29. Zhang Junjie

Chapter 29

Zhang Junjie

J ust as the fear that had gripped Junjie’s throat loosened its hold, Leo wordlessly shifted into a lion. He stepped away from Junjie and moved to stand several meters in front of where Rei was sitting on the ground. Junjie gazed past his mate to see a blood-soaked Ellora crossing the field toward them, a bow in one hand and a sword hanging from her hip. Behind her lay Aire Bira’s lifeless body. Was she now coming to finish off Rei?

Leo opened his mouth, and an earth-shattering roar swept across the field and hammered against the surrounding tree line. He almost pitied the humans who invariably heard a lion’s roar in the middle of Connecticut. Huli strutted to Leo’s side and let out his own warning bark, which wasn’t nearly as impressive. Junjie had to bite the inside of his cheek. Leo’s roar was enough to make Ellora pause in her approach. Huli’s bark was simply adorable.

Either way, it didn’t detract from the fact that both Leo and Huli were stepping forward to protect Rei and the clan. As Kai and Moon moved to Leo’s other side, Rei spoke up from his healing cuddle with Yichen.

“Okay, okay. I’m touched. The lion and the huli jing with all the tails are impressive, but when you throw in a dragon and horde of zombie soldiers, it gets over the top. I’m pretty sure Ellora is coming to talk.” Yichen and Philippe helped Rei climb to his feet.

The elf’s color was improving, and it looked as if Yichen had taken a moment to wipe some of the blood from his lover’s face. His movements remained slow and ginger as he shuffled around Leo with Yichen at his side. He patted the large cat on the top of the head, his eyes wide like he couldn’t quite believe he was touching a lion.

“Moon, I think you can call off the dead army now,” Rei said in a low voice.

“Call them off?” Moon repeated. His words jumped a full octave higher than he normally spoke. “Um…okay. I can do that. I think…”

“Moon? You know how to end the spell, right?” Chen demanded. Junjie dropped his face into his hand and closed his eyes. They were both trying to be quiet, but their voices carried across the empty field on the wind.

“You see, Sky was a lot less clear about how to call off the dead when I was done with them. The big focus was on raising them.”

“Moon!” Chen hissed.

“What? It’s not like I could practice something like this. I intended to use it if things went bad. And things went really fucking bad! ”

The conversation grew more muffled as Chen hurried to his mate’s side, wrapping him up and whispering what were likely reassurances in his ear. Moon had a point. Chen had been severely injured and hadn’t been looking all that great less than an hour ago.

Thankfully, the zombie elves started collapsing to the ground, first one by one and then in great groups, until they were all lifeless heaps once again.

“It’s always something,” Yichen mumbled under his breath.

Rei leaned over and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “That’s what keeps it interesting.” He gave a final pat to the top of Leo’s mane and took a step forward, meeting Ellora away from the rest of the Zhang and Varik clans.

“What now?” Ellora demanded when Rei was standing in front of her.

“I beg your pardon,” Rei gasped, seeming to choke on the words. “What do you mean? You all go home. Back through the door. Scoot! Close the door and forget about the human realm for a few millennia.”

For several heartbeats, Ellora stared at him as if he were dense or just insane. “And that’s it? You’re staying here? We close the door, and you’re going to die. Have you lost your mind living with the vampires and-and…” Words dried up on Ellora’s tongue as her wide eyes skimmed over the various creatures that were now part of the Zhang clan.

“Probably a little, but if my parents and Trin were anything to go by, my family wasn’t all there to begin with.”

Ellora’s glare turned dark and Junjie held his breath, waiting for the woman to hit him with her bow. “What are we supposed to do? You were the crown prince when Queen Belladonna was killed, but Trin stole the throne from you?—”

“I actually abdicated, but you weren’t there for that. It was a whole mess,” Rei interrupted.

“Prince Wistari Elnaril Rey?—”

“ Shhhh! Don’t say my whole real name!” Rei shuddered. “By the gods. In the human world, it sounds like you’re summoning a demon.”

“What the fuck are we supposed to do?” she screamed at him.

Rei at last sighed and reached behind him with his left hand to motion for Yichen to draw closer. When his mate was standing beside him, Rei placed an arm on his shoulder and leaned on Yichen for support. The elf might be healing from his fight with Trin, but it was clear that he was weak and still in a lot of pain.

“King Ash and Queen Belladonna were a nightmare. We hoped Trin might be better since he didn’t grow up immersed in the court like you were, but he was as bad as his mother. Countless generations of your family have ruled the fae. There’s no contingency plan if there isn’t someone in the direct line of succession,” Ellora continued. “You saved us from Trin, but you’re abandoning us to anarchy once the door is closed. How are the fae supposed to rebuild in chaos?”

All the joking and teasing disappeared from Rei’s expression, and lines dug in around his mouth and across his brow. Gone was the young man of mischief. “Ellora, I’m not the right answer.”

“But—”

Rei held up a hand, stopping her argument in her throat. “I’m an easy answer. I’m the answer no one has to think about, because I’m just the next in line. But that’s a line of people who have made terrible decisions for our people. I don’t want to be king.” A tiny smirk lifted one corner of his mouth. “That’s not modesty talking. We both know I have none of that.”

“What you want is a brighter, more equal future for all of the fae, and sticking with more kings like Ash and Trin won’t give you the future you want,” Yichen added.

Ellora’s shoulders slumped, and the tip of her bow dug into the dirt. “What am I supposed to tell them?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got an idea.”

Rei pushed off from where he’d been leaning against Yichen and walked farther into the field to where Ellora’s and Trin’s armies gathered together, staring awkwardly at each other as if they couldn’t decide whether they were still enemies.

The former crown prince lifted his hands above his head and then jerked slightly, lowering them.

“My people, listen to me,” he started, his voice ringing out. “Your royal family has served you poorly for too many long centuries. They’ve led you down a dark path for their own benefit, and it’s time to return to the light that has always graced the fae. It’s time to go home.” Rei paused and Junjie strained to listen to the indistinct murmur of conversation. He couldn’t understand what was being said, but it didn’t sound riotous, which was a step in the right direction.

“While the fae may be able to conquer the humans, it will drain our magic. Our home will be left barren and without magic. Our kind will wither as well. It’s time to go home and replenish our strength.” Rei paused and motioned to his half sister. “Ellora carries the royal spark of magic, but without the evil that tainted my family. She will lead you home. After some time has passed and the fae are on the mend, I ask that each of the heads of the various clans send a representative to the sacred pool. There, the clans will meet and devise a new, fair system of ruling the fae with Ellora’s help.

“In the meantime, I will remain here in the human realm after the door has been closed as penance for how my family has harmed both the humans and the fae.” Rei finished with a bow to the gathered fae. Junjie picked up a soft moan, though, and Yichen hurried forward to help him rise.

Time ticked by, and no one moved. There was a low rumble of conversation among the members of the fae before slowly, one by one, they headed into the treeline, disappearing from sight. The fae were leaving.

Ellora walked over to Rei and punched him in the shoulder. “Asshole.”

“Ow!” Rei whined, rubbing his arm. “What did I do?”

“You lumped all that on my shoulders. What do I know about designing a new government?”

Rei grinned and shrugged. “You’ll figure it out. This isn’t your first trip to the human realm. You’ve seen how they fucked up their own countries, and you’ve seen how our parents made a mess. Just don’t do that.”

“Such an asshole,” she muttered, but there was a faint smile teasing her lips. “I’m assuming you’ve actually got some secret spell or plan to stay alive after the door closes. You’re too self-centered to throw your life away for something our parents did.” She shook her head and walked to where the armies were still filtering in the trees. “Keep your secrets. If the gods have any pity, I’ll never see your face again,” she called over her shoulder.

“You know, I’m almost going to miss her,” Rei declared to Yichen.

Junjie laughed, but the sound became lodged in his throat when he spotted a lion bounding through the tall grasses toward him, his tongue hanging out past long fangs and wide golden eyes staring at him. Junjie’s entire body tensed, and he squeezed his eyes closed, waiting for the bone-jarring impact of Leo colliding with him.

But the tackle never came.

Instead, a pair of strong arms wrapped around him while Leo’s giggles danced in his ears.

“Did you really think I’d crush you?” Leo snickered.

“You have been enjoying yourself too much in your much larger cat forms. I don’t know what to expect from you,” Junjie countered. He hugged Leo back, his heart soaring in his chest. Their lips touched, and another giggle bubbled up that Junjie couldn’t stop. They were free. They were free and whole again. Yichen was home with their clan, and Jiang Chong was dead.

At last, he could allow himself to dream about the next stage in his life—bringing Erik and Leo to their new home. He could show Leo the section of the manor that had his private rooms. Rooms that could now be redesigned to fit the little boy and his mate! There would be walks through the various gardens and down through the orchard. The clan owned a great deal of land, and they were far from other neighbors. Leo could shift into any cat form he wanted and run without worrying about being seen by an outsider.

Of course, this would also be the first trip for Kai, Moon, and Rei to their home as well. Kai would likely settle in quickly, but Moon and Rei would experience their world for the first time. Excitement bubbled through Junjie, and it was only Leo’s low chuckle that drew him from his thoughts.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but you’ve been humming happily to yourself for nearly a full minute. I’m going to assume you’re thinking about the celebratory sex we’re going to have.”

Junjie swallowed hard, and Leo didn’t miss it. The cat tossed his head back, sending his laughter skipping through the field.

“Busted! You weren’t! What were you even thinking about?”

“Taking you home to China with me and all the new things I get to share with you and Erik.”

Leo was still chortling when he reached up and cupped Junjie’s cheeks with his hands, tilting his head for a kiss. “My sweet, soft vampire.”

“That’s right,” Aiden’s voice cut across the murmur of conversation. “You’ll be planning to leave now.”

And like that, the celebratory mood dimmed. Going home meant leaving behind the friends they’d found in the United States. Junjie pressed a quick kiss to the tip of Leo’s chin and slipped away to stand next to Xiao Dan, along with Yichen, Xiang, Mei Lian, and Chen.

“The Zhang clan owes you a great debt for your assistance during our stay in the United States. Without your help, we would never have been able to save our Yichen, defeat the fae, or destroy Jiang Chong at last. You have fought by our side and offered a friendship that we will forever treasure.” Xiao Dan bowed deeply to Aiden and his mate. Junjie and the rest of his clan followed suit.

Aiden extended his hand to Xiao Dan with a wide smile, and Xiao Dan took it. “The Variks are honored to have met your clan. We’re grateful for the chance to lend you a hand during these trying times. We’ve learned so much from you, and I hope we can continue this friendship even though a great distance will soon separate us.”

Xiao Dan nodded and lowered his hand to his side after shaking Aiden’s. “I’m sure we will. I think there is much that we can still learn from each other.”

“You know, love,” Ronan drawled as he draped his arm across Aiden’s shoulders. “Once things are quiet here, we could go on an extended vacation to China. It’s one region in the world neither of us has traveled to. Assuming our friends wouldn’t mind some visitors.”

“We’d love to have you!” Mei Lian shouted, cutting off Xiao Dan’s answer.

Junjie stepped over to Winter. “You spoke of coming to stay with us for a time so that you could study the Zhang fighting techniques. I would like to formally invite you and Fox to stay with us as long as you would like. Both Chen and Xiao Dan are excellent teachers and would be happy to have you as a disciple.”

“Wow,” Winter exhaled. He shoved a hand through his messy hair and laughed, his eyes incredibly wide. “Yes. I’d…I think I’d love that. I’ll talk to Fox, but I think he’d jump at the chance. We just need to wait until he’s a little stronger and more in control of his new instincts.”

Junjie nodded. “Understandable. The invitation stands for whenever you are ready to visit us.”

“Whoa! Wait!” Rafe cut in, holding his hands in the air. “We’re making all these great long-term plans to travel to China, but that’s months or even years down the road. These guys aren’t leaving the States immediately. We need to plan a party before they leave town. One last Varik and Zhang shindig to end all shindigs.”

Winter snorted. “I think we’d be better off letting Marcus and Ethan plan it.”

“What?” Rafe gasped. “That stick-in-the-mud? No way!”

Philippe leaned against Rafe and patted him lightly on the chest. “Your family knows your parties far too well. We’ve just survived one chaotic mess. I think it’s too soon to go through another.”

“You too, mon ange ?” Rafe cried. “But I would definitely go more sedate for a family party. Only a couple of strippers and one champagne fountain. We already have the tiger with Leo. I wouldn’t need to order a second.”

“Marcus will handle the party planning.” Aiden sighed.

That was probably safer, but Junjie suddenly found himself wondering exactly what a Rafe party would be like.