FOURTEEN
T hose words turned my addled mind into mush as I sat in a chair in the chambers of a king.
You must fall in love with me.
Even if I did, his plan was impossible. So wildly inconceivable that, for the first time in years, I truly wanted to cry. If this king thought he could free his kingdom with something as elusive as love, then he deserved the disappointment headed his way.
I just needed to make sure I was long gone before it arrived.
Minutes after the king’s abrupt departure, the doors were nudged open.
A silver tray rattled in his hands, tea spilling from the spout of a floral teapot. I frowned as he approached and set it upon the table beside me. “I do not need refreshments. I need to leave.”
“It’s peppermint,” he informed as if that mattered.
But it did. It had been my preferred choice for years. Before I could ask him how he knew, he cursed, attempting to fit his large fingers through the teapot’s handle.
I bit my lip when he gave in and grasped the entire pot. It was undoubtedly terribly hot.
“I can do it.”
He ignored me, filled the white teacup, and then put the teapot down without so much as a wince. I would commend him if it hadn’t been unnecessary. As it was, a thank you sat tight behind my teeth, unwilling to budge.
I wasn’t thankful. I was stuck yet again, and with yet another royal who intended to use me for their own gain.
Gratitude was something I’d forgotten how to feel.
I was no longer even angry. What I felt had crawled beyond the threshold of rage into numb and reckless stupidity.
No matter what I did now, nothing good would come from it, and of course, whatever happened would be my fault, although I’d wanted none of this in the first rotting place.
“You’re anxious,” the king said, stepping closer when he was already closer than I was comfortable with.
“I’ve been taken from one castle to another without any say in the matter. Anxious barely scratches the surface.”
“Two castles.”
At that, I tore my eyes from the steaming tea and gave them to him.
He dragged a hand through his crimson hair. The wavy strands fell over his shoulders, reaching for his pectorals. “You were forced to leave your home.”
My chest tightened further. In need of space, I rose from the chair. “You’ve done some research.”
King Vane’s chambers were both refined and bland. Filigreed molding curled from the corners of the room like cobwebs to meet the rocky ceiling. A brass chandelier with real cobwebs tilted precariously over his bed, candles burned to nothing within.
I assumed he only used the brass sconces. Two were aflame between the windows I walked alongside and one above the entrance to the bathing room. Those above the nightstands gave a better view of the dust sprinkling the books beneath, piled beside a half-rolled map.
Save for the one atop the fireplace mantel, there were no portraits. I stopped and pointed at it. “Who wrecked this?” I asked, though I already knew.
And I knew who the painted female was. Queen Kalista’s hair was the same shade as her son’s, and her eyes an autumn-touched green.
“My father. These were his rooms, and that’s my mother.”
“She did more than wound his pride, then,” I surmised.
“We all know that by now,” he said gravely. “But it’s the only portrait of her that I have, so it stays.”
Intrigue arose. I snuffed it. Whatever he’d endured was no concern of mine. As I turned away from the slashed face, I squeaked in surprise.
King Vane grinned, more beastly than charming. “May I have your hand?”
“What for?”
“I’d like to touch it.”
The earnestness of his quick response had my hand extending before I could find my brain.
Carefully, he took it.
Then he tugged me to him and seized my face in his paw-like hand. He released my own to touch my back. Slowly, his head lowered until his mouth was scant inches from mine.
My brain returned. Panic stole my voice.
I swatted at his mountainous chest and shoved my hand over his face. My finger met his nostril, his arm a band of steel at my back.
He grunted, gruffly saying, “Remove your tiny claws from my face.”
“Then remove your bulbous arm and hand from my body.”
“Bulbous?” he repeated, chuckling as he released me.
“What in the skies are you thinking?” I stumbled back, my legs meeting the divan by the window.
“I’m thinking I need to free my kingdom.”
“You cannot just grab me,” I hissed. “And try to kiss me.”
He studied me, my heaving chest and undoubtedly wild eyes, and his features twisted. “How am I supposed to win your heart if I cannot touch you?”
“I don’t know.” And I didn’t particularly care. I walked backward to the table, half fearing he’d strike again. Taking a seat, I pulled the teacup toward me while keeping an eye on him. “But not like that, I can assure you.”
“You enjoy kissing, though,” he stated. “Sex.” After a shake of his head, he gave me a strange and almost worried look. “Do you not?”
Withholding a shocked laugh, I nearly spilled the tea. I sipped it. “You’re not off to a great start with this heart-stealing thing.”
His forehead creased. “You speak as if you do not want me to even try to steal it.”
I thought it best not to give that a response.
He scrubbed at his heavily whiskered jaw. “I’ll give you whatever you want.” His wings lifted, splaying slightly as he turned and paced toward the doors he’d left ajar. “Good food, good literature, good housing, and good sex…” He spread his hands. “I will give you everything a female wants. All you need to do is let me.”
I sipped more tea to be sure this was truly happening. Out of all the outrageous things I’d heard and seen and even felt, this situation won by far.
For some moments, I had no words. I wasn’t sure I could find even one. After all, what he’d said did sound humorously appealing, and yet…
“Love isn’t found in pleasures, King.”
Undeniable desperation gritted his question. “Then where is it found, Princess?”
“If I knew, maybe I would tell you,” I quipped, not entirely sure I would, but certain it mattered little right now.
He turned to me and glared. “ Maybe? ”
“Actually…” I traced the rim of the teacup, unable to control a flare of temper as this new reality settled like stones tied to my ankles in deep water. “I likely wouldn’t, being that I have no desire to be here, let alone enable you to seek retribution by breaking those wards.” Foolish, utterly moronic words.
But it was too late to gentle or regret them.
The flames in the sconces flickered. One extinguished. Shadows danced from the tips of his wings, seemingly birthed from the black feathers. And his eyes…
They were a blazing blue, aglow with fury.
“You’re no remedy,” he growled. “You’re but another punishment from the dark mother.”
“And you’re but another tyrant who doesn’t need freedom from a curse you’ve brought upon yourself.”
Silence.
So much silence, fear chomped at my chest.
After years of worrying over my survival, I’d known better than to react in such a way. I knew when to stomp and when to tread carefully. Yet, for some reason, I hadn’t any energy to care.
Perhaps this was true defeat. No way out. No way forward.
Irrefutably fucked.
“I’m a tyrant,” the king finally said. “Is that right?”
Though this was a hopeless situation, I still refused to cower. “I believe that’s what I said.”
“That’s what you’ve been taught.” His jaw worked as he eyed me, harshening the violently square angle. “Which means this will be even more difficult than getting you here.”
“Then…” I sipped more tea and gave away a morsel of my knowledge by saying, “Why not vanish me beyond the wards, and I’ll return to Cloud Castle?”
There was still time to make it look like I’d merely wandered throughout the castle, or even the grounds. I hadn’t been gone so long that my absence couldn’t be explained.
“To your beloved prince?”
I flashed my teeth. “Please.”
He huffed, quiet as he watched me, that fury still burning bright in his gaze. “How did it feel, Princess?”
“How did what feel, King?”
“Taking the cock of a male who’d rather die than admit he cares for you.”
With that, King Vane vanished—as if to punctuate that he could indeed get beyond the wards trapping his realm. He could take me back to Ethermore.
And that he wouldn’t.
The remainder of the night was spent upon the divan beneath the window, staring at the stars. Clouds passed over the scythe moon, luring my thoughts to Atakan.
There was little point in wondering if he worried for me. More likely, he and King Garran were worried about the alliance with my father. I pondered how long they might hide my disappearance, as they certainly would, and what my father might do once he learned of it.
There’d been too much war. With the Unseelie attacks increasing despite the wards trapping their realm, I doubted they’d encourage other tensions to escalate.
But that was the way of kings. Bloodshed and brutality. Displays of dominance to soothe their bruised pride and need for total control.
So although I wasn’t anything worth killing for, an example would still need to be made. I was a halfling, but I was also a princess. A tool made for trade.
And my father, as gentle as he’d often been, did not take kindly to disrespect of his belongings.
My disappearance could create a lack of trust our kingdoms might not recover from. Certainly not when trust between humans and faeries was already an impossible feat to begin with.
Alas, that was the best-case scenario. At worst, my father might believe the Seelie had murdered me and gotten rid of all evidence. In which case, retribution must be sought.
Come what may, I still couldn’t find it within myself to care.
I’d had no say or hand in any of this. Though it had been unknowingly, my father had even provided me the key to leave one cage for another.
My father and Garran had done this.
Let them squabble and cause a ruckus over a problem they’d given themselves—while I once again tried to survive another bloodthirsty male.
And his sneaky spies.
The king hadn’t returned to his chambers, but his shadows hadn’t left. Whenever they neared, I flicked at them, and they retreated with a haste that resembled flinching. I might have stopped. I might have felt bad.
But their stalking darkness and the Unseelie king’s parting words revealed a truth that bit at my bones.
Vane had been watching me via the shadows that marked him as a ruler of The Bonelands.
Perhaps the battles nearing Cloud Castle had been an effort to capture me. Perhaps he’d been waiting for me to seek the bait my father had handed me.
I had no idea how he would have known I was in possession of the featherbone or if he even did. I didn’t know much of anything and loathed it almost as much as my new predicament.
The castle was quiet, any occupants slumbering.
Sleep finally took me as the stars faded beneath the brightening blue, but it wouldn’t stay as dawn arrived. A hum of energy seeped from below—through the cracks in the mortar and stone.
The leather divan creaked as I pushed up from the headrest to better see through the window.
Outlined by violet willow trees, the dirt drive resembled a serpent curving toward the dense woodland separating the castle from what lay beyond. That, coupled with the view of awnings and rusted pipes from floors beneath, suggested the king’s rooms resided on the highest floor of Ashbone Castle.
The doors opened.
I straightened, blinking blearily at King Vane.
He kicked the doors closed with one of those same clunky boots he’d worn last night. A fresh burst of his scent and the different clothing told me he’d bathed and perhaps rested elsewhere.
Another tray in hand, he crossed the room, and I shamelessly noted how his olive pants hugged his thick thighs. The tight fit of his black tunic.
My stomach mercifully gurgled before I was caught, my attention stolen by the food he uncovered on the tray.
“You didn’t sleep.”
“You and your little spies would know,” I said, voice groggy.
He released an amused breath, then untucked one of the two armchairs before gesturing to it. “Don’t tell me you will also refuse to eat.”
Hunger sent me to my feet with unexpected ease. I smiled venomously. “I didn’t refuse to sleep. I simply struggle to feel comfortable doing so in the lair of a beast.”
Stepping back, the king nodded once. “You believe a den of serpents is a safe place to lay one’s head each night?”
I plopped onto the chair. “Better the enemy you know.”
It seemed he had no response for that. At least, none he was willing to share. A muscle feathered in his hairy jaw, those luminous eyes riddled with things I didn’t wish to hear. Perhaps he knew that, and that was why he remained quiet and left for the bathing room.
My mouth dried as I looked at the bowls spread before me and hesitated. But he couldn’t make me fall in love with him if he poisoned me.
So I ate. First, I demolished the raisin-speckled oats, and then I picked at the bowl of glowing fruit while leisurely drinking some peppermint tea.
All the while, the king leaned against the doorframe of the bathing room, arms folded over his chest. His wings twitched when his mouth did. Attempting to hide his smirk, he ducked his head.
“Dare I ask what is so amusing, King?”
He dragged a finger over his plump lower lip, and his eyes rose to mine. “You.”
I waved a piece of sliced apple. “Care to elaborate?” Easing back in the chair, I made a show of exposing my crossing legs. “After all, I’ve nothing but time while kingdoms wonder over my whereabouts and how they might retrieve me.”
“If my people cannot leave, then yours cannot get in.”
I half rolled my eyes, flashing more of my teeth than necessary as I bit into the apple.
He slid his own over that lower lip, eyes dropping to my legs with a slowness that seemed intentional. “You’re not what I expected.”
“And that amuses you?”
“I find your defiance and feline attitude amusing.”
My eyes narrowed to slits upon his growing and perfect smile before I forced them back to the breakfast tray.
For a moment, I couldn’t resist thinking it was a dreadful waste—a shame that he was who he was. Even with that long mane of hair and his clear aversion to shaving, he was more than intriguing to look at.
Vane Ashbone held an allure that didn’t request attention but commanded it. He exuded a primal energy that tugged at some mystical and deeply feminine part of me. I didn’t doubt he had the same effect on many females.
The muscles and wings certainly didn’t help.
Suddenly uncomfortable, although this entire situation was anything but comfortable, I asked the most pressing question I had. “If the only way to break the wards is to steal your enemy’s heart, why can’t it be King Garran’s?”
“His blood wasn’t used to bind the wards,” he said. “Atakan’s was. A safer bet, we assume, given his ruthless reputation.” His tone became edged. “Any curse must have a thread to unravel it, no matter how small, and we all know Garran murdered the only creature he’s ever truly loved.”
“The wards required the king’s blood?”
Vane grunted. “Or a direct descendant’s.”
Due to Garran stealing Vane’s mother’s heart and thus beginning the war in earnest.
I assumed Atakan’s death wouldn’t break the wards, or he wouldn’t be gallivanting through the mountains and risking his life to hunt the Unseelie.
The mere thought made me instantly wish to think of something else.
“You look troubled.”
I wanted to laugh. “Because none of this is troubling at all.”
Vane didn’t appreciate my sarcasm, apparently. Eyes narrowing, he just watched me intently.
It was akin to being silently ridiculed.
It shouldn’t have bothered me. I had far bigger things bothering me. Yet I quickly reached for something to fill the quiet. “Is it true there are bones crushed within the mortar of this castle?”
He stared at me for a knowing moment longer.
Then he relented with a nod. “Nobility and distinguished warriors who fell in the first war were honored by having their remains included in the restoration of this fortress.”
At that, I paused. “It was destroyed in the first war?”
“A good portion of it.” He looked at my food. “Most of these upper floors have been rebuilt.”
Without meaning to, I said, “With the bones of those souls trapped in the mortar forevermore.”
“Again, it is considered an honor unlike any other for their sacrifice and service.” He licked his teeth behind closed lips, then revealed them in a half smile. “Are you afraid of ghosts?”
“I’ve yet to meet one, so it’s hard to say.”
As if trying not to laugh, Vane’s smile broadened. “They are not known for conversation, Princess. At least, not the ones I’ve seen. They merely act as silent sentinels.”
“The remains serve as wards, then.”
He nodded once more.
It prompted me to say, “Your shadows crept beyond Cloud Castle’s wards.”
He huffed. “If that were possible, perhaps my father would have been better prepared to keep our people from entrapment.”
I still wasn’t sure I believed him. “Then how do you know anything about my relationship with the prince?”
“People talk,” he said with a gravity that sagged my shoulders. “And you weren’t always in the castle, Princess.”
My entire body stiffened. I tried to hide my reaction by eating.
A handful of unhelpful minutes passed. My skin began to itch from his words and what they’d implied. I finished my tea and quietly reassured myself that his shadows hadn’t seen me with Atakan in that garden shed. That my gown and the warmer climate were to blame for my discomfort.
Which then led to a mild panic over not having any of my belongings. Nothing more to wear.
“If I am stuck here, then I need clothing.” I set the teacup down. “A hairbrush and that good literature you spoke of.”
“You will be cared for,” Vane vowed. “You have my word. If you desire books, I will show you to the library on the second floor.” He seemed to choose his words carefully before asking, “What else do you desire?”
The stilling of his rugged features made it clear he was no longer talking about material items. Even so, I sought clarity. “What do you mean?”
“Show me how to win your heart, Princess Mildred, and not only will I give you whatever you need…” He straightened from the doorframe, sincerity deepening his voice. “Whatever you ask for, no matter the magnitude, will be yours.”
I shook my head. “ Show you?” Incredulity sharpened my tone. When he merely nodded, I laughed. “I’m afraid I’m tired of teaching males how to treat me.”
“I don’t intend to treat you poorly. I’m simply…” He once again appeared to search for the right words. As if unaccustomed to needing to, he exhaled roughly. “Trying to hasten the process.”
His frustration, the hint of desperation, gentled my reaction without my permission. “But how can we fall in love if I’ve forced you to be someone you’re not?”
Rain arrived in a downpour. Pattering against the windows and steel awnings, it drowned the loud and telling silence.
“I see,” I finally murmured.
“You will also have my protection,” he added, a softening of what he perceived to be a blow. “Forevermore.”
And it was somewhat of a blow.
Not because I wanted this Unseelie king to love me in return. That was the last thing I desired—right beneath wanting to love him. It was because this would be another game.
Yet again, I was a means to an end for a king. This time, if Vane’s asinine plan proved successful, the cost wouldn’t only be my life.
It would be my heart.
Fortunately for most, heartbreak was a survivable curse. And if there was one skill I had, it was making sure I lived.
My spine steeled, even as my stomach quaked. “Whatever protection that might be means little. My father’s kingdom is at stake.” Though he was well aware, I reminded him, “We have an alliance with Ethermore.”
“Your father met his end of the agreement.”
He was right. Regardless, the repercussions of escaping this mess would be vast. “Yet his daughter would be the reason the wards fall and your beastly warriors terrorize the continent again. I refuse to be the reason you’re able to seek retribution.”
And what was sure to be unmerciful, blood-bathed destruction at that.
For weighted seconds, the king just smirked.
Finally, he simply said, “The offer will stand, so you needn’t decide what you want right now. Just tell me when you’re ready.” With that, he stalked to the doors, those giant wings tucked to keep from brushing the frame. “And you’ll find clothing in the dressing chamber.”