Steal the Night (Thieves #5)(106)

The sound made my soul hurt. Dev’s heart was straining to keep up with the demand and it was going to burst soon. His heart would fail and now there wasn’t even Zack to save Daniel. It was everything I had feared it could be. I would lose them both.

“Tick tock, Queen Zoey. Time is running out,” Myrddin said in a weird sing-song. “Lose them or save them. It’s up to you.”

“I’ll do what you ask.” I made my deal with the devil, but I was going to find a way out. I wasn’t about to let this man have my husbands. I would go along for now but he’d made an enemy of me, and I promised myself I would be a formidable one. “Save them.”

His smile was charming and he walked back over to the tray. “It would be my pleasure.” He pulled the device off the heart and it exploded, sending liquefied silver everywhere. Myrddin squeezed the heart gently and silver poured out of the arteries. He doused it in a solution and within a minute pronounced it clean.

“That was all?” I hissed the question. “You knew what you were doing the whole time?”

He walked to the stasis chamber. “Of course, dear. I might not have performed the magic before but I knew what I was doing. There’s very little magic I can’t master quickly. I needed the extra time to spend with you. While I was working on Daniel’s heart, I thought I’d work a little on your soul, Queen Zoey. I know who holds power and who doesn’t. I think we’ll make a good team. You’ll see. We’ll make Daniel a great king.”

As Dev’s heart reached a staccato crescendo, the wizard shoved his hand through the blue light and carefully pushed the heart back into Daniel’s chest. His hand disappeared. I could see him moving and shifting until he was happy with the placement and he gently pulled his hand back out. The flesh closed as the wizard’s hand retreated.

I stood there, completely helpless, watching Dev fail, hearing his heart getting ready to explode. There was nothing I could do except pray that it would be over soon, hope that the wizard would be satisfied with my promise and let Devinshea live through this. I bit my lip as the pounding of Dev’s heart began to make one long sound, the beats so close together I could barely tell there was any time at all between them. I watched as his face tightened with the strain, and there were tears squeezing out of his eyes as he realized his time was almost up. He wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer, and it would cost him everything.

Then just like that I heard the most beautiful of sounds. Slower, so much slower than Dev’s, Daniel’s heart began to beat. Dev’s hands came off Daniel’s shoulders and he slumped to the ground, every bit of energy he had utterly expended. His heartbeat tapered off rapidly but then it found a natural rhythm and though my faery prince didn’t move, I could hear the glorious beat of those two hearts making a time and music of their own.

“You see, Your Highness,” Myrddin said with a completely satisfied look on his face. “I always manage to do what I promise. You should remember that when dealing with me in the future. Your husbands are both alive and I suspect you will find them very grateful to me. Tell them what you wish, but I’ll be able turn it to my advantage. Or you can keep your bargain with me and we can handle them together. I don’t have to cut you out entirely. I would rather you were my partner in helping the king. He needs us both, you know.”

I nodded numbly, all the while thinking that this time I was going to let Lee rip out his throat. I would wait until the time was right and I couldn’t be accused of anything. I would come up with some scenario that made Lee seem entirely innocent, but my wolf was getting let off the leash. He’d been wanting to kill someone for me for the longest time, and it looked like Christmas was finally here. I’d held him back when he wanted to do in Declan Quinn, but I wasn’t going to play around with Myrddin. The wizard made Dev’s brother seem like a helpless infant. Lee would rip the wizard to shreds and I would be waiting with a hose to clean his fur and a big bag of beef jerky for a job well done. I smiled at the thought and was very pleased when the wizard seemed disturbed.

“Your Highness?”

I gave the wizard my biggest, wide-eyed stare. “I’ll do what you think best, Myrddin.”

That really made him uncomfortable. “Somehow I doubt that. Call your guard back in. We’ll need help moving the king and Devinshea to the recovery room.”

I called to Lee as I always did when I needed a strong arm, and in seconds he was at my side.





I sat in the middle of the two beds and waited. It had been several hours since the successful end of the operation, and Dev had woken briefly. He’d managed to choke down Nim’s elixir and promptly slipped into a deep sleep, but not before I’d seen Bris’s emerald green eyes staring up at me. I knew he’d been there lending his host every bit of strength he had. I’d leaned over and kissed him softly, whispering my thanks. The ancient god had looked satisfied and let his host’s body get the rest it needed.

Daniel had been still as a corpse. He was in that deep, dark sleep most vampires suffered through every day. Daniel had both companion blood and Dev’s magic to feed from. When he was well he slept more normally, like a human would. We were able to rouse him if needed and he would sometimes toss and turn in his sleep. Myrddin had explained it was just an effect of the deep healing his body was attempting to do. To prove to me Daniel was all right, he’d asked Zack to feed his master. Zack had been more than willing to donate. He’d been slightly sheepish at getting knocked on his ass by something as scary as blue light. He’d opened his wrist, and the sight of Daniel’s mouth opening to get that blood mollified me. If he was feeding, he was healing.