Ch 1
Cedric waited inside the cabin with Lucian and Keelin and wondered—again—how everyone had been aware of Lucian’s secret hidey-hole except for him.
He was the alpha. There should be no secrets between him and the shifters he was responsible for. What if something had happened and he’d needed to find Lucian? Or the pup had gotten hurt while he was out here and the others were gone and Cedric didn’t know where to find him?
How the fook was he supposed to protect his family if they hid things from him?
A low growl emanated in the center of his chest and he released the tension on a long exhale. Lucian had always been a crabbit beast, fighting Cedric’s dominance over him every time he turned around. At least until the young one had mated Keelin. The lass was not only The Key and the most important element to keeping the soul suckers locked away in their own dimension, but she was also the one responsible for single-handedly taming the demons inside of Lucian.
And that made Cedric’s job a hell of a lot easier.
A low growl rumbled through the silent room, one not of his making this time, and Cedric realized he was smiling gratefully at the lass who currently filled his thoughts.
She smiled in return before running a soothing hand over her irate mate’s back, soothing his possessive grumblings.
The storm raging in Lucian’s blue-gray eyes tempered down to a minor squall at her touch, and he grabbed her hand and kissed the back of her knuckles before shooting Cedric an apologetic glance for threatening him.
Cedric narrowed his eyes in warning, but to be honest, he didn’t take offense. Much. Wolves were extremely territorial, especially over their mates. And Lucian, a wolf who ran a wee bit hotter than the others, took this to an extreme.
The door opened and a male nearly as tall as Cedric with long, wavy brown hair and a short beard ducked through the opening. His bright blue eyes quickly cased the place before he reached back and took the hand of a female to assist her inside. She stumbled over the doorstep, but he was ready, catching her easily and grinning when a heated blush rose up her neck to color her cheeks. Gently, he brushed her golden brown locks from her face and hugged her against his side as he pulled them out of the way so the others behind her could come in.
Marc entered in much the same way Brock had, his dark eyes landing on Cedric and waiting for his nod before he stepped fully inside. Turning, he gave a smile of encouragement to his Bronaugh as she followed him into the small cabin. The lass tucked a strand of wheat-blond hair behind her ear with her free hand. The other held tight to her mate’s arm. Cedric was relieved to see her eyes flashed no colors, but were a warm brown, much like her mate’s.
Marc closed the door behind them and they took a seat on the bed, the only piece of furniture in the place other than a small table and chairs in the kitchen area and a wood stove near the door.
The only ones missing were Duncan and Ryanne.
Although summer was fast approaching and the sun was rising through the trees, Cedric had closed the curtains over the single window when he, Lucian, and Keelin had gotten there, and with the door closed it took his eyes a partial second to adjust to the dim light. When they did, he walked to the entry of the kitchen, then turned to face the somber group.
“Thank ye all for meeting me here. I did no’ want tae take a chance o’ the prince overhearing any o’ this.”
There were a few curious looks, but no one raised any questions. Cedric looked at each of the lasses in turn. They were all Fae: one sweet and pure, one besieged by the sinister magic of the an olc, and one a little of both. He allowed his gaze to wander back to Bronaugh. “Can I trust all o’ ye?” Although the question was meant for all of them, he directed it toward her in particular. He held nothing against her for her heritage, but there was something happening with the lass, and his gut told him it wasn’t only the natural progression of her dark nature she was battling.
“You can trust me,” she told him. “I’m not thrilled with what has happened with my people. But I am loyal to Marc above all else. I would never do anything that would put him in harm’s way.”
Something about her words struck Cedric as a wee bit…off, but for now, he only needed her reassurance she would not go off the deep end anytime soon. He gave her a nod and turned to the others. Heather was the only one who was of the na maithe tribe. And although she was raised on the other side of the world with humans, as a “daughter” of the Faerie prince, she was the next biggest risk. “What aboot ye, Heather? Tell me now if ye feel any sort o’ protective feelings for yer prince. None o’ us will blame ye for them, but I dinna want ye here if ye do, for yer own protection.”
Brock frowned and searched his mate’s expression as though the idea had never occurred to him.
But she only gave Cedric a quick shake of her head. “He’s only my prince as far as he needs to be to keep me off of his radar. After the little game he played with our lives—solely for his own amusement no matter what he may say—I believe he’s more crazy than anything. I am one hundred percent behind you. It’s time he was removed from the position of protector of our people. A position he never should have had to begin with.”
Cedric didn’t miss the meaningful glance she sent to the other females. “The biggest thing I’ve learned since meeting all of you is that we are all Fae. It doesn’t matter what tribe or where or how we were raised. Soul suckers aside, there’s no reason for any animosity between us, and I think it’s Prince Nada who’s been feeding that opinion for a long time.” She looked at the others again. “Am I wrong?”
“No,” Keelin told her. “I don’t think you are.” She smiled at Heather, then at Bronaugh, before turning her attention back to Cedric. “What do you need to tell us? I can guarantee you it won’t leave this room.”
Satisfied with their answers, he apologized to their males. “I’m sorry I had tae go there, and did no’ warn ye ahead o’ time, but I needed tae be sure yer lasses spoke the truth.”
“It’s all right,” Marc said. “What’s going on? Why did ye need tae bring us way out here?”
Cedric linked his hands behind his back and grinned. “I have a bit o’ good news for ye. And again, allow me tae apologize for no’ being honest with ye until now. But I heard from Duncan. He is alive and well, and so is Ryanne.”
That last was nearly drowned out by the whoops and hollers and howls of the pack. Marc stood from the bed, pulling Bronaugh with him, and swung her around as he hugged her close. Brock bent forward with his hands on his knees as Heather pounded him on the back with enthusiasm. When he straightened, they both grinned at each other until their faces looked about to crack.
His heart full at their reactions, Cedric turned to Lucian and Keelin. The lass had a knowing smile on her face, and he knew she was not surprised at all. For he’d recently found out Ryanne and Keelin had long been friends, and this is why Ryanne had been sneaking around in the woods behind her house when Duncan first saw her.
However, as far as Prince Nada was concerned, no one knew of Duncan and Ryanne’s whereabouts or even if they still lived. Upon Cedric’s orders, every wolf for miles around had been brought in to help find them. Search parties had been patrolling for weeks, combing every inch of the mountains within a hundred mile radius. It was a waste of resources, but necessary if they wanted to convince the Fae prince that he and his pack were oblivious to his secrets.
And to keep up with the charade, all contact between Duncan and the pack had been cut off so there wasn’t any chance of their communication being intercepted.
“When did ye hear from him?” Lucian asked.
“Aboot a week ago.” Turning to Lucian, he didn’t expect the amount of enthusiasm the others were showing. Lucian and Duncan had always been at odds, with the older wolf being the bane of Lucian’s existence, having a habit of teasing the younger wolf until he was right ready to rip him limb from limb.
Of course, it was for Lucian’s own good. It had taught him to control his beast enough that it was relatively safe to have him around.
So, it was a shock to the alpha to find tears in the lad’s stormy gray eyes. “Tis okay, Lucian. Truly. Duncan is alive and well and safe. As is Ryanne.”
Lucian crossed his muscular arms over his wide chest. “Why are ye only telling us this now? It’s been months, Cedric. Months that ye let us go on fearin’ the worst.”
“Lucian…” Keelin rubbed his back again. And aye, Cedric could see the muscles shifting beneath the thin cotton of his T-shirt from where he stood.
“Do NO’ try tae stand up for him, Keelin,” Lucian growled at her.
Cedric held up his hand, stopping whatever she’d been about to say. “Dinna say it, Keelin. Lucian is right. I should no’ have lied tae him. Should no’ have lied tae all of ye,” he said to the group at large. “But I did no’ have a choice.”
“Ye had a choice,” Lucian gritted out.
“No’ if I did no’ want the Faerie prince pullin’ the truth out o’ yer heads like he did tae Duncan. Aye.” He nodded at the shocked expressions surrounding him. “That’s what he did. Pulled Ryanne’s existence right from his head without a word spoken between them. I saw it with me own eyes.”
The lasses exchanged a few looks between them, but Cedric noticed they didn’t share in the surprise of their mates.
“Why didn’t you tell us he could do that?” Brock asked Heather.
She shrugged. “I’d heard rumors, but I wasn’t positive they were true. You know how things get built up.”
“It’s no’ the lass’s fault,” Cedric told them. “How are they tae ken what the daft prince is going tae do?”
“So, where is Duncan? And Ryanne?” Marc asked.
Cedric weighed the pros and cons of telling them. When he and Brock had first brought them home, the two of them had stayed right here in this very cabin until Cedric could set up a new place away from the pack where they’d be safe, unbeknownst to the rest of the pack for their own safety. When he had a place, he’d spirited them away in the dead of the night. It was not the pack’s way to keep secrets from each other, but it was the only way he knew to keep them all out of the prince’s hands.
Prince Nada didn’t know Cedric and Brock had saved Ryanne. And he also wasn’t aware that Ryanne had then gone back to the caves and saved Duncan. As far as Cedric could tell from the conversations they’d had, the prince thought his daughter was dead and Duncan had either joined her or was in no state of mind to free himself from the land of his nightmares.
The Faerie prince was a wily one, and Cedric would not take any chances with Duncan’s life. Or Ryanne’s. He didn’t want to give the prince any reason to suspect they weren’t telling him the truth when the pack said they didn’t know where they were. He didn’t want him pulling anything else from anyone’s head. He needed the pack and the surrounding wolves to believe Duncan and his Fae lass were gone, and to react accordingly, both physically and emotionally.
As he’d predicted, the prince had come around often at first, playing his games, asking a lot of questions about Duncan’s whereabouts, and if any of them had seen Ryanne or Thomas’s wolves, who’d also gone missing.
Once or twice, the prince had focused a little too hard on Cedric’s responses, and he’d felt his royal pain in the arse probing around in his head like a worm. However, Cedric wasn’t the alpha for no reason, and he’d been prepared. The prince could poke around in there all he wanted, he would find nothing but the latest binge-worthy series on Netflix or an honest concern for his missing wolf and his mate, because even though he’d arranged their disappearance, even he didn’t know where they were or what was happening with them.
He and the others did their part, unknowingly as it was, and exuded genuine fear and grief. And after a few weeks, the prince’s visits tapered off. He was no longer interested in what the rest of the pack was doing, and didn’t waste his time questioning Cedric on whether or not any progress had been made in their search.
However, Cedric was no fool. He was quite sure the prince still watched the wolf’s activities. And to that effect, he kept up the daily and nightly patrols and check-ins. And that seemed to keep him satisfied.
But, aye. After waiting one more week to be certain, it was time to fill in the others. “Duncan and Ryanne are in a safe house, borrowed from one o’ the other packs. They’re laying low for now.”
“What pack?” Brock asked.
“Oregon,” Cedric told them. “I can no’ tell ye any more than that. Because tae be honest, I dinna even ken exactly where they are. Only Mack, the alpha in those parts, can tell ye that. And he’s been sworn tae secrecy.” He looked at each face in turn. “‘Twas the only way tae keep him safe, ye ken that?”
“Aye,” Marc answered. “I do. And so does everyone else, even if they will no’ admit tae it.” Looking straight at Lucian, he lifted both eyebrows.
“I ken,” Lucian growled. “Even if I do no’ agree.”
His temper rose, white-hot and unexpected, and Cedric whirled on him. “What else would ye have had me do,” he bit out. “‘Twas the only way I could think o’ tae keep the prince from sniffing around here.”
“Maybe no’ lying tae us would have been a good start,” Lucian growled.
“Let it go, Lucian. This isn't getting us anywhere,” Bronaugh said.
Lucian’s upper lip lifted off as he flashed his canines at her. He took a step toward her, but Keelin pulled him back.
With a roll of her eyes, Bronaugh looked at Cedric. “So, what do we do from here?”
Linking his hands behind his back, Cedric paced back and forth across the floor, rolling his shoulders and stretching his neck as he got his temper under control. He was letting Lucian get to him when he needed to keep a cool head. “The prince came tae me with an idea before all o’ this happened, and the more I think on it, the more I’m starting tae agree with him.” He stopped pacing and faced the others. “We need tae keep Duana under control, especially with what we all ken now aboot her and the prince.”
“What idea is that?” Brock asked. Though his words were calm, Cedric didn’t miss the way he tightened his grip on Heather. And he didn’t blame the lad. Anything to do with the Faerie prince made him nervous.
Cedric took a deep breath. “He wants me tae mate Duana.”
“Are ye mad, Cedric?”
“Ye can no’!”
“Are you crazy?”
Bronaugh’s eyes flashed with bright pinks and greens and yellows.
“Haud yer wheesht!” Cedric cut them off. “Just calm the fook down. I'm no’ going tae do it for real. I’m only going tae tell the prince I am.” He waited until he had everyone’s attention again. “I’ve given it lots o’ thought. Tis the only way tae find out what she’s up tae. Because we all know it canna be anything good.” He held up a finger for each point. “One. We need tae find out why she was snooping around Keelin's house. Two…”
“That's easy,” Lucian said. “We ken now she’s the prince’s daughter. But, unlike Ryanne, she’s as daft as he is. And now that we ken what his true plan is—tae release the Dark Fae and kill off the rest o’ us—it’s easy tae see. She wanted tae get rid of Keelin so she couldn’t tighten the lock on the portal, because it’s the same thing she’s been blatherin’ on aboot.”
Keelin, who had been quiet up till now, stepped forward. “I don't think that's it. Or, at least, not all of it. And I don't like this idea Cedric. You need to stay away from her. Duana is more dangerous than you know.”
“Och, no.” He smiled to soften his abrupt dismissal of her concern. “I appreciate the concern, lass. But it's the only way tae get tae her.” His chest swelled when he thought about the intriguing musk that hovered around the princess whenever she was around him. “She’s sweet on me, and I'm no’ saying that tae be boastful. I can tell by the colors in her eyes whenever she's near me.” He would’ve mentioned the scent that came from the lass also, but didn’t want to discuss such sensitive matters in front of the females.
“Are ye sure it's no’ because she's angry?” Marc raised one eyebrow. “Because I get that a lot.” He grinned as Bronaugh shoved him.
Cedric had to admit he had a point. “Aye, sometimes she is,” he conceded. “But no’ all the time. The other times, ye see, I ken it's because she's attracted tae me.” He tapped the side of his nose discretely.
The wolves nodded in understanding.
“Do you really think you have a chance to get close to her without her getting suspicious?” Bronaugh asked.
“I think I do,” he said in all seriousness, as visions of Duana’s soft curves bared to his hungry gaze swam through his head. “Aye, I think I do.”
