The broken court kyra ba.., p.1
The Broken Court (Kyra Baxter Series Book 2), page 1
Table of Contents
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
About The Author
Copyright
Copyright © 2021 Chowen Publishing House LLC
All Rights Reserved
Kindle Edition All Rights Reserved
Editor: Corina Douglas at BURNING LEGACIES PUBLISHING LIMITED
Cover photo and design: © Moonpress Design by Bianca Bordianu
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a review. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Dedication
To CLR and CLR...
Without you both, I wouldn’t be where I am today. You set me on the path to grow, and now you support my dreams without hesitation. Thank you for your advice, time, and help. I love you both.
Chapter 1
The carnage from Spathi waited for me. All I had to do was fall asleep and the replay of what we’d found there would pounce into my mind. But we were safe for now, taking sanctuary in the house of a long forgotten friend. Visha and I had settled it: we weren’t running. No matter what, we would face the fall-out that was to come. The life they had created for me, the one my friends had so carefully guarded me within, was gone. In the morning light, we would face the threat of our enemy, the threat that was lurking out there. With a new plan, we’d be prepared for whatever awaited us. Despite the constant uncertainty, a desperate thrill resounded through me. We would risk it—together.
Visha snored softly on the bed next to me. I should have been sleeping, too; but awake, I could keep away the horrors of the day. So, I’d remained seated on the bed, legs crossed in a meditation style, and watched the shadows lengthen outside as I considered our position. We were alone in this place, and after what we’d seen at Spathi, it was a good bet none of that clan had survived. Everyone around me was in danger—because of me and my limitations. My magic was still locked away. I was still cursed to a human form, and more of a burden than a source of help because of it.
Neither of Visha nor I fully trusted our newest ally. Hell, Kismet had shown up out of the blue but also right when we needed him the most. What Visha said was true and quite visible: he carried a flame for me. As I was unsure of what had happened between us in the past, I needed to be extremely cautious with Kismet. The curse prevented me from knowing how to tread around him—from truly knowing whether he was a friend or a mere acquaintance. Plus, it had been years and years since he’d been our companion. But since I didn’t have that background knowledge, I was going to have to trust my gut. And my gut was telling me to use him to my advantage. At this point, I was damn near willing to do anything to save us, and if that meant using an old unknown connection, I’d do it.
With limited information, we were stuck here like pigs in mud, with no clear path ahead. The obvious choice was to stay with Kismet until we learned how he could help us. But we weren’t able to make our next big offensive action thanks to Kismet’s tight-lipped policy last night. He was secretive, and I couldn’t blame him for not instantly showing me all his cards. Given the situation, I wouldn’t have shown him mine either. But I wanted action, and it grated me that Kismet had proved to be a wily source. Tomorrow, I’ll prove myself to him and earn his trust.
We had been at Kismet’s ranch for less than twelve hours, and I think the constant change in environment had kept Visha from falling apart after what we’d witnessed at Spathi. Visha was the only protector with me of an original trio. The other two were a brother and sister named Orna and Luka, but Luka was also Visha’s lover. We’d lost Orna months ago, and more recently, Luka. We had been thought he’d died in the attack at Spathi, but we hadn’t found his body there, so we couldn’t think the worst...not yet at least. I knew Visha was carrying the weight of her lover’s disappearance, and my biggest fear was that if we didn’t find Luka soon, it would destroy her. But Luka’s disappearance was just one of many problems facing us, and unlike everything else, locating the missing High Fae was the most imperative course of action. The plan was once I had Kismet on our team, and once he became a valuable resource, we would tear Dallas apart to find Luka. And if for some reason Kismet wasn’t a big help, well, we would find another way. I wasn’t done fighting. Not by a long shot.
To that end, I was doing the only thing I could to help us push forward. The me inside my head—a smaller version of my physical body in many respects—crushed another brick from the wall build across the expanse of my head. Inside my mind, I stood and brushed the resulting dust away before walking back to inspect the hole I was enlarging in my wall. How deep this thing ran, it was impossible to say. But the fact that I could now walk into the hole showed immense progress. I was adamant that it was coming down. It had to—my magic lay on the other side.
The wall was my curse. Drystan—my tutor in the mental facilities department—hadn’t known how deep the wall in my mind ran. He believed that the moment I could breach it, my magic could be accessed and thus used to speed up the process. Desperation filled me, as I vainly wished I could just get rid of it. Still, the hole I’d made was sizable. Soon, I promised myself, this mental wall will come tumbling down. Already, I’d killed Unseelie monsters, navigated the world of the Fae, and survived immense loss. It was a fairly outstanding record for a Fae in hiding—which was exactly what I was.
One more brick. I didn’t have to coax myself further, because if I stopped and went to sleep, I would have to face the nightmares. I knew that when I decided to shut my eyes tonight there would be new horrors to keep me company. I knew that Mishka, the woman who’d betrayed me, would make an appearance. She’d probably chase me, now without hidden malice. But the fear of facing my panel of judges, ready to condemn me for my shortcomings, kept me awake and sitting on the edge of the bed, staring out into the balmy Texan night.
A warm tendril of what I could only call sunlight scraped at me from behind, at the edge of my consciousness.
He’s here! A rush of heat tingled down my spine. The imp had been sent to fetch Drystan when we thought we were in danger and I’d been waiting on him—it was part of the reason I’d stayed awake.
“Come in,” I offered mind to mind. This was good! I didn’t have to expend any more mental energy in thinking up a way to search for him. Since I’d made the tactical decision to switch from a smartphone to a burner, I hadn’t had a way to contact Drystan, especially because my Fae methods were currently useless.
It took a moment before he entered. The sunlight proceeded the shadows. The dark and the light essence of who Drystan was mingled together, filling my mind, and a manifestation of him followed.
“Where are you?” he asked, voice strained.
Drystan wasn’t shouting, but I could feel the fury that he was doing a poor job of holding back. Little sparks of it lashed out, stinging me with their heat. Just as Drystan commanded the daylight, he also held a terrible darkness that threatened to break free. My inner being quaked at the menace of the prowling tendrils that were unleashed with his presence. I knew that if he lost control here in my mind, he would wreak havoc and pierce my fragile mental defenses.
But I trusted him.
Realizing that I hadn’t responded, I lifted my physical hands as well as my mental ones—or so I thought. The truth was, I was too exhausted to differentiate. “I’m at the ranch—the one Visha found out about on your computer. We were looking for Luka, but we found something else instead.” Feeling a bit snippy, I added, “But shouldn’t you already know where I am, since I sent the imp with a message hours ago? Or is it because you wanted me to run away that you’re angry?”
In reply, there was nothing but silence, Drystan’s looming presence waxing and wani
“So, where are you?” I pressed. In here, there was no disguising the ache in my chest at the way we’d parted. Every thought and feeling was laid bare for his examination. While I had forgotten what we were, Drystan still had strong feelings for me and, although I hadn’t let myself get carried away, I, too, was now feeling things for him.
His sigh was a cool night breeze, filled with despair and frustration. “I’m by your stolen car on the ridge overlooking the ranch—someplace I would never have been stupid enough to descend into.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “You pushed us away!”
“Just because I wanted you safe does not mean I wanted to let you go. But did you have to go and be caught by the Unseelie?”
“This isn’t the enemy, Drystan.” I swallowed hard, debating how much to reveal right now. “This is an old friend from the Courts. He was a prince and is using Unseelie as his army.”
Drystan jerked violently. He stalked forward a few steps. When he stopped, I couldn’t tell what he was thinking; his face was an unreadable mask.
I changed the subject. “Why do you have Fae magic if your power was stolen from you five hundred years ago?”
“Magic? Ha! These are mere parlor tricks, My Princess. I cannot command the dark to consume, and I cannot command the daylight to ignite.” Drystan scoffed. “Although, I can fade short distances, and I can come into your mind. I can also throw a few tricks, like cleaning your appearance or showing off the shadows from my body. But I am weak.”
The derision and self-loathing in his voice struck my heart. I stepped toward him then stopped short. There was so much anger roiling under his dark presence and it threatened to explode. As it leached over to me, I blurted out, “I told you, I’m not running. Besides, our traitor is dead. The fact that Mishka fooled you is rather surprising. Anyhow, I’ve found a new ally here—one who does not want me to run away.”
Drystan lifted his black eyes and slapped his head with his hand. “You believed that? About Mishka?”
“You said we had a traitor in our midst! The man here said it was Mishka—wouldn’t he know who his informant was?”
“Keeping tabs on Mishka was one of the reasons I made contact with her first thing when I came to town.” Drystan narrowed his gaze at me. “Do you know the saying, ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer?’”
My throat went suddenly dry. “Which was she, then?”
“I think you already made up your mind about which you believe her to have been.”
I carefully tucked away Drystan’s reaction, determined to work out this puzzle when I had time later. Although I was still pissed that he’d suggested to his sister—my shield-maiden, Visha—that she should squirrel me away to safety, there was no denying the admiration I had for him given the fact that he’d gone to his possible death in order to draw the heat off me.
Drystan’s presence prowled closer. “I would have come with you; you two should not have gone to the ranch alone.” Drystan reached out a hand, which was covered in darkness, and tapped my inner skull. Clearly, going by that action he was still pissy. “I had only the vaguest clue of what was at the ranch. It could have been home to the minions who serve the Priests. And on that, I have no idea where they’ve gone or what they intend to do next. They are veritable ghosts—nearly nonexistent.”
“I have more than one enemy, Drystan! This isn’t black and white, I realize that now. But do you?” I shouted and swatted his hand away, but in the next moment he captured my wrist and yanked me hard against his body, before lowering us both to the floor. It was useless to struggle and I didn’t want to anyhow. So, I relaxed, waiting for his touch.
But instead of moving closer, Drystan pushed off me at the last moment and took a seat on the floor of my mind. I scrambled to a sitting position and we were again locked in another stare.
“I could never be your enemy.” He paused and his gaze fell to his knees. My heart lurched in my chest as he continued, “I said there could be a traitor. My focus had been on whatever games Cadan and his handler, Martin Westwood, were up to, but I found out that they didn’t betray you to the Unseelie.” Drystan brought his palms together, capturing my hand in between. “Rather, I’d thought that the Unseelie were just stronger than we were. I never kept an eye on Mishka, especially after we’d struck that bargain in exchange for weapons. If she was a traitor, the damage was done. Forgive me?”
“I hate that you sent me away,” I responded, not wanting to concede forgiveness right away, instead deciding to face the situation head on.
“I know.”
“I thought I’d never see you again.” On impulse, I trailed a finger along his chest, which was covered in a black athletic tee, just as his chest in the physical world would be. Starlight exploded out of the darkness. Through our connected hands, I felt the call of daylight deep within my bones. I shivered and clenched my legs closed. Although there was a low hum of approval from Drystan, I couldn’t stop the thoughts from earlier popping back into my mind. What if his response was false? What if he had the sole aim of restoring his powers?
A chant of dō-rē-mi-fa-so-la-ti-dō ran through my mind. Nothing I thought in here was hidden from Drystan. I knew we had a quid-pro-quo arrangement, but it would be cruel indeed if there wasn’t anything more underneath all this.
The memory of his recent fight came to mind, and I relaxed a touch. Those feelings he’d had for me as he’d fought the poison of death following his battle with the darthghoul had been real.
“What the devil are you trying so hard not to think about?” Drystan’s voice was eerie, filled with soft darkness.
I sighed. I had to be partly truthful or Drystan would know, since my thoughts were as good as naked inside my mind. “The man here at the ranch... He told me so many things about my past.”
“And?” Drystan pressed. “Who is he?”
Ignoring his question, I kept on with my train of thought. “Well, the way he told it, you and I weren’t strangers, which from your memories I knew...”
I stopped talking as a deep rumble of appreciation filled my mind with a sensation that I could only describe as desire. In the physical space, my body was alive with various nerves tingling across my skin. It was as if something was kissing its way along my neck and running its hands down my ribs. A shadow? I blinked open my physical eyes just to be sure and the scent of lemons and fresh earth assailed me, wafting over my skin as if there really was a Lord of Twilight in the room with me. My body was on fire, the place between my legs throbbing with need. I found myself tangled in the bedsheets, no longer sitting. I arched under the sensations Drystan’s presence was creating in my mind.
Pushing down a blush, I turned my focus back inward and was met with a pair of glittering black eyes. I arched a brow at the potent Fae sitting in my mind. “Show me what you’ve got, Princeling,” I challenged him.
“I was a king, Princess,” Drystan purred, his voice sending ripples of desire through every fiber of my being.
A king? The word pulsed through me. I trailed a finger along Drystan’s thick forearm, but he captured my inner hands, pulling me onto his lap. I shimmied my backside against his groin. In response, he drew a finger up my outer thigh. As his fingers feathered along the length of the inner muscle, another wave of indescribable pleasure crashed through me. And the bastard knew it. Not a single corner of my mind was free from his presence.
“I want more,” I demanded.
“Kyra,” Drystan warned, “when I do finally take you after all this time, it will be under the sun, out in the open. Both my body and my mind will pay homage to you. I refuse to substitute that experience with some fantasy that I can produce in your head.”
Even though this was a whispered promise of the kind of fantasy he could produce, I still craved his touch. “There is too much despair out there. Please, Drys, I need this.”
His eyes flared wide. I wasn’t sure why and I didn’t care. All I could focus on was his fingers, now trailing down the spine of my inner being. Then he dropped our joined hands to the floor right as a wave of pleasure rippled out from my core, washing over my physical body in an all-consuming moment. I choked off a cry as the orgasm pulsed through my body.
