I turned to Peony, just twenty feet away, who giggled hysterically, a sound I never thought I’d hear from her. “Oh my god, we did it!” she screamed into the wind. “We are flying! We are free! I can’t wait to tell Caleb.”
My chest contracted with pain and unease. “Are you sure we can trust him?”
Peony nodded once we were level with each other and gliding. “It was his idea to free the earthbound fae, and he was the one to agree to work with Onyx. He’s on our side.”
“That’s good.” I was glad, and yet my heart was heavy.
Peony pulled her Pegasus closer to mine. She flicked her hair from her face as we drifted over the field and then over the forest. Tiny houses and lanterns shone below. “Nathan is not a bad guy.”
No, he wasn’t. He also wasn’t a coward, but… “He won’t use his brains if it means going against authority!” I had to shout over the sudden flapping on my Pegasus’s wings. Then the creature glided, offering silence except for the air rushing past.
Peony sighed. “Give him some time. Be patient. If I changed, anyone can.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, you sure made a one-eighty.” But would Nathan want to change? After all, Peony had been forced to when the vampires turned on her. Nathan and his sister were treated well by the king, and it would stay that way as long as they did whatever King Peter told them to, no questions asked. Deciding that worrying wouldn’t get me anywhere, I pushed Nathan and the king out of my head and focused on my ride. Up here, the stars were clearer. I could make out faint blues and oranges. A ribbon of faint dust spread across the sky.
The fresh air did me good, and after Peony and I returned the Pegasi to their stables, offered them sugar cubes, and parted ways at the still-open gate, I fell into a peaceful sleep, hope nestled in my stomach. I wasn’t completely on my own. I had Peony and Caleb, and I was much more resourceful than I had previously believed.
For the next few days, I avoided Nathan, afraid he’d pick up on my little rebellion or worse, my true thoughts. No notes came for him, inviting me to his office for Telepathy, which bought me time.
I threw myself into my studies and during the in-between times, let Peony explain the basics of close combat as I’d never be allowed to wear a sword or bow given my high status. She showed me how to hold a dagger and where the most vulnerable spots on a fae body were. A small blade was better than nothing, and it was also easy to hide daggers on my body, underneath my dresses or inside a small purse. Daggers were the weapons of assassins, after all. Sneaky. Unexpected.
I just hoped I’d never have to use the crystal dagger now tied to my ankle.
Peony and I also met by the Pegasi stalls, flying on our mounts daily. She had let Caleb in on our secret, and he ensured that no one got to the stalls while we were gone and discovered the Pegasi were missing. By the end of the week, I was feeling much better.
All was going well, until Nathan rushed into our classroom, in the midst of Developing a Mind Shield. We had been working on how to put up magic barriers around ourselves, as Nathan and the royals did, but I’d been struggling with the act and Nerissa had been frowning at me all through class as if worried.
“Nerissa,” he nodded curtly. “I must borrow Virgie.”
Nerissa gave him a peaceful smile. From the few times I had tried talking to her about a potential war, I knew she too had drunk the Kool-Aid and believed that King Peter only had the Summer Court’s best interests in mind. “Of course, brother.” She faced me. “We will work on your shield more next week.”
I stood from my position in the circle and didn’t meet Peony’s gaze, even though I could feel her worry drilling into me. Next to her, Kristen chewed on her fingernail.
Don’t worry. It’s going to be fine, I said in my mind. Telepathy hadn’t worked so far between Peony and me, but I continued to try. Plus, I knew that I could influence her mood, and right now, I couldn’t let Nathan see how much I had confided in her. Thus, I sent a wave of calm over her, feeling her relax in response. At least I was getting better at focusing my power on people without staring directly into their eyes.
I stepped out of the classroom with Nathan, and the tree stump staircase delivered us to the ground floor. I didn’t ask why Nathan was here, but waited patiently for him to enlighten me. He seemed uneasy, his fingers twitching. But that wasn’t my problem.
He finally spoke when we reached the empty ground floor. “King Peter is sending us on a mission. It’s time for you to prove yourself.”
I inhaled sharply and snapped my gaze to him. What would the king have me do? Would I have to hurt someone? “Didn’t I already prove myself?”
“Not yet. We need to retrieve something from the Border Territory.” At my raised eyebrow, Nathan added. “The Border Territory separates us from the Winter Court. It is a transition zone between our courts and mostly uninhabited.”
Of course. I had heard Blythe mention it in passing but she hadn’t elaborated much in History. Apparently, the Border Territory was just a travel area that got more winter-like, the closer you got to the Winter lands. Elemental fae often traveled there between courts.
“He wants us to retrieve snowdrops,” Nathan said. I blinked. I had expected jewelry or perhaps a sword, not flowers. “It doesn’t grow here because it’s always summer.”
“I know what a snowdrop is,” I snapped. While there were still a lot of plants in the fae realm I couldn’t name, we had snowdrops back on earth. It was the first flower that came out in February or March when the snow thawed. Small and white-petaled, it had the shape of a downturned bell. “Why does the king need it?” Was this a meaningless task to prove my loyalty, or the first step in accelerating the war against the Winter Court? Did King Peter suspect I had calmed him during his interrogation of Onyx? Or did he simply withhold trust until his subjects couldn’t think for themselves anymore?
Nathan hesitated, but then he must’ve seen in my gaze that I needed more information before I risked my life.
“The king wants Peony and other plant fae to work with it. It might make us better at fighting in winter conditions. Right now, the cold weakens us.”
I gritted my teeth as ice raced down my spine. So King Peter was preparing to invade the Winter Court. His talks about a truce would never happen because he knew Onyx could never deliver what he asked of her.
“What if I refuse?” I asked coolly.
Nathan closed the space between us and gripped my shoulders, quicksilver eyes boring into me. “You can’t. Why would you? He’ll have to send you to the dungeons. Then, if you refuse again—”
“He’ll execute me.”
Nathan sighed. “Please, Virgie. We need the snowdrops. We never know when the Winter Court will strike.”
“Onyx doesn’t want war. Why must I go, other than a loyalty test?” I wanted to get away from Nathan and his inability to think. He reminded me too much of myself back when I was trapped in the vampires’ society. I hated the mirror that he held up to me.
Weariness settled into Nathan’s face, making him appear much older than his twenty-four years. “To get the snowdrops, we need your mentalist abilities. As for Onyx…” He sighed. “Perhaps she doesn’t want war, but her generals do. She’s young and doesn’t have them under control like her father once did. Until she’s queen, anything can happen.” Nathan fell silent, and a heaviness spread between us.
“Fine, I’ll do it.” I might lose this battle, but I’d win the war. Swaying some Winter guards to look the other way wasn’t that bad. As for the snowdrop, it would take the plant fae a while to figure out how to utilize it.
“Thank you.” Nathan smiled, but I didn’t return his smile. I wasn’t doing this to pacify King Peter or to make it easy on Nathan. I was doing this for myself, to understand how much my powers had grown since I’d come to the fae realm and to fool King Peter. The closer I got to know my enemy, the better.
Chapter 17
I expected to find guards accompanying Nathan when I met him out
side the Vasara Center at dawn the next morning, but it was just him and me. For once, I didn’t wear a dress or skirt of a purple shade. Instead, Nathan had ordered me a white bodysuit and cape, which covered my folded wings. Pierre had delivered both the previous night. Given the nervous glint in the stylist’s eyes, he must’ve known that the outfit was for a mission into the Winter Court to blend in and look more like a Winter fae. However, besides giving me my outfit, which also included black boots, he didn’t say anything, and I didn’t press him. Pierre was a nice guy, and I didn’t want to get him into trouble.
Nathan too was dressed in a white suit and a white coat that matched his hair. His wings, unlike mine, were exposed, and I suspected that it was not an oversight, but a strategic choice in case we needed to take to the sky quickly.
Nathan walked me away from the Vasara Center and toward the area of the field I had first landed in when Caleb had brought me through the portal. Leaning against a tree and at the edge of the field was Caleb, his messy hair blowing in the wind.
He nodded at both of us. “I’ll be here. Let me know, and I’ll reopen the portal.”
So that was how we were going to travel. I glanced from him to Nathan. “You two can use telepathy even when you’re in different courts?”
“Sort of,” Caleb said. “But only if I’m the one to open the portal and if I remain close to it. Also, Nathan has to practically shout to be heard.” He didn’t crack a smile, the mischief for once gone from his face.
Nathan simply nodded, his gaze focused on the sun peeking up from the horizon. “We need to hurry.”
“But I don’t even know what to do,” I said since he had refused to volunteer any more details about the mission yesterday.
“I’ll explain everything later.” His tone left no room for further discussion.
I turned to Caleb for help, but all he said was, “It will be fine. I’ll be right here in case you need assistance.” His face stayed unreadable. Glad to see his confidence, then.
“We won’t need the help. It’s just a precaution,” Nathan snapped and stepped closer to me. What the hell? Was Nathan jealous? If so, it was misguided. It wasn’t Caleb he needed to worry about, but his own behavior that was getting more off-putting by the minute.
Caleb focused on a spot in the air. It shimmered, flaring green, and then the portal turned bigger and bigger, green border expanding until the oval shape was as tall as I. At first, the portal blurred in the center, and then the colors sharpened again to reveal snow and ice. In the morning sun, everything sparkled with a pink light. The snow itself. The ice-covered ponds. The sky was hazy with clouds of thin ice crystals and the sun cast small rainbows on either side.
Nathan took my hand, and this time, I was grateful for the contact. Together, we stepped through the portal. I didn’t dare to glance back at Caleb. Nerissa had explained in one of her classes that while portal traveling was relatively safe and quick between parts of the faeland, unlike between worlds, one could still manage to get stuck somewhere accidentally if one’s mind wasn’t sharp and ready.
Tingling washed over me as I moved through the portal, then vanished as I set my foot on the sparkling, crunchy surface of the Winter border. The cold slammed into me, chilling me to the bone. My breath escaped, spiraling into the sky. I shivered underneath my outfit, wishing Pierre had given me thick parka. Scanning for Winter warriors, I was relieved to find there were none among the trees and small open fields. Pine trees hanging heavy with bluish icicles stood scattered around the area, forming long shadows in the morning sun. The only ground free of snow was under the trees themselves. I spotted no houses in this area. And unfortunately, I spotted no bell-like flowers under the trees.
“Where are we?”
“A couple hundred meters from the true border.” Nathan motioned in front of us as he released me, but a wall of trees that somehow looked unnatural blocked the view. “We are near the edge of the transition zone. The faster we complete our mission, the better.”
I agreed, shivering. We started walking toward the wall of trees, and I fell into step with him, grateful for the fast pace that would hopefully ensure I didn’t lose my toes or fingers to frostbite. A gust of wind slammed into my face, and I blinked away tears of pain. I couldn’t wait to reach the trees just to have them shield me from the freezing temperatures.
“We’ll reach the border and the snowdrops in a few minutes. You’ll use your mind skills to force the guards to look away, then retrieve the snowdrops. Make sure to dig them out with the bulbs.” Nathan handed me a small shovel, and I snorted. “Is this funny?”
“Yes.” I took the shovel from him and shook my head. “It seems very inefficient. Couldn’t a plant fae just collect a few of the seeds by using her powers?”
Nathan nodded. “Yes. Peony could’ve done the job, but that’s not the point. King Peter ordered you to do it.”
“Right. To prove myself. Again.” And whatever King Peter said was the gospel to Nathan. I waited for Nathan to say something about how I had brought this on myself by angering Percival or using my mind power on the king instead of Onyx, but Nathan stayed on the task at hand.
“This is a serious mission. We need the snowdrops and if you prove yourself, you’ll be given more important tasks in the future.”
“Mhm.” Like I was desperate to be the king’s little mentalist servant.
We stepped into the trees, allowing us to warm up a bit, and slowly moved through the thick pine needles. Here the icicles weren’t as thick, as the trees formed a canopy to the sky which blocked falling snow. Nathan and I walked in silence, the air thickening with tension. I didn’t dare ask what I’d face, and the stiffness in Nathan’s walk told me to stay quiet.
At last, I spotted light on the other side of the tree wall. The temperature plunged, making my fingers numb. Nathan motioned to me to duck low, and I did as we moved soundlessly over soft pine needles.
As soon as black and cobalt blue uniforms came into view about a hundred feet away, Nathan pulled me behind an icy boulder. We both crouched and he leaned close. “I have to wait here per the king’s orders. But I’ll be there in a second if you need me.” Nathan gripped my hands tightly. “You’ll need to cross the frozen river. I know you can do it.” He pressed his lips together tightly, his forehead creasing with worry. Was that hesitation in his eyes? No. He was too loyal to the king to have unapproved emotions.
“I’ll be fine.” I spoke confidently, not allowing any fear into my voice. This was the only way I’d ever get Nathan to take me seriously. I tore my gaze from his slim, long nose and thin lips and peeked around the boulder to study the Winter guards. There were four of them on the opposite side of an ice river, armed with bows and arrows. Two men. Two women. They stood in a group, gossiping near some more pine trees, all of which were heavy with icicles. A guard shack made of dark stone and ice bricks stood off to the side. Footprints marked trails in the snow and went between the trees.
I squinted, needing a plan before running across the river blindly. The trees on the other side of the narrow river had white, bell-shaped flowers under them. I had to get across the ice, which was forty or fifty feet wide, without making a sound. Then I had to dig, get the snowdrops, and return.
I took a breath. I could do this. The guards weren’t looking at me, but I’d be able to compel them without direct eye contact as I’d had a lot of training in that the last few weeks. While there being four of them should complicate things, their minds didn’t exactly have strong shields up, just a regular alertness one would expect from guards. These fae all had light blue wings, which I guessed were the equivalent of the Summer Court’s bronze.
I divided my attention between them evenly, imagining that four threads went from my head to each of theirs, and then I whispered into their minds, Go to the right, don’t look back. You heard something.
It felt risky to give them instructions that if broken meant they would see me, but Nerissa had taught me that the most effective m
ind manipulation was subtle. If you asked your target to do something too strange, they might become aware of a presence invading their minds.
The guards broke apart. One tapped another’s shoulder and pointed into the trees, saying something I couldn’t hear. As a group, they walked quickly to the right just as I had asked, vanishing into the trees. One fae woman drew her bow and notched an arrow, ready to attack an intruder.
“Very good,” Nathan whispered. “Now, go!”
I dashed for the snowdrops before my pounding heart and turning stomach made me lose my nerve. The snow on the ground muffled my steps and the wind swallowed my panting. I skated across the river, sticking to the ice to avoid leaving footprints, praying I wouldn’t fall and break a bone. As I reached the shelter of the trees, I ducked beside a few of the delicate snowdrops. Not wanting to hurt the snowdrop bulbs, I dug into the nearly-frozen ground carefully. Working, I kept throwing glances at the guards. They were dark, distant figures in the trees, peering into the woods beyond. The woman with the bow took a few steps forward, listening for the phantom noise, while the two men whispered to each other. Then the woman with the bow stepped back, shaking her head at the other guards. The jig was up.
With the spade deep in the dirt, I paused and sent out more mental strands. The noise is to the east. They’re fleeing.
I ducked behind the trunk, digging faster. Despite the cold, sweat dribbled down my bodysuit. I freed one of the snowdrops along with a clod of freezing earth. Two more to go per the king’s instructions.
Faint footsteps reached my ears. Heading to the east, apparently, meant coming closer to me. I couldn’t see them now through this thick tree. Shit. Just as I freed the second bulb, the guards stopped and spoke a few words between themselves.
“...I’m sure. Just a fox,” a woman said.
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