Page 44 of Across an Endless Sea

Caed shakes his head. “Fomorians have no magic. The caves are created and destroyed by tunnel wyrms.”

He pauses, like I should be scared or impressed by that, but I have no clue what a tunnel wyrm is. Instead, I seize on the first thing he said.

“No magic… but what about your swords?”

Come to think of it, I’ve not seen any other Fomorians use magic.

He shrugs, turning away from me as he finally releases my hand to cross his arms over his chest. “I’m a prodigy. What can I say?”

His evasive answer makes me frown. “And you used glamour,” I add. “And you have blue eyes when none of the other Fomorians do…”

“Drop this, little queen.” A blunt hardness has bled into his tone, edging the words with a threat.

Regardless of his warning, when the realisation hits me, it’s so unexpected that I can’t stop myself from blurting, “You’re part fae.”

His hand fists the fabric of my shirt before I can take my next breath, lifting me until my feet are off the ground. My body hovers over the crevice in the rock, perilously close to the plunge below. His grip doesn’t hurt, but I’m keenly aware that the only thing between me and the Deep Caves is the strength of the fabric I’m wearing.

All Caed needs to do is let go, and I’ll find out firsthand exactly what a tunnel wyrm is. My hands fly to his wrist, digging into the skin there, but I can’t seem to summon a drop of fear as I stare into his narrowed eyes.

He could drop me, but my gut says he won’t.

“I am Fomorian,” he growls. “In all ways that matter.”

“Put me down,” I demand.

My legs dangle uselessly over empty space. On impulse, I kick out. My foot connects with his thigh, but I lack the leverage to do any real damage. Still, the tiny bit of revenge is satisfying, so I do it again. The crowd, which was dispersing, draws closer, lured by the promise of another sacrifice to the Deep Caves.

My Guard’s turquoise eyes burn with the same stubborn aggravation coursing through my own veins. Neither of us is willing to back down.

The crowd jostles restlessly, as if trying to decide if they should lunge forward and just push us both down into the dark. Their eager expressions, more than anything else, convince me to break the stalemate.

“Caed,please. Put me down.”

He lowers me, and my breath hitches as I descend towards the dark abyss. When solid wet stone meets my bare soles once more, my whole body sags in relief. Caed doesn’t release his grip on my shirt, but I’m no longer the focus of his attention. Instead, he raises an eyebrow at our audience.

“Hate to disappoint you,” he snarls at them. “But this one’s too special for the Deep Caves.”

There are grumbles of annoyance at his words, but a single hard look from Caed disperses the group.

The moment we’re alone he releases me and captures my palm once more.

Great, more hand holding.

I curse the buzz between us as he drags me out of the water. My breathing is shallow, and the adrenaline lingers in my system, but my body insists on reminding me that this male is my mate.

As soon as we’re far enough from the falls, I ask the question that’s burning in my mind.

“How can you hate the fae so much when you’re one of us.”

“I will never be one of you.” He curses, then drags me back up the hill. “Now come on. You have to get changed for dinner.”

I bite my lip, my stomach churning at the thought of eating—or indeed, existing—in the same room as Elatha, but I say nothing.

Caed—however—snorts. “Sonowyou’re afraid? At least you still have some common sense.”

Prae is gone by the time we reach her workshop once more. The forge is still glowing, but her tools have been put away.

“Go,” Caed says, pushing me in the direction of my closet. “Someone should’ve left something out for you.”

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