Over the next three days Lorcan and I spent our time researching and investigating leads to the Irish Republican Army or the DLR, not coming up with much. We spent our nights at the underground club, but my Druid guy never came back. Still, I couldn’t lose the feeling of being watched.

With no results and an annoyed call from Lars about our progress, I was getting frustrated and losing hope on how we were going to proceed.

“One more night at the club, then we try a different lead.” Lorcan rubbed his neck, prowling behind me in the small room. “I was sure he’d be back. He had to feel your power. It’s too strong to ignore.”

I hooked the fake ring into my nose and brushed out my shorter black hair in the mirror. My eyes were rimmed with black eyeliner under my glasses, my tank top showing off my tattoos. For once in my life I looked tough. And I liked it.

“I have an idea, but you’re not going to be happy with it.” He was going to hate it.

Lorcan’s eyes met mine in the reflection, his lids narrowing. “No.”

“You don’t even know what I was going to say.” I tossed my brush onto my bag, facing him.

“Yes, I do.” He shook his head. “There is no way in hell I’m going to let you go by yourself.”

Dammit. “That’s not what I was thinking.” Yes, it was.

Lorcan slanted his head, his gaze level with mine.

“Fine.” I huffed. “But I wasn’t thinking you’d stay here or anything. You could still be in the club. Just not near me. Maybe you’re scaring him away.”

Lorcan prowled up to me, his shoulders curved.

“Yeah, exactly like that.” I motioned to him.

“I am not leaving you alone.” He loomed over me. The feel of his beast prickled at the edges. “If anything happened and I couldn’t get to you...”

“I can take care of myself, you know.” I put my hands on my hips. “I’ve tossed your butt in the dirt a few times, dweller. Don’t make me out as some helpless girl.”

“Kenn—”

“I’ve done perfectly fine without you for sixteen months.” I cut him off, hating I had let him know I had noticed. Noticed and counted. “I don’t need you to protect me. I am a Druid. Not the weak human you first met.”

“You were never weak.” He snarled and pressed in closer.

“Then why are you treating me like I am?” I pushed at his chest, not buckling under his threatening form.

“You are by far smarter, stronger, and more capable than me.” Anger rumbled in his voice. “I know you can handle it.”

“Then what is this about?”

He peered at the ceiling.

“What?”

His face flickered, like he was struggling with something, but he swiftly locked his jaw, turning away from me. The moment vanished.

“Fine. But I will be there. I’ll stay in the shadows.” He grabbed his jacket, shoving his arms through the sleeves with irritation. “But if I get a whiff of anything off, the experiment is over.”

It was the best I was going to get. And in reality, I wanted him close. I felt better with him near.

 

 

The rock band was in full swing by the time I entered the crypt. The bouncer, who recognized me on sight, flicked up his eyebrows in surprise. “Alone tonight, lass?” His thick Irish brogue hung on the air, his eyes wandering down my body.

“By myself, but never alone.” A flirty smile pulled at my lips. Raven was blunt, confident, and comfortable in her own skin. Plus, it was true. I could feel the hooded dweller at the back of the line as potently as if he stood right next to me. I swear I could even hear a low grumble come from him.

The doorman eyed me, a salacious smile curving his mouth. “Well, if you get lonely down there, you can always come and keep me company.”

I placed my hand on his arm and smiled, slipping by him with a wink. A thrill of my forwardness rushed up the back of my neck, pulling my shoulders back. I tossed my heavier jacket in coat check and headed for the bar.

I had never been to a bar by myself. Actually, I hadn’t gone to any bars. I’d missed my twenty-first birthday while being held captive by Aneira. And when I returned, my life was no longer homework, movie nights, and boys. It became training, war, and death. Then when I became Queen, parties, clubbing, and whatever else people my age did were no longer options for me.

“Back again.” The bartender smiled at me, already grabbing the beer I had been favoring all week. His eyes drifted over my shoulder searching for my partner, but he didn’t comment about his absence.

“Thanks.” I handed him my money and took a long gulp. I let my hips move to the beat of the music, drifting around the crowded club. I inspected every group, trying to get a feel of the crowd. The same as it had been since the Druid ran out. Knowing my Awen tattoo was on full display, I tried to spot for any reactions. Nothing.

Everything pointed to another disappointing night. The only shift in the space was when Lorcan entered. It was bizarre how I knew exactly where he was. He altered the molecules in the air, his gaze brushing me with the potency of fingers.

“Hi.” A guy came up next to me at the bar, sparking a sense of familiarity. Had I seen him here before? He was around my age, lean, dark spiky hair, brown eyes, and wearing glasses. Cute and completely my type. Or what used to be my type. “My name’s Adam, but everyone calls me Wizard.”

“Wizard?”

“My computer skills. Not an actual one.” He grinned, fidgeting and awkward.

“Of course.”

“American?”

“Yeah. Starting at the Queen’s University this semester.” Raven’s story rolled off my tongue, and I almost giggled. Queen’s University. Funny. I guess in a way I was attending the Queen’s University of Life.

“What? Have something against the Queen?” The way he said it made me feel he wasn’t exactly talking about the university.

“Just not my top choice... of schools.” I weaved around his question.

“Not mine either. But could have been worse.” His Irish accent landed heavily on each word, his double meaning clear. “I graduated from Uni just before the war.” He bobbed on his feet, shoving his hands into his pocket. “So what is your name?”

“Raven,” I replied, finishing the last of my beer.

“Well, Raven, what do you do?”

“I am a supervisor of sorts.”

“Sounds grueling.”

“You have no idea.”

He smiled at me, dipping his head, a silence growing between us.

“Dance with me?” Adam blurted. He was so awkward and adorable. He was everything I used to like in a guy. And I had no interest in him. Damn you, dweller. Suddenly I felt daggers of irritation prickle my back from the shadows, raising up on its hackles.

“Sure.” I heard my response roll off my tongue, and I placed my hand in his, letting him lead me out to the dance floor. The song was in between slow and fast, and both of us struggled to find a beat.

“Sorry, I am genuinely bad at this.” He laughed nervously.

Kennedy would continue to dance awkwardly, not confident enough to take control. Raven reached out, clutching his hips with my palms, moving them in sync with mine. He laughed again, but moved in closer, his legs brushing against mine.

My back felt on fire as eyes from behind me burned into my skin. Lorcan had turned me down. We were not together, nor would we be. He had screwed every girl in sight. I was free to dance with anyone whenever I liked. But an image of Lorcan grinding on the gorgeous fae girl I saw when I entered sent blistering rage down my spine. I tossed the picture out with all my other thoughts.

Adam’s hand moved to my hip, and he pulled me close. His head bowed, his mouth close to mine. At high school parties, I saw people making out within minutes of meeting each other all the time, but it was never my style. I couldn’t do that. I always knew the guy I crushed on, probably for years.

But I wasn’t Kennedy tonight. I was Raven.

He shifted closer, his glasses hitting mine. “Sorry.” He blushed, his cheeks flushed, brightening his eyes. I smiled, trying to cover up my nerves. He leaned in closer, but stopped, swallowing nervously.

A déjà vu feeling struck me hard, a memory floating to me like I had been here before. A vision. A boy. A kiss.

My visions didn’t show me arbitrary moments in the future. They were important. Significant.

Before I could think of why I was doing it, my hands came to his face, pulling him down, my lips finding his. I had no idea why I was kissing this boy; I just knew I was supposed to. It was brief but filled with the angst Raven carried on her shoulders. Raven would do something like that. She was aggressive and angry. An extremist. She took what she wanted.

“Damn.” Adam’s eyes widened. “I’m glad I got to come here tonight.”

“Thought we’d get it out of the way.” I shrugged, Raven taking over my behavior.

“I hope there will be more…getting things out of the way.” He grinned sheepishly.

I laughed, grabbing for his hand to go back to the bar. Raven needed liquor to stay dominant. My fingers slipped and pushed up his shirtsleeve, displaying a tattoo just above his wrist.

I froze, not believing what I saw. Three thick lines with three dots. “Awen,” I whispered, and my gaze darted up to him. It was the Druid symbol, but I felt no magic coming from him. He was human.

“Shit.” He jerked his hand back, pushing down his sleeve. His head turned toward the corner of the club. I followed his gaze. The bearded guy from the first night stood near the stairs. I whipped back to Adam, trying to understand what was going on.

He was gone. Crap! Then I saw Adam push through the throng, heading for the other man.

“Wait,” I yelled, already in chase. No way was I going to lose them again. But the packed club conspired against me, hindering my progress as I swam upstream against the current of people on the dance floor.

Adam’s spiky hair came into view as the pair jogged up the stairs near the exit. Adam’s brown eyes looked back, catching mine, before they disappeared through the door.

No! I couldn’t lose them.

My muscles snapped with energy, barreling me through bodies near the steps. I shoved them out of my way as my boots grazed the stone, and I leaped toward the door, my heart pounding in my chest. I slammed through the door and curved around the large body blocking the door.

“Already lonely, eh?” The bouncer’s chuckle stopped when I ran past him, my head swiveling up and down the alley. Panic dripped down the back of my throat, dread curling around my intestines. My eyes caught movement…two men turning down another backstreet.

“Hey?” The bouncer called after me, but I hardly took notice, sprinting down the alleyway in pursuit. A scuffle and holler came from the doorman behind me, and I knew Lorcan had reached the top. I didn’t slow for a second. The shadows ate up the light the farther I went. I stretched my short legs, the lane they’d turned down only a few steps away.

Pivoting on my foot, I swung for the unlit passage, trying to make out shapes in the murk. I took ten paces, frantically searching for outlines or movement. Then an arm shot out of an entryway, fingers wrapping around my arm. I yelped, fear tangling around my lungs like weeds. A hand clamped over my mouth, dragging me into the doorway.

“Be quiet,” a man’s voice hissed into my ear, a knife at my throat. His magic slammed into my back, almost paralyzing me. Adam was next to him, pressing my body in the small space like a sandwich.

A growl echoed off the brick down the alley. Lorcan moved closer, his energy buzzing at my skin.

“Step back or I slice her throat,” the Druid man yelled into the alley. He shoved me out, keeping the blade at my neck. Adam and the man moved behind me and faced us toward the beast. Red eyes glowed in the night, Lorcan’s outline looming and hunched over like he was ready to attack.

“Call off your pet,” the man demanded in my ear. The blade dug into my tender skin and caused my eyes to water. Panic colored my vision, hazing my mind. “And don’t think about doing a spell. I can cut you faster than you can get any words out.”

Don’t lose it, Ken. Keep it together.

 

1.)   He knows what you are. Senses your magic.

2.)   He probably doesn’t want to kill you. Not until he knows what you want.

 

I inhaled through my nose and nodded. He lifted his fingers just enough to uncover my lips. I knew what I had to do to survive. This was our only chance.

“Back down, beast.” My command sailed through the air with complete authority.

Lorcan exhaled a rumble that shook the cobblestone, his shoulders riding up to his ears, his form growing in height and bulk.

“Now,” I ordered, the condescension thick, smacking him in the face. He didn’t move, and the air clotted with tension. Please, Lorcan. My eyes begged him.

He huffed, shaking his head, he took a step back. His irises stayed vertical but went back to green. A reddish-green, but I would take it.

“He is exceedingly protective of me.” I swallowed, talking over the knife cutting at my skin. “But I still need to get better control of him. We’re both a work in progress.”

“Really?” the bearded man snipped. “Because the magic coming off you is extraordinary, so don’t lie to me. I can feel your power.”

“Look, I just found out what I was. Discovered my real parents were murdered in the war.” All truths. “I don’t even know who they were. I was raised by humans.”

“Sounds like your story, Major,” Adam said.

Major grunted at his partner, pulling me more firmly against him.

“If you’re so new, then how can you already control a dark fae? He is powerful; I can tell.”

“I know the important tricks to survive on the street. Alone.” I forced a smile to curve my mouth. “Not like they are good for anything else.”

“You seemed awfully cozy with it the other night.” Major rewrapped his arm across my body. Lorcan’s eyes shaded red.

“We can’t play with our toys?” Raven had taken over, committed to her part.

Major snorted, twisted with derision. “Why are you here?”

“I heard about the cause. I want to be part of it.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Awen. I saw Adam’s tattoo. I know what it means. I want to join the fight.”

“I don’t think so.”

“I lost my family. They were butchered by the fae. I grew up not knowing what I was. But I could feel it, all my life, the fact I didn’t belong…I always felt different.” I swallowed, real anger sprouting in my gut. “I hate them. What they took from me. Since the barriers have fallen, I’ve been on the run because we are still being hunted. Killed. I want them to know how it feels to fear.”

Major shifted behind me, the knife ebbing slightly from my throat.

“I believe her, Major,” Adam muttered.

“Why, Wizard, because you think she’s hot?” He huffed at his friend. “A few tattoos and claims of dead parents and you’re all gooey. She’s not one of us. We trust no one.”

“But I am a Druid just like you, Major,” I replied, knowing the power of simply using someone’s moniker. “I’ve been searching for you guys. I don’t want to run anymore. I want to fight. I want them to suffer like we have.” My eyes landed on Lorcan, drilling into him. Follow my lead. I hoped he understood because my next words were against our plan. “Take me. Leave the fae behind. I don’t care. But I want to be part of your cause. To really do something that counts.”

A growl came from Lorcan, but I ignored him.

“You need me as much as I need you,” I added quickly.

“What makes you think we need you?” Major sneered.

“Because I want the same thing you do.” I twisted my head enough to peer at him. “Revenge. And I’m willing to do anything to get it.”