She stood rigid, her shoulders back and her hands fisted at her sides. Why was she there? How was she there? It didn’t make sense. Why hadn’t she told him she was coming? The questions rushed through his mind as he continued to fight the magic holding him. If this was Peri’s doing, he was going to bite her, hard.
His mate slowly turned, and a second later their gaze locked on to one another. He drank her in like a man who’d been thirsty for decades. He wanted to go to her, needed to make sure she wasn’t a figment of his imagination. The fear that filled Jen’s eyes made his stomach clench. He’d only ever seen her that scared once before, and that was when she thought Thia was going to die at birth.
“Why the hell are you here?” he asked, reaching out to her through their bond.
She didn’t answer. Instead she stepped to the side. She obviously wasn’t bound by the spell that was working over the battlefield. He looked past her shoulder and saw Alston, and in his arms was Thia, his daughter.
Decebel’s wolf lunged inside so hard that he’d actually managed to move just a little but that was it. Rage rolled through him like the building storm of the sprites as he looked back at Jen and then to his daughter again. His helpless daughter in the arms of a monster. Alston had just made the biggest mistake of his long, long life. He’d unleashed a demon in the form of a wolf, and no matter how long it took, Decebel would eventually destroy the high fae for touching his precious child and for the fear he saw in his mate’s eyes.
Alston’s voice drew Decebel’s attention from his daughter, and he looked at the high fae’s face. The smug look was enough to make Decebel want to chew on the marrow of the man's bones.
“It’s time you retreat and lick your wounds.” Alston’s gaze seemed to roam over the space, looking for someone. His grin widened as though happy he hadn’t found them. “After all, you’re beloved hero, Perizada, has deserted you. She was here. I can feel her magic, and yet I do not see her now. Tell me,” Alston said, his voice sounding smug, “how long did she last before she tucked her tail and ran?” He threw his head back and laughed.
Thia jumped, startled by the sound. Her bottom lip quivered, and Decebel swore for every tear that fell down her cheek, he would cut Alston up slowly. Slice by slice, he would cut the high fae until he was just a pile of bite-size pieces to throw to his cousins, the wild wolves.
Alston’s laugh died down. “I have to admit I am quite taken aback. I was truly expecting to face the great and mighty Perizada here today. Ludcarab even brought out his pet.” He motioned toward the man sitting on the dragon that hovered in the air about forty feet behind Alston. “We were expecting a more challenging match.” He shook his head as though disappointed.
Decebel’s gaze roamed the battlefield, because he couldn’t move his damn head, only looking away from his mate and child for a second to verify what Alston said. He didn’t see Peri anywhere. Why would she leave? Or was she taken? It wouldn’t be beyond Alston to have done something in order to deceive them.
He tried to move forward again, but he couldn’t budge. It was a binding spell like the one Peri had put on them in the past. In that moment, Decebel despised the fae’s magic.
The thunder still rumbled, but it wasn’t as loud as when the battle had been raging. The lightning was now completely gone, and everything suddenly felt even more dangerous than when his foe had been attacking him with the intent to kill.
“The only thing I’m going to be licking is his blood from my muzzle,” Fane snarled next to Decebel. He apparently wasn’t concerned about Perizada bailing on them, if that was in fact what had happened.
Decebel realized that whatever was holding him must have backed off enough to allow them to speak, though they still couldn’t move their limbs.
“What do you want with the pups, Alston?” Vasile asked.
“The pups serve no other purpose than to control you and your females. There’s no way you will strike against us while we have them.” The high fae smiled, and the evil behind it sent a chill down Decebel’s spine.