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Fresh panic made the noise in the room unbearable. People grabbed each other—one fainted. Some of the men pulled out weapons as whispers of war between Riothin and Lyro flitted through the space.

Shayne didn’t stop moving. He pulled Lily through the doors as he slid his crossbow onto his back, and the second they were in the hall, he scooped her off her feet and began running with her in his arms. Wailing alarms filled the building, and one or two men rushed out the large doors after them, but they were far behind. Lily looked around as her thoughts crystalized, as it dawned on her that none of this was imaginary, and that Shayne…

He was really here. He held her tightly, his fingers curling around her side and locking her legs against him as he turned down a hall and followed a path of bodies littering the floor. Dark liquid covered his hands, leaving fingerprints on her dress, and Lily wondered how many men he’d killed on his way in.

No, not men. Fairies.

She looked up at him in surprise. The sudden movement made him tilt his face toward her, bringing it close enough that his features were clear, cancelling out any doubt she might have had left about who this was.

“Shayne.” She said it with volume this time.

“Lily,” he said back as he turned and slipped them sideways through a doorway. “I’m in a bit of a rush right now. Can we talk later?” he asked.

“I…” Her mouth and tongue were thick. “I thought you weren’t coming for me,” she admitted. Warmth pushed behind her eyes as her own statement rang in her ears.

“As if.” He shook his head. “You’re crazy, ugly Human. How could you think for one second I wouldn’t come?” He spun and pushed a door open with his back.

Cold air brushed over Lily’s skin as Shayne sprinted through a garden. Flowers and leaves slapped against them until they reached a metal gate, and Shayne kicked it open. Lily almost screamed at the sight of a giant beast with fangs waiting on the other side. Shayne pushed her up onto its back, then leapt behind and reached around her to yank on a set of reins. The beast turned and galloped through a courtyard where more bodies made a path to a large gate hanging open before them.

“Is… is this real?” Lily had to check one last time. What if this was a dream? What if she woke up in a minute and all of this was taken away, and she was forced to eat and dance again?

“Absolutely,” Shayne promised into her ear beneath the roaring of the wind and the grunting of the beast. “I’ll prove it to you. Just wait.”

It was real.

Her body relaxed; she leaned back against him.

As they flew threw the opening, broke through the treeline beyond, and were consumed by a dark forest of trees, Lily felt Shayne hug her a little tighter to himself, and he whispered, “I’m sorry I was late.”

31

Shayne Lyro, Heir to the House of Lyro

Warmth trickled along Shayne’s stomach and down his side, pooling at his hip and soaking his shirt beneath his coat. He didn’t notice it until the thundering of his chest subsided, and at that point, he felt the sting of the cold iron cut along his forearm, the gash in his left shoulder, and the ache of the needly slices up his legs, too. But especially, he felt the stab he’d taken in his side from the first guard at the Riothin gate. The stab that threatened to steal his alertness now and put him into a passed-out state that wouldn’t be good for him or Lily.

Ah, Lily. He’d stolen her back.

He smiled, hardly able to believe he’d found her at all, but revelling in the fact that she was actually where Hans-Der said she was, and Shayne hadn’t been forced to hunt the Ever Corners for the rest of his faeborn life.

The crossbeast grew tired from the sprint, so Shayne slowed the creature to a walk once he was sure they were far enough away from the House of Riothin. They wouldn’t have loads of time, but a few moments to rest would be enough for now. He slid off the creature’s back, then he turned and held his hands up for…

Lily was looking at him, but it sort of seemed like she wasn’t reallylookingat him.

Shayne’s mouth twisted to the side as he contemplated. He knew she’d snap out of it eventually, but it wasn’t exactly easy to see her this way. Even in her weakest moments in the human realm, she’d always seen him and known him, and probably wanted him a little. Not that he cared about any of that now.

He reached into his pocket and drew out a small bottle. “Drink this,” he instructed. “It’ll help you shake off—”

Instantly, Lily slid off the beast, grabbed the vial, uncorked it, and began to chug.

Shayne held his breath as he watched. He’d forgotten for a moment that he’d enslaved her. Shame on him. Shame, shame, shame.

“Lily,” he said, but she didn’t stop drinking until the vial was empty, even as a cold wind swept in and she shivered. She handed the vial back and wiped her mouth, and Shayne bit his lips. “In any other situation, I would have so much fun with this,” he admitted, more to himself. He sighed and took the vial, then he pulled off his crossbow, shrugged away his coat and threw it around her shoulders. “Give it a minute. Any second, you’ll be back to feeling yourself again, and I’m sure you’ll have plenty of things to say—”

“What happened to you?” she asked in a stern tone.

Shayne took a step back and looked her up and down. Was she back to her senses already? He’d never heard of fairy medicine working that fast. He followed her gaze down to his tunic and realized it was soaked with blood. “Ah, yes. This.” He pointed to his side where he’d been brutally stabbed. “It’s just a little scratch. I’ll be fine.”

Her eyes darted up to where he chewed on his tongue.