Vowed Read online

  Vowed

  Farseen Chronicles Book 6

  N. R. Tucker

  Text Copyright © 2019 N. R. Tucker

  All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the author, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

  Cover Illustration by N. R. Tucker

  Cover Design by N. R. Tucker

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  ISBN- 13 978-0-9907163-5-8

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  From the Author

  Chapter 1

  The incoming portal alarm glowed as it pulsated red and orange. With a growl, Ryan closed his laptop and hurried down the hallway. Was it too much to ask to have a quiet shift? His first day as the senior shifter liaison at PAC HQ and someone created an unauthorized gate event inside the facility. Why didn’t they open a gate out in the woods and walk through the checkpoint without setting off the alarms?

  Unless it’s an attack. Ryan picked up the pace and ran.

  The portal alarm had been established to notify everyone in headquarters that someone had opened a gate event at the portal, the only place inside the facility where a gate event could be opened. All arrivals were color-coded, with a pulse for the color-blind, for authorized events. For unauthorized gate events, the sound and color code were obnoxious by design. Any gate that opened inside headquarters would not fully open for two minutes, allowing security to arrive before the visitor.

  Ryan arrived at the same time as Liron, a representative from the Northern Realm. The other fae representatives were already in place, as were the wizards and vampires.

  “Anyone know anything?” Ryan waved toward the portal.

  “No.” Sam, the shifter currently responsible for portal activities, narrowed his eyes on the portal. “Orders?”

  Ryan glared at the portal. “Prepare to fire.”

  At Ryan’s words, the four guards standing around the portal brought their weapons to bear on the platform. Those in the gallery saw the movement and everyone, human or preternatural, who could be somewhere else, left.

  “Is that our only option?” Liron asked. He was at heart a bard and a peacemaker. He hated to see a life wasted. “I don’t know who it is, or what their purpose is, but allow them to explain.”

  “No,” Ryan moved between Sam and Liron. The shifters were responsible for headquarters security this shift. There had been clashes between shifter, wizard, vampire, and fae security teams worked together, so security duties now rotated each shift. “There are no do-overs. If they don’t have authorization, they die.”

  “Wait,” Willow ran up to Ryan. Breathing hard to catch her breath she faced him. “The arrival is authorized. Temp… er, Lady Tempest just called it in.”

  Ryan barely prevented the eye roll at Willow’s slip. The shifters used fae titles at PAC Headquarters just to make sure no one felt slighted. It had been hard for some to adjust their thinking.

  Sam pegged Willow with a hard stare, “You sure? The authorizations are valid?”

  She pursed her lips at the questions. Willow was no longer a child of their clan. She served as one of the Sovereign’s Personal Assistants. “Yes, I’m sure. Yes, I validated the authorization.”

  Liron and Ryan both breathed a sigh of relief. No life would be wasted today, and no one would fire the first shot in the next preternatural war.

  Before Willow could say more, the gate congealed on the portal platform. A tall woman exited and placed her hands on her hips. Her braided white blonde hair wrapped around her head and still the loose end of the braid reached her waist. Her voice carried throughout the gallery. “Where is my brother’s eldest?”

  All movement at the main entrance of PAC Headquarters stopped. The humans and preternaturals from the Seen looked over in confusion. The fae from the Farseen bowed. They bowed low.

  Liron welcomed the unexpected visitor, pitching his voice so that Ryan would hear her name and title. “Lady Z, daughter of Queen Niamh and sister to Lord Ellwood, welcome to the Seen and the Preternatural Alliance for Communication Headquarters, PAC HQ if you prefer.

  Willow bowed as the shifters had been taught to do with high-ranking fae. “Welcome to the Seen, Lady Zylina. Lady Tempest will be here momentarily.”

  “Call me Lady Z or Z, and we’ll get along just fine. Call me by that horrendous name again, and I shall blast you into one of the less friendly dimensions.” Lady Z’s tone was matter of fact as if sending someone to another dimension wasn’t a big deal.

  Ryan recognized the name but had foolishly assumed her long dead. He moved to stand in front of Lady Z with Willow at his back. If Lady Z were to start slinging powers, he would protect Willow as best he could. It was then he noticed Lady Z was eye level with him and wasn’t wearing heels. She was six feet, three inches tall and just as muscular as Tempe.

  Lady Z raked him with a glare before a wicked smile spread across her face. “You must be Ryan, the young alpha everyone compares to Val. I don’t see the resemblance myself, but perhaps it will become plain when you do something foolish. Do you plan to be a fool today?”

  Ryan didn’t know if he should laugh or be insulted. He noticed the fae representatives, except for Liron, inched away from him, and Ryan conceded that perhaps he should be worried. Liron, who had become a friend of sorts, remained by Ryan’s side. Ryan appreciated the show of support. Before he could think up a suitable reply, another voice reverberated throughout the gallery.

  “Lady Z, if you try to provoke Ryan the way you did Val, you will quickly find Ryan is ruled by his brain and his compassion, not his heart, nor his arrogance.” Tempe approached the portal with Lady Sierra.

  “You left out avarice,” Sierra muttered softly. Tempe leveled a hard stare at her, and Sierra tilted her head in acknowledgment of her inappropriate comment.

  Walking past the throng of fae who bowed so low they might as well have kissed the floor while they were down there, Tempe waved a dismissive hand. “Go about your business. Lady Z is here to see me.”

  The fae scattered.

  “Where is this shifter of yours, and the quads? I have gifts to bestow.” Lady Z breezed past the guards and headed for the main door.


  At ease! In addition to the mental order, Tempe sent a quick hand signal to Ryan before he tried to stop Lady Z, who left the portal without permission. No reason to prove to everyone in the gallery that Lady Z is the apex predator in the room.

  Ryan hated receiving orders directly into his head. He glared at her, but she didn’t notice. Tempe rushed to catch up, and Ryan bit back a grin. It was nice to see someone knock Tempe off balance.

  “Liron, remind the Northern Realm that prior notice of visitors is expected.”

  Liron shrugged. “Strictly speaking, Lady Z is not a member of the Northern Realm. She lives as an unaligned fae, moving about as she sees fit.

  Ryan nodded his understanding and left. Lady Z was more powerful than he assumed. Only the strongest ruling fae chose to live unaligned. It was a title customarily bestowed on fae who had been kicked out of their realm. They had no safe harbor and no realm backing. He had believed only Father Aldous made that choice freely.

  *****

  “I will gladly introduce you to both, but gifts are not necessary.” Tempe followed her aunt out past the guards and into Bide Park. As they walked, every fae bowed low as soon as they recognized Lady Tempest’s companion. Tempe smothered a smile. For once, they were more afraid of someone other than her. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed that.

  “Gifts are never necessary, but I will do no less for the quads than I did for the shifter triplets and the human child.”

  “The triplets? The human? You never met them.” Tempe had not seen Lady Z in a thousand years. The possibility her adventurous aunt had finally found a dimension where she wasn’t adored by the elementals had been in her mind recently. Tempe knew a gift had been given to Layton, but as he was mostly fae, it was to be expected. Not necessarily desired but expected nonetheless. It would help if the fae witch bestowing a gift on the child warned the family what the talent was, but that rarely happened. A gift was between the witch and the recipient.

  “Not in the strictest sense, but I did come to the Seen to bestow on each a gift. The elementals tell me when something big happens in the family. This time I thought to visit with you while presenting the quads their gifts. I came years ago to present the triplets their gifts. I also gave that lovely human male a gift that has passed down to your great-grandson.” Lady Z found a flat rock and patted it as she sat down. Pleased to be outside, she took a deep breath and coughed. Once the burn in her lungs eased, Lady Z sent out feelers to the elementals. Just as she feared, the people of the Seen were not taking care of their planet.

  Tempe sighed and sat as instructed. No wonder her offspring were so powerful. The most powerful fae witch to ever walk the dimensions snuck into the Seen and gave out gifts. “You should have told me you had been so generous. I would have known to train them.”

  Lady Z huffed, “Why ever for? You wanted normal. You didn’t want your children to be pawns of your father. I’m afraid my foolish brother nearly ruined you. I find myself pleased you stood against him.”

  “You’re pleased? Well, that makes it all right, doesn’t it?” Tempe stood, her eyes turning black as night as she fell into the same argument they had any time they met. “If you had stayed Val would still be alive.” You could have protected him. You could have protected all of us.” Lady Z returned to the Farseen for visits, but she was forever traveling and would be gone for centuries at a time.

  “No. Had I stayed I would have been forced to kill Ellwood and take his place as the Forrest Lord of the Northern Realm. I didn’t want my brother dead, and I had no desire to rule the realm. We both know I’m selfish enough to refuse to take-one-for-the-team, as the humans say.” Lady Z patted the stone again.

  Tempe took a deep breath and struggled to reign in her temper. Her eyes returned to their normal jade green as she sat back down. Tempe didn’t speak but continued to glare at her aunt.

  Lady Z raised both eyebrows, “Child, you are my brother’s daughter. You know we’re a selfish species. We put ourselves first.”

  Tempe snorted. That was true. The easiest way to get help from a fae was to prove the action would not impact them at all. The fae rarely helped if it would cause them discomfort unless the cost was worth what they would gain.

  “I was saddened by the death of your mother. She was a proper lady, and I remember fondly the chats we had over the centuries.” Lady Z’s face sobered. “What a disreputable way to end a good life. I would be pleased to assist you in removing from this dimension the fools who caused her death.”

  And that was the reason Tempe respected her aunt. Lady Z was as self-centered as Lord Ellwood, but she didn’t tolerate injustice of any kind. She could also be kind upon occasion.

  Tempe inclined her head. “Rayna’s children avenged her death in the same way her life was taken, publicly.”

  “Excellent.” Lady Z stood. “Do you prefer to open the way or shall I? Oh, wait. I believe it’s called a gate event now. How amusing. Shall I open the gate event?”

  Tempe hesitated, “Could we discuss the gifts before you bestow them?”

  “Of course not. Once I meet them, I will be able to determine which gift will serve the quads best.” Lady Z smiled happily.

  Tempe pinched the bridge of her nose and told her head to stop pounding. She opened the gate to Beryl Lane and walked through. Her feet kept time to the throbbing of her head.

  Chapter 2

  Next time she wouldn’t have her phone on speaker. The vow played like a mantra in Sage’s head. Ryan called to warn them about Tempe’s visitor, and Kyan moved into protector mode and tried to stow Sage back in Calabozo for safekeeping. The two of them had been in Tempe’s office when the call came in, and Sage had put her phone on speaker. It frequently saved time when receiving reports from the alphas as Sage included Kyan in most discussions anyway. His knowledge and experience were invaluable to her. This time it worked against her.

  As Sage and Kyan entered the room, he glanced out the window and commented, “They’re here. Lady Tempest is bringing Lady Z to meet the quads. Let’s reduce the number of shifters in this room.”

  “Who’s Lady Z?” Lucas asked from the kitchen where he was washing dishes.

  “Lord Ellwood’s twin sister,” Star replied. She and Joey entered from the room that accessed Calabozo. They each held one of their twins, Lexus and Xander. She glanced over at Kyan, “Lady Tempest told me to bring the twins to meet their great aunt.”

  None of the shifters in the room moved. Most were shocked to learn that Lord Ellwood had a sister and stared at Star.

  Bryce huffed, “If you’re not related to Tempe, disappear. Lady Z is described as the strongest witch ever to be born in the Farseen. She makes a mockery of Crystal’s powers.”

  Eyebrows rose at that announcement, with many of the shifters mimicking Tempe’s trademark facial expression. Crystal was credited with creating most of the spells and enchantments referenced in the stories of The Brothers Grimm. She had been a powerhouse, and it had taken a task force to kill her.

  “Does that make her a wicked scary fae?” Lucas asked with a grin.

  Some humans, mostly the AIB and IGI had dusted off the fairy tales and used them as proof of the evil intentions of the fae. The phrase ‘wicked scary fae’ had become common, even on some of the mainstream news stations and websites.

  “Wicked scary fae witch,” Logan amended with a matching grin.

  Fred, cousin to the twins and another PA for the sovereign, stood up and placed a firm hand on Logan’s shoulder, pegging Lucas with a hard stare.

  Since their cousin was nearly six and a half feet of well-maintained muscle, both teenagers quelled noticeably. Fred headed for the entrance to the shifter underground headquarters. He didn’t release Logan, forcing the teenager to scramble to keep up. “Sage, with your permission, I’ll take anyone not needed here to Calabozo.”

  Sage inclined her head. “Excellent idea.” At least Fred asked. Whenever there was a slim chance of danger, Kyan became a tyrant. Sh
e knew who Lady Z was and wanted to meet the powerful fae. Tempe spoke of her aunt with respect, and there were few in the Farseen, or Seen for that matter, who elicited that response from her.

  Bryce opened the door in time for everyone in the house to hear Lady Z. “We’ve stood out here, admiring the mountains, long enough. Your shifter sent as many of his clan away as he could. I’m ready to give the quads their gifts.”

  “Lady Z, welcome to our home. No gifts are required.” Bryce donned his expressionless lawyer face. He wasn’t sure what gifts she meant, but fae gifts were not to be taken lightly. Gifts from fae witches were rarely benign and frequently dangerous.

  “So say you, and Tempe for that matter, but I disagree.” Z stopped before Bryce and looked him over, “Nice choice.”

  “I think so,” Tempe gave her husband a what-did-you-expect shrug. “Bryce meet Lady Z.”

  Bryce bowed, “Lady Z.”

  Lady Z barked a laugh. “You may all call me Z or Lady Z, as you wish. I’m not much for protocol.” Her eyes fell on Sage, and she bowed. “Then again, sometimes protocol is compulsory for the good of all. Sovereign, songs of your bravery reached even my ears, and I like what I have been told of your actions. Well met.”

  “Well met, Lady Z.” She tried to keep the surprise out of her voice but failed. Songs? Plural? There was more than one song about her? She knew about Sage’s Lullaby. Everyone did. Battle a realm lord and a bard writes it up, but she didn’t think she had accomplished anything else song worthy.

  Lady Z looked around the room and focused on the twins. “Lex and Xan.” She walked over and took Lex from Star and turned to take Xan from Joey. He glared at her and tightened his hold on his son. Lady Z grinned at Star, “I like your consort. He is wise not to trust too willingly. Fear not, Joey. I shall not harm the children. I am here to bestow gifts.” With Lex on one hip, she held out her other arm for Xan.

  Sage breathed a sigh of relief that Joey remained in one piece. The songs of Lady Z indicated that you could never be sure if she would take offense or be amused when someone stood up to her.