Gillian backtracked, only to bump up against an invisible wall. Yep. She'd been enclosed by a magical shield. Trapped. But better her than Puck. Although, if he continued to strain, he might break every bone in his body.
She banged on the invisible wall, ripples sweeping over the air, hazing her view of him.
"Don't worry about me. Take care of yourself," she called.
Maybe the Oracle could help? Even if Gillian had to use force. Very well. With a dagger in one hand and a canteen of water in the other, she crouched beside the Oracle, ready for anything. She hoped.
"Here. Drink."
The Oracle reached for the canteen, her hand shaking so badly it affected her aim. Their fingers brushed, and the other woman inhaled sharply, horror filling her eyes.
"Do not trust your husband. You cannot trust him."
What had she seen? Determination mounting, Gillian grated, "I will always trust Puck. And you're going to help me get back to him. So drink up, and strengthen." To assist the Oracle, she tilted the canteen to her lips.
The weaker woman drank greedily, water dribbling down her chin. When she finished, she cried, "Thank you." Tears left streaks on her dirt-smeared cheeks. "Thank you."
"Look, I know this is a trap," Gillian said. "What I don't know is whether you're knowingly involved. Yes or no, you're going to help me get past the shield."
"I didn't know... I'm so sorry... Should have seen... He used me, plans to--" Her eyelids closed, her head slumping forward, as if a switch had just been flipped inside her mind. Her body followed, tipping over.
Gillian lightly tapped her cheek. Nothing. No response. The Oracle slept--because of magic?
Frustration and anger pricked the back of her neck, and she rose, palming a second dagger. Puck--
Was gone, she realized, no longer standing by the tree.
Panic beckoned. Where had he gone? What had happened to him?
A split second later, he reappeared, past the invisible wall. He must have flashed, using his newest surge of magic. Relief and dread went head-to-head, both overshadowing the frustration and anger. "I told you to stay back. We're trapped by magic, unable to leave the immediate area."
"No worries, lass. We'll find a way. We always do."
His easy tone held hints of relish, and it jarred her. Especially when it was followed by another gust of wind that carried the scent of wildflowers and maple. Her brow furrowed with confusion. What had happened to the heady mix of peat smoke and lavender, her favorite fragrance ever?
One made her blood burn with passion while the other left a chill of dismay in her veins.
"Puck," she said, taking a step toward him. Then she stopped, her heart pounding against her ribs. Her head tilted to the side as she studied her husband more closely.
He wasn't looking at her with hope, lust, adoration, anger, or even total emotionlessness. He looked at her with hate and suspicion, despite the slight smile curving the corners of his sensual mouth. In each hand, he clutched the hilt of a short sword. His knuckles were white, completely leached of color; he appeared to be posed on the brink of attack.
Do not trust your husband.
Puck would never hurt her. She knew it soul-deep. But this man...
"Come to me, wife," he said.
"Of course." The only conclusion she could draw: this wasn't powerful Puck, her beloved.
This was Sin, the shapeshifter.
43
Puck couldn't move. The moment Gillian had raced ahead of him, a bolt of magic had disintegrated his weapons and cemented his feet in place. Powerful magic...chaotic, evil. Demonic?
No. Couldn't be. At the moment, Puck was the only demon-possessed male in town. But the crux of the matter? Sin had come for him.
Why his brother hadn't attacked him outright, he didn't know. Didn't care. Only one thing concerned him right now: saving Gillian.
Sin appeared at the glittering shield that separated Puck from his wife. He cast Puck a look of abject longing--one Puck mirrored?
First view in centuries. Should have expected a punch of affection. A reaction ingrained in him since his younger brother's birth.
The years had certainly changed Sin, and not exactly for the better. He looked older, harder. His dark hair had turned white, despite his immorality. His muscle mass rivaled Puck's, but he carried it awkwardly, as if he'd never gotten use to the bulk.
A circle of gold glowed just over his head. Mortals would call it a halo, but it was actually a king's crown. Taken only through death, or a king's willing relinquishment.
A confusing mix of love and hate crashed through Puck. A terrible awareness of betrayal followed. Longing for what could have been. More adoration. An urge to kill, violently, savagely, ruthlessly--blood would flow in rivers. Regret strong enough to send him to his knees. If he could move.
In Sin's eyes, he saw the same emotions reflected back at him.
How could he kill the man who had once been an extension of himself?
How could he not? Sin was an obstacle between husband and wife. Obstacles between Puck and Gillian got crushed.
As he watched, Sin shapeshifted into a monstrous form with horns, claws and hooves. Puck's monstrous form, with no hint of the halo.
"Do not hurt her." Puck strained for freedom with every fiber of his being.
"I will do what I must," Sin replied, and he sounded sad.
"Gillian! Gillian, run!" If she saw or heard him, she gave no notice, continuing to minister to the Oracle. "Sin, please. I beg of you." What was pride without Gillian? "If you bear me any love, you will not harm her."
Sin closed his eyes, let his head drop, and Puck thought maybe he'd reached the little boy he'd once loved. Then the male he'd become faced Puck, determined and crazed, and turned away. He approached Gillian.
She had no idea an enemy drew near, would have no defenses against him. Puck fought harder, frantic.
"Come to me, wife," Sin said to Gillian, and motioned her over.
"Of course."
"Give your husband a kiss."
She smiled with all kinds of sweetness--though none of the affection Puck had come to know ever reached her eyes. He paused, certain he was reading her wrong.
"I
'd love to kiss my husband," she said, her tone as sweet as her expression. She closed the distance, her steps clipped.
"No. Gillian!" Fight, fight! Puck was willing to break bones, tear muscles and lose limbs to reach her. Anything!
"Put the weapons away," Sin-Puck said. "They aren't necessary."
A curse left Puck as Gillian obeyed.
She reached her "husband" and dragged her hands from the waist of his pants up his stomach, chest, and let her fingers linger over the bird tattooed on his heart. But Sin's tattoo was a mirage while Puck's had unimaginable power...
Metal glinted against Gillian's forearm as she slowly rose on her tiptoes. Puck dared to hope. She hadn't sheathed her weapons, after all?
Sin slowly lifted his arms, as if to embrace her. At the last second, he angled his wrists, preparing to strike.
"No! Gillian!" Panic choked him, but Puck kept fighting.
Indifference cranked up the volume, screaming inside his head. The butterfly tattoo slithered all over his body, sizzling against his skin.
Just before Gillian's lips met Sin's, she struck, angling her wrist to reveal the dagger. A dagger she shoved into Sin's neck without hesitation. Blood gushed, a crimson river. His brother howled with shock and pain as he stumbled backward.
"I know who you are," Gillian said, her tone hard and sharp. Kick, kick. She easily disarmed him. "What have you done with my Puck?"
She had realized the truth. But...how was that possible? Not even their parents had known when Puck and Sin had shapeshifted to switch places.
Whatever the reason, pride struck Puck. My woman knows me.
Sin's wound must have weakened his magic. Suddenly Puck could move his arm. Muscles strained and bones threatened to break, but he managed to work his hand to his chest and press two fingers against the rounded claws of his bird tattoo.
Long ago, he'd used magic to hide the shears of Ananke inside his flesh. Today he would use the shears to break Sin's hold and aid Gillian.
Except, he hesitated. What if the shears could only be used once? He'd wondered before, but feared now. He wouldn't be able to divorce Gillian--bonus--but he also wouldn't be able to part with Indifference. And if they could only be used twice? He could divorce Gillian, as planned--because yes, he would always give her what she needed, and she needed her freedom long enough to learn the true emotions in her heart--and Puck would be stuck with Indifference, without a filter.