Dark Fae(16)

Anger like I’d never felt before ripped through me. Card had been using Ashling’s body for a play toy.

“SON OF A BITCH!” I yelled, wishing I could kill him all over again. Any regrets I’d had were washed away in that moment of rage; it was enough to make me believe that I was one of the dark Fae. There was nothing righteous about this anger, only bright pulsing fury that left me shaking, and sick to my stomach.

I paced the bower until I began to calm. He couldn’t touch her anymore. That was the only upside I could see.

Moving slowly, I went back to my bed. Staring straight up at trees that covered us, I couldn’t see the night sky or the stars. Tears trickled out the corners of my eyes and down the sides of my face. Bres shifted on my one side and pulled me into his arms, cradling my body against his. He said nothing, only held me against the warmth of him. Reaching out, I touched Luke’s hip and urged him closer, tucking his back against my belly. I tucked one arm up under Luke’s head, and reached back with the other hand to pull Bres tight against me.

Held between the two men, I fell back asleep, my tears drying, fading into determination with the knowledge that Ashling was still waiting for me to save her; that for the moment, she was still there inside her body.

And if there was one thing I’d learned, it was that while love might not always conquer, it never gave up.





8

Morning dawned coolly, and I was even happier to be pressed between my two Fae men, their body heat fending off the chill of the early dawn. Not to mention it was a damn nice sight to wake up to the two impossibly handsome guys.

“Morning.” Bres rumbled in my ear, his lips taking advantage of their proximity to my sensitive lobes. Luke cradled my hand over his heart, but there was no heat there, not like what I was receiving from Bres. Still, it was very nice to be stuck between them.

“Mmm.” This was too good to be real. I had to still be dreaming.

“I think we’d best get moving,” Luke said, breaking the spell, as he let go of my hand and stretched out on the ground, his vertebrae popping and cracking. I let out a sigh and sat up, looking down on my grubby clothes. Scrubbing my hand over my face and into the tangle of knots that had once been my hair I let out another sigh. “What I wouldn’t give for clean clothes and a shower.”

Bres laughed. “What’s the point? We just have to go deeper into ta forest to find ta three Smiths.”

“You’re a guy, you wouldn’t understand,” I grumped, stretching as I stood up, feeling several vertebrae of my own pop. Despite sleeping on the ground and dreaming of Ashling, I was completely refreshed. Glancing over my shoulder at Luke and Bres, I had no doubt they were the reason.

They had their heads bowed together, dark and light nearly touching. Luke nodded, “That seems to be the best course of action.”

I frowned. “What does?”

Both of them looked over at me, their eyes far too innocent for anything good. “We were trying to figure out who should go to Nuadha,” Luke said.

Bres dusted his hands off onto his pants. “We were thinking that you and Luke should go to Nuadha, speak to him, and try to convince him that Chaos is here and is a true threat.”

Lifting an eyebrow I said, “And?”

“Then Bres will go deeper into the forest and try to find a gateway to the three Smiths. I don’t believe even Fianna knows which one it is,” Luke said.

“Let me think a minute,” I said, turning my back on them. Cora, please, please still be here.

I am here.

Lir didn’t trust Nuadha; he even made Balor promise to keep me away from him, I said. I can’t go with Luke, can I?

Nuadha may see you as a threat to his power. You are, after all, supposed to take his place. Go with your instincts, Quinn. They won’t lead you astray.

There was one other thing I needed to ask Cora, no matter how awkward it was. Ashling thought Cora had led me wrong and I had to ask.

Did you lie to me? About Card’s powers and freeing Ashling?

She retreated deep within me and no amount of prodding could make her come forward again. Her silence damned her and her lies. Scrunching my eyes shut, I took a few deep breaths to calm my hurt and the crushed hope that had started to bloom again.

“Do you be alright, Quinn?” Bres asked. I waved at him over my shoulder. “Give me a minute.”

Cora had lied to me. But why? Just so that I would fight harder? I knew that was the answer. I might not always fight hard for myself, but for Ashling I would give everything I had, and Cora knew that about me. Damn.

Without being able to speak with her, I had to go on what I did know. I agreed with Cora about following my instincts; the only problem now would be trying to get the boys to see the truth of it.