Page 75 of Omen of ice
Tania cringes and drops the berry over the side, then watches as it disappears.
Benj murmurs something to his companions, and the two Fae move to either side of Tania and Daroose. Then, to me, he says, “If you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to Delkin.”
“The druid comes with me.” There’s no way I’m leaving without her. Daroose might vouch for them, but I don’t trust it. Tania and I are stronger together.
Benj shakes his head. Just once. It’s unyielding and leaves no room for argument. “You have my word that she will be unharmed.”
Daroose snorts. It slings an arm around Tania’s shoulder and waves me off. “Run along.Youhave more important things to deal with right now.”
Tania rolls her eyes. “It’s fine, Valen.” She folds her arms and regards Benj carefully. “I’ll be okay. Anyone lays a finger on me and I’ll simply rip it off.”
My lip twitches with a grin. “I would expect nothing less. Be sure it’s a useful one, though. We Fae find the thumb particularly pleasing.” I turn to follow Benj but pause, glaring at the kelpie. “Oh, and see if you can find me some wine. Mine hasmysteriouslydisappeared.”
Daroose gasps. “I’m certain I have no clue what you’re babbling about.”
The corner of Tania’s mouth hitches, and amusement flickers through the link.
She’ll be fine. If she isn’t, there’ll be no containing her.
I let Benj lead me up several small steps, to the highest platform. There, in the leaves, is a hollow carved from the trunk. No. Not a hollow, but…a room.
“Del?” Benj hesitates.
“What the hell was Marvis chattering on about?” A tall, white-haired Fae appears in the doorway. “He said you found a Fae that has violet—”
Benj says nothing and inclines his head toward me. Delkin growls, then turns. When his gaze lands on me, his mouth falls open. “What is this?” The anger in his voice is gone, replaced with something I can’t quite place. Sorrow? Regret?
“The kelpie summoned us to the ground.” Benj’s voice is softer now. “He was with a druid.”
It’s then that I notice his eyes. Violet. Exact duplicates of mine. “You—”
“Your name—what is it?” He’s utterly still. Not a flinch of muscle or even the rise and fall of his chest as he breathes.
“I’m Valen, nephew of Lord Orbik, monarch of the Winter Lands.”
Delkin exhales, then breathes in deep. “Nineteen. You are nineteen now, yes? Nineteen and two hundred and six days.”
I don’t answer him—I can’t—because my brain starts buzzing. His reaction, his eyes, the knowledge of my age…
Delkin takes a step back. It’s him and me, alone now. Benj must have slipped out at some point. He closes his eyes and inhales. One moment, there’s a Fae with eyes like mine; the next, a wolf with white fur like newly fallen snow.
My body reacts without thought. I melt into my own shift and crouch in front of him.
This Fae is my father. There’s no doubt in my mind. The truth of it is a weight, primal and unrelenting, pushing against my subconscious. He’s my father—and he stole my mother from her home. Stole her, then inflicted the injuries that ultimately killed her.
A feral roar tears from my throat, and I lunge at him.
We crash against the wall. Delkin lets go of his wolf but doesn’t raise a hand to defend himself. “Whatever it is”—I snap at the air beside his face, and he swiftly jerks away, cringing—“you think you know”—another snap, this time resulting in a chunk of skin and material from his sleeve—“is wrong!”
I release my wolf and shift back to Fae form. Too easy. Ripping him to shreds with razor-sharp teeth is cheating. I want to feel it. To relish in his blood as it flows over my hands and slips between my fingers. “Fight, damnit!” Grabbing him by the front of the shirt, I slam him hard against the wall.
His lip is bloodied, and there are scrapes on his face. Blood oozes from the bite on his upper arm. Still, there’s no retaliation. A glint of annoyance, maybe, but no anger. “I can allow you to pummel me until your anger is sated, or I can answer whatever questions you might have. But first, I beg you one of my own.”
I don’t owe this bastard anything, but there are things I want to know. Need to know. If I answer his question, maybe this will go easier. I can kill him when I’m done. “Ask it.”
“Where is she? My Mori… Is she well? Is she—”
“My mother is dead!” I shake him hard. “Youkilled her.”
