by Nissa Leder
“I take it I won’t be getting any answers tonight,” Raith grumbled.
“Not tonight, Summer prince.”
Kaelem laughed at the anger pouring off of Raith. The Summer prince really needed to get his emotions in check, but that would take away the fun, which would be no good.
“Then I’m leaving.” Raith paused, waiting for an objection.
If Kaelem refused, he’d stay. If he asked Raith to dance like a drunken chicken, he’d do that, too. For as much as Raith pretended to be uncaring, Kaelem had seen inside his mind when his mental shields were down. Raith would do whatever it took to learn more about his mother. Well, almost whatever. Kaelem had read his thoughts of the human girl. Those feelings would be the one line he may not cross, even to know more about his beloved mother.
Which made Kaelem want to push the boundary even more.
When Kaelem didn’t respond, Raith got up from the table and left the room without another word.
Kaelem smirked. That human girl had both Summer princes intrigued. Only, she was never truly human. Kaelem could sense the fae in her the first time he saw her.
And he’d felt the moment she took the pill he’d given her.
Now she wasn’t human at all.
A soft wind blew against Kaelem’s skin. Someone had evanesced into the room, which only few could do. The palace barriers prohibited evanescing for most fae. Only Kaelem and a few of the Unseelie guards could.
And the Fates, who appeared in front of him.
Their raven hair contrasted sharply against their pallid skin. All three stared at Kaelem with deep set, obsidian eyes, so dark it was impossible to distinguish between iris and pupil.
“Hello, King of Darkness,” they said in unison.
Kaelem slouched back in his chair and lifted his feet onto the table. A visit from the Fates, how interesting. The last prophecy he heard landed him the position of king. “To what do I owe the pleasure of you beauties?”
It’s wasn’t a lie, the three sisters were beautiful, in a harsh way. Big eyes, with thin rose lips, and flawless pale skin. Had they not had the habit of bearing bad news, they might have been more likable.
“As proud as ever, we see,” they said. “We come to share news of a great power.”
The Fates were nothing if not dramatic.
“Don’t brush us off, King. Or you may just suffer the same fate as your father.”
Kaelem kept his face still, but the jab got to him. His father had been warned of the threat the Seelie Queen posed, but he swept the warning away.
“Our words are never true or false,” the three voices sang in perfect harmony. “But we speak the outcome we see.”
And they were almost never wrong. Their visions were legend. Fae kings and queens taught their heirs to believe or regret it.
Except Kaelem’s father. He told them to go to hell, and that’s probably where he was that very moment.
“I’m listening,” Kaelem said.
The Fates cocked their heads in unison, like crows perched on a fence. “Trouble bubbles for the fae world. A power, long undiscovered, awaits those brave enough to search. But only two parts of a whole and one part of another can free it from its chamber. That is the key.”
Mumbo jumbo, as usual. The Fates never spoke plainly. Riddles were their game. But Kaelem liked games, and he liked power.
“What type of power?” he asked.
The Fates giggled, their voices carrying like bells through the room. “What fun would it be if we told you that?”
Within a blink, the sisters had vanished.
Damn Fates. They dangled steak in front of Kaelem like he was a dog, salivating at what was out of reach. Two parts of a whole and one part of another. What in the hell was that supposed to mean? If something were whole then it wouldn’t have another part. Maybe it was more than one thing?
A crumpled piece of paper on the table caught his attention. He grabbed it and unraveled it to find the words start with the human written inside.
The human? Did they mean Scarlett? She wasn’t a human anymore, not technically, at least. But she’d already caught the attention of two Summer princes, one of whom was now king. The Unseelie Court lived amongst the mortals, but Kaelem rarely talked to them. His fae played with humans, but Kaelem didn’t know any by name except for Scarlett.
It wasn’t just the Summer princes she’d intrigued. He’d spoke to her to mess with Raith and Cade, but somewhere along the way he’d grown fond of the human. Why else would he have given her a pill to enhance her fae heritage?
She had to be the human in the note.
The Fates weren’t loyal to any court. They could be telling Cade about the future they saw at that very moment, and if he got to Scarlett first, Kaelem would lose his chance.
No, that wouldn’t work. He needed to bring Scarlett to the Unseelie Court.
Now.
But first, he’d need to find her.
Also by Nissa Leder
The Brielle Davis Series
The Unveiling of Brielle Davis
The Undoing of Brielle Davis
The Unbinding of Brielle Davis
About the Author
Nissa Leder was born and raised in Washington State, but now lives in the sunny Phoenix Valley with her husband, Joe, and their two boxers, two cats, and pet poison dart frogs.
Always an avid reader, she didn’t realize her love for writing her own stories until her freshman year in college. Once she knew her life’s calling, she began studying the craft of writing and eventually obtained an MFA from Spalding University.
When she isn’t writing down the stories that fill her head, she’s likely at the tennis courts working on her forehand or journeying to another world by reading a book. She’s a big believer in following your dreams and encourages everyone to shoot for the moon and pursue their passions.
Nissa loves to connect with readers! Find her on her website (nissaleder.com), Facebook (facebook.com/nissa.leder), Twitter (@NissaLeder), or send her an e-mail ([email protected])
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