“For what?” I said aghast, moving towards Penelope. “She was the one who helped me close the portal and fight the Drakaar.”
“That’s because she was the one who opened it in the first place,” said the Grand Duke. More warriors came into the room to make sure there was no trouble.
I turned to look at Penelope—it couldn’t be true, I didn’t believe it.
“This is ridiculous,” said Penelope, shaking her head. “Why would I let the Drakaar into the palace and poison my own sister?”
“People have done worse things in their quest for a crown,” said the Grand Duke.
Penelope snorted most inelegantly. “You know I don’t care about the crown, Kildaren.”
“People change,” said the Grand Duke of the Night Court. And I realized there was some history behind that look. Penelope must have known Tristan’s father when she lived in Elfi.
Kildaren turned to me. “You are expected at the council meeting today; we will decide what to do with you next.”
“You can’t have a council meeting without my grandmother.”
“Yes, we can,” said the grand duke. “The elders have supported the motion to convene the council today, due to what has happened.” He turned to his guards. “Take Countess Penelope to the dungeons.” He walked out of the room.
“Penelope,” I said, moving closer. “I will speak to the council and tell them you did not do this. I will find the one who did.”
She nodded. But the guards didn’t give me a chance to say anything more as they dragged her out of the room and to the dungeons that lay deep under the Crystal Castle.
* * *
I left Tristan with Cade when the guards came to take me to the council chamber. He still hadn’t woken up, and I needed him by my side right now. I hoped he would recover soon. Rhiannon and my grandmother were gone, and I didn’t know where they were or when they would return. I was alone against the whole fae council. There was no one who would support me now. What were they planning to do to me?
The council chamber was all abuzz when I walked in. Everyone was trying to talk at once and there was no order to the proceedings. Andromeda had arrived and was seated at the head of the table where my grandmother usually sat. Skye stood behind her mother’s chair and I tried to catch her eye, but she looked down. Beside the Grand Duchess of the Day Court, seated on a similar chair, was Kildaren. It looked like they were calling the shots, and the elders didn’t seem to mind.
They made me stand at the foot of the massive table, which depicted the map of Avalonia. All the elders were seated in their places, their faces grave and pale. But I also noticed there were guards stationed all over the room, behind every pillar, in every corner. My grandmother never had guards attending a council meeting. Why were they here?
Andromeda noticed where I was looking. “The guards are here for our protection,” she said with a haughty stare.
She was so full of herself and deluded. If the Drakaar came back, those guards would not stand a chance. Even I could take them out if I wanted to.
“Your grandmother has become weak, more concerned with getting your kingdom back than with doing what is best for Elfi,” Andromeda continued to speak. “But she is still the queen, and poisoning the queen is treason.”
“Penelope did not poison my grandmother,” I said, my hands balled in fists. “You should be looking for the culprit closer to home.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” said the Grand Duchess of the Day Court.
“What I mean,” I said, looking at Skye, “is that the only people near the portal when it opened were Skye and Brianna. Penelope was at the other end of the room.”
“Nonsense. A powerful spirit-fae like Penelope could have easily opened it from across the room.” Andromeda paused and stood up, resting her elegant fingertips on the great wooden table. “Penelope has spent too many years outside Elfi, and we don’t know what she was doing all this time. She is the only one who could be in contact with Morgana and carry out this kind of elaborate plan.”
“What plan?”
“Morgana’s army is camped at the borders of Elfi,” said Andromeda.
“Already?” I gasped. The last I had heard they were still outside Brandor.
“It is not a whole army, but part of it, led by Lucian the Archmage,” said Kildaren. “She has been hiding them secretly in Brandor. The Emirs have given them free passage through their lands.”
I shook my head, unable to think clearly.
“Don’t you think it strange the Drakaar attacked the palace shortly after Penelope came back to Elfi?” Andromeda asked.
My head was whirling. I refused to believe Penelope was working for Morgana. “No, Penelope couldn’t have done this.”
“Foolish girl,” said Andromeda, banging her hand on the table. “Your grandmother is gone. The wards around the kingdom have fallen—only her power was keeping them in place. Rhiannon is not here to reinforce them. That’s all Lucian needs to move his army into Elfi. Soon they will be at the gates of the city.”
Penelope did send Rhiannon with my grandmother. Did she do it to get them out of the way so Lucian could invade Elfi? It made sense, but I knew Penelope, and she was one of the most humble people I had ever met. She was not interested in power. Was that also an act? Penelope had lied to me before and was an expert on disguising her actions and motives. She was a spy, after all—Elfi’s best, my grandmother had said. Would she betray her own sister to take the throne? Would she betray me? It certainly looked like she already had.
The Drakaar had been there for a purpose, to kill me and take the book. But if Penelope was working for Morgana and wanted to kill me, she had had hundreds of chances to do it from the first moment I got to this world. It didn’t make sense; there was a piece of the puzzle missing.
“We have made a deal with Morgana,” Andromeda went on. “She has agreed not to invade Elfi if we give you up to her.”
“What! You can’t trust Morgana, you know it’s not only me she’s after. She wants the Book of Abraxas, and she already has three of the keys. She will destroy Elfi in her search for it.”
“No, she won’t,” Andromeda snapped, looking around at the Elder Council.
Everyone was quiet and let her speak. They had agreed to this already, and none of them stood up for me.
Andromeda looked me straight in the eye. “Because we are going to give her the Book of Abraxas.”
24
The Book of Abraxas
I couldn’t believe she had said that.
“You want to give her the Book of Abraxas?” I repeated. “This is madness! You are condemning the world because you are too scared to fight Morgana.”
The elders were quiet, their immortal faces grave. I glanced back and forth, studying them. They had all resigned themselves to the fact that Morgana had won.
They were giving up.
“Once Morgana has the book and you, she will leave us in peace,” said Andromeda. “The High Fae have never been concerned with the workings of the mage world. Why should we care what happens to them now?”
“You are all blind,” I said, gritting my teeth at their stupidity. “Morgana is a cunning liar—she will use the book to release Dragath from his prison. And when she does, do you think he will leave Elfi alone? Do you think Dragath won’t come back here with the Dark Dagger and finish what he started so many thousands of years ago?”
There was a murmur from the elders as they whispered to their neighbors. The Elder Silias stood up. “When Morgana has you and the book in her possession, she will withdraw her troops from the foothills of the Wildflower Mountains and leave us in peace,” he said. “When and if she releases Dragath, she will be able to control him with the book and will not allow him to attack the fae. Morgana has given us her word.”
They had been taken in by Morgana’s lies. I knew she would not keep her word. She wanted absolute power, and with the Book of Abraxas she would have it. How could they be so blind? My grandmother, Rhia
nnon, and Penelope would never allow them to do this.
And then it hit me.
I looked at Andromeda’s smirk and the face of Tristan’s father and I knew. They had planned this. They poisoned my grandmother so Lucian’s army could come into Elfi. Her son Aiden had taken four fire-fae warriors out of the city that day so there would be less opposition to the Drakaar. They expected me to die at their hands. They blamed it on Penelope so she too would be out of the way. One of them had to have opened the portal. Did Skye know what her mother was truly planning? Was she part of the conspiracy too? I needed proof, or the elders would never believe me.
“When Tristan wakes up, he will never stand for this.” I looked at his father. “Does he know you are planning to give Morgana the book, and give me up as well?”
Kildaren leaned back in his chair, putting his fingertips together. “Tristan is an immortal; soon he will forget you and move on. My family cannot be married into a line of half-breeds,” he sneered. “As for the book, Tristan will understand it is for the good of our kingdom. We cannot stop Morgana from coming here and taking it.”
“I can stop her,” I whispered softly. “I just need more time.”
“There is no more time,” snapped Andromeda. “There is nothing you can do. Your powers may be strong, but they are not strong enough. There is no magic that can stand against her army. Morgana’s troops are already at our borders and more will be coming once the winter snow thaws in the north. We will meet with Lucian at the Gandren Pass in the northern mountains and hand you and the book over to him.”
I tried to get them to listen to reason. “If you want to give me up to her, fine. I’ll go without a fight. But you cannot give her the book.” I looked around at all their pale immortal faces, and I could see the fear in their eyes. “I understand you are scared. But there is a way to make sure she never gets her hands on it.”
Kildaren’s sapphire eyes narrowed. “How?”
“We destroy it,” I said slowly.
Andromeda laughed, and so did some of the elders. “Foolish child. No one can destroy the Book of Abraxas, except Abraxas. And the last time I checked, Abraxas died five thousand years ago in the Demon Wars.”
“No, he didn’t,” I said, shaking my head. “Abraxas is alive. Trapped in a magical prison between worlds.”
Some of the elders gave shaky laughs. Others remained silent.
But the Elder Silias explained slowly, “Abraxas is an Elder Dragon, the most powerful dragon to have ever lived. If he were alive somewhere, there is no one who could summon him. And if they could no one can control him. Dragons are not tame creatures; they look down on most of our kind. The only ones they respect enough to speak to are the dragonlords. And there are no magical bloodlines left that can command an Elder Dragon. Izadora doesn’t have that power and neither do you.”
Andromeda gestured to the guards to come forward. “You are confined to your room for the night so you can prepare yourself for your final journey,” she sneered. “We leave tomorrow. The Gandren Pass is a day’s ride from here.”
The guards came forward to catch my arms.
I glared at them. “Don’t think about touching me if you value your lives,” I growled with all the courage I could muster.
The guards stopped in their tracks and looked at Andromeda for further instructions. They had seen me fight in the grand hall that night, and didn’t look very keen to take me on right now.
“Well,” Andromeda said. “We would rather not have a scuffle here. I’m sure you can walk without assistance.” She snapped her fingers and four more guards came forward. “Escort Princess Aurora to her room. And make sure she stays there. You are lucky I’m not putting you in the dungeons, only because I don’t want you anywhere near that traitor Penelope. So don’t try to do anything stupid and run away—I hear you are quite proficient at that. And don’t think you can create a portal out of your room. The Elder Fae have warded the castle, including the dungeons. Your spirit magic won’t work here anymore. If you do anything to jeopardize this treaty with Morgana, Penelope will die before she ever gets a trial.”
The guards bowed. I didn’t.
I turned on my heel and stormed out of the council chamber. Andromeda was a bitch, but she was clever. And Tristan’s father wanted to get rid of me for obvious reasons. He didn’t think I was good enough for his son. If I could prove they were the ones who poisoned my grandmother, maybe I could convince the Elder Council to stop her from giving over the book.
I wanted to go and see Tristan, but the guards wouldn’t let me—they took me straight to my tower room. I hoped he was okay—at least Cade was with him. I had to get a message to them to tell them what was happening.
I ran up the stairs to my room and slammed the door while the guards formed a barricade at the bottom of the stairs. I sat down on my bed and took a deep breath. I refused to believe Penelope was guilty; she had helped me so many times. If only I could get into the dungeons and speak to her. I had to know for sure she wasn’t behind this.
That night I waited until the castle was asleep. I knew I could not portal myself out of the room, but there was another way. I silently thanked my grandmother for putting me in this specific room, probably the only one that had a secret passage. This time I was not going to run away; this time I was going to make things right.
I crept slowly down the stairs, listening for any sign of the guards, and pushed open the stone door to the secret passage as slowly and quietly as I could. I had to shut it completely behind me. I didn’t want the guards to come up the stairs looking for me only to find the way into the passage. I lit up my hand and a ball of light formed in my palm. Holding it up, I peered down the dark corridor beyond.
I walked forward, my heart hammering in my chest as I passed the crack that looked down to the throne room. No one was there, and my grandmother’s throne sat empty in the vast cold hall. I ventured further down the secret corridor. I wasn’t exactly sure where it went, but today I was going to find out.
Slowly descending into the depths of the mountain, I followed the passage. If I could find a way into the dungeons, I could speak to Penelope and figure out the truth. Finally I reached the end of the corridor—a dead end. I looked for a loose stone, and after moments of searching I found the secret handle. The door groaned slightly and opened as I stepped out into another long dark corridor.
This wasn’t the dungeon. I was back in the catacombs.
This part of the library didn’t have any books, just smooth stone walls and endless dark tunnels cleaved into the depths of the mountain.
“Which way?” I asked the voice in my head, but there was no answer. There was no way of knowing when it would appear. Before this I had tried to contact the voice, but it had been quiet for a while. It only seemed to speak when I was in trouble. I was going to have to find my way to the dungeons on my own.
I was startled by the sound of people talking in the distance. I immediately put out the light in my hand and let my eyes adjust to the darkness. My fae senses became sharper as I moved slowly toward the sound and peered around the corner.
It was a small chamber with two corridors leading out from the other side, running deeper into the catacombs. Andromeda was talking to Skye, surrounded by at least a dozen Day Court guards in blue uniforms with golden stars emblazoned on their chests.
“This is the place,” Andromeda said. “Once I leave with the council and Kildaren to hand Aurora and the book to Lucian, the wards around the castle will be removed. That is when you will open a portal here, bring our army into the city, and take over Iris.”
“But what about the Elite?” asked Skye. “They are loyal to Izadora; even Aiden takes his role as protector of the queen very seriously. Getting rid of Aurora is one thing, that’s the only reason he agreed. But deposing Izadora, I’m not sure how he will react.”
“Aiden will do as I tell him,” Andromeda snapped. “By the time he finds out the truth, Izadora will be dead, and I will
be queen.”
My heart felt heavy. Skye was very much involved in her mother’s plans. I expected this from Aiden but not Skye. I thought she was my friend.
“What about Erik and Tristan? They will never agree to this,” Skye said.
“Erik is gone and Tristan is injured,” Andromeda replied. “None of the other Elite have the guts to oppose me.”
“But Izadora may return at any time once she has recovered, and so will Rhiannon,” Skye insisted.
Andromeda shook her head. “No, they won’t. I have already taken care of it.” Her face contorted with a malevolent smile.
“What have you done now, Mother?”
“I’ve already found out where Rhiannon is hiding Izadora while she recovers,” said Andromeda. “The werewraiths under my control are on their way to finish the job. Izadora is too weak to fight, and Erik cannot take on four packs of werewraiths on his own.”
Skye gasped. “Four packs! Is that necessary? Isn’t poison enough?”
Andromeda shook her head. “There is a reason Izadora is queen. She is too powerful—werewraith poison will not kill her, but the werewraiths can while her magic is too weak to fight back.”
“It will be a bloodbath,” Skye whispered.
Andromeda grinned, as feral as the werewraiths she commanded. “I want to see if Erik is as good as he claims. Let him show us if he can protect his precious queen.”
“This is treason and murder, Mother,” said Skye, still arguing with Andromeda.
“It must be done, Skye,” reasoned the Grand Duchess. “For the good of our kingdom. Izadora and Rhiannon will never agree to give the book to Morgana. This new alliance will save our people from a war we cannot win. Morgana has an army ten times stronger than ours. All we have are insufficient fire-fae warriors, a handful of griffins, and an army consisting of a few hundred High Fae warriors and half-breeds.” She paused. “Morgana has promised her support for my rule. By the time the festival of Ostara arrives, Elfi will have a new queen.”
The Rise of the Dawnstar Page 25