Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CORMAL
M adoc places Meri on the bed and carefully sweeps her platinum hair back from her lips and face. For a brief second, he leans down as if he’s going to kiss her but stops himself before their lips touch. I conjure a chair by the bed and sit down, lacing my fingers with hers. His lip curls, but he says nothing. He better fucking stay silent. Not once did he let me hold her on the way back. Snarling like a damn beast every time I tried to kiss or touch her.
Callyx arrives, bringing everyone else with him, including Rivan.
Rivan, Solandis, and Arden step toward the bed, but Madoc holds up his hand. “She’ll be out of it for a few days. Her body is recovering from the power she inadvertently invoked.”
Solandis’ delicate brows rise. “What power? Is this something new she picked up?”
Madoc runs a tired hand down his face. “To explain the power, I need to first take a step back and explain the Dark Fae Kingdom and how the crown chooses its ruler. As you may or may not know, the light Fae crown uses wisdom and foresight to choose its ruler. Unlike its counterpart, the dark Fae crown searches for blood and power, specifically the blood of Konnyr and the power of The Wild Hunt.”
Knowledge sparks in the depths of Theron’s violet eyes. As the only other dark Fae in the room, he quickly jumps ahead. “You’re the son of Madox.” There is an awe to his tone I’ve never heard before and based on the expressions of Arden and the rest of the cadre, neither have they. “You went missing a little over three thousand years ago.” He frowns.
“I am,” Madoc admits in an arrogant tone. “I was to inherit the crown after my father passed, but the night before the coronation, Leandra stole the power from me and gifted it to Denir.”
Fear rises inside me. “Are you telling us Meri somehow picked up this power from Denir? Is she mimicking it?”
Madoc’s jaw clenches. “It can’t be replicated in any way. Only those with Konnyr’s blood can wield it. My guess is Leandra accidentally or hell, purposely, took that power from Denir when she created Meri. It’s why they’re both after her.”
Theron whistles. “And time is running out,” he continues to explain for the rest of us. “To keep the crown, the dark Fae ruler must show his continued ability to wield this power every thousand years on the anniversary of his coronation, which for Denir is in less than two months.”
“Meri’s nine hundred and ninety-three years old. Leandra must have stolen the power right after the last anniversary and created Meri,” I tell them, rubbing my thumb across the delicate bones in her hand.
My mind latches on the explanation Madoc gave to Lucifer. “Why didn’t she kill you instead of dumping you in The Below?”
“She couldn’t take the chance my death would cause the power—and subsequently, the crown—to search for a ruler with the strongest bloodline. It would not have been Denir. He only has a drop of Konnyr in him.” Madoc sneers. “Enough to wield the power for the coronation ceremony, but like Meri, he doesn’t have enough of the bloodline to wield it in times of war—the purpose for which it was created.”
It hits me. “Lucifer knew, didn’t he? Or at least, he figured out some of it out.” The smug bastard is going to hold this over me forever.
Madoc’s lips twitch when he sees the irritated look on my face. “It felt good to be recognized by another ruler.”
Rivan raises his head and looks at me in utter horror. “Meri has to die to release the power, doesn’t she?”
Everyone starts talking at once. I place my fingers under my tongue and whistle like my sister taught me to do long ago. They instantly stop. “Madoc?”
He shrugs. “Leandra took the power from me, and I’m still here. I’m guessing she can do the same for Meri, but will she? She constantly threatens to unmake Meri, yet she kept her alive all those years. I think she intends to use her as a tool of revenge against Denir. How? I don’t know. Placing Meri on the throne will never work.”
He’s silent for a minute as he thinks it through. “She made her with both Nyssa’s and Denir’s essence. There must be a tie between them.”
Solandis slips past Madoc to go to Meri’s side. Her graceful features twisted in anger. “I refuse to let that happen. We need to kill Leandra before she unmakes Meri.” Her turquoise eyes assess me closely. “Tell me what you’ve done to find her.”
“Very little,” I return with a frustrated sigh. “The amulet prevents her enemies from finding her. We were visiting past places they lived in hopes of finding an item of Leandra’s to use in a hunt.”
“What’s the origin of the amulet? How did Leandra get it?” Arden asks with a frown. “We might be able to use blood magic to trace it.”
I shake my head. “My guess is blood was used to create the spell to hide its wearer from their enemies.” When everyone looks hopeful, I scan the crowd, landing on Daire. “Evren made it.”
Daire, Arden, Vargas, and Callyx exchange hopeless glances. “I see.”
Rivan, who met Evren and helped her defeat the brùid, locks eyes with me. “I’m sure you’ve exhausted every other avenue. We don’t have a choice. We need to ask Evren.”
“Right now, we need to wait for Meri to wake,” I tell him, unwilling to leave her side. I watch Solandis press her hand to Meri’s forehead.
Madoc comes to stand beside me. “Meri will be out of it for at least three days. We know Leandra was warned last night. We don’t have much time.” He presses a hand to my shoulder. “We won’t leave her alone for one second. I swear.”
Rivan comes up to us both. “If you want, I’ll go with you.”
I tear my eyes from her to look at Rivan. “I’d rather you stay here. Keep training. We’re going to need you at full strength.” It’s the truth, but it’s not the sole reason I said it. He needs to snap out of this destructive phase and focus on the bigger picture. “If Leandra manages to unmake Meri, you’re going to have to step in and bring her back to us. So, train. Do whatever you have to do to prepare, but you might be the only reason she survives.”
Rivan’s at his finest under pressure. I plan to keep reminding him of his role.
Daire glides over to us. “You’re going to need back-up. I’ll go with you.” His bright blue eyes hold a hint of worry in them. “We should bring Vargas, too.”
Vargas walks over to us. “His favorite son and favorite commander.” He motions to Daire and himself. “And the biggest pain in his ass.” He dips his head toward me and laughs. “At least we know who he’ll kill first.”
Daire chuckles. “Hopefully that means I’ll make it out of there alive.”
We joke, but asking Lucifer and Evren for her blood is the scariest fucking thing I’ve done in a long time.
“Swear to me you will have someone by her side at all times,” I order Madoc.
Dark, angry brows draw together in irritation. “I already swore to you. Take my fucking word for it and get into the damn portal. We’ve got this.”
Arden turns from giving Daire a kiss goodbye and adds her promise to Madoc’s. “We’ve already put together a schedule. We won’t leave her alone.”
Rivan points to the portal. “Go.”
Vargas shoves me into the portal and immediately follows. Underworld guards look confused when they see their commander, but they quickly snap to attention and salute him.
“Prince Daire is arriving. Look sharp,” he orders them in a hard voice.
Straightening, the two soldiers thrust their shoulders back and chins up.
Daire steps through, looking every inch the prince in his navy windowpane suit and light blue tie. “At ease.” The guards spread their feet but stay alert.
As we walk away, I hear him lean down and whisper to Vargas, “Guess you’ve still got it. But you’re confusing the hell out of them with this face.”
Vargas waves a hand. “By now, they all know I’ve died and come back. It doesn’t hurt to wear this face once in a while to remind them who they fucking report to.”
“Me?” Callyx says jokingly. When Vargas moves toward him, he holds up a hand. “Easy, old man. You’re still the big chief. All I do is spy on people and kill Lucifer’s enemies.”
The Duke of Greed happens to be walking by and overhears Callyx and almost walks into a marble pillar. I chuckle. His shoulders stiffen when he hears me, and he turns, mouth open to say something, but when he sees the four of us staring back at him, he gulps and rushes off.
“Shall we?” Daire suggests softly, his hand raised toward the hall.
I straighten the black silk tie I’m wearing. “How do I look? Respectful?”
Callyx laughs. “Arrogant, as always.”
“That’s the look I was going for,” I say smugly. “Let’s go.”
When I requested the meeting with Lucifer, I made sure to let him know it was a request involving Evren. Surprises suck. It’s better that he’s on guard from the start.
Walking into his office, we find Evren sitting behind Lucifer’s desk with him standing tensely by her side.
“Daire!” Evren says, jumping up to come over and give him a hug. “It’s been too long. You really need to come to dinner. Bring Arden and the cadre. We’ll play old records and dance the night away.”
Lucifer snorts. “She’s been watching way too many movies.”
Daire ignores his father. “We’d love to. Let me know when.” To my surprise, he walks over and gives Lucifer a hug. “Keep your temper in check and hear us out.”
Lucifer shakes his head. “I make no promises, but it must be important for all four of you to have banded together on this request. What is it?”
Instead of returning to the desk, Evren folds her legs underneath her and drops into an upholstered chair. When Lucifer clears his throat and motions to his desk, she wrinkles her nose. “It’s uncomfortable. I don’t know how you sit in it for an hour, much less all day. This is much better.” She props her chin on her hand and looks at me.
“I’m sure Callyx told you about Meri’s new power,” I begin, glancing at Callyx for confirmation. When he nods, I continue. “We need to find Leandra and get her to remove the power from Meri and, hopefully, restore it in Madoc. Denir needs the power for his coronation anniversary. He’ll become more desperate the closer it gets.”
Lucifer drops into his desk chair. With a frown, he shifts from side to side. Finally, he looks up. “You want Evren’s blood to trace the amulet. First, let me be clear, I would never give her blood to you or anyone else.” Power rises in the room, nearly suffocating in its intent.
A cool breeze of power sweeps through the room and, relieved, we all take a deep breath.
“There. Much better.” Lucifer flashes Evren a murderous look, and she winks back at him. “I didn’t use my blood to make the amulet. So that means…” She looks at me expectantly.
“You used a spell,” I reply with a shake of my head at the power she must wield. Something of that magnitude usually requires blood to activate. “Would you share the spell with me?” Maybe I can trace the words.
She frowns. “I gave the amulet to Leandra in exchange for the information she brought me. I can’t, in good conscience, give you the spell.” Slipping her bangle off her wrist, she offers it to me. “Meri is going to need a way to control the power within her while you search for Leandra. Make sure she wears this at all times.”
Disappointed, I take the piece of jewelry from her. “Thank you. This will help.” The intricate bracelet has no clasp, but it does have a deep red ruby on the top. “It’s beautiful.”
She lifts a shoulder. “I find metal to be a great conductor of spells, and I like to wear pretty things. Jewelry allows me to combine the two.”
My eyebrow rises at her words, and I hold the bracelet up to the light. Engraved inside is a spell written in Viridian, which is Evren’s natural language. At the end of the spell is a symbol of a diamond overlapping a triangle. Almost like a signature. This is how we’ll find Leandra.
“This means more than I can ever repay,” I tell her. “Meri is everything to me.”
Lucifer clears his throat. “Glad to see you finally know Madoc is the true heir to the Dark Fae Kingdom.” There’s a hint of superiority in his expression.
I roll my eyes. “I was waiting for you to bring that up.”
He leans forward. “Denir is weak. If the Dark Fae Kingdom falls, the imbalance will break the Fae. Tell Madoc The Underworld will stand with him and the crown.”
Inhaling sharply at the message, I bow my head. “I’ll tell him.” Madoc must have the crown to call upon his allies, but when he does, they will come to his aid. “Thank you.”
With the bangle clenched in my fist, I leave them all to visit with each other, unable to stay away another second. There’s the tiniest sliver of hope inside me, and all I want to do is share it with her.