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I recoiled away from him. “I don’t need help.”
He grimaced, his gaze drifting to his brother. “You do, especially if—” He bit down on his lip, but I didn’t need him to finish his sentence. I knew what he was going to say.Especially if Nikkos passes away.
Fool that I was, I took his hand and let him help me off the bed.
“Come,” he said to the girls. “Let’s go to your nursery for a moment.”
The girls gasped and jumped up. Ember raced to my side, grabbing my free hand. Aurora, brave girl that she was, eagerly took Draevyn’s other hand. For a moment, I thought oddly, we looked like a complete family. But, no. Draevyn wasn’t my mate, and we’d never be complete without Nikkos.
He walked us just a short distance down the hall to another set of double doors into a big room with two pretty canopy beds on one side, and tables with bench seating and rows upon rows of dolls and other toys on the other. The girls let out excited squeals, running toward the toys and snatching them off shelves.
A middle-aged woman clomped into the room, her hooves poking out from beneath her plain, black dress, a long black veil pushed behind her rotating fawn ears as she smiled at us.
The girls gasped, dropped their toys, and ran back to me.
“It’s okay,” I murmured, wrapping protective arms around them.
The satyr and Draevyn exchanged tender smiles before he escorted her toward us. “Mrs. Euphemia,” Draevyn said, nodding toward the girls and me, “these are the princesses Shirina, Aurora, and Ember. Mrs. Euphemia was our favorite nursemaid growing up. She was more than a nursemaid. She was like a mother to us.” The look he gave her wasn’t just one of pride, but gratitude as well. “She is kind, protective, and fair with discipline.”
A nursemaid? The girls had me. They didn’t need a nursemaid.
Euphemia curtsied, which seemed rather formal considering the circumstances. “Your Highnesses, it’s an honor to meet all of you.” When her smile settled on the girls, they turned in to me, burying their faces against my skirts.
“Nice to meet you as well,” I said, my words coming out harsher than I’d intended, “but I don’t need any help with the girls.”
Draevyn ruffled his wings. “Of course you do.”
I shot him a scowl before turning back toward the nursemaid. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Euphemia, but I don’t trust anyone else to watch them.”
“No need to apologize,” she said. “I understand. Lord Inferni has told me much about what you and the girls have been forced to endure.”
“Mrs. Euphemia, if you would allow me.” Draevyn held out a hand and Mrs. Euphemia took it.
The girls and I gasped when he rolled up her sleeve, exposing angry red welts where her fawn fur should have been.
Draevyn rolled her sleeve back down, shadows falling across his eyes. “She got these scars the night our parents were killed. She ran into a burning tower to save Nikkos and Blaze from a fire that ravaged the castle. If you think this is bad, know that the healers cured the worst of the wounds.”
Mrs. Euphemia didn’t say a word as she hung her head.
Emotion clogged my throat. “Oh, I’m sorry that happened.”
“Me, too.” She smiled and then wiped her watery eyes with the backs of her hands. “But I’m grateful at least my boys survived.”
Draevyn handed her a handkerchief, and she let out a heart wrenching sob. “Forgive me.” She dabbed her eyes with the cloth. “I’m just so worried about Master Nikkos.”
“I understand,” I said. “So am I.”
And then for some reason we gravitated toward each other, and she took me in her arms, holding me tight. I hadn’t realized until that moment how much I needed a hug, but I practically melted into her, unable to stop the flow of tears. I was so afraid Nikkos would die. I’d already lost so much. How could my heart survive losing him, too?
“It’s okay, my dear,” she soothed, rubbing my back. “Let it out. Let it all out.”
And so I did. I held this woman, and she held me, and together we cried. Her hugs reminded me so much of my mother’s hugs, of Tari’s hugs. And even though I had only just met her, I felt as if I’d known her my entire life.
“Why’s Auntie crying?”
I pulled back at Aurora’s question. Oh, the girls. How had I forgotten about them? I thanked Draevyn when he handed me a handkerchief, and I wondered if he had an unlimited supply of them. I dried my tears and even blew my nose into the fine fabric. I hoped he wasn’t expecting to get it back.
Draevyn cleared his throat, his features as hard as iron, though his eyes shone like two iridescent pools. “As you can see, the nursery isn’t far from your bedchamber. Mrs. Euphemia is an excellent reading and music tutor as well.”
