Treachery

by E. A. Weston

  “Sounds nice,” I manage and swallow against the sting of tears.

  “Yes, he was a very kind fairy, just like my father. They looked alike but Killian had our mother’s summer blood, which made his skin brown in the sun. He had black hair and was very strong. Do you know he was chosen to become a warrior for Avalon? It was a great honor to be chosen. My father was so proud of him of his one and only son…”

  Her voice trails off as tears fall from her eyes. Climbing off the bed, I walk over to her and wrap my arms around this fragile fairy. I can feel her bones through the clothes she is wearing and it hurts me to see Killian’s sister like this.

  “I am truly sorry, I fear I have become a blubbering fairy.” She says, wiping her face with her hands.

  “It’s okay, I miss some people too. I know what it feels like.”

  “Thank you, Reagan, I may sound strange, but I just know I can trust you.”

  “You can, I promise.”

  With one last smile, she stands to leave and tells me she will visit with me again tomorrow. After she closes the door behind her, I find myself crawling back onto the bed, Killian’s bed. My life has changed so much over the last few months and I’m not even sure of who I am anymore. My body aches constantly and now my brain is being fried with fairy drugs.

  I’m tired.

  I don’t know how much longer I can hold out for.

  I just want to go home.

  * * *

  I’m not sure how long I’ve slept before the mean fairy returns with new clothes for me. She just drops them to the bed and leaves again. Climbing into the bathing pool again, I allow the water to swallow me up, and the heat to penetrate my muscles. Surfacing, I lay my head back on the stone floor. My body is shrinking, I can see the bones in my wrist begin to protrude from the skin and the ache in my body is getting worse.

  Climbing out of the water I pick up today’s clothes and shrug on a dress made of soft satin. It’s red with gold decorating the neckline but just like all the rest, it’s almost see through. Walking out of the room I find Brokk waiting for me in the sitting area.

  “Morning,” he smiles as he holds out his elbow for me to take.

  “So what is in store for me today? Whipping, drugging?” I ask and refuse his elbow.

  His handsome face elongates with his frown. “Why would think such things?” he asks.

  “Never mind.”

  I follow him out of the door and down the long circular staircase, passing by long hallways off two different floors. I wonder what it was like for Killian to grow up here if he ran through these halls and up the stairs. Brokk leads me into the large room where the tables are all lined up again. Most of the fairies give me curious glances but some of them downright stare as I pass. Brokk pulls out a chair for me to sit.

  “Thanks, kid,” I smile at him.

  “Kid,” he scoffs then sits next to me.

  I watch the fairies as they eat the bread and fruit from in front of them along the tabletop. My stomach hurts from hunger but all I manage is the sweet bread.

  “You really should try something else,” Brokk announces piling some fruit onto my plate. “Please, just take a small taste.”

  Rolling my eyes, I reach for a piece of red fruit that looks like a darker slice of watermelon. I really hope it tastes nice and stays down. Lifting it to my mouth I bite into it, feeling the sweet juice flow over my tongue. The texture is like an orange, though, Brokk smiles at me as I chew and swallow.

  “Okay, that wasn’t too bad” I agree and bite another bit. After I have sampled three different types of fruit, I am finally feeling a little better. Brokk just watches me with interest as I eat.

  “Is there something on my face?” I ask.

  “No,” he smiles.

  “Then stop staring at me,” I reply.

  “I can’t,” he shrugs and tilts his head a little. “I have a feeling that we will become good friends.”

  His whisper catches me a little off-guard as I look at him. I’m not sure what to make of his statement but I decide to keep my mouth closed. Turning away from him I allow my gaze to travel to the top table, where Aurelia and Connor are seated. She looks a little ill sitting there but she nibbles on the food as she did the other night. Connor is in deep conversation with the fairy beside him, both of them looking a little eager.

  Once breakfast is over, I am escorted to a room on the second floor where I wait with another fairy. He is standing by the door behind me not saying anything but looking mean all the same. The chair I’m sitting in is soft and delicate, in front of a wooden desk, which is stacked with books. The door soon opens, revealing Connor. He strides into the room and sits behind the desk. He says something in his language causing the fairy at the door to leave.

  “So, this is a treat.” He announces with a calm look in his eye.

  “What is?” I can’t help but ask.

  His eyes travel over my face and down my neck to my chest. I can feel my skin begin to crawl under his gaze and try not to shiver at the feeling.

  “We have some good news,” he begins. “It seems that one of my guards was on duty in the forest of lost souls, on the day you appeared.”

  I do my best not to swallow the lump forming in my throat. I can’t ever let him know that Killian came with me. I can only imagine what will happen to me, or him.

  “Really?” I eventually ask.

  “Yes, he glimpsed another fairy too,” he tells me keeping his cold black eyes on me. I just return his stare, what else can I do?

  “Yes, I told you I met him when I woke and he took me to the beach.” It’s hard to keep my voice steady but I have to, I have to get through this lie.

  “I fear that you are telling the truth, human. But as the prince of this realm, I cannot allow you to leave.”

  I feel like I have been punched in the gut as I nod at him, “why? I just want to go home.”

  “It is not allowed, humans who have glimpsed the fairy realm do not…live to tell of it,” he smiles at the end of the sentence with a gleam in his eye that screams of sinister motives. “However, my princess seems to be taken with you,” he continues. “And I must confess it has been an age since she has smiled, so I have agreed to allow you to be her pet. You will be moved to the servants quarters and will begin to serve the princess.”

  “Excuse me?”

  His eyes glaze over again and the blackness has no end his scowl is one of cruelty, “as I have said, human. You will serve my princess if you do not wish it then I will have you put to death.” He snarls. I don’t have a chance to open my mouth when the door swings open and the guard hauls me out of the seat. He drags me down the stairs two levels and pushes me into the kitchen. He barks at the woman standing staring at him, with a nod of her head he turns to leave. I’m standing in the kitchen of the castle with all eyes on me.

  The female fairy who had answered the guard walks over to me and gives me a small smile. It’s not kind or unkind but sympathetic, nodding her head towards the sinks she leads me over. The plates and dishes are piled high, full of crusted food and scraps.

  “What?” I whisper. She doesn’t say anything but points to my hands then the sink and walks away. I almost cry, I’m not against washing dishes or anything but this just seems cruel. With a heavy sigh, I look around for a trash can to scrape off the crap from the plates. A younger fairy is watching me with a curious gaze and I look back with what I now feel in my heart.

  Emptiness.

  Chapter 12

  After spending hours washing the dirty dishes, without any form of dish soap, I am finally allowed to sit down. All the fairies of the kitchen staff are sitting over in the opposite corner to me. They are laughing and smiling while eating their meal. I have a small loaf of bread and a cup of water, provided by the younger fairy boy who was staring at me.

  Once our food break is over, I watch as they begin to prepare what looks to be the diner. One of the male fairies slaps two heads onto the large table and I can�
�t help but retch. With a snort he begins to laugh at me, the young boy takes my hand and brings me over to the side where a barrel of some kind of purple thing is. He takes out one and begins to peel the purple skin off, revealing a light purple inside. He then puts it into a large basin filled with water. Once he is done, he hands me the knife and walks away.

  Grabbing a stool, I pull it over to the barrel making sure to make the scraping noise as loud as I can and sit myself down. If I’m to peel this stuff, then I can damn well sit while I do. I’m not sure how long I peel the purple potato; well that’s what I’m calling it. Although it feels more like a mango but purple potato it is, my back aches even more than it normally does. The male fairy that had the animal heads earlier walks over to inspect my work and grabs the barrel away. I watch him pour out the water and dump my purple potatoes into the giant vat with the animal heads.

  The door is open to allow the cold night air inside but it makes little difference in the temperature. The sky is now a dark blue almost purple as the night begins to settle, my hands are wrinkled and stained from the food. The young boy approaches me again, I’m guessing he is the one that drew the short straw and has to deal with the human. He points to the door and waves me after him. Once outside I take a deep inhale of the night air, he pulls me toward a long brick building with wooden doors all along it. He opens the very last one and gestures me inside. I’m not sure I want to go in but he waves again looking a little impatient for someone so young.

  Stepping through the door, I almost fall down. The room is small with a cot type of bed against one wall and an oil lamp sitting on top of a wooden desk. There are some clothes on the bed but not the type I have been wearing, no these are dull gray and not in the least bit see through. The door behind me closes, leaving me alone in this new cell. My body trembles as my wall finally crashes down and tears pour from my eyes.

  Crawling onto the scratchy bed, I sob and sob until my throat hurts and my body aches even more. My ribs pain me from crying but I can’t seem to stop the flow of tears. I used to tease Killian about him sounding like a medieval knight but what I wouldn’t give to hear him again, to get out of this place and run far away from this castle. By the time the sun rises I haven’t slept at all and I know my eyes are puffy and red from crying all night. The young fairy boy opens my door and points to the kitchen.

  “Go away,” I mumble to him and turn my back.

  He shakes me hard and turns me over to him, “you must work,” he says in perfect English.

  “You can talk my language?” I whisper with a dry throat.

  “Yes, but you must not tell,” he answers and I nod. “Now come, you must work,” He says again before running out of my cell.

  Dragging myself out of bed, I change into the gray clothes and walk out into the hot sun. I find the kid waiting by the door with another barrel and two small garden forks. He motions for me to follow him and we walk down a path to what I assume is the garden. When he stops, he hands me a fork and we dig up the vegetables. The sun is hotter than it was at the beach or even in the Tenebrosi camp. It beats down on us and I am sweating so hard in these stupid clothes.

  Once the barrel is full, we drag it back to the kitchen. I am allowed to eat and drink water now, which I guzzle down like it’s going out of fashion. The main fairy chef, speaks to the kid, and he nods in return then looks at me with a sad expression. Grabbing another empty barrel he pulls it back outside and I follow him back to the garden. We dig up more vegetables but work silently. My mind is empty I can’t bring myself to think of anyone or anything. I know if thoughts begin to enter my head I will break down again and this time, I may not come back.

  After a day in the hot sun, I eat the meal that has been put in front of me. I don’t care if I throw it all back up in ten minutes, just the physical activity of eating is better than anything I have done today. The meat is tender and melts on my tongue but I don’t give myself time to enjoy it too much in case it all comes back up. After dinner, I wash the dishes well into the night before I am allowed to go sleep.

  It’s at night I allow myself to think, to think about Alex and Jake. The life I am missing out on, the life I agreed to give up. I can still feel the ache in my chest from the bond Killian and I share but each day the ache lessens and I wonder if it’s him forgetting about me. If he has decided that one human is not worth the trouble compared to trying to get back his kingdom. Does he feel this ache too and know that I am not forgetting him but trying to survive in a world that I don’t understand.

  The moon glows outside of my cramped living space. Opening the door, I allow the light to enter the room. Seeing it, up there, shining like a beacon stirs my soul increasing the ache in my body and heart. Thoughts of Killian are front and center as I whisper to the moon and hope he can hear me.

  * * *

  “You are the light that guides me

  That shows me the way.

  You are the love

  That shines through my heart.

  You are everything I need

  To keep me safe.

  You are my moon

  * * *

  And you are my stars

  I take your love.

  To hold with my own

  To give me strength when I am alone.

  You keep me safe

  In all that I do.

  * * *

  You are my moon

  And you are my stars.”

  Chapter 13

  Killian

  * * *

  It’s been a week now since Reagan has been kidnapped. A week since I have sent scouts to far off lands looking for allies. A week since Samiel stumbled into camp beaten and broken and a week since I lost my mind. I can feel the bond slowly beginning to fade, the pain in my chest lessens each day, but the fear of losing it entirely makes me ache even more.

  Each day I train, just as dawn breaks, I am on the field waiting to spar. Most of the fairies are afraid of me but I am not about to give up. I am not going to sit back and wait to see if my true love is alive or dead. Avery didn’t understand at first but now I think he gets it, he knows that my love for Reagan can’t be broken by time, distance, or even death.

  She is mine and I am hers.

  My eyes stare at the moon as it shines in the dark sky, reminding me that I cannot give up, that I will not give up. I remember when I first saw her, dancing in the club. My breath was stolen just from a glimpse of her eyes, the move of her body set mine on fire, and I miss her terribly.

  “You look lost my brother,” Avery says.

  “No Avery not lost, just remembering,” I answer.

  “We will find her Killian.”

  “I know, I have no fear of that, Avery. I will travel to the ends of the realm to find her and marry her. She will be your queen, brother, I swear on the Goddess she will be back in my arms safe.”

  “Queen? I don’t know how the realm will feel about a human queen,” he sighs.

  “I do not care, Avery, this is my birthright, and I will take it back. She is my true mate and I will marry her. Any fairy that feels differently will have to get over it. I’m tired of fighting against myself. I’m tired of putting others before myself. I’m not being selfish. No, I am doing what my father would want me to. Take back my kingdom and marry the person I love.”

  Avery sighs again as he stands, “you always have my sword brother.” He says before walking away. I watch him retreat to his house and fall back onto the grass. I can feel the tension in my body coiling, waiting to break lose and find her. But I have to be smart, I have to not only do, what my father would want me to do but I have to be who he would want me to be and that is king.

  I have to think like a king and put my heart aside for now but never forget the reason that I plan to storm my home this soon. To actually be back at the castle will be like reliving that day all over again. The sounds, the screams, and my mother's voice begging me to do what I did. Run, run like a coward. How could I have left my home the way I did? I s
hould have fought harder, fought instead I chose to leave, but never again.

  I will fight.

  I will win.

  I will be king.

  Chapter 14

  Reagan

  * * *

  This past week working in the kitchen has been horrible. No fairy talks to me and sometimes when a different one enters they snarl at me. Keeping my head down is all I can do. I decided to stay fit and began my exercise routine a few days ago. Each morning I wake before the sun and force myself to do fifty sit-ups and fifty push-ups. My arms aren’t in too bad of shape thanks to Samiel and his beach training.

  Even the young fairy boy has noticed my biceps since I now carry all the barrels when I can. The digging in the vegetable garden is useful too and helps to keep my stamina up. This morning while I am finishing my push-ups I hear stomping in the courtyard. Peeking out of my doorway I notice fifteen guards in five rows of three, they look menacing. All dressed in black with their cold black eyes. Not Killian’s, his still hold the stars.

  I watch as Connor strides out of a doorway, he too is dressed in all black. They have swords strapped to their backs and march in unison. It’s a sight to behold causing my heart to sink a little, how can Killian go up against such fairies. The fairies in the training camp are full of goodness and love but these look like cold-hearted killers. They leave the courtyard with a thunderous beat as they stomp their way below the archway.

  Once they have gone, I sneak out of my room and begin my run around the garden. Each day I try to do an extra lap hoping to keep up my fitness and each night I practice the fire magic Nerida taught me. Allowing the blue flame to grow bigger and bigger, I’m not sure if it will actually burn something and I haven’t had the guts to try but what if being here in Avalon, can allow me to do some small bit of magic. After my run, I change into the gray drab clothing and report for purple potato duty.