Night and Fire

Chapter 7

"I want to meet him." Evalin's father said.

"Oh no." She shook her head, "No, no, no, no. That it not happening."

"But he is your mate." He narrowed his eyes.

She gulped down, "I know that, father."

"Then why can't I meet him?" He asked her. "Are you embarrassed or afraid that I'll snap his neck?"

She raised her eyebrows at that last comment. "It's nothing like that."

"Did he do something to you?" Her uncle Lorcan growled.

She felt everyone's gaze on her and she rolled her eyes. "No, he didn't." She raised her brows and mumbled, "Except when we encountered the witches and he got hurt and made me believe he was dying and I almost kissed him because of it."

"I am definitely snapping his neck," her dad snarled. "Or better yet, I'll break his wings."

She felt anger rise up at the threat. She looked her father dead in the eyes and said with deathly calm, "No, you won't."

He grinned.

"What?" She asked.

"It's true," he said. "You have never talked to me that way before, but the thought of me touching your mate has you reacting out of instinct."

There it was that word that made her uneasy, instinct. With a mate you act out of instinct, she just spoke to her father like she would speak to her enemy and she hated it.

"I'm going to my room." She was out the dining room before anyone could stop her.

About twenty minutes later there was a knock on her door then she heard footsteps.

"Who is it?"

She felt the bed shift under someone's weight then felt small hands on her cheeks. She opened one eye and stared at her little cousin.

"Lenny!" She took a seating position and lifted him over her head. "Aww you are so cute!"

"That he is." Her aunt Manon smiled at her giggling witchling.

"I'm guessing you're here to talk about the witches?" Evalin asked as she sat Lennox on her lap.

"I smelled their deaths on you when I got here," she said. "I also smelled it on your mate when he showed up. How many were there?" She asked.

"Four, more like three because one was running away from the others."

"Why was she on the run?"

"Because she said and I quote, 'I may or may not have killed one of their own.'"

Her aunt made a face and nodded, "That'll do."

"That's what I said." She chuckled, "We each took out a witch and as for the wyverns..." She trailed off. "The runaway's wyvern killed one and... one had Zachary pinned down and was killing him." She explained, "I was blinded by the mating bond and killed it along with the other that was coming for me." She glanced at her, "I'm sorry."

Manon shook her head, "We can't save them all, Eva."

She sighed, "Yeah."

Lennox grabbed her hair and put it in his mouth, "No, that's bad Lenny." She told the child as she grabbed her hair. "This, no mouth." she told him.

"I also wanted to ask you if you could keep an eye on him tonight."

"Of course, you know I love him and his chubby cheeks." She said kissing the witchling's cheeks.