A spark of clarity hit me. Finn had paused and I could sense him trying to speak with me, but his words weren’t getting through.
Finn!
I shouted in my head, but the mecca was a purple haze that couldn’t be penetrated. It had become this huge living thing, moving on its own now, using me as a channel. I tried to stuff that live wire back down but nothing happened. The entire hill was coated in a purple mist and now I could see just at the top, just ten yards from me, near the stage, a portal had opened. Two fae magic users were using energy to hold it open, one on either side, as the remaining unharmed fae were escaping.
My legs began to violently jerk as I struggled to stay on Finn. I had gone too far this time. I might have saved my people, but the mecca was going to rip me in two. Then, as if this moment couldn’t get any worse, Violet’s scream cut through the dark night, forcing chills up my arms. I could only watch in horror as the two fae who had opened the portal wrapped some type of glowing magical bands around my best friend’s arms and legs and shoved her through the portal just as the hole closed.
It all happened so fast I couldn’t be sure it was true. A cavern of sorrow opened inside my chest. Kade reached me then; his huge hands came up to either side of my face, tearing my gaze from where my best friend had just been.
I looked into his eyes, those deep molten copper eyes, and the pain threatening to destroy my body eased the slightest bit. I tried to gasp for small breaths; I wasn’t sure if the mecca or the loss of Violet had robbed me of oxygen. I couldn’t think straight. Kade’s eyes suddenly flared with spikes of purple and my legs stopped shaking, but his forehead broke out in sweat.
“No!” I tried to rip my face away from his. I couldn’t lose them both. No one could control this amount of mecca, not even Kade. It was everywhere in an inexhaustible supply. But his hands clamped down harder and I watched in horror as his amber eyes went purple. Both of us were buffeted by a huge gust of wind, and I realized Nix was there. Her ten foot wingspan stole the moonlight from around us, and the next moment happened so fast I had no time to process it. Nix flew at Kade’s face, landing on his head, and something snapped so hard I was thrown backward, and everything went dark.
Chapter Eleven
Fire can reduce the strongest tree to ash.
Consciousness returned and I floated in a sea of calm for a few beats, but as awareness filtered in, so did the memories. Violet! I forced my eyes open, trying to lift my head from the soft linen pillow beneath it. A sharp stab of pain rocked through my body, settling into my brain. It was like a migraine on steroids, and I wasn’t sure I could sit up without throwing up.
I finally got my eyes open, and was in a half sitting position. “Violet!” I called out as I tried to take in my surroundings through the pounding pain. I was in my room at the Island mansion.
Movement from the couch off to the side caught my eye. Calista crossed to stand at my bedside. Her face was haggard and streaked with blood. Her eyes were red-ringed and puffy.
“Violet’s gone. A lot of them are gone.” Calista’s voice was broken, a hollow shell.
Pushing through my pain, I attempted to leap from the bed. Calista caught me as I stumbled, but I made it to my feet.
“What do you mean, a lot of them? What about Winnie?” Warmth brushed against my leg and it was Finn, pressing himself against my comfortable night clothes, supporting my weight.
Calista’s chin was trembling. “Winnie is fine. She’s already on a boat back to Manhattan. Violet was taken, maybe more. We haven’t accounted for everyone yet. And Ben is … dead. He was ambushed by at least a dozen fae. We lost more than five hundred wolves and three hundred bears.”
I sagged back into the bed at her news. Ben. No, it couldn’t be true. Ben and Derek both killed by fae. Violet snatched into their world. My heart was breaking, I could feel the fissuring cracks as my body bled for my loved ones. Drawing on the strength of my crown, I searched the pack bonds, filtering energy around the alphas as I tried to sense my people.
Calista was right. Where Ben’s bright shining energy used to be, there was only emptiness. Emptiness everywhere. Over five hundred lost on the night of the summer festival. Our celebration would now go down in the history books as the most awful battle we had endured since the dark days.
Fighting through my shock and pain, I forced myself to stand. On my own. No support from Finn or Calista. “Okay. I need to know exactly what happened last night. How the fae appeared, and if anyone was around. We’ll need to interview the wolf and bear shifters…”
“You have no time for that,” said Calista. “The council and Selene are waiting for you. They have called a trial for dissolution of crown.” This time my advisor couldn’t keep her composure. A single tear trailed down her cheek; her sorrow was palpable.
“Based on what?” I asked, my voice surprisingly steady.
“Unfit to rule.” Another few tears trailed along her cheeks.
I let her information process. The council and Selene had decided I was unfit to rule and now they would challenge me. It wasn’t an easy process, and without hard evidence they wouldn’t succeed. Nope. This was a show of their strength, pushing me back for my display of dominance yesterday.
“Calista, listen to me...” My voice remained strong. The petty annoyances of the council and Selene were so far down my list of things to worry about. I had no idea where Kade was, my best friend had been kidnapped by fae, and another one of my most cherished friends was dead. Everything else paled in comparison.