Page 10 of Ruthless Fae
Her warm smile lit up the room for a brief moment, making me wish I’d gotten a full education at the Academy under her tutelage and not just a few months of solace. I owed my life to her, in more than one way, and perhaps, when this was over, I would owe her more.
She stood, hoisting herself up and grimacing a bit as if it pained her. “It is late. We are tired. Please, get some rest. We’ll reconvene in the morning.”
The group watched her go before getting up themselves. Charlie and Rowan got up together, linking arms, making me long for Vaughn’s embrace. I thought back to his words and my reply. I’d told him I loved him. What would that mean when he woke up? My mind ran over it again and again even though there were many more pressing issues for me to consider.
“Tally,” a female voice called.
When I looked back, Bridget, Disha, and Vinya stood in the hallway waiting for me. “You’re bunking with us.”
The females led me down the hall and into one of the sleeping quarters. The room was barely large enough to hold two bunk beds, but we were in a flying ship soaring above the clouds, so I didn’t expect much else. Besides, anything was better than sleeping on the ground. Vinya climbed into a lower bunk while Bridget and Disha took up the top and bottom of the other. I stood, a bit awkwardly, trying to figure out where I belonged.
“You can have the top bunk over Vinya,” Disha said, gesturing as she fished in her shirt, produced her bra, and flung it at a pile of clothes on the floor. “Though it might be a little uncomfortable for your wings.”
“I’ll make it work.” I flew up, nearly bashing my head on the low ceiling as I climbed into the narrow bunk. Disha was right, the area was tight, but I’d slept in worse places, though I had to face the wall to give my wings enough room.
“So, Tally,” Bridget’s voice called. “You and that werewolf, eh?” Her voice had taken on a singsong quality that children used to tease their friends, but I knew her well enough to know this was how she talked to those she cared about. She had a werewolf for a brother, after all. Out of everyone, she likely understood my situation the best.
“Vaughn and I are… complicated.” I used the human term, realizing it fit perfectly.
Bridget giggled. “Well, Becca told us he said he loved you today.”
“Bridget!” Disha admonished. I heard a thump and glanced back to see that Disha had thrown a pillow at Bridget’s head.
“What?” Bridget said, grabbing the pillow and adding it to her own. “I’m happy for them. It’s not everyday interspecies romance works out.”
“Bridget dates a half-fae,” Disha offered.
I remembered now that Bridget had been with a fae girl back at the Academy, the daughter of the woman who’d taken in my aunt. I rolled this thought over in my mind while those two squabbled back and forth.
“Anyway,” Disha said. “We’re glad you're safe and sound, Tally. The dean was worried about you.”
“She was?”
“Yeah,” Bridget added. “We tried to get on the island back when you first were taken but weren’t able to. Stupid barrier. Sorry it took us so long.”
I rolled onto my stomach so I could look them in the eyes. “However long it took, you’re here now. I really appreciate it.”
“Of course,” Bridget replied. “You helped us. We’ll get you back home in no time, and then your only concern will be what that hot wolf is up to.”
Vaughn. I swallowed hard. “Do you really think he’ll heal?”
Bridget’s smile faded. It was rare to see her serious, but her brother, Bobby, also a wolf shifter, had been injured in a similar way. “Vaughn will be okay. The dean will figure out how to heal him. She can do almost anything.”
I nodded, going quiet, wondering if I should go to see Vaughn again before I slept or if he needed his rest. Sleep seemed like an elusive creature with so much on my mind, but my body was exhausted, and tomorrow there would be so much to do. We were going to try to break into the Habermanns’ dome again.
I needed rest. I needed to stop thinking about Vaughn.
I closed my eyes as sleep dragged me into darkness, and I knew no more.
Chapter Five
Vinya,Charlie, and I crouched low in the grass, waiting. A quarter moon hung low in the sky. We were on the north side of the dome while Tyler and his team were scheduled to attack the south side within the next two minutes.
I’d waited all day inside the ship for nighttime to fall. Now, restless energy coursed through my body, a buildup of hours of anticipation. The attack had to happen at night no matter how badly I wanted to get this over with. Vinya and Charlie had spells to make them invisible, and I had my glamour power, but Tyler and his group, including Neil, the silent twins, and some others, would need the cover of night to keep them safe. Their goal was to draw as much attention as possible, so he’d decided cloaking spells would be counterproductive.
Gods, keep them safe, please.
Charlie put a hand up in the air, holding up five fingers. One by one, they ticked down, counting the seconds as my heart beat wildly in my chest. When she made a fist, the sound of gunfire erupted in the distance. We waited until we heard the counter-attack from the dome’s guards, then ran toward the shimmering dome under Charlie’s cloaking spell. I was under her protective charm rather than my own invisibility, so we could see each other.
