“Got it,” Mel said.
Folas stepped over to Devdan. “Same goes for you. You guard the door outside Princess Aerith’s chamber at night. You and Mel will switch posts after dinner. King Liri hosts many late-night balls, which means you will be responsible for keeping an eye on the princess during the parties. Just don’t hover too close.” He narrowed his eyes in warning.
“I’m going to miss the balls and parties?” Mel bellyached, showing her first true frown of concern.
“Need I remind you that you are not here to participate in the revelries?” Folas snapped. “Your only concern should be for Princess Aerith’s safety.”
My body felt as though it might float away. As though I weren’t really here. As though I were dreaming.
It all felt so wrong. I was the big sister. I was the one who should be looking out for Mel’s safety, not the other way around.
I didn’t even have the energy to summon up anger when Devdan clasped my sister’s hands, leaned his forehead near hers, and told her to be safe.
Now he was looking out for her? The snake? I’d only been gone three days, but it felt like months.
Once Devdan was dismissed and dragged his feet reluctantly down the hall, I latched on to Mel’s arm and pulled her into my room, shooting Folas with a warning glare. I didn’t care what he’d said about Mel standing outside in the hall. I slammed my door in his face.
Whirling around, I found my sister not beside me where I’d expected but already on her way to the double doors leading to the next apartment.
She whistled. “Look at this place. It’s massive!”
As she disappeared into the adjoining room, I ran after her, calling, “Mel! Stop for one sec, will you?”
She stood waiting inside the sitting room. When I walked in, she launched herself at me, giving me a quick hug before stepping back, head already lifted to take in the chandelier and painted mural of the sky with fluffy white clouds covering the ceiling.
“This is fancy,” she said wistfully.
It wasn’t the dungeons, but I might as well have been a prisoner. I placed my hands on my hips. “Care to explain what you’re doing here?”
Mel lowered her head and almost looked at me until she noticed the open double doors leading into the dressing chamber. Her mouth hung open. “There’s another room?” She took a step toward it.
“Mel! Stop!”
She turned and smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, first time in a castle. I was so worried about you when I woke up and saw your covers tossed aside and dagger on the floor. Luckily, Master Brygwyn and Keerla came right over and helped me figure it out. Well, it was mostly Brygwyn. That weird fever I got was my fire magic trying to warn me about the blondie twins. They stopped me outside the market, and I’m guessing they followed me home.”
“What did they want?” I asked.
Mel’s eyes darted around the room, avoiding mine. She sighed and hung her head. “They were interested in the diamond choker I was selling. I’m sorry, Aerith, I had no idea who they were or that they were even Fae.”
My hand floated to my neck, fingers skimming my throat at the not-so-distant memory of Folas and Galather collaring me in the dead of the night and whisking me away against my will. Bastards, both of them. Two rotten peas in a pod.
I sighed. “They probably would have found me at some point. Liri doesn’t give up so easily.”
“He’s totally obsessed with you,” Mel said with a grim nod.
My eyes sharpened on her, taken aback at the understanding in her tone.
“That’s why Dev and I are here,” Mel continued. “To break you free and take you back to Pinemist, but I’m beginning to think we might need to do more than leave. If Liri’s going to come right back after you, we might have to . . . you know.” Mel drew her finger across her throat in a slicing motion.
Alarm screeched through my ears, a silent deafening pulse. I didn’t remember stepping in front of Mel, only feeling her arms in my hands as I squeezed. “You cannot speak of such things here,” I hissed. “Do you understand? Don’t even think it. The wrong look can give your thoughts away.”
For once Mel’s full attention was on me, but her concern appeared to be directed at my mental health rather than the dangers of scheming against a Fae king. I had no doubt my expression looked half-crazed, but this situation was far more treacherous than anything we’d ever been through. For so many years we’d lived in fear—or rather, I had. I’d feared creditors would take away the last of our possessions, humiliate our family in front of our neighbors. Anxiety over losing our home had kept me tossing and turning all night.
But this fear, right now, was about something more final. If Mel crossed Liri, he’d end her. He might spare her life on my account but only to lock Mel away in the dungeons, a fate worse than death for a spirited female such as herself.
“Then what’s the plan?” Mel asked. She glanced over her shoulder at my campaigne board then back to me. “I’m sure you’ve already formulated one. How can I help?”
I released her with a sigh. The only plan I’d come up with so far was to stay on Liri’s good side, while keeping him always at a distance, and convince him it was hopeless to ever expect he’d win my heart.
I doubted very much Mel would be impressed with my plan. I wasn’t even enthused by it. If anything, Liri behaved as though things were going wonderfully and that we were somehow a team.
It could be years before he grew frustrated.
It could be forever.
I neither had years nor forever to give him. And I now had Mel to think about. And Devdan.
“How is it that Devdan is here?” I asked, recalling his soft gaze on my sister. “Did the two of you—?” I let my question hang.
Mel squinted for a moment before realization hit. “Ew, no,” she said, nose wrinkling. “We’re friends. Well, maybe more than friends.” A sheepish grin curved her lips.
I huffed and put my hands on my hips. “I’ll deal with him later.”
At least they wouldn’t be spending their nights together. I hated how little control I had over my life, and now my sister’s, which rekindled my loathing for Liri.
“Be nice to him,” Mel said. “Devdan’s never been outside of Pinemist, and now he’s come all the way to Faerie to help.”
“Certainly not on my account,” I said gruffly.
“I told you we’re close friends, and friends help each other out. You still haven’t told me your plan.” Mel leaned forward expectantly.
With her long blue coat, flaming red hair, and sword at her side, Mel looked like the kind of warrior elf no one would want to mess with. But she wasn’t invincible. She thought she was, which put her in further danger.
My job was to protect her by any means necessary. It appeared my hand had been forced.
“I will be the one to do it,” I said without emotion, my eyes glazing over.
“Be the one to—oh.” Mel slid her finger over her throat again. When I didn’t confirm or reprimand her, she lowered her hand. “Are you sure?”
I nodded, and the motion made me feel nauseous as dread tightened inside my stomach.
The jeweled dagger that Hensley had found for me was now tucked beneath my mattress. I’d wanted it for protection, never suspecting I’d need it for killing. I’d hunted deer, fowl, and rabbits in Brightwhisk Forest, killed to feed my family but never had it been an assassination. I didn’t know if I had it in me.
What other option did I have?
Marry Liri?
I’d rather die than be his bedmate, his queen.
Scratch that.
I’d rather he die.
Candlelight illuminated my dressing chamber shortly after the late sun had set. Shadows bloomed over my face like bruises in the mirror above my vanity as Hensley brushed my hair in rhythmic strokes.
She’d barely spoken more than a sentence since arriving at my chambers after dinner. Ever since learning the news of her impending engagement to Ryo, sh
e’d become melancholy.
When I’d first told her of Liri’s decision, her eyes had widened in horror. She’d tried to school her expression even after I told her she was safe to show her true feelings around me. But she’d bowed her head and claimed it was an honor to serve the Elmray family however King Liri saw fit.
Tonight Liri would officially announce the union between Ryo and Hensley at an engagement ball. His aunt, Queen Naesala of Ravensburg, had reportedly arrived that afternoon to attend, despite her deep-seated hatred for Liri, who had killed her favorite nephew and brother. She’d blamed me as well when she’d arrived shrouded in a black gown and veil for Cirrus’s funeral at the palace. As far as I knew, this was her first visit since then. I wasn’t keen to catch up on old times with the prickly queen.
Although Hensley was to be the lady of the hour, she still attended to me like the most devoted servant. Who would fill her shoes after she married Ryo? I hoped I wasn’t around long enough to find out. I didn’t want either of us to. It was more imperative than ever to steal Hensley away from Dahlquist, but now I also had my sister to worry about.
Routine seemed to be the only thing keeping Hensley calm. Conversation certainly did not. I had my own dire thoughts to occupy my mind as Hensley swept my hair up over my bare shoulders.
How to kill Liri?
First, I wanted to convince him to send my sister and Devdan back to Pinemist. Otherwise, I’d worry too much about their safety. They could be punished for my actions. After they were safe, I’d need a new ally. Perhaps Queen Naesala? Would she be more inclined to help me leave Faerie if I avenged the deaths of her brother and nephew?
I chewed on my lip. Seemed too risky. But I would need to flee Dahlquist and find a high Fae, or one of their guardians, willing to transport me back to the elven realm. There were plenty of jewels lying around my chambers with which to entice a guardian.
I glanced in the mirror at Hensley, afraid my intentions were written all over my face, but her deep frown and absent gaze as she pinned my hair made her look as though her mind had wandered a realm away.
The changing of the guards had occurred an hour earlier, leaving Devdan outside in the hall. Unlike my sister, he was not welcome inside my chambers. I’d wanted to reprimand him for going against my wishes to stay away from Mel. More than that, I’d wanted to shake him for failing to prevent her from diving headfirst into Faerie. But Hensley had arrived, and any kind of scolding would only echo off the stone walls. I had no authority here, and I was sick to death of it.
“You look as beautiful as ever, Princess Aerith.”
Hensley’s soft voice startled me. In her silence, I’d practically forgotten she stood behind me. I glanced in the mirror at my updo as Hensley held a second mirror behind me. Sapphire encrusted combs glittered from a soft, wispy twist at the back of my head. They matched the rich blue of my gown.
I stood up and turned around. “You look beautiful as well.”
Hensley set the mirror down and smiled weakly. She looked the part of a princess-to-be in a light-yellow gown layered in ruffles down a wide skirt. A tight bodice accented her slender waist, and thin sleeves draped off her shoulders. A sunstone plunged between the valley of her breasts. Her brown hair was swept up and entwined with golden laurel leaves. She looked stunning, but I understood the depths of her anguish. I’d felt it right before marrying Cirrus—that sense that I was giving up my life but there was no turning back.
If I dispatched Liri in time, perhaps I could save Hensley from the same fate I’d been forced into nearly two years ago.
Before we reached my door, Hensley stopped, her eyes expanding in panic.
“It will be okay,” I tried to reassure her, but she shook her head.
“I am not worthy to marry a prince.”
As unjustified as it was, it made sense that a human would feel this way about marrying a royal Fae, but Hensley had it all wrong.
“Ryo’s the one who doesn’t deserve you,” I said, not hiding the disgust from my tone.
Hensley’s eyes grew wider, but the hint of a smile twitched over her lips. “You shouldn’t say such things.”
“I’m a princess. I can say whatever I wish,” I said with more confidence than I felt. “And the same will soon go for you.” Hopefully not, but if it did, Hensley needed to own it.
“No—I could never,” Hensley sputtered.
I put my arm around her. “Yes, you can. If they want to use you, it’s only fair you take advantage in every possible way. The only reason I’m a princess is because I married into the Elmray family. You’re doing the same.” I offered what I hoped was a comforting smile.
This time, Hensley returned it. Her entire body appeared to relax, and her head lifted a little higher.
When I opened my door, Devdan’s eyes immediately landed on mine, but there was nothing of the haughty male from Pinemist. His brows pinched together with worry. Begrudgingly, I had to admit Devdan appeared to have more sense than my sister.
I wondered if she’d whispered anything to him in passing of my plan to end Liri. I hoped she’d been wiser than that. The more a secret was shared, the more chances it had of being discovered—even when keeping it to trusted individuals.
Devdan didn’t utter a word, doing as Folas had instructed, following behind Hensley and me as we swept down the hall toward the ballroom.
I would have delayed our arrival, but Hensley had been firm about readying ourselves in time for punctual attendance.
Orchestra music played, filling the room with more notes than guests. The few gathered groups were older Fae who openly stared at Hensley and didn’t bother to lower their voices as they expressed their censure at such an unseemly arrangement between a Fae prince and human girl. The music drowned out some of their words, but their dirty looks conveyed their thoughts as though they were shouting them directly into Hensley’s rounded ears.
Her cheeks flushed, and she took a step back. “You were right. We should have waited.”
I grabbed her arm, anchoring her in place. “We’re here now. You can’t show any fear. You’re no longer a lady-in-waiting. You’re betrothed to a prince.”
Hensley swallowed and looked at me. “How did you do it, Aerith?”
I lifted my nose, casting a bored look around the room, staring down any eyes that met mine. “I stopped caring,” I said. I gave in. I kept that last part to myself.
“You make it sound so easy,” Hensley said wistfully. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s more difficult because I’m human. I’m too sensitive. Emotional. Flawed.”
I snorted and shook my head. “Believe me, all beings are flawed. Some just mask it better than others. You’ll get there.” I patted her arm in reassurance.
Hensley’s lower lip quivered. “I don’t want to become numb.”
I looked at her sadly, hoping she wouldn’t lose herself the way I had—hoping I could prevent that future from ever coming to pass.
“Just look at her,” a cruel female voice floated over the notes of the symphony. “No human should be allowed to marry a Fae, let alone bind herself to a prince. This union is a travesty.”
Hensley turned abruptly. I worried she’d make another attempt to flee, but this time she rushed over to the refreshment table and grabbed a flute of sparkling wine before one could be handed to her. The servants didn’t look as eager to serve her as they had me.
Hensley had gulped down half the wine by the time I reached her. When I tried to snatch the flute away, she turned from me and downed the remainder of the bubbling liquid.
“I thought you didn’t want to be numb,” I chided.
“I already feel numb,” Hensley said. “I need something to liven me up.” She grabbed another flute.
“Er, maybe you should hold off on the faerie wine,” I said, recalling my own unfortunate evening imbibing on the delicious sparkling beverage. As a human, Hensley’s tolerance would be even less than mine.
Hensley’s lips paused on the rim of the flu
te. She lowered it and cast a wistful look my way. “I wish I had your courage, Aerith. I just need a little more help getting out of my own head.” At least she sipped rather than gulped down the second glass.
“It’s not worth it,” I said, narrowing my eyes at the flute.
When a servant offered me a glass, I turned it down.
After finishing her second flute, Hensley picked up a third.
“Hensley!” I scolded.
Her cheeks were already red, and the ball had yet to officially commence. “It’s just to hold on to,” she said defensively.
I was going to have to keep an eye out for her. Well, I was used to spending my evenings in that capacity in Faerie. It’s not as though I had anything better to do.
The ballroom began to fill, and more and more disapproving looks were aimed at Hensley. Many times, the malevolent glances slid from her to me. Every five minutes I felt tempted to grab my own glass of bubbling wine to hold and sip. I’d learned my lesson. I would be careful and only take a few sips this time. No. I smacked the thought away and held out, unlike Hensley who’d polished off her third glass, taking sips when I wasn’t looking. It wasn’t until all the guests had arrived that the trumpets sounded and the royal family entered, following behind Liri and his aunt, Queen Naesala, whom he escorted on his arm. I was glad to be by Hensley’s side and not part of their entourage.
I stood on tiptoes and craned my head for a better glimpse of Queen Naesala. She was reportedly in her thirty-eighth year, but she looked ten years younger. Her fair skin was flawless, blonde hair as light and airy as a lazy summer’s day. Tonight she’d dressed in a red gown that clung to her body like paint—or blood. I chewed on my bottom lip, trying to determine if the color was a sign of revenge to come.
I wouldn’t put it past her. The Fae loved to play mind games that kept others anxiously speculating.
Rather than a crown, Queen Naesala wore a golden headband with a ruby teardrop in the center of her forehead. Liri wore a half crown of silver that spiked out from his ears to the back of his head. His fitted tunic glimmered dark gray and metallic silver, his white hair brushed back silky smooth and straight.
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