181: Ada's POV
181: Ada's POV
Phoenix held my hand for the next several hours while I ran his brothers through the details of the last few months. I didn’t skip anything— from me slitting Georgina’s throat, to Blade and Dagger swearing their fealty in the form of a mate bond, to every conversation and decision I could recall. Nik and Darius listened intently, only interjecting when they had a clarifying question. It was therapeutic in more ways than one.
Running through the thought processes behind my decisions made me more confident that I’d been making the right ones. The only one I was still slightly questioning was the decision to accept Blade and Dagger as mates. I explained that it didn’t feel the same as the bonds I normally had with the three of them. The draw, the physical intensity, wasn’t there with the bond I had with the fae brothers.
When I wrapped up talking about Bryant and the pains and progression there, we all sat in silence for a few moments. The sun was coming up. Rays were peeking through the trees, filtering in through the window in shades of yellow and orange.
Nik cleared his throat, running a hand through his shaggy oil-slick hair, “Any chance Adrian had some coffee in that cellar?”
Phoenix smiled, “I’ll go get some started.”
Darius ran a hand over his face, “Nik, I think we need to tell her.”
“Absolutely not,” Nik hissed out, glaring at his brother.
I cocked my head to the side, “Tell me what?”
“Ada, while we were—” Darius was cut off by the door opening. I turned to see Phoenix standing there, arms crossed over his chest. I’d never seen him close to as angry as his face looked in that moment. “Phoenix what is it?”
“Caelthar?” Phoenix’s voice lilted up at the end, as if it was a question.
My eyebrows furrowed. Nik leapt to his feet, “Is he here?” Phoenix gave his brother a curt nod. Darius and Nik locked gazes, Nik’s hands shaking, “I—” he cut himself off before turning to me, “I’m going to apologize in advance.”
“For what?” I stood up at the same time Darius did, just as the very air around us seemed to go still and quiet. “Nik, what’s going on?”
Phoenix glanced out into the hallway before taking a large step into the room. Behind him, a large figure ducked its head to pass through the doorframe. I cocked my head to the side, studying the entity that had entered the space. His eyes were the first thing that caught my attention— there were no whites. Even from a distance, I could see they were all black with something bright and swirling within them.
His sheer size was the next thing. He made my mates appear dwarfed, and I was pretty sure he’d make Blade and Dagger look small as well. In addition to towering over everyone— so much so that he couldn’t quite stand up fully straight in the cottage without hitting his head on the ceiling— his chest and shoulders were wide. When he’d entered the room, he’d ducked, but I realized he’d also had to angle himself slightly sideways because his shoulders were wider than the doorframe.
He was dressed entirely in black, with a large black cape hanging on his back made from wolf fur. His presence commanded attention, the power radiating off of him in waves. He seemed to suck the very air out of the space, absorbing all noise and signs of life around him. His fae ears twitched as I appraised him.
Something in me called to him. It was a part of me I didn’t recognize— not quite the animal part of me that was wolf. But similar. Like I knew him without ever having met him. My body moved forward without me being conscious of it. Nik’s palm hit the middle of my chest, stopping me.
The fae’s lips twitched up at the corners, as he fixated his eyes on me, “It’s nice to see you alive and well, daughter.”
Shock jolted through my system. If Nik hadn’t already stopped me, that sentence would have frozen me on the spot. Daughter? This man was claiming to be my father? And Nik knew him. Darius didn’t seem all that surprised. They knew? What the hell kind of secrets were they keeping from me while demanding my honesty?
“I thought you said you didn’t want to meet her,” Nik stated flatly, dropping his hand from my chest.
“I said I shouldn’t meet her, not that I didn’t want to.”
The stranger’s voice was a low, resonating bass that seemed to shake the foundations of the cottage, despite him speaking in a manner I could tell was quiet. My heart hammered in my chest as I continued staring at him.
“Then what’s changed?” Nik snapped, trying to step to place his body between the man and me.
“Absolutely nothing,” the thin, pale lips on the man's face curved into a threatening smile, revealing lengthened canines. “I shouldn’t be here,” he took a slow, deliberate step toward Nik, “But I am, and I’d like a moment alone with my daughter. Leave us.”
As soon as the command left his lips, my three mates seemed to move against their own will. Nik tried to dig his heels in but was sliding on the hardwood floor toward the door. The man stepped out of the way, allowing my mates to pass him as the three of them struggled against an invisible force. My eyes widened as the door clicked shut behind them. The doorknob began to rattle, loud bangs echoing through the room as they all began beating against it.
The Fae man— my father? — rolled his galaxy eyes and waved a hand over the door. It still shook with what I could only assume was each hit against it but was now silent.
“I’m Caelthar, King of Kings.” A hand was held out to me. When I just stared at it, he dropped his hand and sighed, “Would you mind if I sat down? It’s rather uncomfortable having to stoop like this.”
I managed a nod, my eyes following him as he moved through the room and over to the window. He glanced outside before sitting in the too-small chair. It groaned beneath his weight, but he didn’t seem to notice. His eyes were now fixated on me. With no better option, I walked back over to the mattress and sat across from him. Caelthar was so large that our knees almost touched.
He sighed, “I don’t know why I’m surprised that your mates kept their word and didn’t tell you about me, but I am.” he ran a hand over his face, grunting, “A part of me expected Blade and Dagger to be the ones who were unable to keep the secret. I suppose this is very confusing for you, Ada.”
“Confusing, infuriating, numbing,” I crossed my arms over my chest, cocking my head to the side, “Take your pick.”
“You’ve got my temper,” Caelthar chuckled. “I’ll get to the point. You all need to come with me, or you’re all going to die.”