Page 5 of The Dark Will Fall (Twilight Lake #5)

Maeve Cruinn

Covered in bruises, my eye swelling shut, and the scratches down my face stinging from the salt water, I knew I wouldn’t be injured for long.

I hide behind a large rock, marking the boundary between the lagoon and the forest bordering the sand. My breath caught in my chest, and my muscles ached, but they had already started to heal.

Cormac was well and truly pissed, and I was certain he’d attempt to beat me to death—again—if he caught me.

The Tuatha Dé Danann had protected me, healing my wounds.

As much as I wanted to fight back, in a way, his anger was warranted. I had killed him because of my foolishness. My addiction to the promise of power—the Kraken’s eye.

I had told myself I would get rid of the stone. Of the cursed piece of the High Throne that had twisted my mind like the tangled limbs of an octopus—but in the final moment, I hadn’t been strong enough.

My weakness had killed Cormac.

My weakness had killed me.

“There you are, Princess.” Cormac’s face was streaked with mud, and his long, golden hair sported several leaves. He poked his head around the boulder, though it was apparent he had spent some time searching the forest.

I scrambled away from him, kicking up sand and dried leaves. Cormac gripped my ankles, and I fell face forward. My mouth filled with blood, as my teeth scored my tongue.

Still reaching, clawing at the ground to get away. Cormac’s weight pressed me into the sand, and I couldn’t move. My breath locked in my chest, his weight too much as he pressed his muscular body against mine, leaning down to speak directly into my ear.

“Caught you.” He breathed.

My nostrils flared. “Come back to kill me, huh? Hurt me? Just get it over with, you overgrown fish!” I snapped, my tangled hair falling in my face, stealing my vision. I bashed my fists against the forest floor, feeling the ground give way under the blow. Mud splattered over my face.

Cormac laughed, but the sound was bitter. Mocking. “You know where we are, don’t you?”

I closed my eyes, jaw clenched as I inhaled shakily. “I know,” I told him. “I guessed.” Though the blood on my face was dry, the wound above my eye closed. “I fucking hate you, Cormac Illfinn.”

He rocked his hips, grinding once against my backside, almost unintentionally, as he pushed himself to stand. Cormac brushed the forest debris from his chest. The black scar over his heart was gone.

“Tuatha Dé Danann.” Cormac nodded sagely.

I rolled off my front, pushing myself onto all fours. It took a moment to catch my breath. To recover from the heavy male who had knocked the wind from my lungs.

“I thought you were going to kill me.” I wheezed.

Cormac scoffed. “What gave you that idea?”

I waved a flaccid hand to the blood on my face.

Cormac quirked a brow. “You fell on your own fecking face, Princess. Running away.”

“You put your hands around my throat.” I countered.

“To be fair, we’re in the Tuatha Dé Danann. I’m fairly certain you can’t die twice.” He threw his hands up in exasperation. “I’d say my anger isn’t misplaced. Considering you killed us both.”

“I told you not to touch it!”

Cormac’s eyes narrowed. “You sound like a dragon protecting its hoard.”

“I didn’t exactly have time to say: Oh, Cormac! Only those with the blood of a god can touch the Kraken’s eye .” I retorted, sitting back on my ass and crossing my arms over my chest.

“For feck’s sake!” Cormac threw his head back, pleading with the sky.

My stomach let out an unhealthy grumble at that moment. It was as if my body had woken up when I wasn’t paying attention, and all the usual sensations had returned full force. Hunger, thirst, and a whole host of others.

I pressed my hand against my stomach.

“What’s wrong?” Cormac’s snarling demeanor gave way to concern.

“Are you as hungry as I am?”

Cormac frowned, taken aback. He paused for a moment, cataloging his body before shaking his head. “I haven’t seen any recognizable plants. No animals in the forest, though we likely scared them away.”

“Fish?” I asked.

Cormac’s lips pressed together. “There were some fish in the lagoon.”

I sensed his hesitation. It went unsaid that entering the lagoon held untold dangers, that neither of us was in a rush to encounter.

“It’s too dangerous.” I shook my head, thinking of Cormac pounding the water from underneath, as if he was trapped under ice.

Cormac frowned, turning back to the beach. “I have the feeling I’m forgetting something. A feeling I’m meant to be somewhere.”

I mirrored his expression. “Me too.”

Cormac held out his hand, gesturing for me to stand. It took a moment to decide to take it, lest he attempt to hurt me again. His palm was still callused in the way it always had been. Even death hadn’t changed that.

Behind me, the darkness of the forest pressed between the gaps in the trees. Breathing but silent. In front, the endless fluffy sand of the beach and the shimmering ocean that did not move as it should have.

I sucked my lips between my teeth. “The forest, or the sea?” I wondered. “Which one?”

“We are water Fae, are we not?” Cormac quirked a brow.

I nodded my agreement. “The sea it is.”

We wandered the beach for what felt like hours before I flopped down on the sand, defeated.

Cormac stepped up to the water, where the lagoon lapped the shore like an eager beast.

He squinted at the horizon, the sun in the same position it had been when he woke up to this world.

“Do you have the feeling something is trying to keep us here?” Cormac said thoughtfully. “A beautiful paradise, to be sure. But perhaps, a cage as well?”

My stomach rumbled, and the edges of my vision grew narrow. I growled as I stood, pushing past the Mer-King as I approached the water as if issuing a challenge.

“If you aren’t brave enough to swim, then it’ll have to be me. Won’t it?” I declared, huffing as I blew a tendril of dry white hair from my eyes.

Cormac huffed a laugh. “I’m not chomping at the bit to rush back into waters I’m not sure I can leave, Princess. My condolences that my bravery is not up to your standards.”

I pressed my hand to my temple, closing my eyes to stave off the dizziness. “Why aren’t you bothered by this sensation?”

Cormac shrugged. “Perhaps I’m a shade more dead than you.”

“Don’t joke about things like that.” I cracked open an eye to glare at him.

Cormac ignored my condemnation and turned back to the water. “I’ll go.” He nodded staunchly, a warrior walking to his death.

I rolled my eyes. “Fecking eejit.”

Before he could step forward, I stepped into the waves, praying to Belisama that I would not remain above them.

Whoever was listening to my prayers answered, as the cool water submerged my ankles and I felt the sand move to cradle my feet. I laughed, the sound free and buoyant, as I rushed forward—bending down to cup the water.

I should not have feared the water. I was Undine, after all.

The crystalline lagoon felt different. Though its physical touch was much the same as any water.

Where the Twilight Lake was a playful friend, and the Dark Sea was an ancient behemoth, the lagoon felt empty. Devoid of life.

An illusion.

Cormac remained on the shore; worry painted on his features as I ventured further out. My unfamiliar shift was soaked to the bone, the fabric clinging to every part of my body. I waved at Cormac, shooting him a bright smile before I sank to my knees and allowed the water to rise up to my waist.

I pushed off the shelf, diving under, my hunger dissolving with every moment in the water—even if it was an illusion.

“Maeve!” Cormac shouted from the shore.

His voice was muffled as I remained submerged. The water was a bright turquoise, clean enough to see for miles.

The same pristine sand lined the seabed. A rainbow of coral, and clear water for miles.

But no fish.

Puzzled, I swam deeper, as my gills sprang from my throat and my scales pushed to the surface of my skin.

As I extended my arms, a flash of red caught my eye.

My scales had changed color. No longer the delicate periwinkle and opal that I shared with my mother, but a pinkish hue had overtaken them, with ruby red dotted throughout.

I couldn’t afford to dwell on adornments, though such things were essential to an Undine.

Cormac called my name again, and I broke the surface, showing my face to put him out of his misery. Cormac strode into the water with all the grace of a beast stuck in mud. His fear was masked by the heavy frown on his features, his green eyes flashing with anger as he made his way into the sea.

I waited for Cormac to turn back once he reached the seashelf and the water grew too deep. I had no idea if his tail had followed him to the Tuatha Dé Danann, but Cormac seemed to have no trouble swimming. I guessed his strong shoulders and oversized arms were good for something after all.

It took only a moment for the Mer King to reach my side, his head remaining above water the entire time. His golden locks were stringy and wet.

I dipped his head under the surface, but he had no tail, just two legs, kicking hard to keep him afloat.

Tails were a point of pride with Mer-folk.

I remembered the stories of Manannán mac Lir and the fisherman. Though the Undine legends had claimed the tails of the Mer as a punishment, the Mer themselves felt differently.

Though stories were stories, and no one truly knew the origin of things.

When I broke the waves, a smile on my face as I readied myself to make fun of Cormac, I noticed the tears shimmering in his eyes. The muscle twitching in his jaw as he held back his sadness. Cormac had lost a vital part of himself. His tail. The red scales that proved he was king.

Any jokes I wanted to make died on my tongue. Instead, I swam forward, my scaled arms outstretched as I pulled him toward me and rested my head on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

I meant it. I was sorry. It was all my fault. Drunk on power from the stone, Cormac had tried to save my life. He had made the ultimate sacrifice for me.

A bone-deep sorrow bloomed under my skin, stealing my breath.

Cormac pressed his cheek against my hair, a sob catching in his throat as he held back tears. “I know.” He whispered.

Cormac and I swam to the shore, crawling from the sea and flopping down onto the sand. We had searched the water, but there were no fish to be found. No coral, or water-fae either. Not another soul for miles, fae or otherwise.

We rolled onto our backs and watched the fluffy clouds travel across the sky. The heat brushed against my skin, but did not burn. The breeze from the crystalline water was a pleasant caress and nothing more.

I was used to the icy shores of the Night Court, born and raised in frigid waters. I’d never thought of another option, and though the Tuatha Dé Danann was growing more comfortable by the minute, I had to admit I missed my home.

The Night Court.

The Twilight Lake.

I sat up, face pinched as I struggled to recall what else I missed. I searched my mind like a set of prying fingers, pulling open every crease and fold, but did not find the answer I was looking for.

I knew I had forgotten something, but my memories were vague. They were there one minute and gone the next.

“Paradise, huh, Princess?” Cormac chuckled to himself; the sound edged with a hint of bitterness. “Without a tail, with which to swim. Without wine, and loose court ladies. Perhaps this is more your paradise than mine.”

I scoffed a laugh, propping myself up on my elbow as I turned to face him. “Don’t you remember, back in Tarsainn?”

Cormac arched a brow but did not answer.

My lip twitched with a condescending smirk. “I’ve seen into your dreams, Cormac Illfinn. You’d sooner dance a jig than you would spend time in the harem.”

Cormac tilted his chin, slanting me a look. “Got me all figured out then?”

I shrugged, flopping back on the sand, as I knitted my fingers together and rested them on my stomach—looking back at the sky to avoid his emerald stare. “Sometimes I do. Other times I wonder how much is the mask you wear, and how much is the real you?”

“The mask of the King.” He said thoughtfully.

“The mask of the pompous, arrogant, fecking eejit with a head bigger than Charybis’s belly.” I corrected, though there was no heat in my words.

“What is your paradise, Princess?” Cormac pushed himself up on his oversized arms, unmarked by the scars of the Trench. A slate wiped clean. “Is it lying on a beach, just like this, with a handsome King? Rolling about in the sand?”

I rolled my eyes, but couldn’t deny that my stomach fluttered. “Paradise is a bit boring, don’t you think?”

“We could make our own fun?” Cormac flashed a crooked smile, his face hovering over mine, blocking the blue sky.

“Doing what? Racing sea turtles, and eating coconuts?” I asked wryly.

Cormac gave me a long look. “Maeve…”

My cheeks heated, and I looked away.

Cormac gripped my cheeks, forcing my face back to his. He leaned over me, close enough to share a breath. “Perhaps paradise is what you make of it? Hm?”

My breathing stuttered. Every inch of my body tingled, though I didn’t know if it was from fear or arousal.

Cormac Illfinn was much bigger than I was.

His broad shoulders were easily twice the width of my body.

The taut muscles of his arms and the lines on his stomach as his tunic rode up.

My eyes flitted to the curve of his cock, hidden in his leather trousers.

As Cormac’s lips pulled into a smug, unsufferable smirk, I knew he had caught me looking.

He did not loosen his grip on my face, his fingers pressing deep enough that I could feel my own teeth through the skin of my cheeks. Cormac leaned in, ignoring my lips entirely as he placed a delicate kiss on the seam of my jaw, and he finally let go of my face.

I shivered as his body pressed closer to mine. His body heat seeped through the fabric of his tunic, soaking into my body like a warm bath.

I reached up, placing my hands on his shoulders. My fingers twitched when I touched his skin, unsure of the line we both straddled—but had never crossed.

“What do you say, Princess?” His voice tickled the shell of my ear.

My eyelids fluttered closed, my breathing caught on a sharp inhale. I licked my lips.

His callused fingers danced on my stomach as he reached under the fabric of my tunic. “I can make you feel good…” He continued as his teeth scored the skin on my shoulder.

I wanted him.

Cormac Illfinn .

I was going to shatter into a thousand pieces if he didn’t reach between my legs that very moment.

“…After all, there isn’t anything better to do…” Cormac finished the thought as his hand dipped under the waistband of my leggings.

My body turned cold. I grabbed his fingers, pushing them away from my stomach as I sat up.

“ No ,” I whispered, as I scrambled away from the Mer-King.

Unable to look him in the eye.