She didn’t know this version of him, one that was a rotten bastard, with enough power to be considered a fucking god in multiple worlds. He didn’t like to be denied shit, and he sure as hell didn’t like to put a halt to his plans again.
“Okay,” he said, retaking his seat.
Sorry, what?I shook my head, like I could clear my ears out. Had he just saidokay?
“How many creatures do we need?”
He had! He’d fucking said okay, and now they were discussing their plans like a married couple.
“You will need at least a thousand,” she replied, excitement finally crossing her face. “I’ve built a paradise here, but beyond my village, the rest of The Grey Lands is as you remember. Barren and dangerous. We will find our creatures out there.”
Shadow’s jaw was twitching. “A thousand? What’s your plan to bond that many to us?”
Before she could answer, I got to my feet, drawing their attention. “I think I’ll take you up on that offer of freshening up,” I said saltily. “There’s a lot of bullshit in the air, and I think a bit landed on me.”
Ixana looked confused, so there was maybe not a great translation available for that little dig. Shame. Shadow, on the other hand, understood me perfectly.
“Mera,” he growled.
I smiled sweetly at him. “Yes, Darkor?”
He didn’t like me using his name, not at all, as his fingers tapped a hole into the side of the table, and if I’d been closer, the heat on his body would have had me positively sweating.
“Don’t push me, little wolf,” he murmured, and my stupid heart clenched for a beat.
“Wouldn’t think of it,” I replied, managing to keep my tone even.
Ixana, clearly done with our verbal foreplay, waved her guard over. “Please show the shifter to her room, and if anyone touches her without her permission, I will personally send them out beyond the fence.”
The bird-girl she’d called over to guide me actually paled. Her yellow-feathered face turned into a peach color, and that was the weirdest shit I’d seen today. “I will guard her with my life,” Birdy said.
Ixana nodded before turning to Shadow. “Does that work for you?”
He wanted to argue, it was so fucking clear on his face, but he just nodded. Letting me go.
He. Let. Me. Go. All so he could go back to playing happily married family with the ice queen, discussing their plans.
I could not stay here and watch this relationship rekindle. I wasn’t a strong enough, gracious enough, or good enough person for that. Nope, I had to escape, and then hold out long enough for Midnight and Angel to arrive.
There was a second reason I was leaving as well. If either of them thought they could use my power to gather the creatures they needed…
It was a big fat hell no.
My sole aim was to figure out what I was, what my power was, and how both had come to be. The moment I knew that, I was hauling my ass out of this world and heading back to my library.
Shadow wouldn’t need either library here, shacked up with his ice queen.
“Are you okay?” Birdy asked as I stormed along after her.
“Yes, totally okay. Ready to find my room.”
Some of the color had returned to her feathers now, and she had quite the bright… plume? Her hair, instead of being like mine, was this fancy-ass crest that started on top of her head and then trailed down her spine. It was wickedly cool, and the fact that she wore clothing over her feathers amused me to no end. Did they have something to cover that their feathers didn’t? Or was it part of making them more humanoid?
I’d probably never know and at this stage was just going to accept it without questioning everything. One day soon, this world and its inhabitants would no longer be my problem.
The halls Birdy led me along were as white and winding as the first entrance, and I knew there was not a fuck in hell I’d find my way out of this maze. “You can actually ask for guidance at any time,” Birdy said when I made a comment about it. She reached out and placed a hand on the wall, long claws tapping on the white panel. “Exit to main street,” she said.
The spot under her palm lit up, and then the light started to move along the wall, fast enough that it was gone in a few minutes. “If you followed the light, it would lead you out. I’m not supposed to tell anyone about that little secret, but honestly, I don’t have time to keep babysitting you, so it’s best if you can get around on your own.”
