Page 89 of Shadows of Light
“We can make all of you so happy,” the redhead murmured.
Cole sensed the attention of the others on him as they waited to see how he would react. The dark fae part of him was ravenous, but he’d rather starve than touch another woman. The idea of it made him sick.
Before the woman could get too close, a wall of shadows rose to keep them separated. More shadows slipped across the rocks and encircled the blonde’s legs, sealing them together.
“We’re not here for that,” Cole snarled in a voice mingled with those of the shadows.
The smiles faded from the merfolk as they exchanged uneasy looks. Everyone came here looking for sex, riches, or flecks of their tails for spells; that was what the merfolk counted on. They could predict that and torment those who arrived here.
They didn’t know how to react to someone who didn’t seek those things.
CHAPTERSIXTY-EIGHT
“We’re looking for crudue vine,”Sahira stated.
The merfolk exchanged another look as another merman emerged from the water, pulled himself onto land, and draped himself over a rock. He lifted his head to stare curiously at the newcomers before glancing around at his brethren.
“There’s no crudue vine here,” another merman said.
“It’s rumored you know where to locate some; if it’s not here, thenwhereis it?” Cole demanded.
“It’s a rumor, so how would we know?”
A chuckle ran through all of them.
“Silly dark fae, don’t you know better than to listen to rumors?” the redhead taunted.
A shadow rose to her throat so fast that it was barely visible until it cinched around her neck and lifted her onto her toes.
“Don’t fuck with me,” Cole warned. “You have no idea what I’m capable of doing. I could kill you all and not feel remorse for it. I’m not here for your games, and I’m not here for sex or your treasures. I’m here to save the woman I love. The woman who rightfully rules overallof you. If you know something, and you’re not telling me, I’ll kill every last one of you.”
“We live in the sea. You can try, but you’d never kill us all,” the blonde replied.
“Do you think there aren’t shadows in the sea?”
“Okay, okay.” Sahira waved her hands in a calming gesture as she jumped into the conversation. “I think we should all take a deep breath and start over. We’re not here to fight you. We’re here to save the new queen of Dragonia.”
All their tails stopped flipping up and down as a hush descended, and the merfolk became immobile. They didn’t blink while they watched Sahira.
Gulping, Sahira looked at him before continuing. “She was stung by a noxus scorpion. We froze her heart before the poison could kill her, but we have to find the vine before we wake her.”
The merfolk studied them before shifting their attention to each other. No one spoke, but Cole saw the conversations running through their minds as they seemed to communicate wordlessly.
Finally, as if they were one, their attention shifted back to them. “There’s nothing we can do to help you,” one of the mermen said. “We don’t bother ourselves with the affairs of other immortals. This realm is peaceful; other immortals only come here when they seek to take from us. We don’t reward those who do.”
When Cole stepped forward, Varo reached for him, but his younger brother’s hand fell away before it touched his arm. Cole focused on the merfolk while sending shadows beneath the sea to uncover what he needed.
“She is the queen of all the realms, includingyours,” Cole said. “She rules you, and youwilldo whatever you can to save her.”
“We have not acknowledged her as our queen. We didn’t swear fealty to her, and as you know, we have a king and queen here.”
“Do you?” Cole growled.
The shadows had sought something to use against these things, and now he had it. A scream went through the ocean, but the sound didn’t pierce the day when the shadows seized on the woman with a crown made of shells adorning her black locks.
Someone else roared beneath the water, but Cole didn’t care as the shadows dragged the woman from the depths. The shadows chattered excitedly around him and darted to and fro as they frolicked like dolphins.
They sensed a fight coming, the blood that would spill, and the death they incessantly craved. A bloodbath was at their fingertips.
