Chapter 23
Rowan
Leaving Jesmina to sort through the clothes and pack them away, at her insistence, I made my way to the kitchens to beg some breakfast. Mrs Gretchen, the cook, greeted me warmly.
“Milady. What can I do for you today?” she asked, eyeing me shrewdly. “If you’re here to ask for a job, then just be on your way, missy.”
I had met the stout cook just a few days earlier when I had gone in search of something to fill my time. When I had asked to be put to use in the kitchens, happy to wash dishes or prepare some of the meals, she had looked aghast and waved me out of the room.
In fact, my offers of work had been turned down by everyone.
Jesmina had scoffed when I asked if there was a chore in the castle I could take over, and the stable master had turned purple before turning away without so much as a word.
Orick had just looked confused when I offered to shine his sword, but shook his head all the same.
I’d been effectively dismissed, so my search for a purpose had been in vain.
Aenan had laughed at me when I had explained it to him, then laughed all the more when I told him what I said to a Orick.
He wouldn’t say why he found that so funny, but did assure me I would find something to keep me busy, all in good time.
“Good morning, Mrs Gretchen,” I replied. “No. Nothing like that.” I eyed the warming rack, where a loaf of bread sat cooling. The smell had my mouth watering, and my stomach growling.
Mrs Gretchen, having heard, grinned at me. “Oh, I see. You missed breakfast, again. Let me put a little something together.”
Her hands were buried in a bowl of flour, but she wiped them clean before skilfully cutting a thick slab from the loaf and lathering it with honey.
I didn’t even wait, biting into it eagerly, humming all the while.
There was nothing like warm bread and runny honey, and I told her so around a mouthful.
She laughed out loud and shooed me away, so I set off to find Caelan.
He was in the study, still in discussion with my brother, so I slipped in quietly and took a seat in my now favourite wingback chair, listening to them while I finished my meal.
“I’ll station more guards in the Woods of Sprite and at the lookout here,” Aenan said, pointing to the map on his desk.
“And we can spare a few in the Dark Forest. Just until we are sure they have moved on.” Caelan nodded in agreement.
“I don’t want them getting that close to the castle again.
And Rowan is not to leave the estate, not without you or me,” Aenan commanded, looking up and catching my eye across the room.
I had just been about to announce my presence, but it seemed he already knew I was there, so I frowned at him instead. I didn’t like the thought of being managed. Even though a tiny part of me realised it was for my own safety.
“I mean it, Rowan. You’re to stay on the estate.”
I narrowed my eyes and internally stuck my tongue out at him.
His eye roll came back at me a moment later.
Caelan, however, came over and kissed me…
right on the mouth. I looked up at him, wide-eyed, stunned that he had done that.
Especially in front of my brother. He also looked a little shocked, but covered it up.
“Uh… good morning,” he said, before turning away.
I didn’t know what to say. We hadn’t really discussed our relationship. What it was, or where it was going. I knew he liked me, and we had been intimate. But I wasn’t sure I was entirely comfortable advertising that to my brother.
“It’s a bit late for that,” Aenan said aloud.
“You project every bloody thought in your head. It’s like you’re shouting to me what you’re doing all the bloody time.
It’s why I was outside in the cold earlier this morning instead of tucked up in my bed.
I really didn’t want to be listening to another ‘Oh God’. ”
I stared at him in horror.
But… I was dreaming.
“Yeah, well, clearly some part of your brain was conscious, or you talk in your sleep. Try being less vocal next time!” He raised an eyebrow at Caelan, who just looked away, but not before I saw his lips twitch.
I was so embarrassed I wished for the ground to swallow me whole. My face was surely as red as my hair. “Oh my God,” I exclaimed, before slamming my hands over my mouth.
Kill me now.
Caelan, the insufferable wretch, burst into laughter. I shot him a death glare, but it only seemed to fuel his amusement.
“Is it too early for a drink?” I asked, trying to change the subject, not very tactfully.
It was Aenan’s turn to laugh, but he did move to the drinks table and pick up a decanter. Sniffing the contents, he poured a very small nip into a glass, handing it to me.
“What is it?” I asked, intrigued.
“Apple cider brandy. Not a particularly strong one, so you’ll be fine.” He winked at me before returning to his desk.
Caelan took the seat beside me as I sipped at the brandy, savouring the flavour. It tasted of apples and honeysuckle and had a pleasing spiced aftertaste that lingered in my mouth.
“Last night, you said Vaeyl was interested in me due to the prophecy,” I said, catching my brother’s eye. “What did that mean?”
He flicked a glance at Caelan before answering. “We are worried that Vaeyl will see your arrival as the heralding of the prophecy.”
I furrowed my brow, confused. “Why is that a problem?”
Caelan spoke, his voice serious. “The Dark Fae do not want the curse to be broken, lass. They are content with who they are and what they have become. Most of them have actively chosen to embrace the darkness.”
I shifted in my chair, unease settling in my stomach. The thought of being a part of a centuries-old prophecy made me uncomfortable.
“They chose to be dark. What about the ones who didn’t choose? Do they not get a say?”
“They would no longer think that way,” Aenan stated. “Once turned, they do not want to turn back. They would now think the same as the others. Vaeyl likes to turn those who have a gift he can take advantage of.”
Like our mother.
“My fear is Vaeyl will try to convert you or kill you to stop the prophecy from coming to fruition. There are many who believe our parents did the right thing in sending you through the Mystwoods. They will believe, with your return, that the curse can be broken.” He looked away for a moment, clearly deep in thought.
“I actually think he will want to convert you,” he said absently, focusing on me again.
“The way he was looking at you in the tavern… Well, you do look a lot like our mother.”
I shuddered. “That’s disgusting. He’s our uncle.”
“Like I said, technically he isn’t. And he was obsessed with our mother as well. Or so I was told. I was given the impression it wasn’t just because of her seer’s gift.”
A sudden thought occurred to me. “In the tavern, when you came in, Vaeyl did something to me. I couldn’t move. I was frozen and unable to look away from him. What was that?”
“He is a Mesmeriser. A Whisperer of a sort. It is the gift he has been bestowed with. The only one I know of, apart from the glamour. It allows him to capture others by binding them with his eyes so they cannot move. Once he has them under his spell, he can look away, but they cannot. Not until he releases the hold. You mustn’t look him directly in the eyes again, Rowan,” he warned.
I shuddered as I remembered the feeling of being caught in that snare. How I’d been unable to do anything. Say anything.
“It’s why you can’t leave the estate without us, lass,” Caelan said. “Someone must be with you at all times, lest he try to take you again.”
“You think he intended to take me?” I exclaimed, my heart pounding. Goosebumps prickled across my skin.
Caelan’s jaw tightened, but Aenan was the one who answered.
“We think something changed his course to Reverran, and can think of no other reason. Generally, they – the Dark Fae – stay in their lands. We leave them alone; they leave us alone. That’s been the unwritten rule for a while now.
They haven’t been seen this far west in a very long time.
It’s why we investigate every sighting, especially those close to Wyndaryn. ”
“He must have learnt you were here,” Caelan said gravely, glancing at Aenan. “We have spies in the village.”
Aenan’s expression was unreadable, but his voice was hard. “It appears that way.”
“I took every precaution,” Caelan said, his frustration and anger evident. “She had the hood up the entire way through, right up to the gates.”
“It’s likely they saw her further out, then,” Aenan replied calmly.
Caelan slammed his fist against the arm of his chair before leaping to his feet and pacing. “Dammit! This is all my fault!”
Eyes wide, I watched them both, my heart in my throat.
Aenan waved off Caelan’s self-blame with a dismissive gesture. “It’s not like you could have cloaked her the whole way, brother. Someone was watching for you, it seems.”
Caelan didn’t look any happier at that thought. I tried to think back to those few days. Tried to remember if I had seen anything. Heard anything out of the ordinary. But I didn’t remember seeing another person, not until we walked through Reverran.
Sìthbheire.
“There was a male,” I said, and they turned to me. “In the village, when we first came through.” I looked at Caelan, but he only raised an eyebrow. “He called me a changeling,” I said. “Remember? I only mention it because I couldn’t understand how he knew.”
“What did he look like, Rowan? Think carefully, now,” Aenan said, his voice serious. His tone conveyed the importance of my answer, but I stumbled, suddenly unsure of myself.
“He… he just looked like a fae male to me. But his eyes were strange. Not like yours, Aenan. They didn’t light up or anything. But when he looked at me, I could feel his stare. Like needles on my skin. It felt like he could see through my cloak.”
Aenan glanced at Caelan, who said, “I don’t remember him. But I did hear the word. I thought they were talking about me…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I should have realised, Aenan. Should have been more careful. Should have gone around the town. I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry to you both.”
“There’s nothing to be sorry for, brother,” Aenan said, before heaving a sigh. “They would have found out eventually.”
I nodded in agreement. Caelan didn’t respond. He eventually sat back down, but was silent for the remainder of the conversation. His pacing may have ceased, but his feelings of guilt clearly hadn’t. They radiated from him in bitter waves of torment, washing over me.
Needing to ease his suffering, I nudged him with my shoulder. “Didn’t you promise me a ride around the estate today? I want to test out my new riding boots.” I pulled up my skirt and twisted my legs to show them off.
He gave me a weak smile. “Aye. I believe I did.”