40. Chapter 40
Chapter 40
B right light fills the room, and it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust. The air is considerably dryer and smells of honeysuckle and fresh fruits. Somewhere outside birds sing and children laugh.
As my eyes adjust, I take in the room around me. The large bed, sitting area, and windows with sweeping views of the courtyard; I think we are in Luc’s room.
Realizing he’s still holding onto my arm, I jump back. He narrows his bloodshot eyes on me but says nothing. He seems much calmer now, but still, my heart pounds in my chest. I feel like a rabbit waiting for the wolf to make its move, so I know which way to run.
After several seconds, he mirrors me, crossing his arms. He raises an eyebrow and tilts his head.
“I told you I’d get you out of there. You don’t have to be afraid of me. It’s not your fault you’ve caught the eye of another High Lord. You’re a beautiful woman.” His expression turns dark. “Now, if you embarrass me, that is another story.” He pauses to emphasize his point. “As far as I can tell, you and I still have an agreement. After the appropriate mourning period, I will take the throne, and you will swear in as my emissary. With my father gone, I can marry whom I choose, so you should get to meet her soon enough.”
“I told you I have prior obligations. I was under the impression that your father would be alive for quite some time.”
“How sensitive of you. You’re going to have to work on that if you want to be a proper diplomat.” He glances at my dress. “Get changed. We need to make an appearance.” He signals a servant who guides me through the castle.
My new room feels small and strange, and I miss the ambient crackling of the hearth fire. My mind races through the events of the last few days and my last few moments with August, and I squeeze my eyes shut. I will not cry. I will not cry. I spin the needle-sized rod on my necklace between my fingers and contemplate snapping it.
With a fluttering of wings, a dark shape flits through the room and lands on my bedpost. Cirrus drops a sprig of juniper, and my heart leaps. Razenna is listening.
“Thank you.” I pick up the flower and stroke Cirrus. “I’m assuming you used some gates to get here. I don’t think even you can fly that fast.”
He cocks his head at me, and the thought strikes me. . . perhaps she sent him through the underworld. Is that possible?
Whatever it is, I don’t care. I’m grateful he’s here, even if communication can only run one way. I feel less alone.
Dawning a fine new dress, I follow Luc in mourning black to the palace balcony.
Luc moves to the balcony’s edge, and I stand to the side with a few other cabinet members. A tall, thin man with a grey goatee hands him a wand of sorts with a glowing crystal on one end.
“Warmest greetings,” Luc speaks into the wand. His voice is amplified, carrying through the crowd below with ease. Several people gasp, and one woman lets out a shrill yelp. His grin grows wider as he continues. “Warmest greetings fae of Helios.” A hush settles over the crowd as they hang every bit of their attention on Luc. “I appreciate all your love and support during this difficult time. My father was a great leader, but I believe the time has come for Helios to take back the leading seat in the fae realm.”
A few whispers carry through the crowd, and I look at Luc. “It is time we take back our rightful spot as the most powerful court!” An uneasiness stirs within me, and I’ve lost my appetite. I scan the growing crowd. Several nodding heads and a few cheers sound during Luc’s intentional pause. “I believe it is with technology like this,” he holds up the wand-like item momentarily before continuing, “that will help us get there.” The crowd cheers in agreement. “I’ve been working on this and many other things like it that will benefit our society for many generations.”
“It is high time the fae of Helios, you fae right here, have a say at the highest level of government. Now is the time to prepare; now is the time for action!” His voice grows louder, as do the cheers. “Soon, if we want to dissolve the treaties with the humans, no one will be able to stop us. We will come and go in the human realm as we please. We may settle upon acres on top of acres of warm sunny ground.” The crowd below is now yelling and throwing things, becoming agitated in their excitement. “I have a new half-human emissary that will lend strength to this transition.”
Hundreds of eyes land on me, each gaze adding another link in my chain to Helios Court. He is making this really difficult for me to find a way out of this.
“Go, tell your friends. Tell your neighbors. Tell them of this and tell them we have many jobs opening up at the castle to build and create my new inventions. Tell your sons to join my army where they will find glory and riches!”
The crowd below is unhinged, bumping into one another, yelling, and scattering in different directions. If I had rounded the corner and not heard Luc’s speech, I would assume this was some sort of angry mob. Luc turns to me, beaming. “Hungry? I’m famished.”
“What are you doing?” I ask, following him back into the palace.
“Each year, and in extreme circumstances, The High Lords of each court come together at a symposium to discuss important matters, mostly issues involving the human realm and any decision that would affect the fae realm in its entirety, not just a particular court.” He leads me to a small study with a mural of Ophellen painted on the wall.
“When the Astral Court fell, there were only six courts, and one member needed to have tie-breaking abilities. The Helios Court once held that position until the Peasant Wars.”
“That wasn’t that long ago for you, was it?”
“No, Legs, and don’t interrupt me.” He moves to a shelf and pulls Advanced Rune Magic and Deity Bloodlines: Awake the Goddess Within , handing them to me. “Selene, Mabon, and Yule destroyed our court so savagely that Selene was able to take that position even though their High Lord had just died on the front lines.” A sudden heaviness fills my chest, and I try to keep my face neutral. I knew August fought in that war, but I didn’t realize his father had died in it. I wonder if he was there.
“August has held that position ever since and stopped every single one of my plans involving the human realm. He took part of our land and gave it to the humans. It belongs to us, and we’re going to take it back. It is imperative that we cohabitate with humans once again.”
His eyes dart to me, and he softens. “He doesn’t understand the mutual benefits that will arise if we open the borders back up again.”
Suddenly, everything clicks into place. This rivalry between Luc and August and the hatred between them. This is still fresh to them, while generations upon generations of humans with their short lifespans have grown and populated the region, long forgetting the past.
Sudden realization of what Luc plans to do grips me, and my stomach sinks.
“You’re going to invade?” I ask softly.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that, Legs—it’s unbecoming. They’re just humans. They’re weak and disease-ridden. They’ll be glad to have us back and have access to our technology once more.” The clock tower pops in my mind and Eoin’s words ‘I forget sometimes that we were sort of commingled at one point in time — humans and fae.’
Oh, Eoin. I need to find a way to warn him.
“I’m sure your big brain would be quite the gift to them,” I say to him and push feelings of trust, warmth, and sincerity. His posture relaxes, and the corners of his eyes crease as he smiles at me.
He lifts his chin at me. “You could rule there, you know?” He grabs another book, The Road to Peace: Why the Gods Must Sleep , and hands it to me. What is it with these fae males and their propensity to pile books upon me?
“You could rule in the human realm in my stead. It would be almost poetic given your lineage.” Okay, maybe I pushed too much trust again. I really need to work on this.
“What about my curse? You’re not worried I might cause problems there?” He’s so concerned about his image I can’t imagine he would be happy with a scandal.
“The Siren’s curse?” He shakes his head. “No. That’s all a myth—propaganda spread by the Prophet to detour humans from venturing into our lands. He prefers us to be separate.”
“And yet, you two are allies?”
“Sometimes we do what we must, not what we want to.”
I follow him back to his room, vaguely listening to the plans he has for the future while my mind reels. How am I going to get out of this? He leads me to the balcony and sweeps his hand wide, gesturing to the wide expanse where he would like to build an underground manufacturing facility. I notice my well is lower than it was this morning.
“Please stop pulling from my well. I don’t know when I’ll get to fill it again.”
“I’m not,” he says with a strange expression.
“Uh, I forgot about the weird leak I have here.”
He scrunched his full brows and purses his lips before looking skyward. “It’s the spires.” He points to the golden points atop each spire on the castle. “They pull magic from fae during the day, but no one usually notices, as our wells continuously refill in the sunlight.” His face darkens, and my stomach sinks.
“You’re not Dagr are you?”