Page 14 of Beyond Fate

That left only Casimir’s wings as a means to escape. But if he untucked them with so many vampires around, they would be torn, which was instant death for any fae.

It was a risk Casimir couldn’t take, but his chances on the ground weren’t any better with the swarm of vampires. He felt their painful bites all over his body. Casimir wouldn’t have to worry about one vampire draining him when each one who came near him took a huge sample of blood for themselves.

He was running out of time and options.

“I want the truth. What did you really do, Elouan?” Casimir snarled as he turned to face him, only to see four vampires attacking the guy. Not a chance in hell was he going to save Elouan after the bastard had just tried to kill him. Elouan was the one who’d caused this chaos to begin with. Besides, Casimir had his own vampires to deal with.

The ones closest to him hissed as they gazed up at the sky. Casimir didn’t want to look up. That would divert his attention from the vampires attacking him.

As he fought, he noticed a thick fog rolling toward them from the very hillside the vampires had raced down. The entire area filled quickly, making it difficult for Casimir to get his bearings.

This had not been his day. He could still sense everyone around him. He just couldn’t see his enemies coming at him. Someone grabbed his arm. Casimir snarled, gripped the wrist, and yanked it forward, ready to embed his blade.

“Watch that goddamn thing. It looks sharp!”

“Damon?”

Arms wrapped around his waist as a solid wall of warmth pressed into his back. “Get ready to fly. Second to the right, and straight on till morning,” Damon whispered in his ear.

He had no idea what Damon was talking about and honestly didn’t care. He could only concentrate on the fact that his mate was there and he had his arms wrapped around him. For a brief moment, Casimir had even forgotten about the surrounding chaos.

It just felt too good to have his mate envelop him for the first time.

Then they shot into the air.

Casimir laughed as they rose above the fog until he saw the twinkling lights of Midnight Falls in the distance. Whatever problems he and Damon still had, Casimir let them melt away for the moment and simply soaked in his mate’s warmth.

They touched down a good ten miles from the battle on a large cliff.

Casimir hated the moment Damon pulled his arms from around him. Even if his mate was a good five inches shorter than him, it still felt good to have those powerful arms around his muscular frame.

As Casimir turned and looked down at his mate, Damon tucked in his wings and took a step back. “Welcome to Neverland,” he said with a smirk.

It was as if Casimir was looking at a stranger. This was not his snarly, aggressive, bloodlust mate who had declared his hate for him. This person was…nice. And simply gorgeous when he smiled. Casimir wasn’t sure what to say or do.

“I leave you alone for a second and you end up in another battle with vampires.” Damon shook his head with a smirk.

Casimir frowned. Maybe he’d been killed, and this was his paradise? This was not the Damon Frost he’d known for the past week. This person was calm and jovial.

“Long story.” Damon sat on a small rock shelf, pulled one leg up, and rested his forearms on his bent knee.

Casimir sat close to him, not daring to touch the wolf shifter until he had some answers. “Your aggression?”

His nékah drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, appearing as if he were simply enjoying the peaceful night.

“I owe you a tremendous apology,” Damon said as they stared at the vast forest below. Casimir could see a scattering of lights from residential homes and headlights traveling different roads.

“I don’t understand né—Damon.” Casimir no longer had the right to say the word “mate” out loud. Not after he’d… He didn’t even want to think of his betrayal right now. It still hurt too badly.

“You and me both,” Damon snorted. “I flew out of the forest in a rage. Don’t even know how I flew since I’ve sucked at figuring my wings out, but when I got far enough away, this huge portal opened up and I got yanked inside of it.” He leaned back on his hands and crossed his legs.

Casimir swept his gaze down Damon’s body, yearning to touch any part of his mate. At the moment, it wasn’t even a sexual yearning. He just wanted some kind of physical contact from someone—preferably his mate. Two thousand years of solitude was a hell of a long time to be so alone.

He also wanted to ask what the apology was for but felt as if he was walking on fragile glass that would break at any second.

“Where did you end up?” Casimir sat forward and rested his forearms on his knees. He stared at the ground because it was too painful to look at a man he couldn’t touch.

Damon chuckled. The sound filled so many empty spaces inside Casimir’s hollowness. “I can officially say I’ve visited the underworld. Sorry I didn’t bring you back a souvenir. The gift shop has been closed since… Actually they need to build one first.

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