Hush, the woods are darker still

by L. V Russell

  Laphaniel spun, ducking low to avoid decapitation, slashing out in a savage attempt to sever the knight from his ankles. Both swords met screeching, Laphaniel still low to the floor as the Raven knight sent blow upon blow down upon him.

  My voice was swallowed in the cacophony of jeers and howls that rattled the walls. The rising bloodthirsty cries grew louder and louder with the crashing of metal. Glamour grew thick and heavy, swirling around the room to send the shadows and candlelight crazy. It was a riot of noise and chaos and madness, and the Unseelie drank it up as if starved for it.

  Laphaniel and the Raven Knight danced around each other in a violent waltz, both covered in sweat and blood as they tore at each other. They moved with a terrifying grace, swords meeting screaming, bodies turning, ducking, slashing.

  Laphaniel staggered when a blow caught him on his arm, and he spun quickly to avoid the knight’s blade, bringing his own sharply down against his opponent’s side. The Raven knight howled, spittle flying from his lips while Laphaniel backed away. Laphaniel spat blood, gasping.

  Cold laughter seeped through the mayhem, and I looked up from the fight as the Unseelie King raised his hands. Beside him, Niven clapped as dark shapes materialised before them.

  “You said, one opponent!” I called out over the chaos, watching in mute horror as massive black dogs took form from the shadows. Their teeth glittered in the manic candlelight.

  “No,” the King answered, keeping his hand high to keep the hounds at his feet. “I said last man standing.”

  “Cheating bastard!” I swore, my voice utterly swallowed by the roar of the dogs as he thrust his hand down. “Laphaniel!”

  Laphaniel turned, swinging his sword upwards as one of the snarling dogs leapt at him. He impaled it to the hilt, the dog whimpering before it died. More lunged at him, ripping and tearing his clothes, biting at his arms and legs, fighting desperately to get to his neck.

  The Raven knight stood back, catching his breath while the dogs did their best to take Laphaniel down.

  I ran forwards, narrowly missing Laphaniel’s sword when he swung and hauled one of the hounds away. It turned to mist in my hands, swamping over me in cold tendrils that wrapped around my body. They held me tight, looping like shackles until I could hardly move…barely breathe.

  Three more hounds fell by Laphaniel’s sword, one caught mid-air when it jumped up, splitting in two as Laphaniel dragged his blade through the air. The dog jerked, twitching across the floor, its detached left side still working for a few more seconds.

  “Behind you!” I screamed, fighting desperately against my bindings. The Raven knight brought his sword down upon Laphaniel’s head, catching his cheek when he moved at the very last moment. Laphaniel lifted his sword, stumbling with its weight. He snarled and slashed out at the Raven knight, using his dwindling strength for one last blow.

  And missed.

  I screamed with him as the knight jerked forwards, piercing Laphaniel’s shoulder with the length of his blade that sent him sprawling to his knees. His sword clattered to the floor, streaked in red.

  I tore at the shadows around my body, ripping them quicker than they could materialise. Shoving myself to my feet, I lunged for Laphaniel’s sword and, without thought or mercy, flew forwards and struck the blade through the raven knight’s chest, impaling the armour with a force I didn’t know I had.

  He fell to the ground, dead. A triumphant smirk remained upon his face.

  I grabbed Laphaniel, hauling him up and taking his weight as he grunted against me. I faced the two thrones, dropping the sword onto the blood-soaked marble, its echo singing around the sudden silence. “Last man standing,” I panted. “We win.”

  The Unseelie King lounged in his throne, surveying the death and blood with an amused eye. He shrugged, the shadows around us all, stilled. “Do you know what I would have done if you had lost?”

  Laphaniel’s blood trickled over my hands, I fought to look up at the two thrones. “No.”

  “I still would have helped you. It is in my best interest to do so, but it is good to know what you will do to secure your throne, Miss Jenkins.”

  “You just wanted someone to die.” I wanted a sign that I was wrong, to see a shred of mercy…of something human still left within him.

  “I did. It was beautiful.”

  “You hateful c—”

  “Careful,” the Unseelie King warned, straightening. “Don’t you forget who you are talking to. Go and get him patched up before he bleeds out over my floor.”

  “Do we have a room, or are we to stay in your dungeons?”

  “You are guests of the Unseelie,” he answered, gesturing for a rake thin creature to step forwards. The creature curtsied, ragged gown rustling as she moved. The decaying leaves making up her skirts crumbled to the marble. “Ithir will show you to your quarters. Do try not to get eaten during your stay.”

  With a final look at Niven, I walked away. She glared back, bringing a cigarette to her lips, which the Unseelie King lit it with a wave of his fingers. She said nothing, exhaling a plume of smoke.

  Ithir escorted us into another mirrored hallway, her long winding fingers clicking against the glass while we walked. She turned to me, moss slipping from her mouth as she spoke.

  “Up and up the stairs,” she began, deep brown eyes darting from me to Laphaniel. “The fourth door on the left is for you.”

  She grinned at us and backed away, licking her lips before leaving us alone.

  I kept hold of Laphaniel’s elbow while he stared at the space just above my head. “How are you feeling?”

  “Where does this hallway lead?” he murmured, still not looking at me. “This isn’t the right way. We’re going the wrong way.”

  “We’re going to our room to get you cleaned up so we can rest. Let me see your shoulder.” I lifted the torn fabric, relieved to see he wasn’t bleeding heavily. “This doesn’t look too bad. Does it hurt much?”

  “No.”

  “What are you looking at?”

  I followed his gaze, frowning as his reflection crumpled to the floor, twitching and jerking while tiny winged creatures with needle-like teeth picked at him.

  I placed a hand beneath his chin, forcing him to look at me. “Don’t look in the mirrors.”

  “I don’t want to be here.” He backed away, bumping against the glass as he shrugged me off, his lovely eyes black and frightened. “I’m going back.”

  “Back where?”

  “Home.”

  “It’s gone, remember? It burnt down.”

  He shook his head. “What did you do?”

  “I didn’t do anything,” I replied softly. My hand brushed over his cheek. “You’re burning up.”

  “Teya? I…” His knees buckled, and he slammed hard onto the marble. I sunk to my knees beside him, catching him just before his head struck the floor.

  I shouted for help.

  “No…” The single word was a desperate plea. “I’ll get up.”

  Laphaniel forced himself upright, leaning heavily against me. He sucked in a rasping breath and coughed. Blood trickled down his chin

  “Something’s wrong…”

  “I know,” I said, bringing his head down into my lap. I tried to stop my hands shaking as I held onto him. Another cough rasped from his mouth, the sound wet and pained. I shouted for help again, despite him begging me to stop. I shouted again and again and again until someone came at last.

  Something came.

  “I heard you,” the Spider said. “I heard you.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Laphaniel groaned beside me, shrinking back while the faerie that filled the nightmares of all other fey loomed over him.

  Soft white hair trailed over thin shoulders, spilling down the four arms that protruded from them. Four long, lithe legs came off a swollen abdomen, the skin pale and sleek. Her feet were bare and clawed. A tattered gown covered the top of her body, draping over full breasts, the sleeves long enough to cover her
four hands, but not enough to hide the sharp talons at the end of her slender fingers.

  “I’m Charlotte,” she said, turning her otherworldly face to mine. Two huge black eyes blinked down at me, framed by six smaller ones, all twinkling in the light. She smiled, revealing a row of cruel-looking teeth that were nothing compared to the razor-sharp fangs that lay neatly tucked in the side of her mouth.

  “You’re the spider fey,” I said, sliding in front of Laphaniel.

  “You have heard of me?” she asked, the words soft and strange. She stretched closer, her hands hovering just over my face. “Are you afraid?”

  “Should I be?”

  She thought for a moment, then turned her attention back to Laphaniel. “Perhaps.”

  “He’s really sick, at first I thought it was the iron, but I don’t know, I don’t know what’s wrong…” The words poured out in a rush. I couldn’t help but think I had just brought death upon Laphaniel. The thought terrified me.

  “You need to come with me.”

  “Will you hurt him?” I asked, noting the red stains on her fingertips. Charlotte stared at me, not saying anything, slowly contemplating my question.

  “Not if I can help it,” she said finally, her voice haunting. “Not with any malice or intent at least.”

  “She is going to kill me, Teya,” Laphaniel breathed, something so beyond terror on his face, I had no word for it.

  I helped Laphaniel back on his feet, keeping hold of him. He sucked in a sharp breath, his knees almost buckling again. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

  Charlotte dipped her head slightly, mulling over my words. With a strange smile, she ran her claws over the glass wall, so it shimmered and melted away like water. The liquid mirror lapped at our feet, the ripples sounding like shattered glass. A staircase stood within the gap left behind, the steps slippery with the glittering water.

  Charlotte fixed all eight of her eyes on Laphaniel, who recoiled away from her. “Best get him downstairs before something else scents his blood.”

  We circled down the steps, down and down and down, deeper into the bowels of the Unseelie labyrinth. I had to pull Laphaniel down beside me, forcing him to keep walking. With every other step he let out a small moan of pain, his hand in mine, slick.

  We followed Charlotte into a nightmare.

  Moss spread over the stone walls, the high ceiling above us was so thick with cobweb I could see nothing beyond it. The room was dark and dank and cold.

  Crumbling bookshelves lined the walls, filled up with ancient tomes all locked shut with faded clasps. More shelves hung from the walls, straining beneath the weight of countless jars, each brimming with things floating in thick yellow liquid. Fat candles burned in the gaps in the stone, dripping wax onto the stained floor.

  An old bed sat in the corner; sheets splattered with dark stains. Attached to the railings were four leather straps. A collection of old surgical tools dangled from hooks, swinging slightly although there was no breeze.

  “Teya...” Laphaniel was breathless, his hand trembling in mine. I took a step back with him, turning to face the way we had just come.

  “Do you think you can reach the stairs before I catch you?” Charlotte said, not looking at us.

  “He doesn’t want to be down here.”

  “No one ever does,” the Spider said sadly. “Now, if you would just help him onto the bed over there, I can take a look at him.”

  Laphaniel shook his head frantically, trying to back away. I had never seen him so helpless, and it frightened me.

  I forced him to look at me. His face was ghost white, eyes utterly black. “Let her bandage you up, then we can go, I promise.”

  In the far corner of the room stood another bed, made with crisp white sheets and soft pillows. Very reluctantly, Laphaniel sat upon it, his arms tight around his middle. He swallowed quickly, his breaths hitching.

  Charlotte brushed past me, one hand lingering on my hip, claws digging into my skin. She brought her head close and whispered in my ear. “If you want him to live, hold him down.”

  She caught my eye before she slipped away, and I nodded, not knowing what else I could do but listen to her and pray she wasn’t planning on devouring us.

  “Lie back,” I said to Laphaniel, squeezing his fingers, feeling his hand hot and damp in mine.

  He didn’t move, his entire body tense. “Why?”

  “Because your shoulder needs stitches, and it’s going to hurt,” I replied, not quite lying to him. “Just lie back, and it’ll all be over.”

  In the gloom, I watched Charlotte draw up some greenish fluid into a syringe. Laphaniel followed my gaze and instantly tried to tear his hand from mine.

  “What are you doing?” he snarled as I clamped my hand back on his. “Teya?”

  “Charlotte is going to make you feel better,” I said, swallowing a sob as he fought against me, kicking out when Charlotte approached him

  “Don’t!” he cried. His fingers dug into my hand to try and prise it away. “Let me go! Get off me, Teya!”

  It broke me to pin him down like some sick animal, fighting against him while he bucked on the bed. His eyes shone utterly wild as he dragged his arm away, his body giving him one last surge of strength to try and escape.

  I grabbed him again, hissing in pain when he sunk his teeth deep into my arm. Using my wrist as a gag, I shoved against him to keep him down. I forced his other arm out, moving my fingers so Charlotte could curl her claws around it to expose the inside of his elbow.

  Laphaniel tore his hand away, raking fingers over Charlotte’s skin, his face a mask of desperate panic. The Spider was quicker, slipping the needle deep into his arm. She pulled away the empty syringe with a satisfied nod.

  “You’re going to be okay,” I said, guiding Laphaniel’s head back onto the pillow as he slumped against me. He attempted to sit and failed. “I won’t let anything happen to you; I promise.”

  “Don’t leave me here,” he said thickly, words slurring together. His hand slipped from mine.

  “I’m not going anywhere.” I pressed a kiss to his burning skin. “I’ll be right here when you wake up.”

  “Don’t...”

  His eyes drifted shut, and he didn’t move. If it were not for the slow rise and fall of his chest….

  “This boy reeks of blood and death,” Charlotte said, passing by in silence. I leapt backwards into a table, sending everything on top crashing to the floor. “Did I startle you?”

  “You’re very quiet,” I replied, sucking in a shaking breath. I knelt on the floor to pick up the things that had scattered, scalpels, needles, and little dishes to keep things in. Charlotte reached over me, picking up an assortment of tools from the floor, holding out her clawed hands for the rest.

  “I will need new ones,” she sighed, dropping the handful into a bucket on the large worktable. “The needles are in the second drawer over there. They are formed of ice-glass; I made them myself.”

  “And the scalpel?” I dared to ask, my stomach churning as her eyes lit up.

  “Do you want to watch?”

  I moved, sliding closer to Laphaniel. “I won’t let you hurt him.”

  The Spider cocked her head. “And what would you do, little one, if I chose to cut him up instead?”

  Fear and fury battled inside me; my heart crashed against my ribcage, my pulse a scream in my ears. “I will find a way to burn this place to the ground with you inside it.”

  Her touch was cold as she ran her fingers over my face, fangs glinting behind her strange smile. “I do not doubt you, little one.”

  I didn’t move from Laphaniel’s side, watching while the Spider came closer, her talons clicking upon the floor as she approached the other side of the bed. I tensed, but she didn’t lay a hand on Laphaniel.

  “Lift his clothing up.”

  I kept her gaze for a moment, then reached for the tattered hem of Laphaniel’s hoodie and lifted it gently. My hands shook as I peeled back his t-shirt, the f
abric sticking to the wound oozing over his ribs.

  A sob clawed its way up my throat. “You stupid…stubborn…”

  Charlotte pulled back more of his shirt, revealing mottled bruising snaking all the way over his chest. Her fingers stroked down his ribs before pressing down. Laphaniel writhed under her touch, a low groan on his lips.

  “Stop that!” I slapped her hand away, and she caught it with her own, hissing.

  “Can you feel it?” she whispered, bringing my hand down upon Laphaniel’s skin. “That fever could well be the end of him, little one. These ribs have been broken and not had the chance to heal properly. There is a wound deep inside, and it is festering. He has a mark on his arm, I am guessing from blood-giving? Yes? It is all too much. His shoulder does need cleaning and stitching before that begins to poison him too.”

  “I thought…I thought it was from the iron, from the car…the warehouse.” I swallowed, unable to look away from the wound on Laphaniel’s side. “I didn’t know, he didn’t tell me…we just kept on running. I didn’t know it was this bad. I didn’t know.”

  “Fey heal quickly,” Charlotte began, face softening, “when they are not exhausted and hungry. When they have a safe place to rest, with clean bindings for their wounds. I can smell the faint tang of iron on this boy. He is lucky not to be dead already from his stupidity.”

  “We had nowhere to go.” Tears rolled over my cheeks, hot and useless.

  “Well, you are here now,” Charlotte said, lifting Laphaniel’s wrist and pressing her long fingers against his pulse. She frowned, and my heart lurched. “Ah, there it is.”

  I released a shuddering breath, taking Laphaniel’s hand from her. “Why are you helping us?”

  Charlotte moved over to her worktable, claws scraping over the stone. “You are guests in the Unseelie Court,” she said, sifting through bottles. “In any other circumstances, that Seelie boy would be strapped to my other bed while I carved him up.”

  “We weren’t invited here,” I began, suddenly wishing I could swallow the words. “I mean…”