The Dark Rises (Killian Blade #6)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

MERI

B etrayal doesn’t hide in the dark like a thief in the night. It hides in plain sight, waiting for the right moment to strike. This time it struck at dawn in the light Fae court. Solandis saved, crown gone, traitors vanquished; I step from the portal into The Abbey with Cormal and Madoc at my side, bitterness and anger warring inside me. Not for the crown I willingly gave up, but for the loss of the queen I could finally see when I looked into the mirror.

Arden, Valerian, and Theron greet us, weapons and magic held at the ready. At the sight of Cormal, they relax, only to tense a second later when they see Madoc. Tall, dark, with a menacing scowl on his face, he doesn’t appear the least bit friendly.

If this morning’s attack was a moment of betrayal, this is a moment of truth. Madoc’s agenda might align with ours, but it doesn’t mean he’s with us. He has gone out of his way to save me… three times. The wendigo, Denir, and Camon. And he even helped me defeat Hyne, the kraken. But do I trust him? That’s the important question.

I look up and find his predatory stare locked on the three in front of him. He must sense my gaze because his eyes swing down to mine. Wariness changes to amusement and his eyes lighten as he senses my dilemma, but not one plea passes his full lips.

His warm, scarred fingers loosen their grip on my hand, as if he’s preparing himself for my rejection, but mine automatically tighten. Somewhere along the way, I started to trust him, and I didn’t even realize it. Maybe it’s because he saved me and asked for nothing in return. I’ve always dreamed of a knight in shining armor. In Madoc’s case, tarnished armor might be more accurate, which I oddly find appealing. Regardless, black and white, good and bad aren’t scales I’ve used in my life, and I don’t intend to start now.

Swinging my gaze to Arden, I hold up our linked hands. “Madoc is with us.”

Her green eyes return my stare and narrow for a moment, then the prickle of her magic disappears as she slowly pulls in her power. But Valerian and Theron turn toward Cormal for confirmation.

Cormal snorts at my statement. “With you, maybe. I don’t trust him.”

Madoc, his face stern, nods once. “Good. We share a goal, not a friendship.”

His tone is nonchalant, but his muscles are tense as he waits for Cormal to make up his mind.

With gritted teeth, Cormal turns to Arden and her men. “As much as I want to remove him from this world, and from Meri’s side, Madoc stays. For now. The enemy of our enemy and all that. A shared purpose, but not a friend.”

Theron, violet eyes narrowed, sheaths his swords. Valerian also relaxes, releasing the magic swirling around him until it dissipates.

Arden rolls her eyes at them all.

I glare at Cormal. “I consider him a friend.” Sort of. As much as you can befriend something so wild.

Madoc makes a strangled noise in his throat, and Cormal grunts.

Dismissing them, I reluctantly release both of their hands and walk over to Arden to give her a hug. The familiar smell of strawberries and champagne tickles my nose. “It’s good to see you. Solandis?”

The crushing hug I receive in response is almost terrifying in its strength. “She’s here. Safe. All because of you. We can never repay you for what you’ve done.” Her green eyes are swimming with tears when she releases me.

“She’s family.” They all are to some extent. Arden, Vargas, and Callyx. But Solandis’ unwavering support and love is everything to me. A crown is nothing compared to her. “Where is she?”

Arden’s smile dims. “She’s resting right now. Vargas’ orders. Although, I think she was relieved to relinquish control for a while. This really took a lot out of her, especially with the pregnancy. Vargas will come get us when she’s up for visitors.”

I desperately want to see Solandis but I hold off. Her needs come first. At least she’s safe and unharmed. I doubt this would have fazed her under normal circumstances, but the baby changes everything.

Arden leans in close and whispers, “Callyx returned to The Underworld to report to Lucifer.”

It’s clear she doesn’t want Madoc to hear her. “I understand.”

Arden straightens and waves a hand toward Cormal’s bloody shirt. “Do you need healing?”

To my relief, Cormal rubs his hand across his chest and shakes his head. “Now that we’re out of Fae lands, it’s healing quickly. Thank you.” He tilts his head toward me. “The Underworld is Leandra’s domain and until we can find the bitch, I want to be sure Meri has a safe haven. Is it okay if she stays here?”

Valerian shares a look with Theron, then they both nod.

Theron turns his gaze toward Madoc, cool violet eyes studying him intently. “I assume you’ll be staying too?” When Madoc dips his chin, he warns him. “The Abbey is a sanctuary, and she protects her own.”

With that subtle statement, he motions for us to follow him. “I’ll show you to your rooms. All common areas are open to you, including the library, rooftop, and training rooms.”

As we enter the elevator, Madoc hesitates. “Old magic powers this contraption.”

Interest flares in Theron’s eyes, and he flicks a questioning glance toward me as he answers him. “Yes. It’s a bit uncomfortable for some, but this is the only way to travel around The Abbey. Too much magic in the walls makes the shadows unreliable.”

Madoc stiffens and steps inside. He inhales sharply when the doors close and darts a glance at the ceiling, clearly uncomfortable.

I slide closer, letting my body brush against his, hoping it will help. He unclenches his hand, but the moment the elevator begins to move, his hands form fists again, all comfort gone. I hope the ride is short.

My mind lingers on his words. Contraption. Almost as if he’s never been in an elevator, which is odd. They’re everywhere… in all the lands.

The steel doors slide open, and Theron extends his hand toward the hallway. “This is your floor. Any time you want to leave, just step in. The elevator will take you to your destination with just a thought.”

By unanimous agreement, we all decide to let Madoc out first. He steps foot into the hallway and loudly exhales.

Theron brushes past him to lead us to our rooms.

It’s the same wing I stayed in the last time I was here, so Cormal and I are already familiar with the layout.

Cormal clasps hands with Theron. “Thank you. I’m in your debt.”

Theron’s eyes briefly slide to Cormal in acknowledgement, but his attention remains on Madoc. “No debt. Not for family.” His violet gaze swings to me and warms before he reenters the elevator.

Madoc enters first and prowls around the room, his eyes darting from one item to another, inspecting everything.

I step into my previous room and see little has changed. Plain white walls. Nearest to the door is a small sitting area with a loveseat and coffee table and in the corner, a dining table with two chairs. On the far wall sits a dresser, a couple of nightstands, and a large bed covered with a fluffy white duvet. Two doors lead to a closet and an attached bathroom.

When Cormal enters behind me, I whirl around, unable to wait a second longer. Lifting his shirt, I trace the wound left by the Killian Blade. Pink puckered skin is all that’s left of the gaping hole where it plunged into his heart.

My lips replace my hands, skimming the scar on his chest, grateful that we’re both alive to fight another day. I pick up the reassuring sound of his beating heart and tilt my head back to look at him.

“Good thing you’re hard to kill.”

His eyes are full of bemused wonder, as if seeing my concern is still a surprise. He grabs my hand, presses a kiss to it, then links our fingers together.

Adrenaline clashes with reality, and it suddenly feels like a truck ran over me. With Cormal in tow, I move to the couch to contemplate the magnitude of the events that occurred earlier today.

“That was one hell of a morning. Allandra and Camon dead. Lorn a monster or whatever the hell he turned into. Gone forever, I hope.”

An image of his green scales flashes repeatedly in my mind. He had me completely fooled. I never saw it coming. Not once did my intuition or self-preservation pick up on his deception or his other form. Enemy. Monster. Thank goodness we never went further than the briefest of kisses or I’d need therapy.

“And to top it off, I had to give a copy of the peace treaty to Faris, of all people,” I say with a disbelieving shake of my head.

At the thought of the treaty, I can’t help but think of Rivan and wonder if he made it safely to the Water Fae. Goddess, please keep him safe .

“A hybrid of a dryad and some sort of serpent,” Madoc says with an odd glint in his eye. I raise an eyebrow, and he clarifies. “Lorn. You couldn’t sense his other self when you were around him?”

Defensively, I shrug. “No. Fae were drawn to him, but he didn’t seem to affect me as much. Isn’t a dryad a type of nymph?” That would explain why the Fae hung on his every word.

“Tree nymph, yes, but as the light Fae queen, you should have been able to sense his true self,” he interjects impatiently when it’s clear I’m not getting the point.

Gritting my teeth, I reveal the truth about my reign. “When I became queen, an extensive amount of knowledge poured into me, but accessing the threads to the people and the land wasn’t possible. It was nothing but a black hole.” I lift a shoulder. “Eris, one of the brownies in the palace, told me everything disconnected from Nyssa, and the crown, a long time ago.”

Madoc paces, quiet for a moment, then shakes his head. “As their queen, the magic should have reconnected with you, but it could be corrupted. Too many deviations from its true purpose.” He eyes Cormal. “Where did you send Lorn?”

Cormal returns his stare. “The Underworld.”

When Madoc arches an eyebrow, silently demanding more information, Cormal’s only reply is a smirk.

“Does it matter?” I ask Madoc.

He ignores my question and resumes pacing.

With a speculative look, Cormal’s gaze turns toward the dark man pacing the room. “Faery fire means you’re royal. How do we know you’re not after the crown?”

Madoc waves a dismissive hand. “The light Fae crown chooses its ruler. When the light and dark Fae were cleaved into two, the light Fae embodied their crown with certain traits like wisdom and foresight to choose the best candidate amongst those with royal blood.”

I blink. “Right before I threw it in the air, I told it to pick the best candidate—one who would serve both the aristocratic and Lesser Fae equally. Do you think that’s why it didn’t choose?”

His brow raised high, Madoc pauses and stares at me. “Maybe. It was a good move. One a queen would make for her people.”

For a second, I can’t help basking in the rare compliment, especially from someone who rarely gives them out. “Thank you. That means a lot. And the dark Fae crown? Was it also given wisdom and intelligence?”

A hard noise escapes Madoc’s throat.

Did he just laugh?

“No. It searches for blood and power,” he responds harshly.

Interesting. I turn toward Cormal, who’s been strangely silent during the entire interaction. “What’s next?”

“We need to find Leandra before King Denir gets to her,” Cormal replies, his tone grim. “Whatever he wants can’t be good for us. How the hell we’re going to locate her, though, I’m not sure. The amulet makes her invisible to her enemies.”

Madoc stops pacing and turns to us. “What if we sent a hunter who wasn’t her enemy? Someone who knows nothing of her except her scent?”

Cormal jumps up, cursing. “Of course. Why the hell didn’t I think of that? But who? Tarquin, one of Lucifer’s hellhounds, isn’t up for another mission.” His fingers tap against his thigh as he thinks about it.

“I know someone,” Madoc informs him. “He won’t care who she is, nor will he ask questions, which will play in our favor. But he’ll need something of hers. Do you have anything?”

Both men turn to me. My nose wrinkles at the thought. “No, but I could take you to some of the places we lived to see if she left anything behind. I must warn you, though; she was paranoid, rarely left items that could be used to trace her.”

With as many enemies as she had, she knew one slip up would mean her death. I wish I’d been brave enough to steal something and leave it behind.

“There has to be something,” Cormal insists. “Starting tomorrow, we’ll check the most likely places.” His tone is full of fierce determination.

Madoc raises a demanding finger. “I’m going with you. If we find something, I can immediately take it to my friend and start the hunt.” When Cormal nods his agreement, Madoc moves toward the door. “I need to let him know.”

He leaves without even saying goodbye.

Cormal stares after him with an incredulous expression on his face.

I can’t help but chuckle. “Madoc is… unique. I don’t think he’s used to being around people.” Another odd thing I like about him. He doesn’t pander to others.

When Cormal grunts in return, I ask him, “Do you think this will work?”

Cormal nods. “It’s a good plan.” His words are reassuring, but his narrowed eyes and set face tell me he’s concerned about whether Madoc is going to be a problem.

I slide the tip of my finger across the line in his brow. “Give him a chance.”

Cormal compresses his lips, but his hand wraps around the back of my neck, and he drops his face close to mine. “You’re my priority. Not him.”

They will either work it out or attempt to kill each other. Since they’re both immortal, I’m not concerned.

I study the dried blood encrusted on his clothes, and desire and anger mix with the maelstrom of emotions raging within me.

My fingertips tingle. With a flick of my hand, I remove our clothes. Revenge can wait. “I need you. Inside me. Remind me that we’re alive and here. Together.”