Crown of Smoke and Blood by Sadie Jacks

Author:Sadie Jacks
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: vampires, sexy, fae, explicit, hybrid, steamy, cursed, alpha males, badass female, fae court
Publisher: Sadie Jacks

Chapter 24 – Koehn

Did she realize her eyes glowed as her fists rhythmically opened and closed? That she almost vibrated with so much emotion that I was incapable of taking my eyes off her? And that emotion pulled at me like a moth to the flame. One I would willingly die in. So much about this woman drew me in. The fire that seemed to glow just under her skin was merely one of those things.

“What comprised the Vast experiments?” Hector asked softly.

Vari shook herself slightly. Blew out a breath. When she focused on me, I saw the hesitancy that slid through her petite frame. “As you know, Fae are already magical.”

I nodded.

She mimicked my movement. “Did you know that there are over 150 different types of Fae?”

My eyes widened. “No. I would have figured closer to fifty or sixty.”

Her smirk was bitter. “That would be a good guess. If we weren’t discussing King Atavian. He’s locked up the surviving pairs of extinct species. Forces them to mate and breed.”

“To save them from full extinction?” Ambrose asked.

Vari shook her head as she snorted. “Not even close. Most of the breeds that are close to gone have very specific traits that he wants to breed into his children.”

“Gene splicing and genetic experimentation,” I said, my voice nothing but a horrified whisper.

Vari nodded. “Exactly. The Vast have a base set of five essences. Outside of those, each child was given a specific set of creatures culled for unique properties.”

“What tried to overtake you in the basement.” My voice was soft.

Vari looked at me. “You saw them?” Her cheeks blanched under the golden tones of her skin.

I nodded. “I recognized only one. And I’m not even certain it was real.”

She tipped her head to the side. “What did you see?”

“A lamia?”

She sucked in a noisy breath. Nodded. “She’s a bitch.”

“What are the base essences you carry?” Ambrose asked when Vari didn’t say anything else.

She studied the ancient for a very long time. “We Fae take our vows very seriously. If you speak about me, I’ll know. And I will kill you.”

Ambrose nodded. “I will not break your trust, child.”

Vari was quiet for a few more minutes. Then she nodded and licked her lips. “We all carry species directly related to the five elements: wind, water, earth, fire, Aether. Within those species, there is some wiggle room depending on the creatures selected as the final additions to the child.”

“What do you carry specifically then?” I asked her.

“Djinn, phoenix, kelpie, succubus, and I am Fae—so that takes care of the earth element.”

I blinked at the list. Those were quite the collection. And probably explained a few things about her. “All of them are essentially immortal.”

She nodded. “Yes. There are only a few ways to kill a Vast. But I won’t tell you that.”

I could understand that. “What creatures did he give you?”

Her back stiffened. “He didn’t give them to me. He forced them on me. In me. They had no choice in the matter. Neither of us did.

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