CHAPTER ELEVEN #2
His response made me pause. I pursed my lips, blinking hard.
Then I nodded, allowing Collith and Laurie to glimpse the feeling in my eyes.
It was the best goodbye I could manage without revealing any fear.
After that, I padded into my room and got a fresh pair of jeans from the closet.
I pulled them on, walked silently past Collith and Laurie, and headed for the stairs, hoping that I’d done enough to convince them.
And I prayed, as I strode through the barn and out into the bright afternoon, that I’d live to see them again.
The kitsunes were waiting by the woods. Neither of them spoke while I closed the distance between us. I stopped in the shadow of a tree and said, “Let’s go, then.”
Yaeko sneered. “If you’re as dangerous as you say, it wouldn’t be very smart of us not to take precautions.”
I frowned. But before I could utter another word, she lifted her arm and swung the butt of her katana at my head.
I awoke in Raas with a pounding headache.
While I didn’t recognize the room I was in, I recognized everything else instantly.
The glass walls, the dark water beyond. Wincing, I sat up from the daybed I’d been lying unconscious on and took in my surroundings with a single glance.
Honey was here. She stood with her back to me, and the stillness was broken by the sound of clinking silverware.
The envoy must’ve heard me stirring, because she turned her head slightly and spoke over her shoulder. “Well met, Lady Sworn. I made some tea in case you woke up with some discomfort.”
“Thanks.” I stood slowly, making sure that my legs were working properly before I put my full weight on them.
Honey crossed the little room holding a small, white cup.
As I accepted it, I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that I wasn’t a fan of tea.
I kept my expression neutral while I took a brief sip.
The taste was even more bitter than I’d anticipated, and I felt my facial muscles twitch. “Wow. This is so great. Thanks again.”
“Of course, my lady. Please take all the time you need. When you’re ready, I believe the others are waiting for you.” Honey gave me a kind smile. I mustered a weak one in return, and took another drink of her disgusting tea.
“I’m ready now,” I said. I just wanted to get this over with.
I went to the side table where Honey had made my tea.
Despite its taste, I was reluctant to set the cup down.
There was something comforting about the warmth seeping into my fingers.
But I forced myself to do it anyway, because I might need my hands free to defend myself.
Honey turned and walked to the door, touching a panel on the wall beside it.
The door slid open, and I followed her into the room with the bar.
Voices floated through the stillness as we approached that far room.
Our footsteps sounded overly loud. I held my head high and donned the mask of the Unseelie Queen once again.
Something told me I was about to need her strength, her ruthlessness.
Everyone else was already here, I saw as we stopped in the doorway.
Well, almost everyone. Wichonne and Mercy hadn’t arrived.
My gaze shifted from their empty chairs to Alexander N?rg?rd and a water nymph I didn’t recognize—his cousin’s replacement, apparently, since Laurie had so generously removed his head.
Dracula sat beside them, alone, just as he had been last time.
Anna and her beta were here, the massive werewolf standing behind her chair like a sentry.
Nan and the two kitsunes occupied the same spots as before, as well.
And there, sitting in the last two chairs …
Oh, fuck, I thought, trying not to let any panic show on my face.
Mab sat in the chair representing the Seelie Court.
Micah sat in the chair for the Unseelie Court.
“Lady Fortuna Sworn,” Honey announced, bending into a brief, graceful bow before she backed away, leaving me there.
I fought to control my heartbeat, knowing it would give me away in this room full of creatures who could hear a pin drop.
But with Mab and Micah here, I had a feeling this meeting was not going to go well.
Shit. I should’ve let Collith and Laurie kick the kitsunes’ asses back at the loft.
As Alexander stood from his chair and began to round the table, I realized how vital it was that I didn’t let them pick up on any hint of fear. People were only afraid when they had something to hide. So I watched the water nymph king approach with a look close to boredom. “Hello, again,” he said.
I was a little surprised he was being so courteous, considering I’d played a small role in his cousin’s death. I gave Alexander a bemused look and replied, “Hello.”
He extended the crook of his arm. I only hesitated for the span of a heartbeat before I took it. Alexander might be a besotted idiot, but as I faced Mab and Micah, who were both slightly turned in their chairs to watch me, he felt like a lifeline in a sea full of sharks.
He’d noticed the faeries’ intent stares, too. “As representatives of the fae courts, I assume you’ve met Queen Fortuna?” Alexander asked.
“Oh, you’re a queen again?” Micah said with raised brows. He looked around the room with exaggerated confusion. “And where is your throne?”
I gave him a derisive smile. “Where is yours? Oh, right, you’re a Shadi. Your bloodline wasn’t even in the running.”
If Collith had been there, he would’ve sighed. He also probably would have pinched the bridge of his nose, which was something he only did when I’d really, really fucked up.
Like right now. Micah’s eyes narrowed, and the look he gave me was familiar. I knew when I’d made a new enemy. Micah had never been a fan of mine, but now, it was personal. I swallowed a sigh of my own and inwardly kicked myself. I’d have to be smarter than this if I wanted to leave Raas alive.
Alexander must’ve agreed, because he propelled me into motion without warning. Nan’s voice floated through the shimmering room as we walked toward the open chairs on the other side of the table.
“As you can see, King Laurelis and Queen Viessa have been replaced for these proceedings, per our vote,” she said. “Wichonne Babdock has recused herself, so she will not be in attendance, either. Shall we begin?”
As Alexander pulled out a chair for me—thankfully, the spots on either side of it belonged to him and the werewolf alpha—Collith’s warning whispered through my memory.
If these creatures find out you’re not only the creator of this Beast, but that you’re capable of making more things like him, they’ll see you as a threat.
Trepidation crept down my spine as if someone had exhaled an icy breath behind me. I met Micah’s gaze and lifted my chin in a wordless challenge. I could take this sniveling, pampered faerie.
I couldn’t say the same for Mab, though.
I still had a couple friends at the table, I reassured myself. There was Alexander, apparently, and the Shapeshifter Queen also seemed invested in me. My situation wasn’t completely dire, right?
Then everyone looked at Nan, and she said, “It’s been brought to our attention that you have a connection to the Beast, Lady Sworn.”
It felt like the air in my lungs froze. Somehow I kept my breathing steady, even as my mind raced. How could they possibly know that? Only my family knew, and the members of my Court, and Collith and Laurie. None of them would’ve betrayed my secret.
Doesn’t matter, I thought. I’d have to worry about that part later.
Right now, I was on trial, and a table full of Fallen kings and queens were waiting for my answer.
I couldn’t utter a single lie, but if I told them the entire truth, they’d probably kill me on the spot.
The Order didn’t know what kind of connection I had with Oliver—if they did, I got the sense Nan would have phrased her opening line differently.
I fought the instinct to fix my gaze downward. Instead, I spoke to my allies in the room, meeting their eyes without flinching.
“It’s true. That creature used to be a person, once.
I knew him … and I loved him. But then he killed Finn.
” I forced myself to say his name, because I knew they would hear the pain.
Hear how real it was. I paused for a moment, waiting for the burst of grief to pass.
Then I looked at the Shapeshifter Queen again, who I had saved for last. “The Beast has to die for that, and I have to be the one to do it. The only challenge has been how. I put a holy blade in the Beast’s heart and it did nothing.
But last night, Collith struck him with heavenly fire, and that seemed to be more effective.
We plan to keep trying until we’re successful.
Those are the facts, and anything else is none of your business … Your Majesty.”
I added her title with a respectful nod. My answer wasn’t intended to insult anyone, and I didn’t want to make more enemies. I just wanted to survive. Nan pinned me down with that shrewd gaze of hers, and no one spoke. Silence hovered over the table like a pent-up breath.
Beyond the glass walls of this room, the water continued to shift and darken.
I must’ve been unconscious far longer than I’d realized.
Night had fallen, and it felt like we were at the bottom of the world, where moonlight and humanity couldn’t reach.
I looked around at the members of the Order one by one, hoping to find some in their eyes.
Then Mab’s voice rang into the stillness. “I disagree,” she said.
All the moisture in my mouth turned to ash. Here we go, I thought.
Nan’s head tilted with an air of polite interest. “How so, Queen Mother? Let us open the discussion. I believe Lady Sworn has said her piece.”