A Discovery of Secrets and Fate (Chronicles of the Stone Veil 2)

Palm still to Zaid’s cheek, Rainey turns to me. “And this is what you’ve seen all these years?”

“Some aren’t as handsome as Zaid,” I reply dryly, shooting him a wink. He glares back at me.

Rainey’s hand drops and she looks at Titus for a moment, then to Carrick. “You’re both normal.”

“That’s debatable,” I mutter under my breath.

She then looks over to Myles, who stares at her with a flat expression. Is this too much for him? Has this killed his adoration for Rainey that she so recklessly took the eye drops?

“It’s okay, Myles,” she says with a smile, then nods toward the vial she had left on the counter. “You need to see this.”

I hold my breath as I watch him, not daring to let it out until he picks up the bottle. His attention stays focused on Rainey as he pulls some liquid into the dropper, then puts a small amount in each eye.

CHAPTER 11

Finley

“So you’re saying you never age in Semper Terra?” Myles asks Titus as they sit at the dining table, their breakfast plates just now cleared away by Rainey and Zaid.

The sun had come up a few hours ago, and we had mostly filled Rainey and Myles in on everything. After Myles took the drops and saw beneath Zaid’s glamour, it was a nonstop information barrage with dozens of intervening questions, which had to have driven Zaid and Carrick crazy.

Despite that, Zaid kept the coffee coming and we all moved into the living area, choosing the largest grouping of furniture to sit on. I told most of the story, continuing from how Carrick knew I could see under Marcus’ glamour and how he taught me about fae and daemons, all the way through what happened on the eve of my birthday with Fallon.

That was a tough one. It hit Rainey and Myles hard when they realized what it meant that Fallon was now a Dark Fae.

That, most likely, my sister had essentially died.

Rainey cried and hugged me, but I didn’t have any more tears at that moment. I had used them all up on Adira, who had been killed less than twelve hours earlier, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to hug the hell out of Rainey right back. I was so relieved they knew the truth that I’d hug everyone if I could.

Just as dawn was breaking, I told them what happened with the incubus and Adira. The tears did come again and both Rainey and I were soggy messes.

Throughout it all, Titus and Zaid would pipe in on some details, usually about daemons and fae or the meteor’s history and the magical stones it produced. Titus explained the concept of alternate dimensions separated by veils by telling them about where he lives in Semper Terra.

Throughout it all, Carrick remained quiet unless he was asked something directly. When Titus’ stomach growled like a lion, Zaid insisted on cooking breakfast and Titus regaled Rainey and Myles with more tales of Semper Terra. I glanced at Carrick a few times, but he seemed lost in his own thoughts. His face is so hard to read, but I could tell he was pondering something troubling as his frown lines were deeper than ever.

After breakfast, Myles and Titus stayed at the table talking about annihilators, flying over blue lagoons, and the fact Titus is 129 years old. Weirdly, Rainey has kept up a running chatter with Zaid, who doesn’t seem nearly as cranky around her as he is with me. I’d be offended if I didn’t find it so charming. Plus, I’m also completely grateful Zaid isn’t mean to her. The last several hours haven’t been easy on her or Myles. They’re both currently in the kitchen cleaning up. As for Carrick… well, I have no clue where he is.

I’m not even sure when he slipped away.

When I push up from the dining table, Myles is so completely engrossed in his conversation with Titus that he doesn’t even notice. Titus—who observes everything—shoots me a quick wink before telling Myles about the mermaids that populate the tropical waters around Semper Terra.

Wandering through the living area, I let my hand glide along the grand piano sitting before the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Puget Sound. It’s overcast outside, and the water is a shimmering gray as the Seattle-Bremerton Ferry heads out southwest across the water.

I move down the outer hall that heads to the south side of this penthouse suite, seeing that Carrick’s office pocket doors are open. Hesitantly, I peek my head around the opening to see Carrick sitting at his desk.

Before him, a large book is opened, and he’s bent over reading from it. One arm is on the desk, curved around the book, and the other elbow is planted with his head resting in his palm. He flips a page, yellow with age, and continues to read. The book is huge, maybe fifteen inches in length, and it looks to be incredibly thick if it were closed. The cover appears to be made of aged leather.