Page 133 of Lady for Embers

Cethin nodded, his eyes narrowing as he watched her.

And then her laugher turned hysterical because what the actual fuck? He had to be kidding. It had to be some kind of prank, and a poor one at that. She was going to beat him senseless for playing her like this.

She sank to the too soft grass, her side beginning to cramp at the laughter while the two males stared down at her, concern growing on their faces.

“You are serious?” Sorin asked. “Saylah is your mother? And hers?”

“Yes.”

“So you two are, what? Gods as well?”

Andthatidea had Scarlett’s laughter starting all over again because this entire conversation was ludicrous. She was not a goddess. Her mother was not a goddess.

“No,” Cethin said slowly, his worry growing as he watched her. “Our father was not a god. He was Avonleyan. A descendant of Anahita.”

“A literal descendant of Anahita?” Sorin asked.

Scarlett was damn glad he was asking questions because she certainly couldn’t get control of herself enough to do so.

“All Avonleyans are descendants of the gods. The bloodline may be diluted or strengthened depending on parentage and ancestry,” Cethin explained. He lowered to a crouch before her. “Scarlett, are you all right?”

“I am fantastic,” she said, tears rolling down her face from the laughter that was ?nally starting to ebb. “Apparently I am some sort of deity or demigod.”

Cethin shook his head. “No, we are neither of those things. We are more powerful than a demigod, but not as powerful as a deity.”Scarlett blinked at him, swiping the tears from her face. “A demigod is the child of a god and a mortal. A deity is the child of a god and a magical bloodline.”

“But an Avonleyanisa magical bloodline,” Scarlett argued.

“Yes, but there is still mortal blood somewhere along the line because Avonleyans are descendants of demigods.”

Her nose scrunched as she tried to process this. “Then... what are we?”

Cethin shrugged. “We are... Avonleyans. The most powerful Avonleyans. You, in particular, arethemost powerful Avonleyan because you also have Fae gifts.”

“Cethin?” Scarlett said, reaching for Sorin’s hand.

“Yes?”

Sorin pulled her to her feet as she said, “I need that drink now.”

She had needed some time to process the revelation of her heritage after Cethin had given them each a glass of wine. They’d wandered along the path that led to the country estate. Her brother seemed to understand she needed the silence, letting her think while Sorin asked basic questions about the kingdom.

When the estate had come into view, her footsteps had faltered. It was a beautiful three-story home. A well-kept iron fence surrounded the property. It was all well maintained. Cethin clearly made sure the entire estate never fell into ruin or disrepair. Scarlett would think someone actually lived there if she hadn’t already known the truth.

Cethin had offered to take her into the house, show her around, but he had seemed relieved when she had declined. It would have been too much for her to deal with tonight. It would have been too overwhelming to see what could have been. To see a home where she would have been loved, surrounded by a father and mother and brother rather than a Fellowship where she was trained to kill with girls bound to her as sisters.

They’d returned to the castle, where the three of them had shared a simple dinner in a small den that reminded Scarlett of their casual dining space in Solembra. She had felt like she wasreturning to something familiar when their ship had passed through those dark waters, cutting through darkness and shadows, but this was not home, even if it was where her blooded family resided.

She cut a glance to Sorin where he was seated beside her, a re?lled glass of wine in his hand as he listened to Cethin tell him of their agriculture system. She knew she should be listening, learning everything she could about this land, but her thoughts were all over the place. Sorin had relaxed more and more as the evening had worn on, he and Cethin falling into easy conversation. She should probably be getting to know her brother too, but again, she couldn’t get her thoughts to focus on anything right now.

Scarlett reached for her wineglass that had been re?lled... three times? Four? Whatever. It didn’t matter. Anyone would need alcohol upon learning their mother was an actual goddess. Speaking of which...

“Do you have water gifts too then? If our father was a descendant of Anahita?”

The attention of both males fell on her. Probably because she hadn’t said much throughout this dinner and had randomly interrupted their conversation.

Cethin pushed his empty plate off to the side, sliding his chair back slightly and settling back into his seat. “No. When two bloodlines come together, the child only receives the gifts of one. You and I are a bit of a special instance because there was an actual goddess involved, I suppose. But like anything else, the stronger the bloodlines are that come together, the stronger one’s gifts will be, whatever they emerge as.”

“Like Eliza’s ?re magic,” Sorin mused.

---