“Don’t worry about Franklin.” Wizard swiped his hand in the air. “He’s like that with everyone, especially if he doesn’t know you.”

“He was fine.” I followed him down the hall. “Believe me, I’ve dealt with a lot worse. A lot. He should be protective of what you have here. I understand that.”

“Yeah, all the burden of allowing someone in, doing what the commander tells us, keeping up to date on leads, it all comes down on him and Major. Mainly him.”

“Are Major and Franklin related?”

“Would you believe they’re father and son? Franklin was seventeen when Major was born. Bloody young. They act more like brothers though. That’s probably because they just reunited in the last year.”

“He didn’t raise him? Was he with his mother?”

“Neither. Major was raised by humans to protect him. Mommy, Daddy, and son found each other after the war.”

That was why Wizard said my story sounded like Major’s. Giving up your child and the person you love to keep safe? No wonder they blamed and hated fae so much.

“Where’s his mother now?”

“You’ll meet her in a bit. They never married. They were so young, and with the threat on Druids, they went their separate ways, escaping death. What happened when they found each other again? Let’s just say, they are making up for lost time. They say they aren’t together.” Wizard made air quotes with his fingers. “But they sure as hell act like it.” Wizard turned around a corridor, one that opened up to a large room at the end. It was set up like a cafeteria. Empty tables and chairs for about seventy lined the middle of the room, and the far side was the buffet.

“Breakfast is six to nine, lunch twelve to one, dinner five to seven. Otherwise they just leave water, fruit, and snacks to grab if we’re hungry.” Wizard took me back down the hall, speeding past another corridor.

“What’s down there?” I pointed at the closed-door hallway down the lane.

“Uh. It’s off limits.” He rushed through his words. “For the top tier only.”

I peered down the passage; nothing looked out of the ordinary. But it had me curious what was there. When I glanced back at Wizard, he was steps in front of me. I hurried to catch up. He took me back to the main area. It was quieter than it had been before. Barely a few people still wrestled on the mats and a handful worked on their spells.

“This is the hub, the heart of our base. Where we train, work, and hang out. Right now most are heading to bed or on a mission,” Wizard said then pointed to the mats. “Ophelia and Poppy are two of the fight leaders. They used to be self-defense trainers. Fox and Mayhem do the advanced classes and also teach target practice in the empty factory above.” He twisted to the magic half of the vast room. “Kenya oversees the Druids.”

A pretty woman with wavy red hair and a curvy figure stood yelling at one of the practicing pupils. She had a heart-shaped face and blue eyes, a few inches taller than me, and looked to be in her early forties.

“That’s mommy dearest,” Wizard whispered in my ear. “She is a force. The kindest heart in the world but will take you down to your knees if you make her mad. We all love her, but I’m warning you, you don’t want to be on her bad side.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“Kenya?” Wizard called her over. She walked up, her magic slamming into me. “This is Raven, our newest recruit.”

Her lids tapered, her brows furrowing as her eyes ran over me. She frowned and placed her hands on her hips. “Raven?” She continued to stare me up and down, her Irish accent weighty in my ear. “You remind me of someone…”

“You’re getting that a lot today.” Wizard nudged me playfully.

“I have that face.” I tried to smile and shrug it off.

Kenya pursed her lips, then finally nodded. “Welcome, Raven. I look forward to seeing what you can do.”

I nodded, not sure how to respond. Her critical gaze seemed to want to open me up and see right to my soul. I didn’t back away, staring right back at her with the same intensity.

“Well. O-kay.” Wizard clapped his hands together, trying to defuse the tension growing around us. “Let’s finish our tour and get you settled.” Wizard steered me away, curving us toward a hallway splintering off opposite the war room and kitchen.

“See you, Raven.” Kenya’s watchful eyes still probed, trying to figure me out. I could tell something bothered her. The fact my image was plastered everywhere didn’t help. I hadn’t realized how precarious this was until I was here. Just one movement or facial expression might be enough to trigger recognition.

What would they do if they found out I was the Seelie Queen? I didn’t think they’d kill me immediately, but they would certainly use me. A bargaining chip? Lars would rightfully sacrifice me before giving in to their demands. Another outcome where he came out the lone leader. In every situation Lars was in the prime seat. I began to question whether this was by chance.

“Raven?” Wizard’s voice snapped my head to the side.

“Sorry.” I turned to follow him, looking one more time at Kenya. She furrowed her brow as she watched me. I would have to be careful around her. She would try to figure me out, so I’d have to be on guard all the time.

Wizard nervously jabbered as we walked, talking about people I didn’t know, or just pointing out places to fill the silence. I was never good at small talk. It exhausted me. I tended to stay in my head. Watching. Observing. Only my close friends saw the talkative side of me.

“So this is where the bedrooms are located. We bunk two to a room, but I think you will get a room to yourself until someone new comes.”

I let out an exhale. Thank goodness. One place I didn’t have to keep up the pretense.

“It’s all mixed here, even the loos. Druids are pretty free, so there are no rules about sex or dating each other.” Wizard’s gaze slid to mine at the last part, his cheeks flushing.

Oh, nerf herder. It was my fault. I had kissed him, and I hadn’t even known why except my vision told me to do it. If it led me here, it was for a reason, but now I had to deal with the aftermath. He was adorable. Only two years ago I would have had a crush on him. But I already had enough problems between a knight and a beast. I gave him a slight smile and looked away.

“This is going to be your room.” He grabbed the doorknob and opened the door. “The loos and showers are around the corner.” He flicked on the light and let me go into the room first. It was a box. Of course it had no windows being under ground and only filled with a single bed on each wall, a trunk at the end of each cot for storage, and one table with a lamp between the two.

On the end of one bed lay two pairs of dark gray sweats, two pairs of underwear, a sports bra, hoodie, bathroom kit, backpack, and two towels. I walked over and touched the items. I felt like I was being committed to prison or an institution. Both, probably.

“Once you do a few missions, you can upgrade clothes,” Wizard said.

Ah. Until I proved myself I could not leave here, nor would they waste time or money getting clothes for someone who was not staying.

“There is also a laundry next to the bathrooms.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “But until your first mission, you’re required to wear the tracksuits while you train.”

“Is there a training schedule?”

“Yeah, they post it each morning after breakfast.” He leaned against the doorjamb. “Everyone has different areas of concentration, but you are the fastest Franklin has had anyone do a mission. Normally the newbies are here for at least a couple of weeks before they have any kind of trial in the field.”

Lucky me. I wasn’t surprised. Franklin knew something was different about me, and he wanted to rub out his inkling to mistrust me and prove my faith to the cause. I wasn’t some average Druid. If I pulled through, I would be a player and a huge asset to them.

“Well, I’ll let you settle in. You missed dinner, but if you’re hungry there are snacks in the café.”

Right. I forgot it was probably nearing midnight by now.

“Show me the pit.” I pushed my glasses up.

“Uh…” Wizard rocked between his feet.

“I need to have access to him, to make sure he stays under my control.”

“The pit is not for someone like you.”

“What does that mean?”

“No… I mean… you are...” He stumbled with his words, staring at his feet, then at the ceiling.

“Don’t let my small size deceive you. I’ve been through a lot in my life. Seen a lot of bad shit.” I let Raven’s brisk attitude snap out. “I can handle a bunch of fae.”

Wizard rubbed at his arm, then at his temples.

“Wizard.”

“Okay, but don’t tell anyone.” His shoulders fell in defeat. “I’m not supposed to take you there.”

That didn’t take much. It hit me with glaring clarity I could walk all over someone like him now. My inner strength as Queen had flourished. It made me realize in my personal life I needed someone who would challenge that.

Wizard grabbed my hand, slipping down the hallway right around the corner from my room. Going down another hallway, we hit a set of double doors. Wizard went to a box and typed in a code while I watched out of my peripheral vision. The door popped open.

“During the day, there is a guard to help retrieve your fae for you, but after eleven, they lock it for the night.”

It took everything I had to keep my composure. They were treating them worse than animals. Zoo hours. Disgusting.

Funny how those claiming they had been treated so awful were now doing that exact thing. Two wrongs did not equal a right. I could relate to so much of the anger the Druids felt, but turning around and behaving just as badly was no way to end the hate and discrimination.

Stone steps led us down, barely lit by a few dim lights above. The smell was the first thing to hit me: pee, sweat, blood. With no windows and an inadequate air ventilation, it was stuffy, the air heavy with stench.

My gut screwed into a ball, my lungs taking in limited breaths. We reached the bottom, and I stopped, trying to take in what lay before me.

“Stay close to me.” Wizard grabbed for my hand, but I walked past him, scanning the room with disbelief. I was the one who could protect him, not the other way around.

It was a large stone room with curved ceilings and pillars, dark and musky like a dungeon. My nose wrinkled with an even sharper stench of urine and body odor. Several hay beds with blankets dotted the wall. The space on the side looked like open showers and toilets. No doors or curtains.

Three figures were asleep on the straw beds. Each had a bucket filled with a towel, a basic bathroom kit, and they wore matching black sweats and hoodies. The fae uniform. My eyes danced over each form until it landed on the outline farthest away. My stomach wound up like a vortex.

Lorcan.

Dressed in the sweat ensemble, he sat with his back against the wall, his arms on his knees, his eyes closed. My hand went to my throat, trembling.

“We should get out of here.” Wizard looked around frantically, ready for one of the unconscious fae to leap for him. All except Lorcan were sound asleep.

“Who controls these other fae?” I motioned to the three figures sleeping, their backs to me, but I saw all were male.

“Kenya is the only one able to control more than one. These are all hers.” Property. I had heard fae talk about humans the same, like we circled back to the slave era. We talked like we progressed, but had we? We just seemed to be repeating history.

“Franklin dabbles in black magic, but he’s not very good. His fae broke free and escaped. Black magic is being taught to only a few of the more skilled Druids here.”

My knowledge of black magic was minimal. The little I read about said Druids weren’t born with it like their normal magic. It was something you had to learn, to be taught because it wasn’t natural for Druids to do harm. We were known to be one with nature, not against it. Hurting, control, power—it corrupted the soul. The book I had read was very firm that it was wrong and immoral.

Except you desire it, don’t you? A voice tickled the back of my mind.

I wrapped a strand of hair around my finger, shoving the thought back. “Is there a reason they’re all male?”

“The male fae minds are easier to control than the women’s.” Wizard shifted his weight back and forth. “Not much different from humans, huh?” He laughed, but when I didn’t join in, it died away awkwardly. “So…um…there’s another girl who dabbles in the black arts, Cali, who is also an American, but she’s out on a mission with hers. They have a special relationship.”

“What does that mean?”

“She sleeps with hers.” He cringed. “I know fae are supposed to be great at sex and all, but…” He shook his head like he had a bad taste in his mouth.

“Really?” I kept my face blank.

“It’s not against the rules here or anything, just frowned on.”

My stomach clenched at the indignity. No, we had not progressed at all. Only the players on the field had changed.

“Kenya is one of the most powerful in the dark arts here and still struggles to keep them under a spell. That’s why Major took notice of you in the club. You seemed to control yours with little effort or magic.”

I should have been more guarded. There were so many times I could have slipped.

“Believe me, it takes more effort than you think to handle this one.” I stared at the silhouette of Lorcan. “Could you give me a few moments?” I tried to hide my nervousness. “I actually wouldn’t mind strengthening my spell.”

Wizard shook his head. “No way am I leaving you here with them.”

“I’ll be fine. Go,” I ordered, my jaw set.

He hesitated and gazed around the pit as if trying to imagine the worst that could happen but finally relented. “Okay, but come up soon. We shouldn’t even be down here after hours.” He headed for the stairs then stopped. “You might think because I’m human I don’t really have a fight in this like the Druids, but my parents were killed for harboring a Druid family. I was scarcely five when fae murdered them in front of me. Everyone here has a reason to hate them. Don’t pity these things; they’ll turn on you in a moment. They’re ruthless and malicious.”

I bit my lip against the onslaught of grief he exuded. I understood his need to blame, but it never made the situation better. How was turning these men, who probably had nothing to do with the killings, into slaves going to help the situation? So easy to blame. If I thought this way, I’d also want all the fae murdered for killing my family. But not all fae, humans, or Druids are the same.

Wizard darted up the stairs. The moment I heard the sound of the door shutting behind him, my feet flew across the room.

“Lorcan,” I cried out his name, falling to my knees on the hay. He didn’t move or open his eyes. The spell was only temporary, it had to be mostly through his system by now. “Lorcan?” My hands slid over his stubble, cupping his face.

His mouth pressed together, letting me tilt his face down to me.

“Please, look at me,” I whispered.

He lifted his lids, his irises were green, but his pupils were vertical. Absolutely no emotion seeped through them, gutting me like an ice cream scooper.

“I’m so sorry.” I tipped my head into his, the apology feeling pathetic.

“You should go,” his voice rumbled low, blank of sentiment.

“No. I can’t leave you like this.”

“What are you going to do?” He sneered. “I’m fae. This is where fae sleep. Where the pitiless and malicious belong.”

“Lorcan…”

“Go.” His eyes flared with red.

“No.” I gritted out.

“Kennedy, I understand why you did it.” His was voice hollow, not matching his statement. “But you shouldn’t be here.”

My heart felt like it had been tossed off a high-rise, splatting onto hard concrete. The pain of walking away from him, leaving him in this hell, was torture.

“Go now,” he growled. “Before you’re caught.”

I choked back a whimper, letting my hands drop from his face. He was right. I couldn’t do anything. We had to stay in character if we wanted this to work. We’d made it this far, and it couldn’t be for nothing.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered, my head down.

He didn’t respond in any way, staying still. I couldn’t imagine how hard this was for him. A proud alpha, letting himself be caged and humiliated, all because he made a deal with a demon to protect me.

This is all because of you, Ken. He is only sitting here, pretending to be a zombie, because of you.

The knot in my throat bobbed back up, and I squeaked out a woeful noise as I stood. He stared straight ahead, like I wasn’t even there, tearing my heart into tiny pieces.

I leaned over and brushed my lips across the spot between his eyebrows. Then I whirled around and ran back up the stairs before I completely lost my will.

I would get him—us—out of here as soon as I could, whatever it entailed. Whatever I had to do to prove myself, I would do it. Quickly.

The truth bubbled under the surface and rooted in my bones. There was nothing I wouldn’t do for him.