\u201cI couldn\u2019t sleep,\u201d Thom said. \u201cSo I ended up out here. Paul saw something and I\u2014we, really\u2014thought it would be better to let you sleep until we knew whether or not there was an actual threat. We let Cameron and Neve sleep, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Phelan?\u201d I asked, planting my hands on my hips. \u201cDid you let him sleep, too?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom cleared his throat uncomfortably. \u201cNo. No, he and Seamus went to go talk.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart stopped. \u201cSeamus<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChristos<\/em>,\u201d Thordin swore. \u201cYour voice, Marin, keep it down.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy in god\u2019s name would I do that<\/em>?\u201d I spat.<\/p>\n Thordin\u2019s eyes fluttered shut for a moment and he crowded close, leaving J.T. and Sif nearer to the French-accented man and the rest of the Hunt\u2019s breathren. \u201cHe leads them, but I don\u2019t think they call him by that name. He told Phelan not to use that name.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, to hell with that<\/em>.\u201d I shoved my hands into my pockets. \u201cWhere\u2019d they go?\u201d<\/p>\n I have to wake Neve. She needs to know. She needs to see him\u2014to see her brother.<\/em><\/p>\n Damn it all, he was the fucking Taliesin before Phelan. Does he know more about all of this than he got to tell his cousin?<\/em> My lips thinned. \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you wake Neve?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s complicated,\u201d Thom said, his voice quiet, gently reasonable. I wanted to punch him in the jaw. He of all people knew better. I gave him a baleful look and shook my head.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a bad answer and you know it, Thom.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFine, here\u2019 s a worse answer.\u201d He took my face between his cold hands and leaned close enough that we were practically sharing one breath between us. \u201cI wanted to keep you and our son safe and I refuse to apologize for doing that. I\u2019m not sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n I wanted to slap him\u2014to be so angry I couldn\u2019t see straight, to say things that I\u2019d regret later. The words died on my tongue and I couldn\u2019t hang onto the rage no matter how hard I tried.<\/p>\n Sometimes, I hated the fact that I loved him and that he loved me more than anything else in the world.<\/p>\n He kissed me and I let him, rage evaporating like fog.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI couldn\u2019t sleep,\u201d Thom said. \u201cSo I ended up out here. Paul saw something and I\u2014we, really\u2014thought it would be better to let you sleep until we knew whether or not there was an actual threat. We let Cameron and … Continue reading