Chapter 27
T he courtyard, usually bustling with activity, now hangs heavy with the scent of damp stone and something acrid, like burnt leaves. The only sound is the creak of the heavy door as Dae shoves it open, the silence amplifying the tension in the air.
The room has been emptied of all people and Faeries. A large oak table sits in the centre. Surrounding it are the visiting demons, along with a teeny tiny pink-clad winged creature sat on the table before her chair. There is also a tall woman who reminds me of the moon.
Dorian winks at me, his eyes gleaming with amusement, while Lilith’s cold, red eyes follow my every move.Dae’s hand clamps around my arm, his voice urgent as he says, “Elly, go to our room.” I scoff, shaking him off. Dorian laughs, and Micah snaps him a look that silences him.
Dorian clears his throat. “It’s time, Dae. The attack on Ellyllon needs to happen now. Before they get her back and we have nothing left to bargain.”
The what? Oh, fuck. That’s what he meant when he said he’s making a deal for me. He’s opening the gates to Hell and letting the demons into Ellyllon through Faerie—and it’s all my fault! I should never have met him in the forest, night after night. I should never have fallen in love with him. I should have stayed at home and died quietly.
Dae’s face turns vicious, rot and decay oozing out of him. The monster that lurks beneath his skin makes an appearance as his sharp horns cast menacing shadows along the table, and his hooked nose curves up in a snarl. “They’re not getting her back.”
Lilith’s long, pointed fingernails tap an impatient rhythm against the table. “Aberith has stepped up his efforts, it’s only a matter of time. It should happen now, before we lose the chance. He’s disoriented and confused. Ellyllon is keeping its gates open in case she makes it through there?—’’
Dae interrupts her, snarling at Micah. “Her vote doesn’t count. She only wants bigger hunting grounds.” Lilith licks her lips and smiles. Dae snarls again. “Touch Elysia and your chance goes. That’s all they need for the heart to restore to full strength. Her death.”
The heart? What fucking heart? With a twinkle in his eye, Dorian is watching me. If they all want in to Ellyllon, then Dorian is playing them. He doesn’t want to attack Ellyllon. He wants something else. That’s why he was the first to speak—so that I’d know what’s at stake. So that I’d make the deal with him.
My mind is a whirlwind of questions, urging me to speak—why would Dae let them in? What’s Dad doing to get me back? Why would my death result in a restored heart, and what even is the heart?—but I remain silent. I retreat into myself, hoping to avoid disturbing the scene and allowing them to spill all their secrets. Although I feel Dae is the only one who cares what I hear.
Micah leans back. “Lilith is one of the seven. No matter her…motivations.”
Lilith smiles. “As if your tiny brain could ever understand what I’m after.”
“Yeah, really hard to guess,” Aamon sneers.
“And me?” the moon goddess interrupts. “Do you care what I think?”
Dae runs a hand through his hair. “Of course I care what you think, Selene, but you’ve got to admit you’re not thinking straight. None of you are. You’ve all got something pushing you to attack now. I’m the only one who can think clearly.”
Lilith laughs, an eerie shrill that ricochets off the walls, sending a shiver down my spine. “You? You’re love sick, and about twelve years old.”
Tiny particles of wooden dust float from the table as Dae slams his hands onto it. “Keep pushing, bitch.”
Lilith grins, her lips pulling back high enough to show pointed, blood-stained teeth. Her eyes dance with a challenge, and I can’t help the little green monster that rears its head within me. Why am I jealous of her? What does she have that I don’t? Perhaps it’s her freedom... Her eyes snap to mine, and I shift from foot to foot.
“Elly, will you please go to fucking go to bed.”
No chance of going under the radar, after all. I stride purposefully towards the cupboard Obi once showed me, pull out a velvet chair, and drag it along the floor. Sitting down, I try not to fidget. Lilith laughs. It’s an eerie shrill.
Resting my elbows on the table, I steeple my fingers. Here goes nothing. “Obviously, I’ve come to the table a little unprepared, but nonetheless, I’d like to negotiate for not attacking Ellyllon.”
No one says anything, that is, until Lilith’s laugh grows louder and brighter than before. Dorian says, “No one invited you to the table, little girl.”
I narrow my eyes. He should probably shut up—I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t want me to telling them he’s my ticket to ending the curse without Dae.
“Elly, baby, this isn’t the place for you.” Dae steps a little to the left and places his hands on either side of my chair, leaning down to speak in my ear. “I’m sorry I’ve been keeping things from you, but you need to go.”
Aamon asks, “What have you brought to bargain with?”
Dae holds up a finger, stopping Aamon’s bargain. “Don’t look at her.”
Aamon rolls his eyes.
“Why?” I ask quietly, even though everyone can still hear. “Faerie has stood between Hell and Ellyllon for over a thousand years. We’re so young. You’ll have so much time to regret a decision like this.”
Dae tries to grab one of my hands, but I pull it from his reach. “Do we have to do this in front of everyone?”
“No, we could have done it any other time if you’d have just told me.”
“Told you? You’re a little spy for your dad. How could you ever understand a decision like this? You’ve never made your own choices. You take anything he feeds you and say thank you. Fuck me, you were going to die for him.”
“For my mother. And I’m cursed. It’s not a choice.”
“Not anymore, it’s not.”
“I want my sisters back,” Selene says, cutting into our argument. “The time to attack is now.”
Slow nods ripple across the table as my heart sinks. They’re going to attack my father’s home. “And you, Lixi?” Dae asks the tiny fluttering being.
Lixi presses her tongue into the side of her cheek. “I’m not the one going to war. I shouldn’t get a say.”
“I want to hear, anyway.”
Lixi says, “It makes sense to go now. Their barriers are down, they’re panicking, Aberith is distracted and reckless. That shit with the Nori? That was dumb by anyone’s standards. Besides, when the heart does collapse, you don’t want to be caught there. Who knows how badly Ellyllon will suffer, maybe it’s just a few earthquakes, maybe the ground opens up and swallows everyone, demons and all. This way, if you go now, you can be in and out before we’re forced to find out.”
In and out—they’re using Ellyllon as a bridge to get to Arcadia. Fuck, this is a full-scale war. And again, what fucking heart?
With cold grey eyes, Dae scans my face before turning to the table and saying, “No. I’m not opening my gates until the time for the sacrifice has passed. Until it’s too late for them. The gates open both ways, I’m not risking Faerie because you’re all impatient.”
What sacrifice?
What heart?
What the hell is going on!
“We don’t know how the magic works,” the moon goddess says. “Waiting doesn’t mean they can’t steal her and kill her a week after the date, too.”
Dae says, “It’s not just about Elysia?—.”
Lilith licks her upper teeth. “Sure.”
Dae’s eyes narrow almost imperceptibly. “Enjoy the food and dancing. Don’t ambush me again.” Dae walks off, his long legs carrying him up the staircase.