Page 17 of Fae Devoted
Tucker’s vision shifted, the color of his irises now matching his Alpha’s molten gold. The Guard’s duty was to protect the reigning monarch and their people from harm. To suggest the island wasn’t secure—especially after the breech in security at Chess—was a grave insult.
A lone howl rent the air. He wasn’t the only Ferwyn male in the pack sensing Samuel’s rising anger.
“Why are you here?” Tucker asked through unrepressed one-inch canines, drawing the vampire’s attention to defuse the building animosity between the two powerful leaders.
Prince Myles hadn’t moved from his relaxed position on the couch, his countenance the epitome of apathy. If it weren’t for the subtle change in his scent, which only a shifter could decipher with accuracy, and the blazing, blood-red pupils, Tucker might have assumed he was quite bored.
“Ah yes,” he replied, his voice as bland as his expression, the scarlet black again. “I have some news the commander decided couldn’t wait until this evening to discuss.”
Tucker turned to his Alpha. “Jeremiah?”
“We’ve had a confirmed sighting.”
“Where?” he asked, heart pounding.
“Detroit.”
“When?” What was his brother doing in Michigan?
“Mr. Grayson was spotted less than twelve hours ago at the Rivière Casino in Detroit.” Myles set his half-empty glass on the coffee table, uncrossed his legs, and leaned forward with his elbows on his thighs. “A previous contract Feeder of mine moved from Memphis to the East North Central and is now an employee at the Rivière’s hotel. She called home to talk to her sister this morning and mentioned the oddity of a Clan Walker male traveling outside his designated region.”
“It might not be Jeremiah.” He had to be sure. Tucker couldn’t waste precious time on a wild goose chase into another príoh’s territory. A príoh who was also the ENC Region’s king.
“Miss Brooks identified you by name and noted the unusual facial scar. She asked if Lieutenant Tucker lost a dominance battle to Príoh Walker and was outcast from the Clan. She assumed the wound must be fresh since it hadn’t yet healed.”
“And you heard about this conversation with her sister…how?” Tucker’s body felt stretched taut, his skin too tight. His wolf needed to run.
“Miss Brooks’ sibling is my secretary’s favorite midnight snack.” Myles shrugged. “He thought the information was pertinent and notified me.”
“Does he know?”
“About the Fae, or that Mr. Grayson is your twin?”
“Either,” he bit out.
“No, and since you obviously haven’t left the island and remain scar-free, he agreed Miss Brooks must be mistaken.” The prince let his loosely clasped hands hang between his knees.
“But he suspects Abby isn’t completely human.” Samuel scowled.
“Mr. Hutchins hasn’t been a fledging for a very long time, Commander Walker. He is old enough to remember the Na’fhuil race and the days when they were hunted like prey by wealthy humans and power-hungry Fae Touched.” Gregory Hutchins might look like a teenager but he had been with the prince when Mud Island was still uninhabitable marshland. Decades before the Ferwyn revealed themselves to humanity. “And if he hasn’t yet figured out Miss MacCarthy’s secret, he soon will.”
Hutchins was infatuated with the Alpha’s Ca’anam, the attention he fawned on the halfblood irritating Samuel to the brink of violence. Abby insisted the vampire was harmless andrestrained her mate from doing bodily harm whenever he got too close for comfort.
Tucker didn’t like the strange little Dádhe’s behavior any more than Samuel. And he sure as hell didn’t trust Hutchins’ innocent demeanor. He was relieved the prince’s secretary remained in the dark. Hopefully, they could keep it that way. As far as Tucker was concerned, the fewer people who knew about the pureblood’s existence and Abby’s ability to open the gateway to Faery, the better.
“I’ll leave for Detroit tonight.” He’d need to travel the seven-hundred-fifty miles by car. Flying wasn’t an option, commercial or private. All Fae Touched were banned from carrying firearms of any kind on American soil unless part of a monarch’s security team. There was no way in hell Tucker was entering another Clan’s territory without extensive firepower.
“No,” Samuel said, an edge of command in his voice. “I won’t have you imprisoned for encroachment. You will wait until we secure Remington’s consent to enter his territory.”
“There’s no time.”
“Give me seventy-two hours.”
“He’ll be gone by then.”
“Dammit Tucker, he might be gone now.” Samuel scratched at his scalp, leaving the sandy-blond ends of his hair standing on end. “It’s not worth the risk to go in illegally.”
“I won’t find Jeremiah sitting in a holding cell.” Dead didn’t work for him either. Any ENC Ferwyn would be within his rights to attack him for crossing the border without the express permission of their Clan príoh. “I’ll be careful.”
