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“I could not. Dagda’s Council swore a blood oath to never bring harm upon his daughter.”

“What a fatherly thing to do,” he groused.

“’Twas many centuries ago, before she turned into the creature she is now.”

Rihanna caught Bryce’s hand, distracting him from his thoughts of Dagda’s pretentious demands and how this could have been ended on the ruins of the castle had the High Fae been able to attack Daeanna directly. He turned over her palm and traced the jagged scar from their blood bond.

“When one can live hundreds of years, I find it quite foolish to swear a blood oath to someone or something when so many variables might occur over time. Foolish, unless you know for certain you’ll never regret the decision.”

The corner of his mouth lifted as he raised his little bird’s hand and kissed her palm.

“Bryce, there’s much you’ll learn of the Fae, but I shall teach you one important fact now. Blood oaths are never taken lightly. ’Tis why I’ve only ever made a promise in blood twice. Blood is sacred to us, Goddess-blessed magic and power in our veins. ’Tis not something we shed or share lightly.” Liam folded his hands behind his back and smiled serenely. “I should return to the main shop where discussion on our next steps have commenced. Pompelia left you a clean set of clothing on the table, once you’ve cleaned the blood from your skin.”

The man left without a sound, not even a footstep, closing the door behind him. Rihanna swung her arms around his neck and hugged him like she’d lose him if she let go.

“I would give you my oath in blood a hundred lives over, my beloved, but I hope this time is the last,” she murmured beside his ear.

“I told you once, and I’ll tell you as many times as I must—you aren’t losing me this time.” He kissed the top of her head. “You’ll never lose me again.”

Moira lookedup when the door closed to the private sitting room at the back of the shop. Liam’s brow creased over one eye, an expression very unlike his usual confident self, and took the empty seat beside Shaye.

She didn’t like that look on Liam’s face. Didn’t like it at all. It added to the cold that suffused her blood, despite Shaye’s arm around her shoulders and her transition from helpless mother whose children had been kidnapped to determined mama bear anxious to get them back. In either state, the thought of Daeanna in possession of her sons made her blood run like ice.

At last, Liam looked up, the thoughtfulness gone, leaving a rather frightening man in its stead. The golden flecks in his eyes pulsed like stars in a pitch-black sky. His face was a sheet of hard, immovable resolve.

God, Moira wished that resolve could be used to fight Daeanna. Unfortunately, one of their strongest allies couldn’t lift a finger toward their enemy.

“The dagger. ’Twas laced?” Thierry asked, methodically petting the unusual shimmery feathers of his hawk-like friend. Moira had never seen him in the company of wild animals, although she understood his power was strongly connected to nature. The massive bird perched calmly on the arm of his chair, one dark red eye gauging the gathering, made Thierry appear far less the comedian he often played.

“Aye, though none of the poison infiltrated his blood. An anomaly I intend to investigate further once we handle our current situation.” Liam cast a shaded glance toward Horano, who arched his brow. The unspoken questions weighed heavy in the air, but neither man pursued further conversation. It wasn’t a priority.

Getting her children and Killeny’s children back was.

Horano cleared his throat, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Do we have a strategy to approach her?”

Shaye lifted his arm from Moira’s shoulders and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “The strategy is to go into this with no strategy. She is unpredictable, and should we set a plan, it weakens us. We must be open to any and all possibilities, including her trying to harm the children. I put naught past her.”

“Wise,” Liam said.

“When Rihanna returns with Bryce, we leave. Every minute she has our children, I don’t want to imagine what she might be doing to them.” Shaye straightened and let out a sharp breath before he turned to her and cupped the side of her face. The warrior Fae she’d seen since he sent her into hiding cracked. Her tenderanam carareturned, if only briefly. “Are you certain you wish to come?”

She nodded, clenching the hem of her pajama shorts in her fists. “You’re not leaving me behind.”

“Moira.” Her name, soft as a breeze, threatened tears anew. She lifted her chin until he lowered his mouth to her ear and whispered, “This is not your fault, my love. I feel your guilt, and you mustn’t believe it. We’ll retrieve all the children safely. I promise.”

“She never said she’d return them unharmed or alive, Shaye. She simply said she’d return them if you agreed to her ridiculous proposal. You can’t agree to it. Ever.”

Shaye’s lips moved to her forehead. “My smart wife. You caught her vague promise.” He kissed her softly and leaned back, catching her gaze. “Whatever happens when we arrive, don’t doubt me. Keep your trust in me. Always.”

“Always. But can we really destroy her?”

“Contrary to belief, she’s destructible,” Liam interrupted.Moira twisted, gaping at him. He nodded once. “Blood can destroy blood when ’tis of royal lineage. Our obstacle becomes Dagda’s location.”

“Dagda would never destroy his own daughter,” Thierry spat. The hawk-beast squawked, making Moira cringe. “Look at her crimes and she still lives. Had he carried out a sentence he would have given any other Fae, we wouldn’t be in this mess. The Talaenian people wouldn’t be facing a formidable threat to exterminate anyone of mixed blood.”

“This isn’t about blood, Thierry.” Moira shook her head and sighed. “It’s never been about blood. It’s about Shaye. It’s always about Shaye. She uses the cover of war between Tuatha dé and Talaenian, pureblood versus mixed blood, to follow her ultimate agenda. She’s willing to anger the spirits of this world to get the one man she wants. The one man she’s obsessed with.”

Shaye gathered her hand in his and squeezed. “She’ll never get me,ghra. Never again.”