Chapter 38
Maddox
“The past may fade but can never be erased.”
— An Unseelie Proverb
All I want is to run after Nia, but Raven’s threat to carve her dagger across my Seelie’s throat keeps me rooted in place, watching like a useless fucking stone as Raven drags her away.
“Where are they taking her?” I demand, glaring at the female who claims to be their chieftain.
“Somewhere safe.”
I do not take her word for it. If this place were safe, they would not have taken Nia from me.
I will get her back.
I do not care how many fae I must fight to do it. I will not leave this place without my Seelie.
The Chieftain motions toward a tall ladder reaching high up the cliff and invites me into her home.
I do not want to join her anywhere. I want to stay right here and wait for an explanation that makes sense.
“Why did you take Nia?” I ask again.
“I have told you that we have much to discuss,” she says.
“Does this discussion have anything to do with your people attacking the Seelie fae?” I was a fool for trusting them. For staying in this place longer than necessary. We should have left the moment I was healed. I have failed to keep Nia safe, and now she has been stolen from me.
Annoyance flickers through the Chieftain’s dark eyes, and her crinkled lips press tightly together.
She is irritated? Good. So am I.
“The Seelie attacked us first,” she clips.
This cannot be true. Ever would not have allowed that to happen.
Could this be the work of the rebels he mentioned? The same ones who were against building a new bridge? “Explain yourself.”
The Chieftain stalks forward until we are toe-to-toe on the worn path. “My mate was hunting south of the village when Seelie fire rained down from the sky. He was killed along with three of our fiercest warriors.”
She must be mistaken. Ever does not even know there are fae living down here. As far as I know, no one does. Why would he order an attack—
Wait.
“When did this happen?”
“It has been thirteen weeks since my mate was buried.”
That would have been when the previous king burned the bridge. South of the village . . . That is where the bridge once stood. This must be what happened.
“I am sorry for your great losses, but the Seelie were not attacking you. They were trying to kill us.” The last Seelie queen despised our kind and did not want us to have access to their well, so she destroyed the only way to reach their side of the canyon.
Thankfully, we are not so easily deterred.
The Chieftain folds her arms over her colorful chest, her gown as fine as those in Madame Ella’s shop. “Yet you brought one to our village. Dared to mate with her in our beds.”
Who I mate with is none of their business. I do not know these fae. They are not my people and have no claim to me. No bearing on my actions.
Nia and I have chosen each other. This is all that matters.
“The Seelie who plotted the attack have been killed. An Unseelie sits on the throne of Willowhaven.”
The dull hum of curious murmurs lifts around us, females wondering if what I say is possible.
It is more than possible. It is truth.
“Lies,” the Chieftain hisses.
I may lie about many things, but not about this.
“Go to Rosehill and see for yourself. The animosity between our peoples has faded.” This is a new age of peace—one that might end as quickly as it began if the Seelie learn that Unseelie have been behind the attacks on the bridge workers.
We are only beginning to earn their trust. These ignorant fae must not be allowed to destroy what we have built.
The Chieftain holds out her hands, and the murmuring stops.
Blowing out a breath, she straightens her shoulders, her expression as rigid as before.
“Even if what you say is true, there is still much anger in our hearts. We have lost mates. Sons. Daughters. Our only hope of survival lies in expanding our line. To do this, we need strong, healthy males.”
“That does not make it right to kill the Seelie.” Two deaths do not make a life.
“We have not killed them, Mad-dox. We have captured them.”
I know better than to take her word for truth. If she wishes for me to believe her, she must give me proof. “Show me.”
To my shock, the Chieftain leads me through the village toward where they took Nia. I scan for signs of my Seelie but find none. If anything happens to her, I will burn this village to the ground.
Raven trades words with four other females outside a small hole in the cliff. That Raven is here is a good sign. Nia must be nearby. Although I do not see her.
The Chieftain orders Raven to bring out the prisoners. Our former escort disappears inside the small hole, and when she emerges, she is not alone.
A Seelie with hair the color of clover peeking from between bits of blood and mud staggers out, his hands bound in front of him. Groaning, he winces against the gray sky.
Could this be one of the missing architects?
A second male emerges, his arm slung over Raven’s shoulders. His black leather uniform bears the Willowhaven crest.
This is glorious news indeed. Ever will be—
My Nia emerges from the hole, her skirts painted in muck. I take a step toward her, but then my body locks tight as a fist when another male emerges after her. Dread courses through my veins. Twists in my gut.
What is the Nolan doing here? Why is Nia putting her arm around him, helping him stand?
My teeth grind, but I force my face to remain neutral. Anger will not help this day. I must keep a clear head. Remain focused.
Nia’s worried eyes meet mine, spilling tears.
Why does she cry? Is she hurt? Is she relieved to be near me once more?
Or is she relieved to be near him? She said that he is engaged to the climbing vine, but what if their absence from one another has rekindled the flames of love that once burned in their hearts?
Has my place there been reduced to ash?
Was I even in her heart to begin with?
Focus, Maddox. Your broken heart does not matter. You may mourn once everyone is safe.
These men are innocent. They have no business here at the bottom of this canyon. “You must release them.”
The Chieftain shakes her head. “You have heard our troubles, and yet you continue to side with the Seelie?”
Their troubles, though regrettable, are their own to solve. “I side with what is right. Holding these innocents against their will is not.”
“We will let them go on one condition: You must remain in Riverglade.”
I will not stay in this unknown place with these females who do not hold my heart. To ask such a thing of me is madness. “I will not agree to this.”
“Then we will keep you all here . . .” Her lips curve. “But rid ourselves of the Seelie female. We do not need another womb.”
They will hurt Nia?
What other choice do I have? I am only one male. Does it really matter if I must remain here? Nia has many friends and family in Rosehill. And now she has the Nolan.
She does not need me.
“If I agree, you bring all the Seelie safely back to Rosehill?”
“This I promise you.”
Her promise means nothing, but this predicament leaves us with very few options.
One life in exchange for six.
A fair trade.
With my stomach in knots, I go to Nia and take her slim shoulders in my hands. “You and I must speak.” This makes the Nolan scowl, but I do not pay him any attention.
Nia shoots worried glances at the Unseelie watching us, their friendliness a distant memory as we walk a short distance away to where no one can overhear our conversation. “The Chieftain is letting all the Seelie go. She will have an escort return you to Rosehill.”
Nia will be safe. This is all that matters.
Her brow furrows as she steps closer, her hands finding mine.
If only I could hold on forever.
“The way you said that makes it sound like you aren’t coming with us.”
I can no longer find my smile. “I am afraid I must remain here.”
“Remain for what? I’m not leaving without you. You can’t make me.”
Her protest restores some of my broken heart. Perhaps she is not taken with the Nolan after all. “It will be all right. You have a family to return to.”
“You’re the only family I want.”
I have waited thirty years for someone to say those words to me.
For someone to choose me.
If only the love I feel could be enough to save us both.
I wipe away her tears, holding her close. One way or another, I will escape this place. I only hope that she still feels the same when I someday return to Rosehill.
“They can’t do this,” she whispers, her voice catching with tears.
They can. They have. “You do not understand what it is to face extinction. They need males.”
“They want you to mate with them?” she shrieks, yanking out of my grasp, her hands balling into fists. “Tell them to find someone else! Aren’t there a whole slew of unmated men in your village? Get one of them to come here instead.”
Her point is a good one.
Why did I not think of this solution?
My Nia is the most intelligent female.
This might not work, but it is certainly worth a try.
I take Nia’s hand, leading her back to where the Chieftain waits with the rest of the Seelie hostages.
“We have a counteroffer,” I say. “I come from a clan of mostly males. If you let us go to them, I can ask if any would be willing to remain here in my stead. Many are anxious for mates.”
The faces I can see appear overjoyed. This starts the chatter anew, excitement buzzing in the air at the possibility of an alliance between our clans.
The Chieftain bobs her head. “Very well. Have the Seelie female bring us six willing males before the week’s end, and we will release those who wish to return to the above lands.”
Nia wraps herself around my arm. “Why is she pointing at me?”
Week’s end? That only leaves three days for Nia to climb to the top of the canyon and back again. This is not enough time. “I will go.” I do not suffer from the fear of heights and can run very fast. I will run the entire way there and back.
“You will stay,” the Chieftain counters. “As I have said before, we do not need another female.”
“You cannot expect her to survive on her own.” What if she slips and falls? What if she meets a wolf? There is no end to the dangers in this place.
“And yet you wish to mate with one so weak?” The Chieftain scoffs with a roll of her eyes. “Ignorant males.” She shakes her head. “The Seelie female may take one Seelie escort. That one.” She waves her hand toward the Nolan.
“Not that one.” Anyone but that one. The journey to Rosehill will take hours if not days. Look at how close she and I have grown in the time we spent together in this canyon.
How can I possibly compete with a male who has held Nia’s heart for years? By the time they reach the top, they will be planning their mating ceremony, and I will surely be forgotten.
“They are the ones. Tell them to leave before I change my mind.”
The Seelie males and Nia all look to me for an explanation. “What did she say?” Nia asks.
The Chieftain has unknowingly sealed my terrible fate.
“You and your Nolan are allowed to leave. If you return in three days’ time with six males willing to remain here, then the Chieftain will release the rest of us.”
Nia grimaces. “Can you and I go instead?”
There is some solace in knowing that she does not seem eager to travel with her former lover. That is where my peace ends.
“This is the way it must be.” Unsheathing my dagger, I press the bone hilt into her hand. “Take this as a gift in response to the one you gave me from the river. You know what this means?”
It means I accept her offer.
It means that I am hers and hers alone.
Her eyes widen, her fingers wrapping into a white-knuckled fist around the hilt. “I know what this means.”
I press a kiss to her forehead, hoping it is not the last one.
All that is left is to wait and see if Nia decides to return at all.