“Is thereanything specific you’d like to ask me?” Phineas asked.
“For starters,I’d like to know about the blanket.”
“It’s not reallyabout the blanket, but the tartan. It’s the Gunnach tartan, our family’scolors, if you will, and it has been infused with magic by the Oracles, so thatanyone wearing it, under it, that sort of thing, will feel peace.”
“Great, moremagic,” I breathed out.
“What’s thatsupposed to mean?”
“Nothing, I’msorry. It’s just that I was raised to fear and disavow any and all magical ‘woo-woo’stuff, and sometimes the things you say instinctively put my guard up.”
He cocked hishead. “Woo-woo stuff?”
I let out a frustratedhuff. “You know what I mean.”
“Search yourheart, love. Do you believe the Cauld Ane are some sort of evil sorcerers?”
I pressed mylips into a thin line and met his eyes.
“You can thinkabout it for as long as you need to process it, but you wanted an answer toyour question, sweetheart, so there you have it.”
I sighed,shaking my head. “Of course not.”
“Good, then whatelse would you like to know?” he asked.
I swallowed.“How old are you?”
“Forty.”
I gasped.“You’re not really fifteen years older than me, are you?”
“I am.”
“But you look myage. Yourmotherlooks my age.”
“That’s thenature of the Cauld Ane, love.”
“Right.” I tooka deep breath. “Why am I here?”
“You mean,outside of the fact you were warning us?”
I let out afrustrated huff. “Yes, Phin, outside of that.”
“Because, like Isaid, you’re my mate.”
“Which means,what, exactly? I want all of it now, Phin.”
Að eilífu maki minn.
The wordsfloated into my head and goosebumps formed on my skin.
“Forever mate?”I frowned. “Wait, how did I know that, and why am I shivering?”
“Our souls arereaching for each other,” Phineas explained. “Þú verður að vera minn aðeilífu.”
“Forever mine…or yours? Right?”
He nodded. “Theyare some of the first words we speak to our mates.”
