Kennedy moved closer to the visitors, introducing everyone to each other. The testosterone in the room grew thick as smoke, the men distrustful as they approached each other, their shoulders rolling back, their chests puffing out.
“Should we let them strut around, fluffing up their feathers?” I approached Zoey, shaking her hand.
Slight amusement danced on her face as she glanced from Eli to Ryker before her green eyes fell on me. I could feel her sizing me up in just a second, studying me. I had been in enough battles and fights to recognize the signs of an opponent figuring out your flaws or weaknesses.
“Guess it’s not solely the men.” I held my gaze on her, not bowing to the intensity of it.
Her grin widened, her hand landing in mine. “I have a feeling we’ll be perfectly fine.”
“Or kill each other.” I shrugged.
“Or that.” She gave a small laugh and her shoulders softened.
“Damn, horny rabbits, get off me.” A small voice croaked from Zoey’s bag, a furry head popping out. “What? Where are we? Is it lunchtime?”
“What the hell?” I jumped back, my eyes widening at the tiny thing crawling out of the carrier. “Th-that’s a monkey? It’s. Talking.”
“Well done.” The monkey jerked his thumb at me, hopping up on Zoey’s shoulder. “Another one who proves how well the school system works around here.”
“Holy shit.” I blinked at the tiny brown creature. He couldn’t have been more than five inches tall.
“But to be accurate, I’m actually not a monkey. I am a sprite. My name is Spriggan-Galchobhar.” He patted his chest.
“Sprigga-a-what?” My tongue tumbled over his name.
“Just call him, Sprig,” the blonde girl, Annabeth, said.
“I hate to break it to you.” Eli came beside me, looking a little bewildered at the creature. “But I’ve seen a lot of sprites in my time. You’re not that.”
“Well, I’ve had some work done.” Sprig huffed, folding his arms. “Kinda like Pam.”
“Who’s Pam?” I asked.
“Uh…” Zoey muttered. “Long story.”
“My girlfriend.” The monkey peered at me like duh.
“She’s a fuckin’ stuffed animal.” The man I learned to be Croygen spoke up, rolling his gorgeous smoldering eyes. “A goat.”
“Shut up, pirate-booty. At least I have one.”
“No, you shut up, you fuzzy ass-wiper.”
“Ass-wiper? At least I’m not an ass face.”
“Guys.” Zoey dropped her face in her hands, shaking her head. “Do we need a time-out again? I swear my infant son is more mature than you two.” Zoey huffed, but a small smile twitched her lips. “Sprig was a lab experiment—”
“Gone wrong,” Croygen muttered.
“Gone right.” Zoey rubbed the little guy’s head. “He was part of Dr. Rapava’s research.”
“The DMG.” Kennedy stepped to my other side. “Yes, Lars told me about it.”
I had heard of the DMG. It had been destroyed about six years ago. A horrible government institution, especially for fae. They had hunted and tested them, used them as lab rats.
Ryker moved closer to Zoey, catching my eye. “You’re a dae. Half demon.”
With that word, I suddenly understood the connection.
“So are you…half demon, I mean?” I tilted my head. He was at least half demon. Our demons recognized each other. “But what else are you?”
Ryker shifted on his feet, his jaw twitching, as if he didn’t want to tell me. I knew asking was rude, but my mouth always opened before I thought.
“A wanderer.” He grunted so low, I barely heard him.
“A wanderer?” Gabby squeaked from the back wall. Damn dweller ears. They pick up everything. “Are you kidding me?”
Ryker glared at her but didn’t respond.
“What’s a wanderer?” I glanced between him and Gabby. Not being raised fae, I was still learning things I’d have acquired growing up in the Otherworld.
“They’re as rare as you, Brycin.” Eli folded his arms, examining Ryker. “Only a handful over the centuries have been born.”
“Or made.” Zoey winked at the large blond man.
“Made?” Kennedy asked, her eyebrows crunching down. “I’ve read you can only be born as one.”
“Yeah, well throw in a freak electrical storm... and voila.” Zoey motioned to herself.
Ice slithered down my throat, a heaviness plunking into my gut.
“An electrical storm?” I croaked.
“Over six years ago now, a crazy lightning storm hit Seattle. You lived around here, right? Devastated Seattle and surrounding areas. Killed thousands. But during that storm somehow his powers transferred to me. Long story short, I became a wanderer too.”
My hand went to my mouth, my body curved to the side, acid scorching the back of my throat. Crap on ash bark.
Eli’s hand rubbed my arm. “Do you need me to get you a bucket?”
“Not funny.” Though I almost said yes. Years of emotions I thought I’d dealt with crawled up and sat in the back of my throat. It was impossible not to cross paths with people I had affected, but I never really knew if the person I passed had lost a loved one or their home because of me.
“What’s wrong? What did I say?” Zoey’s expression seemed bewildered by my violent reaction.
“Did you lose anyone?” I couldn’t look at her.
“My foster mother, Joanna. I thought I lost Lexie too. And my partner Daniel, but he died by a group of fae, not the storm. Annabeth lost her whole family. A lot of people did. It was one of the most devastating catastrophes ever to happen here. And what happened because of it…the aftermath…a lot of damage was done.” She looked over at the blonde, sadness and loss passing between them. Zoey didn’t mean structural damage, which shoved the vomit higher in my throat. “It was so powerful; I knew it had to be done by fae magic.”
My head spun, air sticking in my throat.
“Breathe, Brycin.” Eli gripped my wrists, holding me upright. Even after this long, the guilt I felt overwhelmed me. The dead haunted me. Innocent people, who had merely been going along with their lives, had everything taken from them in a blink.
“Em, it was Aneira…not you.” Kennedy tried to soothe me, but it didn’t help. Aneira might have threatened me by hurting Mark, but in the end, it was still my choice. I chose him. Catching my dad’s eyes across the room, I saw the guilt and sadness he still held. He shouldn’t. He told me not to, but I couldn’t lose him, too, no matter the costs.
Now I was face to face with the consequences of my decision.
Ryker’s heavy gaze tore into me, his voice low. “It was you.”
Zoey’s head jerked to him, her mouth parting, looking back at me. Her lids widened when I didn’t refute his claim.
“The reason daes were illegal is because they contain too much magic.” Ryker’s voice was empty of emotion. “Enough magic to destroy a city…”
My head bowed, my lids squishing together.
“You?” Zoey’s face was a mix of emotions, as though she didn’t know how to feel or think about the girl in front of her. I didn’t look like much compared to the utter destruction I caused. The lives I ruined and took. “You were the one?”
“You did it? You were the reason all that happened to me?” A strangled noise came from Annabeth as she turned away from me. Lexie wrapped an arm around her friend.
I felt like a pariah, even though Eli stood by me. Only I could carry the weight, feel the true burden of what had happened on that hill.
“I am so sorry,” I whispered. “I realize nothing I say can take away the pain I had caused.” I knew whatever happened to her, it was my fault.
“It’s not Ember’s burden to carry alone. She had no choice.” Lorcan’s words startled me, jolting my gaze to him as he stepped up next to Kennedy. “I was there. I was the one who was made to provoke her. The Queen had an amplifier there. She was forced to do it.�
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Lorcan was defending me? What bizarro world did I step into?
“Wait. You were there? On the old Queen’s side?” Croygen stared at our group. “And you’re here? Am I missing something?”
“Oh, novels’ worth.” Kennedy rubbed the bridge of her nose. “But now is not the time. We can’t change the past. We have problems right now we must deal with. The stone is taking over Lars and coming for Zoey. And Stavros, who seems to have risen from the dead, is here to claim the throne.”
“And the lack of honey.” Sprig stood up. “That is the real travesty.”
“Honey? Pfffftttt.” A winged figure zoomed by my head. “No, what this room needs is to get a barrel full of juniper juice.”
“I second it.” Croygen held up his arm. The tension in the room dissolved.
“My lady, we were searching for you.” Simmons buzzed by my shoulder. “Aaaahhh!” He tipped forward, heading for the ground.
“Pull up! Pull up, you troll twat!” Cal yelled at Simmons, landing perfectly on my shoulder. Simmons brushed the ground, curving his false wings back toward me. Eli reached out, grabbing him before he tried to land again and placed him on my other shoulder.
“Pixies?” Sprig fisted his hands. “Honey bear farts, no!”
“What is your problem, monkey-man?” Cal leaned into my neck, crossing his arms. “Someone glue your furry butt cheeks together?”
“You would do that. Evil pixies!” Sprig stuck his tongue out.
“Sprig?” Zoey tapped his head. “Why are you being rude?”
“As if he knows any other way.” Croygen snorted. “But if you didn’t know, sprites and pixies don’t like each other. Because the little dickheads are too similar.”
“Hey!” Simmons’s chest puffed out. “How dare you insult pixies? We are nothing like sprites.”
“Creatures that are stubborn, obsess about eating and drinking, and love to play tricks on people?” Croygen rubbed his chin. “Yeah, nothing alike.”
“Please, sprites don’t know how to drink. Can’t hold an ounce of alcohol. What kind of fae is that?” Cal snorted.
“And you couldn’t consume pure honey as I do. Pansies!”
“Oh. Oh. Oh.” Cal hopped up and down on my bone. “Bring it on, monkey man. Not as if you are doing a very good job at being a sprite anyway.” He motioned to his fur.
“Ohhhhhh.” Sprig’s eyes widened. “Challenge accepted. The honey bears will take you down.”
“And one drop of juniper juice will have you crying for your mommy.”
“Why do I feel I should step in…? But nah, this will be so fun to watch.” Eli snickered. “Plus, peanut butter always wins.”
“Are we taking bets?” Croygen lifted an eyebrow.
“Now you’re talking.” Eli grinned.
“Taking bets on what?” West came sauntering in, winked at me, then turned to Kennedy. “Sorry, darlin’. Had a late night.”
I snorted with laughter.
Rez strolled in behind him, holding a coffee, looking as stunning as always. Living at the ranch had relaxed her attire and her personality. She mostly wore jeans or cargo pants but somehow still looked stylish. She walked over to me, handing me her coffee to take a sip.
I adored her. “Thank you.” I hugged the cup.
“Thought you might need it too.” She grinned at me. “What did we miss?”
My mouth opened to catch her up, when movement across the room pulled my attention away.
“Oh. Gods…” Croygen shoved through his group, his mouth open, staring at Rez as if he had seen a ghost. His head started to shake back and forth. “No. You can’t possibly be?”
Rez turned her head, searching for whomever this man was addressing, but his gaze was latched on her with a mix of shock and apprehension.
“Morweena?”
Rez inhaled sharply, her feet moving back a few steps. “H-how do you know that name?”
Who was Morweena?
“I can’t believe this.” Croygen shook his head.
“How do you know her?” Rez’s eyes flashed, her shoulders stiffening. “How do you know my mother?”
Croygen blinked, his gaze moving over Rez again, a wildness spinning around his dark eyes. “Your mother…of course.” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “You look so much like her.”
My head snapped back and forth between the two, a strange feeling swirling in my gut.
“Actually, she told me I was the spitting image of my father. I thought that was why she hated me so much.” Rez’s voice dropped a few notches, defensiveness coiling in her tone. “Answer me. How do you know her?”
“We knew each other a long time ago.” His chest began to move up and down. “Intimately.”
Rez’s pressed a hand to her chest. In that moment looking between them, the dark hair, almond eyes, tanned skin, and high cheekbones...
Holy. Crap. On. Ash bark.
“You’re the pirate,” she whispered.
“Tradesman.”
“Oh gods…” Rez gripped West’s arm, bending forward as though she were going to faint.
“Holy shit.” West stood strong at her side, staring at Croygen in bewilderment.
“No.” Croygen’s eyes widened, retreating, but his eyes stopped on every feature they shared, seeming to understand.
You’d have to be blind to not see it. It was like when I first saw Fionna beside Kennedy. There was no way they weren’t related.
“No!” He wandered around in a circle similar to a madman. “This is a joke, right?”
“You were on your way to the Orient, correct? When you stopped in Greece?” Rez straightened, her grip still holding tight to West.
Croygen swore, running his hand over his head and neck, not able to stand still, his face pale, as if he were either going to throw up or pass out.
“You met a young siren named Morweena. Took her innocence on the beach, claiming you loved her?”
“No. No…” Croygen took another step back, his head shaking. “This can’t be...”
“She fell in love with you, was willing to leave her family, her calling, to be with you. The night she was going tell you she was pregnant with your child, you were gone. Without a word. Like a true thief of the night, you disappeared.”
Croygen bent over his hand, grabbing on to his knees, sucking in gulps of air.
“I-I didn’t know she was pregnant.” He said it so low it was more to himself than anyone else.
“That’s because you left before she could tell you.” A sprout of anger burst from Rez’s words. “You destroyed her that night. Shattered her heart into such tiny pieces it could never be put back together.” Resentment lined Rez’s face. “I grew up with her bitterness. Hate. She couldn’t even love me. Always saw your face in mine.”
“Holy fuck.” Croygen stood, rubbing his face. Rez seemed to be taking this slightly better than him because she had always known he existed. For Croygen, this was all new. “You, you’re my daughter?”
Both were silent, staring at each other, realizing the monumental moment happening while they watched each other.
“Don’t worry,” Rez finally whispered. “I want nothing from you. Like every young idiot girl, I dreamed of you coming back for us. But those dreams died a long time ago.”
Croygen shook his head. “You don’t understand. I would never have left if I had known. I didn’t want to leave her.”
“What do you mean, you didn’t want to?”
“I can’t believe this.” He started pacing again.
“What did you mean?” Rez repeated the sentiment.
Croygen gripped his hand into a fist, anger dancing around him. “I was in love with your mother,” he bellowed. “I wanted her to come with me. I asked her to. She was the one who broke my heart.”
Rez’s brow furrowed with confusion. “What?”
“Men were after me. The cargo I was carrying to Asia was much sought after. I left a note for her that I was hiding in a cove
down the coast and to come find me there. To run away with me. I waited for three days.” Croygen held up his fingers. “Three. A mutiny took place on my boat because of it. I went against code. We weren’t even supposed to stay in Greece more than a night to replenish supplies. But I broke every rule. Most of my men left me when we got to the next port.” He took a deep breath. “After three days, I realized what a fool I had been. Sirens didn’t love, they bewitched you into following them to your death. I pulled up anchor and left and never returned or allowed myself to be played the fool again.”
A tear ran down Rez’s cheek. She quickly wiped it away, looking at her feet. “She never got the note. She thought you were the one who tricked her. That you left her without a thought.”
“No. I didn’t,” he said quietly back. His anger vanished, face drawn with heavy sadness.
I could barely fathom it. All these years both were broken hearted thinking the other hadn’t loved them. A little girl raised without her father because of a miscommunication.
“I can’t believe this.” He ran his hand over his silky hair. “I have a child.”
“Not really much of a child anymore.” Rez’s voice strained with emotion.
I shifted on my feet, feeling as if we were all intruding on this private moment.
“I hated you for so long. I never wanted to meet you.” Rez’s eyes shined with tears. “But that was a lie. I always hoped someday I would find you.”
“Damn, this is so weird.”
Rez laughed. “Yeah, it is.”
“In the last ten minutes, I became a father to a grown woman.” He motioned to her, his voice going soft. “This will take a while to process. I’ve missed so much.”
“So have I.” She took a shaky step toward him. “I don’t expect anything. I only want to get to know you.”
“Me too.” Croygen’s voice cracked, blinking back the emotion.
“Hi, I’m Rez…your daughter.” Rez held out her hand to him. He stared at it, then back at her. He took her hand in his, smiling at her.
“I’m Croygen, the asshole pirate,” he smirked. “And your shit father.” Neither went to hug the other, but you could already see a bond forming.
My throat choked with unshed tears.
Rise From The Embers (Lightness Saga Book 4) Page 9