Page 58 of Fated to the Demon Lord

“Later.” It was clear he was on high alert.

Vaelor’s mist curled at our feet. I gazed around the forest, birds chirping, and a lightness I couldn’t explain enveloped me. And yet in the corners a darkness lingered, a foreboding of something waiting in the shadows.

A figure moved. It took the form of a woman, stepping out from behind a tree. She matched my height and wore a simple dress.

I stopped walking and just stared. “Ma?”

Tears filled my mother’s eyes, and she stepped toward me, throwing her arms around my shoulders. “Oh, Denara, my love. I’m so glad you are safe.”

I didn’t move. Didn’t respond. I suspected she might be here—but for her to be here left me feeling as if the ground underneath my feet were falling away. I shut my eyes, trying to stabilize my world, but when I opened them, nothing had changed.

Mother didn’t appear to care. She stepped back and wiped at her eyes. “I never thought I’d see you again.”

I managed to control the fury that threatened to erupt at those words. “Yes, well, you left…” I said flatly.

Bargoth claimed I resembled her, but I observed the new gray strands in her hair, the extra wrinkles around her mouth and eyes. But she appeared healthy, maybe even healthier than when I last saw her. There was a soft glow about her and a confidence in her movements that I’d never seen before. And yet, her scent was the same—violet and sage. The same way she’d smelled the day she’d given me a hug before she disappeared.

Gods, and her voice was the most familiar thing in the world. How many nights had I lain awake wishing to hear her speak?

“Sweetheart, I’m so sorry, but I had to,” she said, her expression earnest. “And Gerand? What happened to him?”

It was as if she’d stabbed a knife into an open wound. I dropped my gaze, unable to meet hers. “He’s gone.” Shit. What was wrong with me? Somehow I felt ashamed to admit to the woman who had abandoned us that I had lost my baby brother.

Mother recoiled, eyes widening in horror. “You mean he’s…he’s…”

“He was sold off,” I bit out. The injustice of it built a heated pressure behind my gaze. “You left us, and he’s gone to be a slave who knows where.”

She swiped at her eyes. “Thank the gods he’s alive.”

“I don’t know if he’s alive,” I yelled. A tear made its way down my cheek.

Mother wrung her hands. “I have people out searching for him. Now that we have more information, we can perhaps narrow the search. Come, come to my home, and I will explain everything.”

Vaelor cleared his throat. “Denara⁠—”

I held up a hand to cut him off.

Vaelor frowned. “I have⁠—”

“Not now,” I insisted. This conversation was between me and my mother. “And you’re a hedge witch?” My voice shook a little at that.

Mother’s mouth dropped open, and she looked at Bargoth.

Bargoth scratched his head, as if nervous. “Denara did some… magic earlier, and it was surprising to her. She must have realized it came from you.”

“It’s nothing to be frightened of, my dear.” She reached out to me again, but I jerked away. My body shook. She hadn’t even denied it. Did that really mean that I was a hedge witch? The lid on my emotions was ready to explode if she pushed me further.

She pressed her lips together. “I suppose we have much to discuss.”

“I don’t want to.”

Pain flashed across my mother’s face.

“Come now. I am sure there are misunderstandings, but if you come to our home, you can relax and we can clear this up,” Bargoth said.

“She said she didn’t want to.” Vaelor positioned himself right behind me, and I found his nearness reassuring.

“It’s up to you, of course,” Bargoth replied soothingly. “But I suspect you’re hungry and in need of rest. Please let us at least supply you with that?”