Page 53 of A Hint of Delirium

Sage grinned. “Who do you think? You don’t recognize those eyes? Kazimir, of course.”

26

VIOLET

Ihurried out of Alec’s loft like my ass was on fire, but instead of taking public transit back to Hell’s Kitchen, I hailed a taxi. It wasn’t any faster, but it gave me a quiet place to think, which was what I needed.

Kazimir.

Was that my father’s name? Who was he? Obviously, he was Unseelie, but whoexactlywas he? From the sound of it, he didn’t seem like a very good person. I felt sick to my stomach.

Right now, I needed to get to Ansel and tell him what I’d just learned. He would tell me more about this Kazimir person. At least I hoped he would.

When I arrived at Ansel’s apartment, I entered and found him pacing the living room. At the sound of the door opening, he spun around and rushed over to me.

“Where have you been, Vi?” He looked me up and down for injury. “I thought it was obvious that you were supposed to stay in the apartment.”

“Sorry,” I mumbled. “I met up with Alec.”

His green eyes widened in surprise. “You what?”

“Just for a bit,” I said quickly.

“Violet … I know my brother is aware of you now, but he can’t be trusted. Don’t hang out with him alone. It’s not safe.”

I slowly nodded. While I didn’t trust Alec completely, I also didn’t feel unsafe around him, either. It was weird.

“I didn’t mean to worry you.” I reached for his hand. He rubbed his thumb tenderly over my hand and I could tell he was quite shaken up. “But I need to tell you something I learned while I was with Alec.”

He furrowed his brows. “What is it?”

“Sage showed up. She recognized me, but this time she put a name to my face,” I said.

His brows shot up. “Are you serious?”

I nodded. “Do you recognize the name Kazimir?”

Ansel released my hand as if it was doused with acid. He grimaced and looked away as he ran a hand through his shaggy hair. “Are you sure that’s the name she said?”

“Yes, I’m positive. Why?”

Ansel turned his gaze back to me, wearing a look of pity with which I was all too familiar. “If Kazimir is your father, then we’re in more trouble than we thought.”

I pressed my lips together to keep my bottom lip from quivering. I couldn’t speak without my voice shaking so I kept quiet. It was worse than I thought. How evil was this man?

“How much do you want to know?” Ansel asked before divulging anything further.

I thought about it for a moment. Ignorance was bliss, but ignorance could also get me killed. The utter lack of information landed me in this predicament.

“Tell me everything,” I croaked.

Ansel nodded as he took my hand and led me to the sofa. We sat down beside each other and turned to face one another. He didn’t release my hand when he reached for the other one, maintaining physical contact.

“Kazimir, as you probably already guessed, is an Unseelie. He’s the top general of the Unseelie army and the right-hand man of the Unseelie King,” he said quietly. I swallowed slowly as I tried to process it all. “He is known as probably the cruelest fae in history, one who has committed many atrocities in the name of his king. He’s extremely loyal to the King, so much so, that he killed his wife and son at his command because the King wanted to test Kazimir’s loyalty.”

I listened, too stunned to speak. My mouth fell open and my stomach began to turn. If Kazimir found out about me, who knew what he’d be capable of doing … all for the King. He’d rip the orb right out of me without blinking, even if it meant killing me.

“Do … do I really look like him?” I asked tentatively.

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