“Find out who he plans to name his Hand of the King if he takes the throne.”
“Wouldn’t that be Rafe?”
“Rafferty is not on the council, so no. It will be someone else. Find out, and I shall get you those quarters.”
Huh. Bree wouldn’t have guessed Rafe wasn’t on the council. He certainly seemed to be the Prince’s right-hand man, but she also hadn’t really seen him interact with very many other fae. And she couldn’t help but wonder why. If Rafe was his first choice to train Bree, then why wasn’t he on the council?
“Alright, I’m on it,” Bree said. “But the second I get this information, you better give me that better room.”
Lord Dagen shot her a wicked grin, and then bowed before disappearing down the darkened corridor. As he went, his footsteps blended in with the sound of another set. Through the darkness, Bree recognized the approaching fae far before she ever saw his face. There was something so familiar and recognizable in Rafe’s gate. Confidence and strength. Pure power. It made her heartbeat pick up speed, trembling beneath her rib cage.
Rafe frowned as he strode down the hallway, casting a sideways glance as he passed Lord Dagen. When he reached Bree’s cell, the expression on his face was nothing short of angry.
“What was that cretin doing here? What did he want with you? Why was he down here alone with you?” His hands were fists by his sides.
“Don’t worry,” Bree said quickly. She didn’t want him asking too many questions about the Lord. While she didn’t mind spying on Taveon and couldn’t care less what the Prince would think about her betrayal, she didn’t want Rafe to find out. She didn’t want to see the look on his face when he discovered it. She had a feeling he’d take it like she had betrayed him, maybe even more than the Prince. “He didn’t do anything untoward. Besides, I wouldn’t have let him if he’d tried.”
Rafe unlocked the cell door and strode inside, standing tall before her with dangerous eyes. “What did he want, Bree? You cannot expect me to believe he just came down here to gaze at the merchandise?”
She flinched and took a step back. Rafferty had never spoken of her that way, at least not that she knew of. As if she were the Prince’s property. As if she truly were his slave.
His face immediately softened when he saw the look in her eyes. “I am sorry. I did not mean it that way. That is just how someone like Lord Dagen would view you.”
“Yeah. And I certainly didn’t think you saw me that way, too.”
“Bree.” He loosed a breath. “I don’t. I am sorry. I just got angry at the thought that Dagen was in here with you, poking and prodding and doing who knows what else. I have heard stories of what some Court members do with those they consider slaves. It is not pretty.”
Her cheeks flushed. “He was doing nothing of the sort.”
“Of course not.” That bright smile of his finally crossed his face. “I imagine you would not make it particularly easy on him if he tried.”
“No.” She grinned. “I wouldn’t.”
“Good.” A pause. “How are you feeling? Are you ready to train?”
Bree had never been more ready in her life.
Chapter 16
Dagen
Bree Paine was something else. She was certainly unlike any female Dark Fae that he’d ever encountered, and she was even more unlike what he’d imagined a Redcap shapeshifter to be. He shouldn’t have gone to visit her again, not until she’d given him the signal that she had some information for him. It had put everything into jeopardy, particularly when Rafferty had walked by in that moment.
He didn’t think Bree would reveal to Rafferty why he’d been there, but he couldn’t be certain the roguish raven hadn’t overheard their conversation.
He would have to be more careful next time.
Dagen strode through the corridor, picturing the look on Bree’s face when he’d tried to ask her some questions about what she’d found. She’d been unhappy, to say the least, and she hadn’t seemed pleased to see him back after such a short time.
Miserably, he stared down at the carpet. He was starting to think his dumb little plan to get close to the most beautiful fae he’d ever laid eyes on was about to implode on him in a terrible way.
Dagen had never felt the way he’d felt when he had first laid eyes on Bree that day when Taveon was walking her through the hallway. She’d been so fierce.
So fierce and so angry.
He’d thought that she would enjoy a chance at freedom, a chance to get back at the Prince for what he’d done to her. Taveon had ordered his guard to shoot her. Dagen still could not wrap his mind around that horrible fact.
But she didn’t seem happy about the spying at all.
He’d only been trying to help her. He’d only been trying to find excuses to get close. If he approached her in public, Taveon would get suspicious and try to drive him away. The Prince had never trusted Dagen, even though he had tried his worth to talk King Midas away from some of his most horrible decisions.
In the end, Midas had a mind of his own and he never listened to a single advisor.
It had been a losing battle with him, and Dagen could only imagine that his son would easily follow in his father’s footsteps, especially seeing the way he treated Bree Paine now.
“Speak of the devil,” he muttered under his breath as Taveon strode down the hallway, his face set in a grim line.
The two males passed each other, giving curt nods that did little to hide the way they truly felt. Indeed, Dagen wanted what was best for the realm, and another King Midas was far from the best. While he’d gone to Bree to get close, he would gladly take any harmful information she could find.
The realm deserved a better King.
Chapter 17
Bree
Bree had decided she would do her best to find the information that Lord Dagen wanted. Prince Taveon was being unreasonable, especially after everything he had done to her. There was no reason why she had to be kept in a tiny cell and forced to eat prison food. There was no reason why she had to endure horrible punishment. He was a gorgeous asshole and that was that.
So, why did it feel as though she was trying to talk herself into it?
He was right on time for their morning walk, and she was waiting for him for once. She’d chosen that deep purple dress he’d given to her that first day, hoping to reignite that spark in his eyes.
But he was in a mood this particular morning, and that was saying something. Somehow, he managed to be even more scowly than he usually was.
“Come on,” he grunted as he yanked open the door and motioned for Bree to join him in the stone hallway. He didn’t even glance at her as he did it, too focused on something inside his own mind.
“Someone must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed,” she said as she sailed out into the hallway with the dress billowing behind her.
“Ah, and there you would be wrong,” he said. “There was no bed in my life. I did not get to sleep last night at all.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Why? Is something wrong?”
He seemed to notice her for the first time, and he paused as his eyes caught sight of her. It was then that she could see the full weariness on his face. Those sunken eyes, the purple rings around them. Even his shoulders were a bit stooped, as if he carried the entire weight of the realm on his back.
“You are wearing the dress I brought you.” The weariness dimmed for just a moment.
“Yes.” A pause. “Though, technically, all of the clothes I have are the ones you brought me.”
“Yes, but that one...” His cheeks filled with color. “Well, it is different from the rest.”
How odd, Bree thought.
Bree wanted to pry a little more, but she knew it was probably best to save the real needling for the question she truly needed answering. If she could find out Dagen’s information, then she could get out of her hellhole of a cell. And she could have a window. Oh, how she yearned to see the outside world, even if it
never did see sunlight.
When they reached the top of the stairs, Bree cleared her throat and motioned at the end of the hallway they normally avoided. Every day, they took the exact same path. Bree had memorized every turn, every painting on the wall, where each guard stood and what he looked like. It was information that might come in handy later, even though she wouldn’t dare attempt an escape, not when she was worried Taveon might invade her realm in retaliation.
“How do you feel about going a different way today? Maybe we could go somewhere with some windows? I feel like I’ve been cooped up in here for years.”
Taveon merely frowned. “I am afraid that way would lead toward the barracks, and some of those males might take offense to you. Word has spread that you are some kind of shapeshifter, and they are wary of fae like you. They do not like knowing that there could be spies out there, disguised as animals.”
A seed of guilt sprouted in Bree’s gut. Little did he know that spies could sometimes be disguised as slaves.
But that was ridiculous. She owed him no loyalty, not after everything he’d done to her.
“Surely there must be a way for me to see the outside world.” Bree decided to try another tactic. “Even if it isn’t on our walks. Maybe a different room? I think we’ve agreed that I’m not going to run. There’s no reason to keep me in a cell.”
He let out a sigh. “Bree. I am far too weary to have this old argument again this morning. And if you insist on carrying on about it, then I would much rather end our walk now.”
She bristled as they continued to stride down the old familiar hallway, the only one she’d seen inside this entire monstrous castle. “Fine then. Let’s talk about something else. I saw the Hand of the King earlier.”
“Rafe told me.” Taveon scowled. “Lord Dagen. Stay away from him. He was a supporter of my father, which means he is nothing but trouble.”
But of course he would say that. The Prince probably knew that Dagen would love to see anyone but Taveon on the throne.
“I guess that means that you won’t choose him to be your Hand, then,” Bree said, tiptoeing a little bit closer to the question.
Taveon cut his eyes her way, his shoulders tensing. “You suddenly seem very interested in Court business. What happened to your disdain of everything within this castle?”
Bree sighed and shrugged, trying to remain as nonchalant as possible. “Well, you know, I guess I’ve figured that I’m stuck here for awhile. And you keep dragging me around the halls trying to explain things to me. I figured I should probably learn what’s going on. If I’m going to be stuck here forever, I might as well understand it.”
“Stuck here.” He frowned. “Yes, I suppose you are stuck here.”
“You act like that’s an insult.” She glared up at him. “When you’re the one who has imprisoned me here.”
Irritation practically rippled off Taveon in waves, his tightly-coiled muscles tensing that much more. So much for avoiding another argument.
“Very well. What is it you would like to know, Bree? To make your time stuck here with me more bearable?”
Was he seriously offended by that? She wanted to laugh at how ridiculous he was being, but she knew that would only piss him off even more. Bree had a sneaking suspicion that someone like Prince Taveon hated being laughed at. In fact, she was certain he would take it as a great excuse to end their walk right here and now, before she’d had a chance to get her information for Lord Dagen.
“Just more about how your whole political thing works,” she said with a shrug.
“Okay,” he said slowly. “I will answer one question of yours per walk. In return, you will answer one question of mine.”
Her heart thumped hard. That...she wasn’t particularly fond of. So far she’d done her best to hold her cards as close to her chest as she could. She didn’t want her mortal enemy to know any compromising information about her or anything that could help him understand the best way to cause her pain.
But one little question surely couldn’t hurt.
And if it got her out of that cell...
“Deal,” she said with a nod.
“Good.” A ghost of a smile flickered across his face. Just that slightest of expressions struck her deep within her core. He looked so much different when he smiled. He was practically blinding in his beauty when he did so. She blinked those thoughts away when he continued speaking. “I shall go first. My question is this. Why did you no longer wish to be human and become a Light Fae instead?”
“Gee, start with a tough one, why don’t you?” she snarked, but her heart flickered strangely in her chest at the question. It was one she’d asked herself a million times. And one she’d never been able to answer. Not fully, at least. She hadn’t even truly understood what she’d been doing when she left her human self behind to become fae. She’d just...hoped for it, in a way. And it had happened.
“That is my question,” he said firmly. “Answer it, and I will answer yours.”
She puffed a sigh, and did her best to put words to the strange feeling inside of her. “I was never satisfied in the human realm. I always felt as if there was more out there. Somewhere. Though I knew nothing about magic and fae and portals that led to stranger worlds. All I knew was that I never felt settled. I never felt right. But as soon as I stepped into Otherworld, I felt...home. I felt like I belonged even though my entire world had been tipped upside down.”
And that was the truth, every single bit of it. A part of her wished she could take back her words. Opening up to Prince Taveon seemed like the worst idea she’d ever had, but he didn’t laugh at her and he didn’t scowl. He only nodded like he understood.
“I appreciate your candor. Now, your turn.”
She stopped to gaze up at him. She had the chance to ask any question in the world. He’d tried to see further inside her mind and her soul and her heart, and she wanted to do the same. Just to understand how he ticked. What made him so angry, so cruel?
But instead, she opened her mouth and said, “If you do not want Dagen as your Hand, who will you choose?”
Prince Taveon blinked at her. “Out of everything you could possibly ask me, you wish to know who I intend to make my Hand?”
“Yep.” She swallowed hard and glanced away. Surely he would see through this. He had to know that she never would have asked this on her own.
“I will name Branok or Conlan as my hand,” he said slowly. “I will not name Dagen, for reasons I have already explained. And I cannot name Rafe as he has never taken part in the political side of our Court. The Hand must be on the council, and he is not.”
“Right,” Bree chirped with a bright smile. “Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out then.”
Taveon’s jaw rippled, and he stared at something just beyond Bree’s shoulder. “I must be getting you back to your cell now. Today’s time together has come to an end.”
Bree tried to think of something to say as they walked back toward the dungeons, but her mind went blank. In fact, she’d been the one who had shut down the conversation. Not that it mattered, she told herself. She didn’t need to know what made Prince Taveon tick. It had been a stupid game, one she’d only engaged in to drag an answer out of him.
She would get her better quarters now. She just wished she could muster up the energy to be happy about it.
“I’ve found out your information, so now I need you to take me to my new room.”
Dagen raised his eyebrows. “I see you can work quickly when you are properly motivated.”
“So, about that room,” Bree said as a response.
“Tell me what you have learned, and I will get your quarters sorted.”
“No.” Bree shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “You will get my room situation changed, and then I will tell you what I know.
“You really do like to make things difficult. Do you not, Bree Paine? I can see now why Prince Taveon has found it so difficult to control you.”
Bree frowned. “I am not his to control. And I’m not yours to control either. I am my own person, thank you very much.”
“Yes, yes.” He waved his hand, smiling. “Do not worry. I shall give you your new quarters.”
Lord Dagen unlocked the cell door, giving each end of the corridor a quick glance before motioning for Bree to join him. He’d gotten rid of the guards somehow, but she imagined it wouldn’t be long before they returned. Not that there was anything they could do to stop them at this point. Dagen had been the Hand of the King, and he was now the most senior member on the council. His word was law, at least until the next ruler ascended to the throne. If he wanted to move Bree to another room, there was nothing anyone could do to stop it.
He led her up the stairs, down another corridor, through another archway, and further along a hallway that was carpeted with swirls of reds and blacks. By her estimation, they were in the same building as they’d been in before, but as far away from the dungeon entrance as they could be.
Or at least she thought so. This place was a maze, one she knew she could easily get lost in for months if she went prowling around in the wrong direction.
“These are your new quarters.” Lord Dagen pushed open a door and motioned Bree inside.
There was a single bed pressed up against a stone wall, and it was positioned between two windows that looked out on the world below. Through the foggy glass, the moon glowed bright and silver in the inky sky. Bree let out a long breath of relief, one so soul-consuming that her entire body relaxed at the end of it. She could see outside. The air coming in through the cracked window was fresh and cool and flowing with the scent of pine.
It was a small room, with only the bed and a small oval table tucked into the corner. But she didn’t care. This was practically a five star luxury resort compared to where she’d spent the past couple of weeks.
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