Chapter 20
Robert stretched his legs out in front of him, crossing them at the ankle as he stared into the flowing stream that ran past Isabella’s cottage. The dark ripples seemed to take on a mesmerizing life of their own as they reflected the light of the full moon.
After what felt like the longest two days of his life, he was not at all anxious to begin another night in the cottage. He needed time alone to unravel his tangled thoughts.
Time alone to face his demons.
He and Isa had made the trek back from Castle MacGahan in silence, his guilt and worry building a wall he wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to scale—guilt over the secrets he kept from Isa, worry about his inability to ensure the obstinate woman’s safety.
From the moment he’d seen the burn mark on the bedchamber floor, he’d begun to suspect that his relationship with Isa was far more than either of them had bargained for. That suspicion made his not having any control over what would happen to Isa when the Faerie Magic overtook him all the more painful.
And the Magic would overtake him. Of that he had absolutely no doubt. The daily changes in his old wound assured him of that fact.
He felt powerless for perhaps the first time in his adult life, and he hated it.
When had he so completely lost control over the direction of his life? That was easy. The moment he’d come in contact with his first Faerie.
The mark on his arm prickled, and he squeezed his eyes shut in a useless attempt to quiet his equally prickly conscience. Apparently the Fae Magic that infused his body wouldn’t allow him to wallow in self-deception.
Fine. He’d admit that the Fae weren’t entirely to blame for his current dilemma. Though he did fully expect the Faerie Magic would be the death of him, in fairness, it had also saved him. It had swept him into the future and allowed him the most amazing decade of experiences any man could imagine.
No, the problems troubling him tonight were of his own making.Hehad kept information from Isa.Hehad failed to convince her to leave this place for her own safety.Hehad slept with her. Willingly. Eagerly.
Then he had gone and made everything worse for the past two days by shutting her out, denying them both what little time they might actually have together.
“Great dunderheaded fool,” he muttered into the night.
“Pardon?”
Robert’s eyes flew open at the sweet sound of her voice so close. Her hair was loose, the long curls flowing around her.
“I dinna mean to interrupt yer... yer thinking time, but I worried when you remained out in the dark for so long.”
She held her fingers laced together at her waist, so tightly, from the looks of it, that Robert doubted she could have any circulation left in her hands.
He’d managed this night to confront some of his demons. Perhaps it was time to confront one more.
“It’s no so dark, really.” He stretched up his arm, pulling her down to sit next to him when she took his hand. “The moon lights the land like a lantern tonight.”
“I suppose.” She nodded before laying her head against his chest.
“Isa, did you ever...” He swallowed his nervousness and draped his arm around her, pulling her close before he tried again. “When you were a small lass, did anyone ever tell you stories? Faerie stories, perhaps?”
Her body tensed against him, but he held her tight, waiting for her response.
“Mayhap,” she said stiffly. “One or two.”
“Sitting here this night brings a story to my mind. Would you like to hear it?”
“Aye,” she whispered, seeming to relax a little. “It would please me to listen to yer telling.”
“Long, long ago, long before man ever began to record his history, Fae and Mortal lived together in a harmonious world. For every man there was a mate. Two perfect halves, their souls destined to be together through eternity. As one life ended, the displaced spirit would take up residence in the Fountain of Souls, waiting until its mate arrived, and then they would both return to bodies to live together again. All was as it should be.
“Then came the Great War. A battle between factions of the Fae for control of the Fountain and the power of immortality it bestowed. The foundations of life itself were shaken. Soul Pairings were ripped apart, many never to be reunited, and the world was divided between Mortal and Fae.
“Since that time, the souls that were separated—the ones that survived, that is—have sought one another, lifetime after lifetime, their misery creating disharmony in both worlds.”
Here he paused, listening to Isa’s breathing, wondering for a moment if she’d fallen asleep.