Page 80 of Rain of Shadows and Endings

Theon nodded, and he and Luka made their way to the house. With some type of luck, they managed not to run into anyone else. Luka walked Tessa straight to the bay window where she curled into herself, clutching her knees to her chest. He was speaking softly to her, and Theon couldn’t hear what he said. Needing to do something, he went to the kitchen and filled the teakettle. He was placing tea bags in four mugs when Luka joined him.

“She is going to be fine,” Luka said, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms. “She is already calming.”

“Because I am over here. Away from her,” Theon groused.

“Because you are doing what she needs and giving her space,” Luka argued. “Metias and Pavil used their gifts on her, Theon. We are lucky we even got to her in time. It sounds like they weren’t touching her for very long. Any more contact and…”

He trailed off, the tea kettle beginning to whistle shrilly.

“I know,” Theon sighed, moving to grab the kettle. Pouring hot water into the mugs, he added, “My father had to be a part of this. It’s why he kept us back when Metias and Pavil left the meeting. To give them time to get to her first. What does he want with her?”

“We will figure it out,” Luka said, both of them watching her. She was staring out the glass across the gardens, her chin resting on her knees.

“If he expects me to work with those assholes, this can never happen again. Ever.”

“Agreed,” Luka said. “We can come up with a…tactful way to let your father know until we can take care of them.”

“When that time comes, they are mine,” he replied darkly, already debating how many ways he could draw out their deaths.

“Understood,” Luka said.

“And my father won’t give a fuck about anything we say,” Theon growled as the door opened and Axel came in. Tessa flinched at the sound.

“You won’t believe this,” Axel said, closing the door softly, clearly having noted Tessa’s reaction. “Kacela jumped over her kennel gate. There is no other way she could have gotten out of the kennels. All the pens, including hers, were securely locked.”

“They can’t jump that high,” Theon argued, pulling tea bags from the mugs. “I made sure of it when I had the kennels remodeled when I got the hounds.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, brother. I couldn’t see any other way she got out of her pen,” Axel replied. “She also had that golden paint all over her paws and muzzle. But it was more like…”

“Like what?” Luka asked when Axel hesitated.

“It was like golden blood, but that doesn’t make any sense, right?”

None of the events of today were making any sense. Like everything else in their lives, they needed to consider every possibility before they decided how to proceed. Their father clearly had a hand in all of this. Theon just needed to figure out why.

Axel grabbed one of the mugs. “Want me to take this to her?”

“I guess,” Theon muttered, bringing his mug to his lips.

Tessa lifted her head when Axel approached. He said something to her as he offered her the mug, and she took it without any type of reaction before turning back to stare out the window. He then wandered off to the bedroom.

Theon turned back to Luka, taking another drink of his tea. “When she lets me near her again, she needs any wounds healed, and she needs to bathe.”

“How do you think she did it?” Luka mused, ignoring everything Theon had just said. “How do you think she managed to run after Metias and Pavil touched her?”

“Maybe they didn’t use their gifts to their full extent? She is an heir’s Source after all,” Theon replied. Luka didn’t answer, telling Theon exactly how likely he thought that idea was, especially if his father had a hand in this. Theon didn’t bother saying anything else. They’d know soon enough once she calmed down.

Some time later, Axel emerged from his bedroom. He was carrying Tessa’s phone and some earbuds in his hand.

“I got her these to use while running,” Axel said by way of explanation as he held the items out to him. “I don’t know what kind of music she likes, so I set up a bunch of playlists for her and paired the earbuds with her phone.” Theon nodded, taking the items. “Should we do something?” he asked, his gaze drifting back to Tessa.

“I need to check her injuries,” Theon sighed.

“Do you want me to do it?” Axel asked.

“No,” Theon bit back harshly. Axel’s brows rose. “I mean, I’ll do it. I should be able to heal most of them with the bond between us. Just give her a few more minutes.”

Axel nodded. “Are you going to confront Father about this?”

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