Page 5 of The Hunger
She turned to my mom, who was still studying her hands.
“I already yelled at Eliana for keeping me away, but I think you need to hear what happened, too. You’re as much to blame for keeping me from helping your daughter as she is. I wanted to come home weeks ago, Nicolette. But Eliana told me that we needed to stay away because you wouldn’t be able to help yourself around us. She didn’t trust you. And given our first meeting, it was easy to understand why.”
“I apologize, Fury. There was so much I didn’t understand at the time.”
Megan glanced at me.
“Why isn’t she making eye contact? I hate when there’s no eye contact. It makes me feel weird.”
I met Megan’s gaze, and that dark thing resettled inside of me.
“She’s acknowledging you’re mine. She won’t try to steal my meal from me.”
“Your meal? Anywhere, anytime, cupcake. You know that.”
Oanen sighed behind her.
“Megan, you’re not helping Eliana. Eliana, I’ll go find your father. Send Megan when you’re ready. And, Megan, I’m trusting you to keep your word. Stay out of it, or we leave.”
I closed my eyes and listened to his steps retreat. Slowly, most of the lust cleared.
“You’re really struggling with us around, aren’t you?” Megan asked, sounding devastated.
I opened my eyes, knowing they were still full succubus, and gave her a sad smile.
“It’s easier when it’s just one of you in the room.”
“If you’re hungry, you know I wouldn’t mind if—”
“Don’t even go there.”
“All right. Fair enough. But your mom is right. Not about you being hungry but about you not being a horrible person. I’m standing right next to you, Eliana, and I don’t even feel a blip of wickedness in you.”
“How is that possible after everything I’ve done?”
“Bad things happened, but you never set out intending to do wicked things. You never broke any rules or laws.”
I shook my head slowly and sank to the couch. Megan sat beside me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
“Fine. You have no problem with everything that’s happened as a result of my bad choices, but I do. I didn’t know I was feeding on Fenris. Or maybe I didn’t want to know. How could I do that to him? And he’s too blinded by need for me to even care. How am I supposed to live with this?”
“You find a way to make it right.”
“I’ve been trying.”
“I know you have. But you’ve been trying alone. Now you have me.”
“And me,” Mom said.
“And me,” Oanen called from the back of the house.
“Stupid bird hearing,” Megan mumbled before taking my hand. “Okay. Tell me what we need to make right besides Fenris and Ashlyn.”
I took a deep, calming breath.
“Dewy attempted to trick Piepen into believing he was the father of her child so she could talk him into selling his wings. That backfired. Given how little Dewy seemed to care for the baby, I suggested Piepen take the child to his guardians. Adira overheard everything and said the Council didn’t support my idea and didn’t care what happened to any of their wings. So Piepen stole the baby to keep Dewy from selling its wings.”
I could feel Megan’s surprise and confusion.
