NEMAIN

I sat on the bench beside the window, a fur wrapped around my shoulders as I glared out at what had once been a thriving forest. Now, even the pines were dead. I missed their clean scent. Perhaps I would have Karis restore the forests before I consumed her. It was the least she could do. Or maybe it was foolish to wait. Kill her first, consume her heart and power, and then I could restore the forests. Everyone would be so thankful for the restoration, every fae in Faery would love me.

“Mirror,” I called out, scanning the wall across from me.

The surface began to ripple.

“Show me what is dear to the girl.”

An image appeared. The image of a young human, trapped by a tribe of Wirry. He was tied up, gagged, dirty, and terrified, but still fighting against his restraints, trying to escape them. To live.

I smiled.

This boy was what my daughter loved? Pathetic.

I summoned a Banshee, who flew into the room and hovered low in front of me. Flicking my eyes toward the mirror, her gaze followed. “Bring me the boy. Destroy his captors.” The Banshee flew toward the mirror and sniffed the air around it.

Karis would soon be returned to me, and when she was, I would destroy everything she held dear while she watched, powerless to stop it. Then I would destroy her before she could cause any harm. To my empire. To my subjects. To Faery. Or to me.

The Banshee flew out the window, frayed cloak rippling behind her. She had the boy’s scent, and the Wirry wouldn’t know what hit them until it was already over. After, I would have what Karis coveted most. That boy would give me the greatest advantage over her.

She loved him, but she would soon learn what a frivolous and pointless emotion love was. I would teach her how dangerous it was to let someone own even a sliver of your heart.

* * *

KARIS

There is screaming, shouting, and struggling. I think it’s Loftin. He sounds weird. Maybe he’s joking. I can’t help but laugh. The world spins out of control and I’m tossed to the ground. I can’t stand up. The weight of gravity is too heavy.

I must have fallen.

Down.

Down.

Down the cliff.

And landed at the bottom.

I hear Loftin. His voice is thin and cracking. “Please be okay,” he whispers in my ear. “I need to tell you everything.”

His voice sounds like it’s farther away.

Maybe he is above, staring down at me from the top of the cliff. Like a star winks down upon the earth.

The cliff was so hard to climb. So hard. But it’s easier here. Lighter.

Here, pain doesn’t exist.

I feel like laughing again. It’s all I want to do. But I can’t feel my body to make it respond to my wishes. Silly fae body.

“She needs help,” a deep and unfamiliar voice barks.

Of course I do, if I’m the she about which he speaks. I can’t get up. I can’t climb anymore.

There is a moment of steadiness, a moment where I don’t feel the spinning. Like it’s stopped. “Hold her down. She’s going to fall.”

Strong hands steady my shoulder. I want to shrug them off, but I can’t move.

I can’t move, but now I feel my body.

I try to move my feet, but they are leaden. My hands... I can’t move my fingers. And my laughter stops, because I cannot laugh. Sucking in a breath, my chest constricts around my lungs. I cannot breathe.

“Hold on for me, dear,” someone says comfortingly.

I can’t hold on, but I can cry. It’s the only thing I can feel. So it’s a comfort when warm tears slide from the corners of my eyes and run into my hair. I thought I was standing up, but I must be lying down.

“I don’t know how, but you’re already healing on your own. There isn’t much I can do,” the same voice says.

Visions slide across my mind; memories coated in darkness of feelings and smells and touches.

Dusty’s hand in mine. Iric’s arm as he leads me through the crowd. Loftin. Seeing Loftin through the smoke. Loftin jumping into the water to save me from the Puca. Bits of tree hitting my face as the Banshee claws the trunk apart. Loftin vowing to protect me. Cratans. And Loftin running beside me. Loftin’s lips on mine, tasting of sweet autumn spices and anger.

Tears of blood.

A withered finger pointing at my chest…

When the darkness finally consumes me, I am not afraid. I’ve dwelt in darkness most of my life.

* * *

There was a drum in my head; relentless, steady, and unyielding. I tried to sit up, only making it onto one elbow in the plush bed in which I lay. Draped with heavy red fabric, it was beautiful and soft. The darkness of the room was interrupted by the light of a single candle. That’s all it takes, I thought. One star in the sky. One light in a room, and darkness was snuffed out.

I managed to sit up, clutching my head and brushing my hair back and out of my face. That was when I noticed a man sitting in the corner of my room, his fingers gripping the armrests of an ornate chair. “Hello, Karis.”

“Who are you?” My voice was scratchy.

He smiled and inclined his head. “Alistair.”

My muscles tensed. “Where is Loftin?”

“He is in his room.”

“Where are we?” I asked, suddenly aware that I was in an unfamiliar cotton gown. Someone had undressed me.

“You are safe.”

I didn’t ask if I was safe – I asked where we were.

“Do you remember being bitten by the Brownies? Loftin mentioned that you and he were climbing the cliff at the edge of the sea, trying to avoid the Hides when the Brownies descended on you near the summit.”

I stretched out my arms to see them completely clear of the bite marks that should have been there. Opening my mouth, I turned to him. He smiled. “You are already healed.”

“Did you heal me?”

“No, and neither did our healer, though he was willing to try. You healed yourself.”

His hair was long and black as midnight, his eyes a soft color of red, his irises smooth like satin without a single striation. His features were sharp and handsome. Deadly, if I was reading him right. He leaned forward in his chair. Wearing a dark suit and starched white shirt beneath it, he resembled a King. A fae king. With ears pointed at the tips, long limbs, and elegant fingers, he smiled at me; beautiful and horrible at the same time.

“You’re fortunate. Most fae would have died from the number of bites you received. Brownies are venomous. Much like the Asper...” His eyes fixed on my arm meaningfully. “I know of only one fae who could grant such a rare gift. Tell me. How do you know Finean?”

I shook my head. “I don’t.”

“You must,” he insisted, his tone gentle, but with a bite of warning.

“I’ve only seen him a couple of times.”

Alistair’s head tilted to the side. “In a mirror?”

“No. In water. At a lake, I saw him in the water’s surface.”

He smiled, revealing two pointed fangs. “Interesting.”

My heart pounded in my chest. What was he? He was trying to appear kind, but those fangs were certainly used for something, and he radiated power.

He rose from his seat and I clutched the blanket at my chest. “Don’t hurt me.”

Alistair chuckled. “You are the last creature in all of Faery I would dare try to hurt, my dear.”

“Why?” The question flew out of my mouth before I could stop it.

“Because you are precious to someone I respect very much; someone much more powerful than I, and someone even I wouldn’t cross.”

There was a hum throughout this house. A noise that drowned out all other noises. It wasn’t tinkling like the bells at home, but was low and foreboding. It gave me chill bumps as it resonated over the walls.

“I’ll send someone to help you dress. You’re invited to dine with us this evening,” he commanded, striding to the door.

I wasn’t sure who “they” were, but the invitation seemed less a suggestion and more a demand. When he closed the door behind him, I threw back the heavy covers. My toes found a plush rug at the side of my bed, but before I could stand, my door opened again and a female fae gently closed it behind her.

“Lady Karis. My name is Bryony. I’ll help you dress for dinner.” Doubled over her arm was an enormous gown.

“What sort of dinner is this?” Was I a guest, or would I be on the menu? At this point, I wasn’t sure.

“It is formal, but I hope the food is to your liking. It’s been a long time since we’ve prepared food.”

She smiled and I saw that she, too, had fangs, but there was nothing malicious about her. Her skin was pale, with a smattering of freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her curly, light brown hair bobbed with every step she took. Her eyes were also red, but a brighter shade than Alistair’s had been.

Bryony hung the gown on a hook inside a large, empty wardrobe and turned to regard me. “Would you like a proper bath?”

I felt my shoulders slump in exhaustion. Every muscle in my body was on fire with a burning soreness. It must have come from climbing the cliff. “That would be amazing.”

She left the room and moments later, a large tub was brought in by two hulking fae men, followed by a line of them carrying buckets of steaming water. “I can leave you to it if you’d like, or I can help. It’s up to you,” Bryony offered, waiting for my reply.

“I can bathe myself. But thank you.”

She curtseyed. “I’ll be along in a while to help you into the gown and help you style your hair.”

When they were gone, I braced the back of a chair against the door handle and clutched my chest, breathing easier.

I removed the cotton nightgown they’d put me in and sank achingly slow into the water. Was Loftin also bathing before dinner? He never mentioned that we’d see any castles, or palaces, or whatever this place was, on our journey, but Loftin didn’t mention a lot of things. He never spoke of his home, family... or anything personal. However, he was a wealth of information about the Unseelie we faced, and was knowledgeable about the forest and where he felt Iric would be headed.

There were times I knew he was holding something back. When he spoke about Finean or the dark queen, he became distant, withdrawing from the conversation or turning it away from the subject. And then there were his mercurial moods, scalding one minute—hot enough to scorch—and frigid the next. He would yell at me for not listening and then kiss me senseless the next. But enough about Loftin.

I scrubbed my hair, realizing it was noticeably shorter. Fingering the jagged edges, I tugged it down as far as it would go. It barely hit my shoulders.

I finished washing and toweled off, heading toward the wardrobe to discover the dress Bryony had hung there. It was intricate, with complicated hooks and lacing. I would definitely need help getting dressed. Just then, someone knocked at the door. I covered myself as best I could. “Who is it?” I asked through the wood.

“Bryony, Lady,” she greeted, waiting for me to remove the chair before opening and shutting the door behind her in a businesslike manner.

My mind spun with impossibly wild scenarios as Bryony helped me don the corset, undergarments, and eventually the gown, which was intensely tight around my rib cage. “Is it supposed to fit this way? I think it’s too small.”

Bryony laughed. “It fits you perfectly. You look like a proper princess now.”

Wonderful. Never in my life had I felt or wanted to feel like a princess, but I supposed I did now. The dress was the crimson color of fresh blood, and it showed more skin than I’d ever revealed in my life. I tugged at the bust line, trying to cover up more of my skin, but there was no use.

Bryony smiled. “It may not be what you’re used to, but I promise you’ll fit right in.” She arranged my hair in two braids that met at the nape of my neck in a small twist.

“What happened to my hair?”

“A Brownie bit your braid off,” she answered efficiently. “I hope you don’t mind that I evened it up for you.”

Those little bastards. I liked my hair long. I brushed my hand over the small twist she’d made.

“Dinner is ready,” she commented nonchalantly.

“Will Loftin be there?” I asked.

She paused, giving me a wary look. “I don’t believe so.”

“Why not? Is he okay?”

“Of course. He will not be harmed while under Alistair’s watch.” So Alistair was their leader.

“Is Alistair a king?”

She cocked her head to the side. “He is our King.”

I followed her down a long, narrow hallway lined with doors. Torches flickered at regular intervals, but other than those, the walls of stone were bare. When we came to an intersection, she turned right, then took another left down a shorter hall, then right. By the time we arrived at the large room where dinner was being held, I had lost all sense of direction.

Fidgeting with the gown, I took a deep breath as she opened the doors. The din of chatter fell silent. She stepped inside and curtseyed, averting her eyes. “May I present Lady Karis?”

It was all so... formal. And beautiful. Breathtaking, actually.

The room was large, with elaborate, arched stone columns holding the ceilings up, and massive purple swaths of fabric hanging in the corners. Potted trees were dotted around the room, as well as baskets of a plant that smelled heavenly. Was I supposed to curtsey? Alistair stood from his seat at the head of a long table and waved me toward him. Every seat was full except one – the one at his right hand. He smiled as I approached.

“Welcome, Lady Karis.” Alistair rose and pulled out my chair. Then he scooted it beneath me as I sat down.

“Thank you,” I squeaked, glancing around the table…at all of the red eyes pointed expectantly toward me. I cleared my throat, thanking the gentleman who filled my lovely stemmed glass with water.

Alistair raised his glass and everyone at the table followed suit. “To Lady Karis.”

I sipped my water as he sipped his wine, but when he settled his glass, I noticed it wasn’t wine at all. Belatedly, I realized that was the other scent permeating the room. Blood, coppery and thick-smelling.

Conversations began to blossom around us once more and I could finally breathe now that the attention had shifted from me.

“You are stunning,” Alistair declared as he raked his eyes over me appreciatively.

“Thank you for loaning me something appropriate to wear.”

“Your clothing was ruined. It was the least I could do.”

“Where’s Loftin?” I asked.

“Preoccupied at the moment,” he answered vaguely.

“With?”

“This and that,” he evaded.

“Was he hurt?” The thought clogged my throat with emotion.

“No, my Lady. He is well. He just declined my invitation for tonight’s dinner. Perhaps he will be more willing to dine with us in the morning. You are not alone, nor are you in danger here. I have given orders that you are not to be harmed.”

“Why would anyone harm me?” The thought sent shivers up my spine.

“Everyone has enemies, Karis. Especially you.”

“No one knows me here.”

“You’re a stranger. And in Faery, anything unknown is presumed to be dangerous. Never forget that,” he warned with a steely edge to his voice.

Just then, a plate of food was placed in front of me. I groaned at the smell of cooked meat and vegetables, and as the food on the plate steamed, I breathed it in and grabbed my utensils. Cutting into the meat, I savored the taste as I chewed. Loftin and I had split a Harick this morning, but we’d come so far and I was starving. Suddenly, I became aware that my chewing was the only sound in the room. I swallowed my bite and peered around the table. No one else had plates. And every red eye in the room was fixed on me.

Alistair motioned toward my food. “Please continue. We prefer to drink our dinners, but you should enjoy your meal. Please.”

“What are you?” I blurted.

Alistair laughed out loud, several of his dinner guests following suit. “‘Leancan’ is the proper name, but some call us vampires.”

My eyes widened. I’d heard of vampires. Blood-sucking demons, Root had called them during his stories at night when he was smaller. He and Mage would try to see who could scare us the most with their tall tales. Mage had stories with all sorts of monsters, but Root’s favorite tales were of vampires. He described them as creatures with great boils all over their flesh with fangs and glowing yellow eyes. He was wrong about their appearance, but he was right about the creatures being real. He’s not going to believe this.

“Do you drink human blood?” I asked, staring at the glass in front of their king. The hand that held my fork shook violently, so I sat it down and tucked my hands under the table to hide their trembling.

“We drink blood. Fae, human, or animal, it makes no difference,” he stated nonchalantly.

“What type is that?” I asked warily, glancing at his cup.

“It happens to be Unseelie fae. Why are you concerned about us consuming human blood? You’re not human,” he added.

Well, I may not be entirely human, but I was raised by them. “Loftin and I have been scouring the forests searching for…” I searched for the words to convey Iric’s importance to me, “…my human friend.”

He quirked a brow. “Friend?”

“More like family,” I tried to clarify.

His brows kissed. “I see. There are many things Loftin has not told us, it seems.” His hand tightened on his glass.

“Do you know Loftin well?”

“Everyone in Faery knows Loftin.” He glanced away.

Alistair, for all his hospitality, watched me in a way that made me uncomfortable. It was like he saw all the sides of me that I preferred to keep hidden, knew all the secrets I didn’t want to tell, and was happy to share in the knowledge that I’d laid bare to no one else.

“Please finish your dinner. We have much to discuss.” With those words from their king, the other Leancan drank their cups and took their leave, some filing out alone while others left in groups.

When it was only the Leancan King and I in the room, he turned to me. “Tell me about the human you seek.”

“Why do you want to know about him?”

“If he’s alive, I can help you find him.” So you can drink his blood? I don’t think so.

“Loftin is helping me find him,” I shot back. “Speaking of which, can I see him now?” I was getting more aggravated by the moment. Alistair invited me to dinner, but refused to let me see my guide.

“I can just as easily take the information from your mind, you know.”

I gasped. “That would be an invasion. I want to see Loftin,” I demanded. “And I want to see him now.”

He ignored my outburst, taking another sip of blood from his goblet. “Why should I let you?”

I could feel him trying to get into my thoughts, but I shoved his fangs away from my mind. He tilted his head and grinned at me. “Interesting.”

My aggravation was palpable. I needed to see my guide, to know that he hadn’t been fed upon and his carcass thrown into the woods. Maybe it was to make sure the same wouldn’t happen to me, but on some level, I didn’t want Loftin to be in this mess that I was responsible for. I was the one who received the toxic Brownie bites and got us mixed up with the Leancan. What kind of trouble it was exactly, was still unclear.

“He’s my guide and my friend, and I want to see him.”

“I don’t think that is wise. You call him a friend, but he’s no friend to you, Karis,” Alistair answered cryptically.

“I’ll be the judge of that. I want to see him.”

He swirled his glass, the crimson pool at the bottom coating the sides and sliding back down. Again and again.

It was time for a new strategy.

“Thank you for helping me, Alistair,” I started sweetly. “I’m grateful for all that you’ve done, but I need to leave, and I need Loftin to accompany me.”

He smiled. “Plying me with kindness and compliments won’t sway my decision.”

I stood up, my gown pushing my chair back. The scraping noise and motion set Alistair on edge. He bared his fangs and stood up so fast, his chair fell to the floor with a loud crack. He grabbed my arm.

“Let go of me,” I growled in a low warning, already feeling the crackle of power beneath my skin.

Alistair’s mouth gaped open. Then the entire room began to shake. No, not the room. The earth. It vibrated with me. I observed the ceiling, dust raining down around us, on the table and blood and finery.

My heart panicked, thumping like a wild, caged beast.

Alistair narrowed his eyes at me for a moment, then restored his blank but curious expression. “Calm yourself. I’ll allow you to see him if you stop threatening to bring the ceiling down on top of us, under a few conditions...”