CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
ARABELLA
The throne room was abuzz with chatter and packed with fae; some flying, others crawling, some as tall as the ceiling, and others consisting of grotesque blobs of slime, hair, and teeth. Strangely, the monstrous ones didn’t set me on edge as much as the eerily beautiful ones did. Their warnings were clear and visible on the surface. They were all dangerous creatures, but you couldn’t tell what to beware of when looking at the beautiful ones. I never made eye contact with any of them for long.
Carden wasn’t here yet and I couldn’t spot him anywhere in the crowd. The Queen was also missing, and though it was likely a coincidence, it set me on edge.
Tonight, I wore a sequin-laden gown in the color his mother had insisted on—purple. The very same hue of the bruise on my upper arm. Rule found me across the room and walked over casually, his fingers trailing down my skin, tracing the mark. “You haven’t healed,” he noted nonchalantly.
“I know.”
“There are still two days left in the game,” he rumbled, leading me to a table as far away from the dais as possible. Again, he produced a platter of human food and I wasted no time cutting into the steaming meat.
“A fine last meal, Rule. Thank you.”
He let loose a growl from his belly that vibrated the table, rattling the glass and disturbing the water in it.
“Growl all you want, Rule, but it won’t change anything. Your mother plans to kill us, and I think it’ll be sooner rather than later. Where’s Carden?”
“I haven’t seen him,” he replied coolly, never taking his eyes off mine.
“Why aren’t you grinning? You’re no longer entertained by the game? Have I disappointed you? Am I not strong enough to win, after all?”
He shook his head but snatched my wrist, my fork clattering onto the plate and drawing the attention of the circle of fae around us. “You won’t stand a chance tomorrow if you think of yourself as weak.”
I scoffed, “That’s what everyone in the room is waiting for, right? They want to see us die.”
“It isn’t what I want.”
“Well, Prince,” I sighed, sitting back and taking a sip of water. “What do you want? If you were a player, do you know what your heart would desire most in the world?”
His lips thinned and sealed. He pushed himself away from the table and began to walk away. “What’s the matter, Rule? Cat got your tongue?”
He muttered something unrepeatable as he pushed through the crowd.
I was finishing the meal alone, making sure to eat every morsel and pondering how she might kill us, when she appeared in front of my table and took a seat in the chair opposite me. Wasting no time with pleasantries, I demanded, “Where’s Carden?”
“How impolite,” she scolded. “That’s no way to greet a queen.”
“Where is he?”
“My son will not choose you over me. You should let that fact seep deeply into your bones. He won’t save you. He isn’t strong enough to.”
I laughed mirthlessly. “Have you told him how weak he is? Because I’m not sure he knows.”
“Of course he does.”
“I bet he hates you.”
Her head ticked back like I’d slapped her.
Emboldened by causing a reaction in her stony countenance, I continued, “Everyone in this room – no, everyone in your kingdom – hates you.”
Calmly schooling her features, she smoothed her dress. “They respect me.”
“They fear you. If you lose an ounce of power, any one of them would try to claw you apart for your crown.”
She glanced around the room. “They’ll never have the chance.”
I slumped wearily in my chair. “Why are you here? Did Rule take the attention away from you for half a second? Is that what this is about?”
“He won’t be loyal to you.”
“Who? Carden or Rule?”
“Both,” she answered with an icy smile.
“That’s fine, because I only need to be loyal to myself. Look around, Coeur. You live in a house of cards, full of ruthless monsters and people you’ve cursed. At some point, this precarious balance of power will shift.”
She smiled cruelly. “It won’t be in your lifetime, girl. I would be shocked if you live to see the sunset tomorrow.”
“No grand finale on day five? Surely, you won’t end it sooner and disappoint your people.”
She shook her head. “The purpose of this game is not to entertain, but to teach a valuable lesson.”
“To whom?” I asked.
Wiping the calculating smirk off her face, she stood. “This conversation is over.” She vanished, the seat she’d occupied sat as vacant as I felt.
I looked down at the table and was lost in thought when Carden slid into the unoccupied chair. “You know what I think?” he asked without preamble.
Startled by his sudden appearance, I jumped. “What’s that?”
“I think you look beautiful tonight. Your hair is like silk, your gown is sparkling like moonlight on water, and it would make me the happiest human alive if you’d dance with me.” He held out his hand.
Moved by his gallant speech, I choked out, “How can you be so amazing when it’s all about to end?” A tear slid down my cheek.
“Because if tonight is all we have, I want it to be ours. Not hers. I want to spend every second holding you in my arms.”
I couldn’t help but smile through my bittersweet tears, but I put my hand in his and watched as he stood. “I wish we had more time.”
He gave a sad smile. “Me too.”
Carden led me wordlessly through the fae, who parted to allow us to pass, until we reached the center of the tiled floor. I glanced up at the ceiling, once again amazed at the intricacy of detail Coeur went to for each evening’s festivities. Swaths of violet-colored silk draped from the ceiling, accented by vines of pale moonflowers climbing the walls, their heady perfume filling the air. I could feel the vibrations from the rhythm of the music in my bare feet.
I couldn’t help but think back to O’Hare and how he’d trembled on these tiles. Like us, he knew what fate was in store for him. No one in the room could fault him for being afraid of death, but in the end, how we met it would be our only legacy. Would we face Coeur with dignity, or allow her to feast on our fear?
Carden twirled me around theatrically, making me giggle. He put one hand at the small of my back and with his free hand, lifted a strand of my hair to his nose and inhaled deeply. I stiffened. Carden had never done that. There’s only one person who does that… “Rule?”
He winked. “Play along.”
“Where is he?” I demanded quietly, unease trickling through my veins at his outright deception.
“Safe. I promise.”
“Well then, why do you look like him?” My heart thundered against his chest as he reeled me in.
“Because I needed to speak to you, and also because I need to make a point.”
I swallowed.
“For now, just dance with me,” he entreated. “Pretend I am Carden.”
I didn’t want to pretend he was Carden. Stubbornly, I refused to relax my shoulders.
“If you’d like, I can make you believe it.”
My fingers shook. “I don’t want you to,” I whispered.
He nodded gently, wearing my heartmate’s face. A few strands of dark hair caught on his eyelashes. I studied his brow, working my way down to the structure of his cheekbones and jaw. Everything was right. How did he copy Carden so easily? And how did I not realize it wasn’t Carden? When O’Hare fooled me, it was my own fault. Deep down, I knew it wasn’t him. I couldn’t feel him.
Unless… “You can mimic people,” I breathed. “Does that mean you imitated the tether between me and Carden, too?”
He answered with a grin.
“Why are you doing this?”
He leaned in again, nuzzling my cheek with his nose. “Because now, my tether to you is stronger than all the rest. I can’t let you go now. You are destined to be mine,” he breathed into my ear. “I won’t let her hurt you. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Panicked, I squeaked, “What about your heartmate, Esmerelda?”
He shook his head. “The bond between us has withered since you came into my life. Just like my tie with my mother. They pale in comparison to what you and I share.”
“But Carden is my heartmate!” I argued, trying not to raise my voice.
Prince Rule growled possessively, sliding his hand up and down my back, marking his territory. “Don’t you feel it?” The music faded into the background and my thundering pulse filled my ears. “You are the most important thing in my life now.”
“She’ll kill me for this,” I breathed.
He chuckled, spinning us in tighter and tighter circles until the music stopped and so did we, leaving me breathless. The darkened room suddenly filled with bright light, and the silk cascading from the vaulted ceiling faded from violet to gold; iridescent, glittering gold. It seeped down the walls and the floors turned to liquid, like fae blood rushing across the tile. I moved to avoid it, but Rule held me tight.
The swirling gold solidified beneath our feet.
While the assembled fae watched in awe, Rule used his power to transform the two of us, too. His suit shone like the sun above, and my dress sparkled like shimmery gold, as if I was the water on which he reflected. Carden’s image faded away and Rule stood proudly in his place, holding me as if I were truly his, basking in the adulation of his people.
The Queen rose stiffly from her seat. The temperature in the room rose quickly. A sheen of sweat formed and then blossomed on my skin, a droplet sliding down my back.
Rule put himself between me and his mother.
“How dare you?” she raged.
“Calm down, Mother,” he began. “I was merely taking pity on the poor girl. She’ll die within the next forty-eight hours. I just thought that for one night, she ought to be able to enjoy herself.”
“You are a great many things, Rule,” she gritted. “But selfless is not one of them.”
“Fine, then consider me selfish. I do have a tether to her, Mother. Perhaps I want to spend this time with her.”
The Queen smirked. “But she didn’t want you, did she? In the end, she wanted her heartmate, so you pretended to be him so she wouldn’t reject you again. What have I always told you about the hearts of humans, tether or no?”
He swallowed visibly and straightened his spine.
“Rule?” She paused, waiting for him to give her his full attention. “When will you learn that it doesn’t matter what you want? All that matters is what I want. I am queen, and I didn’t become queen by allowing disloyalty.”
Rule began to pant, obviously laboring for breath. His mother grinned, watching his face contort in pain. His hand tightened on mine as he fell to his knees.
“Stop hurting him!” I screamed, following him to the floor. In answer to my plea, an invisible force closed around my neck and I couldn’t breathe. Pressure filled my pores, pushing at the back of my eyeballs. I couldn’t make a sound, even though my mouth was wide open.
I clawed for Rule, but he couldn’t help me.
“Hear my words, Rule. Before this game is over, you will make a choice. I advise you to make the right one.”
Declaration complete, two golden lions sprang from the walls and stalked toward us, roaring so loudly that every fae in the room covered their ears and backed away. The Queen smiled as they crept closer and closer, shaking their manes, each golden hair clinking against the ones beside it. Their footsteps got louder and Rule cried out, a mixture of anguish and fear.
“Don’t make me tear the heart out of my own son!” Coeur bellowed. The lions stopped, their maws wide, teeth bared, poised to take our heads off.
“I won’t, Mother. I’m sorry,” he promised.
With Rule’s agonizing apology ringing in the air, she released me and I scuttled away from him, gasping for breath. I thought he knew what he was doing. That he was taunting her, because he was actually the stronger of the two. But he wasn’t anywhere near as powerful as Coeur, and he’d just fueled the fire of her hatred of me. I could see it in her posture, in the way she steeled her face. I wouldn’t live through tomorrow. And that meant that by placing an ounce of trust in Rule, I’d damned Carden, too.
Brave warned me against him and I ignored it.
I was such a fool.
The doors of the throne room parted soundlessly as the clock chimed midnight. The fae crept out of the room as quietly as they could. Rule finally composed himself and stood up, straightening his golden suit. He offered me his hand, but I smacked it away.
“No,” I bit out.
Coeur’s laughter faded as she slowly disappeared from sight.
Disappointment flared in his eyes, but he offered, “Let me see your throat.”
“So you can tear it out? I don’t think so.”
“I would never hurt you,” he asserted, thrusting his hand out again. I refused to accept it, standing up under my own power.
“You just did.”
RULE
I sealed Arabella inside her room and left the kingdom, an uneasy feeling unfolding in my belly. This was risky. Visiting the other kingdoms was something I didn’t do often. Mother had quite a nasty reputation among fae, especially among royalty. I knew that none of the long-reigning fae rulers would help me, but there was one queen who might be persuaded. Better yet, she was a witch—whom Mother hated, just for existing.
I appeared in the entryway of the palace of Virosa, knowing that the night hours were the best time to catch Luna out and about. Luna, who was half-fae, had absorbed her fae father’s powers upon his death and now had the knowledge of both human and fae worlds. Mother hated her because she was just as powerful as she was, if not more. She felt that Luna didn’t deserve to rule a kingdom; that she wasn’t “really” fae.
But I needed her because of her reputation for intricate spell work…
“Queen Luna?” I called out.
One of her servants rushed down the steps, squinting in the darkness as I stepped closer to a candle to illuminate my face. “Who might I say is calling?” the voice queried.
“Prince Rule,” I answered. “Is she here, or is she in the Dark Forest?”
The woman swallowed thickly. “Please wait here.” She rushed back up the steps.
A few minutes later, Luna, dark hair spilling over her shoulders, walked down the staircase in a simple black dress. “You’re either brave or stupid,” she greeted.
I smiled. “Both, at times.”
“Which is it today?”
“Today, I need help.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Why should I help you?”
Offering a charming smile, I hinted, “I can pay you handsomely.”
She gestured to the expansive walls of her palace. “I have all I need.”
Trying a different tactic, I tempted, “I have a piece of information that you’ve been craving.” Dangling carrots was one of my favorite things.
She continued down the stairs, raising her hand and using the wind to plaster me against the wall. My cheeks flapped against the intense pressure. “Give me the information, Rule, and I won’t kill you where you stand.”
“And you’ll consider assisting me?” I added hopefully.
“Fine,” she snipped. “I will consider it.”
She stopped the wind and I fell to the floor. Dusting off my lapels, I supplied, “I know who sent the plague to the Seven Kingdoms, and who, even now, is hunting any and all witches.”
Her brows raised, curious. “Who?”
“King Thab.”
“You know this how?” she asked skeptically.
“One of his… soldiers… wandered into an area I had warded.”
She laughed. “And straight into a trap.”
“Let’s just say that after spending some quality time with me, he was very eager to provide the information I requested.”
Luna slowly nodded. “Thank you. Now – you should probably leave, before I send a message to your mother carved into your delicate flesh.”
Squirming inwardly, I bantered, “As interesting as that sounds, I was hoping you’d tell me how to sever a tether.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “You can see them?”
“To a point, but they blur together.” That was the problem.
She shook her head and turned around, effectively dismissing me, and began to climb the staircase.
“Please!” I cried out. “Please. I’m begging you, Luna. I need help.”
She turned around slowly and gave an appraising look. “Why would you want to break something so sacred?”
I decided to be honest. “I’m bound to someone I hate, and who hates me in return. I just want it to end.”
She considered me for a second. “I’ll be back in a moment.”
She ascended the stairs, and then I heard her rattling around in one of the upper rooms. A loud clang, followed by the shrieking of a bat, echoed down to me. When she returned, she held a vial in her outstretched hand. “Drink this to illuminate the tethers,” she instructed. “Use something sharp to slice through the one you want to be rid of, but be sure of the one you cut. Once a tether is broken, it is broken forever.”
I nodded and accepted the vial, disappearing before she could change her mind.