Page 36 of Shadows of Fate

Bastian held up his hands in defense, a brazen smile on his face as if he knew exactly what he was doing. I didn’t look at Silvana for a reaction; part of me was scared that my possessiveness would scare her away, while the other half of me wished she’d try to leave just so I had an excuse to chase her.

“I have no desire to enter the Court of Ice, let alone rule over it,” Silvana muttered.

I glanced over at her, a brow arched, and she smiled from behind her glass.

Micah cleared his throat. “If you two are done eye-fucking each other, I’d like to continue this discussion.” A blush crept up onto Silvana’s cheeks and I glared at him as he continued. “What is truly the plan, Raiden? Do you want us to send in some people and see what they can uncover?”

“Let me talk to Cedar.” Silvana jumped up. “Think about it. He’s a raven shifter; he’d be able to get in and out quickly. Plus, he does jobs all over all four courts. He has ins everywhere he goes. Still send in some of your people. The more eyes we can get, the better. But Cedar is someone we know can do this.”

“She isn’t wrong, Raiden. I’ve talked to some of the coven leaders about him,” Bastian said. “While we’re at it, we should send a few people to the other two courts as well.”

Micah nodded in agreement. “Also, we need to send a letter to Paine letting him know what we know.”

I sat down in the chair behind me and ran my hands over my face. “Silvana, do you think Cedar could deliver a message for me to the ruler of the Court of Ravens first?”

She nodded. “Of course. I’ll send him a message now.” She rose from her chair and Bastian followed her.

“I’ll show you where the birds are to send it out,” he said, and they left.

I leaned back in my chair and stared at Micah. I knew he had more to say.

“Can’t you see their threads?” Allie asked him softly.

He arched a brow at her. “Their threads?”

She nodded, smiling. “Of course. They’re gold and shining even more brightly since we came back into the library.”

Visionaries could be… strange at times. Often speaking in riddles, and at the moment, I lacked the determination to figure out what our “threads” was that she was referring to. I had too much else going on, and as much as I wanted to claim my ice queen right there on that table—I needed to take care of my court too, and I needed her help to do it.

I looked at Micah, waiting.

“She’s giving off an array of things, Raiden. She’s anxious and stressed, but also eager. There’s also a great deal of… lust. I will not elaborate on that. But there isn’t anything that would point in the direction of her being a traitor,” he said.

Allie stared at him for a moment, her mouth slightly ajar. “A traitor? She’s Raiden’s soul-bonded, Micah. Who would she betray us to?”

Micah and I both stared at her for a long moment.

“She’s my…” I whispered. It all clicked in my head at once. The threads Allie kept talking about. Being able to sense her and her feelings. The undying need to claim her. The inexplicable pull. “She’s my mate?”

Chapter19

Feathers

Silvana

Bastian walked with me until we found a room in the upper east wing of the manor. He pointed to a narrow staircase.

“At the top of this is where all the feathers stay. You’ll be able to send a message with one of them,” he said.

“The feathers?” I asked with a laugh.

“Yeah, you know. Feathers all over the damn place. Micah normally does all the messages in and out. I’m not a fan of them.” A small blush was creeping up his cheeks and it took everything in my power not to continue laughing at this big masculine male being afraid of carrier birds.

Before I headed up the stairs, I paused and let out a breath. “Listen, Bastian. I’m sorry about earlier. It isn’t you or Micah. I just… Most of the women I save, I make sure they’re safe and that’s the end of it. Hearing Allie was still here? Instead of off living her life safe and sound? It set me off, but I should never have insinuated what I did. I hope you can forgive me.”

A smile lit up his face. “Why do I get the feeling that you don’t apologize often?”

I rolled my eyes. “Because I don’t. Ever, really. It took me the last hour or so sitting in that library to come up with that much. So just accept it, and let’s move on. Shall we?”

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