Chapter Twelve #2
“I don’t always feel strong.” Varys focused on the training warriors, but his stare looked miles away. “There are moments when I think of Elias and the grief of losing him cripples me. A piece of me died with him, I believe. Left in that shallow grave where I found him.”
Pressure filled my rib cage, compressing my heart and lungs.
After breaching the barrier around my parents’ cottage, the mercenaries of Nocturne had slit my dad’s throat and tossed him into a ditch.
Something I only knew because of the queen.
During the royal ball, she’d spoken of my dad with such a venomous tone it was no mystery which parent Cedric took after.
Then again, King Eidolon wasn’t as good of a man as I’d once thought. Treachery and wickedness ran deep on both sides of the gene pool. Prince Sawyer was the only one in the royal family I trusted wholeheartedly.
“One more time!” the black-haired demon roared from the field. He kicked at the dirt in his frustration. “I will best you, human. Mark my words.”
Callum smirked. “Not in this lifetime, demon. But it’s entertaining watching you try, so I accept your challenge. Let’s go again.”
“Your knight is highly skilled,” Varys said, watching them.
“A combination of pure talent and a lot of hard work,” I responded.
“Stubbornness too. See those scars on his neck and chest? The dork was outside doing drills the next morning after getting them. Not even almost dying was enough to keep him from training. I found him hitting a tree with a big stick. He thought he’d be clever, you see, because I said he couldn’t use his sword for a few days. ”
Varys smiled. “You have quite the group by your side. Skilled warriors, a fiercely protective and loyal demi-wolf, a shadow mage, and a brilliant healer.”
And maybe, eventually, a demon lord. But that was a giant maybe. It was possible Lord Onyx could reject our fated mate bond and tell me to kick rocks.
“Sounds like the perfect quest party,” I said, amused by the realization.
“Maybe I can make it as an adventurer after all. I’ll bake muffins to keep everyone fed, while they fight monsters and solve cryptic clues to find our way through labyrinths and dungeons, complete with defeating the big and scary final boss. ”
“You want to be an adventurer?” Varys cocked his head. “A dangerous profession. While in Bremloc, I heard many a tale of adventurers being mauled by wild boars and ripped apart by enchantments guarding treasure.”
“Dangerous but fun, I bet.” I thought of all the video games I’d played in my old world.
Kicked ass at playing, in fact, often claiming the top scores.
However, increasing skill levels in a game and becoming a badass paladin or assassin was easier than, well, actually having those skills in real life.
The real me couldn’t walk across the grass without tripping.
“If you crave fun, might I suggest horseback riding?” Varys said. “Safer than fighting monsters and… big and scary final bosses, as you phrased it.”
I exhaled a laugh. “A kind way of saying I wouldn’t survive ten minutes on an epic quest. My dreams are crushed. How will I ever go on?”
Varys echoed my laugh. His eyes, however, glinted with a recognizable ache. “It’s not my place to advise you on matters such as this… but I hope you’ll choose to remain in this realm. Your presence has had a positive effect on many of us here. Particularly with Lord Onyx.”
“Really?” I asked, surprised by that. “How?”
“Ever since your arrival, I’ve noticed a change in him.” He peered up at the branches again. “A light in his eyes that wasn’t there before.”
A stirring of warmth flowed into my chest.
The pad of paws on the grass sounded right before a blur of black fur pounced on me, landing on my lap. I laughed as Oreo licked my cheeks, his poofy tail whacking Varys as it wagged ninety-to-nothing.
“Duty calls, I’m afraid. I should be on my way.” Varys scratched Oreo’s back before standing from the bench. He nodded to me. “Was a pleasure speaking with you, lad.”
“You too,” I said, chest warm with an odd sensation. Similar to how I felt once learning Prince Sawyer and I were related. “Hopefully we can talk again soon.”
The older demi-wolf smiled. “I’d like that.” He tipped his head to me before walking down the path back toward the castle.
A trace of peaches came with the gentle breeze, announcing Lake’s arrival. He knelt in front of me, his purple eyes shining with affection. “There’s my human.”
“There’s my mister wolf.” I hooked my wrists around his neck.
“Yours now and always.” Forehead pressing to mine, he slowly exhaled. “I’ve never taken your love for granted, yet in this moment, I’m even more grateful to be by your side. Not all of us can be so fortunate.”
“What do you mean?” I drew back and petted Oreo with one hand, while keeping the other at his nape.
“Varys loved your father like I love you,” he answered. “I can sense a brokenness in him, as though his soul is crying out. I sensed the same in my father when he spoke of my mother. The loss of a mate is greater than any physical pain.”
“You’re saying Varys and my dad were mates?”
“Aye. It’s what I feel anyway. When a demi-wolf finds their mate, they emit a certain scent. It lets other potential partners know they’re taken. Varys remains devoted to your father even all these years later.”
Varys had imprinted on my dad, only to have that love be unrequited.
“So, it’s true.” I focused on the softness of Oreo’s fur. He had calmed down and sat on my lap like a good boy. Petting his fluff helped soothe the gnawing ache in my chest. “A fated mate can be rejected.”
“I know little of the world beyond what my father taught me and what I’ve read in books.” Lake brought my hand to his face and pressed my knuckles to his cheek. “Yet, if I know one thing it’s that I was yours from the moment you came stumbling through the forest to my cottage.”
I smoothed my thumb across his porcelain skin, a lump in my throat. “I was yours too.”
But would Lord Onyx feel the same? Or would he reject our bond?
Oreo wiggled off my lap and landed on the grass, padding over to the fence to watch the warriors train. He zeroed in on Callum and watched his every move, snarling when the black-haired demon managed to elbow Callum in the ribs.
“Do you think Fane would be okay with me cooking dinner tonight?” I asked. With the knights back to their training and Briar working in his clinic, I craved a touch of familiarity too. Being in the kitchen gave me that.
Lake peered up at me, a hopeful gleam in his purple eyes. “No harm in asking.”
***
The sun kissed the horizon, setting the sky aflame with hues of orange and deep purple. Fresh, crisp air came through the open window as I stood in the castle kitchen peeling potatoes for that evening’s dinner.
On the menu? Pork chops, creamy mashed potatoes, southern-style green beans, and freshly baked bread. Cake for dessert. Maybe not as refined as previous dinners at the castle, but Fane had said I could cook whatever I wanted. Which meant comfort food.
“Thanks for letting me make dinner tonight.” I peeled a potato, then chopped it into thick chunks. “It feels good being back in the kitchen and whipping up a big meal. Been too long.”
“You owned a café in Bremloc, yes?” Fane grabbed a potato and peeled it.
I nodded. “I used to wake before the sun every morning and make donuts, scones, cookies, and muffins. The smell of brewed coffee and pastries would fill the kitchen. Then when my men woke up, I’d cook them breakfast and send them off to work before opening the café doors. Every day felt special.”
“You must miss it dearly.” The middle of his forehead creased. “Your home.”
“Yeah.” A pressure burrowed in my chest. “Owning a café was always my dream. Hard work, but I loved it. But what I miss most is the life my men and I built together. Our cottage. Our friends. All the laughs and memories we made.”
Moments we’d probably never have again.
“More memories can be made here.” Fane’s long black and purple tail slowly moved behind him as he set aside a peeled potato and grabbed another. “With new friends.”
“Is that what we are?” I asked. “Friends?”
“No.” He scowled and salted the pot of water on the stove before dropping the potatoes in.
Such a grump.
A comfortable silence passed between us as we continued prepping dinner.
It was a nice change. The demon had learned to trust me.
He no longer watched me like a hawk each time I grabbed a utensil, as though worried I’d try to shank him or something.
He rinsed off the green beans while I grabbed a small skillet to fry some bacon.
With the food prepped, I checked the cake baking in the oven before pulling out the tins and placing them on a rack to cool.
“You sure that’s edible?” Fane scrutinized the two slabs of cake. “Bacon in green beans is enough of a crime, but that looks much too dense.”
“First of all, bacon in green beans is god’s work. Second of all, this is honey cake. It’s supposed to be kind of dense, but it’s baked to perfection and will taste amazing, especially once I add the honey glaze on top. You’ll love it.”
Humor touched his grass-green eyes. “A bold declaration.”
“Look, I may not be able to walk across flat ground without tripping, but I know food. Trust me.”
That humor fell to his lips. “My opinion of that atrocity aside, I’m sure milord will enjoy it. Honey cake is his favorite.”
“Oh really?” I feigned surprise. “I had no idea. What a coincidence.”
Had I intentionally chosen honey cake as that evening’s dessert in an attempt to win over the demon lord?
Possibly. After falling in love with five men, I’d learned the way to a person’s heart was through their stomach.
Even Rowan couldn’t resist. To seduce my carb thief, I just needed to bake bread and slather it in butter.