“What he means to say”—Zadyn gives him a stern glance—“is that I rescuedhimand his entire caravan from a pack of thieves.”
“It was love at first sight.” Eaton flings a chiseled arm around Zadyn’s shoulder and gives him a shake. “Our dear Zadyn has a savior complex, if you haven’t noticed.”
I laugh, taking a sip of wine. Eaton bends to whisper something to Zadyn, then slumps back, a knowing look on his face. Now I’m curious about what couldn’t be said for the entire room.
Zadyn clears his throat and continues, “I traveled with Eaton and his siblings for a few decades.”
“Oh.” I nod.
Mar slips into a seat beside me, Dover on her other side, and Kai near the end of the table, charming the hell out of a female with a wedding band around her finger.
Lively music picks up from a few minstrels in the corner, and some of the fae break from their dinner to dance. The wine and beer keep flowing, everyone here at ease, merry, and unapologetically down to earth. It’s nothing like the polished, carefully cultivated court of Aegar.
“So,” Eaton says to Zadyn, “to what do I really owe this surprise visit? I know it’s not because you couldn’t live without me.”
“It’s a little heavy for dinner conversation,” Zadyn warns. Eaton shrugs and waves a hand for him to speak. “The portal.”
“What of it?”
“Well, for one thing, we know what happened to it. To the Guardians.”
Eaton looks up, suddenly alert.
“The King of Vod somehow destroyed them and gained control of the portal. He’s amassing an army of foreign creatures who have sworn obeisance to him in exchange for passage into our world.”
“How do you know this?”
“Because he told me,” I answer.
For the first time, Eaton seems to notice my eyes. He leans closer, his brow creasing as he studies me. I allow my pupils to constrict, narrowing into black slits and then back into round dots.
He nearly falls out of his chair.
“Mother of Zed.” He swallows hard, his sun-kissed face paling a shade. “You didn’t tell me your bond was the last Blackblood.”
“What kind of familiar would I be if I had?” Zadyn says. “Serena was being held captive by Kylian. He tried to force her into marriage so they could perform the Bloodfast, but we got there in time.”
Eaton’s eyes narrow, shifting down the table to Kai. “And you’re running around with the bastard’s kid brother?”
“Kai is nothing like his family,” I say defensively. “He did everything he could to keep me safe there. He’s on our side.”
“And what side is that?”
Then it dawns on me. Eaton isafraidof me. He thinks that with my power, I might be a threat to his home. To his kingdom.
“The side that wants to keep Kylian from conquering this world,” I say earnestly.
Eaton sucks in a long breath, swirling his empty chalice. “I am far too sober for this.”
The towering wooden doors to the hall swing open, pausing ourconversation, and in walk three striking fae with hair the same shade as the prince’s.
The first is a male, slightly taller than Eaton, veins bulging on his shredded arms and pecs. That one looks like Zeus and Chris Hemsworth had a baby. The male beside him looks more adolescent—shaggy curls, not quite as tall or bulky as the first. And then there’s the female.
Nearly as tall as her brothers, she is statuesque and severe like an Amazon, clad in tan-colored leathers with a white fur pelt thrown over her back. Her blonde hair is plaited into an intricate braid that falls to her hips, swaying as she walks with all the cocky confidence of the males at her side.
Zadyn stands and walks around the table to meet her. My eyes narrow in confusion.
“Hello, Alix.”
