bed and left Ruya sleeping, her cat and her bird friend watching over her. It was the dead of night, and I was thoroughly worn out. I wanted to curl up with my witch and sleep the night—and half the next day—away, now that her omega need was easing. But I also wanted a chance to speak to the leader of this strange rebel court, and I wasn’t going to get anywhere using broken mindspeak or long, handwritten letters.
I slipped through the hallways to my own borrowed suite. The door of this room didn’t have a lock on the inside. Though I was pretty sure it could be secured from the outside. It made me wonder just what kind of “guests” these people usually entertained. But goddess knew Odell had rooms just like it at the conservatory. At least no one had ever locked me in here.
I turned on a weak lamp by the bedside and arranged the pillows against the headboard. Then I climbed in to sit cross-legged against them. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and willed my shoulders to relax. I was probably going to end up a toasted treat for even attempting this, but…I really wanted this little court to succeed.
The system that governed the paranormal world was broken. If the emperor wasn’t in charge of the syndicate, how much suffering could be eliminated? If he had never come to power, would I have a family still? Would I have been raised by people who loved me for simply existing, rather than out to of the obligation to help a stranger or the lust for a tool to help them secure their court? And my life had been far more pleasant than some other paranorm’s lives. It was worth the risk of being eaten by a dragon, if I could do anything to help get rid of the emperor.
I took deep, slow breaths, lengthening my exhales, slowing my mind and calming my body so I could slip into a state somewhere between sleeping and waking. Then, I skimmed my surroundings, sending out mental feelers looking for the sharp mind and powerful aura I needed.
The wards were an ever-present irritant at the periphery of my mind, a pulsing warning, a pressure that grew harsher as I toed the line between guest and threat by using my magic. I focused through the dull headache that was already building. There. I was in luck. Robin was sleeping, and she wasn’t shielded the way I had feared she might be. I nudged myself forward, merging my consciousness with hers.
A beautiful scene blossomed around me as I sought to weave a background that would be soothing to the dreamer. It was pulled from Robin’s own mind. Not a memory of a real place, but a visual representation of the emotions she found pleasant. I stood on a high place, with a deep cave cut into the peak of the mountain off to one side. The shadowed depths glittered with massive crystals of ruby and amethyst, winking with a warm light that reminded me of fire. Thick, ancient forests covered the hillside around the cave opening, littered with a multitude of wildlife. I turned in a circle, looking out over the sharp drop on my other side, taking in how high up we were, and the beauty of the rolling hills below. I even spied a city down there, it’s lights twinkling like yet more precious gems in the falling dusk.
A rumbling growl shook the ground and vibrated in the air around me as the dreamer I sought slowly noticed my presence. I turned to face the dragon as she emerged from the glittering cave, my palms up in a gesture of peace. Words escaped me for a moment. She was gorgeous. A stunning creature of reds and golds. Her long, serpentine body was reminiscent of an Asiatic dragon, as was the shimmering red-gold mane of hair that crested her head and neck, but there were hints of a more western lineage in there too, in the shape of her four powerful legs. Talons as long as my arm dug into the rocky ground as she prowled out of the shadows.
“Peace, dragon,” I said, taking a small step backward. “I just wanted to talk to you.”
I held my ground as she loped around me, her supple body undulating in a way that was mesmerizing, even as she sized me up for eating. “You dare slip into my mind, fae?”
At least she wasn’t swiping at me with those wicked claws. Yet. The damage might not be fatal, but I could feel pain here, just as intensely as in the real world. “I thought it was the best way to communicate,” I answered. “My mindspeak is garbage—broken and garbled. More impressions of what I’m thinking than actual sentences. That’s why I only share it with a select few. And besides….” I paused to look up, giving her a wry smile. “I’m pretty sure mindspeaking to you in the waking world would have gotten me killed. Your court would probably murder me on the spot if I so much as thought about whispering into the mind of their alpha.”
She stopped pacing around me and lowered her head, bringing those gold-flecked reptilian eyes level with my face. “So, you decided to let me kill you here instead?”
I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest and ignoring the heat I could feel radiating off the dragon’s scales. Of course she had fire. Because nothing could be easy. And because this was Robin we were talking about. Even knowing her just a short time, I got the distinct impression that nothing she ever did was less than impressive. Why should her shifted shape be any different? “I was hoping to save the murdering for later. I have information for you. And I thought it would be best conveyed through talking, rather than me writing you a novel that you probably wouldn’t read.”
Her long, tufted tail flicked, whipping about with unnerving speed. “Talk then,” she commanded. “Though I don’t know why you think I should trust anything one of Odell’s little sycophants has to say.”
I grinned. “Sycophants. Nice. I like it. Very haughty royalty.”
She bared her teeth at me. Long, pointed teeth that could easily skewer through my body in a blink. This might be a dream, but it didn’t make dying here any less pleasant. And also…she was a dragon in the waking world too. So she could give me the pleasant experience of being eaten alive twice if she so chose.
“Look,” I said, cutting right to the chase. I had a feeling Robin wouldn’t go for the slow, gentle, cajoling approach I usually used on dreamers to lull them into trusting me. “I hate Odell. I loathe the syndicate. Maybe more than some, since they kind of ruined my life and put me in a position where I had to put up with Odell to survive. I’d be fucking thrilled if you really can disrupt their hold over the paranorm community.”
She huffed and a puff of smoke escaped her mouth, rolling over me and leaving me feeling half boiled. “How kind of you. I’m so glad I have the blessing of one little faun. I was just a nervous wreck wondering if you approved of me.”
I shook my head. This woman. “The vampires. That’s where you need to focus to get more information. They know more about the emperor than anyone else. I don’t know all the details, but I know the vampire queen has met the emperor in person—often enough that Odell was mad with jealousy. That’s the only reason Odell’s court is cozying up to the vampires with all their fake overtures of cooperation and friendship.” I shrugged. “I was tasked with getting information out of the vampire queen while she slept during one of her visits to the conservatory. She was wearing enough protective magic that I couldn’t get much. But I know she’s withholding information from Odell. Something that makes her feel smug.”
Robin started pacing again, and I couldn’t take my eyes off the graceful way the dragon moved. “That’s your big reveal? That the vampires know…something? How helpful.”
I ran a hand through my hair. Was the alpha always this stubborn? Or was it just because she despised me? Maybe it was because she knew I was intimate with Ruya. Who knew? “Send me to the vampires,” I said, dropping my hand and staring her right in the eye. “The queen might let her guard down in her own territory. And even if she doesn’t, I can travel the dreams of her closest court members. I can get you more information, help you figure out what you need to know. Where the emperor goes to ground. What his strengths and weaknesses are. I know he has a powerful magical artifact and a banshee on his side, if what the queen let slip is correct. But I can get you details. Information you need to be successful on this suicide mission of yours.”
Robin snorted smoke at me again. “You are assuming I don’t already have the information I need. I have spent decades planning and building my powerbase and contacts, and you think you have something to offer?” Her snout came close to me again, those gold eyes narrowing. “Why do you care if I succeed or fail? What’s in it for you. Really.”
I stomped a hoof. I rarely ever lost my temper, but for some reason, this shifter was trying my patience. “What’s in it for me? You mean besides the liberation of our people? Besides the fact that I don’t want more families destroyed, more people manipulated and suffering under the thumb of the syndicate? Do I need another reason?”
She shimmered, the massive dragon body compressing, dwindling down to human form. Robin’s willowy frame was clad in a perfectly fitted red sheath dress, and gold and jewels glittered at her wrist, throat, and ears. Her long red-gold hair rippled loose down her back in a sparkling waterfall. Never anything by half, she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen—besides Ruya. But while Ruya was still growing into her power and confidence, this woman was fully in command of those traits. She paced closer to me, prowling around me in a slow circle the same way she had in her dragon form. “You’re not Odell’s dog,” she said, her husky voice low and musing.
I didn’t trust that look she was giving me. “No.”
She tilted her head, still circling like a predator about to pounce. It was unnerving. “You’re trying to steal my mate from me.” Still that even, husky purr. But those words held so much danger I could feel my body and soul brace for death.
“No,” I said, pushing out a wave of calm, hoping I wasn’t about to feel those long, red-lacquered nails tear into my flesh.
She arched a brow at me, her expression saying she didn’t believe me. Then she frowned. “Why did I say that? What are you doing to my mind? More fae tricks?”
She was getting closer and closer to me with each circle she made. I held up my hands. “No tricks. People just tend to be more honest in the dream space.”
She growled at me. It should have been terrifying. And it was. I felt goosebumps ripple along my skin as all my hair stood on end. But I also felt a surge of lust. Fauns were adventurous by nature. Death and pleasure were both peak experiences and all that.
“Ruya isn’t my mate,” the dragon snapped. “She’s just a lost omega with stars in her eyes and no concept of how the real world works.”
It raised my eyebrows at her in disbelief. “Sure.” She was so full of shit. “But here’s the thing. You do think of her as part of your court—your pack. And as an alpha it’s natural for you to want to protect her. We have that in common. I’m no alpha or anything, just a throwaway lesser fae. But I want Ruya to have a good life. One where she’s free to make her own decisions. One where it’s safe for her to walk down the damn street without declaring an alliance to some fuckstick on a power trip who wants to use her then toss her aside.”
Robin stopped pacing and I stared into her pretty golden-brown eyes. “I thought you and the rest of your court were just more of the same,” I told her honestly. “That you were only using her too. But I admit I was wrong.”
Robin huffed a bitter laugh. “But I am using her.” She shrugged, her husky voice going cold. “You were right. I have a court to protect. Avenging my family takes precedent, but I will do my duty as an alpha for as long as I can. And what better way to protect my court than to have a powerful healer at my beck and call?”
I rolled my eyes. “Bullshit. I’ve seen the way you all go out of your way to protect her. To give her as much freedom as you can. To look after her, even when it drives her insane. I see the way you all look at her—even you, alpha—like she hung the moon. You’re all so busy trying to tiptoe around her and keep yourselves from overstepping the stupid boundaries you’ve drawn. But it’s obvious she matters to you. That, more than anything, makes me want to help you. Even if it’s a small thing, I can do something to make sure Ruya gets to stay with her precious family—your weird court—for as long as possible.”
We just stared at each other. Robin’s face gave away nothing, and I felt like an idiot now. Nothing was getting through to the shifter princess. No one here was ever going to trust my motives. I knew that. And yet, I had to at least try.
“Forget it,” I said, waving a hand as I turned away. “I’ll let you get back to sleep, princess.”
“I can’t send you,” she said, and I turned back to find her standing there with her arms crossed over her chest, biting her full lower lip and frowning. I could tell she was wrestling with a puzzle, her eyes unfocused. “Even if I wanted to trust you, it would be a bad decision. Too obvious. You were with Odell’s court, then you defected here to me. Then you suddenly appear at the vampire coven? It would be suspicious. And what reason would you give to make them take you in?” She shook her head. “No.”
Her gaze focused back on me, and she nodded her head at our surroundings. “This is impressive.”
I huffed a laugh at her attempt at a compliment. “Thanks. Thinking of ways to use me now too?”
She smiled, and it was full of teeth, more predator than polite lady, as her gaze raked over my unglamoured body. “I’m glad you understand how this works. I might not send you to the vampires, but if you insist on loitering in my nest, I will find a use for you, little faun.”
I stared right back at her, refusing to do the alpha-submissive song and dance, no matter how hard it was to meet her eyes. I wasn’t a shifter. And I was done with pretending to be docile and stupid just because I was a beta. “I have no doubt, princess.”
Then I let the dream dissolve.