Page 14 of Hunted
“I like to think I may have influenced her, somewhat.”
Leaning my head to the side to see what Pepper was doing, I realized something. She wasn’t actuallytouchinganything. With her back to me, all I could see were her arms waving around. I had assumed she was handling frying pans and cracking eggs, but the eggs crackedthemselves. Looking more closely, I saw pieces of bacon turning over in the pan they were frying in. I also saw the wooden spoon in the pot of beans stirring them all by itself.
Pepper now looked like a conductor at an opera, orchestrating all this by simply waving her hands about.
“That’s incredible,” I said.
“Oh, it’s nothing, really. I suppose I’m getting lazy in my old age,” she added, chuckling. “Don’t tell. Helen.”
“I won’t,” I said, my lips curling into a little smile.
“Tell Helen what?” asked Evie, who came skipping into the dining room running her fingers through her golden hair. It had looked damp a moment ago, but after a quick shake, her hair became soft silk falling across her shoulders.
“Nothing,” Pepper said, grabbing one of the frying pans. She offered me a wink.
I returned the wink, then looked over at Evie. “Did you just dry your hair with your hands?” I asked.
Evie beamed and sat down across from me. “I did,” she said, “It saves so much time.”
“I’ve never… I mean, I’m Fae, I live in Arcadia, and I’ve never seen anyone use magic like this.”
“Really?” Evie placed her elbows on the table and cupped her face while she looked at me. “But Arcadia is like, thehomeof magic. Isn’t Windhelm a palace made of ice?”
“Windhelm is a city, and the palace isn’t made of ice…” I paused, then frowned. “Or maybe it is, and I just haven’t noticed.”
“Well… I don’t notice my cantrips anymore. So, maybe it’s like that for you, too?”
“What’s acantrip?”
Evie smiled, tapped the tip of her nose with her index finger, andcolorrushed to her face. Her eyes darkened as if she had applied a purple shadow, her skin lightened, her cheeks flushed, and her lips turned a shade of deep red. “This is a cantrip,” she said, grinning widely.
“Bloody hell,” I said, amazed. “I wish I could do that.”
Evie’s face softened and she reached for one of my hands. “You sound just like Dahlia,” she said. “Do you know that?”
I frowned. “I do?”
“She used to say bloody hell a lot. It was one of the first things she ever said, actually.”
“She learned that fromyou,” Pepper put in.
“And I’m proud of it! Bloody hell is one of the most British things a person can say. Amara may have been born in Arcadia, but she’s an honorary Brit today.”
“Is that… a good thing?” I asked, chuckling.
Evie shrugged and squeezed my hand. “It just makes me feel a little closer to you.”
Her smile was infectious. I couldn’t help but return it. “Thank you,” I said. “You’ve all made me feel so welcome.”
“You’re family. Why wouldn’t you be welcome?”
“I don’t know. I guess I’ve never felt—” Valerian’s presence at the edge of my senses caused me to shut up. I saw him cautiously approach the entrance to the dining room. Somehow, he didn’t look sleepy, or out of sorts. He had his silvery hair held in a top-knot, and he was wearing a large, fluffy, green bathrobe, and fluffy yellow socks to complete the look.
Evie stifled a giggle. “Good morning,” she called out. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I’ve been asleep for three days,” Valerian ventured, then paused. “Was I?”
“No, it’s been one night. But it was a long one. I hope you’re feeling rested.”