“Mate,” she whispered. A connection so deep and profound that had been utterly twisted by pure evil. “Volund didn’t just attack her, Malachi. He took her. He wanted to know… He raped her. And he marked her.”
His hands froze. “No.”
“He wanted to know if it was possible for an angel to mate with one of the kareshta. He was curious. So he marked her with his power and bound her to him.” Ava choked. “He’s in her dreams, Malachi.”
“She dream-walks with the Fallen who raped her?” he whispered.
“She can’t escape. He’s there every time she closes her eyes.”
There was dread in Malachi’s voice when he asked, “Your father?”
“He’s Volund’s child. She tried, but she couldn’t bear it. Jasper looks like Volund did when he took her.”
The room had grown deathly quiet. Ava could only watch her grandmother, a woman locked in the torment of her own mind. She had sensed the darkness there as well. Volund’s touch had marked her in more ways than one. There was violence and a burgeoning rage belied by the woman’s still form. Jaron, she knew, could sense it. His eyes met hers as he held his child. He bent down to whisper something in her ear and Ava relaxed completely.
“She needs sleep,” Jaron said. “She only truly rests when I am here.”
“Why can’t you help her?” Ava asked. “Heal her? Keep Volund from torturing her every time she closes her eyes!”
“I do not know how.” He took a deep breath. “In thousands of years, no angel has violated his brothers’ children the way that Volund did mine. She has even begged Death to come for her, but Azril will not. I do not know why.”
“Why didn’t Volund kill her?” Malachi said. “After he’d attacked her, why didn’t he—”
“Whether he likes it or not, Ava is his mate. When Volund bound himself to my daughter, he didn’t realize it would affect him too,” Jaron said. “Perhaps it is her only power now, but she became his curse. He would kill her if he could do it without harming himself. But he cannot.”
“You hate my father.” Her instincts were screaming at her. “Because he’s Volund’s son.”
“Yes.”
“But you protect him.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“He’s her son as well. She did not hate him. And… he has my blood.”
“What is my father? Half Grigori. Half angel. How can he even exist?”
“How do any of our children exist?” Jaron asked. “They are the will of the Creator. Though if my master has a purpose for your father, I have not discovered it yet. Perhaps Jasper’s only purpose was fathering you.”
Ava tried to wrap her mind around it. “And Volund? Would he hurt my dad?”
“At first, Volund was interested in your father. I had to hide them both. He thought the child of an angel and a kareshta would be even greater than the Irin. But the child was far too unstable. He had power, but no control. More damning, Jasper has free will. I cannot control him, just like I cannot control you. Volund lost interest when he found out he could not control Ava’s child.”
“But he knows who I am.”
“He learned when you came to Istanbul. He was watching me and found you. When you attacked his men in the cistern—”
“All I did was scream.”
Jaron gave her a look that made Ava feel like an ignorant child.
“You unleashed power the Grigori had never experienced before,” he said. “Our children live in fear of their sisters, because their voices hold power the Grigori don’t understand. Volund’s sons didn’t know what you were. Your magic was dark like the children of the Fallen, but you were in the company of Irin scribes and they treated you as one of their own.”
“So?”
“You attracted his attention, Ava. It was easy enough for him to discover the connection when he started to look. You have his blood, after all.”
She shivered, and Malachi’s hands soothed the goose bumps from her skin. “That’s why he wants me.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I honestly don’t know. Nor do I care. He has become erratic.” Jaron stroked Ava’s temple. “Perhaps she torments him in his sleep as well. I can hope, but it does not matter. He cannot have you. Volund has taken enough of what is mine.”
Malachi broke in. “Unbelievable. This is like two dogs fighting over a bone. Ava doesn’t belong to either of you.”
“Why?” Jaron asked. “Because she belongs to you?”
“She belongs to herself!”
“Enough.” Ava stood and started pacing. “You can find me anywhere because I have your blood, can’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Can Volund? He’s disgusting, but I am his granddaughter.”
Jaron hesitated. “Unless I’m shielding you and you’re shielding yourself, Volund can find you. The Irina magic you learned has helped immeasurably.”
“That’s why he couldn’t find me in Norway.”
Jaron nodded. “Your magic and mine, combined with the old singer’s, made the haven the safest place for you.”
“Until I left.”
“The minute his Grigori spotted you, Sarihöfn became useless. I was the one who violated the wards there. You needed to leave.”