Avery lifted her eyebrows, “Does he?”
Kyla saw the blush growing on Morgan’s cheeks. Her pale skin changed from alabaster to cherry within a few moments.
“It’s not what you think. He considers me like his pet or something.” Morgan’s words slid off her tongue in a smooth lie, almost so sharp that Kyla could taste it in the air. Morgan wasn’t being fully truthful about her feelings for Rylo, or perhaps what she meant to him. But, Kyla would let Morgan keep her secrets. It wasn’t her place to share what Morgan was hiding behind her lies.
“Savine was convinced I was his gift from Althea, so that’s not too different. Are all fae men this possessive?” Avery asked.
“Allfaeare that possessive,” Kyla said with a laugh, diverting the conversation to take the growing pressure from Morgan. From what Kyla understood of Morgan, she was a private woman who preferred to keep much of her thoughts and feelings to herself, rather than disclose them to a larger group.
Susan gave a sad smile. She’d suffered a loss since they were together in the Towers, and by her reaction to Elio’s name, Kyla could see she was in mourning for him. “The exception would possibly be a Bayberry, but I believe my parents would tear the world apart if they were separated.”
“At their age?” Avery asked.
Susan smiled, but it faded quickly. “Oh yes! They are very devoted to each other. I think my chance of that is gone now.”
Avery looked concerned at their friend. “What do you mean?”
Morgan sighed heavily, putting her hands to her face before looking up at the others. “Susan, I am so sorry for Elio. I know we talked about his death, but I shouldn’t have made you hear the details again.”
Susan’s face looked cracked with grief. “I know there are risks with magic. It’s just we were only beginning to know one another. I’ve never felt so wanted, and I don’t even know if we were soulmates. Now I’ll never know.” Tears streamed down Susan’s face and Rue pulled her close as Susan sobbed on her shoulder.
Kyla got up, her lower back aching from being in the same position. She let herself stretch her arms high overhead. The nausea she’d been experiencing had been growing more intense in the past few weeks, and she never knew a fae could feel so worn down as she did. It was well past her typical bedtime, but it was worth staying up late with her friends. She made her way to a cabinet and pulled out another wine bottle, topping off the other women’s glasses.
She turned to Avery while she stretched. “I don’t mean to intrude on your relationship with my brother, and I know you’re still adjusting to life with a fae soulmate. It sounds very different from what relationships are like in your realm. But, please, don’t continue to hold his devotion to you against him.”
Avery frowned and shook her head. “He hurt my sister for no reason!”
Kyla sighed. She knew Avery was going to fight her on this. “That was wrong of him, but he nearly lost you today, and he still blames himself for your kidnapping, and your injury when you arrived at Orofine. He’s going to make mistakes, but you are his soulmate.” Kyla had to fight back her own emotions, thinking of all her brother had been through to get to this point. “You’re his soulmate and he still can’t believe that he gets to call you his.Please understand he will react if you are threatened. It’s the nature of the bond between you, and the reason you reacted the same way with the Hunter.”
Avery bit her lower lip, nodding her head. “No, you’re right. I’ll talk with him after Morgan leaves tomorrow.”
Susan stopped crying as she rested her head against Rue’s shoulder, and Avery broke the tension by telling Susan and Morgan more details of the Hunters, while Rue and Kyla pitched in.
Morgan frowned next to Avery. “So we’ve been hunted all our lives?”
“Apparently. They did a terrible job hunting us. According to the lists we found, there are still more out there.”
Morgan looked tired, like she couldn’t take on the burden of more bad news.
“Can we share something cool? There’s been a lot of grief while we’ve been separated, but Susan and I have learned some amazing magic. Would that be okay with you, Susan?”
Susan nodded. “I think a distraction would be good. We could show them how we can connect mind to mind,” Susan suggested. “But I think Rue and Kyla will be left out. It is probably only possible between witches.”
Kyla saw how Morgan bit her bottom lip. “I was able to communicate with Rylo mind to mind, even when we weren’t close in the caves.”
Susan had a puzzled expression on her face. “I haven’t actually tried with a fae, I just assumed we couldn’t.”
Morgan shrugged. “Let’s show Avery first.”
The room grew silent, Kyla watched Avery as her face lit up. “That’s so weird!” she shouted, far too loud for fae hearing. Kyla cringed at the high-pitched tone of her queen. “What’s the spell? I want to try!”
The women shared the words of incantation, and Kyla watched as Avery struggled to connect through to them mentally. Finally, a wide grin spread across her face.
“I guess they’re talking to each other,” Rue said to Kyla.
“Makes me a bit jealous to not be a witch,” Kyla replied, keeping her tone light.
The three women continued to stare at each other with broad smiles on her faces. It was obvious that they’d managed to communicate together as one, and Kyla couldn’t help but think how invaluable of an asset that could be if they go to war. She only knew of one other couple who could communicate through their minds, but they were soulmates. Their bond between them manifested itself through telepathy. Finally, Susan turned to Kyla.
