King Cave (Forever Evermore, #2)(153)

Protect.

He watched, his head cocking.

I felt the press of his will.

Then nothing. Darkness.





Chapter Twenty-Five



My eyes shot open to blinding white light.

I jolted, sitting up.

I rolled, falling heavily onto a cold, hard floor.

“Queen Ruckler, stop!” a man shouted, the voice vaguely familiar.

Twisting, I squinted into the brightness, my eyes darting. I was in the infirmary at King Cave. There were medical beds throughout the room, and the Mage that had worked on me previously after my bout with Elder Kincaid was standing at the end of the bed I had fallen from.

He held his hands up, saying, “You’re alright. Try to calm yourself.”

“Ezra,” I stated instantly, my voice hoarse and my eyes going to the other beds. “Where is he?” I remembered avidly the events at the beginning of the attack. The last bit was a little blurry, once he was shot, but I remembered Elder Merrick’s face at the end.

The Mage’s eyes carefully blanked. “Queen Ruckler, you need to—”

“Fuck off. The only thing I need to do is find him.” I slammed a shaking hand down on the bed, and hauled myself on wobbling legs. The white gown they had put me in was drafty, and I shivered as I got a better look at the occupants of the beds. Ezra wasn’t there. “Where the hell is he?” My heart knocked, dread hammering me.

Hesitation. “He’s in his family’s room.”

“Why? He was shot three times and once with a silver arrow. He should be in here.”

A longer pause. “I think I should call Elder Kincaid to come and speak with you.”

My gaze snapped to him. I asked the one question I didn’t want to. “Is he dead?”

Instant. “No.”

Relief surged and my knees weakened. I began to fall, and the Mage jumped forward, catching my elbow and holding me steady. I shook my head, trying to focus. “Why is he there?”

The Mage made me sit on the thick mattress. Softly and slowly, he explained, “We removed the bullets and repaired the damage of his injuries, but the silver had already entered his bloodstream.” My heart stuttered, chest squeezing painfully, and my vision shrunk to pinpoints. “He’s in a coma, so he’s not in any pain, but there’s nothing else we can do. It’s only a matter of time as the silver travels through his bloodstream.”

Instant. “Blood transfusion?”

He shook his head. “Too much silver.” He cleared his throat. “Your injury had already healed by the time you returned, but your body rejected the blood we tried to give you. We believe that was caused from the silver injury to your thigh. You’ve been asleep for two days.”

I barely listened, my mind seizing. “How much time does he have?”

He rested a hand on my shoulder, squeezing soothingly. “A day, at most.”

I nodded and pushed off the bed. “Where are my swords and gun?”

He tried to maneuver me back on the bed when I teetered. “You really should rest longer.”

“My stuff,” I demanded, eyes glowing. I was on a f*cking mission now that he had given me the timeframe. “Where is it?”

“Queen Cooper took the items to your room. She and King Collins have been in to check on you regularly, both of them having returned from their trip shortly after you and Ezra were brought here,” he murmured, taking a step back when he saw the expression on my face. “Queen Ruckler, there’s really nothing that can be done to save him. You won’t even be able to see him. Only Vampires are allowed at a time like this.”

I snorted, holding the back of my gown together. “When a damn Mage is involved there’s always something that can be done.”


Having had dressed quickly in all black, Jack and Pearl not in our room to hinder my actions, I found my weapons easily, Pearl stashing them in my closet. Now, I waited in the shadows for a break in the people coming and going inside Ezra’s family’s suite. There were a multitude of Vampires going inside to say their ‘last goodbye’ to Ezra. It was enough to shatter my already nervous system, but I kept my mindset steady, knowing — needing to know — that I was correct in my assumption.

When it appeared that the last of a large group had exited, I raced down the hall to listen at the door. I heard no one. Cracking it, I peeked inside. The room directly behind the door reminded me of our bedroom, the entry the living room, albeit done in dark colors. And it was empty.

Slipping inside, I sniffed the air, and I locked the door so no others would enter to interrupt. There were so many scents they were hard to distinguish, but I was fairly positive, the scent alive and strong, that his dad and, another sniff, Bindi were through the open door at the end of the room and to the left. And Ezra was through the second door to the right. His scent was wrong, the smell of silver clinging. I swallowed the growl that wanted to erupt, furiously and instantly hating the mixture.

On light feet, I moved to the right. The farther into the room I went, the more sounds I picked up. The sounds of death. Cahal’s pleading voice as he drilled Bindi for alternative solutions to Ezra’s health in the room I had guessed they were in. Bindi talking soothingly, quietly, but giving no available options. And the labored breathing of the dying from Ezra’s room.