Page 28 of The Shattered Kingdom (The Cursed Kingdom #2)

ABBY

ONCE KIE FALLS asleep, he’s out cold. The hand he insisted on resting over my heart falls limp, and his arm on my waist grows heavy. I feel a strange sense of accomplishment at having successfully gotten him to sleep.

Mason sneaks into the room, his eyes darting rapidly between Kie and me as he packs a bag for tomorrow. I assume he’s going to pack one for me, too. I hope so, at least. We don’t plan on being gone for long, but Kie and Mason want to be prepared.

“Are you hungry?” Mason whispers.

I shrug, and Mason returns several minutes later with a platter of food. Kie groans, rolling over, and I take that as my opportunity to sit up and eat. I’d leave the bed altogether if I didn’t fear it would wake Kie up.

Mason finds excuses to linger in the room while I eat, but we don’t speak out of fear of waking the testy faerie. Should I ask Mason about his father? Does he even want to talk about it? I can’t tell.

“You should rest, too,” Mason eventually says.

“I’m not tired.”

Mason raises a brow. “You sound like Kie. ”

He shuts his curtains, plunging the room into darkness. I glare in his general direction, or at least what I assume to be his general direction.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Go to sleep, Abby.”

The empty platter is eased out of my hands, and the bedroom door shuts a second later. I’m not tired, and I cross my arms over my chest as I sink back down. Kie rolls over again, pulling me into his arms.

He hooks a thigh over my waist for good measure, trapping me in place. I let myself enjoy it, but only because he’s sleeping and won’t know. I can’t remember the last time I was cuddled, and it’s nice. I feel warm, and safe.

I fall asleep.

I don’t wake up until the next morning.

I’m in only my underwear, and my skin is slick with sweat. The faerie beside me is a furnace, and our sticky bodies are practically fused together.

Something is quietly vibrating on the bedside table on my left, and I fight back a yawn as I turn to see what it is. On the table is a dark shard of glass that wasn’t there yesterday, and I raise my brows as I realize it’s one of those magic enhancers Samuel used.

He used his to create a map of the realm. I haven’t seen one since. Mason must have placed it here last night.

Kie groans, drawing my attention. We shifted while sleeping, and he’s practically sprawled over me.

His violet eyes blink open, and he plants his palms beside my shoulders before pushing his upper body off me.

His shoulders and biceps flex, the muscles bulging as he leans forward and touches the dark glass.

“I didn’t know you had one of those,” I say.

Kie shrugs. “Most faeries in the capital don’t use them. We’re strong, and the magic boost they provide is negligible. It is helpful for small things, though, like this. Mine has been infused to vibrate every morning.”

The buzzing stops, and I relax back into the mattress.

Then I remember we need to leave for the shifter lands and jolt out of bed.

I left my dress on the floor last night, but it’s gone.

I bet Mason stole it, and I chew at the inside of my cheek until I spot two piles of folded clothing on his desk.

They weren’t here last night.

Both outfits are black, and I fight back a smile as I realize one is meant for me. Mason found me a pair of tight pants and a stretchy long-sleeved shirt. The ensemble is identical to the outfits they wore in the forest. We’re going to match.

“Do you feel better?” I ask Kie.

He sits up, watching me dress.

“I do,” he admits. “I always thought sharing a bed would be uncomfortable, but I enjoyed it.”

My movements falter, but I quickly regain my composure. It never occurred to me that this would be the first time Kie shared a bed. I suppose the risk of accidentally touching skin during sleep was too high.

Kie clears his throat. “Did you enjoy sleeping with me?”

Yes. I’m not going to tell him that, though.

I grab the second pile of clothing and toss it toward Kie. He smoothly catches the fabric, his piercing gaze never once leaving mine. It feels like he’s staring into my soul, and I don’t like it.

“I should find Mason,” I say.

I’m surprised the shifter didn’t crawl into bed last night or, at the very least, drag in a mattress and sleep on the floor. Mason’s been vocal about his desire to be near me, and I doubt he’d allow me to have alone time with Kie out of the goodness of his heart.

He’ll weasel his way between us, and he’ll do it with a smile.

I push open the bedroom door and walk down the hallway, peering into every room I pass. They’re all empty, and when I round the corner that leads to the open living space, I finally spot Mason.

He’s sprawled across the couch, still in yesterday’s clothing, with his feet dangling off one side and an arm hanging off the other. Sitting on his chest is a folded piece of paper, and upon closer inspection, I realize it’s the letter his father wrote.

Mason fell asleep rereading this.

My heart lurches.

Three backpacks are resting against the edge of the couch, and I step over them before snatching the letter off Mason’s chest. His nose crinkles, and I just know he’s awake and smelling to see who’s near him.

He relaxes once he realizes it’s just me. I’m not sure what I’m doing, and I drag my fingers through my hair before setting the letter on the coffee table and throwing myself on top of Mason. I feel bad for him, and instinct tells me this is what I should do.

The shifter immediately wraps his arms around my waist, trapping me against him. My knee falls between his thighs, and my arms are squished between our torsos.

“Mason,” I grunt.

“I’m jealous you slept with Kie first,” he says. “And in my bed, no less.”

He’s not really upset. He walked into his bedroom several times while Kie was sleeping, and not once did he look the least bit jealous. He’s only making a big deal about it because he’s hoping to guilt me into agreeing to sleep with him, too. It’s not going to work.

I huff, pushing myself off Mason as Kie walks into the room.

The faerie’s gaze flickers between us and the letter on the table. Mason clocks the action, and he snatches up the letter and shoves it into his pocket .

“Give me five minutes to change,” Mason says, rising from the couch. “We should leave soon.”

Kie nods, his lips flattened into a straight line.

What’s he thinking? I wonder what Mason’s thinking, too.

My mom used to make my brother and me hold hands and share compliments whenever we got on her nerves with our fights, and I’m contemplating making Kie and Mason do the same. I would if we weren’t in a time crunch.

Mason disappears, taking his letter with him, and Kie retreats into the kitchen. He fills a platter with food, then slides it in my direction. It’s a healthy breakfast, full of protein.

“Eat up,” he orders. “We have a long morning ahead of us.”

We plan to be back before anybody notices we’re gone.

Kie and Mason don’t want the council, Anox specifically, to know we’ve left.

Anox will throw a fit, and Kie and Mason don’t want to risk anybody finding out.

It would be too easy for an opportunistic faerie to take advantage of the kingdom being temporarily left without leadership.

I’m shoving the last bite of food in my mouth when Mason returns, now dressed in matching black attire.

I want to joke about it, but now doesn’t seem like the right time.

Things are too tense, too awkward. I wish I had been paired with mates who don’t have such complicated relationships with their families.

It’s not something I’m familiar with, and I don’t know how to address it.

“Let’s go,” Mason says.

He throws his and my bags over his shoulder. I extend my arm, not needing him to carry my things, but Mason doesn’t hand it over. If anything, he looks amused by the mere thought of him not carrying my bag.

“I wish I had that treatment,” Kie mumbles, brushing past me.

Mason shoots him a sharp look. “Sleep tonight and I’ll consider it. ”

Kie secures his bag over his shoulders before ordering Mason and me to stand aside so he can open a portal. He’s opened them a few times in front of me. The one after finding Lill was violent, and he practically poured magic into the ground to open the portal to the gods’ realm.

This time, it’s closer to what Lill did. There’s no abrupt or aggressive tearing of the world. The air begins to ripple, then splits open like a zipper unlatching. Instead of the black couch I’ve been familiar with, I’m now staring into thick woodlands.

Mason takes my hand, his gloved fingers curling around my palm, before pulling me through the portal. I squeeze my eyes shut as dizzying weightlessness hits me, and I only open them once the smell of earthy dirt hits my nose.

Kie has joined us, and the portal is gone.

I look around, an uncomfortable feeling of déjà vu hitting me. The last time I was in these woods, I was angry, hungry, and so fucking scared. Kie and Mason were still planning on giving me to Zaha, and I was half-convinced they were going to rape me. I thought Lill was totally innocent.

Now we stand here as mates. Mates who don’t get along, but mates nonetheless. Queen Gitta is dead, my best friend is a wanted murderer, the shifter who tried to kill me begs me to share a bed with him, and Kie’s refusing to sleep out of fear my heart will stop beating.

I turn toward Mason. “Are there any shifters nearby?”

He shakes his head, the column of his throat bobbing as he gulps. He’s nervous. I don’t blame him. This will be his first time seeing his father since he was sent to live with the faeries, and emotions are high after finding that letter.

“My senses are better in my animal form,” Mason admits.

“I see.” I reach for my bag, intending to pull it off his shoulder so he can shift.

Mason shakes his head and pulls the bag out of my reach.

“What’re you doing?” I ask.

Mason meets Kie’s eye over my head, the pair having a silent conversation. I hate it when they do that. I don’t appreciate feeling left out, and I glare at the underside of Mason’s chin until he shifts his attention back to me.

Mason clears his throat. “You’re afraid of my animal form.”

What? Is this man stupid?

“I’m afraid of dying even more,” I say. I had to explain this to Kie after he confessed to meeting with Jackie, and I hope this is the last time I have to say it. “I don’t understand why I need to keep explaining this.”

Mason hesitates before setting the bags on the ground and removing his clothes. I used to avoid looking at him when he stripped, but now I let myself stare. Mason hands his clothes to me, and I shove them into his bag before stepping back and gesturing for him to get to it.

His shoulders pop out. I turn away. I’m not interested in seeing, after all.

Several seconds pass before Kie taps my hip. “It’s safe to look.”

I appreciate the warning, and I steel myself as I lock eyes with the giant shifter. Mason’s terrifying, his animal form large, intimidating, and incredibly fucking deadly. I can’t be scared of him, though. We already have enough working against us.

“Hit him.”

“What?” I must not have heard Kie correctly.

The faerie chuckles. “Hit him, preferably as hard as you can. See for yourself that it’s still Mason. He’s not going to hurt you.”

The mere thought has my hands shaking. Still, I widen my stance, shove away my fear, and swing. Mason doesn’t move so much as an inch as I connect my palm with the side of his head. My hand stings like a bitch, though, and I let out a pained gasp as I clutch my fingers to my chest.

Mason plops down on his butt. He’s still as tall as I am.

“I’m overcoming my fear,” I whisper to myself. I’m shaking, adrenaline rushing as I eye Mason’s muzzle and the teeth I know live behind his lips. “Open your mouth.”

Mason’s jaw drops, and I stare into his throat before sticking my hand inside it. I wiggle my fist inside his mouth like a fish before pulling it back out. He didn’t bite me. Good.

“His ears are sensitive,” Kie says.

I grab the fuzzy, pointed ear and yank. This time, Mason reacts. A pained whine pours from his throat as he throws his body toward his ear, following my tugging. Still, he doesn’t attack me.

I release his ear, guilty as he rubs it against the ground.

“I’m sorry,” I say.

Kie chuckles. “He deserves it.”

Kie’s in a better mood already. He’s laughing and encouraging me to hurt Mason, two things he hasn’t done since finding Lill. I wonder if the sleep has anything to do with it.

I zip up Mason’s backpack, and Kie smoothly throws it over his shoulder. He also tries to take my bag, but I pull it out of his reach before he gets his grubby hands on it. It isn’t that heavy, and I can manage just fine.

I turn toward Mason.

“Lead the way, Scooby.”