Free Scorched by Darkness by Alexandra Ivy Page A

why?
    Lila grimaced, as if she had a bad taste in her mouth. “The fey in this world are weak,” she groused. “They should have spent some time with the Dark Lord. He would have given them a spine. Or they would have been destroyed.”
    Finn ignored his weariness as he released a concentrated burst of power to create an ice dagger that he clutched tightly in his hand.
    He didn’t know much about the Dark Lord, but there were rumors that his followers were cruel, ruthless bastards who sold their souls to gain the power the evil deity offered them.
    Which meant that they could be doing anything to his people.
    He had to find them.
    Now.
    Adair hunched her shoulder. “You speak as if being tortured was a good thing.”
    “It made us tough,” Lila argued, her tone sharp. “We’re survivors.”
    Adair shook her head. “No, we’re thieves who hide in the shadows.”
    Without warning, Lila lifted her hand and slapped Adair across her face. Finn hissed, barely resisting the primal urge to lunge forward and give Lila a taste of her own medicine.
    He didn’t approve of violence toward females, but the sight of Adair lifting a hand to touch the mark on her cheek made him tremble with a vicious need to punish Lila.
    Only the knowledge that he didn’t have any idea how many Sylvermyst might be lurking in the ice tunnels kept him hidden in the shadows.
    Acting impulsively might put Adair in even more danger.
    “Don’t ever say that again,” Lila said in shrill tones. “We’re the forerunners who will return the Sylvermyst to their former glory.”
    Adair ducked her head, an air of defeat slumping her shoulders. “I don’t want glory,” she muttered.
    “Really?” Lila sneered. “What do you want?”
    “Peace.”
    “Talk like that in front of our brothers and you’ll discover the true meaning of torture,” Lila warned.
    “Don’t you hope for more?” Adair’s words were so low Finn nearly missed them.
    Lila stiffened, a strange expression tightening her features. “All I hope for is to live through the day,” she said in harsh tones. “Tomorrow, I’ll hope for the same thing.”
    Adair sucked in an audible breath, her hand tentatively reaching toward her sister. “Lila, listen to me. We could—”
    Crack. The female once again slapped Adair, halting her soft words.
    Finn growled low in his throat, lifting his hand. One flick of his wrist and the ice dagger would be flying through the air to sink in Lila’s throat.
    The thought had barely formed when Lila was taking an abrupt step backward. Almost as if she sensed she was about to become a shish kebab. Unfortunately, her new position meant that it was impossible to have a clear shot at her.
    “No. Stay here until you’re called for,” Lila commanded, pointing her finger toward the opening behind Adair. “Next time I discover you’ve left your rooms without permission I’ll turn you over to Micah.”
    With her warning delivered, the female swiftly headed down the tunnel, disappearing around the curve. At the same time, Adair turned to head down a separate passageway that presumably led to her private lair.
    Finn moved forward, his jaw clenched as he battled against the instinctive urge to follow Adair.
    His duty demanded that he locate his people and find a way to free them from the icy prison. After that, he needed to concentrate on how to destroy the Sylvermyst so they could never again use their powers to enslave his tribe.
    The last thing on his mind should be Adair and the certainty that she was as much a victim of her family as his own people. No matter how distractingly lovely she might be.
    Keeping his back against the icy wall, he cautiously continued past the side tunnel, following the faint scent of nettles.
    It was impossible to determine how far he traveled, or even how much time had passed, but at long last the tunnel began to widen. He slowed until he was barely inching his way forward, catching the scent of more Sylvermyst along with