Exiled Queen (The Thief's Talisman Book 3)

by Emma L. Adams

  Talk to them. I wasn’t what you’d call an expert diplomat, for a half-blood who’d worked with dodgy thieves and other minor criminals in the mortal realm and had only tangentially experienced the Courts until I’d been dragged here. Then again, it wasn’t so different. You just had to outdo their underhanded tactics. The problem was, I didn’t know a thing about winning loyalty, especially of soldiers trained to obey someone I’d hated.

  I looked around and spotted a teenage soldier not ten feet away. He was the kid I’d given my knife to when Aspen and his army had attacked the Hornbeams’ palace. He’d survived after all, though presumably he’d been taken captive to the Vale. His eyes shone with awe and fear as I approached.

  “Hi,” I said. Apparently I still hadn’t got the hang of ‘friendly’, because he paled and nearly slipped off his chair. “Don’t worry. I’m not here to hurt anyone.”

  “Are you here to take Lord Hornbeam’s place?” he asked, his voice quiet.

  “Me? No. I’m interested in getting Lady Whitefall out of the way.”

  He hesitantly said, “I heard you… I thought you left. Because the Summer Court wants you dead.”

  “I don’t always make wise decisions.”

  Several others had moved to listen in, not very subtly. Okay. How to use this situation to my advantage? Their fear kept them from attacking, but any of them might snap and turn on me if they did think I was out to steal their palace from them. And if word got out to the Court… it wasn’t like I could use my hypnosis indefinitely to hold them to their word.

  There was only one way to be sure: put everyone under a vow. Considering how the last one turned out, I knew better than to expect that method to work. And after what they’d been through with their last two leaders, it wouldn’t surprise me if they never agreed to submit to being controlled again. I couldn’t blame them for that, at least.

  The kid gave me another awed look. “You fought Lady Whitefall.”

  “I did.”

  “You nearly beat her,” added another solider, who looked hardly older than twelve. Was there even an age limit for soldiers? “She’s worse than either of them, right?”

  I nodded. “You know Aspen, right? He’s her right-hand-faerie.”

  “He has Lord Hornbeam’s talisman.” He swallowed nervously. “With him, she has more magic than our entire Family.”

  I didn’t expect low-ranking soldiers to know which talisman she’d stolen. What mattered was figuring out what she planned to steal next, but I was fairly sure asking everyone where are the security talismans for the entire Seelie Court wouldn’t endear me to them. Especially as they probably didn’t know. But Cedar, who’d once robbed the Erlking himself, definitely would.

  “That magic you used,” one of the soldiers said slowly. “Are you using it now?”

  “I’m not using any magic on you,” I said. “I used it in the prison to stop her from controlling you.”

  “You set us free,” added the kid next to me. “I remember.”

  “I can’t promise she won’t try the same thing again,” I warned. “You need to be prepared. Talk to me if you have any suspicions about what she’s planning. As far as I know, I’m the only family leader working against her.”

  Silence followed me as I walked back to the others, as though everyone held their breath. A faint whistling noise caught my ear, and I couldn’t say I hadn’t seen it coming.

  I stepped to the left, and the arrow struck less than an inch from my foot. I followed its path with my eyes, conjured an arrow of ice, and threw it at the archer. He fell, gasping, but nobody ran to help. The ice had punctured a hole in his chest. His legs twitched, and he fell silent.

  Cedar chose that moment to enter, which to be honest, was more startling than the arrow. Had he been listening to me talk to the soldiers?

  “Now that’s taken care of,” I said. “Anyone else want to take a shot at me?”

  Chapter 8

  Cedar scowled at the dead soldier. “One of you can clean up the mess,” he said, his voice echoing through the room. “If you’re thinking about trying the same, I’m as much your enemy as she is.”

  Whispers broke out. Cedar ignored them, turning his back to leave. I paused, then ran after him before he disappeared.

  “Did you expect that?” I asked in a low whisper.

  “No, I thought they’d have more sense.” He slowed his pace to let me catch up. “The majority of them look up to you. I heard.”

  “You mean they’re terrified I’ll put them under hypnosis. Viola said I needed to convince them to support me in case I need an army at some point.”

  “She’s right,” said Cedar. “We need all the support we can get.”

  “And have you worked out whatever it is you went off to figure out? The talisman?”

  He nodded. “It’s risky, but I believe she plans to steal a security talisman. I’m intending to go to the Court tonight. A major family’s holding a revel, open to the public. Meaning anyone in Summer. It’s the perfect moment for me to replace the other talismans.”

  “You’re not serious.” I stared at him. “Glamoured or not, if they catch you—are you sure it’s not a setup?”

  “The Sidhe are known for having skewed priorities. They’re confident in their security, and would not cancel an event unless war threatened.”

  “At this rate, it probably will.” I stopped walking. “Wait. Is there a chance they might have been compromised? Look at Lady Whitefall, and Aspen—they both have the ability to trick people. If their abilities work on the Sidhe… maybe they’ve already used their powers to persuade them to open the doors.”

  Cedar’s eyes met mine. “I did wonder. There’s no chance they can actually get into the Erlking’s palace—the event is at the home of a lesser noble. But there’s a talisman with the capacity to unlock Summer’s top security, and it’s likely to be present at the event. The guards never leave their posts without it.”

  “Shit. So you think she’s already sent someone in to steal it, and they’ll be at this event?”

  “The talisman requires a code to unlock it, but it frequently changes hands between the guards at Gatherings. So it’s possible she’s planning something tonight. Either way, there’s no better opportunity for us to replace it with a fake, and hide the real one somewhere she can’t find it. If we manage it, the Summer Court will be closed to her.”

  “You’re actually being serious.”

  “Yes, I am,” said Cedar. “It was my job to know how to enter the Court. Lady Hornbeam was one of those entrusted with the code to unlock the talisman, as were all higher Sidhe. It’s possible she told Aspen.”

  “Shit,” I said. “Okay. I’m going with you.”

  Cedar looked at me. “Don’t hit me for this, but the top secure part of the Seelie Court is totally sealed against anyone who doesn’t have Summer magic. And strong Summer magic, at that. I don’t plan to breach it, but if it comes to it, I’ll have to go alone.”

  “Not to this event,” I said. “You know I’m immune to her power. If she’s there in person…”

  “The guards don’t wait to ask questions before attacking intruders. The price on your head only worsens the threat. And…” He paused. “It wouldn’t surprise me if she knew we were working together. I don’t believe for a second that she’s forgotten what you can do.”

  Maybe he was right. Going along would risk falling into a dangerous trap designed precisely to repel Winter faeries like me. But Cedar risked being arrested, too. They’d punish him if they caught him. And…

  “My dad’s in the Summer Court,” I said. “What if she’s found him? Or if he’s there?”

  “He might be,” Cedar said. “Half-bloods are allowed into the event. I wouldn’t consider going otherwise. I have an alias I use in the Court, but I haven’t been there in over a year.”

  “You’ve been there that recently?”

  “Lady Hornbeam sent me to learn the layout of their most secure areas, in case she
needed the knowledge,” Cedar explained. “It was the only time she permitted me to wear glamour.”

  I suppressed a shudder of revulsion. She couldn’t be dead enough in my book.

  “But you’ve definitely seen the security talisman,” I said. “It’s still risky as hell.”

  But the thought of seeing Dad again—even if I had to glamour myself and sneak into a Summer event—it tempted me more than it should have.

  “They still think the thief is a child,” he said. “It’s not the first time I’ve sneaked in.”

  “How did you survive to adulthood without getting beheaded?”

  “I’ve often wondered that myself. Are you sure you want to look for your father?”

  “Positive.” There was no other option.

  “Even if he doesn’t want to be found?”

  A sharp nail dug into my chest. Dad was hardly lucid the last time I saw him. Nothing about him as half-Sidhe made a jot of sense. Much less why he hadn’t at least tried to get a message to me before disappearing. If he’d reached the Summer Court, surely he knew they wanted me dead or arrested. So why not try to come back to me?

  Had his human disguise been the one who loved me? Was his real self as ruthless as his wife?

  My eyes stung unexpectedly. Maybe the insults he’d thrown at me in a temper had held more truth than either of us had admitted. But I had to know what was real. Whether the witches told the truth, and whether he was a tool of the Sidhe.

  I looked away. “My hypnosis doesn’t last long. If you want me to hit the guard carrying the talisman with it, you’ll need to say when.”

  His mouth tightened. “If anyone picked up on the Winter magic…”

  “Then they’d assume it was her. I’ll be careful.” The last time, the hypnosis had lasted less than fifteen minutes. Not a lot of time at all. “It’s the best we’ve got. Unless you have some other secret ability…”

  “No, I don’t. And there aren’t any hidden entrances—not that we can easily access from the outside.”

  “So how’d you get in when you were a kid?” I asked.

  “I glamoured myself to look like a hobgoblin. It’s considerably easier to do that when you’re ten years old. Lady Hornbeam had it set up as a test.”

  “So you had to pass a test by stealing from the Erlking? And if you’d failed?”

  He shrugged. “I’d have been demoted to an inferior position, I imagine.”

  “That’s…” I’d been going to say ‘messed up’, but considering all the other shit Lady Hornbeam had done, making Cedar rob the Summer Court was nothing. “So we just… walk in the front door? I guess now’s the time to see if my transforming magic can actually turn me into someone else.”

  “That won’t be necessary,” said Cedar. “You can stop listening, Viola.”

  Viola stepped out of the shadows, shrugging guiltily. “I figured you wouldn’t say if you were sneaking off again.”

  “I would,” I said. “She’s going to attack Summer next, and if we don’t at least try to remove the talisman she’s targeting, she’ll mow the Court down. Apparently they’re hosting a revel tonight, despite the robbery. Either they’re too overconfident for their own good, or they’re already compromised.”

  “You’re not seriously thinking of walking in there?” Viola’s eyes widened.

  “I’m dead if they suspect I’m in Faerie anyway,” I said. “If she gets past their security, she can bring any of her fellow outcasts in. And then it’ll be a massacre. Or she’ll turn them against Winter. I’ve no idea what her plan is.”

  “Right.” Viola chewed on her lip. “What you need is a way to get in without anyone knowing you’re from Winter.”

  “There’s not a reversal of my talisman, is there?” I looked at Cedar.

  “Not that I know of,” he said. “I have an alternative plan which involves less trial and error.”

  “You have got to be joking,” said Viola.

  I frowned. “What?”

  “There’s one person who might help you,” said Viola. “A powerful fae who specialises in shapeshifting… on other people. But she also overcharges, likes to ensnare you in bargains, and disappears when you need her. I hired her once and ended up not being able to speak to anyone for a week.”

  “Damn.” I looked at Cedar. “Who?”

  “We don’t have much choice,” he said. “She owes me, besides. I helped her once, years ago.”

  “You’d better be right,” Viola said. “Are you absolutely certain about this?”

  “Nope. But my dad’s somewhere in there. I need to get him far away from her.”

  She nodded. “All right. But be careful.”

  * * *

  After transforming my clothes into a convincing Summer outfit—deep green, with leaf-like patterns—I walked with Cedar, covered in a light glamour he’d cast to turn the naturally blue glow of my magic pale green. My skin prickled like anyone I passed could see right through me. Glamour might fool the magic-less fae-kind. It certainly wouldn’t fool the trained soldiers guarding the Summer Court.

  As we walked, the fog in the forest cleared, and the sun brightened despite it being early evening in Faerie. Then heat surged through the air and brushed against my skin—not from the sun but from the life magic present in the very air itself.

  We passed through a leafy clearing adorned with impossibly bright flowers unlike any I’d seen in the mortal realm, and certainly not in Winter. Huge ancient trees flanked us on either side. No clouds obscured the sky here. I knew Summer was as ruthless as the dark heart of Winter, but it sure as hell didn’t look that way. The warm air caressed my skin, bringing the scent of apple blossom and crushed leaves, earthy smells complementing the soft, lovely music coming from all around. I listened out for familiar eerie notes, my body tensing, but it wasn’t Aspen’s pan pipes.

  “Is Summer how you expected it?” Cedar spoke in a low voice, as though to reassure me. “I forget you’ve never been into the heart of our Court. I have to say the borderlands aren’t a good example of it.”

  No kidding. The borderland forests were grim and more Winter-like than these cheerful open spaces bursting with life. Birdsong mingled with the sound of softly flowing water, and all the trees were heaving with bright green leaves. The perfume scent of the flowers stung my eyes. Cedar’s warm aroma of scented candles and woodsmoke seemed subdued by comparison.

  “The Sidhe don’t do subtle well, do they?” I murmured.

  “Don’t let it fool you,” he said lightly. “This is royal territory, mostly for show.”

  “Hmm.”

  Part of me belonged to Summer, too, apparently, but my magic didn’t stir in response to the thrumming life inherent in the atmosphere. We passed between hedges bordering fields which ran up to large houses and estates which presumably belonged to Sidhe families closer to the central Court than the borderlands. Though they doubtless had their own disputes, there was no warfare and talisman theft happening here—at least, not in plain view. The two of us were evidence enough that one could walk openly on their territory without provoking conflict. Past the estates were clusters of smaller buildings. A village. Nobody stared, to my surprise—apparently my glamour was good enough, or maybe they just didn’t care. As for Cedar, despite the tension in the air, he looked almost relaxed, for one of the few times since I’d met him.

  We walked through the village, into another patch of woodland. I’d long since lost track of the way back, and hoped Cedar knew a shortcut to the path in case we needed to make a run for it. Just as I was about to ask, Cedar stopped beside a large, ancient tree grown into the shape of a house. Gnarled branches formed the outline of a small cottage.

  As Cedar knocked, I whispered, “You know your way around the whole territory?”

  “I was required to know,” he said in an undertone. “I have my suspicions about the event’s location, but we’ll have to enter as guests. Luckily, I can glamour a forgery of an invitation.”

  “Er.�
� I tapped my face. “Bright blue eyes. White hair. See either of those things in Summer?”

  “Actually, yes, but only on nixies.”

  “So you want me to strip naked and dye my skin blue.”

  He smirked. “I doubt nixies would be allowed into such an event. I do have a plan, but you won’t like it.”

  He knocked again. The door opened, and an ancient faerie with bark-like skin peered out.

  “Hornbeam,” she said, with a sniff. “Your timing might be better.”

  “It’s been a while, Gladys,” said Cedar. “I’ve come to call in my favour.”

  “For yourself? Or her?” She jerked her head towards me. “That’s a pretty glamour, but you should know better than to try to trick me with illusions.”

  “Merely a precaution to reach you unharmed,” responded Cedar. “As a matter of fact, we came in search of something better.”

  “She’s powerful,” remarked the old faerie. “And Unseelie. I can’t transform her nature, and her magic is out of control. There’s no covering it. May I ask the occasion? There are some disturbing reports coming out of the Court.”

  “We’re looking into it,” said Cedar. “There’s a revel tonight which I suspect might be connected to the attackers. Unfortunately, our names aren’t on the guest list.”

  A slow smile appeared on her face. “I see how it is. Lord Niall is the host, and he has been quite vocal about the punishments to await trespassers. Instant execution, I believe. His guards aren’t patient.”

  “Precisely why I need your help,” he said.

  “I owe you one favour,” she said. “To whom may it apply—you or her?”

  “Her. I’ve made my own arrangements.”

  “Very well.” She strode closer to me, her hand outstretched. I instinctively stepped back into the rough wall. Earthy fingers trailed over my skin, and my magic reacted, lighting my hands up blue.

  “We can’t have that happening, can we?” she muttered. “Right.”

  The crone pointed at me. My back arched and a horrible rippling sensation passed over my body like my skin was stretching. I fell to my knees, biting back a yelp of discomfort. Needles prickled up and down my arms and spine. When I looked down, my hands were blunt and scaled, dark red in colour. I pushed to my feet, looking up—way up—because I’d shrunk. A lot.