Charmed Wolf by Aimee Easterling (best ereader for pdf TXT) 📕

her sister to spend decades scrubbing chamberpots. But was that really punishment enough?”

The Queen’s perfectly formed nostrils flared. “I’m not amused by this memory.”

My teeth sharpened as I smiled. “I can see why not. But would you be amused by the ability to settle the score? That country girl will return to your Court shortly. I have her true name in my possession.”

Well, I kinda did. I would if Kale got carried back to Faery along with the Guardian, which I thought likely. Well, possible at least.

Ignoring my own uncertainty, I continued. “I could give you that name, let you torment her for the rest of her life....”

“Full fae live for eternity,” the Queen corrected.

“Then you can torment her for eternity.”

The hall fell silent. No one spoke. As best I could tell, no one except me breathed.

The Queen’s eyes narrowed as she considered. Her finger skimmed the surface of another bowl of honeycomb, but she didn’t consume the sticky sweetness this time.

Finally, when I thought I’d lost her interest, the Queen took the bait. “What do you want in exchange?”

“In exchange,” I told the one being able to make it happen, “you will give a human child a small nudge to help him stab the one who betrayed you.” I raised a finger when her lips curled upward. “No, that’s not the entirety of the bargain. You’d do that anyway, I know, to get your wayward subject back.”

“What else?” The Queen leaned even closer, her floral scent surrounding me. “Best spit it out. Your pack will be in shreds if you don’t hurry up.”

Images of what was even now happening among Clan Whelan flickered through my mind. But the Queen, for once, was right. The only way I could impact that horrifying battle was to make a deal and make it quickly.

“The rest of the bargain is simple,” I told her. “You’ll release both sons from your service. Then you’ll seal the borders between earth and Faery for good.”

Chapter 38

I thought Erskine and Rune would be the sticking point, but the Queen listened impassively through the mention of her children. When I asked her to seal the borders, however, she shook her head.

“That’s impossible. Even I can’t halt the flow between our worlds at Samhain.”

Which meant the Guardian could come back after I betrayed her. Fae like Lenny’s wife would continue inserting themselves into human and werewolf lives.

I understood, at last, why Rune had felt duty lying so heavily on his shoulders. But the Samhain Shifters had kept the peace thus far. I would trust them to continue protecting our world.

“Alright,” I agreed. “You’ll seal the borders on every day other than Samhain. And you’ll let your sons stay on earth in human form.”

“Your Butch is nothing but a mongrel.” The Queen twirled one hand as if she’d dismissed him long ago, as if the entire reason Rune had lived like a monk for a decade was irrelevant. “I release him.”

I inhaled deeper than I’d been able to a moment earlier. One person I cared about was safe. Now to ensure the others.

“And Erskine?”

The Queen cocked her head, her long neck bending in a curve that was unbelievably beautiful. “But does Erskine want to abandon the world of Faery? Perhaps we should find out?”

She raised her chin and the mirror floated forward. Now it hovered so close I almost felt like I could step through it back into my world.

Or, rather, into the stone circle. There, Erskine paced across his mossy prison. Pounded his fist against a stone wall. Roared his frustrations at the sky.

I felt the same way. The Queen was drawing this out unnecessarily. Who knew how many of my pack mates were dying while she indulged in her love of theatrics?

Just when my patience was about to snap, the Queen spoke. “Son.”

I’d thought the mirror didn’t transmit sound. But Erskine turned toward us, his eyes so much like the Queen’s that I shivered. “Yes, Mother?”

“I’ve made a bargain that involves you. This mortal”—she shook my chain—“has requested that I give you a choice between the human world and Faery. Of course I’ve agreed.”

As if she was a benevolent monarch. As if she wasn’t watching shifters die for mere entertainment.

“If you leave my service,” the Queen continued, her voice merry but her words dark, “you will never be able to return here. You’ll be stuck in the filth of earth among mortals whose lives pass like mayflies.” She paused long enough to yawn. Then: “But, of course, it is your choice.”

Not much of a choice when the Queen put it that way. “Erskine needs to know that on earth, you won’t tamper with him. And that he can always change his mind and return to Faery.”

Because Rune might not trust Erskine, but he loved him. I couldn’t allow Erskine to be dragged back into the awfulness of the Unseelie Court because he thought trying out humanity would be a one-way ticket to eternal boredom.

The scent of flowers exploded around me as the Queen smiled. “But if Erskine leaves me, I don’t want him back. And you requested border closure. That closure will impact movement in both directions. Unless you want to remove that stipulation from our deal?”

I barely got a single word out between gritted teeth. “No.” I wanted to help Erskine, but not enough to lose sight of the safety of everyone else in the process.

The Queen shrugged then turned back to the mirror. “So, son, what is your decision? The drab human world for an eternity, no contact with your beloved mother? Or home for feasting and frivolity?”

Erskine’s eyes met mine. He swallowed. “Tara, do you need...?”

My muscles relaxed then tightened. I’d been wrong to think Erskine would be tempted by the land of the fae. Despite his enjoyment of a glittery mane while four-hooved, he was too much like his brother to ignore the obvious. The chain at my throat was his only focus now.

But the chain was mere frippery. My