Chapter 17

Feyre

I pushed my hands into my pockets as I hurried out of the library, bracing against the harsh wind. I hadn't been able to talk about Corbin with Ida today either and I wondered if Rhys would do well with her. Maybe she could walk him through his lost wings better than I could, but I know he doesn't want to talk about it. It hurts too much.

My thoughts drifted to Jurian and Corbin. How were they faring in the Prison? Resentment towards them roared through me; I hoped they were suffering. Turning the corner, I resisted my urge to go see if they were still there. Jurian sounded so sure when he said he would escape last week.

Wings extended out of my back as I shot into the sky, shaking my head. That was ridiculous. They would never get out; Amren was the only person to ever escape successfully. I shut my eyes, savoring the feeling of weightlessness in the sky.

Guilt panged at me as I snapped my eyes open and dived down, thinking of how Rhys did the same thing just a couple weeks ago. I hadn't been able to stop it. His wings were gone because of my foolishness. I should have seen the warning signs the night of: Jurian's lack of interest after his urgent letters, Lucien and Vassa being at the lake…

I landed in front of the River House with a soft thump before retracting my wings, rolling my shoulders and straightening my shirt as I walked in.

Rhysand

I grinned at Feyre across the table as she made her soup turn into water animals for Nyx. He let out a tiny screech of joy as Elain sat down, "Sorry I'm late. I was caught up reading an interesting book Nesta got for me."

I chuckled as the animals splashed back into their bowls; the excess falling onto the table, "No need to apologize."

With a wave of my hand the table cleaned as Elain nodded. I started to eat contently, relishing the flavor bursting into my mouth. The only sounds in the room were Nyx's noisy slurps.

Once we all finished eating, Feyre started to stack the bowls to take to the kitchen as Elain started to wipe down the table. I got up to help as Nyx piped up, "Daddy, how come you haven't had your wings out since you came back?"

Everyone froze. Elain shot a look at me as I exchanged one with Feyre, 'What do you want to do, Rhys?'

Every part of me screamed to tell him. He would find out eventually, but I was scared. I didn't want to break into pieces in front of him. Every thought about my wings had my heart cracking. I wasn't ready to tell the truth. How would it affect him to know I would never fly? Would it even affect him to begin with?

I released a steady breath before forcing a smile, "No reason. I've just been tired, so I've been hiding them so I don't have to repeatedly shift form. That's all."

Liar.

Feyre let loose the breath she's been holding, her shoulders slumping. She placed the dishes on the table with a bang before swiftly turning and stalking towards the door, fists in balls.

My mouth dropped and I went to go after her but my feet couldn't seem to move. Everything came crashing down inside me as a strangled groan escaped my lips. Elain's eyes were as wide as saucers as she rushed around the table. Putting a hand on my shoulder, she searched my face before whispering, "Are you ok?"

No. No no no no no…

"Yes," I croaked.

"Feyre's just been worried about you is all," she swallowed, "That's all. She just knows that the topic is difficult," she scrunched her eyebrows at my blank face, "I could take Nyx to bed for you so you could talk to her… Rhys?"

I blinked once, before nodding and slowly making my way towards the staircase, dread filling every step.