While some of them could devour the whole scale, leaving their victims numb, others had more specific needs. Love, fear, happiness, grief, and passion were some of the most popular divisions in the court of Felroth. And while sex was an easy way to feed on passion, there were other ways.

This also explained how my parents were able to not kill each other while accidentally making me. If one of them was feeding on life force and the other on passion, they’d balance each other out.

Isay did not need to feed, but she connected best to plant life… and delthers apparently. I was neither.

Chapter 16

ISAY

I WAS FREEZING. COLD SHIVERS SHOOK THROUGH ME WHILE A sharp pain stabbed at my chest. I whimpered and gasped, because I’d already lost my voice from screaming through the night.

I was barely lucid enough to recognise that I’d been dragged to the infirmary, and the room was packed. Every fae in here saw me writhe and squirm in my bed. Some of them were well enough to talk about it. I’d heard someone whisper that I was going through a withdrawal. Withdrawal of what exactly?

I knew it was morning based on the brightness behind my eyelids. There was darkness within me, though. So much of it that I could barely feel my own life force pulsing from deep in my chest where the pain originated.

I’d done something to the delthers that left their mark on my soul. Of that, there was no doubt.

Part of me was gone while the other part was trying hard to mend itself by stabbing at the darkness that had taken its hold on me. Another ice-cold shiver ran through me with biting intensity, and I curled into a ball, gripping at a blanket that did nothing to keep me warm.

“Where is she?!” a roar boomed through the infirmary as my trembling continued.

Someone must’ve pointed in my direction, because the footsteps stomped across the room to stop next to my bed.

“Isay?” This time, the male spoke softer. A warmth of a hand hovered above my cheek but didn’t lower to make contact.

I couldn’t respond through the pain that continued to course through me. Tears streamed from my eyes, and I gritted my teeth to keep from making any more sounds, but I couldn’t manage to keep in the coarse cry.

“What’s wrong with her? Why hasn’t anyone helped her?” Karmuth demanded, spinning on his heel to face the room.

“Sir,” a hesitant fae coughed out the word. “Nobody was willing to touch her.”

“What is wrong with her?” Karmuth repeated angrily.

“We think the delther venom is in her bloodstream,” the same fae replied carefully, his voice hitching slightly. “She’s been fighting it on her own.”

Even without seeing him, I knew his eyes searched me for cuts. While I was cold all over, his eyes burned on me.

“She is not marked by one of them.”

“No, sir. The warrior who brought her in said she’d pulled the ecos right out of seven delthers, though. Without touching them. She must’ve pulled the venom with it.”

Silence fell as they both looked at me contracting on the bed.

“Get me the etheris salve,” Karmuth commanded.

“Sir—”

“Now!”  he roared.

The fae hurried off, and Karmuth sat on the edge of my bed. The mattress dipped at his weight and rolled my body towards his. His hand came to my back, holding me through the thick fabric of the blanket covering me.

“You’re going to be all right, Isay. Just hold on.” His hand rubbed circles on my back, spreading warmth.

“Kar…” I gasped but couldn’t even finish his name.

“Shhh, beautiful, keep your strength. I’m going to help you through this.”

More warmth spread through me at his words, and I sobbed quietly.

“I… tried…to—”

“I know you did.” His hand brushed through my hair, sending a different type of shiver through my scalp.

“I’ve never—” I gasped through a wave of pain.

“Any other time I would love to hear your lovely voice, Isay, but right now you need to focus on breathing. Let me do the talking.”

I nodded, wishing my eyes would open. His voice was so soft, I wondered if he was looking at me the way he’d looked at Ronya, with a gentleness in his eyes. I wanted to see it pointed at me, wanted to see him.

“Here, Kar.” The fae from before was back. “I don’t think it is a good idea to—”

“I’ll face the consequences if I have to. There’s nobody out there who can suck the life force out of me, so they’ll just have to behead me, right?” Not so gentle now.

I made a protesting sound, not willing to think of such consequences.

“Don’t,” I begged.

“Princess, I told you not to talk. I will be fine, I promise you.”

A minute passed and I thought he’d changed his mind, but then a cautious brush sent warmth through my cheek. The smell of eucalyptus and something I couldn’t decipher rose from his fingers. He rubbed it into my skin in slow circles, then dipped his fingers into the salve again and trailed it down my neck.

“Your ring might start burning again, so just nod when it gets to be too much, and I’ll stop.” He pulled at the blanket to reach more of my skin, but I refused to let go of it.

I shook my head. “Cold.”

“I get it. Trust me, I do, but this will help better than the blanket.”

I kept on gripping at it as if my life depended on the weight of it on me.

“I will warm you up, Isay. I swear you’ve got me burning like nothing ever has. Just let go of the blanket and I’ll show you just how hot it can get.”

Was he being serious? His voice had taken a sort of roughness to it that ignited something in my chest that made my fingers loosen and he pulled it off just enough to run his fingers over my bare arms, warming me up just like he said he would.

“How’s the ring?” Karmuth asked, and I shook my head. I couldn’t feel the ring through the confusing sensations unfurling within me.

He kept on running his hands over my skin. When both of my arms were tingling from the salve, Karmuth pulled at the hem of my shirt and my eyes flew right open. Through a veil of darkness in front of my face, I could see him. Face contorted in pure concentration, he didn’t notice me gaping at him as he revealed my stomach, then dragged his fingers across the tender skin.

“Karmuth,” I gasped. That got me burning, all right.