Chapter 4
T he sounds of my father coughing chased me farther away as I moved throughout the castle, toward the escape the open air promised.
I needed a moment to breathe. A space to clear my head after everything from the last twelve hours.
Exiting out of one of the side garden doors, I immediately ran into Ian. And by ran into, I mean, slammed into him. I bounced off his chest and gasped, as he chuckled at my clumsiness, gently grabbing my arms to steady me.
“Just the person I hoped to find. It’s time.” The sparkle in his eyes meant this morning would be hard.
It had become a regular occurrence for Ian to coerce me into going on those damned awful runs with him. Not only had he focused on my strength, but he insisted I needed to be able to run far without fail if something were to ever happen to him.
The first time he had taken me on a run, I retched my breakfast in the center of the city market. We’d only made it half a mile. Now, nearly a year later, I could run miles and miles without needing to empty the contents of my stomach.
“I’ll give you fifteen minutes to change and meet me at the front entrance.” Ian’s grin, normally contagious, wreaked of threats.
I pursed my lips. “I’ll have to run to my room and to the front to make it.”
“I know. Fourteen minutes.”
My legs seemed to obey before my head, and I shouted back at him as I ran toward my room, “I hate you as a trainer.”
“Thirteen.”
I shouted in frustration but didn’t stop. His ruthless methods were to thank for who I had become, and while I hated the pain of training, I loved him for it.
I stripped myself of the confines of the leathers Kalliah had dressed me in earlier, opting for the tight, all-black training gear I loved so much. I couldn’t help but admire the way it clung to some of the muscles I’d developed. I buttoned the top, pausing once at the jagged scar along my ribs. It had been tingling lately, aching like a reminder I couldn’t be rid of. I didn’t have time to despise the mark right now. I was up against the clock.
I ran out of my door with one shoe on as I hopped into the other, jumping the last few steps of the marble staircase and sprinting toward the front entrance of the castle.
Ian bounced back and forth on his feet when I made it back to him. “A minute to spare,” I said, punctuating my declaration with a little victory dance.
He hummed his approval.
Rolling my neck, and quickly stretching my arms, I nodded, ready to begin. We started off slow, jogging around to the front of the palace, and down the long carriageway, leading to the main road, running toward the heart of the city.
The palace took up the entire back half of the city, surrounded by floral hedges, which looked like anything but the gate they were. The gardens behind the palace were open to everyone year-round, allowing Fae from all over Brookmere to come and explore the beauty Ellevail had been graced with by nature.
Many believed the soil at the palace also held magic. The most luscious and abundant crops were grown here, then shared with as much of Brookmere as we could feed.
Ian increased our pace slightly just like he always did every few minutes.
The first buildings scattered near the palace belonged to the wealthier members of society. Their perfectly trimmed gardens drew in the eyes and appreciation of most, but none rivaled the palace’s.
The charm on the outside masked many more vile things within. Vile might be a stretch, but the actions of some of the wealthier Fae were usually ugly, despite the exquisiteness they surrounded themselves with.
Never trust something is as it appears at first glance.
I’d never forget the first lesson my father taught me after being old enough to bow hunt with him. We stumbled upon a razorven drinking from a stream. The white, four-legged beast’s eyes were closed as it drank deeply with its long, slit tongue. It looked peaceful.
My father held a finger to his lips, silencing me before slowly stepping back, retreating with me. The beast turned its head, opening red orbs for eyes as thick black hairs rose along the spine of its back, and I screamed. My father used his magic to create a wall of vines, completely blocking the creature from us as we ran.
I never would have guessed its hairs were poisoned and flexible, capable of slicing and paralyzing its victims in moments, before devouring them.
The animal haunted my dreams for a week before my father finally convinced me razorvens were rare outside of the southern forests, the hunting grounds that all manner of nightmarish beasts called home. The southern forests were avoided by nearly all Fae of Brookmere. I let myself breathe again, safe knowing there was plenty of distance between me and more razorven.
Never trust something is as it appears at first glance.
And damn if the sentiment didn’t ring true for Fae as well.
A group of children gathered around one of the fountains in the middle-class area of Ellevail as we passed. A boy gathered water in his hands, shaping it like a flower and handing it to one of the girls, much to the delight of her friends.
I nudged Ian’s shoulder to get him to look.
“Don’t embarrass him by having the princess watching him flirt,” he scolded.
“I would think the princess being impressed would only improve his standings.”
Ian snorted. “You know nothing about boys.”
Shoving Ian playfully, I sprinted ahead of him as we rounded some of the shops that always had the most beautiful displays.
While Fae didn’t use their magic for everything they did, many clearly presented it proudly. Liam Dorian, the local butcher, unmistakably fed his animals crops enhanced by his exceptional earth magic. His meats were enormous and tasted divine. While Matricia Maygan’s dresses flew off the shelves because of the incredibly soft, fine silks she created and strung together better than anyone else.
I attempted not to feel as though I didn’t contribute anything, but it hurt some days, witnessing Ellevail thriving with their magic intertwined throughout everyday life.
“Race you to the gates,” Ian shouted, sprinting ahead.
“Cheater!” I yelled, my sides aching, even if my strength had improved greatly after all these months.
The clear distinction between the societal castes of Fae in our world were evident everywhere, but especially in Ellevail. The moment one passed the imaginary line separating the middle from the lower, it seemed like a different city altogether. The bustling bright streets were dimmer, the colors muted. The magic here weaker and harder to see as readily, and most of the lesser Fae performed jobs for the middle and upper classes. Jobs they couldn't accomplish solely with magic.
Ian tagged the gate before I’d even rounded the last corner of the street.
“Now, back to the palace.” He ran by before I could protest.
I groaned. Ian knew I hated the run back. Ellevail’s city cascaded slightly downhill from the palace, the city stretched out in front of it, requiring us to return uphill .
We took another street back to the palace, this one busier, and people shouted and waved at me and Ian as we ran past them.
I watched my people with a genuine smile on my face, and even the ragged breaths I had trouble getting in couldn’t stop me from enjoying it.
Besides, I didn't want to appear weak in front of them, so regardless how winded I became, I still ran.
Ian slowed to a stop once we entered the official palace grounds around the side entrance.
A stitch in my ribs had me gasping. Almost immediately, my vision blurred.
I swallowed, lifting my arms over my head to help air flow into my lungs just as Ian taught me, but the stabbing pain in my ribs hit too close to the already irritated scar. The lack of breath took me back to dark places. Dark dreams.
What can you see? What can you feel? What can you hear? Elisabeth’s voice sounded in my head.
I can see the leaves on the trees, swaying in the breeze. I can feel my tunic tight around my body, skintight, but supporting me for ease of motion. I can feel my toes inside my shoes, and the dull ache in my calves.
I breathed, my vision clearing, bringing me back.
I couldn’t often fight off panic attacks when they came, and a tear pooled in my eye as I gratefully grounded myself more firmly in the here and now.
The sound of a throat clearing came from the shadows near the edge of the training pit, and Corbin emerged. A scar ran down the length of his face, adding to his already intimidating stature. Working in the stables certainly helped his natural physique. He raised his head toward Ian, the sunlight gleaming off the strip of copper hair pulled back over the shaved sides of his scalp. Next to him, Kalliah rose from a wooden bench along the wall.
I knew, given the large request from Storm and Kade, the men had a lot of work to do. “No rest for the Hidden Henchman, huh?” I whispered, pinching Ian’s side.
He ran toward Corbin, while I remained behind, entering the pit to cool down and work on my flexibility with a bit of stretching. I grew stronger every session, every week. I’d started scared and wobbly, and I developed and grew, strengthening my muscles to make up for the fact I couldn’t strengthen my magic.
Kalliah approached.
“Want to join me?” I grinned, still recovering my breath.
She kicked out a foot, showing the brown flats she wore when she strode around the palace grounds or with me in my chambers. “Sadly, I’m not prepared. By sadly I mean, thankfully.”
I snorted in response, and she stood leaning over the railing of the pit and let me finish my series of stretches.
Ian returned after only a few minutes, his face tight.
I arched an eyebrow at him, moving toward the edge of the pit near Kalliah. “Are we good?”
He nodded once. Although he didn’t say more right away, Ian surveyed our surroundings and then walked toward us until we were close enough to whisper. “I had Leif and Corbin looking into Storm and Kade, trying to find anything they could.”
My eyes widened, waiting to hear what had been discovered.
Ian rubbed the back of his neck, then sighed. “They can’t find anything on them. At all.”
“That’s not necessarily strange. There aren’t reliable records in all the towns,” I said, trying to convince myself it wasn’t weird. “It’s not like we have their full names, either.”
Ian pursed his lips. “Magic like theirs should be rumored to exist somewhere, though.”
“We will just have to be vigilant and careful when we do the drop this time,” I calmly stated, examining my nails, as if we hadn’t just fought for our lives the night before.
“If the drops are going to be like last night, you are not going anymore,” Ian commanded, using his “Captain of the Guard” voice.
His tone left no room for argument, but it never stopped me before. “I can handle myself, I proved so at the meeting.”
This time he spoke to me through gritted teeth. “You just want to know more about their magic. It is not safe for you to be there.”
Before I could continue the argument, a sharp whistle sounded behind us. “Lady Kalliah,” our head housekeeper shouted. “The princess is expected at lunch today.”
Kalliah grumbled at the summons. “Guess playtime’s over. Shall we, Your Highness?” She grabbed my arm before I could respond, leaving Ian behind.
He and Corbin had last-minute details for a drop this week, in addition to preparing for the new supplies we had to provide Storm and Kade.
I had duties to attend to as Princess.
Closing my eyes, I left the Hidden Henchman part of me in the training ring and pulled Princess Lana Dresden from deep inside of me.
Just another one of my many necessary masks.