1. Kols
KOLS
Aflora refusedto look at me.
Not that I could blame her.
She thought I’d betrayed her.
That knowledge hurt me almost as much as her resulting shiver to the dungeon air. Shade’s shirt and boxers did little to keep her warm, but it was more than her lack of proper clothes. It was her soul reacting to the wrongness of her surroundings.
Elemental Fae weren’t meant to stay underground for long periods of time. It’d only been a few minutes since our descent, but I caught the unease radiating from her shoulders. It rivaled my own, because I had no idea what to expect. The news of her trial arrived first thing this morning, and the Council was set to meet within the hour to discuss her fate.
I had no clue what this supposed recording revealed. Hell, I could be facing my own execution, for all I knew. But I doubted it. Otherwise, I’d be in chains right next to Aflora.
Which meant there was still hope.
It all depended on what Shade had told the Council.
I rubbed a hand over my face as the iron bars locked behind Aflora, the gargoyle overhead watching her with severe distaste. “Don’t harm her,” I told the stone creature. “She’s still a guest until the Council deems otherwise.”
Aflora snorted before settling on a stone bench, her eyes continuing to avoid mine.
There were things I wanted to say but couldn’t with our surrounding audience. So I merely said, “Someone will return should a test of your abilities be required for the trial. Otherwise, you will be notified when the Council reaches a decision.”
I met Zeph’s gaze as I turned, his green orbs giving nothing away. We’d discuss this more once we were away from all the surveillance cameras and lost our two Warrior Blood guards.
Aflora didn’t reply or acknowledge my comments, her stature prim and proper as we left her alone in her cell.
Too bad I couldn’t force her into a temporary dream to communicate with her, but we didn’t have time for that. So instead, I walked with purpose up the stairs, past the Council Chambers, and into a corridor that led to a room where I could speak with Zeph in private.
The pair of Warrior Blood guards remained at the dungeon entrance, their job to ensure Aflora didn’t escape. That alone told me the Council had no idea how powerful she was. If they did, they’d put a lot more than two fae on watch.
Zeph closed the door behind us, his first comment a string of curses that ended in Shade’s name. “Did they let you hear the rest of the recording?”
I shook my head. “Only the bit you overheard with her calling for her own extermination.” I ran a hand over my face once, fatigue weighing down my shoulders. “We need a backup plan. Because if this goes south…” I trailed off, not wanting to finish that statement out loud.
“Breaking her out won’t be hard. Those two nitwits on the stairs will go down in a single spell. But we’ll need to alter the security footage.”
Yeah, we were on the same page. I’d already begun to think about whom I could bribe to clear the tapes. “Where will we hide her?”
“That’s the part I haven’t figured out. We can’t trust anyone. Not even her Elemental Fae.”
True. If they learned about her growing power, they’d have no choice but to end her life. “Fucking Shade,” I muttered, livid all over again. “What the hell was he thinking? He has to know this is going to bite him in the ass, too.”
“Maybe that’s what he wants.” Zeph scratched the dark stubble dotting his jaw. “His motives all seem to revolve around creating chaos. If the Council finds out what happened last night?—”
The door opened to reveal my father on the other side, his expression one of relief. “Oh, good, you’re already here.” He joined us without asking, his gold eyes narrowing at Zeph just enough to indicate he still wasn’t pleased with the Warrior Blood, before fixating on me. “Is the recording true? Is her power growing out of control?”
“I haven’t heard it all yet to comment,” I answered carefully.
Disapproval radiated from my father. “You’ve spent the last few months supervising her. Surely you can make an assessment regarding her power.”
“Yes. From what I’ve observed, her power level remains the same as the first day she arrived.” Not exactly a lie. She was born with Quandary Blood abilities; she just hadn’t used them much until her forced enrollment at Midnight Fae Academy. And last night, she sort of exploded because of that contained power.
So, yeah, she was losing control. But the quad-bond mating ritual we’d performed as a result of her outburst should help ground her. Maybe.
Which opened a whole new realm of consequences.
We’d solve those problems another day.
One issue at a time.
The first one being to free Aflora from the dungeon.
“Then why is she claiming a need to be exterminated?” my father challenged.
I considered his query and quickly formulated a safe reply. “From what little I’ve heard of the recording, it was a hypothetical statement—if she proves too powerful, she needs to be removed. Aflora feels very strongly about protecting her Earth Fae.”
My father studied me for a long moment, his gaze narrowing. “So what caused the inferno in her room at the Elite Residence on campus?”
Fucking gargoyle, I seethed. My brother, Tray, wouldn’t report the incident. Neither would his mate, Ella. Which left the damn stone guardian at the front door. “That was my fault. I had a little too much aggression after my duel with Shade and released it inappropriately. I’ll repair the quarters myself.” By using magic, of course.
The tick in my father’s jaw suggested that he suspected I wasn’t providing the whole truth, but he eventually conceded with a stiff nod. “The Earth Fae is your ascension trial. I trust you to see it through appropriately.”
“And I am,” I promised him. I just wasn’t doing it the way he’d originally intended. What with accidentally mating the girl during sex and biting her soon after to initiate the Midnight Fae bond.
My father left without another word, never once acknowledging Zeph other than that initial glance. Normally, it would irritate me. Today, I had other, more important matters to address.
“He knows you’re lying,” Zeph said before I could speak. “But I don’t think there’s anything incriminating on the tapes, or he’d be angry, not just disappointed.”
A fair assessment. If there was anything about the quad-bond on the recording, my father would have reacted differently. Such as throwing my ass in the dungeon and Zeph into an execution chamber. “Whatever it is, it had to be enough to call an emergency meeting and require her detainment.”
“That wouldn’t be hard. The Council often overreacts.”
I snorted. “You would say that.”
“Just as you wouldn’t,” he returned, his tone lacking his usual teasing disdain. He seemed as tired as I was. Likely because we both didn’t do much sleeping last night, having enjoyed the new connection with Aflora a little too much.
Palming the back of my neck, I blew out a long breath and looked at the ceiling. “She thinks we betrayed her, Zeph.”
“She’ll get over it.” He clearly didn’t share my concern. “Go prepare for the Council meeting. If the findings are dire and she’s truly in jeopardy, text me a note about possibly missing a few classes this week. If she’s fine, let me know when you’ll be back on campus. I’ll react accordingly.”
I bobbed my head in agreement. “Okay. And if you see Shade before I do, punch him in the face for me.”
Zeph grunted, his green eyes blazing with vengeful power. “If I see him first, there won’t be much left of his face for you to hit.”
“Good.” Because the fucker deserved a beatdown for whatever game he’d engaged us all in now.
I just hoped Aflora wouldn’t pay the ultimate price for his newest diversion.