Chapter 14
MERAK
After our bath, I quickly don a clean pair of trousers, then gently dry Gwen’s hair with a towel and wrap her in the purple robe.
She suppresses a yawn and gives me a fatigued smile.
My chest tightens with emotion. Gods, I like taking care of her.
Not for the first time, I find myself in awe that she is mine. My mate. Forever.
True, she hasn’t agreed to consummate the bond yet, but I sense that it will not be long now.
In a secret part of my mind, a place I don’t think she can access, I pray that she will agree to mate with me before we leave Ellonnar.
Though I can use my winter magic to erect wards around my tent in the war camp to ensure her safety, I will still feel better if the bond is fully consummated.
I want the ability to sense her location if she is ever in danger.
I sweep her into my arms and carry her back to the hearth. The bird is still sleeping, though that is not a surprise. I healed the creature, but I also glamoured it so it would remain utterly calm, fearing it might flit about the suite trying to escape.
I take a seat on the sofa near the makeshift nest Gwen created for the bird, and she eagerly peeks out at the little creature. Her concern for the bird reaches me, but I sense her relaxing when she notices it’s still breathing.
“It will be fine,” I say with confidence. “I promise.”
She nods and starts to lean against me, but as she moves deeper into my arms, I notice the key hanging from her necklace shifting across her skin, and I find myself reaching for it.
I meet her eyes. “Tell me about this, my dearest.”
A wary look crosses her face. She opens her mouth as though to speak, then hesitates.
“Please,” I say, unable to sense the truth of the necklace’s origins or what it means to her when I brush my mind against hers.
She draws in a long breath before slowly exhaling, and her expression eventually becomes distant, so distant I know she is thinking about the past.
“Well, back in Braemar, I liked to hang around the markets, even when I didn’t have a single copper to purchase the smallest trinket.
I simply liked hearing the traveling merchants talk about their adventures and glimpse the wares on their carts.
” Her cheeks grow pink. “Well, one day I was hanging around the markets and an elderly man I’d never seen before rushed up to me and placed the necklace in my hand.
He told me it was important and said never to take it off.
He said I would need it one day. He claimed it would prove useful at a time when all hope seemed lost. Then he rushed away, disappearing into the crowd before I could question him further.
I tried to find him. I spent the entire day searching for him and asking around, but I couldn’t find him and no one had seen a man fitting his description. ”
Something about her story tugs at a forgotten corner of my mind, though I cannot say why. It’s as though a memory or an old legend is trying to resurface, yet it’s not able to fully take shape. I let go of the key and stare into Gwen’s eyes.
“What did this man look like?” I ask.
She shrugs one shoulder. “Very old. Honestly, he looked ancient. He was wrinkled and very tan like a sailor, but the way he spoke, despite the urgency in his voice, was rather polished for a sailor—an accent I’d never heard before.
I suppose he was a bit mysterious.” She laughs briefly.
“Perhaps I am foolish to still wear the necklace after all these years. But I find… I don’t want to take it off.
The mere idea of taking it off makes me feel anxious, and so… .” Her voice trails off.
“It comforts you.”
“Yes. It comforts me… but it also makes me feel prepared. If that makes sense. Prepared to face whatever might come.”
“Well, I think it is a lovely necklace,” I say, “and it suits you.”
“It is old and tarnished, but thank you for saying so.”
We share a long look as another moment of silence falls between us. She starts leaning against my chest again, only to tense and pull back to stare up at me.
“The letter that arrived earlier,” she says slowly. “What did it say? I sensed your emotions as you read it, and I know the news wasn’t good. Did something happen?”
I press a kiss to her forehead, then meet her eyes.
“It was from King Theron. He wanted to know whether I’d found you yet, as his mate is eager for an update, and then he informed me about the Winter Court army’s most recent battle, as well as some troubling events that followed.
” I draw in a deep breath as I recall the most shocking news from the letter.
“Tell me about the battle… and the troubling events that followed,” Gwen says softly. She places a hand on my chest, and I sense her compassion through the bond. She might still view my people as the enemy, yet she is saddened to learn that innocents may have died, faefolk with very little magic.
But before I can reveal the full contents of the letter, I must tell her about the dark scene I came upon recently, one that still haunts me.
As I pause for a moment to gather my thoughts, I feel her giving me space—the same kind of space she sometimes needs for herself. My affection for her deepens.
“About a week ago, as I was searching for you,” I begin, “I came across a tragic scene not far from the border of the fading Winter Court. Thirty-two adult faefolk and six children, all dead, all shot with arrows… arrows that I confirmed were the type used by human soldiers from a nearby town called Hollins. I recognized some of the faefolk among the dead and realized they belonged to Frostfall, a dying province under my friend Commander Ashvale’s rule. ”
“Oh, how shocking,” Gwen says, briefly running her hand over my chest, a comforting touch.
“And how terribly sad. I am so sorry. I-I don’t like that your people are conquering mine, but I also don’t like to hear about my people killing innocent faefolk, especially children.
” Her voice cracks as she mentions the children, and her eyes fill with tears.
She blinks them back, then swallows hard.
I remain quiet as the images of that day flash in my mind, though I try to keep them hidden from Gwen. I don’t want to expose her to that sort of darkness.
And I suddenly realize I don’t want to bring her back to the Winter Court army at all. Not even for a day. In the war camp, she would witness things that would break her heart, possibly even her spirit. She is too gentle of a soul to endure such a life. Even temporarily.
I hold back a growl and resolve that I will consider the question of where we will live and how King Theron will react to my abrupt resignation later.
“So, the letter told you about the Winter Court army’s attack on Hollins?
” she says. “Even if Hollins is a large city with a sizable army of their own, I imagine your people still won.” Her brows crease, and I sense she’s trying to uncover what part of the letter upset me, the reason for my waves of anger and worry.
I meet Gwen’s eyes. “Yes, the Winter Court did indeed prevail over Hollins. But in the aftermath of the battle, Commander Ashvale’s brother kidnapped the human female he was sent to track down.”
“The young woman named Isabel?”
“Yes, that’s the one. Apparently, Commander Ashvale and Isabel are mates.”
She emits a faint gasp. “If your friend and Isabel are mates, why would his brother kidnap her?” She goes very still as she awaits my response, and I sense her growing worry.
She’s not just worried about Isabel’s fate, but also about what her own life will be like once we reach the Winter Court’s war camp.
“Because his brother’s mate was one of the faefolk from Frostfall who was killed in the forest near Hollins. Commander Ashvale’s brother blamed him for it, blamed him for not being there to prevent such an attack, so he sought revenge.”
Gwen draws in a sharp breath. “Did the commander’s brother kill Isabel? Or… has the commander been killed?”
“No, Commander Ashvale’s brother didn’t kill Isabel, and the commander himself is faring well too.
They survived, though my comrade had no choice but to kill his own brother.
When I read the news, I felt rage that Commander Ashvale’s brother could do such a thing, but I also felt guilt that I didn’t know his brother’s mate was one of the bodies I discovered on the forest floor.
I only turned a few of them over briefly to glimpse their faces.
I wish I had been more thorough. I wish I could’ve told Commander Ashvale that his sister-in-law had been killed.
While I don’t know my comrade’s brother, so I cannot claim to know his character, perhaps if my comrade had known the full truth, his mate wouldn’t have fallen into danger. ”
Gods. I could not fathom losing Gwen.
Learning what almost happened to Commander Ashvale’s mate, also a human female, is deeply concerning. It leaves a cold knot in my gut. Until I met Gwen, I never had anything to lose. Just my own life. But the prospect of dying in battle never truly frightened me.
To the best of my knowledge, I don’t have any adversaries.
Unless… no.
I push all thoughts of the black frost and the shadow figure from my mind, though I promise myself that I will eventually tell Gwen what happened on the day I was born. She is my mate, and it wouldn’t be right to continue keeping secrets from her.
Gwen gives me a solemn look. “Well, I am glad that Isabel and Commander Ashvale survived the ordeal. But you shouldn’t blame yourself for what happened.
The commander’s brother made a choice no one could’ve probably ever predicted, a dark one, and he paid for it with his life.
None of it is your fault, though I suppose it’s only natural that you would feel anger and worry on behalf of your friend. ”