Prisoner of Darkness

by Nissa Leder

  Scarlett absorbed the wrath in the air and did her best to warm Aria.

  The clicking of swords stopped. Winter Guards were scattered on the ground like leaves in the fall.

  If they hurried, maybe, just maybe, they’d escape alive.

  Kaelem rushed to Scarlett’s side. They needed to leave quickly, before anyone else came to aid the Winter Guard.

  He couldn’t find the strength to ask Scarlett if Aria was still alive, but she answered his unspoken question anyway.

  “She’s fading fast. I did what I could, but we need to get her somewhere warmer.” Scarlett lifted her hands from above Aria’s heart. “What do we do with them?” She glanced at the two queens, both curled on the ground, unconscious.

  Kaelem wanted to finish the job. He’d only caused the Winter Queen to black out—in case they needed leverage if more of the Winter Guard arrived. But he wanted to wrap his shadow around her throat and squeeze until her eyes popped from their sockets and blood sputtered from her throat. Then he’d enter her mind and shatter it completely with darkness.

  She deserved it and so much more.

  No, it would be an act of war. Don’t let your desire for revenge destroy you, brother. Aria’s voice was barely a whisper in his head. She was right, it was not a decision to be made lightly, and he didn’t have time to waste. Aria needed warmth.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Kaelem said.

  Raith and a warrior woman stood outside Aria’s cell. They were now both enemies of the Winter Court, too. How had they made it in?

  Kaelem could ask questions later. He lifted Aria and exited the cell, Scarlett close behind.

  She stopped and hovered over Kassandra’s body.

  Kaelem had read Scarlett’s thoughts. She’d been the one to take Kassandra down with mind magic. Impressive, to say the least. He listened in again.

  She should die. She deserves nothing less.

  Not today, Kaelem spoke inside Scarlett’s head. Her time will come.

  Scarlett tilted her head.

  Kaelem added, Since you have mind invading abilities, unless you have me blocked out, I can speak to you like this.

  Raith grabbed Scarlett’s hand. “C’mon. We’ll deal with Kassandra another time.”

  Scarlett let Raith pull her out of the dungeon.

  Aria was still breathing. She was so light in Kaelem’s arms. His sister used to be the most vibrant person he knew. Now, so near death, he saw her fragility. The Winter Queen would pay. Kaelem’s revenge would be long and sweet. Someday.

  When they stepped into the entry room of the palace, Cade and Poppy stood in front of the exit door.

  Cade glanced at Scarlett and Raith’s interlocked fingers.

  Kaelem could offer Raith to Cade as a bargain for a quick exit. He could even offer Scarlett. He promised he would release her sister from the mirror, which was glamoured small in his pocket, for her help, nothing more.

  Aria coughed in Kaelem’s arms. She desperately needed warmth but Kaelem would not betray those who’d helped him.

  If Cade and Poppy planned to stand in his way, he would show them no mercy.

  Kaelem stared at them and said, “Don’t make us fight you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Scarlett’s body felt so heavy, completely drained of magic. If her senses weren’t so heightened, she’d have almost felt human again. She leaned into Raith’s shoulder for support.

  Cade stared at her and Raith, their proximity likely unnerving him. Even now, after he’d won the Summer Court, she felt his possessiveness over her. She wondered what had changed in him? He’d brought her to the Summer Court as a source of magic, not as a fairytale princess he’d hoped to fall in love with.

  The air around pressed into her skin. Her eyelids grew heavy, so heavy, until they snapped shut and the world around her darkened.

  Scarlett woke to the comfort of a mattress underneath her and blankets covering her. The memory of the day’s events swirled in her mind like a fine mist. She opened her eyes to find Raith sitting on the bed at her side, concern heavy on his face.

  “Where are we?” Scarlett asked. She scanned the room and recognized it before he replied.

  “The Unseelie Court.”

  Scarlett fought the weakness in her limbs and pushed herself to a sitting position. Why was she so tired? “Is Aria…okay?”

  Raith nodded. “She’s stable, though delicate.” He shifted closer to Scarlett. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there sooner.”

  Scarlett reached for his hand. “You were there in time. I don’t think we could have gotten out if it weren’t for you and your friend.” Jealousy rose in Scarlett’s throat like bile. She had no idea who the warrior woman was, but her fae beauty and fighting skills were apparent.

  “Sage,” Raith said. “She saved me in the forest and has been teaching me about my Autumn heritage.”

  “Oh.” Scarlett wasn’t sure what else to say. It wasn’t like Raith had promised himself to her, and, being fair, Scarlett had crossed lines herself with Kaelem. To save her sister, she tried to assure herself, but deep down she couldn’t deny she possessed an attraction to the Unseelie King.

  But she wanted Raith, no one else, to hold her in his arms now. She scooted closer to him.

  He shifted himself next to her and wrapped his arm around her.

  She rested her head on his shoulder.

  Would she ever adjust to being fae? In the dungeon, she’d felt strong, far stronger than she’d ever felt as a human. At first she’d feared the changes, but after wielding power like she did, she couldn’t imagine not having it.

  “My life is a mess.” Scarlett sighed.

  Raith tilted his head toward her and lifted her chin.

  As his lips met hers, a wave of energy passed through Scarlett, the bond between them strengthened.

  Raith pulled back. “Yours and mine both, love.”

  Raith absorbed the passion between him and Scarlett. He’d missed her. The feeling of attachment he had toward her felt foreign. His entire life had been him refusing to care too much about anything or anyone. The only person he’d ever truly loved was his mother, and she was stolen from him, leaving him broken inside.

  The bond he shared with Scarlett complicated everything. He didn’t know how to separate his true feelings from the binding of the Summer Court ceremony.

  He’d given it a lot of thought, and the reason they were still bound must be because the Battle of Heirs hadn’t officially concluded. Cade had knocked Raith down, but Raith didn’t die or surrender. And if the battle still continued, Cade wasn’t truly king.

  If Raith found his brother and admitted defeat, would the bond vanish? More importantly, was that what Raith wanted? If the bond disappeared, he’d know if his feelings for Scarlett were real, but he’d lose the connection to her. If they hadn’t been bound, he’d have never felt her panic. He wouldn’t have come to help.

  Scarlett and Kaelem could have become Winter Court prisoners.

  Next to him, Scarlett rested her head on Raith’s chest.

  He ran his fingers through her hair.

  Eventually, she dozed back off and he gently laid her onto the bed as he stood. He needed to clear his head.

  When he entered the dining room, he found Kaelem sitting at the head of the table.

  “I want to thank you,” Kaelem said. A chair next to him scooted backward. “Sit, please.”

  Raith obliged. “It wasn’t for you.”

  Kaelem smirked. “I figured as much, but I’m grateful nonetheless.” He crossed an ankle over his knee. “I can feel your connection to her.”

  “And?” Raith checked his mental shields. He didn’t want the Unseelie King prying into his thoughts.

  “There’s care and lust and something else. A fae bond connects you two, which must mean she’s still your second.”

  How would he know that? Raith could have surrendered and lived.

  “There’s something about her, something alluring.”
>
  Raith clenched his jaw. Had Scarlett and Kaelem been intimate? The Unseelie King was a ganacanagh, a creature made for women and men alike to throw themselves at. And Raith had seen Kaelem high off of attention. Had he also developed an interest in Scarlett?

  “Before you imagine the worst, my relationship with Scarlett was business…mostly. I can’t deny I see her intrigue, but my mission was to save my sister, and, thanks to you and your woman friend, I succeeded.”

  Raith had never seen Kaelem so sincere. His love for games was well known, but in that moment, Raith didn’t feel like a pawn in some scheme. He felt true gratitude exuding from the Unseelie King. He wasn’t sure if he should be honored or scared.

  Sage had returned to the Autumn Court. She offered to help Raith search for more information, and he planned to take her up on her offer someday after Scarlett had healed.

  “I don’t like to owe favors, so I will tell you everything I know about your mother, and then we will be even.”

  Kaelem glanced at the dining room door and it swung shut. “When I was visiting the Autumn Court last fall, I had an unusual encounter with one of the castle servants. I usually don’t invade the minds of a servant, but I saw a shift in her expression when the Autumn King mentioned the deterioration of the Summer King.

  “With no mental wall to speak of, slipping inside her thoughts was easy. I saw an image of the Summer Queen, only a much younger version than Kassandra’s current age. She was dressed in simple clothes, no jewelry, and stood inside a hut of some sort.

  “My interest was piqued, so later, after the meeting, I found the servant again. She tried to keep me out of her mind, but of course she stood no chance. Her memories were mine for the viewing. I learned that Kassandra was not raised in the Summer Court. She grew up far outside the castle with her sister, your mother.”

  Kaelem paused.

  Raith replayed the words. How could it be? Kassandra was his mother’s sister? How come no one had ever told him?

  Kaelem continued, “When your mother died, the king found Kassandra to share the news of her sister’s passing. When he came back to the castle, Kassandra was with him. The servant recognized her, as your mother had taken the servant with her to see Kassandra the week before.

  “At first, the servant said Kassandra seemed distraught at the loss, but before long, she had her grips on the mourning king. The servant was cleaning the king’s chambers when she heard Kassandra’s voice outside the door. She hid under the bed. Kassandra and the king entered the room. The king complained of being tired. Within moments, the room was silent and another fae man entered.

  “The servant heard Kassandra instruct him to erase any part of the king’s mind that knew Kassandra as the former queen’s sister. When it was done, they both left, the king still fast asleep on the bed. The servant was the only other person to know of the connection. She knew her memory would soon be taken, so she fled.”

  The story seemed so unreal, yet Raith couldn’t deny how much sense it made. Even as a child, his gut told him not to trust her. He hated how quickly his father had fallen for her. Raith had always felt an extra sense of jealousy from Kassandra. He had felt the love his father had for his mother when he saw into his memory, but he’d never felt the love between him and Kassandra.

  “You knew this all along and you sent me on some fucking wild goose chase?” Anger boiled inside of Raith. He’d almost died from the wolf bite.

  “The agreement was I’d tell you what I knew, not everything I knew.” Kaelem shrugged. “You should be more careful with your bargains.”

  With a deep inhale, Raith released his rage. It would do him no good.

  “The servant may still be at the Autumn Court,” Kaelem suggested. “I had thought you would have found her eventually, but now I’ve saved you the searching. You helped me in the Winter Court and now I’ve told you all I know. We’re even.” His gaze locked with Raith’s.

  Raith nodded. “Agreed.”

  He didn’t need any more favors from Kaelem.

  Quietly, Raith snuck back into Scarlett’s room. She was awake and sitting up, with color returning to her face.

  Uneasiness sat at the pit of Raith’s stomach. “I need to leave again.”

  Scarlett smiled. “I could feel something from the bond. Is everything okay?”

  Raith told her everything Kaelem had just told him. “I can’t explain it, but I need to know about my mother.”

  Sadness coated Scarlett’s face. “I understand. Truly.”

  He promised himself not to ask, but he couldn’t resist. “You could come?”

  Scarlett frowned. “I can’t. I need to get my sister out of the mirror and figure out how to protect her.” She pushed the blankets off of herself and stood.

  Raith approached her and pulled her into his arms. “I’ll come back and help you as soon as I can.”

  Scarlett wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

  He would find out what he could and come back to her.

  Cade hovered outside the door to his mother’s bedroom.

  She’s remained in her bed since their return to the Summer Court yesterday, recovering. Kassandra hadn’t shared what exactly had happened to her, but he guessed her pride was hurt worse than her body.

  After Raith, Scarlett, and their group had left the Winter Court, Cade and Poppy had gone straight to the dungeon. Guards were scattered across the floor like confetti, all dead. Further into the dungeon, Cade found his mother and the Winter Queen, both passed out but alive.

  It took an hour for them to wake, and when they did, they were both fuming. Icicles shot from Nevina’s palms when Cade told her about the guards.

  Still weak, Kassandra requested an immediate return to the Summer Court. The cold of the Winter Court weakened Summer fae, and it would take Kassandra much longer to heal if she stayed.

  With a groan, Cade entered his mother’s room. One servant added wood to the fireplace while another filled Kassandra’s teacup.

  “Mother,” Cade said.

  “Leave us,” Kassandra snapped.

  Both servants stopped, set down the wood and teacup they were holding, and bolted.

  “How are you feeling?” Cade asked as he approached her bed.

  Her coloring had returned to her face. She’d been so pale when he’d found her on the dungeon floor.

  “I’ll survive.” She grabbed the teacup from her bedside table and sipped. “I’ve been confused, though.” She set the cup back down.

  “About?”

  “How Kaelem and Scarlett were able to get through the guards alone. As the Unseelie King, Kaelem is powerful. But as it was the Solstice, the guards were at their height. And Scarlett is newly fae. It’s unlikely she had much power left after she entered my mind.”

  Cade kept his face calm. She was fishing for information. Did she think Cade had come to their rescue? “I wasn’t there. I do not know how they escaped.”

  It wasn’t completely a lie. Cade wasn’t in the dungeon, but he knew they received reinforcement when Raith and the warrior woman showed up.

  “Where were you, son?”

  “Poppy and I were attending the ball, as we’d come to do.”

  Kassandra’s eyes searched his expression for signs of dishonesty, but Cade let nothing show. He knew his mother didn’t like Scarlett and would lose no sleep if she were to die. But if she knew Raith had survived, Cade wasn’t sure he knew what she would do. He was ruler now, not her, and only he would decide the fate of his brother.

  He’d wondered if letting Raith and the woman in to help and allowing everyone to leave without a fight were the right choices. When he’d seen his mother lying on the ground, he worried she’d been killed and it was his fault. But they’d spared her, a kindness he doubted she’d have shown them.

  The bond between Cade and Poppy was as strong as ever. With Raith still alive and not conceding his right to the throne, the Battle of Heirs still continued. But he couldn’t let Kassandra know that
.

  “I need more rest.” Kassandra closed her eyes.

  Apparently, the conversation was over.

  Cade left, retreating to his chambers. There, he was greeted by three women he’d only heard legends about: the Fates.

  “Hello, Prince,” they said in unison, their dark hair hanging over their pale faces.

  He shut the door behind him so no passing ears would overhear.

  Why were they there? And they’d called him prince, which must have meant his suspicions were accurate. He wasn’t actually king.

  Yet.

  “Why are you here?” He watched them suspiciously.

  “We’ve come with a warning: war is fast approaching. The fae world is shifting. New alliances will form.”

  “With who? What will happen to the Summer Court?”

  Their heads cocked to the side, dark eyes watching him curiously. “That is yet to be decided.”

  “What can I do?”

  “She who is one of many will hold the power. Betray her, and rain will fall. Help her, and the sun will rise again.”

  “Who?” he demanded.

  A cacophony of laughter burst through their lips. “We have no answers, only advice.” Their eyes fluttered with knowledge, knowledge they wouldn’t share with Cade, not today. “The Summer Court will need a ruler or it will fall.”

  “But I am its ruler,” Cade tried to tell them, but before the words escaped his lips, they had vanished.

  Who was the woman they spoke of? How could Cade get her on his side if he didn’t even know who she was?

  They denied him any real answers, except for one; Cade wasn’t truly king.

  He couldn’t protect his people without being the leader they needed.

  Next time he saw his brother, he couldn’t let him go.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Scarlett stood in front of the window in her room in the Unseelie Court, staring out into the bright lights of the city sparkling in the everlasting darkness.

  It had been a week since they’d escaped the Winter Court. With the help of Unseelie magic and, most of all, Scarlett’s healing abilities, Aria was on the road to recovery.