Page 98

“I’m sorry, it’ll leave a scar.” She’d learned from the infirmary in Levea that she could heal most things, but sometimes the superficial skin didn’t heal completely. Was it a limit to her power or something she needed to learn? Maybe she couldn’t heal wounds entirely at all. It’d certainly seemed that way with severe ones.

The female’s hand slowly rose to her face and traced the faint scar from her eyebrow to her mouth. Her eyes widened in shock and she stared at Arianna for a time before pressing her face to the ground. The female broke out in violent sobs as she whispered, “Thank you,” over and over and over again.

Arianna stood and the crowd parted as guards pushed their way through. Niall emerged with them, wind whipping around his body in agitated fury.

“What happened?” he demanded.

Arianna answered before the guards could tell the wrong story. “The male was beating a former slave.” Arianna gestured to the injured female, then to the male still standing. “And this one defended her.”

Niall looked at the body and anger pulsed from him. “By killing him.”

“Yes,” the male said, his gaze daring as he locked eyes with Niall. “It’s nothing short of what he deserved.”

Niall’s jaw clenched and Arianna saw a flash of anger there she’d never seen before. “The crime you’ve committed is murder and murder is paid with the life of the accused.”

The female’s head shot up and her quiet plea was enough to tell Arianna what the two meant to one another.

No one moved despite Niall’s command. It was as if they waited for another’s opinion. The hesitation didn’t go unnoticed.

“You said they had a one-week grace period,” Arianna positioned herself closer to the male.

Niall nodded. “I did, as such—”

“Does it not apply to the slaves?”

Niall clenched his jaw again, looking annoyed with her for the first time since she’d arrived. “My Lady, while I can appreciate your efforts toward wanting to ensure they live suitable lives, I cannot, in good standing, condone them for the act of murder.”

“But the male was aware of the new law. The half-breed,” Arianna gestured toward the one behind her, “heard her scream and yet no one else did?” She eyed the guards skeptically. “None of you heard her?” They looked away and her anger surfaced anew. “They stood aside as a member of your court,” she spat at Niall, “tried to take what he wanted.” The guards bowed their heads in shame. “I will not have him executed when he fought because no one else would.”

Niall eyed her then eyed the crowd, both half-breed and Fae. “A crime this severe cannot go unpunished.”

Arianna glared at the charred body with disgust. “What would his punishment have been for harming a former slave?”

Niall’s hand flexed. They had an audience. He couldn’t be anything but truthful here. “He’d be exiled.”

Arianna nodded. “Then that shall be the punishment served.”

Chapter Thirty-six

Arianna

Arianna sat on the roof, nervous anticipation rolling through her as they watched the matte black carriage pulled by two midnight horses make its way down the main street. Dark red trim lined the wheels and windows giving the whole thing a menacing appearance.

Talon had informed Arianna that the ambassador of Fiadh would be arriving that evening and she hadn’t expected the anxious butterflies that had formed in her gut. She knew the ambassador was female, but that was as far as her knowledge went.

Arianna didn’t know if she was older, like Niall, or younger like herself. She chewed her lip, watching the wheels roll across the stone in silence. Arianna imagined it had a red carpet inside with thick cushions and smooth panels that glittered with the precious stones Fiadh prided themselves on.

She wondered if she’d ever get to see the grand city carved into the belly of a mountain.

Arianna crossed her legs and gripped her mate’s hand. Rion didn’t appear near as pensive. He watched with an easy calculated gaze, sizing up an opponent. Was this female her enemy, or was the High Lord from Fiadh telling the truth about his estranged son? Had the attack on Levea really been an isolated event? Rion didn’t seem to think so. It did feel a little too convenient, especially since that son had gone missing.

The carriage pulled to a stop before the gates. Four more carriages followed, all black.

The door opened and Arianna held her breath as the image she’d been forming in her mind shattered into a million tiny shards.

She’d been expecting the female to be dressed in a long gown, for her hands to have white, elbow-length gloves that would reach out for someone to assist her down the carriage step. Arianna had imagined the female’s hair long and flowing, pinned back in elaborate braids, with jewelry on her wrists and around her neck.

Instead, an elegant warrior emerged clad in black leathers with more knives strapped across her torso than Arianna cared to count. Long braids were tied back from her dark face and Arianna felt Rion’s magic spring to life, circling his mate as if she needed protection from the warrior even at this distance.