Blue Blood (Series of Blood Book 3) by Emma Hamm (books to read this summer .txt) 📕

There was no time to go look for the horn, not even time to mourn its loss, though it had come at great cost. If they wanted to protect the people they cared about from further harm, they needed to go

A sharp stab in his pocket hindered his movements as he shifted his weight.

“A Unicorn horn always shows up when it’s needed,” Bluebell explained. “They’re rather sticky pieces of magic. Keep following people around even when they aren’t wanted.”

“I do want it,” he replied, cracking his neck to prepare for teleporting.

Mercy stirred at his words, and he realized they applied just as well to her. He did want her. It was just a shame that the two of them had found such hardship while in each other’s company.

He worried the memories they shared would always be a black stain they could not get rid of. Sighing, he curled his arms around her back. Wings flexing, he began the long series of jumps back towards Haven.

13

Mercy’s fingers dug into Jasper’s back, holding onto him for dear life. Teleporting had a way of making one feel formless, but the sensations lingered too long. It made her feel both aware and corporeal. She did not enjoy feeling as though she were dead.

Everything he said lingered in her mind. He was a good man, this Fairy who seemed to be an endless well of patience. And he liked her.

When was the last time someone had liked her for being herself?

She pressed her cheek into the crook of his neck and wished they could have started in a different time. A kinder time, when there would have been a chance for a sweet love between them. Her chest ached, not from emotion but from the lingering cold of the river. He had been right to throw her in. There had been no controlling the rage that had bubbled over until she was little more than a thing made of anger and hate.

Still, it was dangerous for her to be so cold.

Her heart had been replaced by Ignes's Ember long ago, and she'd grown used to the stillness that took place of her heartbeat. But something stirred within the depths of her chest, and then she heard him.

Ignes. It was one of the rare times he would speak inside her mind.

“He is a good man.”

Mercy nodded. Jasper really was one of the few precious men who were kind at their core.

“I want you to listen to me,” Ignes firmly said. “I understand you’re attached to him. You remember that Phoenix are not like humans? Jealousy is not an emotion we frequently feel. At least when it comes to our mates. And you are not going to be a Phoenix for a while yet. Enjoy yourself. Find your happiness in your human life so that when you are like me, you will bring something more to our kind.”

She nodded again and bit her lip. There was something strange about what he said, and she couldn’t put her finger on it. His words had an air of importance that he rarely spoke with.

“I want you to be happy.” Ignes laughed. “So go and be happy! The more humanity you retain and remember, the more we will fit into this world where humans outnumber us. Volcanoes and the core of the earth are only good for so long. I want us to remember these people so someday we may protect them. If we can find a way to connect with them, it’s better for us.”

At least he was the voice of reason. Mercy certainly couldn’t seem to find her own voice.

Jasper’s teleporting slowed, and she wondered if he was tiring. They had been traveling for hours now. First, he had only teleported as far as he could see. Then, he had teleported farther and farther jumps.

They were on the edge of a cliff one moment, and the next there was sand under her toes. Scorching heat had soothed her pain for a moment before snow had set her shivering anew. Every jump, every time they moved, she felt as though she left bits of herself behind.

Teleporting wasn’t natural. Only a few creatures could do it, and she wasn’t certain how they kept their sanity. Mercy wanted it to stop an hour ago, but she understood why they couldn’t. Malachi could be tracking them, planning to find where they would go next, and they had both learned their lesson the last time he had caught them. They would not bring death with them to Haven.

Dark memories burned the edges of her vision, but she could do nothing about them. Even Ignes couldn’t raise enough heat to feel true anger. There was nothing left inside of her but an aching numbness.

Hard stone materialized beneath her feet and remained there. That was new. She lifted her head from Jasper’s chest and blearily looked around them.

They stood in a back alley of a crumbling city. It had been a long time since she had seen the high towers of concrete and stone. Mercy tilted her head up to look at them, but all she could see were the changes.

Greenery grew everywhere, even in the cracks of the buildings. Moss had wedged itself into the grooves underneath her feet. Even roots were bursting through the nearest window, leaving shattered glass scattered over the ground like stardust.

“Where are we?” Mercy asked.

“Home.”

She didn’t correct him. She didn’t want to tell him that there wasn’t a home for her, not anywhere humans could exist. The volcanoes were already calling to her. She wanted their heat, and they wanted to dissolve her soft human shell.

“Mercy.” Jasper extended a hand. “Come home with me.”

She hesitated for only a moment before she reached out and took his hand.

Jasper reeled her into his arms and tucked her against his shoulder. Mercy wondered for a moment if he thought she wouldn’t come with him while she relaxed into his grip. She didn’t want to teleport anymore,