A Song of Shadows

by Jenna Wolfhart

  “No. You’ve seen these Hunters and how they’ve reacted. It doesn’t matter what she can do. She’ll always be a changeling to them.”

  “I can hear you, you know,” I called out just before we strode into the hall.

  A part of me felt as though I should be angry that they were trying to discuss me without me knowing, but I was certain they’d been doing that long before now. Besides, it wasn’t anything I didn’t already know. Rourke thought I was some kind of gift from the realm because of my varied powers and that the Courts would rally behind me. Liam, on the other hand, knew the gritty truth of it. Changelings, while fae, while born here, were Other to most of those who called this world home. They would only rally behind someone they would truly consider a Queen.

  And a Queen I was most certainly not.

  As we strode into the hall, Phelan glanced up from where he still stood hovering over the map. I wondered if he had moved at all while we’d been gone, or had he merely stood there, endlessly pushing his wooden pieces around, trying combination after combination, never able to solve the puzzle of the war.

  “They said you were on your way.” He pointed at the map. “Show me what the Autumn Court plans to do.”

  Wordlessly, I strode over to the map, right past the territory markers that belonged to the Autumn fae. Instead, I grabbed the block that represented the Sprint Court and shoved it across the table and into the Winter lands.

  Frowning, Phelan glanced up and met my gaze. “What’s the meaning of this? Did you not learn anything at all? My guards said you found the stone and went into the Autumn Court where you overheard the Queen in discussion about the war.”

  “I did.” I gave a nod and met his gaze. “The Spring Court plans to invade the Winter Court two mornings from now. After they lose, which they will, Autumn will retaliate against weakened Winter forces.”

  He grunted. “That is very unlikely.”

  “Well, as unlikely as it is, that’s what I heard,” I said. “The Spring fae are going to war.”

  Phelan frowned down at his map before glancing at each of his fellow Hunters in turn. “This is certainly not what we expected to hear, but I cannot deny it’s valuable information. If the Spring Court goes to war with Winter, then the entire landscape of Otherworld could be changed. I think it’s clear what we need to do. We need to inform the Winter Court that they’re coming.”

  “What?” Liam strode forward, his hands fisted by his sides. “Now, wait a minute. While I agree that something must be done, I’m not certain provoking the Winter Court is the right course of action.”

  “Provoking them?” Phelan laughed. “I daresay it is the Spring Court that is doing the provoking. The Winter Court should know what is coming for them.”

  Liam huffed out an irritated sigh and whirled toward Rourke. “A little help here?”

  “Phelan, you cannot do this. For once, I find myself agreeing with my Summer friend here,” Rourke said coolly. “Spring fae, notoriously, do not like fighting. I’m sure there must be some sort of explanation for this, which means they could be reasoned with. I think the far better approach would be to go to them directly for a reasoned discussion. If you warn the Winter Court, this situation will only end in more bloodshed.”

  “Well, lucky for me, this is my decision and not yours.” Phelan lifted his eyes from the table and flicked his fingers at what I had thought was a dark and empty corner in the room. Instead, it turned out to be where Alastar was stationed, along with a handful of other Hunters. Alastar’s red eyes flicked to mine, and they sparked with furious fire.

  “Alastar, please take our guests to their new quarters and lock the doors. They’re not to go in or out unless accompanied. They may join us for dinner, if they wish, but if they make too much trouble for you, then they can enjoy eating in their rooms alone.”

  Alastar and his men quickly surrounded us, and I whirled in a circle as they grabbed our arms in their tight grips. Liam’s face was a mask of rage while Rourke’s eyes were nothing but pure ice.

  “Phelan,” Rourke said in his quiet, deadly voice. “What’s the meaning of this?”

  “Surely you of all people would understand, Rourke?” Phelan asked, crossing his massive arms over his chest. “You’re not one of those fae who is driven by emotion but by logic and calculation.”

  “You’re keeping us here so we don’t go warn the Spring fae,” Rourke said, his voice dripping with derision. “But why?”

  “No. Think harder.” Phelan shook his head with a laugh. “Your changeling is valuable to me. With both the Autumn and the Spring Courts going rogue, we’re much better off with a Greater Fae who can weave in and out of shadows. We can use her to plan all of our moves in this war. We’ve already lost all our Royals. I will take any advantage I can get.”

  “Well, good luck with that,” I said, lifting my chin. “Because you can keep me here all you like, but I won’t help you ever again. Not after this.”

  He let out another chuckle. “Why do you think we’re keeping Rourke and Liam as well?” The smile vanished from his face. “You’ll do what we ask, or we’ll kill them.”

  “Something doesn’t smell right.” Liam paced from one end of the small squat room to the other. He’d already walked the same path about a hundred times since they’d thrown us in this little make-shift cell, and I was starting to think he’d wear a hole in the floor.

  “Yes, and it’s Phelan.” Rourke leaned against the wall with his arms lazily crossed over his chest, but the clench of his jaw gave the truth about his feelings away. He was pissed. “Taking leadership of the Summers has obviously gone to his head.”

  “It’s not just that.” Liam stopped to grab the bedpost and squeeze it tight in his fists. “It’s the way he went about it. It’s almost like he wants the Spring Court to attack the Winter fae, but that doesn’t make any sense.”

  “Summer fae,” Rourke said with a slight eye roll. “They’re not logical.”

  “Well, regardless, I think we should get the hell out of here,” I said, standing and swiping one hand against the other as if I were dusting off the very presence of the Summer fae. “He can go warn the Winter Court all he wants, and we’ll just go talk to Spring ourselves.”

  Rourke lifted an eyebrow. “And how, pray tell, do you anticipate getting through that locked door?”

  Phelan and his Hunters hadn’t taken us down to his dungeons. We were his prisoners, but he seemed inclined to make our stay as comfortable as possible. We weren’t enemies so much as we were fae he wanted to control. Instead, he’d put us in a section of the hall where two bedrooms were connected together, along with a bathroom that held a claw-footed tub. There were windows in each one, but they’d been blocked off. The doors were locked, and I was guessing there was at least one Hunter stationed outside.

  Obviously, we couldn’t shift in or out of this place, but there were plenty of other options when it came to magic. So, I filled the males in on the plan. At first, they both looked skeptical, but over time, I managed to convince them it would work.

  Now, we just needed to wait for the right time. We needed darkness.

  At some point in the middle of all the waiting, I drifted off to sleep. When I awoke, I found myself in the master bed—alone. Glancing around, I spotted Liam stationed by the door while Rourke had decided to take a nap in the other room.

  Quietly, I slid out from under the covers. One of them must have carried me here and tucked me up into bed. The thought of it, such a sweet and tender move, made my heart throb. One moment, they could be the tough and violent fae males that they all were. The next, they were making sure I was covered with fluffy blankets.

  I tiptoed over to Liam’s side and eased onto the chair next to his. With the blacked-out windows, it was impossible to tell what time it was, but it must have been hours later. Almost time.

  Liam jerked his head toward where Rourke was sleeping. “I never pegged an Autumn as a gentleman, but he refused to get into your bed witho
ut you knowing.”

  I blushed. “That’s sweet.”

  “Not as sweet as the way you look when you’re blushing.” He reached out a finger, traced it along my skin. I shivered. “Before we do this, there’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.”

  My heart thumped. “What is it?”

  “I think we need to determine who your parents are,” he said quietly. “Your powers are…impressive, to say the least. I think the realm needs you, Norah. They’ll especially need you if there’s another battle between Courts.”

  “I…” I didn’t know what to say. “I’m just a changeling. They wouldn’t stand behind me, no matter who my parents are. Rourke said none of the couples that year had any ties to Marin. In fact, he said no one has ties to her. Not anymore. All her family is dead.”

  Liam frowned and shook his head. “Yes, but there must be more to the—”

  The murmur of voices drifted through the door, and Liam suddenly fell silent. He caught my eyes and nodded, jumping up from his chair to wake Rourke. With a deep breath, I edged closer to the window. It was boarded up and blocked off, but it would normally have a view of the courtyard. The courtyard where the horses were kept.

  I had no idea if my plan would work. Still, it was worth a shot.

  “Fly free,” I whispered into the silence.

  In the distance, the whining and neighing of horses cut through the night. Hooves pounded on the ground, louder and louder until it sounded like the thunder of those terrible storms. Shouts of alarm echoed down the hallway outside our quarters, and footsteps thudded on the floor. Rourke and Liam listened at the door for the sounds to grow distant.

  The Summer fae would try to stop the horses from escaping. I hoped they would fail.

  Rourke and Liam pounded at the door, shoving their massive bodies against the wood. The noise was drowned out by the chaos outside, and the repeated thumps did little to draw any guards back to our hall. In moments, we’d escaped our room. We rushed down the hallway in the opposite direction of the charging horses. Soon, we were out in the night, running as fast as our feet could take us.

  Three large forms thundered in front of us, blocking our way. We came to a sudden stop, our breaths heavy, our hearts racing. My gaze locked on the deep brown eyes of the horse I’d saved from the Wilde Fae. It bent its head and shifted to the side, as if in invitation for me to climb on.

  I gaped at the horse. I hadn’t asked for it to come to me, and I certainly hadn’t commanded it to do a thing.

  “Come on, Norah,” Liam said hurriedly as he glanced over his shoulder. “I think they’ve spotted what we’ve done. If we don’t go now, we might never get out of here.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  We outran the Summer fae and charged across the free territory as fast as our horses would take us. When I finally saw the familiar, moss-covered Academy, I wanted to cry. We’d been gone less than a week, but it almost felt as though years had passed us by. It was strange how quickly this place had begun to feel like home. It was like a lighthouse, soothing and warm, after being tossed in a turbulent sea.

  Liam and Rourke nodded at the guards patrolling the edges of the grounds, and we deposited our horses in the stables. They looked as happy to be at home as we were. When we entered the Academy’s front doors, we were immediately surrounded. Questions were shouted, heads were craned, and elbows jostled elbows. It wasn’t until Head Instructor Alwyn skated across the marble floor that the crowd began to calm.

  “I need to see the three of you in my office,” she said by way of greeting before turning on her heels and tossing the last word over her dainty shoulder. “Now.”

  It turned out that Shea had filled Alwyn in on everything that had happened, up until a point. She’d returned to the Academy after Rourke and I had set off on our mission, both to resume her work as an instructor for the changelings and to keep Alwyn appraised of what was happening.

  “Now that I have the three of you in front of me, I think it’s imperative that I emphasize the importance of following the rules here. Both for the Academy’s sake and the realm at large. Liam, I warned you what would happen if you went against my orders.”

  “You did warn me.” He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair. “Loudly and repeatedly.”

  She frowned.

  “I’d like to say something if you don’t mind,” I said.

  Still frowning, Alwyn gave a nod.

  I took a deep breath. “I understand that in normal circumstances, it’s a good idea for changelings and their instructors to keep some physical distance. That said, finding mates is a part of this whole thing, right? So, if a changeling finds her mate, what’s the harm in…well, you know. Getting to know each other.”

  “Mistakes can be made,” Alwyn said. “Besides, this situation is nothing like what you’ve just described. You have had physical intimacy with at least two of your instructors. That is not merely a changeling deciding she’s found her mate.”

  “Except that maybe it is.” I swallowed hard and continued. “I know you were only trying to keep me safe by attempting to hide what I really am. But I know the truth now. I’m the kind of fae who isn’t of one Court but of four, which means I’m the kind of fae who mates with more than just one male.”

  For a moment, Alwyn just stared at me. And then she suddenly pushed up from her desk, her eyes sparking with anger. She glanced from Rourke on my left to Liam on my right, an accusatory look twisting the sharp features on her face. “You told her? I thought you both understood the gravity of this situation. If Queen Viola discovers there’s a Greater Fae at the Academy, she’ll turn her attention right on us again. Viola will kill her, just like she killed Marin. And then she’ll turn her wrath on all of us. This is why we’ve kept it from Norah all this time. For her safety.”

  “Phelan and Alastar could see what she was,” Rourke said quietly, his hands steepled under his chin. “They realized that her powers meant she’s not like the rest of us, though I’m confident Norah understood that herself far before that. She is not an idiot, Alwyn. We shouldn’t have been keeping it from her.”

  Alwyn dropped her hands to the desk and pressed hard. “Wait. You’re telling me the Summer Hunters know? How is this possible, and why did Shea not inform me of this? I thought the only reason they wanted to speak with her was to ask her about the Redcap presence in Manhattan. They said they were hoping to use them against the Autumn Court.”

  “They lied. Alastar saw her shadow at the Feast. He wanted her to spy on the Autumns for him.”

  Alwyn’s eyes went razor sharp when she looked at me. “You can shadow? Oh, for the love of the forest. What I wouldn’t give to speak to Magnus again about her lineage. Surely there must be some sort of explanation for this.”

  “If there is, Magnus wouldn’t be able to help us,” Liam said in a gruff voice. “Besides, that’s not what’s important right now. We didn’t come back here to return to teaching. We came back to warn you about what’s coming. The Spring Court plans to launch an attack on the Winter fae. Now, the Summer Hunters have gone north, hoping to rile up the Winters about it all.”

  Alwyn pursed her lips and sat back in her chair. “It was only a matter of time. After what the Autumns did, I knew it wouldn’t take long for another Court to take a shot. They’re all going to vie for the crown. Marin’s crown.”

  “Rourke and I plan to take Finn—and Kael if he’s willing—to discuss peace with the Spring fae. If we don’t do something to try and stop this war, I worry what will happen to these lands.”

  Alwyn pursed her lips and nodded. “If the Spring advance and the Winter advance, they will end up fighting here. In the free territory.”

  “The Academy could get caught in the crosshairs.”

  Alwyn braced her hands on her desk. “I’ll come with you. We’ll cancel classes and have second and third year instructors join the guard rotation. Liam, you go grab Finn. We’ll need him. Best bring Rourke as well. A
Winter viewpoint might be the very thing they need to hear. Liam, you go tell the second and third year instructors what we’re planning. They can have an assembly with the students once we’ve left.”

  That left me. The secret Greater Fae changeling who would only get in the way. I knew what Alwyn would say before she said it. I was to stay here, of course, while the real leaders went to take care of things. I’d cower and hide. If the fight came to us, I’d run. This was how I knew I could never be the rallying fae that Rourke and Liam imagined I could be. If not even those who knew me best—like Alwyn—believed I had the strength to join them on a mission, then why would anyone want to stand united behind me?

  They wouldn’t. This realm needed a Queen. Not a changeling who did nothing but hide in the safety of her Academy.

  “Norah,” Alwyn finally said. “I need you to get the horses prepared. We’ll need six. You’re coming with us.”

  “Well, if it isn’t my bride-to-be.” Finn’s lighthearted drawl drifted into the stables from where he lazily leaned against a wooden post. He gave me a grin, and then a salute. “I heard about what you did. I have to say I’m impressed, though not the slightest bit surprised.”

  I blushed and smoothed down the horse’s mane I would be riding. “Did you miss me?”

  “Oh yes. I missed you like I’d miss my own lungs.” He sauntered into the stable, propping one hand on the wall behind me. With an oomph, I twisted toward him, caught off guard by how close he was. Those sparkling green eyes peered into mine, searching for something I wasn’t sure he would find.

  “You know, I never truly know when you’re exaggerating,” I said in almost a whisper.

  He winked. “Good. Life isn’t fun unless you’re kept on your toes, right?”

  I didn’t know why that made me blush, but it did.

  “Are you going to come with us?” I asked in a vain attempt to steer the conversation away from my toes and his lungs and to distract myself from the fact his lips had somehow gotten so close that I could practically taste them.