24. Chapter Twenty-Four
Nicholas
Hill Castle constructed a dining room rather than a revel hall, which was typically the norm.
A long table sprouted from the floor out of roots, flattened to hold an arrangement of food and beverage.
Laurent sat at the head; his hardened stare illuminated by the candles burning from warped chandeliers.
Percival and Solomon scurried to a pair of seats at the opposite end of the table.
They dug into the food, though never removed their eyes from the entering guests.
Charmaine had a restful sleep because she walked steadily on her own, though Evera kept close to her side.
Henry kept a calm facade, save for the hands clasped tightly behind his back.
Nicholas and William sat together. Yawning, Arden dropping into the chair by William.
Henry took the chair on Laurent’s left. He praised the human for being brave enough to do so. William, however, scowled.
Solomon and Percival made a mess, gnawing on fruits and meats, spitting pits across the room and dripping blood on the floor.
Both preferred their meat on the raw side, encouraging bugs to flutter around their heads.
They shouldn’t be there. He had them sitting at the dining table acting as if this were normal.
“The food and drink are safe. I acquired a stash from Terra when we had human guests more often,” Laurent said.
He moved with a grace that mortal kings envied, sitting elegantly, speaking gracefully, and summoning the attendants with a flick of his eyes.
The mortal girl who led them hurried to pour his drink, faerie wine that resembled silver paint and tasted of the greatest delights.
If a mortal partook, they would die thirsty while drowning in water.
The mortal attendants, with their clouded eyes, ensured all had their meals.
Fresh fruit lined their plates beside freshly cut meat from the steaming hog at the center of the table.
It smelled strongly of paprika and thyme, so savorful that their stomachs growled.
Laurent wore a proud grin. He disliked mortals at his gatherings unless they were under his control, but he remained ever the perfect host. He enjoyed when others couldn’t deny his hospitality.
Though Laurent stated the safety of their meals, he tasted the food on William’s plate. To his surprise, Evera sampled Henry’s and Charmaine’s. Arden shoved food in his mouth without care.
With their reluctant nods, the humans of their group partook in their meal.
In a strange way, he took pride in William eating, rather voraciously, because it meant he had William’s trust. They had a long journey and ate little of their supplies, seeing as Laurent didn’t stop in their travels, so the group was eager to fill their stomachs.
However, that didn’t stop any of them from giving Laurent, Percival, and Solomon peculiar looks.
Their host ate in a consuming silence that Nicholas couldn’t stomach.
The dining hall had a darkness to it that couldn’t be explained.
The candlelight burned true, and the doors hung open, practically inviting any to dare an exit, and yet, it was suffocating and entirely untrue.
A shimmering web of silk flickering beautifully in the sun while the spider hid under in the shadows.
“What are you up to?” Nicholas finally asked over a half full plate. He didn’t partake in the fae food, if only to ensure William didn’t mistake any. Laurent had it placed together, after all, no doubt hoping one of them made a mistake.
Laurent leaned back. “Am I not allowed to have guests?”
“You’re not fond of human guests less they become a new addition to your toys.
” He spoke of the attendants lining the hall, ten of them in total.
Each was the same; white eyed, bloodied and bruised.
There were plenty more wandering the halls and countless crushed under Hill Castle or used as fertilizer for the gardens.
“You once weren’t, either, yet here you are, traveling with them,” Laurent replied.
“Traveling with them or working with them?” Solomon called from the end of the table. “We should ask what you are up to.”
“Father already knows and you don’t deserve an answer,” he snarled. He never had a family dinner before and decided he was relieved not to because they were horrendous.
Beneath the table, William sat a hand on his thigh. The touch soothed him, but nothing truly comforted him. Not when Laurent sat so close to William, not when he could wave his hand and snap William’s neck.
“We appreciate being given this food and rest, Lord Darkmoon,” Henry proclaimed.
He took to eating his food more comfortably than the others, though Nicholas noted how small his bites were.
He practiced caution in his own way. “May I ask how long you want us to stay? We have quite a lot of work to do.”
“So I have been told.” Laurent took a slow drink. “But I have not been told why this work is so important. Disappearing mortals should be of no concern. Why, there are a few here that others would claim disappeared, though they came to Faerie of their own volition.”
“We do not speak of mortals wandering to Faerie in search of riches,” said Nicholas.
Laurent’s long finger traced the rim of his wineglass. “Then what do you speak of? I suggest you tell me soon if you are in such a rush as you so claim.”
“Shadowed disciples,” William said. He sat tall and brave, meeting Laurent’s eyes without a care. Nicholas both loved and hated him for it. “Shadowed disciples have been snatching mortals from Terra and bringing them to Faerie. We are in search of them.”
He took the opening to say, “Let us leave and I will take care of them, as I have been doing until now.”
Laurent drank slowly, without a care. He couldn’t understand why.
Laurent wanted the shadowed disciples gone as much as everyone else, if not more.
Fearworn’s destruction by Nicholas’ hand brought power to the Darkmoon name, even trust. Mortals traveled to Faerie once more.
Many would wind up like the attendants, broken and abused by bored fae, then killed once their masters saw no reason to keep them around.
The cycle would repeat, and Laurent loved that cycle as much as the next fae.
Mortals were foolish enough to believe the fae that destroyed Fearworn would be more trustworthy. That’s what Laurent wanted, more deals to make, lives to ruin. So why have them sitting here? Why…
“This is a distraction,” Nicholas whispered. “You don’t want us to look into the disappearances.”
“If I didn’t want you investigating, I could have killed you upon your arrival.” Laurent popped a grape into his mouth.
“You would have tried and you would have pissed me off.”
Laurent chortled. “You are always angered. That is nothing new.”
“Then you should have no issue letting us leave to investigate, though I cannot understand why. Why the distraction?” He stood. The chair shrieked, and the room bore down on him.
“I do take issue with your departure. You did not seek my permission to bring these humans to my lands, and I am shocked by you, Arden.”
Arden had his gaping maw open to inhale a roll of meat.
Growling, Nicholas took William’s hand. “We weren’t on your lands. Even if we were, they do not need your permission. Any are welcome in Darkmoon, so long as they respect it. Come. We are leaving.”
William couldn’t stand. None could. The table warped.
Roots wrapped around their ankles, up their legs, and the chairs shifted behind them.
A strangled breath left William’s throat when the roots snaked around his torso, then slithered about his neck.
The same happened to the others. Fire caught at Charmaine’s fingertips.
The roots tightened around her wrists until she cursed and relinquished the flames.
Nicholas tore at the roots, constricting William.
The thorns pierced his flesh. The cent of copper filled his nostrils and fear rang through his heart.
“Release them,” he ordered, tearing faster, shredding the roots into splinters that pricked his hands, William’s hands. He imagined the room shattering around them, Laurent bloody and dead on the floor.
“Nicholas,” William warned. His words choked off from the grip around his neck. Seeing the constriction there, watching it grow tighter and hearing William’s breath stutter, forced his heart into his throat.
“I will release them if you assure me they will remain here or return to Terra,” Laurent replied.
“I am Hill Castle’s lord, and as much as it is your home, it must obey me, and I want them here.
” Laurent stood. His hand fell on Nicholas’ shoulder, applying no pressure, and yet, he flinched.
“You and Evera have a duty to fulfill, so you will cease this nonsense or come to regret it.”
“You’re a bastard. You are cold and heartless,” William spat between clenched teeth.
“But most of all, you fear your son and what he is capable of, so you try to control him, but he is stronger than you will ever be.” William turned his attention to Nicholas, speaking low and firm.
“He has no control over you. He wants what you have, but this power is yours entirely and he knows, as we all do, that you are better than him in every way.”
The roots wrapped around William’s mouth. Nicholas spun on Laurent, his nails pointed at the bastard’s throat. But then he was yanked under into the stony soil that blackened his vision. He couldn’t breathe, clawing at a crushing darkness that made him into a terrified child begging to be set free.
William shouldn’t have spoken back to Laurent. Nicholas didn’t understand why he would. They were trapped in Hill Castle, captured by Laurent, who could kill them all without care. William had been right. He was cold and heartless and…