“Did you follow me?” I question.
He shrugs. “I was in the area and saw you walk past. Then I followed you. You can thank me later.”
“I could have handled it myself,” I say and let out a sigh. “But thank you for helping, it did make the situation less messy for me.”
The Unseelie woman slides two glasses in front of us and looks me dead in the eye. “Why are you here? Everyone knows you are both part of the academy test, and no one likes that fae blood of any kind is in the academy test. They don’t want fae blood near the throne.”
“Then they are shit out of luck,” I comment, hearing someone groan in pain in the room. “I want to speak to the Unseelie rebels. Tonight.”
Her eyes widen, and she steps back. “I know nothing.”
“That’s a lie, and we both know it,” I counter, taking another long sip. Her eyes flicker to Ryker.
Ryker leans back, crossing his arms. “I’m not leaving without her, and she won’t leave without your truth. Just tell her, she clearly means you no harm.”
“I want to help,” I clarify. “I am not what I appear to be, and I can’t watch the Unseelie fae be so cruelly treated for much longer.”
“I cannot help you,” she gently tells me, leaning closer. “But they are watching you. Just you, Daesyn Riverlite. Your name is whispered a lot in here by those I suspect are involved with the Unseelie rebels.”
I finish my drink and lower my magic, just enough for her to sense it. “Thank you.”
“You’re Unseelie fae,” she breathes out, something strange burning in her eyes. She reaches forward and grips my hands tightly. “An Unseelie fae is close to the throne for the first time in thousands of years. You must win the academy and set us all free. You must.”
I see it now. Hope. She is hoping I can win.
“We need to leave, Dae,” Ryker gently tells me, taking a long gulp of his drink and placing the empty glass down.
“Go out the back, this way,” the woman tells me, pointing at the back door and letting my hands go.
“What’s your name?”
“I have no name, like so many of the Unseelie born here. Our owners refused to let our mothers or fathers name us,” she softly replies. “But I like Regina.”
“Then that is your name,” I suggest, making my way to the door. “Are you going to be alright?”
She picks up a bottle off the side and takes a long drink. “Yes, just go. We will meet again, the Otherworld is waiting.”
“Be safe,” I tell her, turning around and running to the door, which Ryker is holding open. Mossy jumps on my shoulder, and I look back as Regina whacks herself on the side of her head with the bottle, her body crumbling to the floor. Smart girl. They can’t question someone who tried to fight.
Ryker takes my hand and pulls me out into the alleyway behind the tavern, and I tug up my cloak hood. We get to the end of the alleyway, seeing more than forty reapers marching to the tavern with scythes in their hands, the royal crest in gold on their cloaks.
“The royal army have been called,” Ryker mutters, and he wraps his arms around me. “Hold on.”
Flames burst around us, and I rest my head on his shoulder as he portals us away. We come out on top of a hill, overlooking the city but within the walls. The magic of the wall hums nearby, and I glance out over the city, still staying close to Ryker.
“You’re mad at me,” I figure. Mossy jumps off my shoulder and climbs up a tree, sitting at the top. He has always liked the pretty views.
Ryker groans and presses his lips onto my forehead. “You don’t have to do everything alone, Dae.”
“I didn’t expect to get in a bar fight tonight,” I counter. “If I did, I might have asked you to come with me.”
“There lies the problem,” he replies. “You wouldn’t have even if you were walking into a war. Which, if you had found an Unseelie rebel, you would have done.”
“It’s as much their war as it is mine,” I reply. “It breaks me to see the Unseelie here. They are my people, my family, my blood. And they are close to extinction if this world keeps killing them!”
“I get it,” he soothes. “I’m not saying you are wrong to want to help. I’m saying I’m in this with you.”
“Why the hell would you do that for me?” I question, looking up at him. He cups my cheek, and I freeze.
“Why do you think?” he questions, and he kisses me. Ryker’s lips are like a branding iron, owning and taking every little bit of me he can with each punishing kiss. My body reacts immediately, coming alive with his touch, and I kiss him back with just as much passion as he kisses me with. He picks me and spins us around, pressing my back into the tree and arching his pelvis into mine. I gasp when I feel his hard cock straining against his trousers, and my nipples rub against his chest with every movement. He suddenly lets me go, stepping back, his eyes burning red with power.
“My hellhound wants to claim you, Dae,” he warns, holding a hand up and looking physically pained to stand back. I breathlessly stare at him, a little bit of my mind wondering what it would be like to be claimed by a hellhound. I imagine he is hot as fuck in bed. “And you aren’t ready for me.”
Suddenly more than a bit of guilt sinks into my chest. I’ve kissed his two best friends, men he sees as brothers, and I’m falling for all of them. Including a demon overlord who is dangerous to fall for but impossible to forget. I’m sowing chaos and destruction into their friendship, and I don’t want to ruin that. They needed each other, each for different reasons, but it’s clear they were all lost before finding their friendship.
And Seth? He would kill them for touching me. His demon would never take it well.
“Ry...,” I drift off, not knowing what to say.
“I know, that was a shitty friend move,” he laughs out. “But I don’t regret it, and I will never forget it.”
“Neither will I,” I admit, biting down on my lip. Ryker tracks the movement, desire flickering over his eyes before he turns away. He sits down on the hill and pats the space next to him. I sit down and rest my head on his shoulder.
We don’t have to say anything, as we both know this is complicated, and the fact of the matter is someone is going to be hurt in the end.
And I know it’s not just going to be me.
Chapter 33
