Mark of Truth (Wicked Kingdoms Book 1) Page 5

  When none of them make a move to get up, I turn toward the door to let our crew know about giving a drop of blood to the gargoyles out front. For all I know, they broke the light sound barrier and are somehow here. I stop short as a tiny grey face with chubby cheeks appears in front of mine in the doorway. I jerk my head back to avoid a collision with the small body made of rock.

  This little guy is hanging upside down by his tail, and he is absolutely adorable. His tail has a triangle spike at the end, and his light grey skin is veined in deep green. His large wide set eyes are also green, and his ears are pointed like a bat’s but stick out sideways from his tiny oval face, folding a bit at the ends. Teeny little hands, a small round belly, and miniature flapping wings complete his slight frame. He can’t be any bigger than a tennis ball.

  Smiling, I turn to Dare. “Anything I need to know about this little creature? Does it require my blood as well?”

  He shakes his head, tapping his forefinger on his lips. “No, they are gargoyles, but miniature ones.” He nods. “Looks like the two you have there are just babies though. I’d guess they’ve probably lost their mother. It happens often with them. The mother leaves them on their own to survive.”

  I spin around. Another little creature is also hanging from his tail. He hangs there, his big round eyes just blinking at me. This one is the same light grey but has purple eyes and veins of purple running across his skin and wings.

  I reach up with both hands, one finger caressing each of their tiny snouts, laughing quietly to myself as they snort at me, wrinkling their noses. They flip right side up and float in front of my face, their wings beating wildly to keep them in the air. I hold two hands out and they come to rest on them, sniffing at my palms.

  Faint footsteps sound behind me and the smell of autumn tells me it’s Dare. I shiver as pulses of desire hit my core and make me clench my thighs together. His hot breath fans against the back of my neck left bare by my ponytail. My hands shake and little nails dig into my palms.

  “They seem to have taken to you, little álainn,” he declares, his lips barely grazing over the shell of my ear.

  The baby gargoyles slowly start inching up my arms with their tiny wet noses, both of them making their way toward my elbows, inspecting every inch of me. I smile. If their mother won’t protect them, I will. We have something in common them and me. Our mothers abandoned us at a young age.

  “So, Dare, what’s your bet as to my heritage? Am I from a forbidden union, or do you think I’m just weird?” I keep my voice low. I don’t ask about being his mate. All of the books say the reaction is swift and intense. Unlike anything else in this world. Between the dirty looks and veiled threats we’re throwing at each other, I’m willing to bet we aren’t mates.

  I peer over my shoulder at Dare, his extraordinary eyes meeting mine.

  “Would you have an issue being half goblin?”

  “Not at all. I prefer goblins to the elves. Bunch of stuck up assholes, they are.”

  At his chuckle, I continue, “I just don’t feel like dying any time soon, you know? Lots of places to see, people to meet, the usual things. Nothing too grand.”

  “And if I said the Goblin Kingdom would welcome you?”

  “I’d call you a liar, which is ironic because you’re Fae. So how about you don’t play with words and you just say what you mean and mean what you fucking say?”

  “I am not lying. The Goblin Kingdom has always accepted the leath cine, as well as those who are half goblin half elven. Not to mention anyone else who has been cast out of their home court. Even before the Light Elven Declaration was written into effect we did this.”

  I cock my hip, my foot tapping an agitated rhythm. “That’s not true. You’re known for slaughtering babes who are left at your doorstep if they’re not strong enough to protect themselves with their natural abilities.”

  “We pride ourselves on being the strongest of Fae, but we also value life.” His face twists into a horrified expression and a lethal calmness shines in his eyes. “A babe is a gift, and something all goblins value.”

  “You mean to say everything MECA taught us about wanting to try to connect with family in the Goblin Kingdom is a lie?” Doyle asks with disbelief. “I could have tried to find my parents, and no one would have tried to kill me?”

  “Not a lie, but not the truth. Each situation is different. You are obviously goblin, but you never thought to seek out your family? Do you remember much of them?”

  “No. I was just a baby when I was found on the front steps of MECA,” Doyle says. “And MECA told us that it would be unwise to try to connect with you. Any of you. For anything outside of official business we were told to stay away.”

  “Most goblins wouldn’t willingly give up a babe as they are a rare and precious gift from the Goddess. Even if you were half human, you would have been protected. They are sure you were left there? And there were no house sigils or markings on you to indicate where you came from?”

  “None,” Doyle confirms.

  “Well, then, I guess you will have to come to Goblin with us as well.” He shrugs, as if getting an invite into the Goblin Kingdom is something that happens every day for a leath cine.

  My attention drifts from their conversation as they continue to pepper Doyle with questions. The two little creatures are back from exploring my arms and rest in my open palms. They jump back and forth, their little wings not carrying them very far. Every time they land, they turn their little faces toward mine as if seeking my approval for a job well done.

  Dare’s deep rumbling voice makes me jump, unsettling my tiny guests and causing them to chirp angrily at him as he directs his attention between them and me. “You must grace them with names.” He nods at the two baby gargoyles sitting on my hands, both with churlish expressions, their little arms crossed across their scrawny chests.

  At their looks he frowns harshly at them, making me frown at him in turn. How could he be mean to them?

  “Stay with your new máthair,” he tells them sternly.

  The one with green eyes opens his mouth to growl at him. I giggle at the small hiccupping sound he makes. Little guy thinks he’s fierce.

  “Don’t you growl at me, you little beastie. Bond with her, not me.” He jabs his finger at me, his face still stern.

  “Bond with me?” I ask him.

  Purple eyes winds his tail around my thumb and tries to sit up tall on his hind legs and preen as I look down at them. His front arms circling a bit as he wobbles and tries to keep his balance.

  “Yes, bond with you. Once they have chosen who they are loyal to, that’s it. You tend to be stuck with them. As it so happens, if you do give them your blood, you will always know where they are and they you. It will also cause your personal sigil to appear on their chests signifying who they belong to.”

  “All good information to know.” I bite my lip. Why would these babies put their faith in me? Because I’m motherless like they are?

  “They only bond with those who are worthy of trust and who are pure of heart. It says a lot about you.” He smiles.

  I get lost staring at those lips framing perfect white teeth. Who knew teeth could be sexy?

  “Make sure to grace them with names soon, though, or they will be difficult to summon to you.” He darts his gaze toward my lips.

  My body heats with thoughts of my mouth touching his.

  “I’ll have to watch them for a bit to get a feel for their personalities so I can name them appropriately.” I walk back toward the couch where Doyle is still seated, my two new companions in tow.

  As soon as I sit down, they leap off my palms. Their tiny wings flap with as much force as they can muster. They land a bit clumsily on the soft upholstery of the deep red couch. Doyle flinches. “Scared of the little beasties, Doyle?” I joke.

  “Not at all. I have just never encountered a gargoyle before today, let alone mini ones that have appear to have bonded with you, Ev.”

  “Me either. I’
ve have decided to just go with it.”

  Really I have no other choice at this point. If I stop to think about all of the changes that have happened over the last few days—fuck, the last few hours—I’ll lose my ever loving mind.

  The crew wouldn’t be here for a while, considering they were packing for themselves as well as Doyle and me. I keep an eye on my two new shadows and let the hum of conversation wash over me.

  Time to center myself before my abilities decide to take over and make this party one from hell. Or at least more interesting. Being able to project images to those around me is entertaining or terrifying, depending on what I pick up from them. It sounds impressive in theory. Not for a high elf though. It’s just another disappointment to add to my mother’s long list. And trust me, her list was already a mile long.

  I feel a poke in my side and look to the right. I blink at Doyle as I try to refocus on the conversation.

  “What was that? Sorry, I zoned out for a minute.”

  He shakes his head, and I look down. My purple-eyed little devil is balancing precariously on the head of my green-eyed little devil, trying to reach the necklace dangling off to the side of my ribs. As one tiny claw latches on, green eyes bounces away. The other huffs out a breath and then widens his eyes once he realizes there is no longer someone beneath him and he’s left hanging. Arms and legs scrabbling for purchase and purple-eyes lets out a squeak.

  I rescue the now dangling gargoyle. “I think I know what your names shall be.” I turn first toward the purple veined baby gargoyle. “You shall be Anarchy.” Turning my face toward my little green mischief maker I say, “And you shall be Chaos, seeing as how you like to cause it.”

  Both of them puff up their chests a bit, standing on their hind legs with their front legs held up in a fierce pose. Eyes wide, I search for Dare to see if I did something wrong to offend them.

  “Are they going to attack me?” I ask him once I have his attention.

  “Quite the opposite,” his deep voice rumbles. “They are pledging themselves to you. To complete the bond, you must give them a drop of blood, as you did with our two protectors out front. Only with these little guys, they will bond only to you and tolerate those who are around you often.”

  Doyle holds out the same dagger I used earlier in front of my face. I shuffle them both into one hand. Might as well only have one finger with a slice in it. I slide my finger down the blade Doyle holds in front of me. I hold it in front of one and then the other. They both take turns raking their rough tongues over the cut. They drink only a single drop of blood. Dare scrunches his nose, his brow raised, after I wipe the remaining blood on my jeans. I narrow my eyes. Dare’s reaction could have to do with him being goblin, or he is turned on by blood? If so, gross. Total turn off. Each species has its own quirks, goblins’ being that they value every bodily fluid. Blood especially, as blood holds power, and they are not ones to let it go to waste.

  I make a mental note to ask Axel about it when he gets here, since he is the history and culture buff among us. It helps that he also lived in the Goblin Kingdom until he was ten, when his mother mated higher than her current station and promptly dropped him like a bad habit on the front steps of MECA. We’d better not run into the bitch during our visit. I might cut her, just for funsies. No one, and I mean no one, hurts my family and gets away with it.

  A throat clears, and I realize I’ve been staring into Dare’s eyes this entire time. Like a lovesick idiot. I turn my face away, my skin heating. I look to Dagan. A scowl mars his handsome face. He promptly tells us that the rest of our crew has arrived then turns his back on me. I stand up and tuck Anarchy and Chaos into one of the pockets of my zip up hoodie. We all head back the same way we first entered the massive manor. The giant doors open before any of us can reach them. I’m impressed at whoever holds the talent to move objects, and heavy ones at that, although I don’t let it show.

  Relief hits me as I walk through the giant doors and the sight of the rest of my crew greets me. It seems like I haven’t seen them in forever. In reality it was forty-eight hours or so while Doyle and I were on our little fact finding expedition. A long time for all of us, considering we live together and more often than not go everywhere together. I bound down the wide granite steps, and Eryn rushes up to meet me, her arms wide open. Her abilities as an empath keep her deeply in tune with everyone in our group, which is beneficial when I need a good hug. We usually try to hide or tone down our emotions around her so we don’t overwhelm her. Her abilities allow her to not only sense emotion but to influence it if she so wishes. We both spring apart when a loud and fierce growl rips through the air behind us.

  I look to the massive gargoyles sitting on their perches. Neither of them looks alarmed or pissed off in any way. Doyle has a smirk on his face but shakes his head at my look. I turn back around and hug both Kirin and Axel, ignoring the growl coming from behind me. I explain about the bloodletting with the gigantic gargoyles and laugh as Eryn rubs her hands together, a wide smile splitting her lips. She loves any creatures of the Faerie Kingdoms, even the wicked ones.

  I can’t wait until she gets a look at Anarchy and Chaos. She’ll freak.

  We’re all our own kind of freaky anyway, so who cares? As she once told me, embrace the weird.

  CHAPTER

  FIVE

  Shortly after their blood was spilled and they were granted access to the manor by the gargoyles I’m now calling Doom and Danger, we were shown to our own wing of the mansion. Our own wing! Okay, let’s be honest. It was more like a castle. Who builds a castle in the middle of Indiana? Oh, that’s right, the Fae. That’s who. After Eryn and I did our rare girly squeal over our new digs, we decided to really check the place out and get some good old-fashioned recon done. They may think this is their turf, but my crew and I have a way of making any territory our own. It could have something to do with Kirin being able to manipulate spaces and energies, but I couldn’t care less, so long as it keeps us at an advantage.

  We round the corner and I run smack into the wall. My hands fly up to remove my face from the solid surface only to touch soft skin stretched over firm muscle. Not a wall then. It’s a rock hard chest.

  A naked chest. Dare’s naked chest. Sigh.

  With sweat dripping down it in tantalizing rivulets.

  I remind myself that I can’t follow them with my tongue and clench my teeth. Those rivulets make a path down the dark line of hair from his perfect abs to his low-hanging sweats where it disappears. My pulse speeds up, and I place a hand on the wall to steady myself. And to stop me from following that tantalizing rivulet. With my tongue. Or my finger. I’m not picky.

  Eryn giggles behind me, and I snap out of it.

  “Sorry. Didn’t see you there.” My face heats with embarrassment. Maybe if I wish hard enough, the floor will swallow me up whole.

  A small smile is resting on his lips—more like a knowing male look—the head tilt, eyebrows slightly raised, his lips slightly apart. That look. The one that melts panties universally.

  He totally caught me checking him out. Ugh. Typical male preening.

  My libido is telling me he can preen for me all he wants, but my head is firmly against anyone who could lead to my head being chopped off. No offense to him, but I’m pretty partial to my head and want for it to stay firmly in place where it is.

  Of course Eryn jumps in, saving my ass as usual. “We’re just heading to check out the house if that’s okay.”

  “Do as you will, ladies. But know that my brothers’ rooms are on the fourth floor, and they do not take kindly to their privacy being invaded.” His mouth went from a teasing smile to a straight line in an instant. His entire demeanor changed with his warning.

  “Not a problem, we just want to check out the library we were in earlier and find the kitchen and stuff. You know we half mortals have to eat,” Eryn says with a touch of steel in her tone, her posture stiff.

  “Yeah, like every day. Weird concept, I know,” I can’
t help adding, a little perturbed that he thought we would invade their space. We’re here at their insistence. While the place is nice, it isn’t our home.

  Way to remind us, douchebag.

  A small chuckle comes from him, and I look at him questioningly.

  “Nothing,” he says and brushes past me. The contact from his bare skin against my arm electrifies me and I can’t stop the gasp from escaping my lips.

  He stops, shakes his head, and then continues up the flights of stairs, his brush off smothering the heat his touch had just ignited within me.

  “Did you catch that, Eryn?” I ask as we continue to hoof it down the stairs. Good Gods, I’m not going to need cardio while we stay here. The wide staircases leading up and down the manor house are enough to keep me in fighting shape.

  “The energy flow between the two of you is something I have never seen,” she mutters back at me, almost to herself as she skips down the stairs. She isn’t even winded. How does she do that?

  “Energy bad, or energy good? I need details here, girl!” I wave my hand for more.

  We finally reach the bottom of the stairs, and I hunch over, taking a second to catch my breath.

  “I can’t say.” She looks at me with her lips pursed, her eyebrows furrowed. “But it was extraordinary.”

  Shrugging, she turns and starts down the hallway to our left.

  “Super,” I reply, rolling my eyes at her back.

  I should know better than to press her when she isn’t ready to give me answers yet. She has her way of doing things and I have mine. She may not be as “in your face” stubborn as I am, but she holds her own.

  Guess I’ll have to corner him somewhere and pump him for some information. Either that or I can talk with Dax. He seems to like me and is the most approachable of the three brothers. A plan begins forming in my mind as we wander through the maze of halls. Nothing I can do tonight since we’re playing Sherlock Holmes, so I decide to strike tomorrow. It’s been a long day, and all this information is draining my energy.