“Are you going to murder me in the attic?” Nath says as he climbs up the ladder and has to duck his head a little from the slanted ceiling because he is built like a tree. “I saw a movie where that happened once.”
“You just made me food, so you’re safe,” I joke, and he grins, before looking around the room with more interest now we are up here.
“So why are we here?” he slowly asks, and I nod my head towards the desk.
“Look at this,” I say, pointing at the book. Nath slides into the seat, and starts reading the passage, and I silently wait for him to finish.
“I didn’t know any of this. Mum once said my dad was a guard of the Winter court,” Nath whispers quietly. “It never made any sense, and she didn’t know what a Winter court was, so we never had answers.”
“My mum left me a note, telling me I was born on Frayan and that she wasn’t my mother. That my dad wasn’t my father. The note said I would find answers here…but there is a lot to go through,” I say, seeing the slightly sympathetic look Nath flashes me before I look at the boxes. “I don’t even know where to start or what to believe.”
“I’m sorry they didn’t tell you who you are before they passed away,” Nath lightly whispers, but in the silent room, it sounds louder than it should. “I bet it would have been easier to hear them tell you the truth.”
“Mum said she was blood bound to never tell me the truth,” I inform him because I don’t want anyone thinking badly of her, and a look of understanding flashes in his eyes. I don’t understand what blood bound means, but I’m sure Nath does.
“I think we should tell my friends—” he starts off.
“No. I’m trusting you because you are like me and want answers…they aren’t like us. I don’t want to risk Sophie hearing any of this, and I’m not ready to talk to anyone else,” I quickly tell him. “I don’t even know why I shared this with you, but here we are.”
“You don’t have to say anymore, Adie. This can be our secret,” Nath says, being serious for a second, and I really appreciate it.
“Thank you,” I lightly whisper back. “Don't you think it is strange how we trust each other so quickly?”
“Not really. When I first met Rick, Mich, and Josh, we trusted each other from the get go. It is the same with you, maybe some part of us deep down knows that we can trust each other,” he muses. “Either way, I'm interested to see what's inside all these boxes.”
“Me too. My mum wouldn’t have left all these boxes for me if there wasn’t something interesting in them,” I reply, and tuck a little bit of my hair behind my ear, catching a little strand of my hair in the bracelet on my wrist.
“Ouch,” I say, slowly pulling my hair out of the bracelet, somehow getting it more stuck. I look up as Nath takes over, pulling the strand out effortlessly and letting it fall as he looks down at me. There is a moment where we both just stare, speechless, and in a trance of sorts. The small contact of his hand holding my arm feels like lightning is buzzing through my skin, and I really never noticed how seductive everything is about Nath. The way his tanned skin is the perfect shade, how his hair looks silky soft and the way his green eyes are so deep that anyone could get lost while they stared into them. It’s not just his attractive body that makes him seductive, it’s everything.
“Where is this from?” Nath asks gently, rubbing a thumb over the bracelet and snapping me out of it. I look down at where his hand rests on the bracelet and at the three red crystals that almost shimmer under his touch.
“My mum said it belonged to my biological father,” I say, “and I suspect it’s from Frayan. I have no idea what it is, but I think I need to keep it on.”
“One of my powers is to control energy. It’s how I make the jewelry that makes us seem human. I also have an extremely high connection to crystals and the energy they produce. If you would let me, I could find out what kind of energy this crystal has,” he says. “Some crystals can talk and even hold messages.”
“What energies do crystals usually have?” I ask. “And how do they keep messages?”
“Protection. Healing. They can even hold element powers for attacking or defending yourself,” he explains to me. “I only need you to hold your arm out, and I can check if there is anything interesting in these crystals.”
“What’s the worst that could happen?” I reply.
“You shouldn’t say that. Every time anyone says that, something goes wrong,” he jokes, making me laugh as I hold my arm out and he steps back a little. I watch, silent, as he hovers his joined hands over the crystals. His hands start to glow, a light blue haze appearing around them, and it spreads down to cover the bracelet. The red crystals start to glow brightly, and I scream as shooting pain spreads up my arm, making me drop to the floor as the waves of pain continue to spread from it.
“Adie!” Nath drops to my side, pulling me onto his lap, and the pain slowly fades as I focus on the sound of his heartbeat near my ear which is pressed against his warm chest. I take deep breaths as I try not to cry from the shock, and Sophie’s head pops into the attic from the ladder.
“Are you okay?” she asks, lightly growling, and all I can do is nod.
“A box fell on her foot, but her shifter healing is fixing it. Don’t worry,” Nath tells Sophie, smoothly lying, and I’m glad he did. Sophie wouldn’t understand.
“You know how clumsy I can be,” I mutter, my voice cracking a little. “Honestly, we are good.” I manage to say much calmer.
“You are clumsy. Try not to drop something on yourself and scare me again, please,” she sarcastically says and goes back down the ladder. I realise that I’m sitting directly on Nath’s lap, and my head is rested on his chest, hearing his fast beating heart, and I swallow the nervous feeling which mixes in with how relaxed I am.
“What happened then?” Nath quietly asks, placing a finger under my chin, and lifting it so our faces are inches away and he can see me as I answer.
“Pain. It was like the time I got electrocuted by the toaster when I dropped a fork into it, but much worse,” I explain, and he looks back at the crystals. “At least say you got some kind of idea about what it is?”
“I don't have a clue. The crystal was like nothing I’ve ever seen before, and it pushed away me when I tried to sense what it was,” Nath admits, flashing his eyes at the bracelet. “I almost saw the start of an image locked in there, but the crystals are so strong, they threw me out.”
“I think it's best we just leave it alone then. I don't want to do that again,” I tell him.
“Neither do I,” Nath mutters. “I am sorry I caused you any pain at all. I never knew that crystals could do that.”
“It's not your fault,” I reply, and I freeze as he presses a gentle kiss on my forehead.
“I’m not one to walk away from a puzzle. I will work out what it is, but not in a way that could hurt you. Don’t worry,” he whispers against my forehead, his warm breath is somewhat comforting.
“Why do you care?” I manage to reply, though my voice is almost silent.
“I don't think that is something even I know the answer to yet, beautiful…but I care, and I won’t be going anywhere,” he replies, and I gulp, staring at the insanely hot guy who just said he cares about me. “Now why don't we have a look around in these boxes and clean up some of these books?”
“Sounds perfect,” I say with a nervous smile up at him, before climbing off his lap and getting to work.