Chapter Nineteen
JOON
I slip into the simple riding jacket I borrowed from Mingi.
In the beginning, I had the strength to collect most of the shards on my own. But with each one found, the next took more of my power to track down.
When I became too weak, there was no other choice but to use the frost bloom and enlist the aid of human brides as vessels.
With their help, I managed to find several more, though each success was few and far between. Hopelessness weighed on me, trapping me in a pit of despair until I had all but given up. My sixth wife resulted in nothing but failure after failure.
As long as I am careful with the use of my magic, the power I siphon from Violet lasts longer than any other vessel.
There is only a single shard remaining before the mirror is complete.
I feel lighter than I ever have before. The burden of this curse does not seem so heavy now. Mingi and Iseul have always been by my side, always ready to support me, but were never able to help.
For the first time, I allow myself to hope.
And it is because of Violet.
Perhaps it is because she is more willing.
“If I had known any of this, I would have helped you without bargains or threats.”
She alone has expressed a desire to help and outright demanded to know more about this situation… and me.
Imugi passes through the wall like fog. “The presence has returned,” the demon says, gliding through the air in agitated patterns.
“You say it is the same one as before?”
As if on cue, there’s a tap against the window drawing my attention—the blur of a dark shape darts out of view.
Imugi hisses. “There!” They whip their pale face toward me. “The very same. They must have followed us after the attack at the bridge.” Imugi releases two small puffs of mist from their nose. “Maybe even longer than that.
Another tap. This time, the small demon remains perched on the outer ledge. They press their long, finger-like talons against the glass, clicking the sharp tips.
“It is unusual behavior. There is something wrong with them,” Imugi mutters.
Why would a demon venture into the sun when direct light weakens even the strongest among them?
I flick my wrist and send a flash of power toward them. Frost spreads, crackling over the pane. They fall, trying to get out of the way.
“Wait!” Mingi snaps from out in the hall. His command is ignored by whoever is frantically knocking.
The second I open the door, Iseul pushes her way inside, heedless of the impropriety. She looks around the room frantically. “Is she here?”
Mingi follows, stopping right inside the threshold. He knows I wouldn’t do anything untoward, but it would cause nothing but trouble if word got out that she was in my apartments, alone with me.
“What is going on?” I demand.
Iseul rounds on me, her dark eyes wide with worry. “Violet—I was supposed to accompany her to the library today, but she wasn’t in her room when I went to get her.” She flings her arm toward the window, pointing. “And I caught a demon climbing out the window. What if it did something to her?”
Imugi and I exchange a glance.
“Was it about this size?” I spread my hands to match the one that was just here.
Iseul nods.
Violet is entirely human, so they cannot be bonded to her. There would be signs of a demon’s magic, impossible to hide. One cannot bond with a demon and remain unchanged.
“Do you have any idea where she could have gone?”
Iseul bites her lip, shaking her head. “I don’t… I am sorry.”
Unease slithers down my spine. Everything about this is off.
Without a word, I stride from the room. Turning a corner, I stop mid-step when I catch sight of the same demon peering through yet another window near the end of the hallway.
I quicken my stride. By the time I reach the window, the demon has already moved to the shade of a tree along the walking path beyond the main doors. They sit, watching me, as if waiting.
This wild demon’s presence cannot be a coincidence.
The Western courtyard is empty, but there is one place that is always teeming with activity. And where there is activity, there will be servants spreading palace gossip like currency.
The demon scrambles to keep out of reach, pausing every few yards to look back.
My steps falter. Do they want me to follow?
They are leading me toward the central court. That suspicion is confirmed as I continue.
The demon hides beneath the shelter of plants, stopping at the edge of the Central Court’s Garden, out of the servants’ view. They gesture toward the main palace.
I reach out and stop the first guard that crosses my path. His posture lacks strength, and he moves with a lack of confidence. The young man cannot be more than a year into his service.
“Where is my wife?” My voice holds the cold threat of a winter storm.
His face pales. “She is in the throne room, with the king, Your Highness.”
I am already walking away before he’s finished. My uncle has never formally met with any of my previous wives. I lengthen my stride.
Ministers Ilseong and Molan have long wished to see me stripped of my birthright and banished. I do not know what they hope to accomplish, but this situation reeks of their influence.
I do not slow as I enter the Formal Hall, and stride through the corridors with menacing purpose. Servants line both sides of the corridor outside the throne room door, standing in neat rows with their backs to the wall.
“Your Highness, y-you can’t go in—” one of the king’s attendants stammers out.
I reach past him and push the door open. It comes as no surprise to see Ministers Ilseong and Molan there. Their faces contort in a mix of shock and anger—no doubt they are the ones responsible for this.
Violet snaps her gaze toward me. She is unnaturally pale, lips bloodless, and eyes glassy with pain.
“Ah, there you are, Wife,” I say with a casual air. “I have been looking everywhere for you.”
Violet’s eyes widen. “J—” she begins.
I take her wrist and pull her to me, keeping her from addressing me informally.
She is so unsteady on her feet that she collides against my side. Violet’s skin is cool to the touch. My fingertips shift to find her pulse. It is erratic, confirming what I already knew. She is in the early stages of one of her ‘episodes.’
“Did you forget? There is somewhere you are supposed to be.”
A barely perceptible wince pinches her expression. The rise and fall of her chest quickens with sharp, shallow breaths.
Her visible confusion is a bad sign. She doesn’t even have enough wits about her to know that she hasn’t forgotten a demon damned thing.
“I-I believe I did?” Her voice is breathy and weak. I send her a subtle prompt, before she hastily adds, “My Prince.”
I tear my gaze away from the desperation and pleading shining in her eyes and turn my attention to my uncle.
“I hope you do not mind if I steal my bride for a previous commitment, My King?”
He contemplates my request for a moment before speaking—it wouldn’t do to allow anyone to order him around through a thinly veiled demand. Not even the crown prince.
“Your timing is excellent. We had just finished our talk,” he says, then flicks his gaze to Violet, taking in her deteriorating condition that becomes increasingly difficult for her to hide by the second.
He lowers his voice. “See to it that you do not overtax her… she does not look well. And we wouldn’t want to have another incident. ”
The comment is a sharp barb that hits its mark. He believes I am doing this to her, as I have done with my previous wives.
Uncle disapproves of my cruelty to my wives and the people of Arum, whether human or fae.
He may be the only one who has stood by me for the last fourteen years, but that does not mean he has forgiven me for the late king’s death. I took his brother, and last living relative, from him.
I bow low in deference, more than expected of the Crown Prince. We are both aware that he could have easily denied me out of spite if he so wished.
Violet clasps her trembling hands to still them, then bows as well.
We take our leave. I watch her carefully, ready to catch her if necessary. Her uneven breaths are now coming in short, shallow bursts.
By the time we make it to the hall, she can barely hold herself upright. I scowl and grab her arm, dragging her with me as we pass dozens of eyes, scrutinizing my every move. The servants frown and send her sympathetic glances.
At the first alcove offering a semblance of privacy, I press her against the wall for support. I call to my power and send it into her.
My eyes close as I guide the magic through her veins. Once it finds the way to her heart, I watch as the pain melts from Violet’s face. When all signs of her episode are gone, I release her.
Emotions flicker in her honey eyes as Violet lifts her gaze to mine, peering through thick lashes. “Are you angry with me?” she asks softly. “I didn’t know—”
“You did nothing wrong. I was worried when Iseul told me you were not in your rooms when she came for you.”
I glare through walls as if I could see Ministers Ilseong and Molan. What had they said to my uncle that he would publicly summon her?
“I’m sorry…” she says haltingly. “I am not usually so forgetful.”
I return my attention to Violet. Her look of innocent confusion is too pure to resist.
There is still the matter of that strange, wild demon to discuss. But that can wait until later. There is something else I would like to do first.
“I am taking you into town.” I take her hand, relieved to find her skin is warm again. We stop just before leaving the cover of the central palace, and only then do I release my grip. “It’s not Lummi, but I thought you might like to see what the capital has to offer.”
Violet’s face alights with amazement as I pull back a curtain of ivy to reveal a narrow door in the outer wall of the western corner along the back wall of the Northern Court.
The hidden passage is known only to the royal family and intended as an emergency escape. As a child, I would slip in and out of the palace through here. I remember the excitement of getting away with something, shared laughter, and whispered secrets.
Those days, as with all my memories before that night fourteen years ago, are muddied by the horror of what happened.
Imugi drapes their long body over my shoulders, silently pouting. They are against the idea of sharing this secret with Violet. The demon’s protests were half-hearted and didn’t last long.
I think they are finally warming up to her in spite of themselves.
Stepping inside, I hold the vines aside. Violet follows without hesitation. The passage is dark, but I wait until the cover is back in place before conjuring a fae light that hovers several inches above my palm.
The stone path is damp from the humid air trapped within. Without room to walk side by side, Violet holds onto my free arm with both hands until we reach a short door.
She sucks in a sharp breath when I extinguish the light. I crack open the door just enough to listen. Imugi rises from their perch and impatiently slips through.
“That is not necess—” I begin, but they are already gone.
Violet presses closer. Close enough that her breasts press against me with every breath.
Imugi returns a moment later. “The way is clear,” they say with a bite to their tone. Then, under their breath, they say, “Though you are a fool to do this.”