voices and pulled up several feet short of the second.

As she waited for the hikers to pass, she crouched on her heels behind a copse of young red pines not too far from the well-worn path.

A squirrel scurried on the branches above her, Jays squawking in irritation as he disturbed their roost. She frowned down at the mud on her favorite running shoes, then laid her head against the rough bark, holding in a sigh.

Jacob owes me a new pair of sneakers.

The approaching voices became more than distant murmurs, and Johnnie couldn’t help overhearing their heated discussion.

“You aren’t gonna find it.”

“It’s here somewhere,” a male said, his voice pitched high.

“Somewhere?” His companion laughed. “It’s a fucking forest, Neil. You might as well try to find a penny in the ocean.”

The conversation halted mere yards beyond Johnnie’s hiding place, and she peeked around the tree’s trunk.

Her instincts told her the two men facing each other in the middle of the dirt path were human.

Both were armed, but that wasn’t unusual.

Most of the Untouched took a firearm with them whenever they left the house.

The shorter man locked his fingers behind his neck and gazed skyward. “Bonnie is gonna kill me when she finds out. What am I gonna tell her?”

“Shit if I know. I don’t have a wife.”

“She’ll accuse me of having another affair.”

“Are you?” His companion smirked.

“No, but that won’t matter if she thinks I lost it because I took it off to pick up some chick in a bar.” He dropped his hands, walked to the edge of the trail and kicked at a cluster of wild mushrooms. “She’ll leave me for sure this time.”

“Looks like you’re screwed six ways from Sunday then, ’cuz you sure as hell can’t tell her the truth.”

“Damn wolves.”

“Heavy motherfuckers when tranqed.”

Johnnie froze, stiffening against the tree, careful not to make a sound.

Are they talking about the Willow twins?

“It’s gotta be here. I haven’t been anywhere else since the facility issued the last lockdown.”

Abby’s facility? Tucker mentioned the corrupt agency that held her and her brother Conlan was somewhere in Michigan. Was it located near Dylan’s park?

“Yeah, but the overtime should be sweet.” He slapped Neil on the shoulder. “Maybe with the extra money you could buy a replacement?”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“You don’t go home on furlough until the end of the month, right? That’s plenty of time to find a ring that could fool Bonnie.”

“It might work.” Neil ran his palm down his face. “Thanks, man.”

“Sure, now let’s get the hell out of here. I’m starving.”

Johnnie waited for them to round the corner, her mind struggling to accept what she’d just overheard.

Why would a human-run facility take the twins? Did they know about Ferwyn bones and Anwyll dye?

Heart thundering against her ribs, she leaped to her feet and tore through the underbrush, her normal grace absent as she stumbled over hidden roots, jumped fallen trees, vaulted over small streams, and crashed through low-hanging branches, ignoring the stinging scratches on her face.

What had they done with them? Were they hurt?

The cabin was empty when Johnnie rushed inside.

Her shoes were soaked, and she was mud-splattered from her ankles to her cheeks, her hair no longer in its tight tail.

Going straight to the guest room, she grabbed her oversized purse and suitcase, then stood in the hallway with no clue what to do next.

First things first, she had to get to Jacob and Samuel.

They needed to know the twins could still be alive but in real trouble, and their disappearance might be tied to Abby’s old captors.

But how? She didn’t have a car or a phone, and it’d be stupid as hell to travel on foot with the danger of Lord Daimhín’s Athair still looming.

“Okay, okay. Think. Don’t panic.” Taking her bags to the door, she began searching the house, hunting for an extra set of car keys. Everyone had them, didn’t they?

Her only choice was to borrow Dylan’s Jeep and drive to Sault Ste.

Marie on her own. No way would Dylan take her to Samuel without good reason.

And she couldn’t reveal the existence of the facility or the Fae without breaking Jacob’s confidence.

Something Johnnie would never do, no matter how hurt or angry.

On the second full sweep, she gave up. So maybe Dylan was the exception to the rule, or he’d taken the spare with him.

“Can’t say I didn’t try to do it the easy way,” she said aloud, charging to his closet. “Plan B’s a go.”

Johnnie dropped to her knees, crawled through the clothes she’d tossed on the floor—again—and found a beat-up pair of hiking boots. “Perfect.”

Removing the laces, she scrambled to her feet, grabbed her luggage, and ran outside.

Dylan’s ancient hardtop was in the one-car garage.

After finding what she needed in his toolbox, she took the shoelace and stretched it tight, wiggling it over the top corner of the driver’s side window.

It took her a few minutes to maneuver around the weather stripping, but once the strand was securely inside, she angled it to the near side of the door.

With the regained length, she created a small slip knot and slid it back inside the classic car, thankful he didn’t own a newer model.

Next, Johnnie positioned the loop over the old-fashion, pencil-shaped pin lock and secured the noose around the wider top by pulling on one end of the shoelace.

She took a deep breath, held it, and tugged. The door lock lifted.

“I’m in.” Throwing her bags in the back, Johnnie slid into the driver’s seat and said a little prayer. It’d been a long time since her brothers taught her how to hotwire an old car.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, wincing when she wrenched open the panel beneath the steering wheel.

All Southern boys loved their rides, and Dylan was no exception.

But she didn’t see another way, and if honest, couldn’t muster much sympathy for the duplicitous male.

Her generosity was in unusually short supply.

Retrieving the wire cutters she had also borrowed, Johnnie selected the red wire and snipped it in half, repeating the action with its black twin.

She stripped one end of the black and the opposing side of the red, exposing the wires.

Exhaling, she started the Jeep by touching the two together, then twisting the ends to hold them in place. “Thank you, Albert and Oscar.”

Adjusting the seat to accommodate her shorter legs, she placed the Wrangler in reverse and backed out.

Gravel crunched under the tires as she turned toward the main road.

Johnnie stepped on the gas as soon as she hit pavement, cold fingers clutching the wheel.

The heavy sense of dread weighing on her chest urged her to hurry.

But somewhere deep inside, she feared it was already too late.