She wriggled her fingers and lifted her arm, a tentative smile coming over her face.
I heaved out a sigh of relief and moved behind her. “Let me help you sit up.” She didn’t protest as I put my hand under the small of her back. I pushed her into an upright position, Peony helping, her joints popping.
“I’m sore, but I can manage the pain. Can you help me stand?” There was so much vulnerability in her hazel eyes. I wanted to hug her, but sensed that if we did that we would both collapse in tears, and with this part of the desert continuing to drain her the most, we couldn’t dawdle. Thus, I took her hand and slowly pulled her up. She let go of my hand and swayed, but didn’t fall. “We need to get out of here. I’m afraid we’ll have to walk. I’m not strong enough to fly.”
“I understand.” I eyed the outcrop. In the pale light, I noticed uneven stone forming natural steps to the ground. That would have to work. Peony’s wings seemed fine. Nothing was torn as far as I could see, but it would require a lot of energy to fly, energy she didn’t have, and yet, how much more strength would she lose to the wastelands if we walked? Could I carry her? Probably, but only a short distance.
Thunder clapped from above. The sky was growing dark with thick clouds that gathered overhead. What the hell? A flash flood was the last thing we needed. And the rocky ground would allow for one in no time. If it rained, we might get trapped up here.
“Latest and youngest Queen of the Winter Court,” an ancient voice came at me from all directions and reverberated through my skull, making a shiver seize me. At the same time, the sensation of sunshine and cold wind snapped through me, and I knew this power was the Grand Librarian.
“Did you hear that?” I asked, my voice trembling. Peony nodded, her eyes wide as she stared at the sky.
“Queen Onyx Vinter, you have entered the wastelands, which have been abandoned by your kind for a long time,” the fae man’s ancient voice continued, more in my head than anywhere else.
“I...I have,” I said slowly.
“Unlike others before you, you have shown kindness by helping your fellow fae from the Summer Court.” The voice shifted to one of approval, of one wanting to help, and hope rose in my chest.
“I, the Grand Librarian, see that you are worthy. You can end this draught.”
I thought back to the library book. “We tried following the instructions, but something went wrong,” I shouted into the sky.
Thunder clapped. “Your plant fae friend, while powerful, is not your equal. Though she is strong, she is not the heir.”
“There’s no way I can get King Peter here.” Whoever the Grand Librarian fae was, he had probably died millennia ago and had no idea what we were up against.
Lightning flashed, lashing the ground a few feet away, followed by the crack of thunder. Everything inside of me contracted. Peony screamed. Had I gone too far by challenging this ancient power?
“The king does not vibrate on the same frequency as you. He is old. Corrupted. You are young, driven, and reckless as only the young can be. Find your match. She is here, waiting for you.”
Oh, shit. “Petra.” I gulped. No matter how much I wanted to deny it, I had to find Princess Petra Kallan and convince her to work with me.
“You cannot use this location again to unite your powers and heal the Ancient Lands. This location has been compromised. To restore the balance, you must venture to the other utmost point.”
I swallowed. “The tundra.”
“Yes. Farewell, and may the Ancient Lands guide you.”
The thunder stopped and the clouds drew apart to reveal a weak, tan glow on the horizon. Sunrise was coming, and the ancient voice had abandoned us. I turned to Peony who swayed. We had to hurry before the morning heat weakened us further. “I’ll fly you out of here, and then we’ll figure out where Petra is.”
Peony didn’t meet my gaze.
“What is it?”
“I...I know where she is. I can sense her plant magic.”
I exhaled slowly. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”
“Because I can sense her feelings, and they’re murderous.” Peony finally looked at me, fear swirling in her hazel eyes. “Petra has changed for the worse. She was crazy before, but the wastelands... the Ancient Lands...have pushed her over the brink.”
And I’d have to work with her at the Tundra where my own power would be compromised the most. I pushed my shoulders back. I was the Queen of the Winter Court. I was Onyx Vinter. I would not be afraid. “I’m ready for the bitch. Bring it on.” I flashed Peony a sharp-toothed smile.
She extended her palm. “I’m no longer cold. Give me more of your magic. It will be quicker if we both fly. And we’ll be better off once we’re off this ground.”
“As you wish.” If I had the right to be proud and reckless, so did she. Peony might not be the heir to the Summer Court throne, but she was a powerful ally. I pressed my palm against hers and shot magic into her.
Her brows came together as she stiffened. “That should be enough. We fly to the center of this forsaken place. Petra is there…along with your father.” Peony opened her wings wide and rose in the air, allowing me some privacy to regain my composure.
My father was still alive. Why hadn’t I sensed him? Was I too preoccupied with everything else, or did I simply not want to worry about an additional variable that complicated the equation? Because that was what he had always been to me. We shared DNA, we shared our love for the Winter Court, but beyond that, there wasn’t much that united us. Now, I’d have to face both him and Petra. I opened my wings and shot into the sky, approaching the challenge the only way I knew how—head on.
14
Virgie
My goal was clear—get past the guards to the royal chambers and steal the crown. First, I’d need to shadow Percival and learn his mannerisms. Then I’d have to carefully pick the time and ensure King Peter wouldn’t get suspicious. In his corrupted state, I could see him turning even on Percival, especially as his youngest son had demonstrated he didn’t have the stomach for the recent cruelties going on at the Summer Palace.
Caleb, still disguised as Christoph the guard, paced around the center of the hedge maze. “It’s hard to remember it’s actually late morning.” He eyed the sky above, which was filled with stars and no trace of the sun. “Percival likely won’t leave the throne room for some time. He may leave for lunch. Either way, we’ll need to study his and Father’s movements.”
“This is insanity,” Nathan said.
“It’s risky, but we can pull it off.” Caleb glared at Nathan. “Father takes all of his meals in the dining room. He never lingers, but he also doesn’t skip them. The vampires appear to be feeding whenever they want to or when Father has someone for them to punish. For safety reasons, it might be best to go into the throne room after the vampire guards are sated.”
I balled my fists, wanting nothing more than to help the prisoners. If they all refused to go into the breeding program, then the vampires would get their fill before lunchtime. I imagined a few would stay in the throne room, including Lady Cardinal, whom King Peter clearly trusted.
Nathan drew close to me. “While we’re waiting for the right time, we should get our hands on the Shield. Its petals should protect us from the harsh wastelands.”
I nodded. We had to get to Onyx and Peony before they found Petra. “Any idea where King Peter keeps the Shield?”
“He likely has a large supply as he was ready for Lady Cardinal to move in her guards.” Nathan motioned in the direction of the throne room. “I doubt he expected the Summer lands to go dark. Soon, they’ll fall apart. We need to get to the wastelands and fix this before everything falls apart.”
Nerissa winced, but didn’t protest. She could hardly stop her brother from doing something so dangerous when she wanted to be in the middle of the action herself. On the upside, with me planning to steal the crown and wear it to open the wastelands and Caleb being the one to wear it when he united his power with On
yx’s, Nathan would be somewhat protected from the worst.
“If we can get a clipping of the Shield and grow our own, that would help,” Caleb said.
Shivers raced down my spine at the thought of venturing into the unforgiving, deadly wastelands. “I wish we had Peony here,” I said quietly.
Caleb’s eyes flashed with pain, and I felt a pang of guilt for bringing up Peony. He composed himself quickly. “I’ll take care of the Shield. My plant magic is not as specialized as Peony’s. I’m more of a jack of all trades, but it should be enough.”
Nerissa stepped toward me. “While Nathan and Caleb are working on that, you and I will trail Percival. I won’t let you do this alone. Thankfully, Blythe is one of his tutors and is allowed to walk around the castle with guards.”
I nodded. “Okay, but we must be careful. We can’t afford Percival becoming suspicious of you.”
Nerissa motioned us out of the hedge maze. “He won’t. With King Peter pushing his new allies on the whole court and no one liking the bloodsuckers, it only makes sense that Blythe would be accompanied by a stern guard for her protection. Zeeba fits the role perfectly.”
That was good. “Do you have any tutoring set up for today?”
Nerissa nodded. “This afternoon.”
We all exited the hedge maze and separated. Nathan and Caleb walked side by side in patrol fashion. I stared longingly after Nathan, wanting to kiss him or hold his hand, but if we did that and someone saw Kalvin and Zeeba like that, it would spell a lot of unwanted attention.
Even though we had a plan, I wondered if we’d be able to pull it off. What if King Peter never removed his crown, not even in his chambers? What if King Peter would sense me stealing it even though my blood was not connected to the royal line? I took a deep breath, trying to think positively. Still, the doubts continued niggling at me
Nerissa and I walked through the gardens for a little while, passing a few fae guards whose movements were jerky,
Milling near the throne room would only arouse attention and suspicion, so we stuck to the gardens. “Blythe” led me to an office filled with books and potted plants when it was lunchtime. By then, more vampires appeared around the castle as they filtered out of the throne room. Several of them sported relaxed grins, clearly high on fae blood. I shoved down the disgust I felt at what King Peter was turning the Summer Court into.
Nerissa opened a few drawers in Blythe’s small office and pulled out several books.
“Was it hard to learn Percival’s curriculum?” I asked.
She smiled. “All noble and royal children are taught the same curriculum. I remember how Blythe taught me when I was younger. We are on the magical dynamics of the Crystal River.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. With Nerissa prepared, we might just be able to pull this off. She hugged the books to her chest in typical Blythe fashion, and I followed her out of the office. As we reached the throne room, I noticed that only a few vampires remained, patrolling. The prisoners were gone, either taken to the new breeding center or drained by the vampires.
Blythe waited at the doorway, bowing her head slightly at Percival and King Peter. Percival remained on his small throne, grasping the armrests, while King Peter slowly rose from his. As he stood and straightened, the trees picked his throne off the ground and lifted it into the air, then did the same for Percival.
“Your tutor.” King Peter waved Percival off, as if he were a bothersome fly, and for the first time I felt bad for the brat. Maybe Percival was so nasty to everyone because he’d never known true love himself. Maybe we could help him once King Peter was off the throne.
Percival nodded mutely and shuffled over to join us. He was different from the last time I’d seen him, his cockiness replaced by a heavy quietness. Nerissa gave him a smile and motioned for him to follow us. He did so without protest. I glanced backward once wistfully, wanting to follow King Peter now and get this over. But that was not how it worked. We couldn’t walk before we learned how to crawl. For Onyx’s, Peony’s, and every fae’s sake, we couldn’t mess this up.
“Have a seat,” Nerissa sing-songed once we were in the gardens and motioned to a wooden bench. My shoulders dropped when I realized that no vampires patrolled nearby. Good, I really wanted to stay away from them. Percival glanced around, as if wanting to make sure as well that there were no vampires, then sat down. I stood back, silent. I thought of combing Percival’s mind for useful information, but his mental shield was stronger than ever. Forcing myself past it, might alert him to my powers and who I truly was.
“Today, we’ll learn about the Crystal River.” Blythe opened her book. “Take notes, young prince. The Crystal River is a vital component of the Summer Lands, and flows directly from the glaciers of the Winter Lands. Its waters—”
“We went over this yesterday,” Percival said dispassionately.
I tensed. Nerissa was not as on top of things as she pretended to be.
Nerissa laughed in Blythe’s crystalline voice. “Of course,” she said. “So much has been happening here in the castle, I simply forgot.”
I studied Percival’s narrowed eyes and lowered golden eyebrows. He was stressed and ready to take out his anger on anyone he could get his hands on. He might not like the real torture happening in the throne room, but he liked feeling powerful, no matter the cost. I had to be careful. If he suspected we weren’t who we pretended to be, he’d sell us out to stay in his father’s good graces.
“Yes. Things have changed,” Percival said tightly, and his mental shield came down a tiny bit. Anger greeted me. He was ready to burst, wondering why he had to take stupid lessons when his world was falling apart.
“We shall move on to the dynamics of plant spread, focusing on the exchange of magic with the Winter lands.” Nerissa turned to the next page. “Take notes.”
The lesson seemed to last forever, with Nerissa having to remind Percival to take notes every few minutes. A servant brought him and Blythe a wooden platter of an antipasti mix with delicious-looking crackers. My mouth watered. The magic apples kept us alive, but they were not the same as normal food. My taste buds yearned for variety, and it was a torture to stare at Percival’s full plate that he barely touched. Not eating must be one of his stress responses. Shadowing his lesson really allowed me to get a better idea of his mannerisms, but I needed more. I needed to see his entire normal routine. When “Blythe” dismissed him three hours later, he gathered his notes and eyed the archway that led back into the castle.
Nerissa nodded to me as he left. “Go ahead. Guards always surround him, so he shouldn’t get suspicious, as long as you’re careful.”
“Thank you,” I whispered and followed Percival. Keeping tens of feet behind him, I wondered how Nathan and Caleb were faring. Had they gotten the Shield? Was Nathan’s vow hurting him?
Percival stalked into the castle. I stayed well behind him, studying his walk, that seemed heavy and sluggish. Fae guards stood aside as he passed and didn’t give me a second glance. Zeeba was clearly a fixture around here.
I kept my gaze straight ahead, hoping I was doing everything a patrolling guard would do. At least the vampires seemed to have vanished. They were probably sleeping. The Shield might protect them from the sun, but my guess was that they still preferred to rest at least for a while during what should’ve been daytime. They were also probably sleeping off their fae blood high. Either way, I was grateful for their absence. Having fewer vampires around would make stealing the Shield and the crown easier.
Percival picked up his pace as he walked past the now-empty throne room and turned down a corridor, clearly not wanting to dwell in this part of the palace. I did the same, patrolling along the wall, keeping my mouth in a tight line. Percival took a stairwell up to the next level. I’d never seen this grand, marble staircase before, but it fit the description Caleb had given me earlier. This staircase led to the royal living quarters. Two stern guards, holding crystal spears, guarded it.
One of the guard
s glanced at me as Percival vanished at the top of the stairs. He was no doubt going up to his room, which was close to King Peter’s private chambers. Chambers in which King Peter might remove his crown.
I nodded to the two guards, knowing no excuse in the world would get them away from the steps. Even my mind powers would have a hard time getting these seasoned guys to budge since a regular guard like me had no business up in those quarters.
To continue, I would have to take the form of Percival. Unfortunately, they’d just witnessed the real Percival walking upstairs. I had no choice but to move on for now.
I had walked twenty feet into the main courtyard when Caleb, still in the form of Christoph, patrolled up to me. “Zeeba,” he said in a low voice. “We have a situation with Kalvin in the storage area.”
15
Onyx
Peony hadn’t been joking when she’d said that I’d feel the weakest when we reached the tundra. The farther we flew from the desert, the weirder I felt. My muscles ached and my head pounded as the landscape changed. I even started to feel queasy from the flying.
Below me the cracked desert slowly turned to dead grasslands and rolling hills of yellow, dry tinder. An occasional dead tree, like those naked ones I’d seen in swamps, dotted the landscape. Most had a sort of mummified look as if they’d turned to dust and stone. Their leaves had long decayed. The trees slowly morphed from deciduous corpses to tall, skeleton pines. Though the sun remained unforgiving, the air took on a chill.
Peony and I remained well above the ground. I was getting tired of flapping my wings and the look on Peony’s face told me that she was, too.
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
I eyed the thickening, dead skeleton trees ahead. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” A dizzy spell swept over me, and I almost fell, but gritted my teeth and steadied myself. My crown continued to filter its magic into me, but a strange, black, icy power emanated from the dark ground. It was faint, but I recognized it for what it was. Warped Winter magic. Twisted. Cruel. Lifeless. It tugged at my own magic, trying to infect it, urging it to twist and hurt me. Sweat broke over my body and my neck stiffened, but I forced myself not to panic. I’d be fine. The Grand Librarian believed in me, so what I was embarking upon was possible.
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