Page 74
Story: A Strange Hymn
Slippery, slippery woman. Her words are not quite an insult, but they’re phrased so that they toe that line.
I give her a slow smile. “You are too kind.” This is the first time I’ve spoken directly to her, and the room goes quiet as they listen to my harmonic voice.
Mara waves over some of her people. “Please show the king and his consort to their rooms,” she orders them, not bothering to let the Green Man greet us. To me and Des, she says, “The feast begins in an hour in the Sacred Gardens. I look forward to seeing you both there.”
Chapter 21
The two of us stand inside our guest suite, finally alone. Nearly every surface around us is covered with flowering plants. They grow from pots, they wreath the walls, and they hang from the ceilings. The smell of them is almost too powerful.
The suite itself is alive, situated inside one of the colossal trees that ring the castle. Above and below us are more rooms, where Temper, Malaki, and the rest of our group are staying.
My skin dims as I force the siren back to her watery depths before locking her away. I rub my arms, remembering the siren’s egotistical, screwed-up thoughts.
Des raises an eyebrow. “I still owe her,” he says.
And my siren still plans on pillaging the promised sexual favors from him. “She’ll be back to collect from you at some point.” I run my hands through my hair, reclaiming my body. “Why did you want the siren out?”
“Fairies are always aware of power dynamics,” Des says, folding his arms as he leans against a side table. “I wanted Mara to meet you at your wickedest.”
And who better to pit her against than my siren?
I let out a shaky breath. We’re not even an hour into the visit and already I’m being sized up.
This is my welcome to Solstice. Let the festivities begin.
***
By the time we make it to the Sacred Gardens, the sky is dark, and I feel more like myself.
“Sacred Gardens,” I murmur as we walk under a flowering trellis and enter the wooded clearing. “That sounds like something teenage me would call my vagina.”
Next to me, Des smirks. “Undoubtedly, cherub.” His eyes turn a little sad, and I wonder if, like me, he’s thinking about all the time we missed together between then and now.
As soon as we enter the garden, which isn’t so much a garden as it is a flowering meadow surrounded by hedges and trees, the crowd’s attention moves to us. A sea of strange faces stares back at me and Des, and there are only two I recognize—Temper’s and Malaki’s. The two must’ve arrived here shortly before we did.
Des leads me deeper into the Sacred Garden. The area is lit by dancing fairy lights and several bonfires. Out here it smells like jasmine and smoke, and as the fire hisses and burns, the scent drifts into the star-filled sky above.
Des leans into me, his breath tickling my ear. “It would behoove you to know—”
“Did you just say ‘behoove’?” I interrupt him. “How old are you, eight hundred?”
“—that as King of the Night,” he continues without missing a beat, “I’m expected to help lead this evening’s festivities, and as my mate, you’re expected to be at my side.”
“Because I have so many other places to be,” I say. I catch sight of a giant urn of fairy wine. Stop numero uno once the party begins.
Des’s eyes brighten, his lips curving into a pleased smile. “Word of warning, cherub: sass is a turn-on, so if you expect me to keep my hands off you and your precious beads, you might want to work on being pleasant.”
I raise an eyebrow. “If you think I’m going to be some docile, agreeable girlfriend, you’re—”
Before I can finish, an invisible hand pushes me forward into Des’s arms. He still has that smug-ass smile on his face. “Mateis the correct term,” he says, his voice pitched seductively low. “I’m not your”—he makes a face—“boyfriend. I’m neither a boy nor particularly friendly.” He ends his little speech by kissing me on the nose.
I realize the mistake I made only once Des’s lingering hands finally release me. He baited medeliberately, knowing I’d mouth off to him and he’d get his opening to pull me close.
Wily man.
I glance around us. The spit of the flames and the glow of the flickering lights play with my vision. Now fairies are flashing us sweet smiles; now they’re leering at us suggestively.
The whole thing is discomfiting, like Des and I are some drama unfolding purely for their pleasure.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74 (Reading here)
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160