“What are you doing on the ground, my girl?” Those dark eyes — so dark, so… wrong in a way Atria couldn’t pinpoint — crinkled with a grin. “Let’s get you up, hm?”
She was too astonished to do more than stare, but that was fine with Delilah. She didn’t wait for a response. Humming a soft, soothing tune, the former sovereign clasped her under her arms and hoisted her back onto her feet. Using quick, efficient flicks of her leather-clad fingers, Delilah righted her clothing and dusted her off. “There we are. All better. Sorry I was a bit late. Traffic is terrible in UW.”
“I…” Whatever she was going to say died in her throat.
Delilah bent down to peer into her face. Her expression was enigmatic. There was a smile on her lips, but her eyes were distant. Uncanny in their lack of focus. If Atria didn’t have her abilities, she never would have known that the infamous former sovereign, Thaddeus II’s executioner, the fierce woman who helped raise three orphaned boys was…
Happy.
Delilah Solbourne was happy.It was the kind of elation that only came after a long wait. It popped in tiny, countless bubbles in the air around them. Satisfaction, relief, and a background hum of acrid anxiety threw that exuberant emotion into sharper focus.
“I’ve waited a very long time to meet you,” the former sovereign said. Her dark eyes glittered, cunning and strange, as a dimple popped in her cheek. In that moment, she looked so much like Kaz that it made Atria’s heart lurch, desperate for what it had lost.
She sucked in a deep breath. Exhaled.
And then she threw her arms around the former sovereign’s neck andsqueezed.
“Oh, my girl. I’ve missed you.”
I’ve missed you.She said it quietly, in a small voice that didn’t match her oversized reputation or what Atria had seen of her personality.
I’ve missed you.
As if they’d known each other their whole lives. As if Delilah had lost something precious and was nearly overcome with relief upon its return.
Atria knew that Delilah’s relief and affection were real. They were a steady beat in the air, a second heart that existed outside of the elf’s powerful body. For all that it sounded strange, shedidmiss Atria.
She couldn’t begin to guess at what life was truly like for someone with Foresight, but Atria could empathize. How confusing and lonely it must be to know so many people you haven’t met; how isolating to not be able to share too much of futures that might never be.
“Thank you,” she gasped, burying her face in Delilah’s mass of fragrant curls. “Thank you for finding me. Thank you.”
I’m safe with her,she thought, clinging even harder.I’m safe because we’re family. To her, we’ve probably always been family.
Delilah’s arms curled around her back and held her tight, but with infinite care. She lifted Atria off the ground with a sigh of pure contentment. An agonizing release of tension drifted down through her aura to settle around their feet. “You were never lost. No one is. Not to me.”
Atria’s legs shook when she was carefully set back down. Pressing her palm against her pounding heart, she asked, “What are you— Did you know I’d be kidnapped?”
“Of course.” Delilah shot her a bland smile as she guided her toward the opening of the alley, where a sleek red sports car idled. “You were never in any danger. I had my eyes on you the whole time. Mostly.”
A shockwave of urgency stalled Atria’s steps. “Kaz!” She dug her fingers into Delilah’s arm, her heartbeat thundering in her ears as she thought of her poor mate. “I need to call him. Delilah, he’s got to be so worried—”
“Oh yes, he’s losing his mind right now.” Delilah patted her back and then pushed her along again, this time with more force. “It’s all very sad and scary for him, but he’s a big boy. He’ll survive a heart attack or two.”
“Delilah,please.”The thought of Kaz losing his mind as he desperately attempted to track her down made her sick. “Why can’t I call him? Why didn’t you just tell him where I was? Why hasn’t the tracker—”
“It’s alwayswhy.Why, Lilah? How come, Lilah? Why’d you do this? Why didn’t you do that?” Delilah grasped the passenger door’s handle and swung it open. Ushering Atria inside, she said, “If I answered everywhyI’d never get anything done, and there is so much to do. Always so much.”
Atria fumbled her way into the low seat and swung her legs inside. Her fingers were shaking too hard to manage the seatbelt, though, so Delilah brushed them away and did it herself.
So many strange things had happened to her over the past few weeks, but being strapped into a seat like a toddler by one of the scariest people in the world had to make the top of her list.
“Why didn’t I tell Kaz? Because a little fear and misery can be a great motivator.” Delilah clicked the mechanism together and then rested her hand on the roof of the car. “Why hasn’t he tracked you here yet? Sweetheart, I never leave home without my lipstick, a gaming device, and a signal jammer.” Peering down at her charge with a much put-upon look, she added, “Also, I’m a fucking Solbourne. I can do whatever I want.”
A flash of temper momentarily destroyed any sense of caution Atria possessed. “Yeah, well I’m a Solbourne now, too. AndIsay you can’t fuck around with my mate whenever you want.”
A slow smile spilled across Delilah’s face. “Definitely worth the wait.”
She began to close the door, but Atria threw up her hands and asked, “What about the guy?”
