Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Dalia
Jaeden climbs out of the car as the bikers park behind it. They don’t immediately move off their bikes, allowing Jaeden time to approach us.
“They said they need to speak to you,” Jaeden tells us as he glances over his shoulder at the three riders. “They’re from the Headless Riders MC. They wouldn’t tell me why they needed to speak to you.”
Morrigan considers the riders before turning her attention back to Jaeden. “What do we know of their MC?”
“Not much. They’re not from around here.”
“Hmm, that’s not helpful.” I stare at the bikers, wondering why they’re so insistent on speaking with us. “Did they ask for us specifically?”
Jaeden runs a hand through his white hair. “They asked for the Fates.”
“Few people know who we are.” Phoebe’s eyes narrow at the bikers.
We’re all suspicious of their motives, but we’re never going to find out what they want from over here.
I drop my hold on my sisters and bat away Morrigan’s hand when she tries to stop me. I take measured steps toward the men—because there’s no mistaking them for anything but men.
None of them remove their helmets, surprising me until I see what’s written on the small patch on the front of their cuts—Der kopflose Reiter.
German headless riders.
They don’t remove their helmets because they don’t have heads beneath them—at least not corporeal ones.
I rack my brain, trying to recall anything I can of their mythology, but come up blank. German isn’t really my area of expertise.
It’s hard to get an idea of their heights since they’re all sitting on their motorcycles, but they’re all fucking massive—the one in the back, the biggest of them all. Their size alone should be intimidating, but somehow I know they mean us no harm.
As a moirai, I will always follow my gut. They’re not here to hurt us, but that doesn’t mean what they’re here to tell us won’t hurt.
“You asked for us?”
The one sitting up front with the president patch on his cut nods. “If you are the moirai, then it is you we seek.”
“You know, it’s odd that you knew where to find us. Not only do most people not know what we are, but most people don’t know this place exists.”
“We are not most people,” he says, and clearly, I’m aware of that.
I sigh. “Why are you looking for us?”
“Are you not the ones who created Iero?” another of the riders asks.
“We are.”
“Then it is you we seek,” the first man says again. “We’ve come to warn you of impending danger.”
Great. Just great.
Even though I knew he was going to say some iteration of those words, it doesn’t make it any easier to hear.
I feel my sisters and Jaeden approach as I stare at the three riders.
“Let me guess,” Phoebe says with a smile. “She didn’t think to introduce herself, did she?”
The final rider chuckles as he shakes his head, and I barely keep from rolling my eyes.
“Of course not. I’m Phoebe Allard. This is my sister, Dalia, and my other sister, Morrigan. We are the moirai—more often called the Fates.”
The first man nods. “My name is Steel. I’m the president of the Headless Riders MC.”
“I’m Blaze, the road captain of the MC,” the second man says, lifting his hand in a wave before gesturing toward the last man. “This is Titan. He’s the sergeant at arms and doesn’t talk much.”
As if to prove Blaze’s point, Titan grunts and nods toward us.
“And this big guy back here is Jaeden. He’s on the Iero council.” Phoebe points to the man in question, who just continues to glower at the riders. If I weren’t so worried about why they’re here, I’d smile.
Blaze leans forward. “Are the rumors true? You’re triplets? Because I never would’ve guessed that.”
Phoebe nods, still grinning at the men who still haven’t told us why the hell they’re here. “Our mother birthed us all at once. It’s not often that triplets survived the birthing process back then, yet somehow we did. It was how our mother knew what we were—what we would become.”
“So it’s true then? Moirai aren’t born from the previous moirai?” It’s Steel who asks this question, surprising me. As the president, I would’ve expected him to want to get straight to business. Instead, he’s here asking questions about me and my sisters.
Questions we don’t have to answer, but if it’ll get them to give us the information we need faster, then I’ll do it.
“They can be, but not always. We were not. Now, would you like to tell us about the impending danger?”
Steel ducks his head. “Of course. I’m sorry I allowed us to be distracted. Since it’s the entire reason we came to Iero in the first place. A battle is coming.”
I wait for more information, but when they remain silent, I sigh. “That’s about as clear as mud. Do you have any other details?”
“Umm…yes. Blaze? You were the one who dreamed of it. Tell them what you remember from it.”
“Sure.” There’s a moment of hesitation. “Does the name Renwick Vesperine mean anything to you?”
I suck in a breath that gets stuck in my chest as my vision grays around the edges.
Do not lose your shit, Dalia.
Just keep breathing.
It doesn’t matter what he has planned.
You got away from him once, so you can do it again.
You’ll never be his prisoner again.
“Dalia? Dalia!” Morrigan’s voice is troubled as she shakes me.
I blink at her, watching as the worry in her green eyes grows. I can feel Phoebe clinging to my hand, while Jaeden rumbles behind us.
I don’t even know why I’m reacting this badly. It’s not like I wasn’t thinking of the shadow demon myself before the riders appeared. It’s not even the first time I’ve heard his name said out loud since I escaped his grasp.
Maybe it’s because I know he’s been trying to contact me—something my sisters don’t know about. I didn’t think it was important enough to tell them.
After all, if he planned to come after me, wouldn’t he have done so before now?
It doesn’t make sense that he’d be coming after me now.
I don’t even know why I stole the mirror when I escaped, or why I kept it all these years. I buried it in a box of salt in the back of my closet, never telling either of my sisters about it.
Just like I didn’t tell them when I started feeling the buzzing sensation coming from it, sounding in my head, and reminding me we’d exchanged blood vows. He will always have a hold on me as long as he is alive.
But I’m strong enough to withstand it now, so I’ve been ignoring the summons—which was apparently the wrong thing to do.
Why now?
Why me?
“Focus on me, Dalia!” Morrigan snaps, shaking me again.
She’s right. I was losing my focus. I was slipping into memories of the years he held me captive—of the years I didn’t think I’d survive.
I suck in another breath, and something loosens in my chest.
So I take another and another until I no longer feel like I’m going to pass out.
“I’m going to go with it means something to you,” Blaze says, his voice tense.
I frown because it feels like something someone would say in jest, but he just sounds pissed.
“Yeah, it definitely means something,” I say with a sigh, leaning forward to rest my head on Morrigan’s shoulder—always the reliable one. The rock for me and Phoebe. “It means trouble.”