Adric's Heart Read online

  Her breath hitched. Snow was predicted for later that night.

  Suddenly the water shivered as if touched by a finger, and she saw Adric-the-cougar slinking through the snow-covered forest. He reached the edge of the trees, stared at the fog-shrouded grounds beyond. At first, she thought he was looking at a graveyard. But the tombstones were house-sized, with lush ivy vines snaking over fanciful gothic arches.

  She’d never been to the New Moon Court, but she recognized it immediately.

  And Adric was on his way to it.

  Rosana’s heart stuttered. The water shivered again, and she became part of the scene, slinking with Adric through the forest. She felt the frozen earth beneath his paws, heard an owl’s mournful call, scented the musk of a deer herd huddled against the cold. The rising sun glimmered a pale gold, and then was hidden by a fast-moving cloud.

  Once again, the water in the bowl lurched and swooped. When it cleared this time, a tall fae was strolling around a pond on a path of white pebbles, his black head bare to the falling snow, a duster swirling around his long legs.

  Her bowels iced. It was Prince Langdon, exactly as he’d appeared in her vision in December.

  His head swung to where the cougar crouched, and then his gaze flicked to her. He turned.

  The scene shrank in on itself until his face filled the scrying bowl. It was a poet’s face—narrow, dark-eyed, incredibly beautiful. Tiny diamonds outlined his pointed ears, glittered in his winged black brows.

  She gulped. His eyes narrowed, looked straight into hers.

  He can’t see you, she told herself frantically.

  Then he smiled.

  15

  The Factory was in an abandoned grocery on the west side. The sign outside still read Allen’s Stop-and-Shop; it worked as camouflage, and suited Adric’s sense of humor besides. After they’d gutted the place, there’d been plenty of space for the shop that Jace Jones had set up to test and manufacture the clan’s quartz-based smartphones. When Adric entered Tuesday afternoon, the jaguar fada was already there, deep in conversation with his small team of quartz-crystal techs.

  Jace turned to him. A tall, rawboned man, he had cropped black hair and the same serious hazel eyes as his niece Merry.

  “Ric.” A smile lit his face. “We have something to show you.”

  Jace and the three techs spent a few minutes bringing Adric up to date on their current projects, including the quartz mine on Rising Sun Fae land which was the clan’s hope for turning the smartphone technology into a money-maker.

  “We could have them in production by summer.” Jace handed him a prototype made from the mine’s high-quality quartz.

  Adric fingered the smartphone. Durable and waterproof, one side of the quartz had been ground down to mirror-smoothness so the user could access the technology. “You’ll be able to make enough for every adult in the clan?”

  “Absolutely. With enough left over to start selling them to other clans.”

  “Impressive.” Adric included the entire team in his nod of approval. “Keep up the good work.”

  Zuri and Marjani arrived as the meeting broke up. The four of them climbed down the ladder to the war room, a chamber carved out of the bedrock that had been magically soundproofed so they could speak freely, even refer to the fae by name.

  They took seats around the round table that Adric had carved himself from a massive slab of granite. He looked around at his three remaining lieutenants. “You know why you’re here. Dion do Rio came looking for me last night, seriously pissed off. A wolf trespassed on his territory—a large brown wolf.”

  “Luc.” Marjani’s face remained expressionless, but Adric scented her distress. She’d probably always feel guilty that Luc had accepted Blaer’s geas to save her.

  The wolf had loved her since they were both teenagers. The problem was, she’d never felt the same way.

  Adric nodded grimly. “That’s my guess. And if he’s here, then so’s Lady Blaer.”

  “But why would she send him to Rock Run?” his sister asked.

  Zuri’s jaw hardened. “To piss off both clans, of course. If she’s really lucky, she’ll set off a war between us and Rock Run.”

  “Wouldn’t be the first time a night fae tried that,” Jace muttered.

  Adric exhaled and came to his feet. He felt like he was banishing Luc all over again, but Zuri was right. His lieutenants needed to know the full story about what had happened in Delaware.

  “What I say next doesn’t leave this room.” He waited until the other three nodded before continuing, “It was Luc who tracked me to Lewes. He brought Blaer and another fae—a male—straight to the B&B. They came in after midnight and tore the place apart. It was sheer luck that I got out of there with my hide intact. And Rosana do Rio, too. You may as well know she was with me.”

  Marjani drew a sharp breath.

  “Yeah,” Adric said. “He’s not to be trusted. He’s completely under that fae bitch’s control. We have to consider him one of them.”

  Zuri’s dark brows lowered. “Fuck, Ric. You should’ve told us this immediately.”

  “Maybe. But there was a minute, right at the end. Luc and the fae were in the parking lot, and I was on the other side of the fence. I know Luc scented me. He could’ve fingered me then, but he didn’t.” Adric lifted his shoulders, let them drop. “I didn’t want the whole clan to know.”

  Zuri swore. “He knows everything we do. The location of our dens, the Factory. Our secret tunnels. He even knows about this room.”

  “He can’t get through the ward,” Adric said. “Any of our wards. I made sure of that when I expelled him from the clan. But—"

  “—he could bring Blaer to the Factory,” Marjani said. “Or even your den. He might not be able to bring her inside, but all they have to do is wait outside for you to show up. And Blaer knows the secret incantation. If she gets close enough, she doesn’t even have to force you to accept her geas. She can control you through your quartz.”

  Adric growled. “Let her fucking try. I was this close to her.” He held up his index finger and thumb, the pads almost touching. “This close. But I had to let her go. Luc would’ve fought me and given her time to ’port out. And I would’ve had to kill him.”

  “Plus, you had Rosana to think about,” said Marjani. “You did the only thing you could. But you can’t let Blaer get that close again.” She toyed with the smooth ivory handle of one of her daggers.

  None of them paid it any mind. Marjani’s blades were as much a part of her as her claws.

  She scowled. “I don’t like this. You have to increase your security.”

  “Jani. I can take care of myself.”

  By tomorrow, it wouldn’t matter anyway. He’d be on his way to Virginia. But no one—especially his sister—could know that.

  A small whetstone appeared in Marjani’s other hand. She began sharpening the already keen-edged iron blade. “We could buy you a protection charm.”

  “We don’t have the money, and you know it.”

  “But—”

  “No. The best defense is to eliminate the threat.”

  Marjani compressed her lips and swiped the blade viciously over the whetstone.

  Adric set his hands on the table. “Lady Blaer is up to something, and thanks to my asshole cousin Corban, she knows the secret of our quartz. It’s time to take her out.”

  Zuri’s smile was all teeth. He and Luc had been close friends. “I’m your man.”

  “Agreed. But take your time, assemble a team—the woman’s powerful, and she’s smart. I’ll be damned if I lose anyone else to her. And before you do anything, ramp up our defenses. You and Jani both.”

  Marjani jerked her chin in assent.

  “I’ll let the clan know that the cubs aren’t to go out alone, and that even the adults need to take care.” His jaw set, because Gods, he hated to do this. “I’ll also warn them that Luc can’t be trusted. Anyone seen talking to him will answer to me.”

  Zur
i fingered his soul-patch. “The wolves aren’t going to like it. One day Luc’s a hero for saving Jani, the next, he’s bad news. If you don’t tell people about Lewes, they’ll say it’s just another example of how the cats have taken over since you became alpha.”

  Jace scowled. “Ric appointed two wolves as lieutenants. What more do they want?”

  “Hey, don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just saying it looks bad. And then there are your cousins,” Zuri said to Adric. “Two out of three of them are dead.”

  “Thanks to me and Jani.” Adric blew out a breath. “I know. It’s damn convenient that out of Leron’s immediate family, only Nash is left. A suspicious man might think we planned it that way.”

  And everyone knew Marjani’s Gift was strategy.

  Zuri moved a big shoulder. “Nash says himself that it’s Corban and Kane’s own fault they’re dead. But you gotta admit it looks shaky.”

  “He’s right,” his sister chimed in. “And I have an idea. You need a new lieutenant—why not Nash?”

  Adric sank back onto his chair. “Nash Savonett?” he asked, as if she could mean anyone else. “I don’t know, Jani.”

  “He’s a Gifted tracker,” she returned, “one of our best, and he’s backed you since day one. If he wasn’t Leron’s son, you probably would’ve considered him before now. And he’s a wolf. It keeps the balance.”

  “She’s right,” said Zuri. “The lupines appreciate that you appointed me and Luc as lieutenants. After the way Leron treated you, you could’ve turned on the wolves, but you didn’t. You brought us into your inner circle. But these last couple of years have set some of them off again—too many wolves have died.”

  “Because they attacked me and mine,” Adric shot back. “Every damn one of them would be alive today if they’d accepted that I’m the alpha now. Not Leron, and not any of his sons.”

  Zuri spread his large hands. “I know that. Even they know that. But…”

  Jace had been sitting back in his chair, silently observing. Now he leaned forward. “Nash has my vote. Keeping the balance is important, and the man is smart. Plus, he doesn’t have the prejudices his brothers had. Take Evie’s brother, Kyler. Nash has gone out of his way to be a friend to him—a human. He’s been working with Kyler, showing him how to defend himself.”

  “So it’s unanimous,” said Adric. The clan wasn’t a democracy—the final decision was his—but these three were his lieutenants precisely because he trusted their judgment. “I’ll inform Nash that he’s my newest lieutenant. But he’s on probation for the next six months. If it works out, we’ll make it official.”

  “Fair enough,” said Zuri.

  “Anything else?” Adric glanced around the table.

  When the other three replied in the negative, he adjourned the meeting.

  Marjani fell in beside him as they left the Factory. “I keep telling myself that Luc’s not responsible, that he doesn’t have a choice, but he knows what that bitch is capable of. If she’d captured you…” She shook her head. “It’s like I don’t even know him anymore.”

  He set an arm around her narrow shoulders. “It hurts.”

  Her chest heaved. “Yeah.”

  “You sure you’re okay with Nash making lieutenant?”

  “I wouldn’t have brought it up otherwise.”

  “Even though his own brother was behind your—” He halted.

  They didn’t discuss the attack on her. At first, it had been because she wasn’t talking to anyone but Suha, the clan’s head healer. Then, as the months passed, he’d let it go. Some things were better left buried.

  “You can say it—I won’t break. Corban Savonett was behind my kidnapping. And—” she swallowed, then lifted her chin—“it was because of him I was raped by those bastards.”

  Dragging in a breath, he forced the words past the hot ball in his throat. “I’m sorry. So fucking sorry.”

  “Damn it, Ric.” She jerked away to glare at him. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. It. Wasn’t. Your. Fault.”

  He kept his gaze on where they were going so he wouldn’t have to meet her eyes. Heavy gray clouds had blotted out the sun, bleaching color from the Formstone rowhouses that marched up either side of the street. It was going to snow later.

  “I’m alpha. I should’ve known what was going down.”

  “Stop it.” Marjani punched his shoulder. Hard. “Just stop, already. They fooled me, too. I thought Shania was my friend. I agreed to meet her at that bar. I was stupid enough to get drugged.”

  “You would never have been attacked if not for me. Corban targeted you because I was alpha. That’s the only reason.” He drew a breath between clenched teeth. “And I didn’t even know until the next morning.”

  By then, she’d been given by Corban and his people to a den of sick river fada. They’d smashed her quartz, leaving her hurting and defenseless, and then proceeded to gang-rape her. She might have disappeared forever if not for Tiago do Rio, who’d been kidnapped along with her. Somehow do Rio had resisted the drug enough to fight back.

  And Adric hadn’t known until it was too late.

  “It’s over.” She gave him a shake. “I need you to accept that. It’s hard, I know.” Her throat worked. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “But it’s over, and I’m okay. And I’m working on putting it behind me. Because I will not let those motherfuckers ruin my life. But I can’t if you’re still beating yourself up about it.”

  “I’m sorry.” He smoothed his palms up and down her arms. “I’ll try, okay?”

  “You do that.” She opened her arms and he came into them.

  And then they had their arms wrapped tight around each other, rocking back and forth. Adric’s throat ached with unshed tears. He gulped them down. For the first time in forever, he let himself take comfort from his sister instead of giving it.

  When she released him, her cheeks were wet. She wiped them away with the sleeve of her hoodie. She sniffed. “They’re happy tears.”

  He eyed her doubtfully. “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.” She gave a watery chuckle. “Come to dinner tonight? Beau’s cooking.”

  He managed to smile back, because that’s what she needed from him. “In that case, I’m there.” The bear shifter loved to cook, and his Louisianan mama had taught him well.

  She gave him another hard hug and then they separated—her to meet up with Fane, him to inform Nash of his promotion to lieutenant.

  His cousin could barely contain his excitement. Like Corban, he was tall and good-looking with close-cut black hair. But the resemblance ended there. Corban had been a tight-lipped, calculating man, while Nash had warm brown eyes and a ready smile.

  “You won’t regret it. You’ll see.” Nash stepped toward Adric, arms outstretched, and then hesitated, head cocked to one side to expose his throat. His wolf demonstrating its complete loyalty and trust.

  Adric pulled him into a hug and gently bit the offered throat, acknowledging and accepting that trust. “You have to pass the trial period first.”

  “Don’t worry.” Nash nuzzled Adric’s cheek, marking him and being marked. “I will.”

  Adric gave Nash’s head a rub, just like when they were kids and Nash was the little cousin who idolized him. “You know what? I think you will, too. Report to Jani tomorrow. She’ll bring you up to speed.”

  After that, Adric crisscrossed Baltimore. Checking in with the various dens. Spreading the word about Luc and the night fae. Reassuring the cubs, who’d picked up on the adults’ tension. At least he could throw in the good news about Nash, too.

  Doing what an alpha did, because his conscience wouldn’t let him leave without making sure everyone and everything was as ready as possible.

  Dinner was a rowdy affair. A dozen clan members squeezed around Jace’s big plank table. They laughed and talked over one another, drank beer, passed bread and salad. Gorged themselves on Beau’s truly excellent shrimp étouffée.

  Beneath the table, Tigger bumped his hea
d against Adric’s leg. He scratched the cat behind his ears and watched approvingly as his sister devoured a good-sized helping of the shrimp étouffée.

  Fane had taken the seat by Adric. He glanced over to see the other man watching Marjani, too, a smile on his narrow, good-looking face.

  Fane turned his head toward Adric, and their eyes met.

  Adric drew a breath. He’d accepted the other man into the clan for Jani’s sake, but that didn’t mean he was happy about it. Not only was Fane a quarter fae, he’d been one of King Sindre’s envoys, a trusted member of the ice fae court. The blond mixed-blood was as wily as they came.

  But Fane was proving useful. His wayfaring Gift meant he could slip in and out of places as well as the night fae, and as an envoy, he’d been inside all of the major fae courts—sun fae, ice fae, and most importantly, the night fae. As a sign of good faith, he’d drawn Adric maps of all three courts, with key buildings and rooms marked.

  Fane leaned forward, letting his long blond hair curtain his face from Marjani. “I’ll take care of her,” he murmured. “Lady B will have to go through me to get her.”

  Adric kept his expression blank. “Oh?”

  “Don’t worry—Jani doesn’t know for sure. She just suspects. She is a Gifted strategist, after all.”

  Fuck. “She can’t know. No one can. I want your word on that.”

  “I won’t lie to her.”

  “I’m not asking you to. Just keep your mouth shut.”

  Fane inclined his shiny blond head. “Then you have my word.”

  Adric took a gulp of beer. “Thank you. And not just for keeping your mouth shut, but for being the mate she needs.”

  From the other end of the table, Marjani regarded them with narrowed eyes. Fane winked at her.

  “I’m the one who’s thankful,” he murmured, and then asked Horace to pass the hot sauce.

  Adric blinked. The thick stew was already spicy enough to burn a hole in a man’s stomach.

  An evil grin split Horace’s broad face. “You sure?”