Page 54 of What Fools These Immortals Be
“You didn’t know that?” he asks.
“No. No, I…” I know Moreau was attacked. He was already part of the Hunt then; all of us except Paxton and Grant were. The Huntsman retrieved him, and we saw nothing of them formonths. The next I heard of Moreau was that he had appeared back in London in time for them to sign the treaty—his signature is on it, as far as I know.
I know, too, that Vasile and Deacon were there that night. Vasile killed Tamesis, his sire, and left him there to burn. He and Deacon… They were together, and then they did not speak again. At least as far as I knew back then. They were hardly my concern.
“I didn’t know,” I say faintly. Tamesis was not helped by any of the regular fae. My blood—like any fae-blessed mage’s blood—can cause a vampire to feel intoxicated, and a lot taken over a short amount of time can give them strength, maybe improve their natural persuasive abilities. A regular fae’s blood would give them more power than that. But to manipulate bonds?Packbonds? That is a different matter entirely.
A high fae helped him. Perhaps even someone of the royal line.
“I understand that Quinn was manipulated,” Njáll says. “And he’s young and scared. But he’s not without guilt. I think Augustine should settle for less than he wants, but I can’t blame him for being angry.”
I shake my head. He doesn’t understand about Quinn at all. Hecan’t. He doesn’t even understand the magnitude of what Tamesis did to Deacon, it seems like, because Deacon would have known his mate from the first instant, and his wolf would never have allowed Vasile to be hurt.
“You don’t understand,” I say, realising my error when Njáll’s expression sharpens, and he sits up. “I mean… That power. You haven’t felt it.”
“I felt some of it.”
“When?”
“When Tamesis took us.” The words are brittle, Njáll’s shoulders pulled taut. “He didn’t make us fight each other, but I could feel it, sometimes, like he wastryingto do something to me.”
He probably stretched himself too thin, I don’t say, and I don’t reach for Njáll either, although I want to.
“I understand,” I reply, “but fae magic is powerful. You felt it last night, didn’t you? Imaginethat, all that power, manipulating that young wolf. And I’m sure he was in no headspace to fight it, with all his pack being taken along with them.”
Njáll scowls into the distance but nods. “Yes, I… I suppose that makes sense.”
“It’s not about that, and I’m not saying you’re wrong to have empathy for Augustine.” Although I don’t have much, myself. It is unfortunate that his lover was killed, but I am suspicious of his motives for appearing in the city now and coming to Njáll specifically. Not to mention that, beyond a name, we have no indication of who this lover was. He has neatly avoided the topic, and I am not certain that Njáll has noticed. “But I have more for that poor wolf. Fae bonds are no joke, and that is what Tamesis did with that fae magic he stole—he turned the pack bonds into fae bonds and used those to do as he wanted.”
“Fae bonds?” Njáll frowns. “That’s what… I remember Vasile saying that’s what his guards had.”
Saide and Rook. None of us have heard from them still, and though deep down I am worried, I cannot afford to dwell on it. The Huntsman will deal with that matter.
“They did. They do. Theirs is a soulbond. Like the wolves’ mating bond, I gather, but stronger still.”
“There are other types of bonds?”
“Yes.” I lean forward and clasp my hands together. “The fae use bonds for everything. Bonds for lovers, of course, but bonds of friendship, of family or brethren… Enemies can be bonded, in a way, if their enmity is strong enough. And bonds of service or by promise, too, which is why it would have been so dangerous for you to agree to chase those fae.”
Njáll blanches, and he is watching me again now, his too-pale eyes cataloguing every expression that crosses my face. “You’ve felt them?”
“I have been manipulated by them before,” I say. It is true. And I don’t want to get into how the Huntsman uses them now. He only had to use his words to bring me here, to remind me of my duty, but we allknowhe has more power than that.
Is that why Saide and Rook left? They are fae, and high fae at that, so they can better resist him than the rest of us, but he is still the strongest of us all.
“When? How?”
“Over the course of my work,” I say, waving a hand absently in his direction. A sudden urge to share burns through me, to share something of myself that Njáll does not already know. “I was born a witch, you see, in a town overshadowed by a vampire we all appeased. He wanted me, wanted the magic in my blood, even if it wasn’t fae and wouldn’t do much.”
Njáll makes a quiet sound. He leans back on the sofa, curling his body ever so slightly towards mine.
“He made his intentions plain, and when the town cast me out in fear, he chased me and turned me and kept me as his own.”
“He should not—” Njáll growls, hands curling into fists, and I laugh faintly, running my fingers over his knuckles.
“He is long dead,” I say. “No offence to Vasile, of course, as I believe our situations were very different, but Iensuredit before I left.”
That gets me a faint snort, and when Njáll relaxes his hands, I don’t pull mine away. We’re not holding hands, but our fingers faintly brush, every touch sending sparks shuddering up my arms.
