LOFTIN

I hung from the ceiling, my wrists in iron shackles and my skin bubbling and burning beneath them. That was one thing the humans had right. Iron was toxic to the fae. The shackles themselves wouldn’t kill me, but an iron spike to the heart could. So could a knife across the throat. Sword to the stomach. Iron-tipped arrow. My mind kept considering all the ways Alistair might think to kill me. Most of them were slow and painful, but I hoped he was angry enough to make it fast.

Had he hurt Karis? Would the blood-sucker feed on her?

She must be terrified.

I gripped the iron chains and tugged, jerked, and tried to yank them out of the ceiling, roaring with pent-up anger. I was still panting, sweating, and burning when the door swung open and Alistair entered, followed by...

Was that Karis?

My eyes widened.

Her hair was glossy, the ends barely grazing her collarbones, which were accentuated by a deep red gown that plumped her breasts and made her waist seem miniscule. The men’s clothing she’d worn had concealed her womanly shape, but this dress made every weapon she could use against a male visible.

“Why is he in chains?” she asked Alistair, her rage barely contained. I’d just heard an earthquake resonate through the lair. Thankfully, she was okay.

“Because we can’t trust him not to run.”

“Run where? Is there anywhere in the forest your men can’t find him?”

Alistair flicked his eyes to mine. His fangs popped out at the sight of my smirk.

Karis placed her hand on Alistair’s arm. “If I promise to be responsible for him, would you please release him?”

“No, Karis. Don’t make any deals with him,” I panted. She and Alistair ignored me entirely.

“You’d take responsibility for him? You must not know him very well,” Alistair replied snidely.

“I don’t know any of you very well,” she countered.

Alistair stared at the chains holding me upright. “I will place him in your custody, then. Just know that when you give your word to a Leancan, it is written and sealed with your blood.”

Karis swallowed thickly and Alistair watched the column of her neck as she did. Blinking rapidly, he regained his wits and strode toward me.

“Don’t do anything foolish, Loftin. Her life depends on it.”

I gritted my teeth as he worked the iron to release me, staring at Karis as she waited across the room. Why did she come after me? And why would she make such a promise to a Leancan?

* * *

KARIS

Alistair removed a key from his coat pocket and released the manacle encircling Loftin’s left wrist. His arm flopped to his side and he winced, panting against the pain he must have felt. His flesh was red, raw, and blistered, and just as angry as he was. When Alistair released his right wrist, Loftin fell to his knees.

I walked to him and knelt beside him. “What can I do to help?”

“I’m fine,” he growled.

“We want to go back to my room, Alistair,” I commanded, not bothering to look at the Leancan.

“You want to go to your chamber together? That wouldn’t be proper, Lady K—”

“I don’t give a damn what you think is proper right now! We’re going, and I need water, bandages, and some food for him, for faery’s sake.” I’d uttered it like a curse.

The vampire’s eyes glittered in anger, but I refused to yield to him. If this was how they treated Loftin as a guest, I wouldn’t let him out of my sight again until we left this place. Which I intended to do as quickly as possible.

Alistair watched as I put Loftin’s arm around my neck and helped him to his feet. He swayed, weak and exhausted as we walked out of the room, leaving the stench of sweat and melted flesh behind us.

“You’re heavier than you look,” I grunted, trying to reposition myself to support more of his weight as we walked down the hallway.

“At least I have a good view,” he drawled, staring at the tops of my breasts exposed by the dress.

“Do you have to be such a pig right now?” I hissed.

“Have you seen yourself tonight?” he asked incredulously.

“I have,” I snapped.

He grinned. “You look stunning in red.”

Alistair’s footsteps behind us stopped and he let loose a low growl from his chest. The hair on the back of my neck rose.

“If you want me to keep my word, you’ll begin treating her like a lady, Loftin. Stop leering at her as if she were a common whore.”

His comment stabbed me in the gut. I was nothing like Vivica, but maybe I needed to be... not as far as her profession went, but Vivica was bold and fearless. She wasn’t afraid to tell the Governor he’d made a mistake, knowing it could end badly for her, because she had something he wanted. Apparently, I was something the Leancan King wanted. Or needed.

I kept moving us forward, retracing my steps through the hewn rock and walls of human bone, through corridor after corridor, twisting and turning until we arrived at my chamber. As I eased Loftin onto the bed, Alistair strode in behind us and took a seat in the same corner chair where I’d found him that morning.

There was a wild look in Loftin’s eyes. They were glassy and bloodshot.

“It’s the iron,” Alistair offered. “It’ll wear off in a few hours. For now, you can treat his wrists and then you and I are leaving the room. I’ll lock him inside and place guards at the door. He’ll be dangerous until the iron toxin wears off.”

“Are you sure he wasn’t bitten?”

“He was bitten twice, but the bites were merely superficial. The iron seeps into a fae’s veins slowly. He’ll sleep it off, and I promise you can tend to him once you come back.”

Pausing a moment, Alistair’s gaze became cunning when he asked, “What’s more interesting is that before our healer could put salve on your bites, the wounds that were inflicted by your run-in with the Brownies were already closing. Your bites were severe. There were many and they were so deep, they should have scarred your flesh. Yet, there’s not a mark to be found on you. Is there?”

True, there were no scars on my skin, but I didn’t know if I believed the Brownies really bit me as much as he claimed. I didn’t remember much of anything after the first few bites.

In response, I merely grumbled, “Where are we going?”

“I informed Finean of your presence, and he has asked to speak with you,” he answered.

I shook my head stubbornly. “I’m not going anywhere without Loftin. I can’t trust you not to hurt him while I’m gone.” Glancing at his wrists made me want to make the whole earthen honeycomb implode.

“We don’t have to travel far to reach him; he’ll come to you. But we can’t contact him in this room.”

I hesitated.

“We’ll be in a room just at the end of this corridor.”

“Karis?” Loftin called out. “Don’t leave. I need to tell you something. Something important.”

It was the same thing he’d said before we climbed the cliff, and just like then, I wanted to stay with him, but it was imperative that we push forward. We had to get out of there and find Iric, but Loftin had to heal first, which meant I had to do what Alistair instructed for now.

With one last glance at Loftin, I nodded to the Leancan and let him lead me out the door.

* * *

The room was drafty, but no room I’d seen so far had windows. The air had to be coming from outside, and if I could find the source, Loftin and I could escape once he regained his strength.

The Leancan shot me a look that made me wonder if he knew exactly what I was thinking, and then grabbed a torch from the corridor and walked around the circular room lighting the torches positioned along the walls, ten in total. As the flames flickered and danced, the dank room glowed a warm orange, the shadows dancing with the fire. This room was much larger than my chamber, and mostly empty.

While he took the torch back to the hall, I stared at the only fixture in the space. It was tall, twice as tall as the Leancan King, and covered with thick cloth. I startled when Alistair suddenly appeared in front of me. The Leancan could move more silently than Vivica, despite his massive frame. His eyes scanned my dress. “I should have asked you to change. Your dress is soiled.”

I glanced down. There were wet places where Loftin’s oozing wounds had grazed the fabric, and where I’d held his weight and shuffled him into my room. “You could have helped me carry him,” I chastised. “Even better, you could have put him in a room instead of in iron shackles.”

The vampire smiled, his soft red eyes dancing with mischief. “I won’t soil myself to help Loftin. If it were anyone else, I would have gladly helped you, Lady Karis.”

“If you were a true gentleman, you would’ve helped me, regardless of who I was carrying. And why do you keep calling me Lady? Is it a term of respect?”

He bowed his head and body slightly. “Of course.”

I watched as Alistair walked over to the covered object and tugged on the pale fabric. Despite its thickness, it billowed to the ground, revealing an enormous mirror. The frame that held the looking glass was ornate. Leaves and swirls came alive in the wood, and four large legs helped it stand.

“Why do you keep it covered?” I asked.

Alistair winked at me over his shoulder. “We can’t have him watching all the time.”

Watching? I shuddered.

Extending his hand, Alistair beckoned me, “Come here.”

My image appeared in the mirror, different from the girl I saw in the lake’s reflective surface. I blinked, taking myself in. My hair was pulled back, revealing a long, graceful neck and accentuating my ears. Vivica would tell me how hideous it was for a woman to wear short hair. A woman’s power is in her beauty, she would often chastise.

My eyes were dark gray, with lighter streaks and webbing; the exact colors of the dome of smoke that stretched over Ironton. And the crimson dress must match the hue of my blood. I wondered if the vampire picked the shade to remind me of what he craved most, or to remind himself.

“How do we call out to him?” I asked softly.

“He’s not expecting you, but he’ll be happy to see you, I’m sure. Just wait.”

We waited for several long minutes until the mirror’s surface seemed to cloud. A fog appeared, obscuring my reflection before erasing it altogether.

There is a woman in an intricately beaded, golden gown standing in front of a man. I can only see her back, but the man is dressed in black fabric and leather, and his hair is gray and cut short. A large scar bisects his face from his left eye, down his cheek and through his lips.

“Huntsman, I give you one task. Fail it, and your death will be more painful than any you’ve inflicted on your prey, because I shall become the huntress.”

“Aye, my Queen. What is it that you ask?”

“Find my daughter. And when you do, cut out her beating heart and bring it to me.”

The man blinks rapidly three times. “Truly?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself, Huntsman. And do not fail me.”

He places his fist on his chest. “On my honor, my Queen.”

The scene changed.

The same woman stands in front of a man in a gown made of ebony feathers. I can’t see his face or hers, but I recognize the voice of the Queen from the previous vision.

She circles the man, and as I realize who he is, tears fill my eyes. This is what he was trying to tell me.

“Every hunter before you has failed to find my daughter. She’s only a girl. If you truly are the best hunter left, do you think you’ll have trouble finding her?” she asks. “Tell me why I shouldn’t just end you now.”

“Maybe we can come to a mutual agreement, so that we both get something we want.”

“I’m listening,” she urges.

“The prize that I ask for is dear to me, just as the girl is dear to you.”

She stops in front of him. “What is it that you want, bounty hunter?”

“If I find the girl and bring her to you unharmed, you will restore the life force of the King of Autumn.”

“Your terms are impressive. I must admit, no one before you has had the courage to ask anything of me.” She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

“It’s a bargain. The girl for my father,” he replies.

“I remember you,” the Queen states. “You are King Kegan’s son. The Prince of Autumn. Heir to a ruined kingdom.” Loftin’s body stiffens.

“What you ask is difficult and risky. Our kingdom is in ruin, but I would gladly risk my neck to find your daughter if you vow to bring my father back.”

She snaps her teeth together. “I will not restore his power.”

“I’m just asking for his life. Nothing more. Not power or our court. Restore his life, and I will bring you the girl.”

She tuts, “Bring me the girl—alive—and I will restore his life.”

He agrees with a single nod of his head.

“You do not want to fail me. My daughter is an abomination, and I want her dead. But I need to be the one to end her life. Do not harm a single hair on her head, and protect her from the fae that would devour her.”

* * *

Abomination? The word rang through my mind as the fog faded.

Someone was shaking me and everything was muffled, but someone was yelling. “Lady Karis?”

Another shake. “Lady Karis! Are you alright?”

I blinked until my vision cleared. Alistair was in front of me, his face wrinkled in concern.

“What happened?” I mumbled. “Did Finean send me those visions?”

“What visions?” he asked, his head tilting quickly to the side. He was like a falcon, a bird of prey, assessing a threat. His fingers tightened on my arm and his eyes locked on the side of my throat. He sighed and leaned in to me, breathing deeply. “You smell exquisite. Like nothing I’ve ever encountered before.”

“And if you want to live one more second, you’ll step away from her at once,” a deep voice echoed through the room.

Alistair stiffened, his wide, red eyes locking onto mine. I shivered, my arms cold from his touch, as he slowly took a measured step back. Over his shoulder, in the mirror, stood Finean.