by J. M. Kearl
She reached for the door handle. “It’s to the east.” Then she dashed out.
I decided I had to go either way. I laid some pillows under the blankets so it looked like me from afar and left a note on my pillow just in case: Went for a walk.
I was trusting that if they did find me missing I wouldn’t suffer too much of a punishment. As the girl said, they needed me. In the back of my mind though, I worried they’d try to get at me by way of my parents or brothers. I was most worried about my brothers. They were more vulnerable.
I spelled outside and Gideon appeared beside me. We darted from tree to tree staying in the shadows of the palace. “Keep trying to reach the boys. Any of them.”
I came to the end of the castle and peered around the corner. A set of guards walked our way. I pressed my back against the wall, slowing my breath. Do I take them out or let them pass? I decided to make myself invisible and hoped I wouldn’t have to hold it long but with my new power I was capable. It wouldn’t strain me like it once had.
I chanted the magic then looked down at my body. It couldn’t be seen. I tore past them hoping they’d take my movement as nothing but the wind. I made it to a cactus and dropped the spell. Gideon peered from around it. “This reminds me of a time with your father, looking for your mother.”
“Really?” I peered out to see a couple strolling down a path nearby. “When?”
“She was taken captive by the Hesstians and your father sent me in to find her. King Enden had her in his possession.” He laughed in my head. “It is so strange to see you with his son. But gone are the days of glorious battle.”
“We might see a battle sooner than you think.” I stood there a moment, wondering where in the Faerie I was going. I dropped to my knees and picked up a nearby stick and stuck it upright. “Show me the east,” I whispered, and chanted the magic words in my head. The stick fell to the right. I got up and dusted off the sand. Then Gideon and I took off at a run.
I made it through the paths along the now-deserted ponds and manicured palace grounds. In the distance a golden fence separated the palace from the city on the other side. I was almost there when something caught my foot and I flew forward onto my hands and knees. I pulled my sword and whipped around, holding the point of it to… Firo Hazelvale.
Did he have a tracking spell on me or something? How did he know every time I left my room?
He toyed with the golden rope in his hand, still attached around my ankle. “Where are you running off to?”
I tugged against the rope. “I need to help my friends.”
“Oh, right, your little harem of boys.” He chuckled. “What you need to do is get back to the palace and sit in your room like a good girl.”
I shot to my feet and shoved a finger at him. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
He grabbed my hand. “Here’s the thing. I like Delhoon. It’s where I spend much of my time. I don’t want to see it destroyed. So get back in there and do what you’re told.” He released me. “I’ll find your friends.”
“I can’t trust you. My cat says they’re in danger.”
“I’ve told you before, Fae can’t lie. If I say I’ll find them I will. I’ll even give them a place to hide if need be.”
I tapped my foot nervously. “They won’t destroy Delhoon. They need me.”
“If your mother and father die and there is no one to take their place, the country will fall apart. I already know Helios will find a way to kill them should you not listen.”
I swallowed down the nervous lump in my throat. “Fine. But you better find them and make sure they’re safe. I need him to send word he’s alright.”
Firo lowered his head in a bow. “I promise, Princess.”
I scooped Gideon up and spelled straight back to my room. I hated being used. I hated that I couldn’t do what I wanted. I was a prisoner.
I set Gideon on the bed and changed back into the Summer Court clothes. Then I paced back and forth. My door creaked open, a Fae woman peeked her head in and then she left as quickly as she’d come.
Firo Hazelvale better do what he said.
9
Zyacus
A tawny wolf the size of a bear came out of nowhere and took Aric to the ground. Its snapping jaws came dangerously close to his face. Aric held the beast inches away. I built a huge orb and sent it flying. It collided with the wolf and knocked it ten feet back. Taz had his sword in hand ready to strike. Aric got to his feet and scrambled to stand beside me. The three of us waited, a united front against the wolf.
It slowly rose to its paws and hackled up, showing its massive teeth. My skin prickled and my temperature rose. Sweat beaded on my brow. No, not now. I knew this feeling. I’d felt it before. I hit myself in the head and clenched my teeth together.
Taz looked at me strangely. “You alright, man?”
My wolf side wanted to make itself known. I was on the verge of shifting and I didn’t know how to stop it. I took several steps back and tossed my shirt to the side. “Hold the thing off,” I ground out.
“Oh shit, he’s about to go all hairy on us,” Aric said, pulling out his sword.
Prick. I stripped down to nothing and let the itchy feeling take over. Within a split second I stood on all fours. My vision sharpened and my hearing intensified. The other wolf no longer bore its teeth but remained in a defensive stance. My instincts took over. I ran at it, leaped over Taz and Aric and collided with the wolf. I sunk my teeth into the scruff and tore. The wolf yelped and chomped my leg. The sharp teeth hurt but made me angrier.
We rolled and growled. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. I latched onto the side of his neck. I knew he was male by the scent, and drove him into the ground. With one paw pressing his body into the dirt, he quit fighting. He surrendered much faster than I anticipated.
I backed off and stood in front of Aric and Taz to show him they were mine, a part of my pack. The other wolf rolled to his feet, lifting one leg off the ground. His form shifted to human… I had never seen another shifter before and I stared. Had he just changed from an animal to a human man in seconds? I had done it too but I hadn’t seen it from an outsider’s view.
The man had long unkempt brown hair, was certainly harrier than I was naked, and held his bloodied shoulder. He stared back at me. “I didn’t know you were one of us.”
I glanced at Aric. I didn’t know how to turn. I knew I would eventually but this part of me was something I knew nothing about.
“Cousin of yours?” Aric remarked stepping forward.
Smart-ass. I let out a low growl.
“Look, we aren’t here for trouble.”
“You’re a blood drinker,” the man said, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. “Yet you travel with a wolf?”
“He’s my cousin.”
The man laughed without humor and slowly rose. “What an unfortunate thing.”
I growled again but this time because he was fully exposed and the last thing I wanted to look at was his little peter.
“Why is that?” Aric asked, sharply.
“You three aren’t from here, are you?” He started walking for a black pile not too far away. “The wolf is the natural enemy of the blood drinker. One bite and it’s night night. The blood drinker’s venom is deadly to us too.”
As I relaxed my body started to tingle. I knew the shift was coming. I darted for my own clothes and as soon as the change happened, I dressed and picked up my sword.
The strange man put on this attire much slower, as if each movement hurt him. My leg had puncture wounds but that was the only injury I sustained.
“Are you from Night Court?” Taz asked.
“Depends who’s asking.” He pulled the black shirt over his head and limped our way.
“We aren’t from any Court,” Taz said, putting his sword back in its holster.
The man’s eyes drifted to me then Aric then back to me. “You sure about that?”
“We’re from the human realm,” I said.
The guy’s eyebrow arched. “But you’re not human.”
“Yes I am,” I argued even though I knew humans didn’t change forms into a wolf. Part of me was still human.
“You three must be the human princess’s crew.” He rolled his shoulder and tilted his neck back and forth. “Astaroth said she’d brought friends.”
“How would he know?” I asked, bitter at even hearing the name. He’s the bastard who intended to marry my girlfriend, the woman I loved. I’d never let that happen. I didn’t care if both our worlds depended on it. Astaroth Nightfrost would never call Visteal, wife.
“The Night Prince is well informed on a wide variety of things.” His reflective eyes watched me again. “Wolf shifters are faeries. Our origin is from Night Court. The curse of the blood drinker also came from there. The Fae lords made the curse a couple thousand years ago to watch us fight in pits.”
I’m a faerie? That couldn’t be. I’d never even been here. Neither had my family.
Aric folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. “They created an enemy of the wolf shifter for entertainment?”
I saw the unspoken words in his eyes. They made me a blood-thirsty beast for their entertainment?
“Are you surprised?” the man said. “I’m Targus.”
None of this made any sense. My father’s line could be traced back at least a thousand years, not a single magic-born or wolf shifter. And my mother was human, my uncles were human. How could I be anything else? I touched the wolf pendant at my neck. Had my mother known something? “How can I be a faerie when my family is not from here?”
Targus shrugged. “If there are blood drinkers where you are from, it’s likely at some point the Fae lords sent wolf shifters. It could be dormant in your family line and revealed itself during the blood moon.”
That would mean it ran in Aric’s blood too. “It must be from my mother’s side, our side, Aric. I wonder if you would have changed if you hadn’t become a vampire.” A little thought popped into my head; when Visteal claimed that Aric wasn’t truly my uncle’s son. I’d never thought to ask her further about it. It seemed so absurd. But it was true he didn’t have the same black hair and light blue eyes like the rest of us. I shook it off. It didn’t matter at this moment.
Targus sniffed the air. “We need to move. You’re being followed.”
We all started jogging for the city. I wondered if I should be able to pick up a scent like that. Maybe I could. My sense of smell was stronger but I couldn’t differentiate many of the aromas.
“What are you three doing out here anyway? Shouldn’t you be in the Summer palace?”
“We got booted,” Taz said. “The King lost his mind when he saw Visteal’s winter tattoo and we all got thrown into the dungeon. We escaped out here but now we’re being hunted by a group of humans who patrol the area.”
Targus nodded as if this were expected. “Perhaps it is fate we ran into each other then. I’m on a mission.”
“A mission?” I asked. “What kind of mission?”
He grinned. “The kind that involves fire. I’ve been instructed to send a message.”
Taz shook his head. “Like setting a building on fire? No way.”
“Oh, come on. It will be fun. It will give you three purpose while your princess receives the preparation she needs for the contest.”
“What contest?” All three of us asked at once.
“You haven’t heard?” He chuckled.
I didn’t want to set any buildings on fire but I had to know more. “Elaborate.”
Judging by the deserted streets and where the moon hung in the sky, we had hours until sunrise but my heart still raced as Targus threw a rock into a window.
“That was loud. Someone may have heard that,” Aric said, looking around the corner of the stone building. Nothing on it was marked or distinguished what might be inside. It didn’t appear to be a home or business. The windows were too small, and the single door had a metal bar that latched and locked in front of it. But if it were of importance wouldn’t it be guarded? It was inside the palace fence which we easily got through, but we hadn’t seen a guard yet. Apparently, they only stood at the entrances and exits of the main palace.
Targus waved a hand as if he weren’t worried. “Did you see any patrols? Me neither. Summer Court can be summed up with lounging near ponds, admiring each other’s looks and degrading humans and lesser faeries. Rarely chaos.” He pulled a torch off the wall and tilted the end toward me. “Mind giving me a light? I know you have magic, kid.”
“What is this building?” I asked before obliging. “Is anyone inside?”
“It’s the king’s personal wine stash.” He grinned. “You may not know this but the man is an insufferable lush. This will hit him where it hurts.”
I brought fire to my palm and lit the torch. He tossed it in the window and it wasn’t long before orange flames glowed brightly. A note popped out of the torch and fell into my hand.
Targus eyed me suspiciously. “What is that?”
“It’s a message from Visteal.” I read the note. She said to meet outside her window by a pond. Except I didn’t know where that was. There were hundreds of pools of water and as many windows.
Distant yelling broke my concentration. Guards ran toward the burning building, toward me. My stomach dropped.
“Come on, Zyacus!” Taz shouted, chasing after Targus and Aric who had already started running. I gave one last look at the palace and sprinted after them. Visteal had found a way to get to me once at my castle when she didn’t know the way. I should be able to find her.
We hid down an alleyway outside the palace grounds watching them try to put the fire out. It gave me a small amount of satisfaction knowing the king would be pissed off. After he threw us in the dungeon for no real reason. We’d come here to help them and were treated like trash. I didn’t trust Targus but so far he’d treated us better.
I stuffed the note in my pocket. “I need to go in there and find Visteal.”
“There’s no time. You three need to come with me. If we’re to make it for the contest start we need to leave now. It’s a journey to Winter Court and we need to find horses.”
“Can’t you open a portal?” Aric asked.
He shook his head. “I don’t have magic. I’m Astaroth’s loyal servant. He dropped me here but there is no pickup.”
Taz chewed on his lower lip. “We shouldn’t leave her. What if she needs our help?”
“She doesn’t need your help.” We all turned, ready to fight the newcomer. Targus growled and I scowled at Firo Hazelvale. “I caught her trying to escape to find you three.” Firo pointed at each of us slowly. “She would risk too much for you. You’re a distraction. It’s in all our best interests if you leave with the dog and get to Winter where you might actually be useful. Helios only brought you here to use against her. So leave.”
I wasn’t a pawn. I was her protector. I would do anything for her. “I need to see her. She could come after us again if she doesn’t hear from me.”
“I’ll relay a message,” Firo droned.
“That’s not good enough,” I barked. “If you don’t take me, I’ll go myself and I don’t care what kind of shit that stirs up.”
“You have five minutes, boy.” Firo grabbed my shirt and we vanished into the darkness. When I could see again, I stood in a low lit room. Firo disappeared and Visteal sat up in the bed, throwing her blankets off. In her hand, a ball of magic waited to strike.
“Vis, it’s me.” In three strides, I grabbed her in my arms and held her tight. When I’d left her in that dungeon, I was terrified I wouldn’t see her again.
Her hands clenched my shirt and she squeezed me tight to her. “Zyacus. I was so scared. Gideon said you were in danger and—”
“I’m fine,” I said, rubbing her back.
She pulled away to look me in the face. Then her lips pressed to mine. Every time our lips met it burned hotter than that fire we’d just set. I wanted
to kiss her longer but now wasn’t the time. I grabbed her face and had to force myself to lean back. “We’re going to ride to Winter Court so we can help you. If I must pose as a servant or make some heads roll I will. We found someone to show us the way.”
Her eyebrows knitted together. “Wait, you’re leaving?”
“I assume when the Winter Prince comes to get you, he won’t be taking three tagalongs.” I smirked at her. “Especially not me.”
She stroked my cheek and tears filled her eyes. She’d been so emotionally fragile since Astaroth marked her with those tattoos and she’d been forced to make a deal. I wanted to hold her in my arms until she was whole again. Gods, how could I have let her get into this? It should be me that kills the Winter King, not her; me that has to bear this burden.
“But it could be too dangerous.” Her chin quivered. “Who knows what is out there. Wild beasts, and vampires, and what if you can’t find water or food or—”
I pressed my fingers against her lips. “Don’t worry about the boys or me,” I said, and kissed the tears running down her cheeks. “We’ll be there when you get to Winter. Worry about what you need to do to prepare.”
“I won’t marry him,” she said, her voice growing stronger.
I couldn’t even let my mind wander to that possibility. It angered me too much. Screw that part of the prophecy. She didn’t need to be anyone’s wife to kill that bastard. “You don’t have to.” I smiled, wiping her tears with my thumb. “If you’re going to be anyone’s wife, you’re going to be mine. When I said I loved you, I meant it.”
She grinned but her eyes dropped.
I hoped she would say it back this time. Did she love me too? I knew she cared about me and I knew when she kissed me there was passion but did she feel the same? Maybe I was a fool for loving her. Maybe she didn’t love me back.
Firo appeared and cleared his throat. “Time’s up.”
I kissed her hand and moved to Firo’s side. “I’ll see you soon.”