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“That sounds like a story.”
“A long one,” he said grimly. “Or I hear it is. I was a baby.”
Shaw had told me he was young, and I supposed eighty was relatively so by fae standards.
“Aurora raised me after our parents died in the war.” An orphan like me. I wouldn’t have guessed, but then I realized that all of the fae royals were orphans. Sisters and brothers but never fathers and mothers. I knew so little about how the crowns passed from parent to child in the fae courts. Maybe I’d been too distracted by their long lives to consider it, or maybe so much time had passed that they hardly remembered, either. But there was something wistful on his face that called to my own grief, to the sorrow of never knowing the most important people in your world.
“She had to grow up very fast,” Sirius continued. “Lach, too. I think that’s why they get along so well despite everything.”
“Do they?” I tried to sound like I didn’t care, like I was merely interested. But earlier, when he said he wouldn’t lose anyone else, I hadn’t considered who he had lost. Maybe not just his parents. Maybe someone he loved. “Were they involved?”
His barked laughter told me enough. “Aurora is too busy with the court to date anyone, but I think friendship is the safest option for those two.”
My pulse returned to a steady rhythm. “The Astral court is in Prague, right?”
“Yes.” His wide smile was full of pride.
I thought of the picture of Charles Bridge taped to my fridge and understood why. “You love it there.”
He nodded. “The history, the city, but especially the alchemy.”
“Alchemy?” I raised a brow. “That’s not a real thing. You can’t really turn things into gold.”
“Alchemy is about a lot more than that.” He chuckled like the very thought was ridiculous. “It’s simply studying the science of magic. We have labs and everything.”
“You really study alchemy?” I was strangely impressed.
He scrubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, I’m a bit of a nerd. But take ambrosia, for instance. If you isolate—”
The wail of a siren cut him off. Red-and-blue light flashed through the window. Beneath us, the music stopped. I surged toward the glass on instinct, looking out as a police car screeched up to Alouette’s entrance. I was nearly to the door, spurred by a surge of adrenaline, when Shaw blocked me. “Where are you going?”
“They might need help.”
“We should stay clear of the cops—”
“Oh, please. Not all of us are avoiding arrest warrants.” I started around him.
He moved to stop me, but I elbowed him and shot out the door. Lights flooded the main level as I reached the bottom of the stairs, breaking the sensual spell to reveal floors littered with trash and the dust and tears marring the velvet wall coverings. People pushed toward the side exits as if fleeing the mundane reality before it could infect them, too. Something was definitely going on, but when I began to make my way toward the dance floor, a cop held up a hand.
If Shaw couldn’t stop me, neither could this guy. “I’m a nurse. What’s happening?”
“Clover overdose. Ambulance is on the way. They’re a few minutes out.”
Shit. “They’ll be too late. I can help.”
He hesitated for a minute before jerking his chin for me to follow. He was nearly as effective at clearing a path as my fae companions. People were clustered around the dance floor, some crying, others filming. I froze for a second when I spotted the man collapsed on the floor, recognizing the blue suit.
“Do you have Narcan?” I shouted at the officer.
His mouth twisted. “We used it last night.”
“Check the first aid kit at the bar.” I prayed that the staff at Alouette were smart enough to be prepared for this scenario. I dropped to the floor, my knees smarting on the polished concrete. The linebacker’s arms were drawn to his chest, his lips already turning blue as a breath rattled from him. He had seconds, minutes if I was lucky. I planted my palms on his chest, his skin sticky under mine as I began compressions before leaning over to blow air into his lungs. “Just a little fucking longer.” All I could do was keep him alive long enough for the ambulance to come.
Twin shadows fell over me as I leaned to give him oxygen again, but no life-saving medicine appeared.
“Where’s that goddamn Narcan?” I barked as I started another round of compressions.
To my surprise, Lachlan dropped to the floor next to me. I had no idea how he’d known what was happening, and this was no time to worry about it.