Chapter 11
Eleven
ALLETTE
I dye my hair after dinner, wishing Eason’s betrayal was as easy to cover up. How could he do this to me? Because of his lie, I was almost stuck down here for another year. Perhaps he hid the truth because he had to leave for work and didn’t want me going without him. Regardless, he should’ve given me the choice. I deserved to know the truth and decide for myself whether I wanted to stay here or return to Kumulus.
Widow Mae falls asleep before ten o’clock, giving me a chance to sneak around the creaky cottage and prepare for my escape. There isn’t much to do since my bag is still packed from the night before. Eason. What were you thinking?
I take my share of the money, leaving Eason his wages so he has something to survive on until next year. While I may be angry with him, he has taken care of me, so I don’t want him to struggle.
And then I sit down to write him a note.
I’m sorry.
I’m so very sorry that I can’t be the woman he wants me to be. The one who can love him the way he deserves.
Sorry that he chose to lie to me about the date instead of telling me the truth.
Samhain is tonight, and I will be going home.
There is a chance no one will come through, and if that is the case, I’ll burn this note along with what remains of my hope.
I don’t know why you lied and
probably never will.
Perhaps in time, I will find it in
my heart to forgive you.
Or maybe I won’t.
I sign the note and leave it on the table, not caring if Widow Mae learns that I’ve left him. She already thinks the worst of me; may as well embrace my terrible reputation.
As tired as I am from staying up last night and today’s betrayals, I refuse to let myself fall asleep. It would be my luck to take a nap and end up sleeping the whole bloody night away.
Outside, the wind whistles and trees groan. I wrap my cloak tighter around myself as I slip into the dark night, leaving Mae snoring away in the rocking chair. Once my eyes adjust to the darkness, I slowly make my way back to the spot where Eason and I have waited for the past four years. When I lift my gaze toward the sky and see a distant, flickering light shining brighter than the stars, hope sparks anew. Something moves in the distance, far too large to be a bird.
Holding my breath, I watch in rapt silence as the first masked fae lands, green wings flared at his back, quickly followed by another, and another. Although their voices remain hushed, I can feel their excitement vibrating in the frosty air.
They’re here. They’re really here . After all this time, I’m finally going home. Tears spring into my eyes, but I brush them away. I can cry when I reach Kumulus.
A thin young man with dark brown hair emerges from behind a stone, calling for someone named Tully to wait up.
I step out of the shadows and give him my best smile. “Hello there.”
The man’s head swings toward me. He lets out a shrill yelp and leaps back. I’m about to apologize when his boot slips on the snowy ground. His arms cartwheel, but he goes down like a brick, cracking his head off the stones and falling still.
Oh, no. No, no, no.
Tell me I didn’t just kill some poor man. Cursing, I sink down next to him, checking the pulse at his throat. Strong and steady, thank the stars. I press my cold hand to his warm, smooth cheek. Why did I think it would be a good idea to burst out of the darkness instead of announcing myself like a normal person? Now this man will refuse to help, and I’ll be stuck here all night waiting for someone to return.
The man groans, wincing as he reaches for the back of his head. “Bloody hell.”
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
He blinks up at me through wide eyes. Why isn’t he saying anything? What do you expect, you dolt? You nearly killed him.
Perhaps I should say something else. “I need your help.”
He pushes himself to sitting, still rubbing the back of his head. “Help with what?”
Here goes nothing . I gesture toward that light in the sky. “I need you to bring me through the portal.”
His dark eyes narrow. “How do you know about the portal?”
“I’m Scathian—just like you. Only I missed the window last year and cannot recall my wings.” That sounds convincing, doesn’t it?
The man’s brow furrows as his gaze sweeps down my tattered cloak and worn woolen dress. The longer he stares, the more my cheeks heat. “You don’t look Scathian,” he says eventually.
How am I supposed to convince him? It’s not like I can recall my wings because they no longer exist. If Eason were here, he could’ve shown the man his leathers, but I didn’t even think to bring something to prove my heritage.
Wait! I know.
I tear off my cap and tuck my hair behind my pointed ear.
Even with the proof right in front of him, the man still looks wary.
“I can pay you.” I drop my pack onto the ground, digging to the bottom where I’ve hidden my purse. “One piece of gold to bring me up.” It took me two months to earn this gold, but I’d pay anything to get home.
His eyes flick nervously to the empty forest, where the rest of the fae have long since disappeared. “If you’re Scathian, then you must know it’s illegal to fly with an adult passenger.”
I withdraw another coin. “ Two pieces of gold?”
He stares silently at the coins in my palm. I don’t have much more to offer.
“Please.” I am prepared to beg if necessary. “I need to get back to my elderly aunt, Lady Marjory Rittey. She must be devastated. Can you imagine your family missing you for an entire year, believing something terrible has happened to you? Please, help me. Please.”
I’m about to launch into a second round of pleading when he lets out a withering sigh and agrees. We both stand, and I gladly hand over the coins.
I’m finally going home.
Eason should be going home too .
My smile falters. What if this is a mistake?
A sharp breeze lifts my hair around my face, unsettling my mop cap. That tugging in my core grows stronger. I can’t back out now. I’m doing this for Eason. He gave up everything for me. He deserves to go back home too.
Next year, I will be sure to send someone straight to our cottage so Eason can choose whether he wants to remain in the human realm or return to our world.
The man’s wings appear at his back. Stars, they’re small. They barely look big enough to carry his own weight, let alone the two of us.
“They’re strong,” he clips when he realizes I’m staring.
Thankfully, it’s too dark for him to notice my ferocious blush. “I didn’t say anything.”
“You didn’t need to.” His mouth presses flat, and he motions me forward. “Come on. I don’t have all night.”
My heart pounds as I wrap my arms around this stranger, breathing in the leather and wind clinging to his soft cotton shirt. Stars, I’ve missed that smell.
“Hold tight.” He lifts me into his arms and launches into the night sky. The forest becomes nothing more than a smudge of black at our feet. With my heart in my throat, we burst through the thin layer of gray clouds, climbing until the stars look so close, it feels as if I could reach out and touch them.
Every beat of the young man’s wings brings us closer and closer to a flickering star, larger than all the rest. Suddenly, warm liquid and bright silver light replaces the icy air burning my lungs. I’m not prepared for the sudden change, clamping my mouth shut a second too late. My tongue and throat catch fire, and I really should’ve taken a breath but didn’t because this fool forgot to warn me that we were about to enter the bloody portal.
How long is this going to take? It wasn’t this long the first time, was it? Then again, maybe that’s because we were going down instead of up. Or it could be this man’s tiny wings. If I don’t get a breath soon, I’m going to suffocate.
Calm down. You’re too close to die now.
If those bastards who hacked off my wings didn’t kill me, this won’t either.
We emerge into a darkened sky capped with black clouds. My gasp of fresh, cool air relieves some of the fire burning inside me.
Short houses resting on cobblestone streets surround us. The beautiful portal glows bright in the very center. A beacon. A reminder.
My escort lands, releasing his hold on me. The moment my boots meet the ground, laughter bubbles inside my chest. I want to sing to those low-lying clouds. Dance with joy with my arms raised in the air. Let my victorious shouts echo through the alleys. Kiss the damp cobblestones.
I’m home!
I fling my arms around the young man who saved me and press a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
He smiles down at me, his blush bright beneath the orange fae lights flickering atop iron posts. “The pleasure is all mine…I’m sorry. I never caught your name.”
“My name is Allette.” And I’m finally home.
“The pleasure is all mine, Allette.” With a wave, he drops back through the portal and disappears.
Heavens above, I cannot believe, after all these years, I have finally made it.
Now to get out of this square.
I rarely ventured to this part of town before that fateful night, so none of the alleyways cutting through the low houses look familiar. Which one should I choose? The one that angles upward makes the most sense since my aunt’s tower is uphill and across the river from the city.
The skinny street spits me out onto another, wider road directly across from a wall of black marble.
Memories of that night come flooding back, raw and so real, I swear I can hear Senan’s laughter. When the tears come, I don’t fight them but let their saltiness wash away the bitterness and sadness consuming my soul.
The doors burst open, and a man twice my size comes barreling out, dragging another man whose forearms have been painted in colorful tattoos. The thinner man’s skin glows like he has swallowed sunlight—another unfortunate soul lost to the dust. The duster murmurs something unintelligible that makes the giant smile, ball up his meaty fist, and slam it into the thinner man’s face, laying him out on the cobblestones.
The overwhelming urge to run to his aid washes over me, but getting involved is too risky. The poor man—what did he do to deserve such a beating?
The giant continues glowering at the duster through murderous black eyes as the tattooed man slowly rises to his feet. Is he mad? Why doesn’t he stay down? The giant hits him once more, and he stumbles back and back, careening toward the stones, collapsing at my feet.
I expect a curse or a howl of pain.
Instead, he laughs.
He laughs a laugh I know as well as my own.
A wave of heat expands in my core.
It can’t be.
When I look down, I find myself staring into the silver eyes of a prince who is supposed to be dead.