Fairy Magic (7 page)

“It’s a good thing I brought backup,” she said to herself, wiping her sword against a patch of soft pink moss that looked like a fuzzy blanket. Then she picked up her crossbow and continued walking.

She’d celebrated too soon.

The ground quaked. That was the only warning she had before a pair of bears tore through the trees—huge freaking bears with claws as long as daggers and teeth like stalactites. How the hell was she supposed to kill giant hell bears?

A chilling war cry echoed through the forest, and a moment later a gang of three people ran down the trees like they were flying. In a flash of movement, they circled around the bears like a whirlwind. Arrows and blades cut into the bears, and the beasts fell.

They stopped and turned toward Naomi. She opened her mouth to thank them, but one of them, an elf with spiked silver hair, was faster. He dashed forward, pressing his dagger to her throat. His hell-hardened turquoise eyes bore into hers.

The woman in the group stepped forward. She was wearing a black faded tank top and khaki shorts over her slim frame. Her long, straight hair was pulled back into a high ponytail.

“We don’t know you,” she declared, lifting her katana. “What are you doing sneaking around so close to our camp?”

Before Naomi could speak, the woman’s hard voice split her emerging words apart like a guillotine blade. “We don’t know you, and we know everyone in this area.”

“She might be one of Valin’s spies,” the third person said.

He was a muscular vampire with a shaved head, camouflage-print pants, and a thin green t-shirt torn at the arms. Like the other two, he looked filthy. There was a hard edge to all their eyes, like they’d been through hell.

“I don’t even know who Valin is,” Naomi told them.

The woman laughed. “Now I
know
you’re lying. Everyone knows Valin.” She flicked her hand at the vampire, who disarmed Naomi with cold efficiency. Then she motioned toward the elf and said, “Come on. Let’s bring her back to camp. We can torture her for answers there.”

Wow. The people of hell didn’t sugar-coat anything.

The elf nudged Naomi forward. “Walk.” He kept the point of his knife close to her back, ready to strike. He didn’t look like someone who missed. He moved with the spry bounce of a cat. She’d never be able to outrun him before he pounced.

As they brought her down the broken path, she considered using Fairy Dust to get away. Magic was in short supply here, so she’d probably take them by surprise. Like the beast men she’d met on the Fire Plains, these forest hunters would never expect magic from her.

But she didn’t try to escape. Something was pulling her in the same direction. For better or for worse, she realized she would find what she was looking for down that path. Curiosity fought a bloody battle against her burning need to take control of the situation.

“So, how long have you been here?” she asked the hunters. Talking would make this better. It would make her feel like she was in control of something.

“In hell?” the woman asked with a frostbitten smile. “Three-hundred-and-twenty-three years, give or take. The days kind of blend together. We don’t have much in the way of seasons down here.”

“That’s not true,” said the vampire. “We have hot-and-dry, and
really
hot-and-dry.”

The elf snorted.

“Your clothes look modern,” Naomi told the woman.

A crooked smirk twisted her lips. “I killed someone for them.”

Alrighty then. “But you three are not…”

“Dead?” The woman barked a laugh. “No, we were just sentenced to an eternity in hell. Apparently, death was too good for us, so the Magic Council sent us here.”

“Hell is not so bad once you get past the first decade or so.” A smirk curled the vampire’s lips. “Though the dearly departed don’t taste quite as good as the living.” He leaned in, inhaling Naomi’s scent. A look of longing spread across his face, and his eyes burned with hard need. “You smell like dessert.”

“Enough of that,” the woman snapped, pushing him back. “If you kill her, we won’t get to question her.”

The vampire dipped his chin. “As you say.”

He was still looking at Naomi, his tongue sliding across his lips in sweet relish. She decided a change in subject was in order.

“What are your names?” she asked them.

The woman, who was obviously in charge of the other two, said, “I’m Emma.” She pointed at the vampire. “That friendly vampire who wants to eat you is named Bruce. He’s been here for about two hundred years.” She indicated the elf. “And that’s Troy. He’s our band’s newbie. He’s only been with us for about fifty years.”

“How many more people are in your band?” Naomi asked.

“Enough questions.” Her eyes gleaming with suspicion, Emma pushed her down the path. “We’re not going to reveal our secrets to one of Valin’s spies.”

“I’m just trying to make conversation.”

“Well, don’t,” Emma told her. “We don’t trust you, and we’re not going to be friends.”

They spent the rest of the hike in silence. At least she’d been transported here in proper outdoor clothing. She’d have hated to tackle that hike in her evening gown and slippers.

With each step that they took, they climbed higher through woods thick with white ash—until they arrived at a forest mountain camp. A few animal-skin tents were scattered across a thick plateau of hardened mud speckled with stones. Naomi didn’t see anyone else.

Emma grabbed Naomi’s arm. “Come on. We’ll see if our leader knows what to do with you.”

Emma pulled her toward an open area in the middle of the camp, where a man stood making arrows with his knife. Even before he turned to face them, Naomi recognized him. The dragon prince.

Emma bowed her head to him and said, “My prince, we’ve caught a spy.”

The prince’s gaze shifted to Naomi, his eyes burning with darkness. It was like staring into the cold, merciless abyss. His kingdom of three were looking at him like he was a god.

“Where did you find her?” he asked, setting the arrow down on a long, flat rock that resembled a table.

“In the woods, about a kilometer outside of camp,” Emma said.

Bruce set Naomi’s weapons down at the prince’s feet. “She was carrying these.”

“She was fighting a group of Thunder Lizards,” Emma reported. “Her skills are adequate. She defeated the lizards, but then a pair of Hell Bears attacked. We killed the bears. Maybe we should have let her die.”

“No, the beasts of hell cannot be allowed to find their way to our camp. The demons see through their eyes.”

Well, it was nice to know His Majesty, the prince of practicality, treasured their little adventure together as much as Naomi had.

“The demons might see through hers as well. Though she claims she doesn’t know who Valin is.” Emma rolled her eyes, demonstrating exactly how she felt about that.

“You did well to bring her to me. I will take it from here,” he said.

Thus dismissed, the three hunters walked off. Emma looked amused, like she knew Naomi was about to die. Bruce the vampire winked at her. Was he trying to flirt with her? The elf just looked glum.

Naomi focused on the prince. He was watching her like she was a big puzzle he had to solve. There was something downright unsettling about that look in his eyes, as though he could read her mind.

“So, this is quite the kingdom you’ve got here, Your Majesty,” she said with a smile that only came easily because she’d had over two decades to perfect it.

His lips said nothing, but his eyes were singing a song that penetrated her to her very soul. She kept talking. It was the only way to calm the pulse thundering inside her ears.

“What is all this?” She indicated the piles of weapons. “Planning on staging an invasion?”

He scooped her weapons off the ground and handed them back to her. “Don’t concern yourself with that, Naomi.” He began to walk.

She followed. “Ah, so you do remember me. I was starting to wonder.”

“It’s hard to forget you.”

She wasn’t sure if that was meant as a compliment or as an insult.

“So do you have a real name, Your Highness?” she asked. “Or shall I just call you the prince of hell?”

A wicked smile slid across his lips. “That mouth is going to get you into trouble.”

“Actually,” she said. “I only get into trouble with evil princes.” She didn’t know why she was mouthing off like this. Maybe because the big, scary warrior prince made her nervous. “Most people find me charming.”

“Because you’re a fairy,” he said.

“Half-fairy actually.”

His nostrils flared as he inhaled deeply. “Fairy and…mage?”

“Yes,” she said. “You can smell that?”

“I can smell your magic. Though it feels masked. You’re not really here, are you?”

He turned to face her, the faded skin of a dead animal stretched out behind him, tinged with green and burnt with black scorch marks. They were inside of a tent. She hadn’t even noticed they’d entered it. Damn, he was distracting. What game was he playing at? Was he going to kill her? He must not have thought she was really a spy or he would never have given her her weapons back. Not that they would do much good against the massive, muscular dragon prince. He could probably snap her sword in half with his bare hands. He stepped forward, his movement smooth and supple despite his size. Naomi wasn’t the strongest person, but she had agility on her side. Against someone that strong and fast, she didn’t think it would be enough.

“You’re not really here,” he repeated, a statement rather than a question this time.

Naomi backed away from him. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“You’re not here in the spirit realm. Not all of you.”

“I…” He was so close that his scent flooded her nose. He didn’t have the stale stench that the hunters did. He smelled like burning spices. Sweet, hot spices burning with life and magic.

“Makani,” he said.

“What?”

“You asked for my name,” he said. “You may call me Makani.” He said it like he was letting her borrow the crown jewels of the Pacific.

Naomi pushed down her unease, covering it with a wide smile. “I don’t mind if I do.”

He grunted, obviously amused. He didn’t say anything more. He just stared at her in silence, letting his eyes do the talking. If only she could speak dragon. The space between them had shrunk to nothing. She felt like she was stuck inside of a really tiny box with a huge beast. A huge, sexy beast with no shirt on, which showed off his magnificent chest but still… She wondered what that beast would be like if he truly went wild. No, she shouldn’t even think about that. The answer was too scary.

“So, why did you bring me here? Planning on having your way with me?” she teased. She couldn’t let him know how nervous he made her. Predators pounced on any sign of weakness. So she went with her trusty old standby: flirting.

But rather than being caught off guard, rather than getting unsettled himself, his eyes slid over her body like he was considering her suggestion.

“On second thought,” she said quickly. “Never mind. I don’t think you could handle me.”

He glided toward her like a dragon soaring on the wind. She backed up—and hit a pole. He pressed his hands against the pole, trapping her without even touching her. His arms looked as hard as any iron cage.

He dipped his face to hers, speaking against her cheek. “When someone marches into my camp and says things like that, I tell her to put her money where her mouth is.”

The look in his eyes tempted her almost as much as it scared her. She didn’t know whether to run, fight, or throw him against the ground and actually put her money where her mouth was.

He leaned in. “What will it be, my lady?” His breath caressed her lips.

An eerie sensation electrified her senses. It felt like a river of flames sliding down her back, igniting every nerve ending it kissed. Whatever he was doing to her, she didn’t like it. Ok, she really, really liked it, but she didn’t want to.

“How did you get here?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said. She hardly recognized the rasp that was her voice. “A dark fairy attacked me. I’ve been having these visions ever since.”

“These aren’t just visions.”

The burning river plunged down her neck, drowning her in waves of deep, aching need. Sucking in air, she tried to move away. Chains rattled against her wrists. The bastard had chained her to the pole. Worse yet, she hadn’t even noticed. His magic was darker than she’d realized. Of course it was dark. It worked in hell. This was getting out of control.
She
was out of control.

“Let me go,” she demanded, pulling against her chains.

Nothing happened. She blasted them with Fairy Dust. Still nothing.

Smugness twisted his mouth into a smile. “Those chains are enchanted with spirit magic. They will withstand even your attacks.” His hand traced her cheek. His magic nipped at her neck.

She drew on the well of magic boiling inside of her, sucking up every drop of magic she had to blast the chains again. The metal links turned gold, but held.

He laughed. “You are trouble. You bring trouble.” His mouth hovered over hers. As it dipped to kiss her, magic ripped her from the spirit realm.

* * *

Naomi rose from the floor. She slapped her hands against her legs, trying to shake the lingering tingles of the spirit realm from her body. She looked down at her watch. She’d lost a quarter of an hour to the vision. Blast it.

She moved in silence. She hadn’t heard anyone down here, but that didn’t mean guards weren’t posted somewhere inside of this huge underground maze. She felt something strange—something familiar—but she couldn’t say what it was. Some kind of magic? Yes, magic. It felt like magic. But the only place she’d ever been able to feel magic was while she was in the spirit realm. Maybe she was still stuck there. That was a happy thought.

The trail of familiar magic led her down turning hallways until she came to a room drenched in dirt. Iron chains hung from the walls, locked around the wrists of dead prisoners. There were ten of them. Their skin was colorless, except for the streaks of crusted blood. Someone stirred in the room of corpses. A moan broke his cracked lips.