I nodded, eager to be pampered and hear more about Selvyn’s past.
Marta untied the strip of leather at the end of my braid and used her fingers to loosen the strands. She grabbed a silver brush from the vanity, running the bristles through my hair in slow passes.
“Elric and I met Selvyn when he was still a young man. One of the first times he found his way out of the cave, we caught him pulling vegetables from out of our garden.” She laughed to herself at the memory. “He was wary, wild almost, like a skittish cat that had never experienced even a bit of affection. Elric and I began to leave food for him at the mouth of the cave, and over time he grew to trust us. We knew he was a cambion, and we helped him learn to control his magic. He’d join us for supper, borrow books from our bookshelf, and on occasion, he’d even accompany us into town. But no matter how deep our bond grew, we couldn’t get Selvyn to leave Dalwick Cave. He viewed it as his atonement for his mother’s death.”
She set down the brush and began to gather my hair between her fingers. “When the sacrifices began, Selvyn would lead them through the caves and here to Belden. He’d show up at our door with frightened, outcast humans, and Elric and I would get them acclimated to our world.”
Marta rummaged through a little jewelry box on top of the vanity, pulling out a gold hairpin lined with pearls. It reminded me of the trinkets I’d had as a young girl, before my father squandered our fortune away.
“Marta, I can’t–”
“Shh. I’d like nothing more than for you to have it.”
Before I could object, she wove several strands of hair together and used the pin to hold them in place. I couldn’t comprehend why Selvyn would subject himself to such isolation, especially when he had such wonderful friends.
I ran my fingers over the hairpin and stared at Marta’s reflection in the mirror. “Selvyn wouldn’t stay here with you and Elric?”
“For a long time, we tried. One summer we built the cottage, hoping that the promise of having his own space might entice him to stay, but not even that was enough. It doesn’t come from a place of feeling unappreciative, it’s more like Selvyn doesn’t deem himself worthy, if that makes sense? It’s similar to how he feels about you, m’dear. He doesn’t think he’s deserving of love.”
It brought me to tears.
If anyone was worthy of love, it was Selvyn.
“Do you think he’ll ever stay?” I asked, wanting more than anything for Marta to offer me some glimmer of hope.
She tied a length of velvet ribbon to the end of my braid, and gripping my shoulders, she leaned in. “We haven’t given up hope, and you shouldn’t either.” Marta stood up and her body stiffened. “That reminds me. Selvyn mentioned you might be in need of a contraceptive tonic?”
I nodded. “Please. I’d appreciate it.”
Marta didn’t pass judgment or press me for more information, she simply drifted out of the bedroom and down the hall. When she returned, she presented me with a vial full of a deep blue liquid.
“Go ahead and take that dearie. Your cycle will start in a few days and you’ll be right as rain.”
I popped the cork and drank it down, making sure to drain the vial of every last drop. Unlike Selvyn’s elixirs, this one was palatable, with a slightly sweet aftertaste.
She took the vial from me and smiled. “Alright then. Let’s find you some stockings and some shoes and we’ll join them out in the cottage.”
Chapter12
My heart was heavy as Elric and I trudged through the snow to the cottage. Tonight would be my final night with Iris, and from now on, the cottage would be her home.
It sat cold and vacant, kept separate from the farmhouse by a wide field. Thick icicles hung from the eaves of the thatched roof, and I stared up at them while Elric fiddled with a heavy ring of keys before finally unlocking the door. He stepped inside, and after hesitating, I followed behind him.
“It’s been some time since I’ve been inside of here,” Elric said. “I know Marta comes in occasionally to tidy.”
I held out my hand, calling to my magic and forming a tiny blaze in the center of my palm that lit up the interior of the cottage.
It was just as I remembered it. Elric and Marta had taken great care in making sure the space would be comfortable for me, raising the door frame and ceilings so that I could stand comfortably. A bed long enough to accommodate my horns sat beneath a wide window. Across from it was the fireplace, with a small table and a bookshelf taking up the remaining space.
“I’ll make the bed if you start the fire.” Elric’s clipped tone suggested it was more of a command than a request.
I didn’t acknowledge him, just huffed and set to work stacking the wood in the fireplace.
Elric fluffed the mattress before spreading a crisp white sheet overtop. “You should stay,” he said quietly.
“I don’t need you telling me what to do, Elric,” I snapped. With my focus on the fire, I imagined flames overtaking the stack of wood until it ignited with a pop and cast the room in orange light.
Elric threw a pillow down onto the bed and marched over to where I was crouched next to the hearth. “You’re being an ass. You realize that? A stubborn ass. I’ve seen the way you look at her, Sel.”
