Page 21 of Black Hearted (Cursed Fae #4)

Zane

That night, I slept soundly, but I had no dreams of Lorelei, which scared me. Was she hurt? Is that why she hadn’t visited me? Or was it simply because we’d been asleep at different times?

In the early morning hours, before the sun had risen, Nellie and I ate a quick breakfast with Glori, Thalion, and their three daughters: Octavia, Fawn, and Daisey.

They were beautiful young ladies ranging in age from about three to thirteen.

It was hard to look at them because of their resemblance to Lorelei, but I loved that they were trying to talk to Nellie.

So far they had asked her about the games that she loved to play and whether she liked to sing. But poor Nellie.

I glanced over and saw Nellie staring at her oatmeal instead of eating it. No one in Lorelei’s family seemed to have eaten more than a bite or two of their own meals, either. A melancholy hung over the table. We were leaving on a dangerous mission, and no one knew when—or if—we’d return.

“Did she visit you in your dreams last night?” Glori asked me.

I shook my head. “You?”

“No.” She looked at her daughters and her husband, who all frowned and shook their heads.

I wanted to tell myself it didn’t mean anything, but my gut told me something wasn’t right.

Hold on, Lorelei. Just a little longer.

After breakfast, we went out to the stables to ready our horses.

Even the king and the girls, who were staying behind, joined us.

As I attended to Biscuit, I caught Lorelei’s sisters playing some game I didn’t recognize.

One person stood in the center, and the others bopped them on the head before being chased.

Nellie was participating, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes.

Glori called me over.

“You will not truly be able to help save my daughter without something to defend yourself with.” At first I was not sure what she meant, but then she looked at a guard who brought over a sword.

“This is for you,” she said. “Use it well.”

I was grateful. I usually relied on my magic to protect myself, but with how unreliable my powers had been since arriving in Faerie, I felt better having a weapon at my disposal.

I thanked her and assured her that I would do everything I could and that I intended to save Lorelei from whatever happened.

“I’m counting on it,” she said.

By the time the sun was fully up, the queen and I, along with her troops, were ready to leave. The queen’s children stood in a line by the stalls, heads hung low as their mother kissed them goodbye.

When she was done, Thalion stepped forward and pulled her into his arms. The king looked to be almost twice as big as his petite wife and almost swallowed her in his embrace.

I glanced away to give them a moment of privacy, and anyway, I had my own goodbye to make. I went over to Nellie. She wouldn’t meet my gaze, so I got down on one knee in front of her.

“If you find the princess and ride off into the sunset and forget about me, I won’t blame you,” she said, still refusing to look at me. But I caught the telltale sheen of tears in her eyes.

The walls this little one had built around her heart to protect herself were high.

I gently grasped her chin and forced her to look down at me.

“I won’t forget you. I will be back. It’s a promise,” I told her.

She nodded, chewing on her lip.

She sucked in a shaky breath and then, bursting forward, wrapped her arms around me. “Don’t get killed.”

“I told you once before,” I whispered into her hair as she clung to me, “I’m very difficult to kill.”

Letting me go, she stepped back and rubbed her hand over her eyes before saying, “You better be.”

Some of her usual spunk returned, making me smile.

I noticed she was wearing a necklace I hadn’t seen before. Hanging on a delicate gold chain was an orange jewel set in a teardrop pendant.

“That’s nice,” I said, pointing to it.

Nellie’s face brightened, and it made my heart lighter to see her smile. “Thanks. It was my nana’s.”

When she said that, I remembered how she’d taken it with her before leaving her house. I wished I had something to give her as well, but I hoped that her nana’s necklace would give her comfort while I was gone.

Standing, I watched as the king gathered his children and Nellie, and they all began to return to the palace.

I turned to face the queen, who was watching me with a warm smile. “You must have really made an impression on her. I can tell she’s not one to trust easily. She’s bonded to you.”

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

With that, I climbed into Biscuit’s saddle, and we rode toward the Turtle Mountains.

The journey started out pleasant enough, with a crisp, westerly breeze and a partially sunny sky. But the farther east we traveled, the more the clouds disappeared and the hotter it got until the ride became grueling.

We had to stop the horses more than once to water and rest them. Even the Spring queen looked red-faced.

I glanced at the sky, the sun beating down relentlessly. “Any chance you could bring clouds or something?” I asked Glori.

She shook her head. “I don’t have that type of control over the weather. That would be the Summer queen’s power. The Turtle Mountains mark the barrier between the Spring and Summer Courts. Beyond them is only dry, scorched earth and unrelenting sun. It will get worse.”

She wiped her brow and gestured to some nearby soldiers, who I now noticed were carrying potted plants and flowers.

“The plants will help me replenish my power, if needed.”

I nodded. That made sense. Spring fae drew their magic from life itself. If the ground didn’t hold life, she had to bring some with her as reserves.

We pressed on, and sure enough, the lush green landscape gradually turned barren. Instead of riding straight over the Turtle Mountains, we skirted them to stay hidden from Queen Liliana as we approached.

We wanted to find where she was hiding before she knew we were coming for her.

We rode until the sky was streaked with orange from the setting sun as it began to drop lower.

“We’re going to have to stay another night unless we get a lead on where the Summer queen is hiding,” Glori told her soldiers.

They fanned out, and we all scanned the horizon for any sign of life: a house, a tree, a castle—anything. But the land stretched flat and empty.

It had been too long since anyone had heard from Lorelei in her dreams. Something wasn’t right. I truly feared for her life and whether she would make it another night, but I couldn’t say so aloud.

“I fear Lorelei is in too much danger to delay,” I said, tactfully voicing my concerns.

Glori nodded, still scanning the horizon. “Let’s split into four groups,” she said to me before turning to her troops and shouting names, pointing in different directions.

“Zane, you go northeast with Captain Lace,” she said, gesturing to a stout fae on his horse.

I gave a sharp nod and maneuvered Biscuit to ride next to the captain. Anything to get to Lorelei faster.

After Glori divided her troops, we spread out with the Turtle Mountains at our backs, all on a mission to find Lorelei.

It reminded me of bird hunting back home, when we had to fan out to find the downed bird. But this bird was Lorelei, and darkness was approaching, with a vast landscape still to cover.

The queen and her group headed southeast as I rode northeast. We moved fast and hard, praying to the fates I’d find Lorelei in time.

The horizon felt endless. Every time I thought I’d reached it, the line kept moving, signaling an unending expanse of dry, scorched earth. There wasn’t a tree or bush in sight—just a few hills, a mountain, and a jagged rock cropping.

The sun had already set, and it was getting harder to see. I lightly nudged Biscuit, urging her forward as panic rose inside me. Searching for Lorelei in the dark would be nearly impossible, but I knew I couldn’t wait another night to find her. To rescue her.

She hadn’t given me specific details about what Queen Liliana was doing to her, but I knew it was some form of torture.

“We should make camp,” Captain Lace called from behind me.

I ignored him, spurring Biscuit toward the jagged rock cropping in the distance.

As I neared, my stomach clenched. What I’d thought was a rock cropping wasn’t that at all. It was a large stone manor house.

“I see a house,” I yelled back to Captain Lace, then pushed Biscuit harder than ever. Her muscles shook as she pounded the ground, no doubt picking up on the urgency in my voice. Horses were intuitive like that.

“Good girl.” I stroked her neck as we neared the stone manor, the night continuing to darken.

The moment we arrived in front of the manor entrance, I leaped off Biscuit, not bothering to tie her up. I risked a glance behind me to see if Captain Lace and the others were close, but in the darkness, I couldn’t see or hear them.

They might still be on their way, but it didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to waste time waiting for them. Each heartbeat banged against my ribs like a clock counting down. I had to get to Lorelei now.

Pulling the sword Glori had given me, I raced up the front steps and tried the door handle. It pushed open without resistance, which made me wary.

Where were the guards?

I slipped inside the manor, pausing when I was met with complete silence.

Allowing my hearing to sharpen, I picked up faint clanking noises—like pots and pans—coming from the right. Perhaps someone was in the kitchen?

Whatever operation Queen Liliana was running here, it appeared to be lightly staffed. Probably because most fae wouldn’t agree with kidnapping the Spring Court princess. At least, I hoped that was the reason—and not because they’d already left or this wasn’t the right place.

Moving quietly through the manor, I checked a few bedrooms, but they were empty. If Lorelei was being held prisoner here, Queen Liliana was probably keeping her somewhere more secure, like a cellar or dungeon. I just needed to find the—