Pierce took another sip of his whiskey, his face oddly passive. He seemed to have come to some sort of acceptance of how things were. If he was angry, he wasn’t showing it. That seemed odd from someone who was in hiding from violently protesting the poor treatment of dragons. “Yes, Nodoor was behind other kingdoms in its treatment of dragons, but eventually that practice was found criminal. Sadly, it came too late for my older brother, Eben. The work was grueling and high risk. He died at work due to the poor conditions.”
And the hits just kept coming. How could I consider myself deserving of any good when I came from a family that was responsible for working someone to death? I pressed a hand to my stomach, a sickness growing in the pit of my stomach.
“Uncle Eben was my cousin, Nepa’s father,” Ivan began in a contemplative voice. “She was barely old enough to remember him when he passed.”
I hung my head, ashamed. My family had been responsible for the death of one of their family members. There was no getting over that. Ivan had to see me differently now.
Don’t you even think of running from me, Sunshine.He telepathically said in my head. One of the benefits of the mate bond was that we could talk to each other telepathically and although at times annoying, this was one time I appreciated it. I looked up to see Ivan narrow his emerald eyes at me and shake his head. My eyes threatened to water, but I blinked rapidly to hold the waterworks at bay. I wasn’t the one who should be crying. I wasn’t the victim.
I cleared my throat, and I sat up straighter. “I’m sorry. I know the words don’t mean much. My family is… challenging, but I’m not like that. And I’ll dedicate my life to ensuring that dragons are treated equally. Maybe it’s a good thing we had the treaty with Prinath. I would say you should come back, but they still might imprison you for the destroying buildings and things.”
Pierce gave me a soft smile as he scratched his chin. “Yes, you’re probably right about that. And there’s no need for you to apologize. It wasn’t you. Hell, you married one of us.” His smile faltered, and he took another sip of his drink again before continuing. “Besides, we aren’t so innocent, Jalisa. There’s no easy way to say this, but my family is also responsible for the death of your brother. We had a cousin and some of his associates who attacked your brother when he was arriving home from a trade. They stole his goods and murdered him.”
Have you ever had a moment when you’re swimming under water and the world above seems so disconnected? It’s close but distant at the same time. Words are being said, and sounds are coming through, but you can’t quite make them out. Like you’re peeking through a portal to another realm. That’s how I felt in that moment. Pierce was talking, but the words didn’t make sense. Even my vision felt off. Maybe it was the tears. Shit. I didn’t want to cry. I looked up to the ceiling as if that would make them slide back into my head instead of off to the side of my face.
I grumbled, disgusted with myself, and wiped at my face with my fingers. “There were guards with him and some associates. It was the most valuable trade he’d ever negotiated. It was dangerous traveling with such an expensive haul. We knew it had to be an insider who knew about the deal but could never find out who. It wasn’t just my brother who died, the whole group was killed, and they took everything. I guess they got their revenge for your brother.”
Pierce crossed his arms, giving me a sympathetic gaze. “It wasn’t about revenge, but you’re smart enough to know that. Just as you’re smart enough to know that your family probably had high suspicions of my family’s involvement.”
“They mentioned a few years back that Ivan’s family wasn’t who I thought they were but didn’t say exactly.”
“Because they had no proof, and it would only open the discussion about what your family did to ours. I do know that my cousin and his friends have disappeared, last I heard. I don’t think that’s a coincidence.”
“You don’t think that they took off with the items they stole?”
Pierce tilted his head in my direction and gave me a pointed stare. I huffed and looked away, already knowing the more likely answer. “My family killed them. Great, so our families more than hate each other, they kill each other.”
“No one knows that. I’m saying, the rumor was that they were handled. Although, don’t ask me about what happened to the items they stole.”
I took minor comfort that it wasn’t certain that my family killed them but, then again, they had a right to seek such revenge. Regardless of who did anything, I did hope that this cousin was dead. Knowing the truth would, however, give me some relief. “But I don’t understand why our families watched Ivan and I get together and said nothing about our shared history. That makes no sense.”
“It does if you have the decency to be ashamed of your family’s actions. And even if you knew, would it have changed anything?”
Ivan quickly shook his head, jaw tight. “Hell no.”
He was so certain. I wasn’t sure I could love him more, and I felt the same way. “I’m in for life now. But thinking a little deeper, I could see why our parents wouldn’t say anything. Ivan’s parents were probably concerned he’d be at risk if my parents knew the truth about what your cousin did and havingme so close upped that risk even if Ivan didn’t know. And my parents probably didn’t want Ivan around if they were behind killing his cousin, not to mention our connection to the death of his uncle. Our joining risked putting too much darkness to light.”
Pierce nodded. “How poetic.” He then clapped his hands. “So, how far do you think either of your families would go to keep you apart?”
Ivan and I exchanged worried looks. Our families clearly weren’t strangers to causing someone’s death. Could theybothbe behind the attacks?
Ivan chuckled, looking down at the drink in his hand. “The one time they’re on the same side and it’s to kill us.”
I wanted to disagree, but I didn’t like being naïve.
Chapter Nineteen
Jalisa
We needed to go back to the fae realm. We’d gotten all the answers and help we could get here. I fought through a restless sleep that night thinking of how I would go back to my parents and confront them. Were they behind the attacks on Ivan? If I told them I knew about our past, would they give in and give me the cure for his memory loss? They’d want something for it, no doubt. Most likely in the form of ending my union with Ivan.
I let out an exhausted breath and looked at myself in the bathroom mirror that next morning. Our time here was winding down. It wasn’t a total lost cause. Our meeting with Pierce had certainly been enlightening. I was glad that Ivan was able to meet his uncle. The pair had gone out for some bonding time lastnight, and I was asleep when Ivan returned, so I didn’t get to talk to him yet.
We needed to have a plan for when we returned. Perhaps it was time to threaten our parents. They wouldn’t volunteer the truth, so we’d have to snatch it from them. This had gone on far enough.
I left the bathroom with a renewed focus. “I think we’re going to have to kidnap our parents and force the truth out of them. My mother might cry, but don’t be deterred by her tears. It’s all part of her manipulation. Now, admittedly, your dad is a little scary. And the high possibility that he’s trying to kill me is problematic, but I can be strong. The question I have is, do you mind if I stab him just a-”
I paused, startled at what I was seeing. Ivan, in his hybrid form, sat at the edge of the bed, his bare iridescent blue back to me underneath his long, silken blue hair. But it wasn’t his position or form that stopped me. His wings were out. Massive turquoise blue wings, spanning almost his height lengthwise. They were scaled and rimmed in a darker navy blue boning structure like in his full dragon form. While his wings were beautiful, it was odd that they were out.
