Page 98 of Taken By the Fae

ChapterTwenty-Seven

The wood floor is hard against my back, and I take a minute to pry my eyes open. The room feels brighter, warmer, and the sharp scent of alcohol is stronger. I glance sideways to where Jules’s body lies with the iron stake sticking out of his chest. Sitting up slowly, I peek at my arm and frown when I find it’s uninjured. I move it carefully in confusion.Did Tristan heal me?

“Aurora.”

My head snaps up at the sound of Tristan’s pain-filled voice, and everything comes rushing back. Not that it helps me make sense of anything. “Where were you?” I gasp at his disheveled appearance. His hair is a mess, his clothes are ripped, and dried blood is caked above his brow, under his nose, and along his jaw. “What happened?”

Tristan doesn’t answer. His eyes are dark and glowing with fury, his jaw clenched sharply. He shakes his head, kneeling before me and helping me to my feet.

I immediately lift my hand to his face, brushing my fingers over his skin. “Tristan, what happened?”

“We need to get out of here,” he says lowly, his face pale and his jaw clenched. “I’ll explain—”

Footsteps pound the pavement outside before two men come barreling through the front door. One appears to be in his late twenties, and has sandy brown hair, and the other is younger-looking, with dark red hair. They look as if they could take me out in a matter of seconds. Against muscles like that, I wouldn’t stand a chance. I’m not sure even Tristan could take them both.

Glancing between me and Jules’s body, the redhead growls deep in his throat. He makes a move forward, and Tristan steps in front of me.

The older fae grabs the younger one, pulling him back. “We can’t touch her now.”

“The hell we can,” he snaps. “She killed—”

“Look at her,” he cuts the other one off firmly. “We can’t.”

I step out from behind Tristan. “What the fuck does that mean?”

“You took the life of a fae knight,” he says in a cool tone. “You answer to the unseelie court now.”

Tristan’s stance goes rigid, and I shake my head. “I’m human.”

The men exchange looks, and my stomach twists.

“Not anymore.”

Those two words shatter my world.

My mouth goes dry. “I…” I look at Tristan, the image of him blurry.

“You’re fae,” the older one says to me.

The redhead shakes his head, his glowing eyes filled with disgust. “We need to advise the queen.” His gaze slides to Jules’s body for a moment before he shifts, dematerializing before my eyes. The other fae spares me one last glance before he disappears too, his words echoing in my head.

You’re fae.

My legs give out, and Tristan catches me around the waist before I hit the floor.

“You son of a bitch,” I growl at Jules as tears spill down my cheeks. I pull away from Tristan and drop to my knees beside Jules’s body, ripping the iron stake from his chest, crying out when it burns my skin. I drop it immediately, and it clatters against the floor.

Between one moment and the next, the front door flies open, slamming into the wall, and Allison storms into the pub with Max. They’re both as disheveled as Tristan, with ripped, bloodstained clothing and strained expressions.

Stopping dead in their tracks, they stare at me with wide eyes. Max glances at Jules’s lifeless body, and the recognition that flashes in his eyes is mirrored in Allison’s expression. I’m immediately overwhelmed by her mix of shock and terror. It’s dark and spiky, like thorns grazing along my chest. She looks as if she wants to say something, her brows tugging together and her lips parting, but nothing comes out of her mouth.

“Allison, let’s move,” Max says in a low voice.

Her eyes hold mine a moment longer, glassy with unshed tears, before I cast my gaze down as she and Max move around me to grab Jules.

Tristan clears his throat, and Max looks to him, seemingly for direction. “Go back to the hotel.” He nods at Jules’s body in Max’s arms. “Take his car. It’s around the back of the building.” His throat bobs when he swallows. “We’ll meet you there.”

Allison reaches into Jules’s pocket and retrieves his keys, while Max nods, tossing his own set of keys to Tristan, who catches and pockets them.

---