Chapter 15

Silence stretched between them until Nickie thought she would snap. She didn’t know for how much longer they remained in the air, but every time she tried to speak with Zenon, she met the same stubborn resistance. At first, she’d been afraid that maybe the magic was strengthening again, but his gentle hold on her proved that it hadn’t. He flew past mountains she assumed were the Appalachians, and over the plains of the central states. They had to be somewhere in the Midwest. She’d never quite had that kind of aerial view, so it was hard to tell.

She was sore all over and more tired than she remembered ever being, but he had yet to open his mind to her. Okay, so maybe she was being stubborn, too. She could have spoken out loud, and he would have heard, but he’d needed some space to deal with what had happened on his own terms, and so she’d kept to herself. Unfortunately, her fatigue—and her bladder—had other ideas.

“I know you’re upset, but we have to stop. I hurt from flying in this position, and I need a bathroom break,” she said, keeping her voice neutral. Piling more guilt on top of him was the last thing she wanted.

Moments later, the link to his mind opened, and the faint trickle of his warmth seeped in. Along with it, the same grief she’d glimpsed earlier bombarded her before he reeled it in.

“I’m sorry. I wanted to be as far away from the enemy as possible. I will find a place for you to rest.”

Sighing, she closed her eyes for a second. Hearing his voice in her head, even if chillier than the Arctic, shouldn’t have been such a relief. “Thank you.”

Zenon flew closer to the ground. Off in the distance, she could barely make out mountain peaks. Down below, a small community came into view. He circled it twice, then as though thinking better of it, he broadened his trajectory. In a wooded area a few miles from the town, he approached a small log cabin sitting near the tree line in an overgrown yard. All around it, tall pines grew, casting the building in their shadows.

He slowed his descent until they hovered a few inches off the ground before releasing her. Nickie crumbled onto the grass in an ungraceful heap. She’d never been so glad to be earthbound in her life.

Zenon landed a short distance away, shifting seconds later before stalking toward her, not caring about his nudity in a strange place. Thankfully, the cabin looked deserted.

“Show me,” he demanded, his hands fisted at his sides and the veins in his neck jumping.

As intimidating as he looked, she wasn’t afraid, but she took a small step back anyway. “What?”

Pain flashed in his eyes. “There is blood—your blood—on your clothing. You told me you were not seriously injured. Show me your wounds.”

“I’m not. It’s a scratch, that’s all.” She hadn’t seen it, but it hadn’t bled a whole lot, and once he’d stopped squeezing her, the pain hadn’t been bad. It was the bruising she suspected might be popping up by now that she’d rather he not see.

He sucked in a breath and his eyes rounded. “Show me,” he hissed through his clenched teeth.

Crap, she had to get better at blocking herself if she didn’t want him reading her thoughts. As determined as he was, there would be no changing his mind. She gingerly grasped the hem of her shirt and took a quick look around.

“See, it’s just a scratch,” she said lightly, exposing her lower belly only enough to see where his talon had broken the skin. It wouldn’t even need stitches.

“Please, don’t make me beg,” he asked, the warble in his voice reminding her of the beast contained within him.

Sighing, she tugged her T-shirt up and over her head.

His harsh gasp reached her ears before it was completely off.

“Damn and damn again,” he muttered under his breath.

Nickie looked down. Sure enough, along the base of her ribs, a red stripe denoted where a bruise was forming. She didn’t have to see to know the same would be visible along her back. Zenon came within touching distance, lifted his hand, then dropped it before making contact. “I will never forgive myself for harming you. I am sorry,” he said, refusing to meet her gaze.

“Hey, it looks a lot worse than it is. I bruise easily because of the blood thinners I’m on for my heart condition. I promise, after a few days, this will be gone. I barely feel it.”

His shoulders slumped. “Once you’ve had the time to rest, I will deliver you to your friends.”

And then what? Ditch me? No way. “How are you going to do that when we don’t even know where they are?”

“You can call Jasmine and find out.”

“And if I do, you’ll leave me? Just like that?” Her heart pounded as she waited for his answer. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what was going on, and it was up to her to make him see that he wasn’t to blame for what had happened.

“I will. I am a danger to you.”

Nickie snorted. “Right. I don’t believe it for a second.”

A rumbling sound vibrated from his chest. “Look at you. You are bruised. I pierced you with my talon. Have you any idea how sharp they are? I could have stabbed you clean through.”

Anger exploded inside her at the self-loathing in his voice. “It doesn’t count. I’m fine. Even if you had, who would have been responsible for it?”

He opened his mouth to answer, but she lifted her hand, stopping him. She wasn’t going to listen to him beating himself up over it.

“Before you answer that, tell me… When the spell caster caught me in his magical web, did you blame me for trying to flee? Was it my fault that I was afraid, and that doubt had crept into my mind? I was heading straight for that sniper on the road. I could have died.”

His stubborn silence fueled her anger.

“Answer me, damn it. Whose fault was it? Mine? Could I have done anything to prevent it?” she asked as she stepped into his space, pointing her thumb toward her chest.

“Of course not. The very notion is ridiculous. You were under the influence of the spell.”

“Yes. Just like you were.”

Zenon’s chest rose and fell with his harsh breaths. “I should have sensed what was happening and found a way to stop its effects on me.”

“You don’t think they took every precaution to keep you from doing that? They’ve had years to plot, plan, and master their spells, yet here you are, beating yourself up over something neither of us had control over. You forget one small fact, Zenon. Even with no preparation, you still defeated them. You didn’t fail me.”

“You would not so readily defend me if you knew what had been in my mind—in my heart,” he said in a cold tone that sent chills down her spine. “I was flying toward the mountains, not to escape the effects of the spell, but to release you and watch you crash into the rocky terrain below. I was going to kill you.”

“Zenon—”

“Rest now. I will bring you to your friends when I return.”

Before she could say anything more, he spun on his heels and stormed to the cabin. The door creaked as he shoved it open, then disappeared inside. A few moments later, he was outside again. He didn’t speak a single word as he turned his back on her. Helpless to do anything more, she watched his retreat as he took his phoenix form and flew away from her.

“If you think I’m letting you go that easily, you underestimate me, mate. When you get back, we’ll talk,” she sent into his mind before he could think of blocking her.

She could wallow in self pity until he got back, or she could do something she should have been doing already—learning what it meant to be a phoenix’s mate. Because he might be ready to throw in the towel, but she wasn’t.

She rooted in her backpack for the pain relievers she kept in the side pocket and a bottle of water. Swallowing two tablets down, she pulled out her phone. Might as well get this done and over with. Jasmine would be worried senseless by now.

“Where the hell have you been?” Jas screamed into the phone. Had it rung even once?

“We ran into some trouble, but we’re okay now. How are you guys doing?”

Jasmine’s frustrated sigh came through loud and clear. “We can only talk for a minute, so listen up. We’re fine. Jackie died, but she’s okay now. We ditched the vehicles as soon as we were able to. All the others destroyed their phones already. As soon as we get off here, I’m doing the same and so should you. They’ll have a good idea of who we are now, so you can bet they’ll be tracking them. We’re heading to the coordinates Jackie gave this morning. We’ll be there in two or three days as long as we don’t have any run ins with those assholes. Remember that place we went to in New York a few years ago? You loved it, and I was bored out of my tree.”

The Dinosaur Exhibit. “I remember.”

“Look for something kind of like that. That’s where we’ll meet. I’m sure your boyfriend can help you find us.” Jas paused. “Be careful, chickadee. They shot at us. Thankfully, no one was hit, but they aren’t playing around.”

“You, too. If you get yourself killed, how will you collect on those sundaes?”

“Oh, you’re paying up. Be ready for it. We have to get off here. Kill that phone. Pronto.”

Nickie swallowed around the lump in her throat. “I will. Seriously, though. Be careful. I can’t do this without you.”

“You, too. I mean it. Love you to the end of the earth.”

“Love you. See you in a few days.”

They’d known going in that things could get dangerous, but it wasn’t until then that it really hit her. She stared at her phone, then dropped it on the ground as though it had burned her. No way was she leading those bastards to them. She rooted around the yard until she found a stone big enough to get the job done. Then, without thinking twice about the pics or anything else she had stored on it, she smashed her cell to smithereens. Nothing was worth losing anyone’s life over.

Even though she knew she’d never spot him, she shielded her eyes against the sun’s glare and glanced into the sky before heading to the cabin. A tingle teased at her mind, barely there, but she recognized his touch. He might have stormed off, but he hadn’t left.

She’d deal with her misguided mate when he returned. After a quick jaunt into the thick brush at the edge of the forest to give in to the demands of her bladder, she returned to the cabin.

The door sat half off its hinges where Zenon had left it open. Inside, dust covered every surface. A worn-out chair sat by a broken window that had a branch sticking through it into the space. A small wood stove sat in one corner, with its chimney broken part way up. Bird droppings against the faded black paint reminded her not to touch anything. Across from it was a tiny eating area. Only the fact that it had a counter and a sink told her it was the kitchen. There was no fridge or stove. Only a few cupboards with doors hanging off as if the cottage had been ransacked. Probably local kids with more energy than good sense. Either way, it didn’t matter. Other than Zenon’s footprints, there were no tracks in the dust on the floor. Whoever had wrecked the place hadn’t been around for a long time.

Two doors led from the single room. The first was a bathroom—one she’d rather die than step foot in, much less use. The second would have been a bedroom. It, too, was empty of furniture. Groaning, she made her way back out to the wild and untamed yard. No point in staying inside and breathing all that dust in when she could just as easily make herself comfortable in the shade somewhere.

Spreading her hoodie out on the grass, she sat with her back against the trunk of a tree. Although she didn’t blame Zenon in the least, she could understand how he would feel guilty over what had happened. Had the situation been reversed, she might have reacted the same way. That didn’t change the fact that he was her mate, and she would fight for him.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. Zenon had told her that all she had to do to find the knowledge he’s shared with her was to look for it. She didn’t know the first thing about it, but she’d figure it out. She brought up the sweet memories of him as a baby, focusing on him and expanding on them. A woman cooking over a fire in a beautiful medieval kitchen, laughing at her sons’ antics—Adelaine, Zenon’s mother. A tall man, dark and imposing, entered the room. His features melted at the sight of his wife before smiling at his boys. He strode over to a squirming Zenon and picked him up before going to his wife and giving her a sound kiss—Garman, that was his name.

Nickie’s heart raced. She was doing it. The information she wanted was right there in her mind, waiting to be discovered. Pride blossomed inside her, and for a second, she thought it was her own, but Zenon’s distinct feel was all over it. He might have tuned her out, but he hadn’t left her completely.

What about becoming his mate? Few images surfaced when she dug around. Probably because he’d never done it or experienced it—which was a good thing—but it didn’t help her learn what she needed. More of an impression than an image, she got the feeling of becoming one with Zenon. It was more than sex, though. That rang true, as well. It was a complete merge of their minds, as well as their bodies.

Once they’d performed the full mating, there was no one without the other. As weird as it sounded, they would still be individuals, yet a part of him would reside within her, and she in him. The thought should have scared her shitless, but she’d seen inside him, and she wasn’t afraid.

Now, if only she could figure out how to keep the bastards out of their minds once and for all. Her breath caught in her throat. The more she considered it, the surer she became. They needed to complete the full mating. With him being so deeply entrenched inside her, and vice versa, the spells wouldn’t stand a chance at getting either of them. That was the answer. It had to be.

“Do you hear that, mate? I’m not letting you go,” she yelled on their mental link, shoving all her feelings for him into his mind with the words. Let him think what he wanted. She wasn’t a quitter, and she wasn’t giving up.