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Ella had no idea what time it was, only that since she was last outside, it had started raining and it was dark.

As soon as she magically punched her way through the walls of her dungeon, she’d been returned to the square where she’d arrived.

She loitered in the trees near the exit, concealed in the green shadows.

Water continued to gush out of the fountain in a soothing refrain, but there was no sign of the queen or any of her guards.

That was weird.

Why wasn’t anyone following her?

She checked around the square, using both Vadim’s magic and her empath abilities.

It was odd…the more she accessed his power, the stronger it seemed to be and the easier it rose to her amateurish commands.

No wonder Vadim had been feared so greatly.

She was only using a fraction of it, and it scared the pants off her.

It was like being given the keys to a racing car after driving a tractor.

A shadow moved at her left. For a moment she wished she had her familiar weapon with her, but she had so much more in the tips of her fingers.

Magic that was far more suited to Otherworld, as well.

She needed to find Adam before the queen mother or the king found her.

She attempted to clear her mind, but found it impossible as a clear sense of danger clouded her judgment.

“Dammit!” She walked toward the shadows, but instead of dispersing, they seemed to thicken. “What do you want?”

A guttural laugh answered her.

“What do you think, Soul Sucker?”

The advancing troll looked somewhat familiar. His heavily furred body was naked and his black eyes shone with hate. Behind him was a sniggering group of young Garden Fae.

“Do I know you?”

“You destroyed my nest and forced me back here.” He raised his club. “Now you’re going to pay.”

He rushed her. Ella just had time to point her finger and shove magic at him before he cannoned into her and she fell to the ground.

There was a kaboom and the acrid smell of burning fur.

His screaming blocked out every other sound until an explosion of black blood made her gag, but at least stilled the screeching.

When she finally disentangled herself from the troll’s soggy remains, she shuddered at the carnage.

“Too much power, Ella. Bring it down, girl.”

She wiped at her face, which was sticky, and spat uselessly to rid herself of the unwanted taste of deep-fried troll.

If any of the others had wanted to take a pop at her, her awesome display of power had sent them scurrying away.

She headed back for the fountain so she could at least rinse herself off. How the hell did Vadim control himself?

She dipped her fingers into the flowing water and shivered. It was freezing. She suddenly remembered the spell he’d taught her and freshened herself up. The magic even repaired the holes in her pink jeans. Damn, it was useful. If only it worked on her face…

“Soul Sucker?”

She turned to see a woman standing quietly behind her. Even in the darkness, she registered the richness of the woman’s dress and the sparkle of diamonds in her long dark hair.

“Let me guess. You’re Morosov’s mother.”

“Indeed I am.” The Fae inclined her head. “And you are my son’s mate. I am so pleased to meet you.”

“You are?”

“Of course. Why would you think otherwise?”

“Because everyone else in this batshit-crazy place, including me, wants to kill him.”

“He is my son. How could I wish for his death?”

Ella scowled down at her boots. The apparent sincerity of the queen’s answer made her feel like a loser who had given up on her mate way too fast. But the Fae were tricky like that. She shouldered her backpack.

“Is there something I can help you with? Otherwise I’d quite like to get on.”

“Where are you going?”

“To find my face.”

The queen drew closer. “You have been bespelled? I did wonder.”

“Didn’t anyone tell you? Normally I’m blond and blue-eyed. An idiot called Adam stole my face as his third trophy.”

“But that wasn’t supposed to happen.”

She paused to study the queen’s delicate features. The female looked about the same age as Ella was, and that couldn’t be possible. It was also the second time someone had suggested Vadim had tried to protect her from Adam. “What was supposed to happen?”

“Nothing.” The queen shivered. “Cygnet insisted that we stop Adam from taking your face.”

“Well, it didn’t work.”

“But why?”

“Perhaps you’d better ask your husband and mother about that.”

“We all agreed to it, as did the sect.”

“Then someone didn’t follow through, did they? You all wanted Morosov back here for your different reasons anyway. It’s hardly surprising that my face wasn’t enough to stop someone from getting what they wanted.”

“Soul Sucker?—”

Ella had to look away from the ethereal beauty of the queen, whose blue eyes were now swimming in tears.

“I understand that you are angry with us, but please consider what you intend to do.”

She stared hard at the fountain and realized the figure of the woman was modeled on the queen behind her. Awkward. “I have to go. I intend to find Adam and get my face back.”

“And what if he still has cygnet?”

“‘Cygnet’ is supposed to be the most powerful being in Otherworld. How could anyone ‘have’ him?” She glanced down at her hands. “I feel some of his power in me. I know how strong he really is.”

“But what if his power is constrained?”

“By what?” Ella shook her head. “I’m so tired of everyone speaking around every subject. If he’s so easily contained, why are you all so scared of him?”

The queen drew herself up. “His apparent weakness might not be our doing.”

“So you’re saying it’s my fault?”

“You are mated to him.”

“So what? It obviously means nothing to him. He walked out on me.”

“There are many ways a male can show his love for his female, Soul Sucker.”

“By buggering off to Otherworld to play at who’s the biggest idiot? That’s supposed to show that he loves me? I don’t think so.”

“Perhaps this time it is you who speak in riddles.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

The queen held her gaze. “He is your mate.”

“So he’s done all this for me, right. ”

“All I am saying, Soul Sucker, is that when you kill Adam, be very careful what you obliterate along with him. You alone have the power to destroy my son in many different ways, remember that.” She inclined her head a regal inch.

In the distance, the sound of voices rose.

“I wish you well on your journey, and I urge you to leave right now. I will take care of the pursuit at this end.”

“Well, thanks.”

“Goodbye, Ella Walsh.”

Ella had no time to reply as she focused on Adam and sent herself hurtling through Otherworld, landing with a bump outside a heavily fortified wall complete with security cameras and troll guards.

Why were cameras even necessary in magic-centric Otherworld?

She rubbed an elbow that had contacted hard against the wall.

“Ouch.”

There was no cover around the perimeter of the wall, so she backed off until she reached the surrounding forest and sat down with her back against a tree.

Her whole body was shaking. Experience told her that there was no way she could move forward until she’d conquered her hunger and fatigue.

She took off her backpack and opened it up.

Inside were her emergency supplies. Two juice boxes, one of chocolate milk, three energy bars and two Pop-Tarts.

A meal fit for the gods, as Feehan had always joked.

She paused for a moment to imagine what was going on back at the SBLE office. Would she ever see her colleagues again? Feehan had promised backup, but what could he do against the combined might of the sect and Vadim’s family?

Not a lot. She was basically on her own.

She opened the first energy bar and a cranberry-apple juice box and alternately chewed and sipped her way through them.

As she ate, she watched the wall to see if anyone was coming in or out of the one main gate, but all was quiet.

Was Vadim in there with Adam? Did the sect know that she was there? She assumed they did.

The Fae queen had a point. If Vadim could kill anything in Otherworld, why wasn’t Adam dead already? What was stopping him? Was he really trying to protect her? But why? He hardly knew her. She started on the second bar.

That wasn’t true. He knew her better than anyone else in the world.

But then, he’d also told her he was hers for all eternity.

The rat.

She stopped chewing. Would she kill to get him back?

It was something she had to consider before she charged in to get Adam.

Everyone needed a plan. Did retrieving her face mean more to her than Vadim’s life?

She had more power in her than she’d ever imagined existed, and it was a huge responsibility.

How did he deal with that on a daily basis?

How had it felt to be the executioner of the Fae?

She stared out into the darkness, her appetite diminishing with every breath.

Exhaustion threaded through her. In her present state, getting into the sect stronghold was beyond her.

She’d be unable to control her power and would kill everyone in sight, or she’d implode and be dead in a second.

The thought of another fried troll made her want to puke.

Better to sleep for a while and then plan how to take down Adam and retrieve her face.

She closed her eyes and resolutely refused to think about Vadim. One problem at a time. That was all she could cope with right now.

* * *

She woke up feeling cold and automatically grabbed for the covers.

Which weren’t there. Opening one eye, she remembered that she was in the middle of Otherworld, her head pillowed on her backpack and her clothes her only covering.

Thank God she’d been wearing jeans, even if they did have a few new holes in them, despite her magical repairs.

The smell of coffee floated past her nose and she abruptly sat up.