All Things Wild and Beautiful

3. A Brief History

The artwork above is not mine.

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    Preparations for their search took a few days to complete, but finally, they were ready to set sail for Wendlyn. They had traveled to one of Terrasen's port cities, Suria, where a fast ship was waiting. Aedion and Vaughan were already on board, situating a few of their supplies.

    Aelin, Rowan, Darrow, Evangeline, and Elide were gathered at the dock, waiting to see them off. Fenrys stood off to one side, watching his friends offer one another luck and farewells. Lysandra knelt, her emerald green eyes meeting Evangeline's large citrine ones.

    "Be good for Darrow," she said. "Scold him if he's being rude."

    Evangeline grinned, the movement drawing Fenrys' gaze to the brutal scars on her cheeks. Lysandra had been forced to disfigure the child to protect her from Madame Clarisse's brothel in Rifthold, where they had both once been employed. They still bore the tattoo of Clarisse's brothel, a black snake, although the tattoo was branded over now that they were free.

    Aedion appeared beside them, sweeping Evangeline off her feet. He said something inaudible, which Evangeline laughed at. Her red-gold curls bounced as Aedion set her down again. He knelt, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Fenrys pulled his gaze away from the small family and spotted Lorcan and Elide close by.

    Their size difference still made him laugh. Lorcan towered over Elide, but somehow, seemed smaller than her. As Fenrys watched, Elide narrowed her eyes and draped her arms around his neck, muttering something that made Lorcan smile.

Fenrys scented Vaughan a moment before the male spoke. "He really does look less of a bastard when he smiles."

    "Sometimes I forget that he knows how," Fenrys chuckled.

    Vaughan crossed his arms with a faintly amused huff. "It surprises me that Lorcan found someone before you. Even more so that he's married."

    "Miracles happen every day."

    "Or circumstances prevent us from moving on."

    Fenrys stiffened. "Nothing is preventing me from moving on."

    Vaughan's dark gaze met his own. "Do you still wake from nightmares and spend hours training to calm yourself down? Have you been with anyone since Maeve? Are you..."

    "We all have different ways of coping. You choose seclusion. I choose work," Fenrys interrupted. "And no, I haven't been with anyone since Maeve died, but that's because no one has caught my eye, not because I'm incapable of it."

    "I remember when Gavriel would find you half naked and black out drunk in alleyways, and had to smuggle you back to your room before Maeve found out. Did those people catch your eye, or was that just a way of defying Maeve?"

    "Some of them caught my eye," Fenrys answered vaguely. "Others were just a form of defiance. Me choosing something for myself for once."

    "How many times were you caught?"

    "Every time."

    "What happened to those people?"

    "You know exactly what happened to them."

    "And you're telling me there's no reason why you haven't sought anyone romantically?"

    Fenrys flashed Vaughan an incredulous look. "You're asking a lot of personal questions for someone who doesn't bother to come around more than once every few months, and hardly spares a word for me."