Total pages in book: 51
Estimated words: 47068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
She hesitates for only a moment before gingerly placing her hand into mine and claiming another piece of my soul.
Chapter Five
Rissa
Dax lives in a fairytale mansion. At least that's how it seems to me. The house was obviously built by hand…his unless I miss my guess. And either he's had practice at it, or working with wood comes naturally to him because every hand-hewn wall stands in testament to the skill and craftmanship that went into it. Every massive log was carefully placed, the seams so tightly compacted that it's hard to tell where one log ends and another begins.
Large windows nestle high up, allowing natural light to flood into every corner. It should be cold inside, considering the thick layer of snow and ice coating everything outside. But it's warm and inviting.
I understand why when we make it down the giant staircase. A fireplace takes up half of one wall, flames dancing from thick pieces of wood inside. Half a dozen people stand around it, staring at us.
My steps falter.
"Easy, elskan-ljós," Dax murmurs, his hand at the small of my back. He hovers over me like the world's most protective prison guard. Except I've mostly accepted that he didn't kidnap me and I'm not a prisoner here. I think I may even believe what he told me.
That's what terrifies me. I believe him…and I don't want to. I want to go back to a week ago when my life made some semblance of sense. It's never been easy. There have always been little things that made me feel like I didn't quite belong. I've always felt things I shouldn't, heard things that weren't there, but those little whispers never led me astray. Until now.
Aside from one tiny girl who can't be older than sixteen or seventeen, everyone else in the room is just as big and intimidating as Dax. Two of the men—Fae? —seem familiar, as if I should be able to place them.
Were they at the bar the other night too? I don't remember, but I think they were.
One of them grins at me, humor in his blue eyes. He has dark umber skin and braids in his long hair. He's beautiful in a brutal sort of way, but he doesn't look dangerous. I think he probably is, though.
The one beside him screams darkness and danger. He's pale with a single black eye. A vicious scar bisects the other, running halfway down his cheek. He watches me intently, as if he's weighing and measuring the worth of my soul. I'm not sure what he decides, but I quickly shift my gaze from him when he cocks his brow as if to call me out for staring at him.
The man standing closest to the stairs is beautiful. Out of everyone in the room aside from Dax, he's the most human, but there's something about him that's simply different. I've seen beautiful men before. They're everywhere in this world. But this one is too perfectly formed. Too bright. His brown skin gleams. His amber eyes aren't shadowed. There is no cold arrogance in the way he holds himself. Out of everyone in the room, he's the one who looks the most human…yet seems the most Fae.
The final man in the room seems almost deceptively normal compared to the others. He's massive like Dax, with olive skin and gold eyes. There's an air of authority about him, and an endless abundance of patience. He smiles at me when I meet his gaze, his expression kind.
I'm positive every one of them is Fae like Dax. Not the girl, though. She's human like me. She's beaming at me, practically quivering where she stands as if it's taking everything she has not to race forward to introduce herself. I like her immediately.
"Rissa, these are my brothers," Dax says, leading me down the final few stairs. My feet hit the bottom and I stop, refusing to move any further. "Damrion." He points at the Fae who smiled at me. "Adriel." The scarred Fae. "Malachi." The Fae with humor in his eyes. "And Kyvon. We call him Reaper." Reaper gives me a salute. "And this is Abigail."
"Hi," I whisper, my stomach fluttering with nerves. How the heck do you introduce yourself to a room full of warriors you're pretty sure have been alive longer than everyone you've ever met, combined?
"Valkyrie," Damrion says, his voice a deep rumble, like a rockslide.
"Sup, Rissa?" Malachi grins at me.
"Sup?" Reaper shoots a scornful look at Malachi. "How have you lived this long?"
Malachi hefts his finger in the air, making the human girl giggle.
Damrion shoots a quelling look at the two warriors.
"Hi, Rissa." Abigal skips forward to meet me, flinging her arms out. Before I can react, she pulls me into a fierce hug. "I'm really happy you're finally here. I knew Dax would find you."