CHAPTER 17
Lynne
TOMORROW WAS MY WEDDING day. I would finally be with Dorian forever and never have to be caged again.
Normally, one would not see the groom the day before the wedding, bad luck and all that, but I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to see him. I needed to see him.
When I rose for the day, I quickly dressed and skipped down the stairs of the UnSeelie Palace. The wedding would be held on this side of the Fae Realm as was tradition. My mother would arrive tomorrow for the big day but not a day sooner. Typical.
Others had already begun to arrive though. The palace was busy with life. Servants ran to and fro, each in a hurry to get everything ready for the biggest royal wedding of the millennia. Fae lived for a long time, so it was safe to say the leadership didn’t change often. Royal weddings were a rare event indeed.
Everything had to be perfect.
I hurried through the halls trying my best not to get run over by the UnSeelie Fae that filled the halls. Dorian usually was in his study at this time of day. He wasn’t one to sleep in. He said he always worked best as the sun rose.
My lips curled up, a memory of the night before filled my head. Dorian had lavished me with his attentions not only once but several times until we both collapsed, and still, he’d woken with the morning light. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about my prince being lax in his royal duties. Or his husbandly duties.
I rounded the corner that led to his study and paused at the door. It was closed as usual. I knocked on the wood but didn’t wait for him to answer before turning the knob.
Peeking my head in, I frowned. He wasn’t here. I pushed the door completely open and stepped into the room.
A large desk took up most of the room. The walls were lined with bookshelves stuffed with so many books I’d had to stop myself from drooling the first time I saw them. When we weren’t getting lost in each other's bodies, I loved to sit and read by his side while he worked. But today I wouldn’t get either of those because my prince wasn’t to be found.
Not to be deterred, I left his office and searched out his mother, my soon to be mother-in-law.
I had noticed that when the UnSeelie Queen wasn’t in her garden, she spent an awful lot of time in her bedroom. I’d come across her bedroom door ajar once. She had been standing in front of a large full-length mirror that took up most of one of her bedroom walls. It had been quite peculiar; she had just been staring at it. The longing in her eyes made me want to ask, but since I wasn’t her blood, I thought it best to keep my mouth shut.
But still, it was curious. What was she looking at?
Shaking my head clear of the thought, I knocked on her bedroom door. Her voice called out from the other side and I opened the door.
Sure enough, there she was standing before the mirror once more. For a moment, I thought I saw something in her reflection but the moment she saw me it was gone.
“Good morning,” I said walking toward her. “I don’t mean to barge in unannounced, but I was wondering if you had seen your son today?”
“You know it’s bad luck to see the groom before the wedding,” she chastised, but her lips curled up in a knowing grin.
“I know.” I glanced down and shuffled my feet. “But I just have this feeling like I have to see him.”
“Very well.” She moved across the room, her skirts brushing the hard floor with a swishing sound. “He mentioned something about going to his spot this morning.”
My eyes lit up at her words. If he was at the tree, we could be alone without interruption. Hopefully, we could get a few more embraces in before the others began to search for us.
“Thank you.” I nodded and headed for the door, but her voice called out to me making me stop.
“While I do not abide by many rules, I feel as if you should follow today’s. You should not see your prince today.” There was a weird tone in her voice that I did not understand as if she knew something bad was going to happen.
“I will take it under advisement.” I nodded again before leaving her room.
I really should follow her advice. It was said the UnSeelie Queen had the gift of foresight. Not like the Seer that knew all of the future, but enough of the gift that the feelings she got were pretty profound.
But I really wanted to see Dorian. Bad luck or not, I would take my chances.
The moment I stepped out of the hedge maze and into the orchard rain began to pour. That’s odd, I thought frowning up at the sky. The rainy season had all but ended, which meant it was the best time for a wedding. But the liquid splashing against my face was undoubtedly rain. A sinking feeling settled in my stomach.
The UnSeelie Court had warmed up to me after my time here, and I hadn’t gotten lost once in the last few weeks. The rain coming down now felt like a warning. Like it didn’t want me to keep going.
First Dorian wasn’t in his normal place, then the queen told me not to go, and now the realm itself was warning me away. To a sane person that would be a clear enough sign that I should turn back and not risk whatever was waiting for me. But all the signs just made me need to know what was so bad that I shouldn’t see my one true love?
With a determination I didn’t know I had, I hurried through the orchard. My hair plastered to my face and my skirts became wet against my legs. I forced my feet to take one step after the other as I made my way up the hill and to our normal meeting place.
When I reached the top, my heart plummeted. Before my head could finish processing what I was seeing, my feet were turning back the way I had come. I shouldn’t have come.
My feet pounded through the wet grass, hitting puddles of mud that soaked my dress further, but I didn’t care. All I could focus on was what I had just seen.
Dorian had been at the top of the hill, looking as dashing as ever, but instead of brooding like he usually did when he came there alone; he had his arms wrapped around Ms. Liddell. His hands were in her blonde curls, and he held her close to him as he ravished her mouth. Just thinking about it made me sick to my stomach.
I didn’t know where I was going but I knew I couldn’t go back to the palace. They would all be there getting ready for the wedding tomorrow. I cried out as a sharp pain sliced through my heart. I couldn’t breathe.
I’d made it to the other side of the orchard. I leaned against the large rock wall that went around the whole area and tried to catch my breath.
A voice called out to me over the sound of the rain falling. I glanced up to see Dorian running down the hill with Ms. Liddell close behind him.
Shaking my head, I pushed off the wall. I couldn’t see him. It was too soon. Too fast. I needed somewhere to think.
Then as if reading my thoughts, a bundle of bushes next to me shook and then moved aside to reveal a hole. Not thinking twice about it, I hurried into the hole bypassing a worn out sign as I trudged further into the opening.
The further in I went the larger the hole became until I was able to walk standing upright. When I exited the hole, I was in a stone covered dome. Standing in the middle of the area was a single tree. It was large and glowing with brightly colored fruit, it was as if it had been waiting for me.
My feet kept going toward the tree, never stopping to wonder what they were doing. When I stopped before the tree I heard a voice in my head. It was deep and warm. The sound of it resonated through me pushing away the chill of the rain.
“What do you wish?” It asked.
Wish? My brow crinkled, not sure if it was some kind of trick or not.
“Your heart aches.”
“Yes,” I said aloud even though the words had been in my head.
“Do you want it to stop?”
I swallowed thickly and thought back to what I had just seen. Dorian had told me nothing was going on between him and the human woman, but he had lied. Even after all the signs had pointed to it I had believed him because I loved him. But clearly, he did not love me.
If I wished I could turn back time. Then I would never fall in love with the dark prince. I wouldn’t know what it felt like to have my heart ripped from my chest.
Decision made, I stepped closer to the tree and answered, “Yes.”
“Then take our fruit and you shall get your wish.”
My eyes looked to the fruit above me. They were about the size of a peach but with a glow that came from deep inside. The thought of peaches made the fist around my heart clench once more.
Not being able to stand it any longer, I grabbed the nearest fruit from the tree and held it in my hand. Warm to the touch it tingled throughout my palm. I slowly brought it up to my mouth and then with my wish in mind, I took a bite.
The juices filled my mouth instantly and then my world was spinning. Everything I had ever known or felt rewound. It was like I was a spectator to my own life, except it was in reverse. I saw Dorian and Ms. Liddell embracing and then yesterday when I had been with Dorian myself. He looked at me with such love, and I wanted to stay in that moment forever, but the fruits magic pushed forward faster and faster until I couldn’t make out the scenes in front of me.
Until finally, there was nothing.