Chapter 27 #2
“I was like that with my grandmother, too. I never really got the chance to be closer to my parents before they were taken from me.” She had the same lost look in her eyes as Wolfe when he’d spoken about his mother. A haunted quality that spoke of wounds that never fully healed.
“What happened?”
“They were killed when I was eight.”
I straightened, my body suddenly becoming rigid. I'd placed my foolish foot in my mouth again, just like I had with Wolfe. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—”
“I know. And I don't want you to feel bad. That was just me sharing. It would be awkward if we went on from here and I hadn't told you those parts about me.”
“I would have understood.”
“I'm sure you would, but I want you to trust me. Sometimes, to earn trust, you have to share pain.” A storm of sadness gathered in her eyes, darkening the usually vibrant color to something deeper, more troubled. “My entire family were murdered in one night. And no one knows why.”
“All of them?” I held my breath, my heart squeezing at such horror.
“All of them. There's just me.”
“Oh Arielle, I'm so, so sorry.” The words felt inadequate in the face of such loss.
“It's okay. I'm stronger now, but that pain is something that will never leave me.” She sighed deeply, as if releasing a weight she'd carried for too long. “Wolfe's family took me in and raised me. I was always meant to be part of the Royal Court, but the Nightblades became my family.”
I'd sensed that her loyalty to Wolfe ran deeper than her role from the first day we'd met. Now I understood why. Their relationship was forged in shared grief and gratitude.
“Some people think my family were killed by vampyres from a secret society my parents belonged to.”
I gave her a thin stare. “I didn't realize vampyres associated with anyone besides themselves.” That’s what I’d gathered from what little I’d read about them.
“Not in Galaythia. That’s more like the traditional vampyres of the east. Here they make up a third of the population. The same as Lycans. Vampyres are the worst, though. They hate everyone and they’re mostly untrustworthy.”
“Do you think they killed your family?”
“I think there's a reason people believe they did it. I've spent most of my life trying to find answers, but I've come up with nothing. One day I'll find the truth though. I have to believe that.” She nodded with a determined look in her eyes.
“I hope you find it. I truly hope you do.”
“Thank you. That aside, I wanted to tell you about my past because I'm an outsider here too, so I know what it's like.
I'm not Fae. I'm not from Galaythia, and I'm bound to the Nightblades because of oaths older than we can imagine. When I say I will help you as best as I can, I want you to believe that I mean it.”
I nodded, understanding flowing between us like a bridge being built. “I do believe you.”
Her smile returned, genuine and warm. “Thank you for giving me a chance.”
“I can see you sincerely want to help me.”
“I truly do.”
Despite her smile, the weight of old pain still lingered in her eyes. Not wanting to keep her dwelling on difficult memories, I decided to steer our conversation to something lighter. “What's it like with everyone? Do you live here at the manor?”
“I live in the capital but I'm here often. Wolfe prefers for me to stay around people, but he appreciates that I need my space sometimes. As for everyone else...” She thought for a moment and smiled with obvious affection.
“Sirril is the heart of the group. He's like the parent and the comforter at the same time. As you can probably tell, Garrick is the most lighthearted of the Bloodsworn, but both he and Alaric can eat like buffalos and drink rum by the barrel. And they always have a woman on their arm.”
“Really?” I giggled, though I wasn't surprised by this revelation. I guessed it from the way they carried themselves.
“Yes. That said, they're very different from each other. Sometimes I have to wonder how they became friends.” Arielle grinned. “Alaric is the silent, deadly type who can be a bastard when he wants to be. Garrick’s the opposite. He’s charming, witty, and loves practical jokes.
So watch out for him. He’s always sneaking up on me by phasing in when I least expect it. ”
I narrowed my eyes. “What’s phasing?”
“I figured you might ask. It’s like teleportation, similar to portaling.”
“I didn’t know there was anything else like portaling.” My surprise was evident. Portaling was already such a unique technique. I was intrigued to hear of another.
“There are a few techniques, but portaling and phasing are the main two. Portaling requires a lot of energy and precision. You use your own magic to open a path to a destination, usually across great distances. But it drains you.”
I had firsthand experience of that. “What’s the difference with phasing?”
“Phasing doesn’t pull from your own magic the same way portaling does. It’s more elemental. You tap into the natural currents of Galaythia to shift the air, light, and shadow, then slip between them by passing through the Void.”
I stilled. “The Void?” It sounded ominous and daunting.
She nodded. “It’s the heart of the Hollow Realm.
A liminal dimension beneath all realms that touches every realm without truly being part of any.
The Hollow is shaped by absence. Absence of life, absence of light, absence of sound, absence of magic.
Almost like nothingness. When you’re inside, it feels like being erased for a moment. ”
My mind spiraled, blown by another piece of extraordinary knowledge of the magical realm. “That is …mind-blowing, and a little terrifying.”
She smiled wider. “It can be terrifying if you linger.”
“And people use this regularly?”
“All the time.” She chuckled softly. “Wolfe and Alaric practically live in there like a second home. Those with shadow magic are drawn to spaces like that.”
I remembered when I asked Wolfe about his magic. He told me just enough to satisfy my interest but also made me more curious. Curious about his magic and him.
“Is Alaric like Wolfe? He seems like he is.” I worded the question carefully, hoping to disguise my interest in Wolfe. Knowing my luck she’d tell me that Wolfe always had a woman on his arm too.
“He has the same brooding personality, but Wolfe’s temperament is far worse and unlike Alaric he has a filter.”
“You think Wolfe has a filter?” I raised my brows, thinking back to some of the crass things Wolfe had said to me.
“On some level.” She laughed, the sound bright and musical.
Then her expression became thoughtful, almost reverent.
“Wolfe has a quiet humanity and compassion that most people don’t see.
He likes to hide it behind the mask of the ruthless leader, but you see that side of him every now and again and it surprises you. ”
I didn't know Wolfe that well, or really at all, but I knew exactly what she meant. And I agreed. I'd seen and felt it for myself in stolen moments that felt too precious to examine closely.
Beneath the darkness that shrouded the god of the underworld, I'd glimpsed his light when he'd saved me from the Ruskiel and when he'd flown with me this morning. Those moments felt like secrets shared between us.
“Maybe he has to be that way because he's the leader,” I offered, though it felt like I was grasping for an explanation that might make sense of my conflicted feelings.
“Perhaps.”
“What about Bastian?” She hadn't mentioned him yet, and now that I had, her cheeks colored fiercely.
“Oh Bastian... he's um, the best. He's literally the best. There's... no one like him.” The twinkle in her eyes and wistful tone of her voice told me everything she felt, a love so bright it practically radiated from her skin.
“He's different from anyone I've ever met. The kind of guy who will go to battle for you without question.”
“That's a big deal.”
“Yeah, he is.”
I waited for her to elaborate but she didn't. She just smiled sheepishly, lost in whatever memories made her glow like that.
Arielle seemed like the type of person who would tell me if she and Bastian were a couple, especially since she was sharing the group dynamics so openly. So I gathered they may not be together like that yet. It was clear from her eyes though that she desperately wanted to be.
“We could talk about those guys all day, and there's loads to tell you about everyone else, but we mustn't lose the light.” She glanced up at the sky where the sun was beginning its descent toward the horizon.
“Restoring magic is always best in daylight, so let's see what we can do to work on your powers.”
“I'd love that. It would be amazing to feel my magic again.”
“Indeed. Also, having your powers will help immensely with the tracking spell. I want to give you the best chance of locating the ring quickly. That way I can get you back to your family and fiancé as soon as possible.”
Fiancé. The word struck like cold steel between my ribs. I smiled and said nothing, because saying the truth aloud would unravel me too fast.
From the look in her eyes, I could see she thought I was eager to get back to Thayden, that he represented some great love waiting for me.
She also looked like she wanted to ask me more about him but was holding back out of politeness. If only she knew that marrying him would be the one thing I'd change about going home.
I didn't correct her or make her any wiser. Not because I didn't trust her enough to share my feelings about Thayden, but because I didn't want to talk about him when I had more pressing things weighing on my mind. “Do you think Wolfe will release me when this is over?”
“I think it would be unconscionable if he didn't. When he gets his ring back, he'll be the king. I doubt he'd want to appear spiteful and make enemies of the mortal realm by keeping you hostage.”