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I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. “I’m sorry, sister, but what a troll’s ass.” I tensed when I heard Blaze laughing behind us.
“Believe me,” she whispered while leaning into me, “he was sorry when he came to his senses. I didn’t know if I could forgive him, but then he nearly died saving the girls from demons. He was a lump of coal when we found him.” She paused, then resumed with a voice thick with emotion. “If I hadn’t used my siren voice to amplify Nikkos’s healing powers, we would’ve lost him.”
“I take back what I said about him,” I said loud enough for Blaze to hear. “Tell me everything that’s happened since you met your mates.”
She smiled beside me. “I will if you tell me how you met Helian and found Ash and Finn.”
Oh, elements. I released a heavy breath. Where did I begin?
Chapter Seven
Flora
Heaving a satisfied sigh, I laid in Marius’s arms, his chest hairs tickling my bare breasts. The room was bathed in the soft glow of flickering candlelight as a shaft of moonlight cut through the billowing curtains. Though our lovemaking had been brief, for my poor, dear mate had tired quickly, he’d been so tender and loving, making sure I found release before taking pleasure for himself. Marius had always been a generous lover. Then Derrick had taken me in his arms, his stamina so much more than his brother’s, and I’d found release two more times before succumbing to fatigue. I hadn’t slept so hard in ages. Perhaps it was because I no longer had to worry about being discovered by my murderous sister. Perhaps it was because we were in a warm, cozy room with thick carpets and a big bed, not a drafty cabin with dark sounds echoing around us. Now we were tucked away in the silky sheets of our comfortable bed, no feathers poking through the stitching, no bedbugs nibbling our toes. Derrick sat up beside me, drinking a goblet of juice while scattering crumbs on the sheets from a raspberry pastry. I suddenly remembered Derrick had a sweet tooth. We always had fresh juice and pastries at Elisi to satisfy his cravings. We had wanted for nothing then, save for children, so happy were we on my mates’ estate, cut off from the rest of the world.
But then everything changed. One moment we were preparing the nursery for the welcome addition of our twin girls. The next, we were running for our lives while Delfi burned. And then we ended up in a moldy cabin in a dark and frightening forest. Forget about juice and pastries. My mate, daughters, and I were lucky to have enough porridge to last the winter.
All because Thorin, the evil mage I’d once thought of as my friend, was in reality a vindictive demon, and Malvolia, my twin and best friend, had succumbed to Thorin’s tricks and her own paranoia. Derrick and Marius were my only friends now. I trusted no one else, except our girls, though I doubted they trusted me, and I honestly couldn’t blame them.
I snuggled against Marius while he gently stroked my shoulder and arm, feeling selfish for enjoying his tender touch when it was he who needed soothing after suffering so long as my sister’s prisoner.
Tell me about our daughters and grandchildren, he asked through thought, his voice echoing in my skull so that I knew Derrick had heard his question, too.
A knot formed in my chest. It hurt to think of them, much less speak of them, not just because I missed them so, but we wronged them in so many ways, starting with giving Tari to Thorin. And then there was the way we’d mistrusted Shiri for most of her life.
I swallowed back my sorrow while catching Derrick’s gaze. There was no mistaking the shame reflecting in his eyes. I sat up, hugging my knees to my chest. “What do you wish to know?” I asked Marius aloud.
He sat up behind me, pulling back my hair while placing the tenderest of kisses on my shoulder. “Everything.”
I arched away from him, feeling undeserving of his gentle touch. Tari was a green witch with the kindest soul, but now her powers are far stronger, I answered through thought, my throat too tight to speak aloud as shame washed over me. Our poor Tari. We’d taken her from her children and given her to a monster. She mated with Prince Helian and his half brothers.
And our grandchildren? he asked, unaware of the turmoil within my heart, for he’d no idea how much it hurt to speak of them.
I heaved a weary sigh, knowing it was selfish of me to not talk about them when Marius had missed so many wonderful milestones from both our children and grandchildren.
Derrick cleared his throat, answering, Precocious, mischievous, exhausting, but so, so precious.
They have strong magic? Marius pressed.
They’re just coming into their powers, I answered, unable to say more when I realized how much I missed my granddaughters. I hugged my knees tighter, staring at the gossamer curtains that billowed in the breeze above the open doors that lead to the balcony where we’d first discovered Marius. I imagined the fabric from just one of those curtains could’ve afforded my poor family enough porridge to have lasted all winter. But that was in our past. We were no longer poor and destitute refugees. We were royalty, and I would claw my sister’s eyes out before she ever forced us into hiding again.
Aurora can teleport, and Ember can see spirits, Derrick finally answered.
I turned my head, looking into Derrick’s eyes that glistened with unshed tears. His heart ached to speak of them, too. I reached for his hand and squeezed, saying nothing while he laced his fingers through mine. We didn’t need to speak. Our heartache, our sins, our shame, was written in our eyes and the turn of our mouths.
And what about Shirina? Marius pressed.
A sharp blade replaced that dull ache in my chest. Shiri. Dear, sweet Shiri, who’d loved her family and her nieces above all else and was rewarded with wary looks and mistrust. Oh, the shame of it made me want to hurl myself over the tallest castle turret.
She has the siren’s call, Derrick answered, his voice sounding strained.
The room went silent, the distant sound of violent ocean waves filling the void, echoing the tempest in my heart.
What is wrong, you two? Marius finally asked.
I hung my head with a groan. What would Marius do when he found out how we’d treated our children? Would he turn away from us? Would he loathe us as much as I despised Malvolia?
I squeezed Derrick’s hand while wiping the moisture from my eyes with my free hand. “We’re ashamed,” I finally answered aloud, my voice constricting.
