Page 230 of Bitten By the Fae

“Most of the problems have been dealt with,” my grandfather added, his tone flat. “However, a stronger resistance has risen over the last two decades, and they’ve caused a few more issues than usual. We attempted to cut them down roughly fifteen years ago, but we weren’t as successful as we would have liked. Which is why we allowed the Royal Earth Fae to live.”

My father nodded. “Yes. Her parents were known loyalists, and we suspect she is, too.”

“What?” I couldn’t stop my reaction, my blood thrumming in my ears.

Known loyalists?

And did they just admit to being the ones who killed Aflora’s parents?!

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me that from the beginning?” I demanded. And, holy fuck, did they know about her Quandary Blood abilities?

Yes. They had to. Because Shade had been informing them the entire time.

Which meant they knew about our bonds as well.

“For what it’s worth, I’ve yet to see any evidence to support that theory,” Shade said calmly, his gaze catching mine. “You’ve been living with her. Have you seen anything to suggest she supports the resistance?”

I stared at him.Is this a trap to test my loyalty to the Council?Or is he trying to tell me something?

“I didn’t even know there was a resistance until right now,” I replied through gritted teeth. Technically, that was true. It also avoided the direct question he’d just asked me, something he seemed keen on doing. Time to repay him the favor. “So how would I know what to look for?” I countered.

What the fresh hell is happening here?I wondered, my mind whirring with a multitude of ideas at once.

Did Shade play us all from the beginning? Did he never care about Aflora?I knew he’d been hiding something, as did Zeph, yet the Council didn’t seem to know all the details.

Unless they were biding their time with me?

“It’s true. She’s shown no signs of linking to the resistance,” my father said, drawing my attention back to him. “Between Kolstov’s and Shadow’s reports, I have seen no evidence of a connection.”

“That’s why you had her attend the Academy,” I realized, thinking out loud. “To use her as bait.”

He dipped his chin in affirmation. “Yes, we felt sure the Quandary Bloods would come for her out of loyalty to her parents. We suspect that was the point of the attack last week as well, but you and Zephyrus thwarted the attempt to collect her,which is the other reason we needed to bring you in—so that doesn’t happen again.”

I blinked.Out of loyalty to her parents? Because they helped Quandary Bloods?No, those weren’t the most important questions to ask. Instead, I focused on the more prevalent issue at hand. “You want her to be taken?”

Another nod. “Shadow’s bonding with her allows us greater insight into her mind, and now that they’ve completed their mating, he can fully track her. So if the resistance takes her, we can use her as a beacon to take them down.” He glanced at my grandfather. “It was Constantine’s idea, and a brilliant one at that.”

“You told Shade to bite her,” I said, feeling numb inside.

“Yes, we did,” my father confirmed.

That doesn’t make any sense. “Then why did the Council almost vote him out afterward?” I asked, unable to mask my confusion.

“It was all for show,” Shade informed me. “They suspect that one of the Seconds is working with the resistance and feeding them information.”

My father nodded. “Yes. So we’re using them to stay one step ahead, which is why we had to make it look like Shade was being punished for his forbidden actions.”

“You were really convincing,” I said, looking pointedly at Tadmir.

The Malefic Fae lifted a shoulder. “We all make sacrifices for the greater good. Mine is to temporarily hold off on a powerful alignment. Shadow’s will be to kill his Elemental mate and take my daughter at a later date.”

My stomach twisted at the casual way he just informed me of Aflora’s pending assassination. But what really bothered me was Shade’s bored expression, like the thought of hurting her didn’t impact him in the slightest.

Yet he hadn’t said anything about our quad-bond.

Which indicated there was more at play here than I knew, unless this was all leading up to that major reveal. Maybe he intended to take my throne, and that was his trump card.

Hmm, no. If that were the case, my father would be simmering with anger toward me. Instead, he seemed pleased to be bringing meinto the fold, as he’d called it.