“I don’t know how long it will be until I see you again,” I breathed, crushing her in my embrace and almost feeling like the little boy who used to crawl into bed with her when she got home late from a Council meeting, even though I was now more than a foot taller than her.
“I’m always in your heart, Caleb. And you’re always in mine.” She pressed a kiss to my cheek, squeezing me one last time before stepping back and disappearing in a swirl of stardust.
My gut clenched as I watched her go, knowing she was heading back into the lap of that psychopath and fearing that I might have just seen my mother for the final time. Our parents were the closest Fae in the whole of Solaria to his level of power. They were the most obvious threat surrounding him. And maybe for now he cared enough about public opinion to try and force them into line rather than just killing them off, but long term? I didn’t trust him one fucking bit. Which really just meant we needed to work even harder to bring him down as fast as possible.
I drew in a deep breath, took my own stardust from my pocket and left the desert behind as I fell into the embrace of the stars.
I landed back in the cold, snowy landscape which housed The Burrows, glancing around once more as I failed to spot the farmhouse or anything to let anyone know that the rebel stronghold was right beneath my feet. The illusions around this place were strong and I was certain I wouldn’t have found it at all if I didn’t already know its position and hadn’t been granted the right to enter.
I started walking, my eyes set on a distant snow-covered mountain as I went until I met the resistance of the magical barrier flaring against my senses. I ground my teeth as the power of the magic tore through me and the next moment the farmhouse and barn appeared alongside a ring of worn-out snow which had been trampled along the edge of the barrier.
I frowned at the set of footprints which were ground right down to the mud before the sound of a wolfish bark made me spin just in time to get pounced on by a big ass white Wolf.
Seth knocked me to the ground, making an oomph leave me and I laughed as I fell beneath him in the snow and he ran the pad of his tongue right up the centre of my face.
“Gah!” I batted him away and his excitable yips turned into laughter as he shifted back, straddling me and grinning widely.
“Dude, I’ve been pacing since the moment you left,” he began. “I’m so fucking hyped up it’s untrue. I don’t think I’ve ever been so glad to see your gorgeous face before.”
“Oh yeah? Just how grateful are you to find me alive and well?” I asked, my gaze trailing over his neck and landing on the thump of his pulse beneath his skin.
“I see how it is - you only want me for my blood,” he huffed, leaning back and giving me a clear look at his abs, not to mention his cock which was out and pretty much half mast. Then again, he always seemed to be hard these days so I was starting to think it must be a Wolf thing. He was used to getting laid a whole hell of a lot with his pack after all so maybe his body had grown used to the demand of satisfying so many of them.
“Are you staring at my dick?” Seth asked, tilting his head as he looked down at me and I snapped my gaze back to his face.
“More like the artery in your thigh,” I replied quickly though that wasn’t entirely true.
“Oh yeah? Well maybe if you can overpower me then you can bite me there,” he teased and my grin turned feral as I felt the bloodlust powering through my veins.
“Promise?” I demanded.
“Cross my heart and hope to die,” he replied before shoving himself off of me and taking off fast towards the barn, his bare ass on full display in the pale light of the day.
I tried to shoot after him but found myself rooted to the ground by earth magic I hadn’t even noticed him wielding.
A curse spilled from my lips as I severed the roots which were clinging to my shirt and jeans before lunging to my feet and taking chase.
Seth cast a blizzard of air magic back at me as he raced for the barn, almost knocking me on my ass before I managed to shoot aside, speeding around to the other side of him so fast that he couldn’t change the direction of the wind in time to stop my advance.
He darted into the barn and I chased right behind him, scenting blood in the air and losing control of the beast inside me as I slammed into his back and whirled him around, throwing him against the rotting wooden wall of the barn.
Seth swore and threw a punch at me but I dove below his strike, dropping to my knees before him, grabbing hold of his leg and yanking it aside a second before driving my fangs into the thick vein at the top of his thigh.