“I have never asked, and Wrell has never offered an explanation. It is his concern, not mine.”
And not mine. Her unspoken message was clear.“So, they kicked him out again?”
“No. According to Wrell, he was offered a place within his tribe once more. It seemed the chief of the Volitan tribe that cast out he and his mother died a few seasons after their banishment. The new chief expressed her belief that a young should not have been banished with the mother and Wrell should have been allowed to stay. She extended him that same consideration upon his return.”
“Why didn’t he stay?”
She looked at me like the answer should have been obvious.“Once he learned his mother had been banished by her own tribe and in essence sentenced to death, he would not be part of the Volitan tribe. He returned to us. Much to our joy at having him with us, but we sorrow with him over the pain he has endured.”
Silence fell between us as Syleen was lost in the past, and I mulled Wrell’s fate over in my mind.
After many long minutes, I turned back to her.“So, sleeping in the sand must be a normal part of the Volitan tribe, an aspect that he would have done as a child.”
Syleen nodded without comment.
I grinned at her, a thought suddenly occurring to me.“In some ways, not by time or history, of course, but at least by blood, I am more a part of this tribe than Wrell is.”
She inspected me, then apparently decided I meant no disrespect.“I had not thought of such until now, but I suppose, as far as direct blood lineage is concerned, you are correct.”
Twenty-Six
FINN DE MORISCO
“I don’twanna be back here.”
Schwint put a reassuring hand on the small of my back and added a little pressure to help steer me through the door. “You’re not gonna slip up. I’m right here, my sexy witch. No Spor for you, at least not without planning it ahead of time with me.” He grinned at my eye roll. “This is like the… what? Fifth time we’ve been here in the past week and a half? No slipups yet. You’ll be fine.”
“Hi, boys.” Marina’s smile from behind the bar was almost friendly. Before we were even seated behind the glass bar, she had our typical beers ready for us, foam running down the frosted sides to pool on the glowing red illuminated countertop. She gave a quizzical look at Schwint. “Still with this one, huh? Didn’t think you’d settle down so easily.”
“Yep. Three whole weeks.” He gave my earlobe an annoying tug. “Just call me Mrs. Warlock.”
She made fake gagging sounds while bending over behind the bar.
“Do you have to be so gross? There are people trying to enjoy a drink here without all your bodily noises.” The nasal voice emanated from an emaciated man on the far side of the bar. He looked as if he hadn’t bathed in weeks.
Marina straightened back up, eyes glowering. “Really? You’re going to try to give etiquette advice about drinking?” She gave him a once-over, and her lips rose in a sneer. “How do you even find anyone to drink, smelling like you rolled in feces?”
He flashed yellowed fangs at her.
“Seriously?” She bared her own glistening teeth at him. Even without fangs, she gave off a more predatory fierceness than the skinny old man. Although, between the two, I’d rather be bitten by Marina. She might be fiercer, but the thought of his nasty teeth sinking into me was repulsive.
A hiss escaped between his fangs, along with a small jet of phlegm that splatted on the countertop.
This time Marina’s gag was real. “Fuck, man! Get the fuck outta my bar, vamp. Don’t bother coming back either.”
He let out another hiss. “You can’t tell me what to do, bitch.”
A massive, dark form slipped from behind the vampire, and a clawed hand clamped over his thin shoulder, eliciting a loud yelp. “I’m the only one that can call my witch a bitch, you fucking blood bag.” He tightened his grip until I heard a loud pop as the vampire’s collarbone snapped, and he began a high-pitched keening. “Now get the fuck outta here before I rip that scrawny neck of yours open and toss you out for the other vamps to have an all they can eat buffet.”
Marina exited behind the counter, shoved the huge man, and pushed his claws away. “Shut up, Farvin. I can take care of myself!” Her lips moved in a silent invocation. The vampire’s keening morphed into a silent scream and his hands shot down and clutched between his legs. Her eyes darted to the werewolf, then back to the vamp. Another incantation and the front door flew open and the vampire shot through the air and landed in a quivering heap on the sidewalk. The glass door slammed with such force I was surprised it didn’t shatter.
Farvin grinned at the witch. “What’d you do to him?”
Her lips curved into a crooked, self-satisfied grin. “There wasn’t much there to begin with, so there really wasn’t much shrinking left to do. Ain’t no big thang.” With a nonchalant flip of her hair, she strutted back behind the bar.
Farvin followed her, his eyes mimicking the motion of her hips. “Damn, girl, you got me hard.”
Schwint leaned over, his breath tickling my ear as he whispered, “Can’t say I’d hate to see that.”
