Chapter 45
Veylor
The doors banged open as I stormed through them, yanking at the clasp of my cape. Benedict materialized at my side, his fingers already reaching for the heavy fabric as it slipped from my shoulders.
The manor teemed with servants, their footsteps and voices echoing off marble floors and vaulted ceilings. I could release some from service, with enough gold to start anew elsewhere, build homes of their own. They'd want for nothing.
Now that the courts were dissolved they didn’t need me, didn’t need this job any longer.
“He’s in the library, he insisted.”
I hummed and straightened the cuffs on my tunic. “He was so hell-bent on visiting without an announcement?” I arched a brow at Benedict.
In the old courts, arriving without notice would have been a grave insult, but after decades of seclusion, perhaps the rules of fae courtesy had shifted without me.
Benedict smoothed the wrinkles from my cloak with practiced fingers, his expression tightening. "Your letter mentioned he was welcome anytime. He took that rather literally."
A muscle twitched in his jaw. "And refusing entry to someone of his... particular talents... seemed unwise."
He meant a sorcerer.
While some fae practiced magik, few were able to call themselves warlocks or sorcerers. Even so, those high practicing magik wielders hid themselves. Now that the courts are dissolved we should show ourselves more. What was the point in hiding?
I had hid all of my magik, my parents and the courts had no idea I could wield, and it was best that I had kept it that way.
“Very well, make sure Oryx and Vesper stay out of trouble.”
I entered the library without a knock and strode in.
Candlelight caught the copper and wheat highlights in Sylvaine's long, curled red hair as he stood with his arms clasped behind his back, gazing out over the courtyard with practiced indifference.
Right where Oryx, Vesper and I had stood.
Fuck.
Without turning from the window, Sylvaine's voice cut through the silence. "Quite the intimate display I witnessed in the courtyard. Had I known I'd be interrupting such a... tender moment, I might have announced myself." When he finally faced me, his amused expression met my cold stare.
Sylvaine grinned, a long fang touching his lower lip. “Come now, Veylor, I’m only joking. Your secret is safe with me. Don’t know why you would want to keep it a secret though. These are better times.”
My shoulders eased slightly. Only just.
“I’ve come here because of your inquiry about the strand of hair—”
"—No," I cut him off with a sharp wave of my hand. "I've heard enough." I crossed to the refreshment cart Benedict had prepared for our unwelcomed guest and lifted the crystal stopper from a decanter. The mead gurgled into my glass, amber and potent.
Sylvaine quirked a brow and brought his hand up to his jaw. His finger tapped lightly on his cheek. “Really, how curious.”
A low meow caught my attention as George wound between my ankles. The cat slunk past Sylvaine with an arched back and bared teeth, then leapt onto my favorite chair by the hearth, claiming it with a possessive curl of his tail.
“Ignore the feline, he hates strangers.” I waved my glass toward George. “And you’re right, I don’t care anymore. You don’t have to tell me what else she is. I know she’s part human and that’s all I need to know.” I took a sip of my drink, ignoring Sylvaine’s stare.
With languid strides, he circled the desk and perched on its edge, invading my space with a predatory lean. "Those striking features of hers—snow-white hair, violet eyes—remind you of anyone in particular among our kind?"
I hummed. “Perhaps.”
He chuckled. “But what kind of fae I wonder?” He crossed his arms. “White similar to yours, like the Shadow Court. Has she ever said if she knew who her father was?”
I squeezed the glass in my hand and it burst into pieces, scattering across the floor.
It was impossible. The mate bond wouldn't…couldn't…form between blood relations. Every instinct in my body had recognized her as mine from the first moment. The gods themselves wouldn't be so cruel as to bind siblings together with this primal, unbreakable connection.
Panic surged through me at what Sylvaine was implying.
Darkness erupted from my skin like ink in water while shadowed tendrils snaked between my fingers. The library convulsed around me…leather-bound volumes tearing from their shelves, ancient pages scattering through the air like startled birds.
Sylvaine slid off the table, his laughter filling the room. As my storm of power subsided, autumn leaves materialized around him, spinning in graceful spirals on currents of his own conjured wind.
“By the Shadows, you are so easy to rile up, my friend!”
I was not his friend, I was no one’s friend. I wiped my hand down my face at the audacity of this male.
“Get out,” I snarled and tossed the cart filled with drinks and food. “Get the fuck out of my house and don’t come back!”
Panic filled Sylvaine’s face and the leaves dropped to the ground. He held out his hands and rushed toward me. “Wait, no wait!”
I shook my head, my hair falling from my hair tie.
To think he had me believe I had kissed my sister.
“It was a bloody joke, you are always so tense. Come sit down, I must tell you who she is related to. You need to hear this.”
My hand was on the door and I turned back to him. “Then why are you acting like a fool? If I need to hear this so badly?”
Sylvaine shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve been lonely for a long while. I’ve forgotten how to act.”
Averting my gaze, I rolled my shoulders and strode toward the hearth.
George had claimed my armchair, curled into a perfect circle of fur and contentment.
I exhaled a low growl of resignation before settling onto the couch, motioning with a curt flick of my wrist for Sylvaine to take the opposite end.
Vesper had said once before, never to disturb a sleeping cat.
“Go on,” I nodded. “What are her genetic origins?”
Sylvaine sighed and leaned back on the pillow. “She has frostwhisper fae genetics. They are a sub species within your Shadow territory. I haven’t seen one in my lifetime and to find out that she is half, well it is rather remarkable.”
I rubbed my chin and stared into the fire. “Never heard of them.”
"I'm not surprised. I had to excavate ancient texts just to find fragments about them.
Nothing but whispers and legends remain—no living witnesses.
The stories describe beings with hair like fresh snow, eyes the color of twilight violets, who could weave weather, snowflakes and clouds between their fingertips.
" He smiled, leaning forward. "And they formed extremely strong bonds with their mates. .." He cocked his head to one side.
I swallowed heavily. “Mates?”
“Yes, as in more than one. The nameless gods had these creatures mate as triads. One female for two males. The females were, insatiable I hear,” he winked.
I shook my head. “How do you know about mates?”
Sylvaine's smile faded as his gaze fixed on the dancing flames. "This isn't new knowledge to me, Veylor. When I began studying genetic magik years ago, I discovered the ethereal strands that connect mates—invisible threads woven into the very essence of faes, goblins, and other beings."
I stared at him in shock.
“H-have you found yours? Your mate?”
Sylvaine licked his lips. “I did this search for you not just as a gift but hopefully for something in return.”
While I didn’t expect this to be a free request from him, I was intrigued on what he was wanting from me.
“Seeing that you are at full staff, I was hoping that you would be willing to hold… a ball.”
I raised my brows. “A ball?”
"Yes, a grand ball," he said, eyes brightening with hope.
"Fill your halls with every eligible female in the territories.
I lack the resources myself, but in your home.
.." His voice softened. "Even if she rejects me, I'll at least know she exists beyond my dreams—that somewhere in this vast world, my mate draws breath. "
My fingers traced the outline of my lips as I rose to my feet. A ball... I owed him nothing concrete—he hadn't named his price outright. Yet the knowledge he'd given me hung between us like an unspoken debt.
The information he gave me about Vesper, while not needed, was enlightening. One day, she may want to know where she came from, why she is so beautiful.
I scratched the back of my neck.
“I will need to speak with Vesperr and Oryx to be sure they are comfortable. They are my triad as you say.” I nervously laughed at the word.
A triad.
That was why there were three of us.
No wonder she could take us both. Well, soon will be taking us both.
By the Shadows.
"Of course," Sylvaine rose to his feet with a flourish, bending at the waist in an elegant bow.
"I would never dream of rushing such a delicate matter.
The sacred bond of a triad deserves proper reverence.
" His lips curled into a knowing smile. "I truly am delighted for your good fortune.
In fact, I've begun compiling a comprehensive text on mate bonds to share throughout the territories—it seems our people have been left woefully uninformed on such crucial matters. "
I smiled. “That is a noble thing for you to do, I appreciate it.”
George flicked his tail and opened his eyes into slits. He watched Sylvaine carefully.
"I should retire for the night. Benedict already pointed me to suitable quarters." He paused at the doorway, his silhouette framed against the dim hallway light. "You've found something rare, Veylor. May fate be as kind to me someday."
Once he left I let out a sigh of relief.
A ball?
This home has not seen a ball in decades and while the idea may seem small to him it would hold a great burden for the estate.
Still, despite my past cruelties, many of those I've wronged have chosen to remain under my roof. Perhaps hosting such an event wouldn't be entirely impossible after all.
They would have the possibility to find their mates, locals could try to find theirs…
The revelation about our mating bond still had my mind spinning. I hadn't yet found the courage to speak the truth to Vesper—this wasn't something to be casually mentioned over breakfast.
No, she deserved something memorable, something that would honor the significance of what we were to each other.
And let the whole world know that we all belonged to each other. With no fear, no shame.
I’d destroy anyone who thought otherwise.
My eyes lit up.
Of course at the ball. The ball would be perfect.
Then at the end of the night, I would ask Vesper to join our souls together permanently—all three of us bound by those ethereal threads Sylvaine described. My condition might make the ritual challenging, but nothing would stop me from completing what fate had designed for us.
A laugh escaped me. Half nerves, half excitement as I braced my palms against the table's edge.
Yes, this would be the moment we'd all remember.
I'd commission the finest silks from the Shadow markets for her gown, and have matching obsidian pendants crafted for both of them, something that would mark them unmistakably as mine.
From the nearby closet came a soft thump, drawing my attention. As I approached, whispers and muffled laughter leaked through the wooden door.
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose until I finally opened the door.
The closet was out of sight and the only way they could have gotten inside is if they came through the back of the library through one of the secret passages.
Oryx.
Vesper leaned against the wall in a dress I hadn't seen before, the bodice pulled askew to expose one pale breast. Oryx had her pinned there, his skulled head lowered to her chest, tongue circling her nipple as she flushed crimson.
His fingers were tangled possessively in her hair, holding her steady as she squirmed.
She shook Oryx to get his attention but he hummed and paid her no mind. He was drunk with desire and instead pushed his body closer to hers.
"Well, isn't this a delightful surprise," I drawled, shoulder pressed against the doorframe as I surveyed the scene before me.
Oryx hummed and pressed Vesper up against the wall. “Just a snack,” he hummed. “Her scent was stifling in here.”
I leaned against the doorframe, one eyebrow raised. "How generous of you to start without me, especially after sneaking in to listen to my private conversations."
Oryx stopped his licking and his ears perked up. “It was her idea. You should punish her.”
“Excuse me!” Vesper gasped. “You wanted to listen too!”
I sighed. “How much did you hear?”
“Most of it. I can have two mates because I’ve got a special pussy.”
Oryx snorted and I slapped my hand to my cheek.
There goes the, you are my mate surprise.
“It also means that your mother—”
“Got down and dirty with a super special rare fae.” She eyed me and grabbed my arm to pull me closer. “Now stop talking about my daddy issues and come here.” Her face softened. “You are getting worry lines.” She pressed her thumb between my brows to rub them away.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I came closer and wrapped my hand around her waist.
She shook her head. “No, I…”
My eyes rolled back into my head. Her scent was absolutely irresistible.
“I told you,” Oryx growled. “Like an animal in heat.”
George meowed from the other side of the room and walked out the door. The sound of him hacking and coughing enough to almost shake me out of my thoughts.
"Then we should satisfy our curiosity." My voice dropped to a growl as I exchanged a look with Oryx. "Bring her to the desk. If she's truly as rare as they say, a thorough investigation is warranted."
Oryx chuckled darkly and Vesper’s eyes glazed over in delight.