Page 233 of Claimed By Fangs and Darkness
The collar in question was a lacy pink piece with a cute little bell. Evie fucking hated it, which brought me much delight and satisfaction.
She wrote back immediately.
Is that supposed to be a threat?
I shook my head.
Enjoy being able to sit while you still can.
“Sorry about that,” I said. I closed the notebook, relieved that everything hadn’t fallen apart in my absence.
We did, however, need Valentin’s support now more than ever. I wouldn’t show them my desperation. They needed to see my strength. I had to believe our story, and our parallel ideologies, would have to be enough to move Rune.
Our fates were intertwined. They just didn’t know it yet.
“Not at all,” Uriah said, waving a hand. “It was a long journey. I’m sure folks back home were worried for you.”
A woman with short, wiry hair and dark skin joined us. She was far less approachable than Uriah, offering me a curt, guarded nod.
“I’m Mason, Rune’s second-in-command,” she said without extending a hand.
“Kylo.”
We stopped walking, waiting in the center of a hallway. The art, furniture, and decor were classically gorgeous, like being in a finely curated museum.
Behind us, in the direction of the room with the giggling, whispering girls, a man’s voice carried.
“Behave.”
Two fiery, softer voices said things I couldn’t quite hear.
The man chuckled, and a door closed.
I slowed my heart with a deep breath, pretending to be much cooler and more aloof than I was by a longshot.
I slowly turned my head.
The man walked toward us, slow and graceful. His features were impassive, deadly. Thorny branch tattoos crawled down hisarms and up his neck. He matched my height, one of the few men who did.
“Welcome, Kylo,” he said. “I’m Rune.”
I smiled. I obviously knew who he was, but we both politely pretended. “Thank you for welcoming me into your home.”
Rune nodded. “I’m intrigued to hear your story.”
He was more guarded than Uriah, but less icy than Mason. He wanted to protect his people, now more than ever.
Convincing him to endanger his city after everything that had happened the past month was going to be a tall order.
But I wasn’t leaving empty-handed. It wasn’t an option. Rune was the only being capable of giving us a fighting chance.
He wordlessly led us into a deliberation room. Guards pulled the door shut behind us.
I pictured Evie in her garden where she was happiest, talking about magick and fate and the gods’ wills.
When it was time for me to state my case, I centered myself with the memory of Evie handing me an arrangement of pink roses and lavender and whispering in my ear.
Ask me again. Ask me again to marry you.
