“I planned to tell her when we returned from the ball in the Gloaming,” Sahira said. “It had been long enough since news of Del’s death arrived and we’d had time to grieve. I kept increasing the dosage, and it was only a matter of time before the potion stopped working, but Ineverplanned to utilize her for anything. I’m not likeyou.”
Orin rolled his eyes. “Yes, we all know I’m the devil. Blah blah blah blah blah. Let’s move on to something new, shall we? Like, whydidn’tyou tell her after the ball?”
Sahira looked to Cole. “Cole arrived, and then there was so much going on, and it was all happening so fast that I couldn’t dump it on her then. When he disappeared for two weeks and she was so heartbroken, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I had no idea when I would tell her; I was running out of time, but I… I…” Sahira’s words trailed off as her head bowed and she focused on the cat. “I was a coward, and I didn’t want to hurt her.”
Del leaned across the space separating them and rested his hand on her shoulder. “It should have been me. I should have told her when the war broke out. We all knew there was a chance I wouldn’t come home, and it never should have been left to you, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it either. You’re not a coward; I am.”
“Neither of you are cowards,” Lexi whispered.
And they both looked to her, but Orin cut into the touching moment.
“Are you going to continue taking the potion?” Orin asked Lexi.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Sahira’s handstilled on the cat as everyone in the room focused on Lexi. Cole chose not to acknowledge him.
“You stopped taking it?” Sahira asked.
“Not on purpose. I forgot with everything going on in the Gloaming. Cole was injured, and….” She shrugged.
“Are you okay?” Brokk demanded when Lexi’s voice trailed off.
“I’m fine,” Cole assured him. “Just a couple of stab wounds.”
“You took a fae sword to the heart,” Lexi said irritably. “And another to the ribs.”
“How thefuckare you still alive?” Orin blurted.
“It seems that not being a purebred dark fae has its advantages,” Brokk said with a smile. “But it hurts like a bitch.”
“That it does,” Cole agreed. “But Sahira’s potions took care of that.”
“Holy shit,” Orin muttered as he ran a hand through his hair and glanced between him and Lexi. “We have to be able to bring the Lord down.”
“We shall see, and we will take our time in getting to that point. We’renotrushing into this,” Cole said.
“Of course not, but we can take him. Iknowwe can.”
Cole hoped Orin was right, because something had to stop that monster before he destroyed them all.
“The sooner we get the duplicates of my brothers to the Lord, the sooner he’ll stop breathing down my neck. After that, we can start really planning.” He shifted his attention to Del. “Before you disappeared, you told me you were working on something that might change things and get us to the Lord; was it Lexi?”
“No,” Del said. “I never wanted her involved in any of this. Even if we took him out, I wouldn’t have revealed her true identity. Someone else wouldn’t have cared about the consequences of what that throne brings with it and would have tried to seize it for themselves. They would have tried to take her out to get it. I was afraid I wouldn’t be enough to protect her from that.”
“Now, she’ll have an army behind her,” Orin said.
“Nooneelse, other than Varo, is to know what she is until we have her abilities under control and are capable of protecting her,” Cole told him.
“What about the coalition?” Del asked.
Cole thought about the group formed between some of the most powerful immortals from each realm to secretly plot against the Lord. They hadn’t done much good to stop the Lord so far, but they were his allies.
“Not yet,” he finally said. “Maybe Maverick when we know more about Lexi’s abilities, but, for now, this is to remain between us.”
He could trust his uncle with this; he just didn’t want to draw Maverick into something this dangerous until they had a better idea of what was going on.
He focused on Del. “What was your plan back then?”
