"Well, when stacked up against a man who would happily flay and burn me, I think you are relatively not scary."
"Don't let him hear you say that. I'd never get the throne if he heard of so much weakness within me."
"I don't think kindness is a weakness," I told him, holding in a groan as the berry broke apart in my mouth. Was it possible for things to taste purple? Because it tasted purple. And ripe. And perfect. One day, I would grow my own blackberries. Make a day of picking it with my children, eating so many we'd get belly aches, then taking it home to preserve as jam for the colder months.
One day.
When I got out of this place.
When I was safe again.
It was a harsh reality to realize that once I was back behind the veil, I would never again be able to leave it. I would only ever be safe behind it. And, I had a sneaking suspicion, the truth would be the same for not only Drake, but also Smoky and Sal. If the Dark trackers had their scent, they might never be safe. Especially if I got away. They would be tortured for information about my whereabouts. And even though I knew I could trust them with that information, the idea of them being tortured and killed for not getting it would be too much to bear.
Would the elders let them in as well? Would they even come if they were allowed? Sal had a huge family. Smoky valued her freedom above all else.
Maybe Sal's whole family could seek asylum in the Light Court.
But that left Smoky still stubbornly on her own in The Green, thinking she didn't need anyone but herself.
"What has that look on your face?" Jet asked, brows drawn low.
"I was thinking..."
The sound of the door flying open, sailing and cracking against the wall cut off my sentence, made my heart lodge tightly up in my throat.
"Father," Jet's voice said in a somewhat bored tone even without looking over to see if that was, indeed, who it was. Then again, I guess when you were a prince, not many people would have the audacity to charge into your room that way.
"What is this?" the Dark King's voice demanded.
Cass was, well, not exactly what you would expect from an evil, brutal, half-mad man.
For starters, he didn't look old enough. Maybe somewhere around my parents' ages with dark hair, handsome features, a solid, but thin build, and the honey-brown eyes that both of his children had clearly inherited.
He just seemed like a man.
Maybe a rich, powerful man by the way he carried himself and spoke. But just a man.
It was interesting how wrongly you could judge someone based solely on their appearance.
"That, father, would be my fiancée," Jet said, tone still holding that bored sound, like his father's demands were a bother. "Imagine my surprise to find she was tossed in the cellar like some prisoner. You should see her ankle," he added, tisking as his head swiveled to his father. "It is most unbecoming of a Dark Princess now."
"It will heal," Cass said, brows going low in what seemed to be confusion. "I wasn't aware you would be open to the idea of having her in your chambers before the wedding."
I didn't know him well enough to understand the odd tone his voice had taken on, but Jet's chin lifted a bit defiantly.
"I figure if I am being forced into marriage not of my own choosing, I should at least enjoy my privileges whenever I wish."
"And you're not opposed to this arrangement?" Cass asked, tone disbelieving.
Across from me, Jet's eyes seemed to tell me to tread carefully.
"I figure it is not my virginity that has sealed my fate here, but rather my connections."
Jet's eyes danced a bit, letting me know I had chosen the right thing to say. It was something these men shared, it seemed, a desire to be spoken to bluntly. But, I imagined, with Cass, it was a much thinner line to try to toe.
"Your mother claimed you were meek and obedient," Cass told me, brow raised.
"My mother never had much use to spend time with me. She's hardly the best judge of my character."
"Indeed," Cass agreed, nodding. "Well, son. Enjoy your privileges. But don't create an heir until after the wedding. One bastard in the family is enough."
With that, he left as suddenly as he appeared, closing the door firmly behind him.
"Two," I said under my breath, annoyed on Jet's behalf even if he was part of my captivity as well.
Jet's smile curved up, but didn't meet his eyes. "Be careful with that tongue, Amethyst. If you want to survive, you need to know when you use it to slice, and when yo use it to spill compliments and subservience."
I snorted at that, plucking a grape from the tray. "I have never really needed to watch my tongue. It's never run away with me in the past."
"We must bring it out of you."
"It must be your charm," I drawled, dragging a small chuckle out of him. "Just so we're clear, there will be no having of privileges while I am here."
Jet's head ducked to the side a little, watching me. "You've lost that virginity you just flung in my father's face," he observed, making me stiffen. "Don't try to deny it, I can practically smell the sex on you. Who was it? The Salamander? The lower female?" he asked, eyes dancing a bit at that prospect. "Or the unknown?"
"Does it matter?"
"Not particularly."
"Then I see no need to answer."
"In another world, Amethyst, I think you and I may have gotten on well," he declared, rising from his seat, moving toward the door. "There's no need to bolt this behind me. No one will lay a hand on you now. You're free to walk around. But make no moves toward exits," he told me, voice getting more serious than usual. "You need to appear like you plan to live out your life here. Don't look for opportunities until I tell you to."
Not having anyone else to trust, I had to blindly put my faith in this man who would stand by and watch me be tortured to death.
Life was full of strange choices, I guess.
"Okay," I agreed, reminding myself that I could bide my time, play a part.
Because I knew what was at stake.
My life.
My future.
The one I wanted to build with Drake.
It was worth a few fake smiles, some dinner conversation with a man who wanted to kill my brother and use his own daughter.
I could pull it off, bide my time, wait until Jet decided the time was right.
And then I would free myself.
I would find my way back.
And I would spend the rest of my life trying to put all of this behind me.
ELEVEN
Drake
"No," Smoky snapped, her surprisingly strong hand curling around my arm, yanking backward, forcing me to stop.
"What the fuck do you mean, no? I have to find her," I snapped, yanking my arm free, charging forward only to have Sal step in my way.
"Listen. This is not the way. What do you think you are going to do? Charge into the Dark Court all by yourself, and demand to have her back? Think here. You aren't going to do Amy any favors by getting yourself killed."
They weren't wrong.
I needed to be smart, to be rational.
The problem being, it was impossible to be smart and rational when the woman you loved was in the grips of Dark trackers.
When my feet had hit the ground to find her gone, I knew immediately what had happened. I had smelled them all around.
Smoky had come upon me first, swinging down from a tree while I frantically, irrationally called out Amy's name, hoping for some kind of response, a direction to go in.
Sal had come upon us just a few moments later, demanding details.
"The only way you are getting her back is with force," Smoky declared, shrugging.
"We aren't exactly a fearsome threesome," Sal shot back, shaking his head.
"I didn't mean us. I meant them," she declared, meaning heavy in her words.
My kind.
More specifically, my kind in Draca form.
Talk about force.
Dozens of fire-breathing
, winged creatures storming into Dark land.
It would be enough of a shock to have the guards shocked inactive. For just long enough, I'd hope, for me to find Amy, get her out, and get her back behind the veil before anyone knew our intentions.
The problem being, I would need them to agree.
And for them to agree, I would need the counsel's permission to even ask them.
"They'll never agree."
"Make them," Smoky demanded, waving an arm out back toward my land. "You are wasting time here that is better spent hauling ass back to your land to at the very least try to get them to agree. If that fails, we will think of something else. But if you don't ask, the answer will always be no."
Not needing more than that, I turned and ran, aware of their feet pounding the ground behind me, somehow keeping pace even though it seemed like I was running at warp speed.
I reached the veil hours later, night already weighing darkly on the woods.
Without giving it any thought, I grabbed Smoky and Sal's wrists, dragging them through with me at a dead run.
I was only somewhat aware of the shock and worry on the faces as I tore through the square, focused on the building before me, where one of my oldest friends and my biggest foes would be sitting, talking about silly, mundane, unimportant things while who-knew-what was happening to Amy at the hands of the Dark Court.
"What is..." Foren's voice called as we stormed in.
His old, weak voice was drowned out by the strong, worried one of Kieran.
"What happened?" he demanded, chair scraping then tumbling to the floor with how fast he stood.
"They took Amy," I forced out, finally remembering to release Smoky and Sal's wrists.
"Who?" Drayven asked, voice surprisingly strong. Worried, even.
It was no surprise to me that Amy had managed to win over almost all the members of my clan in record time. Borena, Foren, and a few stubborn, old tribe members had been the holdouts.
But the majority of the Draca had managed to see what I did in Amy. Her sweetness, her loyalty, her willingness to adapt, pull her own weight. She'd pitched in on every tribe activity she could, all the while doing so with a smile on her face.
She was light and goodness and warmth.
Everyone leaned into it.
Except, of course, for two of the elders before me.
"Dark trackers," I supplied, heart squeezing tighter in my chest.
"How do you know?"
"We could smell them," Sal declared, fearless in front of so many unfriendly faces.
"And you are?"
"This is Sal. And Smoky. I've told you about them."
"And you just brought it upon yourself to bring them here without permission?" Foren asked, grouchy, tone sharp.
"I'm sorry if I am not thinking straight because my woman has been fucking kidnapped!" I roared, the sound ear-piercing even when it bounced back at us off the empty walls.
"You are understandably upset," Aurelia's voice consoled, holding a hand out. "But we need you to try to remain calm. Not doing so is only going to drag this out. What did you come here for?"
"Help," I snapped. "Reinforcements."
"You can't possibly think we would allow you to take our men and women to the Dark Court," Borena said, rolling her eyes at the very idea.
"Actually, that is exactly what he thinks," Smoky snapped. "And if you dusty old fucks would get your head out of your own asses for two minutes and see what spineless shits you are being, maybe you would nut-up and help."
To my other side, Sal snorted.
But in front of me, Foren and Borena went almost purple with outrage as Aurelia ducked her head, embarrassed.
It was Drayven who held Smoky's gaze for a long moment before turning it to me.
"This is a member of our clan," he said, voice strong. "We are obligated to hear out his plan before we put it to a vote."
So they heard me out.
And they forced us out of the building, wasting precious fucking time debating things when we should have been storming out of there, getting Amy out before something happened to her.
"Breathe, Drake," my mother demanded, always having the uncanny ability to be calm in chaos. "You won't help the situation by passing out from lack of oxygen. I am sure the elders will make the smart decision."
Judging by the raised voices I could hear even from outside, I wasn't quite as confident as she was.
Above all of them I could hear Kieran's roar of rage, determined, it seemed, not to be outvoted again, not to keep the tribe in their stubborn old ways.
"I'm not saying to force anyone, but if some of us want to volunteer, that should be our right!" Kieran's voice was still roaring what seemed like hours later, the owls already nestled silently in trees, suggesting morning was almost upon us.
"Damn straight," Smoky agreed, pacing back and forth in front of me, oblivious, it seemed, to the way everyone was staring at her, wondering about her.
Sal was easy.
Sal was something they understood.
But this wild woman who screamed at the elders and had weapons strapped to her thigh, she was a mystery. And if there was one thing that was fascinating to those used to the same old thing day in and day out, it was a mystery.
"What?" she snapped, clearly having enough of being looked at - this woman who always wanted to be left alone.
"It's nice to see a new face," Tsar told her, shrugging, leaning back against the side of one of the houses, unabashedly raking his eyes over her.
"Keep eye-fucking me like that and I'll rip them out of your skull," she shot back with a sickeningly sweet smile. "Are you seriously going to stand here gawking at me when Drake's woman is stuck in the Dark court having fuck-knows-what done to her? That's the kind of men you are?" she asked, directing her anger at Tsar simply because he had been the one speaking to her.
"There are rules," he shot back, but lost some of his usual bravado.
"Rules," she snorted, pacing a few feet, mumbling to herself like a madwoman. "Rules. You're fucking fire-breathing hell beasts of lore, but you are being held back by some antiquated rules set up by some noodle-spined elders?"
"Easy," Drayven's voice called, loud and close. He'd managed to sneak up on us.
They all had, I realized as I turned to find them standing there, all various forms of angry or embarrassed.
"Easy? Now is hardly the time to be easy, elder-man," Smoky shot back.
I felt my lips tip up humorlessly, glad that she was on my side rather than against me.
My eyes sought Kieran, finding a muscle ticking in his jaw, but unable to determine if it was because he was pissed, or just remnants of his anger from the argument.
"We will not force anyone to do anything they do not wish to do," Drayven said, tone raising so those around us could hear. "Many of you do not understand the risks of leaving our land, going out beyond the veil. We have survived because no one knew we even existed, because no one can find us. Leaving here could be a suicide mission. It could put you at risk. It could put all of us at risk. But," he added when both mine and Smoky's voice opened to object. "We have also come to recognize that not everyone here continues to support the ideals our society agree to many years ago. That is an issue for another day. Many other days," he specified.
"What are you saying, Drayven?" I asked, voice hardly more than a growl, frustrated, antsy, sick to my stomach.
"I am saying that if you have some men or women who would like to help you, they are free to do so. With the understanding that if trouble follows you, you may not lead it back here."
As if anyone would want to put the whole clan at risk, all the innocent children.
"If you go out there, you are on your own," Foren added, defeated, but too prideful to admit it. "We will not come for you. We will not save you from whatever fate might befall you."
"Like your dusty old ass can save anyone," Smoky mumbled under her breath, making Sal knock his hip into hers to tell her to b
ehave even as he fought the smile on his face.
"We ask that mothers of small offspring do not volunteer," Aurelia's voice rose up. "Or sole caregivers to someone elderly. And, of course, elders will be forbidden."
My gaze went to Kieran, understanding the ticking in his jaw.
"Otherwise," Drayven concluded, "you are free to go with Drake should you wish." With that, he, Aurelia, Borena, and Foren turned and left.
"I'm coming," Kieran declared immediately after they were out of earshot. "Fuck my position on the council."
"You have no idea what that might mean for you when you get back," I reminded him.
"Some things are worth the possible consequences."
One.
That was one.
Smoky turned, pinning her focus on Tsar. "You. With all the testosterone and posturing. Are you coming?"
"You gonna ride on my back, babe?"
Two.
Even if she wouldn't, he was coming. If for no other reason than the bragging rights he would use to get women into bed when we got back.
"Been dying to get into the outside world," another voice raised, someone I didn't know, young, but old enough.
Three.
"I don't have any small children," my mother declared, stepping forward.
"No, me," my father decided. "The girls still need you," he added, giving her a warm smile.
Four.
A trio of chest-puffing young men were next.
Seven.
"Eh, fuck it, sounds like fun," a woman declared, stepping forward, her fire-red hair making me momentarily wonder how I had missed her before. Younger than me, surely, but definitely old enough.
Tsar's eyes lit up, making it clear there was at least one woman in the clan who had resisted his charms.
Eight.
"Could use a story to tell my grandkids," an older man decided, shrugging as he stepped forward.
Nine.
With me, ten.
Ten dragons storming the Dark Court.
We could block out the sky.
It would be just the distraction we needed.
"Cowardly lot," Smoky decided quietly, just loudly enough for me and Sal to hear.
"They're used to their ways," Sal defended them.
Escape From The Green Page 22
