Scorched By Flames - Vella Day Page 0,2

mention of her mom and sister, every protective gene flared. “They are important but leave them out of this.”

Her mother was afflicted with a disease no one seemed able to identify, and she was very near the end of her life.

“On the contrary. We plan to use them to make you do our bidding.”

More bile rose up her throat. This was her worse nightmare. “What exactly do you want from me?”

“Just what I said. To kill a man.”

“Who?”

“His name is Bevon Forrester, and he murdered my mate. For that, he needs to die.”

“If this is about retribution, why not kill him yourself? I bet you’d feel better if you did.”

He faced her—or rather his image turned toward her. “That’s where you come in. I don’t have the ability to do so. You see, the man is a Fey.”

Against her will, Zulema laughed. “You do realize Feys can’t die?”

“That’s what they want you to believe. For one thing, treniam, a special plant, can seriously harm them. I believe that is what killed my mate—that and her fatal wounds.”

“I’ve never heard of that plant.”

“It grows only on Feyrion, which is the realm where most of the Feys reside. A number of the plants were harvested here by some demons a while back, but the Feys destroyed the stash. We failed to gather some for ourselves, and that was an oversight on our part.”

Now Zulema leaned back against the sofa, not caring if she dirtied it. “Feyrion, you say. No problem. I’ll just pop on over there, grab a handful, and ask this Bevon dude to eat some.”

The man’s expression remained blurred, but from his fisted hands, he didn’t appreciate her sarcasm. “One merely needs to touch Forrester’s skin with it to weaken him dramatically. Once he is ill, I believe an arrow to the heart would end his life.”

So that was why she’d been selected. She was an expert marksman, and the crossbow was her specialty. “Sure. Easy.” Or not. “As soon as he notices the arrow heading toward him, he’ll teleport. He is a Fey after all.” Not that she knew much about his kind other than a few tidbits the witch world had regaled her with.

“He can, but so can you.”

Zulema laughed. “Really? Trust me, I can’t. I’ve tried.”

“We have blocked all of your powers for the time being. Once you agree to help us, your powers will be restored.”

The whole idea that someone could block her powers scared her almost as much as their threat to harm her family—and most likely her. “Even with my powers at full force, I can’t create a portal.”

“I’ve solved that problem. Inside the folder in front of you is a small medallion. This will allow you access to Feyrion. I’ve written down the instructions on how to use the device.”

He was something else. “Once I arrive, I imagine there will be sentries to challenge why I am there. It’s not like I can tell them that I want to collect some treniam so I can kill Bevon Forrester.”

“No. Tell them you are a friend of my late mate’s.”

He had thought this through. “If I’m a friend of hers, people would expect me to know your name.”

The silence that followed spoke volumes—as did the blurred out face. “Fine. My name is Derrick Valoric.”

“Thank you. Should I need to contact you about anything, how can I reach you?”

“The same medallion can communicate with me.”

She was impressed with his thoroughness, albeit disgusted with the concept of killing anyone in cold blood, whether he deserved it or not. “What can you tell me about this murderer?”

Zulema would do anything to keep her family from harm. Considering her mother was helpless in a nursing home, this man and his kind could reach her rather easily—and that thought sickened her.

“There’s a dossier in the folder. Study it.”

Zulema picked it up. When she opened it, her heart rate skyrocketed. While she’d never seen this Fey before, Bevon Forrester’s eyes were kind. And that smile. Oh, my. That smile made her heart flutter—something that never happened. Though that might have been how he was able to get close to the woman he supposedly killed.

Zulema read further. “Tamarella Warnom was his cousin? Why would he kill her?”

“Why, indeed?” the man asked.

This didn’t make sense. “Are you sure he killed her?”

“According to the man my mate was arranged to marry, it was Bevon who killed her.”

She held up her hand. “Whoa. I thought you said that this Tamarella woman was your fated mate.”

“She