Page 34 of Given to the Fae (The Dark Realms #3)

Locke snorts. ‘So are black fights, but you seem to find those easily enough. You just have to know where to look.’

His assessing eyes move over me, and I can’t help but wonder, as I look at my smooth unscarred wrists, if he likes the way I look like this. But his eyes move away from me quickly.

‘Keep it on unless I tell you to remove it, and, for fuck’s sake, call us by our names,’ he says impatiently. ‘Now, let’s go or we really will miss the Gate.’

My mind is alive with ideas. With a fae artifact that can change my appearance, I could go anywhere. I could do anything. This is the best chance I’ve ever had to escape and I have somewhere to go. The Light Realm.

Locke glances back at me and smirks. ‘Just in case that pretty little head of yours is thinking of running, darling, remember we’re the only ones with the key to the Light Realm. There’s no getting there without us, understand?’

I nod and follow them back into the main street, putting my thoughts of escape away for now.

‘And stop looking down,’ Locke hisses as we walk. ‘You’re a proud fae female. You do not stare at the ground. You hold your head high.’

I nod, putting my shoulders back and walking next to him instead of behind him.

It feels odd, though. I’m a fraud and it feels as if everyone is looking at me and they can see that I’m but a lowly slave in a very illegal costume.

My breathing quickens as I wonder how many of them would be punished before they were able to get through my sentence of thrashing of me to ribbons to then hang me out for the birds to feast on.

I’m glad when I see the Gate that we came through a couple of days ago ahead.

We get there just in time, only waiting for a few moments before the roar of the Bridge.

We traipse through with the horses in tow. I take a deep breath and step into the Breach. This is the first time I haven’t been in the cage or on horseback.

The shadows and forms assail me as soon as I’m inside the corridor. They hiss around me and whisper words I can’t understand, they scream and shout, the sounds making me clutch at my new pointed ears.

My name. One of them said my name. It was whispered into my ear. How do they know my name?!

Someone else is yelling but I can’t make out their words over the din, and I’m suddenly scooped up into thick arms.

Morgan.

I snuggle into the warm chest, pressing my nose into his throat as my hands curl around his neck.

The sounds of the Breach disappear abruptly, and I know the Gate has closed. I look up at Morgan and am shocked to see it’s Locke. My heart lurches in my chest and my cheeks color. His arms tighten around me and his throat bobs. He stares into my eyes.

‘You must never stop inside the Breach,’ he murmurs, but he doesn’t sound angry.

‘I didn’t realize I had,’ I reply in just as soft a voice.

Locke

Jak’s throat clearing has me looking away from the female and her rapidly pinkening cheeks.

She suits her conjured fae ears and violet eyes, there’s no doubt, but I find that I prefer her looking like herself. I like peering into the depths of those expressive, deep brown eyes of hers.

Her hands unwind from me almost unwillingly and a part of me misses touching her, guiding her through her pleasure when I was forced to release her those few times.

Gods, what a cunt I am.

I put her down and look around at the leafless trees and the red sun.

This place isn’t familiar.

‘Find the Gate box,’ I command, and, as the other two hunt around the vicinity, I watch Bryn.

‘What was that back there in the street?’ I ask.

‘What was what?’ she asks innocently.

But I’m not fooled. ‘The old woman. You threw yourself between her and her master, Bryn. What the fuck were you thinking? Why did you do it?’

Bryn stares at me for a beat too long. I know her explanation will be false and a part of me would love to conjure the truth from her lips, but the thought makes me sick to my stomach. I’ve worked enough magick on her.

‘She was just an old woman. Weak and frail.’

‘But you did the same when Bere was beating that other female in the barn. She wasn’t old and frail.’

‘Bell told you, I thought. I owed her and she asked it of me.’

I stare at her, watching intently. ‘But why you, Bryn? I see a pattern.’ I step closer. ‘Why are you the one who throws herself into danger to help these slaves who wouldn’t do the same for you?’

And why do I feel so angry about it?

She stares at me, and I find myself wishing to see her true eyes.

She doesn’t answer me and in fact is beginning to look a little green. I grab the skin with the tea in it, thrusting at her.

‘Don’t want you getting Gate Sick,’ I say, changing the subject.

She nods, looking relieved that I’ve ceased my questions. What secrets is this little human hiding? And why is it becoming increasingly important to me that I know what they are?

She takes a sip from the skin and wrinkles her nose at it.

‘I would have thought the Breach would affect the fae more than humans,’ she remarks offhandedly as she replaces the stopper.

‘Why?’ I ask, a little puzzled and wondering if she’s all right.

‘Your hearing. Your ears are more sensitive than my human ones.’

I frown. ‘What do you mean?’

She looks at me properly, her confusion mirroring mine.

‘The sounds,’ she says as if I’m not understanding something that’s plain.

I shake my head. ‘There are no sounds, Bryn.’

Her brow puckers as her puzzlement increases. ‘Yes, there are,’ she insists. ‘Cries and screams. And they whisper .’

At my blank expression, her frown deepens.

‘Do you really not hear them?’

‘I only hear the roar of the Breach,’ I say. ‘No one hears anything other than that.’

‘I found it!’

I turn to see Morgan easing a wooden box out of a hole in a tree gingerly with two long sticks in a pincer shape. A black, shadowy tendril wraps around one of his tools and tries to pull it back, but Morgan raps it hard with the other stick and it recedes into the hollow tree trunk.

‘We stay close to the fire tonight,’ I say, staring into the hollow of the tree, ‘and I’ll cast a repelling conjure to keep the Dark Realm creatures away.’

Morgan and Jak nod in agreement and the box is opened.

‘There’s only one Gate here, so we won’t have to travel anywhere,’ he murmurs after a moment. ‘Looks like there are some safe caves a few minutes’ walk...’

He turns the parchment around as he stares at it and points down the path to the right. ‘That way.’

He turns the parchment over. ‘The Breach opens every day, and we’ve reached the Third Circle.’

‘Good,’ I murmur. ‘We’re on time.’

To meet up with Bere in the First Circle. Another step closer to success and getting rid of our human millstone.

‘Let’s get to the caves early, and if they’re not as safe as they once were, we’ll still have time to make camp elsewhere and get settled safely for the night.’

I lead my mount down the path, keeping an eye out for anything dangerous. The sun is up, though, so we should be safe enough except in the darkest places of the forest.

The walk to the caves doesn’t take long at all, and we find ourselves in front of a gargantuan boulder large enough to be called a cliff if it wasn’t simply planted alone in the middle of the forest with no higher ground around it.

There appear to be three entrances high on the cliff-face.

I take a closer look and find concealed foot holes in the rock leading up to where the caves are.

‘I’ll go first,’ I say, beginning to climb.

‘I should do it,’ Morgan says, and I shake my head.

‘You can’t even see out of your left eye,’ I say with a chuckle. ‘Take a healing potion. Jak was able to find a few vials at a stall on the way to the Gate.’

Morgan grumbles but does as I say and I climb quickly up to the caverns.

I conjure a bright orb of white light and put it inside of each cavern ahead of me, reaching out with my senses and my magick, to ensure it’s actually safe and there’s not some Dark Realm creature, or traveler lurking in the deeper recesses of the rock.

‘It’s safe,’ I call down when I find nothing, eyes widening when I let my conjured orb go out and I see that the cave walls are covered in tiny blue lights that glow in the darkness like stars.

I hear the others scuffling up. Bryn is first, followed by Jak and Morgan last. I help her onto the ledge and she looks out over the tall trees that span as far as the eye can see.

‘When will the sun set, do you think?’ she asks.

I shrug.

‘I’m not sure but perhaps there’s time to get some hunting in.’

I raise my brows at the others and Jak nods at my unspoken question. ‘I’ll go.’

Morgan stares at Bryn while her back is turned and his lips thin. I can’t read his expression, but he isn’t happy.

‘I will as well,’ he murmurs.

They both deposit their packs and go back down to release our horses while I cast a conjure to ensure the beasts don’t wander into danger.

I go through the packs while Bryn starts a fire in the pit at the mouth of the cave but realize quickly that one of our bags is missing.

I stifle a curse.

‘I’ll need to go back to the Gate,’ I say to her. ‘Do you want to come with me?’

She shakes her head, not really looking at me.

‘Are you all right?’ I ask.

She raises her head and her eyes follow my body oddly, flitting over me. She licks her lips, and I swallow hard. What is she doing?

‘Are you all right?’ I ask her again.

She nods. ‘Yes. Of course.’

She looks away again, her face red.

‘I’ll be back soon,’ I say. ‘Don’t go down to the ground while you’re alone.’

She nods again, all of her focus on getting the fire burning well, and I climb down.

I grab my horse and jump on his bare back, deciding that I don’t want to be gone for as long as it would take me to walk to the Gate and back. I don’t want to leave her alone here for even that long.