Page 77 of Drawn in Blood
It was the man from the dock in Iceland.
The man blinked, jaw dropping as he looked back and forth between Ember and Killian, and then Eira and Fen, who still hadn’t said a word. Fen turned to Killian, confusion washing over him. He turned back to the man, still standing on the other side of the door, and shoved his finger in his chest.
“You have no right to be here,” he hissed.
“Fenrir Kitt!” Eira scolded, still wringing her hands.
“She’s my sister too, mate,” the man replied, shoving Fen’s hand away from his chest.
Sister?
Ember sucked in a breath as she looked between the two, puzzle pieces shifting into place as she realized why his eyes had looked so familiar the night before.
They were the same shade of blue the rest of the Kitts’ shared.
“Osiris,” Otto breathed, as he walked into the room, stopping behind Eira, who was doing her best to compose herself.
“You’re home,” Eira added, teary eyed as she stepped closer, wrapping her son in her arms.
“Just go back to whatever hole you crawled out of,” Fen spat. “If you can’t bother to answer letters for five years, you don’t have any right to be here now. We don’t need you.” Then, he strode out of the room.
“Fenrir!” Eira almost shouted, making to follow him into the den.
Otto gently grabbed her arm and shook his head. “Let him go,” he whispered, turning back to Osiris. “Mum has tea in the kitchen, let’s go talk.”
The adults left the room, leaving Killian and Ember alone in the foyer.
“I didn’t even recognize him,” Killian mumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets. “He looks so different.”
They made their way into the den where Fen was angrily setting up a game of chess, mumbling to himself as he slammed pieces onto the board.
“Whoa, mate,” Killian laughed, “what did that rook do to you?”
Fen shook his head as he sighed. “What gives him the right?” he said, as he furrowed his brow. “What makes him think hecan just waltz in here after five years and act like he cares about her? You don’t walk away from people you care about.” He took a shaky breath, wiping away the tears pooling at his bottom lash.
“Why did he move to Iceland?” Ember asked, as she sat beside him, pulling her knees to her chest. “Does he have friends there?”
“I don’t know,” Fen shrugged. “After he finished school, he just up and left, didn’t even say goodbye, just left a note for Mum and Dad.” Fen furrowed his brow as he looked back at Ember. “How did you know he was in Iceland?”
Ember’s eyes widened as she looked toward Killian, whose face closely resembled a ripe tomato.
“That’s irrelevant,” she replied, as she shook her head. “What’s important now is finding Maeve.”
Killian nodded as he sat on the floor on the other side of the chess board, carefully moving a pawn. “So, what’s our first move?”
Fen chewed his bottom lip, moving one of his pawns as well. “The Guard isn’t getting anywhere with the investigation, and I honestly don’t think they can all be trusted.”
Killian moved another piece, tapping thoughtfully on his chin. “So, talking to Thornsten is out of the question then?”
Fen rolled his eyes as he moved a knight. “We’d get farther searching the entirety of the Dark Forest by ourselves with nothing more than a flashlight.”
“Well, maybe we should.” Ember shrugged. Both boys looked at her like she had grown an extra head.
“Ah, yes,” Killian nodded, “let’s go for a walk in the woods while a mad man is on the loose snatching weans from their beds.” He winced as he looked over at Fen. “Sorry, mate.”
Fen shrugged as he made his next move, tapping on the table.
“That’s not what I mean,” Ember replied, as she rolled her eyes. “I think we should go back to Arcelia. Maybe someoneknows something we don’t, or maybe we can find some clues. Odette knows the forest better than we do, and I’m sure she would help. Maybe Osiris can come with us too.”
