Suzanne McLeod - The Shifting Price of Prey

‘Viviane,’ I shouted. ‘Do something. He’s hurt.’

She held up her hands and shook her head. ‘Sorry. Incorporeal, remember.’

Fuck. I kicked the circle, straining to grab its magic, then stopped as Gold Cat snarled and spat at me as if to say, ‘Get back!’ Hope springing in my heart, I watched as it swiped its tongue over Finn’s bloody face then pushed at him with its head. His body rolled over, landing on the ashes, his arm dropping inside the circle.

I dropped to my knees, reaching out to grab him, but as my fingers closed over his wrist, Gold Cat leaped over him and the ashes and vanished in a cascade of golden stars.

Magic exploded inside me, desperate heat spreading through my veins, throbbing between my legs. I tightened my hold on Finn and pulled him fully into the circle, not caring for anything other than needing him in here with me. He moaned, lids fluttering open, eyes a muddy-green with pain. They lit with relief when he saw me.

‘Gen?’ he murmured. ‘Thank the Gods. I thought . . . killed . . . worse.’

I wanted to tell him how ecstatic and relieved I was to see him alive, wanted to find out how hurt he was, wanted to ask him what had happened, wanted to tell him I was fine, wanted to get him to take the damn collar off, wanted us to escape. Wanted to tell him about the magic driving me. Wanted to warn him. Wanted to stop it. Instead, I took his face in my hands and thrust my magic into him, exalting as the muddy-green in his eyes flickered emerald and he reached up to grip my arms.

His eyes turned solid gold with my Glamour. I lowered my lips to his in a searing kiss.

The steady beat of Finn’s heart woke me. My face was pressed into the curve of his throat, my body sprawled atop his where we lay on the furs, and despite Finn’s sleeping breath warming my hair and the languorous wellbeing leaving my muscles yielding and pliant, I could feel where a certain part of him was nowhere near so soft. Could feel it so intimately that there was no way I could deny we’d had sex, and we’d evidently fallen asleep still joined.

Only I couldn’t remember any of it.

Stunned, I prodded the blankness in my mind. I could recall the swampies bellowing, Gold Cat dragging Finn into the cave, Viviane lifting her hands and shrugging . . . then a fuzzy memory of pulling Finn into the circle, the magic and need driving me as I kissed him. But nothing more. Shocked disbelief washed over me, fracturing my sleepy aftermath.

I couldn’t remember what we’d done.

Was this some sort of cosmic joke? Had someone stolen my memory? Or hexed us, or maybe just me— Crap. The Morpheus Memory Aid. One of its side-effects was memory loss. Why the hell did it have to hit now? Then something more horrifying hit me. I’d Glamoured Finn.

Fuck. I’d forced him. Disgust whirled through me. It didn’t matter that he might have said yes if the circumstances were normal; he hadn’t had the chance. I was as bad as his ex, the Witch-bitch Helen.

I started to move then found myself flipped over and a very awake-looking Finn gazing down at me, horns curving at full length, eyes shining gold. Part of me was selfishly grateful he was still caught in my Glamour, so I had a few more minutes before I got to see his revulsion at how I’d trapped him. And if I was truthful, even sickened with myself as I was, I wanted a few more minutes to enjoy the position I’d woken up in . . . and was still in. Finn flipping me over hadn’t dislodged anything, and what hadn’t been exactly soft before was becoming less that way even as we lay here, much to my body’s obvious delight. It reacted happily, tightening around him with desire.

‘Sorry,’ I muttered, ashamed heat burning my face. ‘I didn’t mean that.’

‘Hey.’ He grinned, did something that made me gasp beneath him. ‘Nothing to be sorry for, Gen. I am a sex god, after all’ – he winked – ‘and us sex gods love it when we’re appreciated. It does wonders for our poor battered egos.’

‘Yeah, about that—’

He silenced me with a long lingering kiss, one that made my toes curl and made me want nothing more than to take this where he thought it was headed. As he started moving, my heart cracked a little and I broke the kiss, turning my face away.

He stilled above me. ‘Gen?’

‘I’m sorry,’ I said, staring at the back of the cave, noticing the leather collar and its broken padlock. Finn must’ve removed it at some point. ‘We can’t— I can’t do this.’ Tears stung my eyes.

He gently turned my face to his, brushing his thumb across my wet cheek. ‘Gods, Gen, what’s wrong?’

‘Finn,’ I said softly. ‘I’m not sure if you’ll understand me, but I’ve trapped you in my Glamour. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. Whatever we did last night, it’s my fault. But we can’t do this now. And I can’t release you unless we’re not touching.’

‘You’ve Glamoured me?’ He gave me a perplexed look as he shifted back slightly.

‘Yeah,’ I said, feeling strangely reluctant to lose my connection to him. ‘I’m sorry. You need to move so I can free you.’

‘Gen,’ he said earnestly, ‘we talked about all this last night at length. I’ve told you before, and I explained then, you can’t trap me. See?’ He closed his eyes, took a breath and when he opened them again, they were his normal moss-green. ‘It’s just more fun sharing magic.’ He gave me a brief half-smile. ‘I know you were knocked sideways with the effects of that stupid cambion’s magic coming on top of the fertility spell and all the ambush stuff, but we didn’t do anything either of us didn’t want to last night, or at least—’ His expression turned troubled. ‘Are you saying something different, Gen?’

‘I don’t know,’ I said. ‘I can’t remember. I’ve used two of those Morpheus Memory Aids in the last few days. I think their magic’s—’

‘Morpheus Memory Aids usually cause spotty memory loss, like forgetting if you’ve locked the door, or where you left your keys. It doesn’t strip away a whole night.’

‘Well, it has.’

Distress crossed his face. ‘Gen, we didn’t just have sex, we talked about stuff. A lot of stuff. Nicky, Helen . . . us . Don’t you remember any of it?’

‘Seriously, Finn. Nothing after I kissed you, no.’

His expression turned horrified, and he was gone so fast I felt a breeze. A fur landed on top of me and I hugged it as I sat up. He had his back to me. Sleek sable hair coated his hips and thighs, and a black tuft nestled at the base of his spine: his tail. The fact that he was too upset to hide it sent my pulse spiking with anxiety. It sped faster as I saw he was tearing Carlson’s backpack apart, ripping off all the smaller pockets. He tossed it aside then scanned the cave as if searching for something. Suddenly his eyes lit on Marc’s clothes by the cold fire. He snatched them up, shoved his hand in the jeans pockets, but came up empty. He threw them down in disgust.

‘What are you looking for?’ I asked, hating that my voice shook.

‘Something that would explain why you’ve lost your memory.’ His gaze fixed on the fire. He grabbed a stick and poked the ashes. ‘Nothing.’ He rushed back, his jeans appearing as he did, and crouched down next to me. ‘What’s the exact last thing you remember, Gen?’

I looked into his worried face, tamped down my own panic. ‘The swampies were outside the cave, I could hear them, and something like a fight, then Gold Cat dragged you in, pushed you into the circle.’ I frowned. ‘I remember wanting to talk to you, but instead I kissed you. Then nothing until I woke up.’

Finn took my hands, an odd look on his face. ‘You said a gold cat dragged me in. What cat, Gen?’

‘Gold Cat. It’s a primal spirit, an animus,’ I said slowly, unease clutching my gut. ‘The ritual went wrong and I somehow made an ùmaidh and the animus bonded to it.’