by May Dawson
I cared about Silas, but if he hurt Maddie—if he had hurt Maddie—I wasn’t sure what I would do to him.
“Then we fight our way through Monsterland,” Rafe said. “You know what, I’d rather take my chances.”
“I’ll go with you,” she said. She shrugged. “You know my secrets now anyway. Princess Raura wouldn’t give a damn about you all, but the Huntress is just the type.”
“Thank you,” Maddie said warmly.
“Oh, I’ll find a way you can pay me back eventually, Dirtsider. Sooner or later, the spring court will have to stage a coup,” she said blithely. “All right, we all need to split up and make our way up to the ramparts. There’s no way I can get you out through the front door.”
The team would have danced until they died, enchanted by the combination of Fae wine and the spell and the music. Luckily, their obsession with Maddie had helped save them.
We made our way out in small groups. I could see the music tug at them. Ahead of me, Maddie and Jensen clung to each other as if they tethered each other.
I stopped at the doorway, in the quiet of the long stone hall. There was laughter from the doors that led into the Fae city, and part of me wanted to just run. But we wouldn’t get far before Turic and his men stopped us. Instead, I waited to make sure everyone else made it out safely, leaning against the wall and pretending to brood over my wine.
Arlen and Lake came down the hall side by side. Their clothes were torn and bloodied, and they looked exhausted.
Lake leaned in close to me to mutter, “You need to be careful.”
“Always,” I said, holding up my cup of wine.
He gave me a long look. “Did Raura find you?”
“Lake,” Arlen said, his voice low and strangled. The laughter down the hall had gone quiet.
Lake’s demeanor changed in a second, from serious to the playful flirt. “Well, she said she was curious how differently a Fae-blood tasted!”
Lake made raucous jokes—which Arlen answered only in disinterested grunts—as the two of them ambled away.
Even with our tenuous allies here in the keep, we couldn’t get out of here fast enough for my tastes.
Although part of me hated the thought of never knowing what happened with their coup.
Penn and Chase were still glaze-eyed when we got upstairs.
“Did I look that bad,” Rafe muttered to me, then shook his head. “Don’t answer that.”
Raura landed lightly on the ramparts, her shimmering wings folding into her shoulders once more.
“I’m not sure it’s safe for us to leave,” I ground out reluctantly, and Rafe gave me a look, his dark brows drawing together, that said I was speaking out of turn. But I couldn’t stand the thought of Raura or Lake or Arlen being killed for helping us, and what we were doing put them all at risk.
“Let me worry about that,” Raura said. She moved swiftly to cure Penn, then Chase. “I know the risks. But there’s a limit to what my father would do to me.”
She held out her arms. “You first, Fae-blood. I need you down there to help clear the way.”
Maddie bobbed onto her toes to kiss my cheek, and I wrapped my arm around her narrow waist tightly. “Good luck,” she whispered.
“You too,” I said, just before her soft lips brushed my cheek.
I couldn’t resist, I kissed her hard, mindful of the time but desperate to feel her mouth against mine. The two of us might struggle with how to heal our relationship, but when the stakes were high, there was no doubt how we both needed each other.
Reluctantly, I left Maddie’s arms to step up onto the ramparts beside Raura. The wind ruffled my hair, and I stared down a long way to the forest below.
She wrapped her arms around me and then jumped, carrying me with her. I squeezed my eyes closed against the intense rush of wind through my hair and the sudden lurch of my stomach.
“Gods, you’re heavy,” she complained, her voice strained. We seemed to lurch down through the air until we landed.
“Are you sure you’re up for this?” I asked her.
“Saving humans who will owe me forever? Oh, I am so up for this,” she promised me.
Then a figure stepped out of the shadows. “Raura, what do you think you’re doing?”
Ruara pulled a face at me before she turned to face the figure. At least that meant we probably weren’t about to be murdered.
Fenig pushed her cloak back, revealing an exasperated face. “You’re supposed to be helping with the riots in the city, as one of the junior knights.”
“Turic could stop his made-up riots by recalling his instigators,” she said. “He just wanted us out of the way of his blood carnival.”
“Have you ever considered not inserting yourself into trouble that doesn’t involve you?” Fenig demanded.
“Not really,” Ruara purred. “You know Turic wants them dead. He hates Dirtsiders.”
“Whatever Turic wants, he’s still bound by the law,” Fenig said. “As are you.”
Only when she was Raura. When she was the Huntress, I didn’t think she considered herself bound by any expectation.
“I’m going to get Maddie,” Raura said suddenly, launching herself into the air.
“No, you’re not,” Fenig said tightly. She launched herself into the air too, her wings suddenly ripping loose from her shoulders as she flew up into the air. Above us, I could hear the two of them arguing.
Right before the doors opened and Turic and his men stormed out.
There was no way to run. Maybe I could protect everyone else. Maybe I could even trick my way out of it.
“What are you doing?” Turic demanded.
The air above us had gone silent. Hopefully Turic and his guards wouldn’t look up.
“The party grew old,” I said. “I thought I’d explore the city.”
“Where are your friends?” Turic asked, a hook in his voice.
“Sleeping it off. They didn’t take the wine very well.”
“Sad to hear that.” Turic said. “You’re on the opposite side from the city, by the way.”
“I must have gotten turned around.”
“A shifter? Lost his sense of direction?”
“I lost a lot more than my sense of direction at the hands of the covens.”
“Why are you out here, really?” he asked.
“I felt a pull to the city,” I said. “Maybe it’s my Fae-blood. Maybe I feel something for this world.”
I said the words lightly, as a lie, and yet the words seemed to harden into truth as soon as I dared speak them.
I wished I hadn’t.
Turic’s face had changed too, something horrified and stricken written across his features for a second before it was gone, replaced by his usual sharp handsomeness.
“I’m glad you’re well,” he said briefly. “Someone altered the wine to make it dangerous for your human friends. I’m glad they don’t seem to have any major…ill-effects.”
“It must be different for shifters,” I said. “Even though they’ve lost their magic.”
“It must be,” he agreed. “And I’m thankful for that. Since you are guests in my kingdom, I am furious that anyone would attempt to do you harm. I promise, this will be dealt with.”
“It’s probably best that we get out of your way as soon as possible,” I said. “We can head out tomorrow.”
“Given what’s happened, I think it’s best I escort you,” he said. “Perhaps I can show you a glimpse of the city tomorrow before breakfast. Then we can leave.”
“Thank you,” I said, trying to figure out how the hell we’d get out of that. “I appreciate your hospitality.”
He flashed me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “After what happened at the party, I’ll have my guards make sure you reach your room safely, and will keep a guard near your door. You should be safe tonight.”
Somehow, I managed to fake gratitude, despite the feeling of ash filling my mouth. Fuck. We weren’t escaping tonight—and if
he escorted us all the way to our destination, we’d have a whole new series of obstacles.
One day at a time in this fucked Fae world, I guessed.
I headed into the keep, with the guards at my back.
When I walked into the hallway, I heard the guards lock the gate behind me.
Maddie flew into my arms. “Are you all right?”
“No beatings this time,” I said. “But we’ve got complications.”
The eight of us sat in the hallway, our backs against the walls, to talk about what happened.
I told them all about Turic’s plan to escort us until we reached the Hooksbane. We could escape him then, but every minute we spent with Turic felt like a danger.
I needed to tell them about the ring. I started to unwrap the bandage absently as we all talked, but when I looked down at my hand, I’d just wrapped it tighter. I frowned, tried to force myself to speak up, but the words wouldn’t pass my throat. Every time I tried, my chest seemed to tighten. I frowned. I’d shown Silas the ring. It wasn’t as if I were scared of Rafe’s disapproval.
“Enough talk,” Rafe said. “Let’s get some rest.”
Silas cleared his throat. “I’ve got my magic back, by the way.”
Rafe’s eyes widened. “How?”
This was my moment to tell them, and yet for some reason, I couldn’t quite force the words out. I frowned, wondering if there was some kind of enchantment on the ring. I’d been able to show it to Silas; why wasn’t I able to force the words through my lips now.
Silas shrugged. “I’m hard to contain.”
“Then the rest of us sleep while Silas goes back to the academy. We all need it.”
Silas rose, his hands sliding into his pockets. “Except for me?”
“Well, the incredible Silas Zip doesn’t need sleep.” Rafe said. “I need you to check in with Clearborn.”
“Yeah,” Penn agreed. “Daddy’s gonna be worried.”
“Please don’t call him that,” Jensen said, clapping him on the shoulder.
“What? We’re going to pretend like we don’t all have massive daddy issues?” Penn asked.
“Yes, yes we are,” Jensen said.
Everyone else rose to head into their cells, but Maddie shifted over close to me, resting her head on my shoulder.
“I feel like I should spend some time with Penn and Chase,” Maddie told me softly. “They’ve got some…feelings…about what happened down there.”
“Yeah, I imagine they do,” I said, knowing how much they both loved Maddie and how embarrassed they must feel about dancing with another female, almost to their death. “You know they didn’t mean anything by it.”
I felt protective of them both, but especially Penn. I knew my best friend well enough to know how much he adored Maddie. And it was obvious, too, how much Chase cared about her—how torn he felt between Blake and Skyla and between Maddie and us all. I hated that he carried that weight, and that I had no idea how to help.
“I know,” she said. “And I’m glad you want to protect them.”
“I didn’t say—” I started, and she leaned over to kiss me. I broke off, my hands circling her waist, as she kissed me, slowly and sweetly. Then she pulled away, our lips breaking away at the last second. I glimpsed her red, bee-stung lips, the hint of a smile on the edge of her lips, before she headed for Penn’s door.
She was a force of nature, and I was so glad she was on our side.
My room felt too quiet without her, as if some of the life in the room had left when she did. I peeled the damned Fae clothes off my body and threw myself into the bed. I needed to be sharp for tomorrow—I’d better get some rest.
No sooner had I drifted off to sleep than I was dragged down into strange dreams.
Fae creatures rose and fell around me—some with beautiful faces, some with monstrous faces, all of them deadly.
I stood in one place, but the ground seemed to shift under my feet as the scenery changed around me constantly—castles, gardens, forests, oceans rose and fell in front of me and disappeared, each more beautiful than the last. If there was one thing the Fae world had, it was beauty—it was a beauty so intense it ripped something open in my chest, something aching.
That strange aching feeling in my chest was something I’d have to hide from my team, and not just because I wasn’t the poetic kind of soul to give this much of a fuck about the scenery, and they’d never stop mocking me.
No, I’d have to hide this from them because it felt like a betrayal.
Because part of me yearned to stay here.
“It’s just my Fae blood,” I muttered to myself. “Once I go home, I’ll forget that it felt like this. I’ll be happy dirts…” I stopped myself, and corrected, “I’ll be happy when I’m home.”
“It’s not just your blood. It’s your heritage.” A male voice spoke from behind me.
I whirled.
An older Fae with piercing green eyes and white-blond hair, dressed in well-worn leather armor, stood behind me, back in my room.
“Welcome home, son,” he said.
“Who are you?” I demanded, trying to cover the way those three words made me reel.
“Jorden,” he said. He extended a hand to me, as if to clasp hands in the Fae way, and after a second’s hesitation, I reached to grip his arm. But my fingers passed right through his wrist.
“I’m a ghost,” he said. “Which is a pity.”
My fingers found the ring I wore, and I twisted it, sure that somehow it was responsible for what was happening. Maybe I wasn’t even really his son—maybe the magic just made him think that I was.
“I’m the rightful king of the spring court,” he said, “and you, Tyson Atlas, are my heir.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Blake
When I walked into the house and a strange woman was there with Aunt Jen, I stopped dead in my tracks and said, “What’s up?”
It wasn’t like Aunt Jennifer knew anyone to have visitors.
“This is Ms. Long from Child Protective Services,” Aunt Jen said. “She has some questions for you.”
“This late?” I demanded.
“Well, it took you a while to come home, Blake,” she said. There was something familiar in her mannerisms, but I couldn’t quite place her. “And I didn’t want to miss you.”
Dread settled in my gut, but then everything changed when I sat down opposite her and caught the distinct whiff of strawberries.
It was so familiar that for a second I was right back in that treehouse with Kit, even though the face that stared at me from behind thick glasses was far older and different.
“Are you all right, Blake?” she asked, a look of concern across her face. Jennifer looked absolutely horrified.
I realized I’d risen from the table.
“Yeah,” I said. “I, ah, I need to go to the bathroom.”
I went into the half bath and washed my hands, splashed water over my face, trying to figure out what to do.
None of this made sense. I was losing my mind. There was no way that was Kit somehow with a different face, and yet…
I texted Chase. Where are you? Call me when you get this
Then I added, I remember who you really are
There was something really weird going on.
Someone knocked on the front door. I was willing to bet this was somehow related to Kit, so I rushed out of the bathroom and headed for the door. At least I could keep Jennifer from answering the door for whoever that was.
When I looked outside, there was a man in khakis and a white shirt standing on the front porch. He held up a police badge through the window, raising his eyebrows as he made eye contact with me.
“What do you want?” I asked, because I wasn’t buying that he was here for real.
“My name’s Clearborn,” he said, “and you’re in danger.”
Just then, I heard Jen yell something, one second before it was cut off.
I ran back through the house toward her.
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When I reached the living room, Jennifer was lying on the floor, her brown hair spread across the floor. Beyond her, the glass doors out to the yard were open, and “Ms. Long” was dragging Skyla toward the door.
“Let her go!” I shouted, already hurtling across the living room toward her.
Skyla was fighting her, kicking and lashing out and trying to bite her.
Behind me, there was a massive boom and a thud, as if the front door had just been blown open.
The woman who was dragging her away muttered what sounded like a curse word, but it wasn’t even English.
Skyla went limp in her arms.
I put my head and shoulder down, ready to tackle her, and she raised her palm. The scent of burning filled the air, like popcorn gone too long in the microwave, and then I realized I was lying on my back, staring up at the ceiling. Blue smoke drifted above me.
I started to get up, just in time to see Skyla’s bare feet being dragged across the floor as the woman taking her started to vanish.
Then Clearborn raced past me, followed by a few other guys. “Watch the perimeter,” he snapped. “I’ll take the witch.”
He raised his hands, and she dropped Skyla, letting her fall at her feet.
“What do you want with them, Alice?” he demanded.
She smiled. “You really saw through my disguise that easily? It’s too bad your students aren’t that smart.”
He raised his hand, and that strange crackling erupted from his palms, almost like fire. She was knocked backward and slammed into the yard.
“My students are smart enough not to monologue,” he said, striding after her.
I rushed to Skyla. “What’s wrong with her?”
The man turned his head over his shoulder to look back at the two of us, and muttered a few words in a foreign language. Then he ran into the yard, after Alice.
Skyla woke with a start, her long lashes fluttering open.
“You’re okay, you’re okay,” I promised her.
But we wouldn’t truly be okay until we understood what was going on around us and knew how to keep ourselves safe from it.
“We lost them!” someone shouted from the yard.