by Bailey Dark
“Tell me what it was like.” I rest my chin in my hand, suddenly curious. There’s so much I don’t know about Altair, and what this place was like before Maaz tried to destroy it.
“It was tiring,” Altar says, leaning back in his chair as his face takes on a faraway look. “I spent long hours of the day meeting with my people, trying to resolve their everyday problems. And after that I met with my councilors, the lords of the kingdom. We planned new expansions to the economy, new guard posts on the border, everything and anything.”
“And there were women fawning over you, of course,” I say, eyes glittering.
“Oh, so many women,” he teases. He grows serious, locking eyes with me. “I haven’t been with anyone in hundreds of years.”
I raise my brows. “Some people can’t go a month.”
“Time is different for the Fae.” He shrugs. Altair rises and moves to a bench beside the window. He pats the seat beside him, arching a brow expectantly. Sighing, I push away from the table and join him. “Look at it,” he murmurs.
I follow his gaze out the window, towards the lights of Desmarais. “It’s beautiful,” I say, tilting my head. The city is awash in sapphire darkness, lit like a jewelry box. It sparkles in the dark, vibrant with life.
“Imagine what it looked like a thousand years ago, at the peak of my rule.” He taps the glass. “It was a hundred times brighter than that. You could hear the music and laughter from here.”
“You miss it,” I say, a statement rather than a question.
“I do.” He nods. “I would do anything to get it back.”
I smile softly. “Like kidnap a woman.”
He eyes me, cocking his head. “I would steal you away a million times if it saved my people.”
“I know you would,” I murmur, heart racing. I might even let him.
“Verity,” he says softly. I meet his gaze and my blood runs faster at the fire in his eyes. “Are you happy here?”
I purse my lips thoughtfully. “I am,” I finally say, nodding.
“And do I make you happy?” His voice is hoarse, eyebrows crumpled. He looks vulnerable.
My lips part in surprise at his question, and at the somberness of his tone. I inhale sharply. “I suppose,” I say, voice faltering.
He breaks out into a relieved smile and leans his head against the cold windowpane. “Thank you, Verity.”
“For what?” I furrow my brows. But Altair doesn’t answer, he simple stares out at his city. “Tell me more about it. Life before the curse, I mean.”
Altair’s eyes snap towards me and his smile broadens. “It may take all night.”
“I think we can risk a sleepless night.” I settle back, my knees touching his.
Altair speaks then, his voice low and melodic. He tells me of parties filled with light and sound, colors that I’ve never even dreamed of. He tells me about the ships that used to sail in and out of his harbor at all hours, their massive sails blocking the moon. He tells me about the emissaries from exotic Fae kingdoms that traveled to Desmarais to see the breathtaking city and forge alliances with its strong King.
And as he speaks, my eyes drift closed. I feel his fingers gently stroking my arms, trailing fire and tingling pleasure along my skin. He’s still murmuring his history to me as sleep takes me and his arms ease me down into his lap. The last thing I remember is his hand, warm on my back.
Chapter 19
Altair
I heave a breath as the morning sun glistens over Desmarais’ harbor. Splashes of pink and gold shimmer on the horizon. But the beauty of the sight does little to curb my sorrow. The city is quiet, the street shops and boutiques closed. No ships linger at the docks. It might as well be a town haunted by spirits and wraiths.
I tap my claws against the stone of the tower as I hear Navi’s footsteps on the stairs. She’s quiet as she joins me, staring out at the once glorious city. “All the guards and servants have left,” she murmurs.
I turn to her, taking her as if I’ve never seen her before. Dressed in a forest green cuirass and leathers, with her sword at her hip, she looks formidable and fierce. She’s braided her auburn hair in a crown around her head for her last day on earth. She meets my gaze, her green eyes somber.
“Thank you, Navi,” I say softly. “You may go home as well if you wish.”
“This is my home,” she says.
“I wish the end hadn’t come so quickly,” I sigh.
Navi stiffens her shoulders, eye twitching. “She had over a month to remedy the curse. It wasn’t much time for her. Though I am disappointed, she doesn’t seem as quick-witted as we hoped.”
“She is,” I snap. “Verity simply doesn’t know. And has no one to turn to but useless books in that useless library.”
“Shall we burn it down?” Navi asks, a hollow grin tugging at her lips. “The entire castle, so Maaz wins nothing.”
I shake my jaguar head. “No, she would only dance over the rubble.”
“Indeed.” Navi’s sword clanks as she shifts.
“Tell me, Navi,” I say softly. “Should I have agreed to her terms?”
Navi snorts. “Absolutely not, Altair.”
“Why?”
She turns her steely gaze towards me. “Because that witch would have destroyed this kingdom a thousand years ago, right after she laid claim to it. She would have razed it to the ground and her cruel Sisters would have run amok among our people. No, you did the right thing refusing her.”
“And yet, here we are.” I tilt my chin towards the city below. “Maaz will still burn it down. But she’ll have no people to toy with.”
“And that’s a comfort,” Navi mutters.
“In a way,” I agree halfheartedly. “What time is it?”
“Half past seven,” Navi says.
“Sixteen hours to go,” I sigh. “How shall we spend it?”
Navi takes a deep breath and then drops to one knee. She bows her head in obeisance. “My King.”
“Navi, what are you doing?” I say incredulously. She hasn’t bent the knee for me in over a thousand years.
She doesn’t look up. “My King, I have served you for one thousand, three hundred, and sixteen years. I have been loyal to my King and the Kingdom. I pledged my life to yours to die protecting you. But I would pledge my life to bind myself to you. My heart.”
I go still as I realize just what she speaks of. A sacred binding. The kind I would ask Verity to make. And Verity alone. I sit up and flare my wings out behind me. “Navi, rise,” I say.
“My King, I would ask that you respond first,” she murmurs. “Tell me your answer.”
“I cannot.” I wish desperately that I wasn’t this beast. I wish that I could show her how her words have touched me. She looks up, brows flat. “I can’t return your feelings, Navi. I’m in love with another.”
“You’re in love with her,” she says flatly.
“I am.” I nod. “Please, get up.”
In one swift motion, Navi is on her feet, her sword sheathed again. “Don’t let this trouble you, Altair.” Her lips tug upwards into a kind smile. “With only sixteen hours left in this world with you, I wanted you to know.”
“Thank you, Navi,” I whisper.
She bows and disappears down the stairs. I imagine I hear an echo of a stifled cry as her footsteps fade. I met Navi when we were young Fae; young and impulsive and wild. There was a time we turned to each other in our pain, but that was long ago. Navi’s cold and stony demeanor almost convinced me that she would never love anyone. I was wrong.
Sorrow lances through my heart. I wish I could return her feelings. How easy that would be. But on the last day of my life, I don’t want to deny how I feel any longer. Like Navi, I need to be honest with myself. And with Verity.
I turn away, studying the city again. My people know what’s coming tonight. They know that time is up. Maaz will come tonight, while we are all faded away, and claim my kingdom for herself.
Fury sweeps through me as
I picture Maaz in my mind. Her slender figure draped in a long, red cloak. She would tear it all down just to spite me, even after I’m gone. I should send Verity back through the portal before that moment comes. Sighing, I turn away from the view and slip over the rim of the tower. The wind rushes through the feathers of my wings and ruffles my short fur. I close my eyes, relishing the freedom of the free fall before spreading my wings wide.
I catch myself a few meters from the ground and soar upwards, back into the sky. I find Verity in the wild garden again, pacing agitatedly. She barely glances up as I land on the lawn beside her. “I don’t understand,” she mutters angrily.
I cock my head, watching her as she rubs at her temples. “What is it, Verity?”
“I have tried everything I can think of,” she snaps. “I have brewed potions, cast spells, I even kissed you hoping it would reverse the curse. But nothing works! And I’ve read every damn book in that damn library about this damn magic!”
“Verity,” I say, keeping my voice low and soothing.
“What?” She whirls on me.
I brush a wing over her, the closest I can come to stroking her in this form. “You’ll have to return to the mortal realm tonight.”
“Why?” Her brows crumple. “It isn’t—is it?”
“Tonight, near midnight, Maaz wins,” I say, nodding. “I’ll send you through the portal before the curse takes me and my people. You’ll be safe from Maaz in the human realm.”
“No.” Verity shakes her head. “Why didn’t you tell me it was this soon?”
I meet her gaze. The once vibrant blue is the gloomy shade of a stormy sea. “I thought it was best that you didn’t know.”
“You can’t decide what’s best for me, Altair,” she whispers.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” I drop my head, fatigue and exhaustion weighing on me. Years of dreading this day, and now it’s finally arrived. It’s all very surreal.
“I wish we had more time,” she breathes, her voice breaking.
I look up as she drops to her knees beside me. Her arms wrap around my neck and she nuzzles her face into my fur. I purr, closing my eyes. “Why?”
She shakes her head against me. “I didn’t get my fill of your incessant teasing.”
“Verity,” I murmur. “Tell me, please. Why do you want more time?”
“I told you,” she says into my fur. “I just didn’t get enough of you.”
“What more do you want?” I say as her arms tighten around me. “I will give you everything.”
Verity pulls away, her eyes wide. She flushes slightly and bites her lip. “You don’t mean that.”
Before I can speak, she jumps to her feet and runs from the garden. My heart clenches painfully in my chest as her slim figure disappears around one of the hedges. “Everything,” I say aloud, wishing she could hear me. “I will give you everything.”
Chapter 20
Verity
Altair’s words echo through my head as I run through the library. My fingers drift over countless spines, searching for any tome that could help me to break the curse. I will give you everything. My breath hitches in my throat, heart pounding wildly.
It wasn’t like Altair. Sarcastic and mysterious, he wouldn’t be so honest. Would he? My heart clenches as I remember the moment; the sincerity in his eyes. Those gorgeous hazel eyes. I scan text after text, hoping for anything to scream out at me. But there’s nothing here. Nothing that I haven’t read or checked already.
Frustration and despair sweep through me, like a roiling cloud. I toss a book to the ground with a shout, and then stand, panting, over it. His last day. His last day and he didn’t tell me. If I had known, I would have spent every waking minute I had in this library, rather than at his side, flirting with him. How could I be so stupid? How could I have taken is so lightly?
I drop into a crouch and clutch at my head. It pounds steadily, painfully. But what can I do?
“Child,” the librarian’s wizened voice reaches me as the sun sets.
I glance up, surprise arching my brows. “I thought everyone had left.”
“Everyone else,” the librarian confirms, sweeping towards me. “But this library is my home.”
“You live in here?” I ask, dropping my hands from my face.
“You look troubled,” she says.
I heave a sigh. “Today is the last day, and I can’t do anything to help Altair or the Fae. They’re all going to die because of me.”
“They’ll die because of Maaz,” she corrects, her tone light. “Listen to me now.”
“Why?” I ask warily.
Her eyes flash. “The Bloodbane witches covenant with the Dark God, Sadal Melik. It is he who gives them their powers.”
“Yes.” I nod exasperatedly. “It’s called the Blood Rite, they become his brides. And they never turn away. If they do, they die.”
“Indeed. You, my little mortal, are a Bloodbane witch. But when did you make your covenant?” She cocks a brow.
“I didn’t,” I whisper. “I was born with it.”
“Were you?” She asks, turning away.
I scramble to my feet, skin tingling. “What do you mean?”
“You don’t expect me to reveal everything, do you?” The librarian flashes me a sly smile. “Good luck, dear.”
I bite my lip, pondering her words. Maybe my magic doesn’t work because I haven’t made the covenant with Sadal Melik. I grimace. I don’t know that I want to become the bride of an evil god from this dimension. But if it’s the only way to save Altair, I would do it. I would give him everything.
There was a reason Altair brought me here, a reason that he needed a woman with the power to become a Bloodbane witch. But if he only needed the covenant, surely any Bloodbane would do. But they wouldn’t help him, I realize. Any Bloodbane that helps a sworn enemy would lose their place in the Sisterhood at Maaz’s command. Maybe even Sadal Melik’s command.
I rush from the library as the castle is cast in darkness. There are no servants to light the candles and lamps that fill the halls. I run through the shadows to Altair’s room. I burst in, stubbing my toe on the door. “Damn!” I shout, hissing in pain.
But the room is empty. His bed carefully made, and the fire burnt out. My heart lurches in my chest and my breath quickens. What if he’s already been taken from me? What if I’m alone in the castle? Breathing shakily, I whirl away from his room and back through the halls. Every shadow and every object in the darkness looks like Maaz.
“Altair?” I shout, sprinting as I feel the darkness at my back. Fear sweeps through me, stabbing my heart like a lance. “Altair!”
But the castle is silent. My feet slap against the stone floor loudly as I jump from the stairs onto the landing. My eyes are rimmed with tears, my throat swollen with grief. I can hardly breathe, but I run on anyway. I have to find him. Altair. Altair. Altair.
A tear slips from my eyes and I wipe it away furiously. I have never felt more alone than I do now. An entire kingdom gone. And just me left to fill it. Suddenly, I see a light spilling out of an open door ahead. The door is tall and covered in carved wooden vines. I pause in front of it and peer through it. This door has been locked tightly since I first arrived in the castle.
The light is almost blinding compared to the darkness of the halls. But when my eyes adjust, I see a simple golden throne on a marble dais. And in it sits Altair. A sob slips from my parted lips and I cover my mouth with a shaky hand. His hazel eyes dart towards me, wide with worry. He rises and holds a hand out towards me.
“Verity?” His voice echoes through the grand hall.
“Altair,” I whisper, rushing towards him.
I cover the distance in seconds, and he wraps his strong arms around me. “Verity, what’s wrong?” His voice is laced with worry and fear.
“I thought you were gone,” I whisper, trying to control my ragged breathing.
“No.” He strokes my hair gently as I lean into his chest. “No, I wouldn’t go wit
hout saying goodbye.”
I push him away from me, my fear giving way to anger. “Don’t do that to me!” I shout. “God, I- I was so scared, Altair.”
“I’m sorry.” His brows crumple.
Silence falls between us, hollow and loud in the massive room. I break my gaze with him and finally take in the space. Marble columns line the length of the room, the floor is inlaid with a detailed tile mosaic of a hawk. Altair perches on the armrest of the throne, watching me.
“What is this place?” I ask, my voice echoing through the room.
“My throne room,” he says, gesturing grandly. “I haven’t used it in years. This is where Maaz cursed me. I’ve kept it locked ever since. It seemed a fitting place to meet my end.” I stare at him. “Parallelism and all that.”
“Are you okay?” I ask softly, moving closer to him.
He reaches for me, trailing his fingers down my arm tenderly. And I remember his words. Everything. “I’m fine, Verity. But we should get you home soon.”
“I know where the portal is.” I clench my hands into fists, forcing the well of emotions back. “When it’s done, I’ll go. But I won’t go before.”
“You want to stay with me? Watch me waste away in a matter of seconds?” He cocks a brow. “Absolutely not.”
I drop my voice to a whisper. “You can’t decide what’s best for me, Altair.”
He chuckles. “In this case, I can, and I will.”
“No,” I say forcefully, crossing my arms.
“Verity,” Altair growls. “Don’t be stubborn. Please, just once, listen to me.”
I eye him. “Where is Navi?”
“Navi is performing her last watch. That was her wish,” Altair says stiffly.
I can picture her now, on the battlements, her sword in hand, standing proud and strong. “I wish I had gotten to know her better.”
“Perhaps it’s best that you didn’t,” Altair says as a smile tugs at his lips.
“Altair,” I say. I grab his hand tightly in mine, my gut coiled with nerves. “I have to tell you something. Ask you something. I don’t know.”