Page 30 of Into the Abyss
I shot him a disgruntled look. “Do younow?”
“You’re part fae,” he stated.
CHAPTER 13
Amalia
His words deflated some of my exasperation as Igazed at him. So, he’d paid enough attention to me to figure itout.
“The fae line has been dead for thousands ofyears,” Corson said. He still regarded me like I was a manticorelooking to strike, but most of the antagonism had melted from hisvoice.
“Over five thousand years to be exact,”Magnus replied. “That’s why I didn’t recognize it at first; Ishould have known what she was just from her eyes, but none of ushave seen a fae before.”
“How do you know that’s what she is?” Caiminquired.
“I’ve read a lot of the scrolls the demonskept about our history. The demons who wrote those scrolls didn’tmention the fae often, as the fae weren’t fighters. Their empathability and pacifistic nature made them easy targets for otherdemons, but they adapted enough to survive amongst demonkind. Aftera while, most demons let the fae be; what fun is it to attacksomeone who won’t fight back?
“The fallen angels didn’t feel the same wayand were the ultimate end of the fae. The angels didn’t care if thefae were fun to fight or not. They saw them as inferior becausethey were demons, so they slaughtered them.”
My fingers dug into the skin of my forearmsas my heart ached for those distant ancestors who never quite fitin to the environment they were born into. I knew well howdifficult that must have been for them. But despite theirdifferences from other demons, the fae learned to survive in Helluntil a group of vicious intruders eradicated them.
I couldn’t stop myself from glaring at Caimwho had his head tilted to the side as he studied me.
“I think I dimly recall these fae beings,”Caim murmured. His eyes slid up to meet mine. “With their colorfuleyes. They didn’t put up much of a fight against us.”
“I’m glad you remember slaughtering myancestors,” I muttered.
Caim shrugged. “Only the strongest survivedLucifer. I take no satisfaction from killing; I never have. Isimply did what was necessary to survive back then.”
“And killing a species who didn’t like tofight was necessary?” I demanded.
“Not at all,” Caim said. “SurvivingLucifer’s wrath was though. He wanted them dead, and nobody said noto him. Your fae or my life, the choice was not a difficult one tomake.”
“So when you turned on Lucifer, you did itto save yourself?” I inquired.
Caim’s eyes and his sculpted face became awall of ice. “No. I did that to saveallof us. Turningagainst my brother was not an easy decision to make.” A muscletwitched in his cheek when he glanced at Raphael. Hostilityshimmered in the air between them, but when he looked at me again,he smiled. “Your eyes betray your emotions.”
My eyes were as much of a curse as myability to feel the emotions of others as if they were mine. Therest of the Faulted hadn’t inherited the shifting eye colors of thefae—colors that revealed my every emotion to anyone who knew whateach of the shifting hues meant.
“I’m sure their eyes were another thing thathelped aid in the demise of the fae,” I murmured. “I guess it’stough to fight someone when they can figure out your every emotionby looking at your eyes.”
“Yes, it would be,” Corson murmured. “Andyou trust her because she is part fae?” he asked Magnus.
“No,” Magnus said. “I trust her because shedidn’t turn on me in the Abyss, and she brought me back here when Iasked her to. If she intended to kill me or set me up, she’s hadplenty of opportunities to do so. I also trust her because I sawwhat the Abyss does to her.”
I couldn’t stop myself from grinning at him.I felt like a childish idiot for soaking up his words in this way,but no one, outside the jinn, had ever shown any faith in me, andmost of the jinn saw me as nothing more than a child. Magnus saw meas more, and he wanted the others to see it too.
“Then we shall see what happens,” Raphaelmurmured.
“Yes, we will. According to the scrolls, thefae did breed with some other demons, mostly the tree nymphs,before they were eradicated,” Magnus said. “Hence, the tree nymphs’powerful call toward nature and their more kindhearted temperament,but I’ve never seen a nymph with your eyes. That’s what threw meoff so much in the beginning. I recalled reading about a demon withshifting eyes before, but I couldn’t remember where or what theywere, and I wouldneverhave guessed the jinn and fae linecrossed at one time.”
“That’s like mating a lamb with a lion,”Corson said.
I released my arms to spread my hands beforeme. “You can’t pick your Chosen, and the line continues, so thepairing was a strong one.”
“Yes,” Magnus agreed. “Do all the Faultedhave the fae eyes like you?”
“No. Few of the Faulted have had the faeeyes over the thousands upon thousands of years since the fae andjinn bred. I’m the only Faulted with them now.”
