I paused, pondering the question before nodding. “Yeah, I think it is. But honestly, I doubt I’ll live long enough for it to happen.”
She took the stark words with great poise, nothing more than a soft curiosity on her features. “Does that scare you?”
“Death?” I asked.
She nodded.
“No.” The answer was instant, and had she not asked the question, I’m not sure it was a truth I’d consciously known.
Tilting her head slightly, she said, “You’re not afraid of death?”
“No. I’m really not.”
“Why?”
“Because… there’s no pain in death.” It was a simple truth, but again it wasn’t one I’d recognized until then.
The brightness in her eyes seemed to sputter as she reassessed me. After a moment, her delicate brows pulled down. “You mean no pain foryou.”
It wasn’t a question, but I nodded nonetheless, uncertain of why she’d said it.
Her soft hand clasped mine and tightened a fraction. “I promise you, Nyleeria, if you were to die, a great many would feel the pain of that loss.”
Heartbeat kicking up a notch, I swallowed her words, trying to reconcile them with how expendable I’d been to others in the past. She held space for me as if knowing I needed time for the tiny thread of truth she’d spoken to weave itself into my soul, and while it tried, it was only enough to stop me from outright rejecting her words, nothing more.
Needing to change the subject, I clasped my other hand over hers. “I’m sorry I lied to you when we first met. You and Myron deserved better. I doubt it changes anything, but I did advocate for the fae with Thaddeus because of the kindness you showed me. I know we met under false pretenses, but I’d like to believe our friendship was real, and I’m sorry if my lies jeopardize that.” As I braced forher admonishment, the guilt I harbored over lying to them bubbled hot at the surface.
Her entire being softened as she squeezed my hand a little tighter. “Thank you. I appreciate it more than you know. I don’t begrudge you for what you did; you were in an impossible situation. Although, I will admit that Myron and I are deeply hurt by Caius’ lack of transparency.” I could see it in her face; the calm, weary hurt of someone who knew they would get past it, but needed time.
“I know what it’s like to be deceived—and I’m not excusing him—but for what it’s worth, Caius only recently confirmed I was the spark, and he was just as surprised as any of us that I was fae. Did he withhold the truth? Yes. But I genuinely believe his heart was in the right place.”
“Myron and I came to the same conclusion. It will just take time to heal the broken trust between us, and that’s something Caius has to own and be willing to build once more.”
I offered her a small smile in understanding.
“Let’s have some breakfast,” she said, clearly needing a subject change of her own. Releasing my grasp, she leaned over to the knee-height table and handed me a plate, which I graciously accepted before dishing myself out.
We were about halfway through eating when a soft knock came at the double-wide patio doors.
“Hello?” an unsure male voice said before the golden topknot of his hair caught the light as he stepped into the sun.
His deep hazel eyes lit up the moment he spotted us. That, combined with the lanky awkwardness that seemed to cling to boys as they filled out into men, reminded me so much of Eithan at that age that I couldn’t help but gawk. This male was the youngest high fae I’d seen, which made me all kinds of curious.
Stepping up to the other side of the table, the stranger took a knee, placed a palm over his heart, and cast his eyes down. I glanced to Fiora, who seemed to think this was perfectly normal. Refocusingon him, I noticed his head was shaved to stubble from his eyeline down—the style much different from his male counterparts.
“Lady Nyleeria. Lady Fiora,” he said, the respect in his tone was undeniable. Standing, he leaned over the table and extended a long arm in my direction, hand out, then flashed me a blinding smile. “Hi, I’m Kaelun.”
I blinked up at him, unsure of how to handle his… pep.
His light brows furrowed a fraction as he looked down to his offering in confusion, then to Fiora. “Am I doing it wrong?” he asked, his hand faltering a fraction. “I read every book Fenyte gave me on human customs—were they wrong?”
A soft chuckle sounded to my right, pulling my attention to Fiora. “No, you did good, Kaelun.” She stood. “I just think she’s in shock.” She winked down at me, and honestly, I was.
Give me a na’li, a surly fae, a mercenary with an arrow; those I knew how to handle. But this ray of sunshine burned my retinas. “Come here,” Fiora ordered, her voice filled with deep affection as she stepped around the table.
Dropping his proffered hand, he hunched down, each of them kissing the air just above the other’s opposite cheek. One. Two. Three times.
Once done, Fiora held him at arm’s length. “My, you’ve grown up fine, haven’t you?” She beamed with unmistakable love as she took him in, and it was clear that whoever he was, he was near and dear to her.
