Wolves gathered at the foot of the alpha’s throne, and those still in human form stood behind them, me and Grayson included. Penelope was in the healer’s tent with Rosalind and Newt, who the older women had instantly adopted as their new pet, feeding her homemade sweets and gathering clothes from among the other children for her to wear.

The carriage had driven us to the center of the gathering ring and disappeared the moment we disembarked, the stags leaping into the trees and disappearing in a fog that rose and vanished in less than a minute.

The gaping and murmurs of shock died as soon as the shifters saw Penelope, and they moved like only a true pack can, each member assisting without words. The pack healers whispered with Rosalind as they examined Penelope, then they did the same with the pixies.

Left alone with Pen for a moment, I warded the bed and the healer’s tent against the one who had harmed her to blind them to her location.

Puck and company had returned shortly after, and his first order of business had been to look in on her himself. Seeming satisfied that we were at least caring for her properly, he joined Niall, Carl, and Gray for a pre-hunt information dump, where we all shared what we had heard validated or not and used the rumors and sightings to narrow down the search perimeter, about four miles outside the camp near the mountains.

It gave us a natural border difficult for him to escape through, but numerous caves and ravines to add to the search.

“We’ll close him in, pinning him to the cliffs and forcing him into the closest gully when we find him,” Carl said, pointing to a small area on the map. “I’ll send wolves out to herd him, and when the time comes, those in human form will move in for the capture.”

I glanced at Gray, who managed a wan smile at me across the table. He’d demanded that the pack help us before I attempted to heal Carl’s son Preston, both to ensure their aid and because we were trying untested magic and didn’t want to accidentally bind Farley to me or give him an unintentional power boost.

The latter won me over. Frankly, I thought I’d finally found a good use for elf-sickness. But it was easy for Penelope to release her enraptured victims. The effects of her song wore off with time. For elf-sickness, often it was a complicated and long-lasting healing process.

So, we held off on attempting a ritual for Preston, and Carl assigned three extra wolves to guard me and ensure Farley didn’t get to me.

“Really, I don’t need guards. We need every shifter available to be out there with the pack, protecting each other.”

“You are the most important person in this camp, right now. I can’t afford to have you unable to fulfill your end of our bargain.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but Gray shook his head and growled at me. “Don’t,” I snapped and spun around to storm off, nearly crashing into Tryst.

“Well now, Princess. Why is it every time I see you, you’re under siege from your own family?”

I barely controlled my urge to punch him in his smug face. “If it isn’t the exiled Fae broker, come begging for more power.”

Annoyance flashed across his face, but he pasted a smile on, seething anger in his eyes. I realized with a start that he wasn't hiding behind his perpetual glamor. Staring at him, I learned two things. One, he was too fucking beautiful for it to be fair, and two, he knew it and never hid his real appearance. Unlike my cousin, who hid the atrocity of his face.

"Tryst, you are really very nice looking," I said it without an edge, knowing he'd hear my sincerity. I'd never complimented him before because I'd assumed it was Fae magic and I refused to compliment what I considered a lie.

He blinked fast, and the corner of his mouth turned up further, the anger leaking away from his stare. "Thank you, Princess," he bowed, turning his head, so our eyes never broke contact. "A compliment from a beautiful woman is always the best welcome."

I kissed his cheek, one of the customs I’d tried to adopt since I’d begun princess training for my father. I felt Gray’s eyes burning holes into my back, but I ignored him. Tryst was Fae, and we were near Fairy. He couldn’t go back, but I could bring a little bit of our ways to him. Since returning to Fairy was his heart’s desire, reminding him of my place in more than name could help to keep his manipulations in check.

“Do not force me to put down your pussycat, I know you’re fond of him.”

I rolled my eyes and backed away from him. “You just can’t leave well enough alone, can you?” I quickly introduced the Fae power broker to the shifters. “Before you ask, yes, he’s a con artist, and no, I cannot vouch for you if you allow him to make a deal with you.” I turned back to Tryst, who was standing with his hands in the pockets of his Armani suit. “No dealing while I’m here. We have more important things to worry about, like how to wake Penelope, catch a killer, and if I can squeeze it in, defeat my cousin and free the wee folk in the pit.”

His mouth worked silently for a minute, opening and closing as he discarded each response, in turn, finally settling on, "I am at your service, my lady."

Gray's arm draped over my shoulders, and the friendly look in Tryst's eyes cooled a little. "Yours too, of course, Mr. Xenos."

“Okay boys, you’re both pretty. Now both of you simmer down and focus on any one of the more important tasks at hand.” I glanced at Carl and Sheryl for support.

“Your alpha-witch is right,” Carl interjected, earning a silent glare from me. “The sun’s almost down. It’s time to go. He pointed at me. “You heal your friend and stay put for now.”

I managed a curt nod without argument. “Put those guards on Puck. I won’t lose another member of my team to this place.”

"Agreed." He made the changes, and the first wave took off to the north.

Grayson and Niall jogged back to their cabin, and within a minute, a wolf and a jet-black jaguar sauntered out together. I'd thought I was used to the image of such different animals in a pack. But seeing them mingle with the lone were-lion and strange wolves reminded me of how much the shifters differed from their natural counterparts.

The camp was left to the healers and the handful of us who did not shift. The area was too large to ward us in, so I wove my strongest spell with my own blood and runes to protect the healers' tent and commanded Rosa and Newt to stay inside.

Sheryl took Preston into the tent as well, to play with Newt. Preston shared his paper and pencils with little Newt, encouraging her to draw and slipping her candy when he thought the adults weren’t paying attention.

“He will be healed, Sheryl, one way or another. I can’t imagine such a kind soul not getting to be a father and carry on the legacy of your family.”

She smiled, but her eyes were shiny with unshed tears. “Do what you can. My pack will honor our agreement no matter what happens.”

I watched the healers for a few minutes, coating Penelope with herbal tinctures and muttering their own spells over her. Nothing was working, but she’d survived the separation from Fairy, and we couldn’t give up on her.

Tryst stuck his head in and motioned for me. “I’d really love to help you, Morgan, but I can only do so much this far from my store of magical power.”

“Let me guess. You’d like just a little of mine to put you in the fight.”

He spread his hands in surrender. “I will gladly throw myself between you and that abomination you call a cousin, but as it stands, l would barely slow him down.”

He was right, and I hated it. Tryst managed to be simultaneously the most manipulative and the most honest person in my circle. But he was on my side, or at least, he hadn’t attacked me or helped anyone else hurt me. He couldn’t. I was his best chance at seeing the inside of the manor and the rest of Fairy that lay beyond.

“You can always leave.” I meant it, but he was wearing me down.

“I won’t leave your side until the danger has passed.” He offered me his arm. “Let’s take this somewhere more private.”

The sky was dusky with a red tinge along the tops of the mountains to the west. Somewhere out in that growing darkness was danger, but as Tryst led me away from camp, I wondered if I was in greater danger staying where I was.

“What the hell are you doing?” Gray stepped out from the tall grasses, naked and perfect in every way. Except of course, for the scowl he wore.

“Tryst is about to take a whole lot less than a pound of flesh in exchange for some power.” I poked him in the shoulder and made him look down at me. “And there had better be some amazing intel that comes with this deal, too.”

He saluted me, but all his attention was on Gray. “You’re back early. Good news, I hope?”

Gray grabbed my arm and jerked me nearly off my feet getting me away from the broker. “You can’t be alone with him, Morgan. Send him away.”

I yanked my arm back and rubbed where he'd grabbed me. If I'd been merely human, I would've been sporting the beginnings of bruises. As it was, my arm ached where his fingernails bit into my skin, and I was seriously pissed off.

“Grayson, I am only going to say this once, so I hope you’re listening.” I kept my voice soft enough that even Tryst couldn’t hear me, and neither would my alpha if he hadn’t had supernatural cat hearing. “If you ever pull shit like that with me again, I will tear your fucking head off and mount it outside my door as a warning to future boyfriends.”

He blanched at the threat, his dark skin paling then quickly reddening under his dark tan. "You are my girlfriend and a member of the coalition. If you think he has what you want, you're not as smart as I thought."

I clenched my fists and counted to ten in my head before speaking again. "I'm not a possession, Gray. I am a princess of the Seelie High Court, and I will do what I need to in order to protect what's mine." I held his face in my hands and whispered almost inaudibly in his ear, "and if you can't accept that I am more than your pet outcast witch, then we are through."

“I have a skip to catch…for you,” he hissed, black fur flowing over him as he turned away, so by the time he his stride, he was in full cat form. Not all shifters could change so smoothly, but Grayson made it look like something out of a movie, beautiful and fluid.

I turned back to Tryst, whose face was a careful blank. "All right, you caused your trouble and got your entertainment. My price to share power with you is information on how to sneak back into the pit and how to escape with extra baggage when I leave."

Without smiling, he held out his hand. “I am not as callous as you believe, Princess. I take only what is fair for myself in exchange for that of equal value.”

“So you know a way into the pit and out again?”

He grinned. “The crone told me not to let you get stuck with the Fae for all time. You owe her a visit for tea.”

“And what is your price for helping me?”

“A pound of flesh would be lovely, or a month of having your power.”

I scoffed at him. “I’ll visit the crone and find the way myself, and if Fortunato kills me before then, I’ll make sure my father learns of your part in it.” I pushed him out of my way and started back toward the healing tent. If he wasn’t going to help me, it was time to forget him and continue for myself.”

“Oh gods, a kiss, Morgan, just a kiss from a princess, okay?” He jogged to catch up to me and matched his pace to mine. “It’s a small price to pay for the freedom of the wee folk, is it not?”

I doubted Gray would see it that way, but he had little say in the matter, just as I had little say in the shifters he would have to ‘audition’ when we went back to California.

“Fine. Prepare the contract, I’ll summon Gray back here. He might kill you for it, but I won’t have him finding out about it later.” I sat next to Penelope’s cot and held her hand. “Sweetie, I know you don’t want to come back out to this world, but it would be awfully good for morale to have you back.”

Across the room, Newt and Prescot had started a new game. The healers kept up their chanting, spells I almost recognized but for the difference in dialect. I had taken Penelope from Fairy but failed to change anything except our surroundings.

Something had to give, and if a little tongue from the hottest Fae in town was the price to pay, then who was I to complain?