by Chloe Jacobs
“I don’t quite understand why you need us to travel with you to meet your queen. If the faeries want to make nice and they’re willing to help me out, why doesn’t she come here?”
“Such would not be possible. Queen Minetta does not leave the Glass Kingdom.”
It wasn’t hard to tell that there was more to it than that, but before Greta could ask, a crash outside the room interrupted them.
Attack! Her blood sizzled and a surge of power sparked from her fingertips before common sense kicked in and she realized that she wasn’t the one in danger.
The door rattled on its hinges with a massive thud. “Oh, no.” She immediately lunged forward, but it was too late, the magick had awakened, responding to the possibility of threat with the eagerness of a coming storm.
Desperation mingled with the fear, the pain…and an uninvited thirst for more. She stammered Siona’s name, but her friend was already at the door. She had it open before Greta could get there.
One of the faerie guards waiting out in the corridor was on the floor, shaking his head and trying to get to his knees. The other was in the process of having his nose bashed into the stone wall.
“Isaac!” Greta called.
“Dryden!” Siona called, before slapping a hand over her mouth. She looked like she wanted to jump in and help the faerie boy.
Isaac looked at her, and Greta gasped at the feral light in his eyes. His form had even started to fill out, taking on the wilder, huskier shape of his moon phase. Close. He was so close to the edge, so close to going Lost.
She tasted smoke, felt the heat of it shoving at her insides, burning her lungs as the magick fought to get out. And it hurt.
As if he could see it, the dangerous light in Isaac’s eyes flared and he growled low in his throat. She’d never seen him this bad except when the eclipse had taken hold.
Something in the Mylean air made every goblin, ogre, gnome, and other creature vulnerable to a kind of moon madness that threatened whenever they lost control of their emotions. She had believed it was just another facet of the curse that had blanketed the world in unending winter, but the curse had apparently been broken and Isaac was obviously still susceptible, so she’d have to reevaluate.
Byron pushed himself in front of his sister, brandishing a short sword. Where the heck had that come from?
“He’s not Lost!” she cried just as Isaac noticed that Byron was standing between him and what he’d come for—her. “But everyone needs to stand back, now!”
His gaze swung madly left and right. She stepped forward and reached for his hand. She held on tight, fighting to push the magick down and focus only on him. She whispered calming words under her breath. They weren’t just for him, but her, too.
As she clawed back more and more control, he watched her, seething. But finally, he seemed to calm, and the moment her pain felt completely banked, he let out a deep breath and his eyes returned to normal.
She suddenly realized the most disturbing and distressing thing about Isaac, the goblin king, the boy she’d linked her future to and hopelessly fallen for…
She was poisoning him.
He had just been this close to going Lost, and it was her fault. She didn’t think she was imagining it. The trouble he’d been having with his moon phase was because of her. Somehow, she was tormenting him with her darkness through the link they shared, her demons inciting his.
Oh, God, this couldn’t happen again. “Isaac, it’s fine,” she lied.
“Greta,” he rumbled.
“I’m fine,” she repeated.
He turned to Siona with a hard glare. “What are they doing here?”
Leila stepped forward. “We understand your reluctance to trust our intentions. The faerie race has long retreated from the affairs of Mylena,” she said. “But your announcement this moon rising has already set events in motion that will affect us all. My brother and I are here to make alliances, not enemies. We have relayed our proposal to your plighted queen”—Greta looked to see whom they were talking about before she remembered and stopped herself—“and we will wait in our camp outside the castle gates for your decision. If we don’t hear from your emissary by the next moon rising, we will assume that you do not wish to have our assistance in the war that is sure to come your way.”
Isaac stubbornly crossed his arms, unfazed by the faerie warnings. “You can leave my lands now. I won’t be calling upon you.”
“Why don’t we all just—”
Isaac clamped his hand on her arm before she could smooth his harsh words. She bit her lip and shut up.
With that, Leila dipped her head with a sigh. She and Byron turned to leave. Siona’s tight expression didn’t change as she moved out of the way and let them through the door. “I will show our guests to the castle gates,” she said.
When they were alone, Isaac rounded on her. “You could have been—”
“Don’t say it,” she snapped, hands on her hips.
“They tried to have you murdered once before. Just because they come now in fancy clothes with simpering smiles on their faces doesn’t mean their purpose is any different.”
“One faerie tried to kill me, and he’s gone. If these ones wanted me dead, they had ample opportunity to make that happen before you got here, but they didn’t hurt me. In fact, they could be the only people in Mylena who like me.”
“The faeries can’t be trusted. You know that.”
“What kind of people would we be if we believed that of everyone?”
“Wise and cautious ones,” he said stubbornly but then sighed and rubbed a hand over his face, looking weary.
“Isaac, what if…” She wrapped her arms across her midsection. “What if they could help us…me? I mean, me.”
He stopped and pulled her against him. “We need no one but each other.”
“The princess said that Queen Minetta can do something about the nasty gift Agramon left me with.” Frustration and fear choked her. “If we went to the Glass Kingdom—”
“I won’t take that kind of chance with your safety,” he said gruffly.
“It’s not your chance to take. It’s mine.”
“We don’t need them,” he insisted.
“We need someone. When were you going to tell me how bad the uprisings have gotten? You said everything was under control, that you were just dealing with normal, everyday grievances, but that was a lie, wasn’t it? The people are revolting against you, and it’s because of me!”
“Not because of you,” he insisted. “This is my doing. Since my father died I’ve been a king in title only, but today I wanted to promise that I will be there not just for my people but for all of Mylena.”
As an attempt to make her feel better, it fell way short. “You were absent because you were busy helping me free a bunch of humans from a demon. A demon, I might add, that would have enslaved all of Mylena and countless other worlds if we hadn’t stopped him.”
“All of that is true…and none of it matters,” he admitted. “The goblin people want a leader who understands their daily challenges, not one who strays afar to fight fantastical battles.”
He wanted to honor his responsibilities to his kingdom and his commitment to her. She wanted the same, but she was much less confident about making it work. When it all fell apart and she and Mylena ended up on opposite ends of a double-edged sword, what would he ultimately choose? How could she even ask him to choose?
Her determination to do whatever it took to make Mylena accept her doubled, but she couldn’t do it as a burning fuse atop a powder keg of dangerous dark magick. The faeries were right. She had to get rid of it, and she had to do it fast, or the next time she lost control, she could not only destroy all of his efforts to make her worthy of Mylena, but Isaac himself might end up Lost.
“You can downplay this all you want, but Mylena isn’t accepting me just because you say so, and especially not when their king could go Lost just by being in the same room with me,” she warned.
“But—”
“I can control it,” he assured her in a whisper that caressed the corner of her mouth. “I have no choice but to control it or risk losing you. Losing everything.”
She couldn’t let him assume all the risk. He deserved a queen who was as strong and capable and worthy as he was, not one who was a hated, damaged liability, who was more likely to lose him the kingdom he already had than help him secure a unified Mylena.
Chapter Six
There had been word of another attack near the border. After the gnome king’s loud and public threats in the hall the night before, Isaac decided he should personally go check it out, with a retinue of guards backing him up.
Greta had wanted to bring up the faeries’ proposal again after they’d both had a chance to sleep on it and calm down, but he was gone before she awoke—probably to avoid what he knew was going to be an argument.
She’d strapped on her swords and daggers and slipped out of the castle alone. It might be better this way. She doubted any amount of sleep would change his mind about the idea of putting her body and maybe even her soul at the mercy of the faerie queen, who was, by all accounts, more dangerous and powerful than any that had lived before.
At the subtle sound of crunching snow behind her a few hours later, she quickly ducked behind a thick tree and peered around it, but she already knew who it was before the figure came into view.
The hunter stopped and tilted her head like she was listening intently. She was too good at her job to give in and go away. Greta swore under her breath and stepped into view. “What are you doing here, Siona?”
“I knew it was you. There’s no mistaking your ripe human scent,” Siona answered with a teasing grin. “Not to mention, you’ve been getting sloppy about covering your tracks.”
“I have not.” She bristled. “Why did you follow me?”
“Do you really have to ask?”
She sighed. “Does he know?”
“Of course he knows, but he also knows how important finding your friends is to you, and he trusts your ability to take care of yourself.” She raised a slim brow. “He does not know, however, that this excursion isn’t about finding your friends.”
Of course Siona had figured out what she planned to do. She understood better than anyone what this magick was doing to Greta. “Why didn’t you tell him?”
She paused. “I agree with you. I think you must do what you can to rid yourself of the black magick, and I only want the best for Mylena’s future queen.”
Greta groaned. “Don’t say that word.”
“Do you doubt that it will become reality?”
“I’m trying not to think about it, so do me the courtesy of playing along, will you?”
Her voice was softer when she said, “I’ll stay by your side and we’ll enter the Glass Kingdom together.”
There was a lump in her throat as Greta swallowed and nodded. “Thank you.”
They spent the afternoon slogging their way through wet, slushy snow instead of the ice-crusted snow she was familiar with, the kind that sounded dead when you stepped in it. The air was cold as usual, but not brutal. Maybe Isaac had been right and the curse was broken.
“Is this what springtime really looks like?” Siona asked.
Greta didn’t quite know how to explain because it had been such a long time. “It’s like getting the same meal every day. Tea and toast, tea and toast, tea and toast, until the tea and the toast don’t even taste like anything anymore. But then suddenly one morning there’s milk for your tea, and the morning after that, some jam for your toast, and then the next day maybe a piece of fruit on your plate. Springtime is like waking up every morning to…more. More color, more sounds, more scents, more life. First the snow melts and it gets all muddy, but at least that’s a little bit of color. And then the trees start to bud and the birds start to sing.”
“Singing birds?” Siona sounded skeptical.
“Of course!” She grinned. “And when the birds come back and start singing, then you know the warm weather is really on its way.”
“I’ve never seen a bird that wasn’t for eating before, and even those are wretched-looking creatures.” She turned wide eyes on Greta. “I think singing birds would be a miraculous thing to behold.”
Greta didn’t want to actually promise anything. She wasn’t even sure that spring was really coming. Would Mylena’s more delicate birds somehow find a way to return if the ice thawed? It seemed doubtful. It wasn’t like they were just hibernating, or had flown south to wait out the curse in warmer climes. Some Mylean species had adapted to the weather, but there must have been hundreds, or even thousands, of species that had simply gone extinct.
“Trust me, when it’s five in the morning on a weekend and you left your window open overnight, you won’t think birdsong is so miraculous.” She chuckled, then realized Siona had no idea what she was talking about.
She cocked her head, suddenly tense. “Something’s up ahead.”
“It could be nothing,” Siona whispered.
Greta’s sword was already in her hand. “I’m going to check it out.”
“Danem,” called a voice from the other side of a thicket of trees. “I am unarmed.”
The faerie princess, Leila.
As much as she’d been on her way to find the faeries, Greta’s instinct to protect herself was still strong, and the magick started thrumming in her veins. She glanced at Siona. Her friend was already putting away her daggers and gave Greta a focused look of encouragement. She felt the darkness fading immediately.
She took a deep breath and sheathed her sword. She’d tried to talk Isaac into relaxing his suspicious nature. Maybe she should take her own advice. Siona was right. Coming in with weapons raised was sure to give the faeries second thoughts about helping her.
They pushed through the trees and found Leila waiting, arms folded delicately in front of her. She wore a flowing white dress beneath a heavy winter cloak ruffled in pure white fur. How the heck had that girl survived even one Mylean snowstorm dressed like that?
Greta peered around her. “What are you doing here alone? Where are your guards? Do you require assistance?”
“No need to worry about me, although I appreciate the sentiment. The rest of our group is camped not far from here, but I wanted to meet you personally.”
“How did you know we were coming?”
She smiled. “We aren’t in the habit of allowing others to sneak up on us.”
Greta nodded. That was something she could appreciate.
“Can I presume from your presence that you’ve decided to let Queen Minetta help you with your problem?”
That’s exactly why she’d come, but now that the moment was here, she was hesitant to commit, Isaac’s warnings echoing in her ears. “I have some questions first.”
“Of course.” Leila looked at the darkening sky. “But since the moons are soon upon us, please come back to camp and stay the night. I would like to be able to reassure you that faerie hospitality does not need to be something to fear.”
Greta turned to Siona and lowered her voice. “I’ve seen the way you look at them, especially that boy who was at the banquet, the guard. You know them, don’t you? From when you were living in the Glass Kingdom?”
Siona paused before nodding slowly.
“And what do you think?”
“About what?”
“About their proposal. Can they really be trusted?” Siona drew back, looking startled by the question.
“Well?”
“You should never trust anyone,” Siona whispered finally, biting her lip. She took a deep breath, and the lines in her forehead smoothed out. “But I agree that it seems doubtful they intend to slit our throats.”
“All right then. I guess we’re really doing this.�
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“Greta, what about the goblin king? When he finds out—”
“If he really wants me to be his queen, he’s got to learn that I won’t just sit back and let him be the one to take all the risks. As much as he wants to protect me, I need to protect him and the goblin kingdom, and I can’t do that if I’m the thing that puts him in danger.” She winced. “Not to mention, it would be nice to help him make allies instead of being the reason he has more enemies.”
Siona gave her a weird look. “That says a lot, danem.”
“About what?”
“About how far you’ve come. Not too long ago, you wouldn’t have given a second thought to matters of Mylena, not unless it affected your own survival or benefited you personally in some way.”
A flush of embarrassment crept up her neck. Siona made her sound so self-centered. She wanted to object, but had to face it—the assessment was spot-on. But in her defense, until now all she’d had to worry about was her own life and death, not anyone else’s.
Sometimes she wasn’t sure she was actually better off for having grown a conscience and a sense of social morality, but if it helped Mylena accept her, then it would be worth it.
Siona’s gaze remained intense for a long moment. “You continue to surprise me, danem,” she said.
“In a good way, right?” Greta chuckled and punched her lightly in the arm. “Come on, no more of this danem crap. Don’t think I didn’t notice that you called me Greta just a minute ago.”
They followed the princess back along the narrow trail, now shrouded by darkness as the suns had lowered. After a few minutes, she stopped in her tracks and folded her arms, turning slightly. “You might as well come out and join the group,” she called.
Siona spun around in surprise and drew her daggers, but there was no sound, no movement in the woods.
The princess chuckled. “Come, Dryden,” she said lightly.
A deep flush rose in Siona’s cheeks, either because she was embarrassed about not having picked up on the fact that they were being tailed…or because the faerie suddenly walking out of the woods right in front of her was the same guard whose name had burst from her lips when Isaac attacked him back at the castle.