“Tell him we’re ready,” I replied, turning to watch as Quinn and the other ghosts closed in around us, and then disappeared from sight.
The men turned at my words, and, as soon as Adam had taken position next to his father, I erected the protection shield around me and Larissa. Angry growls erupted from Ryder and his men, but Adam just watched me carefully, as if he’d known the plan all along. He’d known me the longest out of everyone else here, so it stood to reason that he would have guessed my plan.
“You’re sure you want to do this alone, Syn? I can only give you a boost to tap the line and hold the shield up. Anything that comes through the line will be up to you to defeat,” Larissa said from beside me.
“Nope, not sure at all, but I can handle this, Larissa. I won’t be responsible for him hurting anyone else.”
“Fine, but you need to get whatever is bothering you off your chest now,” she said with keen eyes.
“I’m not sure I can marry him. Not now, not ever.”
“You’re marrying Adam, we both know that,” she said, and shook her head. “You need to be faithful to him, Syn. He deserves it, you both do. You are bound together by destiny. I know you don’t love him yet; not as you love Ryder. I just don’t think Ryder is in the stars for you. He forced his way into your life; unlike Adam, who has always been there for you when you needed him to be.”
“Larissa, they’re not just asking us to get married…they want us to have babies. Which means—”
“I know what it means, Syn. I’m dead, not dumb.” She rolled her eyes with a small grin on her lips.
“I’m sorry. It’s still a lot to take in.”
“He wasn’t only thinking of me when he was with those women, Syn. I lied to him, because I knew it would hurt him to hear the truth from me. He doesn’t remember it all now, but he will soon enough. He felt guilt for me, and lust for you because you were nearing Transition, and your need pushed into his mind when your Transition hit. It’s been messing with him pretty bad, so give him a little time. I would think it has to be a common thing when one has a bond such as the two of you do, and I guess that’s why they try and marry familiars. He’s always had his eye on you a little bit more than a big brother would. It’s always been there, staring us in the face. Adrian and I just never wanted to admit it. I think you were meant to be together, and, in the end, it looks like you will be.”
“I don’t think so. I think we both deserve to be loved. Real love, Lari; the kind that makes everything else in the world seem trivial, the kind that melts your soul and melds it together with the one you truly love. I do love Adam, but I’ll never be in love with him, and that’s what he needs. Right now, he seems to only care about what the Fae need, and I get that too, I really do…But, what happens when we have done what they need?”
“You’ll have children to be happy and content with, Syn. It’s more than I’ll ever have.”
I swallowed a twinge of regret, knowing she was right, and I shouldn’t be complaining to her of all people. She’d never have anything more because her life had been cut short entirely too soon. “I just don’t think I’ll be a good mother. I truly never had one. She was taken before I learned anything from her.”
“Being a mother will come naturally to you, Syn. Stop selling yourself short. You love unconditionally, and you never give up on a person no matter how much they deserve it sometimes,” she tilted her head a little, and smiled. “And you’ll kill anything that threatens those you love. You’re going to be the best mother ever. You’re going to make bears look timid compared to you.”
“I do kill shit well,” I agreed, and looked around at the angry faces watching us. “We better do this before they join forces and try to shatter my shield.”
“Okay, so the plan is that: I help you tap the line. I can feel the disruption in the air when they sift so I can help give you a little warning when they come through, but I can’t wield a weapon or help you do the killing, as I am only a soul—even though I look like more right now. It’s sort of forbidden for the dead to help the living, so let’s not test the powers that be more than I already am.”
“That’s fine, Lari. I just need strength, and a second pair of eyes.”
“Then get dressed, it’s time to kick some ass,” Larissa said, grinning wickedly. I whispered the spell that would place the shield in darkness, making it impossible for anyone to see inside of it as we prepared for war.