by Jasmine Walt
Well, as normal as someone in my situation could be.
I hope Oscar comes to find me soon, I thought sleepily as I began drifting off. Guilt and worry squirmed in my belly as it occurred to me that I might have run too far and fast for Oscar to be able to find me. But even those thoughts couldn’t keep me awake, and I succumbed to my exhaustion, leaving my worries behind as I slipped into a deep sleep.
Chapter 6
A knock on my door roused me. I shot up in bed, my heart pounding in panic—oh god, the sun was already up, shining through the window. I was late, and the housekeeper was outside the door, and she was going to beat me—
“Are you decent? I’ve brought you breakfast.”
I started at the male voice before memories came rushing back. Heat flooded my cheeks as I looked around and remembered I was no longer on that godforsaken island. I had escaped the Morrigan’s clutches. I was safe.
Well, from her at least.
“Yeah, I’m decent,” I called back, throwing the quilts off and swinging my legs over the side of the bed. I hadn’t bothered to take off my rag dress—there was no way I was sleeping naked amongst strangers—so there was nothing to hide when the door swung open.
“Darun Briethe at your service,” the guard announced with a little smirk as he stepped inside and kicked the door shut behind him. It was the same guard who had snuck up behind me in the forest yesterday.
He still wore the same fur cloak, tunic, and armor he’d worn yesterday, but there was clothing draped over one of his burly forearms, and better still, he carried a tray of food. As he set the platter of fish, bread, and porridge down on the table, I barely restrained from leaping on it and shoving it into my mouth like a squirrel after a long winter, but I made myself stay still.
“Bran decided to make me play babysitter to you,” Darun said
“That must be terrible,” I drawled, stifling the urge to roll my eyes. He’d left the food on the table, but he made no move to get out of the way so I could eat it.
He snorted and tossed me the clothing in his arms. In an effort to distract my rumbling belly from the tray, I ran my fingers over the thick, velvet dress colored a dark red and brown. There were socks and underwear, too, and even a pair of winter boots, which he set down on one of the chairs.
“The chieftain wants to see you after breakfast, so eat quickly and dress.” He wrinkled his nose as he studied me. “Then again, maybe I should have someone draw you a bath.”
My cheeks flushed, and I raised a hand to self-consciously touch my hair. “Yeah, well, let’s see how you fare after being kept prisoner and slave for God knows how long.”
A shadow passed across his face. “I was once kidnapped by a Seelie lord and held captive in his dungeons for nearly a quarter of a century. The Seelie see us as animals, and I was treated no better than one. So I think I can understand that quite well.”
“Twenty-five years?” I echoed. The man before me looked like he was barely in his thirties. Still, the fae were ageless. It would do me good to remember that, so I buried my shock. “That’s terrible. How did you get out?”
“That’s a story for another time.” Darun gestured impatiently toward the food as if he hadn’t been keeping me from it the whole time. He probably hadn’t done it on purpose, but at the same time, he hadn’t exactly made himself scarce, either. “Now hurry up and eat.”
Not needing to be told twice, I stepped past him and plopped down at the table. My mouth was practically watering as I grabbed a chunk of fish and shoved it into my mouth, all pretense of manners gone. As the delicate flavors lanced over my tongue, I snatched up the roll and tore off a hunk with my teeth, chewing furiously. My mouth was too full, but I still contemplated another bite before I’d even swallowed.
I choked down my massive mouthful and took another giant bite of bread, a thought occurring to me. I could make a sandwich. Without a second thought, I tore the bread in two and sandwiched the remaining fish between it. In retrospect, I shouldn’t have done that, because a second later, all that remained on my tray was a bowl of porridge.
I stared at it disdainfully as my stomach rumbled, desperate for more food. Unfortunately for it, I was absolutely sick of porridge, and even though it meant still being hungry, I left it there. If I never ate another bite of boiled oats, it would still be too soon.
As I looked up from my meal, I realized Darun must have left while I’d been stuffing my face because he was coming through the door with four women. Two of them were carrying a wooden tub while the others had buckets of water. Jeez, did I really smell that bad?
Part of me wanted to sniff myself to find out, but I refrained because they were already using my wood stove to heat the water, filling the tub with the steaming liquid. It seemed I was getting a bath after all, whether I wanted it or not.
The women wore dark dresses and cloaks, though not the fur ones the men had been wearing yesterday. Oddly, they had the same thick, dark hair and yellow eyes. Hell, they even had the same savageness to their features as the men, though it manifested in a more feminine way that served to make them prettier than they actually were.
Still, it was curious. I watched them, wondering what manner of fae they were. Some sort of animal-humanoid hybrid, maybe?
When the bath was full, Darun and three of the women left. The oldest of the bunch stayed behind. To be fair, I wasn’t positive she was actually the oldest because her features were just as youthful as the others, but the wisdom in her gaze as she studied me made her come across as an old soul.
“Well, don’t just sit there,” she said, gesturing to the tub impatiently. “Get in. You don’t want to keep the chieftain waiting.”
“Umm, do you really have to be here for this?” I made no move to get up from my chair. “I’m not sure how comfort—”
The woman sighed and gave me a dismissive wave. “Your hair looks like it hasn’t seen a brush in six months, and I could use the dirt under your fingernails to grow an entire field of crops. You need someone to groom you. Now get in.” She stamped her foot. “Quickly.”
“Fine,” I grumbled as I stood. I shucked off my dress, letting it fall to the floor, and the woman’s eyes widened as she got a good look at my naked body.
“By the Lady,” she exclaimed, swallowing hard. “When was the last time you had a good meal?”
“I’d rather not talk about it.” My cheeks flamed with embarrassment as I ran a self-conscious hand over my protruding ribs. Then, realizing she was still watching me, I got into the tub as quickly as I could to hide myself. I had to bend my knees to fit. The water only went just past my breasts, but it was enough to hide my bony ribs.
I was pretty sure I’d lost a third of my weight as I’d wasted away in the castle. Only the hard labor had kept me from becoming completely weak and feeble—that, and the magic I inhaled every morning.
“I’ll make sure you get a second breakfast after your audience with the chieftain,” she promised as she grabbed a bar of soap and a brush. “Regardless of his decision, a young thing like you shouldn’t be reduced to a bag of skin and bones.”
“Thanks.” Despite my embarrassment, warmth filled my chest, and I smiled at the woman.
The woman introduced herself as Milgred, and we got down to the dirty business of cleaning me up. There was indeed a small mountain’s worth of dirt beneath my fingernails, and my hair was so dirty she had to wash it three times. By the time I rose from the tub, the water was completely black and covered in a greasy film. I’d never felt so simultaneously dirty and clean in my life.
Afterward, Milgred dried me off with a towel and helped me into my dress. The dark velvet was thick and warm. Long sleeves trailed down to my kneecaps, and a hem that covered my feet completely. The bodice was just low enough to show a hint of cleavage. I looked closer, seeing the dark red was a pattern of fall leaves against a brown background. My shoes were sturdy boots of the same color. I couldn’t help but notice that the clothing was of finer make than w
hat the women wore.
Milgred pursed her lips. “It’s a little big,” she said, but she must have seen my expression fall, because she added, “But you still look beautiful.”
I frowned at the compliment. The way these people were hovering over me had made me think I was a prisoner, and yet this woman was being so kind to me. The contradictions were confusing as hell.
“Why is the chieftain treating me so well, when he hasn’t even met me yet?” I asked aloud as the woman sat me down in a chair and began attacking my hair with a brush.
“That’s a strange question,” Milgred said, trying to brute force her way through a tangle. She pressed her hand firmly to my scalp, but that didn’t stop the sharp tugs that made me ball my hands into fists to keep myself from squirming. “You are the Winter King’s daughter. Why would he not treat you with respect?”
“But he hasn’t laid eyes on me yet,” I protested, trying not to wince as she yanked at a particularly stubborn knot. “How does he know for sure?”
“Our noses tell us much about a person’s character,” Milgred said simply. “Bran seems to think you were telling the truth last night, and you do smell like one of the Winter King’s clanmates.”
“Oh.” One of the warriors had commented that I smelled of ice and snow. “Er, what kind of fae are you, exactly?”
“I would expect the Winter King’s daughter to know such a thing,” Milgred clucked. She paused in her attack on my hair. “Though you do speak and act more like an untried youngling than a powerful princess.”
I bristled at that. “I’m reincarnated,” I snapped. I didn’t see how I could pretend I still possessed all my knowledge, so I might as well tell the truth. “My memories haven’t completely returned yet.”
The woman stilled. “That’s not possible.”
I turned to look at her. The shock in her eyes sent a tingle of unease down my spine. “I’m sitting here, aren’t I?”
“Yes, but I’d thought the rumors of your death had been exaggerated. I’ve never heard of anyone coming back from death so quickly.”
I shrugged. “Another fae told me the same thing,” I said, thinking of Maddock’s reaction to me. “I think it must be because I’m a shadow.”
Milgred didn’t say anything after that. As she finished brushing and plaiting my hair, dread began to weigh heavily on me. Had I made a mistake, telling her about my reincarnation? But how could I possibly avoid revealing that when it would be obvious to anyone that I was not a polished fae princess? The woman I’d seen in that vision Maddock had shared with me, who had so easily stripped him of his power and waltzed out the door, was not the woman sitting here in this chair. She looked like me, but she was a stranger. I didn’t even know her name.
After I was dressed, Darun came to collect me, along with one of the other warriors from yesterday. Darun nodded approvingly as he looked me over, then escorted me through the town to meet with the chieftain. The sun shone brightly overhead in the cloudless blue sky—a cold, clear fall morning.
Wood smoke teased my nostrils, mixed in with spices and fat lingering from breakfast as it wafted from the houses I passed. Unlike last night, there were people out fetching water from the town well. They studied me warily, the men’s hands never far from their hunting knives. The women, too. There were very few children, and the ones I did see poked their heads through curtains or hung out of open doorways to watch me.
“We don’t get many visitors,” Darun explained quietly.
“I can see that,” I muttered, trying not to feel self-conscious as I ran a hand over the braids of my newly cleaned hair. Man, I was suddenly grateful for that bath. I didn’t want to think about the looks I’d get if I’d come out that dirty. I was used to stares—just not from a group of people who looked like predators capable of ripping out my throat.
I was led into a log house in the center of the village that was larger and finer than the surrounding ones. Two more warrior men stood on the front porch on either side of the entrance, spears in their hands. Darun and my other guard nodded to them in greeting, and they returned the gesture, making no move to stop him as he opened the door and held it for me.
The interior of the house reminded me of a hunting lodge. Heads from a variety of beasts, both fantastical and mundane, were mounted on the walls and above the fireplace. A fire roared in the huge grate, and the windows let in plenty of sunlight. The furniture and walls were all dark wood, and rugs covered the glossy wooden floors. Chairs and couches sporting deep red cushions were grouped around the fireplace in a sitting area that could easily accommodate twenty people.
Sitting in an armchair near the fire was a powerfully built fae male wearing a dark tunic and trousers embroidered in gold. A cape of red flowed over his broad shoulders and down his back as he stood to greet me. His thick head of long, dark hair was graced by a laurel crown, and his yellow eyes gleamed with interest as he studied me. Behind his chair and slightly to the left stood a woman in a flowing dress in varying shades of grey, with silver and citrine jewelry glinting at her wrists and throat. She wore a wolf’s mantle on her shoulders, the head pulled up over her dark hair so that the ears stuck up over her head. The look in her yellow gaze was less appreciative and more calculating as she surveyed me in a way that made me want to assure her I wasn’t plotting something.
“So the rumors are true,” he said in a rumbling voice that made me think of mountain men and grizzly bears. “Riona Maoilriain, daughter of the Winter King, walks the Unseelie realm once again.”
The name sparked a flash of memory—of sitting in a great hall at a long table filled with darkly beautiful fae, laughing and murmuring to one another over a great feast. I sat just a few paces from the head of the table, where a man with silver hair, pale skin, and ice-blue eyes sat. He wore an antler crown that glittered with diamonds and was dressed in a deep blue tunic embroidered in silver. His ice-blue eyes were warm as he chatted with another fae just a few seats down from his right…the same one I stood before now, who flashed his fangs as he lifted his goblet in a toast.
The vision broke, and I blinked at the man in front of me.
“It is a pleasure to see you again, Chieftain Cano.” The words spilled from my lips without thought, and from the satisfied gleam in Cano’s eyes, I gathered they were the right thing to say. “I hope the Wolf Tribe has fared well.”
“Ah, so you do remember us.” Cano smiled, his fangs glistening in the morning sunlight. “It has been at least seven hundred years since I last saw you in the halls of your esteemed father’s castle.” A shadow briefly dimmed the glint in his yellow eyes. “Back when he was still our king.” He took a breath, allowing an uncomfortable silence to build between us before gesturing beside me with one hand. “My hunting captain, Bran, tells me you are on your way to see your father.”
“I am,” I confirmed, scrambling to keep up the pretense that I knew what I was talking about. “But I have not been to my father’s keep in some time, and I’m afraid I don’t know where he’s relocated.”
“Have you no way to contact him?” the woman behind him asked, a hint of skepticism in her cool tones. “I find it hard to believe the Winter King would leave his daughter without some method of communication.”
“I’m afraid not,” I said, just as coolly. “At least nothing that would survive dying and coming back to life. It has been several hundred years since we’ve last seen each other.”
“Of course,” Cano said before the woman could respond. She snapped her mouth shut in response, her jaw clenching as her angry eyes flitted to him. “Forgive my mother for her suspicions. It is just that we have not spoken to the Winter King or any of his kin in some time. We were allies before he retreated into the Hoarfrost Hills to lick his wounds.”
“Do you know of a way to contact him, then?” I asked, trying to keep the hope out of my voice. “Perhaps as a way to honor that old alliance?”
The chieftain looked at me for a long moment, considering. His mother fr
owned at me over his shoulder, but I didn’t meet her gaze. Instead, I kept my focus on him. The air seemed to grow thick with tension, as if we were holding our collective breath.
Would Cano choose to help me, or would he kick me to the curb?
Chapter 7
It seemed like the whole room were holding their breath, perhaps wondering the same thing I was. But finally, the Wolf Tribe chieftain spoke.
“It has been quite some time since I have spoken to Chieftain Maoilriain,” he said at last, his lips curving into a faint grin. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to see how the curmudgeonly old bastard is doing.”
I held in my sigh of relief as we hashed out the details. Chieftain Cano agreed to contact my father on my behalf, so that I could tell him I was here and hopefully figure out how to get to him, but explained that it wasn’t as simple as making a phone call. My father was very far north from the Wolf Tribe’s territory, and a lengthy spell with a complicated ritual was required. The chieftain’s mother, who was a shaman, would work with some of the tribe elders to set up the ritual, but it would take most of the day.
Not knowing what else to do, I headed back to the solitude of the guest house. I didn’t feel like chatting with the other tribe members just yet—I had a lot on my mind, and I wanted time to sort through my jumbled thoughts and emotions.
I opened the front door to my lodgings, then smiled at the sight of a second tray of food on the table. Next to it was a note from the woman who’d helped me—she told me her name was Milgred, and that if I had need of anything to come and find her. I wasn’t very hungry, but after my time at the Morrigan’s keep, I wasn’t about to turn down food. So I sat down and ate it, pleased to note she’d replaced the bowl of porridge with some kind of mashed, spiced root.
Now that I’d met with the chieftain, I understood why his people had treated me so civilly from the start, despite their suspicions. The Wolf Tribe was an ally of the Winter King, or at least they had been before he retreated from fae society.