Dremian rubbed the back of his neck. “Right. Um, you might need to be interviewed at the XIA offices. This is a bit beyond my paygrade.”

  “So, what happened to you?”

  He sighed. “I had to hold back physical pursuit while Emmers carried me down the hall. Oh, Neekil is back in his body. His people are taking care of him, but he is already stealing phones and making calls. He’s been very concerned about you.”

  She snorted. “Yeah, but as it was stated, he is chivalrous.”

  Dremian nodded. “Yeah, he is that. Right, how long do you feel you were in the creature’s grip?”

  She made a face. “Two hours? Five minutes? I have no idea. Do you know why I am wearing a chunk of cold iron?”

  She bent her arm and touched the bulk of links at her neck. She could feel the weight and texture, but it was the scent of it that was terribly familiar. Nothing else smelled like cold iron.

  “Ah. We got a call about that. Imara Mirrin was there. She said she had to keep track of your spectre and make sure that it was stuck into your body. There was also some problem with your body not healing. The iron seems to have stopped that process in its tracks. Your body appears to be healing.”

  Appears was the operational term. Hannah didn’t feel right. Whatever had kept her punctures from healing was now all over her body. If she wasn’t wearing the iron, she would bleed out in minutes.

  “My family and I are paying for healing. I am hoping that it can take some of the pressure off or showering is going to get rusty really fast.”

  Dremian nodded. “Please do not hesitate to call us if you need anything. Don’t worry about the Grunwald mansion. We are taking care of it.”

  She nodded. “Right. Of course. Do you need to know anything else?”

  “Um, how did you make contact with Neekil to begin with?”

  “I was running my hand along the top of the mantlepiece and got a splinter. That’s how he got in. Just a little prick.”

  Dremian snorted. “Oh, he will love that.”

  “Yeah, I felt something come loose and get stuck inside me. When I checked the mantlepiece, there was no trace of my blood left on the wood.” She shrugged. “So, if a little blood could get him out of the wood, a lot of blood would free him. I just hadn’t counted on the thing inside waking up. It isn’t due to rise for another nineteen years or so.”

  “Why do you think it woke up?”

  She shrugged and then paused as pain ripped through her. “Right. Uh, he said he liked my spirit. It could be something as stupid as no other women have frequented that room. The mantlepiece is from his original tree. I don’t know who carved it, but they put oak patterns on it. I think he was one of those nameless gods that just had a weird-shaped tree in the woods, and he would capture passers-by every few decades.”

  “And then someone chopped him down and brought him to the new world.”

  “Yeah, and based on the size of the rings in the tree, he had to have been a minimum of three hundred years old, two hundred years ago.”

  “So, he is five hundred years old.”

  “At least. I would have to take the thing down and count the rings, but he’s old by my standards.”

  Dremian made notes. “Right. Okay. They are definitely going to want to talk to you.”

  “I can hardly wait.” She sighed and leaned back against the pillow. She had four wounds on her upper torso, and they were throbbing with pain.

  “You don’t look well.” Dremian frowned and looked at her.

  “Yeah, well, you are a twit. Can you let the nurse know that I am released for a healer to come in? I will wait. I am literally not going anywhere.”

  He smiled. “I hope to see you again, Miss Lee. You are interesting.”

  “Nice seeing you again.” She nodded as the haze of pain ran through her body.

  He left her, and the door swung closed. She felt the sweating and shivering as she tried to get the pain under control.

  * * * *

  Dremian went to the nursing station. “Miss Lee is feeling a lot of pain. I think her meds wore off. Also, she is clear to have the healer come in.”

  The nurse smiled politely. “I will check her chart.”

  The nurse typed in a few letters, paused, and went to the hard copy. “Excuse me.”

  The nurse found another nurse in the hall, gripped her arm, and spoke to her in an urgent tone. The nurse flinched, checked the chart, and nodded tersely with her lips tense.

  Dremian felt sick. Hannah had huge wounds throughout her body, and he got the sinking feeling that she hadn’t had any pain meds since she woke up.

  He looked around for her family and found them in a waiting room with an agent that should not have been out of his own family’s custody.

  “Agent Ar-Thuat. What a surprise to see you here.” He smiled at the dark elf.

  Neekil looked at him from the hood he was wearing. “The most recent wave of magic has had a positive effect on my clan. We have far more sun tolerance than we used to, Agent Dremian.”

  The standard XIA uniform was stretched to capacity by Neekil’s shoulders, and the body armour looked like it was unnecessary. His white hair was in a thick braid that crept out of his hood. His bright red eyes were glowing with amusement. “I have been introducing myself to the Lee family and explaining how Hannah got involved.”

  Dremian nodded. The family looked resigned but calm. So, Neekil hadn’t told them about the peeping incidents that Hannah had been concerned about.

  A man in robes came rushing onto the ward, and Dremian identified him at a glance. The healer. His expression was tense, so things were not going well for his next patient. “Shit. Hannah.”

  He turned and sprinted down the hall to where the crash cart was being wheeled in as beeps and alarms emitted from what seemed to be every surface.

  He followed them into Hannah’s room, and he could see Hannah seizing and them pushing a number of syringes into her IVs. Hannah’s mother slipped past him, and she gasped as she watched her daughter at the mercy of the medical system while the paddles were prepped, and the healer focused on getting enough energy together to make a difference.

  It took ten minutes of tense voices and calm orders, but Hannah’s body relaxed, and her vital signs evened to a steady beat. She looked exhausted, but she was stable.

  The healer came out and grabbed Dremian by the arm. “I have to talk to you.”

  The Lees piled in to check on Hannah, but Ar-Thuat remained outside the room.

  The healer looked around, and then, he walked down the hall to a private room used for families, and he hauled Dremian with him. Ar-Thuat accompanied them.

  “She’s being consumed. There is something old and powerful that is degrading her body from the inside out. They may have stopped the blood loss, but the draining is continuing. I am going to call the guild. She needs healing every few hours if she is to last.”

  “What about the iron necklace?”

  “That is keeping her skin closed, but the rot is already inside. She needs to be monitored constantly, and an energy transfer would be ideal if you can find a matching donor.”

  Ar-Thuat smiled. “I can do it.”

  Dremian winced. “He actually can. They are frequency compatible.”

  The healer frowned. “I don’t know how you know that, but if it’s accurate, get to her side and hold her hand. She needs to start getting infusions of energy immediately.”

  Ar-Thuat nodded and left.

  Dremian groaned. “So much paperwork. I will file the report immediately. I imagine your report will be coming soon?”

  “Yes, I will file it when I get back to my office. This is a weird one. I tasted plants.”

  Dremian nodded. “I wish I could say that that was the weirdest part of this situation.” He shook his head and left the private room, heading down to the main floor and his vehicle. He had a lot of forms to fill out.

  Chapter Six

  There was a warm hand holding her own. It wasn’t her mother, it wasn’t her father, and none of her brothers would hold her hands. They were the feet-tickling kind.

  Hannah opened her eyes a slit, and she could see nothing but darkness. She opened her eyes a little wider and saw the deep grey hand holding her own, and she traced it up to the arm, shoulder, neck, and finally, the head of a familiar face. “Neekil?”

  He grinned. His white teeth were surprisingly sharp. “Hannah. Nice to see you face to face.”

  Her skin tried to blush, but she was exhausted. “What’s happening? Why are you here?”

  Her mother’s voice was amused. “I am guessing that you have met, Hannah.”

  Hannah turned her head, and her family was all seated and watching as Neekil held her hand. “Uh, sort of.”

  Her dad looked at Neekil and nodded. “Well, I approve.”

  Hannah covered her eyes with her right hand. “Oh. My. God. Dad.”

  The Lees burst into laughter as one.

  Neekil leaned in and whispered in her ear. “Am I missing a joke?”

  She shivered and lowered her hand to glare at him. “My dad has never liked my boyfriends, but he always said that if I brought home a guy that was black, he would give immediate approval and work backward.”

  Her mother was still laughing. “I don’t think he meant dark fey, but he is a man of his word.”

  Hannah looked at everyone and saw the worry under their expressions. “What happened?”

  Neekil whispered the explanation in her ear. “The entity is still draining you. He can’t have your blood, so he is consuming the cellular energy of your body. It will take him days to kill you that way, but fortunately, I am compatible as an energy donor.”

  The warm breath in her ear was definitely distracting.

  “How long do you have to stay with me?” She murmured it quietly as if her family couldn’t hear her.

  “Just until the entity is dealt with. I thought after that, we might start courting.” The words were against her skin, and she wanted to stare at him, but instead, she looked at her parents and brothers. “I am fine now. You guys, go home and get some sleep. I promise that Neekil will call you if anything happens.”

  Her parents balked, and her brothers frowned. She finally said, “Listen, it is noon on a Friday. You guys have contractors to schedule and sites to check on. I am gonna be here. Trust me on this, they are not letting me out any time soon.”

  Her mother frowned. “You nearly died.”

  “For the third time in a few days. You are all here. You have all told me that you love me. I have told you that I love you, there is no unfinished business.”

  That was the thing that convinced them. She was treated to more kisses on her forehead and squeezed toes. The moment that they were out of the room, she turned to Neekil.

  “What the fuck are you doing here?”

  He laughed. “I was here to check on you after you were so kind as to ensure my freedom after meeting me. Why didn’t you tell your family that I was the one inside you?”

  She sighed. “Why do you make it sound so dirty?”

  “I wanted it to sound that way.” He winked. “So, how are you actually feeling?”

  “Like I was stabbed with a load of spikes and then had a healer take the edge off. I am pretty sure I am on all the painkillers in the hospital.”

  He sighed. “The entity uses nerve agents. They burn your nerve endings.”

  “So, as long as it is out there, I am dying.”

  “Correct. Good call on the cold iron, though. Imara?”

  She touched the links with her free hand. “Yeah. Pretty sure anyway. Does it bother you?”

  “Me? No. No issues with it, or I couldn’t be in the XIA.” He smiled. “This world is laced with it. I need to be able to do my job.”

  “Okay. Why are you holding my hand?”

  “Energy transfer. I am replacing what you have lost and letting your body work on cellular integrity.” He smiled brightly. “My turn to rescue you.”

  She groaned. “How long do you have to hold my hand?”

  “Until the entity is wrapped up.”

  She sighed and looked at her arms. The punctures that had been sewn shut were now bright scars, and the stitches were gone. “This was the best that the healer could do?”

  “He was busy saving your life, so the healing of the penetration wounds will have to wait for the next one. The next healer is due in two hours.”

  She exhaled. “Right. Okay. So, were you and my family chatting while I was out?”

  He grinned. “Nervous?”

  “Very.”

  “Nothing to worry about. I just told them that I was recovering from my own experience at that mansion, and I had heard about your first encounter there. Now, tell me about what is inside that wood.”

  She sighed. “It’s male or presents as male. It likes to play with its prey, and it is willing to wait but not too long.”

  He was darkly serious. “Play how?”

  Hannah made a face. “He didn’t try anything with me if that is what you were asking, but I am glad that your team got me out of there when they did.”

  “So, it spoke to you?”

  “Yes. I was in his weird green realm. I only know that I didn’t want to give him time to be motivated to start something more invasive than what was already going on.”

  “So, you were in a separate realm? How large was it?”

  She gave him a dark look. “It was an endless boreal forest. How the hell would I know how large it was? I don’t have any extra senses that let me expand consciousness.”

  He chuckled and stroked her hair away from her forehead. “Why don’t you look like your family?”

  She snorted. “Recessive genes. A great, great grandmother. Thanks to those ancestry tests, we have gotten in touch with a few distant relatives. They take after her. They sent copies of some really old documents that they had. She appears to have come from Norway or Denmark.”

  “That could explain the hair and eyes, but they are not normal colouration, even for those regions.”

  She grinned. “We have tons of family lore, but every family wants to think they are related to someone important.”

  “Yes, it adds to the family loyalty.”

  “Right, well, we have lore and rumours. It occupies us during winter gatherings.”

  “Are your brothers married?”

  “The eldest is. He has two girls and one boy. The younger brothers are dating but no proposals yet.”

  “Where are you in the birth order?”

  She made a face. “The youngest. And the only girl. I can hardly wait until the nieces start dating. That will take the heat off a bit.”

  He grinned. “You are planning on waiting that long for a social life?”

  “I am not planning anything.” She smiled. “If I run into anybody that I click with, my family will be accepting if not welcoming.”

  “As long as your love interest is black.” He grinned. “I like my odds.”

  She snorted. “Please. Your teammates have already informed me that you are an inveterate ladies’ man. You don’t have to exert yourself, but if it is reflex, I will just ignore it.”

  He paused. “You are not falling for my charms?”

  “Um, no. I don’t generally associate with folks like you.”

  “Folks like me?” His tone got dark, and there was a sinister air around him.

  She smiled. “People who look interesting at a glance.”

  He cocked his head in surprise. He went from sinister to perky puppy in seconds. “Really? You find me interesting?”

  “And a bit of a perv.” She nodded.

  He paused. “A perv?”

  “I don’t sleep naked, I don’t grope myself in front of a mirror, and I don’t pick a thong in the morning when I am planning on talking to clients or sitting and doing paperwork.”

  He smiled. “It looked good on you.”

  “Yeah, but you shouldn’t have known it was there. So how long did it take you to rifle through my clothing?”

  “An hour. I can see in the dark, so it was a mystery as to what the colours were.”

  “You can see in the dark.”

  “Yes.”

  “In the dark.”

  He cocked his head. “Of course.”

  “Right. So, when I showered in the dark...”

  “I helped you find the shampoo and conditioner.”

  “Uh-huh. Sneaky bastard.” She snorted as she was nodding off again.

  “I am an ardent admirer of your form. To find a woman who looks so soft but is made of muscle and curves is a treasure. What is you occupation?”

  “I now sell real estate, but I used to flip houses with the family. Mom does the coordinating, and Dad wrangles the contractors and the subs. Makes sure that everyone is where we need them.”

  Neekil nodded. “Does it pay well?”

  “It bought me my house and let me go and get my real estate license. So, business is pretty good.” She looked at him as she was dozing off. “Were you thinking of changing occupations?”

  He smoothed her hair away from her forehead. “No. Just thought you might like some consulting work when this is all done. You managed to spot a sleeping entity that everyone else had just walked past. There are miles of carved wood in that place. Localizing it to the fireplace wasn’t something anyone else had done.”

  She mumbled drowsily. “They had looked at it before. It was asleep, so it wouldn’t have shown up. It would have stayed asleep if it wasn’t for your blood waking it up.”

  He whispered, “It came for me, I didn’t bleed on it before it attacked. I defended myself.”

  She exhaled slowly. “Shit. That means it was waiting for bait. Fucking temporal anomalies.”

  Blackness wrapped her up, but it was genuine sleep. When she woke up, she needed a laptop and a phone. She might need the box.

  Chapter Seven

  Food seemed like a strange concept, but she was feeling better, and if she was going to be released from hospital, she had to eat. They were fussy about things like that.

 

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