Page 24 of Fae Unleashed
Vi snorted. “Oh yeah. I totally agree. Morgan fought his feelings for me for the longest time. What can I say? I’m irresistible in the end.”
I gave her a dubious look. She laughed. The mood in the room lifted. I breathed a sigh that let out the tension that’d been crackling in my chest.
“I’m trying to figure out how we can lift this curse from you.” Addie threw the tarot cards onto the table and looked up at the ceiling. “Can someone come down here and give me an answer?”
Vi and I shared a look. We knew that Addie was in touch with two deities, but there was no way of knowing which would come down to answer. I was sure that Vi considered them a questionable source of information, at best. At worst, they were nuisances who did nothing for humanity.
At least, that’s what I’d heard.
Even Addie seemed to agree. She’d had a lot of trouble with her divine great-grandparent, the Norse goddess Hel. There was another deity following Addie around, though. We got lucky when Persephone showed up on the couch across from Addie.
“Hello little darlings,” Persephone crooned as she took in our faces.
Her attention lingered on me. The way her eyes narrowed made me feel like she was trying to make a decision. I gave her a finger wag and hoped that would be enough to tell her that I was on her side.
It had to be the Unseelie blight. Persephone saw it and thought the worst of me, like every other bright and shining figure I’d met lately. Though, I conveniently forgot who Persephone had married. This wasn’t a goddess who would be afraid of a darker side.
“You’re managing this curse very well,” she said with approval. “I’m really loving this whole aesthetic you have going on.”
That’s when I realized that Persephone and I had similar body types. Gods could take whatever form they wished, and Persephone chose to look likeme. My face warmed at the unspoken compliment.
She smiled, knowing that I’d picked up what she’d been putting down. She pushed off the cushion and came over to me. When she bent and placed a fingertip on my forehead, a wave of blossoming energy rushed through me.
Our arcanas were similar. We both flourished in the earth and held sway over growing things, though Persephone’s was gentler and stronger all in the same breath. Her arcana touched mine and greeted it only for my blight to recoil. A darkness in her arcana stretched like sleepy cat and brushed up against it.
The room remained silent. No one dared breathe while this all went down without a sound. No one else could feel what was happening inside me, yet they all watched with bated breaths.
Persephone pulled back and put her hands on her hips while she regarded me with her lips twisted to the side in thought. I looked up at her expectantly. It was selfish of me to expect her to snap her fingers and will this blight away, especially when I’d been playing this curse down all this time.
I’d been telling myself that this was nothing. It could change my arcana, but it could never change me. That was only on the inside, though. When everyone laid eyes on me, they saw the curse and the potential for Beryl’s brand of evil. So few in the fae community sawmeanymore.
Finally, Persephone’s smile spread wide. The demure grin brought a spark to her eyes. “This is going to be very fun.”
I sat up straighter.
Addie asked what Persephone meant by that. Vi scooted to the edge of her seat and nervously nibbled a tortilla chip.
Persephone waved a hand in my direction. “All she needs is the first kiss of true love. That will clear everything up. It’s kind of classic in that way. I do admire the curse-weaver, even if she is a bit of a bitch.”
My stomach immediately plummeted. I scratched the back of my head. “Yeah, about that…”
Vi gave me an apologetic look. She knew. We’d already talked about it a bit. When Addie and I locked eyes, she realized, too. Addie tilted her head apologetically.
Persephone looked between all of us. “I might be divine and capable of amazing miracles, but one miracle I cannot perform is translating whatever is happening here. Speak, mortals. Oh, well, with you all, I’m not sure mortals is the right moniker.”
Vi crashed back in her seat and laughed. “Cerridwen already kissed the man she’s in love with. Nothing happened. Her ass is still cursed.”
Persephone waved Vi off. “Throw the whole man out, then. We can sit Cerri down in a magical speed dating ring. I know of one in Denver with some really cute suitors. I drop by to torment Eros and Aphrodite every now and then.”
But I didn’t want anyone else. I stood and slipped out of the room while everyone discussed my options. My head spun too quickly for me to keep up. I could think of no one else other than Rhoan.
As if summoned by my thoughts, Rhoan appeared in the nearest doorway. I crashed into him and put my forehead to his chest. He held me loosely, as if he didn’t want to admit affection for me, but his hand on my lower back was steady enough to tell me everything that he was hiding.
Rhoan cared. He did everything in his power to care for me; he was willing to risk life and limb to protect me. I wished I could take him far away from everything happening here. I wanted to wake to him beside me in the early morning before I headed to work. And, when I came home from work, I wanted to bring him the food that I made throughout the day and watch his face light up at every bite.
My domestic dreams seemed silly, but I couldn’t help thinking about the vision of my fae mother standing over a big pot, a wooden spoon in her hand as she tasted its contents. It seemed that the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree.
She’d married a king, though. I wanted a knight with a vow of celibacy, a knight who likely had a thing for the elven assassin working for us.
