Page 51 of A Story of Sinners

“That I’ll be like you. That I won’t have her back. That I’ll try to take ownership and control like you do with your mate.”

I tipped my head back and sighed. Sure, I had control issues, but they were not that serious or damaging. At least, they weren’t until I rejected my own mate. I shouldered my way past Fin and knocked his hand from the door. “She’s your mate. She’ll deal with it.”

The door to the common area opened, and four heads turned to greet us: Eulalia, Matilda, Isadora, and Redmond. I raised a brow at Redmond and walked over to the serving cart to pour myself a glass of liquor, swallowing the drink whole. When I finished, I slammed it back against the cart.

I addressed my human friend. “It’s nice to see you, Redmond. What brings you to our clandestine meeting?”

Redmond released a noise of frustration and narrowed his eyes on me. “I’m here to help you pull your head out of your ass, Ryken. Your actions have lacked all common sense and decency. You’re on a self-destructive path that doesn’t affect only you.”

“Thanks for your input, old man.” I poured another glass of liquor, needing liquid courage to help me survive the lecture I was sure to receive, only to turn and find Redmond standing in front of me.

He plucked the glass from my hand and placed it back on the table. “You rejected your mate, my ward. Why? Do you know the type of pain she is in?” His voice rose. “Do you have any idea what you have done to her?”

I didn’t need his fatherly lecture, not when I already knew how much I’d messed up, and so I laughed, a dark sound that lacked humor, as I poked him in the chest. “Do you think I’m not aware I made a colossal, overwhelmingly stupid mistake?” I poked him again, snarling. “Do you think I don’t feel the same pain she does?”

The last thing I needed was to burn all my bridges, but I couldn’t help but redirect the anger I felt towards myself, to the closest victim. I felt like an idiot, a fool who acted only on instinct. I felt small.

This time when I went to poke him, Redmond grabbed my finger and twisted. The movement of the squirrely man stunned me for the briefest moment, and my voice splintered. “I know I screwed up, Redmond. I don’t need you or anyone else to remind me how much.”

Redmond twisted my finger a little harder, then released it, turning his back on me as he retreated to the couch. “Then fix it and stop complaining, and for the love of everything, stop acting like an overly emotional brute of a male and start thinking with your head.” Redmond turned to Matilda and stuck his nose in the air. “Children, the lot of them.”

The seer nodded in agreement, and I studied the silent girl, wishing to peer into her mind.

“How much did I throw us off track?” I asked, unsure whether she knew of the rejection well in advance, whether it was something already set into stone or if it had been a swerve in the path. I hadn’t been expecting it myself, and I still cursed my inane reaction to being marked and claimed.

The little seer gazed up at me, her eyes wide, and when she spoke, her voice was soft and childlike. “Very far.”

I hummed and moved to the sitting area, slowly eyeing Isadora, Eulalia, Fin, Redmond, then landing back at Matilda, my earlier bluster withering away. “I need to know everything. What happens next? What are the best steps in moving forward?”

The seer’s gray hair hung in her face as she gazed at the floor with withered eyes. When she lifted her head, it was to meet Eulalia’s face.

“Go on,” Eulalia nodded. “You can tell him what you know. He needs to know the damage his actions have caused.”

Fin exhaled. It seemed he would not have to battle his mate, at least not today.

Matilda’s voice creaked as she used her words, words she whispered with the barest breath. “It is unknown what damage your actions caused, High King, because you don’t exist in the sight. There is a wall in place where you should be, something impenetrable that not even I can peer into. There is something or someone shielding your presence from others, and there always has been. As the future stood, if you hadn’t rejected Dahlia, the problem would have been resolved within a week. The demon would have been dead, at her hands. She would have been in Faerie shortly after, though it is unknown if she would have been there for you. It is my assumption that you would have been the reason, but it is truly impossible to know when your presence in the sight is lacking. Without seeing the possibilities, there is no way to know how you can affect a situation.”

My brow furrowed, and my gaze bounced around the small table. “What does that mean?”

Isadora snorted. “I told you fae males were slow.”

Eulalia waived her off. “It means she can’t see your past, present, or future. It means that you are anachronistic, something that doesn’t quite fit into the pattern of events. With that said, the best thing for you to do is to stay uninvolved with the events that have been set in motion. Your actions will only cause chaos and unpredictability.”

I bristled at her comment. If Dahlia was involved, then I would be too. There was no way I would sit back and watch her get sucked into damnation without me. I snorted at the ridiculousness of their direction.

“Do you have any idea why you wouldn’t be in the sight, Ryken?” Redmond cut in. “Is there something unknown about your origins or what you might be?”

My nostrils flared as I looked to Redmond. The faithfulness of my mother and father’s relationship had been called into question one too many times, and I knew without a doubt that they held a loyalty to one another that could not be broken. “No.”

I thought about what had just transpired and looked to the seer. “If you can’t see my actions, then how were you able to send Fin to stop me from murdering the twat?”

The seer dipped her head. “I had a vision of Dahlia waking alongside the dead corpse of her brother, and her actions afterwards were not pretty. Everyone died. It wasn’t difficult to figure who would have enough power to destroy the male.”

I hummed at her claims. “Interesting.”

The room grew silent, and Fin clenched, knowing he wouldn’t like what came next. I leaned back in my chair and took a deep breath. “So what you are saying is that I am an unknown, and my actions can affectyourplans in the pattern of fate?” Matilda nodded, and Eulalia’s eyes cut to hers in warning. “Good. Then if what you claim is true, there is a chance my actions have the capability of ensuing not only a negative outcome, but a positive one as well.”

“No!” Eulalia argued. “It is best to stay on the chosen path for now. It will be a long journey, thanks to the changes your actions have caused”—she thrust her pointer finger my way—"but the demon will be given a length of rope to hang himself with, and he will. If we withdraw ourselves from the situation and allow the events to play out without our interference, everything will work itself out. There will be a happy ending for all.”

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