“If it wasn’t her, dear, it would have been you. And that could have been catastrophic.” She paused. “Assuming everything went well the other night?”
Heat rushed to Bryn’s face and she looked away. She had no idea how to answer a grandmother about something of a sexual nature.
Sven’s lips twitched but he maintained his composure. “Everything went very well, Grandma. Very well indeed.”
Okay, was the ‘indeed’ absolutely necessary?Bryn’s cheeks flamed as she sat silent.
Hilda’s eyes glowed with happiness that the ritual had been performed and hopefully an heir realized. The fact that sex had been involved was a mere detail and Bryn felt more at ease.
“I knew you two were meant for each other the first time I met Bryn.”
“And yet you didn’t say anything to me?” Sven teased.
“You wouldn’t have listened anyhow, but your mother knew. That other woman was horrid.”
Bryn’s temper rose. “She tried to kill Sven.” She ignored the warning look that he sent her. “She put some toxin on his skin that made him collapse.”
Hilda folded her hands. “Yes, I heard. Evil is what she is. And probably part of those nasty Skelvarns. They probably have your brother, too, if you ask me.”
Sven stood and walked back and forth. “They do. Or at least Magnus does. I don’t know about Alitta and how deep her involvement is.”
“You need to protect Bryn, sweetheart. She is in danger. I can feel it in my old bones and her aura is like a magnet for bad people. They want to destroy her.”
“I don’t understand though. Me meeting Bryn is all because they tried to assassinate me. How could they know about her?”
Bryn raised her hand. “I’m right here. I’m curious about the same thing. When I first met Alitta, she didn’t give me the time of day other than to try and stake claim on you.”
Hilda laughed. “Honey, she could see the good in you before she ever walked into the room. My guess would be that’s why she tried to poison Sven. I’m just happy that you were ableto heal him so quickly. Martin says that he still doesn’t know what the toxin is.”
“I still don’t understand that,” Bryn admitted. “I don’t understand a lot of things.”
“Come here, dear.” Hilda held out her hand. “Come sit with me.”
Bryn took her hand and sat on the edge of the bed where Sven had been. “Sven thinks I have secrets in my past, or in my family history. I just don’t know.”
Hilda squeezed her hand and then instantly yanked back. It startled Bryn, but her hand was grabbed back before she could move.
Her ring.
Slowly, Hilda straightened out Bryn’s fingers and stared at the ring. “Where did you get this?”
Her grip was strong and Bryn could feel the seriousness of the question. “Did it shock you?”
“You felt it, too.” Hilda stared at her. “It wasn’t a shock, it was an exchange of power.”
Bryn looked at Sven. She was completely confused, again, and hoped that he had some guidance. His expression told her that he did not.
“What power?”
“Where did this ring come from?” Hilda repeated.
Bryn told her the story, with Sven finishing with how she had been drawn to it in his desk drawer. She twisted the ring on her finger as she had for so many years. “So I really don’t know why I was drawn to this ring or what it means.”
Sven knelt down. “What is it? What’s it mean?”
Hilda studied the ring before she answered. “This is an ancient crest from a bloodline long thought extinct. I can’t remember the specifics, but I remember hearing that they were hunted ruthlessly. The entire royal family had to scatter in orderto protect themselves, and then I believe they just disappeared, never to be known again.” She pointed at the ring. “I recognize the eyes. No clan has used sapphires since in honor of the lost clan.”
Bryn snorted. “So you’re saying that I descend from an extinct family?”
