Six by Rachel Robinson Read Free Book Online Page B

“Someone like me?” I do not keep the anger out of my words. I want him to know my feelings. I want to know his feelings. I want feeling .
    “Yes, darkling. Someone like you. Someone who has the ability to destroy me.” Shaking his head, he stands and starts collecting the pieces of my mutilated creature. He drags them to the forest’s edge and stays away. When he comes back it is obvious he has decided something.
    “I will try to keep you hidden from the dark witches. In return, you can’t use dark magic again. I don’t give a shit if you can control it or not. That’s the deal. Take it or leave it.” His offer has one large hole.
    “What do you get out of it?” I ask. He does not bring his gaze up to meet mine when he finally answers.
    “Absolutely nothing and more than you know,” he says before walking over to the large trees by my hut. He muscles one out of the way with the utmost ease.
    I speak loudly so he can hear me over the churning brush. “I will never destroy you, Finn.” I smile at him and realize he wears no shirt. I look down when I remember I have it on. He notices my comprehension and a rage-filled look crosses his face as he hulks another tree deep into the forest.
    He raises both eyebrows and swipes sweat from his forehead. “You already have, darkling. You already have.”

Chapter Eight
    January 12th, Midday
    “I’ve only been to the Dark Citadel once. It’s a very large city where all the dark magic users live. Only dark witches can come and go. All the darklings you’ve met, are unable to travel there because our dark magic is dormant, we are feeling . It makes us safe in a sense. They have no use for us. There are very few darklings now that laws have been passed forbidding dark witches to have relationships with humans and darklings.” Finn is answering all the questions I have about the dark witches and the Dark Citadel. Some of the things I know, but all the things that deal with darklings I do not. He agrees to tell me anything I want to know. He says it will help me understand my feelings.
    “Is there any way to escape once you are there?” I ask, because even with Finn’s protection I know I cannot escape my fate. It is a fact I have embraced my entire life.
    “No, not that I know of. There is so much magic guarding the palaces that the only way in or out would be by using a spell.” The terror I have tried to keep hidden rises. I now know why they call it a fate. It is the last place I will ever go. It will be my ending. The fear stems from knowing I will not be able to stay hidden forever.
    “If I were like you and have all my emotions back, I could be free of the fate?” I ask, knowing it is the only option I have.
    “It’s not that easy, darkling. Some emotions are easy… the bad ones. The better ones, the ones that make human life actually worth it, take a lot of time and…” he trails off. I do not like that he lets his sentence hang. I want to know everything about feeling again.
    “What has to happen?” I ask. Finn keeps his distance, as he has since we made our deal, but I can see he wants to approach me. He swallows hard and clasps his hands over his head.
    “You will have to actually fall in love to feel it. The other darklings grew up knowing what love was from caretakers and each other. A loving environment was enforced. You…lost that emotion as a child and have never felt it again. It will be the hardest riddle to solve, especially given your non-existent romantic options.” I let out a breath I did not know I was holding. The mention of my childhood and my mother makes me fearful I will forget her and our life together forever.
    “My mother did love me,” I tell him. I get angry anytime I defend her.
    “Of course, but can you remember loving her back?”
    I cannot—a horrible pit in my stomach surfaces, so I lie. “Yes,” I say. I think of the memory of her chasing me around the yard. Her laugh, her bouncing brown hair…I remember it