by Unknown
Kirill and Trevor were going to stay at Pride Palace while I traced somewhere in the Human Realm with Az. When I was done spending time with Azrael, I'd simply use my ring to return to Pride Palace the moment after I'd left. It should work since I was jumping between realms.
“So where are we going?” I asked Az after kissing Trevor and Kirill goodbye. He was dressed in a suit again, so I was a little concerned.
“Not to France,” he gave me a rueful grin. “Come on, I have it on good authority that you like this place.”
“Ah, you asked around. Smart thinking,” I followed him into the elevator and we went down to the tracing room.
“Carus,” he held his hand out to me. I took it and we traced away.
We came out of the Aether into a tiny hallway, filled mostly with a rolling laundry bin.
“Oh, you were right,” I exclaimed. “I love cramped hallways filled with dirty laundry!”
“Watch it or I'll toss you in the bin,” he pulled me out and down another few hallways until we emerged onto a terrace filled with little seating areas. The furniture was bamboo and Hawaiian print, the people lounging there were dressed in similar printed attire, and the view was of Waikiki Beach. I looked to the right and saw the restaurant's sign, confirming my suspicions.
“Oh, so much better,” I grinned at him. “Who told you this was my favorite restaurant?”
“Blue,” he laughed. “He said he'd seen it in a dream.”
I sobered, the word dream pulling me out of my carefree mood.
“Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I...” I shook my head and pasted on a smile. “I was just remembering when Blue used to invade my dreams. He brought us here once because he saw the memory of it in my head.”
“Oh,” his eyes widened. “I didn't realize the information was obtained by nefarious means. We can go somewhere else if you prefer.”
“No, this is fantastic,” I took his arm and let him lead me toward the hostess. “I haven't been here in years.”
“Good,” he sighed. “Because I have no idea where we would have gone if you'd said no.”
We were taken to a prime table along the railing of the open air restaurant. It had a perfect view of the beach, blue water crashing against the pristine sand, the sound was all the background music that was needed. The air was slightly salty but the scent of delicious food overpowered the tang. I sat back with a smile, ready to finally enjoy a meal out with my boyfriend.
Az ordered another expensive bottle of wine but it was much cheaper than the last one we'd had. Even so, the sommelier still accompanied it, little bowl necklace and all. As we sipped our extraordinary wine, fireworks started going off over the water. It was perfect.
“Enjoying the show?” Azrael waved a hand toward the fireworks.
“Are you seriously going to try and take credit for that?” I lifted a brow at him. “I happen to know they do a fireworks show every Friday night here.”
“Do they always include cheesy romantic gestures in them?” He jerked his head toward the show and I looked over to see the outline of a heart with I love you written inside it.
“How did you do that?” I gaped at the sky.
“Seriously?” He waved his hands at himself. “An-gel.”
“Okay, God of the Sky,” I laughed. “That was a very cool and very cheesy trick. I'm so glad we have our wine to go with it.”
“I knew you'd approve,” he clinked his glass to mine.”
After an amazing dinner, complete with a chocolate replica of Diamond Head(an extinct volcano on Oahu) that held truffles and erupted with dry ice, we headed out to walk along the beach. Now, the beach is not my favorite place but at night it was much more bearable. Though the sand was still annoying, it wasn't getting baked onto my skin with a combination of suntan lotion and salt air to help it in its nefarious plans.
So we strolled for a bit, holding hands as well as our shoes, while we kept to the dry portion of the beach. The moon was bright on the water and on Azrael's face when he leaned down to kiss me. I could taste champagne on his lips and chocolate, a dangerous combination that had me going back for a second helping. Then my eyes slid to the side and I saw someone watching us in the shadows.
I couldn't make out his features but I didn't have to. I knew immediately who he was, had seen him in so many guises now it hardly mattered what he looked like. It was Vex, my dream stalker, the murderer. So now he was stalking me in real life? Well at least he couldn't hide his true appearance there. I jerked in Azrael's arms, starting to break away so I could chase Vex, but I saw the flash of a smile in the dark and then he was gone.
“What is it?” Azrael looked over his shoulder into the shadows.
“Nothing,” I focused back on him. “I thought I saw someone.”
“How about a little flight over Waikiki?” He pushed my hair back over my shoulders. “I can use my magic to hide us and you could go in your demon... I mean dragon form.”
“Oh,” I chuckled. “I see how it is. You want your lady demon back, huh?”
“I like the look,” he shrugged. “The tail is fascinating and it's nice to be able to fly with you instead of carrying you. Though I do like the intimacy of having you in my arms. I'll leave it up to you.”
“Undo my zipper a little,” I gave him my back. “So I can let the wings loose.”
“Absolutely,” he said and went to work on my zipper.
In moments we were flying high above Oahu, Azrael's Death Angel magic concealing us from view. It was enough to make me forget the eyes shining in the dark but when I returned to Pride Palace later that night, alone and high on adrenaline, I found another stalker in the shadows waiting for me.
Griffin startled me, stepping forward out of the darkness beneath the staircase. He looked at me, his eyes shimmering iridescently in the light of the little lamp on the side table beside the elevator. I just stood there, watching him warily as he watched me, feeling the rush of emotions and vivid attraction that I could never contain around Odin. This new body was beautiful but it didn't matter, I'd always been pulled to Odin, on a far deeper level than the physical, and it had always been difficult to deny. In the end, I couldn't deny it, not even for Trevor.
I went forward slowly, a piece of crude metal pulled to his magnetic appeal. I tried to stop, to veer toward the right and get into the elevator, but my feet weren't listening. It had always been like this with him, this dangerous loss of control. My feet finally stopped, leaving me standing directly before him, and he looked down at me like he'd been the one to bring me there.
There was passion in his face and anger in the tenseness of his body. His hand lifted, hovered over my cheek, and then propelled forward into the hair at my temple as if against its will. His fingers clenched together, painfully pulling on my hair, and I cried out but pressed myself forward against his chest anyway. I could feel his heart beating wildly and it felt odd to me, not because of the rapid rhythm but because of where it was in relation to my face. Odin's chest had been wider and higher up for me, his heart was always beneath my ear not just above mine. The proportions were all off.
But I didn't care. I lifted my face to his as his lips lowered to mine. Soft, tender, as his hand in my hair was not, his mouth pressed to mine and I sighed. Then the kiss twisted and a growl emerged from between his lips. He used his entangled hand to push me away, letting me go roughly at the last second.
“I can't take this!” He yelled and stomped off.
“You're telling me,” I huffed and rubbed at my scalp. Half of me wanted to go after him and give his hair a good yanking but I recognized it as the childish half of me and decided not to give in to it. I did, however, give in to my childish desire to run away again. “I'm so outta here,” I growled. “Ring, take me back to when I last left Faerie please.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
A ringing filled my ears as I reappeared in my bedroom in Faerie. I frowned and looked toward Arach, who was standing near the bed. He
lifted a brow back at me and went to stand in front of the mirror that hung above my dressing table. The mirror misted up and when it cleared, High King Cian was looking out at us.
“High King,” Arach nodded.
“King Arach, Queen Vervain,” Cian greeted us. “I need your help.”
“Of course,” I went forward to stand beside Arach. “What can we do?”
“It's the dark fey,” Cian sighed. “They've been influencing the other fey with their magic. It's similar to how it was when Faerie was infected except worse. There's been altercations in all the kingdoms.”
“Altercations?” I lifted a brow. “Care to be more specific?”
“Fey have been attacking other fey,” Cian gave me the fey equivalent of a duh look and then frowned. “Actually there is more. Fey are crying in the halls, hoarding food in their rooms, stealing, and even sexually harassing each other.”
“And you're sure it's the dark fey behind it?” I knew it was the dark fey but proof is always nice.
“They've been invited to visit the kingdoms that were affected and its only after they've arrived that the trouble started.” King Cian nodded. “Can you speak to them, Queen Vervain? Ask them to control their element better?”
“Why me?” I blinked in surprise. “Shouldn't you, as High King, do that?”
“You helped create them,” Cian shrugged. “I assumed you would have some influence with them.”
“Perhaps too much influence,” Arach shifted his gaze to me.
“What was that, King Arach?” Cian angled his head toward us.
“Nothing, High King,” Arach cleared his throat. “I'm sure Vervain would have no problem speaking with King Rowan for you.”
“I'll mirror him as soon as we're done,” I assured Cian.
“Thank you, Queen Vervain. I hate to cause trouble for them so soon but this can't be ignored.” King Cian waved a hand and the mirror fogged over. When it cleared, he was gone.
I grabbed a handful of eyebright from the jar on the table and rubbed it across the glass. “King Rowan of the Dark Kingdom,” I intoned. The mirror did its thing and revealed a bright room dominated by a seductive bed draped in black silk. Rowan's face came into view, he was taking a seat in front of the mirror. “King Rowan.”
“Queen Vervain,” he smiled slowly. “How wonderful to see your lovely face.”
“King Rowan,” Arach growled before I could say anything.
“King Arach,” Rowan nodded.
“We've just had a call from the High King,” I elbowed Arach away. “He's concerned over the lack of control your fey have displayed with their magic.”
“Yes,” Rowan sighed. “As you already know, it's been difficult for us. I would have kept the dark fey within our kingdom borders until we were more confident in our abilities but the other royals were quite insistent that we visit.”
“Oh,” I frowned. “The King failed to mention that.”
“It's alright,” Rowan shook his head. “I'll just keep my people confined to our own kingdom for the time being.”
“I'm sorry that you have to be restricted,” I sighed.
“Hardly,” he laughed. “We have a whole kingdom and still a lot that needs to be done.”
“Oh, good,” I brightened. “I helped Dahlia control her element the other day. Perhaps she can pass the tip on and help the others?”
“I'll look into that,” he said with a strange smile.
“Well, thank you, King Rowan. Mirror me if you need any help.”
“Thank you, Queen Vervain,” he nodded. “Goodbye, King Arach.”
“Goodbye, King Rowan.” Arach rubbed some eyebright over the mirror and ended the conversation.
I frowned at my reflection.
“That went well, I thought,” Arach looked me over with confusion. “Why aren't you happy?”
“The things Cian was talking about,” I turned in my seat to face him. “The stealing, crying, and harassment. All side effects of darker emotions. Rowan said the dark fey were each manifesting a different dark emotion. I guess I just hadn't realized how powerful that kind of magic could be.”
“That jealousy he made me feel was pretty intense,” Arach narrowed his eyes on me. “Feelings like that could start a war. Do you think that's what he's planning? Maybe he's not happy with just one kingdom. Maybe he wants to rule them all.”
“I don't think so. That seems like a lot of work for twenty-one fey who were just given a kingdom.” I considered him thoughtfully. “But I'm not a hundred percent sure.”
Chapter Thirty
“And then the beautiful dragon-sidhe, Aillidh, lifted her hands and a wall of thorns shot from the ground to encase the castle full of sleeping humans. She laughed, knowing that they would sleep a hundred years in payment for their grave insult.”
“Roarke?” I walked fully into the nursery. “What story is that?”
“The story of Aillidh, the dragon-sidhe,” he was reading from a book to Hunter, the baby held in one arm and the book in the other.
“It sounded familiar,” I frowned and then the song came back to me, Vex singing to me in a boat, and me singing with Samantha and Fallon. What the hell? That was a lot of singing. “It sounds like Sleeping Beauty.”
“Sleeping Beauty?” Roarke looked down at the book. “Well, Aillidh does cast a sleeping spell on this spoiled little girl cause her parents didn't invite Aillidh to her birthday party. Not getting invited to a royal birthday party is a huge insult to a fey and she was the reigning fey of their area... and a dragon-sidhe to boot. Talk about dumb.”
“And she surrounded the castle with a brier bush?” I continued. “Then a Prince came along and woke up the girl with a kiss?”
“Well, true love's kiss usually does the trick with enchantments,” Roarke cocked his head in consideration. “But how could it have been true love if he'd never met the girl? No, there wasn't a Prince. The girl slept right along with her parents and the rest of the castle for a hundred years.”
“But that's just a ...”
“Yes?” He lifted his brows at me.
“A fairy tale,” I whispered. “Holy Hidden Ones, are you telling me that all the fairy tales are true?”
“I don't know,” he looked down at Hunter like I'd lost my mind and he needed someone to commiserate with. “I don't know all the fey tales.”
“Fairy tales,” I waved my hand to him. “Stories read to children.”
“Here we call them fables,” he said. “Tales of greatness or woe to inspire or warn, though I can assure you, the stories are the truth. This is history presented in an entertaining fashion for our children. In fact, I found this book in your fire fey archives,” he held it up. “You don't even know how excited I am to be able to read these fables to my own son. My mother read them to me as a child but that was thousands of years ago.”
“Can I see that book?” I held out my hand for it and he handed it over. I started flipping through the pages and then sighed in frustration. “What language is this?”
“Fey,” Roarke laughed. “Here, give it back, I'll read them to you too.”
“I'm just wondering which ones are true,” I pulled up another chair.
“I just told you,” Roarke huffed, “they're all true.”
“No, I mean which ones of the fairy tales I know,” I amended. “Tell me more about this Aillidh. She was able to cast a sleep spell on an entire castle?”
“Oh sure,” Roarke shrugged. “No problem. Sleep spells are easy. Any spell that encourages something people normally do are generally pretty simple.”
“Wait, so all fey can do it?”
“Of course,” he laughed. “We created the Realm of Dreams after all. Sending people there is child's play.”
“What?!” No wonder I could manipulate the Dream Realm! “How did I not know about the Dream Realm?”
“I have no idea,” he gave me a confused face. “You do dream, right?”
“Of course I dream.”
&nbs
p; “Well, where did you think you went when you slept?”
“I didn't think I went anywhere,” I huffed. “Why would I think that?”
“Because you know magic and anyone who knows magic should be able to sense that they're not in their body when they dream. Really, V, sometimes I wonder about you.”
“Roarke!” I growled. “Humans don't think like that.”
“Hmph,” he gave me a superior look. “Probably why we had to make the Aether too.”
“That's right,” I sat back into my chair. “The fey made the Aether to connect the realms. Why did they make the Dream Realm?”
“To peer into the thoughts of mortals of course,” he smirked. “Learn the dreams of a king and you can control the kingdom.”
“That's pretty devious.”
“The fey are devious, darling,” he smirked.
“Definitely,” Anna came into the room and took her son from his father. “And this one is the most devious of them all.”
“Are you referring to me or our child?” Roarke lifted a brow.
“You, of course,” she made a disgruntled face at him.
“Your words are like sweet music to my ears,” Roarke smiled up at her, sarcastic but obviously smitten.
I'd hosted Faerie to transmutate all the defected earth cat-sidhe into fire cat-sidhe and Anna had come through the transformation with fire eyes like Roarke's and a streak of bright red in her otherwise pure white hair. Roarke and Hunter were the only other fire cats who'd gained fire eyes so far and the rest of the fire cats had taken it to be a sign of royalty. That the mother of his child now showed the signs of Queenhood excited Roarke to no end. Anna, however, couldn't have cared less. Or so she wanted him to believe. I think Anna felt more for Roarke than she cared to admit.
“What are you two talking about?” Anna started swaying with Hunter and the baby giggled in delight.
“The fables,” Roarke indicated the book that was now spread out on his lap. “Queen Vervain recognizes them as human stories called Fairy Tales.”
