Consort (Noble Reckoning #1)

Chapter 21

Durin

My magic blazes behind my eyes. It tints the forest blue as I sprint away from a queen I’m so desperate to kill. She did this. She took Rue from me before I even got a chance. My raging bloodlust and I are in perfect agreement–decapitated, disemboweled, or cut up in pieces and boiled into a stew of flesh, the queen’s death will be nothing short of gruesome.

I’m dying to rip her apart, but there’s more to be done before that can happen. There’s no room for mistakes. I must make sure the queen falls, even if it means biding my time in the shadows. But my bloodlust doesn’t want to wait. I’m struggling to keep it contained so it can’t drag me back to the castle and try to end her right now.

I shove the bloodlust back down and cover it with my fire. Thankfully, it submits, and I can eventually slow my pace. But my thoughts just turn back to Rue. I don’t know why I thought she’d accept me once she got to know me. The parts of me that define who I am are the darkest and dirtiest.

Kissing her that first time was a mistake. I never should have promised to return to her. How foolish of me to believe I could have any joy in my life.

Tonight, my intention was to give her the truth and accept however she felt about it. But my resolve crumbled when her face lit up at the sight of me. When she put her arms around me, I found a sense of peace I hadn’t experienced in a very long time. I was weak.

I regret letting her lead me to the cave, as well as everything I went along with once we got there. But she’s so beautiful, so full of life. Denying her seemed unnatural and cruel. Just like it had during her heat.

I did try to resist, though. I searched her face for any hesitation or speck of doubt, hoping it might help me walk away. There was nothing. I had to fight, to gather up every ounce of determination I had, to convince myself to leave.

But that whimper… and the helplessness in her eyes. They threw me back to her heat, igniting a fierce sense of protectiveness in me. I would have done anything she asked in that moment. It doesn’t matter that I’m the second most powerful being in the entire realm. That tiny Omega conquered me with her innocence and desire. I never stood a chance.

By some mercy, my conscience returned just in time. The heat was one thing–I thought I had no choice. But to join with her again out of selfishness, or even weakness, would be wrong. No amount of soap and boiling water can wash the queen away. And hiding the truth from Rue makes me even more disgusting. The stain of what I am remains, and Rue deserves better than that.

And I deserve her anger. I’ve earned every ounce of it.

I can’t help but wonder if fate is more than just where we end up. Is it intimately involved with our choices and actions? If so, this could be my punishment for killing Mitah. Maybe I should have spared him, even if it meant more victims. Perhaps there was already a plan in place for him, and my revenge interfered. I can’t imagine what else I could have done to deserve this suffering.

As I walk, the weight of losing Rue sinks in. My magic flares back up at the onslaught of emotion. Everything is hot. Too hot. My chest is too heavy.

My magic pools in my hands as I struggle to contain it. It seeps between my fingers, dripping to the ground and leaving a trail of blue molten rock. I hold them to my chest, trying not to harm the trunks and roots bringing life to the dryads.

But I trip over a root hidden in the shadows at my feet. “Fuck, sorry,” I grunt as I go down.

A low-hanging branch reaches out to catch me, then gently pushes me in a different direction. Something in the brush of its leaves gives me breath. The spirit of the tree reaches out to my magic and soothes it on a level I’ll never be able to understand.

My magic pulls back in on its own. The panic and defeat slip away, leaving me much more composed. I take a breath and follow its lead, knowing wherever it sends me is where I need to be.

Vines seem to reach out from nowhere, rising from the soil and twisting through the brush to guide me along. I can see straight again by the time I hear voices ahead.

I stop and watch the vines slink back to where they came from. The dryads want me to witness whatever is happening here. I creep closer, keeping to the shadows until I make out two figures up ahead.

The first is a quiet noble named Lyta, who I’ve heard is a spirit reaver. I’ve had a difficult time getting a good read on her. Her magic is a twisted, backward form of healing magic. It drains life rather than restoring it. I’d never seen her use it before, and I’d hoped that was due to her having a soul somewhere inside.

Now that I’m seeing it with my own eyes, it’s clear where she stood all along.

Somehow, she’s managed to bring a kelpie horse to its knees. She jumps swiftly onto his back and straddles him, something kelpies are known to hate. It makes them feel like lesser fae instead of the intelligent, powerful creatures that they are.

Her cruel laugh echoes through the trees as she presses her hands into his eyes. He thrashes beneath her, struggling to throw her off. If the kelpie were in his home territory, he’d drag her into the depths to destroy and consume her.

But on land, he’s powerless against her deadly touch.

As I move closer, I notice the kelpie’s skin looks leathery, and his hooves are cracked and worn. Knowing his suffering began before I arrived makes my fire roar back to life.

I charge forward and rip Lyta off the kelpie’s back. Her shriek of surprise pierces the air as I slam her to the ground.

Before she can find her breath again, I flip her onto her stomach.

As she tries to roll over, I see a faint purple glow coming from her palms. She plans to use her magic against me.

Not fucking happening. I slam my knee into her back and grab her wrists.

“Get the fuck off of me!” she snarls, contorting her fingers in all directions, trying to make contact with my skin.

But my hands are stronger than hers. And I’m fully charged with fury. I release my magic, engulfing her wrists and hands in flames.

She screams in agony as her skin melts away. I press harder, and her bones grow brittle under my heat. They soon break into shards in my grasp, and I let go only because there’s nothing left of her hands to hold onto.

I strip her of her cloak and flip her back over. Her eyes widen when she sees me, but she’s in too much shock from the pain to speak. And she’s powerless without her hands. I leave her in the dirt and turn to check on the kelpie.

“Are you okay?” I ask him. “What can I do?”

He snorts as he struggles to stand, too proud to accept my help. His skin looks slightly better, but he’ll need a healer to recover completely. Sadly, I think his eyes are beyond repair. Restoring sight is a daunting challenge, even for the most powerful healers. It’s likely gone forever.

I feel a wave of sorrow over what he’s lost. His whole life has changed irrevocably, just for the thrill of a heartless soldier.

I turn back to Lyta and watch her tears fall as her own loss sinks in. “My hands… You took my hands! ” she wails, staring at the scorched nubs left below her elbows.

I allow the kelpie to get up on his own while I rip the cloak into strips. After balling one strip up, I stuff it into her mouth to quiet her. I use the others to tie what’s left of her arms against her sides.

Once I’ve finished, I hear the kelpie stomp, and his mane brushes against me. Now that he’s standing, I hope he’ll allow me to help him.

“Where is your lake?” I ask. “I’ll lead you there.”

“My home is in the dark lake,” he grunts. “No one wants to go there.”

“I’ll go with you,” I tell him, resting my hand on his muscular shoulder.

He shakes off my touch, but doesn’t lash out, focusing instead on the noble who deserves his anger.

“What of her?” he asks, tossing his head toward the muffled sound of Lyta’s cries.

“That’s up to you,” I tell him. “We can bring her with us if you’d like.”

He chuffs as he considers it. “Sure. I’ll drag her behind me.”

I smile and begin a makeshift rope with what’s left of the cloak. After lifting a sobbing Lyta to her feet, I attach the rope to her bindings, then secure it around the kelpie’s girth. She stumbles and falls a few times along the way but manages to remain on her feet for most of the journey.

The kelpie remains quiet, following the sounds of my footsteps until the dirt turns to coarse sand beneath our feet. The trees thin, and the vast, still water stretches out before us. The moon shines down from behind the trees, casting gnarled shadows upon the lake. It looks like hundreds of long, bony fingers reaching across the surface.

Figures dart back and forth beneath the water. The kelpies’ songs rise from the depths, distorted but tantalizing. I’m lured to the water’s edge, captivated by the sound.

Luckily, Lyta realizes where we are just in time and screams around the cloth in her mouth. The sound drowns out the songs and shakes me out of my trance.

Silhouettes of kelpies begin to emerge from the water. Some resemble smaller versions of kelpies’ horse forms but with big, luminous eyes. Others look like sultry fae, swaying their hips with a hypnotic grace as they advance on us.

I hear the huffs and stomps of kelpies closing us in from behind. When I turn, a tall, black kelpie with piercing eyes and a domineering aura towers over me, taking the three of us in.

Given his size, I assume he’s their leader. Even Lyta stills when she sees how massive he is. I bow my head in reverence and allow the kelpie I arrived with to speak to his kind.

“Shamere,” the leader says. “Explain this.”

“Majestic,” he answers, keeping his head down. “The noble attacked me and took my sight away.”

The kelpies on land stomp and snort in anger. The ones in the water screech. My stomach drops as I realize I’m wearing a noble’s uniform, but Lyta no longer has her cloak.

Misinterpreting Shamere’s words, the leader takes a step toward me as if I’m the attacker.

“The other noble,” I say, bowing my head lower.

Shamere’s head jerks up, and he shakes it in confusion. “ Other noble?” he asks.

“I’m Durin,” I tell him, wishing I’d explained everything to him on the way. “I’m a noble as well, but not by choice. I killed Mitah to avenge a shifter’s death, and I was caught. I assure you, the work I do is to the queen’s own detriment.”

“You did that to her hands?” the leader asks, jerking his head at Lyta.

I nod. “I helped Shamere because he deserves to live. I play along with my role as a noble in hopes of completing my mission–taking the corrupt nobles out one by one and their queen after them.”

“Shamere,” the leader says, wanting his input.

“I owe my life to this fae,” he says, holding his head high.

None of the kelpies speak, nor do they attack me as they would another fae wandering near their waters. Kelpies are deadly hunters, luring high and lesser fae into their depths to toy with and then consume. Despite the power the queen has given me, I would be no match for their song. It was a risk to come here, especially while wearing my uniform, but it seems I’ve been spared.

A kelpie calls out from the waters, taking everyone’s attention. “Trass, the illusionist,” he says. “He is like you. He threw up an illusion to shield a foal who’d strayed into the forest. The two nobles he was with never saw the little one. His life was spared. The fae had no reason to do that other than mercy. Speaking to him may do you well.”

“That’s very helpful. Thank you,” I tell the kelpie.

Trass is the soldier in charge of illusioning the queen’s bedroom door. He kept my consort status to himself before anyone else knew. I’d already suspected that he was good, but this confirms it.

The kelpies help their injured friend into the lake, promising to keep Lyta alive until he’s able to finish her off himself. Hopefully, they have some kind of healing capabilities or plants growing in the depths to help him.

The leader remains on the deep green sand of the shore, but the rest of the kelpies stomp off into the forest or slink back down into the dark waters.

“We knew someone like you would come,” he says, watching them. “I knew this couldn’t be how Faerie was meant to be.”

“I can’t promise I’ll succeed,” I say, “The queen is powerful. Alone, I may not stand a chance. Maybe after I’ve thinned out her nobility, I can convince others to help.”

“Indeed,” he says, turning away.

After taking a few steps into the water, he looks back at me. “You’re free to use our lands for whatever you require. I’ll command the kelpies to leave you be. No one will hinder you or cause you harm.”

“Thank you,” I reply as he shifts and disappears into the dark water.

I’ve not interacted with kelpies directly before. I’m realizing just how broken the realm is. None of the species really see or talk to each other because of fear or hate. We could be so strong together. And so happy.

Having to rescue a kelpie from a fae noble was sickening, but I’m grateful for the chance to speak with the Majestic. He didn’t offer a stampede of kelpie warriors like I’d hoped, but it’s still a great asset. I can walk along the shores of the kelpie lakes without worry. The parts of the forest that fae avoid out of fear are open to me as shortcuts and hiding spots from other nobles. It will prove very helpful. Perhaps, when the time comes, the kelpies will be willing to help in a more aggressive way.

“Thank you for guiding me,” I tell the dryads as I begin the walk back to the castle.

The branches above me sway gently, rustling their leaves in unison. I’ve always trusted the dryads. They’re elusive but known for their integrity and compassion. Tonight, they’ve proven to be my allies, marking my first real victory since arriving at the castle.

The dryads seldom leave their tree hosts. They communicate with each other through an intricate root system beneath the ground. The entire forest is connected by it. If only I could tap into it. I might gain valuable insights that would allow me to confront the queen sooner and better informed.

But then what? I’m pretty sure I just lost any chance I had with Rue. I was weak. I should have stopped her sooner and explained. Instead, I built her up and then crushed her. I’ve hurt her in so many ways. What will my life be even if I succeed in killing the queen?

The reason Rue is hiding comes to mind, and I quickly find my direction. Once the queen and nobles are out of the way, I’ll rid the realm of dishonorable Alphas, too. I don’t know the details of what Rue’s Prime did to her, but I’ll be starting with him. Then, she can have the life she wants with whomever she wants. She’ll no longer need to hide from the queen, the fae, or even her own kind.

Part of me wants to begin that mission first, but I’ll need the shifters’ help if I want the queen gone. After that battle, I’ll sift through the Alphas left standing and snuff out the unworthy. For now, I just need to find a way to get them on my side.