AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Where is everyone?” I whisper.
“Out of sight, out of mind,” Ken replies. Gone is his lighthearted demeanor. He stands taller, his frown stretches further, and new lines appear on his forehead.
“Rainer,” Ken bellows. His voice echoes back. “We’re baaaack.”
A few seconds later two figures emerge from the hallway beneath the staircases. One is a beautiful female with flowing burgundy-colored hair and dark, hooded eyes. She wears a low-cut dress that hugs her slim frame. Smoky lids and a bright red lip are painted dramatically on her face. Her high-heels teeter slightly as she tries to walk and sip from a goblet at the same time. The excess of golden jewelry bracelets on her wrist clank together in a sharp melody as she leans on the male beside her.
“Fern,” the male says sternly. “Get off me.”
She whines. “Don’t you want more?”
“No.”
The male sports unusually sharp ears. The tips peek through his shaggy charcoal-colored hair. Thin, gold, decorative chains wrap around his lobes, climbing up each point. He’s very clearly fae. No doubt about it. And though I should perhaps be frightened or hesitant, my eyes widen with intrigue.
Dressed in muted shades of grey, his disheveled hair and rumpled clothes seem at odds with the elaborate room. Like he, too, is an outsider. Whorls of ink peek out from beneath a half-buttoned up top. I squint to make out the design, until I realize he’s grimly observing my unabashed staring.
When his eyes lock onto mine, a flash of surprise crosses his face. He stops in his track and the female at his side nearly topples over.
My cheeks heat, embarrassed, but thankfully he doesn’t say anything as he shoves his hands deep into his pockets. He steps closer until he’s only a few feet away. Then I can see just how blue his eyes are.
A pale, frosty blue. Cold as ice.
There’s a beat of silence as he peruses my body, and my stomach quivers. He’s handsome in an unconventional, unkempt sort-of way with strong cheekbones, thick brows, and a pale complexion.
“It lived,” he mutters before turning his scowl to Ken. “What were you thinking, bringing it here?”
That voice… I recognize it from the woods. He was the one trying to free me from the vines.
“I’m not an it,” I whisper, fidgeting with my dress.
The fae—Rainer, as Ken called him—glowers at me. Ken’s shoulders shake with silent laughter. The girl ignores us completely, in favor of pouting at Rainer.
“Rainer, this is—” Ken leans toward me. “What was your name, little human?”
“Alessia,” I whisper.
“Alessia,” Ken repeats to Rainer. “And she is not an it.” He winks at me.
Rainer evaluates me with a set jaw. “I don’t know how you possibly survived. You’re a pathetic thing.”
My cheeks burn at his assessment. Meanwhile, Fern giggles, and I wonder how much she’s had to drink. I recognize that flushed, bloodshot look from the lord and lady’s parties
Rainer’s scrutinization grows so intense that I quickly avert my gaze to the ground.
Ken grunts.
I swallow the uneasy lump in my throat. My stomach chooses that moment to rumble.
Fern gives me a pitying look. “Poor thing is hungry, Rai.” She tugs on his arm. “You should feed her. You of all people know what hunger does—”
“Stop talking.” Rainer grabs Fern’s goblet with one hand, and pinches the bridge of his nose with the other. “What it needs is to get cleaned up.”
My hands ball into fists at my side. Considering I expected to die a million ways since yesterday, a bath and food would be more than I could’ve ever hoped for after today.
But the one thing I’m unable to let go of is the derogatory way he calls me an it.
“I am not an it,” I mutter, louder this time.
