Chapter 9
Briar
Igripped the torn silk of my wedding gown with bloodstained fingers and turned in a slow circle. The flickering lanterns cast warped shadows across the walls, and the air reeked of mushroom broth and scorched herbs—bitter, earthy, suffocating. My stomach churned.
Many-Greats had disappeared again.
He’d pulled the rug from under my feet repeatedly. Why had I hoped he'd stay around and help clean up this mess? I should’ve expected this, but once again, I’d hoped he’d do better. A hollow sensation expanded within my chest, and I pressed my hand over my heart.
Vad crossed the room to me, slow and steady. When he reached me, he touched my cheek gently as a tremor rippled through our bond. His brow furrowed, the lines in his forehead deepening. “Gone?”
“I’ve looked everywhere.” My stomach knotted. “Could he have gotten into any of the locked rooms?” Something wasn’t right. I exhaled and scanned more of the dimly lit area.
There was no trace of him.
Vad crossed his arms, tension rolling off him. “Bryn wouldn’t vanish without a reason.” His tone held a biting edge of suspicion. “If he’s gone, he has a plan or a price.”
Anger flared through the bond, and I raised my hands. “Wait. Hold on. He wouldn’t betray us.” My voice cracked with conviction. “He’s done everything possible to protect my sister and me. He’s weird and secretive, but that doesn’t mean he’s a traitor.”
Even as I defended him, that hollow place in my chest ached harder.
Because…I wasn’t sure. “I didn’t even know he existed until a few months ago.
He started appearing in Ember’s and my bedrooms through some portal, talking about stuff I didn’t even know existed.
He never told us everything or stayed long.
But he cared. He made sure Ember knew I was alive.
He helped me survive, though his actions were misdirected.
” My voice softened. “Even when he tried to send me home, I think it was because he believed it was the only way to protect me. Not because he didn’t care. ”
When I mentioned the portals, Vad’s expression shifted. His eyes narrowed. A dark look flashed across his face, gone before I could decipher it.
He turned and stalked down the hall, checking door after door, tension bunching in his shoulders. “You didn’t tell me. Not that he was on the Aureline High Council. Not that you were an Aureline.”
Pain struck me like a blade between the ribs, fast and unforgiving. “Because I didn’t know.” I wrapped my arms around my waist. “I didn’t know he was on the council until I was in that prison. Even then, he didn’t explain what that meant. I didn’t know I was Aureline. Not really.”
The words tumbled out, each one faster than the last.
“This isn’t where I was raised, Vad. I didn’t grow up with talks of curses and magic warnings.
I didn’t know what being Aureline would mean, or anything about the fae.
” I blinked hard, my throat tightening. “I was dropped into a competition where everyone wanted me dead, and the one person who seemed to have answers made me promise not to tell anyone I knew him.”
Vad stopped in front of a door but didn’t open it. He tensed, his wings flicking behind him as he stared at the wood like it might open on its own.
Something in his expression softened, and he sighed. “These past days haven’t been easy for any of us.”
“I know.” My fingers fidgeted with the bodice of my gown. “I never meant for any of this to happen. I didn’t know me being crowned would strip power from everyone. It’s not just hard on you. I’m in a horrible position too.”
His gaze dropped to my hands, and for a moment, it looked like he was going to reach for me again. Instead, he stepped aside, resting his hand on the door beside us.
“That was one of the doors I couldn’t get in.” I eyed the door.
“He’s not in there.” A faint smile tugged at Vad’s mouth. He looked amused, but then I realized he didn’t want me looking inside.
I lifted a brow. “What don’t you want me to see in there?”
He shrugged one shoulder, though the emotion pouring through our bond told another story.
He cycled through anger, grim satisfaction, and faint disgust, but not at me.
“Because to find out that you were taken to Firellan’s Spine, Thalen tracked down one of the guards involved, and we… spoke with him.”
A beat passed.
Then the meaning hit. “So there’s a dead body in there?” I crossed my arms.
He shrugged. “Thalen ran out of time to remove the body without drawing attention. And you don’t need to see what happened to him.”
Warmth spread through my chest. Not because of the body, but because he had done that for me. For what I’d suffered. I swallowed. “I don't condone torture. But I won’t lie and say I’m sorry he’s dead.”
“I don’t regret it.” With a rough exhale, he pulled me hard against him.
My cheek pressed to his chest, and the steady thud of his heart grounded me. Wrapped in safety, I breathed in his smoky scent.
His arms tightened around me, and his chin dropped to the top of my head. “He was among those who hurt you, and I swore they would all pay. And they will. But if we open that door, the stench will ruin what little peace we have.”
A smile tugged at my lips. “Well, we’re trapped beneath a palace mid-rebellion. I agree that we can skip the smell of a corpse.”
He chuckled with his warm breath brushing my hair. “Your grandfather is not here. And unless he’s foolish enough to turn on us, there's nothing more we can do tonight."
"He won't betray us," I said firmly, even though I didn’t entirely believe it. “I’m angry with him—no, anger isn’t strong enough, I’m furious with him—but I don’t think he’s capable of turning against us.”
Vad pulled back just enough to meet my eyes. “And I meant what I said earlier. I don’t blame you for any of this.”
"I truly am sorry. I never dreamed this would happen. I would’ve told you everything if I’d known. I can’t blame you if you regret being with me."
His expression hardened. "Regret it?" Our bond blazed with anger.
"I have no regrets about being with you, Briar. Even if I had known everything at the beginning, I'd still have chosen you. You are mine, and I am yours. Don’t ever question that. I wasn’t just saying that to Silus when he was running his mouth. "
The fierceness of his response rocked me, chasing every ounce of my concern away.
His wings flared as he pressed me into the wall, fitting his body perfectly to mine.
He dropped his mouth to my ear and growled, "The only regret I have is that I didn't realize who you were to me from the start. All those wasted nights. All that time I could’ve had you in my arms and in my bed. "
He paused, eyes flicking toward the dark hallway and then back to me, blazing with hunger. "We could wait before we rejoin the others. Veralt has the watch. No one’s expecting us for a little while.”
I arched a brow. “So you want to… what? Hold hands and share our feelings?”
He huffed a laugh, his thumb brushing my jaw with maddening tenderness. “Not exactly.”
He grew hard against my stomach, and the spicy scent of desire infused the air. He was utterly focused on me, and I wanted him too, more than anything. It wasn’t the safest place, but it seemed safe enough. And Fate help me, I needed this. Needed him. “We’re spending time together now.”
His mouth curved into a half-smile that made my stomach flip, his fingers sliding to my waist. "Yes, but there are different kinds of ‘time together.’" His voice became lower, rougher. "And I'd rather not have an audience for the kind I'm thinking of."
Heat knotted my stomach.
The bond between us vibrated, sharp and hungry.
“Traditionally,” he murmured, his mouth brushing my ear, “brides and grooms consummate their marriage within an hour or two of the ceremony. We’re behind schedule.”
I snorted, even as my pulse kicked. “We were a little busy.”
His grip on my waist was anything but playful. “I think it’s time we caught up.”
My fingers traced the hard planes of his chest, his heart thundering beneath my right palm. “You sure you want to rush into sex right now? Maybe we should wait and make sure we’re really ready for it.”
He growled, the sound vibrating straight through me, then kissed the tip of my nose. “Yes. I want to have sex now. If you’ll have me.”
I stood on my toes and pressed my lips to his. The kiss was soft at first, but then it wasn’t.
His arms crushed me to him, one hand tangled in my hair, the other gripping my waist like he couldn’t bear to let go. The world fell away—nothing existed except his scent, his heat, and the bond tightening between us, until I couldn’t tell where his need ended and mine began.
He swept an arm around my back and started to lift me, then winced.
I broke the kiss and studied the bloodied bandages on his side and shoulder. “Vad…” The wounds in the fleshy membranes of his wings had mostly healed, though they still had dark scabbed edges.
“I’m fine.” His voice was rough, wounded, wanting. “Not injured enough to stop.”
He pulled me in again, kissing me like a man possessed.
Without breaking away, he guided me backward down the hall. My shoulder brushed the cold stone wall, and then he pressed open a narrow wooden door I hadn’t noticed before. I glimpsed dust and old wood as he tugged me inside and kicked the door shut behind us.
The room was barely wider than his wingspan and lined with crates and barrels. Lips never leaving mine, Vad set me on a crate and stepped between my legs with his hands braced around my hips.
I fisted the front of his shirt, pulling him closer. His body pressed firm and hot between my thighs. He pressed his forehead to mine.
“Does it hurt?” I murmured, brushing his shoulder.
He caught my lower lip between his teeth, then answered against my mouth. “Only when I’m not touching you.”
My breath hitched, and I grew dizzy. “Do whatever you wish, my beloved. Take what you need. I’m yours.”