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Page 34

 

  "I don't know, but it's hit a number of the Indigo Court. " He struggled to sit up. "Now's the time for you to rescue Peyton, if you're ever going to. She'll be easier to get out of here. "

  I bit my lip. "You can't help me, can you? You're too sick. "

  He shook his head, drawing his hand over his eyes.

  "I'm managing to hold on. But the true Vampiric Fae--the ones born to the Court--are having trouble maintaining. Some are slipping into madness, others into their brutal natures fully. I'm afraid that whatever this is, will make them more dangerous than ever once they adapt to it. "

  His words hit like ice water. "Adapt? Isn't it . . . nobody's dying from it, then?"

  "Not that I know of, but it's created a condition where the daylight is like poison. Unlike the true vampires, we aren't dying from it. Just incapacitates and seems to bring out the inner beast. "

  I sat down on the chair near his bed, closing my eyes. What had Lainule and Lannan done? Even if they couldn't effectively fight during the day, they were still terribly dangerous and they weren't going to go poof into a pile of ashes like the Crimson Court when the sunlight kissed them. The plan had backfired, in a terrible way. Now they'd be less able to reason.

  "What's wrong? Cicely?" Grieve pushed himself up on his elbows. "Are you okay?"

  I nodded bleakly. "Yeah. I'm okay. But we have to get Peyton and Chatter out of here. " With a horrible finality, I realized that taking Grieve home with us wasn't an option. Even my love couldn't blind me to the fact that he was far more dangerous, closer to the edge than before. He could survive here, among his crazed brethren, but Chatter--Chatter couldn't.

  Grieve stared at me for a moment, reading my face. "You wanted me to come, too. " Wincing, he gripped the side of the bed and let out a low moan. I moved toward him, but he held up his hand.

  "No," he said, his voice ragged. "We can be together at night, but until I find out what's happening, I don't dare touch you during the day. You'd intoxicate me too much, I'd want to drink from you too deep and I might hurt you. "

  "Grieve . . . I love you. I love you," was all I could say, staring at him from across the divide that had suddenly sprung up, a gulf that threatened to sweep us away from each other.

  He paused, a dark smile creeping across his face. "I could turn you. You could become one of us, now that you know you're part Cambyra Fae. We could be together and hunt through the night. You'd love the power that it brings. And you'd be with your aunt then. "

  Horrified, I turned to Chatter, who shook his head, cautioning me not to speak. "Grieve. Grieve? Where is Peyton?" he said, moving a step closer to my fallen lover.

  "Peyton? The magic-born Were? Where do you think she is, you dolt? She's in the gaol. Idiot. " Grieve's smile grew darker, more feral, and he reached out his hand. "Bring me my lover. I need her. Need to feed . . . "

  "No--no. Grieve--come back to yourself. Grieve, can you hear me?" I jumped up. "Don't let this suck you down. Don't let it eat you up. Can you understand? You've been infected by some illness and it's hurting you. Fight it. Please, please fight it. "

  Grieve snorted, but then a moment of clarity passed across his face. "Cicely . . . get out of here. Please. I don't want you seeing me like this. I don't want you hearing the horrible things I say. " He struggled to sit up again. "Listen to me. I love you, Cicely Waters. You're my one love. You've always been my love. Whatever happens, remember that. Chatter, help her to get Peyton out of here while you can. My guess is that the gaol isn't heavily guarded right now. Myst is probably up in arms--and sick herself. And Chatter--don't come back. It's too dangerous for you now. "

  With another cry, he twisted to the side, bringing his legs up to his chest. My wolf howled as a sharp pain lanced through my stomach and I fell to my knees with a scream. Chatter grabbed me up and tossed me over his shoulder, carrying me out of the room, dragging me toward the main chamber even as I beat on his back, trying to stop him.

  "No--I have to help Grieve. Put me down!"

  "You can't help him," he said, setting me down once we were out of the room and far enough away that I couldn't just run back in. "There's nothing you can do to help him. He has to work through this himself. Come. I'll help you with Peyton. Grieve's right--she probably won't be guarded too heavily at this point. "

  He led me back to the main chamber and I followed, unable to think. My wolf was begging me to return to Grieve's side, to give in, to let him do what he would so we could be together. But the torque around my neck began to vibrate, gently humming, soothing me, and a warmth spread through my chest from the Fae girl tattoo, down toward my wolf where it washed over the tattoo in a glow of moonlight, easing the pain. My head cleared enough for me to shake away the thought.

  As we reentered the room, the others looked up.

  "Come on. Chatter's going to help us find Peyton and get the fuck out of here. " I headed toward the door.

  "What about Grieve?" Rhiannon asked.

  I slipped my gloves back on. "Forget it," I whispered. "We're leaving him here. It's for the best. "

  Chatter gave them a shake of the head and the look on his face said enough that, without another word, they stood and followed us out into the snow.

  We had to climb up the hill next to the cave. Slipping and sliding, we worked our way through the undergrowth, holding on to branch and bough, pulling ourselves up some of the steeper inclines. Boots sliding on ice slicks, teeth gritting as we struggled through the heavy, wet snow, we managed to finally pull ourselves over the top of the slope. I rolled over on my back, staring into the frost-laced sky, letting the flakes kiss my face with their delicate touch.

  "Gods, that was hard. I'm in shape, but damn, that was like slogging through mud. " I pushed myself up to a sitting position, frozen through, my muscles aching like I'd just run a marathon. At this point, I just wanted to get through the rest of the day alive. Happy wasn't a factor now that I'd seen Grieve.

  And carrying the secret that I'd been responsible for his illness--and for potentially making our battle with the Indigo Court worse--didn't help. Guilt ate at me, and even though I hadn't willingly participated in Lainule's plan, the fact was that I'd entered into the contract with the vampires and I'd agreed to obey Lainule.

  "Hurry," Chatter said. "We don't have much time before dusk and who knows what the return of shadow will do for Myst and her people? With the way things are, this might have strengthened them. "

  With that lovely thought lingering in my mind, I let him pull me to my feet and we headed off again, one slogging step at a time. Thanks to the time in the cave, I wasn't as frozen, but the temperature was dropping and the snowflakes were growing smaller and more furious. This was sticking snow, biting snow that would pile up all night.

  Kaylin slipped up beside me. "What went on back there with Grieve?" he asked in a low voice. I shook my head, not wanting to talk about it, but he wouldn't let up. "I know something happened. What was it?"

  Turning my head to him, I kept my voice low. "He's being overtaken by his darker nature. And he says that this cure that Lannan and Lainule thought they found may just make the Indigo Court a lot fiercer and more dangerous to deal with. You should have seen him fighting both the pain and his urge to give in to his vampiric nature. Kaylin, it's all so fucked up. "

  He slipped an arm around me and helped me along, not saying another word. The look on his face was enough. He may not have approved of Grieve but he wasn't taking any delight in the unfolding events. As we trudged along behind Chatter, I leaned my head on Kaylin's shoulder and he tightened his grasp around my waist.

  After another twenty minutes of slow, cold going, Chatter held up his hand. Kaylin let go of me as we all gathered around the Fae. We were on top of a ledge, overlooking another ravine. Down below, I could see three guards standing in front of what looked like the mouth to another cave.

  "The gaol," Chatter mouthed.


  The guards looked anything but attentive. One was bent over, puking his guts out near a huckleberry bush. Another was moaning and rocking back and forth. The third was managing to stand upright, but he leaned on a nearby tree stump and looked in danger of passing out. Finally, a piece of luck.

  I sucked in a deep breath, planning out the approaching battle in my mind. They were weak, but even weakened, they were formidable foes. We'd have to get down there and kill them before they could raise an alarm.

  It struck me that the thought of murdering three strangers didn't even make me flinch, and I looked up, shocked and numb. Kaylin met my gaze and gave me a small nod.

  He understands. He's been alive a long time, Cicely, and not all of his life was easy or painless or free of death and blood. Ulean's touch was gentle on my skin.

  What am I becoming, that I can contemplate killing three people I've never met just because of who they are?

  You're becoming the person you need to be. You're becoming the person you really are inside: a survivor. A warrior. A leader. A woman who will do what is necessary to rescue her friends and family. That's what it means to love, Cicely. That's what your mother could never teach you because she put herself first, always. You're growing into the woman who can proudly wear her wings and fly.

  Ulean brushed around me. I thought of Peyton, and of Grieve. Of Heather and Elise, Leo's sister. I thought of Kaylin's best friend, and the nameless others who'd lost their lives to these creatures. And those who were next on the list.

  Sucking in a deep breath, I checked my blades and pulled out my fan. The others silently readied their weapons. We were ready. If Myst wanted mayhem, then we were going to ram a boatload of it down her throat.

  Without another thought, I went barreling down the slope at the three guards, waving my fan twice, driving the gale on before me.

  Chapter 25

  We brought down a minor avalanche with us, the snow cascading behind us in a wave of smoke. There was very little roar, since only a small slope of snow broke off, but as we surfed the frozen white, a lightning bolt split the sky and thunder rocked the air. Snow lightning--crap! We were getting full special effects for this.

  I came to rest--on my feet, luckily--in front of the guard who had been doubled over, puking his guts out. He'd jumped back when the snow cascaded down the slope, and his gaze rose to meet mine, his eyes ringed with the same mad haze that I'd seen wash over Grieve's face. Before he could react, I flicked out my stiletto and lashed out, slicing his left arm across the bicep.

  He let out a growl and spun around, his foot catching me across the stomach. In a daze of pain, I went flying back into the snow. As I struggled to my feet, I pulled out my fan.

  To my left, Rhiannon and Leo had engaged the second guard. Leo planted his staff in the ground and used it to propel himself up and over the guard's head, catching the man's neck between his legs with a scissor kick. The man twisted, trying to free himself, and Leo flipped away from him, landing in a crouch. Unbalanced, the guard went down. As he struggled to regain his footing, Rhiannon held out her hands and a blistering flame shot forth, engulfing the Vampiric Fae.

  To my right, Kaylin and the third guard were into it. From appearances, Kaylin was winning. There was blood all over the snow and none of it appeared to be coming from him.

  Chatter was skirting the perimeter, looking for anybody, particularly other guards, who might be hiding out.

  Ignoring the pain in my side, I quickly turned back to my own attacker and held out the fan. As I waved it twice, whispering, "Gale force," a gust of wind so strong it knocked me back off my feet raced past, directly aimed toward the guard. It hit him square in the chest, sliding him along the snow a good ten feet before slamming him against the face of a boulder. He went limp and I raced up, switchblade ready.

  Before he could regain consciousness, I slid my blade along his throat, severing the skin from ear to ear. As blood fountained out, his head fell back, still attached to his neck by a sliver of flesh. With a final gurgle, his body relaxed and I knew he was dead.

  Be cautious how much you use the fan. It has limitations that Lainule didn't remember to tell you about. And . . . repercussions. Ulean swirled around me, a twisting vortex as she helped lift me to my feet with her currents.

  I turned to see how Rhiannon and Leo were doing. Leo was limping, and the guard's knife was bloody. Chatter was on the run toward them, but he was too far away. Kaylin and I converged on the Indigo Court Fae as he swung around and--like the creature we'd met earlier--his mouth began to distend as his body shifted.

  "He's turning into one of those doglike creatures!" I couldn't use the fan, the others were too close, so I flipped out my switchblade and tried to jump him.

  The Fae met me with an outstretched fist, managing to punch me directly in the shoulder. I clutched my arm with a groan. How the hell could he be so strong? As I struggled to get out of the way of his second blow, Kaylin leapt in with his nunchakus and went to work. Leo circled behind and brought his staff down across the man's head and, with a loud crack, he was down. Except the Fae was just stunned. He was already starting to regain consciousness and when he did, he'd begin his transformation again.

  Rhiannon pushed to the front and held out her hands.

  "No," I said softly. "Let me do it. Don't bloody your hands, Rhia. "

  She let out a harsh laugh. "They've been bloody for half my life. " And with that, she let out a spray of fire that melted the snow around the Fae and caught him aflame. He shrieked once, then Kaylin threw one of his daggers with deadly accuracy and the Fae lay dead.