Chapter 23

TWENTY-THREE

I didn’t wait for Callum. Didn’t tell him what I was going to do. Just burst back through the doors and into the foyer, where Angelica was standing at the foot of the stairs with her arms crossed and a sour expression twisting her lips. And for good reason. Between my desertion and Callum’s deception, she was probably feeling utterly betrayed.

I didn’t blame her. At least, I didn’t blame her now that I knew she wasn’t our mole.

“Raine, where have you been, and what on earth…” Her gaze turned shocked as she took in my appearance.

I probably looked deranged, with my hair down and wind-blown, my glittering dress wrinkled and stained, and my laced up boots beneath, but Angelica’s disapproval was the least of my worries.

“We need to get as many people as possible out of this building, now.”

She looked at me, then back at Callum. He nodded.

“But don’t be obvious,” I amended. “Use multiple exits. Even try the roof. The attack may come from more than one direction.”

I watched as the buttoned up assistant went from coolly capable to ice-cold predator in the space of a single breath. Her hair went up in a twist to be secured by something silver and stabby, and her dress was promptly ripped up the side with very little apparent effort.

“And what are we telling them?”

“Security threat,” Callum said briefly. “I’m handling it, but they should see to their own safety.”

With one last look over her shoulder, she slipped into the banquet hall, leaving me facing Callum.

“Now are you going to tell me what exactly I just assured Angelica I will be handling?” He regarded me impassively, almost patiently.

“Yes.” I’d started down this path, and I was going to see it through, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t afraid. Didn’t mean I wanted to see his face after I got done explaining the truth. “I know who the saboteur is, and I know what he wants.”

I wished I didn’t. I wished now that I’d never heard of Oklahoma City. Of the Shadow Court. That I’d never met a gorgeous auburn-haired dragon with blazing amber eyes. One who waited patiently for me to gather my thoughts and fight through the pain of what I was about to do.

“His name is Blake.”

Callum still didn’t react. “Someone you know?”

I swallowed. “Yes.”

“Then he must have reached out to you because…” The question hung in the air between us.

I had to force the words out. “He believed there was a chance I might be on his side.”

A pause. “And why would he think that?”

“Because…”

“Raine.” His voice was gentle. “I’m not going to hurt you. Just tell me.”

But he had no idea.

“He thinks that,” I said hoarsely, “because I genuinely considered it when he told me what this Symposium was actually about. And then again, when you explained the laws that all of you created, signed, and rejoiced over—laws that are blind to the very victims you claimed to want to protect.”

Callum looked like I’d punched him. His mouth opened, his eyes went flat and dark. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking,” I said quietly, “about people like me. Like Logan and Ari. People who don’t deserve to be punished…”

But I never got a chance to finish my sentence, because that’s when everything around us suddenly went dark.

It was not like the first time Blake had attacked us in this building, when he’d simply cut the power. This time, every glimmer of light was instantly extinguished, leaving us in an utter darkness that could only have been accomplished through magic.

I couldn’t see Callum. Couldn’t see my own hands. But I knew the general direction of the doors to the banquet hall, and that was where I needed to go.

In any ordinary circumstances, I would have expected to hear screams and cries of panic from inside. The chaos of frightened people attempting to flee from what promised to be a terrifying situation.

But the room beyond the doors had gone deathly silent, and I knew it wasn’t because the room was empty. Even if a few had managed to escape after Angelica’s warning, there hadn’t yet been enough time to evacuate. Which meant either that Blake had managed to neutralize them almost instantly, or… Somewhere in there were fifty outraged magical powerhouses preparing to strike at whoever and whatever was threatening them.

Either way, we had to draw the battle away from them, or we faced a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions.

We had to act, and we couldn’t act if we couldn’t see. Which meant there could be no more postponing the inevitable. No more holding back. No more futile wishing for things that I could never have.

Somehow, I still knew exactly where Callum was, so I moved towards him in the darkness. Towards the sound of his breathing and the fire of his magic. Towards that pull that always told me where to find him. And when I was close enough, I reached deep within and envisioned a key, fitting into the lock on a massive, iron-bound door.

The key turned. The door swung open. And there, where I’d packed it away and tried to bury it forever, was the rest of my magic.

I’d been sixteen when they took me off the street. When they did their first experiments with magic transferral.

Even Elayara had been shocked when it worked.

But not as shocked as Callum when I opened my hand and a pure blue flame sprang to life on my palm, illuminating the darkness and allowing me to see his expression.

He looked like I’d driven a knife into his heart.

I looked into his eyes as the flame grew brighter—a flare of pure fae magic that I should never have been able to wield. “This is why,” I said softly. “Blake believes I will support him, because in many ways, we are the same.”

We were still staring at one another in the light of that flame when the ground rumbled beneath us, knocking us off balance. At the same moment, a blast of air magic came rushing down the stairwell and smashed into us, extinguishing the fire and throwing me off my feet. But I never hit the ground, because Callum caught me. Tugged me against him and whirled around so his back was to the wind, then hit the doors to the event space with his shoulder, carrying us both through.

Once inside, we hit the floor and rolled. I heard him grunt as we hit, but I barely felt the impact, because I was still tucked tightly against Callum’s chest, one of his hands cushioning my head.

Even when he felt betrayed, even when he had to be questioning my loyalties, he kept his promise to protect me. Even when he didn’t understand, he tried to keep me safe. So no matter how hurt and betrayed he would feel, I was going to protect him, too.

The moment we came to a stop, he released me, and I pushed away from him. Struggled to my feet, fighting for balance in the darkness. Once I was sure I wouldn’t fall over, I reached for my magic again and made a light—a scintillating ball of blue that I threw upward to catch in the darkened chandelier. It flew up and hit the glittering crystal facets, blooming instantly into a blue fire that illuminated the entire space.

I’d expected chaos, but this was so much worse. Callum swore in a deep, guttural tone that told me the dragon was lurking close to the surface, but there was nothing he could do.

All around us, bodies slumped over, some lying on the floor, some resting their heads on the tables. There were signs that a few had tried to flee, but had been stopped in their tracks.

And when I looked closer? Their eyes were open. They were still conscious, still breathing, but utterly unable to move, or, from the look of things, use their innate magic.

I knew Elayara had developed an anti-shifting serum and had been working on ways to counter other magic as well. But it hadn’t been complete at the time of her death. How was it possible that…

“So you came after all.”

Slowly, my teeth clenched tightly together to keep from screaming, I lifted my gaze to the stage. The live band was gone, and I could only hope it was because they’d gotten out.

In their place? Blake stood with his hands in his pockets. He wore a dark suit, but no tie, and appeared as relaxed as if he were still walking in the garden. Not at all like a man who’d just single-handedly subdued fifty of the most powerful Idrians in the country. He must have had help…

And he had. There on the margins of the room, standing with their backs to the wall, surrounding us on all sides… the caterers and the waitstaff were watching. Motionless, identical, and all but invisible.

And also human.

Just as he had hired local human companies for renovations and security, Callum had hired human staff for the banquet, never imagining that they would be a danger. Which meant… Blake’s people had been in position since the beginning of the evening. Waiting for the right moment. For Callum to step out. For me to decide who to fight for.

Heather had been his lookout, so the moment I arrived and she saw me with Callum... they struck.

“Yes.” I took a few steps towards Blake, separating myself from Callum. Hoping the distance might give him a chance to shift, or find some other way to save himself. “I’m here. And I’m wondering what it is you’re trying to do. You said you preferred not to hurt anyone. That you would do everything in your power to keep people alive.”

I knew how this would sound to Callum. Like I’d plotted against him. Like Blake and I had made this plan together. But the longer I could keep Blake talking, the longer I had for whatever he’d done to the delegates to wear off.

“Oh, please.” Blake’s pleasant smile never slipped. “How can you still be so naive after what we witnessed? After what we went through? I didn’t want to lose an asset like you, so I had to tell you whatever might convince you to join me.”

An asset . It was exactly what the fae had called us.

“Join you for what?” I gestured to the room. “What are you trying to accomplish? Where does all this death get you?”

“Death?” He laughed. “Oh, they aren’t dead. I have no intention of killing anyone. At least, not anyone who can be of use to me.”

Be of use to him…

“There is only one piece left now. Only one thing I need, and I suspect you know where it is.”

Me? What could he possibly think that I knew?

Except…

“Come on, Raine.” His voice turned coaxing. “How can you not want your revenge on these Idrians? After they took us off the street and made our lives a living hell for ten years? Buried us alive in that prison complex? And you… You were forced to play their sick games, caged in darkness, forced to fight for your life, tested with magic and with pain. Worse even than that, how many did they take that never came out alive?”

“It wasn’t all Idrians who hurt us, Blake.” My voice trembled as I fought back the memories his words evoked. “It was a small handful. And the victims weren’t all human. They were also elemental, wildkin, shapeshifters, and even other fae. I’m not interested in revenge on those who had nothing to do with it.”

“Raine.” My name had never sounded so haunted as it did on Callum’s lips in that moment, but I needed him to be quiet. To not remind Blake of his existence. But he was either too hurt or too stubborn to shut up. “Raine, what is he saying?”

I was going to have to take control.

So I stepped towards Blake again, holding his gaze with my own. “He’s saying,” I replied in a flat, empty tone, “that I was born human. Just like him.”

My limbs began to shake as the words echoed in the air around me. For a moment, it felt like I’d carved out my own heart and offered it up on a platter. I’d finally laid my secrets bare, and I didn’t want to see Callum’s reaction. Didn’t want to know how betrayed he now felt.

“But unlike him, I didn’t fail the tests. I was Elayara’s first true success.” I did turn towards Callum then, somehow managing to face him without crying. “She didn’t just find a way to infuse objects with stolen magic—she found a way to transfer it to another person. A human. One who was given no choice in the matter. And as she experimented, she realized that it was the youngest humans who had the best chance of holding on to that magic.”

Pain radiated back at me from Callum’s gaze—whether from sympathy or betrayal I couldn’t tell—but I refused to flinch.

“When magic enters your body for the first time and carves out its place and its pathways, it hurts. It hurts so much more than you can possibly imagine. And she tried over and over again.”

With Ari and Logan, she’d succeeded only one of those times. With me? It was four.

“Some of the subjects, like Blake, failed every test, but she didn’t let them go. So they learned other ways to be useful.”

I should have known what had happened when Draven said they’d found almost no artifacts. I’d seen the stockpiles of coins, medallions, gems, and the like—boxes and crates filled with unimaginable power, waiting for the moment Elayara decided it was time to go to war. She’d never used them, so where had they disappeared to?

“In Blake’s case? He learned to use stolen magic.”

I heard a chuckle from Blake and turned back to face the stage. I couldn’t keep looking at Callum now that he knew the truth about my magic—about who I truly was. I’d never actually lied to him, but I knew he wouldn’t see it that way.

And I’d finally figured out Blake’s game. “You took her research, didn’t you? All of her artifacts, all of her plans. And then you continued it. Found a way to neutralize more than just shifters. Realized you had the power, not just for revenge, but for so much more.”

I hadn’t been able to stop wondering why he’d stuck around. Why he was here, why he cared so much, when there was nothing tying him to the past. He could have walked away. So why didn’t he?

Not to protect the other victims.

He’d gotten a taste of power. He’d always been good at getting others to listen. Even back at the compound, he’d helped with calming down the other prisoners. Convincing them to wait, to stay alive, not to fight their fae captors. I’d once believed it was an act of mercy. There was no way we could have escaped or beaten them anyway.

But Heather was the clue.

Heather, who was unable to shift. Who had always been terrified around Callum. Who rarely looked anyone in the eye.

It wasn’t the fae my magic had been trying to warn me about the night of the reception—Heather had been standing right behind me. And then she vanished, because her job was done and she’d earned her reward.

Blake had promised her the power to shift, using stolen magic.

It was all he’d ever wanted—the ability to continue using that stolen magic without scrutiny or repercussions.

And if he could circumvent the laws against it?

All he needed was a sustainable source of power. And if he managed to contain every one of the Idrians in this room? He would have it.

He was only missing one piece… One vital ingredient to complete his master plan…

Kes.

Without her, it was all useless. The only other person who’d ever learned to mimic her power was Elayara, and she was dead.

I couldn’t let him see my fear. Couldn’t give him the slightest hint that I knew. So I had to redirect. Had to make sure no one mentioned that I hadn’t come to the city alone.

And I had to prevent Blake from getting his hands on any of the Idrian delegates.

I needed to buy more time. I could really use a villain monologue right about now, but Blake didn’t seem inclined to giving speeches. Which meant the monologuing might be up to me.

“You know the real beauty of this plan?” I stepped out again and began a slow circuit of the room, passing by each table, glancing at Blake’s frozen victims as I did so. Hoping for signs that at least a few of them were fighting the effects of whatever they’d been given. “You Idrians might have made laws against the use and possession of stolen magic, but you can’t even enforce them against this enemy. Your legal jurisdiction doesn’t extend to humans.”

The irony here was brutal, but undeniable. They could enforce their laws against me and the kids, because by human law, anyone who possessed innate magic was classified as an Idrian citizen. But they couldn’t touch Blake without explaining themselves to the human legal system, and there was no way a story like this could be kept a secret. The human population at large would find out it was possible for them to wield magic without consequences. And if the Idrians simply attempted to take down Blake’s people without consulting human law enforcement, the humans would assume Idrians were attacking them for no reason. We had no way of proving what Blake and his people had done, so either way, it was likely to start the kind of war that could end all peace between us for generations.

And that… might be exactly what Blake wanted.

I looked up at him and tilted my head. “You never wanted to stop this Symposium, did you? You wanted the courts eyeing each other. You wanted them watching for threats. You wanted them looking everywhere but at the harmless humans serving their drinks and taking away their plates.”

He didn’t care about the laws. He’d never cared.

But he’d always been good at reading people. And he’d probably guessed that the harder he pushed, the harder he tried to stop it, the more determined Callum would be that the Symposium would take place. Bringing every one of the Idrian leaders into this one room, where they could be captured at the same time.

Blake had used us both.

I turned to Callum, expecting to see disappointment. Anger. Possibly even hatred. All I saw was determination, along with a hint of grim satisfaction. As if he, too, had finally found the last piece of a puzzle.

His expression punched me in the chest, ripped the breath from my lungs and left a memory in its place…

Callum leaping out through the broken window, into the street, looking for the fae who’d attacked us… Bending down to pick up an object he’d found in the road… Something flat and silver, too big to be a coin…

He’d frowned at it. Put it in his pocket. And never mentioned it again.

“You knew,” I whispered, and saw only my own certainty reflected back at me.

He’d guessed all along that the saboteurs were using stolen magic. He’d known and never told me. He’d gotten his first clue when he found a stolen magic artifact in the street after we were attacked. And when he realized there was something unnatural about those “shifters”…

“The only thing you couldn’t figure out was how those shifters died,” I murmured softly. “Until now. Because you had no way of knowing they weren’t Idrian at all. They were human. That’s why you didn’t smell them before they attacked, and why they had no idea how to fight in their shifted form. Someone they knew and trusted—any other human—could have waltzed right in and murdered them, and you wouldn’t have smelled a thing.”

I was so busy being hurt by all the things he’d hidden from me that I almost shrieked when something grabbed my ankle.

I looked down.

There at my feet was the scarred fae prince, holding a finger to his lips for silence.

“It’s not that I didn’t trust you.” Callum sounded tense but adamant. “I knew you had nothing to do with it. But I had to prevent the mole from finding out what I suspected, so I told no one.”

He was telling me he’d had no choice.

Just as I now had no choice but to pretend to be angry and pray that he would realize what I was doing.

If it even mattered. Once this was over, there was no way he would ever want to see me again.

“You used me,” I spat, turning on him with all of the anger I was feeling and could no longer hide. “I was your distraction, your bait , while you investigated behind my back. While you pretended I was useful, pretended you needed my magic.”

“I never lied to you, Raine.” His voice was filled with certainty—solid as the ground beneath my feet. But why didn’t he sound like he hated me? “Yes, the distraction was a part of why I needed you. But only a part. I was doing everything in my power to prevent a war, and I’m sorry that I ended up hurting you.”

That was the fourth time, damn him. He was supposed to hate me, but he sounded like he still cared and I didn’t know what to do with that.

Also, I was trying to sound angry, and he was ruining it.

“Well, it looks like you’ve got a war anyway,” I snarled, hoping he would argue with me for just one more minute. Hoping that Blake would believe he’d driven a wedge between us, and there was still a chance I would agree to help him.

Because I’d noticed one very important detail in my circuit of the room.

Faris wasn’t here. For whatever reason, he’d either left the banquet early or never attended in the first place, which meant he was still out there somewhere.

And wherever he was, he would have felt that rumble of earth magic earlier—felt it and identified it as unknown. Not his, not Logan’s. If we could only hold out long enough…

On the floor beside me, Rath moved, rolling over to rise slightly on his fingertips. Ready.

I looked at Callum and saw immediately what he was planning. There was only a moment to spare when I dropped to my knees and covered my ears with my hands.

His roar was pure dragon, even louder this time, but somehow it washed over me without that same stab of pain. The air around me shook, the floor trembled, and when the last reverberations died away, the room erupted in violence.