Page 104 of Rage of Her Ravens

“Girls! What are you doing here?” They smelled like fresh rosewater and they were clean, their cheeks flushed. Their faces even looked fuller. What a difference a few days at Abyssus had made for them. I wish I could’ve said the same for Shirina. She looked ill, her face gaunt, and I feared I wasn’t just going to lose my brother, but my mate, too.

Ember laid her head against my chest. “We can’t sleep.”

Aurora looked at me with watery eyes. “We’re sad about Uncle Nikkos.”

Had someone told them he was dying? I knelt down, pressing my wings against the wall and balancing them both on one knee. “We are, too.”

Ember’s lower lip hung down in a pout as a solitary tear slipped down her cheek. “My friends said he might join them.”

My veins solidified with dread as I gave Drae a helpless look.

“Her friends?” Drae asked.

“I’ll explain later,” I answered. Nikkos had told me Ember was a spirit talker, but I wasn’t ready to acknowledge her otherworldly friends could be right.

He pushed off from the wall, his face falling and despair reflecting in his eyes. Then he knelt beside me, grasping the girls’ hands. “How about we bug Cook for some warm milk and biscuits?”

Both girls nodded, and Ember surprised me by holding her arms out to Drae. He took her in his arms, and I held Aurora. We jumped on top of the railing and soared down to the lower level, landing in the great hall before making our way to the dining room.

We set the girls on the table, and they held hands while their little legs swung back and forth.

“Is Uncle Nikkos going to die?” Aurora asked us.

“Not if I can help it.” Drae cupped her cheek, his gaze softening. “I will summon better healers.”

I didn’t want to argue with my brother now, but there were no better healers in Delfi. I’d no idea Drae had formed an attachment with the children. This soft side of him was unexpected. Did this mean he’d finally accepted Shiri as his mate?

Ember wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “Our mommy could heal him.”

“I know she could,” I said, my heart feeling like a ship tossed about in a gale, “but she’s too far away.” If only she was here. I would forsake my allegiance to Malvolia just to save him.

Both girls hung their heads. Drae surprised me again when he carried them to a bench, rubbing their backs while they cried in his arms. I summoned a servant to bring biscuits and warm milk for everyone. I’d barely eaten these past few days, but I didn’t think I could stomach food right now.

Drae and I sat there in silence, watching while the girls ate and drank their milk. He wiped crumbs from their mouths in a sweet fatherly gesture when they were finished. My brother certainly had softened toward them. I didn’t smell him on Shiri or sense a bond between them. I worried Drae had ruined his chance to bond with her. It would serve him right after the way he’d treated her, but it would only make it harder on me, for now I would be Shirina’s only mate, tasked to protect her and the children without help.

A loud clomping echoed from the outside hall and then the doors were thrown open. Mrs. Euphemia stood in the doorway, a white lace nightcap on her head, her long pale gown laced all the way up to her throat. “Girls!” She threw up her hands and stomped toward us. “I woke up and you were gone! You scared me out of my wits!”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Euphemia.” Drae stood between Mrs. Euphemia and the girls. “We should’ve told you the girls joined us for a late-night snack.”

Mrs. Euphemia gave Drae and me stern yet tender looks, and suddenly I was a child again, transported back to the nursery. I had always loved Mrs. Euphemia above all our other nursemaids. She wasn’t as strict as our other nursemaids, but she always knew how to make us listen.

She wagged a finger at Drae and then at me. “You both should be abed, too.” She smiled warmly at me, her hands clasped in front of her. “Master Blaze, it’s good to have you back.”

I thanked her with a brief bow. “It’s good to be back.”

Mrs. Euphemia looked from Drae to me. “Any news about Master Nikkos?”

“No, not yet,” Drae cut in before I could speak.

I shot my brother a look. I didn’t blame him for lying. That meant he wasn’t giving up on Nikkos. Neither was I.

“Well, I’m sure he’ll be just fine.” She gave us both a knowing look. I’d forgotten Mrs. Euphemia always sensed when we were lying. She nodded toward the girls who walked up to her and grasped her hands. “Shall I take them to bed?”

“Please,” I cut in.

“Aww,” both girls whined.

“You need to get your rest, sprites.” I knelt beside them, patting their heads. “If you’re good girls, we’ll play a game of hide-and-seek tomorrow. Would you like that?”

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