“Thaden was…awful.” A shudder coiled through me.
Something deadly flickered across his features. His jaw clenched, then his eyes turned black as a starless night, as his shadows bled into them.
Dark veins streaked down his cheeks mapping his fury in a web of intricate patterns. It made him look more demon than Fae.
“He knows what will happen if he ever touches you again.” Wolfe’s voice was low, with an undertone of menace lurking beneath.
I sucked in a quick breath. “You said something to him about it?”
A cruel smile spread across his hauntingly beautiful face. “He hit you, so I hit him back. Justharder. He won’t be able to cover his marks.”
My lips parted. I couldn’t hide my surprise. Nor the satisfaction that rose within me.
I tried to imagine how Wolfe dealt with him. I hoped he did it in his Deathwalker form—knowing him he probably did.
Thayden would have been terrified.
Good.That fucking bastard deserved to be terrified. Gods, how I hated him.
“Thank you,” I whispered, holding back tears. No more crying for Thayden. No more. He wouldn’t hurt me the way he had ever again.
“You don’t have to thank me for that.” Wolfe stroked my cheek, then allowed his hand to fall back to his side as his shadows receded and he became himself again. “I will always protect and defend you, no matter what it cost me. But I had to admit putting the fear of the Gods in him was undeniably satisfying. Especially because he told me nothing useful when I asked him about the attack. I didn’t think he would, but I’d hoped fear would make him talk.”
“What are you thinking about that?” I asked.
“I’m not sure yet. But I’ll find out. I’m sure he knows something though. I can feel it in my bones. And I knew he was lying. That was enough proof of guilt. I only allowed him to live so I could watch him. Might lead us to another trail.”
“I hope so.”
He held my gaze for a moment and sighed. "I never wanted to send you back, Elariya." The admission sounded rough in his throat. "I believed returning you to your family was the safest path forward. It gave me the chance to confront the mortal politics openly and it was better to do so in their realm. I knewI could control the situation and send a stronger message that protected you and your family."
His voice hardened when he continued. "I never believed Thayden would actually hurt you." Each word echoed his bitterness. And guilt. "If I had known—if I'd suspected for even a moment that he would lay a hand on you—I would have burned that entire realm to ash before I ever let you leave my side."
The raw promise in his voice stirred something deep in my soul. “You weren’t to know. No one knew. Everyone said it was like he’d… changed.”
He dragged in a slow breath and gave me a poignant stare. “Because you were with me. So, he punished you for it.”
He shared my thoughts and it was obvious now that we were talking about it. “You’re right.”
“You’re here now.” The light returned to his eyes.
“I’m here now. Thank you for everything you did for me and my family.” I’d never stop thanking him. Wolfe had even gone out of his way to reassure my mother when the matter of my father came up.
“It was my pleasure, and my honor.”
His words lingered between us and I thought of the shackle.
“I felt the tether vanish when you removed the shackle,” I admitted quietly. “I felt lost after.”
Wolfe’s expression softened. “Eventually it would have stopped working and you wouldn’t have been able to feel anything at all.”
“I hadn’t meant to do that.”
“I know.”
“I wanted to keep it because you gave it to me.”
“This is better than the shackle.” He took my hand and turned it gently in his. Our eyes fell to the ring resting on my finger. “It says you’re mine. My mate.”
