Blood and Madness

Chapter 1

1

HALEY

Terror.

It vibrated from my demon’s very soul as he paced the oily street in front of the facility, raking his hands through his hair.

Hudson landed and set me on my feet, and when Jax looked up and met my gaze, I saw it right there in his eye—that raw, unguarded fear that could only mean one thing.

Whatever had happened, Elian was in bad shape.

I swallowed hard, momentarily frozen in place as a dozen horrific scenarios played through my mind. An overdose. An attack. Hawthorn stakes. Gem. Bleeding out. He’s dead…

I didn’t have the courage to voice a single fear. When I finally opened my mouth, the only word I could manage was, “Jax?”

“Angel,” he breathed, pulling me close and holding tight. A tremor rolled through him, and I caught it like a virus, my whole body quaking in his embrace. “You came.”

I glanced up at the other gargoyle who’d followed us here—one of Keradoc’s goons. “As soon as we heard. I—”

“f**k. I’m so sorry, Haley.” Jax pulled back and cupped my face, his eye searching me in the glow of a flickering streetlamp. “For all of it. What I said the other night… that you’re not the woman I thought you were? Way out of line, and not even remotely true. You’re so much more than that, angel. So f*****g much more, and I can’t even… You didn’t deserve that s**t from me. I’m sorry.”

We hadn’t seen each other since our argument about Elian the other night. I’d been so convinced he was upset with me—that he and Elian were both avoiding me. But now, staring into that bright blue eye, feeling the lingering tremble in his muscles, knowing Elian was in trouble, I could barely remember why we’d argued at all. All those harsh words and accusations suddenly felt so meaningless. So insignificant.

“I’m sorry too.” I nestled in closer and stayed in his arms for another beat, stealing a final moment of warmth and comfort. I knew it would vanish as soon as I let go; whatever terrible news he had about Elian would fill up all the space between us like a dark shadow.

But it was Jax who broke away first, pulling back to cradle my face in his hands.

“It’s bad this time,” he whispered. “Real bad. None of us can get through to him.”

I blew out a breath, relieved to know that Elian was still alive, at least. “Tell me what happened.”

Jax searched my face again, then gripped my hand and gestured for me to follow him inside.

The knot in my throat tightened. My heart was beating so loudly I could feel it pounding in my ears.

What could be so bad that he has to show me? That he can’t even say the words?

With Keradoc’s guard and Hudson on our heels, we entered the facility. The darkness enveloped me completely, the iron scent of blood heavy in the air. It was too sweet, though. Cloying, like a vase of dead roses long forgotten.

It reminded me of Keradoc.

Step by precarious step, Jax pulled me deeper inside the room. The stench grew so heavy it made my eyes water, and when my gaze finally adjusted to the darkness and revealed the scene, I nearly gagged.

In that moment, had my heart remained whole, I probably would’ve choked on it.

But it wasn’t whole. The moment I saw him, it shattered into a thousand pieces.

“Elian,” I gasped.

He didn’t acknowledge me. Didn’t acknowledge any of us—not even Gem, who paced in silence behind him, her face sheet-white.

Elian was kneeling on the floor, staring blankly at his trembling, blood-slicked hands as if he didn’t even recognize them. The same dark blood stained his clothes. Spilled from his mouth. Covered the lifeless bodies strewn around him.

Corpses.

“They’re all dead,” I whispered, shock stealing my breath. “How… how did this happen?”

Jax put his hands on my shoulders, his voice low against my ear as we continued to watch Elian. “We were finishing up the last batch of the night, and out of nowhere, he just… He lost it, Haley. Started grabbing pills, downing them by the fistful. Gem and I couldn’t even get close to him—no one could. Eventually he headed for the Dreamers. I’d thought maybe he’d burned himself out and needed to sleep it off, but before we even realized it was happening, he… he just…”

Jax trailed off into a dark, broken sigh that made me shiver.

“He murdered them,” Gem said suddenly, her voice too loud. Too shrill. Her hands trembled as badly as Elian’s, but still, my vampire-fae didn’t even blink. “He mutilated them.”

“But why?” I asked. “The pills I understand, but the people? Elian isn’t a killer. Not like this.”

“Once the pills were gone,” Jax said, “there was only one place to get the Black.”

I choked back a sob, the horror of it almost too much to contemplate.

“Their blood,” I whispered. “He drained them for the drugs in their bloodstream.”

Tears brimmed in my eyes. I knew Elian was struggling—getting worse with each passing night. We all knew it. But to do something like this? To slaughter nearly two dozen people—supernatural and human alike—just to get another fix? Just to chase down one more second of that elusive high that never seemed to give him what he truly needed?

My entire body recoiled in disgust, and I wanted to welcome it. The revulsion. Hatred. Some vicious, vile rage that would allow me to turn my back on the man I loved and walk away from his mess for good.

But when I looked at the fae who still held my heart in his blood-soaked hands, all I felt was a devastating heartbreak. An anguish that penetrated my very bones and filled me with a desperate need to help him. To take care of him, because clearly, he couldn’t do it himself.

I took a step toward him, but Jax placed a hand on my shoulder and leaned in close.

“Careful,” he said, a soft warning. “He’s not himself. Not even close. Honestly, I’m not sure he’ll even recognize you at this point, but we have to try. If anyone can get through to him…”

I swallowed the knot in my throat and schooled my features, nodding once. Jax was right. Whatever Elian and I were to each other now didn’t matter. We had history—a deep, intense bond that hadn’t faded no matter how messed up things had gotten. And that history had bled into our present—twisted, but nevertheless real. Nevertheless important.

I just needed to bring him back to it—to whatever bond still connected us.

Ignoring the stench of death and blood, I knelt down alone beside him, brushing his shoulder with tentative fingers. Blood soaked into the knees of my pants, chilling my skin.

Elian didn’t even acknowledge my presence. My touch.

“Elian,” I said softly, forcing a smile. “It’s me. Sparrow. Can you hear me?”

No response.

I lifted a hand to cup his face, my thumb tracing his cheekbone. The gesture felt so intimate, so familiar, it threatened to yank me straight back into the past. My heart slammed against my ribs, aching with every beat as I fought to stay in the present.

“Elian, please look at me,” I whispered. “Please come back to us.”

Haunted, silver eyes finally slid my way, locking on my gaze, then narrowing. In that moment, I felt his rage, his confusion, his shame, all of it mingling into a dangerous brew that had his muscles twitching. A warning growl vibrated in his chest, but before I could think of something to say that might calm him, he lunged for me, knocking me flat on my back and pinning me to the blood-soaked floor.

“Elian, stop!” I shouted, but it was no use. Fangs burst through his gums as he lowered his mouth to my throat and—

Vanished.