Magic Breaks (Kate Daniels, #7)

by Ilona Andrews

The Consort refers to me as her nanny occasionally, and I find that term uniquely accurate. I would put one of those hideous child leashes on her if I could, except I’m reasonably sure she would cut my arm off.

But as Disney taught us, there must be a king, and our king is known as the Beast Lord, because we, as red-blooded Americans, have an issue with monarchy.

“No,” Jim said. “You can’t go.” “Overruled,” I told him. “Kate!” “Last time I checked I was in charge. Would you like to challenge me to settle this?” Jim scowled at me. “Very scary, but I’m still in charge.

“I’m not an alpha,” Derek said. “You’re like Curran’s baby brother.”

He smelled like Curran. He felt like him. I buried my face in the bend of his neck. His skin was so hot, it burned. “Don’t die on me.” He kissed my face, pulling off his jacket. “Don’t die on me.” I couldn’t stand. I just slumped there on top of the grate, holding on to him. He wrapped me in his jacket, closed his arms around me, and jumped. Then we were in a narrow hallway. He carried me through it. “I love you,” I told him. “I love you, too.” His voice was raw. “Stay alive, Kate.”

I brushed my fingers along his stubbled cheek gently. “Did you have a failure of control, Your Furriness?” “No,” Curran said. “I was perfectly in control.”

After I put her face in my mouth, we agreed that it was in her best interests to tell me what I wanted to know.

Curran leaned toward me. “Are you going to be a hardass about this?” “What do you think?” We were already down by one, because Ghastek couldn’t walk and Jim decided to carry him. I wouldn’t tie up Curran’s hands by making him carry me, too. “If you say you got it, you got it. But if you fall down, I’ll pick you up.” “Deal.”

I wanted to cut Hugh into pieces. I owed him for Mauro, my broken sword, and seven days in the hole. But Curran owed him for seeing me disappear, for finding out where I went, for running after me across half the country not knowing if I was still alive, and then for fighting his way to Mishmar only to find me half-dead. Curran had a much bigger score to settle.

He opened his gray eyes and looked at me. I loved him so much, it hurt. I loved everything about him. The way his eyes lightened when he laughed. The way they shone with little gold sparks when he wanted me. The way his thick eyebrows came together when he was pissed off. I loved his nose that never healed right. I loved the stubble on his cheeks and the hard line of his jaw. I loved that he called me on my bullshit. I laughed at his jokes and I loved that he laughed at mine. I loved that no matter where I was he would come for me. That he would always be there, helping me cut my way through the mess that was life.

I leaned over to him and kissed him. I kissed him, trying to tell him all of the things I couldn’t put into words. I tried to tell him that I loved him, that he meant everything to me, and that I would fight for him. Nobody would take him away from me, because if they tried, I would carve a path right through them. He kissed me back, and tasting him was heaven. He was right here, alive, warm, and mine—but only until tomorrow. I held on to him. I’d just gotten him back. I couldn’t lose him. Not now. “I love you,” I told him. “I love you, too.”

Fuck it. “I love you. I don’t want to fight. I don’t want to argue. I have to do this, because like you said, this is who I am. I don’t abandon the people who fought for me. If I compromise on this, soon I’ll compromise on other things and then I won’t be me anymore. I can’t let my father bend me into something I’m not. I won’t. I know it’s stupid and reckless, but I have to at least try, Curran. I have to try and I’m afraid.”

My arms shook. My feet slid back half an inch. Another half an inch. A muscular arm wrapped around my stomach. Another closed over my chest. A deafening lion roar, proud and furious, thundered over my shoulders. Curran braced me. His magic mixed with mine. My feet stopped moving. My father pushed and we pushed back.

“What’s the problem?” Jim yelled over the noise of the motor. “No problem,” Curran yelled back. “Go ahead without us.” “What?” “Go ahead without us!” “Why?” “Because I want to spend some time with my wife in peace!” Curran roared. Jim nodded, gave us a thumbs-up, and went back to his Jeep.

“Child, my dangerous one, my beautiful one. You’ve claimed your city. You shouldn’t have been able to do that for another hundred years. I’m so proud that my pride could topple mountains. If you let me, I would show you to the world. I would show the world to you.” “So I could see it through your eyes?” “So you could see it through your own.”

“You created all of this. I can’t ask you to give up your life for me.” He smiled. “I know. You did it for me. You moved into the Keep with me. My turn.”