Chapter Sixteen

"Keep it together," Casimir said as they walked out of the building. "I don't need you two going at each other's throats. We need to stay focused."

"I've been in my fair share of brawls," Jax retorted. "I don't need you to tell me to keep my head in the game."

Casimir stopped walking when they reached the edge of the parking lot, causing Jax, Elvine, Jaytee, and Mason to stop as well. "You can be as upset with me as you want, Jax. Up until now we've been cool, but your mate set me up to be butchered by a horde of vampires. If it wasn't for your brother flying me out of there, I would have gotten an eviction notice on life."

Jax bared his canines. "I get what you're saying, but did you hear Arion when he said things aren't always what they seem? How would you feel if you watched someone slam Damon into a building and then try to choke him out?"

Casimir felt his eyes glowing fiercely at the thought of anyone touching his pregnant nékah . He wanted to snap Jax's neck for even putting that image in his head.

"Exactly," Jax ground out. "We'll get to the bottom of why he was even there to begin with." He drew closer to Casimir, his canines lengthening as the shifter looked up at him. "But lay another hand on him and I will forget we're family."

At the moment, Casimir couldn't think of a good enough excuse for what Arion had done.

"You two can settle this another time," Elvine said then looked at Casimir. "Who exactly is coming after you, and what abilities do they possess?"

It spoke volumes that the question had just now been asked. They had blindly followed him out of the building without hesitation, ready to fight at his side, despite having no knowledge of who they were up against.

Until he'd met the Frosts, no one had shown him this kind of loyalty. Not even when he was a commander had his guardians followed him so willingly. His own brother had turned his back on Casimir. But here was a fae who stood at no more than five feet tall and had argued with her mate to join Casimir, displaying her immense courage and fierce determination.

He cleared his throat. "His name is Elouan. He was one of my subordinates."

"We're about to fight an elite guardian?" Elvine squeaked.

"This is why I told you to stay with Damon," Jax growled. "March your tush back inside now."

Elvine flew up to meet Jax's glare, giving him one of her own. "You might as well hump the brakes on your attitude. I'm not going back inside, so shut it and stay focused like Casimir said. He's a béskym , while you're just a wolf with a stick in his paw!"

Casimir frowned. Wasn't it supposed to be pump the brakes and thorn in his paw?

Jax snarled then burst out laughing. "I'm not even going to correct you, Elvine. You keep doing you." His smile faded. "Keep your wings safe. Do you understand me?"

Because one tear and she would die.

She gave him an aggressive salute. "Bye, bye, Captain."

Mason grinned. "You don't happen to know Gage, do you? He's one of my employees. A Seelie, like the two of you, and just as quirky."

"No." Casimir shook his head. "Elvine and I are—"

"New to Midnight Falls," she cut him off and quickly finished for him. "Haven't gotten out much." She beamed, but Casimir saw the nervousness in her eyes.

He studied her for a second before turning to everyone. "Elouan possesses magic, just like I do. He's undergone a thousand years of training as well."

"So this is a suicide mission," Mason muttered, shaking his head.

"I will handle Elouan," Casimir stated. "But he's not alone. That's where you guys come in. I have no idea if it'll be vampires or something else."

"Is that Arion?" Jaytee asked as someone emerged from the side of the restaurant.

Jax spun and watched as the vampire walked their way.

"He's a scrawny little thing," Mason commented. He sniffed the air. "Never knew a vampire could be that skinny. Don't they suffer from bloodlust if they go too long without feeding?"

But Arion was different. Casimir knew this because the vampire hadn't reacted to the scent of fae when they'd first met. He remembered thinking the vampire had displayed surprising self-control. He also hadn't tried to attack Casimir behind the building tonight.

Yet, something seemed off about Arion in this moment.

Jax started forward, but Casimir grabbed his arm.

"If you're thinking about attacking him—"

"Something isn't right, wolf." Casimir tilted his head. "When I first met him, and even behind the restaurant, Arion displayed timidity."

"I wonder why." Jax shoved Casimir's hand off his arm. "I would be frightened if I looked like him and had some gorilla pounding on me."

"Set your hatred aside for a moment," Casimir ground out. "It wasn't because he was frightened. It seems to be his nature." He jutted his chin at Arion. "But his walk is too confident, too…"

"Seductive," Elvine said. "Guy has swagger." She frowned. "You're right. Something is wrong. The entire time we were near each other, I sensed shyness and fear. What do you think is wrong with him?"

When Arion was ten feet away, Elvine landed and tucked in her wings, blending them seamlessly into her olive skin. "Arion?"

"Why did you tuck away your beautiful wings?" He smiled confidently. "Did you think I would do anything to hurt them?"

Casimir slipped in front of Elvine. "Who are you?"

He looked like Arion. The vampire even possessed the same scar peeking out from under his shirt collar. But now that Casimir had an even closer view of him, he noticed more scars on him, like the ones nearly hidden under the sleeves of his long-sleeved shirt.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He glared at Casimir. "Step away from my mate, fae." The vampire moved at inhuman speed and snatched Elvine from behind him.

She shrieked as Arion yanked her roughly, and he would have taken off with her if not for Casimir's lightning-fast reflexes. He gripped a handful of hair and hauled the vampire back. Jax snarled and swiped at Casimir with his claws.

"Get Elvine!" Casimir dodged those deadly claws without losing his hold on the vampire, who twisted and turned to get free. "This is not your mate, wolf."

"Shit!" Jax jerked his hand back then drove his claws into Arion's wrist before he snatched Elvine away, cradling her to his chest. "Touching his skin made my own feel like a thousand ants were crawling all over it."

The vampire screamed as blood poured from his wrist.

The wound produced a foul odor that made Casimir want to gag. "This is not Arion. It's a lamia ."

"A what?" Jax and Elvine asked at the same time.

"A ghoul," Casimir replied softly, closing his eyes briefly. If Jax was livid with him before, he was going to downright hate Casimir now. "In order for the ghoul to take on Arion's form, it had to eat him first."

"No!" Elvine shouted.

"You're lying," Jax bellowed.

"Let me go and I'll tell you where I left him," the ghoul panted.

"You son of a bitch!" Jax attacked, driving his claws into Arion's chest, snarling continuously as he unleashed his rage.

"You two, grab Jax," Casimir shouted at Jaytee and Mason. "If he kills the ghoul, we may never find the real Arion's body."

Before they could take a step, Elvine slammed into Jax and took him down to the ground. Casimir's brows hiked, while Jaytee's and Mason's jaws dropped. Jax was a large man, around six-five and pure muscle.

She rose to her feet, closed her eyes, and started chanting. Suddenly, Raidh walked out of the restaurant and crossed the parking lot. He grabbed Elvine's hand and started chanting with her. She latched onto Casimir's hand, and the words flowed from him.

They were performing a location spell. Even though the vampire in his grip wasn't the real Arion, he possessed Arion's memories, which meant he would have the memory of where he'd attacked Jax and Elvine's mate.

As the dark magic flowed between them, black veins of electricity snapped all around them. Casimir released the ghoul when Elvine began to chant an even darker spell, one to make the ghoul suffer greatly before he would die. She raised her free hand, ready to cut herself to seal the chant with blood.

"Elvine, no!" Raidh shouted. Casimir felt Raidh using his powers to leash hers. "I know you're in pain, but I can't allow you to go down that road. Back off, tulip. We saw where Arion was. Take your wolf and get to him before it's too late."

"He's alive?" Jax stared incredulously at Raidh, hope shining in his eyes. "Where is he?" He grabbed Elvine then jerked his hand back with a yelp."

"Never touch a fae when they are chanting a spell," Casimir warned. "Consider yourself lucky Raidh dampened her magic, or you would have shot across the parking lot."

"You're Unseelie," Mason said. "Gage told me about your kind. You use dark magic."

"Not all Unseelie are evil," Casimir bit out, now understanding why Elvine didn't want the Bengal tiger to know the truth.

Mason held out his hands, palms up. "I didn't say you three were evil. I was merely making an observation."

Casimir snapped his head around when he heard loud hissing noises. "They're here." He turned to Jax. "Take Elvine and find Arion. Go, now!"

Jax shifted into his wolf form before he and Elvine took off in the opposite direction from the arriving vampires. She flew above the wolf as they entered the forest and disappeared from sight.

"Moonbeam, get back inside the restaurant and lock the door," Jaytee said with pure panic in his voice. "I don't want you attacked again, sweetheart. Tell Damon what's going on and see if my dad is awake yet."

"Tell Damon not to come out!" Casimir yelled as Raidh flew toward the glass door.

Jaytee shifted and raced toward the building when a vampire nearly grabbed his mate.

"Guess it's just you and me." Mason rolled his shoulders. "Sure wish that backup would get here."

Casimir narrowed his eyes when Elouan stepped from the shadows on the side of the building wearing a malicious smile, his arms spread. "Can't trust those nasty grave robbers," he said with a tsk. "They're not very intelligent, but I was hoping the wolf could watch as his little vampire plucked the fairy's wings off."

So Jax would go insane, causing him to blindly attack, which would have made it easier to kill him.

"I guess my guys are smarter than yours." Casimir's swords materialized in his hands. "But I have to confess I was dumb enough to assume the last horde of vampires finished you off." He smirked. "After all, I did leave you as a buffet for them."

"I have to confess I was smart enough to control the swarm this time instead of relying on the men I paid to do it for me. But you know how the saying goes. If you want something done right, you kill the ones who fucked things up in the first place and then do it yourself."

"Love what you've done with your hair." Casimir winked. "The half-shorn look suits you, since you never had any honor to begin with."

"At least I didn't run away like a coward," Elouan spat, clearly enraged at the reminder of what Casimir had done to him. "But all will be restored as soon as I kill you and take my rightful place as the new béskym ."

"That's what this is all about?" Casimir scowled. "You tracked me down for a position you'll never get?" He scoffed. "First, your hair has been cut, so not a single guardian will respect you. Second, commander is not a title you earn. You have to be born with the mark, moron."

And a new one would not be born until Casimir died, which he didn't plan on doing anytime soon.

Elouan snarled as his swords appeared in his hands. As soon as they did, the vampires raced forward.

Mason shifted into a huge Bengal tiger just as cars and trucks screeched to a stop and men jumped out, shifting into various animals. Casimir was looking at a polar bear, a cheetah, a brown bear, a black panther, numerous wolves, and even a lion. An entire zoo had just exploded onto the scene.

Satisfied Mason wouldn't be the only one fighting the vampires, Casimir turned his full attention on Elouan.

* * * *

"Did you just say ghoul?" Damon stared disbelievingly at Raidh. He must have misunderstood his brother-in-law. Was there even such a thing?

"And you say Jax's mate was…" Kalen scratched at his long beard, sitting there with nothing but a hand towel to cover his groin. "I don't understand." He looked at Damon. "How is Elvine his mate? They've been under each other's feet for two weeks, bickering and scowling at one another. And you say Jax has a second mate?" He ran a hand through his hair. "Remind me not to pass out the next time there's a crisis."

"Speaking of…" Damon narrowed his eyes. "Why in the hell would you give me so much of your blood, Dad? It wasn't as if you were the only person around. You could have let Jax give some too. You didn't have to give me the lion's share."

"Now is not the time." Kalen closed his eyes.

"When is the time?" Damon stood. "You're my goddamn father! Do you know what it would have done to me, to my brothers, if—"

"Nothing happened." Kalen growled. "Raidh, turn your head, son." His dad rose to his feet, a deep scowl on his face, and then he gritted out, "You'll understand when you have your pup, Damon. And that's one of the reasons. You're pregnant. My grandchild needed to feed. My son was suffering. I'll be dead in my grave before I allow any of my boys to go through unnecessary pain."

That was when he saw the anguish in his dad's gentle blue eyes. Damon knew why. "Dad, you know I didn't mean those awful things I said to you, right?" His chest felt heavy as his breathing became shallow. Did Kalen really think Damon meant those horrific words? "You know I-I don't hate you…"

Kalen glanced at the floor and shook his head. "I couldn't leave you trapped in that sleep, Damon. But…" He chewed the side of his mouth.

"But it wasn't your son who came out of it," he whispered. "Because I'll never be the old Damon Frost, a simple wolf shifter. Now I'm a hybrid, a monster."

"No." Kalen's head shot up. "Don't you dare call yourself that. I would love you even if you had a hundred different species inside of you, son."

"Then what? Tell me the truth," he demanded, and his voice caught. Maybe his dad was having a difficult time telling him that he didn't want him there. What else could it be? "If you don't want me living under your roof, then let me know. Casimir and I will get our own place and you don't have to worry about me living there."

"May I help?" Raidh bit his bottom lip as he stood and looked between them. "You're both aware how my father treated me. I don't want either of you to suffer because you're having a hard time expressing yourselves." He looked toward the counter. "A father and son should have a strong relationship, and you've made me feel like your son more than my own father ever had."

Damon sniffed and cleared his throat. "What do you have in mind?"

He didn't want to be separated from his family, but more importantly, Damon didn't want to take that from Casimir or their child. The pup deserved to grow up in the Frost home, to experience the bond their family shared. It would kill him to deprive his mate and child of that experience.

Raidh held out his hands. Damon hesitated then placed his hand in the fae's smaller one. So did Kalen. Then Jaytee's mate closed his eyes and began to chant. Raidh's hand squeezed Damon's tighter.

He sucked in deeply when he felt Kalen's emotions, felt the pain of watching Damon hurt, helpless to do anything to take away his son's suffering. His torment when he'd had to fight Damon in the forest when his thirst had become too much. How his dad had cried some nights while he lay in bed, praying that Damon would find peace.

But he also felt how strongly his dad loved him. It radiated like a hundred blinding suns. How happy he was that he was going to be a grandfather, though frightened about the birth.

He wasn't the only one. Damon still didn't know how he was going to deliver his pup.

Raidh released their hands. "Sometimes words aren't needed."

Kalen gazed at Damon. "You're really at peace with who you are now?" His eyes narrowed slightly. "Pull a stunt like that again and you won't have to worry about Christian ending you. I'll take you out back and beat some sense into you, boy."

Damon glanced at Raidh. "Did you have to let him see that?"

Raidh shrugged. "I can't control the flow. I can only open the channel."

He was straight-up lying. The little fairy had wanted Kalen to find out the bone-headed move Damon had made.

Raidh smiled sweetly at him. "Don't be upset, Rick Blaine."

"Yes," Damon said to his dad while still glaring at Raidh. "I'm at peace with what I've become. I'm getting a beautiful pup out of it."

"And you love those wings." Kalen chuckled before he sobered. "I have to get out there and help. You two stay behind the counter and out of sight. I don't need your wings ripped," he said to Raidh then turned to Damon, "or my grandchild to be in danger."

Damon watched as his dad walked around the counter, and then he got to his knees and peeked at the glass window.

Jesus. There was a war zone in the parking lot. Kalen unlocked the door then furrowed his brows. Damon already knew what the problem was. He pushed to his feet and crossed the dining area. "I'll lock it as soon as you leave."

With a single nod, Kalen shifted into his wolf, and then Damon let him out before he closed and locked the door.

Damon stood rooted to the spot, his eyes transfixed on the fierce battle between Casimir and Elouan. For a moment, all else faded away as Casimir gracefully dodged and struck, swords clashing and sparking. It was almost as if he was performing a delicate dance. Each move was calculated and executed with the skill of a seasoned warrior.

Damon couldn't help but feel a swell of pride and admiration. Casimir was truly a force to be reckoned with.

* * * *

As Kalen trotted out the door, he knew he owed Raidh a debt of gratitude.

When Damon had first come out of that sleep, Kalen had viewed his son as a monster. It was in the way Damon had looked after he'd opened his eyes, the way he'd gone after Casimir for blood, and the aggression that had possessed him.

Kalen had just been in shock.

Thank god Raidh had shielded Damon from finding this out, because if his son knew his father had briefly felt that way, it would have destroyed their relationship.

He wasn't trying to be deceitful. Kalen believed in honesty, but some things were better left dead and buried. What good could come from Damon knowing the truth? It wasn't how Kalen felt now.

All three of his sons were his entire world, and Raidh had just spared him from losing Damon forever.

* * * *

Elvine came to a sudden stop, causing Jax to shift and frantically scan their surroundings, searching for any sign of their missing mate. "Where is he? I don't see him, sprite."

She gracefully landed on her feet and sprinted toward a large, sturdy tree. Then she dropped to her knees in front of a pile of leaves that seemed to have been purposely gathered.

The sight caused Jax's heart to drop into his stomach.

Elvine didn't try to clear away the leaves. Instead she just knelt there with her arms wrapped tightly around herself, trembling uncontrollably.

With fearful steps, Jax approached her. "Is he buried under these leaves, Elvine?"

She nodded quickly but had yet to remove the leaves. As Jax looked her over, he found himself still reeling from the revelation earlier.

The moment Arion had appeared, he'd instantly known the emaciated vampire was his mate. The pull toward him was intense and undeniable.

But then something unexpected happened. The pull had suddenly shifted sideways and enveloped Elvine as well. It was as if all three of their fates were connected and nothing else mattered.

The realization that she was also his mate left Jax shocked and bewildered.

He had already been secretly attracted to her since he'd caught her peeping into their windows, but it wasn't until tonight that he felt the intense pull toward the beautiful fairy.

Now all he could feel was the magnetic pull toward both of them consuming every part of him.

Jax knelt down in the soft grass beside her and placed a comforting hand against her small back, feeling the tremors racking her body.

His eyes closed briefly as he took a deep breath, preparing himself for what they might find while trying to calm his own racing heart. "I want you to turn around, sprite," he said softly, rubbing her back. "Let me look first, okay?"

The situation was urgent, but Jax refused to manically knock away the leaves and traumatize her if they found Arion… He couldn't do that to her.

She nodded quickly, her vibrant meadow-green eyes filled with gratefulness and fear as she gazed up at him.

Jax leaned in to press a tender kiss to her forehead before he helped her turn around, bracing himself for what he had to do next.

"Don't you dare go soft on me, ma petite . I love your fiery spirit. It keeps me on my toes, brat." He was trying to lessen the tension, though he knew it wouldn't do any good. Still, he hated to see how badly she was shaking.

A sniff escaped her. "I'm not going soft, Mr. Nippy Nose," she said, her voice quivering slightly. "I just need you to slice me some slack right now."

Gazing at her back, he smiled softly and said, "I'll slice you some slack, sprite."

Jax took a deep breath to steady his trembling hands before he began brushing the thick layer of leaves aside. His heart clenched when he uncovered a thin, pale arm, the skin marred with fresh bite marks running up and down its length. With increasing urgency, he dug until Arion was fully revealed.

The vampire's shirt was torn and stained with blood. Jax gasped in horror at the jigsaw puzzle of scars crisscrossing his torso. He traced his fingers over the multitude of old and faded scars, but others looked fresh and raw, most likely inflicted within the past hour, though they showed no signs of healing.

What kind of torture had Arion endured?

More importantly, how had he survived?

Confusion and worry filled Jax's mind as he tried to make sense of it all. Vampires healed when they drank blood. So why hadn't his mate's wounds healed? What could have caused them to become permanent? Having only met Arion less than an hour ago, Jax and Elvine knew nothing about their mate.

"Is it bad?" she asked on a quivering breath. "Is Arion…?"

Ignoring the bile rising in his throat, Jax pressed his fingers against Arion's neck, searching for a pulse and panicking when he couldn't find one. He moved his fingers around, unsure if he was even checking on the correct side since he'd never had to look for a pulse before.

"I don't—" A surge of relief flooded him when he finally located a weak and struggling beat. "We need to feed him."

Elvine spun around, her eyes widening in horror as she took in the full extent of their mate's injuries. "I'm going to kill whoever did this to him," she snarled.

"Let's focus on getting Arion fed first," Jax said as he turned back to Arion. "Then we'll end whoever did this to our mate."