Revelry

by Chani Feener

  “I’m coming, please just listen to me and stay right there, okay?” She couldn’t explain it all over the phone, not when she’d kept this from them both as well. Not when she was in a rush to reach them. “I’ll tell you everything once I’m there.”

  She waited long enough to hear Cole agree before she hung up and started running once more. Her thighs burned and the cold air stung her lungs but she didn’t slow her pace, pushing herself to her limit as she raced across town. She didn’t worry about being seen—her change had given her speed faster than a human’s, and it certainly would draw attention if someone saw her, but that wasn’t important at the moment. If Mavek figured out where they were before she got there it would be too late. He didn’t make threats lightly, and he’d gotten a serious head start. If any of his people had seen her friends in the woods and he asked them…

  She hoped with all her being that he hadn’t yet. He’d placed protection over her group of friends; word of the withdrawal of that protection would take longer to get out than the fifteen minutes he’d been gone. This was exactly why she hadn’t told him. She’d known he would react this way, had guessed it’d put her friends at risk.

  Arden ground her teeth and ran.

  Bright sunbeams filtered through the tall canopy as Arden darted through the trees, moving quickly through the forest on nimble feet. She raced toward the faerie ring as horrifying images of what would happen if Mavek got there first flickered through her mind.

  Not for the first time, she wondered if she should have handled the whole Erlking vision differently. Maybe if she’d confided in the others… She cut the thought short. Even if she had told them, nothing would have changed. As soon as Mavek had discovered it, he would have gone after them, same as he was now. Besides, telling Eskel and Cole would have only made them all more uncomfortable than they already were. She fully believed they wouldn’t hurt her––that the person in the vision had to be someone else. Once she got the two of them to a safe place, she’d figure out how to convince Mavek of that fact.

  He was acting on instinct right now, on emotion. She’d get him to see reason once he’d calmed down. She had to. If anything happened to her friends…

  Arden picked up the pace for the last few yards, bursting into the small clearing where the faerie ring rested. She let out a sigh of relief when she spotted Cole there, leaning back against the thick trunk of the tree, unharmed. He was staring up at the branches, arms crossed casually. If her unexpected and slightly panicked phone call had affected him, he certainly wasn’t showing it.

  “Cole!” She ran toward him, stopping a few feet away. Out of breath, she took a second to inhale, pressing a palm against her pounding heart.

  “What’s the emergency?” Cole asked, straightening and sliding his hands into his front pockets. He cocked his head at her, curiosity clear in his gaze.

  “Where’s Eskel?” She desperately searched their surrounding area, but couldn’t spot him anywhere.

  “Arden, calm down,” he said. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  Her head was starting to ache from all the exertion and she rubbed at her temple. “Mavek is coming for you guys. We need to get out of here before he finds you.”

  Cole frowned. “Why would he do that?”

  “Because of the vision the Erlking showed me,” she confessed, words rushing out of her in an attempt to speed things up. They needed to get Eskel and go. Who knew who else was lurking in these woods? Someone could already be on their way to tell Mavek where her friends were. “Someone with his mark kills me.”

  He lifted his hand and stared at the heavy ring on his middle finger. “Do they?”

  “Yes, they do, and now Mavek wrongly suspects one of you, which is why we need to hurry. Now, where’s Eskel? I told you guys to stay right here.” She turned away, eyes searching a second time. Should she risk calling out for him? What if someone else heard?

  “If the Midnight King is on his way,” Cole said, voice growing closer as he spoke, “it’s already too late, Arden.”

  “Of course it isn’t,” she disagreed. “He’s wrong. I know you two would never hurt me. We just need to leave and come up with a plan. A way to convince him.”

  “Why?”

  “What do you mean why?” She took a step to the left, in the direction of the lake where she’d met the Kelpie that one time. Had Eskel gone that way?

  “Why do you care what the Midnight King thinks? Hasn’t he lost you already?”

  “I care that he wants to kill you guys,” she corrected him. “Don’t you—”

  Suddenly, Cole grabbed her arm and spun her around. She almost lost balance, but one of his arms locked around her waist, tugging her closer with enough force that the breath whooshed out of her. The shock was so great, it took her a second longer than it should have to feel the sharp piercing pain in her ribcage.

  Arden dropped her gaze, eyes widening at the familiar sight of a hand and a dagger. Her vision played out before her, only now it was her reality.

  Cole had stabbed her through the heart.

  She opened her mouth, but a cough came out before she could speak, and all at once her legs gave out beneath her. He held on, easing her down so that she was lying on the mossy ground, head cradled in the crook of his arm. He took his hand off the hilt of the blade and stroked a bloodstained hand over the curve of her jaw.

  “Shh,” he cooed when tears filled her eyes, “I apologize in advance, Arden Archer. This wasn’t the way I’d planned for it to go, but few things ever go according to plan, you know that better than most.”

  “Cole.” It took her a few tries, but she was finally able to get his name past her lips. The effort caused more pain in her chest, and the tears spilled down her cheeks. There was no question about it––she was really dying. It was a wonder she wasn’t already dead, considering the silver poking through the center of her chest.

  He cocked his head and pursed his lips in thought before replying, “Perhaps it’s time I introduced myself properly. I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news on top of everything else, but your friend hasn’t been here for quite some time now. I, however, have enjoyed getting to know you, ex-Heartless. It’s been a real treat, in fact. Probably the most entertainment I’ve had in centuries. I mean,” he leaned a bit closer so that she could feel his warm breath across her face, the scent of mint and lavender wafting into her nose, “who would have suspected the all mighty Mavek Midnight would be felled by a little human girl? This world never ceases to amaze.”

  Maybe it was the blood loss, but Arden was having a hard time following. She blinked at him, trying to clear her head enough to process what he was saying. It took much longer than it should have, and she gasped when it finally hit her.

  The Unseelie could glamour.

  “Where—” A coughing fit hit her, and she felt a trickle of blood spill from the corner of her mouth.

  “Dead by now I assume,” Cole—or not Cole—didn’t seem to have trouble following what she’d meant to say. “I sent him to the Underground in my stead, even gave him my face in return for borrowing his. Since my brother is now here seeking me out, though, I believe it’s safe to assume he’s discovered my ruse. The only way for that to have happened would be death, which leads me to believe your friend has met his end.” He grinned down at her. “Should I apologize for that as well?”

  Cole couldn’t be… Another sharp twinge shot through her and she gasped again, body shaking even as he tightened his hold around her.

  “Shh,” he repeated, “it’ll be over soon, Arden. Then at least one of your problems will have been solved. Perhaps instead of apologizing, I should be asking for thanks.” The corner of his mouth tilted up and he shook his head. “Perhaps not.”

  “Who…”

  “Ah, that’s right. You should be honored, really,” he said, “you’ve been in the company of the Crown Prince of Faerie all this time. Allow me to officially introduce myself. I am Finch, next in line to rule the Undergro
und—although that last bit is no longer true. My brother’s been after the spot for quite a while, you see. He must have succeeded or he wouldn’t have attained permission to come here.

  “Anyway, that isn’t the point of all of this. Initially I was upset about Herla, I admit. It was childish—I’ve often been told I’m impulsive—but after I met you I found myself unable to continue with my original revenge ploy. Even you would have to agree that this is far more interesting than simply killing you or challenging Mavek Midnight would have been.”

  Arden was starting to struggle with maintaining consciousness, her head foggy and weak. Her vision began to wink out, eyelids growing heavy. She didn’t want to fall asleep, knew that if her eyes closed, they would never open again.

  “Almost there,” he told her, watching her physical struggle. “I’ve only a few more things to say, please try and keep awake until then. In the beginning, I really couldn’t tell which way you were going—was it the human, or Midnight? Who would you choose? It was all very fascinating, watching you struggle with yourself the way you did. Seeing how tormented a little thing like that made you. All of the rumors said you were strong, but I suppose the heart makes a weakling out of all of us.” He tapped the end of the knife, raising a brow when she cried out.

  “At least Midnight waited until I’d gotten my answer. I would have been sorely disappointed had I been kept in the dark. You’re colder than I could have dreamed, Arden. I was curious what you’d do if Mavek was threatened, but imagine my shock when after seeing him almost take an arrow for you, you immediately betray him. Stealing his blood like that?” He clucked his tongue. “Ruthless. And to run off to Eskel directly after? Wickedly delicious. Catching the two of you making out in his dorm room certainly created a terrific opportunity for me. How much further would you go? How much greater could your betrayal of Mavek grow?”

  Much greater. She’d taken Eskel to her family home, the one Mavek had bought for her. The one he’d furnished and kept clean. If she’d been able, she would have cursed at Finch, but she’d lost the ability to speak some minutes ago, so all she could do was muster a glare. She’d fallen right into his trap, had let him spy on her, had willingly given him personal details because she’d thought he was Cole.

  And Cole… The tears began again. With only a few moments left in her, she knew she could do nothing to save him now. If he was even still alive…

  Finch eased himself closer once more, lips curling up to expose teeth in a vicious grin that appeared unsettling on Cole’s face. “I’ll be honest with you, Arden, if you hadn’t chosen Eskel, I wouldn’t have stabbed you. You see, I might have taken the long way thanks to curiosity, but my destination was always set. Revenge. Revenge. Revenge. What’s sweeter?”

  Something caught his attention off to the side, but she didn’t have the strength to turn her head and see what it was. Carefully, he lowered her all the way to the ground, even taking care to brush a few sticky strands of hair off of her forehead.

  “Do tell the Midnight King something for me, will you?” He didn’t give her a chance for her confusion to show, tapping a finger to the end of her nose almost playfully before getting to his feet and dusting his pants off. Once he was satisfied, he planted his palms on his knees and bent over her. “Tell him it’s not so easy to wipe blood off your hands.” He winked at her and straightened, resting his hands on his hips.

  “All actions have consequences,” he said, shaking his head. It sounded more like those words were meant for himself, however, and after glancing down at her one last time, he flashed her another grin and then turned on his heel, disappearing out of sight.

  She could only make out the sound of his footsteps for a few seconds before the sound of static started buzzing through her ears, drowning out all other noises. She wanted to keep resisting, but she’d been at it too long already, and could feel the fight draining out of her as clearly as she could feel the wetness of the blood pooling around her.

  The world blackened for a moment, coming back into focus long enough for her to register a flash of light before winking out of existence once more.

  She thought she should be afraid—dying was scary—but she couldn’t muster enough energy even for that. The one thing still bothering her was the fact that Eskel wasn’t here, had probably never been here, and that meant he was still at risk.

  Something heavy slammed down next to her, the ground shaking slightly, but she could no longer open her eyes. A thought began to form in her mind, but then a final breath stuttered past her lips, and everything stopped.

  The smell of roses woke her.

  At first, everything appeared murky and gray, her vision refusing to focus and her hearing fading in and out like she was lying at the bottom of a swimming pool. It took a few moments for her to register the dim lighting wasn’t in her head, and that it was merely twilight.

  She tried to sit up but her body wouldn’t comply, only twitching slightly. Strong arms wrapped around her, holding her still, and she blinked, tipping her head up to find Mavek hovering over her. Arden’s head was resting in his lap and they were in the rose garden, on the bench where they’d kissed the night of the revelry when she’d gotten drunk on faerie wine.

  “Mavek?” her voice came out scratchy and weak, and she had to wet her throat afterward, wincing at the lingering stinging sensation. The rest of her felt numb, and she struggled to recall what had happened and how she’d ended up here. Something wet plopped against her cheek and her frown deepened.

  All at once, her eyesight snapped into focus, strengthening to the point that she could make out every line on his face. She blinked at him, adjusting to the change before noticing the tear tracks staining his marbled cheeks.

  “Are you… crying?” She’d never seen him cry before. Hadn’t been aware the Unseelie even could. Her hand reached up as if with a mind of its own, stroking the curve of his jaw. When she pulled back, the tips of her fingers were wet. “Why?”

  “I’m sorry, Arden,” he practically whispered, leaning over her as if to keep her close, shield her. “I’m so sorry.”

  “About what?” The Tithe was the first thing that came to mind, but it couldn’t be that. Her head began to pound from the effort. “I’m having trouble putting the pieces together,” she admitted.

  “What’s the last thing you remember?” he asked.

  She bit her lip and considered his question. There had to be something she was forgetting, otherwise she’d know what was going on right now. Something important enough to make him cry.

  “We met this morning for training,” she began tentatively, “didn’t we?”

  He nodded his head.

  She could picture the two of them in the manor. They’d had an argument, and she’d gotten mad at him and left—but why? Absently, she pressed a hand against the center of her chest where a strange aching sensation had started.

  Mavek pulled her palm away, lacing their fingers. “It’ll be painful, heart, but try and remember. It’s the only way you’ll understand.”

  “Just tell me.” She wasn’t in the mood for games. Sensation was starting to come back to the rest of her body now, and she felt weird. Aside from the odd feeling in her chest, there wasn’t any discomfort, but something felt foreign. She stretched out her legs on the bench, as stiff as if she was waking from a weeklong nap.

  “You were stabbed,” he said, pausing to give her time to process. When she didn’t react immediately, he sighed. “Give it a moment. It’ll come to you, once you’re done adjusting.”

  “Adjusting to what?”

  His silence made her roll her eyes and she settled some in his lap, trying to focus and figure it out on her own. She was stabbed? When? At training this morning? Had there been an accident? Was that why she’d gotten angry with him and left in a rush?

  That didn’t make sense. She wouldn’t be back here on the grounds if that were the case, which meant something else had to have—

  It hit her like a flash. The
image of Cole and the woods. Of the knife in her chest and the way he’d laid her down, much like she was sprawled out now. Vividly, the memories flooded to her, knocking into her hard enough that she choked on an inhale as they sorted themselves out in her mind.

  The feel of metal through her chest, the way her blood had trickled around her. The look in Cole’s eyes… or, not Cole, but—

  “Finch.”

  Mavek’s hand tightened around hers when she began to panic. “It’s okay, Arden. He’s not here. You’re safe.”

  “You cursed me again.” That piece clicked into place, the rest of them tumbling into their proper chronology. She’d left because he’d found out about the Erlking’s vision. He’d gone after her friends but she’d found Cole first. “Cole wasn’t Cole.”

  “He apparently hasn’t been for some time,” Mavek confirmed in a dire tone. “Ever since the night of Brix’s crowning. I’m not sure yet, but from what I’ve gathered, Finch switched places with your friend that night. I swear to you, I didn’t know.”

  No, of course not. There’s no way he would have let someone like Finch near her if he had.

  “He said that Cole was…” She couldn’t even finish the sentence, her brain wanting to shut down like before. It couldn’t be true. How could she have lost him without even knowing he was missing in the first place?

  “I’m looking into it,” Mavek told her, though it was impossible to miss the way he glanced away. She struggled to control her breathing.

  “Tell me the truth.” With the new curse he’d placed, he wouldn’t have a choice, and she desperately needed to know, no matter how badly she wanted to avoid it.

  Avoidance wouldn’t change anything, after all.

  “Wouldn’t you much rather hear about how you’re still alive?” he suggested. “You were stabbed straight through the heart, Arden. Aren’t you curious to know how you’re here?”

  Her brow furrowed. “I have too many questions.”

  They were all flickering through her mind at once, and she wasn’t sure what she wanted or needed to know first.