Chapter 18
CHAPTER
When I stepped out of the portal, I landed square on my rear in a pile of hot sand, the sun beating down from overhead. Raising my arm to shield my eyes, a hand intercepted the light and offered to help me to my feet.
A hand I knew well. Trace’s hand.
Clasping my grip tightly around his, he yanked me to my feet.
The moment I was up, I jerked away from him.
Jarred by his presence after so long, I offered no greeting while patting sand off my clothes.
I was grateful that I’d somehow managed to land in the correct place, but I still nervously glanced around the back alley to the house, Gia nowhere in sight.
My head ached, and the exhaustion from the portal jump was beginning to set in.
“She’s inside already.” His husky voice was low and calm, utterly unaffected. “Your mental shields have always been questionable.”
Realizing I had dropped them when I took an abrupt tumble from the portal, my nose scrunched and brow pinched in irritation at Trace’s remark. Nice to see you too, ass.
Our meeting couldn’t have been more unlike mine and Gia’s. She and I practically ran to one another. Trace and I stood across from one another, silence lingering between us like two swordsmen waiting to see who would draw first.
“I always have you to remind me of my weaknesses,” I said bitterly.
Trace looked utterly weathered. Dark circles encompassed his once-stunning hazel eyes.
His pale skin was darkened from days under the Artumian sun, though his deeds have been executed under the cover of night.
The curly locks that I had once twirled in between my fingers were now cut short, trimmed tight on the sides with a bit of length still on top.
It was not a glamour. Even as close as I stood to him, his distinct scent was undetectable.
No tattooed markings, no scar through his brow; a near constant glamour that I’m sure factored into the exhaustion that now blanketed this once mysterious High Fae male.
His eyes were tormented, and I didn’t conceal the pity from my expression as I assessed him.
Eager to leave the encounter, I began to glance around looking for others. Specifically, Varro. Frustratingly, I was unable to detect any vibrations from our bond.
“He’s not here.”
Trying to play it off with nonchalance, I redirected my intent. “Where’s Nori?”
“She’s inside. Are you mated?”
His question showed no restraint in its directness. And so, I mustered the courage to respond in equal measure.
“We are mates.”
He tried his best to conceal some emotion I couldn’t decipher. Anger? Anticipation? Jealousy?
“But are you mated?” he repeated, gritting his teeth through the question.
I couldn’t believe he was asking me this. This was not how I had planned to discuss the matter. I would have used more tact, for one thing. I would have also had more respect for our past—but he, of course, wouldn’t have it any other way.
“No, not that it’s any of your business,” I replied, nearly seething.
Why did I say ‘no’ instead of ‘not yet’? I was going to seal the bond someday, wasn’t I?
I’d tired of this conversation already and turned on my heel to enter the back of the safehouse, but before I could go anywhere, he grabbed my hand and pulled me back to him.
“We need to talk.”
“Do we?” I answered him with wide-eyed annoyance, trying and failing to pull away.
“Please. Afterwards.”
His words softened like a plea, and reluctantly, I gave him a nod.
He finally released me, and as we entered the space, I saw Gia, Nori, Saryn and Cairis surrounding the small kitchen table laden with a spread of food and pitchers.
Varro was not among them, as Trace had said.
Panic at the lack of my mate’s presence immediately began to settle in as I approached them.
If something had happened to him, would the unsealed bond somehow alert me to it?
Would I know in my heart if he was in danger?
“You’re a Gods-damned genius, Nori!” Gia squealed in excitement, and a blush of embarrassment came over Nori’s cheeks.
I pulled out a chair and took a seat next to Gia, Trace taking a spot directly across from me. I was so relieved to see Nori and Cairis there, but it only made me worry more about why Varro hadn’t yet arrived.
“Varro may have more difficulty finding opportunities to return to the safehouse. It’s the nature of the work he’s involved in,” Saryn explained, having noticed my constant glances toward the door. “They have the shipyard clans working day and night.”
I breathed a sigh of relief that there was at least an explanation, but that would never fully settle my nerves. I needed to see him, to touch him…
“We’re lucky Trace was able to make it here,” he added.
“So, why is Nori a genius…? I already knew she was special, even when everyone was treating her poorly. But do tell!”
My comment was meant to sound like a joke, but it was clear that it didn’t land. Nori gave me a warm smile, but Saryn huffed in contempt.
“Because she has helped us determine how we are going to kill the queen,” Gia added gleefully, clearly recognizing what I was trying to do and working to clear the tension.
I tilted my head to the side, assessing innocent little Nori. “I leave you for a day, and you return a cold-blooded assassin?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw when Trace turned his head quickly at my remark, and I winced inside as I realized how that must have sounded. He’d been embroiled in the mission long before our arrival.
“Go on,” Saryn said, “tell them quickly so we can get to some actual planning while we still have time.”
Nori began to recount a short but elaborate fable she’d read during her time at Basdie. The story chronicled how a comely, low-born maiden used her powerful gift of shapeshifting to become a courtesan worthy of legend.
She managed to take the form of all six of the king’s mistresses at one point or another.
But the role of a mistress was not her intended position.
She bathed the king, massaged his aches and pains, and pleasured him with the sinful methods that only the most desirable courtesans practiced.
This close proximity to the king granted her a familiarity with the queen as well.
And the courtesan studied her meticulously.
Her mannerisms, her speech, her interactions and friendships.
The art of being a courtesan of such status required the ability to indulge the male fantasy, which comes in many guises.
And she was truly gifted in her art. So, as she accumulated the habits of the queen, it became easy for her to mimic them.
First in private, before the mirror, then to one of the servant girls.
She was so convincing that, when she shapeshifted, she was indistinguishable from Her Royal Majesty.
When it came time to seize her prize, she murdered the queen in secret and discarded her body, assuming her position for the rest of her days.
It is said not a soul knew, until she lay on her royal deathbed and a healer witnessed her final shift back into her true form.
By then, she had already ruled alongside the foolish, greedy king for hundreds of years. Beloved and feared.
We were all enraptured by Nori’s storytelling, but I had failed to make sense of how our plan would unfold. Were we now going to install Gia as queen?
Saryn did his typical, unimpressed slow clap.
“Thank you, Nori, for the colorful inspiration. But we have a lot to cover, so I’ll take it from here.”
He looked across the table at each of us, demanding our attention.
“The queen’s death will be a decoy to create panic and chaos within the castle walls. We will use this to get to the prisoner so we can extract whatever information possible.”
“What prisoner? Gia had mentioned something along the lines of needing to get to someone in the cells, but who is it?” I interrupted, trying to determine if I was the only one without this information and playing catch up.
Gia said, “We believe Princess Embry—King Baelin’s daughter and rightful heir—is still alive and held beneath the castle.”
“So what if she’s alive?” Cairis chimed in. “Why do we need her? She’s as good as dead.”
“Because if anyone has information about the king’s plans and is willing to help us, it’s her,” Saryn responded, trying to hide his annoyance.
“What’s the course of action?” Trace said dryly, always trying to keep us focused on the task at hand.
Gia began a methodical explanation.
“First, we must set the stage. Gossip spreads like locusts within the walls of Nasallus, that we can count on. I will shift into various forms and assist Cress and Cairis in spreading rumors of the queen having taken her night guard as a lover. In a week’s time, the castle will be abuzz with whispered accusations. ”
Each of us listened intently.
“Cress, this is where your skill set comes in. I will introduce you to the king’s Grim Garden, where I’m certain you’ll be able to ascertain the proper ingredients for a strong and effective sleep potion.”
At the mention of sleep potions, my mind began to race through various ingredients and concoctions to achieve such a thing. My train of thought was interrupted as Gia continued.
“During the next sabbath’s supper, Cress will make certain the queen’s usual maid has fallen ill, giving the opportunity for a substitute to deliver her nightly tonics. She will then prepare to intercept me, appearing as the queen’s servant during the conclusion of dinner.”
The thought of being the one responsible for drugging another servant and the queen in the same night made my palms slick with sweat. Trace tilted his head with an almost imperceptible expression of concern that only I noticed. Humorous how someone who left me to die would even feign concern.