Chapter 33
Chapter
Thirty-Three
ETHAN
Sarah stared at me from across the table. A full meal sat before us, but I wasn’t hungry. Every single day, I regained a small piece of my memory. Sometimes it was tiny pieces—a joke Rowan told me, a recipe Moira made. Other times, those pieces were larger.
The memory of kissing Moira had slammed into me with the force of a bomb this morning.
I’d more than kissed her. I’d devoured her, and I couldn’t figure out why.
Besides the obvious reasons. I shouldn’t have kissed her.
Normally, I wouldn’t have. Nothing felt normal these days.
Not me. Not Sarah. Not this living together we were doing, trying to pretend we were a happy couple. Everything felt forced.
Sarah was in none of the memories I’d recovered. Even stranger, I felt zero remorse when I remembered the kiss.
Why would I kiss Moira like that when I was involved with someone? I’d never strayed before. Doing something so heinous was not in my DNA. If I stopped caring about someone, I would break up with them.
And yet, Sarah was sitting across from me, smiling at me with her heart in her eyes.
But that ugliness was still between us. Sometimes when she thought I wasn’t looking, I caught her staring at me with a vacant expression in her eyes as if she was nowhere at all—like she’d suddenly disappeared and had traveled somewhere far away to a place nowhere in this world.
That witch had not returned. Her words stayed with me, but try as I might, I couldn’t reconcile anything she said with what I knew about Moira.
In fact, I wondered if the opposite were true—if that witch had something to do with my current circumstances.
Kinsley walked into the dining room and inclined his head. “You have a visitor.”
Sarah perked up. “Who is it?”
Kinsley’s eyes slid over her like water. For some reason, my Second was no longer a fan. If nothing else concerned me, that should. She and Kinsley got along like a house on fire in the past.
They weren’t friends. Few shifters were brave enough to befriend their Lord’s Lady, but they were able to joke around and tease each other with warm familiarity. Now there was nothing but stiff formality.
“Emberwood’s Lady is here,” Kinsley said. “She has requested a private audience with you.”
Sarah’s face turned thunderous. “She wants to meet with you alone? Why?”
I set my napkin down and rose. “No idea. She just arrived, Sarah. I’m sure it has something to do with new security protocols.”
The lie slipped from my lips so easily I had to look away so I couldn’t see Sarah’s face. Kinsley turned toward the door, but not before I saw the concerned flicker in his eyes.
“Where is she?” I asked.
“Ethan!”
Sarah’s cheeks were hot with anger. “Since when have you begun dismissing me so easily?”
I looked for evidence of the woman I loved and saw more of someone I no longer recognized. “Since you became a different person.”
I stepped out of the dining room.
“She’s in your office,” Kinsley said quietly.
We left Sarah in the dining room, glaring daggers at our backs.
Evie, the Lady of Emberwood, stood at the window, examining my sorry collection of plants.
“My apologies. They’ve seen better days. I’m afraid I don’t have the green thumb your mate claims.”
Evie looked over her shoulder and smiled, then wiggled her fingers. “Would you mind?”
I gestured for her to go ahead. “By all means. I’m sure they’ll appreciate any boost you may offer them.”
Cool magic smelling of sweet flowers washed over the room. Kinsley stared at Evie far more intensely than I’d ever seen him look at anyone. I gave him a raised-eyebrow look and cleared my throat.
Kinsley blinked a few times, grimaced, then turned and exited the office, shutting the door behind him.
I’d seen more than one male giving Evie that look. How Rowan didn’t kill ninety percent of the men who came across his wife still surprised me.
When she was finished, Evie stood and smiled. “There you go.” She stroked one of the leaves on a vining plant advertised as easy care (lies), and I’d be damned if the plant didn’t stretch toward her.
“Please,” I said, gesturing to a chair. “Make yourself at home. Would you like anything to drink?”
Evie shook her head and smiled. “No, thank you. I won’t be here long.” She settled herself into a chair and watched me intensely.
If a shifter had done that to me, I would have put them in their place. Quickly. But Evie wasn’t a shifter. Not quite. She was something far worse.
“See something interesting?” I asked mildly.
She made a humming noise in the back of her throat. “Just trying to see what Moira finds so interesting about you.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed. “I’m afraid I agree with you these days.”
A smile tugged at her lips. “Yes, well, she’s the reason I’m here.”
I leaned forward, a horrible feeling tugging in my gut. “Is she alright?”
A feminine scent trickled through the air. Evie sighed. “We have company just outside the door. I’d prefer to speak to you in private if you don’t mind.”
Sarah. I held up a finger. “A moment, please.”
I sent Kinsley a text and waited. Less than a minute later, a feminine shriek tore through the air, but the presence was gone not long after.
Sympathy flashed over Evie’s face, but she made no comment.
“Please. Go on.”
“When you last saw Moira, how did she look?”
Beautiful. Pale. Tired. “Is this relevant?”
“Very.”
“She had low energy and was cold. But she was coherent, and she’d made dinner and a few batches of cookies.”
Evie nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. “Did you ask her if she needed anything?”
“Of course I did.”
“And she said no,” Evie growled, more to herself than me.
“Is she okay?”
“She is now, but I’m not sure for how long.”
“Is it that woman?”
Evie laughed. “Her mother? It’s almost always her mother, but in this case, Moira’s nature is showing itself.”
The little goddess sighed. “She needs blood. Something is going on with her, and before you ask, I can’t give you specifics.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes. Seems to be a theme these days.”
“I’m asking you to consider donating to her.”
I blinked in surprise. “You want me to feed her?”
“I do.”
“She can get blood from anyone. Why me?” This felt familiar. Too familiar. “Have you asked me this before?”
A flicker of a smile graced her lips. “Not me. Moira’s genetics are…strange. Human blood helps for a little while, but magical blood seems to give her the nutrition she needs to thrive. She was partaking from someone else, but there are complications.”
I leaned back in my chair. “She has no idea you’re here.”
Evie shook her head. “No. And I’d prefer it stay that way.”
“Seems like you are more like your father than you believe.”
A dark look crossed her face. “I am trying to save my best friend’s life. If that means meddling, I’ll meddle. If that means starting a godsdamn war to get her what she needs, I’ll do that too.”
I held up a hand. “Peace, Evie. I’ll approach Moira. We both know she’ll say no.”
“I’m aware. I would take it as a personal favor if you could convince her.”
My eyebrows rose. “A favor to Emberwood or a favor to the fae queen?”
Evie leaned forward and bared her teeth. “I am both. Do not try my patience, Lord. I’m here on Moira’s behalf, but I do not suffer fools.”
I chuckled. “You and Moira are well suited to each other’s temperaments.”
Evie snorted. “Moira will not hunt. She refuses to accept that part of her nature and prefers willing parties.”
Color touched her cheeks. “According to someone close, Moira has a unique ability with her bite. You will find it…enjoyable.”
I barked a laugh. “Pretty sure the woman who was just standing outside my door won’t approve of that, but I will approach Moira. If I frame it as a business transaction, she might be more amenable.”
At the mention of Sarah, Evie’s expression darkened. She stood and leaned closer. Magic rose through the air. “Remember, Lord.”
Evie touched my forehead and disappeared.
Another memory slammed through me.
Me. Moira. The witch.
And the darkest magic I’d ever sensed in my life.