Primal Bonds
Page 58
“Glory.” At Sean’s amazed look, she added. “Don’t ask.”
“Don’t worry. I’m not wanting to know.”
Andrea gazed sternly down at Fionn. “So, the great Fionn Cillian, now that you’re here, do you still maintain that I’m your daughter?”
“Of course I do. No other would dare bind me.”
Sean let out a laugh. “I see where you get your self-confidence, Andy-love. What do you want to do with him, now that you have him trussed?”
Andrea crouched down to face Fionn. He glared back at her with eyes as black as night.
“Prove it,” Andrea said. “Prove that you sired me, and I’ll let you go back to Faerie land.”
“My word should be good enough.”
“Oh, sure, because no Fae would ever lie to a Shifter.”
“Damn you, child, these manacles are killing me. Take them off and I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
“Tell me what I want to know, and then I’ll take them off.”
Anger and fierce pride surged on Fionn’s face. “There’s no doubt to me that you’re my get. Here.” He thrust shaking hands under his mail coat and pulled a chain from a hidden pocket. Delicate silver links shaped like leaves formed a bracelet, and a unicorn charm dangled from every other link. “This was hers, your mother’s. She gave it to me that last night, when I left her, knowing I could never return.”
Andrea had seen bracelets like this in the shops she and Glory had gone to in SoCo, though this one was of real, heavy silver. It was definitely human-made, however; a trinket that a Shifter woman might have seen and liked.
“That’s Dina’s.”
Glory stopped next to Andrea, her face stricken. Andrea became aware that most of the Shifters had moved this way, the conversations stalling and drifting to silence.
Glory yanked the bracelet out of Fionn’s hands. “Damn you. That was my sister’s.”
“Are you sure?” Andrea asked her.
Glory’s eyes blazed. “Of course I’m sure. I gave it to her. Why does he have it? Don’t tell me this is the f**king Fae who seduced her.”
“Yes,” Fionn said without flinching. “I am that f**king Fae.”
Glory screamed and let fly a kick, her five-inch heel driving toward his face.
Fionn had reflexes a Feline would envy. Even with his hands bound, even in pain, he caught Glory’s foot as it went by, flipped her onto her back, and got to his feet, all the while evading Sean’s sword.
“Cowards,” he spat. “Shifters, fighting a man caught and chained. Is that the best you can do?”
Dylan’s savage growl filled the clearing as Glory struggled up, mud all over her silver lamé. Andrea turned and stepped in front of Dylan.
“Get out of my way,” Dylan snarled at her.
Dylan had never looked more terrifying, but Andrea couldn’t afford to back down. If she let him tear through Fionn, she’d never know the truth.
“Don’t touch her, Dad,” Sean warned.
“Dad! Sean!” Liam’s voice cut like a whip. Dylan and Sean remained locked in place, eyes on each other. After a long moment, while Andrea’s heart froze, Dylan dropped his gaze from Sean’s and turned away.
Liam’s whole body was tight with fury. “To avoid any Shifter blood spilling on this fine day, I suggest we let the Faerie man speak.” He switched his glare to Fionn. “Tell Andrea what she wants to know, and if you’re sweet about it, I might decide not to rip you to shreds. I might let Sean and my father do it instead.”
Fionn’s lip curled. “Goddess, Andrea, how do you live with these ... creatures?”
“I never had much choice, did I?” Andrea took the bracelet from Glory, her breath catching as sunlight danced on the unicorn charms. Her mother had always loved unicorns. They were gentle beasts, she’d said, in spite of their horn and some stories that painted them as fierce. “How did she know so much about unicorns?”
“I showed them to her,” Fionn said. “I risked taking her to Faerie to show her the unicorns, because she was so fascinated by them. I wanted to give her that much.”
His dark eyes swam with sorrow for a deep-felt love that had been torn from him too soon. For all his Fae arrogance, Fionn Cillian had loved and lost. Andrea touched his hand.
“My daughter.” His stern voice broke and his eyes grew wet. “I’ve waited so long to find you.”
Andrea swallowed. “I think I believe you.”
Fionn raised his manacled wrists. “Then will you have pity on your poor old dad?”
“Oh.” Andrea turned to Glory. “The key?”
Glory had her arms folded, her expression forbidding. “There is no key.”
“Then what are these for?” Andrea held up her hands. “No, please don’t tell me. Sean, can you help?”
The handcuffs were ordinary steel, the same as the police used on human captives, but they would be no match for the strength of a Shifter. Sean sheathed his sword, worked his fingers between the cuff and Fionn’s gloved wrist, and twisted one handcuff open. He did the same with the other, and Fionn quickly stripped off his gloves.
“Let me see,” Andrea said.
Fionn held out his hands. Below the tunic he wore under his mail shirt, his bare wrists held red marks in the exact shape of the cuffs. The metal had burned him right through the gloves.
Andrea brushed her thumbs over the wounds and closed her eyes, reaching for her healing magic. She saw the tangle of threads around Fionn’s hurt skin, blackened and burned, but the aura of the rest of his body was amazing. He was like silver and light, shimmering strength.
She’d seen some of that glittering silver in her own body. As she touched the threads of Fionn’s being, they wrapped around her, familiar, loving, welcoming.
She also sensed Sean beside her, as she had when she’d healed Ely. Tall and strong, like a bright fire, Goddess blessed. The magic of his sword ran through him, and she reached for it and for Sean, who was bound to her now through the mate blessing.
It was real, this mate blessing, she realized. Not just words spoken by the clan leader in a social agreement. The Father God had been in the words and in the sun kissing their skin. She saw the bond between herself and Sean, gold and strong. Real.
Under her hands, Fionn’s wounds closed. When she opened her eyes, Fionn’s wrists were whole and unblemished, and he was watching her with an amazed expression.
“Don’t worry. I’m not wanting to know.”
Andrea gazed sternly down at Fionn. “So, the great Fionn Cillian, now that you’re here, do you still maintain that I’m your daughter?”
“Of course I do. No other would dare bind me.”
Sean let out a laugh. “I see where you get your self-confidence, Andy-love. What do you want to do with him, now that you have him trussed?”
Andrea crouched down to face Fionn. He glared back at her with eyes as black as night.
“Prove it,” Andrea said. “Prove that you sired me, and I’ll let you go back to Faerie land.”
“My word should be good enough.”
“Oh, sure, because no Fae would ever lie to a Shifter.”
“Damn you, child, these manacles are killing me. Take them off and I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
“Tell me what I want to know, and then I’ll take them off.”
Anger and fierce pride surged on Fionn’s face. “There’s no doubt to me that you’re my get. Here.” He thrust shaking hands under his mail coat and pulled a chain from a hidden pocket. Delicate silver links shaped like leaves formed a bracelet, and a unicorn charm dangled from every other link. “This was hers, your mother’s. She gave it to me that last night, when I left her, knowing I could never return.”
Andrea had seen bracelets like this in the shops she and Glory had gone to in SoCo, though this one was of real, heavy silver. It was definitely human-made, however; a trinket that a Shifter woman might have seen and liked.
“That’s Dina’s.”
Glory stopped next to Andrea, her face stricken. Andrea became aware that most of the Shifters had moved this way, the conversations stalling and drifting to silence.
Glory yanked the bracelet out of Fionn’s hands. “Damn you. That was my sister’s.”
“Are you sure?” Andrea asked her.
Glory’s eyes blazed. “Of course I’m sure. I gave it to her. Why does he have it? Don’t tell me this is the f**king Fae who seduced her.”
“Yes,” Fionn said without flinching. “I am that f**king Fae.”
Glory screamed and let fly a kick, her five-inch heel driving toward his face.
Fionn had reflexes a Feline would envy. Even with his hands bound, even in pain, he caught Glory’s foot as it went by, flipped her onto her back, and got to his feet, all the while evading Sean’s sword.
“Cowards,” he spat. “Shifters, fighting a man caught and chained. Is that the best you can do?”
Dylan’s savage growl filled the clearing as Glory struggled up, mud all over her silver lamé. Andrea turned and stepped in front of Dylan.
“Get out of my way,” Dylan snarled at her.
Dylan had never looked more terrifying, but Andrea couldn’t afford to back down. If she let him tear through Fionn, she’d never know the truth.
“Don’t touch her, Dad,” Sean warned.
“Dad! Sean!” Liam’s voice cut like a whip. Dylan and Sean remained locked in place, eyes on each other. After a long moment, while Andrea’s heart froze, Dylan dropped his gaze from Sean’s and turned away.
Liam’s whole body was tight with fury. “To avoid any Shifter blood spilling on this fine day, I suggest we let the Faerie man speak.” He switched his glare to Fionn. “Tell Andrea what she wants to know, and if you’re sweet about it, I might decide not to rip you to shreds. I might let Sean and my father do it instead.”
Fionn’s lip curled. “Goddess, Andrea, how do you live with these ... creatures?”
“I never had much choice, did I?” Andrea took the bracelet from Glory, her breath catching as sunlight danced on the unicorn charms. Her mother had always loved unicorns. They were gentle beasts, she’d said, in spite of their horn and some stories that painted them as fierce. “How did she know so much about unicorns?”
“I showed them to her,” Fionn said. “I risked taking her to Faerie to show her the unicorns, because she was so fascinated by them. I wanted to give her that much.”
His dark eyes swam with sorrow for a deep-felt love that had been torn from him too soon. For all his Fae arrogance, Fionn Cillian had loved and lost. Andrea touched his hand.
“My daughter.” His stern voice broke and his eyes grew wet. “I’ve waited so long to find you.”
Andrea swallowed. “I think I believe you.”
Fionn raised his manacled wrists. “Then will you have pity on your poor old dad?”
“Oh.” Andrea turned to Glory. “The key?”
Glory had her arms folded, her expression forbidding. “There is no key.”
“Then what are these for?” Andrea held up her hands. “No, please don’t tell me. Sean, can you help?”
The handcuffs were ordinary steel, the same as the police used on human captives, but they would be no match for the strength of a Shifter. Sean sheathed his sword, worked his fingers between the cuff and Fionn’s gloved wrist, and twisted one handcuff open. He did the same with the other, and Fionn quickly stripped off his gloves.
“Let me see,” Andrea said.
Fionn held out his hands. Below the tunic he wore under his mail shirt, his bare wrists held red marks in the exact shape of the cuffs. The metal had burned him right through the gloves.
Andrea brushed her thumbs over the wounds and closed her eyes, reaching for her healing magic. She saw the tangle of threads around Fionn’s hurt skin, blackened and burned, but the aura of the rest of his body was amazing. He was like silver and light, shimmering strength.
She’d seen some of that glittering silver in her own body. As she touched the threads of Fionn’s being, they wrapped around her, familiar, loving, welcoming.
She also sensed Sean beside her, as she had when she’d healed Ely. Tall and strong, like a bright fire, Goddess blessed. The magic of his sword ran through him, and she reached for it and for Sean, who was bound to her now through the mate blessing.
It was real, this mate blessing, she realized. Not just words spoken by the clan leader in a social agreement. The Father God had been in the words and in the sun kissing their skin. She saw the bond between herself and Sean, gold and strong. Real.
Under her hands, Fionn’s wounds closed. When she opened her eyes, Fionn’s wrists were whole and unblemished, and he was watching her with an amazed expression.
