Firo grabbed me and pulled on my arm. “Run,” he said and shoved me. “Go, we’ll deal with him.”
I shook my head. “I’m not leaving him to you.”
If I hadn’t seen Zyacus shift into the massive wolf before me now I wouldn’t believe it. His bloodline trait… a wolf shifter. His pendant made me wonder if he always knew or if someone in his family knew.
Aric appeared in front of me, a wall between Firo and me.
Firo squared his shoulders to face the giant wolf. “We deal with his kind often in Faerie.”
Aric growled. “Leave before we kill you.”
“You are Fae,” I said, eyes going wide. I knew it. But that statement left me with so many questions. If wolf shifters belonged in Faerie then why is Zyacus one? And if the Hazelvales are Fae why don’t they have pointed ears and that unmistakable powerful presence like the Winter Prince?
Zyacus bound for Dain, who disappeared seconds before wide snapping jaws caught him. Then those silver eyes turned on us. Taz stepped in front of me too, all of them suddenly trying to shield me from Zyacus. I couldn’t understand why. He wouldn’t hurt me. We should all be facing off with Firo, the enemy.
A glowing white whip at least fifteen feet long appeared in Firo’s hand. He swung it and it cracked in front of Zyacus.
Snarling, his fur hackled up on his back and he stepped to the side slowly to circle around us. Dragon’s breath, his wolf form was terrifying. The size of his teeth alone; he could snap someone’s head off.
“I can’t tell if he sees us all as a snack or just them,” Taz whispered, gesturing toward the Hazelvales.
Aric seemed to be wondering this too because he’d turned his attention away from Firo and faced Zyacus.
“Of course he’s not going to hurt us,” I breathed but my magic surged the closer he came. “And you should be behind me, I’m the strongest of us all.”
Taz looked over his shoulder at me. “Yes, but if we die it doesn’t matter as much. You’re important.”
Aric nodded. “I may be a prince but I’m low in the hierarchy.”
Firo cracked the whip again, this time it struck Zyacus’s paw. He whimpered, stepping back, holding it off the ground.
Fiery rage ripped through me and I slammed Firo with a blast of winter. Ice and snow pelted him, driving both him and his brother back several feet. I wasn’t sure about Zyacus at the moment but I knew with certainty I couldn’t trust the Hazelvales. I clenched my teeth, bracing myself against my own power that only grew stronger until a blizzard cascaded all around us.
“Alright, I give!” Firo bellowed.
I clenched my hands, stopping the magic. Hair brushed against my arm and I whipped my head to see wolf Zyacus beside me, standing against them. His silver eyes met mine and he nudged his head against me. His animal side hadn’t taken over completely.
Taz and Aric stood on either side of us, ready to fight.
“Talk or the blizzard comes back and this time I won’t stop it,” I shouted as the Hazelvale brothers brushed snow and ice from their clothes and body.
They approached with hands up, to show they had no weapons and hopefully meant not to attack. Firo’s eyes trailed across the four of us and then to me. “I find it odd you prefer the winter spell.”
“I find it odd you’re not telling me why you’re here when we can and will overpower you. Have you come to take brides? To perform some sick ritual stealing souls?”
Firo and Dain looked at each other seemingly confused. “Where did you hear about this? There is no record of it.”
“Oh, I’ve met your Winter Prince, and one of ours was alive during the last blood moon when your kind came. He remembers what your people did.”
“When did you meet Astaroth Nightfrost?” Dain asked. The way he said his name, had a mix of both awe and fear.
“Recently,” I snapped. “Now enough questions from you.” I turned to Aric. “Give them the truth potion. We need answers.” I assumed since Zyacus shifted into a wolf it had fallen to the ground somewhere close.
Aric snapped his fingers and the potion bottle appeared in hand. “Share it equally, boys.”
Firo snatched it out of his hand, jerked the stopper and guzzled half. Then gave the rest over to his brother. He didn’t talk much anyway but we needed to be sure.
“I’m a half breed,” Firo began. “At least that’s what the full-blooded Fae call me. My brother and I are half Delhoon, half Summer Court faerie. And we have not come to take brides, or steal the magic of young men. That is what the Winter king does. His only son, Astaroth born of the Night Court Queen does his bidding. Winter controls Night and they are the most powerful in all faerie. The rest of us have fallen in line for thousands of years. The Winter King says kiss his feet; we ask for how long. Everyone has grown tired of his reign. And we finally have hope to change that and it’s all because of Visteal.”
“Me?” I asked dumbfounded.
“What does this have to do with her?” Zyacus asked, skeptically and bitter.
Hearing his voice startled me considering last I looked he was a giant wolf. When I turned, he stood beside me, completely human and naked as the day he was born. Wide-eyed and blushing, I averted my gaze. I’d never seen a fully naked man before, my baby brothers didn’t count, and although I tried not to look at it, I did. I totally did.
Aric tossed him a pair of pants. I had no idea where they’d come from but at the moment
