I looked away and he cried, his tears hitting my skin and making my cry too. All I wanted was to take him back and everything be okay again. I just couldn’t. I knew my limits, and I knew I wouldn’t get back up again if things didn’t work out.
Hell, I was still trying to get back up from this time.
“I won’t give up,” he rasped when he got himself better under control. “I won’t ever give up trying to get you back. I know I get distracted and lost in my head, but I’ll prove it. We have long, long lives, and I know in my soul I won’t love another like I love you. We’re meant to be and I need my sweet fairy, so I will win you back.”
A small, tiny, miniscule flicker of hope sparked somewhere inside of me that he could. I wanted to find it and stomp it to shit, but I wasn’t a robot where I could do things like that.
There was another slight problem to him having me under him and us being so emotional. Yeah, it made me think of other times, mostly naked.
I cleared my throat and pushed at his chest. “Doc, I need you to move.”
Fear filled his eyes, and it took me a few moments to realize why he was so scared. I couldn’t be sure, but I was pretty certain it was because he thought I’d never let him touch me again.
Wow. He was terrified because of just that?
No, no! It didn’t matter. He wasn’t mine, and he had left me.
Great, now if I could truly convince myself of that. Idiot.
“Julian, I used the last of my energy to get you here,” I murmured. “I’ve never been completely out of power before, but I am. I’m glad I did it to save you, but we might have a problem soon.”
Then his gaze filled with horror as he took in my state instead of selfishly focusing on trying to win me back. I was up in his arms in a flash, and then we were back through the portal. We were upstairs moments later.
“What happened?” White demanded.
“A trap almost killed him,” I muttered, my eyes feeling heavy now that the adrenaline had almost worn off. “My fault. I brought him to Faerie and commanded it to heal him.”
Irma looked gobsmacked and a bit scared. “That’s not possible. Only the—”
“Faerie’s magic is sentient enough to know desperation and probably Dr. Craftsman saved you,” Ryfon cut in.
I nodded. “I told it he saved me and many hobgoblins. It saved him then.”
“Good, good,” Irma whispered, relief smoothing out her expression. “You need fuel and more healing. You too, Dr. Craftsman.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he agreed as he gently sat me in a chair at my kitchen table.
I would have preferred sitting at the counter, but there was also more possibility of me falling if I got too tired… Which I knew from experience. Chairs with arms and backs were best when injured.
“Thank you for saving her,” Irma muttered to Craftsman as she set down the first tray for us. “Maybe we won’t starve you this semester for completely abandoning her. Though I cannot promise the children will stop throwing things at you. They know you made her cry. The fae dogs made sure we knew of her pain.”
Oh well damn. Just dayumn. My dogs snitched to the hobgoblins about me blubbering to them about him who punished Craftsman last semester. That was just… Even White looked like she was having a hard time not laughing.
“The situation is worse than we thought,” I told Irma, and not simply to change the subject. “These hobgoblins were held in cells. Tiny cells, like prison with normal human toilets to share. It was—”
“Cruel and horrific,” Craftsman cut in with a shiver. “They need to tell their story. I know it’s hard, and no one wants to push anyone into speaking out, but I believe people need to. I know it’s not in the natural of fair folk to rock the boat, but to react when pushed. However, the focus needs to come off Tamsin saving them and onto the conditions those being held are living.”
“It is time,” I agreed, shooting the hobgoblins a look. “No one is saying the supe news who would badger you with questions. Mel can tape it, or Izzy, but I believe the average supe would be horrified to know what you guys are living like, and we need that outrage to help us.” I shook my head when they went to argue. “Those were death traps to keep their slaves. Enough.”
“She’s right,” Ryfon agreed after a moment. “That’s too much to risk with the last fairy.”
I mentally sighed. It wasn’t about what had been done to me as a fairy. They wouldn’t fight for themselves and it drove me crazy at times.
But the end result was the hobgoblins taking a needed stand and going into battle to save the others. That was a relief and made me feel better.
What really made me feel better was when Darby, and even Lucca, came into the kitchen and right for me. Irma must have let them know, and I was glad.
Except I met Craftsman’s gaze as Lucca wrapped his thick arms around me, and I had a flash to the song the warlock had sent me about the pain of watching me move on to a new love and leave him behind. Except he’d done this to us. I hadn’t wanted to anything but to love him forever and be his.
So I looked away
