Page 19 of Beyond the Winter Kingdom (Faeted Seasons #2)

Corvo

I popped into Faerie mid-argument. The faint scent of blood greeted me like an old friend.

Drayden stood near the dungeon wall, arms folded and scowling.

Cadoc, Meera’s serial killer brother, loomed nearby, calm as ever despite the blood on his knuckles.

Or maybe it was because of? Who knew? Kaia stood off to the side with her arms crossed, the picture of judgment. As usual.

The only one who looked as done with their talking as me was the bound leprechaun who’d seen better days.

“Finally,” Drayden muttered. “The damn cat’s here.”

“Language,” I said, tail flicking irritably.

Cadoc frowned. “You give a shit about the word damn?”

Kaia rolled her eyes. “It’s the word cat that he takes issue with.”

I pointed at her with a paw. “That one. I’m a god. Act like it, peasants.”

Both Drayden and Kaia groaned. Cadoc simply appeared confused.

I could see the relation to Meera. Over and over I said I was a god, and still the confusion. Alaska in the winter was brighter than the two of them, but perhaps he also gave good pets.

Kaia shook her head, refocusing on the surly asshole and his mini-me. “Pretty sure Vareck said not to torture him.”

Drayden arched a brow. “I didn’t.”

Cadoc Drayden Jr. shrugged. “No one said anything to me.”

Lou groaned softly, head lolling against the cold stone.

His lip was split, and he looked a sickly shade of white.

Despite his haggard, and frankly, repulsive appearance, he stared at me with surprising clarity.

Had to give it to the guy; he was a survivor.

Few walked away from a visit with Drayden.

And even if Junior was the one delivering the blow, we all knew who was in charge in the dungeons.

Sadly, it was not me. There would be more tuna and orgies if it was.

“Gotta say,” I added dryly, “for someone who looks like a meat sack that lost a bar fight, he’s still got better posture than most of the fae court.” Namely because his head wasn’t bowed in reverence at the sight of Vareck or Kaia, let alone Drayden. Brown nosing wasn’t good for the spine.

Drayden ignored me.

Kaia didn’t. “Where have you been? Vareck and Meera went missing at the Witching Hour.”

“Solving your problems, apparently.” I licked my paw then nibbled at my toe beans, trying to scratch the itch that never went away. “I need a portal. Preferably one that leads directly to Evorsus.”

“Why would you need a portal to the twin hells?” Kaia blinked. “You can go there whenever—” She broke off, catching on faster than the other two did. Apart from that leprechaun.

“I take it,” Lucian paused to catch his breath, “the king and his lass found themselves in a situation ?” He grunted while he sat up, wrists tied behind his back and leaned against the wall.

A cough rattled through him and the green of his eyes glowed faintly with power despite the dungeon's natural affinity for neutralizing magic.

I sensed something in him. Something different, like Meera, but not the same.

. . . something old.

“Yes,” I said flatly, not relaying my observations for the peasants present.

If they couldn’t sense a predator in their midst, it wasn’t my job to protect them.

It’s not like any of these assholes fed me second-dinner when I asked.

“And if I wanted to yeet them into the void, I’d do it myself, but I’d prefer not to traumatize the entire court by returning them in pieces.

So they need a portal. A real one. Anchored by a witch. ”

“Wait.” Drayden turned, frowning. “Vareck and his dream girl are in Evorsus?”

“And Damon,” I added. “And the redcap woman. Her sister. Family get together.” That I wasn’t invited to, rudely.

As a matter of fact, I showed up and they pretty much asked me to leave.

I questioned why I should help them, but my life was tied to V’s, therefore it was non-negotiable.

And his was now tied to the reckless ginger.

Alas, I liked her, so I supposed it could be worse.

Kaia’s face blanched. “You left our king and the crown prince in Evorsus? Alone? ” Her voice was a whisper, but it might as well have been a shout. My ears flattened on instinct. “What the actual fuck, Corvo?”

“I didn’t leave them,” I snapped. “I came to get them help, obviously. They’re the ones that went through a portal to begin with and now my realm is in feeding mode. Which means if you three don’t figure out the portal situation, I’ll be attending a banquet I very much don’t want to host.”

“They’re going to be eaten. Great,” Kaia said with a flat affect and purple fire burning in her eyes.

“Can’t he just pyroport there?” Lucian said with a nod toward Drayden. “That’s what he did from Warwick.”

Drayden’s jaw tensed. “I can’t go between realms.”

Kaia pinched the bridge of her nose between her forefinger and thumb and began to pace. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuckity. Fuck.”

Cadoc turned to Lucian, kneeling down and grabbing a fistful of his shirt. “You know everyone. Who can open a portal to Evorsus?”

He coughed, wincing. “You need someone who knows how to tap into the ley lines. Someone who’s touched them before and isn’t afraid to bleed for it.”

Kaia narrowed her eyes. “Who?”

Lucian looked past her, locking eyes with me. “You know who.”

My tail lashed once as though it were a whip, punctuating the gravity of my response. “No.”

“Yes.”

Kaia turned slowly to me. “Who is he talking about?”

I didn’t answer.

Drayden’s voice dropped. “Corvo.”

“She’s the last person we should be calling on,” I muttered.

“My sisters are stuck in a hell realm,” Cadoc Drayden Jr. ground out. “Who. Is. It?”

I sighed, dramatic and long-suffering. “Amelia.”

Drayden’s brow furrowed. “Who?”

“She didn’t seem that powerful when I met her,” Kaia said, ignoring him.

Lucian rasped, spitting a glob of blood onto the dungeon floor. “She’s a chameleon. Looks are deceiving. You want a portal to a hell realm? She’s the one I’d ask, just be prepared to pay the price—and I’m not talking coin.”

I closed my eyes, tail flicking back and forth as I played out options in my mind, but I was coming up short. Of course it had to be her.

It always was.

Kaia stepped forward. “Corvo, you should return to Vareck. Help them stay alive. Amelia runs the Witching Hour. She’s easy enough to find.”

“Careful, Beauty,” Lucian said, his green eyes glowing faintly as he looked at Kaia, but she scowled.

“She cares for no one in this realm or the next, you understand? She isn’t your friend, she doesn’t care about the kingdom, and if you’re coming to her for something this big, she knows you have no other options. She likes it that way.”

Kaia pressed her lips together. “Noted. Drayden and I will go and see what her price is. Corvo? Go help them.”

“Well, this is going to go to shit,” I grumbled, already turning. “Tweedledee and Tweedledum are being sent to bargain with a devil while I try to stop my subjects from eating my familiar. Fucking great.”

I vanished before Kaia could utter another word.

Next stop: the witch I loathed most.