“I just won my freedom from Adira, and I don’t want her knowing that I’m hiding out in your cabin. And she’ll figure it out if we both don’t show up to class.”
He heaved a sigh.
“Fine. I’ll go to class and keep up pretenses on one condition.”
“What condition?”
“Tonight, we share the bed.”
My mouth dropped open. He grinned.
“I’ll take that as a yes. See you tonight, cuddle bunny.”
He was out the door before I could answer. I hurried after him, but he was already gone. Only a last-second thought that someone else might hear stopped me from yelling his name.
Instead, I marched inside and grabbed my phone.
Me: I did not agree to the terms of that deal.
Fenris: Does that mean I should stop in and say hi to Mom and Dad today? They live north of town, right? Or should I just meet you and Mom at the club?
Me: No to all of that. Be nice. You’re the only one in my life who is right now.
Fenris: I think you just drew blood. No visits. No cuddles. Got it.
I stared at the phone for a minute, feeling guilty for being so firm. It was for his protection. Especially the cuddles. Instead of dwelling on it, I grabbed a change of clothes, put out the fire, then left the cabin.
It was a long, cold walk back to the car. Although I felt the tingle of awareness shiver over my skin, I ignored it and kept going.
Only when I was in the warming car did I look at the surrounding trees. Nothing moved. Whatever was out there still remained hidden. And that was fine with me. I didn’t have time to deal with any new problems. My existing list was long enough.
While it felt like an eternity had passed since I’d found the druids, I knew it’d only been a few days. A few days since the banshees sang. Almost two weeks since Ashlyn disappeared. The weight of regret settled on my shoulders.
I sent a quick message to the druids, asking for an update, and another to Mom, warning her that she and Dad were about to have an early morning visit. Without waiting for any replies, I started out for my parents’ house.
By the time I arrived, Dad was dressed and at the door.
“I was so worried about you after your mother told me you had to dine with Adira. Are you okay?” He hugged me warmly then ushered me inside.
“I’m fine.”
“Have a seat. I’ll make you something to eat. Your mother had to deal with some issues at Club Blayz last night and won’t be up for a while yet.”
“Would you mind if I took a shower first?”
Worry crept into his gaze.
“Use the guest bathroom,” Dad said. “I keep that one clean.”
I didn’t even want to know why their bathroom wouldn’t be clean.
My phone buzzed as I undressed.
Lauv: Since we don’t know what went wrong, exactly, we’re quietly inquiring about the words we spoke out of turn during the spell. To avoid drawing unwanted attention, we’re being careful and not pushing too hard for help or information. We’re doing locator spells twice a day and summoning her ghost in the evenings. So far nothing. We don’t know what else to do.
I still held onto the hope that the lack of success with the locator spell and the summoning spell meant that Ashlyn had found a way out and a druid’s spell to hide her. I needed that confirmed, though, before I gave up looking for her.
Me: Keep doing what you’re doing, and let me know if anything changes.
I tossed the phone on the bed and thought of what I had planned for the day while the water warmed. Unlike Ashlyn, I would be far easier for Adira to find if I went anywhere but my parents’ house or the cabin.
Taking a leisurely shower, I thought of Fenris’s cabin and its lack of plumbing. While I appreciated the seclusion it offered, I wasn’t yet ready to forego bathing to avoid Adira. When I finished, I bundled my dirty clothes in my towel and went to find Dad.
Looking barely awake, Mom sat at the table. She nudged the cup beside her.
“Come sit and have some hot chocolate.”
“Where’s Dad?”
“I sent him outside after he woke me. He’s too agitated to be reasonable at the moment.”
“Why is he agitated? He said you were tired. Why would he wake you up?”
She patted the chair and didn’t say anything until I sat.
“Rather than worry about him, let’s talk about why you needed a shower.”
“There wasn’t one where I was staying.”
“And where were you staying?”
I shook my head, unwilling to share that secret even with Mom.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“There’s no shame in enjoying someone’s company for an evening, Eliana. Especially after Adira’s failed attempt to feed you. However, you might want to choose partners who have decent bathing facilities. There are so many things that can be enjoyed in a multi-head shower.”
Realization hit me hard. “Dad thought I was—”
“Covered in the liquid joy derived from a night of frantic copulation? Yes. But not because of anything you’ve done. It’s a memory from long ago. But, baby, even if you had shown up on this doorstep glistening with—"
“Please don’t.”
“Well, it would have been okay. Your father’s love for you wouldn’t have changed.”
I wasn’t so sure about that. “And you?”
“I would have been overjoyed.” She smiled and patted my hand, but her humor died quickly as she considered me. “I think it’s time we have a frank talk.”
“We haven’t been talking frankly?”
“Do you know why I left you here when you were twelve?”
The odd question made me frown.
“I asked you to?”
“No, baby. I left you here because you weren’t ready.” She took a big breath. “A fly reaches sexual maturity within one week. A frog? Within one to two years. A brownie, as you discovered, reaches sexual maturity around 14 months. Why am I telling you all this?”
I shook my head, unsure where she was going with her weird fact dump.
“Different species mature at different rates. We’re not human, baby. We’re succubi. While so many of our characteristics and attributes are just like humans, we’re not the same. I was twelve when I reached sexual maturity. I didn’t question what was happening to me. My hunger drove me, and I embraced it.”
I swallowed hard and looked down at my hands.
“I’m not saying this to pressure you into feeding. I’m trying to help you understand something.
“You were so different from me. When I showed you how to feed, the revulsion and horror you felt was always plain on your face and in your scent. I left you with the Quills because, while you were sexually mature, you weren’t emotionally ready to embrace what you were.” She gave me a sad smile. “Based on what I heard in your voice last night, you still aren’t. I’m sorry that Adira pushed you into doing something you weren’t ready to do.”
I understood now what Mom meant by a frank talk. She was ready to listen. To really hear me. I swallowed hard.
“I don’t know what I think about last night. I hated taking away their will and forcing them to do things I knew they wouldn’t normally want to do. I could feel how hard Adira was fighting it, and I knew the moment her will was about to break. She did, too, based on when she’d vanished.