I turned slightly to see a second blond faerie. The two of them looked so alike that it made me wonder, not for the first time, how small the Fae gene pool was. They all had a similar physique and perfect facial features. Even Lukas Rand and his companions, as fierce as they looked, could be easily identified as faeries.
The newcomer smiled at me. “I’m Daoine. May I ask your name, beautiful one?”
“Jesse.” I had to stifle a laugh because he was laying it on a little thick. But he seemed harmless enough, and everyone knew faeries were huge flirts.
Daoine took one of my hands and lifted it to his lips. “It’s a pleasure. Please, allow me to accompany you to your friend’s table. Perhaps I can convince you both to stay a little longer.”
I tugged my hand from his, but I couldn’t think of a way to refuse his request without seeming rude. What harm could it do to walk across the dais with him?
Korre raised an arm to block us when we turned to the steps. The glint of annoyance in his eyes conveyed his unhappiness with Daoine for moving in on his action. “Daoine, didn’t I just see you with the lovely Nicole? You should return to her, and I’ll take Jesse to her friend.”
Daoine chuckled. “Nice try.”
“I think Jesse can decide for herself who will accompany her,” Korre said, his pretty eyes meeting mine.
I shook my head. “Listen, I’m flattered by your interest, but –”
Beside me, Daoine sucked in a sharp breath. “What are you doing? That is forbidden.”
“What?” I jerked my head in his direction, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was staring at Korre, a mix of shock and reproach on his face.
“What are you talking about?” Korre asked a little too innocently.
“You tried to glamour her.”
Alarm shot through me. Glamouring a human violated at least three treaties and carried a punishment of banishment from our realm. The thought that he’d tried that on me made my hackles rise.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Korre said insolently. “Does she look glamoured to you?”
My hand automatically went to the bracelet on my wrist. Thank you, Mom.
“I felt your magic,” Daoine accused him before I could say anything.
Korre smirked. “Says you.”
Daoine placed himself between Korre and me and spoke to me over his shoulder. “Go to your friend, Jesse. I am sorry for this.”
I appreciated Daoine’s chivalry, but I wasn’t going to walk away from someone who had tried to glamour me against my will. I considered myself an easygoing person most of the time, but even I had my limits.
I pushed past Daoine and poked Korre in the chest. “You jerk. Are you that pathetic you have to use magic to get a woman?”
Korre laughed arrogantly. “Humans come to Teg’s for one reason, and that is to hook up with my kind. You can’t come in here looking like that and pretend to be offended when we take notice.”
Looking like what? I peered down at my outfit, which was anything but sexy, and then glowered at him again. “How any woman looks doesn’t give you the right to violate her. I’m sure the Agency will be more than happy to explain that to you.”
Korre’s humor fled, and he grabbed my arm. I reacted on instinct, hitting him with a palm strike beneath his chin. If he’d been a human, it would have hurt him, but Court faeries were stronger than we were, and all it did was make his hold tighten.
“Release her.” Daoine shoved Korre hard just as I brought my knee up between Korre’s legs. The dual attack knocked him off balance and forced him to let me go. Since I only wanted to get away from him, that was enough.
Until the ogres joined the fight.
Chapter 4
In my defense, I hadn’t meant to involve anyone else, especially a bunch of those bad-tempered brutes. But a girl can’t be blamed for protecting herself, can she?
I watched as Korre stumbled backward and crashed into a table of ogres. Drinks went flying, and angry bellows filled the room amid the sounds of breaking glass.
An ogre reached for Korre, who lay across their table, and grabbed the front of the blond faerie’s shirt in his large hand. In the next instant, Korre was sailing through the air into a group of trolls in the corner.
The trolls, who resembled hairy humans except for their fangs and huge underbites, jumped to their feet, snarling. One troll jumped on Korre, while his four buddies charged the ogres. In the middle of the melee, someone threw a chair that knocked out an elf, sending his companions into a rage. Before I knew it, every faerie in that section was embroiled in a huge brawl.
That would have been bad enough if Korre hadn’t started screaming bloody murder. Court faeries from the dais ran past me and jumped into the fray. Soon, the fight spilled toward us, and I had to step aside to avoid being struck by a flying chair.
“Jesse!” Violet yelled from behind me.
I looked back to see her on the dais, gesturing frantically for me to join her. But before I could move, I was surrounded by dozens of angry faeries doing their best to throttle each other. Dodging the brawlers at every turn, I tried to make my way toward the safety of the bar on the other side of the room.
A boot glanced off my thigh, and I swerved away from it. I collided with a tall, thin elf, sending him crashing to the floor beside me. The troll he’d been fighting fell on top of him, and the two of them continued punching each other.
Something squealed, and a small, white, furry body ran between my feet, desperately trying to escape being trampled to death. It was a hama, a Fae creature about the size of a kitten that resembled an earless rabbit. Hamas were gentle animals and popular pets among faeries and humans.
I bent and grabbed for the hama, my fingertips barely touching him before he darted forward out of my reach. I cringed when he narrowly avoided being squashed under a large ogre boot. The little guy was going to get pancaked if I didn’t help him.
I reached into my inner pocket and pulled out the pouch I’d put there before I left home. Loosening the string, I hurriedly poured a small amount of a fine gray powder onto my palm. It wouldn’t take much for what I had in mind. I lifted my hand to my mouth and blew hard on the powder in the direction the hama had gone.
Every lower faerie in my path who inhaled the powder slowed their movements until it looked like they were fighting in slow motion. It would have been comical to watch if I’d had time. But the effects of the powder wouldn’t last long.
The powder, called fey dust, was a blend of iron powder and some other secret elements. It could slow some faeries, but it didn’t harm them. It was made by a witch in New Orleans, and it was extremely difficult to acquire. I was pretty sure my parents got their supply through Maurice’s connections.
Hoping no one had witnessed my little stunt, I quickly tucked the pouch back into my pocket. I scanned the floor for the hama and spotted a bundle of white fur just beyond the feet of a slow-moving ogre.
I dived after the hama. My fingers closed around the tiny bundle of fur, and I landed on my stomach, clutching the creature in my outstretched hands. “Gotcha!”
I lifted my head and found myself eye to toe with a pair of black boots. My eyes followed the jean-clad legs to a gray shirt and stopped when they met a dark blue gaze.