Farren
My mind was a collision of two worlds—the timid Farren who barely knew the guys or herself and the old Farren who was fucking livid about what had happened. I’d lost far too much time, and now that I could feel some magic thrumming in my veins again, I wanted blood.
I was far from whole, though. Zehra was still silent, and this magic, while helping boost what little I had, wasn’t fully mine, nor was it as strong as mine used to be. But it was a whole lot better than being lost and devoid of any magic at all.
“I’m going after him. He’s weak. I had another one of those dream encounters with him, and I somehow managed to take more of my magic back.Nowis the time,” I announced. Then my gaze landed on the small eggs in West’s arms, and my heart clenched. I couldn’t stand the idea of bringing them into a world that was this uncertain and dangerous. “Fuck. The babies!”
“I can protect them,” West offered. “I’m too old to fight, and you need her to get close. I agree with her. Strike while he’s weak.”
“She just woke up!” Niko protested. Although he was speaking to West, he was looking at me with wild, panicked eyes. “No, Farren. You’re too weak, and we can’t risk it. I can’t lose you again.”
“And you won’t,” I promised, “but I need to be whole, Niko. You have to understand that. I don't know how it happened, but I feelamazing. Stronger than before.”
“Siren magic,” West said like that should give me all the answers. “A sacred scale and a bargain.”
I laughed at the devious old man I loved like a father. “You and your bargains. I’d swear you were fae if I didn’t know you.”
“Farren, please,” Avi said gently.
“You have to understand all we’ve been forced to watch happen, helpless to stop it,” Kane argued. I winced, knowing they were right, but we were at a crossroads. Once the dragonlings hatched, they wouldn’t leave my side until they changed into their human forms at about a month old. There was no way I could ride into battle with them so close.
“For what it’s worth, Cadmus agrees with her,” Levi said weakly. “I don’t want it, but I get it.”
My poor, sweet Levi. I walked over and wrapped him in my arms. “Thank you for saving me. I know your magic is what started this recovery. I could feel it in my dream.”
“I’d give anything for you,” he said softly, making my chest tighten with his words. I’d give my mates the world if I could, but right now I just wanted to give safety to my babies.
We stared at each other, all of the others too stubborn to give in even though they knew this was the best course of action.
“Our babies could be safe in a few hours. Your past could be truly behind you,” I said gently. “My mind is kind of split right now, trying to make sense of the old and new memories, but I know what that hideout of his looks like. We have to get to the basement of these buildings. It was actual architecture, not simply a rough cave. And we already know he’d keep the victims close to his hideout to recharge himself… if our theories are correct. It’s here somewhere. It has to be.”
“Oh, I have a key to town hall,” West said. “I stole it from the mayor a few years ago during a bad round of poker. The asshole was serving us cheap wine, and I knew the bottles in the wine cellar were better.” The smirk on his face and faraway look had us shaking our heads. “Farren, it’s in my safe, labeledtown hall. There’s also a shadow rune in there. Take it. It’ll keep onlookers from asking questions.”
“Thank you, West,” I said fiercely as I rushed over to embrace him. Each egg got a quick brush of my fingers before I was gone. Call me callous, but I forced myself to not take them into my arms for even a second. If I did, I might not leave.
I let Kane take my hand and drag me away from our cabin, but something told me to turn. My jaw dropped at the sight around us, and my heart clenched with both envy and pride. My brood was surrounding our cabin in a show of strength. They stretched out their wings when they spotted me and let out a collective roar that rumbled through the sky.
If only I could return the call.
“Come on. We’ll get her back,” Levi promised as he urged us to move. Four dragons parted from the group, following us from the sky. It was nice to have extra protection in case we needed it.
“Where’s West’s safe?” Avi asked as we walked into the hotel.
“His office,” I said. With most of the dragons outside, Mountainview was far too quiet. Our footsteps were loud on the hardwood floors as we made our way to the office. They stood back while I went in and pushed on the large dry erase board behind his desk. It swung outward, revealing the safe in question. I input the code and laughed at the sight of a jar of keys.
“Found it,” I mused as I held up one of the keys a minute later. Kane had dumped them all out, which made that a lot easier.
“Yup, I’d say so,” he deadpanned before he shoved the rest back in the jar. I put it back in the safe, took out the rune, and tucked his handgun into my waistband. Supernaturals got cocky, and magical attacks could be slow. Sometimes human weapons were superior. Plus, the twisted, pissed off side of me thought that it might be nice to put a bullet in the bastard’s head.
“A gun?” Niko asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “And I thought your memory loss would send me to an early grave. This is far worse.”
“But hot. You can’t tell me that revenge Farren doesn’t have a whole badass vibe about her,” Kane argued.
“She does,” he agreed, “but she’s still my mate.”
“Ourmate,” Levi reminded him.
“She can hold her own,” Avi said as he put a hand on Niko’s arm. “Now, let’s go.”