23. Twenty Three

twenty-three

“Don’t look so worried, cousin dearest. Pawpaw and dad come on a little strong but family means everything to them,” Drake drawled.

“You heard them. I’m not exactly family. Adopted remember?”

“Doesn’t matter. Family is family. No matter how it came about.”

How very enlightened of them. If it was true.

“You call him Pawpaw?” I asked.

“He’s my grandfather. What else would I call him?”

“Not Pawpaw.”

Somehow, I couldn’t reconcile the stern, reserved man I’d just met with that term.

I nudged Jenna as a waiter approached carrying a tray of drinks. “Is there something you want to tell me?”

Jenna reached for a glass first, practically snatching it out of the waiter’s hand. “Nope. Can’t think of anything.”

She drained half the drink in one gulp.

“I suggest you think again.”

I wanted to know what Drake’s dad was talking about. I wasn’t leaving this bar until I had answers.

Jenna set her glass down with a thunk. “Leave it, Aileen.”

“I don’t think I will. You don’t know how dangerous these people can be.”

If she did, she would run for the hills. The sad thing was, I included myself in that assessment of people to steer clear of.

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Do you?”

Jenna’s expression was firm as she met my gaze. “Yes, I do.”

I slumped in my chair. “You have no clue.”

“Even if I don’t, it’s my life. You don’t get to tell me how to live it.”

“I’m just trying to protect you,” I protested.

Jenna picked up her drink, her face lost in thought before she drained it and rose. “You remember when you first came back and I tried to bridge the distance between us. How I’d come over to cook you dinner and buy you groceries. Do you remember what you told me?”

I flinched away from her, guilt and shame an ugly knot in my chest. “You know why I did that.”

“Yes, I do. Now , I know,” Jenna stressed. “But back then I had no clue. My big sister, the woman I looked up to more than any other, told me to butt out of her life and stay out of her business. I forgive you for being so mean. I know you thought you had to. But that memory still hurts.”

Caroline and Drake leaned back in their chairs, doing everything they could to pretend that they were anywhere but here. Anton was nosier, making no attempt to disguise his interest in our argument.

“I’m returning those words to you now,” Jenna continued. “I’m an adult, and I don’t need your approval.”

“Jenna—” I broke off, clamping my mouth shut to take a deep breath.

The temptation to point out how dumb she was being was undeniable. She had no idea how dangerous this world could get. I did. She’d barely glossed over the surface. Vampires. Werewolves. There was so much more. All of which could get her killed.

I wanted to encase her in bubble wrap and make it so all this madness never encroached on her world.

You could compel her, my mind whispered.

She was human. Without any of the training a hunter received. It would be easy. A flex of my power and she would forget all this. She’d never even have to know.

I could keep her safe.

“Funny, isn’t it? You two are definitely sisters. How many times did you make the same argument with Liam and Thomas?” Anton observed.

The trace of mockery in his expression as he looked over at me had a sick feeling dangerously close to shame forming in my stomach. He knew, or at least had guessed, where my mind had gone in that brief span.

Compulsion. Really, Aileen? That’s how we’re solving our problems these days?

The hypocrisy.

While I was lost in my self-recrimination, the air of the bar had changed. I came to my feet as magic barreled into me and past, carrying with it a low charge electric voltage that brought every hair on my body to attention.

Anton’s snarl and Caroline’s growl an instant later said they had felt it too.

Jenna ran her hands up and down the bare skin of her arms, trying to rid herself of the tingly sensation as she looked around in confusion. “What was that?”

For the moment, I decided to ignore her question, uncertain whether I should be worried that she could sense what just happened. I didn’t know if humans could feel the border between the Playground and reality the same way spooks could, but right now wasn’t the time to figure that out.

“Tell me that wasn’t the Playground’s boundary,” Caroline said, slowly coming to her feet.

I wished I could.

In my other sight, magic saturated the air, dampening the natural light to allow shadows to take up residence in the corners. Everything I was seeing suggested the boundary had changed to encompass the bar.

“Can it shift like that?” Caroline asked, seeing Anton and my grim looks.

“Apparently so.” Anton looked at me. “Coming here was a mistake.”

“I’m beginning to see that.”

Interrupting Jenna’s meeting with Dad’s family might have been the worst thing I could have done. If I’d remained upstairs, there would have been no reason for the Playground to draw new boundaries.

Of course, that only held true if my enemies were unaware of her connection to me.

“Would they really risk human exposure just to get at Aileen,” Caroline demanded.

Her wolf peered out of her eyes as she looked around uneasily.

“Somehow, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem,” I said.

Thanks to my stunt with the gun, Jenna and Drake were the only humans in the room. Everyone else had evacuated.

It should have occurred to me that something was wrong when security and law enforcement didn’t appear to handle the situation. A person waving a gun in a casino. They should have been on us in minutes.

I hadn’t noticed.

Even the bartender and waiter were spooks. Another thing I’d missed.

“We have to go,” Anton announced, looking edgy. “Now.”

There was no retreating the way we’d come. At some point, a wall had formed between us and the bar’s entrance. Our only way out was the door at the back of the room that would lead us further into the Playground.

Drake helped Jenna up. “Come on, cuz. Just stay beside me.”

“What’s happening?” she asked.

Drake shot a glance at me. “Things just got a whole lot more interesting.”

That was an understatement. We were up shit’s creek without a paddle.

The bartender planted a hand on the bar and leaped over it. “I’m afraid you’re not going anywhere.”

The waiter moved to block the only other exit in the place.

“We’ve got orders, you see. You’re not to leave.” The bartender’s appearance changed, his well-groomed, handsome facade shredding as he flashed sharp, serrated teeth. “At least not alive, that is.”

The waiter chuckled as he followed in the bartender’s footsteps, his face elongating into a cross between animal and man. His ears became pointed. His skin took on a mossy cast.

Anton prowled forward, not missing a step. “It appears you don’t know who your masters ordered you to accost.”

The waiter opened his mouth to say something but never got the chance.

Anton’s form blurred as he rushed the man, latching onto his neck with his fangs before anyone could react.

The bartender shouted and started for the two.

I whipped out the gun I’d stashed in my waistband, shooting twice instantly. The bartender’s head exploded.

“Nice—Nathan chose iron for the first couple of rounds,” I drawled.

I guess it was a good thing I’d never pulled the trigger on Anton. Iron would have just pissed him off.

There was a squelch as Anton finished ripping the waiter’s throat out and let his victim collapse to the floor.

Jenna made a sound somewhere between a squeak and a moan as Anton turned to us without bothering to wipe his face.

Right about now, she was probably getting a better idea of why our uncle referred to me and other vampires as “monsters”. Anton certainly looked the part. Blood was caked around his mouth and chin. It trailed down his throat and stained the front of his shirt.

The most terrifying part were his eyes. The primal, glittering look of need and desire. An ecstasy that showed blood lust had claimed him.

“Anton,” I tested.

I kept my gun out. Not quite pointed in Anton’s direction in case it triggered his instinct, but close enough that if he tried something I could aim and shoot quickly.

Anton closed his eyes. The blood lust I could sense coming off him dampened. When he opened them again, he was back to normal. Although still covered in his victim’s blood.

“We should split up,” Anton said.

I hesitated, shooting a glance at Jenna before nodding. “I was thinking the same.”

Jenna’s eyes widened in protest. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“She’s not,” Drake said, looking back at me. “She’s serious. Moreover, she’s right. It’s our best chance of survival.”

I sent him a grateful nod. He understood.

Separating wasn’t just for Jenna’s benefit. It was for me too. Distraction caused mistakes. If we remained together, I’d be so worried about her safety that I might miss something important.

“You can’t actually expect me to do this,” Jenna sputtered.

“Aileen, we need to move,” Anton said from the exit.

“Drake, take Jenna. Get her somewhere safe,” I ordered.

As a hunter, he had experience slipping in and out of places like this. Hopefully, the familial bond between them would be enough to make him protect rather than abandon her if things got rough.

“Go with them,” I told Caroline.

Rebellion flashed in her eyes. “It would be better if I stuck with you. You might need some teeth and claws at your back.”

“I’m sure I will, but I’d feel better knowing you were with them.” I nodded at Drake and Jenna, who was still acting resistant. “Two humans alone in the Playground will stick out like a sore thumb.”

Even if one of them was a hunter. Unless they had a chaperone. Say, a demon tainted werewolf who was capable of holding her own against much older spooks.

Caroline’s hesitance showed I’d hit a nerve. “I don’t like this.”

“No one said you had to,” I told her.

It was enough that she’d agreed.

Jenna’s pleading gaze followed me as I joined Anton at the exit. “Aileen, don’t do this.”

“We’ll go first to draw them off,” I told the other three, ignoring her. There was a time to indulge and a time for ruthlessness. This was the latter. I could only hope Jenna was in a forgiving mood once the dust had settled.

“You’re a menace,” Anton informed me.

“You’re the one who thought you’d get more action this way. Congratulations—you were right.”

Anton shoved open the door and glided through.

I caught it as it swung shut, pausing to flash Jenna one last bittersweet smile. “See you later, baby sis.”

God, I hoped this wasn’t the last memory she had of me.

Her broken, “You’d better,” followed me into the Playground.

Anton waited for me on the pathway that I remembered from my first visit.

“Does this run throughout?” I asked, stopping beside him.

Anton didn’t answer immediately, his attention on the woods on the opposite side of the path. Unlike the ancient trunks whose circumference could host an entire dance club, these trees were smaller. More like what you’d find in a mature forest.

Their presence was a signal that we were in a part of the Playground that I’d never visited before. From the lack of guests wandering around, I had a feeling not a lot of people had.

Was that because the Playground had expanded to encompass new territory? Or was there a more sinister reason?

Like patrons being warned away because a murder was about to go down.

About the only thing I could tell was that we weren’t far from the water gardens. The smell of damp earth and algae made that easy to discern. Along with the barely audible trickle of running water.

If I remembered correctly, there was an entrance to the casino near there.

“If you’re serious about playing bait, you’ll head toward the closest exit,” Anton said without looking at me. “They’ll never believe we chose to go deeper into the Playground.”

“Maybe we’re just trying to avoid the obvious trap.”

“Oh, there’s definitely something waiting for us in that direction,” Anton agreed with a snort. “But the question is whether you’d prefer us to trigger it or those three.”

Judging from the self-satisfied smirk on his face, he knew my answer already.

“They’re here,” Anton announced.

Following his nod, I scanned the forest. My gaze bypassed the Fae the first time. It took effort to spot them amidst the trees. There were five of them. Their camouflage perfect.

My friend from the woods on my property stood slightly in front of the rest in a position of authority. His eyes alight with anticipation. A bow and arrow clutched in his grip.

No need to guess what he planned to do with those.

“You ready for this?” Anton asked.

“If I’m not, will that change things?”

The door behind us opened. Drake exited first, Caroline and Jenna at his back. Without a look at us, he headed in the opposite direction. Just a werewolf and two humans out for a stroll in the Playground.

“We should get moving too,” Anton announced.

“One moment,” I said.

There was something I had to do first. Just a little insurance to make sure the Fae came after me and not the other three.

“What are—” Anton broke off as I drew my gun.

Not taking the time to aim properly, I fired several shots into the forest. Bark chips flew. Several curses in what I thought were Spanish—though a much older dialect than I was familiar with—came from Anton.

I emptied several more rounds into the forest, uncaring whether they hit their targets or not. Wounding or killing them wasn’t my goal. Getting their attention was.

And it worked.

An arrow flew past my cheek. Only Anton jerking me out of its way kept it from lodging in my ear.

“It’s time to go,” he snarled.

Using his hold on my arm, he dragged me after him as he broke into a sprint.

I cast one last look behind us to see that I’d accomplished my mission and the majority of the Fae were following. The sole exception was a single Fae who broke off to lope after the others.

That shouldn’t be a problem. Between Drake and Caroline, they could handle one measly Fae.

After all, his father had said their family line assumed responsibility for hunting down dangerous Fae who threatened humanity. Time for Drake to put his money where his father’s mouth was.

“Was that really necessary?” Anton demanded in a tight voice.

“I think so—yes.”

He gritted his teeth, his pace never wavering. We were moving fast. At vampire speed. It was easier than it had been in the past. My legs pumping in time with my heart. The trees and path blurring into a colorful smudge as we practically flew toward the water gardens.

Yet somehow the Fae never fell behind. They dogged our steps every inch of the way. The occasional near misses from their arrows reminding us of their presence.

“I guess I made them upset,” I called.

“I’d say you did more than that.”

Mission accomplished.

I wanted the Fae angry. Even better if they were enraged. Angry people made mistakes.

Movement out of the corner of my eye drew my attention to the trees.

I nearly stumbled as one of the assassins burst out of a tree trunk parallel to us. He took three steps before diving into the next tree trunk and emerging ten feet away through a ripple in another tree.

“How are they doing that?” I gasped in amazement.

They were practically teleporting from tree to tree. Moving in and out like the wood was a portal of some type.

“They’re the Luigseach. They can use the trees to travel,” he said.

“Any trees?” I asked.

“Yes.”

What a frightful power.

Good thing for us, the water gardens weren’t far now. While there were still trees, they weren’t as plentiful and were much thinner and frailer than the ones the Fae were currently using to hop-scotch after us.

“Do you think this counts as evidence of the Playground’s owner choosing a side?” I asked.

It was awful convenient, the boundary shifting. When I factored in that the climate right outside the bar heavily favored our enemies, it was easy to draw certain conclusions. Like the fact this place wasn’t quite so neutral anymore.

“It depends,” Anton said as we reached the edge of the water gardens.

“On?”

I dodged around a small brook, heading for several half-submerged stones and using them to cross to the mossy bank on the other side. Anton leapt right over the narrow space, landing on the opposite bank with plenty of clearance.

He cast a glance behind us to check on our pursuers. They weren’t far, mere moments behind us as they broke through the trees and raced past the boundary of the water gardens.

By unspoken agreement, Anton and I got moving again.

This time it was more difficult. The need for maneuverability outweighing the desire for speed. The only consolation was that the Fae behind us faced the same obstacles.

“On whether the Summer King has entered the fray,” Anton said, returning to our conversation.

I shot him a glance before I was forced to devote all my attention on where I was going. We jogged down a gravel path bordered by lush plants. Statues of women and men in wet looking clothes that clung to their curves, highlighting what was beneath, stood in the small brook we were following. Their dead eyes seemed to follow us.

A Fae assassin lunged out of one of the few trees big enough to support his passage.

I ducked his first swipe, blocking his second. Then Anton was there, ripping out the Fae’s esophagus and discarding him into the bushes by the side.

“You have a real penchant for ripping throats out,” I observed.

First the Fae in the bar. Now this one. I was starting to see a pattern.

“Are you done?” Anton inquired. “Can we go?”

I nodded.

Arrows thunked into the tree the Fae had come out of, just barely missing my head.

“We’re not far,” Anton assured me.

I hoped not. I wasn’t sure how much longer we could keep this race up before we were caught.

He dashed down a path of broken stone that formed a spiral, with me right on his heels. Rather than following the spiral, he jumped and leapt over boulders and bushes, taking a more direct route to the arched wooden bridge in the distance.

We thundered over its planks, the vibrations sending ripples into the water and disturbing the water lilies floating on the surface.

After several more bridges and a few detours to avoid a couple of ambushes, we reached the other side of the water garden. The scenery beginning to look a lot more familiar. This was the same route we’d used a few nights ago.

We pounded back onto the thoroughfare, past bars and dance floors until the threshold of the boundary beckoned.

We were almost there.

Anton and I put on a burst of speed, uncaring as we barreled into spooks who were too slow to get out of the way. By the time we crossed the barrier, I smelled like a liquor cabinet. My shirt damp from all the drinks that I’d gotten dumped on me. None of which mattered as I felt the tingle announcing our passage back to the real world.

“We made it,” I said, feeling a little surreal.

A part of me hadn’t thought we would.

“We’re not safe yet,” Anton declared, hooking his arm through mine and guiding me through the betting tables as we made a beeline toward the elevator.

A commotion came from behind us. Gasps and screams as the assassins followed us into the casino. They weren’t careful as they traveled, shoving people out of their way in much the same way we had in the Playground.

One jumped onto a blackjack table, drawing his bow and letting the arrow fly.

It missed me, ending up in the arm of a woman wearing sweats.

“What the hell are they doing?” I asked as Anton dragged me toward the elevators. “What about the covenant?”

“They must have decided the benefit outweighed the risks. Also, technically, they haven’t done anything that jeopardizes our secret.”

I gave him a look like I thought he was crazy before stabbing my finger at the Fae now leaping from table to table. “That’s not exactly subtle.”

“While unusual, their weapons are ones that humans would recognize and not think anything of it.”

“And their clothes?”

They looked like rejects from a fantasy novel.

“Cosplay,” Anton answered. “Or young adults who got too swept up in a fantasy game. All easily explainable.”

I wasn’t going to question how Anton knew what cosplay was or his easy dismissal of what was happening. The elevators were now in sight.

I raced forward, stabbing the button to summon them before looking over my shoulder. The assassins were closing fast. I didn’t care what explanation Anton came up with. If there was a massacre, it was going to be hard to pass it off with the humans.

Thankfully, the elevator had only eight floors to go.

“Come on. Come on.”

The humans on the casino floor proved unexpectedly helpful as their panic led to mass chaos. Except for the Fae still bounding across the tables, it hampered the rest of his party’s movements.

The table Fae hit the end of the row, leaping into the air and drawing his bow. Anton easily dodged the incoming arrow, careful not to draw too much on vampire speed. Onlookers would assume he got lucky.

He snatched the Fae out of midair, body slamming him into the marble floor. It cracked, a spider web of fissures extending from where the Fae now lay motionless.

That was going to be a little harder to explain.

The elevator’s ding sent my heart racing.

“Anton, it’s here. Let’s go,” I shouted as the elevator doors began to part.

There was the sound of something colliding into something else. Anton flew past me to crash into the ambient lighting running up the column beside the elevator.

A red cap stalked toward me, his head coated in fresh blood and a mace held in his hand.

The elevator doors finished parting to reveal Saul waiting inside.

“We meet again. Just like I said we would,” Saul drawled.

A small object flew out from behind his ear. Before I had time to react, the pixie I’d caught spying on Alches and me at the mansion blew a handful of dust in my face.

“Nightie, night,” Nyx sang.

No.

My eyelids sagged as the dust invaded my lungs, diving into my bloodstream as my limbs started to go limp.

Before I lost consciousness, I reached for my magic breaking power in a last ditch attempt at saving myself. Even before my mind glanced off the glass shell cocooning my power and preventing me from accessing it, I could tell something was wrong.

The drink I’d had at the bar. There must have been something in it.

I crumpled to the floor as Vitus walked up to look me over with a disdainful sneer. “Well, well. This is quite the catch. Just like you said.”

Saul stopped him as he reached for my neck. “You can’t kill her. The king wants her alive.”

I enjoyed the cold look of rage in Vitus’s face as I struggled to keep my eyes open.

“Dahlia is going to kill you for this,” I whispered.

Sadness lurked in the back of the djinn’s eyes when he looked down at me. “She will try.”

Magic welled up in my throat. Almost like a clot of blood that I struggled to expel. It was the only bit of my power I could eke out from the deepest parts of myself, gathering it bit by bit as the words struggled to break free.

There was one last thing I needed to do.

“Oath breaker,” I sighed.

There. Sealed in magic and blood. Now everyone would know what he was.

Vitus kicked me in the head and the world blacked out.