Page 55 of Searching for the Prince
“Not really,” Catlin said, for some reason, she was brandishing a knitting needle like a weapon. “All seems like a shot in the dark.”
“I can tell you that through the door is a lobby, with several other smaller rooms, I followed a nurse in and was chased off, but it was enough,” Gwil explained.
“Right, I’ll pick the lock,” Jack said. “We get in fast and check the rooms. Grab Simon and get out, I’ll try to provide cover, but I need to manage the portal so your best bet is not to get hit.”
“Were you able to get word to Hyax?” Gwil asked, his fear the portal would be their option was fast becoming the reality and fae portals were not good for him, hopefully Jack’s warlock ones weren’t so bad. “To have supplies on hand?”
“Aren’t they meant to be coming through to capture Mettle?” Robin said. “Otherwise, we could be back to square one.”
The retrieval plan they’d devised wasn’t meant to have been done on the fly. Hyax, Alex and Ashley were meant to come through to grab Mettle to stop him from escaping. An emergency portal would mean they were on their own and would have to make the best of it even if it meant the vampires getting a little crispy around the edges.
“I couldn’t get enough signal to call,” Jack said. “I’ve sent a message but the reception’s patchy. But we don’t have time to argue about this. We’ll figure something out.”
“What did you mean by supplies?” Catlin sounded worried
“The fae portals can be a bit rough on vampires. I’ve assumed a similar issue for those created by warlocks,” Gwil explained, there was no point in sugar-coating things. “The blood supplies help with the immediate aftermath.”
“I take it there’s not an alternative?” she asked.
“You could stay here,” Robin snapped. “Look, we need to move, if nothing else we don’t want to get caught in this corridor.”
Jack raced over to the door and his fingers danced over the keypad, a slight purple haze the visible sign of his magic. “Nearly there. Triple layer encryption is impressive, but people are always complacent over the matrixing.”
Gwil was impressed, those locks were not easy to break and he’d seen Hyax have trouble with something similar. Jack was a remarkable warlock and was probably brought in to assist on all sorts of matters. A useful man to know and Gwil wouldn’t think twice about contacting him in the future.
A softclickannounced the door release being activated. Robin, ever the reckless fucker was first through the door. He knew Robin was desperate to get to Simon, but if he was extinguished or injured then Gwil was sure the House of Hewel would find a way to hold Gwil responsible. They followed Robin, the lobby was empty and there were five doors, only one closed and the other treatment rooms were deserted.
“Stand back, I’ll blast the door open,” Jack instructed. “Grab Simon and I’ll open the portal for Catlin and Gwil. I might need another one for us.”
Gwil was happy enough to get out of there and he’d take Catlin with him. Jack hit the door with a discharge of magic and cast out a sea of mist, then with his other hand opened a purple portal. Gwil grabbed Catlin’s hand and dragged her through the portal and to safety.
They collapsed onto the floor, some sort of flowery carpet that, alongside the burning sensation in his veins, made him want to throw up. So much for hoping the warlock portals wouldn’t be as bad as the fae’s. He was vaguely aware of a series of shouts. Someone picked up Catlin and he was rolled onto his back, a blood pack forced to his lips.
He guzzled down the blood, and he was already beginning to feel a bit less shit. His world righted just enough for him to realise Hyax was kneeling at his side. “I’ve got you.”
Hyax administered another pack of blood, even in his current state he could tell it was better than his usual supplies. There was a commotion to his right, Robin arrived with Simon, they were safe. A wave of nausea hit him, and his nerves felt as if they were on fire.
Hyax brushed his fingers across his temples. “Sleep.”
And Gwil slept.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
The last time Gwil had gone through an emergency portal he’d been unconscious for days. At least at Crofton Hall he was receiving the best care vampire medical science and warlock healers could provide him, with the purest blood stocks on hand to aid his recovery. Hyax sat next to him on his bed, waiting for the chills he seemed to be suffering from to abate. Gwil muttered something in his sleep, it was an improvement from last time, but Hyax was still worried sick.
Gwil had been back a couple of days, he was no longer as frazzled as when he had come through but still had a way to go before he was fully recovered. To avoid going out of his mind, Hyax had been to the facility with Ashley to see if they could track the lich who had escapes and the Warlock Ruling Committee were treating the residents who remained, there was nothing he could do.
He’d promised Robin, who was conscious but not in a great state, that he’d visit Simon, and given Gwil was deep in a healing sleep now was as good a time as any.
He headed to the room where Simon was housed. As he approached, he could feel the wards he’d created with Ashley and Alex. It had been exhausting and he’d slept a day straightafter, but he was smug beyond belief they were still standing and giving Simon the protection he needed.
Simon was of average build but nestled amongst the pillow and blankets he appeared small and fragile, his fae qualities still overriding any from his vampire side. His red hair was shocking against the white of the bedlinens. At Sebastian’s request, Hyax had checked Simon’s condition once he had been settled and had been able to provide a base level from which to work, assuming a certain amount of similarity to his own physiology. His assessment was the same as that of the healers they’d brought in, but Sebastian liked to be sure and Hyax was a known entity.
Hyax ran his fingers over the cuff on Simon’s left arm. No change. His magic was sitting behind a magical barrier, the spell housed in the cuffs was stubborn, meaning there wasn’t the option to wait for the enchantment to fade. They’d confirmed the cuffs were elvish and those bastards were the epitome of cantankerous fuckwits. He had to admit that it was a brilliant piece of magic that not only contained Simon’s powers but siphoned them away without danger. Removing them without the right materials would be fatal, Alex was working on a potion which should work, but until that was ready, they would need to be careful. They hadn’t gone to all the trouble of extracting him for Simon to cark it here.
From what he’d heard, Robin hadn’t been as badly affected as Gwil, and Hyax had surmised the protection James had cast had helped Robin when he was in the portals. Once Simon was recovered, Hyax would be asking him how he’d made it possible for Robin to use fae portals without turning into beef jerky.
Simon made a series of whining noises and to Hyax’s surprise, sat up. Simon stared around the room, bemused and a bit lost, which was another shock because Hyax was sure he’d be yelling and screaming if their positions had been reversed.
