Chapter 19

Beating Zenon over the head with examples of goodness wasn’t going to change his mind about the state of the world. He was correct in that there was a lot of evil out there. The news stories sensationalized them all the time, so it was right there and in everyone’s faces. But that wasn’t all there was by a long shot. Eventually, when he’d had some time to heal from his past, he’d see it, too.

With a goofy grin, she watched her mate play with the same eagle they’d seen the day before. It flew in an erratic pattern, at times trying to get away as Zenon gave chase, and at others, rushing the phoenix for all it was worth.

Streaks of pink and purple painted the evening sky. Although tomorrow promised to be another beautiful day, she couldn’t help being a little sad that they’d be leaving the campground. Hazel had kept her promise and had some shoes on the doorstep waiting for Zenon when they’d come out earlier in the day. He’d tried them on and they’d fit perfectly. She grinned as she remembered his faltering steps and concentrated frown as he tried to walk without the full use of his toes for balance.

“So majestic,” Hazel said from right next to her.

Nickie gasped, and her hand fluttered to her chest. “Yes, he is. We saw him when we arrived yesterday. I’d never been so close to an eagle before.”

“I meant your mate, child,” Hazel said.

“You can see him up there? We thought he was invisible when he was flying.”

Hazel nodded sadly. “Once upon a time, that may have been true. But just as spell casters have been able to hide mythical beasts from humans, they also have the ability to spot them if they know enough to look.”

Her heart thudded. This couldn’t be good. “But we made it all the way over here without being seen.”

“You were lucky. My best guess is that the spell casters had been weak, or the spells hadn’t had enough reinforcement. I can only assume that your mate flew at breakneck speeds to get you to safety. They could not focus enough energy in his exact location to spot him.”

She was right in that Zenon had flown hard and fast. What he was doing now was playing around. He wasn’t trying to get away from anything or anyone except the eagle.

Her breath caught in her throat. “You have to get out of the sky,” she sent out to Zenon, panic making her inner voice rise.

“Dark magic has not tainted the air here,” he said even as he changed course and returned to the cabin. He landed a few feet away, retaining his phoenix form.

The eagle came in more slowly, approaching them as though it had done so for all it’s life. It circled once then landed on the peak of their cottage, his too intelligent eyes catching everything.

“Come Clive, we’ll let your friend find some clothes. Then they can join us at the main house,” Hazel said, turning her back on them as she made her way down the beach. The eagle left its perch, following the witch.

The moment they were out of sight, Zenon shifted and took her into his arms. “Don’t worry, sweet angel. The witch was right. The area is heavily warded and protected. The enemy would not have seen me up there.”

“But they could. Once we leave here. We can’t take that chance. I want to go to the next location, but I won’t risk you to do it. Maybe we should just stay here.” It sounded silly even to her own ears.

Zenon pulled back a little, that slow grin that made her heart melt—and maybe her panties, too—brightening his face. “You want to stay in this little cabin forever?”

She shrugged and shook her head. Not really, but it would be better than him being in danger. “The idea has some merit. I’ve had quite a nice time here so far.”

His body stiffened, and she resisted the urge to wiggle against him to see how much harder she could make him. “I’m certain that wherever we decide to make our home, we will have many more nice times. We cannot hide forever. Besides, if we are here, then who will protect Jasmine?”

Nickie snorted. “You know, she’d have your balls in a sling if she heard you talk like that. Jasmine takes care of herself. Always. Except when I do, but that’s it. And even then, she won’t admit it.”

His face contorted as her words sank in. “Sounds painful.”

She giggled. “Not literally, of course, but she wouldn’t be impressed. So, I guess that means we go see Hazel?”

Zenon sighed. “I suppose we should. I would not wish for her to come looking for us should we get distracted inside the cabin.”

Rather than face temptation, she waited outside while Zenon got dressed. He came out wearing the same sweats and T-shirt, and the shoes Hazel had provided. Slung over his shoulders was her backpack. Already, his gait was more natural. Unless she looked for it, she wouldn’t notice the way he rolled his feet, seeking balance.

“Shall we?” he asked, taking her hand.

She fell into step next to him, interlacing her fingers with his. “I guess we should.”

“Do not worry, my Nickie. I can feel it roiling inside you. We are mated. The effects of the spells will not be the same. The doubts and fears they used against us are useless to them now. You will see.”

“But what if they manage to find us?” They couldn’t be killed, but they could be captured—tortured like he had been for so long.

Mindless rage exploded from him, spilling into her, and she had to breathe through it to keep it from taking over.

“I will not allow them near you. Ever. I will kill anyone who dares try harming you.”

She lifted their joined hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles. Finding her love for him inside her, she sent it into him, soothing the fury scorching him from his core. “Let’s see what the witch has to say. We can figure out what we’ll do from there.”

Hazel greeted them before they reached the campsite store. “This way,” she said, rushing them off toward the other side of the building. Stepping quickly, she led them to a plain, wooden door near the back and ushered them inside to a narrow set of stairs.

When Nickie climbed the first step, her foot dropped, and she let out a startled gasp. The next was the same. Even though the stairs led up, her feet didn’t follow what was expected.

“My apologies,” Hazel said. With a flick of her wrist and the wave of her hand, the stairs disappeared entirely. “I should have warned you about that. I’m so used to it that I don’t even flinch at the illusion anymore.”

Instead of stairs, they now faced a windowless hallway. Even though there were no electric lights anywhere that she could see, the passage was as bright as day.

“Well, go on,” Hazel said. “We must hurry.”

They reached the end of the hall and turned right to follow the next. Once they arrived at the end of that one, they did the same and repeated the process one more time. If her math was correct, and she couldn’t see how it wasn’t, it should have taken them right back to where they’d started at the door. But instead, the hallway opened into a large living room.

Piles of books, some had the appearance of being ancient and others like they’d just been bought, littered every surface. In one corner, an area devoid of furniture had what looked like salt sprinkled on the floor and candles sitting in pools of hardened wax.

“Come now, we have no time to lose. Even though they haven’t been able to determine your exact location, those who seek to return you to your prison know in which direction you travel. Maggie has informed me that they search blindly, and they are closer than we anticipated.”

“She mind-speaks with you like Zenon and I do?” Nickie asked.

The witch gave her a funny look. “No dearie. She shot me an email. I wish we had that ability. It would come in handy.”

Nickie bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing.

“What other information can you share, witch? And what is the price you seek for helping us?” Zenon asked.

If there has ever been an altruistic witch, I have never met him or her, he’d told her the night they’d shared their memories a couple of days before. Had it only been that long? It felt like a lifetime ago.

“I seek no fee or payment in form of favors at this time. We repay a debt in the hopes that when the time comes, the phoenixes will rise and aid us all.”

His denial seeped into Nickie, but he kept the words to himself.

“What debt do you repay?”

“You once saved a girl from a fate much worse than death. She was my ancestor. My sisters and I would not exist had it not been for your bravery and the goodness in your soul. Now, pay attention. This is important,” Hazel said in a school teacher’s tone that brooked no argument. “Dusk settles upon us, and the enemy will come. You must be gone before they arrive. I can trick them into following the wrong path for a time, but they will not give up.”

The girl from the village. It had been so long ago, yet the memory was as fresh as the day it happened. He nodded. “We will leave at once,” Zenon said, startling Nickie.

Hazel snapped her gaze at him, impatience evident in the stare. “You cannot fly. Even if they didn’t have spells to show your phoenix form, an industrial heat sensor will be enough to alert them of your presence.”

Nickie gasped. “We can’t very well walk, it’s too far. What are we going to do?”

“I’ve arranged for transportation. It will not be easy, especially for you, phoenix, but it will be safe. Remember that.”

Nickie’s heart thudded hard. Whatever she was alluding to wasn’t going to be good. Hazel straightened her spine, and even though it did nothing to make her any taller, her power grew with the movement.

“What do you propose?” Zenon asked. Already, he had shouldered himself in front of her as though he would protect her from whatever Hazel demanded.

“I will send you to a different location—a portal, so to speak. But the magic I must use will be strong. In order for either of you to come out on the other side intact, I must connect you.”

Nickie breathed a sigh of relief. “We’re already mated, so no need to worry about that.”

“Yes, you have the soul bond. That is crucial, and without it, we would have been left with very few options, but we must bind your physical forms, as well. Tether you to one another. With magic.”

A noise that was almost a growl rumbled from Zenon.

“I will not force it upon you, phoenix. I’ve seen what you’ve suffered. But I will tell you that if you do not leave here in the next few minutes, neither of you will be safe. Your captors don’t care that your mate has done nothing to merit what they plan on doing to you both. They will use your bond—your love—to hurt one another, as well as physical pain to damage the body.”

Burgundy flames burst onto his skin, licking up his arms and over his neck. Zenon clenched his fists. “Show me,” he demanded.

Hazel flicked her wrist and held out her hand. Where it had been empty a moment before, fancy manacles dangled from her fingers. All around the wristband, a pinkish scroll glowed and pulsed like a living thing.

“No,” Nickie shouted, backing away. She didn’t care that the witch was trying to help. After thousands of years in captivity, those would be worse than death for him. “That’s not necessary.”

Hazel huffed and swung the shackles from one finger. “Don’t you think I would do it differently if I could? If you separate during the transition, it will mean disaster, not only for you, but for the entire planet. We cannot risk it. In order for any of this to work, you must remain together—strong. Not just in transition, but afterward,” she said, casting each of them a pointed stare.

Nickie tugged at Zenon’s hand, but he didn’t budge. Opening her mind to him, she witnessed the warring inside him—his need to keep her safe no matter what. He would even give up his freedom if it came down to that. Fuck that shit. “We’ll figure it out. There’s got to be a better way.”

When he looked down at her, she glimpsed his fear in the depths of his eyes, but more than that, his resolve.

“Do it,” he told the witch through gritted teeth even though his gaze didn’t leave hers.

“No, don’t. Don’t do this. It’s not worth it,” she pleaded, tugging against him when he lifted his hand—and hers—so Hazel could apply the restraint, but she was no match for his strength.

Hazel latched one manacle onto Nickie’s wrist, then the other onto Zenon’s. “It will release on its own on the other side. The magic will hold while you’re in transition. We have not had enough time to adequately prepare for this, so other casters will sense the magic even if they can’t follow. They will try to stop it, but they don’t know of your mating. They will not succeed.”

“Where are you sending us?” Nickie asked, even as she tried to tug the fancy restraint off her wrist.

“All will be well, mate,” Zenon assured her, pulling her closer.

She blinked fast, drying the moisture pooling in her eyes. “It better be, because if you do this to save me and something goes wrong, I’ll never forgive myself—or you.”

Hazel made a chortling sound. “Right. Come now,” she said, waving them toward the corner where white powder now formed a half circle.

As soon as she and Zenon were within it, the floor vibrated beneath her feet, and the salt closed around them. Smoke rose from the blackened wicks before tiny flames lit each candle.

Hazel took a deep breath and gave Zenon a solemn nod. “It is time. If we slip past their spell casters, the transition will be quick. If not, it will feel like an eternity, but in reality, it will be but a few minutes. Together, you will conquer. Be well, friends.”

She opened her mouth to say something else, but the sound of a heavy vehicle outside had her snapping it shut again.

When Nickie looked at Hazel again, a tall, slender woman stood in her place. Long red hair cascaded from her head in gorgeous waves. She winked at Nickie, then lifted her hands in the air. Her voice, fresh and silky, curled around them, but Nickie didn’t understand the words.

Inside the circle, the candles grew brighter until she could hardly see the other woman at all. The manacle at her wrist tightened until it was snug. She heard Zenon’s gasp and ensuing grunt as his did the same. His whole body was rigid next to her. Wishing things could be different wouldn’t change what was happening, but at least she could send her love to him. Hopefully, that would be enough to see him through whatever was happening. Because no matter what, being restrained again after such a short time of freedom had to be hell.