Page 61 of The Alien's Cruel Starfrost Domain

In the bowl, her skin was beginning to gain a pink glow—one that seemed like it was probably more natural to her than the blue tinge she’d had before.

“I’ll be back in a moment for the duke’s luncheon.”

I glanced back over my shoulder in time to see Ramira give a toss of her head, then turn and flounce out of the kitchen.

A slight buzzing noise drew my attention back to the bowl. The pixie’s wings were scraping together, and she had begun blinking her eyes.

“I think she’s waking up,” I announced.

“Good,” Adefina said from across the room. “Mind she doesn’t bite you. The raya may be little, but they’re fierce.”

“Okay.” I drew the word out, not entirely certain how I was supposed to keep the fairy from attacking me.

I lifted her out of the makeshift bath and wrapped her in one of the tea towels.

She promptly wriggled around until her wings were free, thenstared at me accusingly. She squeaked something at me, and I leaned down closer to hear what she was saying.

“Where am I?” she demanded in a high, jingling voice. She frowned fiercely, and I had to bite back a smile at the sight. Adefina was right—she was fierce.

“You’re in Starfrost Manor, Duke Ivrael’s home,” Ramira replied, swinging back through the doors. “And if you enter the main part of the house, you’ll be sorry.” She turned her gaze toward Adefina. “His Lordship’s food?”

The fairy glared up at Ramira. “As if I would want to venture into an Icecaix household.” But as Adefina finished the ritual of setting meat pies onto the lunch tray to be sent to the duke’s room, a flicker of fear crossed the pixie’s face.

Adefina stepped forward with the tray in hand, shoving the duke’s food toward the housemaid.

“I have your dress, if you want to put it back on, but I think it should probably be washed first,” I told the pixie as Ramira left again.

“Not to worry,” Adefina said. “I’ll run her up something from the scraps in the closet. Something suitable for a small Starcaix in an Icecaix domain.”

She moved to do just that, while the fairy huddled miserably under the blanket of the tea towel.

“How did you end up here?” I asked her.

“I think your duke bought me.”

The laugh I gave was more derision than amusement. “He’s not my duke. He bought me, too.”

Kila eyed me curiously. “Are you Starcaix?”

This time I snorted outright. “Human.”

The tiny woman tilted her head and stared at me curiously. “I’ve never seen a human before.”

As it turned out, she was fascinated by human culture, quickly overcoming her cold-induced lethargy to discuss everything she could think of to ask me—starting with my name. In return, Ilearned she was Kila.

Within two days of her arrival, Kila had recovered enough to become what I would soon learn was her usual chatterbox self.

Adefina started insisting the tiny Starcaix help in the kitchen.

“But I don’t want to be a kitchen drudge,” Kila complained.

Adefina rolled her eyes. “You couldn’t be a kitchen drudge. You can barely do anything.”

Kila’s wings buzzed angrily, and she darted in close to Adefina’s face, moving like a hummingbird. She shook her tiny fist at the cook. “I can do plenty of things. Just because you are so huge that you can only pick up equally giant objects doesn’t make me useless. I can capture dust motes or get up to the ceiling or?—”

“Or right now, you can add some spices to His Lordship’s evening meal.” Adefina pointed at the spice rack. “Make yourself useful.”

Kila’s Barbie-doll face had scrunched up in irritation, but she’d taken on the job.

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