Authors: Lynn Cahoon
Return of the Fae (16 page)
“Not here. My senses are on overload, and I’m not sure why. Hospitals are filled with energy because of the number of births and deaths happening in one place. I might be reacting.” Ty frowned.
“But you don’t think that’s it. You think we’re being watched.”
Ty nodded.
“Well, the good news is April’s fine.”
Ty’s head snapped back. “What?”
Parris’ smile was tired, at least she felt like smiling at his reaction. “She’s suffering a bad case of morning sickness.”
Ty’s eyes widened. “I’m going to kill that kid when I find him.”
“I think you’ll have to stand in line behind April’s dad.” Parris glanced at her watch. “Look, she’ll need a ride home. I can stay and take her in a cab. You don’t have to stay.”
“I’m not leaving. You want some bad coffee? The hospital should have something open.” Ty stood stretching.
“Yeah. And a muffin.” Parris refused to meet Ty’s eyes. “I know we just ate dinner. I’m an emotional eater, deal with it.”
“Chocolate or fruit?” His tone gentle.
“Both.” Parris sat on the couch where she could watch the doors where April would be leaving the treatment center. “Maybe I can get April to eat something.”
Parris watched Ty head down the hall. She must be tired, it sounded like Ty knew April’s baby daddy. Could that have been who he was talking to on the phone? Parris’ eyelids drooped and she leaned her head back against the wall. Just a few seconds of sleep, that’s what she needed, then maybe she could think clearly.
* * * *
When Ty returned with the coffee and a bag of muffins, he took off his jacket and covered her. They stayed that way for the next three hours, until April showed up at the treatment door in a wheelchair but alive. He shook Parris awake. He needed to explain that April had become part of her extended family.
April carried the child of a warlock, a pregnancy that could kill her before she came to term. Ty hoped he’d be able to save them all.
Chapter 17
The Teutonic Gods mix legend from Germanic and Norse Gods. Worship of these Gods, either the Vanir or the Esir, is prohibited. Recognizing these Gods as deities put us all at risk, including the humans. Failure to report a sighting or a calling of the gods will result in extreme punishment. – The Academy of Witchcraft Manual, Volume 3, Page 1699.
Ten o’clock the next morning, Ty, Parris, and Derek sat at the April’s kitchen table. April tucked upstairs in bed, still sleeping, and a pot of herbal tea at her side. Matilda’s special tea blend for pregnancy had a gentle sedative mixed in, trying to keep April’s human body from fighting with the fetus growing inside her. She needed to be stable, clear, when they told her the entire truth. April had to make the decision. She was the only link to the Coven X.
Alex Cabot, the intern at his law firm, the kid he’d trusted with delivering Parris’ keys and keeping Mrs. Winters safe from her scheming husband, apparently belonged to Coven X targeting Parris’ family. Derek had come up against a blank wall when he’d run the background check on the kid. Nothing out of the ordinary. Except he’d gone to school in Boston. And Boston was within driving distance of Salem.
“Every time I look at Parris’s family history, all roads lead back to Salem.” Derek filled their cups with coffee. He was the only one who looked like he’d slept last night. Parris looked like hell, dark circles under her eyes making her face paler than normal. A sleeping Dragon lay on her lap. Ty asked Derek to stop at Parris’ condo on the way back from Council headquarters to pick up clothes and the dog. With little fanfare, they’d moved the headquarters of Witch Hunter’s International to April’s small house near the college.
Matilda and Robert arrived soon after Parris tucked April into bed. Matilda’s nose crinkled from the odor of the spell coming from the living room. After brewing April’s tea, the two cleansed the house, removing any trace of Alex Cabot. Except for the package he’d left growing in April’s womb.
“Salem.” Ty stopped thinking about Alex and the many reasons he wanted to kill the kid. “Maybe we should take a road trip?”
Parris frowned. “I can’t take off again. Who will run the bar? Who will stay with April?”
Matilda slipped into the small kitchen and sat on a chair near Parris. “Robert and I will stay with April. We can manage the bar. Jake has wanted to prove he’s more than a bartender. Give him a chance.”
“What are we going to find in Salem we can’t figure out here?” Parris rubbed Dragon’s ears absently.
“You think they would set up headquarters in The Council’s territory? The Council purposely stays away from Salem. Too many bad memories and power surges. It’s the perfect place for a coven to hide.” Derek glanced at his phone. “Should I reserve The Council’s jet?”
Ty watched the people sitting around the table. For a confirmed bachelor with no ties except his friendship with Derek three months ago, somehow he’d become part of this rag tag family. A family he felt bound to protect. “No. Book us flights on an airline for tomorrow morning. The delay will give Parris time to get the bar in order. And settle Dragon here in his new surroundings.”
“I shouldn’t leave April.” Parris unconsciously glanced up at the second floor. “This happened because I left her in charge so I could go to Cincinnati.”
“No, this happened because I sent Alex to the bar to deliver your keys. If anyone’s to blame for what’s happening upstairs, it’s me.” Ty covered Parris’ hand with his own.
Robert stood at the doorway. “I think assigning blame on anyone but this Alex fellow is selfish.” He glanced around the table. “You need to come see this.”
The group followed Robert upstairs into April’s room. Her deep breaths echoed through the room. Matilda’s tea had done the trick, she was deep in sleep.
Robert glanced up, making eye contact with each of the four in turn. Kneeling down, he threw back the rug under April’s bed. “Look.”
Ty’s senses flared as the rune glowed with power. The symbol had been burned into the floor, with others circling around the bed. “Frey,” he whispered.
Robert nodded. “Vanir runes, but look at this–it’s Loki, the trickster. He’s part of the Esir. Why would the two be together?”
Matilda sighed. “Because the coven has made a covenant with both. Combining their power, it makes them virtually unstoppable.”
April sighed and rolled over in her sleep, clearly in the middle of a dream. Ty wondered what the girl dreamed. Wondered how many peaceful dreams she would have after they explained her life changed forever. Not only was she going to become a mom, she carried the child of a warlock. Collateral damage in a war she shouldn’t even know was happening.
“We leave for Salem in the morning. Get done what needs done, we may be gone a while.” Ty turned and walked back downstairs. He needed to put his affairs in order. Salem was a hot spot. He would be focused, strong, and protect this group of people.
His family.
Other Lyrical Books By Lynn Cahoon
A Member of the Council
The Council Series, Book 1
About Lynn Cahoon
When I started thinking about Ty and Parris’ next adventure, I wanted to expand their world.
Toki came about when taking a break from edits for
A Member of the Council
and I was running–okay, walking fast–on the treadmill at the gym. And once the fae show up in your story, other magical folk are sure to follow.
When Lynn Cahoon isn’t writing about witches and council issues, she’s writing about the hot and sexy cowboys that walk the streets of her hometown.
Or do in her imagination. You can find out more at
www.lynncahoon.wordpress.com
her website, A Fairy Tale Life.
Return of the Fae
9781616504731
Copyright © 2013, Lynn Cahoon
Edited by Antonia Tiranth
Book design by Lyrical Press, Inc.
Cover Art by Valerie Tibbs
First Lyrical Press, Inc. electronic publication: July 2013
Lyrical Press, Incorporated
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.
Published in the United States of America by Lyrical Press, Incorporated
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