Page 29 of Within the Veil

I sit up with a sigh. I knew my turn was coming, but it didn't make it any easier. My past was brutal, cruel, and definitely not something for a popcorn and movie night. Still, Hudson does need to understand. It is her right as my mate and Queen.

"Take your time, sugar-puff pie. You don't have to go unpack it all right now," Hudson reaches her hand to mine with a small smile. As usual, her smile is like a punch in the gut, making me want to tell her everything on my mind. She is an evil seductress.

She laughs, "Seductress is accurate...evil... well, okay, that's not far off the mark. I prefer murder inclined. But I'll take it. Now carry on."

I shake my head, " So you've seen me change forms, but that's not even half of what can happen if I lose my temper. If it weren't for everyone in this room, I would have destroyed everyone and everything in my path when I thought we lost you. My people, the Arallu, are cruelty personified. My father had no problem beating me bloody whenever he had a chance. As a people, we were notoriously small in number, but our sheer power gave us every advantage that even our governing body, the Suleyman, avoided us like the plague. And although we are technically part of the Unseelie Court, they also left us to our own devices. Arallu are Djinn, something like Genies. We can alter reality and grant wishes to a certain degree but at the great peril of whoever tries. If they got close enough to ask, they would die. If they got their wish, they wouldn't live to enjoy it. I have more blood on my hands than anyone in the room, and none of that blood, before I met you, was for a good reason. But it is a lot less than my father wanted. My mother was human, more specifically, a witch. And the kindest person you could ever hope to meet. I never understood how the fuck she ended up with my father, but it was then that the Arallu realized that they could procreate; it just couldn't be with another Fae. It upset the balance, which is why I feel the Arallu were more bloodthirsty than any of the Unseelie fae in history--and that is saying something.

If it weren't for my mother, I would have been as cruel as my father. She would take me to the river to cleanse me of my bloodlust," I smile at the memory. She was convinced the river spirits would prevent my father's rot from spreading.

"That's where you met the guys, correct? Maybe your mom was right," Hudson says thoughtfully.

"What are the odds that you would go to the same river Ryder was born, the same river that Grayson would go to as well? Water and fire are both cleansing elements, safe to say you're more aligned with fire. Thenallof you somehow working for the Rebellion? Did any of your parents ever mention the reason they would go to the river beyond cleansing or a very coincidental day out where everyone would just so happen to be there together?"

I look at the guys, and we shrug, "No. Never."

"Hmm, okay. Well, Hunter. I will help you stab your father right in the gonads. Thank you for sharing. But just for my own complex, how old are you? Ryder left out that little tidbit," she looks back at Ryder, whose shoulders shake in amusement.

He sighs," Does age really matter if we are mated? Ouch. Jeez, violent ass," he grimaces when Hudson pinches his arm.

"I am several centuries old. You forget after a few hundred birthdays, I'm taking your books away," Ryder sticks out his tongue.

"I demand to be moved to another lap. Hunter, hold me." Hudson holds out her arms, and I chuckle as I pull her into me and give Ryder a smirk as he pouts.

"To answer your question, Sweetheart, I am somewhere around eight or nine centuries old. Arallu's are one of the oldest and most powerful Djinn lines," I answer.

"Holy...I'm getting a complex here," she mutters.

"Fae can wait several lifetimes for their fated mate. I didn't feel alive until I met you. So we can say you're actually older than me if that makes you feel better," I whisper in her ear. I smile into her neck as her body shudders.

"Fuck that was romantic. Complex gone. I love you," she turns her head up, and I give her what she wants, groaning at the sweetness of her mouth. And just like that, all my memories of blood and torture fade away as I absolve myself of my sins with every sweet stroke of her tongue. So absolutely, irrevocably, perfect.

* * *

Zane

If there is one thing Hudson is not...is blind to the needs of her mates, especially Hunter. She knows exactly what he needs to take away the pain in his eyes and give him peace. Out of all of us, he needs her to ground him the most, and Hudson is more than willing to step up to the plate. Although, if they keep going, this is going to escalate from grounding to an orgy. While my dick strains at the very thought that will easily turn into several hours of getting lost in each other, and she wants answers.

Being the level-headed one is fucking lame.

"Okay, let's finish, and then we can move on to the other stuff," I say, sternly. When in reality, I want to bury myself between those perfect thighs and lose myself in her sweetness.

Hudson pulls away with a pout, "Fine. Go ahead. Cock-blocker."

I roll my eyes, "I am well aware. Regardless, you want to know. My given name is Caer Brú na Bóinne, and yes, my mother named me after a swan. As sweet as my mother is, I could have done without it. At least it helped that my people are one of if not the strongest, Earth Elementals, so any teasing wouldn't have ended well."

Hudson laughs, the sweet sound tinkling throughout the room. Such a small thing, but hearing it after several weeks is a gift. One that we would never take for granted.

"Our homelands, Terraheim, like most of Tír na nÓg, is bountiful. But what makes us different is that our family has a close relation to the giants within Fae. No, don't ask me how or why or when someone stuffed a giant dick inside of them," I roll my eyes as Hudson lowers her hand with a cheeky grin.

"Fine, but there is a story somewhere in there, and I intend to find it. Land of the Giant Humpers. Got it. Continue kind and gentle swan," she laughs, and Ryder and Remi join. Assholes.

"The Fae are pure magic, so some couplings don't necessarily need physical sex to create an entity. Consider Gaia and yourself," I say pointedly.

"Lame. I was looking forward to kinky sexual giant stories. But whatever," she grumbles.

I roll my eyes, "anyways. What that means is that my bloodline is unique, and our lands are tied directly to it. So in effect...."

"You can create mountains and hills and manipulate your lands?" Hudson jumps in excitedly.

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