Chapter 18
Tenebrys's head was clouded with the remnants of the moon madness. He struggled to remember the night before, and when he opened his eyes, he found Delphi in his bed beside him. His tail was wrapped firmly around one of her legs, and she was pulled up against him.
Flashes came back to him, like a twisted kind of dream. Fae had been trying to take her, running, moonlight, rage, blood. He could smell sex on his fur. Wounds that weren't his own.
Dear gods, had he hurt her? Tenebrys sat up and checked her over. There was blood on her skirts. Bruises on her arms. Fear clawed through him. He had hurt his mate.
Delphi opened her eyes and gave him a sleepy smile. "Morning."
"Did I hurt you?" he demanded, untangling himself from her and getting off the bed.
"What? No, of course you didn't," Delphi replied, sitting up. Her hair was a riot with leaves and twigs stuck in it. "Don't you remember?"
"Parts. Show me your wounds. I can smell you're hurt," he said, tail flicking in worry and irritation.
"Are you going to lick them again?" Delphi asked, a wicked gleam in her eye.
Tenebrys froze, and the memory of the taste of her skin and pussy came rushing back. That's why he could smell sex.
"I... No. Just let me see," Tenebrys insisted. He was glad his black fur hid any blushing.
With an amused smile, Delphi lifted her tattered, bloody skirts and showed him her slashed-up legs.
"Fuck, Delphi."
"They look worse than they feel."
Tenebrys ran his hands over his face. "Stay there."
He stalked into his bath room and washed off the blood that was still splattered on his chest and the scent of her sex off his face. Gods, he really was an animal.
He turned the taps on the oversized bath and let it fill with hot water. He turned back to the marble counter, and there was a basket of freshly cut herbs and flowers that hadn't been there a moment before.
A shiver went over him, setting his fur on end. He lifted a bound bundle and sniffed it. They were from his mother's garden. Like her library, she had her own private garden of magical plants from Faerie and other realms. When she died, it had disappeared.
Tenebrys had grown up with such herb bundles being put in his bath whenever he hurt himself.
"Thank you," he whispered to whatever spirits or magic in the chateau had left them there.
Tenebrys put it in the bath, and instantly the room filled with a calming scent. Delphi was climbing out of bed when he came back into the room.
"Where do you think you are going?" he demanded.
Delphi's brows rose. "Back to my rooms?"
"Not yet, you aren't," Tenebrys said and offered his hand.
Delphi cautiously took it. "What's gotten into you?"
"You took care of me when I was injured. I'm going to do the same," he insisted.
He led her back into the bathroom before crouching down to slip off her boots. Delphi was still giving him a puzzled look but didn't object when he helped her out of her ruined clothes. She had bruises blooming on her hips and arms.
"Did I cause any of those?" he asked, the sick feeling back in his stomach.
"No, these were from crashing into things in the woods and the fae grabbing me," she replied. She seemed completely at ease being naked in front of him.
"They didn't stab you or scratch you with anything?" he asked, trying to remain impervious to her beauty.
"Not that I know of. Why?"
"The fae use poisons and darts that can cause people to do their will. Turn around so I can check your back."
Delphi turned, and Tenebrys lifted her hair to inspect her neck and behind her ears. Her back was patterned with scars.
Tenebrys touched them. "What happened here? Who did this to you?"
"Which ones?" Delphi said with a slight shrug. "Most of them were from working as a servant. There was one place that Narcisse worked, where I got beaten by the cook a lot because she thought I was too pretty and lazy. I wasn't. She just hated me."
"And Narcisse did nothing?" Tenebrys demanded.
"He didn't want to cause any trouble and lose his post. He always did, eventually," Delphi said, her voice emotionless. "It was a long time ago."
Tenebrys carefully lifted her over the tub's high edge and placed her in the water. Delphi made a soft hissing sound.
"It will only hurt for a moment," Tenebrys assured her. "Trust me. I spent many a bath soaking in this healing mixture."
"But your shifter healing is so powerful. Why would you need to?"
"It's different when you're a cub. Slower. I got hurt a lot trying to train and be better and stronger than everyone else. My mother would lecture me and make me sit in this," he replied with a smile.
He hadn't thought of those days in so long that it felt like a story he had once heard.
Delphi skimmed her fingers over the water. "She sounds like she was a good mother."
"The best."
"What was her name?" Delphi asked.
"Maela. She would have liked you," Tenebrys replied. He opened a drawer in the counter and found a silver comb. He placed it on the lip of the tub for her. "She never used to put up with any of my shit moods either."
"Tenebrys? Why are you being so nice to me?" Delphi asked, drawing her knees up to her chest.
Tenebrys needed to work up to telling her that she was his mate, so he crouched by the tub so they were at eye level.
"I almost lost you last night because of my own stupidity and anger.
I have been so furious at your parents for so long that I have treated you unfairly.
I can't hate you anymore, Delphi. I don't have it in me to even try.
Letting you sit in my bathtub is the least I can do to make up for acting like an asshole," he said.
He didn't dare reach out and touch her pale face.
"Soak here for a while, and afterward, there are things we need to talk about. "
"I have questions too. The fae said some things last night, and I'm... I'm scared, Ten," she admitted. The use of his nickname in such an easy way hit him deep. He did cup her cheek then, his paw taking up most of her face.
"I'll never let them hurt you, Delphi. No matter what. They will not touch a hair on your head."
"Because I'm yours?" she asked.
Tenebrys's heart stuttered. Had he said that to her last night too? Damn the moon and all her power.
"That's right. You live under my roof. You are mine to protect and care for," Tenebrys replied, not wanting to scare her off by telling the whole truth just yet.
"Stay here and rest. I'll go and get you some clean clothes and something to eat."
"Ten? Thank you," she whispered.
Tenebrys paused by the door. "You're welcome, little flower."
Tenebrys hated to leave her alone, but she did need food to help her heal. His dick declared that her having clothing was optional, but he didn't want her to feel vulnerable or unsafe. They did need to talk, and he couldn't handle the thought of being without her at that moment.
Felix was waiting at the bottom of his stairs. His nose and ears twitched.
"What's going on, Tenebrys? I found a pile of dead fae, and your and Delphi's scent was all over it. Her blood is in the woods," he began.
"I know, Felix. It was a long night." Tenebrys told him about the fight, Delphi out in the gardens, the fae hunting her, and Tenebrys only just getting to her in time. Telling Felix helped him piece together his memories.
"Fucking hell, the fae are bold to get that close to the chateau," Felix swore.
Tenebrys needed to talk to someone about Delphi, and Felix would be the best person.
"There's more," he admitted.
Felix's eyes flashed with wolf. Instantly alert. "What is it?"
"I...have a knot," Tenebrys said through gritted teeth.
Felix stared at him for a long moment and then burst out laughing.
"It's not funny, you asshole!" Tenebrys growled.
Felix struggled to catch his breath. "No, it's hilarious. Wow, you really must have pissed off the gods in another life. Have you told Delphi yet?"
"Of course I haven't." Tenebrys ran his hands through his mane. "I don't know where to start."
"It explains why you marked her and why you two have always been drawn to each other. Her parentage is going to be a problem."
"No, it's not," Tenebrys replied with a shake of his head.
"The things Narcisse has done to her, Felix.
I can't repeat them without losing my temper.
She's just as much of a victim of his as we are.
I don't think she even realizes the full extent of how much he used her and her magic over the years. "
Felix sighed. "If it's not a problem for you, then it's not for us.
Your own parents overcame centuries of hatred.
You need to tell her, Ten. The more you hold out, the worse the frenzy will be.
You need a clear head to fight the fae, and you won't have one if you haven't claimed her.
We have time. Your knot has only turned up. "
"Not exactly?" Tenebrys said, shifting his weight.
Felix took a cautious step backward. Males were volatile until they claimed their mates. "How long has it been, Ten?"
"A few days?"
"Oh, you idiot." Felix slapped a hand over his face. "I will get you some food and Delphi some clothes and leave them by your door. You need to deal with this, Tenebrys. You used to be able to charm the surliest of Runefjell alphas. I'm sure you can handle charming your mate into your bed."
"That was before this..." Tenebrys said, gesturing at his face. "I used to be handsome, remember?"
Felix snorted. "Considering I can smell her all over you, I don't think that will be a problem. Now, go. Don't come down until you have claimed her. I'll update the others."
"Thanks," Tenebrys replied and trudged back up his stairs.
It was true that Delphi let him touch her. He had smelled her arousal and tasted it on his tongue the night before.
His beastly body wasn't the only thing that would scare a human woman. He was made differently from any man she may have been with. She didn't seem to know much about shifters, so he doubted she knew about their spurs, or their mating knots, for that matter.
Tenebrys went back into his chambers and tried to think of a way he could tell Delphi what she meant to him without making her run screaming in the opposite direction. Maybe the gods really did hate him.