Page 117 of Dark & Dreadful Brutes

“Ice magic.” He lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back of it. “We’re not going exploring. The caves closest to the castle are well-mapped and extremely safe, unlike some of the lower ones. The caves have magic of their own, and some are interesting. You’ll see.”

I tensed a bit with his explanation—not because of the magic, but because we were heading underground.

“Does it smell like your prison?” I asked him.

“No. It smells like the sea down here, so you shouldn’t be affected. Give it a minute and you’ll start to smell the salt.”

Relief rolled through me, and sure enough, the smell of salt slowly filled the air.

The walls began morphing further as we walked hand-in-hand. The ice became more crystalline, glittering in bright blues and soft purples. It grew jagged in some places, jutting out in wickedly-sharp icicles, and smoother in others, forming waves and swirls. All of it looked like art to me, and veil, I had never been exposed to art like that before.

It took my breath away.

“Legends say that centuries ago, these tunnels were full of pixies,” Ravv murmured.

“Pixies?”

“The tiny version of fae, with crystalline wings.” He held two fingers apart to show me how small they would’ve been. “No one knows why they vanished, or if they really did exist. Some of the most ancient fae will tell stories about them, but fae that old begin to lose their minds, so they’re unreliable.”

My eyebrows shot upward. “Are you going to lose your mind too? How close are you to being too ancient?”

He laughed. “We call it immis when they lose their minds, and all immortal beings can get it. None of our fae have been lost to it for a long time, because we’ve had our war to focus on. Immis comes on with boredom or loneliness. Before the cult, fae used to take mates as soon as they felt it begin to set in. There were many couples mated as friends just to keep the madness away. Some still live now, in my parents’ city.”

“Mated couples don’t get immis?”

“No. They live for each other, and that gives them purpose.” He lifted my hand to his lips again and brushed another kiss to the back of it.

“Maybe the pixies were all lost to immis, then. Or to the cult.”

“Or perhaps there is more in these caves than we realize.”

I didn’t like the sound of that.

He must’ve felt me shiver, because he tucked me beneath his arm and pulled me closer. “We’re almost there. Fae frequent these caves, and no one has ever been harmed here. You’ll see why we like them, soon.”

I nodded, though I was still uncertain.

Clearly, I didn’t have the best relationship with anything underground.

We came upon an opening to a smaller cave, and I peered inside. There were glittering, glowing crystals dotting the walls, sending bits of light everywhere and reflecting off everything.

“Veil,” I murmured, staring into them.

“Couples come here to make love beneath the lights, or dance below them. Sometimes both at once, or to do so while others do the same,” Ravv said, his breath brushing my ear and making goosebumps erupt on my skin.

Worry curled in my stomach. “Have you brought a woman here before? I’m like the fifth girl, aren’t I? Or the hundredth?”

He laughed—loud and booming. “No, Lae. The caves are far too intimate for casual sex. Fae come here with their life partners, not for drunken pleasure.”

Though I still didn’t love the life partner label, it was a lot better than a potential future without him. I wouldn’t necessarily mind being alone, but veil, I’d miss Ravv if we parted. He had become more than just my lover; he was the best friend I’d ever had. He was stubborn, but so was I, and I’d started to enjoy making him growl at me.

I wanted to ask him if he’d ever consider sealing the mate bond with me, but I didn’t want to ruin the moment. I’d never been somewhere as beautiful or as magical as the caves, and I wasn’t ready to let them go yet.

We resumed walking, passing the large opening to another cave. Steam flooded the space, and yellow and orange ice shone softly behind it.

“There are hot springs in there. Some fae enjoy heat play in their love-making. The water would feel nice to humans, but it’s a bit painful for us.”

“A pleasure and pain thing, then,” I said.

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