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  THE ARCANE COURT BOOK TWO | DAGMAR AVERY & K MARGARET

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  THE ARCANE COURT BOOK TWO

  DAGMAR AVERY & K MARGARET

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Devil Inside: The Arcane Court Book 2

  Copyright© 2020 Dagmar Avery and K. Margaret

  Cover Artist: Stella Price

  Interior text design: Stacee Sierra

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  1

  Khalid couldn’t hear a damn thing except for the ringing in his ears. The explosion had left his senses a mess, and the snow raining down on them sure the hell didn’t help his vision. Glancing around them, he first spotted Abaxley and Alyx, the faeblin lying on top of her. He caught the man’s eyes and nodded. “Get her to the portal, now. Scur and I are right behind you.” Now where the fuck was Scur?

  Looking around again, he finally spotted the berserker lifting himself off the ground and shaking the snow off. With all the white around them, it was easy to see the trail of blood running down Scur’s face. On unsteady feet he came closer.

  “Everyone accounted for?” Scur asked.

  “Yeah. You all right?” Scur looked at him like he had two heads. “You’re bleeding.”

  Scur shrugged. “Blood happens. Let’s get the fuck out of here ‘cause an explosion that loud is going to cause an avalanche.”

  “Good point.” The two of them started to run toward the vanishing figures of Alyx and Abaxley. It felt like he was running through wet cement, each step a challenge. But they finally saw the portal, the wavering doorway that would take them the hell out of what could be them buried alive. Scur jumped through first and just as Khalid was about to follow, something streaked past him and through the opening. Fucking coyote.

  He leapt as the portal closed, barely making it through, and stumbled to a stop. His instincts immediately assessed his surroundings before his attention turned to Alyx. “You all right?”

  “Hobs!” she said and frowned. “Fuck, I hope the nomarts are okay. Assholes are using explosives...right? Or was that magic?”

  “I think it was an incendiary,” Abaxley said and then looked down to the coyote. “This guy...”

  “Saved me. He jumped one of those assholes and ripped his throat out,” Alyx said and looked at both Khalid and Scur. “You see action, or what?”

  Scur wiped at his forehead. “If action consists of something fucking hard and sharp falling on my head, then yeah, I saw action.”

  “After the explosion, I don’t think any of us were on our feet.” Khalid looked over at the coyote, who was steadily pacing, but not seeming to pay much attention to the rest of them. “I don’t know how many hobs there actually were, other than the two Fido took out.”

  “At least three or it was someone with them. Someone set it off. I saw a shadow in the coming storm,” Bax said and looked at him. “I don’t think it was completely natural.”

  Alyx went to her knees and smiled at the coyote. “Thank you. I don’t know what you were doing out there, alone, but...you are my hero.”

  “Careful, Alyx, he probably has rabies,” Scur said, voicing exactly what Khalid was thinking. The coyote didn’t snarl at the insult, giving Khalid another reason to know he wasn’t a shifter. No shifter would put up with being degraded.

  “He does have a point,” he told her. “We don’t know if he’s feral or not, and his snout is covered in blood.”

  “Yeah, I’m standing here actually bleeding and she doesn’t even offer me her shirt to stop the flow. I’m hurt, minx.” Scur sniffed.

  “Why would I do that, Mr. Adrenaline?” she said offhandedly. “He’s not feral,” she said decidedly. “And he’s got blood on his snout because he fucked shit up to save me.” She got off her knees. “As far as I’m concerned, he can stay as long as he likes. He’s earned at least a decent meal.” Brushing her hands off, she looked to Abaxley. “Contact Hendrix, tell him what happened, see if he can see what’s going on.”

  “Of course, I’ll have Faust go.” He smiled. “We should get back to the stronghold so we can tell everyone, and you can look at the knot growing on Scur’s head.”

  She grinned at her berserker. “Don’t worry, I’ll kiss it and make it better.”

  “Just hope he doesn’t have brain swelling,” Khalid said. “He can’t afford to lose any brain cells.”

  “Fuck you very much,” Scur said, sidling up next to Alyx and taking her arm. They started toward the stronghold and Khalid pulled the sat phone out of Alyx’s pocket, thankful it hadn’t shattered, and hung back as the other walked a head of him, the damn coyote deciding to trail along next to him. He dialed up Jed and waited for the other man to answer.

  “Something happened,” the Hunt commander said.

  “Yeah, hobs happened. Your men see any movement?”

  “I got a call from Mak about fifteen minutes ago,” Jed said of his brother. “He’s up keeping an eye on things with Incanta, said about twenty minutes ago someone ran into the keep and there were a lot of raised voices and movement. Not long after a half a dozen hobs headed out into the woods and disappeared through a portal. They didn’t have anyone close enough to follow.”

  “Tell him to stay near that portal. At most, four of them will be returning soon. See if he can’t grab one.”

  “Oh, he’ll enjoy that. If we snag one, I’ll call you. Let you have some fun with the interrogation. But if Alyx does it, I wanna watch,” Jed said with a laugh.

  “You and me both, brother.” Khalid hung up and jogged to catch up just as they entered the stronghold. “Six hobs portaled out not too long before the explosions went off.”

  “I hope the nomarts are okay,” she said.

  “Go, tend to Scur,” Bax said. “Use my suite. I’ll handle my people and meet you there.”

  She nodded to Abaxley and he walked off.

  “What’s the spread on the Hunt catching one of those fuckers?”

  “Mak is up there,” Khalid said.

  “Oh, in that case, I’d bet the house on getting one of them,” Scur said. “That fucker is crazy, but he’s got a brain like Jed, which is a scary combination.”

  “Yeah, Mak will nab at least one. Jed said he wants to watch you interrogate,” Khalid said with a grin as they headed toward Abaxley’s suite.

  She laughed. “While he’s a bad ass, he doesn’t have the constitution for that. Let’s get this handled and back to the Sithen. We have a lot to plan for, and royals we need to get brought up to speed.”

  Once inside the suite, she looked at Scur. “Jacket off and meet me in the bathroom. I’m doing a full assessment.” She slipped out of her own coat and stripped out of each layer ‘til she was standing in underwear, her tank, and a bra. “You, too, Khalid. Full assessment.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he said as he removed each layer, half of which seemed to be frozen to his body. Scur managed to strip down first, which didn’t surprise him since the man was known for quickly removing clothing, though it usually wasn’t his.

  F
ollowing him into the bathroom, he leaned against the doorframe and grinned at his princess. “So, are you telling me the commander of the Hunt, a group of the most badass mother fuckers on any realm, would get squeamish watching you interrogate?”

  She nodded. “At the very least, uncomfortable with it.” She looked to him. “I do not deny he is a badass, but...” She grinned. “Me ending up covered in blood is the sweet end of it. They beg me for death in the end, Khalid, what’s left of them do anyway.” She walked over to Scur and started circling him. “A few contusions, no broken ribs. Though...” She pushed on his shoulder for him to sit. “That is going to need stitches.”

  “You have met Calcus, right?” he said with a laugh. “We all grew up watching him interrogate, and while I’m sure you’re creative, and it would be a beautiful thing to witness, I’m pretty positive we all saw worse when we were seven. Hell, Calcus used to make Riven and me tag in when he got tired. Trust me, love, Jed could handle it and if he couldn’t, Gobeth has a problem on her hands.”

  “Ah,” Scur said, “I used to love heading to the Hunt to watch Calcus do his thing. Only time it sucked was when he had a date with the wifey. Then they’d either die quick or be left floundering around.” He looked at Alyx as he sat. “I don’t do stitches.”

  “Then you are going to be left with a gash in your head,” she said and motioned to Khalid. “Let me look at you.” She walked around him. “A few bruises but...” She placed a hand on his ass. “Fine as ever.”

  “I try,” he said with a laugh. He grabbed hold of her hips then slowly turned her in a circle as his hands traveled over her skin. “Looks like you’ll live as well. I’m just glad the ringing in my ears stopped.”

  “It will close up,” Scur said, getting up to dig through the drawers until he found a hand towel then proceeded to wash his face. “You need to call Queen Verity. She should be informed of what we found and who came for a visit as we were leaving.”

  “On my list,” she said as she slipped her underwear off, and then pulled the tank top over her head and unhooked her bra. Even in hurried motions, Khalid couldn’t stop watching her as she stripped. “I’m getting this chill outta my system first,” she said as she walked to the shower stall and turned it on. The spray came out heavy as she ducked under it.

  “Speaking of lists,” Khalid started to say when there was a knock on the bathroom door. He walked over, opening it a crack, knowing it wouldn’t be Bax since it was his room.

  “Sorry to disturb you, but Prince Abaxley asked that I bring up some clothing for you.” An older woman lifted up a pile of clothes.

  “Oh, thank you.” He opened the door a little wider and took the pile from her. “Much appreciated.”

  “If you need anything else, please let any of us know.”

  Khalid nodded his head before closing the door and laying the clothes on the counter.

  “I think I know exactly what she was hopping you’d be needing,” Scur said while bobbing his brows.

  “Maybe we should have Alyx stitch your mouth. Now, as I was saying, lists. After you talk to Queen Verity, we should call Dank and see if Gobeth and Nihar are there and not at the temple. I’d like for him to take a look at the information we were given.”

  “Sound,” Alyx said as she washed her hair. “Also, we need to get the Sithen ready for our new members.”

  “Already on that.” He grabbed the pants from the top of the pile and held them up before tossing them to Scur. “I talked to Pris last night while you were bonding with the prince...”

  “Which also needs to be on the list to talk about,” Scur interrupted.

  “Agreed, but back to what I was saying.” He found the other pair of pants and pulled them on. “Pris is going to work with Octavia and make sure the village is ready for the faeblins and anyone else who wants to live and work there.”

  A visibly soapy Alyx leaned out of the shower stall. “Good. Now what are we talking about concerning my faeblin?”

  “All I know is when I got back last night you were both passed out naked on the bed,” Scur said, walking over to her and laying a kiss on her. “We want to know how you finally landed that ass.”

  “I’m assuming the man actually talked to her,” he said. “I know the concept is hard for you, since you went the entirely opposite way, but I’m betting the two of them actually had a conversation.”

  “Technically Scur did talk to me, after he caught me,” she said as she rinsed off. “But yes, it’s all good. As for the blow by beautiful blow... You wanna know the dirty details and the things he can do neither of you can?” She smirked and took the towel Scur offered her.

  Scur looked over at him, brow raised. “And here I thought princesses tried not to have favorites. I’m hurt,” he said with a pout.

  “I was more wondering what you spoke about,” Khalid said, not taking the bait. He’d lived with huntsmen for too long to get pulled into that rabbit hole.

  “A lot of shit, us, princesshood, the faeblins, them being accepted... We worked things out, I think. Right now, all that matters is that he’s mine now, and I feel closer to whole.” She looked to Scur. “And I don’t know who told you princesses don’t have favorites. You have met Nymea, right?” she winked.

  “You’ve met the rest of her guard, right?” Scur said. “If I were her, I would have picked a favorite, too. But don’t worry, I’ll remember this next time you want something from me.” He snagged her towel from her and swatted her ass with it.

  “Clothes for you on the counter. You do know you opened up all kinds of shit for Scur to do to you now, right?” he said with a laugh. “Back to the discussion, though, how are you feeling about taking on the faeblins? When I mentioned it to Bax, I wasn’t sure if he took me seriously.”

  “I think it makes sense. I mean it helps to legitimize them, and gives them a kingdom to call home, protection, and they don’t have to live out here. We are all new to this, you know? I think giving them a stable place, somewhere they can thrive, is good.

  “But more than that I have been thinking about what the nomarts said, about Faerie being open and free. I think it’s not a bad thing they are their own people. Hell, they are their own corner of Faerie, with their own powers, and ability. I think Faerie wanted that all along, you know? I am happy to call them part of our Court, and more so, I’m honored to have Bax in my guard, as a part of me.”

  She walked over to the clothing and pulled on a pair of pants, and then a t-shirt, no under things. “And as to Scur doing things to me...that’s the best part of it.”

  “Oh, you ain’t going to be getting any of those parts, Miss Has A Favorite,” Scur said with a smirk and sat down on the edge of the tub. “We’ll see how long you can hold out.”

  “Scur, I wouldn’t place that bet with her. You’ll end up with worse blue balls than Riven had.” He grabbed hold of Alyx’s hand and pulled her to stand between his legs, back against his chest. “I fully agree with you. It was the exact same thought I had. I think the freedom being under your Court, with a place they can make their own, is important. They’ve been under the thumb of a dictator for so long, it’s time they got to live their own lives.”

  She nodded. “Exactly. Opportunity.” She leaned her head back. “And I don’t think we should be looking at the goblin blood as a handicap. Cetus, I know he’s against the goblins as they were, but...”

  “Cetus is against the goblins who tried to hurt his queen,” he told her, kissing the top of her head. “I don’t think he cares much about what happens to the faeblin, or any of the other goblins, now that Huron is dead. Man has a one-track mind nowadays.”

  She nodded. “I think having the faeblins integrate into society without having to declare their own kingdom...” She left her statement open.

  “Is the right move for right now,” Khalid finished for her. “I think we should hunt down your newest guard.”

  “And see if that damn coyote is still around. I haven’t heard any screaming, so he
probably took off,” Scur said. “We’re close enough to the Front that he’ll find a pack to fall in with. I’m sure he’ll be just fine. Better there than in the damn arctic.”

  “You don’t need to come find me,” Abaxley said as he walked in. “I just finished talking with Laslo and Vesta. They agree moving is a good idea and have already started the prep for that. I think I should hang out, help with that, but...” He went to her and kissed Alyx square on the mouth. “I’ll be there tonight, yeah?”

  She nodded. “Do you want us to stay and help?”

  “Normally I would say yes but you have shit you need to do, including talking to the queens.”

  “Which, in this instance, can’t wait,” Khalid said.

  “I’ll stay and help out,” Scur said as he stood. “Khalid is more diplomatic and if I head over to Sleeping Court, Nassar and I will probably get in trouble for one thing or another,” he added with a grin.

  “Or my brother and you will get into a boxing match,” she said and smirked. “Which just ends badly for both of you.”

  “We have yet to box,” Scur said. “Though now that I think about it, that would be fun. He could use a couple good shots.”

  “And on that note,” Khalid said, pushing away from the counter, and forcing Alyx to move a couple steps. “Did you want to call Verity before we headed over?”

  Alyx shook her head. “Let’s just pop over. If she’s indisposed, we can talk to Carrigan.” She kissed Scur on the cheek. “Be good.”

  “Me?” Scur said, pulling Alyx to him. “Never.” He dipped her and kissed her, for so long Khalid looked down at his watch to time it. He cleared his throat.

  “If she’s indisposed with Carrigan, we can talk to Ari.”

  Scur finally let Alyx up for air. “She could be indisposed with both of them.”

  “Either way,” she said and rolled her fingertip across Scur’s bottom lip. “And if you think you are going to withhold from me after a kiss like that...” She grinned.

  “Never challenge a berserker,” Scur said.