by Linsey Hall
Carriages and people milled around. Every woman was dressed in a fabulous black lace dress, and though they should have all looked the same, the variety was so great that it was a spectacle of Fae fashion. The men as well all looked different, each dressed as amazingly as the next.
Many of them had animal characteristics that the Seelie did not. Horns, strange eyes, claws. But for the most part, they looked human.
“Their wings,” Tarron murmured.
Shit, he was right. Every Unseelie had their wings out. Clearly, it was a thing at formal balls.
Tarron’s wings flared behind his back, powerful and gorgeous. Like lightning.
I drew in a steady breath and focused on what he’d taught me, calling my wings forth with great effort. Tarron touched his hand to my shoulder, and it helped me mimic his magic.
Once they were out, it felt strange. It was a strain to keep them flared behind me, but I managed as we joined the line of revelers that crept up the stairs toward the huge main doors.
As we stood in line, a few people looked at me strangely. As if they recognized me. I frowned, dipping my face down. No need to draw attention.
Attendants stood on either side of the main entry, taking invitations. My heart started to race a bit faster as we neared the one closest to us.
He had an eagle eye for the little pieces of paper that the partiers handed him, obviously reading each name.
As people approached attendants, they drew their wings back into their bodies. Probably because of the crush of Fae all around us. Gratefully, I withdrew mine into my body.
When we reached him, Tarron handed the invitation to the attendant, his thumb carefully covering the name.
The attendant yanked it out of his hand, peering closely at the little paper.
Shit.
10
The attendant looked up at us, a frown creasing his pale brow. “You are not the Evil Eye.”
Aaand, shit.
I couldn’t try my suggestive magic on him. There were far too many witnesses, and the woman behind me watched like a hawk. I could just imagine telling her I was flicking a fly off his forehead.
Yeah, she wouldn’t believe that.
And pulling a knife to threaten was a no-go. He’d shout and every Fae would be on us.
I leaned over, looking confused. “Oh, we must have picked up my aunt’s invitation by mistake.”
He frowned. “The noble seer has no relatives.”
Aaand, double shit.
“My mistake.” I smiled and grabbed Tarron’s hand. “We’ll be going.”
Quickly, we strode through the crowd. Two guards appeared behind us, ready to frog-march us out if we so much as balked.
This wasn’t the plan.
We reached the bottom of the palace stairs, and each guard grabbed one of our arms. I glanced over at Tarron, and the sight was frankly ridiculous. He was far bigger than the guard, and still maintained the relaxed bearing of an all-powerful king.
He looked like he was letting the guy hold his arm as a favor.
Which, he kind of was.
My guard’s black uniform was as stiff as his voice. “This way.”
They turned us down a corridor that led past the side of the castle. It looked a bit like a service corridor, with the castle wall on one side and high hedges on the other. The castle windows were a good twenty feet above us, and I had a feeling we were walking along some kind of dungeon.
We were well out of sight and hearing of the crowd in front of the palace when Tarron and I met eyes. We nodded, then each of us stuck out a leg and tripped our guard.
Mine stumbled forward, and I whirled on him, punching him right in the nose. He reeled backward briefly, then righted himself and came at me. I ducked his right hook and hit him again, square in the middle of his face.
I gave it some extra Dragon Blood strength, and he collapsed backward into the hedges, totally unconscious.
I shook my hand. “Haven’t been in a fistfight in ages.”
Tarron was already kneeling on the ground, reaching for his unconscious guard’s embroidered belt, no doubt to bind his hands. “It’s good for the soul.”
I grinned at him. “Couldn’t agree more.”
I reached for my guard’s feet and dragged him out of the bush, then mimicked Tarron’s actions, binding my guard. Once they were bound and gagged, we shoved them deep into the hedges and straightened.
I brushed my hands off. “Ready to gatecrash?”
“Excellent idea.” Tarron turned to the castle and looked up.
I followed his gaze, eying the smooth castle walls. They glittered black in the dim light, extending twenty feet up to the first window that was covered in crystal glass. Icy blue light gleamed from within. Delicate black roses climbed on thorny vines up the wall, but they weren’t a great option for climbing. They’d tear my skin and my dress to shreds.
“Can you call on your wings?” he asked.
“I can try.” I practiced what he’d taught me, managing to call them forth a bit quicker than last time.
But they weren’t strong enough to carry me up.
Crap.
I looked at him. “No good.”
He gestured me toward him. “Come here.”
I moved closer as his wings flared wide behind him. He reached around my waist and pulled me toward him. I pressed full-length against the warm expanse of his muscles, and he lifted us into the air.
As we flew up, I called upon my Dragon Blood magic, slicing my finger and letting the black blood well. When we reached the glass of the enormous window, I swiped the blood across it for good measure and imagined it disappearing.
A moment later, there was nothing in front of us but air, and Tarron flew into the castle. We entered a huge hallway dotted with opulent silver lanterns and a rug that somehow managed to look like the night sky.
Tarron landed gracefully and set me down. I stepped back as he folded his wings into his body.
“Give me just a moment.” I called upon my seeker sense, hoping it would draw me toward the sacred pool.
Nothing happened.
I tried again.
Nope.
I shook my head. “I’m getting a vague sense that it’s that way.” I pointed down the hall. “But not much more than that. My seeker sense is normally a bit weak, but the pool might also be protected.”
“Likely protected. Come on.”
We headed down the wide hall, moving quickly to avoid seeing anyone. At the end of the hall, there was an archway that led right into the front foyer of the palace.
There was a crush of Fae within, all mingling in their finery.
I looked at Tarron and raised a brow. “Perfect.”
A small smile curved the corner of his mouth, and he nodded, proffering his arm.
I took it, and we strolled into the mass of people, quickly getting lost amongst the Fae. The main foyer was enormous, with a soaring ceiling and glittering chandeliers. Music trilled through the hall, something strange and haunting.
Midnight blue flowers bloomed along the walls, filling the place with the most amazing scent. Though many of the Unseelie had iffy-smelling magic because of their closeness to the dark arts, not all of it was bad. Something that I was continually noticing.
Tarron leaned down and whispered in my ear, making me shiver, “Some of them are looking at you as if you’re familiar. Doing double takes.”
“I know. It weirds me out.”
“You have no idea why?”
“None.” But I wanted to know.
The crowd was surging toward the exit, so we followed, eventually spilling out into a huge ballroom. A wide, sweeping staircase led down to a dance floor as big as a football field. Hundreds of Fae filled the space, dancing with a grace I’d never seen. The ceiling above was actually stars, open to the night sky.
The Unseelie were as nature-oriented as the Seelie, but in a darker way.
It was more beautiful than I’d expected.
> My gaze lingered on certain faces in the crowd. Was my mother here?
I shook away the thought. There was no time to dwell on that.
“What are your plans for finding this pool if you can’t get a good sense of its location?” Tarron asked.
“Not sure yet. Any idea how you’re going to figure out why they invaded your domain?”
“Find the queen. Confront her if I have an opportunity. Spy if not.”
I frowned. “Can you wait until I’m in the pool, at least?”
He nodded. “I’ll escort you there. Once you’re in, I’ll go find her.”
“Good.” I had a great vantage point from the foyer at the top of the stairs, so I peered around the room, looking for an easy exit.
This place was so big, how would I even know I was going in the right direction? I could spend hours looking, and in that time, someone could discover the bodies in the carriage and realize that something was up. “I’m going to find someone to ask.”
“Ask?” He raised a brow.
“Fine, enchant. Seduce. Beat the information out of. Whatever phrase you prefer.” I spotted a likely looking guard in a corner, near a small door. He looked bored and annoyed. “Wait here.”
Tarron found a spot near the wall while I drifted toward the guard. There were too many people on the landing where we stood. That was no good.
I sidled up to the guard and gave my voice a husky timbre. “Hello, handsome.”
His eyes widened slightly.
“I’m a bit…bored here.” I pursed my lips, going for a sultry frown, and ran my fingertip down the front of his jacket. “Are you?”
He frowned.
Okay, I was going to have to be more obvious. My tone of voice couldn’t make it clearer what I was after, but he was pretty damned dense. I ran a finger down the expanse of skin at my chest, giving him a suggestive look. It was painfully obvious and over the top, but he was a fan from the look in his eyes.
“I have this little thing I like to do at balls, you see,” I purred. “Start it off with a bang. And you look like just my type.”
“Madam…” His cheeks flushed.
“Don’t you have somewhere we could be alone?” I leaned up to whisper in his ear. “I promise to show you a good time. It’ll be quick. You’ll be back at your post in no time.”
He cleared his throat, then opened the door behind him. I slipped through, cutting my fingertip as I went, and he followed.
As soon as he shut the door behind him, I whirled on him, raising a bloody finger to his brow.
But he was fast as a snake, smacking my hand down. “What’s this?” he demanded angrily.
Okay, time for plan B.
I yanked a steel blade from the ether and pressed it into his middle. He hissed in pain, the steel obviously burning him.
“Tell me where the Sacred Pool of the Unseelie is located.”
His jaw dropped. “Why?”
“Tell me.” I pressed the blade deeper, making sure that it broke skin.
He grimaced, his skin turning slightly green.
“I will gut you slowly,” I said, making sure he could hear the relish in my voice.
“Fine, fine. It’s in the deepest part of the castle. You can get there if you go through the ballroom and out the door at the end. Then follow the hall to the right, going down.”
I peered hard at him, trying to determine if he was telling the truth. It was hard, so I pressed the blade deeper.
He gave a keening cry. “Fine! To the left. Go to the left.”
“Ah, hiding the lie in with some truth. Smart.” But I believed him now.
Except, what to do with him?
His magical signature was gross, for sure. Rotten cabbage, mostly. But it wasn’t downright evil. Not so bad that I could kill him and know that I was ridding the world of true evil.
Though the Unseelie had invaded the Seelie realm…
Had this guy?
“Did you have anything to do with the invasion of the Seelie realm?” I demanded.
“The what?” The confusion in his eyes was genuine.
Okay, then. Only some Unseelie were aware of what the queen was plotting.
I pulled my blade away from his belly and flipped it around, then knocked him neatly on the head with the hilt. He collapsed, unconscious.
I stashed the dagger in the ether and pulled out his belt, then tied it around his wrists. His fancy tie—totally unlike anything in the human world, with its complicated knots and bows—went around his mouth. Then I dragged him into a corner and brushed off my hands.
A moment later, I sailed through the door onto the ballroom landing, acting like everything was normal. No one seemed to notice anything out of the ordinary, so I found Tarron and joined him.
“Well?” He raised a brow.
“Got directions. And also, not all of the Unseelie know about their incursion into your realm.”
“So the queen is keeping it quiet.”
“Seems like.”
He nodded, his gaze thoughtful. “So perhaps the balance between Seelie and Unseelie isn’t entirely broken.”
“I thought you hated my kind.”
“Only some of your kind.”
“Hmmmm. We need to get to the other side of the ballroom.” I turned to look at the dance floor down below. The whole thing was a twirling mass of bodies. If we wanted to get through, we were going to have to dance.
Fortunately, they were doing something like a waltz. I wasn’t a bad dancer, thank fates.
I looked at Tarron. “Can you do that one?”
He scoffed. “Can I, King of the Seelie Fae, dance a simple waltz?”
“Okay, okay.” I grabbed his hand. “Come on.”
We descended the massive stairs to the ballroom floor, and I couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit like Cinderella. Except I was always fabulous. No pumpkins for me.
When we reached the bottom, Tarron swept me expertly into his arms, one hand at my waist and the other gripping mine. I rested my free hand on his strong shoulder, and off we went.
Music soared as he twirled me around the room. For the merest moment, I was carried away by the romance of it. Stars sparkled overhead, and the air smelled of flowers with only the slightest undertone of dark magic.
Sure, I was hunting my probably evil mother and trying to save my town from utter destruction. Everything I loved was on the line.
But for this one moment, I was a princess at a ball.
And it was fantastic.
Tarron was an incredible dancer, effortless and graceful. I wasn’t entirely familiar with the steps of whatever this was, but he kept me moving in a sublime rhythm that made me giddy.
By the time we reached the other end of the dance floor, I couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my face. We slipped out of the moving crowd and into a stationary one.
“You’re a good dancer.” Tarron looked at me with respect.
Hmmmm. So that was what the Fae liked. Dancing and fighting. The two weren’t that different, really.
“Not so bad yourself.” I grinned at him.
There were about a hundred people on this side of the floor, all of them milling around and talking. Tables of food and drink were set up along the edges, and the delectable scent of the fruit wafted toward me.
I turned, unable to help myself.
Bowls of gleaming red and purple fruits sat piled onto the tables. Their skin gleamed like jewels, and the scent wrapped around my mind and drew me toward them.
I left Tarron without a word, walking toward the delicious offerings without a backward glance.
I just had to try one of them.
Doubt tugged at the corner of my mind.
Was that a good idea? Wasn’t there something about Fae fruit? You weren’t supposed to eat it unless you wanted to stay forever?
I couldn’t quite remember.
A strong hand gripped my arm and tugged me to a stop right before I reached the bowls.
Annoyance surged in me as I turned.
Tarron frowned at me. “Don’t.”
“What? I’m hungry.”
“You’re not. That’s Fae fruit, and it will force you to stay here forever if you eat it. You’re a half blood, so it would likely work on you.”
I recognized what he was saying—agreed, even—but it was damned hard to resist the pull.
“That can’t be right.” I tried to turn away, but he pulled me harder. “Let go!” I hissed.
He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me toward him, tucking me against his side as he dragged me away. I nearly reached out for the fruit, I was so desperate.
“You’ll feel better when we get away from it,” he said.
I grumbled, but my struggles eased the farther away we got.
Finally, we reached the huge doors that led from the ballroom and slipped through into a wide, quiet hall that was empty of people. As soon as the doors shut behind us, the pull on me ceased.
I sagged against Tarron's side. “Thanks.”
He nodded. “It’s all right.”
“Why weren’t you affected? You’re not from this realm.”
“I’m used to Fae fruit, and it’s not so different from ours. You’ve never eaten it before. And it probably calls to you because it’s the fruit of your people.” As he said the last word, it was clear he was trying not to sound bothered by that fact. But he still was.
He trusted that I hadn’t known I was Unseelie. But he still didn’t like that I was.
Something shriveled inside me. I’d been forgetting our differences.
But they were still there.
As obvious as ever.
He was Seelie.
I was Unseelie.
My mother was involved with the invasion of his realm and the death of his brother.
And we were fated.
How the hell that was supposed to work, I had no idea.
“Let’s go.” I turned from him and started down the massive hall.
He caught up, but we didn’t speak. Instead, we moved swiftly and silently across the deep red carpet. The windows were made of crystal that glinted almost blue beneath the sharp white lights hanging from elaborate silver chandeliers. It was a cold feeling—nothing nearly as nice as his castle.
