Page 115 of Wicked Magik

Veylor's lips curled upward. "You made me curious. I took a strand of your hair to discover what you truly are because you cannot be merely human." His fingers brushed a wisp of white behind her ear. "This color belongs to the fae realm, and these eyes..." He tilted her chin upward, his face hovering close enough that his breath warmed her skin. "These amethysteyes with their golden centers could ensnare any male. I feared you were a siren, come to steal what little I valued." His voice dropped lower. "But I found myself caught instead. What choice did I have when I began to fall for you but to push you away… from me, from Oryx?"

Vesper gasped and I could find nothing inside her mind. I had nothing to give Veylor to help him. A blank slate, that is all she was.

"You stole a piece of my hair?" Her fingers traced protectively along the thick braid draped over her shoulder. "Tell me exactly what you did with it."

Is he going to hurt me now?she thought.

I whimpered and came up behind her, taking the flowers away from her with my tail. “He would never hurt you, not now, not ever. Not anymore, my sweet pet.” I ran my tongue up her neck to calm her.

“You are not questioning me about why I thought you are not human?” Veylor stepped closer to her, their chests nearly touching.

Vesper licked her lips. “I… I honestly don’t know anymore. I know I was different from my peers. I preferred to stay with my mother, and didn't like how people picked on me. I tried to change my looks. It's why I went to school.” She looked away from him. “But I couldn’t even dye my hair, the color wouldn’t hold. My mother said I should embrace it…”

Veylor raised a brow.

My pet, once full of strength, was now crumbling. She was losing the identity she believed she had, doubting herself, and descending into the shadows of her mind.

I didn’t like it.

“Stop,” I snarled at Veylor. “This is too much. This was supposed to be a happy date!” I pulled my pet into my arms and cradled her. “You hurt her!” I growled at him.

Vesper shook her head and patted my chest. “Oryx, it’s okay.” She sniffed. “It’s okay, I have,… it is something that I have thought of. It’s just my mother…”

I shook my skull. “No. Veylor said he wouldn’t hurt you!” I snapped my jaws at him.

Veylor's jaw slackened as he extended his hand toward me. "You misunderstand my intentions! I only seek to offer her truth, to reveal myself completely!" Darkness coiled around his form like smoke, and I pulled my pet backward, away from him.

Protect her.

Even if it was from Veylor.

She’s fragile.

Vesper wiggled in my hold. “Stop!” She yelled and we both froze.

Tear stains remained on her cheeks. I whimpered and instinctively used my tongue to comfort her. She ran her hand up and down my chest, perhaps trying to calm either me or herself… I couldn't tell.

"Oryx, it's alright. I'd rather hear it from him. It's just a hard pill to swallow."

Pill?

She chuckled sadly. “It’s a hard truth. If what Veylor thinks is true then… everything that I am, is a lie.”

“You taste human.” I told both of them. “Her blood tasted human.”

Veylor reached out and grabbed my wrist. “A mixture of species, it can be hard to tell. She can have the blood of a human, some likenesses of a fae. That is why I sent it to a friend. He will find out, and soon. He is very busy.”

Veylor's fingers twitched at his sides before he stepped closer. "Forgive me for ambushing you with this, Vesper. There's so much I need to share, and I feared…" his voice caught, "...Ifeared if I waited, you might shut me out again. I only want to be transparent with you now, to prove my sincerity."

Vesper nibbled on her lip. “You seem genuine. I’m just still trying to wrap my head around it. It’s a lot. While I think this could be true, it makes me believe that my mother kept things from me.” She smiled sadly.

I gently place my pet back on the ground.

“I might not be human. I could be half of a fae? Something else? Something of this world? Why would my mother never tell me”

The word,betrayallingered in her head.

I didn’t want her to hate her life giver, her mother. The only person that made her feel loved.