My stomach ached, already stuffed with delicious cheeses, meats, and pretzel bread that cart after cart offered in abundance. But the sweet smell of pastries, cake, molasses cookies, apple cider, and hot chocolate hooked my nose, dragging me to the next booth. The vendors at the farmers market didn’t care if I had to pop the top button of my jeans. The crisp, overcast day screamed for me to indulge in the warm tasty treats.

I wasn’t going to sit around in a small apartment while the quaint old town of Freiburg called my name from below, asking me to come out and play. Going to Greece almost a year and a half ago to find the sword was the first time I had been to Europe. And that certainly hadn’t been a vacation. I saw the inside of more caves than I cared to remember.

Lorcan could huff and puff all he wanted, but I was going to enjoy the tiny splinter of time away from my royal duties I was allotted here.

Tucked deep under my hood, it was freeing to be an ordinary tourist. No one knew who I was, which I’d come to yearn for in the last year. At home, my image was everywhere, on everything. What I wore, how I moved, the way I talked…all critiqued and written about. Humans and fae weren’t much different when it came to gossip and dissecting their “royals.” No matter what I did, some would find something wrong with it, while others held me up on this strange pedestal with no faults.

It felt nice simply being me.

“Jesus, I forgot how much you can eat.” Lorcan snickered as I took the warm molasses cookies and hot chocolate from the vendor.

I shot him a look, shoving a small cookie into my mouth. Growing up, my parents had to force me to eat. I ate because I had to, never truly enjoying it like everyone else did until I went through Druid “puberty” two years ago. Food became almost orgasmic, and the amount I inhaled tripled, my body quickly burning the energy as my magic demanded more. My hormones also raged out of control, emotions whiplashed, and my appetite for food and sex increased tenfold.

My emotions had since curbed, but the other two were still on high. And I was starting to think it wasn’t a hormonal thing anymore. Just me.

“Don’t they feed you at that castle of yours?” He nudged past me, speaking against my ear, his breath heating my neck. “Or is this covering what you are truly ravenous for?”

My fingers curled around my cup, knuckles turning white. My mouth thinned in a tight line.

He glanced over his shoulder at me, a side grin on his mouth, clearly enjoying he could still get a rise out of me.

If he only knew his mere presence was enough to get a rise from me. This afternoon was no different. In jeans, black puffy jacket, and beanie, he took me back to another time, when I was ankle deep in snow, working on my magic. Before the war... before… us.

I shook my head.

“Wow, someone lost her sense of humor. Lack of good sex can do that.”

He was baiting me. I should be an adult and not let him get to me. Should.

“How do you know I’m not having extremely good sex?” I bumped his shoulder as I walked by, dodging a flailing child with sticky fingers as his mother trailed behind with a napkin. The market was full of locals and tourists, the on-and-off drizzle not dissuading the crowd from their shopping or tasting the local goods. The village felt like a movie set with its cobblestone roads and the mixture of curved and A-lined roofs and a gothic church with ornate steeples. Munsterplatz, the main plaza, was like stepping back into the 1400s or 1500s. I was in love.

Lorcan caught up with me. “Because you forget, li’l bird, I know what you are like after you’ve had extremely good sex.” He winked, heat flushing into my veins. He turned to a cart, indicating to the vendor he wanted a beer. The man nodded, pouring him one from a wooden barrel.

Extremely good seemed a pathetic definition for what that time with Lorcan had been. My mind could barely graze over it without overheating and blushing so deeply people probably thought I had the flu.

“But I guess it’s my fault. Your first time and you had the best…can’t go back after that, huh? No one else will ever be as fulfilling.”

He’s baiting you, Ken. Don’t fall for it.

“Believe me, it is better.” I lifted my chin, trying to appear I wasn’t lying so completely through my teeth. Not only did I doubt anything could be better, I hadn’t had sex since Lorcan, which had left me restless and agitated for a good part of the year. If he wanted to assume Torin and I were doing it, why not let him?

“You are an awful liar.” He laughed, taking a sip of his beer, the foam sticking to the tip of his nose. I stepped up to him. My fingers brushed over his nose, wiping away the froth before I realized what I was doing. The action felt so natural, so comfortable. I dropped my hand.

He hadn’t moved a breath, the intensity of his gaze wrapping around us like vines, blocking out the rest of the world.

I stared up, his green eyes pulling me in like a reel. Kiss me. My body screamed over the objection in my mind.

Lorcan inhaled sharply through his nose, like he’d heard my plea, his pupils dilating. His mouth inched down.

I felt woozy, oxygen not quite reaching my lungs. As the heat from his mouth brushed mine an image slammed into my head. Usually it came with white light, pain, and loss of consciousness. But this one, similar to a few I had gotten recently, like the one with Zoey, was more of a video playing in my head. It was fast, but it jolted me back.

 

Flash.

A woman and man walked quickly past vendor stalls. The Freiburg Munster, with its lacy spires and cheeky gargoyles, dominated the background. They were dressed in casual, dark clothes, but I knew they were anything but tourists. Both were extremely beautiful with violet-blue eyes. Fairies. The blonde woman walked ahead and held the power, her dark-haired partner all brawn.

They were coming for me.

That I knew with certainty.

Flash.

 

The image cleared as fast as it came, giving me a sharp headache, but not coming close to disabling, like they could. I jerked my head around.

“What? Did you see something?” Lorcan stiffened, sensing something wrong. Fae were everywhere here and with magic now a part of the combined world, I think it was harder for him to decipher the smells.

“Fairies. Here.”

“Yes. There are a lot of them.”

“No.” I shook my head. “They’re here for me.”

“No one knows you’re here.”

My gaze landed on the top of a blonde ponytail and a man behind her heading our way. Lorcan followed my gaze to the couple. They spotted us at the same time, their faces darkening the moment they locked on us. They sped up.

“Shit.” Lorcan grabbed my hand and yanked me hard to follow him. I stumbled, his grip on my hand clenching, the muscles along the slope of his shoulders rising as he slipped us quickly through the throng of people.

He glanced over his shoulder, and I did the same. My heart slammed in my chest, seeing they were gaining on us, with only a few shoppers separating us. Tourists frowned at them as they rushed through the throng.

“So much for staying under the radar.” Lorcan pulled me, picking up his speed. “Time to run, li’l Druid.”

My fingers fastened around his as we bolted into a full-out run. I heard the fairy woman yell something sounding German, but I had no idea what she said. Nor was I going to stop and ask.

“Bewegung!” Lorcan yelled as his shoulder rammed through the crowd like a linebacker, shoving people out of our way as we weaved through the market. Fear pumped into my veins, my legs kicking to keep pace.

In trying to lose them, he zigzagged around stands and clusters of market goers, his head constantly flipping back to keep an eye on them. My body knocked around like a ping-pong ball, bumping into people. I ignored the shouts tossed at us, the back of my neck prickling with the pursuer’s magic.

“Faster!” Lorcan yanked on my arm, diving between two families with their kids talking and laughing. With a snap Lorcan tugged me to the side, slamming me into the toddler. The little boy fell onto his behind, a cry already ripping across the cold air.

“Oh no.” I twisted automatically to help the child, dropping my hand away from Lorcan. “I’m so sorry.”

“Ken!” Lorcan swiveled around and reached for me again. “Come on!”

My head lifted to see the blonde and her companion scarcely a few steps away from us. Terror kicked in, whirling me back around as we tore off again.

“Hallo!” I heard the father of the child yell at me angrily, tugging at my heart. I felt awful, but I was sure the child would be fine.

Lorcan curved us sharply around a cart, going in a circle, then pulling me into a booth.

“Geh raus!” The shop man waved us back toward the exit. Lorcan held his finger to his lips, his eyes flashing red. The man inhaled, his next words dying on his tongue as he stepped back, his eyes wide with fear.

Lorcan tilted his head, listening. He held me flat against his warm physique, our heartbeats pounding in unison. My lungs ached at the cold, sharp intakes. Even though every nerve was on high alert with the anxiety of being caught at any time, I felt safe. Content. The deep unrelenting restlessness I had felt for so long was quiet. I chewed on my inner cheek while looking to the side, shoving all thoughts from my head.

When Lorcan pulled away, I twisted my head to him. He crept toward the opening and peered out. “I think we might have lost them.” He kept watch for another moment before his arm reached back for me. Lacing my fingers with his, I gave an apologetic nod to the vendor before sliding through the curtain with Lorcan.

“Where are we going?” I kept close, both of us still searching the area for any sign of the couple.

Lorcan didn’t answer, his focus completely on the space around him. His nostrils kept wiggling as he took in the scents; his eyebrows furrowed. I could tell he was struggling to pick up any particular smell while the market swam with aromas.

He rushed us back the way we came, hopefully putting distance between the fairies and us. How did they find me? It shouldn’t have been possible.

My mind reeled with questions when I felt Lorcan go rigid. At the same moment, a man jumped from around a booth, crashing into the dweller. The two large bodies slammed together, stumbling to the side, hitting a stall as they both fell. Ceramic souvenirs and trinkets smashed onto the ground and rained down on the two fighting men.

Movement in my periphery snapped my head to the side. The blonde woman barreled toward me. Instinct fired through me. The spell lashed off my tongue like a whip, striking out at my attacker, searching to cut deep.

My words exploded into her chest, her eyes widening as her body halted its forward movement, shoving it backward. She sailed back into a pastry stand, her spine hitting the wood display with a crack, sending the pastries into the air and slapping the pavement as they fell from the sky. Individuals around the booth also took the brunt of my spell, spreading out on the cement like a deck of cards.

“Ken!” Lorcan screamed behind me, and I whipped around. He got to his feet; the fae he had been fighting now lay out cold on the ground. Lorcan snatched my hand, not hesitating before he took off at a full sprint, leaving hordes of villagers screaming or staring at us with terror.

And this was only day one of being in hiding.

 

 

Lorcan didn’t slow our pace as he weaved us through town before ebbing a little when we reached a park, every few steps glancing over his shoulder.

“We’re not going back to the flat, are we?” It wasn’t a question. I already knew. My legs scissored double time to keep up with his strides. Lorcan’s grip remained unyielding on my arm.

“Don’t tell me you actually learned something from me last time?” he said humorless, scanning around.

“Not sure if learned is the right word. I merely know how you think.”

He stopped dead, my body ramming into his then bouncing back.

“Believe me.” He swung around, prowling up to me, his pupils vertical. “You don’t have a clue what I’m thinking.” He loomed over me.

Savage. Wild. Raw. Lorcan could scare and excite with the same magnitude. And I seemed to have no immunity to either.

“If I didn’t think it would cause more attention, I’d strip you right here.”

“What?” I breathed out.

He passed his hand roughly over his head, scrubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t know how they know you’re here, but they do. For all we know someone put a tracker on your bag or clothes.” He motioned to my outfit. “Someone will be watching that place, it’s not safe to return.”

So the stripping wasn’t for fun?

“But how would they even know to put it in my bag? Everyone still thinks I’m at the castle.”

“Maybe it’s been on an item of clothing of yours for a while now. What better way for your enemies to keep tabs on you than know the best time to attack.”

That actually made sense. Maybe that was how they found me when I went to Honey House.

A constant parade of staff, visitors, and nobles had access to my rooms or me. At any time someone could have placed a tracker. Bumping into me. A brush of an arm. A staff member who secretly hated me put something on my clothes.

“My favorite T-shirt.” I frowned, already missing my Firefly shirt, the worn, soft fabric.

“I’ll buy you a new one.” Lorcan rolled his eyes, curving back around. “Actually screw that, you’re the fucking Queen, you buy me a shirt.”

I laughed and nodded my head. “Fair enough.”

“We can no longer use the doors either.” He picked up his stride, following the sign to the train station. “And without Lars’s phones, we’re on our own till Monday.” The way Lorcan said it, I knew he preferred it that way. He did not especially like to play with others. Unless he was in charge.

 

 

Near the train station Lorcan got his wish, just not in the fun way. A clothing store provided me with a whole new outfit. Dark, stretchy jeans I could run in, new knee-length boots, a black sweater, and a black coat. This one came with faux fur trim around the hood. I also grabbed a daypack, telling the sales clerk to give all my old stuff to the homeless.

We grabbed some sandwiches and got on the next train heading southeast toward Zurich. Lorcan found us an empty compartment, shutting the door firmly. A few people opened it to join us, took one look at Lorcan, and backed out, their eyes wide with fright.

“What’s sad is you’re not even trying to scare people.” I watched the latest commuter retreat out of the space, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously.

“If one more person opens the door, I won’t be so nice.”

“You growled at that man.” I waved my hand toward the door.

“Yeah, and compared to what I wanted to do, that was very nice of me.” Lorcan sat back in his seat, but his eyes stayed on the door. When the train departed from the platform, his shoulders barely inched down a hair. He was on guard, riled, his beast pawing at the edges of his human form.

My energy on the other hand was crashing after the high of the chase and the overindulgence of food. My lids lowered at the rocking of the train.

I heard rustling of fabric and cracked them open. He stood before me, taking off his jacket.

“Sleep, Ken.” He eased my body down and stuffed the coat under my head. I sighed, taking in his familiar scent coating the fabric, snuggling into it. My eyes struggled to stay open. He sat back down across from me, his hand reaching over. “Rest. I got you.” He slipped my glasses from my face and ran his hand over my head, my eyes shutting at his soft touch.

I was pretty sure I made a purring sound as sleep gripped my lids and pulled me down.