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Chapter Thirty-One

Samara

“She’s almost here.”

Irritation simmered beneath the mask of apprehension I’d fixed my features into.

I’d been switching back and forth between that and one of shaky confidence.

Erendriel had barely left my side since arriving yesterday, and while part of me enjoyed the thrill of outsmarting the Seelie King, I was more than a little exhausted from wearing all these different masks.

Honestly, I didn’t know how Kieran did it. I hadn’t been able to roll my eyes once in over twelve hours.

The only reprieve I’d gotten had been when night had fallen and he’d summoned the wraiths to him.

For hours, they had poured into the temple.

It had been an eerie experience, to say the least. My entire life, wraiths had been something to fear—and they still were—but now, I was relying on them.

I tried not to think about the fact that some of these wraiths could have been the same ones that had killed my parents.

Nothing good would come from dwelling on that, and if all went according to plan, we’d only be allies for a little while longer.

To my disappointment, Serril hadn’t been amongst the wraiths to answer Erendriel’s call.

I would have loved to have him caught up in all of this, but for whatever reason, Erendriel had not summoned him.

And I didn’t want to risk raising suspicion by asking about him.

He would almost certainly be a problem when the dust settled, but not much we could do about that now.

As my mother used to say, “No point in asking tomorrow for its problems when you still had to deal with today’s bullshit. ”

“Just remember what you promised, Erendriel.” I glanced to my right, where the Seelie King stood next to me, gazing out into the badlands. “The rangers are not to be harmed.”

He gave me a patronizing smile. “Of course, my young queen.”

I started to clench my jaw but killed the motion immediately, instead keeping my mask of apprehension and fear on.

For just a little while longer, I needed to play the role of eager but inexperienced queen.

It was a tightrope to walk, and part of me was thankful that it was coming to an end, but another part dreaded my showdown with Carmilla.

She had to be stopped, I knew this, but it didn’t mean I could just turn off my feelings for her.

I knew Vail was struggling as well. We had both loved Carmilla as a stand-in parent.

Her betrayal had left deep wounds in us both.

At least now we had each other to lean on.

Another person to talk to who understood exactly what the other felt.

Currently, Vail stood with Draven inside the temple, and everyone else waited in the first underground level until Carmilla was secured.

“Can you feel them approaching?” He gave me a curious look.

We’d been practicing for most of the time he’d been here.

By which I meant I’d made pathetic attempts at using my Seelie earth magic and he’d played the role of patient teacher.

I’d been mostly honest about my magic capabilities since I already had to balance so many other lies.

Plus, I was never one to waste resources, and while I didn’t trust everything Erendriel said, that didn’t mean he wasn’t a fountain of knowledge.

One just had to wade through his bullshit.

Although, the scholars at Drudonia had never laid a hand on my lower back while giving instructions or found reasons to brush against my skin.

Vail and Draven hadn’t been fans of that but also hadn’t interfered—trusting me to handle the situation. They’d just glowered from where they’d been leaning against the wall, watching us.

I wasn’t blind—Erendriel was truly stunning, but he was also an arrogant asshole.

I already had plenty of those and wasn’t in the market for another.

Plus he didn’t understand the concept of no. Sooner or later, he’d meet the same fate as Demetri and that prick guard Vail had so kindly taken care of.

Maybe we could host a celebration once a year in their honor? Like a mock funeral of sorts. Here lie a bunch of handsy fuckers who got what they had coming. Rest in pieces, assholes.

“Samara?” Erendriel arched a dark golden brow at me.

“Apologies. It’s been a long day.” I gave him a tired smile and hoped that covered up the amused one I’d been sporting a second ago.

“I can feel . . . something.” I looked away from him out into the badlands, and a crease formed between my brows as I concentrated.

“But I can’t tell what it is exactly. Either it’s large or there are lots of somethings, and I get the sense that it’s moving this way, but it’s more a feeling than anything else. ”

There was also the fact that I already knew Carmilla and her rangers were out there, courtesy of Rynn’s scouting, so my magic had something to go on. I wasn’t sure, if I’d had no knowledge of the situation, I would have been able to sense her.

“You’re actually doing quite well for someone who is so new to their magic,” he said encouragingly. “You’ll get better with time and practice, and of course I can teach you to speed things up a bit.”

A shriek came from deep within the temple.

“It seems your wraiths need to learn what it means to be quiet.” I glanced back towards the only room that was dark enough for the wraiths to gather during daylight.

“They do have a tendency to get excited,” he explained. “This temple is where we conducted most of the rituals to make them whole again. The ones who are still shadows are clamoring for the chance to be what they once were.”

“There will be no more rituals,” I reiterated firmly. “No more spilling of Moroi blood for your wraiths.”

“Hold up your end of the bargain, my young queen, and we won’t need to. Once we find the Unseelie Princes, their blood will be the answer to everything I seek.”

I very much wanted to find these Unseelie Princes, but I sure as shit wouldn’t be giving their location to Erendriel. Maybe they wouldn’t be assholes like him. I almost snorted. Of course they would be. I was rapidly coming to the realization that all Fae were assholes.

Maybe they were dead and we were all chasing ghosts. That would certainly be annoying. Although, as much as I wanted to find these princes, part of me wondered if it was for the good of Lunaria that they stayed lost.

More loud wailing came from the back of the temple, and a hint of annoyance flickered across Erendriel’s face.

“I will see to my people,” he conceded and gave me a nod.

“Make sure you get that door closed so that they can move around easier. They cannot walk in the light as I do and there are only so many shadows for them to hide in.”

“Of course.” I nodded back, keeping my tone respectful. He smiled at me before striding into the temple. I watched him go, keeping a close eye on his posture to see if he suspected any hint of deception, but I saw nothing.

As soon as he left, Vail and Draven appeared at my side. I sighed contentedly as I breathed in their scents.

“Everyone ready?” I asked quietly.

Draven leaned in to kiss my neck before whispering in my ear, “Of course, my love. Although Rynn is extra grouchy today. Damn near took my hand off.”

“You did call her a bad dog,” Vail pointed out.

“She growled at Kier,” Draven said coolly.

“Don’t antagonize Rynn. You know why she’s on edge.” I leaned against him while holding a hand out to Vail, who took it, intertwining his fingers with mine. “Our guests are doing well?”

“Woke up an hour ago.” Draven wrapped an arm around my waist and tucked me further into his side. “They still look like death but will probably come up for the fun part.”

“Good.” I watched as shapes started to appear on the horizon. “It’s just a waiting game now.”

We fell silent as Carmilla and her rangers drew closer. Rynn had to keep her distance while scouting, but we knew Carmilla had at least a hundred rangers with her. Maybe closer to two hundred. She clearly wasn’t fucking around this time.

When Carmilla was less than a quarter mile away, I stepped back. “Let’s get into position.”

The three of us retreated back inside the temple, which was as silent as a tomb. Erendriel had gotten the wraiths under control. Good. The last thing we needed was to tip Carmilla off. I tried not to think about all the moving pieces of this plan and how many ways it could fail.

If I stumbled now, it wasn’t just my life on the line—it was the lives of all of all those I loved.

I would not falter.

We walked towards the archway that led further into the temple but stopped just short of it. On either side of us, pillars of white stone spiraled from the ceiling to the floor. Only the spirals and a few tables with benches made of the same stone decorated this room.

Standing in the center of the archway was a pedestal that Draven and I had dragged over from a small room in the back.

Erendriel had barely glanced at the large shallow bowl full of blood that was resting on it.

I’d explained this morning that it was part of the ceremony I would invoke to challenge Carmilla.

He’d made some backhanded compliment about me cleverly using the ridiculous Moroi customs to my advantage.

Clearly, in his eyes, I was more Fae than Moroi.

Draven and Vail moved to stand on either side of the pedestal, facing the temple entrance, while I stood directly in front of it. A few minutes later, I heard the telltale sound of hooves pounding into the hard surface of the badlands.

I took a deep breath and let it out.

“We’ve got your back, Sam,” Vail said solemnly, and I felt Draven’s agreement through our mating bond.

Not a flicker of doubt crossed my mind. Vail was every bit mine as I was his, and Draven had been mine for longer than I’d known.

“And I’ve got yours.” I smiled over my shoulder at each of them.

Our attention snapped forward as Carmilla and the rangers flooded the temple.