Rayne's heart stammered in her chest.

The deepest shade of earthy brown swirled around an onyx pupil, the fog clearing as the whites of Jarrah's eyes move backwards. He didn't let up on the anger in his glare, but Rayne didn't miss the sway of puzzlement that briefly crossed the shimmer in his gaze. She wasn't sure if he noticed, but even the beat of one of his ivory wings faltered, its beautiful, iridescent swirl stilling at the eye contact.

Her throat swelled, and she hastily went to look back towards the crowd when something else caught her senses, keeping her eyes on him. His rapid breathing slowed down to a few rugged breaths and his body swayed on shaky feet. Rayne was half-a-second ahead of him and dove towards his side, hoisting his body upright as he toppled over.

The warmth of his bare skin against her made her swallow thickly, but she didn't move her arms from around him as she helped hold his weight. He hissed under his breath, though she didn't know if it was at her or himself for not being able to hold himself up in his weakened state. The fresh scent of woodsy pine wafted through her nostrils until she was nearly dizzy with the scent of clear skies, open fields, warm summer nights, and blooming spring.

Jarrah looked down at her with his alluring brown eyes and his shimmering jawline that clenched with muscle. Rayne shifted uncomfortably under the obvious beauty that drew one in. The surrounding crowd was hushed now, surprised by Rayne's quick reflexes to grab the enemy.

But their silence didn't matter. He needed tending to asap before he passed out on them.

"Dad, please. He needs rest," Rayne said, looking over at him. "He'll pass out if we don't do something."

Something ticked in Alpha Vance's jaw at the sight. He narrowed his eyes at Jarrah with disdain, but he eventually nodded his head. "Very well. Declan, assist Rayne in grabbing—"

"I got him," she interrupted, her smile strained as he put more pressure on her body the longer, he stood there. Her fingers grabbed the other side of his waist firmly, his arm now heavy around her back. She wasn't small by any means; in fact, she had more flesh on her bones than most of the other wolves. But Jarrah was taller, his upper body fuller with just enough muscle to make him just as heavy as another male in her pack. If her father didn't hurry it up, they were both going to collapse.

"Fine. Declan, you know where he is to go," Alpha Vance declared. "Watch my daughter. And Rayne, I want you at the house in ten minutes."

His voice, laced with the command of an alpha, left no room for arguing. "Ome."

The pack dispersed from there. They spoke to Alpha Vance with questions of the captor while Declan, Ronan's father, nodded over to Rayne with Jarrah's chains in his hands. Fixing her grip on the silent Fae king attached to her side, she helped him stagger forward as best as she could. Iron made them weak, so it didn't surprise her that her father took so many extra measures to make sure Jarrah was powerless. Usually, just one touch of iron put most of the Fae Folk down. One chain would usually suffice for them. But Jarrah needed a chain on each wrist and ankle to prevent him from using his power.

Much to Rayne's dismay, Declan led them to the dungeon room. They kept a room separate from the other dungeon for their kind, so that it was more comfortable for them within four soundproof walls and a bed. It may not have been as bad, but it was still a dungeon and used for prisoners.

"Wait. Declan, father said he's part of the pack," Rayne started, then paused at the hiss of disapproval from Jarrah. She rolled her eyes and went on ignoring him. "Why is he staying here?"

For the first time since they started walking, Declan looked back at her. Though he didn't stop unlocking the building, he paid her enough attention to be honest with her. She was like a niece to him, after all.

"He needs to prove to us we can trust him before we just let him wander around," he explained, his gaze sharp with distrust as he eyes Jarrah.

Jarrah, still silent, stiffened.

"And how are we going to do that when he's locked up?" she demanded.

Declan's lips twitched. "You're going to have to take that one up with your father, honey. Just the messenger here."

Rayne grumbled under her breath, but helped nudge Jarrah into the confines of the room. It wasn't the best place to be, particularly for a king, but it would do until she could sort out her father's plan in the meantime at dinner. Ezra could be complacent if he wanted to, but she was the future of the pack. She had to know everything and why things were how they were.

Jarrah must know something . . . something that could help them defeat Ambrosius and his clan. But what? And how do they get it out of him while he was in that state?

By playing nice.

Rayne bit her lip and carefully sat him on the freshly made bed in the room. She jostled him a bit so that she could avoid hurting his wings, and he winced at the clumsy movement. She murmured out a soft, "I'm sorry."

Jarrah cut his eyes at her. He instead turned his attention to Declan clasping his chains to the wall that was enchanted by a protection spell too powerful for one to break. He wouldn't be able to break his chains out of the wall no matter what, especially being that drained of power.

"Must he stay chained up?" she asked, unable to help herself. She pulled away from his body to stand by the door, unable to halt the guilt from spreading across her tight chest. Jarrah just sat there all the while and stared at Declan, saying nothing.

"Yes, Ray," Declan said, suddenly sounding tired. "Until we know he won't leave, he needs to be chained up at all times."

Jarrah looked back over at Rayne now, his intense gaze calculating as if he were trying to figure out why she cared so much. Nibbling on the inside of her cheek, she glanced away towards Declan, who moved towards the door.

"Let's get you home, before your dad has my ass for keeping you out," he smiled. He gave Jarrah a hard look of stone. "Food will be given to you three times a day. Your dinner will come in an hour and the rules of your stay will come from the alpha when he sees you tomorrow morning."

Once again, only silence met their ears. He just shifted his jaw and turned away, allowing his flowing hair to block his view of them. Rayne sighed, but followed Declan out of the cell. She was going to have a long talk with her father, whether or not he wanted the conversation.

Luna Nevaeh held the Vance family down with an iron grip of generosity and strength in every sense of the two words. Her fierce protectiveness over protecting any life she set eyes on made Rayne wonder if her father kept her out of the loop on their newfound prisoner purposely. But that thought quickly disintegrated after catching them in a quiet argument after returning from the dungeons. She caught Ezra lounging on the couch flipping through channels and before she could say a word, he jabbed his thumb in the kitchen's direction.

Rayne desperately needed a shower after the training she had with Ronan earlier before dinner, but she was too curious by the conversation that she couldn't head up just yet. Instead, she tiptoed over to the kitchen door and barely nudged the door open to hear them better.

"How could you not come to me about this?" Nevaeh hissed, leaning her hourglass body against the sink. Her full lips were twisted into a frown, her plucked eyebrows nudged together over thundering eyes—Rayne and Ezra's eyes.

Nashoba pushed his muscular body forward, his hair now unbraided and floating down his back. He tried to touch his wife's arm, but she moved away. "No, Nash. Now tell me where he is."

"Not until you tell me you aren't going anywhere near him," he deflected, a protectiveness leaking into his voice. His jaw was set, his eyes just as fierce as hers. "I know how you are, Vae. I don't want you or the kids down there alone until I know he's safe to be around."

Kids? Rayne scoffed mentally. She was twenty-one years old, and her brother twenty. They could easily take care of themselves.

"Need I remind you that you're the one who brought him here?" Nevaeh demanded. Her hip jutted out now and Rayne knew as soon as she pushed away the small coils of obsidian from her cheeks, father was done for. "Onto our land—without telling me, mind you, even though you know you have Sherlock Holmes for a daughter? You don't think she's already trying to figure him out—"

A growl rumbled low in Nashoba's chest. His hands clenched into tight fists, and he rolled his shoulders back to release the tension at such a thought.

"Don't like that, do you?" Nevaeh smirked. She dropped the unused pot into the sink and shot him a look. "Should have thought about that before putting him in that room."

"Well—" he paused. Rayne made the mistake of shuffling closer to the door. "I'd answer that, but it seems like we have some company now."

Ezra snickered. Rayne cursed under her breath and straightened her back, deciding it was time to make her presence known. She pushed open the door to the kitchen completely and walked right up to her unsurprised parents. Nevaeh thinned her lips at Nashoba but shot her eldest a serene grin.

"Hey baby," Nevaeh greeted, pressing a kiss to Rayne's temple on her way back to the stove.

"Hi mom," Rayne replied, though her eyes stayed on her father. He rose a thick brow at her, his eyes reading her before she could even open her mouth. Despite being forty-one, Alpha Vance was just like any other wolf with the slow aging. He easily could pass for Rayne and Ezra's older brother, as disgusting as that sounded to her, and her mother could be her sister. Both easily passed for their early 30s, which should have made it easier to talk to them.

But it did the opposite; at least with her father.

"Dad?" Rayne started off hesitantly.

"A, um i hullo?" he questioned, waving her closer to him. Like a pup seeking parental protection, she dove straight into her father's side. Though she was still upset with him for how Jarrah was being treated, she relaxed under the affection of her father giving her one of his signature hugs. "Chim achukma?"

"Amachukma," she said, then paused. No, she wasn't fine; but she couldn't show him how affected she was by the Fae king in their dungeon. "I heard you and mom talking about the Fae king."

"Of course you did," Nashoba muttered. "We've talked about that, Rayne. You're too old for eavesdropping."

"I know, I know . . . but why is he chained up with iron? You know they can't heal properly with iron—"

"I can't chance something happening to any of you until I know he's safe to be around. And until we know he won't leave, he has to stay down there."

Rayne frowned. She went on to finish her thought when Nashoba's eyes grew stern, and his hold tightened with the purpose of getting her attention. She already knew what was coming next without him even saying a word.

"I don't want you in that dungeon unless Declan or I are with you. And don't argue with me about it—you're lucky I'm letting you come at all."

"Dad, I can handle myself. I'm next in line for alpha, remember?" she huffed.

"I remember. But you're my baby first," he said, kissing the top of her head. "And I don't trust him around you or Ezra, yet. Part of the pack or not, the Fae aren't to be trusted. Especially around the future of Moonshine. Got it?"

Rayne pouted up at him, but all it got her was a severe warning look. She mumbled out a low, "Ome."

"Good. Now go get Ezra, dinner's ready." He kissed her temple one more time and sent her on her way.

The conversation didn't satisfy her at all, but she didn't have much of a choice. For now, all she could do was be patient and wait for the questions to be answered whenever they came.

Even if it killed her to wait.

♡ a, um i hullo? - yes, (my) love?

♡ chim achukma? - how are you?, are you good/well?

♡ amachukma - i am well/good/fine

♡ ome - yes