Page 208 of Fated or Knot

“He said I was going to start a hundred fights, smelling like my heat.” And he was probably right. “You seem very redcap-like tonight,” I added, wondering if he wanted to talk about it.

“Do you want to know a secret?” he asked in a loud whisper.

“Yes,” I whispered back.

He finally set me back on my feet. “This is my ceremonial clan attire. My father’s probably wearing his version too. It means we’re serious.”

“I like?—”

“When are wenotserious?” Fal put in. I startled, not realizing he’d arrived soundlessly, as he so often did. He had to have some grimalkin in him somewhere, from his cat eyes and claws, to his sneaky feet. The reformed tomcat needed to wear a bell. Thankfully I had a few he could borrow.

Most of my snark dried up in my mind, along with the rest of my thoughts, when I saw him. “New suit. What do you think?” he practically purred, adjusting the flawless set of his collar. His shirt and pants were a shade of gray that complimented his complexion. He’d layered on a jacket in his signature navy, with silver embroidery bright at the shoulders and cuffs.

There was only one answer to his question. “Unfairly attractive,” I said with full conviction. Rennyn had gotten to him too, as he smelled faintly of frost and ink. Taking away the springtime meadow of Fal’s rut scent should’ve been a crime.

He came over to cup my cheek. “You look adorable. I knew you would.” His nostrils flared and he made an unamused face. “Is that lavender?”

“Aye,” Tormund said.

“For fuck’s sake. He color coordinated our new smells,” he muttered under his breath. “I have one last thing for you before we go,mo stór. Before you get excited, it’s a knife.”

I had perked up, before retreating a step as he held up a blade sheathed in a leather strap.This is what you asked for,I reminded myself. My inner omega, closer to the surface than ever, wanted to recoil like he was holding a hissing snake instead.

He wanted for me to muster myself before he carefully unsheathed the knife. “This is treated with faebane poison. Smell it.”

I took a sniff in the weapon’s general direction and gagged. The smell of the faebane was so bitter and concentrated, its taste coated my tongue.

Fal sheathed the knife with a nod. “You never forget that scent. It’s death. A small wound infected with faebane will kill even the heartiest alpha in ten minutes flat.”

He beckoned for me to come closer and waited again as I unstuck my feet from the floor. Once I was listening, he showed me how the small gemstone in the pommel unscrewed. A powdered version of the antidote was inside its hollow shell. The sheath had a locking mechanism that kept the deadly blade secured, which was the only reason I held my left arm out for him to hide the knife up my sleeve.

Once he had the leather band secure, but not too tight, he bowed over my hand and kissed it. “Promise me you will use it if you have no other options.” His lips grazed my knuckles one by one, and despite all of our scents being thrown off, I was still slick between my thighs like he kissed a more intimate location.

Yet, I was still terrified and my wings were flattened to my back. “I promise,” I said faintly.

“You promise what?” he coaxed. He doubled back over his kisses, running his mouth over my littlest knuckles.

A fae promise was not easily broken, even if it wasn’t quite a vow. He had to feel my fingers tremble as I imagined the worst case scenario, where I had to fight for my life and pack on my own. “I…I promise that I will use the faebane if I must.”

Fal’s sigh of relief gusted over my skin. “Good omega,” he murmured. “All right, let’s be off.”

“Where are we going?” I asked the group once we were moving together down the hall.

Fal rested a possessive hand at the small of my back. He smiled with a bit of mischief. “Oh, just an event.”

“Tormund, where are we going?” I asked over my shoulder.

The big male chuckled. “An event. You’ll like it, li’l bird.”

Fal gestured to the ceiling with one of his dramatic flourishes. “Stars, do you hear that? He's learning!”

Clearly, if even Tormund wasn’t going to tell me, I’d just have to find some patience. As the disgusting taste of faebane faded from my mouth, my mood lightened again. I noted other dressed up groups heading in the same direction as us. Whatever the event was, it had to be big. And we were going as a pack! The first time Pack Sorles would be five members, rather than four, even if my forehead remained unmarked for now.

It turned out we were heading outside to catch a carriage, which was already waiting for us. The inside was large enough for Fal and me to sit on one side, with the rest of my mates across from us.

“Hey, Lark,” Kauz said.

“Guess what,” Tormund burst out.

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