His pointed ears, sticking out of his thin hair, said he was not of this world.
How did the suit work with his wings?
His gaze rooted to her as he casually strolled closer.
Zorn went that scary sort of liquid, his limbs loose, ready for action. He didn’t move position. He never advertised what was coming next. He held her arm and watched the Celestial approach.
The man—could she call it a man without it being human? Creature? Thing?
He slowed, ten paces away, and held up a hand to Zorn, warning them to stay put. His eyes remained rooted to Daisy. He then lifted his other hand, his long, delicate fingers clutching her throwing knife—the one the earlier fae had tossed over the ledge. The fae’s blood crusted the blade.
This belongs to you, does it not?the Celestial asked in her mind. The texture of his voice was smooth like satin. And rich. And not welcome.
“Use your words,” she said, hiding the quiver in her voice.
The Celestial studied her. “Very well, human. Does this belong to you?”
His nails looked manicured. Pristine, like the rest of him.
“You know it does,” she responded.
“Yes.” The Celestial took another moment to study her. She didn’t feel any power wafting off him. No magic. If he was digging through her mind, she couldn’t feel it. He could’ve been a regular human guy with a penchant for cosplay and a silver spoon firmly embedded in his keister.
He tossed the blade at her feet.
“Enlightening,” he said. “And yes, that is the wrong weapon. You’d best arm yourself a little better if you hope to take on one of his kind.”
So he had been digging into her memories. He knew whom she’d stuck with that knife and how ineffective it had been. Good. Maybe they’d catch that other asshole and put a stop to his kingdom’s plans.
The Celestial looked at Zorn but clearly didn’t find much of interest, because in the next moment, he turned. As he did, wings surged from his back without disturbing his clothes at all. They flowed down to nearly the ground before the tips lifted into the air, giving Daisy a view of their incredible beauty.
Deep gold colored the base near his body, slightly translucent in the streetlight. That color spread out like veins into the rest of the wing, thicker in some places than others, the shape a combination of bird andbutterfly wings that somehow worked so beautifully. Between the veins were nearly see-through, the wing almost dainty, the substance reminiscent of a dragonfly wing. The golden hues gradually changed from base to tip, morphing into pinks and oranges and then blues and purples. The colors reminded her of a sunset, almost. Or even like the crisp sky at dawn. Sunrise or sunset, so remarkably similar if she thought about it.
He bent at the knees and launched into the sky, the wings going active. He soared over the rooftops and away, probably to join the others, wherever they were.
A heavy breath rolled out of Zorn. He bent and scooped up the knife before cleaning it with his shirt and handing it to her.
“That was…” Daisy just blinked at nothing for a moment.
“Unexpected.” Zorn started forward. “Reassuring.”
“Reassuring?” She hurried to catch up.
“They might have let that fae you met slip through, but they are still effective. They realized their error and are working to right it. They also know what that fae and his kind are planning, thanks to you. They’ll be able to handle things from within their own realm.” They reached the car. He opened the door for her, looking skyward. “Hopefully.”
Black BMWs tomatch Zorn’s lined both sides of the street as they reached the houses near the dual-society zone. The house on the left, where Daisy often stayed, was Lexi’s. On the right was Kieran’s, both residences housing their close-knit chosen family when everyone got together out here.
The porch lights glowed in both houses, but only Lexi’s had warm, buttery light spilling onto the pristine front lawn from the kitchen window. The living room, too, was illuminated, even at the late hour. Or the early hour, depending on how one looked at it.
Zorn put the car in park but didn’t reach for the door handle.
Daisy unclicked her seatbelt but paused.
“The fae you met…” he said as he turned off the motor. “If he can read memories, I’m assuming he can speak within your mind? It usually goes hand in hand.”
She didn’t know that some fae could only do one of those. Zorn might just know more than the books she’d found.
“Yes,” she responded.
