“Sooner,” Cade replies and blows her a kiss.
Pyleah really doesn’t want to leave him, but she must see to her business today. She knows her son and she knows that he is reluctant to do what needs to be done. Pyleah is going to pave the way for him.
She transports herself to the Dark Fae Kingdom and she finds herself in the gardens, watching Aeval and her daughter chase dragonflies. Their laughter is loud and joyous and Pyleah looks at them fondly before she remembers everything that has happened, and her gaze goes hard.
She shivers under the dark sky. She definitely prefers the Light lands. So much brighter and more cheerful than these gloomy ones.
Aeval sees her watching them and she stops and tilts her head. Pyleah takes that as an invitation to come forward. Aeval gathers Delinda in her arms and Constantine moves to her side protectively.
“Aeval,” she says. “May I have a word with you?”
“Of course,” she says with a smile. She passes her daughter to the Vampire and kisses them both. “I won’t be long,” she mutters, dismissing them.
Constantine gives Pyleah a fierce stare, but it doesn’t faze her. She has no intention of harming the woman. She just wants to ensure that she is in her right mind, per se.
Aeval leads her to a stone bench and they both sit down, fluffing out their gowns as they do so.
“What is this about?” Aeval asks warily.
She has reason to sound so cautious, but Pyleah smiles at her and turns to face her. She focuses on her eyes, so very similar in color to her own and her son’s, and she turns on the coercion, just a little bit, so as not to alarm Aeval. Pyleah leans forward as Aeval’s eyes are transfixed on hers and she sees the dazed look. Reaching out, she curls a wayward lock of Aeval’s hair around her finger and says quietly, “My son is sorry for what he said to you, he didn’t mean a word of it. He was hurting, do you understand that?”
“Yes,” Aeval says immediately.
“Good,” Pyleah murmurs. “Kalen loves you, and you love Kalen. It is time to forgive him,” she adds, still twirling the lock of hair around her finger.
“Yes,” Aeval says.
Pyleah smiles at her and she smiles back. Pyleah lets go of the strand of hair and breaks eye contact with her. Kalen was right, she is strong, really strong, but Pyleah has been using her gift of persuasion for thousands of years before this child was born. She absently rubs at the pain in between her eyes that this magick has caused her and then pats Aeval’s hand. “Go now,” she says.
Aeval blinks at her and pulls her head back sharply, but she gets up and brushes off her gown. “It was nice to see you today,” she says.
“And you, my dear,” Pyleah replies blandly.
Aeval steps back and then looks towards the palace where her father is standing, staring at them from a distance.
Pyleah stands up quickly and inclines her head to Drake. He narrows his eyes at her for a moment, but then nods back.
Pyleah lets out a sigh of relief. Drake will not stand in her way. They have a common goal. She watches Aeval stumble off, a little disorientated, but it will soon wear off. Now that she has agreed to forgive Kalen for whatever it was that he did to her, he can sway her mind into choosing him once and for all.
Everything will work out now.
It must.
Chapter 18
The Dark Fae Kingdom, September 2014 - Aefre
“Daddy,” I say as I reach Drake and he grabs me by my elbow, as I nearly tumble.
“What were you and Pyleah discussing?” he asks.
“Kalen,” I say with a slight frown, trying to remember exactly what it was we talked about, but then brush it aside at Drake’s look. “You have a serious face. What’s going on?”
“I need your help,” he says. “Will you come with me?”
“Of course,” I say. “What’s wrong?”
He doesn’t say anything as he ushers me inside the palace. I race to keep up with his long strides, but he stops dead when he sees Kalen hovering in the hallway.