Prisoner of Darkness

by Nissa Leder

  Kaelem needed Scarlett. She had no allegiance to any court, and no one, except perhaps Raith, had an idea of the power she possessed. If Kaelem brought his strongest guards with him, Nevina would be suspicious. No, that wouldn’t work. But if he brought Scarlett under the guise of a date, no one would suspect a thing.

  He wanted to believe Scarlett would help him out of the kindness of her heart, but one moment of indecision could ruin it all. No, he couldn’t have that. She needed motivation.

  He released the invisible glamour he wore and knocked on the door.

  A young blonde woman appeared. She looked much like the mortal-Scarlett Kaelem had met at the Summer Court. Confusion covered her face.

  “Can I help you?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Kaelem said. “Yes, you can.”

  He raised the mirror in his hand and used his magic to pull her inside.

  Chapter Eight

  Scarlett found Kaelem already at the dining table when she went for breakfast. She figured he’d still be asleep, and she didn’t want to walk in on him naked again, so she had come straight to the dining room.

  “Good morning, darling,” Kaelem said.

  A plate filled with French toast topped with strawberries and whipped cream waited for her. Her body was jittery from drinking the night before. It was unlike any mortal hangover she’d ever had—no headache or nausea—but she didn’t quite feel herself, either. She hoped food would help.

  Her memory of the night remained clear. The dancing, Kaelem’s hands on her, and the poisoned man. Kaelem had removed the man’s memory with nearly no visible effort. Could he invade her mind just as easily? The thought alone scared her.

  As she ate, Kaelem spoke. “It is winter in Faerie, and I’ve been invited to attend the Winter Solstice.”

  Scarlett swallowed the food in her mouth. “Is my training already over?”

  She wanted to go home, but she wasn’t sure she was ready. They’d only trained one day, and even though it went well, she didn’t want to risk hurting anyone.

  “I’d like you to come with me, and we can continue your training there. It’s only a few days of celebration.”

  Back to Faerie? The memory of the Battle of Heirs hit her. She’d nearly died. What if Cade found her and finished what he’d try to do before? “No, I don’t want to go back.”

  “I was afraid you might say that.” Kaelem gestured in front of Scarlett where an antique mirror laid on the table.

  Scarlett grabbed the handle and picked it up. At first, she saw her reflection, but it fizzled into a picture of a room, much like Scarlett’s own living room. She wasn’t sure what it meant until she saw movement. Someone, thin and blonde, walked across the image in the mirror.

  Her sister.

  Was it a vision of her sister at home?

  “No,” Scarlett said. “Leave her out of this.”

  Anger boiled inside her. What did he intend to do with her? She couldn’t let Ashleigh get hurt.

  “Keep your cool or you may shatter the mirror.”

  Why would that matter? Unless…

  Ashleigh was inside the mirror, trapped somehow?

  Kaelem nodded.

  Scarlett carefully set the mirror down and took a calming breath. What had he done?

  Betrayal hit her like a rock to the face. She knew not to trust a fae, yet she’d let her guard down enough to grow somewhat fond of Kaelem.

  He winced.

  “Please.” She would plead if that was what it took.

  She’d do anything.

  Scarlett knew he was in her head. She wasn’t hiding her desperation. What would be the point? She had no cards to play.

  “I just need your help.” His eyes met hers. “The Winter Queen has something of mine. Help me get it back, and I’ll release your sister.”

  “The Winter Queen has something of yours, so you decide to take something of mine? Real chivalrous.” Rage blossomed inside Scarlett again.

  A wave of guilt hit Scarlett. Not her own. Was it his? It disappeared before she could examine the thought more closely.

  “We’ll continue your training and, when the time is right, take what I need. I’ll release your sister, make her forget it all, and we can go our separate ways. No harm, no foul.”

  This was Scarlett’s fault. What had she been thinking, trusting Kaelem? What had she been thinking when she went into Faerie in the first place? That was what got her into this mess. If she’d never gone, she’d still be mortal. Her sister would be safe.

  “You were never mortal,” Kaelem said.

  True. She’d just never known about her fae heritage. Was that normal?

  “No, it isn’t,” Kaelem answered her thoughts. “You have too much fae blood in you to have never had any power. Someone somehow hid your power.”

  Hid my power?

  “Maybe it was your father.” He shrugged. “Someone didn’t want you—or, presumably, anyone else— to know about your abilities.”

  Scarlett didn’t have time to worry about some long-lost relative who had abandoned her. Not when her sister was trapped in a magical mirror. “What does the Winter Queen have that’s so important to you?”

  Kaelem’s face remained still. “That’s my concern.”

  He trapped her sister and forced Scarlett to help him, and he wouldn’t tell her why? Prick.

  Kaelem laughed. “We have fun together. It won’t be so bad.”

  “Once we get whatever it is back, you promise you’ll release her and let her go free, never trapping her again.” Scarlett hoped the agreement was precise enough.

  “Yes, if that’s what you want.”

  Scarlett held her hand out. Kaelem shook it.

  The energy of a fae bargain flowed through Scarlett.

  As Kaelem released her hand, Lola entered the dining room with more footsteps following behind her. “Another visitor.”

  “Again?” Kaelem sounded annoyed.

  Scarlett didn’t think the day could get much worse, but boy was she wrong.

  Cade stepped around from behind Lola.

  Shock poured from Cade when he saw Scarlett sitting there, an arm’s reach away from the Unseelie King.

  She hadn’t died. She’d survived. Why was she there, with Kaelem of all people?

  From behind him, Cade felt Poppy’s confusion through the bond. She was there as his guard, just as she had requested. He’d asked her to choose someone else to join them, and she’d picked Jaser. Cade hadn’t understood why, but Poppy assured him Jaser was a top-notch soldier and was the best for the job.

  Jaser kept his emotion held tight. Cade couldn’t sense if he was surprised at the sight, or if he’d known Scarlett had made it out of the battle alive.

  Cade regrouped his emotion. He was there on business, and he was a king now. He needed to be composed.

  “The new Summer King and his posse,” Kaelem said and he sat in the chair at the head of the table.

  Scarlett’s face was a mask of indifference as she sat in the chair closest to Kaelem. Her dark hair was pulled into a bun high on her head.

  Kaelem gestured to the other side of the table. “Please, sit.”

  Cade obliged, Poppy and Jaser each sitting to one of his sides.

  This was where the king of the Unseelie Court lived? How awful. It was far too much like the mortal world for Cade’s liking, but what did he expect from the Unseelie? The Court of Darkness, it was called. Who would want to remain in a world of night?

  Cade enjoyed feeding on human emotion, but he’d never want to live among them. Though the Unseelie Court was magically secluded from wandering humans, its presence in the mortal world was undeniable.

  “Welcome to the Unseelie Court,” Kaelem said.

  “I’m here to discuss relations between our courts.” Cade straightened his spine. The sooner the meeting finished, the better. He fought the urge to stare at Scarlett, still bewildered by her presence.

  “I just don’t think of you that way,” Kaelem said.
“Other options strike my fancy.” He winked at Scarlett, whose cheeks reddened.

  Cade clenched his teeth. Had Scarlett moved on to the Unseelie King now?

  “Kaelem only wishes,” Scarlett chimed.

  Cade’s mouth relaxed. “We’ve had a long period of peace between all the fae courts. I’d like it to stay that way.”

  Kaelem rested his elbows on table. “I see no reason the Unseelie Court would want anything different at this time.”

  Scarlett folder her hands in her lap, her stare burning into Cade. She was alive. He couldn’t deny the relief he felt. She must have known where Raith was. If Cade still felt the bond with Poppy, Scarlett would still be connected to Raith.

  Cade felt for her aura. The scent of mortal no longer drifted from her. No, somehow, she’d become fae. Had Kaelem rescued her? That would violate the agreement between courts. He wasn’t to enter the battlefield during the Battle of Heirs. No, Cade had seen Kaelem with the other spectators. Even an Unseelie King couldn’t be two places at once.

  Scarlett had always been beautiful, but as a fae, she was stunning. Her porcelain, peach skin was as smooth as glass with not a single blemish, and her bright blue eyes illuminated her now fae beauty.

  “She is quite lovely,” Kaelem purred.

  Shit. Cade yanked up his mental shields. He’d been careless and dropped them. As king, he couldn’t afford such sloppy mistakes.

  “Thank you for your time.” Cade stood. He should get out of there before he did anything else wrong. So much for looking strong in front of the Unseelie King. Better to mess up here than at the Seelie Court, though.

  “Will we be seeing you at the Winter Solstice?”

  “We?” Cade glanced at Scarlett again. Annoyance emanated from her.

  “Yes, Scarlett has agreed to be my date.” Kaelem smirked.

  “Then I suppose we’ll see you both soon.”

  Without another word, Cade left the room, Poppy and Jaser right behind.

  His trip to the Seelie Court would have to wait.

  Chapter Nine

  Every muscle in Raith’s body burned, an inextinguishable fire of pain. Heaviness weighed on his eyes.

  Surely, he was in hell. He’d never given death much thought, but he could think of nothing other than the flames torching his nerves.

  “Shhh,” a voice said, soft and warm, female but unfamiliar.

  It would be fitting if his devil were a woman. Raith chuckled, sending a ricochet of agony through him.

  Raith dozed in and out of consciousness, always too tired to open his eyes. The burning continued, slowly dulling.

  Coldness pressed onto his forehead. The female voice from earlier said, “Your fever is breaking. You’ll feel better soon.”

  Raith searched his memory. How’d he get here? He’d been in the forest, searching for the Autumn Court. An image of a silver wolf flashed in his mind. Its pack had attacked him.

  He reached to his side. A hand grabbed his and squeezed, gently placing his arm on his stomach.

  “Careful, the wound is still healing,” the woman said.

  Who was she?

  Raith’s eyes flickered.

  A young woman leaned over him. Firelight brightened one side of her face. Her copper hair hung down past her chest as her light green eyes widened. She wiped his face with the cool cloth in her hand.

  Raith tried to push himself up, but his body was too heavy.

  The woman placed her hand on his heart. “You need more rest.”

  “Where am I?” His voice was scratchy, as if he hadn’t spoken in quite some time.

  From what Raith could see, they were in a circular room surrounded by stone walls. He laid on a bed of some sort, soft under his back.

  “A cave I’ve been staying in,” she said.

  “Who are you?”

  “Aren’t you the inquisitive one?” Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. “I’m Sage. And who are you?”

  “Raith,” he said.

  “Hello, Raith,” Sage said. “Now, please tell me you aren’t a murderer. I’d hate to have saved the life of a murderer.”

  Raith’s mouth curved in a half smile. “And will you kill me if I am?”

  Sage’s eyebrow lifted. “I’d hear you out first. If you murdered someone to avenge the death of your lover, I may let it slide.”

  “I’ll make it easy, then. No murderers here.”

  “I never said anything about me not being the murdering kind.” Sage laughed. “But you can relax, I’m not. Though I shot that silver wolf in such an awful spot he may have wished I’d killed him.”

  Raith chuckled, sending a stabbing pain into his side. He lifted his head just enough to peek at the cause of his grief. A nasty bruise covered the right side of his abdomen where teeth had pierced his skin.

  It wasn’t the wound that shocked Raith, though. It was what he was wearing, or more specifically, what he wasn’t wearing: clothes. He protected a particular area with his hands.

  He’d been with women before and was never embarrassed by nudeness, but he’d been intimate with them. All he knew about Sage was her name and that she probably wasn’t a murderer.

  And that she wasn’t Scarlett.

  Sage giggled. “Now, now, don’t be so modest. It’s nothing I’ve never seen before.”

  Raith looked to her again, but didn’t move his hands.

  “Plus, as impressive as you might be to some, that,” she pointed to what he was covering, “isn’t what I’m looking for.”

  Panic struck Raith. Was something wrong with it? Had the wolf bit more than his side? He struggled with moving his hands to look or keeping them in place to protect it from her view.

  “Relax, nothing happened. I’m just not into men. No offense.”

  Raith’s muscles softened, but he kept his hands in place. “You…”

  “Like women, yes.” Sage smirked. “Since it looks like you’re still uncomfortable, I’ll go and get your clothes. They were drenched in blood, so I washed them.”

  Raith got a better view of Sage as she left the cave. She wore a leather fighting dress, covered in bronze-plated armor, with matching brown boots that reached just below her knee. He’d heard of female Autumn Court warriors, but he’d never met one. They were rumored to live together in a colony they never left.

  She returned with a bundle of clothing in her hand. “The pants and shoes are all right. The shirt, on the other hand, isn’t much of a shirt anymore.” She dangled it in front of her. The whole bottom half was barely connected.

  Raith took the pants. “These will do.”

  Sage stared at him. “Oh, come on. I’ve already seen you naked.”

  “Yes, well, I was unconscious then.”

  Why did it bother him so much? It wasn’t like him to care about something as mundane as nudity. He would have jumped at the chance for an attractive woman to want to see him naked, though he’d have preferred her been into guys, not girls. But he had plenty of three-some fantasies that Sage would fit into perfectly.

  Someone else had that part of his mind now.

  Sage rolled her eyes and groaned, but turned away and dug through a bag on the ground.

  Raith carefully sat up. The wound stung, but he did his best to ignore it. Thankfully, the waistline of his pants was a few inches below the bite marks. Even if the shirt had been wearable, he would have left it off. Just the thought of cloth hitting the wound sent a shiver through Raith.

  His ankle had been torn into as well when that bastard wolf tricked him into trying to run. It better hope Raith never saw it again.

  Sage went to the other side of the cave where a fire burned. She held something over the fire with a stick. Behind her, the cave’s entrance opened to the light outside. Raith closed his eyes and took in the sounds. Nearby, water rushed over rocks. An owl hooted further in the distance.

  A few minutes later, she asked, “Am I safe to look now?”

  “Yep.”

  She turned around with a plate in
her hand. “You should eat.” She handed it to him.

  It had some sort of meat on it, along with a chopped-up potato and piece of fruit.

  “It’s not gourmet,” she added. “But it should help you regain some energy.”

  “It’s great, thank you.” Raith scarfed it down. He felt as if he hadn’t eaten in days. “How long was I out?”

  “Almost a week.”

  That long? Shit. Raith had wanted to find answers quick and get back to the Unseelie Court to find Scarlett. Even though time moved faster in Faerie, he’d been gone over a day in the mortal world. He didn’t trust Kaelem with Scarlett. “I need to go.” When he stood, a head rush made him waver.

  “You’re in no condition to go anywhere yet.” Sage linked her arm with his and helped him sit back down. “You’re lucky to even be awake already.”

  “Why am I healing so slowly?” As a fae, he should have already healed, especially with his royal Summer blood.

  “You were bit by a shifter. Their bites are venomous.”

  If Raith saw that dirty wolf again, he’d be sure to break its neck. It was lucky Raith was caught off guard. Next time, Raith wouldn’t be such easy prey. “How long until it’s better?”

  “I’m not sure,” Sage said. “I used some herbal remedies and magic, but without the anti-venom, it will take some time. You’re already healing faster than anyone I’ve ever seen.”

  “You’re an Autumn Court fae?” Raith asked.

  A flash of concern flickered across her face. “Yes.”

  “I’m a Summer fae.” He hoped she wouldn’t kick him out because of it. As far as he knew, the Summer and Autumn Courts were cordial enough. “Well, I was. I’m a bit of a nomad now.”

  Sage tilted her head. “Summer, huh?”

  “Is that bad?”

  “No, not at all. I’ve never met a Summer fae.”

  “Lucky you.”

  Kaelem had told Raith to go to the Autumn Court for answers. Raith hadn’t made it to the castle yet, but he was with an Autumn fae. He should learn what he could while he healed.