Chapter 33
Thunder roared in my ears as I stared hard at Sybelle, trying to discern if she was lying to me. Her face was ghostly pale, her lips thin and her eyes flaring wide. She was shaking.
The scent of fear on her was pungent. It was so foreign, coming from her. I’d frequently anticipated her fear before, but she had always surprised me.
Right now, with her stunned gaze pinned on Warwick, it was as potent as ever.
A million questions raced through my mind. I wanted to yell. To smash things.
I couldn’t do any of that here. Already, my shadows were oozing forward of their own accord, drawn out by my rage.
“Varius,” Sybelle whispered, her breath a mere plea.
I closed my eyes, trying to reel my shadows in. “We need to leave. Now.”
“We can’t ,” she hissed. “If we move, the camouflage breaks. The stone doesn’t turn us completely invisible, and these are trained soldiers. They will notice.”
Damn it. She was right. I shot a glance behind us and swore under my breath.
It was the only way. My shadows were rippling, moving across the grass. Any second now, the soldiers would notice.
I gripped Sybelle by the arm. “Follow me. ”
Carefully, we inched backward, moving in the direction of the forest. Sybelle inhaled sharply when she realized where I was taking her.
“But you said?—”
“I know,” I said shortly. “It’s either the woods or Warwick. Which would you prefer?”
Her mouth clamped shut.
The Noxen Forest was the last place I wanted to be. Especially with Sybelle. It was the home of all the reminders of my curse.
And it was dangerous. The sorceress’s magic still lived in these woods.
A few steps more, and we would be under the cover of the trees. I cast a wary glance toward the crooked tree branches that looked like jagged teeth waiting to devour us.
“You command those soldiers,” Sybelle said. “Can’t you simply say you were… observing their training?”
“With you there?” I raised an eyebrow at her. “Not a chance. Warwick would see right through it. He was already suspicious of you being in the training yard once. And now we know this squadron is loyal to him and not me.”
She shook her head, her breath shuddering. “What does he want with me?”
My anger flared again. “You tell me. He’s from your court.”
Her eyes narrowed. “He’s fae . ”
Gritting my teeth, I shook my head at her na?veté. Humans could be so dim. Never seeing what was right in front of them. I opened my mouth to argue, but a sudden burst of my shadows rushed forward, spearing into the open air.
One of the soldiers shouted something, clearly noticing my magic.
Shit.
I tugged on Sybelle’s sleeve and all but shoved her into the forest before jumping in after her. If we disappeared quickly enough, hopefully the soldiers would attribute my shadows to someone else’s magic. In the Shadow Court, wayward shadows were not entirely unheard of.
Sybelle and I collided on the earthy ground, elbows and shoulders knocking together. She cried out in pain, but I clamped my hand over her mouth to silence her.
“The forest hears everything,” I whispered. “Hold your tongue, human.”
She jerked her head away from my hand and said under her breath, “So it’s back to human , now that you think I’m a traitor?”
“I’ll call you human when you act like one,” I growled. “Short-sighted, narrow-minded, and downright ignorant to everything around you.”
Her nostrils flared. “Should I call you beast, then? The brutal unseelie king who thinks all humans are scum, regardless of how innocent they might be.”
“Innocent?” I wanted to shake her. How could she be so blind?
A harsh ringing sound split the air. Sybelle and I both groaned, clapping our hands over our ears.
Mother of Shade. The magic had found us.
“What is that?” Sybelle mouthed, her voice inaudible over the noise.
My ears throbbed as the sound only intensified. It wouldn’t take long for my ears to start bleeding. After that, my brain matter would begin to deteriorate.
“This way!” I mouthed back, keeping my ears covered as I lumbered deeper into the forest.
Sybelle said something, but I couldn’t make out the words. I glanced behind me and found her sprinting to keep up with my long strides.
The piercing chime reverberated through every bone of my body. My jaw clenched as I struggled to focus on the path ahead of me. It had to be close .
Unless I’d gone in the wrong direction. It had been years since I’d taken this route.
Behind me, Sybelle let out a harsh retching noise. I turned and found her on all fours, coughing up blood.
“Sybelle!”
If she didn’t cover her ears, the enchanted tone would melt her brain.
She wheezed, and more blood splattered on the ground.
“Shit.” I rushed to her side, dropping my hands so I could scoop her against my chest. The ringing blared against my skull, drilling harder and faster.
The pulse hammered ruthlessly like an axe burrowing deeper and deeper into my flesh.
I bit down hard enough to taste blood. The warm liquid trickling from my ears told me I was bleeding there, too.
Almost there, I told myself. It has to be close.
Sybelle’s head slumped against my chest. She had lost consciousness. I shouted at her, but I couldn’t hear my own voice against the ringing. My steps quickened, but my vision blurred. Blood trickled from my nose.
The thick oak tree ahead looked familiar. That had to be it.
I stumbled, nearly falling. My ankle rolled, and I groaned, leaning against the nearest tree for support. I took a breath and moved forward, edging around the oak until I saw what I’d been searching for.
A door.
I shifted my weight, lifting Sybelle with one arm so I could use my fingers to tug on the handle. The door flew open, and I lunged, not caring where it took us, just knowing we needed to escape.
I groaned as my body met the hard stone floor of my chambers. With my boot, I shoved the door closed, then let my head fall backward. My eyes shut tight against the agony quivering through me. The ringing had stopped, but it still echoed in my brain, blaring on and on. It would never stop .
I cradled Sybelle against my body. Blood coated her jawline from where her ears had bled. Her eyelids fluttered open as she gazed blearily at me.
“Varius,” she mumbled, her voice sleepy.
“I’m here. You’re safe.” My voice was gravelly. Just speaking made my skull ache.
Both of us had blood dripping down our faces. Thankfully, we were close enough to my writing desk for me to grab a handkerchief and use it to mop up the blood on her face. When I finished, I folded it over and used the clean side to dab at my own wounds.
“What… happened?” Sybelle lifted a hand to rub her forehead and winced. “How did we get here?”
I crumpled up the bloodied handkerchief and set it on the floor.
“When we discovered the dangerous magic lurking in the Noxen Forest, I had a doorframe built into the thickest oak tree. I hoped that using the same materials as the doors in this castle would allow its magic to extend to the woods.” I offered a half smile. “It looks like I was right.”
Sybelle’s brows furrowed as clarity slowly crept into her gaze. “That horrible ringing sound… What was that?”
My gaze fixed on her, only just now realizing what this meant. “It’s a protection spell that’s meant to defend the magic of the wood.”
“Defend against what? Intruders?”
“Defend against fae creatures.” My voice was slow as I let the implication sink in.
She shook her head, frowning. “I don’t—” She froze, then looked at me in horror. For a long, tense moment, we only stared at each other. My mouth set into a thin line at the guilt and fear that struck her expression.
“The sound only affects fae,” I said. She had not been the only human bride foolish enough to enter those woods .
But she had been the only one struck down by the enchantment.
“Sybelle.” My voice was low and dangerous. Every inch of me held perfectly still. I was aware of her body still sprawled on mine, but in this moment, I felt like a hunter who had caught his prey. “Are you fae?”