Page 94 of A Crown Without Mercy

Her head snapped in Nicolai’s direction, and Riordan held up his hands as a gesture of peace. “There are others, Sylvana, who can listen as easily as I,” Riordan said.

Sylvana cupped her hands together, rested her arms on her knees, and looked down, fearing the worst. “Will you find my father?”

“We are doing our best. I have ordered a legion of Barouqe Warriors to locate him.”

“What are you going to do with him?” she asked nervously.

“It will depend upon the circumstances. We will not tolerate dissonance, nor will we tolerate betrayal against the Guild. If your father is simply seeking answers, as we all are, then we will release him. He has been a loyal member of the Legion and a high-ranking warrior for the Cynfadel’s. We will give him the benefit of the doubt—for the time being,” Riordan answered frankly.

Sylvana cocked her head and furrowed her brow. “Are you willing to kill my father?”

“It is not our intention. To hurt your father would be to hurt you. However, if he has gotten himself involved with Ranan, he may have already sealed his own fate.”

“Do you think he’s dead?” she asked.

“It’s too early to make such an assumption,” Riordan replied.

“Fuck me,” Sylvana stood, paced back and forth, and then walked to the window, leaned against the pane, and stared at the swirling, magenta moon.

Nicolai meandered over and wrapped his arms around her shoulders and chest. “I know this much to take in, but we need you to trust us.”

“How am I to trust this entire situation?” she asked.

Kieran walked over and turned her face toward him. “Darling, have we not made it clear all along how we feel about you?”

“I think it has more to do with me being a purebred. Would either of you ever laid sight on me if you had not been suspicious?”

“It is true we sought you out, thinking you may be a purebred. However, Nicolai and I felt an undeniable pull toward you the first night we met, and Riordan felt it the night we were in the library.”

She looked over at Riordan. “Speaking of which, when you asked me to read from the book, was it some kind of test?”

“Yes,” Riordan answered as he stood. “It was written in an ancient Faye dialect, and you read it flawlessly.”

“So all this time you have known who I am and yet not one of you had the decency to tell me?”

“It was of no consequence. We found you and it’s all that matters. It wouldn’t have changed anything for us. However, had we told you under different circumstances, I think it’s safe to assume you or your family would have made a rash decision, one which would have left you vulnerable to both the Lycans and the Faye,” Riordan replied.

“This is too much to comprehend. I don’t know what to think?” Sylvana shrugged.

“My brothers had already made up their minds so regardless of whether you were or were not a purebred, they were not giving you up,” Riordan stated.

Sylvana stared at Riordan momentarily. “And what about you?”

“I have feelings for you I am unprepared to describe in words, but I will honor you in every way. It’s as if a fountain of life has emerged from a barren past.”

“And had other purebreds presented themselves, would you still have chosen me?”

“Yes,” the three of them answered in unison.

“And what if a female with majestic looks, or a female with title and status, or a female who didn’t have dirt under her nails, stood at my side? Would you have looked at me then?”

“Without a doubt,” Nicolai stated.

“It’s not what your reputations suggest,” Sylvana replied. “I fear you are only choosing me because I am your only choice?”

Nicolai leaned against the window next to her and glanced at the moon before looking down at her. “For centuries we have been living in a self-imposed cage, never to be free with thought, nor desire, nor love. Call it wanderlust, if you will, but we have always known our hearts, our blood belong to only one. There has been nothing, no one, who has affected us the way you have.”

“Nicolai speaks the truth. You are our perfect match in every way, Sylvana,” Kieran added.

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