by K. M. Shea
Day’s riders all wore golden robes and had gorgeous suns emblazoned on their tunics. Autumn’s wore crimson shirts swirled with shades of orange and red, and had extravagant tack emblazoned with brightly colored leaves. Spring’s sun stallions all had wreaths of flowers tied around their necks and twined around the tack, while Winter’s tack were all a stark white that had shades of blue in it. Finally, Summer’s people wore brilliant shades of blue and orange, and their sun stallions had brightly colored ribbons braided into their manes and tails.
The monarchs were nowhere to be seen on the bustling city street.
“The other Courts didn’t bring any of their magical mounts?” I asked.
I think the Autumn Court has griffins? I don’t remember what the others have.
“Only equines can be used in the hunts and races,” Lord Linus said.
“Yeah, I’m well aware of the rules,” I sourly said. “I meant why wouldn’t the kings and queens ride their mounts here?”
“Not everyone treats their Court’s magical creatures as pets,” Lord Linus said. “Or, more correctly, the creatures don’t always trust their Court enough to establish the bond needed to be a pet.”
“It’s time for the opening ceremony!” megaphone guy shouted. “Here to mark the festivities are our venerable rulers of the Midwest region. Queen Rime of the Winter Court!”
The representatives for and the fae from the Winter Court howled like wolves as Queen Rime—eye catching with her white hair, pale skin, and stark white clothes—stepped out of a fancy car, sunglasses covering her eyes.
“King Fell of the Autumn Court!”
A handsome fae who looked just a little older than me casually jogged down the stairs of a store, holding out his hands and smirking as his people cheered loudly for him.
He had perfect, brunette hair and a classically handsome face, but his clothes were…unusual. He wore a sort of gold-plated breastplate that just covered his upper chest—leaving the lean muscles of his waist uncovered—fitted red pants, gold wrist cuffs, and a red cloak that draped over one shoulder.
He looked like the kind of guy I just itched to punch—cocky, smug, and annoying.
“King Birch and Consort Flora of the Summer Court!”
I couldn’t spy the Summer monarchs—judging by how far off the cheers for them were, I was guessing they were farther up the street, closer to the starting line.
“King Solis of the Day Court!”
All the sun stallions in the area—regardless of who owned them—raised their heads and neighed in tribute to their true owner as King Solis waved from where he had emerged at the base of the street with a few additional riders.
“Queen Verdant of the Spring Court!”
Queen Verdant—clothed in a gauzy green gown—laughed as she rode in on a sun stallion, her long, curly blond hair cascading over her shoulder, barefoot, and a crown of flowers with a set of white antlers on her head.
Her people cheered for her, making her smile bigger, as she waved like a royal attending a ball.
“And Queen Leila of the Night Court!”
I was perfectly prepared for zero noise. None of my people were here at the start line, and my riders had all backed out. So I was shocked when there were whoops and cheers behind me.
“Our Queen!”
“You get ’em, Queen Leila!”
“Night Court, Night Court!”
“Go angry demon horses!”
I spun around and was shocked to recognize Landon, the barista from King’s Court Café, the two girls I had taken the selfie with, and about a dozen other humans, cheering and bouncing on the balls of their feet.
I laughed and waved to them, making them cheer louder.
It was around then I felt eyes piercing my back. I suspiciously turned around, expecting to see Lady Chrysanthe or Lord Myron.
Surprisingly, it was Queen Verdant who was flashing such a hostile glare at me, it made her beautiful facial features drawn and almost evil. She turned her back to me and enthusiastically chatted with her riders.
What was that about?
“Queen Leila!” King Solis—handsome, golden, and warm—strolled up to us, a smile gracing his lips. “How good it is to see you here today—and you, too, my fine fellow.” He extended his hand and Fax nickered, then rested his muzzle in King Solis’s cupped fingers.
“It’s good to see you, King Solis,” I said. “I’d say I wish your mounts luck, but it seems like most everyone is riding a sun stallion.”
King Solis laughed. “They are beloved—speaking of which, I heard from the Paragon I am to offer you and Lord Rigel my congratulations.” He was the first person to look from me to Lord Rigel without any open sign of anxiety or fear. Which meant either he was a very good actor, or he didn’t care who I got myself hitched to as long as I didn’t run the Court into the dirt.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Lord Rigel is a very strong, respected warrior—a good choice. Surely he’ll be able to protect you,” King Solis said.
“Aha,” I laughed weakly. “Maybe. Are you participating?”
“No—rulers traditionally don’t risk themselves in this sort of manner,” King Solis said.
“See! I told you!” Lord Linus glared at me over Bagel’s head—the donkey was grinning as King Solis rubbed his forehead.
“You can’t mean to imply Queen Leila is participating?” King Solis said.
“Me and the night mares,” I confirmed. “I should probably get up to the lineup.”
King Solis frowned. “Are you certain you should enter? It can be very dangerous.”
“Yep. All my riders backed out—and I’m not looking to win,” I said. “I just want to get through it.”
“Even if you only wish to come in last, it still is folly,” King Solis said. “It’s an unnecessary risk.”
“Listen to the Day King,” Lord Linus echoed.
“I trust my night mares,” I said. “Besides. Everyone seems to forget—I’m human. I grew up in Magiford.”
King Solis’s frown deepened. He glanced away from me, his eyes going to the other monarchs, before he leaned in and spoke in a quiet tone. “Very well, then I must warn you to stay away from the Fall riders—they’re the most brutal, and will attack with weapons if it means securing a front position. Also look out for Lord Umer from the Summer Court. He’s won every year for the past five years. It’s a given that he cheats, but the area is warded against portal magic for the derby, and no one has been able to catch him in the act. He’s avoided disqualification thus far, but he won’t react well if you try to follow him as a result.”
“Don’t worry, I intend to go on a less traveled path,” I assured him.
“Ahh, you’re going for a longer route then? Good choice,” King Solis said.
Lord Linus relaxed and dangled an arm over Bagel’s neck. “If you do that, the danger factor will drastically decrease.”
I conveniently remained silent, letting Lord Linus and King Solis make their own assumptions.
In reality, I was planning to push my knowledge of Magiford for my benefit. In this case, there were a few paths that would be a great deal faster, but also extremely dangerous for a regular horse and rider—those paths traditionally went unused as a result. Or so Skye told me when I walked the exterior of the course with her and asked her about a few of the alleyways and paths I knew of.
I glanced at Lord Rigel. I wonder what he assumes I meant by a less traveled path? Ah, wait, I think I can guess. He’s already probably lining it up with his conspiracy theory that I’m out to destroy the Court and frame it as losing on purpose.
“A participation trophy is enough to keep your current level of influence and power,” King Solis continued. “Even if you came in last, you’d be fine—and, as long as you finish, you won’t be last. There are always some riders that are hurt and are removed from the field before they can finish.”
A frown twitched at my lips. “You said some riders are hurt, how
about the horses?”
King Solis gave me a blazing smile edged with the promise of pain. It betrayed the kind face he showed me and revealed the wildness within him. “Given that the majority of the mounts are sun stallions, no,” he said in a voice that crackled with power like a fire. “No one would dare harm or hurt one of my creatures.”
Ohh, now that was a promise of death. Fax, please be in good health for the sake of my health!
“The Midsummer Derby begins in five minutes. Contestants, please make your way to the starting point!” megaphone guy announced.
King Solis returned to his sunny self. “I suppose that’s our warning to get to the transportation that will take us to the finish line. Lord Linus, Lord Rigel, would you like a lift?”
“We’d love to, but unless you have a trailer in your pocket, we can’t.” Lord Linus patted Bagel for emphasis.
“Oh, most of the other monarchs arrived in cars because they’re putting every last sun stallion they have in the race.” King Solis smirked. “But I have far more, so my escort and I arrived mounted. My stallion will open a portal to the Day Realm and then another to the finish line.”
“In that case, wonderful! I didn’t know how we were going to get these two to the finish line. I don’t know that Fax would be willing to open up a portal for us and leave his little friends.” Lord Linus nodded his head to the night mares, who flicked their tails.
“Splendid. This way, then. Queen Leila, I wish you all the luck I can spare—stay safe,” he warned.
“I will do my best,” I said.
“Yes, listen to him.” Lord Linus nodded sagely. “And his wise words.”
I rolled my eyes. “Good day, Lord Linus.”
Lord Linus sighed melodramatically. “It’s fine. I know children must one day separate from their parents!”
“You—” I started to hiss, but the nutcase was already gone, sweeping after King Solis with Bagel and leaving me alone with Lord Rigel and Fax.
He stared at me. “You’re planning something.”
“Only sort of,” I said.
He shrugged. “Don’t bring ruin to our Court.” With that “beautiful” and “touching” advice, he left.
I shook my head. He was my choice. My choice—I have to remember that. I turned the night mares in the direction of the starting line. Besides, it could have been worse. I could have gotten myself hitched to Lord Dion without knowing his personality is crooked!
Chapter Twenty-Six
Rigel
The finish line was the same as I remembered it from the times I’d been unable to avoid coming to the derby as a child, and my teenage years when Dion had dragged me along because he thought it was exciting.
The derby ended in a park, with a long stretch of green to give the horses room to slow down after crossing the line, which was hemmed in by the temporary seating arrangements that would be torn down once this all was over.
Giant TV screens had been erected around us, allowing us a view of the race. All of the contestants were followed overhead by drones. Or they tried to—some contestants purposely lost them in forested areas in parks so they could then cheat or perform illegal maneuvers.
The only thing that had changed was that I now stood close to the finish line in a reserved seating area for the monarchs and their families with Lord Linus—and the donkey and sun stallion Leila had charged us with.
King Solis had inexplicably elected to stand with us, his face tight with concern as he watched the black blob at the starting line that marked out the queen and her six feral night mares. They were easy to spot in the sea of white, gold, and crimson sun stallions.
“I hope she manages to get through this,” King Solis said.
“She’s a fighter,” Lord Linus said. “As long as no one ticks her off and hurts an animal in front of her, she’ll be fine.”
King Solis clasped his hands together and draped his arms over the chest-high wooden fence erected for safety.
It is strange he has such concern for the Night Court monarch.
King Solis’s gaze skated past me and lingered on Fax and Bagel. “I assume Queen Leila was not planning to ride either of these fine mounts?”
I let Lord Linus answer—I had no desire to speak to the Day King.
“No.” Lord Linus rubbed Bagel’s head—the donkey leaned into it with glee. “She said we had to bring them as ‘emotional support’ for the night mares.”
King Solis wrinkled his forehead in confusion. “Emotional support?”
“That’s what she said.”
“Must be a human thing.”
“Yeah.”
I watched on the screen as one of the derby officials raised a massive white flag, then swung it down.
“It’s started,” I said.
The horses were off like a shot, tearing down the streets in a dangerous crush, except Leila and the night mares.
They stayed far behind, grouped in a tiny pack, obediently standing at the starting line for no apparent reason.
I nearly frowned as the drone assigned to Leila zoomed in on her.
What is she planning?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Leila
I watched as the rest of the contestants disappeared down the broad, paved road. If the previous races were any indication, they’d all stay on this road as it traveled south, until it turned and went east.
From there it varied hugely as the riders branched off into what they thought were the best streets—or the secret places where they could cheat, like the Lord Umer whom King Solis had mentioned.
But I planned to turn off immediately.
Even though we were completely hemmed in on the east by lakes, there was one way out. One way that nobody took because they either didn’t know the area, or because it’d be too terrifying for any horse to travel.
But I know the night mares, and I believe in them. Let’s just hope they believe in me, too.
Once the last rider and mount passed about three blocks in front of us, I gathered up the reins. “Okay, my beauties. Let’s show everyone just how amazing you are. Group up!”
I cheekily waved to the drone as the night mares rearranged themselves into two rows of three. Eclipse was on my right and Solstice on my left with Blue Moon and me in the center. Behind us, Comet, Twilight, and Nebula guarded our backs.
I nudged Blue Moon into a trot, which the rest of the night mares copied, and immediately turned off the road, following a side street that circled back behind the stores, restaurants, and cafés that lined the lakeside and opened into a long but thin parking lot.
The night mares clattered across the parking lot, and I fought to keep my breathing steady even though my palms were fast getting sweaty.
We reached the lakeside, which—although it had a boardwalk—didn’t have a beach, just a steep dropoff since the lake was about ten feet lower than the street.
But bridging over the gap and arching down to the water was a sturdy boardwalk the city had put in about a decade ago thanks to the funds the Curia Cloisters had dropped into a gigantic city beautification project—AKA one of the supernaturals’ efforts to buy goodwill among the people when humans were still unsure if supernaturals were safe or not.
The lake—the horribly named Fairy Lake—actually only started a few blocks north, and at this portion the lake was pretty narrow. So narrow, in fact, the boardwalk cut straight across the water and bridged the lake to connect to a bike path that sliced between Fairy Lake and the other lake that pressed against downtown Magiford. Following the bike trail would drop me off in the downtown area—just a few blocks up from the finish line—and it would cut a significant amount of distance off the ride while providing a safe area and good footing for my night mares to gallop down.
But first we had to get there.
The boardwalk was narrow—made for foot traffic and bikes—but it was passable by horse…if you could get any horse out to the middle of the lake without it losing its mind.
&
nbsp; I took a deep breath. We can do this. I know them.
“Single file—space yourselves, and walk carefully. Blue Moon and I will lead.”
I clicked to Blue Moon, and he obediently walked up to the wooden bridge that marked the start of this water-crossing boardwalk. His hooves thudded dully on the wood as he took the first few steps.
When we reached the part of the boardwalk that started to tilt down toward the water, Eclipse started, breathing loudly as her footfalls added to the boardwalk.
This thing should be able to hold us all, I thought as Blue Moon tossed his head. I’ve seen the city bring multiple bobcats and four-wheelers out here for maintenance. The bigger issue is if the night mares can stay calm.
Blue Moon obediently marched on, and when I twisted in the saddle to look back, Solstice had already entered the boardwalk. He tossed his head, and his movements were tense, but he followed. Behind him, Nebula got on, her ears pinned but her head slightly lowered with a mulish sort of stubbornness.
We’re doing it. We’ll make it, and as long as we get good time on the bike path, we’ll make it.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Rigel
“She is insane!” Lord Linus hissed. “What is she thinking?”
King Solis gaped in silence, though he gripped the wooden fence tightly enough to make it creak.
I stared at the TV screens, the least shocked as we watched Queen Leila lead the night mares—by all accounts uncontrollable beasts—out over the water, taking them far away from land against all their instincts.
“Mmert!”
Recognizing the sound, I turned and was not at all surprised to see the Paragon standing next to us, cradling a basket that held his overweight and bald cat.
“Those are the night mares? Those creatures?” The Paragon shook his fist at the screens. “I spent hours—no—days corralling you uncooperative monsters, and with just a flutter of her eyelashes Queen Leila can lead you out over open water? Like a bunch of peaceful lambs? That’s not fair! You rotten ingrates!”