by Linsey Hall
“It’s a false image, like my mother was.” I looked at him. “What’s your fear here?”
“There are plenty.” He spun in a circle, then stopped and pointed at something on the horizon. “Something is coming.”
I squinted at it, catching sight of a skeletal black form with massive ebony wings. If it had worn a cloak and flown near the ground, I might have thought it was one of Ankou’s minions. But it was something different.
The creature was fast, hurtling toward the city on powerful wings. The scent of rotten corpses came with it, making me gag. Blazing red eyes swept the scene below.
“A Slaugh,” Tarron said. “It has to be a Slaugh.”
“What’s that?” My heart began to thunder louder as it neared. The scent was nearly overwhelming, enough to indicate that this monster was seriously bad news.
“A Slaugh is a type of dark Fae. The soul of someone truly evil, turned into a monster that kills for fun.”
As if the monster had heard him, it put on an incredible blast of speed and dived low, grabbing up an unsuspecting Seelie man and hoisting him high into the air. He screamed and flailed, beating at the Slaugh, whose black cloak fluttered in the wind.
It all happened in an instant. The man was being carried up a hundred feet in the air, then dropped. The Seelie called upon his wings, and I caught sight of them briefly flaring behind his back. But too late.
He couldn’t fly. He was only a few feet above the ground. He slammed into it, going limp.
Dead.
“I can’t protect them.” Tarron’s voice sounded agonized. That was his greatest fear. Of course. “I have no wings.”
We’d given up our magic amulets. And damn, those could have helped here.
He searched the sky, gaze frantic. The Slaugh dived for another Seelie, and I prayed that these weren’t real people—that they were just figments like my mother had been.
Tarron seemed to yank himself out of his stupor. “Come on.”
He sprinted for the building that was nearest to the Slaugh, who was carrying another figure into the air. It rose three stories in the sky. He darted into the alley beside the ornate structure, making sure to stay out of sight of the Slaugh, then scaled up to the roof. I followed, climbing as fast as I could and scrambling onto the roof behind him.
He was already sprinting across the roof tiles, hurtling toward the Slaugh who hovered in the air not far from the edge of the roof. The monster held a Seelie woman dangling over the ground, seeming to enjoy her screams. Another Slaugh had joined him, hovering next to him and cackling.
The bastard dropped her before Tarron reached the edge of the roof, but the Seelie king didn’t slow. He just leapt off the roof, hurtling recklessly through the air toward the monster who’d just dropped the woman.
He grabbed him, holding tight as they spun through the air.
I grinned, liking the look of this plan.
As Tarron reached for his own blade to attack the Slaugh, I raced for the second one. It seemed shocked by Tarron’s attack, temporarily frozen. Because its back was to me, I had a split-second to attack without being seen.
I drew my sword and gripped it tight, sprinting for the edge of the roof. I raised the blade high overhead, pointing the tip toward the second Slough’s back, and leapt. Wind tore at my hair as I flew, and as soon as I neared the Slaugh, I slammed the point of my blade into its back.
The blade pierced deep, all the way to the hilt. I kept my grip tight, my body weight dragging the Slaugh toward the ground. The creature keened, a high wail that sent icy shivers across my skin.
My feet hit the ground, and I yanked the blade free of the Slough’s back. The creature stumbled to the ground, and I swung my sword, going for the head.
Before I could land my blow, it reached out with long claws and sliced them across my arm. Pain flared and blood welled. Burn attacked from the side, leaping onto the creature and throwing it to the ground.
I lunged for it with my blade raised, slicing clean through its head. Red eyes met mine right before the entire body poofed into smoke.
Gasping, I stumbled back, clutching my arm. Pain burned like acid.
Freaking poison.
Not again.
I turned to look for Tarron, spotting him beheading the second Slaugh about thirty feet away. As soon as the head rolled free, he lunged for something gold that was clutched in the monster’s hand.
The key.
“Thanks for the help,” I said to Burn, before running toward Tarron. “You got it.”
He turned to the two bodies that lay crumpled on the ground. The Seelie man and woman who’d been killed by the Slaugh.
I reached for his hand and gripped it tight. “They may not even be real.”
He went to them and knelt by their sides. Carefully, he reached for the woman’s neck and felt for a pulse.
I could have told him there would be none. From the way she way lying, broken and crumpled, that was obvious.
He knew it.
He tried anyway.
“They look real,” he said, his words tight.
I knelt by him and tried to touch his shoulder. My hand passed right through, but he leaned toward me anyway.
“You won’t always be in time,” I said. “It’s not possible to protect them from everything.”
He nodded, his lips thinned. “I know.”
“You just have to do your best.”
He looked up toward the blackened spots where the Slough’s bodies had disappeared. A grim satisfaction gleamed in his eyes. He nodded, then stood. “Let’s get moving. There will be far worse than this if we don’t get out of here.”
Pain still echoed in his words, and I hated that there was nothing I could do about it. I stood, joining him.
He shuddered briefly, and turned to me. “Thank you for figuring out what we were up against. It helped me act more quickly.”
I nodded. “Sure.”
“And thank you for fighting my battles with me.”
Whew. That was simple on the surface and loaded beneath. I could do this for the long haul with him. Maybe. I liked the fact that we made a good team.
I drew in a steadying breath. “Likewise.”
His gaze flicked to my arm. “Are you all right?”
I nodded. “Hurts like hell. Maybe poison. But it’s not fast-acting, or I’d feel worse.”
“Let’s go, then. I’ll get my power back and heal you.”
Together, we walked away from our demons, both real and imaginary. But that was the thing about fears—they never really left you. These demons would be following us everywhere. Fortunately, we could fight them together.
8
The tunnel was eerily silent as we hurried back to the gem-filled cave. About halfway through, Burn disappeared, going to wherever it was that Burn went. Worry hung heavy on the air. We had the two keys…but would they work?
They had to.
As we approached the golden door, tension tightened my muscles. I could feel my magic radiating out from it. Tarron’s, too. Desire pulled hard at me. Fates, I wanted my magic back. Not having it was agony.
We stopped in front of the door. Each of us raised our key.
I glanced at him. “Together?”
“Together.”
Always.
On instinct, I raised my key to the top lock and slipped it inside. Tarron mimicked the gesture, and once his key was in, we twisted them to the right. The locks snicked, and the door swung open.
Magic billowed out at us like invisible smoke. I sucked in a deep breath, at once comforted and torn.
We stepped through the wide doorway together.
Unlike the cave outside, the room was perfectly square and tiled in white ivory.
Ahead of us, two gleaming blue pools waited. They were the only things in the room. One felt distinctly like my magic, the other like Tarron’s.
I shared a glance with him, and he nodded. Together, we stepped toward the pools. I didn’t even he
sitate—I just walked into the water in my boots and clothes, gasping as the coldness hit my skin.
It brought with it an enormous sense of power as my magic flowed into my body. I walked deeper, submerging myself up to my neck. Glorious power raced through my veins, strength and light filling me.
I sucked in a deep breath and submerged fully, letting the water flow over my head and through my hair.
I could swim in here forever.
As the magic filled me, instinct compelled me to open my mouth. I breathed in the water like it was air, and the last of my magic flowed into my chest, strong and fierce. I felt like I could move mountains, swim to the bottom of the Pacific, fly to the moon.
When I broke through to the surface, I sucked in air and grinned.
Next to me, Tarron’s head popped out of the water in his pool.
“I feel stronger than ever,” I said.
Tarron looked at me, dark hair slicked back from his head. “So do I.”
“Facing these trials gave us strength.”
“Quite literally. My magic is more powerful than it was.”
I could feel it, too, surging through my veins. I climbed out of the water and spun in a circle, joy rushing through me. “We’ll need this power to defeat her.”
There still might not be enough of it, but I was closer than ever. I’d had to die to have a chance to win, and it was worth it.
Everything for a reason.
I approached Tarron, my mind spinning.
“Let me see your wounded arm,” he said.
I held out my arm. It burned fiercely, as if his reminder had woken it up. I turned toward him so he could inspect it.
He leaned over me, concern in his gaze.
“Looks like poison.”
“This whole place is full of it.” I stared down at the wound as he raised his hand and hovered it over the torn flesh.
Warmth radiated from his palm, flowing through my skin and knitting it back together.
His brow furrowed. “It’s a fierce poison. Even with my increased power, it’s stubborn.”
“Let me help.” I added a bit of my amplification magic, making his stronger. The acid pain of the poison faded slowly.
I glanced up at him, catching sight of the worry in his eyes. Worry for me.
How many times had he healed me? Taken care of me?
I’d lost count.
I had to admit, I liked it. Having someone on my side like that was awesome. I had Aeri, but having another person…
It was good.
Especially when we worked together.
“Better?” he asked.
I flexed my arm, then smiled at him. “Totally. Thanks.”
Together, we turned back to the entrance.
“I have no idea where to go from here,” I said.
“Let’s go back into the cave. There’s nothing in this room anymore.”
He was right. Even the pools were just plain water now. No more magic emanated from them because we’d absorbed it all like sponges.
Silently, we walked back into the main cave. The jewels continued to sparkle in the ceiling, but they’d lost much of their warmth. Almost as if us taking our magic out of the pools had dimmed their light.
“I could try transporting,” I said. “But I’m not sure if I could bring you with me, since we can’t hold hands.”
“Try it. Try to go home.”
“Home, home? Like, earth.”
“Yes.”
“What if you can’t come?”
He shrugged. “I’ll find my own way.”
“We’re trapped in a jewelry store of a cave. That seems…difficult.”
“I’m used to difficult things.”
“No. I’m not leaving you.”
“Do it.” There was an intensity in his words that made me shiver.
“No. I’m not. We’re doing this together.”
“Thousands of people are relying on us. On you. If you can go back and stop the false queen, it’s worth it.”
Panic lit a fire in my chest. Cold rushed over my skin.
This was just like when I’d had to kill him to save all of the Seelie. Again, he was sacrificing himself.
And I hated being on this end of the bargain.
“No. And I don’t think it will even work. This is death we’re talking about. It’s a state as much as it is a place.”
He shrugged again. “Worth a try.”
“It is not.” A voice echoed in the cavern.
I turned to spot Elara, the Fae servant who had escorted us through the castle at the Court of Death. She’d just appeared in a shimmery portal.
“My transport powers won’t work to get me out of here, then?” I asked.
“No.” She shook her head. “It’s not like that.”
Tarron looked at me and whispered, “It’s still worth a try. If your powers can get you out, they should be able to get you back in. So just try it.”
Ooh, I liked that idea. We could both try to get out—right under the watchful eyes of the king and queen—and if only I was able to escape, I could come back and help him.
Win-win.
Subtly, I reached for his hand. Mine passed right through his, as expected, but I also felt the warmth that indicated that we’d made contact. I called upon my transport power, envisioning my home.
Nothing happened.
I reached deeper, trying harder.
Still nothing.
“Shit,” I whispered. “It’s not working.”
“Come,” Elara said. “The king and queen are calling for you.”
“We’re coming,” Tarron said.
I nodded, and we strode toward Elara and the portal, then stepped in and let the ether suck us through. It spun me through space, feeling just as strange as it had the first time, and spit me out in the main foyer of the castle, right next to Tarron.
Elara looked at us with wide eyes, her tone awed. “You managed to retrieve your magic.”
I nodded, grateful and pleased at the same time. “And now I’d like to get cleaned up. I’m soaking wet.”
Elara nodded. “Of course. The king and queen have invited you for dinner, but you have just enough time.”
“Perfect.” Though I had a feeling that it would be anything but. Just arriving in this castle reminded me of how strange and threatening it was. And confining. It was a freaking prison, and we’d walked right back in.
We’d had no choice.
Elara led us up the stairs to our tower cell, and as she unlocked the great door, a plan began to form.
After Elara left, Tarron and I bathed and dressed quickly. As we got cleaned up, I explained my plan for later this evening. It wouldn’t get us out of this place, but it might allow me to check in with Aeri and see how she was coming along with finding an entrance to the Unseelie Realm. Whenever I thought of her, I felt a distinct heaviness. As if something were going to happen. I needed to see her. I tried my gift of premonition, but got nothing.
By the time Elara returned, we were ready and waiting.
As she led us down through the castle, I took stock of every single guard and security measure.
Instead of the throne room, we were led to an enormous dining hall with a table that would seat at least a hundred people. The king and queen sat at either end, and the rest was…empty.
“Weird,” I murmured.
“We can hear that,” the queen said, not bothering to raise her voice.
Dang. “Voice amplification charm?”
She nodded. “How else are we to hear each other at such a long table?”
I nodded as if she were being totally reasonable. I wouldn’t mention that a smaller table was probably a lot easier.
Elara led us to our seats at the middle of the table, and I was grateful to see that I’d be sitting directly across from Tarron, at least.
We sat.
“We’ve heard that you succeeded in getting your magic back.” The queen sounded damned impressed. Surprised,
even.
I smiled at her, satisfied. I liked doing what people thought I couldn’t. “We did. And we’re ready for the next challenge.”
“Ah.” She leaned back, her gaze cunning. “Now that is a more difficult one.”
“I’d be surprised if it weren’t,” Tarron said.
“We’ll eat first. I’d hate for you to lose your appetites.”
I frowned at her. Of course I was going to lose my appetite if she preceded the meal with a threat like that.
But I kept my mouth shut, annoyed.
Her eyes twinkled as if she knew what she was doing, and I bit my tongue until it hurt.
I’d never been one to rise to the bait. I wouldn’t start now. Not when so much was on the line.
A troop of Fae entered the room, bearing silver dishes. They lined up behind each of us, filling our plates. As soon as they left, the king and queen began to eat. Tarron and I followed their lead. I didn’t even notice the food, just shoveled it in with my mind spinning. I made sure not to eat any fruit, however.
Every few bites I’d shoot a look at the king and queen. I was all ears for what was coming.
Except it was like they wanted to make us wait it out, the bastards.
When we finally finished, I turned, facing the queen with interest. “What is the next task?”
“There are several, in fact.”
Of course there were.
“At present, the two of you lack bodies.” She pointed to us with her knife. “It wouldn’t matter if you crossed the barrier to the other side. As soon as you arrived, you’d disappear.”
Yeah, that was an important tidbit to know.
“We need to get bodies, then,” Tarron said. “Our own bodies, I hope?”
Ooh, shit. I straightened.
I wanted my own body back. Not someone else's.
“Yes,” the queen said.
My shoulders sagged slightly with relief. Thank fates. “How?”
“You must return to the scene of your death, of course.”
Record scratch. “What?”
“You left your bodies behind when you died. You’re going to need those back. We will send you to the scene, at a very specific window in time. You rejoin your bodies and—”
“Then we’re alive?” I interrupted. We were so close!
