Chapter 17 – Billie #2
"Sure it is." Another omega, this one loaded with pearls falling beneath her plain silver collar, sneers at us. "Everyone knows the Golden Triad has standards. They don't invite just anyone to their private events."
They sweep past us in a cloud of pheromone perfume, but not before the redhead throws over her shoulder, "Have fun at your imaginary party, drabs."
Olivia deflates like a punctured balloon. I wait until they're out of earshot before asking, "What the fuck is a drab?"
"Boring. Unappealing. Bottom of the barrel." She kicks at a pebble with her ridiculously pointy pink heel. "Omegas without connections or prestige bloodlines."
So these bitches have their own lexicon. Neat.
"Why do you let them talk to you like that?"
She looks at me like I've suggested she sprout wings and fly to the moon. "Are you kidding? Those harpies practically live inside Isabella's asshole. Talking back to them is social suicide."
Perfect. Now I'm definitely on Isabella's radar, and not in a good way. But if Tallon meant what he said about protection, maybe it won't matter. And soon, very soon, none of this will matter because I'll either be dead or fleeing back to hunter territory with Prince Corvinus's blood on my hands.
And hopefully his head in a bag. I think I saw one in Olivia's closet that would fit it nicely. She has so many, she probably wouldn't even miss it.
"Why are you designated a drab anyway?" I ask as we continue walking. "You seem like everything this school is trying to mold omegas into. You're very… high maintenance."
"Thanks for that glowing assessment of my character." She smooths down her dress with nervous hands. "I wasn't born into a prestige family or anything. My parents work the factories that keep one of the human cities running. Everyone was shocked when I turned out to be an omega. Especially me."
"So even omegas get treated like shit if they don't come from fancy bloodlines." I shake my head. "Doesn't seem like much of a privilege."
Olivia stops walking, turning to face me with fire in her eyes.
"My parents have spent their entire lives working grueling jobs, barely having enough time to sleep, but they always made time for me and my siblings.
If I can get through the next four years in this place and find a decent mate, I can make sure they get to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
It's worth having to hold my tongue around a bunch of catty bitches every now and then. "
Silence falls between us, heavy and awkward. Maybe I'd misjudged Princess Pink after all.
"What?" she demands, clearly uncomfortable with my scrutiny.
"Nothing." I start walking again. "Just realizing we might have more in common than I thought."
"We have nothing in common," she grumbles, but there's less venom in it than usual.
The address on the invitation leads us to the outskirts of campus, where the perfectly manicured lawns give way to older buildings that look like they haven't been touched in decades. We stop in front of what appears to be an abandoned storage facility made of crumbling concrete and rusted metal.
"This has to be wrong," I mutter, checking the invitation again. "Or a really elaborate prank."
"You don't understand Fae magic." Olivia snatches the invitation from my hands and holds it up like an offering to the wind.
The paper begins to glow, brighter and brighter until I have to shield my eyes. The rusted door swings open, revealing not the decrepit interior I expected but a curtain of pure light that reminds me of the portal that brought me here.
Enough that it makes me nauseous.
My every instinct is screaming, "DANGER, ABORT FUCKING MISSION", but Olivia's already stepping through. I follow, because what else am I going to do? Let her walk into a potential death trap I invited her to alone?
The light swallows us whole, and for a moment I'm falling through nothing and everything all at once. Then my feet hit solid ground, and I have to grab Olivia's arm to keep from stumbling.
"Holy fuck," I breathe, taking in our surroundings.
We're standing in what can only be described as an architectural wet dream.
A multi-level penthouse that seems to exist outside the laws of physics, with crystal structures that catch and refract light in ways that make me even more nauseous than the portal.
Through vast stained windows edged in stained glass, I see an ocean that's definitely not located anywhere on Earth.
The water is cerulean blue shot through with veins of silver, and two moons hang in the purple sky overhead.
The party is already in full swing. Fae move through the space like dancers in some sexed up fever dream.
Most of the female Fae wear gowns that are more suggestion than fabric, with strategic cutouts and shimmering material that seems to exist in multiple dimensions at once.
The males are no less impressive, dressed in everything from suits that look like they're made of liquid shadow to robes that trail stardust.
Birds. Male Fae are like fucking birds, bright and ostentatious, strutting around trying to catch the attention of any omega in the vicinity.
And they're here, too. Not many, but enough that the alphas have sort of formed loose groups around them, like mini solar systems. The Fae women seem less than pleased about it, if the death glares are any indication.
The omegas stand out not only because they're far more petite and mostly curvier than their tall, willowy Fae counterparts, but also because of the collars. Some are subtle and plain like mine and Olivia's, some ostentatious, all marking them as either owned or aspiring to be.
My stomach turns when I spot one omega literally sitting at the feet of three Fae males, a jeweled leash connecting her collar to the hand of a redhead who strokes her hair like she's a prized pet.
"Holy shit," Olivia whispers. "This is a shimmer."
"What the hell is a shimmer?"
"Illegal as fuck, for starters." Her eyes are wide as saucers. "They use forbidden magic to open portals in pocket dimensions. The whole thing collapses after a set time. Even by Fae standards, this is..."
"Obscenely wasteful?" I finish. "Obnoxious? The most ridiculous rich people bullshit I've ever heard of?"
"I was going to say exclusive, but sure."
We hover near the entrance like the outsiders we are, both clearly out of our element.
I scan the crowd, making note of the exits (there are none), potential weapons (also none) and threats, which is literally everyone in attendance.
But if I could kill Corvinus here, in a dimension that's about to collapse anyway. ..
The thought must show on my face because Olivia grabs my arm. "Would you at least try not to look like you're planning murder?"
If only she knew how right she is.
"Ladies!" Tallon's voice cuts through the ambient music, something that sounds like crystals singing, and suddenly he's there with that warm smile stretched across his impossibly handsome face. "You made it!"
Olivia goes tongue-tied, managing only a squeak that might charitably be called a greeting. Tallon's smile widens, clearly amused by her reaction.
"I'm so glad you could come, Billie. And you brought a friend." He looks around, then waves someone over. "Perfect timing."
The man who approaches is... fuck, there's no other word for it.
He's gorgeous in that rough, dangerous way that makes smart girls do stupid things.
Bronze skin, black hair that falls past his shoulders, and a build that suggests he could bench press a car without breaking a sweat.
Everything about his energy screams predator, but like Tallon, it's clear he's no common shifter.
He's easily the second hottest guy in the room.
"Ladies, this is my friend Everen." Tallon's grin is pure mischief. "He was just lamenting the lack of a beautiful omega to keep him company. It would seem the gods have answered his prayers."
Everen takes Olivia's hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles that has her turning an impressive shade of pink that perfectly matches her shoes. The girl is color coordinated, I'll give her that. "The gods have excellent timing."
"I... you... hi," Olivia manages, and I have to bite back a laugh.
"Would you like a drink?" Everen offers his arm with old-world courtesy. "I promise to return you to your friend in perfect condition."
Olivia doesn't even glance my way before practically floating away on Everen's arm. Which leaves me alone with Tallon, who's watching me with those unsettling green eyes.
"Relax," he says, and I realize I'm standing like I'm ready for a fight. "Your friend will be fine. Everen is harmless. Mostly. To omegas, at any rate."
"That's reassuring."
He laughs, offering his own arm. "Come. There are some people I'd like you to meet."
This is it. This is why I came. I slide my arm through his, trying not to notice how warm he is, how he smells like the forest after a good, hard rain.
He leads me through the crowd, up a staircase that's completely transparent. I have to focus on not looking down because heights and I have never been friends even when I'm not walking on daggers.
"Afraid of heights?" Tallon asks, and there's gentle teasing in his voice.
"Afraid of falling through invisible stairs," I correct, gripping his arm tighter when the steps seem to shift under my feet.
"They're perfectly safe." But he steadies me anyway, his hand covering mine on his arm. "Dragon glass from the Far Reaches. Stronger than steel and worth more than gold."
"Of course they are," I mutter. "Can't have regular stairs made out of wood like normal people."
His laugh is warm honey. "Where's the fun in that?"
The staircase spirals up to what can only be described as a VIP nest with circular seating that looks soft enough to sink into forever, arranged around a low table laden with food and drinks.
The view from here is even more spectacular, giving a perfect vantage point of both the party below and the alien ocean beyond.
And there, lounging like panthers in their den, are the other two members of the Golden Triad.
I know Prince Corvinus immediately.
The portraits scattered throughout the kingdom don't do him justice.
They can't capture the way he seems to exist in multiple dimensions at once, beautiful and terrible and absolutely fucking magnetic.
White hair the hue and radiance of starlight, eyes the color of winter sky, and a face that could make angels weep.
Full lips contrast against angular features too beautiful for this world or the one I just stepped out of.
He's everything the stories say and more, and I hate him with every fiber of my being.
The man next to him looks a few years older, with an energy that makes my skin buzz.
Dark magic comes off his deep bronze skin like heatwaves in the summer.
His long black hair is bone straight, framing a perfectly carved face with a straight nose and chiseled jaw, and his eyes are so dark the only light in them comes from within.
His eyes have a sharp, dangerous spark that makes me feel as if he's looking through me, into all the secrets I'd rather keep hidden.
His energy has similarities to a shifter's, but just like with Everen and Tallon, his feels like…more. He's no common wolf or even a big cat, but I still couldn't guess the beast he shares his soul with if my life depended on it.
And before the night is over, it might.
"Gentlemen," Tallon announces, guiding me into the nested seating. "I'd like you to meet Billie Moreau."
Prince Corvinus looks up, those impossible blue eyes finding mine, and the world stops.
This is the man I'm destined to kill.
The man who murdered my mother and destroyed my life before it even truly began.
And he smells like fucking starlight.