Spark of Intent Read online

  “At the Gala.” Hiro sounded confident, focused on our plan. “It’s only a few days away and everyone will focus on Nix and the other debutantes. We need them preoccupied. Some of us can get a look around, start investigating. There are some mythologicals who may let something slip if we phrase our questions correctly. We can start questioning Gaspard or Raphael. We’ll need to gauge who we trust, and who will be amenable to helping us. Looking into the Council is dangerous.”

  I won’t endanger anyone else in this until we know more. We investigate this on our own. I knew Theo was worried about involving other members of our family—even those who weren’t blood like Rini, her bears, and her mother.

  “Depending on what we find at the Gala, we can find out when the upcoming Council meetings are—times when they’ll be occupied. When we’re ready, we’ll head back to the island. Nix may be able to lead us where we need to go, or we can find a way past the barrier. I don’t like the idea of only a few of us going across, but we’ll do what’s necessary.”

  I’m not sure I want to involve others yet, but Rini and her bears may not give us a choice. We need to be careful with how much we involve others. This whole conversation is treasonous, and our actions will be ten times worse. Theo slowed as he neared the mainland, sinking down as much as he could to stay out of sight while still keeping us dry. Ryder was still hovering over Nix, his hands clenching at his sides as he fought the urge to heal her, fearing that he would only harm her again.

  “I think it’s time my brother and I had a chat,” Killian added. “He obviously knows more than he lets on. If he knew about the island, he might have more information for us. I think he’ll be on our side. This just can’t go on.”

  “For now, just bring our girl home.” Hiro’s voice was soft now, nearly pleading. “We’ll plan the rest when we get more details from her after she wakes up. Just bring her home.” The phone clicked off, and I turned my face back into the spray of the water. We would bring her home, and we would start making plans. It wasn’t the time to be passive; we would protect her no matter what.

  Twenty-Four

  Hiro

  Nix stirred again, and I held my breath. Part of me wanted to shake her awake, to have her look at me and talk to me, to ensure that she was healing from her wounds and not in too much pain. The other part wanted to just watch her sleep, to let her rest and heal, to watch over her and know she was safe here at our home. Her eyelids fluttered, the long dark lashes shadowing her golden skin. I just wanted to scoop her into my arms, cradle her tightly against me and never let her go.

  It had killed me not to go with my brothers to find her, to not have been there when they rescued her. I knew it made sense, my skills were the least valuable in a fight. My Kitsune yipped in my head, some in insult but also in agreement. I could control plants, which could be useful in a fight, but there hadn’t been a guarantee that we would have access to those when we found her, and I doubted I would have been able to pass the wards that had been erected anyhow. I knew Theo and Killian were both kicking themselves that they hadn’t been strong enough shifters to pass the ward and get onto the island. Ryder had been quiet and serious since the event, scared of himself and whatever had happened. Theo had buried himself in research, trying to find an answer to the phenomenon none of us had seen before. I was berating myself for not killing Stone when she had shown up at my dorm room. My Kitsune had insisted on it, had known her for the threat she was. Yet, because she was human I had simply let it go. I had assumed she really couldn’t do any harm, and that all we would have to do was monitor her interactions and keep a closer eye on Nix. I never would have seen it coming.

  She murmured, tossing slightly, a wince crossing her features as some of her scratches and cuts must have pulled. My blood heated as I thought of the marks crisscrossing her chest and abdomen. Ryder had been right to try and heal her right away, despite everything that ended up happening. I didn’t know if there was a limit on a Phoenix’s abilities to regenerate and she had already done it so many times. Some of her injuries were already closing over, thanks to the bit of healing she’d immediately gotten from Ryder, but there were a multitude of gashes and abrasions on her body that made my blood boil. How many were from whatever had happened to her on the island and how many were from her fight with Stone, we didn’t know. She hadn’t woken up enough yet to tell us anything about what had happened.

  Though he felt it was an invasion, Damien did search her thoughts, hoping to get more information in case there were other things we needed to treat her for—Ryder could heal physical wounds but we had never seen if he could cure infections or anything along those lines. According to him, her thoughts were a jumble, a mess of hallucinations, thoughts, and emotions that created a web he couldn’t untangle to find the truth.

  Our assumption was that the shallow cuts that now crisscrossed her abdomen were from whatever Stone had used to slash at her during their short lived battle. When she had shifted back to her human form, we’d been able to see the extent of her injuries more clearly. Her Phoenix must have been in a complete rage if she had withstood so many blows. My Kitsune made a purring noise, pleased at the strength of our mate and the fact that Ryder had said she had been standing up for us, protecting us and defending herself. As angry as he was that she had been hurt, he was also proud of her—as was I.

  Her eyes were blurry as they opened, processing and trying to figure out where she was and what was going on, searching for us as she scanned the room. She smiled slightly as she took me in. I hovered over her, my hands held out to help her with anything she needed. “Hiro.” Her voice was husky and low, her smile sweet as she attempted to sit up, wincing at the pain.

  “Lay back.” I placed a hand on her shoulder, helping to reposition her on the bed.

  “Injuries?” The word was hoarse, and I could understand her confusion. With Ryder always around, we had gotten used to him healing even the small things.

  I grimaced slightly, grabbing the bottle of Advil and a glass of juice from the dresser and passing it to her. She raised a surprised brow, but took them without question. “You know, this was meant to be your bedroom, not an infirmary.” The scold was gentle, as I watched her take the pills. “You’ve been recovering in this room nearly as often as you’ve been relaxing in it since you started staying here.” She smiled a little as well, knowing I wasn’t actually scolding her, that I was concerned and anxious.

  “That’s been my whole life, Hiro,” she said weakly, coughing and placing a hand over the injuries on her stomach as she winced in pain. I hated seeing her like this. Her pain broke my heart.

  “What do you remember, Nix?” I didn’t want to press her, with her just waking up, but I could tell she was already trying to sort through her thoughts and how she got home.

  “I—” she trailed off, tugging at her hair. “I’m not sure. It’s all so odd. The things I remember…” She shivered a bit. “It’s all nightmares and monsters and pain.”

  “What’s the last thing you remember clearly? The last thing before the nightmares?” I pushed her to sort through her memories while I sat down beside her, picking the brush up off her nightstand. I pulled her hair over her shoulder, brushing through the silken strands. I hoped the soothing, methodical nature of caring for her in that way would help to ease her confusion.

  “I was at Rini’s house. We were eating ice cream sundaes.” She smiled a little at the memory, the classic band aid that I’d seen Rini use whenever she was hurting. I kept the brush moving in smooth, soft strokes, an anchor while she sifted through the nightmares. “I snuck out, once she was asleep.” She glanced at me during her admission, as if expecting me to be angry with her. I continued the motion, my hands gentle, my face serene. I had been hurt that she’d run off, but I understood why she did it. “I went to the Council grounds.” The words came out in a burst, her fingers twisting together in her agitation. “I just, I’ve never been satisfied with what they’ve said or done. I wanted to
look around without everyone on top of me.” She tensed for a moment, then hissed, grabbing her abdomen gently as her pain worsened.

  “Did you go there because of us? To leave us?” The words came out low—nearly a whisper—but not low enough that she couldn’t hear the plea behind my question. When Rini had told us that she had been on Council grounds, I had been terrified—not only because she was missing, but because of the reason behind it. I wondered if she had been searching out the Council or Gaspard, if she had been considering asking for new guardians, that she had given up on us, that she was running away and not giving us a chance to fix things.

  Her eyes widened, and it was only my hand on her shoulder that kept her from twisting too far and opening up her cuts again. “No, Hiro. No. I needed space, and time, yes. I needed to be away from all men and just be by myself and with Rini while I calmed down. The triggers are… hard to manage, but I wasn’t trying to leave.” She cleared her throat, sipping more of her juice despite her hands shaking mildly. “I was angry. I was hurt. But I care about all of you. Even if we fight. Even when you drive me crazy.” She tried to laugh a little, pressing her hand against the pain in her abdomen. “I know things won’t always be easy, and I don’t want to give up on us. I just need certain things, just like you’ll have things you’ll need from me.” Her eyes misted as she glanced at me. “I won’t try and stop your fights—but please, don’t call me names. No matter what. It’s going to cause issues.” I brushed my lips over her hair. Damien had projected her past to us, and though we had known snippets, I could completely understand why she had broken down into a massive panic attack.

  “We know, Nix. We won’t do it again. We are going to be hyper aware of it, I promise.” A knock sounded at the frame, and I glanced up to see Theo in the doorway.

  “May I come in?” His voice was soft, his hands held out to show they were empty. He was being incredibly careful not to trigger her.

  “Of course!” Her smile was soft, but her eyes lit up as she took him in. “Can you tell me what happened? I was just telling Hiro what I remembered, but it’s not much. It’s all confused.”

  “I think maybe you were drugged.” I winced, but kept my hands soft. Leave it to Theo to be blunt rather than pulling punches. “You smelled different when you were brought home.”

  She cocked her head, studying him. “Isn’t that normal? I mean, just being in a different place.” Her brows pulled together as she tried to think through the remaining wisps of sleepy fog.

  He pushed his glasses up his noses, considering. “To an extent, yes. My olfactory senses aren’t the strongest in this form. My Kraken has a much better sense of smell than I do.”

  She bobbled her glass. “Your Kraken can smell?” She paused for a moment, shaking her head as she let out a tiny laugh. “I guess that makes sense. I just never really thought about it.”

  His smile was gentle, his fingers steepled as he explained. “Yes, my Kraken can smell. Not with his nose, though. He smells through his tentacles—those suction cups you saw. Damien landed on my back with you, and my Kraken helped to balance you as he juggled you and Ryder.”

  Her eyes widened, her mouth agape. “Wait, Damien was flying with me and Ryder?” She paused. “You smell with your tentacles?” She shook her head, waving her hand in the air. “Not important right now. I guess I need a biology lesson at some point though. We haven’t really gone over what all of you can and cannot do.” She blinked at me, those long delicate lashes transfixing. “Or what I can do for that matter.”

  I chuckled, enjoying the silken strands of her hair wrapped around my fingers as I brushed through it repeatedly. Honestly, the motion was as soothing for me as I hoped it was for her. I wondered if she’d let me brush it every night; a time just for the two of us to talk and laugh and enjoy each other’s touch.

  “Let’s back this up. I remember going to Council territory. Everything after that is just kind of… blurred.” She shivered a little, rubbing at her temples as if plagued by her thoughts.

  I hated what came next. It seemed that Nix was blissfully unaware of all that had happened, and with her memories being so jumbled, we needed to fill her in. I was regretful that the calm bubble we were in right now was about to pop.

  “We searched for you.” Theo’s voice was soft, his hand reaching out to stroke down the blankets still covering her lap. “Damien even went to his father, trying to get information on where you were.”

  “I’m sorry.” Her voice was soft. “I didn’t mean to worry all of you. I thought I could go look around the Lodge, maybe find my file from when they did all that med work, and get some answers. Some proof of my concerns.” She peeked up at us, testing our reaction, but we kept our faces calm as we nodded.

  “We got a tip that you were on a warded island. I shifted and carried us there, and Hiro stayed behind in case the tip was wrong.” I froze for a moment, worried she’d think less of me for not having had an active role in her rescue.

  Her fingers reached up to stroke over mine as she looked up at me with those deep, chocolate brown eyes. “That feels good, Hiro.” The soft smile she offered me set my heart racing, and gratitude at having her home safe and sound overwhelmed me. Turning her attention back to Theo, she indicated for him to continue.

  “Killian and I couldn’t get past the wards. We had to wait. Everything we’ve gotten from Damien and Ryder is secondhand.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t get to you faster.” Ryder and Damien were in the doorway and she grinned as she reached her hands out to them. Damien settled on the floor next to her, but Ryder chose a chair next to the doorway. I could see the hurt flash across her face, but she didn’t request him to move closer.

  “I shifted, and Ryder and I pushed through the wards. I did an aerial scan, and he searched the woods.” Damien’s voice was warm, his hands rubbing at Nix’s feet, as if desperate for contact with her, and she moaned at his ministrations. “I’m sorry, Nix. I shouldn’t have shut you out the way I did.” Emotion coated his every word.

  “Do you remember me finding you?” Ryder’s voice nearly cracked. He was so nervous, his hands clenched in his pants, ruining the line of the material. I wanted to move to his side and help him, but I didn’t want to leave Nix, and I knew he wouldn’t want me to either.

  Her brow wrinkled, her hand coming up to rub her temple as she tried to sort through things. “I—I don’t think so,” she murmured the words. “None of it makes sense.”

  “Stone had you.” His voice was soft. “She was yelling and kicking you. I thought she was human, but she was going on and on about shifters and mates.”

  “Stone? You mean, Mrs. Stone? The counselor?” She nearly toppled over as she tried to sit up with that revelation, and she hissed at the pain in her abdomen. “I thought that was just a dream. It didn’t make sense. Why would she be there?” Her voice lost its softness, taking on a hard edge.

  Ryder tossed his hands in the air and shook his head. “We have no idea. We still can’t figure out exactly why she would be there. There are some humans who know about us, and I think her son is a shifter, though far from a strong one.”

  “I fought with her.” Her voice was hesitant, as though she was trying to piece things together, but the way she’d phrased her words made it a statement rather than a question. She rubbed at her forehead. “I thought that was just a dream. Like a reference to all of the stress she caused me and my fear for the way she was trying to keep us apart.”

  “It was real, Nix.” Damien’s voice was soft. “You shifted and the two of you fought. It was brief, but it happened. We could tell something was off. You were sluggish and moving oddly; your aim was off.”

  “I actually fought her?” She seemed a little awed, even a little proud of herself, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.

  “You were defending us, from what Ryder said. Stone threatened us, and you fought through all that confusion and all that pain, and you shifted. You attacked her, fought against her despite the bl
ade she used on you.” Nix reached down to touch her abdomen and I nodded. “Yeah, we think that’s what those are from.”

  “Is there something wrong with the injuries?” She glanced at Ryder. “I mean, are they not healing right because of iron or something? Or is it because they translated from my Phoenix form to my human one?”

  Ryder froze for a moment. “I couldn’t heal you all the way.” He looked down at his hands. “Something happened when I tried to heal the both of you.”

  “The both of us?” Her tone softened. “Did she hurt you, Ry? I know you can’t heal yourself, but you looked like you were walking alright when you came in.” She tried to push out of the bed, ignoring her pain, to go and search Ryder’s body for injuries, but I pushed her back down.

  “No sweet girl, stay laying down.” Damien murmured the words to her, continuing to massage her. “He’s not hurt. You were the only one who sustained any injuries.”

  “Then who else did you try to heal?” I could tell she was confused.

  “Stone.” I kept the word gentle, let her realize for herself the effects of her fight. She swallowed hard, putting her cup aside as if she couldn’t bear to drain the rest of the juice from it.

  “Did you run out of strength to heal us both?” There was a subtle plea in her words, a hope that maybe she hadn’t crossed a line.

  “No, but…” Ryder trailed off, biting on his lip hard, as if he couldn’t bear to continue.

  “Something happened, Nix. Something we’ve never seen,” Damien said, his voice as soft as his touch.