by Ivy Clyde
“I told him on our way here.”
“Come inside and have a seat,” I said. “You both must be tired.” Noticing Rowan’s adamant expression, I added a soft “Please.”
They followed me inside, glancing in every corner of the modest cottage. I let them be while pouring wine in two wooden goblets for them. They both needed to understand there was nothing to worry about. We were all safe here.
“Who was that woman?” asked Rowan as soon as I turned around to hand them their goblets.
“She is Lucia and the person impersonating as the heir to the throne of Amaris.”
“What?” he gasped. “Impersonating?”
“Sit down and I will explain.”
Rowan glared, looking like he had no patience for any of my explanations.
“Settle down, Brother,” said Leon, taking a seat beside me on a low wooden stool. He accepted his wine from me and took a sip. “Apparently, there is still much to learn about Coran. Let’s hear about that first.”
Rowan looked torn but his curiosity won. He sat down in a chair opposite us.
“Start with Coran,” said Leon. Even though there was a slight smile on his face, his amber eyes were grim. He was trying to help me get through to Rowan. Warmth spread through me and I felt more confident in myself.
“Coran has been in touch with Vishen,” I said. “The attack in his manor was orchestrated. Those men who were blasting up the place were sent to bring me back to Vishen.”
Both Leon and Rowan’s expression froze.
“What does Vishen want with you?” asked Leon in a low voice.
“Coran told him about how Desiree and her two friends died,” I said. “The description of the attack got Vishen interested in me. He wanted to find me and see whether I was really someone related to the royal family of Amaris.”
“Cade said no one knew about this incident other than the two of you,” said Leon.
“Deirdre was able to guess it was Moira,” said Rowan in a quiet tone. “She was the one who sent Desiree after you. She truly believes you were responsible for her death. I believe she confided in her father and Coran sent the details to Vishen.” Rowan’s gaze slowly filled with rage as his fingers tightened around the goblet. “But can you believe how he’s been in touch with Vishen all this time?” he roared, flinging the goblet away, spraying the floor with wine.
“I know,” said Leon but he was calmer. “Their companionship can’t be a recent one.”
“No,” I said. “They were both involved in my parents’ death.” Rage, hot and swift, flowed through my veins at once. “They are plotting together to destroy the royal families of both kingdoms. They don’t want peace between Aelia and Amaris and they certainly don’t want people of both kingdoms to live in peace and prosperity. They just care about power. Nothing else matters to them.”
“We won’t let Coran go free for his treachery,” said Rowan. “He is already imprisoned in the dungeons. As long as Cade doesn’t betray us, he will never see the sun again.”
“What has Cade got to do with this?”
“We left him in charge,” said Leon. “He also doesn’t know about your true parentage. I decided not to tell him until he proved his loyalty to us.”
“Cade won’t betray you,” I said at once.
“I won’t risk anything when it comes to you, Moira,” said Leon.
“I agree with him,” said Rowan.
Something King Drustan told me on a cold, breezy night came rushing back to me. He said all his sons were wearing masks but that keeping them on for too long would make them forget who they really were. Cade hadn’t forgotten his true nature or intentions but his brothers were having difficulty separating his real personality from the fake one.
“Cade will never do anything against us,” I said. “Still, I am glad you’re both here even if he couldn’t make it.”
“Let’s go back now,” said Rowan. “There is no need for you to stay here.”
“No. I have to stay here and make the same happen for Vishen.”
“I understand your need for revenge,” said Rowan. “But you’re not strong enough to go against a person like Vishen just yet. Let’s go back to the palace and let us help train you. Once I take the throne, I will help you get you your throne back.”
I shook my head. “There is no time to waste at the moment. Did you know it hasn’t rained in Amaris for over three years now? The people are so poor here. There is barely anything to eat anymore. They need me to make things right.”
Rowan and Leon glanced at each other and to my surprise, went completely silent.
“Did that woman tell you these things?” asked Rowan after a while.
“She showed me. If there is something I can do to help them, I definitely will. They are my people, after all.” Taking a deep breath, I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I always felt so out-of-place in the human realm, not knowing there was a world that had a place for me. There is so much suffering here. I have the power to make things better. There is no way I would abandon my people at a time like this. I will do whatever is needed to help them.”
“That woman told you about the sacred chambers buried under the palaces?” asked Rowan in a quiet tone.
“Yeah,” I replied. “I have no idea whether I’d really be able to make it rain in Amaris but I’ve got to try.”
“You will be able to do it,” said Leon. “Direct heirs of the kings can control the magical portal. Divine power flows through our veins and can be channeled into these mysterious contraptions.”
“Are you saying you guys have something similar in Aelia?”
“Yes,” said Rowan. “We can control the seasons using the portal in the underground sacred halls of the Sun Palace.”
“So, you understand how important it is for me to be here,” I said. “My people need me.”
“The gates to the Moon Palace must be heavily guarded,” said Leon. “The sacred halls are even more secure. No ordinary person can enter there. You need soldiers to break in there for you.”
“Lucia will help me get in there,” I said. “She is looking for a way right now. We will do things quietly so Vishen doesn’t get a whiff of what we’re up to. She is pretending to be the heir to the throne, so has some power in the palace.”
“Who exactly is she?” asked Rowan. “How can you trust her?”
“She is from one of the clans here,” I said. “Her family had ties to the old kings of Amaris. If she wanted to hurt me, she could have done so already or handed me over to Vishen. Instead, she agreed to take my message to you guys and bring you here safely. She has no intention of harming me.”
“I still don’t trust her,” said Rowan in a grim tone.
“You don’t have to trust Lucia,” I said. “Trust me.”
His silver eyes gazed at me with a mix of concern and longing.
“I will stay here with her,” said Leon when the silence between us stretched too long.
“What are you talking about?” said Rowan.
“Let’s face it, Rowan,” said Leon. “First, we need to bring down both Vishen and Coran and prove their disloyalty to both the royal houses. Second, Moira needs to get back her inheritance. She is the rightful heir to the throne of Amaris. Can you imagine a world where she is ruling Amaris while we rule over Aelia? We can create history and bring peace to our people. Together, we can eliminate the treacherous nobility that has become so greedy and power-hungry, they’ve forgotten their real duties.”
Rowan’s gaze turned fiery.
“Let’s help Moira,” said Leon.
“Lucia plans to weaken the nobility from deep within,” I said. “We start with Vishen and the rest will automatically fall like dominos. If her plans work, there will be no loss of innocent lives.”
Rowan fixed his gaze on Leon. “This means we stay back here with Moira while leaving the reins of Aelia to Cade.”
“Cade will have enough time to prove himself,” said Leon. “We’ll know what’
s in his heart once and for all.”
A minute passed while Rowan stayed in deep thought. “All right, then,” he said after a while. “We will stay here and help Moira.” Getting to his feet, he moved close to me. Leaning down, he wrapped his arms around me while I stayed seated on my chair. “You are not alone anymore, love. You are no longer unwanted. Your people are waiting for you.”
Leon grasped my hand and squeezed it gently, his amber eyes swirling with warmth. “We are waiting for you. I and my brothers won’t let anyone stand in our way from being together.”
My heart swelled with warmth at their words. The small flame of hope that Lucia lit inside me turned into a raging inferno, removing all doubts and insecurities from my mind.
I was not a powerless, abandoned girl anymore. My parents loved me enough to sacrifice everything for me. Their magical cores pulsed with the beats of my heart. I had three strong mates who were ready to fight by my side. Lucia’s beautiful face flashed in my mind. I had her too.
I felt ready to face the man responsible for my father’s death. Neither he nor Coran would get away with their crimes.
Warm lips touched my lips and neck. My eyes fluttered closed as warmth seeped in through the fabric of my clothes as Rowan and Leon pressed against me.
“I have missed you,” Leon whispered in my ear.
“I am so glad you’re safe,” said Rowan.
“Let’s get some rest,” I said. “We’ll have a lot to talk about when Lucia returns.”
Rising from my seat, I looked toward the bed in the corner. The cot was large enough to hold two grown men.
“I’ll be able to slip between you two,” I said, feeling warmth rising to my cheeks.
Leon chuckled as he lightly grazed my cheek with the back of his hand. “I won’t have it any other way.” He glanced at Rowan. “What do you say, Brother?”
“As long as I have her by my side, I am ready to sleep on the floor.”
I laughed at that.
Suddenly, it felt like the clouds hovering over me shifted. Their silly banter was all I needed to feel better. I missed Cade terribly at that moment. He would have something funny and equally embarrassing to comment on the situation.
My heart squeezed for him. He was going through a test himself, proving himself to his brothers and his father. It wouldn’t be easy to go against his own mother but that was one personal demon no one else could fight for him. This was solely his choice to make.
8
Moira
We woke up late in the afternoon the next day. There was plenty of wine bottles in the cottage but barely much to eat other than some dry oatcakes. Not wanting to get drunk while they were cooped in a strange hut in the middle of nowhere, Rowan and Leon only ate the oat crackers.
“When will that woman return?” asked Rowan, gazing out through the windows. “What if she doesn’t return at all? How long are we supposed to wait?”
“She will return,” I said. The opposite scenario made me too uneasy to even consider. Lucia was spying on Vishen, the most powerful and cunning man in Amaris at the moment. If he found out who she truly was, he wouldn’t think twice about killing her.
“You’ve only known her for a day,” said Leon, pulling me onto his lap.
“It hasn’t really been that long since I’ve known you,” I said, looking up at him. I twirled a finger around a lock of his long, crimson hair. “I still trusted you. No matter how mean you were, I decided to give you a chance.”
Leon smiled, his dazzling beauty taking my breath away for a moment. Leaning down, he pressed his lips to mine in a gentle kiss. “Thank you for that, my heart,” he whispered against my lips. “I can no longer imagine a life without you.”
He dragged me among the pillows and pounced on me. A wild giggle escaped me as he pinned my wrists over my head. His amber eyes were lit up with mischief.
“How can you be in such a playful mood, Leon?” asked Rowan from the corner. “What if this whole thing was a ploy to bring us here so Vishen could finish us all off?”
Leon closed his eyes and lowered his head in the crook of my neck. A long breath gushed out of him, warming my skin. “And I thought I was the creative one in the family,” he whispered. “Rowan can write a thrilling adventure novel filled with intrigue and plot twists all on his own.”
I couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped me.
Rowan’s gruff grunt made me shut up though.
Pushing Leon away from me, I climbed off the bed and walked toward the window. “She will come back,” I said. “My magic trusts her. She makes me feel the same as you. Even when you were a stranger to me in the underground Troll Bazaar, I knew I could trust you.”
“You have a point,” said Leon, coming to stand beside me. “That time you appeared in my secret chambers, I was ready to kill you without even seeing your face, but my magic went against me. Even the thought of harming you made my magic hurt me.”
My eyes went wide. “You wanted to kill me?”
“No one was ever able to break through my barriers,” he said. “I thought you were a spy for the queen.” His beautiful face crumpled in an expression of pain and regret. “I am sorry, Moira. Forgive me for even thinking of hurting you.”
I moved closer to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. Laying my face against his hard chest, I whispered to him. “Once this is over, you will never have to hide who you are. You will proudly show off your talents to the world. Your paintings will be famous in all the fae realms.”
“She is right,” said Rowan in a grim tone. “We don’t have to hide and be covert about every single aspect of our lives. We won’t have to fear anyone or hide the ones we love.”
“We won’t have to hide our relationship from the world,” I said but at the heels of that joyful thought, came another worry. “I already feel like Queen Brenna dislikes me. Wonder what your mom will think of me,” I said, facing Leon.
“Mother will be happy to meet you,” said Leon.
“She will be happier to see her own son and husband first,” said Rowan coldly. “Once I take the throne, I will strip the queen of her powers. She can’t keep threatening you and Lady Ingrid. You’re her son. You have the right to visit her and your father anytime you please!”
My fingers wrapped around Leon’s hand, squeezing tightly. Even though he stayed quiet, I could see the pain in his amber eyes. He held me closely but as he gazed at Rowan, a determined look came over him. They were both ready to fight and break free from the oppression of the queen and her gang of nobles.
We talked back and forth, speaking of the present and how we were ready to change things in the future. This was the first time I was able to speak so openly to Rowan.
Soon, the sun dipped below the horizon. My stomach groaned from hunger. Leon and Rowan had already finished every crumb of the oatcakes. Just as I was beginning to worry about Lucia, the tinkling sound of a hundred bells rang out in the cottage.
“What’s that?” asked Rowan, jumping to his feet at once.
“I’m sure it’s Lucia,” I said, running to the front window to check. Lucia’s feet landed in the clearing near the cottage. Her massive wings fluttered gently at her side before disappearing from view.
“Lucia is a sky elf?” gasped Leon, pressing his nose against the glass pane of the window. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
“You never asked.”
“Rowan, the woman is a sky elf!” Leon shouted excitedly.
“How old are you, Leon?” asked Rowan with an exasperated expression on his usually grim face. “It’s not the first time you’re seeing one of their kind.”
“They’ve always fascinated me,” said Leon with a grin.
Rowan shook his head. “Don’t let this put you off your guard.” He turned toward the door. Leon rolled his eyes at him, making me chuckle.
The door was pushed open from the outside. Next moment, Lucia appeared before us carrying a heavy sack. I rushed to her immediately and eyed her from head to
foot, checking for injuries. A relieved breath escaped me when I saw she looked the same as before. There were no tears in her clothes or any visible injuries on the exposed parts of her body.
“I’m sorry about being late,” she said, walking further inside the cottage. She placed the small sack on a table in the corner and turned to face us. “There has been an interesting development which can help us in our mission.”
“What do you mean?” I asked at once.
“I will tell you but first, you must eat.” Turning around, she dug into the sack and brought out loaves of bread, blocks of cheese, bunches of fat, purple grapes, and handfuls of walnuts. “You must have been hungry all day.”
“What about you, Lucia?” said Leon. “Did you have time to eat while you were foraging for us?”
Surprise flitted through her eyes as she looked at him.
“Come eat with us,” I said, catching hold of her arm and pulling a chair for her. “You must be more exhausted than us.”
Lucia looked slightly stunned as I started cutting a loaf of into thick slabs while Leon started slicing the cheese. Rowan stayed silent but joined us as the small table.
“Thank you,” said Lucia when I handed her a cheese sandwich.
For a while, the four of us were absorbed in eating the fresh food Lucia brought. The meal was simple but delicious and filling.
When I was full, I went to the corner where Lucia stored crates of wine bottles. Picking two from the stash, I went back to the table.
“What news did you bring?” asked Rowan as I poured wine into four wooden goblets.
Lucia met his steely gaze but showed no signs of being intimidated. She sat straight, facing him without showing any weakness. A kind of fierce pride swelled in my chest. I loved how strong she was. While I loved Rowan, it gave me greater pleasure to see him failing to intimidate Lucia.
“There is a way to infiltrate Vishen’s manor but we’ll have to act fast,” said Lucia.
“How?” I asked, sitting down in my chair.
“Vishen’s niece was supposed to come and stay in his manor,” said Lucia, glancing at each of us. “She is about the same age as you and is the daughter of a distant relative. Her father wanted to use Vishen’s influence to get her married to a wealthy nobleman. On the way, she eloped with one of her guards. The few servants who accompanied her have also fled, leaving behind the carriages still filled with their mistress’s clothes and jewels.”
