The Summer Marked

by Rebekah L. Purdy

  “None of us realized right away how strong Winter had grown. Once the Winter King died, Grisselle found a way to delve into the darkest magic. Some say she traveled to the Forbidden Swells to master her powers—a place where no faerie or mortal should step foot. Soon, Winter became longer—the nights colder, more vicious.” He shifted his sight to me, eyes filled with sorrow. “By the time we recognized Grisselle’s power, she’d already attacked and destroyed the Spring Court—extending her hold on the seasons.”

  I reached across the table; my fingers clenched his ghostly hand. More than anything I wanted to give him comfort, some sort of reassurance. With a sigh, I wished for him to feel my sympathy.

  “Wh—what happened next?”

  He gave me a startled look as he squeezed my hand. “I feel you. How is this possible? How did you do it?”

  “I don’t know. I only wanted to offer you comfort.”

  “Your warmth—it radiates like the sun.” His eyelids closed as if he were absorbing me. “I’ve been cold for so long…”

  My skin glowed where I touched Darach. Tingles ran up my arm like a jolt of electricity. “Um—what’s going on?”

  “I’m unsure.”

  I drew my hand back. No way did I want any more crazy stuff happening. Instead, I shifted in my seat, avoiding the many pairs of eyes staring at me.

  “Maybe you should get on with the story now.”

  “Of course.” Darach floated out of his chair to the other side of the table, as if to distance himself from me. “As I said, Grisselle destroyed the Spring Court. We knew it was only a matter of time before she came after Summer and Autumn. We devised a plan to ambush her here. Autumn court arrived first. We set ourselves in place around the palace. Nevin promised to send his troops through the woods, near the back of the castle. We’d have her surrounded. But Nevin never came. He deserted me—or rather us.” He gestured to those standing around him, with jerky, anger-filled motions.

  “Wait, what?”

  “Nevin never arrived. They betrayed us. He betrayed us. We weren’t strong enough to fight Grisselle by ourselves. So when she appeared, she easily destroyed us. The spell she used tethered us between life and death. We’re stuck here as phantoms—ghosts of our former selves. We cannot move on from this place, nor can we go back to our former lives.” Anguish washed over him; his lips were drawn downward and his eyes empty of hope.

  My chest tightened. “But Summer wouldn’t do that—not intentionally,” I said. Nevin was a manipulative jerk, but at his core, he was honorable; he wouldn’t have let his kind die. Would he?

  Darach’s hardened laugh echoed off the walls. “They never came. No amount of your arguing will change that.”

  None of this made sense. Summer hated Grisselle. No way in hell would they have allowed her to just take over Faerie. Not to mention this still didn’t explain why Darach thought I could do something to help them.

  “How does this involve me—I mean, how do you expect me to free you or whatever?”

  He smiled for the first time and in that gesture, I saw his humanity. His desire to live. “Because you are not of Faerie, and yet you are somehow marked by us—as if you are one of our own.”

  “I’m not sure I follow.” I quirked an eyebrow. “I’m human, that’s it. I was born and raised in the human world. The only ties I have to this place are my boyfriend. I mean, I knew when I became Gareth’s betrothed, that at some point I’d become immortal, but I didn’t think that would give me super powers or something.”

  “Nevertheless, it’s you who must free us. I can feel it.”

  “And how am I supposed to do that?” I leapt to my feet. “I don’t know what I could do to help you. I’m just a regular girl.” Because even if those weird events hadn’t been coincidences—the shield that’d formed around me and Adaba, or the Blade of the Four Kingdoms appearing to me—it was part of a mystery I didn’t understand and couldn’t yet control.

  Darach disappeared then reappeared at my side. “There’s nothing regular about you, Salome Montgomery. Word of you travels throughout Faerie. The girl who broke the Summer King’s curse and battled death and won. No. You are the one we’ve waited for. You will free us. And in the end we will fight side by side.” He pointed at the tapestry as if that answered everything.

  Problem was, all my earliest memories were of Grandma and Mom. In the human world.

  And the voices in the woods.

  I opened my mouth to argue. Who was this guy to think he could tell me what I would do? But he raised a finger to my lips.

  “Shhh…someone comes. Whatever you do, don’t mention us to anyone.”

  “Hold on, where are you going? What if this person tries to kill me?” Panic shot through my veins as I glanced around the room.

  “You’ll be safe, for he has a need and use for you. Until next time, Salome.” He bent forward and touched my cheek.

  My skin prickled as I watched the ghosts vanish. Then I heard a familiar voice.

  “Salome!” Nevin shouted.

  Okay, so it was my ex-whatever-you-wanted-to-call-him. How was it that Darach thought I’d be safe with Nevin if he’d supposedly betrayed the Autumn Court? Crap, should I even go with him? If he’d really wanted to hurt me, however, he could’ve already done so. I glanced around the darkened ruins and shivered. More than anything I wanted to get out of this place.

  But why did he come instead of Gareth?

  Again I had next to no answers, but I had no choice but to move forward.

  “I’m here.” Tears blinded me as I moved to the door. I looked behind me one last time to where the specters had disappeared. As much as I hated keeping Darach a secret, I knew I had to until I figured out why Nevin bailed on them. Right now, I had no idea who to trust. A ghost? My boyfriend? The King of Summer?

  Or maybe I shouldn’t trust any of them. Because in all the stories I’d read as a child, Faeries were always tricksters…and they used humans to get what they wanted. So the question was, what did they want? And how did I fit into the big picture?

  Chapter Ten

  Salome

  The door swung open to reveal Nevin and several of his guards. I choked back a sob as he pulled me into his arms; whether from relief or worry, I hadn’t decided yet.

  “Shh…it’s okay, I’m here,” he whispered. He smoothed my hair back from my face. “I’m sorry I didn’t find you sooner. I tried to send soldiers to escort you to Summer, but the portals to Gareth’s were blocked. As soon as I realized I couldn’t get the guards to you, I readied my troops and sent one of my faeries to find you.”

  “Trolls attacked us in the woods. I don’t know where Gareth is. And Adaba was trying to protect me from a dragon, and he disappeared too.”

  His fingers wiped tears off my cheeks. “Don’t worry, Gareth is a seasoned soldier. He’ll make his way to us as soon as he deems it safe. As for Adaba, his whole existence is driven by the need to keep maidens safe. He chose you as the girl he wants to look after. And he is more cunning and strong than you realize.” But I didn’t miss the worried lines on his forehead, or the constant glances around our surroundings.

  I rested my head against his chest. For a moment, I remembered a time when he was the one I ran to when things went bad. Last winter, I’d spent most of my afternoons hanging out with him at my grandparents. Before the curse was broken—before I realized he’d tricked me and used spells on me in order to convince me I loved him.

  “Thank you for coming after me,” I said at last. But I couldn’t help but wonder why, or if he had some ulterior motive.

  “You’re welcome.” He pulled back. “Come along, my men have set up camp in the woods. You can get some food then lay down for a bit.”

  “I’m not tired.”

  “Salome, you need your rest. I know you want to wait up for Gareth, but we still have a couple days’ worth of travel ahead of us.”

  I wanted to argue with him—to demand we send men to find Gareth. But I knew he was r
ight.

  We made our way down the hill to a narrow path that led into the trees. Here several tents were set up. The green canvas billowed in the wind, snapping like whips. Soldiers sat next to campfires. Some cooked, while others carved arrows or wiped down weapons. Two elven guards were posted outside one of the tents. It was bigger than the others and crowned with a flag embroidered with trees, which billowed in the gusty wind.

  Nevin guided me toward it. “You can bed down in my quarters for the night.”

  His quarters? I glanced up at him. “Maybe I should eat first.”

  “I’ll have food brought in for you. But for now, you need to relax.”

  Geez, I wasn’t an invalid. I could handle sitting by the fire. “Won’t your men jump to conclusions about me being in your tent? I mean, we don’t want to give them the wrong idea.”

  He raised an eyebrow at me. “And since when do you care about what other people think?”

  I crossed my arms over my chest. “Since now. Because I’m Gareth’s girlfriend—his Blood Bonded…the last thing I want is for people to forget that.”

  He chuckled, holding up his hands. “Fine. I doubt you’ll do as I say anyway. You’re always so damn stubborn.”

  “I’m not stubborn.”

  “And argumentative.”

  “No, I’m…”

  “See?” He teased, tugging me toward one of the nearby fires. “You can sit out here with us until after you eat, then I want you in bed. Okay?”

  “You know, you’re kind of bossy.” I glared.

  “Well, I am the king.”

  I rolled my eyes but took a seat next to him. Already the heat from the flames warmed my skin. One of the soldiers brought over some type of jerky and cheese, along with a flask of water. Hungrier than I thought, I gobbled down the food.

  “So what’s the plan?” My gaze shifted to Nevin, who stared at the sky. I wondered if he was more worried about the dragon than he’d let on.

  “We’ll wait another day to see if Gareth shows. If not, then we’ll get you to the Summer Palace where you’ll be safe.”

  “But Gareth told me to wait two days.”

  “Tomorrow will be the second day, Salome.” Nevin turned his eyes until they met mine. “My number one priority right now is to make sure no harm comes to you.”

  “Why? You didn’t seem to care about me in the human world.”

  “Because you’re Gareth’s Blood Bonded and he is one of my companions. He would be angry if I didn’t protect you.”

  “And since when do you answer to him?”

  Nevin bristled. “I don’t. But there are things you don’t understand. Things that concern you and Faerie. Right now, all you need to know is that I need you to be safe. I’ve sent word to your grandmother about a few things, and I hope it clears up some recent developments.”

  “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  “I feel responsible for you, all right? You saved my life in the human world; that’s not something I’ll forget. I owe you a life debt, Salome, but let’s not argue tonight. If Gareth isn’t here by tomorrow, we’re leaving, end of discussion.”

  “I can’t leave without him.” My pulse soared as anger bubbled inside me.

  “He knows the way to my palace. He’ll be fine. Whereas you, a mere human, are in far more danger out here than you realize.”

  He didn’t understand. How could I leave the guy I loved out there by himself? Nevin didn’t get the whole concept of love or being in love. All he cared about was himself.

  An extra strong blast of wind swept through the camp. I clutched my legs to my chest in hopes of conserving body heat and stared at the orange and yellow flames licking at the wood.

  “Your Highness, a horse approaches from the east.” One of the soldiers waved for the others to arm themselves.

  Nevin leapt to his feet, sword drawn. “I want you to wait by my steed. If you hear a skirmish, you need to get on the horse and ride. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.” My stomach knotted. I gripped tight to the edges of my skirt. My eyes scanned the surroundings. I half expected a monster to jump out.

  A moment later, a white horse trotted into camp. “Adaba!”

  I leapt to my feet and raced toward the horse. He seemed all right. There were no burns or teeth marks from the dragon. He whinnied then nudged me with his muzzle.

  Nevin lowered his weapon and gave a slight bow. “Adaba. My many thanks for keeping Salome safe.”

  The horse nickered and tilted his head down. After I scratched behind his ears, I made my way to my spot at the fire. Nevin joined me once more, this time sitting closer as if to protect me.

  “I can’t believe he’s alive,” I said. “I thought for sure the dragon had gotten him.”

  “Adaba is more powerful than he looks. You must remember, not everything in Faerie is as it seems. Magic is nearly a part of every person, place, and animal here.”

  “Is the dragon dead?”

  “No. According to the horse, he led it away.”

  “So you speak horse now?”

  He chuckled. “I can speak to this one.”

  I shook my head at him. “So you’re not worried the dragon will come back?” My mouth went dry. All I imagined was it flying into camp and torching us all.

  “We’ll be safe. I set up a magical barrier around the encampment, and our archers are on high alert.”

  I glanced at him. Okay, maybe I was cynical, but I didn’t see how a few Fae would be any match for a dinosaur-type creature with a mouth the size of a bus—magic or no magic.

  What I wouldn’t give to be back in the human world right now. In my bed. Far from trolls, Kelpies, and dragons. Fairytales sounded awesome in theory, but living in one totally sucked balls.

  I cleared my throat. “So, what exactly happened here at the Ruined Court? This place looks like it’s been deserted for centuries.”

  Sadness washed over Nevin’s face as he stared off into the distance. “It used to be beautiful. Marble towers everywhere, gleaming white oak gates, waterfalls, statues… This was the center of Faerie. The place where each court came to rule during their season.”

  “What happened?” Of course, I knew Darach’s version, but I wanted to hear it from Nevin. I needed to know if he’d really betrayed the people.

  “Grisselle.” His voice iced over like a lake in wintertime. He cast me a sideways glance, as his fingers squeezed mine. “I apologize, I don’t want to talk about this right now. Not here. It’s too painful.”

  Too painful…or was he hiding something? He released my hand and focused on the glowing embers in front of us.

  “Sorry I brought it up.”

  “It’s fine. You couldn’t know what we went through. All the lives lost. The people we never got to say goodbye to.” Regret filled his every word. “Listen, I think you should bed down for the night.”

  I stiffened. “I can’t sleep. I mean, Gareth’s out there all alone. H-he could be hurt. And what about the dragon and who knows what else that is probably wandering the countryside?”

  He stood, wiped his hands on his breeches, and then headed toward his tent. A moment later he came back holding a blanket. “If you won’t go in to bed then at least take this and lay down out here.”

  “Thanks.” I took the woolen throw from him and covered up.

  I listened to the soldiers joke around while the fire snapped and popped. Smoke curled up from the flames like wispy strands of yarn. My eyes grew heavy.

  I tugged the blanket up about my shoulders and fought to stay awake, but at last, I found myself drifting off. Maybe tomorrow, Gareth would be here.

  And what if he’s not? What if he’s dead?

  My lids snapped open. I swallowed hard. I wasn’t ready for that. Not now. Not ever.

  “What’s wrong?” Nevin asked.

  “Wh-what if Gareth doesn’t come back?” I whispered.

  “I promise, he will.” He smiled.

  “How can you be so sure
?”

  “Because he’s right there.” Nevin pointed to the edge of camp, where Gareth stepped out of the shadows, his clothes bloodstained and dirty.

  I jumped up. “Gareth. Oh God, you’re okay.”

  He rushed to me and caught me in his arms. “I’ve been worried sick about you.”

  “You? I thought you’d been killed by trolls.”

  He chuckled as he embraced me. “I’ll always come back to you”

  “Promise?”

  “Yes, I promise.”

  His fingers grazed my chin as he lowered his head. His lips brushed mine, and I wrapped my arms around him. My blood pounded in my ears as he deepened the kiss.

  “I’m beginning to think all you two do is kiss,” Nevin said from behind us.

  My face burned as I took a step back. “No, we do other things.”

  “Lots of other things.” Gareth grinned.

  “Um—do you have to tell him that?”

  “Hey, just reminding him you’re mine.”

  “Great, so now you’re marking your territory?”

  He smirked. “Don’t worry, I swear I won’t pee on you.”

  “Nice.” I rolled my eyes.

  Nevin stared between us for a moment. “I need to speak with Gareth for a few minutes. Why don’t you go into the tent now and get some sleep?”

  “But I told you, I’m not tired.” I clung tighter to Gareth.

  “Salome.” Gareth glanced at me. “You need to rest. Besides, I won’t be long.”

  “Fine.” I sighed. Great, he shows up and Nevin wants to talk to him again. What would he ask him to do now?

  “I’ll be in soon.” He kissed my forehead and ushered me toward Nevin’s tent.

  Two candles on a table flickered to life when I stepped inside. A bed made of furs sat in the center of the shelter. The scent of honey filled the air—a smell I associated with the Fae. I walked over to the makeshift bed and lay down. The furs were soft, and I sank into them. I watched the flames on the candles dance, and I let out a yawn. The rustle of the wind in the trees was like a lullaby, and my lids drifted shut once more

  A while later Gareth came in. He crawled under the blankets with me and wrapped his arms around me.