“I can’t keep on going,” I croaked.
“Good. You found the end of your magic well. Use regular arrows.”
My shoulder protested, but I loaded my crossbow and continued. Atticus didn’t slow his sprint, and each of my shots missed him, impaling trees instead. Despite my failure to hit him, he made me practice for another hour or so until he finally, held up a hand for me to stop. “It’s getting dark. We need to return inside. Olwen doesn’t want you to be out here after nightfall.”
Fine by me. My body yearned to collapse into a hot bath and be stuffed with fattening food.
The sun was setting, coloring the horizon in gorgeous shades of pink. Despite Atticus’s words, I felt peace. Yes, night was coming, but if a vampire somehow reached this part of Olwen’s property, I could easily take him out.
Atticus and I started collecting my bolts, yanking them out of tree trunks which oozed sap. We separated, and I found myself in a small clearing with boulders around a small pond. The place reminded me of the fae garden back in Nocturnal Academy, one of the only places of safety I had there. Even though it was now June, the pond here was frozen and icicles hung off the pine trees. As I stepped into the clearing, the temperature dropped. How much magic did it take to preserve this beauty?
I was about to return to Atticus and ask him, when I found a bolt lodged into a tree across the pond. I skated over the ice and pulled it out. A small tree hole faced me, and I was about to turn away when I spotted something inside.
A folded piece of paper.
Grabbing it, I opened it before thinking.
Are you all right?
Large, blocky text spread across the page. I squinted, unable to recognize the writing. Maybe this was a note from one guard to another, but asking each other if they were all right wasn’t a Winter Court trait. No, this was something else.
Yes or no.
As if written by a junior high student, the writer had given me two options to circle. This was for me, right? My thoughts went to Lily, but she had never been a note passer, and I doubted she had ventured outside. I got the feeling she liked staying in the mansion, far away from vampires and the rest of the world. If Lily had really wanted to communicate, she would’ve left a note under my pillow or something. She had regular access to my room since she did my laundry.
This note wasn’t from her.
Blair as far as I knew was still trapped in Vulthus’s dungeon fortress. Plus, neither she nor anybody else knew where I was.
There was only one person I could think about who might’ve figured out where I had disappeared to and would be bold enough to send me a message.
Thorsten.
I searched the note again and found a faintly drawn T on the bottom corner of the page.
My heart thumped. His arctic blue eyes exploded in my mind as the note trembled in my hand. Emotion welled up in my chest. I shoved it down. I could not be weak. Thorsten was playing more games with me. Would he never leave me alone? What was his problem?
More importantly, how the hell had he gotten up here? He was a young vampire. He couldn’t fly, and even if he could, how on earth would he have found this place with all the fae magic protecting it?
No, the note wasn’t from him. Olwen must’ve seen me with Thorsten. This was another test from Olwen. He wanted my full loyalty. Suspecting I was friends with a Summer fae was bad enough. But if he thought I cared about a vamp? There would be hell to pay.
If there was anything I had learned, it was that in the Winter Court, you were guilty until proven innocent.
I wanted to scan the trees, but I resisted the urge. Letting Olwen or any of his spies know that I was suspicious would not get them to back off anytime soon. My hands fumbled with the note, playing with the corner for a bit before I forced a look of disgust on my face.
I knew what I had to do.
I ripped the paper in two, then fours, then eights. I threw the bits back into the tree hole where they fluttered into the darkness before settling. Then I turned away, bolts in hand, to rejoin Atticus and return to the Winter fortress where I belonged.
10
Onyx
Apparently, I passed the loyalty test, because two days later, Olwen called me into the Solstice Room, where I found him sitting at his usual place, the head of the icy table.
I inclined my head and sat opposite him. “You wanted to talk to me?”
He got right to it. “It’s time for you to train on real targets, Onyx. Over the next few days, I’ll send you to a few vampire gatherings of my choosing. You will slip in undetected. There, you’ll zoom in on easy targets, vamps who are loners. When they leave the pack, go after them, and knock them out, but don’t kill them. Make sure they don’t see you and that they don’t know it was ice magic that knocked them out.”
I nodded. I had knocked the twins Kayden and Kassius on their asses before at Nocturnal Academy, by creating a sheet of ice underneath their feet. I could do this. Did I feel relief that I didn’t have to kill this time? No, I couldn’t allow myself to think like that. I was a warrior. Warriors did whatever was necessary to protect their court. “I understand. I won’t disappoint you.”
“Good. Once I know you can be discreet, I’ll give you a tougher target for your second test. If you pass that, we’ll take down Vulthus.” Olwen leaned back, his eyes sparking with shrewdness.
My chest puffed out as tingles of satisfaction raced up my spine. Justice would be mine. I’d become the avenging angel of all the fae who had been mistreated by the vampires. Maybe, after I got rid of Vulthus, the vamps would think twice before exploiting us. Maybe Nocturnal Academy would be disbanded and its teachers imprisoned.
If only the earthbound fae worked together and stood up to the vamps, we could change everything. Or not. What was wrong with me? Why did I think that I could change a whole world that was rooted in injustice with everyone but me accepting the status quo? I had to stop being naive.
Olwen waved his hand to dismiss me. “You may go. Your clothes will be waiting for you in your room. Atticus will take you to the party, which is being held by Marilyn Claire tonight, the owner of the Claire makeup line.”
Another somewhat famous vamp. Lord Sullivan had lectured us about her family, too.
“Thank you.” I inclined my head and left, spotting Lily outside the dining room, cleaning the windows. Her gaze met mine, and my heart contracted. I should be happy, ecstatic. I was finally the hunter, not the hunted.
But I had a hole inside I could never fill.
Even if I became the toughest assassin of the Winter Court, I’d have to continuously glance across my shoulder. I could never love freely, have friends, or enjoy life. My fists balled, and I quickened my step. I was an inch away from a meltdown. Reaching my room, I pushed the door open to find a female servant inside, wearing a black dress, curtsying deeply. “Your Highness, allow me to get you ready.”
I shook my head at the fae. “I need a moment. Alone.”
“But—”
“Out!” I pointed at the door.
She scurried toward it but didn’t leave. “Sir Atticus will be very upset if you’re not ready in an hour.”
I gritted my teeth, but forced my anger down, reminding myself that my situation wasn’t her fault. “Return in half an hour.” I forced my voice to soften, but didn’t apologize as it would only show weakness.
She chewed on her lip. “I’m afraid that won’t be enough time.”
“So bring a second servant!” I shoved her out of the door and slammed the door shut. Then I darted toward my bed, buried my head into my pillow, and screamed. I screamed out all the rage, the fear, and the pain. I screamed until my vocal cords were raw. Heavy tears followed. They cascaded from my eyes, and a crazy trembling I couldn’t control took over my body. I was going into a seizure. Good. I wanted all of this to end. The endless disappointments, the soul-shattering pain, the pitless anger.
But life had no mercy.
The tears turned silent, a
nd my knees drew into my chest. I was a tiny ball of misery, wanting to make myself as small as possible, as if that would magically shrink my pain.
Of course, it didn’t.
I lay motionless, nearly choking on all the slime in my nose, but too weak to go to the bathroom and grab a tissue.
The knock on my bedroom door tore me back to my senses.
“Your Highness, we really need to get you ready now.” The voice from the servant floated through the wall.
I cleared my throat. “Just a minute.” I could barely get the words out. I forced my limbs to work and dragged myself into the en-suite bathroom.
I could not be weak. I could not be weak. I could not be weak.
I blew my nose and splashed my face with water so icy it burned my skin. Then I returned to my bedroom and pasted a neutral expression on my face. “Come in.” My gut clenched as I saw that the fae from before had brought Lily with her.
Lily took one glance at me and opened her mouth. My veneer of coolness didn’t fool her. I gently shook my head, and the pain that flitted across her face nearly undid me. She wasn’t mourning her situation or the death of our friendship, but what had become of me. Even though I looked fine and hadn’t been physically violated, I was wrecked beyond repair. I was a vase that had been dropped too many times, full of cracks.
“Lily, you’ll help Her Highness into her dress while I work on her wig.”
I looked at the other fae, glad for the distraction. “A wig?”
The fae gave me a kind smile, not knowing how much that tortured me and that I wished she showed no emotion at all. “Your hair color is very unique, and I was told that you dying it another color was not an option.”
True. Olwen had mentioned once that my purple hair was impractical and that I should color it a different shade. I had flipped out and told him there was no way I was doing that. It was the only thing under my control. Somehow, he must’ve understood that this wasn’t worth a fight and dropped the topic.
“The wig is a precaution, in case your glamour stops working,” the fae continued.
I nodded. Using glamour for an extended time was still tricky for me, so it was good to have a backup.
The fae pulled my hair into two braids, which she pinned to my head while Lily helped me out of my training clothes, undoing the zipper on my hoodie and pulling it off my shoulders. I swallowed. I wasn’t ashamed of her seeing my body. In fact, while being cleaned for the bidding ball we’d both had to see each other thanks to the cleaners, but this felt too intimate since emotionally we were continents away. Or were we? Just one look at me, and she’d known I wasn’t all right.
Once I was only in my underwear, Lily held out the dress I was supposed to get into and the tightness in my shoulders oozed out of me. At Nocturnal Academy, I had been outfitted twice into gowns that put every curve on display, screaming courtesan. But this simple charcoal dress was modest. It had long sleeves, was high cut, and best of all, it was functional. Underneath the skirt, there were pant legs. It was the dress of an assassin masquerading as an ordinary servant.
I slipped into the charcoal outfit as the other fae held up a mirror for me to see my wig.
“Wow.” The black bob with bangs made me look unrecognizable especially when I used my glamour to elongate my nose and make my chin pointier. But even if I lost control of the glamour, I’d still look like a low-level fae servant and not a threat.
“Now, all we need is a bit of makeup.”
I closed my eyes as the older fae worked quickly. Lily stood next to me, not saying anything, but I could practically feel her tongue itching to speak.
“All done.” The fae held up the mirror for a second time, and once again, I was impressed. She had drawn several birthmarks and also changed the shape of my brows. I looked unrecognizable. Who needed glamour with her skills? At least I wouldn’t lose this if I freaked out. Then again, her services wouldn’t always be available. I made a mental note to add an hour of glamour training to my afternoons.
“Thank you. You’re amazing.”
She curtsied. “Just doing my work, Your Highness.”
Guilt overcame me. This fae had waited on me several times and yet I hadn’t even bothered to ask her the basic of things. “What is your name?”
“Elvira, Your Highness.”
I smiled at her. “Thank you for everything today, Elvira.”
She inclined her head, clearly uncomfortable with me acknowledging my earlier outburst. Then she took Lily’s arm. “We must be on our way. Sir Atticus will be here any minute.”
Lily shot me a glance over her shoulder, and like a fool, I whispered, “Later,” before the door fell shut.
I groaned. What the hell was I thinking? But could I afford being alone? I was slowly going insane. Maybe Olwen’s wrath and him holding someone over my head was preferable to losing my mind. I needed some warmth. Just a tiny bit. Even if I couldn’t give much in return. Even if Lily deserved much better.
Another knock sounded. “Are you ready, Onyx?” Atticus’s voice came through the closed door.
I inhaled deeply and opened the door. “Let’s kick some vamp ass.”
11
Onyx
Atticus and I drove to Denver in silence. I didn’t mind that. My stomach cramped as I spotted, nestled far in the deep woods, Nocturnal Academy positioned on a mountain. My new home, Olwen’s secret fortress, wasn’t very far from it. The castle rose into the distant evening clouds, a collection of spires that a human driver—not that there were many on this remote road—would never recognize if they ever drove through these parts. I only knew the shapes because of the escape attempt Blair and I had made a year ago during Summer Prep.
Shit, why did I keep thinking of Blair? Freeing her would be great, of course, but I couldn’t let thoughts of her distract me as I was going into a vampire nest.
The drive into Denver seemed to take forever. The vamps liked their privacy, but when it came to parties, they hung in populated places. While we fae were their preferred victims, we were too expensive to drink from and drain on a daily basis.
“Where is this party?” I was used to warehouses that weren’t really warehouses.
“At Richie’s,” Atticus said simply.
“Richie’s?” I jogged my memory, thinking of downtown Denver. There were a few ritzy apartment buildings there, ones that had a doorman out front and penthouses that looked out on the city, and it was no shock the vamps would hang in a place like that. Richie’s sounded familiar. I might have seen the building on the news before, though I couldn’t recall why. Marilyn must have an apartment there.
We got into the city, rolling first through a run-down neighborhood. The houses got bigger and bigger, and at last we drove through the business district and finally, downtown. I kept my breaths even. I was to blend in with the other fae servants. If anyone asked, my name for tonight was Allison. I was the servant of whichever vamp happened to walk inside with a bunch of other fae. My black dress was nothing special and neither was my hair.
Atticus pulled up to a fancy apartment building, which had a red awning out front and glass double doors with brass knobs. String lights decorated potted plants, and a water fountain gurgled in the lobby. Money, all right. Limos pulled up to the entrance one by one, each waiting their turn, and unloading people all dressed to the nines. Well, the vamps. I recognized the vamp woman who had splashed Blair with wine while she did her act in the cage. She wore a sparkly evening dress and looked like a wealthy human, drawing no attention from the people walking up and down the street.
My heart quickened, but I breathed out, returning to the cold calculating state. I watched as the woman went inside and two fae servants, both women in matching blue dresses, followed with their gazes on the floor. How I wished I could pick off that bitch, but she didn’t seem like the loner type, and I was afraid I might not be able to control myself and only knock her out if I made her my target.
“Good luck.” Atticus stopped the
car. A bead of sweat was running down his temple. The quicker he got out of the car and away from all the iron, the better. Thankfully, Olwen had ordered Atticus to slip into the party and monitor me instead of waiting in the car, which should give the warrior fae a much-needed break from the iron exposure.
“Thanks. I’ll see you inside.” I got out and rushed in after a small group of vamps and fae as if I were trying to catch up. The doorman nodded at me as I entered the building. Good. My disguise was working if he thought I was a servant running late.
Fae packed into the elevator. Two vamp men stood facing forward, and I knew I had to dart into the elevator as well. Heart pounding, I did, and the doors closed, sealing me inside. The three fae women and the two fae men remained silent in the presence of their masters. The two vamp men were younger, stony, and silent as well. But neither paid attention to me. I was still a servant running late. This likely happened all the time. To add to the image, I bit my lip, as if anticipating punishment.
The elevator climbed silently to the fifteenth floor. The doors whooshed open, and the sounds of classical music and quiet chatter filled the carpeted hallway. A human maid rolled a cart with cleaning supplies down the hall before vanishing around the corner.
I followed the vamps and the fae to the last room at the end of the hall. Still, no one spoke. It was eerie. One of the vamp men entered a code into a keypad by the door, and it swung open for a grand welcome.
The big penthouse sported marble columns, tan carpet, and a grand piano in the corner where a fae with blonde curls was playing a gentle tune. Vamps in suits and dresses mingled and one vampire man sat down next to the fae at the piano, wrapping his arm around her waist without invitation, but she didn’t miss a beat. He whispered something, and she let out a tinkling laugh I knew all too well. Peony. Her master must’ve brought her to the party.
The Nocturnal and Fae Prison Academy Boxset [A Complete Paranormal and Fantasy Series Boxset] Page 48