Page 31 of When the Wicked Sing
With an aching heart, she sank into the water briefly, taking a few steadying moments before resurfacing. Wiping the water—and the tears—from her eyes, she wrapped her arms around herself.
“Someone I care about died. She …” Mariana paused, gathering her composure. “She was like a mother to me.”
“She was mortal,” he stated.
“Yes. And despite how you fae feel about them, they are an intelligent, caring species. They may not have electricity or much care for proper hygiene,” she said with a faint smirk at his expression, “but at least they take care of each other.”
Dax tilted his head, his gaze steady. “Not all fae hate mortals.”
“And yet, for all I’ve seen of your kind, the lot of you have proven to be selfish, hostile brutes.”
A corner of his mouth lifted. “Your mouth is going to get you killed someday.”
“Or it’ll save my life.” Her eyes roamed his face. “Why did you take me, Dax? Why bring me back to a king who wants to destroy my people? You don’t seem like the sadistic type.”
His smirk faded. “Just following orders.”
“That’s it?”
He shrugged. “You have all the power to kill me. Right now. And yet, all you do is cut me with your sharp tongue. So, why did you save my life?”
“Because you’re the only hope I have of finding my sister.”
Dax didn’t respond, yet his eyes never left hers.
“Do you have any siblings?” she asked suddenly, the question slipping out before she could stop it.
His silence unnerved her until he muttered, “I have a younger sister.”
“What’s her name?”
“Kenna,” he said, his tone flat, distant.
Mariana frowned. “Do you miss her?”
Dax’s jaw tightened. His answer came a moment too late. “Always.”
Her heart clenched at the truth she saw in his expression.
“Is she in Aurelia?”
His glare made any lingering questions die on her lips.
She stopped before him, suddenly taken back by the painful look he was trying to hide behind a mask of indifference.
This fae, with his dark shadowed eyes and silent demeanor … was haunted. By what, Mariana couldn’t tell, but it clearly had something to do with his family.
Her heart seized as she lifted an unsteady hand to his cheek. When he sharply pulled back, she swallowed hard.What am I doing? I don’t need to touch him to get answers.But her hand moved anyway, almost against her will.
His cheek was prickly to the touch, and strangely, she liked it. Dax only stared at her with mistrust in his darkening eyes.
“It’s alright to miss those you love, Dax. I miss my sister more than I can tell you,” she whispered.
He snatched her wrist, pulling it away from his cheek, startling her. His grip was tight and unrelenting—a warning.
His gaze traveled to her lips, then back to her eyes. Their breath mingled, and she wondered if he’d close the distance.
The idea was like ice sliding down her spine, and she tried to yank her arm back, but Dax held her wrist firm.
