Interruption War Year 3: An Academy Reversed Harem Paranormal Bully Romance (Fallen Fae Academy Book 4)

by Rachel Angel

  “You’re from the Kingdom of Sea. I’m from the Kingdom of Spring. Last time I checked, we were at war with one another. In my book, that makes you the enemy.”

  “Harley, this is ridiculous. Come on. It’s me. Kingsley. We’re lovers. We’re a couple. Are you really going to let this war tear us apart? Are you going to let this war kill our love for one another?”

  “No,” she said. “You are the one who is being ridiculous. Why would you think I could love someone from the Kingdom of Sea? How egotistical and narcissistic must you be?”

  “You know darn well that I love you, that I’d do anything for you, and that when this is all over, I want to marry you. I want to ask your mother, the Queen of Spring, for your hand in marriage. I’ll even go see your human parents and ask for their blessing.”

  “Human parents?” She grimaced as she looked at him. “I don’t have human parents. I think you have me confused with someone else.”

  “No, Harley,” he said with conviction. “I know who you are, and while I might not understand what’s going on with you at this moment, I know the woman you are. My heart belongs to you and only you.”

  Harley laughed. “Gee,” she said with a snicker. “You really do think highly of yourself. I don’t know where you get this idea that I love you, but just to be clear, my heart belongs to two nobles from Spring.”

  Kingsley cocked his head to the side. He couldn’t believe his ears. “Are you talking about those clowns who were all over you when we visited the Kingdom of Spring? Those trickster oafs who were there when we agreed to be allies?”

  “Their names are Ethan and Colin, and they are not clowns. In fact, they are two of the most handsome, loving, caring and sexy fae men I’ve ever known. They’re attentive to my needs and eager to satisfy my desires. I love them and I don’t want anyone else. I don’t need anyone else. And, even if I did, I certainly would not turn to the prince of the Kingdom of Sea.”

  Kingsley chuckled. It had to be a joke. She was playing a trick on him, a prank. “Harley. Come on. This is silly. Stop kidding around.”

  She huffed indignantly. “I am dead serious.”

  “Why? What’s happened to make you turn away from me like this?”

  “I’ve made my position clear. I don’t have all day to discuss my feelings for you, or lack thereof. Do you have my brother or don’t you?”

  “No,” he cried with a desperate need to reach out to her. His fingers fidgeted at his side as he fought the urge to touch her. “No, Harley. We don’t have him. But if we did, it would be as an honored guest, not as a prisoner.”

  “Ha!” Harley let out. “As if he would ever willingly set foot in this dreaded kingdom.” She turned to walk away.

  Before he could stop himself, he reached out to grab her arm. “Don’t do this, Harley. Don’t go.”

  She yanked her arm free. “I am Princess Harley,” she said spitefully. “Not only do you not have the right to speak to me like a commoner, but you certainly don’t have the right to touch me.” She headed to the opening of the large and lavish tent. “I’ve wasted enough time here. I want to find by brother before nightfall.”

  Kingsley’s shoulders slumped as he watched her walk out. Keeping a respectful distance, he followed her out. As she walked through the encampment, his soldiers looked at her and edged closer. Shaking his head, Kingsley waved them away, ensuring her safe departure from the encampment.

  “Harley,” he said as she reached the limits to their encampment.

  She slowly turned to glance at him, clearly displaying her annoyance at the sound of her name on his lips.

  He didn’t know what to say. His heart was breaking, and he had no idea what was happening.

  “My kingdom needs me,” Harley said dryly. “I will not fail them. So, leave me be.”

  She turned and left him standing there. He stared at the spot where she’d stood for a long, long time.

  Chapter 13

  Harley

  Harley tried to be strong, tried to stay positive, but she was disheartened by the results of her search for her brother so far. As she approached the Kingdom of Fall, she silently prayed to find her brother.

  It was her last chance.

  She reached the border to the Kingdom of Fall and looked up at the distant castle.

  “Please,” she muttered to herself. “Please let me find my brother in this forsaken kingdom.”

  She walked through a field of bushes, their yellow, orange and bright red leaves shinning in the late day sun. The path at her feet was covered with the same dead foliage, making for a mosaic of leaves.

  On either side of her, the forest boasted the same vibrant colors and more.

  While she was able to reluctantly appreciate the muted beauty of this kingdom, it was nothing compared to the Kingdom of Spring. Spring represented birth, renewal, life, whereas Fall was filled with death and finality.

  She walked on until she came to the castle, but her path was quickly blocked by two massive guards with their equally massive guard dogs.

  One of the guards turned to the entrance of the castle, opened the door a crack and peered inside to call out something unintelligible. Moments later Red and Zed stepped out.

  “Harley,” they both cried out at the same time as they excitedly came to her.

  She noted how the leaders of these enemy kingdoms all used the same tactic with her. They all pretended to know her, to know her well. They all claimed an intimate relationship with her.

  “Get your hands off me,” Harley said as she pulled away. “I’m here on official business.”

  “All right,” Zed said quietly. He glanced around then peered inside the castle. “Come on. We’ll get reacquainted inside.”

  She followed them inside to the small sitting room. The moment they entered the room, she didn’t waste any time. She turned to face them, her hands on her hips and her eyes telling them that this was not a social call.

  “I’m here to retrieve my brother,” she said. “I know you have him.”

  Red and Zed looked at one another then back to her.

  Had her bluff worked? Would they admit to having him here? They had to. There was no where else that he could be.

  “I want to meet with the general to negotiate his release.”

  “Harley,” Zed said. “Our father has become a little worse. It’s wouldn’t be wise to meet with him.”

  Narrowing her eyes, she looked at him. “Your father is General Dunsworth, is he not?”

  “That’s right,” Zed said. “He is.”

  She stomped her way to the door. “Bring me to him,” she ordered. “I want to negotiate my brother’s release right away.”

  Red blocked her path. “We can’t let you do that,” he said gently. “Like Zed said, father has taken a turn for the worse. There’s no negotiating anything with him when he’s in this state.”

  “Besides, he’s in a meeting at the moment,” Zed added. “He can’t be disturbed.”

  “Where’s my brother?” Harley shouted. “I want to see him.”

  Red licked his lips and looked down to the floor before answering. “His in a magic-proof dungeon.”

  So, you do have him, she thought for a stunned moment. Her heart pounded loudly in her chest. She’d found him. All she had to do now was figure out how to get him out.

  “Bring me to him,” she said.

  “Harley,” Zed said. “We can’t do that.”

  She turned hard cold eyes to him. “I am Princess Harley from the Kingdom of Spring and I demand that you let me see Prince Harris.”

  “We’re not authorized to do that, Harley,” Red said.

  She wanted to argue their repeated use of her given name without the respectful title, but knew it was futile. Representatives from all the kingdoms refused to address her properly.

  Turning on her heel, she crossed her arms before her and walked the perimeter of the warm room. “Well, if you won’t indulge me that, could you at least offer me a cup of tea
, perhaps a few biscuits. It’s been a long journey.”

  “Oh,” Red said. “Of course. I’ll be right back.” He walked out leaving her alone with Zed.

  They looked at one another in an awkward and uncomfortable silence.

  “I’ve missed you, Harley,” Zed finally said as he took a step closer. “Didn’t you miss me?”

  She nodded as she looked at the configuration of the room. She was backed up to a window that was dress in heavy velvet drapes. The door to the sitting room was over twenty feet away behind Zed. There was no point considering the option of running out. Zed would easily stop her.

  There had to be another way. A cunning way. An easy and amusing way.

  Smiling, she softened her gaze and Zed came closer still. As she wrapped her arms around his neck, she kept her eyes on the door. She concentrated, and as Zed pulled her in to kiss her neck, she closed her eyes and concentrated harder still. Soon, she saw the apparition. A clone of herself. It was faint and foggy at first, but quickly became real and clear.

  Closing her eyes again, she shifted from her own body into that of the clone. As Zed continued to caress and kiss the empty shell of herself, she opened the door and hurried out into the hall before Red returned.

  As she wandered through the wide, marble-tiled halls, she ducked into a room, or behind one of the many elegant columns whenever she came across a servant or soldier.

  Finally, she came to a large and imposing wooden door and heard the deep gravelly voices of the men inside.

  She leaned in closer to better hear them. There were two distinctive voices.

  But before she could concentrate on what was being said, she heard footsteps approach the door from the inside, and she hurried to hide behind a column as a soldier emerged and disappeared down the hall.

  Harley hurried out from behind the column and nudged the tip of her foot in front of the door to keep it from closing completely.

  Through the narrow opening, she peered into the distinguished and highly elaborate meeting room. It was reserved for serious meetings with dignitaries, diplomats and other notables who chose to visit with the general.

  She could clearly see the general seated at his huge mahogany desk, but she couldn’t see the source of the other male voice.

  Shifting over, she caught a glimpse of the legs of the second man, his strong hands clasped on his lap. Seated across from the general, his posture was one of a confident man in control of the situation.

  “Of course, we want to help the Kingdom of Fall,” the stranger said. “We’d like nothing more than to see your kingdom win this war.”

  “I have a feeling you’d like something in return,” the general said.

  The stranger chuckled. “It certainly wouldn’t hurt if you were to help us destroy the Kingdoms of Spring, Sea and Woods.”

  “Sounds like you’re looking to take over the entire Faery Realm.”

  Again, the stranger chuckled. “You make that sound like a bad thing.”

  General Dunsworth laughed and leaned back into his deep black leather chair. “Not at all.” The general sounded stiff and unsure.

  “I thought you should be aware that I do have your wife, the Dean of Fallen Fae Academy in my custody. For the time being, I’m holding her prisoner, and I’m being gentle with her… but that could change.” The stranger stood and approached the general’s desk, turning his back to Harley.

  He was tall and his broad shoulders blocked out her view of the general.

  “It was said that only she had the power to open the portal from the Faery Realm to the Human Realm via the Fallen Fae Academy,” the stranger went on. “Without her the Academy faded to nothing.”

  “Yes,” the general said. “But I heard it’s been re-opened.”

  “My underlings have made me aware of that,” the stranger said as he nodded.

  He turned around and Harley gasped and took a step back as she finally saw the identity of the stranger.

  The Dark Fae Wizard.

  No, she thought. It couldn’t be. How could he be working with the general of Fall?

  “But, as it turns out, the re-opening of the Fallen Fae Academy suits me fine,” the Dark Fae said. “It’s the perfect venue for my underlings to hang out with and then convert these innocent little light fae students to dark faes.”

  Harley hid behind the door as the Wizard walked towards her, but she heard him return to his seat. She resumed her position peering through the crevice of the door. With the Wizard sitting up, his elbows leaning on his knees, she had a good view of the man who was supposedly her father.

  It was impossible to believe. How could her mother have fallen for such a man? How could she have been so completely duped?

  “My army is growing,” the Dark Fae Wizard said as he gazed at the general with a sinister grin. “It’s growing even faster than I had anticipated.”

  “I’ve been made aware of that,” General Dunsworth said. “If things continue the way they are, you should be in a good position to conquer the Faery Realms in no time.”

  “That’s what I’m hoping for.” The Dark Fae Wizard clapped his hands together and sat back as he let out an eerie cackle. “After that, the human realm will undoubtedly be an easy win.”

  Harley wanted to rush in and stop him. She felt she had to do something, but she didn’t know what.

  But before she could do anything, Red and Zed appeared at her sides, and grabbed her arms while one of them gagged her with his hand. They silently pulled her away and brought her to their room where she faced her clone.

  “Nice trick, Harley,” Zed said as he looked from the clone to her.

  She shrugged, pleased with her work. “You guys left me no choice.”

  “Which one is the real Harley, and which one is the clone?”

  “I’ll leave you geniuses to figure that one out,” her clone said.

  “I don’t know what we did to deserve this kind of treatment from you, Harley,” Zed said. “But we suspect some sort of foul play.”

  “Suspect whatever you like,” Harley said. She looked at her clone who stood with her hand on her hips and seemed bored with the whole scene.

  “Fine,” Red said. “If that’s the way you want to be…”

  He reached out to the clone and pulled her in for a passionate kiss as he backed her up to the bed, while Zed pulled Harley in for an equally passionate kiss. She resisted him as he guided her to the bed.

  “Get off me, you animal,” she shouted, slapping him wherever she could. “Let go!”

  But he held her tighter, kissed her harder and she soon found herself melting under his touch. She didn’t understand what was happening. She hated him. He was the enemy. And yet, she was drawn into the kiss, never wanting it to end.

  As she lay back on the bed with Zed, she suddenly felt a strange desire to get closer to him.

  “What are you doing to me?” Harley whispered as she wrapped her arms around him. Was this simply lust? Was it just his body, his hardness that she desired? Was it a spell?

  But as Zed held her tight, she suddenly remembered. She remembered being in his arms before, a long, long time ago. The memories were vague, but she was certain she’d known him before; intimately known him.

  They’d loved one another. They’d studied together, slept together and laughed together.

  How could she have forgotten all that?

  As he continued to kiss her, her love for him, the depth of her affection for him, filled her. But as that realization hit her, she also remembered her strong affection for Colin and Ethan.

  These past days, they’d taken care of her and loved her. She couldn’t forget about them. They’d led her to recognize the full scope of her role as the fae princess of Spring.

  They’d shown her her true identity.

  Zed pulled back from the passionate kiss and looked at Harley. “How do you feel?” he said gently, his gaze delving into her.

  “Confused.”

  He nodded and kissed h
er cheek. “It’s understandable. I think you’ve had certain memories erased.”

  “And your kiss brought them back?”

  “That was what I was hoping for.”

  Looking lovingly at him, she nodded. “I remember my time with you.” She glanced at Red. “With both of you. I’m still a bit fuzzy about the details, but I do remember loving you both.”

  “Good.” Zed shifted off her and looked down into her eyes as he traced over her lips with his finger.