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"I know. She told me. I'm not sure what it does."

"The silver lamp charm allows a person to speak with a djinn."

Tension relaxed in Farren's chest. "She can't pull him through then?"

"No. At least not on her own, but he might be able to get her to construct a portal."

"Crap." If a portal was established, more than just the one djinn could return to their plane. "Aunt Jane, I need to know the djinn's name."

She pressed her lips into a flat line as if trying to resist speaking.

"If I'm going to stop Betina, I need that name," Farren insisted. Time for pussyfooting around the past was over. Farren's entire future depended on him getting the djinn's name.

Farren went for the jugular. "You owe it to me, Aunt Jane. Betina made my life hell."

Sweat beaded his aunt's brow. "I know. I should've done more to control her. I am sorry. His name is Jahangir. He is the leader of the djinn and your grandfather."

"Thank you. Wait, he's the leader of the djinn?" Great! Not just any random djinn but the freaking leader. Yep, his life just kept getting better.

"Yes. One of the things we've been hiding is you are the remaining descendent of the djinn Jahangir, the ruler of the djinn. There are no others as powerful as you because djinn magic skips a generation. Your mother and I shared the fire magic of your grandmother but we have no other djinn powers. Jahangir has been waiting for you to grow up. You are his master plan. Betina is only a pawn. I know she made your life difficult, but she's my only child. If you can save her, please try. If you can't"-a tear dripped down her cheek-"I'll understand."

Farren patted his aunt's hand. "I will do what is necessary to save our world."

He refused to make empty promises, especially when he didn't really care if Betina survived.

"Thank you." She closed her eyes.

He didn't know if she was truly asleep, but he had learned all he needed to. Farren turned and headed out of his aunt's room and away from the pall of sickness and death. He couldn't stand hospitals. His phobia wasn't rational, but he detested the places. The swish of uniforms, the squeak of orthopaedic shoes and the constant announcements over the intercom rubbed against Farren's nerves. He'd spent too much time in hospitals as a kid.

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After multiple 'accidents', they'd started taking care of him at home, but not before he'd come to despise the look of pity in the nurses' eyes.

No one would go against his father and question what happened at home, and his father's scorn at Farren not being man enough to take on his cousin had only eroded Farren's self-esteem. He couldn't explain to his callous parent that it wasn't a matter of not being strong, but if he'd truly unleashed his power, he would've killed them all. Some days he wondered why he hadn't.

"Hey, are you okay, babe?" Dan's voice, warm with concern, and a gentle touch to his elbow pulled Farren out of his dark thoughts.

"Yeah." He brushed away the wetness from his cheeks, refusing to let the memories tear him apart like the reality had to his childhood.

"Let's get back and put our djinn in his place. If we end up having to kill your cousin, leave that bitch to me." Dan's sweet tenor held a sharp edge.

Surprised, Farren examined Dan's face closely. He'd never seen his lover bloodthirsty before. "Are you all right?"

Dan shook his head. "Whenever I hear about how they've treated you I get furious.

Let's get out of here before I decide to smother your aunt with a pillow."

Farren laughed. The angst and anger vanished from his body as if Dan had erased them from his chest. "I love you." The words blurted out before he could stop them.

Dan came to a standstill in the middle of the hallway. "Now? This is where you decide to share that you love me?"

"I guess I could've picked a different spot." Farren could feel his cheeks heating. "I just had to tell you."

He let it hang that he didn't know if they were getting out of there alive. It was pretty much a given that the odds weren't necessarily in their favour.

Dan cupped Farren's cheeks and touched foreheads. "We will get out of this. You are mine, and I don't let anything of mine get away."

"I second that," Devin said. "I still have scars from Thanksgiving one year when Dan wanted the last drumstick."

Dan grinned. "It was a tiny mark, you're just a big pussy."

"It took forever to heal," Devin pouted.

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Dean smacked Devin on the back of the head. "Cope."

Stifling his laughter, Farren followed the brothers down the street to the ley line. His thoughts spun in his mind as he considered everything his aunt had told him. Did Betina know she was adopted? Was that why she was intent on bringing back the djinn, to prove she was just as strong as Farren?

"I just don't understand why she'd think bringing the djinn back to this plane is a good idea." Farren rubbed the back of his neck as they positioned themselves for transport.

"Insane people don't need to have sound judgement," Devin said. "Haven't you watched any superhero movies?"

Farren didn't have a response for that so he focused instead on getting them all back to campus.

97.

Chapter Ten.

They gathered together at the pack house library. Jay and Thomas were cuddled together on a couch and the rest of them were strewn about the room.

"How were things while I was gone?" Farren asked.

Dan saw the nerves run across Farren's face. His lover's anxiety almost pulsed across the room with the level of his stress.

"Betina laid low. There weren't any fires or other unexplained events," Jay assured them.

"Good. Now I need to find a way to lure her out so I can take the bracelet back," Farren said.

Dan could see stress causing lines to bracket Farren's mouth. The poor guy hadn't had an easy childhood and it didn't look like his twenties were going much better. Dan rubbed Farren's arm. "We'll take care of her. Once she doesn't have the bracelet, she won't have the power to call the djinn."

"Make no mistake, she doesn't need the bracelet to cause problems," Farren warned.

"We'll hand her over to the council," Jay promised. "My word will be enough for them to jail her until they can get her to confess to her crimes."

"How will they get her to confess?" Farren asked, then shook his head. "Never mind, I don't want to know. I can't afford to feel bad for her. She'll take advantage if I give her an inch."

The fact Farren could feel any compassion for the bitch who'd made his childhood hell had Dan toppling even harder in love with him.

"How do we find her?" Dan asked. He slid over until their thighs touched, trying to convey his support of Farren.

Jay answered him. "If Farren returns to his regular schedule, his cousin will show up."

Farren raised one dark brow. "How can you be so sure?"

"Like we suspected, while you were gone there weren't any fires. She's waiting for you because she craves you as an audience. As far as I can see, nothing has changed that. I have a *

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feeling she's watching you and knows you've returned." Jay's confident tone eased Dan's fears. If Jay had any doubt, he would've told them.

"If you're sure, I'll trust you," Farren said. "I'm going to go and get some rest now. It's been a long night."

"Why don't you and the Ds spend the night here? We have plenty of room and if you go to your dorm, Betina might set it on fire just to get your attention," Thomas proposed.

Farren's mouth opened, then shut again. "You're right. That's exactly what she did before. I'll stay, I can't speak for the others though."

"I'll stay." Dan wouldn't leave Farren alone with his demons.

Dean and Devin nodded, indicating their agreement.

"I'll have the gnomes show you to a room," Jay offered.

"Thank you." Dan stood and pulled Farren to his feet.

Dan and Farren were shown to one room while Devin and Dean were led to another.

Dan smiled at the big king bed taking up much of the room.

With a happy shout, he kicked off his shoes then threw himself onto the soft surface.

"Oh, so nice."

"You're like a little kid," Farren teased.

Dan patted the spot next to him. "Come play with me and I'll show you how adult I'm feeling."

Farren smiled, the expression temporarily wiping the sadness from his eyes. Keeping his eyes on Dan, he took off his shoes then climbed up beside him. Instead of immediately trying to strip Dan naked, Farren snuggled in close, resting his cheek on his chest. Dan instinctively wrapped an arm around Farren.

"It'll be all right, babe," Dan soothed. He rubbed Farren's back and cuddled him close.

"We'll defeat her in the end. Together we can crush her little djinn-powered dreams."

Farren's body shook with his silent laughter. "I'm glad I met you even if I'm ruining your life."

Dan tightened his hold. "You aren't ruining it, you are making it."

Soft lips brushed his chin. Dan tilted his head down to capture Farren's wandering mouth with his own.

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"I really like you, Dan. I'm sorry I dragged you into this."

"I'm not. I would've missed out on something wonderful."

Dan held Farren in a tight grip, afraid to lose hold of him even in his sleep.

Dan woke up and found Farren wrapped around him like a cuddly, warm octopus. He let a sigh of contentment escape him. "Too bad we can't stay like this."