CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

 

MY FIRST INSTINCT was to fight, not the way that Clay had taught me to in Sweden but with the sunbird. The skin over my whole body heated instantly, but the person wrapped around me didn’t relinquish their hold. I struggled against my attacker even as I tried to comprehend exactly what was happening.

Besides me, and whoever was holding me, there were seven other people in the hotel room. I stopped fighting my captor for a moment to assess the situation. In one corner of the room, a young version of Abraham—with the same dark skin tones and short, curled hair—held Clay tightly against him. With a closer look, I recognized him as the Rain operative who’d been hunting with Ethan the day I’d almost been caught in the forest in Tallahassee.

One of the man’s well-muscled arms wrapped around Clay’s throat, and in his other hand, he held a gun pressed firmly against Clay’s temple. Defiance and anger flashed in Clay’s eyes as his focus shifted between my captor and me.

Louise and Abraham stood to one side, with matching, twisted smiles lighting up their features. Right in front of me, Troy had Mackenzie secured in his arms, one arm wrapped around her chest, his other forearm twisting her head into an awkward position as he pinned her back tightly to his chest. He carried her across the room in that position to join Louise and Abraham in their celebration.

The only one who appeared to be missing was Ethan. Even as the thought occurred to me, I saw the numbers 407 printed in my handwriting on the hand clamped around my mouth. My heart sank as it became clear he was the one who had captured me as I’d entered the room. It could only mean one thing.

Ethan was no longer on our side.

If he ever really had been.

The repeated doubts over Ethan's allegiance played in my mind in an encore performance.

I knew I couldn’t trust him. He’d accepted everything far too easily. I wondered if he was in on it the whole time, and it had been one big rouse to get Clay back or to get to me.

Once a Rain operative, always a Rain operative.

My eyes lifted to Clay; proof that being Rain and being tolerant were not mutually exclusive concepts. It was simply rare for them to coexist.

Feeling the weight of Ethan’s deception, my mind ran over the text that he’d sent me. He had to know I wouldn’t leave the hotel without Clay and that I’d return to the hotel room—it was what we’d discussed as a backup plan should anything go wrong. Did he tell his father every part of our plan? Had I signed a death warrant for the fae and myself by trusting him?

I tried to see any other logic in the situation, any other possible conclusion I could draw, but I couldn’t. He’d obviously double-crossed us. Why he’d gone to such an effort to help Clay and me out of the country a few months earlier, I didn’t know, but I could only assume that either it had been part of the rouse or the news about his heritage had caused him to reconsider his alliances. It could also be that he thought we lied to him about it and wanted some twisted form of revenge.

“I should have known you would be part of this,” Troy said as he glared at me. “You’ve caused my family nothing but trouble since the first moment my son laid eyes on you.”

“Eth told them everything,” Clay spat, his eyes flashing with a murderous intent. “He told them about Aiden and Fiona.”

At first, my heart pounded as I worried about our friends—about Clay’s mother—who would walk unknowingly into a trap because of the message I’d sent. My mind struggled to comprehend that Ethan had helped us for so many months—he’d kept the secret of my survival quiet and ferried us out of the country—only to give us up at such a crucial juncture.

Something Clay had said, or more something he hadn’t said, registered with me.

Why did he only mention Fiona and Aiden?

There were supposed to be five fae coming to meet us, not two. He knew that as well as I did. It was clear that his words had been deliberate; he was trying to convey a specific message to me through them. I narrowed my eyes at him, wanting him to communicate more but knowing he couldn’t in our current predicament.

From right behind my ear, the quietest whisper came. It was barely a breeze, but it was enough to carry the sound of two words, “Play along.”

Guilt swelled inside me that I had been so willing to doubt Ethan—so ready to assume that he had betrayed our secret. Even if he hadn’t earned my trust, Clay had. Clay deserved for me to have put more faith in Ethan than I had.

As that certainty grew, I was willing to believe that Ethan’s betrayal wasn’t real, that it was simply a ploy to let the other four think they had the numbers and the upper hand. I did as he asked and played along. I only wished I had some way of letting Mackenzie know too, so that her mind would be at ease. She would find out soon enough when the others showed up to help us—I hoped.

Twisting my head sharply to the side, I forced his hand to leave my mouth. “How could you do this to us?” I cried as I struggled against his arms, putting on a show but ensuring I remained as calm as I could so that my skin would stay somewhat cool. I didn’t want to burn him accidentally. “We trusted you.”

Ethan laughed. “You didn’t honestly think I would turn my back on my family or my heritage, did you?” I could hear the double meaning in his words. His arms dropped away from me. “Ouch, you bitch! You burned me!”

For a second I worried that I had inadvertently hurt him, but I didn’t see how that was possible when the heat had left me—at least as much of it as I could control. A second later, I understood it was part of the act and almost certainly part of his plan.

“A cold shower ought to cool you off,” he growled, clutching at the back of my neck in a way that no doubt appeared rough, but didn’t actually hurt. At least not unbearably. He shoved me in the direction of the bathroom.

“If you hurt her, I’ll kill you!” Clay shouted, fighting against his captor's hold. Curling his mouth into a scowl, the younger version of Abraham forced the gun barrel harder against Clay's temple to still his fight.

Once Ethan had separated us from the others, he gave me an apologetic smile. “Sorry about this,” he murmured.

“About what?” I asked in a matching hush, desperate for specifics.

The next instant, I was in the shower under a cold stream of water. I cried out in shock as the water raced down my spine.

“Sorry, but it would look suspicious if you weren’t wet when we went back out there,” he whispered before shouting. “That’ll teach you for burning me, freak!”

I flinched at the name, and his eyes flashed with sorrow.

Anything but that. I forced myself to ignore the sting. Ethan didn’t know the history of that word. Didn’t know how it made me relive the worst times of my life.

“What happened?” I whispered, as I ignored the feeling of the water rushing over my body. It was actually getting a little warmer now—indicating he’d at least considered my comfort when he’d devised his current plan.

“After Clay collapsed like he did, they were instantly suspicious. They’d seen that sort of reaction often enough, particularly in fae prisoners. When they started questioning him, they noticed his eyes were different, so they thought he was a doppelganger and a spy. Ben—that’s Abe’s son—and Lou wanted to execute him on the spot, but Dad convinced them not to. I think Dad knew it was really him.” He smashed his palm against the tiles on the shower, and I heard a cry of outrage from Clay. “Maybe that will stop you from trying that again!” Ethan shouted.

“Why do they think you’re on their side though?”

“When I saw there was no way we could leave with Clay, I confessed. I told them that when Clay contacted me I figured he was under the influence of something and promised to help him only so that I could get him back here. When I mentioned Fiona, both Dad and Abe seemed interested. I think she’s the reason they went after Mackenzie.”

“I agree. The way they dumped her in the basement was thoughtless. They haven’t tortured her for information, hurt her, or done anything more than just imprison her. It’s almost like she’s bait.”

“When the others get here, I’ll convince everyone that it’s safest to allow you to get the door. Aiden and Fiona will have to come in, but we’ll have to find some way to warn the others to stay hidden. We can’t fight here in the hotel room, they’re very big on keeping up appearances, and we’ll have security on our ass in an instant if we try. Even if we somehow manage to get away, Abe has a radio. He'll be able to have every security guard and operative in the building on us before we could even reach the elevator. The Assessors in particular would be interested in getting their hands on you, and we can’t let that happen.”

Even though I’d been sure of it since he’d whispered for me to play along, his words made me want to smile. My heart was practically ready to float away with relief. He was absolutely on our side and would do what he could to get everyone out safe.

“Our best chance is to let them think they’ve won, then they’ll take us to the treatment room on level six. It’s on the side you’ve already cleared, and I don’t think they’ve felt any reason to check on the protections to make sure they’re secure because there’s someone who does that every night anyway. If we can get them in there, we can secure them and give us a fighting chance of getting out.”

“So if the other fae follow our group . . .”

He nodded. “As long as we’re in and out before they do the security rounds at six-thirty, we should be okay.”

“That’s if we’re not all killed in the process.”

“Obviously,” he said with an eye roll. “Come on, we’d better get back out there or it’s going to raise suspicions. And Evie, I’m sorry about this too.”

I was too afraid to ask.

Rightly so, it turned out. An instant later, his hands crashed against the small of my back, forcing me roughly through the door and into the opposite wall. I cried out in pain as the breath left my body in a harsh whoosh. Clay struggled against his captor’s hold on the other side of the room.

If nothing else, Ethan’s move assured the others of his loyalty to the Rain, making it appear real and complete. I only hoped Clay could keep it together enough to avoid giving anyone a reason to kill him—especially now that I knew he was already lucky to be alive.

Ethan’s hands reached for both of mine, and he pinned my wrists together near the base of my spine before binding them with rope.

“That is the fiberglass one, isn’t it?” Louise asked.

I assumed Ethan nodded—or more likely rolled his eyes—when she kept talking.

She directed her next words at me. “See we’ve learned something from my last few encounters with you. Heatproof rope. This time, you won’t get away so easily. I’m going to make sure of that, because Daddy's already promised to let me have some one-on-one time with you in the treatment room. And I can assure you that I’ll enjoy every single screaming, agonizing, terrifying second of it. I’m afraid that I can’t guarantee you’ll share the sentiment though. I just have to decide what to do to you first.”

“No!” Clay shouted with genuine fear echoing through his voice. It had stopped being a game or a ploy for him. “Please, Lou, you can’t.”

She ignored him and moved closer to me, whispering in my ear. “I know—first I’ll tear that pretty face of yours apart the way that you destroyed mine.” She traced her finger along my cheek, and I had to close my eyes and concentrate to avoid the sunbird taking control and hurting everyone in the room.

“That’s enough, Lou,” Ethan growled in warning.

Once Ethan had secured my hands, his fingers shifted from my arms to the scruff of my neck again. He guided me away from the wall, only to force me onto my knees. Before he shifted his hand away, he gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Even though I knew we should have the upper hand—even though Ethan was on our side—it went against my every instinct to simply fall to my knees and give up when threatened. Allowing Ethan to tie me up felt like a surrender and my mind struggled against being at anyone else's mercy.

With Louise’s words echoing in my head, it took everything I had to control the sunbird and keep her in check.

I shivered a little as the water soaking me cooled my body, and I understood Ethan might have had another reason for the shower. As long as my skin was wet, it would appear cooler than it actually was due to the evaporation. It was something we’d considered for entering the hotel, but had ruled it out because it would have been too hard to explain unless the weather was on our side and provided a downpour. There would be no need, or time, for explanations when we were racing away from the place though.

Twisting my hands together, I found I had plenty of room to maneuver them around. Getting out of the ropes should have been easy if I’d tried, but even though it went against my desire to flee, I didn’t want to risk breaking free of my bonds yet.

“How long until the other two get here?” Troy asked Ethan.

“That depends,” Ethan said. He knelt in front of me and grabbed my chin lifting my head to meet his eye. “Did you tell them where you were like a good little girl?”

Trying to allow my natural instincts to lead as much as I could, while still trying to rein in the sunbird, I tugged my head away from his hand.

“Go to hell!” I spat.

He raised his arm, the threat in the move evident, and even though I didn’t think it would fall, I didn’t want him to have to falter and give away our ploy. “Did you tell them?” he asked again slowly.

I dropped my chin to my chest. “They’re on their way,” I said quietly before lifting my head and twisting my face to appear pleading and desperate. It wasn’t a hard task in the circumstances. “Please, don’t hurt them. Please?”

“I’d be more concerned with my own hide if I were you,” Louise said. The way she was grinning was far too victorious. I was going to take a little too much enjoyment from watching that smile fall when Ethan revealed his true deception.

“I think this one should be the one to answer the door,” Ethan said, nudging my back with the toe of his shoe. “The fae will come in without a fight if she does. If anyone else answers the door, they'll be suspicious and might run before we can get to them. And I believe capturing their queen is of the utmost importance to you, after all, that’s why you stole her daughter isn’t it?”

“That’s a good point,” Abraham said. “Do you think you can control her when the time comes though?”

“We control her with her lover boy,” Ethan said before glaring at me. His cold stare was chilling, even if it was fake. “If she understands that Clay will be punished if she tries to escape, she’ll be compliant, won’t you?”

“He’s your family,” I said defiantly. “You won’t kill him.” The conversation was reminiscent of another one we’d had not too many months earlier, except that time Ethan truly had been on the other side.

“I might not be able to pull the trigger,” Ethan agreed.

“But I’d have no problems with it,” Ben finished for him.

Glancing his way, it was clear that he wasn’t lying. He would kill Clay, probably without a second thought. Everything about his stance echoed his words. Even his eyes were hardened slits as he watched my every move with hawk-like precision. His watchful gaze left me far less confident about our new little plan.

Even with the extra numbers, we would have to get everyone away from their Rain captors to be able to leave safely. Doubt over our ability to pull it off without someone being hurt—or worse, losing their life—filled me, leaving no room for hope.

A few, tense moments later, a knock on the door signaled that either our salvation or our doom was drawing near. Among my other wishes, I hoped that Aiden and Fiona would understand why I’d led them directly into a trap—even if it hadn’t been intentional. If we all got out of it alive that was.

“Lynnie?” A voice called through the door after a short knock.

“Get up,” Ethan whispered through his teeth, clutching at my shoulder.

Instinct claimed me at his tone, and I shook my shoulder roughly to force his hand off me. “I’ll go along with this for Clay,” I said. “But I don’t have to like it.”

Leaning slightly forward to balance, countering for my hands, which were still secured behind my back, I forced myself to stand.

“You’re going to have to open the door for me,” I growled.

Ethan walked beside me to the door and held me against him as he opened it, making it appear as if I was merely standing behind the door to invite in the guests.

“Aiden! Fiona!” I called loudly, while trying to shake my head to indicate to them that everything wasn’t okay. “It’s lovely to see the two of you.” I tried to put a little extra accentuation on the number of them, without making it too obvious for anyone else who might be listening.

Ethan glanced around to make sure that no one else in the room could see us and then, after putting his fingers on his lips to warn them not to react, spun me around to show my tied hands. I hoped that Aiden and Fiona would take the hint, and not think it was some sort of game. I spun around again and indicated into the hotel room to let them know we weren’t alone.

“Where is Clay?” Aiden asked, successfully infusing his voice with the right level of casual concern.

“He’s inside waiting for us. Why don’t you come in?”

Fiona tilted her head questioningly, but I tried to silently let her know we were in control—or at least partly in control.

“Mackenzie?” she mouthed.

“Inside,” I mouthed back.

Fiona whispered instructions to the other three fae in the corridor to go back to the ethereal plane, wait, watch, and follow us if we left the room. With them in place, she rested her hand on Aiden’s shoulder and guided him into the room.

Once they had passed into the short hall of the hotel room, Ethan closed the door behind us before shoving me into the room. Fiona and Aiden both played their parts perfectly even though they hadn’t been told what they were, exclaiming in surprise when they saw the scene in the room. Abraham reached roughly for Aiden, tackling him around the shoulders before twisting him into the same position in which Troy held Mackenzie.

Louise made a grab for Fiona, pressing her back against the wall. A quick glance at Fiona’s face showed me heartache that knew no depths. It was easy to understand: her own daughter had attacked her. It wouldn’t have surprised me if it was a deliberate move by Troy to inflict maximum suffering on Fiona.

Ethan twisted his hand around my arm, yanking me closer to the bed before tossing a length of rope at each of the other captors. “Those have all been soaked in St John’s Wart, they should hold against the fae magic, at least until we get them upstairs.”

Everyone set to work tying the hands of their respective prisoners, and while they were distracted, Ethan pressed something against my back before slipping it into my back pocket. It was too small and light to be a knife but seemed to be a similar shape and was definitely sharp.

After the Rain had secured all of the newcomers, I glanced around the room. I had no idea how they were going to parade us all through the corridor without someone noticing that we were tied up. Even as I had the thought, it occurred to me that moving captives around was probably a common enough occurrence in the hotel that they would have contingencies for it.

Almost to confirm my thoughts, Abraham lifted a small radio from his pocket. “Clear level four, have elevator two on standby, and employ the screens.”

Soon the Rain had lined us up in the little corridor in front of the bathroom door, waiting for the all clear to leave the hotel room. Ethan had jostled me to the back of the pack. Once everyone else was in line, he grabbed my bag and pulled out the keycard he’d given me—the one that accessed the sixth floor.

“Wait for the right moment,” he whispered, placing it into my hands.

“Yep,” I said as quietly as I could.

“Let’s go,” Abraham said when his radio squawked to life, with a subordinate confirming the completion of all requested tasks.

One by one, they led us out of the hotel room and into the corridor. The glass barriers were no longer crystal clear as they had been, but were instead a clouded gray, no doubt obscuring the view of our floor from the lobby. I hoped that whatever the Rain had done to clear the floor hadn’t removed the fae—although I had my suspicions that there would have been more of a fuss if any Rain had spotted the fae protectors.

When we neared the elevator, Ethan moved me closer to the glass rail. The moment he’d mentioned had arrived. I dropped the card right when he asked, “Sixth floor, right?”

Troy grunted in confirmation.

I knew the question was for the benefit of three other pairs of ears that might have been listening, and I hoped they knew enough about technology and humans to understand the access card I’d dropped was important.

Please let them find us in time, I thought as Ethan jostled me into the elevator.