Page 22

Shayne Lyro and the House of Riothin

He wasn’t dead yet.

It was likely only a matter of time.

Shayne twirled a gold spoon in his glass of citrus, watching the fruity liquid move to the rhythm of the loud tune pulsing from the band working a variety of instruments Shayne wanted to smash. They weren’t bad at playing their harps and lyres and beast skin drums, but the noise had a particular magical edge to it Shayne guessed was meant to pleasure Riothin’s true allies and repulse his secret enemies throughout the room.

Shayne hadn’t considered himself Lord Riothin’s secret enemy at first. In fact, he’d come in sincerity to make an alliance. But he realized rather quickly that the House of Riothin was completely designed to weed out traitors or anyone with secrets or ulterior motives.

Shayne was probably all three of those things.

The scents of the House riled him. The water he used for bathing was ice cold to him. The music sounded sharp in his faeborn ears. And yet, he had to pretend through it all that he wasn’t having problems with the smells, the water, or the music, lest he be figured out and dragged before the Lord in cold iron shackles.

It was a true Yule tidings miracle he hadn’t been snapped in half the moment he reached the front gate seven days ago, smacked his fist against the great House doors to knock, and started loudly calling for the revered High Lord. If anyone apart from Meave Riothin had arrived at the gate and laid eyes upon him first, he’d certainly be a fairy corpse. But naturally, Meave liked what she saw when the gate was opened and Shayne was standing there, leaning against the stone frame like a god, sweeping a hand through his wool-white hair, and flashing the most delicious smile the female had likely ever seen with her wicked green eyes.

Meave Riothin; the second-eldest daughter of Lord Macewite Riothin. Next in line to be married after her older sister had been sold off in a bargain to form an alliance with one of the thirteen Low Princes of the South. In return, her father had been given a powerful army to wield in the South Corner, should he ever need it.

Meave was an easy target. The female was practically begging to be rebellious. Marrying the enemy was at the top of her ‘to do’ list in the foreseeable future.

That part had been easy. It was everything after that became difficult to bear. And it wasn’t just the House repelling him with its natural safeguards and fairy charms, it was the people inside it, too.

Shayne stopped stirring his citrus and placed his spoon on the table. He leaned back in his chair and watched the dancing filling the room, right to the tall windows where fairies who passed by were meant to see the fun those in the House were having and grow envious.

A warm elftouch traced along the back of his shoulders. He pretended not to notice it.

Unfortunately, it happened again.

Shayne sighed. He turned in his seat and searched the sitting area for Meave. He found her watching him with a puffy-lipped smile. He gave her a cute little wave and winked. Then he begged the sky deities to keep her from coming over and asking him to dance. The dance floor was probably covered in tiles that would make the secret-keeping enemies of Riothin feel itchy and hot or some other atrocity.

He turned back to his citrus but found a noisy, nasty, black-haired menace instead.

Cosmo Flora sat across from him at the table. The fairy looked relaxed with one arm slung over the backrest of the chair beside him, which was remarkable considering Shayne had only been turned around for a second and Cosmo looked like he’d been in that casual position for a hundred thousand years. The gold-braided wreath atop his head was crooked in an intentional, stylish way, and his picturesque, sultry smile made Shayne shiver in extra disgust.

Also, Cosmo was a heartless forest hog, and Shayne wished he could feed him bread in his sleep.

But Shayne smiled instead. Because only a perfect face with a perfect smile was weapon enough to stand up to the sultry smile of a heartless forest hog.

Cosmo reached for a cream-nut from a nearby dish. Not to eat it, of course, but to roll it around in his fingers like a godless fool.

“I don’t trust you one bit,” Cosmo said.

“Good. I don’t trust you either.” Shayne turned his smile extra flashy, even offering a cute nose scrunch with it. “But we don’t have to trust each other. We only need to tolerate each other.”

“Do we?” Cosmo laughed and chucked the cream-nut back into the dish. “What is it that you want with my cousin, Shayne Lyro ? And how did you get Meave to notice you in the first place? She’s quite cold and unwilling to give any male a chance these days. But she demanded my uncle not slay you. Yet.”

“The attraction happened naturally,” Shayne lied. “I have no idea what she saw in me.”

Yes he did. He knew exactly what she saw, which was unrestrained gorgeousness, a smile to die for, and irresistible ex-assassin muscles. Cosmo was just blind. And stupid.

Shayne chewed on his tongue as it tingled. Then he said, “And for your information, I came here for an authentic marriage bargain. I’ve betrayed my House. I have no reason to go back.”

Cosmo angled his head. “I still think you’re a Lyro spy.”

Shayne grinned. “Your uncle thinks I’m an asset he can use against my House. And it really only matters what he thinks. Lucky me.” He lifted his citrus to his lips, and he guzzled.

Cosmo rose from the seat. His finger glided over the table as he did, and when his hand reached a full goblet of citrus…

He nudged it over.

The entirety of its contents spilled across the table, rushing over the tablecloth and splattering all over Shayne’s borrowed garments. A few fairies down the table giggled, but Cosmo roared in laughter that soared across the great hall and made heads turn.

Most fairies would have growled in outrage, but Shayne smiled. Chuckled. He flung off all the liquid he could, and he lifted from his seat. “Since it’s clear you’re trying to provoke me, I accept your challenge,” he said to Cosmo. “Let’s play.”

Cosmo smothered a grin. “You’ll never defeat me in this House.” He waved a hand around at the décor and ambiance that all seemed to support him because of his heritage and alliance, and Shayne wondered if Cosmo had caught on to Shayne’s secret difficulties with the smells and water and everything else. “But sure. I’d love to face off with a Lyro in a game of tricks. I’ll defend the name of Riothin until my dying breath.” He said it loud enough for those around to hear. “But let’s make a bargain. If, after ten days, the House votes that I overcame you in easy tricks…” The way Cosmo smiled made it obvious he was fighting laughter as he let the words hang.

Shayne was a breath away from saying, “No bargains,” but he waited, worried he’d be scrutinized for refusing a Riothin relative before all these witnesses when the game had only begun.

“…You’ll be the being we play around with for entertainment on the day of Yule.”

Shayne grunted and sat back down in his seat. He brought his citrus to his lips. “What sort of beings do you usually play around with?” he asked around the glass before tipping the last of his citrus into his mouth.

“Humans,” Cosmo said.

The citrus hit the back of Shayne’s throat, and he spat it across the table. He dragged his wide eyes up to Cosmo as the drips rolled down his chin. He wiped them away with his sleeve.

It shouldn’t have surprised him. It was what fairies did; ridicule and torment the ‘lesser’ species. There was a time when Shayne had hardly noticed what happened to humans who’d wandered too close to the fairy realm gates or, sky deities forbid, had been captured from their own world. Growing up in a rich household had given Shayne a front row seat on two or three occasions to such ‘fun’. He hadn’t cared for it as a childling.

He especially didn’t care for it now.

“D…” Shayne bit his tongue, cursing it for how he stuttered. “Do you have one now?” he asked.

He shouldn’t care. Whoever it was, this human wasn’t one he knew or had agreed to protect.

Queensbane, what if Cosmo and the Riothin House had many humans?

Cosmo sniffed a laugh. “A what? A human ?”

Shayne closed his mouth. He needed to stop asking questions if he didn’t want to die today. “Never mind,” he said. “I’ll take your bargain. Let’s have the House vote after ten days.” He stood again, extending his hand across the table. “But if I win, I want you to become the Yule celebration’s entertainment.” How delightful it would be to see this fool humiliated before this entire House.

Cosmo nodded with a grin. “Maybe you’re not so bad, Lyro. I think you might become fun for us.” He shook Shayne’s hand. The forest hog’s fingers were too warm for comfort.

“I look forward to it,” Shayne promised.

Also, ‘fun’ was Shayne’s middle name.

“And no, we have no humans for the Yule day celebrations. Our scouts are on the hunt for some though, if you happen to know of any.”

Shayne shook his head. “None at all.”

A series of chimes clattered and the noise in the room hushed. Two large curtains were drawn to reveal the great Lord Riothin in a rich cobalt-blue coat. His black beard was braided at his front and his long hair was braided at his back, creating a remarkably symmetrical fae. People applauded politely as he entered the first Yule dance revelry, and Shayne followed suit even though he cringed at the sharp sounds of the chimes that rang in his ears long after they stopped making noise.

As soon as the High Lord was seated, Shayne swept far from Cosmo’s presence and made his way around the tables. He paused when he was just an arm’s length from Lord Riothin. It wasn’t that he was intimidated, it was just that a hundred terrible rumours swirled in Shayne’s head every time he got within reach of the male.

Rumours about Lord Macewite Riothin hunting the innocent on conquests that left entire villages in ashes and childlings without homes. About him dragging back some of those childlings to the House and turning them into lesser fairy servants. About how he often locked his servants away in dark rooms for making mistakes and sometimes he forgot about them for so long, they died.

Shayne took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Truly, some High Lords deserved to be chucked off the nearest cliff to meet the sea dragons. Unfortunately, Shayne had heard so many terrible stories about this particular High Lord as a childling, he’d had recurring nightmares about being dragged off by him to the House of Riothin.

This House.

Shayne slid into the empty seat beside the High Lord. As soon as he did, Meave appeared on the opposite side of the table and took the seat across from him. Shayne flashed her a dashing smile. Her presence was probably for the best, since Lord Riothin almost always gave her whatever she wanted.

“I didn’t see you there,” Lord Riothin said to Shayne in his deep, dark voice. “What have you learned about my House so far, Shayne Lyro?”

Shayne Lyro .

Lyro, Lyro, Lyro .

They always called him Lyro around here.

“I’m not sure. I haven’t really been taking notes.” Shayne folded his hands and relaxed them atop the table. “You know I only came here to stick it to my own House. I imagined I’d just have fun and see what I could offer you while I’m at it.”

Lord Riothin released a dry laugh. “So you say.” He waved over one of the servants carrying a tray of spiked citrus. Shayne accidentally watched the servant a little too hard as she bowed before the High Lord and passed him a drink with shaking hands. Her feet were bare, probably cold in this weather. Normally Shayne would have been jealous of someone in bare feet, but not her.

He dragged his gaze back to Lord Riothin, and he leaned in. “I wonder if you’ve had time to send word to my House?” he asked. He pulled his hands beneath the table and clasped them.

“Not yet.” Lord Riothin lifted his citrus and sipped. The way his eyes moved over the room made it clear he was aware of every single thing happening under his roof.

Shayne sat back. He bit down on his lips to keep himself from blurting something irrational. He settled on, “I wonder why you don’t want to show off to my father that you’ve gained me as an ally? His own son? I’m sure you wish to see the House of Lyro humiliated as much as I do.”

He began tapping his fingers against his knees. All at once, Shayne’s mind went to Fae Café—a place he hadn’t thought of in days, except for the moments when he dreaded that Hans-Der Lyro or his blood brothers had sent scouts into the human realm to seize his humans. His faeborn chest grew tight just imagining it. All he had to do was convince this man sitting before him to send a letter to the Lyro House informing them of Riothin’s new alliance with Shayne, and they’d refrain from sending scouts or kidnappers into the human world. Every hour that went by made Shayne’s skin crawl more at the thought that he might already be too late. It had already been a week.

“I’m in no rush,” Lord Riothin stated.

Shayne nodded slowly. He turned to face Meave, swallowing his disappointment.

He would try again tomorrow.

“Would you like to dance, Shayne Lyro?” Meave asked from across the table.

“Of course he would,” Lord Riothin stated. It sounded very much like a command, and Shayne flinched. It was like he was back to being a childling, stuck in a nightmare of this man’s House. Only he was wide awake, living it.

This morning, Shayne had witnessed a youthful servant being dragged away at the High Lord’s order and locked in the dusty East-wing attic. Shayne couldn’t pass judgement though when his family had done many equal evils. But he still didn’t like it. He didn’t like overhearing the whispered rumours among the House staff of Riothin’s cruelty. He didn’t enjoy pretending to like a fairy who made his servants jump in terror and made young fairies tremble in his presence.

But Shayne ignored the rumours, ignored the sight of the fellow dragged to the East-wing attic, ignored the whispers. He wasn’t here to do anything about it. He wasn’t here to save the day.

He was here to survive.

And so, he rose from the table, he offered Meave his hand, and he danced until the moon came out.

The first order of business when the sun came up was to catch Cosmo off guard. One bonus about the fairies who ruled the House of Riothin was that they all slept in. Only Shayne was up before the sun, and he’d made good use of his time.

The morning feast was hot and delicious, and for the first time in days, Shayne ate well, slurping up cooked bird eggs in sugar cream, and gobbling down crisp beast meat in pepper sauce. The only thing the meal was missing was coffee.

He patted his stomach when he was finished and sat back in his chair to wait.

Sure enough, when the feasting table was nearly filled and only a few empty seats remained, Cosmo entered the banquet hall. His eyes were still half closed from sleep, his pristine coat was open, hanging off one shoulder and flapping slightly with his lazy strides, and, of course, an enormous mustache was scribbled over his top lip and a pair of human glasses were carefully drawn around his eyes with ink.

Shayne pressed a fist over his mouth so he wouldn’t laugh out loud.

No, it wasn’t exactly a trick. It was more of a lousy prank. But it was also a statement to remind Cosmo that Shayne could get to him while he helplessly slept, and therefore, it was worth every drop of ink Shayne had traded his last two arrows for.

Cosmo tugged a chair out and sat down. He looked around the table to see what the breakfast feast options were. Fairies around him began to place hands over their lips to hide giggles and release shallow gasps. It took Cosmo far too long to clue in, and even when he did, he was so confused by the attention that he simply sat there and blinked like a fool.

“Cosmo,” Shayne drawled as he ran a finger over the rim of his goblet. “Do you not even look in the mirror in the mornings?”

That was it. At least a dozen fairies burst out laughing around the feasting table.

Cosmo rose from his chair and touched his face like he knew something was there but couldn’t figure out what it was. He whirled and marched out of the banquet hall, his gaping coat fluttering at his back.

Shayne took a drink of his juice with a smile. It wouldn’t be long now before he had the House wrapped around his little finger and giving him all their precious votes. He decided to help himself to another serving of beast meat. Every bite tasted like victory as the morning sun got higher in the sky, and Shayne eavesdropped on chatter about upcoming Yule festivities to take place in the House. He was particularly interested in the parade.

When he was finished, he dabbed his mouth with a silk cloth and considered what he might do for the rest of the morning now that his one, most-important task for the day was complete.

The banquet hall doors flew open. Someone was thrown into the hall.

A female hit the floor and rolled over twice before she caught herself. She whirled around on her knees and clasped her hands together. “Please!” she begged. “Please have mercy!”

Fairies around the table stirred and turned in their seats as Cosmo marched back into the hall. His face was clean, his coat was buttoned, and his expression was contorted with fury.

Shayne sprang from his seat. His hand still gripped the silk cloth, his knuckles turning white around it as Cosmo reached the young female, grabbed her by the hair and hoisted her to her feet as she wailed.

A few fairies of the House cringed, but most chuckled lightly and shifted themselves to watch the show. But that wasn’t the disturbing part, nor was the aggression Cosmo displayed before the table.

It was that the female’s hair was fashioned in a way to cover her ears. It was that her face was paler than a fairy’s, her physique weaker than a fairy’s, and her begging…

She was human.

Shayne threw the cloth to the tabletop. He fixed himself to march around the table and put an end to this horrid show. Everything in his faeborn chest twisted, his muscles flexed to move. But he froze there, his hands at his sides, his chest rising and falling with sharp inhales.

What was he to do? He was not this human’s hero. He would die if he intervened.

When Cosmo hurled the human ten feet and she rolled across the floor, Shayne whirled around. He stared at the back wall as nausea built in his stomach. He could not endure this. But he could not intervene. He closed his eyes and grabbed a fistful of his hair.

The female shrieked and shouted and begged, filling his ears with pain.

“No,” he muttered to himself. “Don’t even think about it.”

He bit his lips together, trying to think of something else. Why would Cosmo do this here? Was he so angry about Shayne’s prank that he’d decided to take out his wrath upon a human prisoner? Was this all Shayne’s fault?

Curse the faeborn sky deities.

Shayne turned back to the table. He grabbed a solid fruit. He hurled it across the banquet hall. It smacked square in Cosmo’s left eye.

Forget the ink. Now the fool would have a bruise he couldn’t wash away with soap and water.

A chorus of sounds erupted across the hall as the fruit fell to the ground and rolled across the tiles. As Cosmo’s head snapped to the side, his hand flying up to cover his eye.

Shayne followed after his fruit in slow, easy steps, landing himself before where Cosmo was hunched. Conveniently standing right in the way of Cosmo’s reach of the human still cowering on the floor. The smells in the air turned just a little more unbearable, the temperature growing uncomfortably hot. Even the sounds of distant music in the House turned screechy and sharp. Shayne pulled his face into a half-smile so no one would know.

“How cowardly of you,” Shayne said. “If you’re mad at me, take it out on me . Or are you too afraid of my abilities for that?”

Cosmo turned and stood slowly. He dropped his hand, revealing a patch of swelling flesh around his eye. His black hair was ruffled and out of place from Shayne’s epic fruit throw.

When he stared at Shayne now, it seemed different.

“You said you didn’t have a human,” Shayne pointed out.

After a moment, Cosmo said, “I lied.”

Shayne thought that was it. That they would all go their separate ways now that Cosmo’s fit of anger had been handled. But then…

Cosmo’s face spread into a smile.

And because of that, Shayne’s smile faded.

“Everyone leave.” Cosmo’s command boomed over the banquet hall.

Immediately, every fairy in sight dropped their breakfast utensils and began rushing for the hall doors. They escaped two at a time, and soon the large hall was empty, save for Shayne, Cosmo, and the unfortunate human who’d found herself in the middle of a terrible fairy feud. The doors swished closed, and everything went quiet.

“If you care for that human so much, go tend to her wounds, Lyro,” Cosmo invited. He nodded past Shayne with his chin toward the helpless thing still huddled on the floor. “Why don’t you check if she’s alright?”

“Ha! So you can stab me while my back is turned?” Shayne guessed, though he knew Cosmo wouldn’t take that risk. “Absolutely not. I don’t care for humans—I just wanted to see if you were afraid of me, and it seems you are. Admit it.”

Cosmo shook his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe it,” he said, more to himself.

Shayne bit the inside of his cheek, wondering if he’d missed something. But his mind fled to the human on the floor behind him, possibly bleeding. Possibly terrified. If he could have kicked Cosmo out the banquet hall doors, he would have. All he wanted to do now was make sure the human wasn’t broken, but he could not have a Riothin-blooded fairy see him tend to a human, and so, he folded his arms and waited.

“Well, then.” Cosmo backed away, and to Shayne’s relief, he turned for the doors. “I have other things to do today,” he muttered as he marched.

Shayne waited. And waited. And waited. And finally , Cosmo left, the great doors banging closed after him and returning the banquet hall to silence.

It was the first second Shayne dropped the calm look from his face. He spun and fell to a knee, listening for the human’s rhythms. He thought she’d passed out, until he saw her sitting there, alert.

“Are you alright, Human? Are you hurt?” he asked. Shayne lifted a hand toward her hunched shoulder, but he stopped short when she lifted her face to his.

Her once watery-eyed, startled face had changed. Shayne blinked in surprise, something dropping into the pit of his stomach at the sight of her wide, growing smile.

“No…” he rasped, tearing back.

The female threw her head back and roared in laughter, filling the hall with it. Her hair slid off her ears, showing their arched points, and Shayne realized just how much of a fool he was. Realized that Cosmo had tricked him into revealing something about himself none of his enemies should ever know. And that Cosmo was winning after all—not only in the game.

“Did you think I was really doing all that to a measly human?” Cosmo’s voice came from behind him, and Shayne froze to the floor. Cosmo hadn’t made a peep when he’d returned. “Those who know me know I can act viciously when I want to,” he added. He crouched and leaned in to whisper in Shayne’s ear, “And you should know; the things I do to real humans are much, much worse.”

Shayne spun and punched. He knew better— queensbane , he knew better—but unfortunately his fist didn’t.

Cosmo took the hit with a growl. His breathing was heavy when he spun back and sized Shayne up with glowing green eyes. He lightly touched his cheekbone where a new swell would soon match the patch from the fruit.

“What a poor sport you are. No fun,” he said. “But I’m learning all sorts of things about you, Shayne Lyro . Including the best way to rile you up.”

Shayne climbed to his feet and sped past Cosmo. He rushed for the doors, pushing out to brave the halls with a pounding heart. The scent in the hallway was metallic and icy, and Shayne coughed on the air entering his lungs. The agonies of this House created a vast sea where no direction seemed to take him to the surface.

He found himself in the backyard gardens minutes later. He wasn’t even sure how he got outside. He looked back at the House of Riothin as his heartbeat settled. As he started to think rationally for the first time in several minutes.

“They know,” he muttered. “Queensbane, they know.” He dragged his fingers into his hair and began to pace along the stepping stones. Chilly wind whispered across his flesh and a sprinkle of snow fell over the garden, but he hardly noticed.

He cursed the sky deities and fell onto a stone bench, dropping his head into his hands.

“You fool,” he snapped at himself. He’d come all the way here to ensure nothing fae, magical, or dangerous went near the human realm. He had one job to do; to ensure word reached the House of Lyro that Shayne was under the protection of Riothin. All he’d needed was for the High Lord to send that stupid letter, and the Lyro House would have forgotten about Shayne’s humans, forgotten about forcing Shayne into the heir’s seat, and might have eventually forgotten about Shayne altogether. Now, not only did his own family know about his affairs with humans, the House of Riothin had discovered it, too.

“It doesn’t matter,” he told himself. He dropped his hands and clasped them. “This doesn’t change anything.”

It wasn’t like Cosmo’s discovery would reveal anything about Shayne’s connections in the human realm. In fact, Cosmo might not even tell anyone what Shayne had done in the banquet hall. It didn’t matter one bit. Not at all.

Except that now Cosmo knew that he could control Shayne by torturing humans.

“Sky deities, why?!” Shayne growled. At least he hadn’t been holding his crossbow during that catastrophe. He might have handled things even worse.

“If you’re having a conversation with yourself, I can leave.”

Shayne’s head snapped up.

Meave stood by a willow bush, plucking the soft blossoms off as she watched him. A long, glamourous pink dress swept down her body, fluttering in the cold breeze. She was a being most fairies would find pretty, Shayne supposed. But he wasn’t really into ‘dolled-up’ or ‘glamourous’ or even ‘pink’. He tried to picture Meave in jeans, or in a police vest, or even with messy hair all up in a ponytail.

He couldn’t.

“How long have you been standing there?” he asked.

Meave’s glossed lips shimmered in the sunlight when she smiled. “Long enough to determine that you’re either crazy or brilliant with the way you ramble on when no one’s around.”

Shayne forced a smile. “Let’s go with brilliant.”

Meave laughed. Blossoms sprouted to full-faced flowers when her laughter sailed through the garden. Even the flowers of the House of Riothin responded well to their rulers. Shayne wondered if all his secret agendas would earn him some sort of plant rash if he stayed in this garden too long.

He stood from the bench and reached for Meave’s hands. The female’s fingers were pale and soft; too soft though—like she’d never thrown a punch or worked a long day in her life.

“I came to find you for a reason, Shayne,” she told him.

Shayne’s smile turned as relaxed as he could manage. Deep down, he truly hated that he needed her. She wasn’t all bad, she just wasn’t his type even if he was hers. She also threw ridiculous fits at least once a day that were eye-roll worthy, but not enough to deter him from following through on his plan.

But then she said, “My father has demanded you wed me.” And curse him—Shayne’s smile faltered.

“What?” He didn’t mean to ask it with accusation, but he did.

“He will announce it as soon as I tell him to.” Meave held tighter to his hands. “It’s what you want, isn’t it? And if you’re having trouble with Cosmo, he’ll yield to your authority the moment we exchange vows. You’ll severely outrank him as the husband of the High Lord’s favourite daughter.”

For all his greatness, Shayne could only stare in this moment. Even though this was what he had come here hoping for. Even though the main part of his plan revolved around this very thing.

But perhaps he hadn’t expected to be wedded right away. Perhaps he’d expected to have time to sort out his own feelings first and let a few things go from his heart.

“Don’t you want this?” Meave’s bright expression faded.

Shayne cleared his throat. “Of course.” His tongue hurt. “Of course I do. I’ve wanted this since the moment I laid eyes on you at the gate—you know that.”

“Then why wait?” Meave’s face turned bright again. “I’m running out of time, you know. I don’t want any of my father’s warriors as a husband. I don’t want my father to choose anything for me anymore.”

Shayne released a quiet chuckle. Meave had made it so obvious that she wanted to marry a Lyro simply to stick it to her father that Shayne thought he’d struck gold.

And why wait? She was right. As soon as Shayne was the son-in-law of High Lord Riothin, as horrifying as the man was, Shayne would become untouchable. It would establish a stronger alliance with the House than him simply being present. It would undoubtedly force Lyro to withdraw any threats, and it would solve his immediate, pesky Cosmo problem. Cosmo would keep his mouth shut if Shayne demanded it.

He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Can you give me three days to think before we announce anything?” he asked. “We haven’t even known each other for two weeks. Three more days won’t hurt us.”

Meave’s shiny lips spread into a bigger smile than ever. “Let me tell you a secret, Shayne,” she said.

“Hmm?”

Meave’s grip on his hands went so tight, it hurt. “Do you know why I want to marry you so desperately?” she asked. When he raised a brow, she said, “Because you’re the enemy. And once I’m more powerful through the bond of marriage, I plan to throw a rebellion against my father. I plan to take everything he has for myself.” Shayne blinked. He tried to pull his fingers away, but she didn’t let go as she went on, glancing off at the garden like she was in another place. “He’s a ferocious war fae and violent conqueror. But I shall be worse. I will take all the West villages. I will become the High Lady of Riothin whose name is spoken for generations to come.”

A gust of wind rattled the bushes and the whole garden seemed to applaud. Shayne watched in amazement as a subtle shiver shook Meave’s body. As she cringed like she’d smelled something foul in the flowers.

And it was then that it dawned on Shayne that even though Meave was the esteemed daughter of the House of Riothin, she was being repulsed by the House’s magic, too. And she’d been hiding it much longer than Shayne had. Possibly taking cold showers and stifling gags at the scents, hearing dreadful music and dancing anyway.

Shayne finally managed to free himself from her grip.

This female was to be his wife? Someone who wanted to shed blood with her own fingernails?

A rebellion?

A takeover?

Everything she wanted would foil his plan. He’d hoped for subtlety and a quiet existence. He’d hoped to hide in the High Lord’s shadow for at least the next several years. He’d expected an easy marriage, a lot of food, and the occasional fun-filled outing.

What a fool he was—for the second time today.

Shayne should have known that nothing was ever simple among fairies.

He should have known that a quiet, fun life in the Ever Corners didn’t exist.