“For fuck’s sake…” he groaned. “Guess we’re going back to the Nether. I’ll need all my bloody stones—and to call on every favor I still have in this godsforsaken realm.”
“The Nether?” I asked before realizing something else. “We?”
Cash was already moving around the tight space, but only in a way that permitted him to hold me close. Shelves lined the walls everywhere we turned, filled with things I hadn’t any hope of recognizing. “You didn’t honestly believe I’d leave you to figure this bloody mess out by yourself, did you, love? I vowed everything I am to you. That I’d be your sword and shield. Your Hand of Death. Yours to command. I didn’t vow those words lightly, and I’m a man of my word if nothing else.”
I couldn’t believe that even in this situation my heart was pounding like a lovesick adolescent. Some things never changed.
“I’ve always wondered this, but isn’t iron supposed to hurt Fae?” I asked. “It didn’t seem to do any damage at all to any of the ones I’ve fought so far.”
Cash scoffed and gave me a patronizing look. “Because the ones you’ve fought weren’t mere Fae folk. They’ve all been powerful in their own right. Iron doesn’t have a strong effect on powerful Fae like myself. Merely an annoyance, really.”
“That explains why she wasn’t bothered by the dagger I brought with me,” I grumbled. “So, what does work on them?”
“Wit, my dove. And really, anything you can do. It’s smart not to showcase everything. Keep your powers close to your chest. It’s about the only thing that devil woman and I agree on. Notall of your powers will work against the Fae you encounter here, especially not a Royal Siren like Lyra.”
“Lyra?”
His sigh wasn’t for me. It was for the whole situation we were in. “One. The Mistress of Chaos. Second-most powerful Original to reign,” he said, grabbing items. “But along that note, your fangs and magic are more weapon than a dagger against the Fae in this realm. Aside from that bloody sword that brute you let slobber all over you carries everywhere he goes. That sword isn’t a mere weapon.”
“Oh?”
“It’s enchanted,” he mused absently. He tucked me in close like he was afraid I’d scurry away the first chance I got. “Has he never said as much?”
Blood Slayer was enchanted? To do what, exactly? I’d thought his entire story was one big joke, but was his swordactuallyspecial?
Cash’s rumbling laugh annoyed me. “Well, I doubt even that brute truly knows what a weapon like that can do. Knowing him, he amounts all his success to mere skill alone. But yes, it’s a rather formidable weapon and could kill a Fae as powerful as the ones skulking around this realm.”
The Dark Fae peered down at Kate, humming. “Now, what to do with the human…”
“We’re not leaving her here or anywhere I’m not,” I quickly interjected, and the pretty jerk actually sighed like he’d been thinking about it. I plowed ahead, leaving it as a statement and not open for argument. “Will she stay unconscious?”
How am I supposed to explain all of this and figure out a way to get her out of it?
Magic swirled around us as Cash dug out another stone and rubbed it between his fingers. “Fear not, darling. Your friend will wake shortly. Without that obnoxious demon’s power beingreenforced, it’s only a matter of time. But we do need to get to the Nether and figure out our next move. She’ll track us too easily here.”
But where was here?
Cash continued to stuff random items into a bag that was too tiny for the number of things he’d put into it. If not for so many thoughts swirling around in my head, I might’ve found a moment to ask about it. But I was more concerned with the ancient as fuck Fae he called Mistress Chaos to worry about a mysterious Mary Poppin’s baggy he’d carried around the room like it was his personal purse for all things weird and unrecognizable.
I hesitated when I thought about all the people at risk if we ran and hid. She’d go after Grams. Sloan. Jo. Every Hunter under our protection.
…Phillip.
Against a Royal Siren, they didn’t stand a chance. Definitely not one titled as one of the Originals. I’d learned enough about them through Jo to know that wasn’t a situation I wanted to fuck around with for them to find out.
“She’s not an enemy we want. I think we should do what she’s asked, at least until we figure out a better move to make. Play amenable until we’re ready to strike. I don’t think her pheromones or whatever work on me, so, as long as I’m useful, she’ll leave everyone else alone,” I finally surmised with a nod. “It sounded like she planned to train me. Said my mind defenses weren’t where they needed to be.”
Cash’s mouth dropped open, aghast, then his hand was on his hip in that Fae Karen way I’d come to both love and hate. “Are you absolutely out of your head, V?! Why would you even suggest working with that…thatthing.”
As eloquent as ever.
“She’ll hurt everyone if I don’t, and that training can backfire in the end. I’d be more of a threat with whatever she can teach me. Plus, if they are the ones who enslaved her to the Organization—and the ones who destroyed the Royal Sirens—then they could become my enemy just as easily, right? What’s to say they don’t come after me at some stage because of what I am? If they’re working with the Organization, it’s only a matter of time until they find out. Assuming they haven’t already,” I argued baselessly.
But apparently not as baselessly as I first believed because Cash went quiet, then he tapped his mouth with a finger. “You make some fine points. It’s better to assume you can’t protect your mind from any powerful Fae you meet, especially in this realm. They rarely reveal their abilities, and while most can’t read your thoughts without substantial help or talent—Mistress Chaos is one of the lucky few—it’s better to always assume the worst. And they are the ones who hunted me for centuries and made it impossible to stay inside this realm…”
Centuries?
“The Nether Kingdom and their royalty aren’t known for their compassion. Quite the opposite. I doubt their demise would lead to more than a celebration across the realm. If they were truly the ones responsible for sending Chaos Fae to humans, I can’t imagine what else they’ve done under the guise of protecting the realm.”
