“None taken.” Walking over to the window and looking out he put his gangly hands behind his back. “Rhonan was in love with your partner, of course, and wanted him for herself. She had after all shared his bed for the last century. The last time we were set free to feed was during a great realm war, and they’ve been together ever since.”
A strong pain reached into her gut, suffocating her. What was left of her heart, was just gone now.
“It’s the oldest reason known in all the worlds for someone to betray everything they hold dear. Love. And you, my dear Princess, stood in her way.”
“She was in love with my partner?” The question felt like ashes rolling on her tongue but she needed him to say it again. “Or do you mean my mate?”
“I always mean exactly what I say.” He looked at her and grinned. “You didn’t really think that there was any hope that the immortals would love you, did you? It was never about love. It’s much simpler than that, after all.”
“What do you mean, it’s simpler than that?”
“Ah, you poor, sweet child. You didn’t really believe that the High Prince of the Sidhe actually loved you, did you? You’re nothing but a half breed to him, and the end to a curse. The end to a Prophesy that said his family would be removed from the crown. He would’ve done away with you as soon as this was over and rejoined with Rhonan. He had to think of his people and the veil grows thinner each day that all of the worlds waited for you to choose. The curse had to be ended or undesirables, like yours truly, would be running rampant everywhere. But don’t hate him for his noble intentions, even though they were not as noble to you as they should have been.”
She just stood there, completely unable to speak. The heart that once thundered at the slightest touch from Bodhe was now hammering pain. It felt as if it would exit her chest at any moment. It couldn’t be true, could it?
“It is true, Isabel, not that it really matters anymore, right? It will be difficult, I’m sure, but do try not to waste the last few days of your life on the likes of him. At least he’s suffering now too with the loss of his partner. Who knows, he may have gone and followed her to the afterlife already. That should comfort you some. Now, I’m going to return to the Queen. Feel free to roam anywhere you wish, at least until the rise of the Blood Moon. Your shampoo is in the chest over there,” he said and gestured to a wooden chest near the tub of water. The King walked out of the room…but she barely noticed that he’d gone.
Bodhe wasn’t the one? Her head screamed obscenities, and she screamed back at it for not knowing better than to fall in love with the wrong one. And that son of a bitch lied to her! They all did. Even Amele. How could her best friend in the entire world do that? She effectively had no one left in any world that she could trust. Well, there was one person. But he must hate her for what she’d done. She hated herself enough for both of them right now. Even worse? When she thought of Morkain he still didn’t feel right. Handsome sure, but not the one that she loved. Not the one she hated. Not the one that had ripped her heart out of her chest and fed it to the fucking Uglies just to keep his damned crown. She was so tired of being a helpless pawn in all these sick games. She was almost ready to walk out to the King and Queen and just offer herself up so she could die sooner, rather than later. Almost. How could everyone have betrayed her so deeply? If Bodhe and Amele were in on it, that meant the entire Sidhe kingdom was.
Oh God, even her mother? Was she even her mother? New realizations hit her every second and she thought she was going to lose the battle of nausea that was overcoming her with each thought. Giving into a moment of overwhelming sadness, she let the tears fall as she laid back on the dirty bed and tried to fall asleep.
A vision of her mother in the water of the bath appeared that was similar to the other visions, but this time she looked worried. She could see her perfectly, as if she were in Loveryn and not in Ugly hell.
“Of course I am your mother! Don’t ever let me hear that come out of your head again. I have given up so much to keep you safe. Amele was with you for years, darling. I can tell you that she and I both love you dearly, even if I cannot say more right now. You have to listen to your heart. Please do not give up, Isabel, it is not over yet.”
“Well what the hell am I supposed to do? I’m trapped in Ugly-world and if I try to run the sea of them outside will overtake me. I’m not strong enough yet! And Bodhe…” she whispered, trailing off.
The vision of her mother faded as a thickness in her throat made it hard to breathe. Her mother’s face was replaced by Bodhe’s and the words that he spoke before she left.
“Il weiren meyth,” the vision said.
He told her he loved her. How could he be so cruel? If everything hadn’t turned out the way it had she may have never known the truth. He didn’t love her, he loved being royalty! The image of his chiseled features and emerald eyes made her stir with bitter pleasure, the heat building from his memory no match, however, for the hatred building in her soul.
She gazed at the water again but when no more images came she dropped to the bed and chalked it up to hallucinating in hell. The sheets were like sandpaper and the smoke from the eternal fires outside drifted in, choking her. She closed her eyes, but after tossing fitfully for about an hour she said to hell with it, and walked over to the small balcony that rose high above the black landscape.
Flames burned throughout the land in deep pits and scores of Unseelie marched around, some of them fighting in groups and some of them…eww...well, that was something she didn’t need to have branded in her mind. Too late. She looked away in horror.
Suddenly, she had an overwhelming urge to see what things look like with the glamour around the castle because she sure as fuck didn’t want to stare at the less than civilized bunch of Uglies below. Hell, if she was going to be trapped here she might as well see where she was, as they saw it. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad? Hands trembling slightly, she removed the amulet from her neck and opened her eyes.
Do not take it off, Isabel, not for anything.
Hushing the voice that stirred in her mind she sucked in a shallow breath as she looked around. The landscape was just as dreary but instead of the grey masses of Uglies that she was used to, they looked almost like normal Sidhe on the grounds. So they do glamour each other? She turned around slowly and inspected her new room. Instead of the stone-washed color everywhere, the room was brightly lit with candles and the small tub of water became a marble monstrosity with a cascading fountain above it. The bed was still a four poster, but it was made of beautiful light colored wood and had white silks hanging from each post instead of tattered grey. The sheets and covers were satin and down and the walls were white and gold marble and bright as any place could be. It reminded her of Loveryn. A small tinge of pain built in her heart before she brushed it aside.
Maybe she should keep it off, after all?
The only problem with the scene was that everything kept blurring, as if she were taking prescription glasses on and off. She saw the illusion and then the real world would flicker in. Must be the change coming, but if they could glamor each other, then that didn’t make sense. They couldn’t glamor the other races though, and since she was less human by the minute, she guessed it did make sense. She sighed and put the necklace back on, tucking it under her shirt.
Perhaps a bath would help after everything? She walked over to the water and gazed deeply into the clear depths. It looked clean enough and was certainly going to get the spoils of battle off of her, which would be a tremendous improvement to her mental state that was teetering right now on the brink of madness. She stripped naked and walked to the chest where the shampoo was. Yep, her favorite brand of rosemary mint. Imagine that? Apparently they didn’t have a soaper here, not that she would have used it if they did. The lye used in the movie, ‘Fight Club’ soaps came to mind and she shuddered. Oh hell no. Ugly lard! She grabbed a grey towel and her shampoo, ready to plunge herself into the small pool.
Stepping i
n, she noticed that it was actually warm, which was unexpected. Ok, she could deal with this. Letting her body, then her head drop beneath the surface, she did a quick rinse and wash, scrubbing her hair of the nastiness. That was one thing she couldn’t stand; her hair full of Uglies. The grey matter that served as blood was like sticky goop and it was really gross when it was all matted through your hair. It was like an awesome combination of bubble gum and jello mixed.
Yeah.
She scrubbed harder as she washed it twice more and then rinsed it in the falling water behind her.
The door opened and Isabel’s heart thudded nearly out of her chest. “Holy shit, knock ever!?” she screamed, her heart pounding as she bolted up, turning her back to the door. She grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her shoulders quickly, hiding her pendant. An Ugly stepped toward her that she could only guess was a female from the way she swayed her hips when she walked. There were no other resemblances at all that she could see. Unless, oh hell, were those breasts? Barely discernible, they swung lightly like half oval pancakes on the creature’s chest.
Her eyes opened wide, and the only sound in the room was the light drip-drop of the water falling from her hair to the floor. Seeing the smaller crown on this creature’s head, she assumed she was being greeted by the Queen of the realm.
“Well aren’t you a pretty little thing? I didn’t believe Baylor when he told me how lovely your emotions raged within you.” The white eyes narrowed and looked her up and down, scrutinizing her bare flesh where the towel didn’t cover. “Hardly worth all this fuss though, if I must say so myself. But, not too difficult on the eyes for a halfbreed.”
Ha! Speak for yourself! Isabel glared hotly at her but decided against a verbal outburst. If she could hear her thoughts, she’d be getting hit real soon anyway.
“No matter,” she said, as she dismissed her with a hand. “You are our ticket out of this Elemental hell. Had I known what Baylor was planning those many years ago, I would’ve stopped him somehow. Can you imagine spending forever with someone who kept a secret from you that ultimately caused your eternal damnation?” She sighed, “It’s really rather a sex killer, even after all these millennia later.”
Isabel held down the bile that was quickly rising in her throat at the thought of them bumping uglies. And then she almost laughed at the thought, ‘bumping uglies,’…extremely thankful that she didn’t. Holy shit, she was officially losing it!
“Yes, I think I can imagine it, actually. I was about to make the same mistake. The damn Sidhe prince played me like a fool, and I really fell for it…hook, line and sinker.” She gripped the towel so tight she had white knuckles, and Bodhe’s lying face appeared in her mind.
“So, it would be the Elven male that you choose after all of this?”
“My choice isn’t really relevant anymore. I won’t be living long enough to make it, remember?” She scowled at the Ugly. At least this one wasn’t able to hear her thoughts it seemed, thank god. Her verbal filter in her head hadn’t caught up to the one on her mouth.
“It does not matter, you are right. But I am extremely curious anyway. This is the most exciting thing that has happened here…well, ever. You have no idea how boring it gets. And with such a short time in the mortal world to feed, surely you understand that we get terribly starved for affection. You are rolling with emotions at such a high level, that just being in the same room as you is making me absolutely ravenous.”
Her white eyes widened as Isabel’s anger flashed, remembering the way the town looked as they all scattered around, feeding.
“See, even your anger makes me hungry, dear. We had to leave early from the…excursion...because of this ridiculous curse. My partner ordered us from the human realm after your capture…days before we usually must leave. The Unseelie are upset and almost revolting in the realm over this decision. They do not even care that this could open the way for our kind to break free forever. Most are not as civilized as we are, for they were born here, and all they know is endless hunger.”
Well, at least her world was safe for the moment, even if she wasn’t. Bright side, check.
“Why are you telling me all this?” She looked at her curiously.
The Queen just waved her hand and dismissed her again. “You see, all of the Unseelie except for myself, my husband and my two girls were born here and this is home to them. They feed in the mortal world but they do not know the beauty of the other realms. Which is more torturous do you think, young mortal? Being trapped this way, or being trapped this way knowing what is beyond this damnation?”
“I would imagine being trapped and knowing, Your Majesty,” she whispered.
“Do not call me Majesty!” she screamed, so loud the windows shook and the glass threatened to shatter in the panes.
Isabel gulped. Well that was a bit of overkill. Why the hell shouldn’t she? She was the Queen, wasn’t she? But since she didn’t seem to have a death-by-sucking-everything-she-ever-felt wish just yet, she calmed herself and slowly raised her eyes.
“Okay. What should I call you then?”
The Queen began to float toward the door. Just before she got there she looked over her grotesque shoulder. “You may call me Delia, I was happy, I think, when that was my name. Wander down to dinner when you have dressed. We shall await you in the great hall, which is left when you walk out and down to the end the corridor. There will be human food for you.”
She turned to her then fully, the Queen’s white eyes zeroing in on her neck. Shit! No, please don’t see it! The stone was beneath the towel but she may have seen the chain just barely.
“What is that around your neck, child?” she asked as she swayed toward her again.
“Oh, this?” Isabel pulled it out nonchalantly but fisting the stone tight. “It’s just something I picked up somewhere. You know, I can’t even remember where, it was so long ago. It’s supposed to bring good luck or something. A lot of good it’s done me,” her voice trembled slightly. She was a terrible liar, unlike someone else she knew.
“Take it out completely so I can see it.”
Isabel hesitated.
“Now,” her voice was still soft, but commanding.
Reluctantly, she pulled it out completely and opened her hand. Gasping, the Queen reached out to touch it.
“Stay away from me!” She stumbled backwards out of reach, clutching the necklace.
“Silly girl, you cannot lie to me. I am not sure how the King missed this, but I am sorry, you can’t keep it.” The Queen lifted her fingers from across the room and the chain was ripped from Isabel’s neck and grasp, flying to the Queen’s palm. Lightning broke free from her body as it was taken and Isabel dropped to the floor. When she opened her eyes the room started shifting again. Bright and cheerful with flashes of reality. Little electric shocks were still going through her when she looked up.
Isabel held both the anger and sadness back for the moment as she reclaimed her breath. The Queen was now beautiful, no longer a gangly, grey thing…but a tall, lithe, raven-haired beauty. Of course, the flashes of her true self kept blinking in, but she was still beyond shocked. Is this what she looked like before the curse?
“I truly am sorry for taking it, dear, please forgive me. Your emotions are saying what you haven’t with your words and I know it’s special to you somehow. But, please understand, I cannot allow you to wear a magical pendant here. I don’t know what spells are within this, but we can’t be too careful with the guarding of our guests. And between you and I,” she said hushed, looking back toward the door. “I wish there had been another way…that fate had not led you here. If it were up to me, I would go back to that dreadful day and run with my children. As it is, you’re the only way I may yet give them back their lives. You make me hungry, it is true, but can you blame a monster for what they have become when they had no part in their making? I am sorry, I would not wish this upon any being, the fate I have been bound to with my innocent daughters.”
“But I’
ve done nothing to any of you! I’m innocent in all this too. Did you know my mother before this all happened…Keiren? Or my Father, Norgelon, from Albequen? How can you be so cruel to take my life for the lives of your own? No one even knows if any of this will work and that necklace is all I have of my mother. Please…please don’t take it from me. That’s the truth, it can’t do any harm! All it does is dispel the damn glamour and it keeps anyone from casting spells on me. The magic part has been broken since right before I was taken from my world, so all it affects is the glamour. I swear to you, it can’t do anymore than that. Where am I going to go, Delia? Out there?” She stomped over to the window and gestured outside as she looked back to the Queen.
“Yeah right, I don’t think so. No, I’m just hanging out…waiting for the moon to rise red so that I can get the life sucked out of me by whoever wants a taste. That’s all I have of her! Don’t you have a soul at all anymore?” She was screaming now, the last thread of her sanity unraveling as a tear rolled down her cheek. That pendant was a lifeline to a mother she never knew, and she could handle her raka and sword being taken, but not that. Not her one and only thing that belonged to her mother. “It was my mother’s. Please, don’t take it from me. I’m begging you. It can’t cause harm to anyone, and can’t even really help me here. It’s a small comfort to me in this new hellish realm that I’m preparing to die in. Please, Delia…let me keep it.”
Delia looked at her with tears brimming in her gorgeous dark eyes and then looked down to the necklace. She seemed to be contemplating returning it. “I do not know if I have a soul any longer, Isabel. I may be the monster I appear, after all, but I like to hold to the belief that there is some decency left beneath this grotesque shell of who I once was. If you had lived thousands of years as I have been forced to, perhaps you would understand. I wasn’t always this way. I was a teacher, Isabel, and had no dreams of grandeur beyond my family. I wanted none of this! I brought the young into their Sidhe gifts, and to what end? So my partner could have this become of us,” she paused, quieting her tone as she motioned around the room. “If it was just about me, I would not take it from you. But if Baylor knew that you had it—and he would as soon as he saw me and heard my thoughts—then we would both suffer his wrath. I do wish I had not seen it if that is any condolence, which I can imagine it is not, right now.”
Immortal Dreams (Immortal Realms Book 1) Page 25
