Page 140 of Forget Me Not

“Callalily.”

“Raymond.” Cal narrowed his eyes and waited. “If your fears come true when you speak the words, then Reject me again. But that isn’t how human magic works. You broke the spell. It is dead, over, kaput. All that magic would have to be constructed again for it to work now, and I don’t think your friend over there is capable of that at the moment.”

Ray almost glanced away to see what the human in the suit was up to, if the officers had stopped him or if village residents were keeping a close eye on him. He didn’t because Cal’s grip wouldn’t let him move. “He didn’t make it, he just used it. He had instructions, and there is something in his pocket to help.”

“Ooh,” Benny said. “I don’t suppose the cops will let me look at it. Did he say what it was?”

Ray tried to locate Benny, but Benny must have been somewhere behind him. “No. Just that ‘they’ have been wondering how I was still standing. There might be weres who could kill their mates on command, but most couldn’t. He…theywere surprised that I would fight it.”

The Wizard Benedict was scornful. “Tells you a lot about who they are as people.There’sthe flaw in their magic; they assume everyone is as heartless as they are.”

“Bens,” Cal interrupted. “Later, please.”

“It’s important.” Ray frowned. “In case they take me. You need to know, both of you. There isn’t much but… the chemical smell was coming from a different building. They wanted to destroy it, for the insurance or to rebuild and charge more, I don’t know. But it was the same people who did this, according to him.”

Ray did not gesture toward the human in the suit. He couldn’t anyway. “If they arrest him, we’ll never get anything else out of him. Him or his friend.”

“Which one shot you?” Cal asked snippily.

“I was trespassing,” Ray admitted. “But the other one shot me. Then fainted. He wasn’t expecting a monster.” Ray wanted to look down but Cal would not allow it. “I showed him one.”

“Then left him there, untouched and absolutely fine unless he pissed himself.” Cal smirked. “Fairies know how to respond to a monster. Humans could learn a few things from us.”

“Don’t lump me in with those guys,” Benny protested, not particularly angry.

“I doubt we’ll get anything out of either of them,” Calvin remarked. “They will be provided with good attorneys… orsomethingwill happen while they’re in custody. Or the property company will decline to press charges against Ray and Penn because they don’t want this attracting any more attention, and the whole matter will fade away—except for what it will do to Ray’s career, and Penn’s too.”

Any excuse would do to get rid of the two of them now, but Ray and Penn had known that going in.

“Uh, excuse me, Ray was shot.” Benny was outraged. “And a building fell on him.”

“The building was….” Actually, Ray didn’t know whose fault that was. If it was part of the sabotage then… “Strider’s gear. The human with Penn, who we were trying to help. He was living there, squatting, and his things are all there. We’ll need to get them for him. Penn promised.”

“More than I can ever tell you or ever even try to explain, I love how muchthatis your concern in this moment.” Cal waslove/fondness/worry. But he glanced to Benny. “Do you think you could…”

“On it,” Benny responded, reading Cal’s mind again, only to stop. “Oh. Never mind. She’s got it handled, I think.”

“Who?” Ray could not read minds and he’d had a very long day.

Cal huffed, impatient but worried beneath that. “It’s like talking to a fairy right now. Your attention is everywhere. Focus, please.” He pinned Ray to the spot with one stern, fond glance—not that Ray had been going anywhere. Cal fluttered his tiny wings and watched Ray with his chin in the air, then, deliberate and slow, he ran the back of his knuckles along Ray’s throat and smiled viciously when Ray swallowed. “Now,” Cal purred, “claim your second mate if you want him, Raymond Branigan. I mean,” he went on when Ray stared at him. Cal was suddenly less regal and more giddy, “you did all of that to protect me, so I assume you still want me.”

“Callalily,” beauty, faithfulness, life itself. The knowledge didn’t keep Ray from tensing for the pain when he said it, “my mate.”

Ray waited, then frowned up at Cal. “Cal. Mate.” He tasted the word, like chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil or the fancy truffles Penn paid a fortune for. “Happiness,” Ray tried that too. “Husband.” Human and odd, but not completely terrible, like bubblegum from a vending machine. “Callalily.”

A smile split Cal’s face, bright enough for Ray to bask in it. A supernova of green and gold glitter dazzled Ray and possibly everyone else.

Cal kissed Ray’s forehead, then stayed there, breathing hard, for several seconds. “You are going to start healing,” he ordered gently, “and then you’re going to stand up and tell me everything before they come for you.”

“Cal.” Ray’s voice broke.

Cal kissed him again. “You’re tired, I know. But your pack needs you.”

“They aren’t my pack. I can’t be a part of something that hurts the ones I’m supposed to protect.” Ray pulled back until he could meet Cal’s eyes. “I don’t know what I’ll do now.”

“You’ll find some other way to protect us, your true pack.” The fairy magic was still at work, putting weight in Cal’s words. Then his eyes swirled again and the rest of the plaza regained color and life behind him. “It’s in your nature, Ray. There’s no denying it.”

“A city for a pack,” Calvin said, out of sight but close. “Ambitious.”

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