“Perhaps a truce,” Gabriel offered.
The elf looked suspicious. “Of what manner?”
“Both our clans have been attacked by magic. Those attacks might be related. We are part of the human world, and we are investigating the attack. We will continue to do so. If Niera cannot be found, there is nothing we can do. But if she did not leave by choice, if she was taken, we will find her, and we will bring her home to you. And that will resolve the perceived breach.”
The elf glanced back across his army. I didn’t know if they could communicate telepathically, but he seemed to seek their input.
“We accede to your request,” he said, turning to Gabriel again. “You will send a messenger under flag, and we will meet you here again and receive our mother. If this matter is resolved to our satisfaction, the clan will fade into the canopy again.
“But if it is not—if you protect murderers or engage in more treachery—the détente between our clans will be nullified. We will not fade, nor will we share this land that we inhabited before the rest set foot upon the soil. All of our clans will come forth. All of our villages will be visible once again. And humanity will pay for the transgressions that have accumulated in the meantime.”
The elves closest to us unlocked our chains with small keys they pulled from leather cords around their necks. Damien and Jeff stood again, grimacing as they rubbed the spots on their wrists where the shackles had chafed. Even in the dark, it was easy to see the skin beneath was mottled and red, irritated by the silver.
The rest of the army released the tension from their bowstrings and dropped the arrows back into the leather quivers strapped to their backs. They all stood straight again, turned on their heels, and disappeared into the woods.
Their departure left the three of us, wounded and exhausted, looking back at the army who’d come to save us.
Ignoring the shifters around him, Ethan stalked toward me, lifted me up, and buried his face in my neck, releasing the tension he’d been holding while an army of elves surrounded his girlfriend.
“Thank Christ, Sentinel.”
I didn’t generally object to public displays of affection, but we were surrounded by hard-bitten shifters, and embarrassment bloomed in my cheeks.
Ethan pressed a hard kiss to my lips, leaving little doubt of the ravishment he intended at a more appropriate time. He released me, saw the pink in my cheeks, and smiled. “Let them see, Sentinel. I’ve no interest in hiding my affections.”
We weren’t the only sups in the mood for reunion. Tanya checked Damien’s wounds while her sister stood shyly beside her, clearly not sure if she should step forward or if her attentions would be welcome. But Damien had eyes only for her. His dark brow was furrowed, his dark gaze focused on the girl’s face, his expression intense and needy. I guessed the prospect of battle had sped his blood.
Jeff and Fallon talked quietly nearby. She pushed his hair behind his ears and inspected his face, the movements equally efficient and tender. As the second oldest in the Keene family, I guessed she’d taken care of her share of scrapes.
“Healing begins with loved ones,” Ethan whispered.
“So it seems,” I said, squeezing his hand.
Gabriel walked to us.
“Is Lupercalia usually this exciting?” I asked.
“Only when vampires are about. You two have a unique way of inciting trouble.”
I smiled a little at the attempt at humor, but Ethan’s gaze was heavy and accusing. Gabriel had withheld information, and Ethan wasn’t happy about it.
“I’d like to speak with you,” Ethan murmured, low and threatening.
“When the opportunity permits,” Gabriel said. He turned to walk toward Damien, but Ethan grabbed his arm. The look in Gabe’s eyes was deadly. He cast a glance at Ethan’s hand like it was an alien thing, as if no one had ever attempted to grab him bodily.
“Careful, Sullivan,” Gabriel said.
“Careful?” Ethan gritted out, jaw clenched and anger radiating off his body like heat off asphalt in summer. “My Sentinel was accosted, beaten, marched, and nearly beheaded in front of your shifters. She was held at arrow point—kidnapped from a public place—because you failed to mention the elves were alive and living in our backyard.”
Since I’d held my own, I silently objected to “nearly beheaded” but found the rest of it accurate enough.
Gabriel’s jaw twitched, his eyes swirling like a warming brandy. “Now is not the time or place to discuss these matters,” he said, which made me wonder how much he’d kept from the rest of the Pack.
I took the opportunity to glance around, check the faces of the shifters, who still looked shell-shocked that an army of elves shared their territory. Whatever Gabe had known, he hadn’t shared it with the rest of the Pack. And I guessed that omission was going to require some reckoning.
Ethan swallowed down irritation and released Gabriel’s arm. The tension eased, just a bit.
“When,” Ethan bit out, “would be an opportune time to discuss what just happened, and the fact that my Sentinel was kidnapped by elves?”
Gabriel watched him for a moment, his face offering nothing. “I need to speak to my people. Wait for me at the house.”
He didn’t wait for Ethan to respond.
Gabriel arranged for Damien and Jeff to get the car—and Boo—which still waited at the restaurant. The rest of us drove back to the estate in the variety of vehicles the Pack had used to get to the wood.
This time, neither the Brecks nor anyone else stopped us when we walked into the kitchen. The house was silent, the staff hiding or otherwise occupied.
Without waiting for permission, Ethan sat me bodily on a stool at the island while he searched the enormous, glass-doored refrigerator for sustenance. He pulled out two bottles of Blood4You, popped the tops on the edge of the counter like a frat boy at a mixer, and handed one to me.
“Drink,” he said, putting the other bottle down.
“I don’t need blood,” I protested, but only weakly, as my stomach began to rumble from need. I wasn’t exactly hungry—my nerves were still too shot for that—but my body was attempting to heal from the elves’ abuse, and it wanted sustenance.
“Drink it,” Ethan said again, staring down at me until I lifted the bottle to my lips.
It was gone in seconds, and I replaced it with the second before he could argue.
Mallory and Catcher walked into the kitchen, and Mallory rushed over. “You’re all right?” she asked, scanning me for injuries.