Page 94 of Enticing Monsters

“It’s Death Fluff.”

“Death Fluff?” I arch both eyebrows in disbelief. “That sounds…incredibly adorable.”

“If you think it’s adorable to have your arm turn black and fall off like a burnt marshmallow,” Cadmus deadpans.

Tristan turns towards the taller man. “How do you know about marshmallows? I’m almost ninety-nine percent certain you don’t have any here. Come to think of it…how do you know about any of this stuff?”

He waves his hands in the air dramatically to emphasize what he means.

Cadmus’s frown deepens. “This…stuff?”

“You know, modern slang and pop-culture references. I even think I saw a television in your camp.”

“Oh.” Cadmus focuses on the forest once more, leading us down a path I can’t see. The multiple suns in the sky glare down on us and send pinpricks of heat racing up both of my arms. “We have visitors from your world.”

“What do you mean?” I step over a luminescent purple plant edged in orange leaves.

“There was a human couple who knew about the fae and often helped when they could. They did research on the various creatures in Faerie and determined the survivability of the fae from your world returning here. Once they discovered our camp, they would leave gifts in the form of books, magazines, and lights for the camp.”

“You guys have electricity here?” Kian asks in surprise.

Cadmus’s lips twitch. “No. But we do have a fae with the power to create something similar to electricity. At least enough for a few bulbs.”

“Holy shit,” I breathe. Then something occurs to me, and I pause, causing Foster to stumble since my hand still clutches his. “This couple… Do you happen to know their names?”

“Jensen and Shelia, I believe.” A frown touches his lips. “Strange names, but apparently they’re quite common in the human world.”

Warmth blossoms in my chest. I blink, trying to ignore the burn crawling up my throat and crowding my eyes.

Cadmus volleys his gaze between me and my mates. “From the expression on your face, I take it you know them.”

“They’re my parents,” I whisper around the knot in my throat.

They visited Faerie more than once? Knew about Cadmus and the others? Why didn’t they tell me? Was it an attempt to protect the fae here? But from whom?

“They’re not fae.” Cadmus sounds confused.

“They adopted me when I was a baby. Apparently, they found me during one of their trips to this world and took me home. I think they assumed I was a changeling or something, especially since I didn’t exhibit any fae abilities.”

“Changelings were quite common when the virus first spread through the population,” Cadmus confesses. “Parents believed it was the only way to protect their children.”

“What happened to the humans the fae were swapped with?” Tristan asks, tilting his head to study what appears to be a weeping willow—if weeping willows have bright-yellow trunks and rainbow leaves cascading towards the ground like party streamers.

Cadmus’s lips turn taut. “This world is a brutal and unforgiving place. Most of them didn’t survive. And the fae children? Well, they either died an agonizing death that doctors couldn’t understand or treat…or they mutated. And what do you think the humans did to children who suddenly grew scales or fangs or horns or tails, especially hundreds of years ago?”

“Oh.” My chest caves into itself.

A part of me understands a parent’s desperation to protect their child, but I can’t imagine sacrificing someone else’s to do it.

“A lot of fae believed that the virus would go away in time. It wasn’t until the population started to… How do you say it? It wasn’t until the population started to drop like flies did they realize they needed to get out of here.”

“So they left through the portals and went to Earth,” Kian finishes.

Or, more specifically, the rich left through the portal, while the poor were forced to endure unspeakable horrors.

“Those who stayed and survived are who you see today—generations of fae mutated by the very land that was supposed to provide for and protect them.” Bitterness seeps into his voice.

“And you’re one of the leaders,” I point out.

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