Page 4

CHAPTER THREE

T he Unseelie King arches a dark eyebrow at the storm of fire and lightning that is crashing against his wards.

Alistair and Isera notice him a second after me, and they whip around to stare at him.

Up above, Draven and the others must have spotted him too, because all three of them stop their assault on the wards and instead speed down towards the ground.

From where I’m sitting against the fallen tree, I study the Unseelie King who is still standing there right inside his wards, looking faintly amused.

And what I find surprises me. I’m not sure why, but I had imagined the ruler of the wicked Unseelie Court to look harsh and rugged. But it’s the exact opposite.

My head spins from the drugs and my teeth continue chattering as I stare at the fae man on the other side of the transparent barrier.

He is not handsome in that masculine way that Draven is.

Instead, he is beautiful. He’s tall and his body is made up of lean muscles, which makes me think that he is both fast and lethal, but his facial features are more sharp and narrow and delicate.

Almost to the point of looking a little feminine.

That impression is heightened by the fact that he has long dark blue hair that cascades down to his ribs like a smooth waterfall.

His eyes, which are a breathtaking mix of black and silver, look like slivers of the night sky.

The spiky black crown on his head gleams in the silver light from the moon, and his elegant garments made of black and dark blue fabric with touches of silver are perfectly tailored to his lean muscular body.

He’s gorgeous, but even through the wards, I can almost feel the ruthlessness radiating from his entire being. This man might be beautiful, but he is also incredibly dangerous. Like a venomous snake. Beautiful to look at but best viewed from a distance.

Black smoke explodes across the grass as Draven, Lyra, and Galen land hard on the ground and shift out of their dragon forms. When it clears, Galen and Lyra are in their human forms while Draven is in a half-shift.

His massive black wings are spread wide in a show of power as he stalks towards the barrier.

Lyra and Galen trail to an awkward halt halfway between it and us, as if they don’t know if Draven wants their help or not.

Draven doesn’t even appear to notice, because his gaze is fixed on the fae man on the other side of the transparent barrier.

A slow smirk curls the Unseelie King’s lips as he spreads his arms wide in a mocking gesture.

“I thought you would have learned by now, Shadow of Death. Despite all of your power, all of your fire and your storm magic, you cannot breach these wards.” He lets his arms drop again and then gives Draven a sharp look.

“So why have you brought war to my court at this time of night?”

“I’m not here for war,” Draven replies as he comes to a halt right outside the barrier. “I’m here for your healer.”

“If you think that I would ever surrender Haldia to you, you have grown even more delusional since our last skirmish.”

“I don’t want to take her. I want her to save someone.”

“Who?”

Draven turns to look at me. I try to keep my shivering to a minimum, but it’s useless.

My body shakes violently, and that searing, burning pain that is now creeping up the back of my skull is making black spots dance at the edges of my vision.

Pure dread pulses in Draven’s eyes as he watches me, but he wipes it off his features before turning back to the Unseelie King.

My heart jerks as those sharp black and silver eyes slide to me. The Unseelie King watches me in silence for a moment before returning his gaze to Draven.

“Ice flames,” is all the king says.

“Yes,” Draven confirms. “She needs a healer, or she’s going to die.”

“So take her to the Orange Dragon Clan. They have healing magic, don’t they?”

“I can’t.”

A spark of interest suddenly gleams in the Unseelie King’s eyes. “So it is true. You have betrayed the Icehearts.”

Surprise pulses through me. How could he have known that?

It has only been hours since we escaped from the Ice Palace.

Even though Nysara, his spy in Frostfell, witnessed the fight and helped glamour us so that we could escape, there is no way that she should have been able to get word all the way to the Unseelie Court this fast.

“We don’t have time for this!” Draven snaps. “She’s dying! So get your healer out here and save her, or I will?—”

“Or you’ll do what, exactly?” the Unseelie King cuts off, his voice as sharp as a blade.

Dark storm clouds gather around Draven, and lightning crackles around his powerful body as he growls, “You don’t want to play this fucking game with me right now, Orion. Just get your fucking healer out here.”

“ Or what? ” the Unseelie King, Orion, repeats. His black and silver eyes are merciless as he stares Draven down. “These wards have stood for thousands of years. You cannot breach them.”

Lightning cracks against the barrier, but just like before, it only makes it ripple slightly before it grows still again.

Orion flashes Draven a cold smile. “You overstep, Shadow of Death. This is my court, Haldia is my healer, and these are my wards. If you wanted something, you should have begged me for it. Now, you get to stand there and watch her die while I go back to bed.”

Before Draven can so much as open his mouth, the Unseelie King spins on his heel. His long dark blue hair flutters in the air when he turns and starts back towards the trees.

“Orion!” Draven snaps.

But the Unseelie King just keeps walking.

“Orion Nightbane!” Draven yells, his voice echoing through the silent night like a thunderclap. “Don’t you fucking dare!”

Bolts of white lightning crash into the wards as Draven throws the full extent of his storm magic at the barrier. But just like before, all it does is to ripple.

“Get your healer out here right now,” Draven continues bellowing. “Or I swear to God I will destroy everything you have ever touched. I will kill everyone you have ever met. I will burn your entire court to ashes and salt the fucking earth so that nothing will ever grow here again.”

But the Unseelie King simply continues walking.

“ORION!” Panic bleeds into Draven’s voice now. He casts a look at me over his shoulder, and the sheer terror in his eyes makes my stomach drop. Whirling back towards the wards, he slams his fist against the barrier. “Orion, please!”

That finally makes the Unseelie King pause. Turning slowly, he faces Draven again and arches an eyebrow.

Draven doesn’t even try to hide the dread and desperation in his voice as he repeats, “Please, Orion. Save her.”

Starlight glints in Orion Nightbane’s eyes, but the smile on his beautiful face is vicious and full of challenge. “You call that begging?” He gives Draven a taunting once-over. “Pathetic.”

Then he turns back around and starts walking again.

Draven casts another panicked look back at me.

Then he drops to his knees in front of the barrier and spreads his arms wide. “Orion, please, I’m begging you.”

The sight of Draven on his knees, pleading for my life, makes a blast of fury shoot through me. After everything he has been through these past two hundred years, he should never have to bow to anyone else ever again. He shouldn’t have to humiliate himself like this. Especially not for my sake.

“Don’t—” I begin to protest.

But the word barely makes it out of my mouth before it’s cut off by a gasp as a burst of pain spikes through my skull.

It’s so intense that my vision blacks out for a second.

When my eyesight returns, the world around me sways.

I blink hard, my body shaking uncontrollably and my teeth chattering so loudly that my skull rattles.

Once the world around me comes back into focus, I find the Unseelie King sauntering back towards the barrier where Draven is kneeling. But his black and silver eyes are fixed on me.

“We’ve dealt with ice flame wounds before,” he says. “And given the state of her, she has about half an hour left to live. It would take me three minutes to get her to Haldia.”

Sliding his gaze back to Draven, he raises his eyebrows expectantly while leaving that half-spoken offer hanging there in the air between them.

“Please, I’m begging you,” Draven repeats, his arms still spread wide in surrender. “Name your price. I’ll do anything. You want me to grovel at your feet? Done. Just please, save her.”

My heart aches at the sight of Draven like that, and I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment as a wave of guilt crashes into me.

He’s begging for my life with everything he has, and all I can do is to sit here uselessly.

I should be the one begging the Unseelie King for my life.

I should be the only one taking on that humiliation and shame.

But with my spine severed and the ice flames rendering my body weak and numb, I can’t even manage to crawl up to his feet and kneel there myself.

Rage burns through me. And I decide, right there in the grass under the impassive night sky outside the Unseelie Court, that if I survive this, I am going to make sure that Draven never has to sacrifice himself ever again.

Never has to submit to someone else’s whims ever again.

I will take on the pain, I will take on the debt, I will take on whatever fate requires of me.

Next time, I will be the one protecting him.

A few strides away, Galen and Lyra stare at Draven, looking completely stunned. Next to me, Isera only watches Orion Nightbane through narrowed eyes, while Alistair’s gaze flits across the grasslands around us.

“Well, well, well.” A wicked smile spreads across Orion’s face. “The Shadow of Death begging on his knees. Now I almost wish I had brought my entire court out here with me to witness this.”

Draven clenches his jaw but says nothing.

The Unseelie King flicks a glance in my direction. “Who is she to you?”

“Just tell me what you want,” Draven grinds out through gritted teeth.

“Answer my question, and I might consider it.”

Draven turns slightly to look at me over his shoulder, and when his golden eyes meet mine, I can see the desperation in them that I can already hear in his voice. “She’s my mate.”

Galen and Lyra whip their heads back to stare at him, their eyes wide and jaws dropping. Next to me, Alistair jerks back and flicks his gaze between me and Draven. And even Isera’s silver and blue eyes widen in surprise.

Interest sparks in Orion’s eyes. “A cross-species bond? Interesting. Very interesting.”

Draven turns back to him. “I answered your question. Now, are you going to save her or not?”

Silence descends over the darkened grasslands and the gloomy woods behind the Unseelie King as he considers for an uncomfortably long time.

My heart pounds in my chest. Or it might be my head that’s pounding.

It’s getting difficult to tell because I can barely hear anything over the loud chattering of my teeth.

“I can allow Haldia to save her,” Orion says at last, his sharp eyes lingering on me for a moment before he fixes them on Draven again. “If you do something for me.”

“Name it,” Draven replies immediately.

“I want you to kill someone for me.”

“Who?”

“An Unseelie fae here in my court with a silver tongue and too much ambition.” He raises a finger, stopping Draven’s reply before he can even open his mouth. “But I wasn’t done. I want you to kill this man publicly . So that everyone knows that it was you who killed him.”

“You mean so that you don’t take the heat for the assassination.”

Orion doesn’t confirm or deny it. Only flashes Draven a sharp smile. “Well, do we have a deal? My healer will remove the ice flames from your mate’s body, and in return?—”

“And fix her spine.”

The Unseelie King arches an eyebrow in silent question.

“Her spine was severed when the ice flames struck.”

His black and silver eyes slide to me for a second.

“I see.” Then he returns his gaze to Draven.

“Fine. My healer will remove the ice flames from your mate’s body and fix her spine.

And in return, you will assassinate a member of my court in a manner which makes it clear that it was you who did it, and you will not disclose my involvement in the matter at any time.

Now or in the future. That is the deal. Do you accept? ”

Draven doesn’t even hesitate for a second. “Yes.”

“You won’t be able to shift in here.”

“I don’t care.”

Without waiting for Orion to answer, Draven gets to his feet and runs back to where I’m still sitting. Isera and Alistair move aside as he crouches down next to me and lifts me up from the ground.

“You’re going to be okay,” he promises yet again as he holds me tightly to his chest and straightens.

Turning around, he shifts into his fully human form and starts back towards the barrier. Isera marches along next to him. Across the grass, Lyra and Galen lurch into motion and hurry to his side as well. Only Alistair remains standing by the fallen tree.

Indecision flashes across his face as he once more flicks his gaze over the open grasslands around us.

And for a moment, it looks like he’s just going to take off across the fields and disappear into the great world beyond.

But then he grinds his teeth and blows out a forceful breath.

Moonlight casts pale highlights in his curly blond hair as he jogs to catch up with the rest of us.

On the other side of the barrier, Orion Nightbane whispers words under his breath that are too soft for us to hear. Then a sly smile spreads across his lips as he draws his arms through the air in a show of inviting us into his realm.

Worry pulses through my frozen chest. I have no idea what kind of powers the Unseelie fae have. What if Orion can just strike us down the moment we step inside? Or what if he only pretended to open the wards for us and we will die the moment we try to walk through?

That sly smile remains on his lips as we reach the barrier, as if he can read the worry on my face. But he does nothing to help assure us that we will survive stepping inside. His eyes gleam with challenge as he keeps his arm out in that gesture of invitation.

“Welcome to the Unseelie Court.”