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Please, won’t someone kill me? Why is no one killing me?

The thundering hooves come closer, and I close my eyes. The riders are here. The riders of Veles will strike me any moment, and I will join Keir in Nav. It will all be over soon. A breeze blows across my face, cool and fresh. I take one last deep breath as voices sound at my back.

I hold Keir’s body tightly, tilting my head up to the smoke-filled sky.Kill me. Take me back to him.

Something hard strikes me in the back of the head, and I welcome the warm darkness that takes me.

It’s over.

It’s finally over.

Chapter1

Elara

“APeyrusian Princess, you say?” The voice was distant, muffled.

“Mmm, indeed.” Another voice. Closer this time.

“I never understood why these royal houses send their princesses into battle. What good is a woman on the battlefield?”

The owner of the other voice chuckled. “The Fae, there’s no explanation for their ways. Insufferable creatures.” Footsteps sounded close to my head. “By all accounts she fought bravely though. Her mate died in her arms.”

“Oh, how tragic,” the voice replied, so disdainful I could almost hear him sneering. Anger prickled at my throat as I willed myself awake.

Awake? Where was I? I had to be dead. I was dead in Nav, and Keir was waiting for me somewhere. But I sucked in a breath, my chest aching as my lungs expanded, and I was sure that there was no pain in Nav.

“Pretty thing, isn’t she?” There was a creak of leather as someone crouched beside me. “Aside from the missing ear, of course.”

“Too bad it was so torn up, I would have liked one of those pointy things as a pendant.” Their hearty laughter echoed around the room. They were mocking me.

“Wonder what the King will say when he sees his pretty little trophy all cut up like this?”

I groaned, rolling on to my side, pain gnawing at my ribs.

“Oh, watch out. She’s awake.” More laughter. “How are you feeling, fairy?”

“Where. Am. I?” The words got caught by each ragged breath. My vision swam as I opened my eyes. As I struggled to focus, I made out two blurry figures standing over me.

“You’re in Veles.” There was something white floating around his face, a beard perhaps? “Fresh from the battlefield. And a sad and sorry sight you are, too.”

I tried to push myself up on my hands, my head throbbing as blood began to circulate around my aching body. “No.” I gritted my teeth as I rose into a sitting position. “I died. The Riders came for me.”

“You’re gonna wish you had, fairy,” the other one said, the one whose blurry image was dark, clothed in green. “You are now the honored guest of His Majesty, King Theron of Veles.”

“Lucky indeed.” The bearded one leaned in closer, and a grimy hand grabbed my chin. “Looks almost like an angel, doesn’t she? That golden hair.”

I shoved his hand away. “Don’t touch me.” My hand shot to my side, instinctively reaching for my sword. I clenched my teeth together when I realized it was gone. Of course they hadn’t left me armed. I glared up at them, blinking, trying to fill my lungs with air. “You’re lucky they took away my weapon.”

More disdainful laughter. “Now, now, is that any way for a lady to address her hosts?”

A door swung open, the hinges creaking heavily, and hurried footsteps approached. “Get away from her, you beasts.” It was a woman’s voice, older, stern. “I said out, now.”

“Oh, now Drusilla, calm down,” the bearded man said jovially. “We were just welcoming our guest after waking up.”

“You’re animals, the both of you.” Drusilla walked over to me, leaning down to look at my face. She tutted, shaking her head. “Oh now, they’ve done a number on you, my dear.” She looked over her shoulder at the leering soldiers, and waved her hand sharply. “I said fuck off.”

They both broke into breathless laughter, trying to remain cavalier while clearly caught off guard by this woman cursing at them. They backed away to the door slowly. “Yes, alright,” the one clothed in green said with a chuckle. “We’ll leave you two alone.”