Chapter 25 #2
“I used to believe in our power more before I had Rune. I used to think we could actually manage coexistence with the humans because the faction was run by Faith and Cooper Clearwater. Then, they died, and I’ve watched the humans build tech faster than we could keep up.
Under our watch, they stole supernatural children from their beds.
I’ve watched the Fates look away, and we have looked away for too long. ” Her hands clenched at her sides.
“We haven’t looked away,” I told her clearly. “We have documented each case, and your agents have brought all but one home.”
“I’m tired, Drecken,” she admitted with a crack in her tone. “One child is still missing. I’m tired of pretending this is sustainable. Tired of pretending we’re not one mistake away from another war with the humans.”
“We would crush them this time. We do have the draconic blood on our side this time,” I mused.
“Drecken, I’m serious.”
Her vulnerability struck me deeper than I’d expected. For a moment, she wasn’t the infamous enforcer or basilisk representative or even Rune’s fiercely composed mother.
She was simply a woman who had survived too much. As strange as it was, she reminded me of Mom in that moment. She always took on more than she could handle, but she always managed it.
I leaned against the nearest column. “You’re not wrong to be tired, Sabine. Exhaustion is not surrender.”
“That sounds like something someone who doesn’t sleep would say.” She frowned. “Exhaustion leads to surrender, does it not?”
“Perhaps.” I shrugged. “But the Supernatural Council still needs us to fight for peace. It’s what your daughter is training to do.”
Sabine’s gaze softened, and she turned to face me fully. “Do you think she still believes in our ability to keep the peace after what happened to her in the simulator?”
“She believes in herself,” I said quietly. “I believe in her, too. I believe with her as an agent, there’s no species that can stand in the way of peace if we fight hard enough.”
Sabine’s lips parted, and the faintest flicker of surprise crossed her features. “You love my daughter.”
“I care deeply for her. I’d like to call what I feel for her love, though I’ve never truly understood a romantic love.”
“A romantic love is…another side of your own heart. A side you crave to understand at the deepest levels. You hate not being in their orbit,” she explained softly. “You can’t stand the thought of them hurt, and you’d do anything to keep them safe.”
I felt Rune’s bond in my chest like a lifeline. Was what I felt for my mate, love?
Yes, but it was even more than that.
Sabine exhaled, shoulders sinking. “You being her mate scares me.”
“I’m not a danger to her.”
“I didn’t say you were,” she said softly. “But you have a lot of enemies.”
“All turned to ash or locked up in Apex Penitentiary.” Magic arced off me at her implication. “I can keep her safe, and you know that. Besides, she’s not as fragile as you think.”
“She’s my daughter.”
I met her gaze. “She’s my fated mate.”
“I should probably tell you congratulations. Rune is wild, but she’s a strong woman. I’d threaten you, but she’d kill you before I could if you ever hurt her.”
“I’m aware.”
“Good. To be honest, I’m worried you’ve lived long enough to forget how fragile young hearts are,” she admitted.
“Perhaps your heart has never been fragile, though. She’s only in her second decade, Drecken.
You’re old enough to have written the first treaty with the humans. ” Concern and fear flashed in her aura.
“My heart is more fragile now, mated to your daughter, than it was when I was young,” I said, defensive magic sparking around me.
“I will say this once. Don’t mistake Rune’s strength for an immunity of feeling. She breaks differently than others. She needs you to listen to what is in here.” She pressed her chest, where I assumed her matebonds lay.
I studied her quietly, feeling Rune’s bond in the same spot in my chest. “You assume I mean to hurt her.”
“I assume there’s a chance.” Her eyes narrowed into slits. “Even if you won’t mean to.”
A silence hung between us, long and heavy.
“You’re right,” I groaned, letting my magic blast off me in pulse-like bursts.
“I am older than her. Fates, I’m older than you.
Older than even this chamber. I have done terrible things in the name of balance and worse things in the name of research, but I would destroy the entirety of Kalista before I let harm touch Rune. ”
Sabine’s expression flickered with doubt, acceptance, and relief. “I see it now. You’ve accepted the bond snapping in your soul.”
“The bond didn’t just snap,” I corrected. “It erupted. I’ve lived long enough to know the difference between obsession and the Fates. What I have with Rune is both. I’ve more than accepted it.”
Sabine chuckled, shaking her head. “Fates help her.”
“They already have.”
We stood in silence, except for the ambient hum of my magic.
“Okay,” she said abruptly. “I’ll take your word for it. But if you ever let her get hurt on your watch—”
“I’d spontaneously combust from magical overload before I let that happen,” I said.
Sabine nodded. “Then maybe I don’t need to worry after all.”
“You’ll worry anyway.”
“Of course I will,” she sighed. “It’s what mothers do.”
“You already know that I have one glaring weakness, and it’s the only thing that would ever have a chance at keeping me from her,” I admitted, loathing to vocalize my one fault.
Tourmalyke.
“I also know your weakness is the same one we all have.” She paused, glancing toward the door. “You know, it’s strange. I always thought I’d struggle with whomever the Fates mated her to. I thought no one would ever be good enough. But then they picked you.”
“Jesper, too,” I added dryly.
Her grin widened. “I do like him, too.”
“I do too, actually,” I admitted, feeling the bond buzz with a warm feeling.
Sabine stepped forward and offered her hand. “Welcome to my family, Drecken.”
“Thank you, Sabine.” I clasped it back, heat pricking my eyes. It had been so long since I’d ever been included in a family. It’d been so long since Mom and Dad passed.
Her grip was firm, but her aura had mellowed into acceptance. “Take care of her, Drecken.”
“I will.”
“Promise me.”
“I feel confident in doing a blood pact.”
“Good.” Sabine released my hand and turned toward the exit. “Don’t be late to the staff meeting tomorrow,” she called over her shoulder.
Fates. I had forgotten about that.
When she was gone, I looked up at the ceiling and the gold-veined marble, and fell back into a portal that took me to my lab.
Humans made me uneasy, but I had Rune now. If I had to wipe out the humans to keep her safe, I would.
The fun part would be creating a potion that would target humans only.