45. Rae
RAE
At being called a what instead of a who for maybe the third time in the past few hours, I did something very un-me. My fingers fisted around a handful of dirt, and I hurled it at Nyx.
It was instinct. Nothing more, nothing less. But as Pax sucked in an audible breath, I started to have second thoughts about those instincts. Nyx froze, then began to sputter, spitting out pieces of dirt that had clearly landed in his mouth.
I couldn’t help it—I laughed. It wasn’t long before it went full hysterical giggle, but it was what it was. And honestly? I needed the release.
“She threw dirt at me,” Nyx snarled.
Kian shoved to his feet, offering me a hand. “Sounded to me like you deserved it.”
“She all but destroyed one of my best conservatories,” he grumbled.
Odin let out a bark, jumping into the air, clearly believing a game had begun.
I brushed the dirt off my clothes. I’d changed into corduroy pants and an incredibly soft cream sweater, but it didn’t seem like the sort of thing you could toss into the wash.
Hopefully, I could get the dirt out. “Seems like you’re rich.
I’m sure you can have another built with perfectly uniform plants, just the way you like it. ”
Nyx let out a derisive sound.
I didn’t care. I was too busy tracing a plant that had sprouted into a silvery vine with the palest-pink metallic blooms. My fingers skimmed over it as it climbed the window and raced down the wall. It went on and on and…on.
“It’s not possible,” I whispered.
Kian followed close behind me as if bracing in case I fell. “It clearly is. You grew them.”
My mind flashed back to the so-called lesson my birth mother had taught me when I was little. How Imogen had forced me to grow the flower. My steps halted, and I stared at the vine. “It’s not natural.”
“It’s not typical,” Rhys corrected, his voice low. “Growth is natural. It just doesn’t usually happen this fast.”
My fingers traced one of the pale-pink petals.
“I stole years of its life. It didn’t have a choice in the matter.
I forced it far into its lifespan.” I knew I wasn’t just speaking about the vine.
I was talking about the men behind me. They didn’t get to choose to bind themselves to me.
Something in me had demanded it, and now, here they were.
Kian’s hands slid over my shoulders. “You don’t know that. It could live even longer because of your magic.”
Somehow, I doubted that.
“We need to figure out what happened.” Nyx’s voice cut through the conservatory with lethal precision. Just like the rest of him, it was devoid of any emotion.
Rhys glanced at my third fated. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“I mean what caused it. We have to stop it from happening again,” Nyx explained.
Pax cleared his throat.
Nyx glanced in his direction, his expression hardening. “What?”
“Don’t talk to him like that,” I clipped. “Pax is my friend.”
Cold fury whipped across Nyx’s expression, and the room descended in temperature so drastically that my breath hung in the air. “Your friend?” he growled.
What in the actual hell?
I stood my ground, even if it was with Kian at my back. “Yes. My friend. And you can’t be rude to him or act like he shouldn’t be here.”
Nyx stalked toward me. “What kind of friend?”
Pax let out a strangled sound. “Not like that. Gods, not like that.”
Rhys let out a low chuckle. “As amusing as this is, relax, Nyx. They aren’t fuck buddies. Pax knows if he had touched her, I would’ve cut off his balls and fed them to him.”
I gaped at the grumpy vampire King. “Are you serious right now?”
Rhys simply shrugged. “There are always lines.”
The room’s temperature rose again. “He hasn’t touched you?” Nyx pressed.
I crossed my arms over my chest. “That’s none of your business. Maybe he has, maybe he hasn’t.”
Three rumbling growls lit the air.
“Jesus, Rae. Are you trying to get me killed?” Pax complained, running a hand through his light-brown locks and looking a little clammy.
Guilt slammed into me. The last person I wanted to get in trouble was Pax. “He didn’t, okay? He’s like my brother.”
Pax let out a sigh. “Thank you.” His gaze flicked to Nyx. “Also, I’m gay.”
Nyx turned, eyeing Pax. “I don’t care if you’re a eunuch. You’ll watch your hands and eyes around her.”
“Just for that, I’m gonna flash the next person who comes in here,” I grumbled.
He whirled on me. “Do that, and I’ll pluck out their eyes.”
“What the hell is wrong with you? Do they not teach about toxic masculinity in Lumaria?”
Kian choked on a laugh. “I don’t think that’s a required class, but if it makes you feel better, the women here are often just as territorial.”
I let out a huff of air. “I guess that’s better than nothing.”
“Someone needs to teach her,” Nyx cut in, changing the subject. “If she doesn’t learn, this will just happen again.”
“I’m not letting a Luminary within a hundred yards of her again. They’ll try to take her,” Rhys clipped.
Kian shook his head. “You’re one to talk.”
Rhys fisted his hands, his knuckles bleaching white, making his rings stand out against his usually tanned skin. “I was keeping her safe. I can’t say the same about them.”
My stomach twisted because he was right. I didn’t know what the Luminaries wanted from me. Not really. “What about Olympia?” I asked. “She’s the one who brought me to you, right? Could she teach me?”
“Olympia Morningstar?” Nyx inquired.
I nodded. “She’s my grandmother.”
He grunted. “Not letting a Luminary that powerful into my kingdom.”
I sighed, rubbing my temples.
Nyx snapped his fingers in Kian’s direction. “You obviously know some things. Can you teach her?”
Kian sent him a droll look. “I’ve picked up a few things, but I can’t teach her from the ground up. There’s no way.”
I let them continue to argue and slipped deeper into the conservatory, losing myself among the plants. Odin stayed by my side as if making sure I was okay. This was where I belonged: with the earth and the creatures of it. Maybe I could find my answers here somehow.
A knock sounded, and all four men went on alert.
“You need to stay close,” Rhys ground out. They apparently realized I’d wandered away.
I took one look at him and flipped him off.
He grunted in response.
A man who looked like he wore guard-like garb in creams and light blues cleared his throat. “Your Majesty. We caught a Luminary trying to sneak onto our territory.”
The entire room froze.
“See?” Rhys hissed. “Likely an assassin or a strike team.”
Nyx’s jaw clenched so tightly it looked like he might crack a tooth. “Who. Would. Dare. Invade. My. Lands?”
A small figure was shoved forward, defiance in her golden eyes. “Me.”