The Doomsday Trial

by Claire Luana

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  About J.A. Armitage

  About Claire Luana

  Also by J.A. Armitage

  Also by Claire Luana

  The Doomsday Trial

  Copyright © 2019 by Claire Luana and J.A. Armitage

  ISBN: 978-1-948947-75-6 (Paperback)

  ISBN: 978-1-948947-74-9 (Ebook)

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the author.

  All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  Cover Design: Covers by Juan

  Created with Vellum

  1

  I thought I’d been ready for the Fantastic Faerie Race. I thought I’d been ready for whatever I’d find over the Hedge in Faerwild, for the tests and challenges, even a little not-so-friendly competition. But the last few weeks had shown me how horribly, naively wrong I had been.

  The race competitors had been trained for physical strength, for intellect, even our magical capabilities had been honed. But no one had prepared me for the emotional toll this race would take.

  No one had even asked me how I would cope if someone were to die. No one had asked me what I’d do if my sister suddenly reappeared out of nowhere…and not a single producer or staffer had asked how I’d cope emotionally with the ever-present threat of my own demise.

  There’d been talk of how dangerous it would be. We’d been warned to watch our backs, but I’d thought it was just the studio trying to scare us to make great TV. I hadn’t believed anyone would really get hurt in here, much less killed—and yet, I’d seen three people involved in this godforsaken race die in a matter of weeks.

  I gazed up at the ornate ceiling of one of the Faerie king’s palace guest suites, these thoughts refusing to leave, my sorrow shredding at my heart with vicious swipes.

  Orin’s warm arm snaked over me, pulling me closer to him. I yielded to him, snuggling closer. In what felt like a sea of desolation, he was my only life preserver. If it hadn’t been for Orin, I’d have completely lost it.

  The palace staff had assigned us both rooms, but I’d followed Orin to his and curled up in his arms, adrift in my misery. Neither of us had bothered to undress, both of us falling into bed in the wetsuit-like FFR outfits we’d been wearing since we’d started the final leg of the Elemental Trial. Orin had fallen asleep first, his deep rhythmic breathing keeping me company as I counted down the minutes to midnight.

  I hadn’t been able to sleep a wink, despite the exhaustion weighing me down like a stone. How could I? If Ben’s senseless death wasn’t enough to keep me awake, the thought that I was finally going to see my sister after two years of searching kept my eyelids firmly open.

  I’d read Cass’s note so many times in the half-light of the moon that I knew every curve of every letter, and yet, I held onto it, fearful if I let go, it would somehow magically disappear. Taking Cass with it.

  Come to the Goddess of the Moon at midnight. Bring Orin. -Cass.

  That was all it said.

  Outside a bell chimed. I counted the chimes as I had at every hour since we’d collapsed on the bed. Eleven.

  I didn’t want to, but I shuffled out from beneath the safety and warmth of Orin’s arm and headed to the en suite bathroom. I unzipped the oversized FFR hoodie Orin had put on me while we waited on the beach, shivering and numb. I didn’t even know who it belonged to. As I dropped it to the floor, something fell out of one of the pockets. Picking it up, I saw it was a small black leather roll, tied with ribbon. I untied it and found that when the leather lay flat, it formed a black mask, the kind that would go over your eyes for a masquerade ball. And what was more—there were two of them, one laid neatly on top of the other.

  I furrowed my brow, holding them up. Where had they come from? Did they belong to the prior owner of this hoodie, or had Cass slipped these in my pocket with the note? If so, why?

  Too drained to solve the mystery now, I lay the masks on the counter and showered quickly, washing the salt and sand from my body. Then, wrapping a towel around me, I headed back into the bedroom. Orin was still asleep. He was so heart-wrenchingly beautiful with his dark hair falling over his eyes, yet his sleeping face was contorted with worry. I hardly had it in my heart to wake him, but he was finding no peace in his dreams, and there was no way I was going to leave the palace on my own. Besides, in her note, Cass had specifically asked me to bring him.

  I nudged him lightly, and he stirred.

  His black-as-night eyes fixated on mine, and I became acutely aware that I was wearing nothing more than a towel. Orin grabbed my hand and pulled me towards him, bringing me into a kiss that shattered me to my very core. It wasn’t a kiss of passion but of hope, of safety, of comfort. And yet, the touch of his lips upon mine brought tears to my eyes which fell between us, wetting both of our cheeks.

  “Don’t tell me my kissing is that atrocious,” Orin said, rubbing a thumb across my cheek to wipe away the tears.

  “The worst.” I smiled, running a hand through his silken hair. I couldn’t quite believe I got to touch him now, that this was allowed. “It’s eleven.”

  Orin nodded. “I have an idea of how to get past the guards. You get dressed, while I have a quick shower and I’ll fill you in.” He walked over to the bathroom, and a few seconds later, the sound of rushing water hit my ears.

  Padding over to the one wardrobe in the room, I opened it to find a couple of FFR outfits, both in Orin’s size, a suit and a couple of pairs of jeans and t-shirts.

  I guessed that if I’d have slept in my room, my wardrobe would have had clothes tailored to me. But I didn’t want anyone catching me sneaking down the corridor and questioning my motives for being out so late, so I pulled out one of the t-shirts and a pair of jeans and slipped into them. The jeans hung off me, but I found a belt to hold them up. I wouldn’t win any fashion awards, that was for sure, but it didn’t matter what I wore. It only mattered that I was going to see Cass.

  Sitting on the bed, I fidgeted while waiting for Orin. I couldn’t keep still. The minutes were ticking down, and though Orin had assured me he knew exactly where the “Goddess of the Moon” was, we still had to get past the guards and plan or no plan, it would take time. Time I couldn’t afford. When the bathroom door finally opened, I heaved a sigh of relief and stood, but no one came out.

  “Orin?” I padded to the bathroom, sneaking a look inside, but it was empty. “Orin?” I whispered again, the fear beginning to creep up inside me. Had they managed to take Orin somehow? It was impossible. I’d been watching the bathroom door out of the corner of my eye the whole time.

  “I’m here.”

  I jumped in shock at the voice in my ear and turned, t
hrowing an elbow into something solid.

  “Ow! You hit me.” Orin materialized in front of me, clutching his stomach.

  “Sorry,” I said, shaking my head. What the hell had just happened? “You were right there, and I didn’t see you. Why didn’t I see you?”

  Orin’s eyes crinkled at the edges, and a mischievous grin spread across his face. “It was my fault. You didn’t see me because I was wearing this.” He held up one of the leather masks I’d abandoned in the bathroom earlier.

  “You’re a master of disguise,” I countered, still not taking his point. What did a cheesy masquerade mask have to do with this?

  “You don’t get it, do you?” Orin held the mask up and put it back on his face. Within a second he’d vanished completely.

  I stumbled back a step. “Holy shit. You’re invisible.”

  He pulled the mask off, reappearing again. “I found them in the bathroom. There are two of them. I was planning to try to put the guards to sleep, but this is much better.”

  “They fell out of my pocket when I was getting undressed. They must have been with the letter from Cass,” I said, growing excited. “She thought of everything! A way to help us get out of the palace, undetected!”

  Now that the shock of elbowing an invisible Orin in the stomach wore off, and the surprise of the invisibility masks had subsided a little, I grew keenly aware that Orin was completely naked—save for a white fluffy towel wrapped around his waist. His bare chest was lean and chiseled, his abs rippling downward in a perfect V, his strong arms roped with muscle. He probably didn’t even have to do sit-ups, damn faerie metabolism. His pale skin looked like marble on a statue, and I longed to reach out and touch it. But a wave of shyness hit me as I realized how quickly we’d been breaking through the walls between us. It was all a little overwhelming. “You better get dressed,” I managed, clearing my scratchy throat.

  The glint in Orin’s eye suggested that he knew just what my line of thought had been, but he stayed blessedly quiet. He dressed quickly, dropping the towel to the floor as he pulled on his pants. I found myself wishing he was wearing the mask because watching him was almost unbearable. His body was achingly beautiful and I’d finally seen it in all its glory, albeit for half a second while he dressed.

  I needed to get my mind out of the gutter and onto more important things—like getting out of the palace and meeting Cass. I looked at my watch. It was already half past eleven. Sucking in a deep breath, I threw my thoughts of Orin’s naked body to one side and began to pull on my shoes.

  We tied the masks onto our faces, and Orin vanished once more. It was strange, when I looked down I could see myself like normal. “Did it work?” I asked. I felt a ghostly hand fumble along my side, searching for my own.

  “It worked.” Clinging tightly to each other, we headed out of the bedroom door and into the palace.

  2

  The Faerie king’s palace was a huge austere behemoth filled with long empty hallways. Orin’s room had been sparsely furnished, but there had been a few cozy touches—a plush carpet, a pot holding a strange night-blooming plant.

  The palace itself seemed empty, as if the Faerie king hadn’t taken the time to furnish the cavernous spaces that he lorded over. This was the place where Tristam had grown up? I thought. A pang of sympathy shot through me, which I squashed ruthlessly. No doubt his gilded childhood had been filled with fancy balls and friends and foreign dignitaries. He didn’t deserve me to feel sorry for him.

  It was strange walking through the wide empty corridors as if we owned the place, not needing to sneak or hide. I held my breath and kept my footfalls soft as we padded past two guards in the purple and gold livery that I had come to recognize as belonging to the house of Obanstone and the realm of Faerwild. The king’s symbol—a clenched gloved fist (subtle, that)—was emblazoned in gold gilt across the doors we passed and stained into the leaded glass of the windows. It seemed to be some of the only décor he’d seen to.

  As we continued to walk, I started to realize that getting out unseen wasn’t the hard part here. It was figuring how the hell to get out in the first place. The palace was a maze. We passed a few servants here and there hurrying quietly, or pairs of guards flanking doorways, but we couldn’t exactly stop to ask any of them for directions. We could hardly even whisper to each other for fear of being overheard. So we threaded our fingers together and walked silently, hoping that the next turn would be the one that would lead us to freedom.

  We turned down a long hallway that seemed promising—at the end of it stood two tall, broad wooden doors crossed with iron bars. A servant turned from a side hall directly in front of us—a lovely faerie female with jet-black hair and arching eyebrows.

  Orin’s grip on my hand tightened painfully, and he let out an audible gasp.

  The faerie woman froze where she stood, looking around, her pointed ears trained for the origin of the sound.

  What happened next was inexplicable. Orin pulled his mask off, revealing himself to the woman.

  “What the hell—” I started, but my panicked whisper was cut off by one wavering word.

  “Mother?”

  Holy shit! This was Orin’s mom?

  The look on her face confirmed it. Her dark eyes went from shock to delight to motherly worry in the span of an instant. “Orin,” she cried. She looked around surreptitiously before hurrying towards us and grabbing Orin’s arm, pulling him back into the side hallway she’d come from. “What are you doing out of your room?” she asked.

  “That’s all you have to say to me?” he asked, hurt playing across his handsome features.

  “Of course not,” she said, pulling him into a tight embrace and burying her face into his chest.

  He wrapped his arms around her, and I looked away, feeling as if I was intruding upon a very important moment. A minute later, I realized the futility of my action. I still had my mask on. They couldn’t see me anyway.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she said. “Your father and I have been following the race closely. We’re so proud of how far you’ve come.”

  “It’s all for you. If I win the boon, I’m going to free you both.”

  “Oh, Orin.” She pulled back. “You know we’d never ask you to put yourself in danger for us.”

  “You didn’t,” he said. “You didn’t have to. How are you? Are you all right?”

  She nodded slowly, and I thought I recognized the mask that fell over her features, schooling them into indifference. She didn’t want Orin to know how things really were here. “We’re fine. It’s not ideal, but we make the best of it. At least your father and I are together. We had hoped we would run across you while you stayed here, but we feared to reach out directly. The king is very strict, and his instructions were clear. The staff was not to have any contact with the contestants.”

  “Why?” Orin asked.

  She shook her head. “He’s very paranoid. I think…It’s not important. Where are you going?” She changed the subject.

  “We’re going…” he hesitated. “Jacq, come here. Take your mask off and meet my mother, Ramona.”

  I pulled my mask off hastily. “Hello, Mrs. Treebaum,” I said nervously. I couldn’t believe I was meeting Orin’s mother. I felt so unprepared. I hadn’t dated many guys, but usually, parents liked me. This time, I wasn’t so sure. What did she think about her son being with a human? Though…the camera hadn’t caught our kiss, so she couldn’t know we were anything other than teammates. Maybe that was for the best. No need to add potential prejudices related to interspecies dating to the list of complexities we were dealing with today.

  “It’s so nice to meet you, Jacqueline. Thank you so much for looking out for Orin.”

  “Looking out for me?” Orin scoffed. “If it wasn’t for me, Jacq would run into danger any chance she got.”

  “You take care of each other,” Ramona said. “You make a good team. It’s clear to anyone who’s watching that you’re the strongest team.”

&
nbsp; That was nice to hear. We hadn’t been able to see any of the dynamics of the other teams, other than the short time we’d been partnered with them in the Elemental Trial. And then we were all on our guard. It was crazy to think that the public, who had nothing to do with the race, knew more about parts of it than we did.

  “Orin, it’s dangerous for you to be out here, out of your room. The king’s instructions were clear.” It seemed she couldn’t miss an opportunity to mother him. It was kind of sweet, really. “And why the masks? The invisibility?”

  “We’re going to see Jacq’s sister,” Orin said. He looked at me with a questioning glance, and though I appreciated it, I nodded. I didn’t think Orin’s mom was going to spill the beans about Cass. “We think there is something going on. With the race, and a group called the Brotherhood of the Rose and Thistle. We think Jacq’s sister has something to do with it, but we’re not exactly sure.”

  “The Brotherhood?” Ramona’s dark eyes widened.

  “You know of them?” I asked, eagerly.

  “Oh, yes. It’s not common knowledge, but if you pay attention, you see signs of their work here in the palace. The king is deeply involved in the group. There have been humans visiting here for the past few months, involved in clandestine meetings. Shipments of things that are squirreled away under the utmost secrecy.”

  “Faerwild and Earth used to be joined together. We think the Brotherhood is trying to merge both realms again,” I offered our theory. “Do you think the king would support something like that?”