“These have what are generally considered to be the best substantiated, least hysterical accounts of the Fae. But,” he sighed, “even these are full of the most ridiculous, fantastical ‘evidence’. It’s as if folk were so bedazzled by their encounters, if indeed their meetings were genuine, as to be of little use to anyone in the retelling.”
“That’s hardly a surprise,” I observed. “Seems spot on if you ask me. They’ve always been sneaky fuckers.”
Dalziel’s eyebrows rose. “You really are quite vehement in your hatred, aren’t you? What happened to you to make your distrust of an entire species so deep-seated?”
I opened my mouth to answer, but found I couldn’t. “I…I don’t know,” I said, perplexed. “Something obviously did. I wouldn’t randomly hate someone, a whole bunch of someones, for no reason.”Would I?
Those dark eyebrows quirked a little further and I found myself squirming under the intensity of Dalziel’s stare. Shit. Maybe I needed to put myself into some kind of time out until I worked through whatever Fae-flavoured bug was rammed up my arse. I dropped my gaze and picked up the nearest book. “I should at least read these and see what they say, right?”
“Or you could take yourself upstairs and catch up on the sleep you desperately need.”
He wasn’t wrong. I was knackered. But…my head turned instinctively towards the young man asleep in the next room. As much as my wolf desired getting hot and nasty with Charley, firstly he was asleep, and secondly I doubted my ability to rest easily in sheets that smelled of our combined scents.
Dalziel caught my glance. “I don’t presume to tell you what to do, but if you would be more comfortable with a different bedroom, I would be happy to show you where you can move to.” The subtext ‘Don’t you dare think about ousting Charley’ was loud and clear.
Caught between the insane urge to assure him that I’d like nothing better than to roll around bathing in his son’s scent all night, and the equally overwhelming need to get some decent rest, I plumped for the truth. “I think I should move if that’s all right. I’m…conflicted right now, and I don’t want to make Charley feel uncomfortable while I work stuff out.”
My punishment for voicing my true thoughts was a small corner room with an unlit fireplace, an icy, snow-scented draught whistling under the ancient window frames, and a mediocre bathroom across the hallway. Dalziel muttered about not wanting to wake Eleanor up to light the fire, a sentiment I agreed with, but I still knew it was a not-so-subtlefuck youfor putting some distance between myself and Charley. As soon as Dalziel left, I quickly arranged the bed to my satisfaction, pulling a thick throw from a wooden chest and covering the fancy satin coverlet. That done, I brushed my teeth, then returning to the room, I turned the key in the lock and stripped off. I shifted, then leapt up onto the bed and curled into a ball to sleep. My fur would keep me warm, and with the door locked, I had an extra defence, allowing me to sink deeper into rest, not that I expected anyone to disturb me. Dalziel was currently the biggest threat to my existence, and even though I was certain he was needled by my withdrawal from Charley, I felt we’d made a small breakthrough and I was no longer in immediate danger from him.
My wolf, well exercised, as well as full of rabbit and a full Scottish breakfast, was out for the count before I’d barely got comfortable.
22
CHARLEY
It felt earlywhen I woke. For a while, I stayed still, with my eyes closed, confused at my unfamiliar surroundings, until the comforting aroma of old books told me where I was. I eased my stiffened limbs off the sofa where I’d evidently fallen asleep, and crossed to peer out of a window. Hmm, it was light, but barely. And we’d had snow overnight. I pulled my phone out to check the time, but the sodding screen was once again dark. I frowned at the useless lump of tech, and determined to find a clock somewhere.
I folded the blanket someone had covered me with and left it on the back of the couch, then headed upstairs where I took my time freshening up in the bathroom. Brushing my teeth was almost more of a priority than washing; I still couldn’t believe I’d slit the vein of another person — with my teeth! — and drank their blood. Naturally, my fangs refused to come out to play. I’d have to insist Dalziel teach me in front of a mirror.
I redressed in clean clothes, and sighed when I saw our bed hadn’t been slept in. Presumably Luc hadn’t taken the news about my apparent Fae blood any better after some distance to mull it over. With a heavy heart, I traipsed back downstairs towards the kitchen. It amazed me that ingesting blood had somehow rebooted my stomach, which now demanded feeding on a regular basis.
I found the kitchen by following my nose, and peeked hesitantly around the door. Pavel, the…shadow, I thought Luc had called him, greeted me with a respectful nod of his pale blond head. “Good morning, young master. Would you like a hot drink?”
“Oh, yes please. Coffee would be great.” I looked around the kitchen for a clock. “Er, Pavel, what’s the time please? My phone has stopped again.”
A soft snort came from behind a pillar. I stepped into the room to see Rosie, my blood donor from last night, seated at a small table. She was wearing some fancy velour dressing gown over some equally flash pyjamas, neither of which did much to disguise her obvious hangover. It seemed someone shopped for unexpected visitors. Interesting. I filed the information away for later. “You have a mobile?” she asked, looking stunned, her voice croaky from not enough sleep.
Pavel ushered me to sit down, muttering about how inappropriate it was to have guests seated in the kitchen instead of the dining room, but within seconds, a pot of coffee appeared in front of me, with all the fixings. I gave him a beaming smile of thanks and began pouring myself a mug of happiness. To Rosie, I said, “And why wouldn’t I have a phone?”
“Because pretty much everything technical you touch goes on the fritz?” she supplied, her wide-eyed expression suggesting she was amazed I’d had to ask.
I stared at her dazedly over the rim of my mug. “You removed your Fitbit thingy and took your phone out of your pocket last night before I fed from you. Was that really ’cause you thought I’d damage your stuff?”
“Course it was. You telling me you never have problems with electronics misbehaving?” Her brown eyes narrowed as if daring me to lie to her.
Pavel coughed quietly by my shoulder. “It’s twenty past seven, young master. Would you like some breakfast? I’m making porridge for Miss Anderson, but we have a wide range of breakfast foods.”
I twisted in my seat. “I’m starving. Can I have mushrooms and eggs and beans please?” I thought of Luc’s gentle nagging and added, “Guess I should have some toast too. Whatever you’ve got really. Thank you.”
Pavel’s sombre expression cracked a fraction, as if he were about to smile. “I shall prepare a full vegetarian Scottish breakfast for you,” he said, as if it would be an honour.
I shook my head — he was a weird dude, and refocused on Rosie, who was picking at a slice of toast. “My phone screen does keep blanking on me,” I confessed. “Or, it’ll be fine for a while, but I won’t get any messages for a few days then I get two dozen at once. Really pisses people off if they’re trying to get hold of me. It’s been back to the shop loads, but they say it’s me, not the phone. Had it with every mobile I’ve owned.”
She shot me a triumphant grin. “Told you, it’s your Fae blood. Bet you’ve never had a wristwatch that kept time for more than a week either.”
She was right, but I couldn’t deal with this before I’d woken up properly. I grimaced into my coffee and knuckled my eye sockets. “Dalziel wants to speak to you about this, doesn’t he?” She nodded. “Then d’you mind if we do it after breakfast? My head feels like this is one crazy thing too much right now.”
She flapped her toast-free hand at me. “Nae worries. I’m just coming to myself. Nothing that won’t wait an hour.”
