Page 67 of Sticks and Stones and Broken Bones

I nodded, the top of my head brushing Rook’s chin. I was taking comfort from being cradled in his arms. He was warm and solid, dependable and I needed that in my corner right now.

“What did you find out?” I asked.

Korbin and Rook shared a glance.

“Don’t keep secrets from me,” I begged. “Please.”

Korbin sighed deeply but there was resolution in his steadfast gaze. “That your mother didn’t know who your father was.”

“I could have told you that,” I said. My mother had mentioned a secret in her past but never went into any detail about it and whenever I asked about my father, she’d always change the subject.

“She also said you presented with exceptionally strong magic at an early age.” Korbin’s gaze was sympathetic as he imparted that little kernel of knowledge.

Tears pooled in my eyes. “She hid it from me?”

Korbin took my hand in his. “Your mother buried your memories of it in order to protect you from your grandmother.”

“She feared you’d used by your grandmother,” Rook added. “It sounds like she was trying to do the right thing, Raevyn, however misguided.”

Well that just made me feel even worse. That she’d tried to help in the only way she could just so my grandmother didn’t make things worse. I had so many mixed emotions about her, so much hate and confusion, love and pain. I couldn’t tell where one ended and the others began. I was just this swirling ball of chaos, trying to navigate through it without any kind of map or guide. How the hell was I going to survive?

“We also asked Hades about your time manipulation,” Rook whispered by my ear, his breath tickling my skin.

“And?” I asked as I looked up at him.

Rook frowned and a wariness flashed through his eyes. “He said there was only one person he knew of that could manipulate time.”

I sat up, my interest piqued. “Who?”

“His father,” Rook replied with a grimace.

“Cronus?” I almost snorted. “The Titan Cronus?”

“Yes,” Korbin said, curling into my side and resting his head on my shoulder. “But it gets worse.”

“How?” I gasped. How the fuck could this get any worse?

“Cronus is supposed to banished to the Isles of the Blessed,” Rook said. “There’s no escape from there but if you’ve inherited one of his powers, then it stands to reason that the Titan escaped for one night with your mother.”

Well, hot damn. I was suddenly seeing my mother in a completely new light. She’d have had to be something to ensure a Titan. Go, Mum.

“Wait a minute.” Realisation hit me like a freight train. “If you’re saying the Cronus had a night with my mum, does that mean what I think it means?”

“Yes,” Korbin said with a sly smile. “You’re—”

“Related to Hades?!” I squeaked. For fuck’s sake. Urgh. No. The guy was a cuntmuffin. There was no way he was my — gulp — brother.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Korbin said wisely. “We will just take things one step at a time.”

I nodded but still… shit. I might be more than just a witch. Speaking of witches…

“What are we going to do about my grandmother?”

“Well,” Korbin drawled. “That is the question. I’ve a feeling that since Nox decided to withdraw our patronage from the coven—”

“He did what?” I screeched and jumped to my feet. “No. Fuck. You need to give it back.”

“Raevyn, we don’t ‘need’ to do anything. It’s up to us who we grant our power to, and your coven’s actions led to us withdrawing it.” Korbin fixed me with a serious expression, his gaze steadfast.

---