Page 37 of The White Stag
“Just to warn you, itwillbe terrible,” my father said. “You’re going to walk in there with them hating you. They are going to blame you for Alastair’s death, even though this wasn’t even remotely your fault. So be strong and speak your truth, Reagan.”
“If you don’t think you’re up to it, I can have your story recorded and played for Brock and his court.”
I chewed my bottom lip. It was a lot to take in. Could I even argue with a king who had trained from birth to do that? I’d regret it if I didn’t even try. There was so much at stake here if I stayed behind. I wasn’t going to risk the lives of all those people just to have my say to Alastair. His father was to blame too, and I had things to say to him too.
“No, Ineedto look him in the eye when I do this. I know enough about the Seelie to know they are going to say terrible things to me. I can do this. I’ll cross over when I’m able, but I don’t want my monsters fighting those bullets alone.”
“I was just about to warn you about that. So if you see strange Fae around your cottage, don’t be scared. They are mine, and they are there to help. They are my best, and they are going to make sure no one dies except Alastair and those horrible men he hired.
“We’re doing everything we can to get you home before they come, but it might not happen. We’re trying to be honest about everything, baby girl. Alastair might find the cabin before you can safely cross the border. We’ve put every precaution in place. I know you’ve met Tucker, but if you’re calling from Cyrus’s computer, I’m guessing my second messenger hasn’t arrived yet. IknewI should have sent a Fae with portal magic instead of super speed.”
“No, just Tucker is here, and he’s great.”
“I sent someone with a computer and a phone for you. Cyrus didn’t need to tell me that Alastair wouldn’t let you have either. I’m guessing you have things you want to look up or post. We have most of the things you are used to. The Unseelie have internet, cellular data, and social media. Though, if you want help with social media, I’d suggest Tucker or Finnan. They go viral more than I do, and I’m the fucking queen.”
“Are both of your numbers programmed in?”
“I didn’t want to presume you were ready to talk to us or make you think that was why I got them for you.”
“But Iwantto talk again. We need to get to know each other.”
I saw both of their eyes water about me actually wanting to speak to them again. I did. They seemed pretty great. They set my mind at ease about all the weirdness I was experiencing, and I knew if there weren’t so much at stake, she would have let me do what I wanted to see Alastair die because I needed it. Instead, she gave me the next best thing. I’ll bet his dad was a turd too.
“One of your guards can put everything into your phone. And I don’t care what time it is or if you think I might be sleeping. Call us whenever you want to, and I’ll be here.”
I knew she wasn’t just saying that to me because she was supposed to. She didn’t know Cyrus was going to be calling because he didn’t know until we woke him up. But based on how I heard her answer, she had been nearby just in case there was an emergency.
If I needed or wanted to speak to either of my parents, they’d be there, which meant a lot to me.
Reagan
Ihad no idea what I walked into when I returned to the living room. They seemed to be having a very animated discussion about anal sex, which Cyrus lookedthrilledto be having.
“Seriously,no onetalks about butt sex like that unless they are curious,” Tucker said.
“Who is talking about butt sex?” I asked, flopping on the couch between Oisin and Finnan.
“No one,” Cyrus growled.
“Girl, homophobes. They think they are delivering these epic burns, but they are talking about anal sex like they just need Daddy Tucker to give them permission to stick something up there.”
“More than likely, they need someone to remove that big thorny stick first,” Finnan said.
“That’s enough,” Cyrus said.
“No, I agree,” I said. “Elsa and Lia were great moms. I would have been totally happy there, and Alastair would have had difficulty getting to me. Do you remember how their neighbors would try to get me alone when I was playing outside and try to brainwash me into saying they were sinners and deviants? When I refused, they just lied. No one evenaskedme what I wanted and what was happening in the house. They just showed up with a garbage bag and forced me to leave.”
“It killed me to see you so sad when they made you leave. I made the neighbors pay for it,” Cyrus said.
It shouldn’t make me feel weirdly aroused every time Cyrus said he got revenge on someone who hurt me when I was younger, but it did. I just knew that if anything terrible happened to me, Cyrus would be there quietly plotting against anyone who hurt me. Of course, he had done that with Alastair as soon as I was safely here.
“Did you kill them?” I asked.
Would he go that far? I knew he was with Alastair, but I wasn’t sure if those two bigots deserved death, even if their actions were terrible.
“Nah,” Oisin said. “We don’t kill mortals unless we have to. Not when we have so many other options with our magic.”
“Let’s just say that woman had no business worrying about what two lesbians were doing with a foster child. Sheshouldhave been worried about what her pervert husband had on his hard drive. It was beautiful. Cyrus got him busted, she got kicked out of her church, and he’s going to have to register as a sex offender when he gets out of jail,” Finnan said.
