Chapter 9 – Neve
Chapter 9
NEVE
S weat dripped down my brow, but I didn’t dare wipe it away or even take my eyes off Filip.
We’d been sparring in Luccan Riis’s training room for hours. Although I was starving and muscles I hadn’t even known I possessed were aching, I wasn’t about to give up. Not when I’d finally lasted a full five minutes against an opponent.
Sure, he was the smallest and youngest opponent Vale had pitted me against, and I hadn’t technically beaten Filip, but I’d take what I could get.
He was, after all, not without his skills. The squire had been training for many turns. He wielded this wooden sword with power. He didn’t tire as quickly as me. However, Filip lacked in one department.
His coordination was off—an odd predicament for a fae.
One I was determined to use to my benefit. I’d maneuvered us to the edge of the room, where I could use other means to defeat him. I inhaled slowly, taking in how he’d dropped his right shoulder. He was preparing for an attack.
When he lunged, I was ready for him. I twirled out of the way and used all my strength to shove the youngling into the stone. He slammed into the wall, groaned, and I whipped my wooden sword up so that the point grazed his neck.
“I did it!” I squealed. “You’re dead!”
“Don’t sound too happy about it.” Filip glowered, dropping his sword and rubbing his shoulder, which had taken the brunt of his weight when he hit the wall. “I’m going to go get water.”
Sian, who’d been judging his little brother’s every move, snorted. “The strong don’t run from a fight. Even if the fight is a female who, only today, learned how to use a sword.”
Vale did his best to hide his smirk. He didn’t succeed.
Filip growled, and, without saying another word, stomped from the room. Once his footsteps disappeared up the stairs, the males broke out into laughter.
I shook my head. I was missing something. “What’s going on?”
“Filip is going through a growth spurt—with his magic,” Lord Riis explained. “He’s already powerful enough to be named heir to House Balik, but he isn’t out of the woods yet. As younglings grow more into their powers, they sometimes become discombobulated. Filip has a turn or so left to experience that pleasure.”
“Clumsy.” I felt a little bad for the male I’d been trying to skewer with my practice sword for the past hours. “He’s better than that, isn’t he?”
“He is,” Vale assured me. “But not today.”
“Well, I’d like to try sparring with someone whose body isn’t warring with them.” I crossed my arms over my chest.
“He was still a challenge, no?” Thantrel asked, batting his long eyelashes. “Because, respectfully, Princess, you can’t handle any of us.” A smirk grew across his face. “Well, perhaps you could take on Arie.”
“Lay off Arie,” Luccan snorted. “It’s only fun teasing him when we get to witness how red he gets.”
But Arie Riis was long gone, returned to Frostveil to get away from his brothers, so that wasn’t an option, anyway.
“Vale, spar with me,” I insisted.
My husband took up a sword, one made of real metal. “Fine. You grab a real sword too. It’ll be good for you to feel the difference, even if you don’t practice with it often.”
“Then why practice with it at all?”
He smirked. “Because I don’t expect you’ll be getting in a single hit.”
I scoffed.
“Don’t worry, Neve,” his smirk widened at my indignation, “I’ll go easy on you.”
“I can’t say the same.”
His eyebrows shot up, and, from the sidelines, Sian snorted. “You married a fiery one. ”
“It seems I did,” the prince said as we fell into position.
Over the hours, I’d learned the basics, footwork, and how to hold a wooden, then a real sword. Those weren’t too difficult. However, maneuvering the long wooden blade through the air posed more of an issue. To transition to a real sword so quickly would be even more challenging, but I took heart. In the short time we’d trained, I’d already improved, and I intended to continue to do so. And if I could, I’d wipe that smug expression off Vale’s face too.
“Call it,” Vale instructed.
Luccan counted us down, and it didn’t surprise me at all when Vale hesitated, handed me the first move.
I darted forward, sword slashing down. Vale deflected the attack, spun, and smacked me on the arse with the broad side of his sword.
“Oh-ho!” Luccan jeered. “That sounded like it hurt!”
“Rather pleasant,” I announced, playing it off because it hadn’t hurt. Only my pride stung.
“She enjoys rough play, Vale,” Thantrel teased. “I like your wife more and more by the minute.”
“Careful, Than,” Vale growled, probably pretending to be territorial over the female he supposedly loved. He acted so well that he almost made me believe it too.
Metal clanged and whined in the basement as we continued to spar. Round two, three, and four passed, all of which Vale ended with efficiency. As he’d said, I’d not managed a single strike and what was worse, the weight of the metal sword was already becoming too much. On the fifth turn, he allowed me to wear myself out a bit more, circling, darting forward, and then back.
He was toying with me, and it was infuriating.
The prince knew it too because a smile sprawled across his handsome face. “Shall we end this?”
I snarled, and a growl rose out of my throat, the sound far more ferocious than I intended.
A small chuckle left his lips. “I’ve awoken the beast inside. Very well, then. I suppose I should cage it.”
He lunged, long black braid flying behind him as he neared. I ran backward, parrying two upper strikes in rapid succession. Pride rose within me, and a grin spread across my face. I was warding off the famed Warrior Bear! I?—
My back slammed into a wall. My breath left me and before I slipped to either side, Vale was there, so close that I could smell his heady scent of falling snow and sandalwood. Slowly, he brought his sword tip to hover above the skin of my neck as his free arm rose, so that he leaned into the wall.
Blazing moon! I was trapped, and this time not by my own machinations!
“A cage for a very pretty little beast,” he whispered, his lips so close to mine that I shivered. “Admit defeat, Neve.”
I sucked in a breath. The scent of his sweat and the sharing of our breaths made my head spin. I wanted little more than to run my hands through his hair, feeling at the shaved under portions at the sides that were only visible when he wore the longer parts pulled back like he did now. Feeling for the hidden parts of him that others rarely saw.
“You’ve done well, wife, but today is not the day you beat me.”
I blinked. Something in his cocky tone made me more aware of the sword hanging at my side. Forgotten in the moment of being trapped by him.
We’ll see about that. I took a deep breath so that my bosom rose and fluttered my lashes to distract him.
Desire clouded his eyes and his shoulders loosened, and that’s when I struck, quickly drawing my blade against the outside of his thigh, hard enough to draw blood, but not so hard that he wouldn’t heal within the hour.
Vale winced and his eyes widened at the realization of what I’d done.
“Strike for me. Looks like I beat you, husband,” I cooed as he groaned, and his friends erupted with laughter. “Perhaps you should finish the job next time before you begin gloating.”
“Such a dirty little fighter.” Vale shook his head and pressed off the wall, amusement in his eyes alongside the lingering desire.
“I do what I must.” I winked.
“I’ll keep that in mind. I?—”
Footsteps thundered down the staircase, and Filip appeared, a letter in hand.
“My prince, Lord Arie sent a message. They have announced the next Courting Festival event. It’s this afternoon. ”
I groaned, which did not fail to catch anyone’s notice.
“I agree,” Sian muttered. “This farce of a festival has gone on for too long.”
“It just started.” Luccan took the paper.
“Too long,” Sian said emphatically.
“I suppose that means we need to return to the palace,” Vale said. “You’ll need to prepare for whatever my father has in mind.”
“It says a gathering. With wine, so at least there’s that.” Luccan waved the paper. “It’s a few hours from now, in the middle of the afternoon. Odd time for it.”
“Then he has something planned,” Vale muttered.
“Well, at least I got in one win,” I sang as though the idea of the king calling a gathering didn’t make my blood run cold.
My jest lightened the mood a bit, and we began to put away the sparring swords and weapons. Vale told Sian and Filip that he wanted to walk the city alone with his new wife. The brothers shared twin grins as they left, Thantrel following close behind, while Luccan rummaged deeper into the armory for something. Vale and I were about to leave as well when Lord Riis approached.
He hadn’t sparred much. Rather, he watched the younger males and gave me advice. During the hours spent training, I’d learned that Lord Riis had been quite the fighter in the Aaberg Rebellion, and he had much to offer. Was he about to share one last tidbit?
Maybe he’s about to tell Vale not to get distracted by a pretty face. I smirked, loving that I’d get to tease the prince about that .
“Prince Vale, Princess Neve, I have something I’d like to share with you,” Lord Riis said before twisting toward the armory. “Luccan! A word.”
Riis’s eldest son poked his head out of the training armory, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion. “Yes, Father?”
“Come here.”
Luccan wiped his hands on his trousers as he ran over. When he came to a stop, Lord Riis pinned his gaze on his son.
“I’m going to show them our family secret. You need to tweak the magic on it to accept their blood.”
Luccan sucked in a breath. “Are you sure?”
“They might need a fast escape.”
Luccan still appeared dumbstruck. I shot Vale a sidelong glance, but he looked as confused as me. What were they about to show us?
My bewilderment only grew when we approached a wall and Luccan took out a dagger and cut his hand. Blood welled, spilling over on to his palm as he placed it on the wall.
Light flashed, ripping a gasp from my lips.
“Is that a gateway ?” Vale murmured. “But how do you have one here? Does my father know?”
My eyebrows furrowed, which Lord Riis caught. “Gateways are also known as portals, some to places within this kingdom, some to other realms, such as the human world, or sometimes, parts of other kingdoms. This one was made in secret. ”
Vale shook his head. “Leyv, having a new gateway made within the kingdom is a capital offense.”
“I’m aware,” Lord Riis murmured.
A muscle in Vale’s jaw tightened. “Their mere existence was a great matter of contention between him and the previous Warden of the West.”
“Roar’s father?” I asked, unable to help myself.
“Yes,” Vale answered. “The previous Warden of the West was the last known gateway maker in the kingdom. Father forced him to close nearly every gateway in the kingdom, most of them within the western territory. He only allowed him to keep one open outside Guldtown—and an additional portal to the human world not far from Avaldenn. Those only exist should we require supplies. The warden was furious that his gateways were taken away.”
“True,” Lord Riis acknowledged. “Which is why I did not tell the king about Luccan’s magic, though I saw a blessing from the stars.”
“Blessing?”
“Being the king’s spymaster can be dangerous, Princess Neve. There are many fae whose lives I have ruined.” Lord Riis placed a hand on his son’s shoulders. “Luccan trained, in secret, so that our family might make them as an escape route, in case the worst happened.”
“You mean if the rebels attacked the city?” Vale asked. “That seems far-fetched.”
“As your father’s spymaster, rebels and other powerful fae target me. I would not allow my sons to be unprotected. Nor did I wish for your father to use Luccan for his own purposes. Or worse.”
Vale looked stunned but didn’t argue.
“I don’t want to work for the king. Or be killed for magic he doesn’t like,” Luccan added. “Besides, Vale, in the city, we only have this one.”
My husband sucked in a breath. “But elsewhere?”
Red stained Luccan’s cheeks as he realized his misstep. “There are more.”
Vale stiffened. “To other kingdoms? Or worse, worlds ?”
“No, I’m not that advanced. My gateways only extend within Winter’s Realm.”
Vale let out a long breath and ran a hand through his hair, clearly disturbed by the information.
“As your friend, I ask that you hide my secret,” Luccan whispered. “My father wanted to share this to keep you and Neve safe. Surely, that’s worth not telling the king? Adversaries will come for her.”
Vale’s eyes drifted to me and lingered there for what felt like an age. This had to be hard for him. Luccan was his close friend and part of Vale’s cabal. And yet, Luccan had hidden his secret from Vale. To keep himself out from under the king’s thumb, sure, but that indicated Luccan believed Vale might go to his father. Deep in his heart, did the eldest Riis son still worry about that?
“I won’t say a word about this to my father.”
“Good. Now”—Luccan gestured to the daggers Vale and I had worn for our visit with the vampires—“draw blood. I’ll need it so the portal will accept you. ”
Vale pulled aside the tear in his pant leg, but the blood there was dried, the wound so minor that it was already closing. So instead, he drew a dagger across his palm and then handed the blade to me. I hissed as my skin parted and blood welled.
Luccan pointed to the spot on the wall where his own blood still soaked into the stone. “Touch the wall. I’ve already primed it.”
I placed my palm on the wall and another flash of light nearly blinded me. Vale flinched back, but a moment later, the light was gone.
For a moment, I was tempted to walk through. To disappear. Start a new life and taste true freedom. Vale had said he wouldn’t keep me here and that would give him a chance to get what he wanted—to find his soulmate.
But no. Too many witnesses had seen us arrive at Lordling Lane and enter Luccan’s home. Plus, I couldn’t do that to the prince. Not after all he’d done for me.
I side-eyed Vale, shivering as I took in his handsome features. It would be far smarter to stay awhile, to learn the sword and how to wield other weapons from him. That way, I wouldn’t be so helpless when I traveled to another kingdom—hopefully with Anna in tow. Then, one day, after the prince and I had planned meticulously for my departure, I’d go.
The thought made me sad, even though it was inevitable. The plan all along.
“There you have it,” Lord Riis said. “The gateway needs only blood to open. Additionally, our protections are linked, so your blood now works on the wards on the gates and the front door of this house.”
“Where will the portal take us?” Vale asked.
Lord Riis smirked. “I will leave that matter a secret for now, my prince. Know that should you need to flee and use this gateway; you will be safe and far away from Avaldenn.”