Chapter 1 #2
Lord Florent and Lasair had teamed up, Gentry and Fomorian alike.
Some Gentry followed the seelie court, some the unseelie.
Fomorian fae were pure unseelie bastards.
I’d thought Lord Florent had been aligned with seelie.
Instead, he’d been conspiring with the enemy to take me down, to take the throne for himself.
He and Lasair meant to be king and queen, usher in a new way of doing things.
An unseelie way. After my death, of course.
Our future queen was leading the hunt to see my head on a spike.
Let her come. I’d obliterate her.
As exhausted and confused as I was, I craved vengeance too much to give up. The blood of my enemies a fuel to many of my fires.
“We should sleep soon,” Kormac said.
His deep voice sent a jolt through my chest, dragging me out of my thoughts.
“Yes,” I replied. “Another night under the stars.”
“Is that a bad thing?” he wondered.
“Depends on your perspective, I suppose.”
“Like mine?”
“Like yours. You enjoy the outdoors, this kind of living.”
He shrugged, twiddling a blade of grass between his fingers. “I can sleep wherever. I prefer a bed with thick blankets, but I can adjust.”
What wasn’t he saying? “Unlike me and my pampered existence?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Because you’d have to apologize.”
He kept his mouth shut.
“No matter, I know what the truth is. I know what you really want.”
Again, he offered no answer.
“This must thrill you, to see me like this. Grimy from dirt and sweat, a broken man with nothing left but vengeance in his heart.”
“Valance…”
“I should chide you for such insolence at using my name so informally. But it means nothing. I’m not your prince. I never have been. I never will be.”
“Why are you saying this?” he questioned.
“I don’t know. Because I’m thinking too much. Fear not, I’m in no way looking for your sympathies.”
“You don’t…” Kormac didn’t finish.
“I don’t have them?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Because you can’t.”
“We should really get those blankets out,” he insisted, standing up.
“Blankets on the ground,” I whispered.
“That’s right.”
Dusty, dirty blankets stinking of my grubby flesh, my sweat. I smelled myself daily. I tried to wash as best I could in the forest springs and streams. But hot days with no proper baths lead to the stale stench permeating my new life.
I straightened my spine, bored of my self-pity. One could only wallow so much, pine for his beloved friends now in the arms of the blessed Danu.
I will avenge you… I sent to them, wherever they were.
“You’re sad,” Kormac said, taking me by surprise.
The human sat back down, closer to me.
“Sad…” I breathed, uncomfortable with his closeness.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry you’re sad… Hellpiss!” He barked the last word, jumping to his feet again. “Fucking hellpiss to this.” He pushed his hand through his greasy hair. Began to pace before the fire. “I’m not sorry… I’m so sorry.”
I sighed. “Do we have to go through this again?”
“No.”
“Your voice is too loud.”
“Fuck—” But he couldn’t insult me. Instead, he lowered his tone. “I don’t want to do this with you. Not again.”
“Then let’s not. We’re both wrong in the eyes of the other, both been hurt… But I don’t hate you.” The soul bond was kicking in. “Let’s leave it at that.”
Let’s leave the falsehood at that…
…I’m sorry, Kormac.
Damn this!
He shook his head, looking up to the broken starry sky through the canopy of leaves above.
“You’ve been done dirty with this whole Lasair and Florent thing.
By your own father. By me. I’m not a monster.
I know you’re hurting. That might be the soul bond speaking, but I know what it’s like to lose people. ”
Compassion from the human? “I’m sorry for your pain and my part in it.” A heavy sigh, my fingers digging into the log.
He sat back down next to me, pulling up another blade of grass. “We’ll probably never get used to this.”
I actually smiled. “Much like my grandmother. I never got used to her but always had to play nice. She’s still hanging around like a rotten stench. Thankfully, the size of the palace keeps her out of my sight, though the seeds of her vitriol linger.”
He wrapped the grass around his thumb. “When did you last see her?”
“Ten years ago.”
“Even though you live in the same house?”
“You’ve seen the size of my home.”
He nodded. “Good point. What was she like?”
“Cruel. Mocking. Nothing but critical of me throughout my childhood—until my father couldn’t stand the sight of her. She wasn’t exactly warm to her son the king after having to give up the throne.”
“The century rule?” he asked.
“Yes.” A Sidhe sovereign can only be the monarch for a hundred years before having to abdicate to the heir. Sidhe fae were immortal fae, outside of being slain. Age and sickness did not come to us. Unless… Unless you were my broken father and mother after losing my sister and brother.
Grief was certainly a sickness.
“A hundred years is too long,” the human muttered.
I ignored his comment. “I always tried to hide from her, always tried to let her words roll off me as rain to a roof. But she always found a route inside. Always made me feel as if I should have been cut from my mother’s womb early.”
“That’s extreme.”
“I know. But that’s how she works to wear down your confidence. She enjoyed the cursed narrative around me, taking special care to make it known how disappointed she was in my appearance. To anyone who would listen.”
“Not like a Sidhe fae should?” Kormac asked.
“Exactly that. No bright eyes, no vibrancy. The dark one. The curse.” I sighed. “Ridiculous, though the cursed part is rather ironic now, isn’t it?”
He didn’t answer.
“Queen Dovelar Rosestar. Irrelevant. Always a shadow.”
“She sounds awful,” he said.
“She is. But I survived her menace. Through it all, I remained the good grandson, did what I needed to do as a prince.” I frowned at the flames. “This isn’t the same.”
“What isn’t?”
“I was trying to make a point regarding us enduring our soul bond, being strong to see our quest through to the end. But I failed.”
When he chuckled, the surprise almost sent me sliding off the log.
“I get what you were trying to say,” he responded.
I faced him. A smile spread his lips into a lovely curve. Warming his handsome features, containing a very human light. Its gentle heat touched at my core, an odd sensation I did not hate.
There is nothing lovely or warm about him.
There is.
Yes…
No…
Yes… There most certainly is.
I dragged my eyes away. “Maybe I should keep my talking to a minimum.”
“You do that,” he responded coolly. “I’m getting some sleep.”
Movement within the trees. A breaking twig. Footsteps.
Kormac leaped to his feet at the same time as me. We turned at the same time to face the source of the sound, both drawing our swords.
He lifted a hand, taking a step forward.
The protector.
He listened to the air, waiting for the next sounds. Watching. A man of the wilds, of a practicality beyond my understanding. Kormac knew how to survive in the outdoors.
I was forced to start learning.
“Keep close to me,” he said.
“I will.”
I do not want to be too far from you…
Ever…
The human’s broadsword was heavy and brutal like his fighting style. A reflection of his battle-weary aura. The opposite of my lighter movements and weapon.
I missed my real sword, this one a poor substitute. However, any blade was better than no blade at all. Kormac being charged with protecting me wasn’t enough. I had to be able to fight back. I could fight back, proficient in a battle.
Dark caress…
Another sound, the heavy rustling of leaves. Then laughter.
Oh, Danu.