Grave War

by Price, Kalayna

  I wasn’t sure why I hadn’t taken the ring off yet. I would soon—probably very soon—but right now every time I caught sight of it, a wave of terror rushed through me, but also some other feeling, something warm and fluttery that I wasn’t ready to examine. Both would stop once I took off the ring. And I would do that as soon as I was out of the shower and had a safe place to store it.

  “What do you mean by ‘not exactly’?” I finally asked.

  Falin glanced at me from over his shoulder, his face that careful neutral he tended to show the world. It wasn’t an expression he typically wore when we were alone, and I didn’t like it. That meant he was hiding his thoughts, his feelings. He turned into the water, rinsing the soap from his back, and then retrieved the bar from me, motioning me to turn so he could return the favor and wash my back. I did, reluctantly, and as soon as I was facing away from him, he spoke.

  “I don’t think Faerie made it, just retrieved it from wherever she tends to hide it. I believe that is the winter consort ring, but it hasn’t been seen in centuries, so I’m not certain. I’d have to consult some texts, or, I suppose, anyone in my council would know. Faerie wouldn’t accept any of the consorts the former queen attempted to take. I believe Maeve was the last to wear that ring, before the former queen won the throne.” He set down the soap and wrapped his arms around me, drawing me against the length of his body. He leaned down, his lips grazing across my neck, lifting goose bumps on my flesh despite the warm water and steam all around me. “If you remove it, Faerie will likely reclaim it and there is no guarantee it will reappear in the future, if you do decide to be mine one day.”

  Shit. I trembled, glancing at the ring. The official consort ring, apparently. Except I wasn’t the consort. Falin’s lover? Sure. Without a doubt. But I was still unsettled by the term “girlfriend” at times. I was not committing to “consort.” Besides, I was totally not the magical or political backer Falin needed to hold the winter court in peace.

  But did I dare take off the ring and lose the possibility forever?

  “This isn’t a priority right now,” I whispered, more to myself than to him, as I dropped my hand. Out of sight, out of mind. Well, maybe not, but I certainly had much bigger issues to worry about. “Are fall and spring sending fighters to help in the duels with light?”

  Falin turned off the water and shook his head. “No.” He handed me one of the fluffy white towels hanging beside the shower. Wrapping it around me was like being engulfed in a warm cloud. “Both agreed to hundred-year truces with any court who challenged light, as well as safe passage to our fae trapped in the mortal realm, but neither committed any of their people to our cause.”

  “That’s bullshit. Don’t they care that their courts are also in danger if Faerie breaks?”

  Falin shrugged and then leaned forward to towel-dry his hair. I couldn’t help watching him with lustful appreciation. It didn’t matter that I was still sated from our earlier lovemaking, or that I was inwardly freaking out about the consort ring, or that I was pissed at the other courts, worried about my father and the independents, or scared of what Ryese might have accomplished since I escaped his trap . . . I still watched Falin’s naked body.

  “They have no real incentive to send anyone. If we succeed without them, they benefit. If we fail, well, they still have their best fighters in reserve and we’ve—hopefully—weakened light.” Falin straightened and tossed his towel on one of the hooks to dry.

  True. Not helpful and rather selfish of them, but it fit with what I knew of Faerie courts.

  “And what about shadow? Do you trust them?” Their entire court was staying in winter. That seemed . . . risky, what with Falin being a new king and the shadow court crumbling.

  “Trust?” Falin turned, and by the look on his face, he’d totally noticed me checking him out. He smiled, the expression all male and knowingly satisfied. Then he crossed the space between us, wrapping his arms around me. “No. But we have a binding truce between our courts. As long as I am King of Winter and either Nandin or Dugan is King of Shadow, then they will take no malicious actions against me or mine nor I against them or theirs.”

  I nodded as he leaned down and pressed a kiss against my neck. Which was rather distracting, but something about the truce he’d mentioned bothered me. “So then what happens if the shadow court falls and there is no king?”

  His lips stilled, the soft tickle of his breath all that was left on my shower-damp skin. “We had best make sure that doesn’t happen.”

  Right. So it was a loophole, and he knew about it.

  Falin straightened, looking into my eyes. “Honestly, I’d gladly cede the winter throne to Dugan—from what I know of him, I think he’d be a decent king and he has the strength to rule. But I can’t risk handing him control of you.” He lifted a hand and ran the back of his knuckles down my cheek.

  I leaned into his touch. “Why isn’t running away and leaving all the Faerie drama an option?”

  “Magical dependency.”

  I sighed. Yeah. That. We’d both end up fading.

  Falin kissed me, a sweet and deep kiss that eased the weight of our conversation, and as my hands moved to his chest, sliding up to his shoulders, I was reminded of the fact that he was stark naked and I was in only a fluffy towel.

  Things might have gotten a little more interesting, but a voice in the main part of the room called out, “Sire, are you available?”

  Falin made a small annoyed groan as he broke off from me. “It appears our time is up,” he whispered, then he turned toward the opening that separated the bathroom from his bedroom. It wasn’t actually a door—likely because doors in Faerie were far too temperamental—but more of a cutout that denoted the separation between the two rooms. “I am here, but do not enter.”

  “Sire, the shadow royals are awaiting you in your private dining hall.” The voice was male and sounded like it belonged to Lyell, a member of Falin’s council. “The planeweaver has a guest inquiring about her as well.”

  My stomach clenched because there were not many people in Faerie I wanted to see. Really there was only one person, and he presently had his hands on my waist. Well, actually, that wasn’t completely true. I wanted to see my brother, but I suspected he’d been grouped in with the “shadow royals,” as I’d never seen him without Nandin. It seemed unlikely Lyell would mention him separately. So my thoughts immediately jumped to Ryese and his minions. By the way Falin’s fingers tightened where they pressed against my hips, I guessed he was of the same mind.

  “Who is it?” I asked.

  “I did not ask the young lady’s name, but she is a changeling accompanied by a barghest who assured me in no uncertain terms that she is a close and personal friend of yours.”

  “Rianna!” Her name emerged as an excited squeak as twofold relief rushed through me. One part because it wasn’t an enemy looking for me, and the second part because that meant she was safe and really had made it to the winter court. “Where is she?”

  “May I come in the room? This is an awkward way to have a conversation,” Lyell said, sounding miffed from where he stood behind the large privacy screen just inside the doorway to the bedroom.

  “No,” Falin said without hesitation. “Answer her question.”

  A sigh escaped around the privacy screen. I wouldn’t actually claim to like Lyell, but I tended to like him best out of the courtiers I knew. He seemed a little more genuine than most of the courtiers I’d encountered.

  “I will show the young lady to the private dining hall as well, if the planeweaver will be accompanying my king to breakfast.”

  “That will be fine,” Falin snapped. “You’re dismissed, unless there is something else?”

  “No, Sire. I will also be awaiting you in the dining hall. In the event you wish the advice of your council during today’s deliberations.”

  As in, the council had caught
wind of the fact that we were planning to take the fight to light and they wished to be heard on the matter. Falin’s lips tugged downward, just a fraction. He hadn’t missed that fact either. It wasn’t exactly a challenge to his authority, but it pushed the line. At the same time, he was a new king and advice from more experienced fae was worth at least hearing.

  “We will discuss the council’s presence when I arrive. Dismissed.”

  Lyell said nothing else. There was no sound of a door shutting behind him or anything obvious to me, but after a moment or two Falin gave a small nod.

  “He’s gone,” he said, dropping a soft but chaste kiss on my lips before turning to walk into the bedroom proper. “We should dress and head to breakfast.”

  I followed. I was eager to see Rianna, but there was one big problem . . . “Uh, you vanished my pants. I don’t have anything to change into.” If Rianna was here, so was the castle, which meant my clothes were somewhere in the winter court. The problem was getting to them. Waltzing around in a towel searching for a missing castle seemed like a bad idea. Of course, I could probably pull the girlfriend card and wear one of Falin’s shirts . . .

  “If I had to guess,” Falin said, stopping in the middle of the room, “that is probably your wardrobe.” He pointed to a tall armoire off to one side of the bed.

  The armoire wasn’t made of ice, which in this court was almost surprising, but then, most of the furniture in Falin’s private rooms was constructed of more traditional materials. The wardrobe in question perfectly matched the one on the other side of the bed, both being a pale wood that looked blanched more than painted, just like the bed frame.

  “I’ve never seen that armoire before in my life,” I said, frowning at it. I did actually have a somewhat similar armoire in my castle—it had come with the place when I’d inherited it—but mine was dark wood, not light.

  “Neither have I. Which is why I’m assuming Faerie added it for you.”

  Oh. I glanced from the pale armoire to the ring on my finger. Faerie had given me the consort ring. It wasn’t a stretch to assume she’d start moving my stuff into Falin’s room. I crossed the room and pulled open the two large doors.

  I’d expected to find that Faerie had relocated my clothes. Not so much. While I tended toward a lot of jewel tones and black, these clothes were all pale. Blues so light they were nearly white. Soft silver. Pale gray. True white. Several gowns hung in the main portion of the armoire. Not as frilly as what the former queen wore, but certainly fancier than I would normally wear. The built-in shelves held more reasonable clothing, but still in those pale colors. There was even a pair of boots identical in style to the ones I always wore, but these were pure white.

  “Uh . . .” I stared at the clothing.

  Falin had dressed while I pawed through the clothes, and he stepped up behind me now, surveying the new wardrobe.

  “Faerie plans to dress you in my colors, apparently,” he said, and I could almost hear the unspoken apology in his wincing words.

  I blinked, realizing he was correct. These clothes were all in the palette Falin seemed to prefer. It made sense. Faerie had decided I was the winter consort, and now she was tying me visibly in with Falin and the court. I wasn’t sure exactly how I felt about that, but one thing was certain, anything beat wandering around in only a towel. I did open my shields briefly to ensure wherever the clothes came from and whatever they were made of, they were rooted deeply enough in the reality of Faerie that they wouldn’t vanish on me—my clothes popping out of existence and leaving me unexpectedly naked the next time I reached across the planes was not on my bucket list.

  I slid into a pair of white leather pants that were butter soft and fit me like a glove. The top I chose was pale blue with silver threading and while it had some light boning, I could still move freely. Considering I had no idea what the day might hold, clothing that would not constrain me seemed important. I added a long-sleeved white shrug, since the top left my arms and shoulders bare and it was winter, even if it didn’t exactly feel like it inside Faerie. There were even gloves in a small drawer, and I pulled on a pair, expecting them to snag on the snowflake gem on the ring, but the magic ring was, well, magical. Despite the fact that I didn’t take it off, the ring ended up on the outside of the material, sparkling prettily on my finger.

  I frowned at it, but I didn’t attempt to remove it. Not yet. If the decision might be irreversible, I wasn’t going to just yank it off because I had commitment issues. When we had more time, Falin and I would sit down and have a very long conversation about it.

  I glanced at the white boots slouched at the bottom of the armoire, and while I had no doubt they would fit perfectly and be even better quality than my normal boots—everything I was now wearing was finer than anything I actually owned, right down to the lacy panties—I decided to grab my old tried-and-true boots instead. They’d been with me through a lot and I’d earned all of their scuffs. Of course, black boots against white pants made for a rather stark contrast, but I was going with it.

  I sheathed my dagger in my boot holster, and then I had nothing left to do to get ready or prepare. We might be heading to breakfast to reunite with Rianna and coordinate with shadow, but I had no doubt this day would lead us to taking the fight to Ryese and the light court.

  I totally didn’t feel ready.

  Chapter 28

  Al!” Rianna threw her arms around me as soon as I stepped through the doorway of the dining hall, nearly knocking me backward. It was a good thing Falin was only one step behind me, or her enthusiastic greeting might have sent me stumbling right back out the doorway.

  “Hey, Ria,” I said, accepting her embrace. Like most people, Rianna’s skin was just a touch too warm for comfort. I hugged her anyway. I wasn’t typically a touchy-feely type, but I’d been worried about her and she’d obviously had her own concerns.

  Technically, Rianna should have dropped into a curtsy when the king of the court had entered the room, and over her head, I could see the members of Falin’s council dropping to respectful positions, but Rianna and Falin had both been living in my castle with me until he’d become king, and his elevation in status had apparently been forgotten in her relief at seeing me. I spotted Dugan and Nandin in the room as well. They didn’t bow, of course, but they inclined their heads ever so slightly in Falin’s direction as he stepped around me to take in the room. Brad stood beside Nandin, his hood down so that I caught a glimpse of his face before he sank into his own respectful bow. He looked pale to me. Maybe that was from living as a changeling in the shadow court, but based on the purple circles ringing his eyes, I got the feeling he was still weak after the massive amount of magic he’d expended to open the door that brought me to Faerie. I felt a twinge of guilt over that but returned my focus to Rianna.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” I said, giving her a friendly squeeze. “How did you find out I was here?” Not that I was trying to keep it secret, exactly, but considering Ryese had a ransom on my head, it would be good to know how far the news of my arrival had spread.

  “I knew you must have found a way into Faerie as soon as I saw the roses.”

  I pulled back from the hug, staring at her. “The roses . . . ?” She couldn’t mean the snowflake roses, could she? The ever-present snowfall had returned to its normal snowflake design by the time Falin and I had gotten out of the shower. But the flowers had just been in our room, right?

  The look she gave me said no, not in the least. She took a step back, her hand falling to the head of the barghest at her side, a self-comforting habit she had when she was nervous about something.

  “Uh,” she said, dropping her gaze from mine. “Snow roses falling from the sky about half an hour ago? Seemed, uh, rather romantic.”

  Shit. So Faerie had decided to broadcast the news all across the winter court that Falin and I had finally had sex. I didn’t exactly care if people knew I was shagging
my own boyfriend, but still, awkward. And did Faerie plan to announce it every time we had sex? That would get real old real fast.

  “Have you been okay? Getting pulled to Faerie with the castle didn’t hurt you?” I asked, changing the subject. With the sudden awkwardness, I found myself fidgeting, my hand lifting as if of its own accord to swat at a curl that had slipped into my face.

  “I’m fine. I’m no stranger to Faerie, and Desmond has been with—” She cut off, her eyes going wide. Then her hand darted out, catching my gloved fingers from where they’d caught in my curls. “Al, is that an engagement ring?”

  I realized a moment too late that I’d lifted my left hand, and that Rianna was now staring at the consort ring on my finger. I hadn’t taken it off—yet—but I hadn’t expected anyone to notice it, at least not within the first two minutes of me entering a room. Now everyone was noticing because Rianna wasn’t exactly being subtle, and I could feel as gazes locked onto me. Inquiring about an engagement ring might not normally have garnered quite so much attention, but everyone in this room knew I was dating the king.

  Falin had stepped around me once it was clear Rianna’s embrace wasn’t going to bowl me over, but now he stopped, turning to glance back at me over his shoulder. He didn’t say anything, but cocked one pale eyebrow. I couldn’t tell if his expression was asking how I wanted to play this, or just curious to see what I would say, but it was clear he was leaving this ball in my field.

  “Uh . . .” Shit.

  “That can’t be,” Maeve said, taking two steps toward me before stopping short, still several yards away. “That’s the consort ring.” Her voice was a harsh whisper, but it seemed to resonate around the large room.

  “Sire, this is something you should have discussed with your council—” Lyell started, and then fell silent, as if suddenly remembering this was not a private council meeting and we had two shadow royals in the room.

  “It’s, um . . .” Well, I couldn’t exactly say it wasn’t the consort ring. “Faerie did it.”