My hand began to shake. I’d built my case on the fact that Severn and I were broken up, but the fae had easily seen through that excuse. What did it matter if I’d left Severn if he still cared about me? I’d be just as valuable for Black Ember.
“And you can…tell that?” I asked.
“I think so, yes.”
Suddenly, I felt as transparent as the club aquarium walls. Ever since Severn and I had begun dating, I’d been hesitant to name my feelings for him. He’d never said that he loved me—the word had never entered our conversations. Our relationship was intense and passionate, and also sweet, and as domestic as any fae relationship could be, with evening dinners spent with Henry and May, cozy cuddles in the living room watching TV. He’d given me Puck, showered me with clothes and jewels and gifts. He’d even publicly announced that we were dating. But love? I wasn’t even sure fae could feel love in the heart-wrenching, free-falling way that humans could.
Now, as Helena moved the candle closer and began to trace her fingernail down my palm, my heart kicked up.
I’d never told Severn I loved him, either, because I wasn’t surewhatI felt. I’d never been in love before. All my relationships before Severn had been with lackluster guys I’d met at university or online, none of whom had lasted more than a few months. It hadn’t been until Severn that I’d felt anything close to that earth-shattering passion. When we’d made love, it had stirred deep feelings in me. I knew how much I cared about Severn, even wanting to do everything I could to protect him from Black Ember, but I’d never sat with my feelings and tried to put a name to them.
And now a witch was poking around in my heart, overturning stones, searching for a truth that not evenIknew.
I could feel the heat from the dance floor at my back. Sweat broke out on my face. Jack snacked on crackers from a charcuterie board a fae server had brought, keeping his eyes on me as Helena inspected the freckles on the back of my hand.
Nervous, I plucked a few grapes from the tray, popping them in my mouth. “And what happens if you determine that I love him?” I asked.
Helena glanced briefly at Jack. “That’s not my business. I was only hired to find out.”
I turned to face Jack with a question in my eyes. Jack’s eyes lingered on the food spread, and he almost said something but then thought better of it and answered, “Well, to be honest, it’s less about what you feel and more about whathefeels.”
“You mean if Severn is in love with me.”
He nodded.
Anxious, I glanced around the club at the fae and werewolves and demons making out in dark corners. Time stretched as Helena continued her inspection of my palm.
Clearing my throat, I leaned closer to Jack and whispered, “My friend who’s a witch told me twins were involved in the attack on Wilde Tower. Was it Briar and Bramble?”
His eyes widened for a split second, telling me that I’d hit on something, but then he regained control of his expression. He popped an olive in his mouth. “What makes you think it was both of them?”
I sucked in a breath. “You mean it was just one?”
“I’ve never spoken with Bramble, but Briar has provided us with plenty of information about the tower.” He paused, watching me carefully. “She even let me know what airport you were flying out of and when.”
Anger began to simmer in my body like hot coals. Briar was behind it all! She was a traitor who had been whispering in the Werewolf King’s ear anything that could be a weakness to Severn.
“Yeah, I figured you and Severn had no idea,” Jack said, then shook his head. “Twins are often trouble in the Gifted Realm. I mean, look at your own mother.”
I startled so hard that I involuntarily jerked my hand out of Helena’s grasp. I stared at Jack in utter shock.My mother?
The grapes and other snacks I’d eaten suddenly felt heavy in the pit of my stomach. Incredulous, I asked, “What do you know about my mother?”
“Alyse?” He said her name so readily, so familiarly, that the world seemed to shift.He knew her.
“Hey, I need you to keep your hand still,” Helena chastised as she snagged my hand again. Suddenly, I couldn’t care less about her fortune-telling.
With my free hand pressed to my temple, I asked Jack, “Didyousend me her bracelet?”
Jack looked confused. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I mean, I never knew your mother personally. But everyone here knows about Alyse.”
I blinked, stunned. Breathing hard, I asked, “Is she alive?”
A strange expression crossed his face. At last, he said, “It isn’t that simple.”
“What do you mean?” My voice was growing erratic. “What’s simpler than if someone is dead or alive?”
He waved over a server to bring me another soda. “Drink this. It’ll ease your nerves.”
