Page 33 of A Curse So Vile

“We’re going,” Cole said, his face grim.

Under his forlorn exterior, rage boiled. Brenna could smell it, and it was terrifying. Not that she couldn’t handle a hot-headed man. She’d done so plenty of times.

But Cole was different. There was a wildness to him that none of the men in the Den possessed. It was a seed that grew over time, watered by anger, guilt, and shame.

“I would never hurt Fiona. Or any of you, for that matter.”

Dorthea’s eyes darted between Cole and Brenna, then settled on Fiona. The woman was hot-tempered, but Brenna knew she wasn’t rash. Her decisions would be well-measured.

Brenna moved to leave, but Cole grabbed her wrist.

“We need to talk. Privately.”

Her heart sank. She had little time left and instead of spending it with who she loved most, Icaries, she would have to suffer the angst of her traveling companions only to be thrown in a cell upon arrival at her home. She would know no peace in this life, and perhaps not the next, but maybe that’s what she deserved.

10

COLE

COLE

Confused by what had just happened, Cole followed Brenna into the other room, searching for answers.

Fiona’s muscles had returned. Her skin was no longer a sickly pallor.

“Out with it,” Brenna said once the door was closed. She looked exhausted, and he wondered if fixing Fiona had somehow drained her.

“Well?” she said impatiently.

Suddenly, he no longer cared for answers. He dropped to his knees as relief took hold, because while he didn’t understand what happened, he now had hope.

“Thank you,” he said through choking sobs that had been building in him for far too long. “Thank you till my dying breath. I am yours now. Forever in service to you.” He stared at her feet, unable to lift his head to meet her gaze.

“You’re not mad?”

“Mad? Why would I be mad? Just an hour ago, I thought I was going to have to watch my sister die horrifically due to my mistake. Now, she’s hungry. I don’t even understand how she has muscles, they’d been wasted to nothing for so long. You’ve made her better, and for that, I’ll gladly put my life in your hands. I am yours to command in all things.”

She stepped closer and reached down to tousle his hair. “Fear not. The only thing I will request is that you continue on to the Den with me and Fiona. She’s a Dusklander now, and I’m afraid that without you, she’ll forever be lonely. You should be able to make a life for yourself, though I fear your Gryndari friend should stay behind.”

“She’d never leave us. She has no one.”

“Don’t expect her to have any friends at the Den with her attitude.”

“She thrives in opposition.”

“You have a point.”

A stab of anxiety needled him. “You said there would be consequences.”

“For myself, but not for Fiona. The people of my pack would never blame a child for the actions of an adult.”

“What actions do you speak of?”

“Giving Denithian blood to another, as I have given it to your sister, is forbidden. Only an elder can allow for any concession.”

“What will they do to you?”

“I’d rather not discuss that.”