Of High Lords and Heirs

3

They all stared at the obnoxiously green and flowery envelope that lay on the coffee table in the middle of the sitting room at the town house in Velaris. Feyre's name, written in Tamlin's handwriting, on that envelope. The letter had arrived three days after Tamlin had kidnapped Feyre and Rhysand's children. Three days. Seventy two hours. It might not sound like a lot of time, but to Feyre and Rhys, to the rest of the Inner Circle, it felt like an eternity.

Finally, with a sigh almost of defeat, Feyre grabbed up the envelope and tore it open. She'd had enough of waiting, wanted to know what Tamlin had to say. The excuses that he had no doubt put in the letter in order to excuse what he had done. Though, Feyre knew that there was no excusing what Tamlin had done, she was also perfectly well aware that Tamlin would try to justify and excuse what had happed. Would try to spin what had happened to his advantage, portraying her and Rhysand as villains and himself as the supposedly flawless golden prince.

Flipping the letter open, Feyre grimaced. The superiority and sheer arrogance that it contained simply took her breath away.

My beloved Feyre,

I'm sure that by now you are aware that I'm the one who has taken your children away from you. I'm also sure that you are perfectly well aware that you have been an extremely naughty girl.

I have spent years loving you. My love for you has always beaten so strong in my heart that it has often felt like a compulsion, an obsession. But you have spent the years since the war hiding from my affections. Before the war, even. The war that I started in an attempt to bring you back to my loving embrace where you belong.

But for that, I do not entirely blame you. I cannot bring myself to. For it has been Rhysand that has been hiding you from me, warping and twisting your mind with his cruel lies.

During the months after the events Under the Mountain, I saw you struggle to cope with what happened. I can now admit that I did not do my best to protect you while Amarantha ruled. And when Rhysand so heartlessly stole you away from me on our wedding day, he took advantage of the pain you felt. I heard the cruel, poisoned lies he fed you. After you came back, I wanted to give you the space you needed to recover from the lies that he fed you before finally marrying you. Before finally claiming you as my prize.

The cruel lies that I know Rhysand still feeds you. This is why I took our children from where you have been raising them. But I also have to say that I think you have been a terrible mother to them. Keeping them away from me, their natural father was just plain dishonest of you. Almost criminal.

So, I have brought our children home to the Spring Court. If you should ever wish to see them again, you will join our family in Spring. And when you marry me the way you should have done years ago, my paternity of those two gorgeous children will take root in them.

I know that you will come home to me and our two little darling children, because after all, you and I both know that you belong to me. If you do not come home, I will ensure that you never see your children again. And that's not a threat. That's a promise, so you had better heed it. I am not going to warn you twice, my beloved Feyre.

Missing you terribly,

Your Tamlin.

"Well, that definitely confirms it," Feyre spluttered in disbelief, feeling as though she was about to burst into tears. "Tamlin is officially insane. I cannot even begin to believe the crap he was spouting in that letter. He is completely off his rocker."

"Why? What does the bastard have to say for himself?" Nesta said bitterly, never having forgiven Tamlin or his High Priestess for having betrayed them to Hybern. "That it was all just a mistake, and he's sorry for what he's done?"