Jace could guess who was behind the attempt to kill him—Lord Tyrus. Nothing else made sense.
Tyrus was the only surviving son of the night fae prince, but more importantly, he was Silver’s half-brother. When Tyrus had learned that Silver had mated and sired a daughter, he’d put out a contract on the entire small family to ensure his father had only one heir—himself. The assassins had gotten first Takira, then Silver, but a Rock Run fada had saved Merry.
Prince Langdon, Tyrus’s father, didn’t want it known that he’d spawned a mixed-blood granddaughter, but after he’d learned Tyrus was hunting Merry, he’d protected her with a special ward that would kill any night fae who tried to harm her, even Tyrus.
Thank the gods Merry was safe at the Rock Run base. She didn’t live with Jace. He’d lost track of her for several years, and when he’d finally found her again, she’d been adopted by two Rock Run fada. As far as Merry was concerned, they were her parents now. Jace hadn’t had the heart to take her away from them.
The pretty blond female frowned down at Jace, and his mind spun away from his niece.
The pain in his belly was a raging fire now. The small amount of healing he’d been able to do before seemed to have been reversed while he was unconscious, another sign of iron poisoning.
“Salt and warm water?” The female’s low, practical voice came from down a long dark tunnel.
All he could do was tell her what to do and hope it worked. Because if not, Jace would die, and probably the two humans as well. He’d somehow eluded Tyrus’s henchman, but the night fae lord was smart—and brutal. He’d track Jace down and snuff these two like flies.
Fortunately, his rescuers followed directions. The boy returned with a pitcher filled with the salt solution. The female knelt on the floor next to the couch and then, to Jace’s surprise, touched his cheek.
He squinted in her direction and her face swam into view, pinched with concern. “I’m Evie, by the way, and this is my brother Kyler.” She indicated the skinny dark-haired teenager.
Her fingers were cool—or was it because he was so hot? He moistened dry lips and then croaked his name. “Jace.”
“Nice to meet you, Jace.”
His lips twitched despite himself. It was so human, to introduce herself at a time like this…but sweet.
Her fingers brushed his forehead and he tensed, anticipating what was to come.
“Try to relax,” the female—Evie—murmured.
She smelled like fresh soap; she must have washed her hands again. He could’ve told her there was no need. The iron would kill any germs, and if not, the salt solution would do the rest.
That was, if the iron didn’t kill him first.
“Relax,” Evie repeated, and to please her, he smoothed out his forehead.
“Okay.” She wet a clean rag with the salt solution and dabbed at the wounds. “I’m going to clean this out for you.”
“No,” he said, and she stopped and looked at him, her brow furrowed. “Pour it into the cut,” he said. “You have to…rinse it out. Poison.” He rolled onto his side and dug his fingers into the couch, knowing what was to come.
“Okay,” she said. “Take it easy.”
He drew a slow breath, but there was no way he could relax. “Just do it,” he said between clenched teeth.
Her brother handed her a folded bath towel. She tucked it under Jace’s stomach to catch the overflow, and then set her fingers on either side of the lower cut and gently pulled it open. “You pour,” she told Kyler.
“Good,” Jace said. “That’s good. Clean it out.”
The kid tipped the pitcher and salt solution poured into the wound.
Jace’s whole body bowed in pain. God’s cat, it was like getting stabbed all over again. He tightened his jaw and rode it out. Because screaming, especially in front of two humans, would be the final humiliation.
And then, mercifully, he passed out.
When he came to, Evie was stroking his forehead. “There, there,” she said in a motherly voice at odds with her edgy appearance. “It’s all over now.”
He stared at her through slit lids. “Thanks,” he managed to say.
She looked down at his stomach. “Did it work?”
He frowned, checking inwardly. The fire in his blood had subsided to a simmer. “Think so.”
“Can we do anything else?”
“Water.”
“Just plain water?”
He gave a single nod.
She removed her hand from his forehead and he grabbed for her, latching onto the hem of her shirt. “Not you. Him.” He jerked his chin at the teenager.
Her dark brows lifted. “You want me to stay?”
He nodded again. He knew he was being unreasonable, but both cat and man wanted her to remain close.
“Okay.” She took his hand. “Kyler will get you the water, then.”
His fingers folded on hers. “Thanks,” he whispered.
When the water came, she put an arm beneath his shoulders to support him while he drank greedily. It was ice cold and wonderful.
He finished the glass, and she laid his head back down on the cushion and pressed a wet rag to his forehead. He closed his eyes in relief at the coolness. How did she know exactly what he needed?
The storm had slowed to a drizzle. From far away, he heard Evie tell her brother to go outside and make sure there wasn’t any blood. Smart woman.
“The rain must have washed it away,” Kyler replied.
“Get the hose out and wash it down anyway.”
“’Kay.” He heard Kyler’s footsteps move into the kitchen.
Evie touched Jace’s arm. He pried opened his eyes to see her holding another glass of water. “You need liquids—you’re burning up. Unless that’s your normal body temperature?”
He shook his head. “Water…good.”
“That’s what I thought.” Again, she slid an arm beneath his shoulders and held the glass to his lips.
After drinking his fill, he rested his head against her shoulder and let his eyes close again. She’d changed into a dry T-shirt—gray with a purple star in center. She stilled and then to his satisfaction, remained where she was. She was a sturdy little thing—the arm around him had a lean strength—but the spot between her shoulder and her breast was soft and comforting. He inhaled deeply, filling his nostrils with her sweet, womanly scent.
His breath sighed out. Tomorrow he’d be embarrassed at how weak he was acting, but right now, he didn’t fucking care. Because he needed this.
“Do you want any more?” The glass nudged his lips.
When he shook his head, she lowered him carefully to the pillow. His cat whined, but both of them were too weak to do anything about it.
Evie came to her feet. He watched through slit lids as she stretched. The hem of her T-shirt rode up to reveal a tan strip of skin above her waistband.
She glanced down and caught him looking, and her eyes flickered. She unhurriedly brought her arms down and straightened the shirt.
“I’m going to see how Kyler’s doing. You’ll be all right for a few minutes, won’t you?”
He nodded. His cat wasn’t happy, but the man told the cat to suck it up.
She touched his shoulder. “Try to rest. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
He listened as her footsteps moved down the hall to the kitchen.
He drew a slow breath. With Evie out of the room, the effects of the iron seemed worse. He touched his abdomen. The salt had neutralized the iron so that it wasn’t still feeding into his bloodstream, but he felt like he’d been run over by a frigging semi.
He’d live, as his soldier mom used to say, but he was in for a rough night while his body worked to eliminate the small amount of iron that had entered his bloodstream. The best thing was to sleep and let his body’s natural healing abilities take over. That would also give his quartz time to reenergize so he could call for help.
He trusted that Evie and her brother would do their best to keep him safe—and trust didn’t come easily to Jace. Even so, he instinctively sized up his surroundings, noting the exits.
The living room ran the length of this side of the narrow house. He was on the single couch, which backed up against an inside wall. The two windows behind him faced the alley, their blinds closed. An air conditioner hummed in one window, which was good, even though his animal preferred fresh air.
Closed windows meant that he couldn’t be scented from the outside. Fae didn’t have any better sense of smell than a human, but they could be working with a fada.
On the other side of the living room, two more windows looked onto a narrow front porch. If he lifted his head, he could see the front door to the left of the windows. The room itself only had a few pieces of furniture. Other than the couch, there was an easy chair, a sturdy oak coffee table, and a bookcase filled with books, DVDs and other knickknacks, and crowned with a large green fern.
Evie returned. She sat on the edge of the couch, careful not to bump him.
“Is there anyone we should call?”
Jace considered that. He shared a den in Baltimore with a handful of other unmated men. They were friends, but they didn’t keep tabs on one another. He wouldn’t be missed until tomorrow morning at the earliest.
Adric was alpha of the Baltimore clan now. He’d be pissed off when he found out Jace was hurt and hadn’t tried to contact him, but the night fae clearly didn’t know where Jace had gone to ground. In fact, calling for help might lead the bastards straight to this house.
“No,” he told Evie.
“Not even your mate?”
“No mate,” he said firmly, and then wondered why he’d told her. As a fada, he couldn’t tell a lie without making himself violently ill, but that didn’t mean he had to answer the human’s questions.
“That’s good.”
He watched, fascinated, as she pinkened. His clan was mostly brown skinned. He hadn’t known someone could blush that easily.
“I mean,” she added, “no one will be worrying about you then.”
“No,” he agreed. “No one will worry.” And for a moment that seemed so fucking sad. He tightened his jaw. Hell, in another minute he was going to be tearing up like a girl. “I’ll leave in the morning.” By then he should be well enough to slip away without anyone being the wiser.
“Okay, sure.” Her relief was clear, but she hurried to add, “If you feel up to it, I mean.”
“I’ll leave,” he repeated grimly.
Evie took out her phone. “You mind if I play some music?”
“Go right ahead.”
She tapped the screen and set the phone on the coffee table. Music filled the room, a soothing mix of nature sounds, flutes and drums that sounded like something he’d heard coming out of a yoga studio in downtown Baltimore.
His lids drifted shut.
“Go to sleep,” Evie said. “You’re safe. Kyler didn’t see anyone outside.”
He nodded. No sense explaining that a night fae could blend into the shadows even better than a fada. Because the night fae was gone for now—Jace’s skin would’ve been crawling if he were near. The assassins’ orders would’ve been to get in and out quickly, standard operating procedure.
Besides, the remaining night fae—because he suspected there had been three altogether—had to remove their fallen comrade before he was found by a human, or worse, by one of the local fada. The Rock Run alpha would be furious to find a night fae in his territory—dead or alive.
Evie grabbed a laptop and sat in the easy chair at the foot of the couch. She folded her legs tailor-style and frowned at the screen.
Jace studied her profile through half-open eyes. She was…fascinating.
Thin but sturdy, with clearly defined muscles on her upper arms. Her platinum hair was cut short as a man’s and she had those strong dark brows, but her cheek had a soft curve that could only belong to a woman. She wasn’t wearing any makeup, but her earlobe was pierced by a delicate gold hoop from which dangled a silver disc.
Evie touched the screen, scrolling through a document.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Writing a paper for my biology class.” She started typing. “It’s due next week.”
“You’re in school, then.” He swallowed a touch of envy.
No one in his clan had been to a human college, but it wasn’t unheard of. As a teenager, Jace had already been studying the clan’s quartz technology, and he’d have loved to major in physics and IT at one of the local universities.
But the clan had been in the midst of the Darktime, the bloody internal war that had come to a head in his late teens. He’d been too busy surviving to even think of going to college.
“Yeah. I just started back, but I’m going to be an LPN.” She slanted him a grin. “I just thought of something—you’re my first patient. You can’t die on me. That would be too effing wrong.”
He stared, entranced, at the dimple that winked to life in her right cheek. Just as quickly, it was gone. He wanted to keep watching her, but his eyelids drooped.
Outside, rain was falling again, a soothing patter against the windows.
“I’ll do my best,” he muttered and slid into sleep.
Evie glanced at the sleeping shifter. His color looked a little better now, and he seemed to be breathing normally.
Relieved, she turned her attention back to her paper. When you worked two jobs and went to school, you learned to focus whenever you could snatch the time. In fifteen minutes, she had the first couple pages written.
Kyler returned to report that he’d washed down the whole area behind the house, even the alley as far as the hose could reach. “Of course, Mrs. Linney came outside and asked what I was doing washing the steps in the rain.” He flopped down on the floor and took a gulp from a can of soda.
Evie shut her laptop. “You didn’t tell her—”
“Yeah, right.” Kyler gave her the kind of look only a teenager could give. “She’d broadcast it to the entire frigging block. I told her I spilled my soda and you’d be pissed off if I left it until morning. Ants, you know. And then it started raining harder again, so I probably didn’t need to bother.”
Evie gave him a thumbs-up. “Quick thinking, squirt.”
“I hate it when you call me that,” he grumbled, but she could tell he was pleased at the compliment.
Jace muttered something and both their gazes shot to him. He sighed and moved his head against the pillow before curling up on his right side.
Kyler lowered his voice. “What are we going to do with him?”
“Hell if I know. He says he’ll leave in the morning.”
“Good. The dude’s trouble. I mean, what the fuck do the night fae want with him?”
“Who knows? But it doesn’t matter. Tomorrow he’ll go back to Baltimore or wherever he came from, and we can forget he was ever here.” Her heart pinched at that, which was crazy. Shifters didn’t mix with humans, except for the occasional hookup—and hookups weren’t her thing.
Kyler glanced at the curled-up fada. “Wonder what his animal is?”
“A cat.”
“He told you?”
“No.” But she’d bet a night’s worth of tips she was right. “Look at how he moves. And his body—that’s a cat’s body if I ever saw one.”
Kyler glanced at Jace’s long, powerful body and shrugged. “If you say so.” He took another slug of soda. “It’s kind of cool having a shifter in the house—especially a Baltimore shifter. I’ve never seen one up close before.”
“Me either. I wonder why he was in Grace Harbor?”
They contemplated the sleeping man for another minute, and then Kyler finished his soda and rose to his feet.
“Are you going out?”
“I was thinking about it, yeah.” He paced to the front windows and twitched aside a curtain to peer out at the dark street.
Evie took a moment to choose her words. Kyler was so easy to set off these days.
“Do you think you should? That night fae could still be out there.”
He glanced over his shoulder. “Why would he care about me? But I guess I should stay here in case he comes back. I don’t want you here by yourself.”
Evie blinked. Was this the brother who just that morning had growled that Evie wasn’t his frickin’ mom and he didn’t have to answer to her if he didn’t want to? But all she said was, “Thanks.”
Kyler returned to her side of the living room. He sat down with his back against a wall, phone in hand.
She frowned. “You’re not going to tell anyone about Jace, are you?”
“No, Evie,” he said with exaggerated patience. “I’m just letting Ben and the other guys know what’s up.” Ben lived three doors down from them and was Kyler’s best friend. He sent a flurry of texts, and then settled into play one of his online games.
Evie glanced again at Jace. He looked okay, so she went back to her paper. By eleven o’clock she had a rough draft done. She shut the laptop and rubbed her forehead.
Kyler had gone to the kitchen to make popcorn. He returned with two large bowls and handed her one.
She accepted it with a grateful smile. “Thanks. All I had time for tonight was a sandwich.”
“Thought you might be hungry.” Her brother popped a handful of popcorn into his mouth. “I’m going upstairs,” he said as he crunched his way through it. “Shout if you need me—or if you want me to sit with him.”
“I will. And Kyler?” He halted in the doorway to look over his shoulder. “Thank you. For helping tonight, and for staying in with me.”
His narrow face split in a grin. “Hey, it was an adventure. I only wish I could tell Ben. But don’t worry, I won’t.”
“I think that’s best. Maybe in a few weeks, but for now, we’d better keep this between us and him.” She jerked her head at the sleeping man.
With Kyler in his bedroom, she went upstairs to brush her teeth and grab a sheet and pillow from the hall closet. She told her brother not to stay up too late and then went back downstairs, where she shut off all the lights except the one in the hall and curled up again on the easy chair.
She had fallen into a light doze when something made her open her eyes. Jace was staring at her, his irises glowing that odd feral-green again. Her skin prickled. She glanced around the room for a weapon.
Then his breath sighed out and she reminded herself he couldn’t hurt anyone right now.
She rose to her feet. “You okay? Would you like some water?”
“Yeah.” He swiped his tongue over his lips. “I’m so damn thirsty. And I need to take a piss.”
“Water first.” She hurried into the kitchen and returned with a large glass, which he drained in a couple of gulps and then handed back to her.
“Can you walk?” She glanced at him doubtfully as she set the glass on the coffee table. “I can get Kyler. He’s upstairs.”
He eased his legs over the side of the couch. “I can do it.” He set his feet on the floor and used the coffee table to push himself to standing.
He only took a couple of steps before he winced and grasped his belly. “I could use some help here,” he said ruefully.
She was already moving the coffee table out of the way. “Put your arm on my shoulders,” she said as she slid an arm around his waist.
Together, they shuffled into the hall and turned right toward the bathroom. Fortunately, it was only a few steps further. Evie flipped on the light and helped him inside.
Jace gripped the sink and dragged in a breath, head down. He was flushed, his temples beaded with sweat.
She bit her lip. “Will you—I mean, do you need any help?”
“I’m okay,” he muttered.
“Okay, good.” She backed toward the door. “I’ll be in the hall if you need me.”
“I won’t. But thanks.”
She shut the door and walked a few feet down the hall to wait. The toilet flushed and then she heard water running, followed by a long silence.
She rapped on the bathroom door. “Everything all right?”
“Yeah.” The door opened and he limped out. “Just moving a little slow.”
Evie’s eyes widened. He’d washed his face and taken his shirt off. Her gaze went to a hard chest covered by wiry black hair, and then she jerked it back to his face.
The look he gave her made her cheeks heat. The man might be injured, but that considering expression told her he was recovering fast. They stared at each other. A heartbeat passed, then another.
He spoke first, indicating the shirt balled in his hand. “It was bloody. Where do you want it?”
She swallowed. “Just drop it next to the sink and I’ll take care of it.”
“Thank you.” He tossed it into the bathroom.
She hesitated and then reminded herself she was a nurse. Well, almost, anyway.
“I’ll help you back to the couch,” she said in her most professional voice and slid an arm around his back.
He shook his head. “You don’t look strong enough to hold up a kitten,” he said, but let her take some of his weight.
The man was all muscle. Beneath her hand, his waist was taut, the skin hot from his fever. She tried not to notice how good he smelled—warm, sweaty male.
Down, girl.
Sure, the man was sexy in a dark, dangerous way, but he was hurt, for God’s sake. And even if he wasn’t, he was a fada—and a Baltimore earth fada at that. Everyone knew they were a murderous clan. She was surprised any of them were still left alive.
The last thing she wanted was to have anything to do with a Baltimore shifter.
No, she’d make sure Mr. Jace No-Last-Name left as soon as he was able, then pray she never saw him again.
Back in the living room, Jace sank down on the couch. He closed his eyes and bent forward at the waist, his breath ragged. It was clear he was hurting.
Evie turned on the lamp next to the easy chair. “You’re hot. I’ll turn up the air conditioner.” With that done, she shoved her hands into her back pockets, feeling helpless. “Are you hungry? I can make you some chicken soup. Or—”
“I don’t think I can eat anything right now,” he said without opening his eyes.
“Yeah, right.” She flushed, recalling he’d taken a knife in the belly. “Maybe something that digests easily? I have popsicles.” Her mom had given them popsicles whenever she or Kyler were sick.
“A popsicle.” His hard mouth edged up. “Okay, sure.”
“Be right back.” She hurried to the kitchen and returned with an orange popsicle. It would put more liquids in him, and maybe the sugar would give him some extra energy.
While he ate the popsicle, she rinsed his T-shirt out in the bathroom sink and hung it up to dry before getting a popsicle for herself. When she came back, he was reclined on the couch, still sucking the popsicle. A cat’s paw was tattooed in black and gold on his upper left arm. He saw her looking and his face shuttered, so she didn’t ask, just curled up on the easy chair again.
The cuts on his abdomen were still an angry red, but they were starting to close. “I think you’re healing,” she said.
He nodded. “It’s going to be a rough night, but this helps.” He indicated the popsicle. “Feels like my fucking belly’s on fire.”
“I wish I could do more.”
“You did good. I just need to rest now, give it time to heal.”
She wrapped her arms around her legs. “What happened, anyway?”
“Some bastard night fae stuck a knife in me.”
“The one that was outside?”
“No. The guy who stabbed me is dead.”
She gulped. “Oh.”
He regarded her from beneath thick lashes, as if expecting her to cringe from him. But she knew that sometimes, you don’t have a choice.
Jace’s eyes closed. Silence fell while they sucked on their popsicles.
“Iron,” she said. “It was an iron knife? That’s why you’re feverish?”
He nodded. “You know what iron does to a fae?”
“Sure.” Everyone knew that iron was a fae’s Achilles’ heel. They couldn’t even stand it against their bare skin. “It’s like poison for them. But you’re a fada, aren’t you?”
“Yeah. But we have some fae in us. Iron doesn’t affect the fada as bad, but it’s still poison to us. And the knife was probably cold-forged—formed into a blade at room temperature. That makes a difference.”
“Salt neutralizes the iron?”
“Yeah, but don’t ask me how. It just does.”
She opened her mouth to ask why the night fae had stabbed him, and then closed it again. It was better she didn’t know.
“That’s right,” he said, seemingly reading her mind. “The less you know, the better.” He slid down on the couch until he was prone again. “I’ll be all right, now. You can go to bed.”
She shook her head. “I’m staying right here in case you need me.”
His brow lifted—and then he smiled. A quick but real smile that lit an answering warmth inside her. “You don’t have to,” he said, “but thanks.” And with that, he curled up on his right side, closed his eyes and fell back asleep.
She finished her popsicle, and then set a pitcher of ice water on the coffee table within easy reach of her patient before curling up on the chair again.
She was too wide awake now to sleep, so she took out her phone and checked her messages, and then downloaded a book to read, but her gaze kept flicking to Jace. He was a beautiful man: big shoulders, six-pack abs and long, strong legs. And inked—besides the cat’s paw, an intricately rendered tat of a snarling black jungle cat stretched across most of his upper back.
Kyler came downstairs in a pair of gym shorts and she jerked her gaze back to her phone.
“You sure you’re all right?” he asked.
“I’m fine.”
He yawned and scratched his stomach. “Okay, but holler if you need me. I’m all grown up—you need me, you call for me.”
He frowned down on her, and for a second, she was reminded of his father, even though Aaron had been shorter and square-faced, while Kyler had a narrow, sharp-boned face. But those dark eyes and the frown were all Aaron, who had been just the same when it came to protecting his family.
“I will.” She crossed her heart. “Promise.”
“G’night, then.” Kyler gave another big yawn and went upstairs to bed.
Evie shut off the light and snuggled up on the chair again.
Kyler had made her proud tonight. All spring, he’d argued with her about every little decision. Some nights he’d slammed out of the house and then not come home until after midnight. She didn’t know what she was going to do with him when school let out next week. He’d tried to find a job, but so far, no luck.
But tonight, he’d really come through. His dad would’ve been pleased. She smiled. She’d have to remember to tell Kyler that in the morning.
She glanced at her sleeping guest one last time. His face had gone slack, his lashes dark crescents against his cheeks. Curled up on the couch like that, it was hard to believe he was as dangerous as people said.
Her eyes drifted closed and she fell asleep.
Two hours later she jerked awake to see Jace thrashing about on the couch.
“No,” he muttered. “Mary—” He bolted upright.
She fumbled for the switch on the lamp next to the chair. It came on and he hissed, an angry cat-sound.
She narrowed her eyes against the sudden light, trying to see him. “Jace? You all right?”
He ignored her to chug water from the pitcher she’d left on the table and then fumbled with the zipper of his pants.
She rose to her feet. “Jace? What are you doing?”
His gaze swung to her and she took a step back. His eyes were that strange bright green again. His growl raised fine hairs all over her body.
“Okay.” She raised a palm. “Take it easy.”
He snarled and dragged off the pants. Bright bits of color danced over his skin—and then a huge black panther was crouched on her couch.