Finn tugged on my hand. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, afraid my voice would betray me. He wouldn’t understand what I was going through. To him, this would be a good thing.
“You do realize it’s pointless to lie to your bonded, right?” He was staring down at me, and as I met his gaze, I expected to find contempt, but only concern remained in his eyes.
My heart constricted as I fought against the urge to tell him all my fears. This stupid bond was going to be the death of me.
“I didn’t lie. I am okay. My bones are healed. My wings are tucked away, so I assume they’re fine. I can walk and breathe. All is good in my world.” None of that was false. I’d merely omitted the things that were actually wrong.
He sighed and let the subject go. “We’re almost there. Don’t forget Mosi’s mate Olida helped heal you, so make sure you thank her.”
Thank her? For what? Taking away part of me without asking for my opinion. Not a chance in hell. As soon as I got the information out of Mosi, she was going to know exactly what I wasn’t thankful for.
As my internal freak-out began to wane and I started forming plans in my mind to keep me from losing my cool, I let my gaze wander. There wasn’t much to see besides green foliage and tall trees, but I could still hear the animals around us and wondered if they’d been brought in from Earth. The main islands didn’t have too many animals outside of the ones that could help work the farms and birds that somehow found their way through the portal from Earth to Fae Islands on occasion.
The forest began to thin, and structures started to appear. Small huts, made from bamboo and palm leaves, were lifted off the ground about a foot. Most of them appeared to be one room structures from the outside, but the further we walked, the bigger they became until one in the center caught my attention.
The wooden door creaked open, and a woman stepped out. Her dark hair hung to her waist and was braided with silver streaks running through it. Her ebony skin was the darkest I’d ever seen, but it didn’t hold my attention for long as our eyes met. Hers were light purple and glowed under the afternoon sun. As she smiled at me, wrinkles formed, and any unease I’d been feeling disappeared.
She waltzed toward me with arms open, magic pouring off her in waves. “Lucinda! It’s lovely to see you walking. I think you topped my list of hardest healing jobs.”
I stepped back as she inched closer, but the woman seemed to know my next move before I did, and I found myself in her embrace anyway. I struggled to get away first, intent to give her a piece of my mind about her healing, but her hold on me strengthened and my resistance softened as her magic permeated around us.
My muscles relaxed, and I stopped fighting against her without meaning to. “You’ve healed nicely, child,” the woman murmured in my ear. She squeezed once more, and energy tingled along my exposed skin. “This makes me happy,” she added as she backed up.
“Olida, my love. Give the girl some space. She doesn’t know who we are.” Mosi appeared through the same door, grinning as he walked toward us.
He and Finn clasped forearms and half hugged before the unknown fae turned his attention on me. “Lucinda, I’m sorry our previous introduction was cut short, but I can’t be exposed yet. I never would have left you to fight Zephyr on your own otherwise.”
“Well, I’d love to know more about why that is and what the hell has been happening, because clearly nothing is as it seems around here.” I fought to keep the snark out of my tone considering they’d saved my life and had information I needed.
Mosi reached for me, grasping my elbow. “Yes, that is correct. Let’s go inside. We have tea and food waiting for you. There is much to celebrate and discuss.”
I snorted. Celebrate? He was out of his damn mind. “King Zephyr is still alive. There is nothing to celebrate until he’s nothing more than a bad memory.”
Mosi’s mahogany eyes glowered at me, and he dropped his hold as his hands turned to fists. “That fae is no king, and we do not address him as such on this island.” Then, he turned abruptly to go back inside the hut with Olida right behind him.
Finn smiled softly at me and shrugged. “Mosi is very passionate about his purpose in this life. Just go with it.”
Right. Like that would be easy for me to do.
When we entered the hut, it was even bigger than I expected, mostly taller. The first level was an open living area with wood-planked floors, a fireplace, large pillows for the only seats, and a small kitchen where Olida was already gathering items.
Finn guided me toward the cushions, and we both sat, following Mosi’s lead. Olida set a tray of fruit in the middle and took her place beside her mate, holding his hand. They shared an intense gaze, and I nearly choked on the strawberry I’d grabbed. Emotions slammed into me, and Finn patted my back.
Even without my inner voice, I clearly still had problems with public displays of affection, but it was different than before. This time, there was a bit of jealousy there and that was something I’d never experienced.
I knew nothing about mates. I barely knew anything about Finn. I had no idea how all of this was supposed to work, and I didn’t like all of the uncertainties, but at least our chemistry had always been hot. Everything else, though, put me on edge as I waited for Mosi to start explaining what the hell was going on.
“Where shall we start?” Mosi asked, grabbing his tea and taking a sip.
“How about the beginning? Why did you send Finn to find me?” I asked.
Mosi grinned above his cup. “Oh, child. That’s not the beginning. Everything that is happening around you started many years ago. Zephyr has been after you since the day you were born.”
“What?” Finn snarled while I sat there in shock. Though, I was thankful that he hadn’t known that detail. If he’d been keeping anything big to do with my past from me, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to forgive him. Hiding his relationship with Mosi was one thing, but anything more was crossing a line I couldn’t come back from. Bond or no bond, I would hurt him.
“What do you mean he’s been after me?” I asked.
“Well, when you were born and you exposed feathered wings, your parents didn’t know what to do with you. All they’d known was that fae like you were an abomination. So, they’d gone to see the queen, but Zephyr found them first.”
Abomination. That was certainly one word for how’d they’d made me feel.
Mosi continued, “Zephyr convinced them you were perfect as is, that there was nothing wicked about you. He promised them that if you did anything wrong, he would take full responsibility for it.”
My hands tightened around the cup I held. “Of course, they were only concerned I’d ruin their standing. All they ever cared about was moving up the social ladder.”
Mosi held my gaze. “Unfortunately, that is true. With Zephyr’s interest in you, they went along with whatever he said. Your parents didn’t have an easy upbringing of their own. While that doesn’t justify their actions, if you knew, it might help things make more sense.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, slamming the cup I’d been holding down so hard that liquid spilled onto the floor. “I don’t give a damn about the people who gave me life. They were never parents to me, and I hope to never see them again.”
Olida stiffened next to Mosi, and he held her hand, but she kept her head high as her gaze intensified on me. “Your parents were killed after they tried to blackmail Zephyr. They were demanding money from him after they saw what he was using you for. Zephyr doesn’t take kindly to threats, and Gabriel took care of them.”
She paused, seeming to be waiting for a reaction out of me. I could feel Finn staring at me, but I wasn’t sure what any of them expected. I would not cry for either of the people who created me. I meant what I said, and this new information was nothing more than peace of mind. My parents had brought whatever fate they were served onto themselves. They could have loved me, but they’d chosen not to. Everything after that was on them.
Trying t
o get the conversation back on track, I asked, “Why did Zephyr have such an interest in me? I’m not the first fae born with feathered wings.”
Mosi nodded. “That is true, but you are the first who couldn’t be classified as either a light or dark fae.”
No. No, that couldn’t be right. My vision blurred as I tried to understand what he was saying. I’d always known who I was and what I was. Mosi had to be wrong.
“What the hell did you just say?”
Chapter 4
Magic pulsed off me in sync with the pounding of my heart. Mosi had to be mistaken. There was no way that could be true. I was filled only with a powerful darkness. It had guided me my whole life. Maybe this fae wasn’t as wise as he’d convinced Finn.
“I know this is hard to understand, but it is true. I’ve met plenty of our kind, and it’s usually a similar story, but yours is the most unique I’ve found. The other feathered fae, me included, have both light and dark magic within them, but we can’t choose between the two. Though, what’s surprised me the most during all of this is how Finn has become like the rest of us.”
Finn glanced at me and then back at Mosi, his ire also rising. “What does that mean?”
I wasn’t going to make it much longer before I really lost my shit and any chance of getting answers. Mosi was making it really hard for me to see reason, given the words coming out of his mouth.
Olida stood. “Dear, you better move that mouth of yours faster, or these two will leave us. I’m going to get something stronger than this tea, and you better be done when I’m back.”
Now that was the kind of fae I could possibly like. Though, for her, it was still to be determined given she’d screwed with my head.
Mosi watched his mate leave the hut with a shimmer of something in his eyes I didn’t understand, but suddenly, I wanted to. Damn bond.
“My better half is right. Please, have patience with me. It will make sense when I am done,” he said.
“Talk fast,” was my only reply.
Mosi nodded. “Lucinda, when you were born to dark fae parents, it made sense for you to be dark as well. When you didn’t associate one way or the other, Zephyr made it seem as if you were dark by using magic of his own to avoid any questions from anyone who might encounter you. Fae don’t know much about our feathered kind, so there was never any reason to doubt you couldn’t be a welcomed part of our community.”
I scoffed. “Welcomed” was a bit farfetched.
Mosi nodded at me. “I’ve already mentioned how you ended up in the care of Zephyr. He turned you into the weapon he always hoped you’d be, but just like everything else in his life, when you began to find your own sense of understanding, he thought you were worthless.”
I cut him off. “But why me? Why did he choose me at all?”
“While everyday fae aren’t familiar with the feathered fae, the royalty always has been. We all have a special trait that makes us sought after. Hence, why you don’t normally find them in the realm. There are too many selfish people in this world for our kind to assimilate themselves normally.
“Now, this part I can only assume, but it’s likely Zephyr wanted to groom you into his weapon in hopes your special ability would be worth the trouble of raising you as his own. After a while, you showed no extraordinary talents and were growing a conscience. He used that shifter as a way to get rid of you without looking like the bad guy.”
Just when my fury was beginning to settle, it was once again on the rise. “You’re telling me that Zephyr set me up to murder an innocent shifter that he’d already tortured for much too long?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“Why? None of this makes sense,” I seethed.
“Lucinda, you won’t ever understand why, because you are not him. You are not consumed with the longing for more power. While some of the fae are aware he’s vile, most are not. Zephyr couldn’t have thrown a young fae out of the castle without just cause. You killing the shifter that people thought he took care of was reason enough. With one strike, two problems were taken care of for him.”
Regret for not stepping up earlier plowed into me. How could I have been so stupid for so long? I should have killed King Zephyr the moment he began forcing me to hurt innocent people. I had known better, and yet, I’d done nothing but follow blind orders. When I really thought about it, I was just as bad as the king.
Mosi leaned forward and took my hand. “You had no choice. The things you did kept you alive. None of this is your fault. Zephyr is the only one to blame here, and you will make him pay.”
“It would have been better if he’d just killed me,” I spat.
I wasn’t sure if it was the bond or something else, but I was tired. Tired of all the lies and tricks and whatever else. I had always been proud of my strength, always loved who I was, but this was a lot, even for someone like me who fought so hard not to give a shit about anything.
Finn jerked me from Mosi’s grasp, his hands cupping my cheeks. “Don’t you ever say that again.”
Wherever our skin touched, I could sense the magic of the bond flaring to life. Finn’s silver eyes bore into me while emotions I could identify but didn’t understand filtered from him to me.
“This world is not better with you dead. Don’t let Zephyr win,” Finn added before releasing my face and moving closer until our shoulders and sides were touching. “Please continue, Mosi.”
“Once you were gone, Lucinda, the king was desperate for more power. He had spent the last five years believing you would be the key to his success, yet he had nothing to show for it. Coincidentally, the Renegades had a trap set for him that aligned perfectly with the situation. They’d lured Zephyr with a powerful spell, and it would have killed him if not for Ivy.”
Finn tensed beside me, and it was my turn to offer him comfort—something I couldn’t recall ever doing for anyone before, but somehow felt natural with Finn as my fingers intertwined with his. The bond was stronger than I expected it to be and continued to frighten the hell out of me.
Doing things like this was not me, but I couldn’t seem to stop the actions.
“Is Ivy going to die?” Finn asked.
Mosi frowned. “I cannot answer that question. Not because I won’t, but because there are many possible futures. We each have choices to make, and every one can result in a different outcome for us all, but I will do my best to help you get her back if that remains my path.”
Finn grimaced, clearly not happy with that answer, but gestured for Mosi to continue anyway.
“Ivy taking on the darkness was a key role in what is happening now. I know watching her suffer is hard. I wish it didn’t need to be the way it is, but everything is happening for a reason. Finn, if you hadn’t taken on the dark magic within Ivy, you never would have been able to bond with Lucinda.”
“What do you mean?” I asked before he could.
I knew very little about bonded mates. Really just two things. That it only happened if you had sex and that it could be broken with powerful—and more importantly, painful—magic. Considering it had never been a path I saw for me, I’d never concerned myself with learning more.
“Light fae cannot bond to dark fae, and vice versa. Even though you were neither light nor dark, Lucinda, you’d been doused in enough darkness that you became a dark fae. Your very essence recognizes that, but you can also change it. You could be light fae if you wanted, or you could be neither.”
I stared blankly at him. I didn’t really know how to respond to that statement. After everything he’d already said and allowing the bonding to happen, I felt like I’d been kicked from the finish line all the way back to the beginning. I was going to have to figure out what I wanted all over again and I wasn’t happy about that, but I couldn’t deny that I was also intrigued about some of it.
“Are you saying I could no longer be fae?” I asked.
“No, that’s not exactly right, but if what I know is correct, you could cease to use your magic and eventually
you would age faster. Your life would be much shorter than that of a typical fae, but still longer than a human’s.”
I stared blankly at him, having not expected that kind of answer. Giving up magic wasn’t natural. It shouldn’t be possible. Even if the scenario was plausible, I didn’t think it was something I was capable of.
Mosi continued when I didn’t reply, “Like I was saying before, though. In order to bond together, Finn had to have the same essence within him. Given that the darkness he took from Ivy came from Zephyr, it worked out just the way I had hoped. That was when I was able to step in and offer Finn my guidance.”
“You knew Ivy was going to be poisoned and you did nothing to stop it?” Finn snarled from beside me.
“Calm, young Finn. Everyone has their path, and this was Ivy’s. She could have denied Zephyr, and we’d be having a very different conversation right now. I didn’t know for sure what would happen, but even if I did, I won’t ever interfere with destiny. Even when I don’t agree with it,” Mosi said with complete confidence.
Just as Finn began to disagree, Olida returned. She held a basket in one hand and used the other to cover her chest. “Mosi, what have you done to these children? You’re not making them feel any better. This room is filled with darkness and hostility.”
She put the basket down and went around the room lighting bundles of herbs I wasn’t familiar with. The scent was heady yet calming in a way I wouldn’t have expected. I took several more deep breaths before she handed me and Finn each a cup of something warm.
“What is this?” Finn asked.
Olida grinned as she sat down. “A hot toddy. Made from the finest whiskey those humans on Earth are capable of producing. I make Mosi bring me as many barrels as he can every time he visits.”
The first taste exploded on my tongue as I tried to capture all of the flavors: whiskey, honey, a little bit of lemon, and a heavy dose of spice.
“Damn, Olida. I really wanted to not like you, but you’re making it rather hard,” I said after my third gulp.
Dark Fae Freed (Broken Court Book 2) Page 3
