“Gertrude shouldn’t have told you that. It wasn’t a nice thing to say.”
“But it was true. And that’s why she had sex with you—because you needed to recharge your affinity. You could have been with me, the person you wanted to be with, but I’d let myself turn into a tree.” Sorrow tinged her words, radiating from her like a cloud.
“You didn’t turn into a tree.” It had been vines and flowers she’d turned into, trapping him in her embrace.
She didn’t answer. Perhaps she knew a tree wasn’t precisely the right word.
“I don’t want you to think about our first intimate experience with each other as something to feel guilty about.” He planted his feet in the earth and held her hand to keep her from walking. “We have plenty of time in the future to get this right.”
She nodded emphatically. “I’m relieved to hear you say so.” She wrapped her arms around him. “I’ll make it up to you. I’ll show you I can do better.” She pressed her lips to his, her mouth full of desperation more than passion.
He stroked her hair and waited until she took a breath to draw back. “Not out here. You’ll turn into a tree, and it will take hours for you to turn back. Clarissa will never allow you to visit with me again.” He tried to make his voice light and teasing, but it was difficult to do so.
“I figured out how I can not turn into a tree. Gertrude showed me what I could do that might please you. We practiced.”
Lucifer swallowed. “You practiced. With Gertrude?”
Her eyebrows lifted with hope. “She said it was sex education.”
“I’m sure she did.”
Abigail wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him again. This time he gave in to temptation. He relaxed into her embrace and allowed her to show him what she’d discovered.
* * *
Ten minutes later, Lucifer lay in her arms, relaxed and content. He supposed he should have adjusted his trousers or taken her to the stream to wash the stain off her dress or the stickiness from her hands, but he was too drowsy to move at the moment.
He leaned his head against her shoulder while she stroked his scalp as though he were a cat. She hadn’t changed into a tree. He’d only drawn a small amount of her magic out as she’d kissed him and touched him. The flowers blooming in her hair and the green sparkles of magic shimmering around her were small compared to what had happened in the past.
“When we have more time, the next time you come and visit, we can try again,” Abigail said. “Only next time we can make love in a bed. And if I do start to turn into a tree, we can stop before that happens.”
“It will take some practice together. Homework.” They were still both students after all.
She threaded her fingers through his hair. “But it won’t be horrible homework like writing an essay. It will be something we can do together that we’ll both like.”
“Exactly.” A smile stole over his lips. “It will be more like math homework than essay writing.”
She tickled him in the ribs. He squirmed away, laughing.
“Do you feel better now that you know I’m not a selfish brat?” She kissed his nose.
His body felt better. His affinity was recharged. But that didn’t solve everything he still didn’t know how to talk to her about. “I didn’t think you were a selfish brat before.”
“A soulless brat, then? You thought my insufficient soul would make me cruel and uncaring?” She raised an eyebrow.
He had, but he wasn’t about to admit that. He still was concerned about the progress of her soul. “You know what would make me feel better? If you let me use my affinity to evaluate the progress of—”
“No,” she said firmly. Her gaze flickered to the amulet half hidden under his shirt.
He placed a hand over it protectively, remembering how she’d tried to steal it from him before. “I’m not going to put your soul inside you without your permission.”
“It isn’t mine. It’s hers.”
Hers. The old Abigail. The person she was convinced she didn’t want to be. He couldn’t just let that soul stay in a bottle forever. The old Abigail had taken care of him for years as a cat. He owed her a chance at a new life, but he didn’t know how.
He needed to find a way to talk to the new Abigail about this, to convince her before time ran out that she needed to supplement the soul inside her in some way. It wasn’t just her that an incomplete soul was dangerous for. Some of her behavior in the past had been questionable—like putting potions in his food. She might accidentally hurt someone one of these days.
“Now, enough talk about souls.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.
He knew what she was doing, distracting him. She was so adept at it. Kelsie had once suggested Abigail was manipulative. The old Abigail had never tried to distract him this way.
Even so, he enjoyed being lulled by the way she stroked his hair and pressed up against him. He forced himself to pull away. “There’s other things we need to talk about. Things that need to be discussed.”
“Like what?” She threaded her fingers through his beard.
“It’s weighed greatly on my mind what you would think of me for my affair with Gertrude to fuel my magic. Or anyone else I needed to couple with in the past.” He swallowed at that. He had only confessed to one unfaithful deed. The worst was still there, unspoken. His moment of contentment evaporated.
She shrugged. “I already knew about Gertrude. She’d told me you had a past together before I was born.”
Before she’d been resurrected. Lucifer didn’t correct her.
She went on. “It seemed natural that she might help you when I couldn’t. I’m just glad she did because I didn’t know you were suffering. But from now on, you won’t need to go to her, right?”
“I hope not. But you need to understand, there are times I’ve slept with other women besides Gertrude. You do realize that, don’t you?” His heart lurched in his chest as he thought about the cost of his indiscretion. “There were times you were unconscious or too young and didn’t understand. It wouldn’t have been right to touch you that way. I needed to fuel my affinity with others.”
“Yes. I know. I don’t blame you. You couldn’t have me, but you still needed to use magic.” She touched her lips to his with a kiss as light as butterfly wings grazing against flowers. “But now things will be different, right? You’ll only have me.”
“I’m here in this forest finishing my apprenticeship with Baba. You’re over in Clarissa’s castle where it’s safe.” He paused, letting that sink in.
Her eyebrows lifted in question.
“How am I supposed to recharge my affinity with you?” He kept his voice gentle. “Don’t tell me you’re going to come here to live. If you had been here a few days ago, Baba would have used your toes and not her own.”
“I suppose it makes sense you won’t always be able to save yourself for me if I’m away.” Tears filled her eyes. “Just as long as your heart is true to me.”
“My heart belongs to you.” He meant it. Whether it was the old Abigail or the new version of her, he loved her as one.
The problem was she was in two pieces and didn’t want those pieces united. He still didn’t know how to solve that.
She laughed, the sound so free and merry. “If lightning were to strike me down at this moment, I think I could die happy. I’ve been waiting for you to say that to me forever.” She covered his face in kisses.
That declaration was too much like when he had accidentally struck her with lightning—with his electrical magic. Nor did he think she would be half as happy after he finished his confession.
She laughed harder. “You look so serious. Like Felix. Please say you’re making that face just to be silly.”
Ugh. His brother. Why did she have to compare him to Felix?
Her smile faded. “Is something the matter? Did I say something wrong?”
“I’m—” The words
caught in his throat. “I’ve had dalliances with Fae women in the forest. I probably will still have to, though I’ll take greater precautions in the future.” He didn’t want to ruin this happy moment with her. He wished he could keep this secret and spare her knowing, but he didn’t know if Galen was his only child.
His words came out in a rush. “I found out a couple days ago I had a child. The mother’s name was Morag. I coupled with her in the forest. I didn’t realize I would get her pregnant. Most Fae are sterile, and I’ve never gotten anyone else pregnant that I know of. I should have thought more about the consequences.” He didn’t know if she truly understood how his powers worked. “It’s because I’m a Red affinity. We can sire children with Fae.”
“Oh.” Abigail’s eyes went wide. “Do you love her? You intend to . . . marry her?”
“No. It wasn’t like that. Morag was a wild creature. I doubt muileateaches believe in marriage. In any case, she died in childbirth. I was left with the baby. Galen, that’s what I named him. You remember how hideous Izzy’s baby was when she was born? All twisted and leathery. My baby was the same, but he got cuter after a couple of days. You should have seen him. I thought . . . I’d hoped, you might find it in your heart to love him. But I know it’s a lot to ask someone else to love your child when it isn’t theirs.”
“I don’t think it’s that hard.” She frowned. “Godric loves Lucille.”
“Yes, but she had that baby before they knew each other. Lucille wasn’t a child born out of wedlock while they were courting each other.” Like Galen was.
“Do you think that would make a difference to me? I understand your situation. It isn’t the same as Izzy’s.” She shook her head, the seriousness of her expression so adult and mature she reminded him of the old Abigail. Perhaps her soul was progressing to the point that she was becoming the same person she had been before. “What happened to Galen?”
Heartache dwelled inside him like a living creature, gnawing on his organs. “The other muileateaches came for me. Morag didn’t survive the delivery, and they wanted to take out their grief on someone. They wanted revenge. Baba told them to take Galen instead.”
“When was that?”
His eyes burned, and he closed them. “Yesterday.”
“I’m sorry.” She cradled him against herself and stroked his hair. “It’s still fresh and hurts.”
He nodded.
“Is there anything I can do?”
“Don’t get pregnant.”
She snorted. “I’m not going to punish you and try to get revenge on you if you do get me pregnant.”
“No, but I’ll be an apprentice still, and I’m certain Clarissa will keep you away from me—and any babies we have. I won’t be able to help you raise a child, and my children won’t know me if I’m an apprentice. I’ll be stuck here, staying young while you age.”
Abigail held him and kissed his forehead, the way he used to do for her when she was having a bad day. He wished he could have remained in the sanctuary of her arms all day and all night, every day.
* * *
Lucifer longed for Abigail before she’d even left. As he escorted her to the carriage with Vega and Clarissa, Vega took hold of his arm, guiding him away from Abigail.
Vega’s fingers were like talons and her grip stronger than his despite her willowy frame. “Try another stunt like stealing from me again, and I will make you regret it for the rest of your life.”
And it had been such a pleasant visit up until this moment.
“Indeed, Your Majesty,” he said.
“You have wronged me, and by Fae laws, I am entitled to a favor.” A wicked smile curled her lips upward.
He grunted noncommittally.
“Don’t you want to know what I’m going to ask of you?” she demanded.
“No, but I’m certain you will tell me.”
She released his arm. “Your powers of divination are clearly lacking for a Thatch. For your insolence, I’m not going to tell you. I’ll allow you to wonder until I come calling next time with the command for you to repay your debt.” She winked at him. “Toodles.”
* * *
After Abigail left, Lucifer opened the wooden box Abigail had brought from Peter. Inside he found the woven blanket that the valet had promised to keep safe. Lucifer ran a hand over the vines that had remained fresh and alive with magic.
Lucifer had made a friend, and he appreciated Peter’s gesture, though he no longer knew what to do with the blanket or Abigail’s soul.
Abigail had refused the old soul, and he would honor her wish. More importantly, he loved the new Abigail and wouldn’t ask her to change for him. But she would need to regrow her current soul if she didn’t accept the old one.
He showed the blanket to Baba.
“Do not get rid of them yet. You still may have need of it.” Her gaze flickered to the amulet at his throat.
He doubted he would be able to use either, but he knew better than to argue with Baba. She always had her reasons, even when she wasn’t willing to share them. He had a feeling this was one of those occasions.
CHAPTER FIVE
Spymaster Odette
Two days later, a Raven scraped at his windowsill in the early morning, waking Lucifer from his sleep. He supposed the raven probably had a message for him, but he would have been just as happy finding the letter slipped under the door when he woke for chores. He rolled over and tried to return to his happy dreams, but the raven pecked at the window.
Lucifer excavated himself from the depths of blankets and dressed. The gray gloom of dawn greeted him when he opened the door. Pockets of mist swirled around trees and along the path. The raven swooped down from the eaves of the cottage. She twisted and transformed into mist, her bird body stretching and wavering.
Lucifer stared in awe. His sister stood before him. He had never seen Odette transform from a bird to a woman. She stepped forward in a gown of plumage, her midnight hair flowing into the shadows that seemed to swim around her.
“Are you here to play more practical jokes on your naive younger brother?” He crossed his arms.
Technically, he was older, but she had lived longer as a human and had more experience with cunning—which she’d used on him. He hadn’t forgiven her for handing over Vega’s scepter—which she’d surely known wasn’t real.
Odette’s expression remained grim. “Queen Clarissa has sent me to discover if you’re harboring a stowaway.”
“What?” Lucifer asked. “No. Who? What do you mean?”
Odette looked him up and down before elbowing him out of the way.
“What kind of stowaway?” Lucifer asked.
Odette strode into the cottage, her heels making soft thuds against the floor. She snapped her fingers at the fire, and it blazed to life. She peeked around Baba’s curtain where the old woman slept, eyed the cage where Baba kept children she caught nibbling on the gingerbread façade, and climbed up the stepladder to examine the loft.
Kelsie sat up in her bed. “Um, good morning?”
Odette ignored her.
“Is this a joke? What are you doing?” Lucifer asked.
Odette jumped from the loft, gliding down effortless using giant raven wings that sprouted from her back. “Queen Clarissa told me if I think you’re lying, I was to search the cottage for signs of Abigail’s presence. She even gave me leave to torture you if I needed to. Unfortunately, I can see you’re telling the truth.”
Worry banished all fatigue from Lucifer’s brain. “Isn’t Abby with Clarissa?”
“No. Abigail is missing.”
CHAPTER SIX
Lost and Found
Lucifer felt as though his heart seized at Odette’s words. How could Abigail be missing? She was supposed to be safe and taken care of at the castle.
Odette strode across the room toward the open door. “Obviously you don’t know anything about it. Sorry to wake you. Go back to sleep. We’ll handle thin
gs.”
Lucifer dove in front of her before she could get away. “Whoa! No. What happened? How long has she been missing? Did anyone see anything?”
“Eight hours in our time. The last person to see her was Izzy, and she says she knows nothing. The only place Abigail has ever wanted to go is here to see you. Where else might she venture?”
“I don’t know. Has anyone tried to divine where she might be?” If Abigail had run away to see him but gotten lost in the forest, she might not be able to find her way out. There were dangerous creatures like the muileateaches and sirens, who were civil enough to Lucifer—but only because they wanted him for his body. The leshi that had once been out there would sooner eat a lost maiden than help her.
“Of course they’ve tried divining, but there’s too much Fae magic interfering.” Odette made no attempt to be quiet.
It was just as well. Baba rose from her bed, using her cane to push herself to her feet.
Kelsie climbed down the stepladder in her nightgown. “What can we do to help?”
“Send word if she arrives.” Odette said. “Otherwise, stay out of the way. Don’t interfere. We are handling this.”
Baba squinted at Odette, her displeasure evident as she pursed her lips. “You come here stirring up worry like a cauldron of slop and then expect Lucy not to become involved? You will take him back to the castle with you and let him see what he can find.”
Odette snorted, disdain in her eyes. “Your protégé is an amateur. He won’t be able to find anything I haven’t already found.”
Baba wrapped one of her blankets around her shoulders, looking small and frail in her nightgown. “Lucy, use your affinity to track where Odette has been. Tell her where she was before coming to us.”
Lucifer had assumed the cottage would be the first place Odette would go to inquire after Abigail. He found it curious Baba would think otherwise, but he didn’t question her. Time was a commodity they couldn’t buy more of.
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