“Aaaand, here he is. Say hi to Stella.” There’s a faint shuffle as Sol passes the comm to Quinn.
“Hello?” Quinn’s voice replaces Sol’s.
Stella snatches the comm from me. “Hi, Quinn!” She beams, and my heart softens under the radiance of her smile. She really is quite something. “How was training today?” she asks. She twirls a lock of her dark blonde hair around her finger.
“Okay,” Quinn says. Then, after a brief silence, “I broke my arm.”
The twirling stops. “What?” Stella shrieks. I wince, the high-pitched squeal hurts my ears. “Your arm? What were you doing? Sol,” she barks. “How could you let something like that happen?”
The crackle of static sounds over the comm as Sol takes it back. “I wasn’t the one training him, milady,” he says hastily. “It was, um, someone else. Ah, Los. Yes, it was Los.”
There is no elf named that, and Stella catches on immediately. “That’s just your name spelled backward, you jerk,” she snarls into the comm. “What the h—” she cuts off what she was going to say, breathing heavily. “What the raeg were you doing?”
The elven curse word is heavily accented on her tongue but still understandable.
Sol snickers. “I see the prince has been teaching you a few things.”
“Don’t change the subject,” Stella says. “If you don’t answer me right now, I’m coming back there and am going to beat the crap out of you.”
“I’m terrified,” is the dry response. Sol's been studying the art of human sarcasm.
“Answer the question, Sol,” I say over Stella’s shoulder. Accidents happen in training frequently, but I have a feeling taking Stella’s side in this will help her see me in a more favorable light. Yes, it could be quite advantageous.
Stella casts me a grateful look.
Success.
“Suck up,” Sol’s voice is barely audible.
“What was that?” My voice is sharp.
“Nothing, nothing. We were rock climbing. I may have buttered the handholds.”
“Sol.” I don’t have to fake the disapproval in my voice. “He’s not ready for that.”
“Clearly.”
“You buttered the handholds?” Stella’s voice is a mix of rage and incredulity. “With actual butter? Why?”
“Technically, it was vegetable butter,” Sol says. “And it wasn’t done for him. It was for me and other elves who were looking for more of a challenge. We were watching some old human shows about televised obstacle courses, and—”
“I get it,” Stella says, interrupting him. “Sol . . . why?”
“Because I’m a male.”
“That’s a cop-out answer.”
“It seemed like a good idea.”
“Stella, I’m fine.” Quinn speaks up. “They set my arm, and I should be fully healed within a couple of weeks.”
Stella falls silent, a faint crease marring her brow.
“We heal at an accelerated rate, being elves,” I explain. “By setting the bone with magic, we’re able to help humans heal faster than they are normally accustomed to.”
Stella is still scowling, but the anger is draining away in her voice. “Quinn, do you need me to come back?” she asks.
“No. I’m fine,” Quinn says matter-of-factly. “It just makes playing my games more difficult. But I could use the challenge, I guess. That’s what Sol says.”
“Hang Sol,” Stella growls.
“As riveting as this conversation has been,” Sol says, “it’s past Quinn’s bedtime. We’re going to save the kingdom, and then he’ll turn in for the night.”
“Okay,” Stella replies. Her voice hardens. “Don’t think you’re off the hook, Sol, because you’re not.”
“I have no idea what that means, but I look forward to it.”
That sounds a little too close to what humans call flirting. “Sol,” I say coldly.
“My apologies, my prince. It’s fun to, as the humans say, ‘yank her chain.’”
“Stella is not wearing any chains.” The expression doesn’t make any sense.
Stella mutters something incoherent. “Good night, Quinn,” she says after a pause and passes the comm to me.
“Night, Stella.”
“You elves are weird,” Stella says.
“I am sorry that your brother got hurt,” I say. “If I had been there, I wouldn’t have allowed him to participate.”
Stella smiles softly at me. “I know. I’m not mad at you, Eldaren.”
Good. Her fury is cute to see, though, and I feel a surge of pride. Stella is terrible at reining in her emotions. But she’d stood up to Sol, an elf who could break her back with one blow of his hand. She was brave, even if it was foolish. It is probably in part why she’s managed to survive to early adulthood in Liberty. Only the strong survive.
I wait until I know Stella has fallen asleep before slipping out and doing one more round around the inn. I stay close to the building this time, but all seems well. Despite the odd boy in the woods, and the gaia stars-knows-where, this island seems to be relatively peaceful.
Going back indoors, I frown at the broken door. I’m not skilled at carpentry, but I’m going to need to do something about it in the morning. Fortunately, it isn’t cold tonight, even for humans.
I go upstairs. I’m extremely tempted to nudge Stella over and sleep next to her. After all, we’re mates, even if she doesn’t see it that way. She will, someday, I’m sure about it. It’s just frustrating in the meantime.
After some thought, I take the room next to hers, instead. I don’t want her to think I’m being overbearing, even if I’m not. I crack the window slightly, letting in a fresh breeze. The building reeks of dust, though I shouldn’t be surprised. I’m not sure how long it’s been abandoned.
I settle on the bed and close my eyes.
13
Wilder
I lay in a huddle under the bed, waiting. Night is almost here. I bite my lower lip, stifling a groan. My breath comes in shallow gasps. I can’t rest. I can hardly think.
My thirst rages, dulling my senses with its debilitating need.
The other two vampires in this house need to drink, too. It has to be tonight. I don’t think I can hold out any longer.
It’s only been two days. Get a grip, Wilder. Two days since I
