35. Chapter Thirty-Five
Just moments before Azalea woke, Calista returned from her own errands. Her tunic was riddled in dry blood, but she still had a kind glimmer in her eye. I didn’t want to be the one on the other side of her rage, but whoever did this to her had it coming.
If her son was any example, at least.
Azalea stared at Calista, then me, with a terrible frown. Aurelie had been paralyzed alongside her, those wide green eyes moving nowhere but her face. The saddest part? Azalea hadn’t even acknowledged her adoptive daughter.
I’d blame it on the shock, but I wouldn’t give her so much credit yet, not after she spent twenty-some odd years lying to the only daughter she’d ever had. It left a bad taste in my mouth, no matter the motivation.
Calista handed her a half-empty flask of water and kneeled. “Prison was not kind to you,” she whispered.
Azalea hesitantly accepted the flask and sniffed it before drawing the small opening to her mouth and drinking the water. “How did I get here?” she rasped.
“The Elders,” Aurelie said quickly and cringed. Azalea’s eyes widened, and she turned to look at her daughter for the first time since waking. Her gaze instantly softened, and she frowned. “They listened to our story—but, more than that, they peered into me and found something dark, a vision before my time. They agreed to free you…under a condition.”
Azalea licked her dry lips and turned away from Aurelie. “A deal with the Elders is never wise.”
“Perhaps if you had raised her as a sorceress, as she was born to be, she would understand that gravity,” I muttered and started pacing. I could feel her mother’s stare burning into the side of my head, but I couldn’t remain silent. Not when she’d done so much wrong that I knew Aurelie would brush aside.
“Ignore him,” she said with a sigh.
There it was.
“It was the easiest way to get you out.” A moment of silence hung between them, and I glanced at Sapphire. She was frowning at the fire, shaking her head slightly. “We will bring you to our home, and we will figure this out. All of it.”
“Our home?” Azalea hissed in disbelief. “You have not seriously found a home in that realm?”
“I have,” Aurelie snapped, the bite in her tone apparent. When I glanced at her, I watched her shoulders roll back and her chin tilt up, as it usually did when frustration ran rampant. “And I will not listen to your judgment, not when bigger things are at play.”
Azalea’s head slowly twisted to me, her glare hardening. She gave me a once-over, wincing as she stood, and let her arms fall to her side. “You’re…I know you. How do I know you?”
“Because your deranged—sorry, estranged— lover tried to murder him in cold blood,” said Sapphire. “Before your love won her over.”
“Estranged,” Azalea repeated as she brought a hand to her forehead and shook her head. She started to pace, eyes fluttering shut as she mouthed something to herself. I started to wonder if she was casting a spell to break herself free. “Yenira wouldn’t do that. She wouldn’t go back knowing what was at stake—”
“Well,” Aurelie sighed, “we have every reason to believe she did. So did Julius.”
At his name, Azalea froze and let her eyes open halfway, stuck on the ground. She looked so defeated, like the weight of the world was crushing her from the shoulders down. “Julius.”
“Julius,” Aurelie said just as quietly. “He attacked me, even, and he faces death if we cannot prove him innocent.”
“Innocent enough,” I barked and chomped down on my tongue to silence the anger. Sapphire gave me a knowing look, and Aurelie all but ignored me. I decided to join my cousin at the fire, kneeling onto the hard ground and breathing out the frustration.
“Aurelie, will you walk with me?” Azalea asked without turning to look at her. I tensed and glared at her through my lashes. I knew she raised Aurelie, and I likely had every reason to thank her for the woman she was today, but she raised her with lies. Sorceresses weren’t the most honest of people, but the extent to which she lied to her daughter? It enraged me. Still, Aurelie was more merciful than I, and she nodded.
They disappeared further into the darkness, Azalea’s arm wrapping around her shoulder to hold her close. My chest warmed to a degree. I knew that, despite all the dishonesty and tension, it must have been so relieving having part of her family back. I just hoped it didn’t turn out for the worst.
Calista situated across from us and held her hands up to the wall of heat.
“Have you thought about our offer?” I asked, keeping my ears perked for Aurelie’s soft heartbeat. It was growing distant, but I held onto it. I wasn’t scared of freezing the tunnels if it meant keeping her safe.
“Returning home?” Calista said and sucked in a breath. “Eero, I don’t know if the fae realm is even my home. I have been in the mortal realm for as long as I can remember.”
I smiled softly and watched the way the tails of fire whipped into the air, embers turning to ash and ash to dirt. “Is this your home? Chained to the wall, tortured by the very kin of people you once saved in these tunnels?”
“Alright, you have a point,” she muttered and curled her fingers against the wall of heat. “But this has been my home. If I leave…there’s no telling what will happen. Those skeletons were once fae—and they were once home, in a realm where mortals weren’t supposed to grab them, much like the fae aren’t supposed to steal human hearts.” Calista gave me a knowing look before turning her focus to Sapphire. “But, if at all possible, I would like to help.”
Sapphire blinked at Calista and crossed her legs. “With what? There’s a lot we’re trying to accomplish.”
“Well, I understand Eero is fighting for something bigger than himself. I can provide magical aid, in exchange for refuge should I find more victims…mortal or fae.”
“You’re suggesting we bring humans into the fae realm for you?” I scoffed. If that wasn’t a ticket to breaking the treaty, I didn’t know what was.
“The way I see it is if one of the humans thought to themselves, ‘hmm, it might be a good idea to kidnap the fae and torture them,’ then I ought to be the one saying it might be time to give those most in danger a second chance at survival.”
“You think they’re in more danger here than the fae realm?” Sapphire countered.
“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Calista said and dug into her pocket. She unraveled a piece of crumpled paper that had numerous holes littered across the page and cleared her throat. “‘When the ritual has been concluded, and autumn warmth returns to its place in the stars, mayhem will reign across all kingdoms—mortal and fae. Only those most righteous will survive the wrath of revenge. Only those who sacrifice souls for my sustenance shall survive—whether they are of ash or of stardust.’”
I accepted the parchment and squinted at it. It was written in ink the color of rust—and when my eyes danced across dried blood that stained the edges, I wondered if it was ink at all, or something more sinister.
After I handed it to Sapphire, Calista sighed. “I found it on the body of a halfling. I think they were responsible for this whole thing—it had been ages since they kidnapped a fae, but they had it down to a science. I can only wonder if it’s in response to the stories of fae stealing humans away when they venture too near the deadlands, but that letter tells me it”s deeper than that. They’re worshiping somebody.”
I was chewing on the tip of my tongue, the words autumn warmth burning into the front of my mind like a brand. The Elders had to be bluffing—Aurelie was a halfling, but to that of an Autumn Court fae? They were cruel, from the king down to their subjects. It was instilled in them. Aurelie would never be that—cruel—but if that note acted as some sort of half-assed prophecy studied by cultists, then I had to ensure her possible bloodline remained silent.
“Fine,” I said quickly. Short, sharp, but I meant my words. A look of surprise crossed Sapphire’s face, but she knew better to argue with me, at least for now—I’d probably never hear the end of it in the coming days. “We have camps for refugees and rebels already. If they are good and they are in danger, we will accept them, but in return, I must ask you a favor. It isn’t to do with my rebellion or crown, but rather…espionage.”
Calista’s eyebrow arched, the wrinkles deepening in her forehead.
I smiled softly in response. “You controlled the underground during the war, and whether our rebellion is confined to the fae realm or not, I could use that sort of expertise on my side. Once I have my throne, Calista, I may need to call for your aid. I won’t know who I can and cannot trust.”
Her face settled, and she sighed softly before letting her gaze shift back to the dancing flames. “That is a dangerous request.”
“Only as dangerous as occupying mortals in a realm that either wants them dead or out.”
“You have no trusted advisors already?”
I glanced at Sapphire, to which she shook her head slowly before shrugging. I chuckled. “Let’s just say this sort of espionage is best done with unbiased eyes and ears.”
Silence. She nodded. “Fine. Once you have secured your throne, Eero, we will reunite.”
“The quicker, the better,” I said. “I have many eyes on my head.”