"You can't imagine how many years I've longed for this moment," she murmured.

He flinched. Her words touched a raw nerve. Well, maybe 'touched' wasn't the right word.

More like yanked off a scab and poured salt into the wound.

"You're right," he said, his voice harsh. "I can't imagine how you've longed to see me, considering that you've never made the slightest effort to acknowledge me as your son."

She gasped, as if he'd physically struck her. Then a dark flush stained her cheeks.

"d.a.m.n that dragon," she growled.

CHAPTER TWENTY.

Torque blinked, catching the unmistakable scent of lava as tiny sparks danced in the air.

Clearly he wasn't the only one with raw nerves.

He studied her angry expression with a small frown.

"Excuse me?"

She sucked in a deep breath, visibly attempting to control her burst of temper. "Would you sit down?"

"Why?"

"It's difficult to see your face," she explained. "You're quite large for a fire imp."

He lifted his shoulder. He still hadn't really processed the fact that he now knew his heritage. h.e.l.l, he didn't even know what it meant to be a fire imp.

"That's because I'm a dragon," he stubbornly muttered.

"Not entirely." She sent him a pleading glance. "Please, my son. I can explain everything."

He released his breath with a low hiss. Rya would tell him that he was being ridiculous.

And he was.

Slowly he moved forward, perching on the edge of the mattress. "Is this better?"

"Much better." She reached out, as if she wanted to touch him. Then with a grimace she hastily pulled her hand back. He felt a stab of regret that he was making her feel wary, but he couldn't lower his barriers until he knew why she'd abandoned him. "Thank you."

"You said you would explain," he reminded her.

She nodded, resting back against the pillows. "First I should tell you a bit of our history."

"Keep it short," Torque commanded, grimacing as he watched her eyes darken with pain. Dammit. He was a warrior. He was good at killing things. But the emotional c.r.a.p? Not so good. "I'm worried about Rya," he forced himself to explain.

"Ah." Her expression instantly brightened. "The Shinto who was with you."

"My betrothed," he revealed with pride.

"Then I understand your impatience," she murmured. "In short, the fire imps have always depended on volcanoes to provide us protection, warmth, and magic." She grimaced, glancing around the room. "Unfortunately, that means we're unable to travel from our lairs for more than few weeks. At least not without severe anguish."

Torque studied her, recalling Dasi's warning that his mother had been forced to sacrifice for her people.

"Like you suffered?" he demanded.

"Yes."

He felt a surprising pang of distress at the thought of this woman being in pain.

"Then why leave your lair?"

"I had no choice," she said. "Over the past few centuries our tribe has found it increasingly difficult to produce offspring. And the few that were born have all been females."

"Why?"

"We're not entirely sure, although it could be a product of centuries of inbreeding."

Torque nodded. It was a problem with those fey who demanded 'purity' in their bloodlines, as well as those tribes who were too isolated to encourage mating with outsiders.

"We desperately needed a male, so it was decided we must seek help to revive our fading magic," his mother continued.

Torque wrinkled his nose. He didn't have to ask his mother to explain. By 'help' she meant 'sperm donor.'

"Why dragons?" he instead demanded.

"They're known to produce more male children than female."

"True," he said. That was one of the reasons Synge had to have been so overjoyed to have Blayze returned. She was quite likely his only pureblooded daughter.

"Plus we hoped the dragon-magic would give our future children the advantage of not being so dependent on the magic of the volcanoes," she continued.

His lips twisted. His father had used him to pay a debt. Synge had used him to reclaim his lost treasure. And now it seemed the fire imps hoped to use him as a breeding machine.

"I suppose that makes sense," he muttered.

"It did, but I foolishly didn't take into account the treachery of dragons." The blue eyes widened as his mother belatedly remembered he was half dragon. "Oh. Sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's a fair a.s.sessment of most dragons," he said wryly. "How did you end up with my father?"

"I sent out my offer to several dragons, but only Pyre responded."

Hmm. If his father responded, it was because he'd already figured out a way to take advantage of the fire imps.

"What was the offer?"

"A treasure chest of diamonds for impregnating me with a son."

He flinched at her blunt words. "That's very..."

"I know, but we had to do something," she said as his words trailed away. Then, gathering her courage, she reached out to place her hand lightly against his arm. "And please don't think for even a second that I just wanted a child to help my people. I truly, truly ached for my own baby." Tears glistened in her eyes. "I loved you from the moment I felt you spark to life."

An unwanted emotion tugged at his heart. Her regret felt so sincere.

"So why leave me?" He asked the question that had haunted him for centuries.

"It wasn't my decision." The sparks returned, swirling around the bed as his mother clenched her hands into tight fists. "The contract stated that you were to leave with me as soon as you were born, but Pyre refused to let you go." An aching sadness softened her features. "By that time, I was too weak to fight. I had no choice but to return to this lair."

Torque ground his teeth together. He should have suspected that his father was responsible. The cunning old b.a.s.t.a.r.d had devoted endless centuries to taking advantage of gullible demons.

That's when he wasn't using his brute strength to get his way.

"He lied," he said in flat tones.

"Yes." His mother shook her head in self-disgust. "I should have suspected he intended to break his promise when he demanded that I remain at his lair during my pregnancy."

Torque glanced down at the slender hand that was lying on his arm, and tried to shuffle through his various emotions.

Relief that this female hadn't purposely walked away from him. Anger that Pyre was such a greedy beast. And a lingering hurt that refused to be dismissed.

"I find it easy to believe my father would have cheated you. I was a valuable addition to his h.o.a.rd," he said in dry tones. "I even understand your need to return to your lair..." His words faltered as he belatedly realized he was revealing a vulnerability he'd kept hidden since he'd been bartered to Synge. He forced himself to continue. "But I've been away from my father for a very long time." He had to know the truth. "Why didn't you try to contact me?"

Her eyes widened in confusion. "I did."

Torque shook his head. "I wasn't hard to find."

She gave his arm a light squeeze. "I swear, I tried to reach out, but you always blocked me," she told him. "Eventually I realized it wasn't fair to keep troubling you if you were so reluctant to make contact."

"I-" Torque snapped his lips together. As much as he wanted to deny her claim that she'd tried to reach out to him, he suddenly remembered all the times the thought of his mother would pop into his mind, only to have him firmly shove it aside. Now he felt a stab of remorse. "I didn't realize that was what I was doing."

She waved aside his apology. "It wasn't until you reached out to me when you were in danger that I was able to make a connection."

He allowed his hand to gently cover her fingers that rested on his arm, holding her gaze.

"I'm glad you did," he murmured softly.

"Me too." She blinked back tears. "More than you'll ever know."

Rya was trying to be patient.

Not her best talent.

Okay, it was at the very bottom of the list of her talents.

Still, she did her best not to let her imagination run away as she paced the stone floor and counted the pa.s.sing minutes.

Even when she found it impossible to send a telepathic message to her mother. Or even Torque.

Everything was fine. More than fine.

She'd escaped near-death. Her betrothed was about to formally mate with her. And she was going to have the family she always desired.

Even more important, Torque had the opportunity to heal the wounds of his past.

What could be better?

Clinging to her optimistic thoughts, she was caught off guard when she felt a sudden tingle of magic.

Coming to a halt in the center of the cell, she turned in a slow circle.

"h.e.l.lo?" She held out her hand, trying to pinpoint the source of the magic. "Is someone there?"

There was another tingle before the scent of granite filled the cell. Then, seeming to step out of midair, a tiny gargoyle suddenly appeared.

Giving a flap of his fairy wings, the demon offered her a broad smile.

"Ah, ma belle," he murmured. "There you are."

Rya blinked in surprise. "Levet?"

The gargoyle took a step toward her, his claws sc.r.a.ping against the stone floor.

"You cannot imagine how difficult it has been to locate you."

She gave a faint shake of her head. "How did you do it?"

"Your mother."

"Oh, she made it," Rya breathed, relief cascading through her. She'd refused to dwell on the fact that the portal might have collapsed while her mother was still inside, but she couldn't deny that there'd been a sliver of concern she couldn't entirely dismiss. "How is she?"

"She is fine," Levet a.s.sured her.

Wrapping her arms around her waist, Rya released a shaky breath.

"What about Finn?"

"Who?" Levet furrowed his brow before he gave a dismissive flap of his wings. "Ah. The frost sprite." He shrugged. "I believe he is well enough, although his tribe has not yet accepted his houseguest.

She lifted her brows. "He intends to keep the Sylvermyst?"