His eyes are alight with wonder, as if her words are a gift. “That is very interesting indeed.” He brings a finger to his chin, watching her with a querulous expression. Lorelei crosses her arms over her chest and narrows her eyes, but Mr. Meeks doesn’t seem to get the hint.
“We thank you for your consideration, Mr. Meeks,” I say to avert his unwanted attention from Lorelei.
He turns to face me, cheeks flushed. “Ah, yes, and do forgive me for my questions. It’s a rare thing to chat so intimately with a fae.”
“Rare indeed,” I say. “I can’t thank you enough for allowing us to stay.”
“Of course,” he says, drawing closer to me. The scrutiny returns to his face as he studies me now. “How was your mother, by the way?”
I tense, searching for words. “She seemed well-accommodated. For a prisoner, that is.”
“It must pain you greatly to see her like that.”
“It does.”
He lowers his voice. “Did she reveal anything to you? Any explanation over these allegations?”
I consider lying to him, but what would be the point? It won’t change anything. “Mother confirmed that I am of fae heritage.” I watch his face, waiting for it to pale, for the fear to strike his features.
Surprisingly, he remains composed. In fact, his expression seems to brighten. “Really! Oh, that is extraordinary.”
“Extraordinary is a...word for it, I suppose.”
He clasps his hands together and looks me over as if seeing me for the first time. When his eyes meet mine, he blinks in rapid succession. Heat rises to my cheeks as I realize what the gesture means. I take a step back. “Mr. Meeks, I’m not going to glamour you. I don’t even know if I can.” My statement forces me to recall what happened with the mayor, the way I imagined holding his attention in a cage, how he spoke about King Ustrin without meaning to. So perhaps Ican, but I most certainlywon’t. It’s not like I meant to do it in the first place.
His face burns beet red, and he lets out a nervous laugh. “I know dear, I know. It was but an automatic response. However, that does pose an interesting question. How much fae blood do you have?”
“I am a quarter fae.”
“I do have so many questions for you. Do you mind?”
“About...”
“About your heritage. You know how keen I am to understand the fae from a scientific perspective.”
“Mr. Meeks, I only confirmed my heritage today. There’s not much I can tell you.”
“Still, you likely hold a great deal of answers inside you. Answers the scientific community can only guess at.”
Normally, I’d be as excited as he is about such a learning opportunity. Not today. Not with mental exhaustion tugging at my mind.
Mr. Meeks flushes again as he presses his lips tight and takes a step back. “Forgive me, dear girl. I dare not press you when you are clearly in no state. However, can I request your assistance later? Would you be interested in running some...experiments of sorts?”
“Like I said, I don’t know how much help I could possibly be.”
He waves a dismissive hand. “You’ll help me plenty. It will be like old times. Me and my dearest apprentice working side by side. You never know, we could discover something that could transform human understanding of the fae.”
I let out a heavy sigh. His enthusiasm is impossible to ignore. Besides, perhaps he’s right. Maybe we can learn something that will further my own understanding of myself. “I’ll do what I can to help.”
He turns his grin on Lorelei. “And you—”
“No.” She burns him with a glare, then sidles up next to me, arms still crossed over her chest.
My shoulders tense, but again Mr. Meeks is unaffected by Lorelei’s sharp edges. He lets out a nervous laugh. “Once more, I beg you to forgive my overeager excitement over your heritage. You know how I can get.”
I force my lips into a smile. “I do.”
“Very well. I’ll leave you to it. Oh, but I have yet to mention...” He extends his arm toward the tea table. “The tea I brought is of a special nature. It’s something I had from your mother’s apothecary. When I bought it, she said it was a formula meant to ease the nerves. I’ve hardly had use for it since I much prefer laudanum, but now I find the perfect recipient of its cure.”
