Chapter Fifteen
LUCA
A familiar body crashed into me as arms flew around my shoulders, clutching me for dear life. “I can’t believe you almost died,” Alex sobbed, sniffling right into my ear.
“I did die,” I corrected him wryly, hugging him back just as tight. “But I got better.”
Suddenly, he shoved himself off me, gripping my biceps to hold me in place, his face twisted in fury. “As soon as we got your letter, I tried storming to the Fae realm to kill the fucker myself,” he said, and I didn’t doubt that he meant it. “But the Veil spat me back out.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Teighan’s jaw pop at the recollection. He’d obviously had his work cut out for him with his mate the last few weeks. I sympathized. I knew how confrontational Alex could get about the people he cared for, but normally he’d threaten to hire a hitman when his opponent was beyond his capabilities. I guessed he’d felt confident enough—or had temporarily lost his sanity—to take on the Fae king himself.
All power to him.
Glad it hadn’t worked, but still. The thought counted.
“Well, I appreciate the sentiment,” I said, smiling at my best friend, suddenly feeling a little choked up. It was probably the leftover emotions from leaving my dad’s. Cair had consoled me in his office before we’d called Alex and Tee here. He’d snuggled me on his lap for over an hour while I’d wept, overwhelmed and gutted, but even with the sense of relief I’d gained from letting it all out, it was still fresh in my mind.
To think, if everything had gone differently, I wouldn’t have seen Alex again. Or anyone. Wouldn’t have stood in the club again, wouldn’t have felt my friend embrace me in his rough way or listened to his inappropriate topics of conversation—or had my eyes graced by another of his hideously bright sweaters. It was all hitting me at once, and I didn’t really know how to process.
Short of bawling my eyes out. But at that point, I didn’t think I had anything left in me.
“It’s good to see you again,” I murmured, my voice cracking, hoping he understood.
His expression softened. “Missed you so much, Lulu.” Of course, he had to go ahead and ruin the moment by ruffling up my hair and adding, “My little wizard.” But he wouldn’t be Alex if he didn’t.
And it helped.
“I never thought our father would make such a bold and reckless move,” Teighan said, his arm automatically circling Alex’s waist as my friend cuddled against his side. “He won’t get away with this.”
“I can count on your help, then?” Cair asked, and Tee gave his brother one of those ‘no shit’ looks of his that should have had its own trademark.
“Without question,” he asserted. “You are my brother, and I know you would do the same for me if it were Alex.” His hold instinctively tightened on his mate. “Besides, our father has been allowed to abuse his power for too long. I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, as I know your stance on taking the throne, but the Otherworld deserves a new leader. It is time, Cair. You know it.”
I glanced up at my mate, wondering whether he would mention his flyaway proposal to stand down and set Orian in his place, but he didn’t. There would be time for that yet. “I agree.”
“I want to help too,” Alex offered, determined.
It warmed my heart knowing so many people were ready and willing to defend us. Kor and Igor—along with their mate, and the rest of their family—had already pledged themselves to our cause. Monsters in the Otherworld were lining up to fight for their prince at a second’s notice, those already on his payroll and regular citizens. Plus, Rathe had assured us the numbers would only rise as his word reached the four corners of the land.
It was a huge responsibility. A little terrifying, I wouldn’t lie, but also incredibly encouraging.
“It’s not safe, bird,” Teighan said. “You?—”
“Sunbeam...” Alex cut in, taking a step out of his mate’s reach just so he could thrust his hands onto his hips. “I’m not going to sit here looking pretty while everyone I love kills themselves for a damned throne. I know I would do that job exceptionally well, but that’s irrelevant…”
I snorted.
“There’s bound to be something I can do.” He paused to think. “Yesterday, you mentioned gathering Fae support in the human realm, right?” He looked at Tee, who nodded. “I can assist on that front. I have connections that my mother overlooked when she froze my other assets, and I have my art clientele now. I could put out a word or two, use what little influence I still have. Hell, I’ll even stoop to propaganda posters if it’ll be any use.”
My eyes widened at Alex’s tenacity—not that he hadn’t possessed any before, but not for this. “When did you become adept at war planning?”
He rolled his eyes as if I was asking a ridiculous question. “Um, I’ve been coached since birth to deal with hostile situations,” he reminded me, and yeah, I had known that. It was why getting kidnapped last year had barely fazed him. “Plus, I’m mated to a Fae warrior , what did you expect? He’s been going over strategies since we got your last letter.”
Tee shrugged at Cair’s raised eyebrow. “No harm in being prepared. Just say the word, and whatever plan you choose will be in motion.”
“I knew I could count on you,” Cair said, mildly amused. “I have no doubt Father will already be aware that his assassination attempt failed, so he’ll either be licking his wounds or preparing a new scheme. That should give us the chance to get our bearings and breathe for a day or two.”
As if his words were permission, I let out a tension-reducing exhale. I knew there was a rough road ahead, but being afforded even a modicum of rest before shit hit the fan was appreciated. Maybe there would even be enough time for Cair to finally get his dick in me. Priorities . I wouldn’t lie, I was gagging for it, and with a quick sideways glance at my mate, finding out his heavy gaze was already locked on me, I suspected he’d had the same idea. Great minds.
Alex clapped his hands, making me jolt. “Perfect. That means you ”—he pointed at me—“are free to tell me all about your trip and the fact that you have fucking magic . I always knew you were a special bean. Tee filled me in on your dad and the portal lore once his memories returned, but I wanna know it all.”
Well, I guessed sexy times were on pause for a little longer.
The anticipation may actually kill me. Again.
I peered up at Cair once more, sending him an apologetic look—which he responded to graciously with an amused smile and a nod—before turning my attention back to Alex. A teasing grin played at the corner of my lips. “Hm, I’m sure I can spare a feeew hours in my very busy mage schedule to chat.”
He crossed his arms over his chest, cocking a brow. “That’s how it’s gonna be, huh? Too cool for school now?”
“Yup.”
We laughed, and I went to follow him over to the chaise longue, but Cair called out… “Don’t you want to give him your father’s gift, pet?”
“Oh, I forgot!” I said, and Alex gasped exaggeratedly.
“You have a present for me and you forgot about it?! Rude.”
I strode over to the bar where I’d left my pack, rifling through the front pouch for what I needed before returning. “He gave me this to give to you.” I handed the leather piece over to Alex, who eyed it curiously. “It’s an apology for the ward and…” I looked up at Tee. “For not telling you about your mother.”
Teighan seemed taken aback, while Alex was busy assessing the jewelry. “What is it?” he asked. “I mean, I know what it is, but I’m guessing he didn’t send a regular bracelet back with you.”
“It’s enchanted. It will allow you to cross into the Fae realm for three days.”
His gaze snapped to mine, and I swore he’d stopped breathing. “Are… are you serious? I can go through?”
I nodded, but reached out to stop him when he attempted to open it. “Once it’s on your wrist, the time will start, and you have to be back here before it runs out.” He left the clasp alone. “It would be best to wait until you’re ready to go before putting it on. You can revive its magic by burying it under Fae soil for at least a month. If you want to keep going back, that is.”
“Hell yeah!” His enthusiasm was infectious. “Oh my God, can we go now?”
I chuckled. “Might wanna wait until all this blows over. You know, in case you’re the king’s next target?”
He groaned like a child being denied a trip to his favorite toy shop. So fucking dramatic. “Can’t I just go over for an hour? Five minutes. Just a peek, then we can come straight back?” he bargained before addressing Cair. “You said we had time before the king made his move, and I’m going to be obsessing over this until I get to go.”
I knew that feeling too well, so I was sympathetic to his plight. “I mean, we could drop back in on Dad? Be all, ‘Hey, I know it’s only been a few hours, but we’re back.’ ”
“I don’t know, bird.” Tee hesitated. “I don’t want to risk putting you in danger. You are too precious to me, and I know you are far from weak, but you don’t have the unmanifested powers or Fae blood that Luca does.”
Alex smiled at his mate, though I could tell he was still buzzing with unrestrained excitement. “No, but I can fight. You’ve been teaching me how to handle a sword.” Pause for innuendo appreciation . “And we’d be quick. Now that Lulu is a wizard, we can whoosh back at the first whiff of trouble.”
“I’m a mage…”
“Rosewood Creek is very secure.” Cair joined the conversation. “While we were there, Zadok renewed the shields to repel ill intent.”
Alex’s eyes lit up and he flung out a hand in my mate’s direction. “See? Even Prince Charming is on my side.”
The barest twitch of a smirk flicked at the corner of Cair’s mouth before flattening out. “On second thought, he may get eaten by a wyvern.”
My bestie spluttered, and a laugh forced its way through my closed lips.
Seconds later, while Alex was busy grousing about how everyone was mean and we all hated him, Kor wandered in through the red curtain, stalling our debate. I beamed at him, almost grateful for the interruption, and he bowed his head in return. “Your Highness.”
I huffed fondly. “We’ve had this conversation already today. You can call me Luca.”
He nodded again, but the gesture was flat. Cair frowned, clearly sensing that something was amiss. “What is it Korgavan?” he asked.
“This just arrived for you, Your Highness.” Kor handed a letter over to my mate. “It is from the city hall.”
The room fell silent.
Cair’s jaw clenched as he gestured in thanks before gracefully peeling the letter open. The page folded out. Kor retreated to the far side of the room to give us privacy as my mate’s dark eyes scanned what it said, the tension in his frame growing with each second that passed. He huffed a humorless laugh. “It seems Father doesn’t need time to prepare himself, after all.”
“What is it?” I asked, stepping in closer to his side.
“It is an official decree, of sorts,” he said. “In more refined terminology, it accuses me of kidnapping a human of the state, and apparently , if I do not return them—and if every last supernatural creature does not vacate Edenglas by the month’s end—then the treaty between our kinds will be voided. They will be forced to see my actions as a declaration of war.”
“What?” I gasped, scanning for everyone else’s reaction.
I noticed Alex’s face had paled. “Who is it from?”
“The Minister of Human and Fae Relations,” Cair said and my friend cursed.
“Mother.” He shook his head, irritation replacing the elation he’d displayed only a moment ago. “I probably don’t have to ask who this child of the state is, but go ahead…”
Cair’s expression turned grave. “Theodore Lawrence.”
Alex’s head fell back, his eyes screwing shut as he let out an unsteady breath. He held up the bracelet mockingly. “Better save this for a rainy day, huh?”
Teighan tugged his mate to his chest, rumbling a soothing purr and rubbing patterns into his back. “We’ll do everything we can, my precious boy,” he whispered so quietly I almost didn’t catch it. “I swear to you. We’ll get him back.”
I saw Alex’s hair bob with a nod, and the urge to comfort my friend was strong. “I’m sorry, Alex,” I said, knowing it wasn’t enough, but it was all I had.
He leaned out of Teighan’s embrace, his eyes glittering with tears he was clearly refusing to shed. “We may not talk anymore, but he’s still my brother, and since you haven’t taken him, someone has, so we need to find them.”
My mate dipped his head. “Of course.”
Alex’s mom was powerful, dangerous, and no doubt had the means to enact exactly what was in that letter. It was no idle threat.
“This is part of the king’s plan?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“It all makes sense now,” Cair mused. I wasn’t convinced, but he had more experience with his father’s particular brand of crazy, so maybe it had all clicked into place for him. “He thinks burning the bridge between our kinds will ultimately get him what he wants, and the quickest way is by provoking the humans into driving us out of Edenglas.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if my mom has something to do with this,” Alex spat bitterly. “She hates the Fae being in the human world just as much as your father does. All this just seems too fucking convenient to not have her fingerprints all over it.”
“If they are working together, that makes this whole thing even more targeted,” Cair said. “And dangerous.”
The sound in the room was suddenly muffled in my ears, the air heavy and suffocating. A cold finger of regret traced my spine, an anxious storm welling in my belly as my unfocused gaze fell to the floor. This was my fault. Everyone here was distressed because I’d unwittingly taunted the king. “This… is all because of me .”
A large, gentle hand cupped my cheek, tilting my head up. “Do not blame yourself, sweetling,” Cair murmured. “This is all him .”
“Yeah, it’s definitely not you, Lu,” Alex added. “Our father-in-law is a dickbag.”
I laughed faintly.
“Our mating may have pushed him over the edge,” my mate continued. “But there is no fault on either of us for that. He has tolerated our people existing in the human world for centuries, gritted his teeth and borne his disdain because revoking the portal—as your father said—would have caused uproar. For all his harshness and cruelty, he had too much pride and would not have risked being torn from his throne for something so trivial, but now… the stakes have risen.
“You have come along, the first human to march into the Fae realm, bold as brass to take your place there, next to the heir of the throne, and he was powerless to stop you. It unnerved him to the point of irrationality. He has been shown it is possible for our realm to one day host those of human blood, to dilute the pure bloodline, and he can’t have that. He values purity above all else, and he will do anything to ensure it.”
“Even go to war?” I asked.
“Even so, but not outright. This way—” He held up the letter. “He believes he can pretend it is not his fault. If the humans use this excuse to drive us from their lands, my people will need someone to blame for uprooting their lives, and that would land on me. In turn, it may garner the king more support.”
“Or…” Teighan spoke from his position plastered to my friend’s back. “We will all be so distracted fighting a pointless war with the humans that our numbers will be too depleted to overthrow him.”
“Exactly.” Cair lowered his head but didn’t step out of my space, which I appreciated. I needed his warmth. “He must have been planning this since your arrival in the Fae realm,” he carried on, voicing his thoughts out loud. “He has prepared himself for every outcome, it seems. Whether I started the fight because of grief, or the humans did because of a sham kidnapping plot, it doesn’t matter to him as he wouldn’t be the villain.”
“And what? Killing me was just for shits and giggles?”
“He wanted to weaken me, to plant the seed of doubt in the minds of the people.” He reached out again to brush his knuckles down the side of my face, his expression solemn. “I was ready to tear the world apart for you. That would have been their vision of me, and how easy would it be to add abduction charges to a broken male already wreaking havoc?”
I groaned in frustration, my instincts clamoring at the thought of my mate being accused of anything so vile. “That fucker always has to be one step ahead, doesn’t he?”
“Then we just have to be two steps ahead,” Teighan piped up, his arms crossing over his chest in a protective stance. “We already have it in our favor that Luca lived. Our father may still be going ahead with the rest of this lunacy, but even with the threat to their homes, the people will know you well enough to realize you’d never risk losing our place in Edenglas. You’ve spent the last hundred years advocating for them. They won’t forget that so easily.”
“Desperation can weaken anyone’s loyalties or principles,” Cair said before releasing a heavy sigh. “I should know. I would have sacrificed them all if it had brought my mate back. I’d have no right to blame them if they turned on me the same way.”
“Your soul shattered into pieces,” Tee deadpanned. “I think you can be forgiven for your lapse in judgment.”
I sensed a hint of self-doubt trickling through our bond, and gazing into Cair’s eyes, I saw the same flicker of guilt I felt. “Even so, I?—”
“You would not have hurt innocent people, my love.” I laced my fingers with his, demanding his attention. “You would have seen reason, even if you couldn’t imagine it at the time, or now. You don’t deserve to be hated, so don’t even think it.”
After a beat of consideration, studying my face, a smile tugged at the edge of his mouth and he squeezed my hand. Waves of love and gratitude swept into me, filling me with comfort. “I initially wanted to resolve this peacefully.” He rolled his eyes at the very notion. “But Father has clearly run out of patience. He’s gone too far, involving the humans in our affairs.”
“Then… what happens now?” Alex looked to my mate, knowing that whatever steps we took next were entirely his call.
“First, we find Theodore,” he said. “Prove that we had nothing to do with his disappearance and publicly expose the true culprits. Hopefully that will return peace to Edenglas and cement the monsters’ loyalty to our side.”
“And second?” I asked, though I already knew the answer. There was only one way this could end. We’d fantasized about an amicable truce, had hoped we could all come to a mutually beneficial agreement and carry on with our lives in harmony, but the king was beyond that.
If anyone had told me the day I’d mated the heir to the Fae throne that this was where we’d end up a year or so later, I might have believed them, but I would’ve been too caught up in just-married bliss to take it seriously. I was just grateful the king had waited so long, because while we’d had to suffer a minor setback—or five—I felt less incapable and defenseless than I had before.
I could help protect us, and that thought was what had my heart beating a little steadier when Cair finally answered.
“We give him what he wants,” he declared, his jaw set and his gaze hard and unrelenting, looking every bit the seasoned prince he’d been molded to be. “We go to war.”