Page 9 of Fae Devoted (Fae Touched #3)

H is cellphone dinged, and Tucker stopped at his front door to retrieve it from the pocket on his thigh.

Dinner tonight? I’ll cook.

Bracing a hand on the wood siding of his covered porch, he tapped a response to Jo’s text. I may have to work late.

As the dots inside the bubble on his phone appeared and then vanished, his chest tightened.

Settling for friendship until Jo officially reached her majority had been beyond difficult, yet it proved near impossible now that she was ready to accept a mate.

It would be dishonorable to start the Mating Dance when they couldn’t finish it, but avoiding Jo and temptation wasn’t the answer either.

It was hurting her and damn near killing him.

After calling in the smoothie order to the café, Tucker waited out of sight but close enough to overhear Jo thank the teenage girl he’d insisted deliver the drink to her office.

The tremor he heard in Jo’s voice was like a dagger to his heart, and Tucker realized keeping his distance didn’t diminish the desire to claim his she-wolf or make leaving her any easier.

The upcoming separation was going to be a bitch.

Happy coincidence, I’ll be up late. You can come over whenever.

Bowing his head on a sigh, he typed. Don’t cook. I’ll pick up a pizza.

Okay. Just remember, no anchovies on my half!!!

Tucker punched the security numbers into the keypad of his renovated two-story home, and the lock disengaged with a mechanical whir. He opened the door a crack, and his senses went on instant alert as the smell of freshly tilled earth wafted from inside the house.

“Welcome home, Lieutenant Tucker.” Prince Myles reclined in his custom suit on the living room sofa, his legs crossed, dress shoes polished to a high shine. A blackout cloak that vampires used to travel during daylight hours was draped over a kitchen stool.

“You’re trespassing.” Entering a male shifter’s home without an invitation was tantamount to pissing in his territory and declaring it for his own. “How did you get the entry code?”

Myles arched a single dark eyebrow. “Miss Long’s birth date is in the island records, wolf.”

“Get out.” He swallowed a growl along with the urge to throttle the arrogant vampire. If he were anyone but the prince, Tucker would have already dumped him on the front lawn. Sun or no sun.

“The WSC has petitioned for Cameron Nelson’s release,” Myles announced, dangling a crystal tumbler from his manicured fingertips, the glass filled almost to the brim with Tucker’s best whiskey.

“He was a lesser alpha in Grayson’s Texas pack and not an outcast. Príoh McCoy is claiming your brother unduly influenced the male to become a renegade. ”

When James was deep undercover inside Jeremiah’s illegally formed pack, he managed to get word to the prince that Nelson was meeting in Memphis with a high-ranking member of the Knights of Humanity.

Nelson was Jeremiah’s acting beta in Mississippi, and they gambled on him being in the loop regarding Abby’s kidnapping.

Samuel arrested the rebel male and then persuaded him to reveal everything he knew about his missing mate. The information led to Abby’s rescue.

“And the Sídhe’s brand on his nape?” Tucker laid his small round shield and curved sword on the built-in bench, then removed his shoulder harness and draped his holstered gun over a coat hook.

“Príoh McCoy is still working to corroborate the Fae’s existence and the brand’s meaning.”

“King Nathan—”

“Is a liar.” The prince’s symmetrical facial features remained composed, apart from a slight tic near his right eye.

“The WSC king didn’t apprise Príoh McCoy of his association with Lord Daimhín or Mr. Cull.

When asked to explain his Dádhe House’s connection to the Fae and his missing progeny, he refused. ”

Queen Rose was as livid as the rest of them to discover one of the Nine, the assembly of monarchs who ruled the magical communities within the United States’ borders, had neglected to mention the presence of Lord Daimhín in Earth’s realm.

And the truth that Sinclair instigated Abby’s abduction without evidence of contrition had her stating she wished Myles killed the tight-lipped cowboy king when he had the chance.

But Rose’s hands were tied by regional autonomy laws.

Taking vengeance on another Fae Touched monarch would be like the prime minister of Spain ordering the assassination of the president of the French Republic.

It just wasn’t done, at least not openly.

“And Grandmaster Lewis?” Tucker asked, indicating the leader of the Anwyll Colony in Nathan Sinclair’s region, the female witch akin in political power to a Ferwyn príoh or Dádhe House ruler.

“Both are reluctant to publicly challenge their king on the issue without concrete proof. They are concerned the information will get out and incite panic in their respective communities.” A fear the ESC shared with their neighbors.

The front door opened, but Tucker didn’t need to turn around to know it was Samuel.

“That’s because Dugan McCoy would rather stick his head in the sand than deal with the possibility of an interspecies war.

He won’t push for an accounting.” His Alpha’s hand was on the door handle, but his feet were planted on the front landing.

“Marcia Lewis has been in Sinclair’s pocket for more than two decades and was a regular in his bed in the past. We won’t find the witch a ready ally.

Appealing to the WSC’s Commander of the Guard is also out of the question. ”

“Vampire,” Tucker affirmed, gesturing for Samuel to come into his home.

“As a Dádhe who belongs to King Nathan’s House, we can’t count on his support.

” Samuel shut the door behind him. “The Calling will ensure his loyalty above his obligations to the Guard. If Commander Braxton believes revealing his patriarch’s alliance with a Sídhe Lord will hurt the Sinclair House, he is magically bound to conceal that knowledge. ”

“Vampire politics can be inconvenient.” Prince Myles swirled the amber liquor in his glass.

“I asked you to wait for me outside.” Samuel zeroed in on the incriminating evidence the heir held in his hand.

“It’s another hour until sunset. You didn’t expect me to stand in the street until the lieutenant arrived?”

“No, I expected you to stay in the car with your assigned bodyguards.” The web-like bonds connecting Tucker with his Alpha quivered in agitation.

“I decided to drive myself,” he said, taking a casual sip of his drink.

“And leave the Complex without backup…during the day.” The astringent scent of crushed evergreens permeated the room. If caught unawares, the vampire race’s allergy to UV rays would weaken the prince and place him at a distinct disadvantage in an outdoor fight.

“Are you suggesting Mud Island isn’t safe, Commander Walker?”

Tucker’s vision shifted, the color of his irises now matching his Alpha’s molten gold. The Guard’s duty was to protect the reigning monarch and their people from harm. To suggest the island wasn’t secure—especially after the breech in security at Chess—was a grave insult.

A lone howl rent the air. He wasn’t the only Ferwyn male in the pack sensing Samuel’s rising anger.

“Why are you here?” Tucker asked through unrepressed one-inch canines, drawing the vampire’s attention to defuse the building animosity between the two powerful leaders.

Prince Myles hadn’t moved from his relaxed position on the couch, his countenance the epitome of apathy. If it weren’t for the subtle change in his scent, which only a shifter could decipher with accuracy, and the blazing, blood-red pupils, Tucker might have assumed he was quite bored.

“Ah yes,” he replied, his voice as bland as his expression, the scarlet black again. “I have some news the commander decided couldn’t wait until this evening to discuss.”

Tucker turned to his Alpha. “Jeremiah?”

“We’ve had a confirmed sighting.”

“Where?” he asked, heart pounding.

“Detroit.”

“When?” What was his brother doing in Michigan?

“Mr. Grayson was spotted less than twelve hours ago at the Rivière Casino in Detroit.” Myles set his half-empty glass on the coffee table, uncrossed his legs, and leaned forward with his elbows on his thighs.

“A previous contract Feeder of mine moved from Memphis to the East North Central and is now an employee at the Rivière’s hotel.

She called home to talk to her sister this morning and mentioned the oddity of a Clan Walker male traveling outside his designated region. ”

“It might not be Jeremiah.” He had to be sure. Tucker couldn’t waste precious time on a wild goose chase into another príoh’s territory. A príoh who was also the ENC Region’s king.

“Miss Brooks identified you by name and noted the unusual facial scar. She asked if Lieutenant Tucker lost a dominance battle to Príoh Walker and was outcast from the Clan. She assumed the wound must be fresh since it hadn’t yet healed.”

“And you heard about this conversation with her sister…how?” Tucker’s body felt stretched taut, his skin too tight. His wolf needed to run.

“Miss Brooks’ sibling is my secretary’s favorite midnight snack.” Myles shrugged. “He thought the information was pertinent and notified me.”

“Does he know?”

“About the Fae, or that Mr. Grayson is your twin?”

“Either,” he bit out.

“No, and since you obviously haven’t left the island and remain scar-free, he agreed Miss Brooks must be mistaken.” The prince let his loosely clasped hands hang between his knees.

“But he suspects Abby isn’t completely human.” Samuel scowled.