Passion Ignites (10 page)

“My sister is the one sent to seduce Mikkel,” she said while gasping for air.

Ulrik loosened his hold, a frown taking root. “Taraeth sent her.”

The Dark jerked her head up and down. She didn't claw at his hands, but kept her arms by her sides. “The king trusts few.”

“Did he pick you to come to me today?”

“Yes,” she whispered.

Ulrik released her. “What does Mikkel really want you to do with me?”

She touched her throat with her hand and swallowed several times before she raised her eyes to him. “He wants to search your store.”

“For what?”

“He wants to be sure you're not plotting against him.”

So, the bastard wasn't as dumb as he looked. Ulrik took a step back from the female and released her. “What's your name?”

“Muriel.”

“Well, Muriel, do I believe you or no'?”

She gawked at him. “I've no reason to lie. I hold no allegiance to Mikkel.”

“And what if I do?”

She lifted her chin. “You don't.”

Ulrik liked her spunk. “He's my uncle.”

“And the one trying to usurp what is rightfully yours.”

“What else do you know?” he asked, thoroughly captivated.

Her face softened. “I know that you're not a man to back down from what he wants.”

He raised a brow.

“I know that you've been meeting with Taraeth for centuries. Long before your uncle.”

It wasn't until that moment that Ulrik realized she was after something. “You've seen a lot, little Dark.”

She shrugged indifferently.

“What do you want?” he asked.

Her gaze swept over him. “A night in your arms.”

“Just a night?” he teased.

“As long as you'll have me.”

She was flirting with him now. “What do you really want?” he asked.

“I want revenge.”

No one understood the need for vengeance better than Ulrik. He had been planning his for Constantine for what seemed like an eternity. But he was closing in on his prize.

“Against?” he asked.

She cocked her head to the side. “You have your secrets. I have mine.”

Ulrik's gut told him not to trust her. He didn't trust anyone. There was something about her that made him consider the option however. She saw a lot in Taraeth's court. She could tell him much about Mikkel's comings and goings.

Then again, she could be telling Mikkel his plans.

“I'll help you, Ulrik, King of Silvers, if you'll help me,” she purred and ran her hand up his chest.

He grasped her wrist, halting her arm. Then he bent his head until their lips were nearly touching. “Shall we seal the deal with a kiss?”

“I thought you'd never ask,” she said huskily right before she put her mouth to his.

 

CHAPTER

TWELVE

When Lexi next opened her eyes, she noticed how much better she felt. It was the noise that drew her attention. She raised her head and found Thorn in the kitchen making coffee with his back to her.

His dark hair was pulled back today. She rested her head on her arm to get a better look at him. His gray shirt once more hugged his impressive body. His long sleeves were pushed up past his elbows. His black jeans gripped his narrow hips, showing off his fine ass and his long legs.

Though he looked good in the clothes, she couldn't help but imagine him in something more … historical. Like a kilt, or even something piratey.

He took a drink of the coffee, then with mug in hand turned to face her with a smile. “Good afternoon.”

Lexi groaned as she glanced out the window. There were clouds again, once more hiding the sun. She couldn't tell what time it was.

“How many days did I lose this time?”

“Just the one,” he answered. “How do you feel?”

Lexi took stock of her body. It no longer felt as if she had been dragged behind a vehicle. “Better, actually.”

“Good. You have the flu.”

Wonderful. Just what she needed. “I don't feel like I have the flu.”

He raised a dark brow, his gaze pinning her as he walked to the bed. “We had a doctor come see you last night. She gave you a shot. Her orders were that you stay inside.”

“Impossible.” Lexi sat up and rolled her head from one side to the other to stretch it. “I have things that need to be done.”

“Like catching Christina's killer?”

She froze. Slowly, she slid her gaze to Thorn with her heart thumping in her chest. How had he known?

“You said a lot when the fever had you.” He shrugged then and said, “After, I searched the names of the victims and found Christina's. It didna take much afterward to put two and two together.”

Lexi leaned back against the wall with the pillows behind her back. “I had one week left. I've lost four days. Three won't be enough to find him.”

“You willna have those three. If you leave this flat in this weather, you could relapse.”

Lexi lowered her gaze to her hands clasped in her lap. “I promised I would find her murderer.”

Thorn let out a long-suffering sigh. “There is much you doona know. You're no' the only one fighting them.”

“You are?” she asked as her gaze went to him. She leaned forward, wondering if she'd really seen him heal, or if it had been a dream. “Tell me all you know. Please.”

He hesitated, as if he couldn't make up his mind. A resigned expression came over his face. “What have you seen them do?”

“Change,” she replied instantly. “I've seen them change the color of their eyes and hair. How do they do that? Is it some illusion?”

“Nay. It's magic.”

It was on the tip of Lexi's tongue to tell him magic didn't exist, but by the seriousness of his gaze, she kept silent. “How?”

“Do you believe you're the only intelligent beings on this earth?”

She scrunched up her face. “Well, duh.”

“You'd be wrong.”

Her breath left her in a whoosh. “You're lying.”

“I'm no',” he said softly. He leaned forward and put his forearms on his thighs, his gaze on the floor. “Lexi, I doona wish to tell you any of this. You're no' ready for it. But I also know that if I doona, you could get yourself killed. You need to understand the full extent of the danger.”

“Then tell me.” Lexi was proud of herself. Her voice was smooth, even if she was shaking on the inside, as if on another level, she knew she wasn't going to like what she heard.

“What you've seen are the Fae. The Dark Fae, to be precise. There are Light Fae, but it's the Dark who have the red eyes.”

Lexi sank against the wall. She had heard him call them Dark. But Fae? Surely not. Beings like that only existed in fairy tales.

“You doona believe me.”

She looked to find Thorn staring at her. “I … I don't know what to think. I know a man with red eyes killed Christina, though there wasn't a mark on her. I know that I've seen them change in ways that defy logic. Yet, if the Fae were real, wouldn't more people know of them?”

“They came to his realm millions of years ago. The Dark feed off souls. You didna find a mark on Christina because every time they had sex with her, they took parts of her soul until nothing was left.”

Lexi was going to be sick. She clutched her stomach wanting to tell Thorn to stop while at the same time silently begging him to tell her everything.

“There was a war. The Fae Wars. The Fae were stopped before they could take over this realm. They signed a treaty agreeing to stay away, but the earth is a large place and no' everywhere can be patrolled. They slipped in here and there, taking their victims.”

“Who fought the Fae? Us?”

Thorn sat back in the chair. There was doubt in his eyes, as if he didn't want to tell her the answer.

Lexi wasn't going to give in so easily. “You began this. Tell me. Because if it was us, that's not something that would've been kept secret.”

“Nay, it wasna humans.”

Somehow Lexi already knew that's what his answer would be. “There are other beings here?”

He gave a single nod.

“Who? What?” she urged.

“They keep to themselves. You'll never see them.”

“But you know them.”

Thorn waved his hand. “I help them.”

“I want to help. I want to fight the Fae.”

“No' all Fae are bad,” he said. “The Light Fae sided with the other beings and helped end the Fae War.”

Lexi rolled her eyes in agitation. “Fine. I want to fight the Dark.”

“You have no magic.”

She laughed at this. “As if any human does.” When he didn't so much as blink, she knew she was once more wrong. What the hell was happening to the world she knew? “There are those with magic?”

“Druids.”

“Oh.” What else could she say? There was so little history about the Druids. Now she began to see why. “I have to avenge Christina.”

“The Dark seduce you with a look, a smile, a touch. No one can withstand their pull. Your body instinctively knows it'll receive unimaginable pleasure at their hands. You seek it, crave it—and unknowingly go willing to your death.”

Lexi's stomach rolled. Poor Christina. She never stood a chance. “Is there a way to block what the Dark do?”

Thorn's head leaned to the side as he studied her. “I know a few who can. It's rare, however, I watched you shake off their attempt.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Dark use glamour to change their appearance and hide their red eyes. You then wouldna be able to tell if you were talking to a human or a Fae. You felt the desire they can flip on in a human like a switch, and yet you fought it and got away.”

Lexi remembered that encounter on the street. She hadn't known that's what was happening, or that she had come that close to dying. “How did I do it?”

“I'd verra much like to know.”

“I've seen others flock to the Re … Dark all over town. Why are their eyes red?”

Thorn rubbed his palms on his thighs. “All Fae are breathtakingly beautiful. They also all have black hair. It's a choice the Fae make to turn Dark. The first time they take a life, their eyes turn from silver to red. The more lives they take, the more silver runs through their hair.”

Lexi thought back to the guy who had killed Christina. His hair was more silver than black. “Dear God.”

“I can understand you wanting to avenge your friend's death, but if you get close to a Dark, it'll be your life you lose.”

Lexi shook her head. “This can't be real. Please tell me this is all some kind of sick joke.”

“I'm sorry, but I can no'.”

“I didn't think so. It's just … how could all of this be happening and no one get that it's other beings doing it?”

Thorn smiled sadly. “Humans like to pretend they're the only ones here.”

“Yeah.” Lexi had wanted to know the truth, but it made things much more complicated. How could she ever trust anyone again? If a Dark was using glamour, she'd never know it.

“I have a friend who has been hunting the Dark with me. His name is Darius,” Thorn said as he got to his feet. “He'll be here shortly. He went to your place and gathered your clothes.”

Lexi took a deep breath to try to steady herself. “Where am I, by the way?”

“A friend's. Her name is Darcy Allen.”

“That's right. You told me that.” She blinked, because she now knew she hadn't dreamed he had healed before her very eyes.

“Her place was warded by a Light against all Fae. The Dark can no' get to you here.”

“I saw you heal.”

His dark eyes dropped to the floor as he sighed.

When he didn't reply, she said, “Say something.”

“I'd hoped you had forgotten that.”

“Forgotten?” she asked in surprise. “How could I possibly forget that I stabbed you and watched your skin mend on its own?”

He shrugged and lifted his gaze to her. “You were still ill.”

“What are you to be able to do something like that? Is it magic?”

“Aye.”

“Are you a Druid then?” Because he wasn't Fae. He was unimaginably good-looking, and though his hair was dark, it wasn't black.

“Nay.” Thorn motioned to the kitchen. “If you're hungry, I can heat up some soup.”

“That sounds good.” Lexi scooted to the edge of the bed and let him change the subject. For now. “I'd also like a shower.”

Thorn eyed her. “Are you strong enough for that?”

“Probably not, but I'm going to do it,” she stated.

He smiled as he turned away. “I'll start your food then.”

Lexi waited until he was in the kitchen before she gingerly climbed out of bed. The last time she had nearly fallen on her face. She didn't want a repeat.

She took her time walking to the bathroom. After she turned on the water to get it hot, she looked in the mirror and closed her eyes at what she saw. Her hair was sticking out everywhere. She was pale with ugly, dark circles beneath her eyes.

It wasn't like she wanted Thorn to ask her out on a date—
liar!
—but she didn't want to look awful either. Lexi turned away from the mirror and stripped out of the gown.

It wasn't until she stood beneath the spray of water that she remembered Thorn had seen her naked. He hadn't shown the least bit of interest.

“You've been ill,” Lexi told herself.

She angrily shoved aside such thoughts and began to wash. As she did, her mind went over all that Thorn had told her.

Fae. There were Fae on Earth, as well as some other kind of being. Those others had saved humans from the Fae, but why would they want to remain secret?

Then again, with the history of what humans did to things they didn't understand, she could well comprehend their decision. Still, she wished she could thank them for helping.