Page 25

Chapter Twenty-Five

M oonlight bathed the canal, brick road, and brick buildings as Val, Harm, and her mercenaries stood in the shadows of an alley, peering toward the Tulpenland palace. Guards patrolled the street outside while a few of the windows remained lit, even at this time of night.

Val’s stomach churned as she faced that picturesque street. She’d stepped into a world unlike anything she’d known before. Her life would change irrevocably.

Sure, she’d been in the Human Realm before. But usually only briefly when retrieving a captured human or on a Wild Hunt raid. She’d never stayed long.

Was this how Harm had felt when stepping through the faerie circle at her side the first time?

No, he would’ve been far more nervous. The life that waited for her on the other side might be new, but it would be good. There would be difficulties. There might be cruelties as some among the Tulpenland court refused to accept her. But it wouldn’t be a fate of torture and death that Harm had faced back then.

She was a mercenary of the Wild Hunt. Surely she could face her new future with as much courage as Harm had.

Harm started forward. “I suppose I’ll just march up to the guards and announce who I am. You can wait here until I signal it’s all right.”

Val caught his arm before he could leave the shadows. “Wait. Those guards might not recognize you.”

They’d yet to determine how much time had passed here in the Human Realm. Harm had commented that things hadn’t seemed to have changed all that much since he left, so surely it hadn’t been hundreds of years. But they couldn’t narrow it down more than that.

Harm turned back to her, his grimace tugging at the beard he’d yet to trim. “What do you suggest?”

“We should sneak through the gardens and go in through a window at the back.” Val pointed in that direction. “Then we’ll find your father. Surely he will recognize you.”

“I think he might still be awake.” Harm pointed toward one of the lit windows on the ground floor. “That’s his study there.”

“That will make things easier.” Val motioned to her mercenaries. There was no need to give them more instructions.

She led the way through the shadows along the canal, then down an alley, until they reached a street along the back of the palace. Here, gardens stretched along the building’s back and side. They weren’t extensive, but they featured enough hedges and statuary to provide some cover.

The gardens were lit by moonlight and the occasional lantern while guards patrolled here, too. But their discipline seemed lax, and they barely even glanced at the shadows as they marched by.

Something Val would change as soon as Harm was restored to his position as heir of Tulpenland. She couldn’t allow the guards to remain this unobservant.

Val crept through the darkness beside the hedges until she reached the even deeper shadows beside the back of the palace. Once there, Grutte worked his way along the building, testing each window until he found one that was unlocked. Then he boosted each of them inside, including Daisy and Acurru, before four of them hauled him inside after them.

Harm pointed down the hallway, and Val set off in that direction, pausing at each intersecting corridor to check that it was clear before continuing.

As they reached the hall before the duke’s study, Val halted and peeked around the corner.

Two men stood before a door. They wore breastplates, helmets with plumes, and each carried a pike.

Val withdrew around the corner and murmured into Harm’s ear, “There are two men guarding your father’s study. Will these guards recognize you?”

Harm peeked around the corner and dodged back so fast he nearly smacked her chin with his head. He bent his head to whisper, “No. Those aren’t even Tulpenland guards. I don’t know what has been going on here, but those men are wearing King Hendrik’s colors. ”

“Then do we have your permission to take them out?” Val dropped her hand to her dagger. Now this might be fun.

“Yes. Though do it quietly. And if you could refrain from killing them, that would be appreciated. It might be handy to question them.” Harm pressed his back to the wall, as if getting himself out of the way.

Val motioned. “Grutte. Take them out. Don’t kill them.”

Grutte grinned and stalked around the corner. There was a stifled “Wha—” and two ringing whacks . The thuds of two heavy objects hitting the floor resounded down the corridor.

“All clear.” After handing Daisy’s leash to Jesenia, Val strode around the corner without looking first. She trusted Grutte to have handled it.

Besides, if he had been the one falling to the floor, the thump would have been much louder.

Harm followed so closely behind her that he trod on her heels. But she couldn’t blame him for his eagerness. If she’d had a chance to return to her family, she would’ve run to them.

As they approached the door, Harm lunged past her, reaching for the doorknob. Val held out an arm, stopping him. She shook her head, then squeezed between him and the door. There might be more guards stationed inside the room.

Harm grimaced and took a step back to give her more room.

Val cracked the door open and peeked inside.

A large desk sat facing the broad windows, a lamp flickering where it sat on the corner and splashing patterns onto the dark windows beyond. A man sat at the desk, his shoulders slumped, his head resting on his arms so that all she could see was his gray hair. He appeared to have fallen asleep.

She eased her stance to peer through the crack at different angles, trying to see if there was anyone else in the room. She couldn’t see anyone, but someone could be lurking in a corner that she couldn’t view from the door.

With a swift move, she whipped the door open, stepped inside, and placed her back to the wall next to the door. She scanned the room, searching the shadows. Unless there was a fae here behind an exceptionally powerful glamour, the room was empty except for the sleeping man at the desk.

She motioned for Harm to enter.

Harm rushed to the sleeping man’s side and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving the man a gentle shake. “Father. Father, wake up.”

The man stirred and lifted his head. He blinked and scrubbed a hand over his face, not yet looking up as he mumbled, “I’ll seek my rest soon, Stijn.”

“It’s me. Harm.” Harm gave his father’s shoulder another small shake.

His father lifted his head, still blinking, first with bleariness, then with befuddlement, as if he couldn’t comprehend what—or whom—he was seeing. “Harm?”

“Yes, it’s me. I’m home.” Harm’s smile was caught somewhere between joy and apprehension .

“Harm!” His father finally shot to his feet, though he just stood there, gaping.

Harm stepped forward and embraced his father. For a moment, his father remained frozen, as if he wasn’t sure what to do. Then, he wrapped his arms around his son, holding tight for a long moment.

Val remained where she was in the shadows next to the door. Harm’s father hadn’t turned around and had yet to see her. She’d keep it that way as long as possible. She wasn’t sure how he’d react to seeing the fae he’d last seen hauling his son away, nor did she want to intrude on this reunion.

The man’s shoulders shook as he murmured, “You’re home. After all this time. I thought you must be dead.”

Harm stiffened, his already pale face going even more white, and pushed away from his father’s embrace. “How long has it been?”

Val hadn’t gotten a good look at Duke Johannes—now or on that night when she’d taken Harm away—but his hair was all gray. His clothes hung on him while the glimpse she’d gotten of the side of his face showed deep lines in his forehead and dark bruises beneath his eyes.

“Five years. You’ve been gone for five years.” The man’s shoulders remained slumped and shaking as he gripped Harm’s upper arms as if Harm’s steadiness was the only thing keeping him upright.

“Five years?” Harm rested a hand behind him on the desk. At this rate, Val would have to intervene before everyone ended up in a heap on the floor.

Her heart ached, seeing how much time Harm had lost in the Human Realm. Sure, it wasn’t as much as they’d feared, but it was still far too long.

“Where’s Gijs? He was healed, right?” Harm gripped his father’s arms.

Val held her breath, a strange twisting filling her stomach. Gijs was the reason Harm had ended up in the Fae Realm, and the danger to Gijs and his father had been Harm’s motivation to keep pushing forward. If something had happened to Gijs because she hadn’t been able to return Harm quickly enough…would he forgive her? Or would he forever blame her for the captivity that had cost him his brother?

Duke Johannes collapsed into the chair again, weariness in every line of his face and posture. “The fae potion healed him, but within days King Hendrik’s men kidnapped him from the palace. He’s been held hostage ever since, a pawn to force me to be King Hendrik’s vassal.”

Harm swayed, then sat on the edge of the desk, bracing himself against it.

Val gritted her teeth, resting her hand on her dagger again. After everything Harm had gone through to protect his little brother, Gijs had been held captive as surely as Harm had been. Worse, his captivity had been for five whole years instead of the mere weeks Harm had been in the Fae Realm.

She pushed out of the shadows. “We’ll rescue him, Harm.”

Duke Johannes leapt out of the chair again with such force that the chair tipped over and fell to the floor with a sharp crack. He fumbled to draw the thin rapier sheathed at his waist even as he whirled. The sword’s sheath whacked into the desk, jerking the sword’s hilt out of his hand before he even got it partway out.

Well, that explained a lot about Harm’s lack of sword skills. She could see where he got it from.

Harm snagged his father’s wrist before he could reach for his sword again. “Father, I’d like to introduce you to my wife, Valeria of the Fae Realm.”

“Your…but isn’t she…” Harm’s father swayed, as if to collapse into his chair again. He must have realized at the last moment that his chair lay on its back on the floor because he stumbled back a step to lean against the desk beside Harm.

“Yes, she’s the fee who took me away. But everything’s fine now. We fell in love and decided to get married.” Harm straightened, that more confident edge he’d gained in the Fae Realm returning. “It’s a long story. I’ll tell it to you later. Right now, we need to leave to rescue Gijs.”

“We?” Duke Johannes sounded even more overwhelmed.

As if taking that as their cue, Abelardo, Chela, Ignatius, and Jesenia peered around the doorframe. Daisy and Acurru squiggled between their legs while Grutte loomed over their heads.

Duke Johannes gave a wheeze as he collapsed even more fully against the desk.

“My wife brought a few friends along. These are her Wild Hunt. They’re harmless, except to her enemies, and thus my enemies.” Harm met Val’s gaze and something of his grin returned to his face, though more sharp-edged and dangerous than anything she’d yet seen. “Are you up for another adventure?”

“Always. Especially one with a high probability of stabbing.” Val grinned back and drummed her fingers on the hilt of her dagger. “And you promised me a quiet, boring life here in Tulpenland.”

“Are you disappointed?”

“Not in the least.” Val’s grin hurt her face, her muscles unused to holding such an expression. But it felt strangely right, as if here in the Human Realm she was finally free to once again experience a full range of emotions.

Ignatius shouldered his way past the others. “Just point us in the direction of King Hendrik’s castle, and we’ll have your brother rescued before that dastardly king knows what hit him.”

“Don’t you mean who hit him?” Chela pointed over her shoulder at Grutte.

“I am Grutte.” Grutte grinned and gave a small, friendly wave to Harm’s father.

The wave did nothing to ease the white, about-to-pass-out look. Duke Johannes braced himself on the desk as if about to collapse.

“I’ll commandeer one of the ships in the harbor. I’m assuming King Hendrik hasn’t forced you to disband our navy yet?” Harm rested a hand on his father’s shoulder.

“No…” Duke Johannes spoke as if in a trance. “But most of them have been recalled to port.”

“Even better. I’ll have my pick of ships.” Harm patted his leather jerkin over his magical pocket. “As soon as I leave, you can kick out King Hendrik’s men and take back Tulpenland. With a fast ship, we’ll have Gijs rescued and be on our way home before word can reach King Hendrik.”

Duke Johannes blinked yet again and shook himself, as if finally sloughing off the paralysis of the shocks he’d faced that night. His shoulders straightened as the weariness disappeared behind a hardness that was mirrored on Harm’s face. “Yes, I can do it tonight. I’ve been preparing for this for years, gathering those still loyal to me. We’ll have Tulpenland free by morning.”

“Good. Then we’ll be on our way. Hopefully the tide is in our favor so we can sneak a ship out under the cover of darkness.” Harm started to cross the room.

Duke Johannes caught his arm. “You should know, I just received word that Gijs will soon marry King Hendrik’s daughter. The wedding is less than two weeks away. I suspect that he plans to kill me as soon as my heir is safely married to his, effectively joining our lands under his control.”

“With plans to kill off Gijs as soon as an heir is born, no doubt.” Harm ground the words between his teeth. “Don’t worry. We’ll get there long before this planned wedding.”

Val retrieved Daisy’s leash from Jesenia, strolled across the room, and held it out to Harm’s father. “Could you look after Daisy while we’re gone? She’s better for fighting monsters than sneaking, and she takes to ships even worse than she does to dragon flights.”

Harm grimaced and motioned from his father to Daisy. “Yes, Daisy can definitely stay here. Don’t be alarmed, Father, if she occasionally has three heads. Just set her loose in the cellars, and she’ll have the rodent problem cleared out in no time.”

“Three heads…” Duke Johannes had that faint look to him again as he took the leash.

Val focused on Daisy and pointed at Harm’s father. “Daisy, guard.”

Daisy walked up to Duke Johannes and sat on his foot looking outward, her ears pricked and alert.

“Can you watch my snails too? They eat seaweed and leafy greens. Thanks.” Ignatius shoved the crate with the snails at Duke Johannes.

“I…uh…” Harm’s father grabbed the crate’s handle with his free hand, gaping down at both the giant snails and the dog sitting on his foot.

“Does Acurru need to stay here too?” Harm eyed the dragon twining around Abelardo’s legs.

Duke Johannes followed his son’s gaze, then his eyes bugged. “Is that…”

“No. Since we won’t have Daisy, Acurru will be our scent dragon.” Abelardo bent down and picked up the dragon, stroking a hand down his head, long neck, and back. The dragon gave a growling purr. “While he’s not quite as good as Daisy, if Acurru can smell something with your brother’s scent, he’ll be able to locate him inside a whole castle within minutes.”

“That’ll save us time.” Harm nodded and strode to Val’s side before he glanced over his shoulder at his father. “Is there something belonging to Gijs still here?”

“His room has remained untouched. There should be something in there.” Duke Johannes never lifted his gawking gaze from the dragon.

“Good.” Harm reached down and clasped Val’s hand. “Ready to stage a rescue?”

A rescue. Not a kidnapping. Not an assassination. Not a package delivery where the package happened to be a human she was taking to captivity and cruelty.

Once she would have considered something like this none of her business. She would have stayed out of it, unfeeling toward the young man’s situation.

Being good and caring about other people wasn’t so bad. Sure, it meant she needed to get involved and go out of her way to help. But at least that wasn’t boring. Her life would be filled both with excitement and with actual meaning.

Val smiled at Harm and patted her dagger with her free hand. “More than ready.”