Page 8 of A Tongue so Sweet and Deadly

Silver filled his cloudy eyes, and he put a thin arm over his face. “I don’t remember.”

Biting her cheek to stop the choked sound traveling up her throat, Lessia nodded. “That’s all right. You’re starting a new life. It seems only fitting you should choose a new name as well. Many of the others have. Is there a name you like?”

He peeked at her, his arm still covering part of his face. “Ledger.”

Lessia smiled at him. “Ledger. That’s a pretty name. I think it fits you perfectly.”

It truly did.

Like all half-Fae, he was beautiful. Even with the matted hair and the hollowness of his face, it was clear he’d grow into a handsome man. Perhaps not with the lethal beauty of the full Fae, but a more human beauty—a softer one.

“It was my friend’s name.” A sob racked Ledger’s small body, and Lessia clutched the blanket again.

“He must have been a good friend,” she got out, trying to draw a breath as a red haze filled her vision.

“He died. They killed him for stealing food for us. Why did they do that?” Ledger covered his face with his hands as more violent sobs shook his frame.

Her magic thrummed under her skin as she placed a hand on his back, and for a moment Lessia thought about removing his pain.

Within seconds she could make him forget about the friend—forget all about the life he’d been forced to lead.

Shaking her head, she forced the urge down.

She’d removed memories once…

After that day she’d promised herself never to do it again.

She couldn’t undo what she’d done—would never return to the home where she’d lived the first twelve years of her life. But taking something so big away, the love he clearly harbored for the friend, was selfish—a quick solution that still wouldn’t erase the traumatic events that colored the first years of his life.

Stroking the boy’s arm, she responded quietly, “They don’t know any better. They’ve been taught we’re tainted, that we’re diluting the Fae blood. But do you know what I think?”

Hands still pressed to his face, he shook his head, the bed shifting with the movement.

“I think they’re also scared of us.”

Ledger hiccuped, but a sliver of gray peeked through his fingers. “W-why would they be scared of us?”

She sighed. “Because we’re different. The human in us makes us more open, more understanding of how the world is changing. Ellow might have a ways to go, but it’s better here. And it will continue to get better. Vastala hasn’t changed their ways in millennia, and perhaps they never will. Not unless there is a shift. I think the king is worried that if we grow to large enough numbers, that’s exactly what might happen.”

Ledger hiccuped again, and while he didn’t respond, the tremors running through him came further and further apart. Lessia continued stroking his arm until his coiled muscles loosened, the sobs quieting.

As she was about to ask if he needed anything, the boycleared his throat. “Do you think my father will realize I’m gone?”

Ledger peered at her, and the hope that filled his eyes broke her heart.

Most half-Fae who ended up here were the result of a one-night affair or a Fae going against the king’s orders and falling in love with a human. Since it was forbidden to wed humans, it was rare for the relationships to last.

And even if they did…

Few humans survived them, survived the harassment and the nobles who took it upon themselves to right what they felt had been wronged.

Most of the children here had a dead parent and a parent who’d left them in the streets or the wilderness, pressured by their families or neighbors.

They were considered the lucky ones.

As if living in squalor, begging for scraps, and being spat on was luck.

Offering Ledger a small smile, she brushed a stray hair out of his face. “I could lie to you and tell you he will. But I don’t know, Ledger. If he comes for you, we won’t force you to stay if you don’t want to. You are not a prisoner here.”

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