Page 11 of Dermot

Dermot shook his head. “You don’t understand. You’re a Krsnik, you can’t understand. But trust me, from someone who’s seen Krsnik fail to do the one thing they were supposed to do—Vila need to stick together. Krsnik are supposed to protect us, but they’re like everyone else. They can become cowards and be fallible, and I won’t allow a fellow Vila to suffer because of that when there’s something I can do to stop it.”

Bastien blinked. Something had definitely happened to Dermot, but he doubted his mate would give him an explanation even if he asked. He could see that Dermot didn’t trust Krsnik any more than he trusted Kudlak, though. It left an uneasy feeling in the pit of Bastien’s stomach. He wanted to show Dermot that he was trustworthy. He wanted to show him that they were supposed to be together. They were mates.

Dermot didn’t seem to care about the mate bond. He thought that Celeste and Tamsin should’ve stayed away from their mates. Maybe that was what he was doing. Maybe he was staying away from Bastien because he’d already decided he didn’t want him. He didn’t have a reason to look past whatever prejudice he had against Krsnik. He didn’t know Bastien. He barely knew Celeste. He definitely didn’t know Rose, but just because she was a Vila, he trusted her more than his own mate.

“One day, you’re going to realize that your prejudices are hurting you,” Bastien told him.

“I don’t have prejudices.”

“You trust Rose because she’s a Vila. You don’t trust me because I’m a Krsnik, even though I’m your mate.” It was the first time either of them had acknowledged it out loud. Bastien wasn’t sure how he felt about that. “But you can’t trust someone just because of what they are. You need to trust them because of who they are, and you don’t know who Rose is.”

Dermot squared his shoulders. “I don’t know who you are, either.”

Unfortunately, he wasn’t wrong.

Chapter Three

––––––––

DERMOT COULDN’T STOP thinking about the argument he and Bastien had had. He wasn’t sure he’d call it a fight. They’d definitely argued, but they hadn’t yelled or anything, although that was mostly because Dermot had been able to see the people watching them and listening to what they were saying. He’d wanted to tell them to fuck off, but before he could, Bastien had turned around and stormed away. He’d slammed his way inside Rowan and Clay’s house, and Dermot had been left there, staring at the door.

He hadn’t seen Bastien since. He kind of wanted to, but he was sure that was only because Bastien was his mate and he felt drawn to him. It did make him wonder about Celeste and Parrish, but he’d rather die than admit that to anyone, least of all his mate.

But he could feel the pull. It was hard for him to stay away from Bastien. Most of his being wanted to be with his mate, but he was telling himself that it wasn’t necessary, especially given the circumstances. He was in charge, not the bond or whoever had decided it would be a good idea to pair him with Bastien.

Bastien didn’t trust Rose. Dermot could understand not trusting someone because he didn’t know them, but it was obvious that Rose needed help, and she was a Vila. She was more trustworthy than Bastien as far as Dermot was concerned. Bastien couldn’t understand that, though. He was a Krsnik. He was strong, and he knew how to defend himself. It was in a Krsnik’s blood to know how to defeat a Kudlak, but the same couldn’t be said about Vila. They weren’t fighters. They were magic users who used that magic to protect their villages and clans. If no one protected them, though, all of that failed, and the result was that people like Dermot lost their home and their family and everyone they’d ever cared about. It was because of Krsnik that he was alone in the world. He would never forget that. He couldn’t.

The sound of someone laughing made him look up. He squinted as he watched Rose and Celeste walk past his house, their arms linked together. They were behaving as if they were best friends, even though Rose had only arrived at the village a few days ago. After talking to her, Rowan had agreed that she could stay. He hadn’t given Dermot any details, but from what he’d said, Dermot could guess that Rose’s story was like the story of most of the Vila who now lived at the village. She was alone, and she needed a home.

Dermot was glad she was finding one here, but he wasn’t sure what to think about her friendship with Celeste. There were plenty of other Vila to befriend. Dermot was sure that living in the same house at the moment had pushed them together, so hopefully, once Rose got her own place, she would meet more Vila. It would do her good.

But the two women looked comfortable together. Their heads were close, and Celeste was saying something that had Rose giggling. Dermot was curious, although he wouldn’t get anywhere near Celeste even if someone asked him to. He couldn’t trust her, even though she was a Vila. She was bonded to Parrish, and as far as Dermot was concerned, Parrish was the devil. There was no way to know if Parrish could control Celeste from afar or use their bond to make her do something, whether she wanted to or not. Dermot simply couldn’t risk it.

He wasn’t sure Bastien would understand that.

Dermot shook his head and went back to his garden. The sun was hot on his skin, but he enjoyed working out here. He enjoyed the bees flying by his head, the smell of the warm earth, and the feeling of the leaves under his fingertips. This was what he’d been looking for. He’d lost all of this when he’d left his burning clan behind, but he’d found it again, and to him, that felt like a miracle. He never wanted to lose this, which was why he was cautious and protective. He wouldn’t allow anyone to take his new home away from him, not even his mate or his mate’s sister.

Dermot wasn’t sure how long he’d worked in the garden. It had to be at least an hour, because by the time he looked up, he was thirsty and the sun had moved. He grabbed the bottle of water he’d left on a bench close to him, drank most of it, then poured the rest over his head. It wasn’t as refreshing as he wished it was, but it helped.

“Dermot, Celeste is gone,” someone said.

Dermot blinked at Hamlin, who was standing on the other side of the fence, watching him. “What?”

“Bastien’s been looking for her, but he can’t find her anywhere. She’s not at home, or anywhere in the village. Did you feel her leave?”

“You know how the shield works.” Dermot straightened and dried his hands on his t-shirt. “Tamsin and I only feel the shield when it’s touched from the outside by people who aren’t supposed to touch it. We haven’t put in any magic to warn us when someone leaves the village.” It wouldn’t work, not with so many clan members having jobs outside the village.

Hamlin nodded. “That’s what I thought.”

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. You should talk to Bastien.”

Dermot wasn’t sure it was a good idea, but he wanted to know what was going on. Where was Celeste? She’d been with Rose the last time Dermot had seen her, so what if something had happened? What if Celeste had done something to Rose?

He left everything behind and headed toward Rowan and Clay’s house, where he knew he’d find Bastien since Bastien was staying with them. For now, he and Celeste both were, and that wouldn’t change until they decided if they wanted to permanently become part of the clan or not. Dermot was conflicted. He didn’t want his mate to leave, but Celeste? He’d roll out the red carpet for her when she decided to go.

He found Bastien pacing in front of the house, his phone in his hand, texting someone. He wanted to ask who Bastien was talking to, but he didn’t dare. His mate looked like he was about to scream.