Page 36 of The Goddesses' Gifts

“In the trade language, please,” Ozanna requested. She was back under Lhoris’ arm, steadying him and generally looked like shit, with dark rings around her puffy red eyes. “I want to know what’s going on.”

She had a point. I made the shift.

“After all of this, and everything that’s passed between us, Zelfek, you owe me some fucking answers.” I snarled the words at him, unable to contain my temper.

“Of course,” Zelfek answered solemnly. “If you’d like to come inside, we can have this discussion in more comfortable surroundings.”

“I’m not setting foot back in there,” Ozanna declared, her tone brusk and final. And I agreed. I’d never willingly go underground again.

“You heard the lady,” I drawled. “Talk.”

Zelfek frowned before summoning silence and shadow to cover the lot of us. “Very well. What do you want to know?” he asked, arms crossed.

“Why all of this?” I gestured to the clearing in general and shook my head. “You can’t tell me there wasn’t opportunity to pull this off without dragging us into it. Fuck, you could have asked for our help in Bergellon!”

“And alert the spies in my company?” Zelfek scoffed. “It wasn’t that I needed to drag you in, I needed to drag Dulanzo out.” Then he explained the entire scheme.

The agitation and fear that had driven me through this whole mess was starting to fade, leaving me weary and wary. My older boys might still be alive if it hadn’t been for this plot of his. But I knew this elf well, and their deaths would have been wasteful in his mind. I knew exactly who was responsible for it and his blood was cooling at my feet. But I couldn’t help resenting Zelfek for his role in triggering Dulanzo’s actions. And poor Oz was a mess! The newly formed bond told me she felt raw and wounded inside. What had he allowed to happen to her to reach his goal?

I grabbed Zelfek by the front of his leathers with one hand and shook him, bearing my teeth. “Was it worth all this pain?!” I snarled in his face.

He grabbed my wrist and grimaced. The baby pulled away from me and called for Ozanna, extending an arm to her.

She rushed to the child and pulled him away, giving me a hard look that was one part warning, one part worry. “Lobikno, stop,” she croaked. “He really did try to keep me safe. I trust him!”

Zelfek bared his teeth. “You have no fucking idea what this cost me, Lobikno. What price I’ve paid to get rid of that bastard.” His eyes teared up for a moment before he blinked them away.

“How many children did you lose in this?” I hissed and shook him again.

“As many as you did,” he ground out, which made no sense. He only had one. “I lost Rhemvile.” His voice cracked over the halfie’s name.

“It’s not the same!”

“Well, your boys are alive, Lobikno!” he bellowed. “Now, let me go before the others notice you’re attacking their commander.” The shadows he’d summoned started to fade away, though the silence remained.

I gaped at him, my grasp on his jacket slipped and he took a step back. “What?” I whispered

Zelfek took a deep breath and straightened his jacket. “I sent Dourlak to get them and your adult children,” he shook his head. “Lhoris didn’t specify which of your offspring. But they’re adults, so I won’t force them to leave if they choose to stay.” He glanced back at the gates again and mumbled, “I’d wanted to surprise you.”

“What?” My voice cracked. How? I’d felt them ripped away. “Zelfek if you’re fucking with me, I will end you before you even set foot in those doors.” My chest heaved and I broke out in a cold sweat.

“Lobikno, what could I possibly gain in doing so?” Zelfek asked somberly, as if the entire notion threatened to make him sick.

My stomach clenched itself into knots and my eyes locked on the infernal fucking doors that led down to the depths of my personal hell.

“How many?” asked Ozanna.

“Four adults.” Zelfek’s expression softened when he looked at her. “And the two older boys.”

My eyes burned when I lifted them to meet his gaze. All I could do was stand there and breathe. Why wasn’t I relieved? The pain of their “passing” was still there. The pair of howling graves did not relent despite knowing they were alive. “How?”

Zelfek heaved a sigh. “Dulanzo ordered me to kill both of them,” he explained. “Then he gave the little one to your mate as a ploy to manipulate her.” He glanced at Oz. “I’m sorry I couldn’t spare you. Breaking the bonds exhausted me … and then … I’m just sorry.”

“The other two, they were almost old enough to sever the bond themselves, but they weren’t quite ready,” he shook his head. “Had you arrived and demanded to see them before the duel, I would have been exposed.”

And then I saw them, four young, but obviously adult elves and two tall, gangly adolescents. I choked and froze in place. All seven of my living sons. Less than half of what I’d sired over the years. I’d known it for ages now, but to see how few seven was in that context was hard. Mentally I added the two daughters I knew would be with their mother, though I didn’t want to see what kind of monsters they’d been made into. And there was a part of me afraid to see if Dulanzo had succeeded in doing the same to my boys.

Their expressions were grim as they approached. One of the adults had a strong resemblance to Lhoris, but the rest were an even blend of myself and their mother.

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