Captive of Wolves (Bound to the Fae #1) - Eva Chase Page 0,48
contact. But that didn’t take too long either.” He beams down at me, his stance relaxed now that he’s gone through with his minor mutiny and received my gratitude. “Things are hard enough for you without having to worry about that jackass tormenting you.”
If I can get out of here, what Kellan wants to do with me won’t matter anyway. I run my tongue along the backs of my teeth, searching for a way I can ask exactly which direction the human world is in and whether there’s any special procedure to getting out of the Mists that won’t tip him off to my hopes.
Maybe if I come at it in a roundabout sort of way…
“Whitt made it sound like it’s a bad thing, living on the fringes,” I say. “Like things haven’t been so great for you since you moved.”
August’s eyebrows rise. “Look who’s got the big mouth now. Yeah, we’ve had some troubles.”
“But what’s so bad about the fringes? I mean, if it lets you get to the human world quickly whenever you need something there…”
“As you’ve probably noticed, a lot of fae don’t have the highest opinion of humans, so being close to them isn’t seen as a good thing. What everyone wants is to be close to the Heart of the Mists. It’s the source of our magic, and the closer you are to it, the more of that power you absorb. Living out here, after a while we can’t work our magic quite as well.”
The Heart of the Mists. There’s a reverence in the way he says it that sends a tingle over my skin, as if the name itself holds a kind of power. I make a show of glancing around. “Where is the Heart compared to here?”
August waves his hand to the south. “We always build our fortresses so the main door faces it. In theory, that makes it easier for the power to reach us.”
So, that means the farthest fringes—and the human world beyond them—must be to the north. I smile at him, grateful and relieved despite the guilt nibbling at my gut underneath. “You must miss being closer to it.”
“I do, but—it couldn’t be helped. Sylas is doing his best to make things right. Kellan is always grouching about it, as if he wasn’t even more involved in—”
August snaps his mouth shut before the rest of that sentence tumbles out. He makes an apologetic grimace. “You don’t need to worry about that either. And, you know, I’m not the only one looking out for you. Sylas doesn’t want you harmed either.”
The faerie lord has done a lot more for me than any prisoner should really accept. I look down at the brace leaning against the end of the bed. My chest constricts with a sudden wave of emotion.
“Maybe he doesn’t, but none of you would let me leave if I wanted to, would you.”
I say it as a statement, not a question, and August obviously can’t deny it. His expression clouds, his hands stirring restlessly at his sides as he searches for a response.
He doesn’t confirm my comment, but at least he doesn’t completely change the subject. “I guess you have family back there that Aerik stole you from.”
Splashes of red on green flicker through my mind. My heart is suddenly thudding. I grip the edge of the bed and swallow hard. Stole me from them—that’s one way of putting it.
“Yes.” My voice comes out quietly, an uneasy tension coiling through my ribs. Who will I be running back to when I get my chance to escape?
Mom and Dad and Jamie are long gone. There was my aunt and uncle and the baby they had on the way—God, that kid will be eight years old by now—but they lived the next state over, if they’re even still in the same town. I never knew their exact address. We only saw them a few times a year. My grandparents on Dad’s side lived on the west coast, and only visited over the Christmas holidays. I’m not sure what city they live in. I don’t even know their first names. And Mom’s parents were all the way over in Greece. I only met them twice.
Of course, I’m coming at this all wrong. I’m twenty now, not twelve. Twenty-year-olds don’t need family to take them in. They’re supposed to get jobs and their own places to live, like adults do.
Thinking about all that makes my pulse thump even harder. I drag in a breath,