Page 40 of Manor of Wind and Nightmares (Fae of Brytwilde #3)

Now

P ain lanced through my shoulder and leg, plucking me out of my dream. I stifled a cry, opening my eyes to find a woman with long, wispy eyelashes and violet eyes scrunching her face in concentration as she held my shoulder.

“Hold still; I’m trying to help,” she said.

Breathing deeply, I gritted my teeth through the waves of agony that coursed through my wounds. And then, suddenly, the pain melted into warmth as I felt the skin knit back together. Exhaustion swept through me, but it was pleasant and heady, like I’d drank a few gulps of wine.

As my eyelids fluttered, nerves twisted in my stomach.

What if Kaede was waiting for me in my dreams?

How could I bear to hear him call me his sweet torment again, to feel his lips against my throat, and to know that he could not forgive me?

That there was a darkness within him that hadn’t been there when I’d first fallen for him.

“I can’t sleep,” I groaned. Sunlight was filtering brightly through a nearby window of the infirmary I found myself in, signaling it was late in the day.

“There are other contestants recovering today as well,” the healer explained, as if she thought I feared for my chances of participating in the day’s events to win the prince’s hand. “You will not miss any events.”

I wanted to ask where Callista was, but a knock on the door interrupted us.

“Is Miss Aurelia Sinclair awake?”

“Briefly,” the healer hedged, glancing toward where Florian Brightwing leaned against the door. His smile was too bright as his eyes swept over me. “She needs rest from the effort her body underwent in recovering from two bite wounds.”

Florian arched a brow. “Quite the fight you put up in there,” he said conversationally, striding past the healer and waving a dismissive hand at her to send her on her way.

She cast me a hesitant glance before darting from the room. Likely she was more afraid of defying a member of the nobility than insisting he leave me alone so I could sleep.

As Florian pulled up a chair to the bed and settled into it, propping one leg up so that his ankle rested on his other leg, I studied him warily. “I am not sure why my recovery is of particular concern to you,” I said.

Florian smirked. “Direct. I like the way your mind works.”

“I was of the opinion that logic and facts were not highly valued among the fae. Not in a world of trickery and glamours.”

“Ah, but in a world of trickery and glamours where no one can lie and words must be twisted in order to make those tricks, facts are highly valued. One must know the facts to spin them.” He winked as if we were sharing a secret, as if we were co-conspirators and I could trust him within an inch.

Pinching my arm to keep myself awake, I sat up against my pillows. “This is all fascinating, but doesn’t answer my question. Why are you interested in my well-being? What brings you here?”

“Perhaps I have taken notice of your talents in the competition.”

I frowned, moments from last night’s horrors flashing through my mind.

“You don’t believe me.” Florian grinned, amused.

“It’s true. We had a talented seer who was able to share the events occurring within the maze when you were all within it.

The uhgmil taunted all of you with visions of horrors and fears, but you were the only one to see through an illusion and wound one of them.

Prince Kaede’s guards rescued everyone else.

” He leaned forward and lowered his voice, as if sharing a secret.

“I truly think you have what it takes to win.”

In spite of myself, my heart skipped a beat. But winning couldn’t end well for me.

“Alas, some of our members made a poor decision in trying to also use you contestants as sacrifices for the uhgmil. Please know that I voted against it. I am not here to relish spectating suffering and death like some of the sadists in this court. I want a queen worthy of our kingdom.”

I scanned his face and sifted through his words, trying to discover the trick to his phrasing or some other hint that he wasn’t being entirely forthright.

But I couldn’t find any sign that he wasn’t being honest with me.

Perhaps Florian Brightwing was one of those rare, kind souls among the fae.

More like Kaede. After all, he couldn’t lie, only twist words, and he’d spoken very plainly.

And hadn’t he claimed to be Kaede’s friend?

Bentley, too, had mentioned that the three of them were close.

Perhaps I could let down my guard around him, at least a little.

“And so you came to check on me, even hoping I will win?”

Florian shifted in his seat, appearing almost..

.uncomfortable. “Well.” He cleared his throat.

“Since the courtiers tried to sacrifice some of the contestants...the prince’s word to them to not interfere is no longer valid.

He could do whatever he likes. And I think you and I both know that he’s already showing preference for a certain young lady. ”

My stomach dipped at the reminder. Laura. When I closed my eyes, I could see her in Kaede’s arms and the way she’d gazed up at him. The fierce protectiveness in his eyes wasn’t something I could easily forget. “You think he will choose her.”

And why wouldn’t he? Despite the way he’d kissed me in my dream, any hope of truly being with Kaede was no more than fantasy.

The part of him that longed for me would never overtake the part of him that had lost all trust in me, that was still convinced, even now, that I was plotting to assassinate him all over again.

If I were in his place, I wouldn’t trust myself either.

“You think so too.” Florian’s expression was surprisingly gentle, his rich brown eyes exuding a warmth that I realized I deeply missed.

When was the last time I’d felt understood?

Callista and the rest of my family were vain and excessive, viewing me as their sensible caregiver and creating a constant divide among us.

To Kaede, I was a traitor. Other than how Kaede had tended to me in my dream—out of his responsibility as crown prince of Willowbark to heal the hurting—when had someone cared for me?

“It seems a shame, someone as strong and beautiful as you being overlooked.”

Heat stained my cheeks in spite of myself. “Laura has her own qualities,” I said diplomatically. How could I resent Kaede for seeing how lovely and brave she was? If he had to choose his future queen, I was glad he had found someone who might make him happy.

Or that was what I told myself.

Florian laid a gentle hand over mine. For a moment, I stared down at where he touched me, uncertain how I felt about the familiar gesture.

It was comforting to feel a friendly touch, and yet disconcerting.

The last man who’d touched me had been Kaede, even if it was in a dream, and Florian’s cool hand was quite different from the heated kisses the prince had pressed to my throat.

My breath caught and my blush deepened at the memory of his tongue caressing my skin.

Thinking I’d blushed at his touch, Florian grinned.

It wasn’t an unkind smile, so I found myself returning it.

“Do not despair. I know I am not a prince, but you are not unnoticed. And I’m glad you are recovering, truly.

I know you don’t trust me, and I can’t really blame you given how most fae behave toward humans, but.

..well, there it is. I hope you come to believe me, and I look forward to getting to know you better in the coming days as you spend time among our court.

Whether Prince Kaede sees you or not, I do. ”

He stood and bowed, a gesture that endeared him to me, just a little, simply because he’d chosen a human custom to make me feel comfortable. It was nice to see something familiar, to feel a bit of home here in this awful manor.

“Rest well, sweet Aurelia.”

But as my eyes drifted closed, surrendering to sleep at last, all I heard was the echo of Kaede’s words.

Sweet torment.