Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Deirdre
The guards escorted me toward my chambers, but where was Liora? Had we really been gone that long? She would’ve been frantic with worry. I had to find her.
“Excuse me, sir,” I said, turning to the guard that Kane had spoken to. “Do you know where my handmaiden is?”
He nodded. “She's been in the chapel since you left.”
“Take me there.”
“But the king—”
“I will go to my chambers afterward. She must know I'm safe.”
Agreeing, the guard motioned toward the grand staircase. I hadn't been to the chapel since I arrived here. I didn't even know one existed. Would it be a chapel to the All Father or one of the lesser gods that some races worshipped?
Fae were known to be split between the All Father and the Great Spirit of the Life Tree, believing the tree was the mother of our world, and in a sense, it was.
The massive tree with roots that spread out across the world provided life crystals and sustained us in a way that would be impossible without, but for those of us who believed in the All Father, we understood it was the All Father who created everything and protected the Life Tree.
Back in the temple, there was no discussion about who we worshipped.
It had been a long time since I even said a prayer… That absence left a hollowness inside my soul. Once, I used to pray every morning and then every night before I closed my eyes. I’d ask the All Father for strength, for love I didn’t deserve, and for guidance on how to be the child of prophecy.
I had buried those prayers with Crispin.
Part of me wondered if I avoided the chapel because I was avoiding the truth. I wanted to live in my anger, my hate, my need for vengeance. It was the only thing that made sense. Crispin died for nothing. If I had stayed at the temple, maybe eventually Kane would have come.
Even if I thought Kane didn't want to marry me, I should have stayed and believed in my purpose, but with the doubt growing every day, the bullying, the sneers, and the curses behind my back, I wanted to be far away from the prophecy.
We walked down the grand staircase and made a left past the large entrance hall toward an area of the castle that I had never been to.
A long, covered hallway with windows on each side led to an enormous set of wooden doors.
Gardens surrounded the outside, though there was no door here to reach them.
One of the guards went into the chapel first and I waited outside, the remaining guards in front of me and behind me, protecting me from every direction.
Normally, I had two guards following me, but it seemed our brief trip to the Dryad Realm caused quite a commotion.
I wonder how Kane is doing. He seemed so terrified.
The door swung back open, and the guard nodded, allowing me to enter.
The structure had been carved out of the stone, or some fae elementalist with the ability to manipulate rock had formed this quaint place. Four stony pews were aligned on each side, a small walkway between them leading to an altar arrayed with a few candles blowing.
Carved into the stone above the altar was the symbol of the All Father: a circle surrounding the Life Tree with two hands pressed together and in front of those hands an eye and inside the face of an eagle.
Liora kneeled in front of the altar, hood down.
“Liora.”
She turned at my voice. “Your grace!”
With quick steps, she rushed to me, arms open, stopping just before she reached me.
But title didn't matter to me.
I ran forward and hugged her.
She froze briefly, then immediately embraced me back. “Where have you been? You went into the royal courtyard, and then you never came out. Everyone has been searching for days.”
“We went into the Dryad Realm,” I said.
“You did?”
I nodded. “There's something wrong there. There was a storm and Kane said storms don't normally happen and when we came back days had passed.”
“The king has visited the dryads, but it has never been for this long.”
“He was frantic when we returned. He said that time has changed again.”
I almost told her the rest of what I knew, but I kept those secrets to myself, unsure of how much I should share.
“Well, you're safe now,” Liora said, pulling away. “Are you hungry? Do you need anything?”
“It's only been a day for me. I'm fine.”
“Good. Then we should return you to your chambers at once.”
The door opened. Liora and I both turned to Gideon, who stood in the doorway, his face taut with worry. “I need to speak with the queen.”
“It's all right, Liora. I'll be out in a moment.”
She bowed and pulled her hood back up, cloaking herself as she slipped past Gideon and closed the door on her way out.
“You've been gone for days,” he whispered, rushing to my side.
“I know. What has happened?”
“Much.” He glanced back at the door before continuing. “The book you found explains everything.”
“What did you learn?”
“The Lich King was the one to make Kane immortal. I wasn't sure what it all meant at first. The note inside had spoken about a way to protect him, and then the book the note was in talked about phylactery gems. They are more rumors than truth, and how this book ended up in my aunt’s possession is a truth we will never learn, but… the gems are said to hold one’s soul, making them immortal. ”
“Why would she leave that in her room?”
“I don’t know. In the hope Kane would learn the truth himself?
If Kane’s immortality is connected to a phylactery, all we need to do is find the gem and we will have the power to control him.
I've tried to use magic to find it but have been unsuccessful. My aunt would have hidden it where no one could find it.”
“Where?”
“I have an idea. I knew my aunt very well. She didn't trust easily. Her inner circle was small, containing only her pixies, her head guard, Tallis, and the dryads.”
“You think it's in the Dryad Realm?”
“And now you know how to enter it. Kane said a phrase to open the gate. Do you remember it?”
Glancing at the candles and sculptures, I searched for a sign on what to do. Ella had warned me not to trust Gideon, but she had no loyalty to me. She would do anything to protect her king.
Still, things had changed between Kane and me.
I recalled that moment in the glass workshop. How gently he’d tended to my wounds, and how he had shared a part of himself, even though I didn’t think he intended to.
Could a monster save a fragile creature like Toki?
Or was his hatred strictly for humans and not fae?
Am I too eager to see the good when there may not be any?
That simmering hate for Kane had dimmed, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to go behind his back. “Gideon… I don’t think I want to be a part of this anymore. The king and I—”
“He’s lying to you. He has been.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Did you know that there is a threat against your life?”
Not knowing how to respond, I stood there, shocked and confused.
“I wish it wasn’t true, but my sources have told me that the Lich King is searching for you, and Kane plans on handing you over.”
“He wouldn’t.”
The pity on Gideon’s face made the reality of the statement ring true.
Tears, full of shame and hurt, filled my gaze and I turned my head, unable to look at Gideon.
“I have a way out, and I promise no one will hurt you. Here.”
He took hold of my shoulder and turned me back to face him, then rubbed something on my lips.
The brazen action caught me off guard and I shoved him back. “What did you just do?”
“It's a lip balm. If you're like others who wield the element of plant, then you're immune to all poisons derived from them.” He placed the jar of poison into his pocket.
“What are you asking of me?”
“Tonight, call the king to your chambers and when he's there, kiss him with this on. Using my invisibility, I’ll stay nearby, waiting. Once he’s incapacitated, open the door, and ask the guards to go inside and handle a delicate matter, make something up, anything to get them inside—I’ll follow them in and put them to sleep. ”
My lips tingled where he’d rubbed the balm. Almost as if they knew the sin they were about to commit. A poisoned kiss? Was this the prophesied queen I was destined to be?
This was too much. I couldn’t think through everything quick enough. “You want me to kill him? How could you ask this of me?”
“No, it’ll paralyze him. Even though he's immortal, he can still be poisoned. This one will paralyze him long enough for us to use his hand to open the gate to the Dryads.” Gideon eyed me, waiting for me to agree, but how could he expect me to make this type of decision so quickly?
“I can’t do this. I’ll speak with him. If your claims about his plans for me are true—”
“There’s no time.” His voice dropped, and he moved closer. “It has to happen tonight.”
Not only was he asking me to kiss Kane, but to poison him while I did it. “But I’m Queen of the Fae.”
“You saw what happened in the village.” Gideon’s expression softened, and the pity in his blue gaze made me feel less like a queen and more like a na?ve little girl.
“Prophecy or not, the fae have grown to hate and distrust humans. A human queen is not our way. They will retaliate just like they did in that village.”
“They were scared,” I said, trying to convince myself. “In time, that could change. What happens after we find the stone?”
“Once we have the soul gem, we can turn Kane mortal again.”
“Are you going to kill him?”
“No, but he will be imprisoned. I will get you out of our kingdom and you can live freely, hidden from the rest of the world.”
“You're asking me to betray the king.”
“I'm asking you to set yourself free and the rest of us too. A dragon was never meant to rule the fae, and ever since his father came to court, our people have suffered. Do you not see the rot? The swamp so close to our home? His hatred and anger and isolation are changing everything.”
There was no denying the truth in those statements.
“It happens tonight or not at all. The castle is in chaos from your disappearance. It’s our best chance.” Gideon walked over to the door without waiting for a response.
Was this what I still wanted?
Outside of the games and coldness, there was a warmth to Kane, something deep and yearning. I thought back to that moment in the rain when he looked at me with hope in his eyes and apologized for what he had done.
What if I could forgive him and we could bring peace between our people? Finally end the hate that had been there for so long.
What if Kane could heal?
It's tonight or never.
That wasn’t enough time to make this sort of decision. During the past few days, something had shifted between Kane and me and I wanted to explore what that meant. He clearly wanted to keep me safe and the way he had been looking at me, protecting me…
I wasn’t foolish enough to believe everything Gideon had told me. Gideon could be lying about the Lich King’s plans for me.
“Your grace,” Liora said, stepping into the doorway. “Are you ready to return to your chambers?”
Pressing a hand to my stomach, I stood straighter, not knowing what I was going to decide. Kane was extending his hand and I'd be a fool not to take it with an open heart. That’s what any good queen would do.
“I'm ready to return.”
Glancing back at the symbol of the All Father etched into the wall, I thought of my next actions. I could choose forgiveness and be the queen I was born to be, or I could choose vengeance and destroy the king who killed my husband.
And I only had tonight to decide.