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“I couldn’t be seen aiding you, old friend,” Hadeon said.

Arabella frowned.

Was Hadeon implying that he’d arranged having scouts captured to give Arden a warning of what Genoveva was doing?

Arden crossed muscled arms over his chest. “Then what took you so long to pay us a visit? It would seem after a thousand years, you’ve forgotten about us.”

As Hadeon looked up at Arden, she could see that clever mind of his taking in this new information.

“It’s been five hundred years since the fae wars,” Hadeon said carefully. “In the fae realm, that is. A thousand years have passed here?”

“Lies,” Arden snapped, though his tone held a hint of uncertainty. Turning from Hadeon, Arden’s gaze settled on Arabella. “But he’s not why I’ve been summoned here.” Boots crunching on pebbles, the shadow fae prince strode forward. Slowly, he lowered himself so he crouched before her. “Who are you?”

She hesitated revealing what Hadeon suspected of her heritage—and her relation to this male. She wanted to see just what he was like and if he was worthy of her trust. But she did need his help if she had any hope of rescuing Elias.

“No one of note,” she said carefully. “I possess shadow magic. And I was told you might be able to help me learn to control it.”

Eyes narrowing, Arden’s gaze lingered for a moment on her neck—where the black veins were. Then he said, “How have you survived without Queen Genoveva’s notice?”

Careful not to glance toward Hadeon, she said, “As it turns out, mortals are beneath her notice.”

“A demi-fae. That would explain why you weren’t amongst us when the Twilight Court slaughtered civilians,” Arden said, his voice growing distant. “Were you hiding among the humans?”

She nodded.

It was the truth, though all she remembered was being found at the edge of the forest near Shadowbank and the enchantresses taking her in.

In a flash, a blade was in his hand, and he was slicing the bonds at her wrists and ankles. “I’ll never turn away one of my own. Not when so many of us have been hunted down simply for existing.”

Rubbing her wrists, Arabella gestured to Jessamine, Hadeon, and Breckett—the latter of whom still slept.

“These are my friends. I hope you’ll be equally as welcoming to them.” Then she nodded to Breckett. “He’s going to need to feed when he wakes. I suggest having backup when he does. Enchantress Jessamine can explain.”

If she’d learned anything about Elias during the times when he’d nearly run out of essence, erox could become lost to the feeding. And fae were equally susceptible to an erox’s power. Once they were under an erox’s spell, they’d be unable to fight against the pleasure as their essence slipped from their lips—same as humans.

Leaning back on a heel, Arden studied her for a long moment before standing.

He nodded to the warriors behind him, one of which turned toward the cave’s entrance and disappeared. Several others strode into the cave, taking positions around Breckett.

“Walk with me,” Arden said. “There’s much I’d like to discuss.”

Arabella followedthe shadow fae prince in silence through long tunnels within the mountain, clinging to the shreds of her remaining strength.

Like the cave they’d just been in, the walls, floors, and ceiling of the tunnel were all made of rough, uneven stone. Interestingly, there weren’t torches on the walls, nor did Arden hold one. Instead, he moved through the darkness with confident familiarity.

He can see in the darkness, she realized.Just like me.

Sparks of magic from nearby wielders bubbled into her awareness. She didn’t need to cast her awareness out. Not when hundreds of sparks lit within her mind. She could sense them through the cave walls, which led her to believe there were more tunnels and caves within the mountain that housed even more shadow fae.

Just how many fae were here?

As they walked along the rough-hewn floors that slanted upwards, she watched, transfixed by how the shadows moved around Arden just like they did for her. While it was dark within the mountain, the deeper darkness of the shadows still moved. They swirled around her feet and then his—as if they couldn’t decide who to nuzzle into.

Seeing her gaze swiveling between the shadows and the cave walls, Arden said, “We used magic to tunnel into these mountains and build our home here. We needed a safe space away from the demons and creatures of this realm.”

“I didn’t know shadow magic could be used that way,” she said honestly.

They passed several branching tunnels, down which she heard echoes of laughter.