We walked for a long way without speaking, and I didn’t even pay attention to the path. I just wanted to get away, wherever that was. At last I saw it, up ahead: Obadiah’s secret House Tree, the hideout I’d escaped to when my mother first broke the news to me of who I really was, the first place Obadiah and I had made love. I’d always have a fondness for this place, even though I’d spent one of the worst mornings of my life there, when I thought I’d lost him forever.
The House Tree looked much the same as I remembered it. Nothing much from the outside, no sign of a door. But Obadiah knocked his rhythmic pattern of raps upon the trunk, and the door cleverly disguised in the bark swung open. We stepped inside and began to climb the rough, uneven steps. When Obadiah opened the door to the little bedroom, everything was just like I remembered: the bed carved into the wall of the tree, covered by velvety soft wolf pelts, the wide plank floors fragrant with the smell of pine. The little clay fireplace was dark now, but I knew soon we’d have it cheerfully glowing.
I squeezed Obadiah’s hand. “I remember the last time we were here.”
He winked at me roguishly. “We could have a repeat of that, you know.”
A little tingle ran through me at his words. “I’d like that.”
I leaned up on my tiptoes and kissed him full and hard on the mouth, delighting in the scent of him, the surety of his arms, the scratch of his stubble on my lips. I wanted to forget about everything except the feel of Obadiah’s body against mine.
He took off his leather coat and tossed it beside the bed. I did the same with my jacket.
I looked back and forth between Obadiah and the bed.
“As much as I want to be under the covers with you right now, there is one thing we should probably take care of first.”
Obadiah raised an eyebrow.
“Telling your werewolf friends it’s Korvus and not the Queen who’s been stealing their Elixir. Because otherwise they could be storming the Queen’s palace any moment now and it will be a bloodbath. I’m not sure I trust the Alpha to give me a month, like he promised me, as pissed off as they are. I don’t want Reuben’s friends to get killed any more than I want them killing my mother.”
“You’re right. I’ll go to their camp. They’ll spread the word to the packs in New York.”
He rose from the bed and began to get dressed again.
Obadiah must have seen me buttoning my shirt.
“I can go by myself; you don’t have to come,” he said. “Stay here in bed. You’ll be more comfortable. And as soon as I get back . . .” He winked at me knowingly, and I smiled, feeling warm inside. But I didn’t want to wait.
“I’ll come with you,” I said, continuing to button my shirt. “I don’t mind. And then we’ll head back together.”
“I think it’s best if you don’t come.” He frowned.
“Why?”
Obadiah sighed. “They’re werewolves.” He paused, weighing his words. “They don’t like fairies. And being your mother’s daughter, I’m not sure they’d believe your ‘proof’ that she’s not the cause of their problems. They might be more likely to listen if the information about Korvus comes from me—I’m sorry to say. I won’t stay long—I’ll come back as soon as I can.”
At last I conceded.
“Take this at least,” I said, handing him the Vale Cleaver I’d been carrying with me. “You never know when it might come in handy.”
Reluctantly, he took it.
“There are some books under the bed,” he mentioned as we said our goodbyes. “They’re all in Faerie. Plus, there are some Elvish romances. You can read Elvish runes, right?”
I nodded. “As enjoyable as that sounds, hurry back, okay? I’ll be worried about you.”
He touched his fingers to my cheek, then kissed me. “I promise I’ll be back soon.”
I stood in the doorway for a long time after he’d left, still feeling his lips on mine.
At last I walked over to the bed, curled up under the warmth of the wolf skins and waited.
After a long time of reading deliciously lurid elven romances, I realized it had grown dark outside the House Tree’s round window.
How long had Obadiah been gone?
It felt like I’d waited a long time, but then again, there were no clocks in here. That was part of the house’s charm. All I could do was wait.
So I lay there, listening to the sap whoosh through the walls of the tree like a beating heart, and trying not to think about my fears.
The events of the last few days kept going through my mind. We had to stop Korvus from getting at more women, but even if we did, it wouldn’t help the untold number of women he’d already hurt. Meanwhile, my mother was going to die without a cure for her Elixir Thirst. And Obadiah needed Elixir too. He might not be as far gone as the Queen was, but if something didn’t change, that day was coming. Dammit it, where was he?
These worries running over and over in my brain were like great stones slowly grinding me down, and I felt exhausted. I closed my eyes, letting my head fall back into the pillow of pelts. A restless sleep overtook me. I didn’t know how long I was out for. I heard faint sounds from outside the House Tree that stirred me. It sounded like fighting, but it could just as easily have been from my dreams.
I woke with a start. Obadiah was standing over me, his clothes covered in bits of broken leaves and dirt.
“You’re back.” I leaped up out of bed and into his arms.
For a moment, he stiffened, then he threw his hands around me, pressing me hard against him.
I closed my eyes, breathing in the smell of him. His natural scent had been replaced by the smell of the forest.
“I was worried about you,” I whispered. “What took you so long? How did the meeting with the werewolves go?”
“Ah, it went all right, I suppose,” he said. “I’m sorry it took me a while. I’ll have to go back again tomorrow.”
“That’s all right.” I kissed his cheek.
I threaded my hands through his hair and he kissed me full and hard on the mouth. His lips were hungry, demanding. There was an urgency there, a need, and I flushed with pleasure at his obvious desire for me.
His fingers traced down my cheek, trailing deliciously across my neck, then down to my waist. He placed his hands possessively in the back pockets of my jeans and pushed me up against the wall of the tree. I could hear the pulse of the sap throbbing, just like my own hot, excited heart, as he continued to kiss me, raising my wrists up above my head, leaving my whole body deliciously vulnerable to the whims of his tongue and teeth.
He was slowly sliding my shirt up over my head, then unzipping my jeans. I shivered as the cold night air hit my bare skin, before he pressed against me. Seconds later, his own shirt was off, and he leaned forward, pushing me back onto the bed, so that I sprawled out across the soft pelts. He loomed over me, his eyes sparkling dominantly. I smiled up at him. So it was going to be like that, was it? That sounded just perfect right about now.
His hands pinning mine against the wolf-carved headboard, he looked down at me, and an expression I couldn’t read crossed his face. But a moment later it was gone, and his mouth was roving over my body, whiting out all the worries from my mind.
It had always been good with Obadiah, ever since the first time, but we’d been dating for eight months now, and we’d fallen into our tender routines. But something was different tonight. There was a fierceness, a longing, I hadn’t seen in a while, and I liked it. I didn’t want tender and sweet tonight; I wanted not to think. When I looked up into his eyes, I almost didn’t recognize him. I could imagine what those maidens in Greek myths must have felt like, being ravaged by a god.
When it was over, I lay panting beside him, sweat trickling down my stomach, wondering what had just happened. It had all been so sudden, so intense, I still felt like I was in a daze. I rolled over on my side to look at Obadiah. He was lying quite still, staring up at the ceiling, and he seemed startled when I put my arm around him. I nuzzled my head against his chest, and slowly his stiff shoulders relaxed.
“Good night, my love,” I whispered, nuzzling my cheek into his chest.
“Good night,” he whispered back. When I looked up into his eyes, there was something deeply sad in them. He lay still for a moment, not touching me, then slowly picked up one of the wolf skins and laid it over my shoulders.
I was about to ask what was wrong, what that look had been, but he had turned his body to face the wall of the tree. He was probably exhausted, I thought, from his long negotiations with the werewolves, and what we had just done. I’d talk to him tomorrow, I told myself. I turned over onto my side, laying my arm across Obadiah, stroking his chest, but he didn’t respond. He must have already been lost in sleep.