Page 56 of WitchCurse
“Might want to be a bit more subtle about it than holding him down,” I said. “He’s been bound and beaten by the fae a lot.”
The wolf flashed through Toby’s eyes, like it wanted to take over, but the sting of a memory followed, making him flinch away from my touch. “Sorry,” he said. “Just need a minute.”
“Who hurt you?” I demanded. Did they still live? Because I’d kill them if I could.
“It’s fine.”
“It’s not.”
Toby took a deep breath, centering himself and reaching out to grab the collar of my shirt and pull me in for another kiss. “I’m not ready yet. If I walk that path right now, the wolf will take over…”
And he might never come back. I understood, but couldn’t help that it made me angry. If Kiran knew, he hadn’t let on, and if there was a more vengeful being than Kiran in fighting form, I had yet to meet them. I stroked Toby’s cheek. He looked so young without the scraggly beard. “You’ll let us help you work through this, right?”
“Yes. But not yet,” he huffed and looked toward the door. “Kiran is leaving, should we stop him?”
I skimmed the edge of Kiran’s mind, but he wasn’t running, more a need to work through his thoughts and make decisions for himself. “No. He wants to talk to Sebastian and Liam. I trust him.”
“Not to leave us?” Toby’s voice cracked.
“He always makes the right decision, but needs to feel like it is his decision. That makes sense, right? Knowing how much he’s suffered? He’s free, mostly, for the first time since childhood. We pushed too hard, that was stupid. He needs time to work through it.”
“I’d run wild,” Toby said.
But that was a lie. His wolf had control. Liam said he had spent months as the wolf until they all wondered if there was any human left in him. But not once had Toby attacked anyone. Well, there had been a rumor rippling through the pack about someone he’d attacked, a dominant who had left the pack. Was that the… I buried the question for now, not wanting to stir up his wolf when he was gaining ground. “I trust Kiran,” I said. “Let’s give him some time to process, and I need to ask a fae some questions.”
“Who?” Toby asked. “No one knows where Wesley is.”
“Robin,” I corrected. The puck was almost always in the main house. Wherever Sebastian went, the puck would lounge. It could be a shield, as Robin had helped hide Sebastian from the fae for years. Did it still work that way? What did Robin know about the sidhe?
“He was curled up on the back of the couch when I got food,” Toby said.
“Good.”
* * *
Kiran
In the main part of the camper, I made my way to the shower, turning the water to scalding and letting the heat warm my skin. The flow felt like needles at first, my body awakened in ways I hadn’t felt in years, the pain a welcome sensation. I shut off the shower, stepped out to dry off and brush through the tangled mess of my hair. Absently I braided it, and found my way to the bed of the camper and the drawer beneath, now filled with all the new clothing. My mind churned with a thousand questions, some likely best answered by my scions, but not all.
Once dressed, I paused in front of the mirror to smooth glamour over myself in ways to make me look mortal. I remembered those early days of my youth, and how hard it had been to imagine I looked like something else. Mirrors had not been a thing, and the reflection in the water, rippled and vague.
Feeding had added structure to the sharp cut of my cheeks, and eased the pallor around my eyes. With my skin a more acceptable pale peach, hair gold, and eyes blue, I could have been any mortal. Prettier than most after years trying to blend with the fae. Should I make myself less noticeable? I only planned to see the alpha and omega; I didn’t suspect they would care.
When I stepped out of the camper, jacket and boots in place, I wondered if I’d find my way at all. The morning sun was bright overhead, still rising, and I thought they had taken us east. I turned and cast my kitsune gaze west, into the trees searching for the light of their power. Everything lit up with life and energy, unattainable for ages, but little things registering long faded memories, and in the distance was the pulse of the new realm. Not a beacon as much as a warning,here lies the space of a powerful fae, walk with caution.
I headed that way, pace slow, giving me some time to think, breathe, and ease the unrest of a rising sense of betrayal. Part my fault as I’d kept the truth from Nick.
I’d almost unleashed anger in the face of my scion, which might have been all of our undoing. Centuries of caging the darkness should have made me an expert, so was it the removal of the curses that weakened my resolve, or the temptation of affection from my pretty scions?
The wind chilled my skin, and I zipped up the jacket, thinking at least the mortal clothing had benefits, and I caught the scent of death. Not recent, old and decaying, which stirred long forgotten memories. I paused to trace the direction of the smell, thinking the alpha wouldn’t have left the remains to attract more monsters. What else could it be?
The edges of the new realm, defined in my kitsune sight as a ripple of wriggling color that mortal eyes would never see, rose in the distance like a bubble of magic. Something close to the barrier had passed, like one of the magic ones who had triggered the wards?
The stench grew the closer I got, as did strange pulses of magic that ached in my bones. A signal? Something purposely left to attract others to attack the wards? Were the fae trying to keep those of the new realm scattered and busy? It didn’t sound like a normal fae tactic, however, I’d long since left the courts and had no idea what they had learned from the mortals.
I paused at the sound of leaves crunching in the distance, and listened, heartbeat, breath, stealth, yes, but not the sneaky gait I’d expect from someone trying to hide. He wasn’t hiding, only cautious as he sensed me nearby. My kitsune spirit stirred, yawning, stretching, and leisurely reaching out a metaphysical paw for a playful swipe.
Sebastian paused, eyes going wide as he sorted through that sensation. The weight of his power often made me forget how young he was.