Chapter 5 Kailia #2
She silently cursed the god of the wild and untamed as the male she’d stabbed climbed the wooden steps to the platform, pulling back his hood before unclasping the cloak and handing it to a waiting guard.
His shoulder-length silver hair seemed to shimmer in the light of the torches that stood at the four corners.
Tall and broad, white skin, and wearing all black, silver irises locked onto her across the crowd as he rolled back the sleeve of his tunic.
First the left arm, then the right, a stream of red steadily sliding across his flesh.
The godsdamn king of Avonleya.
What had he been doing out in the crowd of people anyway? Without guards at his sides? Out here blending in with everyone else?
There were audible gasps and murmurs broke out as a guard rushed to him with a cloth. Kailia tsked under her breath. It would heal fine, and it wouldn’t even take long. Fae healed fairly quickly, and Avonleyans were even faster. A big deal was being made out of nothing.
But the fuss over a little blood had pulled the king’s attention from her, and she used the distraction to slip farther back away from the crowd until she was near one of the lampposts dimly illuminating the space.
With a sigh of relief, she slipped into the faintly wafting smoke, relishing the feeling of being weightless.
Of not having to worry about anyone touching her.
She couldn’t stay hidden here for long. It drained her power reserves, and she wasn’t entirely sure where the night would lead. She just needed to escape the king’s notice for a little bit. Maybe he’d forget about the random female who’d stabbed him…
Silver eyes flicked back up, going right back to where she’d been standing. She saw the slight crease on his brow as he scanned the crowd, and then the way he pressed his lips into a thin line.
Okay, so he probably wasn’t going to forget about the stabbing.
The king cleared his throat, the crowd going silent at the sound.
“Let’s address the obvious, shall we?” he started with a smile as he raised his wounded arm.
“This is nothing but a scratch. My own fault really. There was an area of particularly dense smoke that made it hard to see much of anything else.” He paused, and Kailia could swear he looked directly where she was hidden in her power.
But then his gaze skipped over the crowd again as he added with a wink, “Or maybe it was Harrison Reyes’s excellent mead. ”
The crowd chortled, some raising tankards and cheering.
“Now that that’s out of the way,” the king continued, the Fae once again falling quiet as they clung to his every word. “I know there are concerns, especially among the Fae in our kingdom.”
Kailia listened as he offered placating words to try to soothe the anxious crowd.
Everyone was well aware of the increasing attacks on the Fae, and the king assured them he was doing everything in his power to figure out who and why.
She watched him as he casually moved back and forth across the platform while he spoke, his grace and poise as effortless as the words falling from his lips.
Growing restless, she flitted to another post, drawing closer to the platform as he moved on to offering lodgings for the Fae who wished to remain closer to Aimonway for their safety.
As if staying on this side of the Nightmist Mountains would be any more secure.
That was ridiculous. There had been nearly as many casualties found on this side as the west of the black mountain range.
She’d stopped listening at some point, only becoming aware the king had finished his speech when the crowd began clapping and cheering.
Daring to move closer still, now hovering in the smoke of one of the stage torches, she watched the king leave the platform. The way he moved was more like a prowl, a predator who’d honed in on prey.
“Rumor is the king is seeking a partner.”
Her attention slid to a small group of females nearby. They’d all pushed their hoods back, running fingers through their hair. The one who’d spoken was bouncing on her toes, face flush with excitement.
“It’s part of the reason all the Fae were summoned,” she went on. “He wants to return to tradition by taking a Fae to his side.”
“Do you think it’s true?” another asked, biting her lip as she pushed onto her tiptoes, trying to see over the crowd.
A third female shrugged, smoothing her hands down her cloak. “Gathering all the Fae together certainly makes it seem true. What better way to survey the options?”
They all giggled as if something they’d said was funny.
But over the next few hours, those rumors appeared to gain more and more traction. The king didn’t leave the city center, making his way through the crowd. He visited with everyone, and as others seemed to realize this as well, more Fae seemed to appear and clamor for his attention.
Kailia had to leave her sanctuary after the second hour, feeling her reserves draining too quickly.
It’d become harder to blend in now. Males and females alike had pulled their hoods back, trying to ensnare the king’s notice.
Keeping her hood in place would draw attention to her, so she begrudgingly pulled it back and stayed on the fringes yet again.
She kept to the darkened corners and shadowed doorways, biding her time.
When it was closer to dawn than dusk and people had more mead than food in their bellies, the king finally took a seat.
Not on a throne atop the platform, but on a common wood chair off to the side.
The crowd was thinning, people stumbling as they began to make their ways home, and it was then that Kailia slipped from the darkness.
There were guards nearby, of course, but they were keeping their distance, clearly trying to create the illusion of a casual air around the king.
The king himself was waving off an offering of food and drink as he smiled at two females he was speaking with, one of them blushing at whatever he’d said.
She waited even longer, until there were a handful of people left milling about, clearly hoping for some more…
intimate time with the king. But it wasn’t until those silver irises landed on her again that she finally approached.
She didn’t really have much of a choice.
He’d seen her, clearly still recognized her, and his stare didn’t leave her this time.
Lifting her chin, she skirted around a male who’d fallen asleep on the ground and closed the distance between them.
The king said something, and the nearby guards left.
Well, they didn’t leave, but they moved far enough away to give some privacy.
She couldn’t decide if that made the king stupid or his supposed guards who would now be too far away to actually protect him from anything.
As she came to a stop in front of him, she planted her feet, and her fingers curled into her palms. He sat casually in his seat, elbow planted on the armrest and a finger steepled along his temple.
Neither of them spoke, and when the silence stretched on, the king simply arched a brow.
Clearly he was not bothered by the quiet.
That was disappointing.
It was the easiest way to extract information. People revealed much when trying to fill awkward silences.
Her eyes narrowed. “You have my arrow.”
The male said nothing.
“I want it back,” she continued.
He blinked once, studying her in a way that made her want to stab him.
Again.
“No,” he finally said.
The word was so…simple. Spoken from a male who was used to being obeyed.
“No,” she repeated, her head tilting to the side.
His lips twitched in the smallest of smirks as he waited for her to make the next move.
“The arrow is mine. You have it. I demand you return it,” she insisted, feeling her ashes vibrate around her.
“An arrow that you tried to kill me with.”
Tried to…
“You’d know if I was trying to kill you,” she scoffed.
A perfect brow arched again in clear amusement at her, the little female speaking to a king.
That made her want to stab him even more.
“And how, pray tell, would I know? I assumed having an arrow shot at me was a pretty telling sign,” he drawled.
“If I were trying to kill you, you’d be dead,” she retorted just as simply as he’d dismissed her request.
“Is that why you stabbed me?”
“That was an accident.”
“You accidentally stabbed me?”
“Yes. It’s rare. Usually when I stab someone, it’s on purpose.”
A huff of laughter came from him, his hand dropping to the armrest. “What is your name?”
She clenched her fists tighter as she held his stare, fingers itching to reach for her blade.
His fingers drummed once on the chair. “I didn’t realize that was such a difficult question.”
“I did stab you,” she snapped. “Providing my name doesn’t seem like a wise idea at the moment.”
“I think the actual stabbing was the poor idea,” he replied, getting to his feet.
Kailia lurched back. “What are you doing?”
He paused, both brows rising this time as he slowly extended a hand. “I was going to take you back to my castle.”
“Why?”
“Because that’s where your arrow is. If you want it back, you’ll need to come collect it.”
Pushing her braid back over her shoulder, she pursed her lips and eyed his outstretched hand.
She didn’t realize her fingers were tracing the hilt of her dagger until his eyes dipped to the movement.
She froze because normal people didn’t constantly feel the need to be caressing pointy objects, and she was supposed to be blending in.
Then again, she’d already stabbed him, so…
He was still staring at her, and she couldn’t read his expression. His hand was also still outstretched, far too close for comfort. Taking another step back from him, she said, “Go get the arrow and meet me back here.”
“No,” he answered. Again. But as she opened her mouth to argue with him, he continued, “You stabbed me on top of trying to kill me with said arrow—”
“I wasn’t trying to—”
“I could have you arrested and held for questioning,” he continued, raising his voice to speak over her.
“You could try,” she muttered.
He’d dropped his hand at some point, but now he once again extended it to her. “Let me escort you to the castle to retrieve your arrow, and then we can move on.”
“Forget this happened?” she said doubtfully.
The corner of his lips turned into some kind of a wry smile. “Something like that.”
She eyed his hand again. “Fine. But we’ll walk.”
His features twisted into something unimpressed. “It would take hours. Even on horseback it would take at least two.”
She shrugged. “Either go get the arrow and return it to me here, or fetch some horses, king.”
“Your Majesty.”
“What?”
His hand dropping back to his side yet again, he clarified, “Most people address me as your Majesty.”
“I’ll address you however I please.”
He went quiet, once more studying her too closely. She was becoming too brazen. This was not the way things were supposed to go, and there was no way this was furthering her plans—
“Fair enough, tiny fiend.”
She bristled, her face scrunching in disgust. “Don’t call me that.”
“I’ll address you however I please. Part of the king title and all that,” he returned. “More than that, you haven’t provided your name.”
“Go get the horses,” she gritted out.
“Horse,” he replied, emphasizing the lack of plurality. “Only one.”
“No.”
There was absolutely no way in all the realm she was riding on a horse with him. That would involve far too much touching. A small shudder rolled down her spine at the thought.
“We are once again at an impasse, tiny fiend,” he drawled, crossing his arms over his chest and staring down at her.
“You not getting your way does not classify as an impasse,” she retorted, not caring that she was once again fingering her dagger. He noticed too, and she could swear he was fighting a smile. “I will meet you at the castle,” she finally conceded. Then added, “Mid-morning.”
“We go now,” he all but growled, stepping closer to her.
She went rigid as he reached for her hand again, but this time it wasn’t slow and tentative. His hand snapped out, clearly done with debates as his long fingers closed around her wrist.
In the next breath, there was a pull at her navel as she was tugged through a rip in the air. She’d been Traveled before, and she hated it. It was nothing like moving through ashes and smoke. That was fluid and graceful. Calming. Traveling was jarring and unsettling.
When they reappeared, she sucked in a breath and yanked her arm from his grasp.
Taking in the new space, she tried to get her heart rate to slow and the phantom burning at her wrist to fade.
Light grey marble floors were offset by dark walls that matched the outside of the castle she’d observed from afar.
Sconces every few feet cast a soft glow along with the windows that would let in the natural light during the day.
There were soft white window curtains tied back with silver cords.
Somehow the space was warm and inviting despite the cool tones of the decor.
The king was watching her with smug satisfaction, letting her put space between them.
“I’m here. Where’s my arrow?” she snarled, reminding herself over and over again that she could not stab him right now. In his home. Where surely there were guards around every corner.
“Ah,” he replied, that knowing smile returning. “That part can wait until mid-morning.”
“I’m not staying here,” she argued.
But he strode to a nearby door and threw it open. “We have quite a bit to discuss later today, tiny fiend. I suggest getting some rest.”
“I don’t need to discuss anything with you.”
“If you’d rather discuss the stabbing with my Commander of Forces, you’re more than welcome to,” he said with faux innocence.
“And if I simply leave?” she countered.
“You are not one of the few people who can Travel in and out of the castle. Even your intriguing smoke and ashes won’t serve you here. So you’ll be left to walk out on your own two feet, and that won’t happen either.”
He waited expectantly, and what was she supposed to say?
Of course he knew about her smoke and ashes.
He’d seen her with those creatures, and she knew she couldn’t move among them here.
She also knew all about the wards surrounding the castle.
It was why she’d had to watch him from afar when he ventured out to the shores or beyond the Nightmist Mountains.
“You are holding me against my will?” she finally said, every part of her vibrating with the words.
“No, tiny fiend,” he replied condescendingly. “I’m graciously hosting you for the night before we enter negotiations tomorrow.”
She couldn’t keep the surprise off her face. “Negotiations for what?”
“I need a wife and more of those arrows,” he answered. “I think you’re the answer to both.”