Page 62 of Bleeding for the Prince
Fil’s shoulders seemed to sag even further. “What’s to stop you from going to the police?”
“Because I think the Met’s a bunch of muppets. Come on, Fil. You’re the one who lost out here. I’m not gonna shit on you further, but I need to make sure I’m right and not overlooking something.”
He sighed. “You’ve heard the expression, if you love someone, you should let them go?”
“Yes,” Gwil said, and he had a feeling he knew where this was going.
“Emily would have married me, but every time I saw her with Lia, she lit up. She talked about how making friends as an adult was hard, but I could see it was more. Both of them were in denial, neither of them acting on the obvious connection.”
“And you decided to do something about it?”
Fil nodded. “If I’d been wrong, nothing would have happened. If I was right, then it was better that the truth was out in the air before we got married and not in a few years, as feelings are hard to keep hidden forever. I used an old family recipe, and a charm to hide it in her handbag, timed to go off during her dress fitting with her maid of honour.”
“You could have just talked to her.”
“I tried. She said I was seeing things, and when the potion acted and brought her some clarity, she said she was sorry and never meant to hurt me.” He sipped his tea. “She’s happy, really happy, and I’m okay because I’d have been constantly watching and that would have been the start of the death of our marriage anyway.”
Gwil had never been as self-aware as Fil, and never as altruistic, although Fil was also saving himself from future heartache. Technically, he’d used a potion on his fiancée, and it could be considered assault and entrapment. But he’d not benefited directly, just stepped back, let Lia and Emily have their love. “Do they know?”
“Yes. I told Emily the truth. I told her why I did it, and that all I did was open her eyes. She was angry, said I had no right. But a few days later, she turned up here as she’d gone to her parents and we talked. She was my friend before my girlfriend, and now she’s still my friend.”
Gwil had his answer. He couldn’t help but feel sorry for Fil; life dealt a load of shit cards, and sometimes there were only certain ways they could be played. “Sounds hard.”
“Hard would be watching her fade away, like a bird in a cage. There’s someone out there for me. I’m going on a date next week with a friend of a friend.”
“I couldn’t have done it, so fair play to you.”
“You’re a vampire; we’re built differently.” Fil finished his tea. “I’m a bit surprised no one came to ask before.”
Gwil thought that Hyax was right about the dragon’s magic acting as a mask, but he couldn’t tell Fil the reason. “As I said, Dante’s thought the potion was related to something else. They’ll be happy enough to have ruled the incident out of those investigations.”
Fil stood. “Unless there’s anything more I can help you with, I need to get on with my packing.”
“I’ll inform the team at Dante’s that you’ve helped in the investigation. I won’t be specific, but I will recommend that you should be compensated.”
“I won’t say no, but it’s not needed.”
Gwil knew what it was like to suffer for love. He’d watched Hyax marry someone else, but had known Hyax loved him. Fil had let his love go, given them the chance to be happy. How he’d gone about it hadn’t exactly been legal, but Gwil had seen people try to hold on and control the person they said they loved, and this was far healthier. While a few grand wouldn’t fix all the shit, it wouldn’t hurt either to have a little cushioning. Gwil left Fil to his packing, pleased they’d resolved the red herring, but it wasn’t much comfort, and when Hyax got home, he was going to hug the fuck out of the blond bastard.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Of all the places Hyax had expected to be called to discuss dragons, Crofton Hall was not one of them. He’d been here a number of times when working with the team to rescue Simon, but that was because Robin had needed support from his friend Ben Redbourn, the Dark Earl of Crofton. Why Hyax was back here now was a mystery, albeit a short-lived one.
Gwil had not been invited, but then he got the feeling this was fae business despite the setting, and he would fill Gwil in when he got home. He’d been allowed to portal directly into a reception room, and had been greeted by Simon and not Ben, and there was no sign of the Dark Earl or Robin.
“Is Crofton Hall yours now as well? That’s a top-tier wedding present.”
Simon laughed. “No, but one of the residents is the individual who might be willing to help us. Remember I told you about the trial I attended on my father’s behalf?”
“The one about an ancient warlord elf?”
“Yes, well, as I said, he’s been reinvented, for want of a better word, as a light elf. His energy levels are off the scale. And he lives here. At least for now.”
Simon had told him as much before, but he’d not been overly attentive or questioning as he hadn’t seen the relevance of Chris, but more Simon’s part in the trial and the wider impact on tribal politics. Now he just had a load of questions. “How does a warlord turn into a light elf?”
“I’ll let Chris tell you his story, but what’s important is he knows where the dragon homeland is. Or at least where it probably is based on his memories from a couple of thousand years ago.”
“I… Simon, are you all right? You’ve not taken a blow to the head recently?”
